Better People Podcast MEA

Join host Holly DePalma as she enlightens us with the extraordinary journey of Franklyn Baker, CEO and President of the United Way of Central Maryland. Franklyn unveils the secrets behind doubling the organization's outreach, fostering a culture of equity and growth, and the thrilling prospects of taking their practices nationwide. Tap in to learn how a passion for community turns into transformative success!

Here are a few of the topics we’ll discuss on this episode of Better People Podcast:
Doubled United Way’s impact.Infusing best practices to enhance impact.Prioritizing culture over strategy.Nurturing equity and fostering growth.Garnering top awards through success.
Resources:
United Way of Central MarylandMidAtlantic Employers’ Association (MEA)
Connect with Franklyn Baker:
LinkedIn
Connect with our hosts:
Holly DePalma -  LinkedIn
Quotables:
01:44 - So, when I walked in the door November of 2016, I really thought this organization has lots of potential, really incredible people, a nice set of disciplines in place, very much passionate about the work in the community. But the thing that I readily noticed, because I came from a background of shepherding and managing various programs, interventions, initiatives, and other organizations, I thought we could probably use a shot in the arm of increasing our level of impact and touching more lives.08:14 - So one out of four, one out of five individuals that walk into a nonprofit around the country will walk out the front door in a year or so of being there. So what's so powerful, because our culture, and as you've many of your listeners have heard, Peter Drucker says, has said many, many times over, and as many, many people like me who repeat it often culture, it always will eat strategy for breakfast. And so for us, there's a reason why for the last three to four years, we've hovered between eight and 12% on our staff. Oh, that's incredible. On staff turnover as compared to the industry of 20, 25%.10:38 -  Prior to my onboarding and I got this information from others who had been there prior to me coming online, prior CEOs were not necessarily doing skip-level meetings. What I mean by skip level meetings for your listeners is in addition to my direct reports, I have, you know, eight direct reports or actually nine direct reports. In addition to meeting with them every two weeks. one-on-one, I also meet with their direct reports. So all of the vice presidents and some select associate vice presidents, I'm meeting with them once per quarter. And when you have the slogan trust and verify, the verification point is very important as it relates to me as a president, CEO meeting with my direct reports. Direct reports. Because I'm having a conversation with someone in development and my senior vice president, chief development officer tells me X, Y, and Z, and I'm talking to that person's vice president. Right? And we're, I'm asking the exact same question to both two answers. Sometimes never. The twain shall meet. Right. And other times there's an exact match. So when the, you have those moments where never the twain shall meet, you have an, an opportunity for inquiry and a very, very humble, curious perspective, not in a sort of blaming or accusatory, it's none of that. It's more of just trying to seek first to understand then to be understood, you know, Steven Covey’s principle. So I think that's extremely important. 24:05 - I tell them all the time that every single one of them in their own right could leave United Way of Central Maryland and become a executive director, presidency of another nonprofit. Right? So they are so valuable in our decision-making. So I'm one of those leaders where I'm not totalitarian, totalitarian in my process. I'm very much a consensus leader. I'll make the final call, executive call when need be, when there's a stalemate or we can't move forward. But they understand that their voice matters. And I consider very sincerely what they're s

Dive into an electrifying chat with CEO David Mattson of Sandler Training on The Better People Podcast. In this episode, we uncover the fusion of potent leadership, savvy sales strategies, and the art of personal career cultivation. Captivating stories and razor-sharp insights make this a playbook for anyone hungry to excel.

Here are a few of the topics we’ll discuss on this episode of Better People Podcast:

Career progression requires personal drive.Effective leaders tailor communication styles.Building business & team growth go hand-in-hand.Honing your craft is essential for leaders.The power of self-awareness in leadership.
Resources:
Sandler Training MidAtlantic Employers’ Association (MEA)
Connect with David Mattson:
LinkedIn
Connect with our host, Holly DePalma
LinkedIn
Quotables:
06:35 - And so to me it was how do you build a business that's scalable and bring good people around you that you don't have to quote unquote babysit and, and let it run? And that's what I did. And so we've, since 2012, I think we've gone, we've grown almost 30 times, and that's how much we've grown in that amount of time by letting people do what they should be doing and staying out of the way, to be honest.07:26 - I believe you should create a plan. Then you should create the positions that are necessary to fulfill that plan. The third thing that you should do is go find the right people. I think the big mistakes that leaders make is they look at their current people and say, where would they fit? I think that's a huge mistake. And that actually helped me because, you know, once you develop the plan and figure out, okay, well these are the positions that I need to actually fulfill it, then it became very apparent that I had some people already that would be great. And I had huge, huge holes. And so my current structure would be, you know, we have a whole group that supports our channel. 15:57 -  Holly: what do you do in your interviewing process to make sure that you know, that right steps to vet your search process  is followed through? Because one of the things I love about Sandler, and I have taken Sandler is process. I'm bad at process. So putting one in place can be really helpful.David: So for us, I use the search model, right? I do use the skills and I'm going through those, those questions I do assess. So I assess early, you know, I don't, I'm a big believer in looking below the iceberg in that I am a big believer in having multiple people interview. Yep. However, multiple interviews without a good pre-brief and debrief is worthless. So if you're not gonna share information, like, okay, Holly, here are the two or three areas that I think maybe an issue, but I didn't uncover enough, you should pick up on that topic. If I don't tell you that, you're gonna ask the same questions that I asked. Right? And we're all gonna fall in love for the same reasons. And if it's, it's an important job, I like to fly in and take, if they're, they have a partner or spouse, I'll take them all to dinner because I learn more there. Then I learned anywhere.28:34 -  When you're doing these guardrails, like, well, what did you do well? Like, what went well? Right? What could we do more of? Right? And then we have the other one is, what would you do differently? What would you do differently? So it's more better. What could you have done better? What could you do more of? And what would you have done differently? If you ask those questions on all the scenarios, people learn very, very quickly. And they self-discover. I think when you tell them all the time, this is what you need to do different, better, whatever. They don't, they don't, it doesn't absorb, it doesn't kick in. And then you always get frustrated as a leader because that person's doing the exact same thing you just told 'em not to do last month, but that's because they were listening to you, your voice versus, well, what would you have done differently? Well, I would've done this dif

In this episode, Holly DePalma kicks of a shift in perspective as we hear from guest CEO Kevin Robins.  Insightful monologues & real-life leadership lessons make up this candid chat on reinventing workplace culture, building successful teams, and making sure everyone is on board and not left at the station.  

Here are a few topics we’ll discuss on this episode of Better People Podcast:

CEO’s perspective on workplace culture.Culture as a business growth driver.Workplace flexibility and trust in employees.Culture fit is crucial in the recruiting process.
Resources:
MidAtlantic Employers’ Association (MEA)
Connect with Kevin Robins:
LinkedIn
Connect with the host, Holly DePalma:
LinkedIn
Quotables:
21:21- And that's what I say all the time when people ask about why are you successful, I say because I have a great team. My job's easy I just, I'm here to support. And I think that's how real leaders and real culture people think about it because you know whatever that saying is culture eats strategy. You know it's true If you get the culture right you know things happen.18:31 - I don't like babysitting people, but I also, when I trust people, I want them to live the lives they wanna live and do the job. And you know, a lot of talks out there about hybrid and virtual, I think it's about flexibility and doing your job. You know, I used to, in high school, I was a painter, I painted, that was the way I made money in high school. Go paint, you know, schools, buildings, whatever. And my approach was work as hard as I can for five hours and do what someone else does an eight hours so I can just take the rest of the day off. And like for someone it doesn't appreciate that but says, no, I want you to be here eight hours, so go slower. I thought that was the stupidest thing I've ever heard of. So I kind of, I think is a vibe I always have like, work hard, play hard, like do your job, do what's expected, meet your goals, and then do what you wanna do. And I think that makes for healthy employees, healthy members, members get that vibe too.16:47 - Holly:  So you know, kind of share what are things that you wish you could do but you can't do or what would you like to do? But the smaller organization is inhibiting the opportunity. You mentioned earlier we couldn't go too fast with change. But is there something you wish you could do that you feel you used to feel empowered to do and you don't feel that you can do here?Kevin: Well I think the biggest thing would be budgets and how much we spend on sales and marketing versus another organization, you know, a larger organization. I think we have the same commitment to providing excellent service and relationships as any organization does. I think that's also part of being a nonprofit association. You know, it's about the membership. You know, I wish,  the thing my wish, like we did better, that I did better was bringing new members on. Because I think what we do is amazing and we bring 60 to 80 new members a year. I wish it was 150.09:30 -  So I think, you know, I was just talking to a CEO before this and I think our past always informs our future. And so I think to understand my feelings on change, I kind of have to go back 30 years when I left the law firm and joined this company called SCI came from a very large law firm. We did things that lawyers do, very structured, went to this company that I was a client, but I didn't really know too much about them. And when I got there, they were in the midst of a reinvention, which I didn't know what that word meant, but it meant that they were changing their whole organization. But it was around the business is why they were doing it. And I came, you know, spent 15 years there and realized every year we did a reinvention because that's what we do. But, you know, to be, to come from the outside into an experience where everything's up for grabs, where the organization, the people are moving, it's changing, was very hard for the first year

Join us as Bookminders CEO Jessica Minkus shares her journey from staff accountant to head honcho, and spills the secret sauce behind their flexible, remote work culture. Discover how an employee-centric approach supercharged their growth, learn about team advisors' impact, and get inspired to enhance your company's culture.

Here are a few topics we’ll discuss on this episode of Better People Podcast:

Home-based workers from start.Emphasis on employee-centric culture.Structured growth through internal promotion.Evolving with technology and remote demands.Creating a non-competitive work environment.
Resources:
BookmindersMidAtlantic Employers’ Association (MEA)
Connect with Jessica Minkus:
LinkedIn
Connect with Margaret Uhrich:
LinkedIn
Quotables:
9:38 - We couldn't expand the way we wanted to because we didn't have the number of employees needed, right? And so, we needed to be able to support the growth. We only promote from within at Bookminders. And because our employees want to work part-time, they typically don't wanna transition into a full-time management role, you know, a role on the leadership team if that means full-time. So I was thinking about all, where we were as an organization, the stressors that we were going to have, and realized we need more support for our accountants out there.16:47 - You know, being in a remote environment, you're by yourself in your office at home, right? And having a group that you're meeting with where you're getting to know each other, you're feeling comfortable, you know, we foster an environment where we want feedback and it's very important to our culture that we get that. But this just gives them another different type of outlet where they're with their peers, they're having like their water cooler moments in a virtual environment.17:43 - We have gotten great feedback. It's really heartwarming. One of our employees that have been here over 10 years is on a team with someone less than 10 years. And she was skeptical and she came out and she's like, this was the best thing that we've done for the organization and supporting the employees. They feel connected.18:53 - I guess the thing that  I wasn't sure of was how quick the buy-in was going to be. And it was very quick and the positive feelings and words have, like, it was so much quicker than I thought it was going to be. And I was not expecting every person that we went to ask if they wanted to be a team advisor to say yes, but like their faces lit up, like, absolutely. And so it's, it's gone really well and much faster than I thought it would.07:04 - It's a lifestyle. I mean, everyone I think should know by now. Like, people like working from home, they like having the flexibility, they like the supported autonomy and everyone's trying to navigate that. But if you're giving that, you know, if you have that structure and you're providing the support, you know, our employees, they love doing their job. They could not imagine going back to a 9 to 5 desk job.

Dive into the incredible transformation of F&M Trust with Dr. Karen Carmack, as she unravels their path from low morale to record earnings through a robust employee engagement strategy. Discover the power of listening, strategic initiatives, and transparent leadership in propelling organizational success.

Here are a few of the topics we’ll discuss on this episode of Better People Podcast:

Impact of voice on employee morale.The strategic plan led to an engagement initiative.Surveys shed light on cultural shifts.Leadership training drives improvement.Financial success is tied to engagement.
Resources:
F&M TrustMidAtlantic Employers’ Association (MEA)
Connect with Dr. Karen Carmack:
LinkedIn
Connect with our host, Holly DePalma
LinkedIn
Quotables:
3:33 - Well, prior to that time, we weren't doing any kind of assessments. We were experiencing turnover, and we were experiencing turnover of more of our key personnel, which was concerning. We were also getting feedback, and you can just feel it in an organization. It becomes palpable that, you know, employees are dissatisfied. And it wasn't a very good feeling. So we were trying to figure out what we can do to improve that. And that's why this focus on employee engagement got on the board. I think initially, you know, we were thinking about, okay, let's find out what satisfies our employees. But I think as we work through it, we took it in a whole different direction, which really had a broader impact on the organization.6:26 - And once I got the charge, I thought, okay, all right. Who needs to be involved with this? Obviously, I was thinking we needed some broad perspectives and also broad representation from within the organization. So what I did is I looked at our employee base and I said, okay, we need the different geographies of our organization represented. We need different levels of hierarchy within the organization and different departmental representation. So I ended up through that process identifying an initial group of 14 employees that I tapped and asked if they would be willing to jump into this with me.14:13 - There were initially, and maybe there's pockets of it today, but initially I think people were wondering, are they really serious? Do they really want our true opinions around what's going on? I think there was a little bit of skepticism initially, but thankfully they took the plunge with us and gave us some feedback.23:43 - We were just a couple of points away from where we would wanna be there. I can't say that was the way it was for the first survey. Our scores weren't all that great that first year, but that in itself was a gift because it gave us all the feedback that we needed to do all the things that we've done over these years. But the true bright spot within all of it has been our leader engagement survey and the scores that we've had within it, because that first year that we did it, we saw a need for improvement.34:48 - And so, you know, the beauty with all of this in parallel that I haven't talked about yet is that our financial results have also improved significantly. We've had record earnings during this period of time. You know whether you can completely correlate it to this effort entirely, you know, there probably are other factors, but I firmly believe that everything that we've been doing to get employees aligned with the culture, aligned with the mission engaged, and getting that discretionary effort has helped us reach some of the goals that we have and blown some others out of the water.

In this episode, Margaret Uhrich interviews Sol Alberione, the Chief People Officer at Giant Machines. Sol discusses the importance of a people-centered approach and the company's focus on creating digital solutions. She also shares insights on celebrating National Hispanic Heritage Month at Giant Machines, emphasizing the need for a sense of belonging and mentorship. Sol further explains how embracing authenticity and being true to oneself led to personal and professional fulfillment in his career.

Sol Alberione, a seasoned HR professional, is a C-Suite executive with over 12 years of experience in Employee Relations, Talent Acquisition, Compliance, and Talent Development. Currently serving as the Chief People Officer at Giant Machines, she is a passionate advocate for fostering a culture of diversity, equity, and empathy in the workplace. Sol's career exemplifies her commitment to putting people first and driving the success of organizations through human capital strategies. 
Here are a few of the topics we’ll discuss on this episode of Better People Podcast:

As a human capital strategist, Soll focuses on creating an environment where employees can succeed, feel seen, represented, and do their best work.The leadership team at Giant Machines fully supports the people-first approach, leading to high employee retention and recognition as the best place to work in New York City.The company values potential over formal qualifications when hiring and focuses on developing and mentoring employees to help them grow within the organization.Giant Machines emphasizes the importance of mentorship and provides coaching and support throughout an employee's entire journey within the company.The turning point in Sol's interview at Giant Machines where he decided to be authenticOvercoming hesitations and limitations to be true to himselfHow authenticity and confidence led to career success
Resources:
Giant MachinesMidAtlantic Employers’ Association (MEA)
Connect with Sol Alberione:
LinkedIn
Connect with our host, Margaret Uhrich:
LinkedIn
Quotables:
02:46 - “For me, the success of any company is the people and the humanity that the company brings. So in my role there is constant decision-making about what we can do to just really create an environment that people can succeed in, can do the best work, can feel that they're represented, they're seen, they belong and can do the best work. So a lot of the decisions happening behind the scenes on how we promote, how we hire, how we connect with our team internally and that connection translate to how they show up in the world.”03:15 - “Being a strategist is always kind of questioning yourself, what can I do better? So from the moment that I talk to my managers and to the moment that I talk come with my CEO is like a how we use the people-centered approach that we have as a company to get, make sure that everyone has a path to succeed in Giant Machines. And also after Giant Machines we have a huge network of people who were part of Giant Machines, and we are still in contact with them. So we want to create like this school of Giant Machines that really open opportunities above and beyond our organization.”05:00 - “All of those are people centered because I always tell them I love you when you're at work, but I love you when you're outside of work. I want you to feel that space, that level of separation that you can have both spaces for you to honor your life. It is important. I don't want to have the discrepancy on who you are outside and who you are when you come to work. And that creates a lot of the decisions on what are the opportunities for growth, the conversations for promotion in order to honor that perspective. Our team, without them we don't have anything. Our CEO is very, very good at the executive team about what can we do better for them in order to just have this humanity that show up to the world that is not just running a business.”12:52 - “But for us, we ar