Good Company (Drew Dudley & Brett Elmgren)
Explore every episode of Good Company
| Pub. Date | Title | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Jan 2025 | Good Company - Season 1: Episode 1 - Building Better Workplaces | 01:10:43 | |
Building Better Workplaces: Leadership for a Post-Pandemic World Welcome to Good Company, the podcast redefining leadership to create workplaces where people thrive! In this debut episode, hosts Drew Dudley and Brett Elmgren share their vision: inspiring leaders to transform culture and drive meaningful change. With personal stories and fresh perspectives, they explore the challenges facing today’s organizations. The discussion examines the pandemic’s lasting impact on workplace culture, raising questions about resilience, recognition, and the disconnect between leadership efforts and employee well-being. What makes people feel strong at work? Are organizations doing enough to address collective trauma and foster recovery? Drew and Brett offer thoughtful insights on building environments where employees feel valued, autonomous, and connected. With practical strategies like improving communication and redefining recognition, this episode offers actionable ideas to help leaders build better workplaces. Listen in for a candid, thought-provoking conversation that will leave you inspired to create positive change! Key Points From This Episode: • An introduction to hosts, Drew and Brett, and the origins of this podcast. [0:01:11] • What people would like to improve when it comes to their organizational cultures. [0:04:34] • Examining the pandemic as a collective trauma and how businesses can address it. [0:06:55] • Reflections on whether the pandemic is over in the context of work. [0:11:52] • Unpacking the nature of happiness and what brings people joy at work. [0:14:11] • The range of pandemic workplace experiences from positive to traumatic. [0:25:18] • Debating a company’s responsibility for employee mental health. [0:31:23] • Key areas where people are feeling weak and unable to access resilience. [0:41:06] • Evidence-based approaches for creating safer more resilient work environments. [0:47:17] • Effective strategies for showing recognition and appreciation in the workplace. [0:51:51] • Final insights and data concerning today’s topics. [01:06:30] Quotes: “I don't think human beings – were meant to live in perpetual states of uncertainty. And that, to me, is what's lingering [from the pandemic] – the uncertainty persists when the pandemic has stopped.” — Brett Elmgren [0:12:12] “I'm wondering if we're asking the right questions of employees when we say, ‘Are you happy?’ As opposed to asking them, ‘When do you feel happiest?’” — Drew Dudley [0:19:52] “Strength is a prerequisite for happiness.” — Drew Dudley [0:23:31] “70% of employees who are heavily monitored report higher levels of work-related stress compared to people that aren’t.” — Drew Dudley [0:45:30] “She goes, ‘I learned a long time ago, this simple practice where whenever something negative happens, there's really only one question, that's effective. What did I learn from that experience? That's it.’” — Brett Elmgren [0:50:46] “94% of employees would stay at a company longer if it invested in their career development.” — Drew Dudley [01:07:43] Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: | |||
| 27 Jan 2025 | The Future of Work: Leading with Trust and Resilience | 00:55:35 | |
How can organizations foster trust, resilience, and connection in a world increasingly marked by disconnection and distrust? In this thought-provoking episode of Good Company, Drew Dudley and Brett Elmgren tackle the complexities of post-pandemic organizational culture. They explore why some companies thrived during adversity, the tension between engagement and accountability, and how assumptions about leadership and decision-making shape workplace dynamics. Packed with actionable insights, this conversation challenges leaders (and employees) to rethink their approach to building trust and culture. Tune in to discover strategies for bridging divides, strengthening team cohesion, and leading with authenticity in today’s ever-changing work landscape! Key Points From This Episode: • Improving engagement through quick office returns and intentional social connection [0:01:31] • How resilient leaders minimized disruption by acting fast in the face of adversity [0:05:44] • The need to accommodate diverse needs when balancing remote and in-office work [0:07:44] • Shaping a strong culture through consistent actions aligned with shared values [0:10:31] • Reasons that employees struggle when leaders dismiss cultural initiatives as "soft" [0:16:31] • Five ways healthy cultures drive engagement, productivity, profitability, and more [0:18:34] • The danger of a single story and why you can’t outsource culture to the C-suite [0:22:14] • A simple question that serves as a litmus test for a strong organizational culture [0:26:06] • Fostering trust and honesty within organizations in an age of disinformation [0:28:21] • C-suite scuttlebutt: frustration with a perceived sense of employee entitlement [0:33:36] • Employee entitlement versus the demand for a more human-centered approach [0:40:32] • Demystifying the executive suite by helping employees understand leadership better [0:44:10] • Practical strategies for building unity and overcoming division in organizations [0:48:20] • Wrapping up and what's next: key takeaways and upcoming topics [0:52:32] Quotes: “We overcomplicate [culture] – If you want to change the culture, just change the way you do things. That's it.” — Brett Elmgren [0:12:11] “[Organizations that have] supportive, psychologically safe, – and empowering cultures of accountability, transparency, [and] authenticity – have way higher employee engagement and productivity, like 21% higher profitability and 147% higher earnings per share.” — Drew Dudley [0:19:13] “Don't outsource culture to your boss. You are the culture!” — Brett Elmgren [0:24:58] “Allow your people to discover you. Don't try to introduce yourself to them.” — Drew Dudley [0:32:21] “Engagement minus accountability equals entitlement.” — Brett Elmgren [0:35:53] “The best cultural indicator is how generous your collective assumptions are in an organization.” — Brett Elmgren [0:53:13] Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: Reality-Based Leadership | Cy Wakeman ‘Why good leaders make you feel safe’ | Simon Sinek | TED | |||
| 10 Feb 2025 | Leadership Pitfalls: What to Stop & What to Start | 00:53:00 | |
Leadership Pitfalls: What to Stop & What to Start Are you unknowingly holding your team back? Small leadership habits can have a significant impact on workplace culture and productivity. In this episode of Good Company, Drew Dudley and Brett Elmgren delve into behaviors that leaders should avoid and unpack the steps they can take to foster more positive and productive workplaces. They explore the power of creation-based conversations, why holding team members accountable is key, and how problem-solving conversations create better workplaces. Tuning in, you'll discover a five-step approach for handling conflicts and challenges, the "genie" question, why controlling your emotions as a leader is essential, ways opinions dilute true expertise, the idea of indirect positive feedback, and more. Join the conversation to explore how asking better questions, leveraging expertise, and providing structured feedback can substantially enhance workplace culture and productivity!
Key Points From This Episode: • Why leaders should shift their approach from judgment to curiosity and support. [0:01:48] • Navigating judgment effectively and why leaders should always assume good intent. [0:04:00] • The power of reframing ideas as questions to foster engagement and ownership. [0:07:19] • Reasons leaders should end open-door policies and focus on problem-solving. [0:11:33] • How to create places for constructive conversations and define clear dos and don’ts. [0:14:53] • An approach to create problem-solving conversations for effective conflict resolution. [0:17:39] • Steps leaders can take to control their emotions when navigating conflict. [0:22:28] • Unpack the issue of over-collaboration and the idea of a credibility scale for teams. [0:27:08] • Ways to identify and evaluate expertise for effective credibility rankings. [0:30:45] • Shifting from incorporating direct positive feedback to indirect positive feedback. [0:34:41] • Examples of disempowering phrases leaders should avoid and what to say instead. [0:37:23] • Takeaways from today's conversation and what Drew and Brett have planned. [0:49:22] Quotes: “We are always going to judge; that is just how the brain works. It's more about stopping the default negative assumptions as a reaction to whatever [leaders] are being hit with.” — Brett Elmgren [0:06:06] “If venting is never followed with action, then it actually creates a culture of entitlement.” — Brett Elmgren [0:14:00] “There is positive intent in every difficult conversation. You should not be having the conversation if you cannot find the positive intent.” — Brett Elmgren [0:16:58] “Stop looking for who is right and stop trying to solve the problem as quickly as possible.” — Drew Dudley [0:21:04] “The power of naming your emotion is a very important one [for a leader].” — Drew Dudley [0:23:22] “Some of your best insight only gets offered when you ask for it from team members.” — Drew Dudley [0:34:27] Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: | |||
| 24 Feb 2025 | Leadership Traits: Overrated & Underrated | 00:54:52 | |
Leadership Traits: Overrated and Underrated What leadership traits are essential, and which ones are given more credit than they deserve? In this episode of Good Company, hosts Drew Dudley and Brett Elmgren unpack the most overrated and underrated leadership traits in today's workplace. In their conversation, they define overrated and underrated characteristics and how certain traits can help leaders create more productive workplaces and fulfilling company cultures. Drew and Brett discuss the common misconceptions surrounding charisma and why there is an inherent distrust of it. They unpack why collaboration is overrated and the concept of mindful collaboration. They also explore why education and credentials are not a silver bullet for competence, and the power of fostering personal value discovery in the workplace in addition to organizational values. Discover why leaders need to understand data, the role of agility and adaptability in leadership, why asking good questions is a vital skill, and more. Tune in to uncover the key traits to leadership success with Drew Dudley and Brett Elmgren! Key Points From This Episode:
Quotes: “Let's work on abolishing the extroverted bias within how [leaders] run meetings and how [leaders] promote people in the organization.” — Brett Elmgren [0:09:46] “Really, what charisma is is the ability to have people form opinions of you that are positive very quickly.” — Drew Dudley [0:11:10] “Collaboration is not necessarily a skill. It is what emerges from developing a certain set of other skills.” — Drew Dudley [0:15:31] “We just use credentialism to gatekeep what access people get.” — Drew Dudley [0:19:03] “I think leaders over manage people through change when the real successful people in organizations understand that change is constant and they are business ready at all times.” — Brett Elmgren [0:37:34] “I think a boundary is the line past which your values start to be threatened.” — Drew Dudley [0:40:24] Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: | |||
| 10 Mar 2025 | Leadership Secrets: Wisdom They Don't Teach You in School | 00:51:17 | |
‘Edge of the Doorway Advice’ is the wisdom we share when we skip the small talk and get straight to the heart of things. That’s exactly what we’re doing during this episode: passing on the overall insights we have gained throughout our careers that could inspire and empower others. What might it look like to ask more generous questions, both as a leader and as a team member? Along with exploring this question, we dive deep into Drew and Brett’s most pertinent advice for other leaders, from definitions and principles to relationships and practices. Join us as we explore what it means to straddle personal and company values, identify manipulative behaviors in those who lead, and learn why leadership can be considered a profession of its own. We also touch on vulnerability, using your position to create positive change, and much more. Thanks for listening to Good Company! Key Points From This Episode: • The ‘Edge of the Doorway’ advice we will share in this episode. [0:01:50] • Nuggets of wisdom leading up to Brett & Drew’s ultimate advice. [0:05:50] • Determining whether there is truly a disconnect between your values and the organization you work for. [0:11:00] • What to do when your personal values and the company values are different. [0:14:04] • Unpacking what it really means to see leadership as an opportunity to create positive change. [0:22:32] • How, as a leader, you should approach speaking about problems and avoiding manipulation. [0:25:30] • The appropriate application of vulnerability in the context of leadership. [0:31:56] • Why leadership itself is a profession and what this means for leaders. [0:36:56] • How fear impacts organizational function. [0:41:54] • Understanding the privilege of leadership. [0:45:23] Quotes: “Those three words save relationships and they save careers: elevate, don’t escalate.” — Drew Dudley [0:07:12] “You have to go to work every day and evaluate your role in a toxic environment by knowing that it’s better to be financially bankrupt than spiritually bankrupt, and toxic environments bankrupt you spiritually.” — Drew Dudley [0:09:12] “‘What’s the most generous assumption you can make about this decision?’ is such a good leadership mantra.” — Drew Dudley [0:13:22] “Leadership is the opportunity to create positive change and it does take courage to do that within every moment.” — Brett Elmgren [0:20:36] “Leadership is about embracing uncertainty.” — Brett Elmgren [0:23:52] “How you feel about yourself has a profound impact on how you treat other people.” — Drew Dudley [0:41:29] Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode: This is Day One Drew Dudley | Everyday Leadership Brett Elmgren | Axom Leadership | |||