The Indigo Podcast

Rachel Wernicke is a clinical psychologist and leadership coach, currently serving as an associate dean and chief mental health officer at George Mason University. She's also a U.S. Army veteran, and in today's episode, we talk with her about self-talk--what it is, why it matters, and how it can be harmful or helpful. We discuss: - What is self-talk - Different types of self-talk and examples - Implications for people, leaders, and organizations Links and Other Information - More about Rachel Wernicke: website and TEDx talk - Bunting, N. (2016). The Mindful Leader: 7 Practices for Transforming Your Leadership, Your Organisation, and Your Life. Melbourne, Australia: Wiley. Click here - Flaxman, P.E., Bond, F.W., & Livheim, F. (2013). The Mindful and Effective Employee: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Manual for Improving Well-Being and Performance. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications. Click here - Rogelberg, S. G., Justice, L., Braddy, P. W., Paustian‐Underdahl, S. C., Heggestad, E., Shanock, L., Baran, B., Beck, T., Long, S., Andrew, A., Altman, D., and Fleenor, J. (2013). The executive mind: leader self‐talk, effectiveness and strain. Journal of Managerial Psychology. Click here - All episodes of The Indigo Podcast - Like us on Facebook - Follow us on Twitter

What do you think about when you think about the word, "bureaucracy?" If you're like most people, it's probably not something positive. Truth be told, there is plenty about bureaucracy that's not great. But might bureaucracy have some redeeming qualities? In this episode, we discuss: - What is bureaucracy and why does it have a negative connotation? - What might "good bureaucracy" look like - Implications for people, leaders, and organizations Links and Other Information - Thompson, V. A. (1965). Bureaucracy and innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 1-20. click here - Sager, F., & Rosser, C. (2009). Weber, Wilson, and Hegel: Theories of modern bureaucracy. Public Administration Review, 69(6), 1136-1147. click here - Olsen, J. P. (2006). Maybe it is time to rediscover bureaucracy. Journal of Public Administration research and theory, 16(1), 1-24. click here - Grey, C., & Garsten, C. (2001). Trust, control and post-bureaucracy. Organization Studies, 22(2), 229-250. click here - Eisenstadt, S. N. (1959). Bureaucracy, bureaucratization, and debureaucratization. Administrative Science Quarterly, 302-320. click here - Downs, A. (1965). A theory of bureaucracy. The American Economic Review, 55(1/2), 439-446. click here - Andrews, R., Boyne, G., & Mostafa, A. M. S. (2017). When bureaucracy matters for organizational performance: Exploring the benefits of administrative intensity in big and complex organizations. Public Administration, 95(1), 115-139. click here - All episodes of The Indigo Podcast - Like us on Facebook - Follow us on Twitter

Surveys have become very common, and it can be annoying. But are surveys worth doing? The short answer is yes, but it depends. It turns out there are a number of best practices that have to do with surveys and how to make them a useful tool for management, leadership, and overall organizational development. In this episode, we discuss: - Should you do a survey - Top items to keep in mind if you are going to do a survey - Implications for people, leaders, and organizations Links and Other Information - Infographic about employee reactions to surveys: click here - Steven Rogelberg: survey expert and meetings researcher - All episodes of The Indigo Podcast - Like us on Facebook - Follow us on Twitter

Among the scholars who study the world of work, Paul Spector is a giant. A 2012 Indiana University study and a 2019 Stanford University study listed Paul as one of the 10 most influential business management researchers worldwide. In this episode, we discuss: - The field of occupational health psychology and why it matters - Signs of healthy and unhealthy workplaces - How to create organizations that are better suited for the psychological and physical health of their members Links and Other Information Paul Spector's blog: https://paulspector.com/ All episodes of The Indigo Podcast Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter

Co-hosted by organizational psychologist Ben Baran and management consultant Chris Everett, The Indigo Podcast takes an evidence-based approach toward solving problems at work and in life in a way that's always thoughtful and spit-out-your-coffee funny. The Indigo Podcast is on all major platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and more. Visit: https://www.indigotogether.com/indigopodcast

Even with the best hiring and coaching, good organizations and leaders need to be ready to fire someone who isn't working out. Letting poor performers linger doesn't help anyone. But firing people isn't an activity to be taken lightly. It's full of emotions and lasting consequences. It's one of those things you want to handle with care as a leader. We discuss: - Managing the termination process - Minimizing risk for you and the organization during the process - Navigating an actual firing conversation, for both the sacker and the being sacked Links and Other Information - Resign or Be Fired: Article from SHRM - All episodes of The Indigo Podcast - Like us on Facebook - Follow us on Twitter

When it comes to managing people, one of the toughest parts is hiring. But if you want a good organization, you have to get hiring right. The good news is that there's a mountain of evidence about how to hire people. Listen in, and we'll explore: - The challenge of selection - A process backed by 100 years of science - Implications for job candidates, hiring managers, and executives Links and Other Information - Schmidt, F. L., & Hunter, J. E. (1998). The validity and utility of selection methods in personnel psychology: Practical and theoretical implications of 85 years of research findings. Psychological Bulletin, 124(2), 262. Click here - Free research on thousands of jobs: The O*Net - What NOT to ask in interviews: Guide from the Ohio Civil Rights Commission - All episodes of The Indigo Podcast - Like us on Facebook - Follow us on Twitter

Leading people is hard. It's especially hard when many of the people you're trying to lead don't like you. But you have to lead anyway. In this episode, we talk about what you can do, exploring: - Situations in which leading other people is challenging - The central nature of trust and leadership - Implications for people, leaders, and organizations Links and Other Information Burke, C. S., Sims, D. E., Lazzara, E. H., & Salas, E. (2007). Trust in leadership: A multi-level review and integration. The Leadership Quarterly, 18(6), 606-632. Click here All episodes of The Indigo Podcast Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter

In this episode, we discuss training at work. Specifically, we examine what's widely known in the training industry as the 70:20:10 rule. One part of this idea is that most of the learning that occurs at work happens informally and not through more formal experiences like those in the classroom. But does this idea stand the test of science? We explore: - The 70:20:10 rule and a review of the evidence - Maximizing the value of on-the-job training - Implications for people, leaders, and organizations Links and Other Information Clardy, A. (2018). 70-20-10 and the dominance of informal learning: A fact in search of evidence. Human Resource Development Review, 17(2), 153-178. Click here Johnson, S. J., Blackman, D. A., & Buick, F. (2018). The 70: 20: 10 framework and the transfer of learning. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 29(4), 383-402. Click here Steven Rogelberg's book, The Surprising Science of Meetings (Amazon) All episodes of The Indigo Podcast Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter

Microsoft released a report on March 22, 2021 that outlines seven urgent business trends and five ways forward with regard to the world of work. We discuss the report and provide our analysis and commentary. Specifically, we discuss: - An overview of Microsoft's new report, "The Next Great Disruption is Hybrid Work -- Are we Ready? - Our evaluation of what we see as most (and least) valuable - Implications for people, leaders, and organizations Links and Other Information The Next Great Disruption Is Hybrid Work—Are We Ready? Report from Microsoft Citi declares "Zoom-Free" Fridays: article from Yahoo! Cort Rudolph on Debunking the Myths of Generational Differences: Episode on The Indigo Podcast All episodes of The Indigo Podcast Like us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter