By Erika Andersen, Founder/Partner Years ago my six-year-old granddaughter informed me that she knew everything. It was pretty easy to disabuse her of that belief: I just asked, “Do you know how to build bicycles?” and she looked at me with narrowed eyes for a moment, then smiled, shrugged, and said, “Well, maybe not everything.”…
By Erika Andersen, Founder/Partner I was working with a leader and her direct reports, focusing with them on how they wanted to operate as a team, given the complexity of their business and the role each of them needed to play. This leader is someone for whom I have a lot of respect, and who…
By Erika Andersen, Founder/Partner Those of us who lead others—in our companies, our communities, and our social groups—recognize that during difficult times people look to us even more often and with even higher expectations. When there’s confusion, pain, uncertainty, and disruption, people look to their leaders for clarity and hope; to bring them together and…
Five Steps to Transform Your Company Culture By Erika Andersen, Founder/Partner Understanding and then evolving your company’s culture is essential for business success and employee satisfaction. Recent studies and our experience at Proteus show that while many leaders recognize the importance of culture, few feel confident in their ability to shape it effectively. We understand!…
Being Capable of Changing is an Essential 21st Century Skill By Erika Andersen, Founder/Partner Humans are not hard-wired for change. Or, put differently, we are capable of changing, but we are often bad at it. As we have seen in recent years, we are living in a time of constant change, and that change is…
By Erika Andersen, Founder/Partner Every member of a team has unique goals and preferences. The most effective strategies for developing talent take this into consideration by balancing leadership support with employee agency. Developing talent is more challenging in hybrid work environments. Without seeing team members in-person regularly, leaders may struggle to understand employees as deeply…
By Erika Andersen, Founder/Partner We subscribe to the principle that each individual is responsible for their own performance and development. But we also know from over 30 years of observing leaders in action how uniquely positioned a leader is to support employee growth and performance. This is even more true as hybrid work is more…
By Erika Andersen, Founder/Partner People approach their jobs differently. One person may be fast-paced and decisive, while another is moderately-paced and cautious. This mix of behaviors can create balance in the workplace and lead to innovation, but can also create tension or frustration. Leaders must understand these behaviors and how to adapt to them to…