#5 Daniel Pink: A lot of our bosses are not as smart as our kindergarden teachers

12/10/20 • 24 min

Daniel Pink (Washington DC) was called the 6th most influential management thinker in the world in 2019. Daniel is a recognized expert on motivation, timing, and business zeitgeist, has hosted a National Geographic television series on social sciences, served as chief speechwriter for U.S. Vice President Al Gore, and is the author of 6 best selling books that have sold more than 3 million copies.
"Empathy in the workplace is now more important than ever. Few leaders manage to motivate their employees remotely: keep giving feedback, informally and on a frequent basis. We've been talking for years about how we work and where we do it. Since Corona, all sorts of things have suddenly become possible. Now more important than ever is the human touch. Taking care of each other and focusing on empathy. My advice for leaders? Give employees autonomy and the feeling that their work matters. Do that by constantly giving them feedback."
"When do employees perform optimally? Timing is another important aspect. Keep an eye on what moments of the day your employees perform optimally. Take an example of teachers or crèche leaders, they know very well how to take the rhythm of children into account. The best leaders stand behind their team."
Open up Digitals is a Fellow Digitals production.

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# 4 Steven van Belleghem: Focus on time, money & energy (Dutch)

Steven van Belleghem (Bruges) is a Belgian thought leader on the transformation of customer relationships and the future of marketing. He is a keynote speaker, specialized in the 'future of customer centricity,' writer of 4 best selling management books, and guest lecturer at the London Business School. Stevens talks about the biggest changes in customer behavior, customer contact and the technological opportunities to become truly distinctive.
Customer expectations – "I have seen an evolution in customer behavior over the past six months. Customers are used to virtual meetings, use less paper, travel less... We have made a huge digital leap forward and this will continue to be the case. I also see that safety nets have disappeared, for example in the travel sector. Booking a trip has become a lot more uncertain. It would be nice if companies could be that safety net and remove uncertainties. Finally, you see that in the social debate, clients expect more from companies than just a nice purpose talk. They should take a stand."
"It's a crazy paradox: for the company that can save the most time for you, you as a customer will spend the most time – Companies are accustomed to focus on their own goals, and then see how these can be delivered to the customer. Turn that around and ask yourself: What is the most scarce good the customer has? Most people want more time, money, energy. If you, as a company, agree with that, then keep asking yourself whether what you offer fits in. Look at new trends and technology, from that perspective you can offer much more value."
Open up Digitals is a Fellow Digitals production.

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#6 Arie van Bennekum: Real change? Give employees confidence (Dutch)

Arie van Bennekum (Rotterdam) co-authored the world famous Agile Manifesto in 2001, a revolutionary idea which propagates a new 'agile' way of thinking. Arie is a thought leader, trainer, coach, consultant, and entrepreneur – currently he is an agile thought leader at the Wemanity Group. We talk with Arie about the COVID-19 crisis, self-managing teams, flexible and resilient organizations, and of course a new agile way of working.
"The world of education is not known as very flexible, working remotely with a class was actually not possible. And behold, since a few months whole semesters are given remotely. The possibilities are there. How do you deal with this in your company and how do you get employees to participate in the change?"
"Focus on creating value – Besides giving confidence, it is also important to take small steps. We've never had a course in online banking. But we all understand how it works. Small, technical steps have always been taken in this process and each step brought value. Focus on that."
Open up Digitals is a Fellow Digitals production.