Accelerate Your Performance

Every day in an organization, good work is being done. Ensuring that all this good work is aligned and focused on the same goals and outcomes is what Superintendent Michael Maine of Martin County, Florida calls getting “locked tight,” and Superintendent Maine is a master at this alignment process.

In this episode, Dr. Janet Pilcher and Superintendent Maine discuss how getting locked tight has resulted in the success of Martin County School District. Listen as they explore the power of aligning strategic plans, goals, scorecards, and measures that matter; and they talk about the importance of having a strong, united team working together to create this alignment.

Recommended Resources:  Measure Impact to Drive Improvement, Drive Student Achievement with Scorecards

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/

Getting feedback is one thing; capturing feedback with the mindset that it is a gift is another. The idea that “feedback is a gift” relates to proactively seeking feedback to better understand what is working well and what needs improvement. Join Dr. Janet Pilcher and, Kathy Myles, a Studer Education Leader Coach, as they explore the idea of feedback being a gift and listening to others for the purpose of learning. 

Kathy shares her personal experiences and suggests that feedback isn't personal; it's about the system, and it's about improvement. When leaders hold this mindset, they see feedback as a gift and use feedback to grow and improve. 

Listen as Janet and Kathy discuss: 

• how leaders can listen to learn, 
• tips for developing the mindset that feedback is a gift, and 
• tactics for effectively listening to learn.  

Recommended Resources:  9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence: A New Operating System for Education, Feedback Is a Gift...or is it

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/

Good leaders continuously seek improvement; they want to grow and learn. They lead the way in growing, improving, and surpassing status quo. The 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence frame these kinds of continuous improvement efforts and shape how leaders execute effective leadership practices. The Pillars offer the means to grow, learn, and excel in leadership. 

In this episode, Dr. Janet Pilcher discusses the DHP 2026 Virtual K12 Leadership Conference, an opportunity for leaders to see the 9 Pillars in action, grow their leadership skills, and share their continuous improvement stories. Listen as Dr. Pilcher provides an overview of this conference and the 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence. Our goal is to support leaders who are on a continuous improvement journey develop effective leadership practices and learn how to use specific strategies, concepts, and tactics in everyday work to be the best leaders they can be. 

Recommended Resources:  9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence: A New Operating System for Education, Building Lasting Impact with 9 Pillars for Leadership Excellence

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/

"Words have power," which is why Dr. Janet Pilcher issues a call for leaders to be thoughtful of words, choosing them carefully and using them in positive ways. Leaders model how to use words effectively, and operationalizing values, including those related to how words are used, encourages the use of words that build a positive workplace culture. 

Listen as Dr. Pilcher 

• discusses two compelling quotes about the power of words, 
• explains why words matter, 
• challenges leaders to be intentional about their words, and 
• ties the power of words to Pillar 3: Communicate for Alignment.  

Recommended Resources:  9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence: A New Operating System for Education, Use Words With Purpose, Count Your Words

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/

Improvement is a team effort, and teams must support one another to be able to move forward together. As Dr. Jennifer Kubista, Superintendent of Central School District 13J in Oregon states, “You have to be reflective and working hard together.” Survey data provides the data and feedback for an organization to reflect on and work on together. In fact, effectively using survey results can improve an organization and its culture. In this episode, Dr. Kubista shares how acting on survey data has done just that in her school district.

This episode addresses questions such as

• What is the value of survey data?
• Why is it important to act on survey data and feedback?
• How does survey data connect with organizational improvement? 

Listen as Dr. Janet Pilcher and Dr. Kubista discuss these and other questions and explore the powerful story of one district’s journey toward improvement by using survey results to move toward real growth.

Recommended Resources:  9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence: A New Operating System for Education, Use Feedback to Unlock Operational Excellence, Convert Surveys to Solutions

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/

In this episode, Dr. KK Owen, a leader coach at Studer Education, shares that “our best chance of success is through our people.” As she explains, it’s for this reason that people need to understand that they are valued and that they bring value to an organization. Building a people-first mindset allows for this kind of focus through recognition, intentional communication, and shining lights on bright spots.

What is a people-first mindset? What does it look like? Why is it important, and how can it be built? Listen as Dr. Janet Pilcher and Dr. Owen discuss these questions and explain why leaders must "just start" intentionally recognizing good work, shining lights on bright spots, upholding the good work and value of others, and maintaining a “people-first” mindset. 

Recommended Resources:  9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence: A New Operating System for Education, Transform District Culture with People-First Strategies, People-First Leadership in Classrooms and Communities

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/ 

According to Dr. Reggie Todd, the guest in this episode, “Service excellence is critical because it directly shapes the experiences people have with an organization.” The truth is that service matters, and service excellence is an all day, every day, all-in proposition. 

What does it mean to have great customer service? What does service excellence entail? How can you build service excellence practices in your organization? These are questions addressed in this episode. Join Dr. Janet Pilcher and Dr. Todd as they dive into these and other questions related to Pillar 6: Exceed Customer Expectations from the 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence. 

Listen to learn how you can transform your customer service practices from good to great and how you can positively shape the experiences people have with your organization. 

Recommended Resources:  9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence: A New Operating System for Education, Provide Excellent Service, How K12 District Leaders Can Foster Service Excellence

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/ 

Do you want to improve your communication skills but don’t know how to get started? This episode of the Accelerate Your Performance podcast is for you! Join Dr. Janet Pilcher in the third episode in a series focused on communication and Pillar 3: Communicate for Alignment, part of the 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence. In this episode, Dr. Pilcher provides practical tactics that you can use to communicate effectively and build a positive, trusting workplace culture. Because as Dr. Pilcher explains, as leaders, our communication “can make the biggest difference for those we serve each and every day.” 

In this episode, Dr. Pilcher shares how to effectively use two tactics from the 9 Pillars for Leadership Excellence Toolkit that are specifically related to communicating for alignment: Key Words at Key Times and Starting with "Why."

Listen to hear why these tactics are important and how you can immediately use them to enhance your communication by using words with purpose. 

Recommended Resources:  Pillar 3: Communicate for Alignment, 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence: A New Operating System for Education, Words Have Power

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/ 

Effective leadership necessitates effective communication. 

If you want to grow your communication skills, join Dr. Janet Pilcher this week for the second episode in a series related to Pillar 3: Communicate for Alignment. In this episode, she shares specific communication barriers and ways to tackle to those barriers. 

Listen as Dr. Pilcher explains how communication barriers impact employees and leadership and how you can grow your leadership through effectively managing communication barriers. This episode will leave you armed with at least one thing that you can begin doing immediately to improve your communication skills. Then, as Dr. Pilcher suggests, "when you think of that one thing, go do it and then see what happens."

Recommended Resources:  Pillar 3: Communicate for Alignment, 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence: A New Operating System for Education

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/

“Great leadership requires leaders to be great communicators.” 

That’s why Dr. Janet Pilcher shares a deeper dive into Pillar 3: Communicate for Alignment, one of the overarching 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence. 

Join her for the first in a series of episodes exploring: 

• the importance of communicating effectively;
• the value of communicating for alignment;
• the barriers to effective communication; and 
• the tactics to ensure communication is positive, impactful, and results-driven.

Dr. Pilcher also pauses to express gratitude for coaches and partners doing meaningful work in the field. As she shares, “We can always spend time learning to improve and expressing gratitude.”

Recommended Resources:  Building Lasting Impact with 9 Pillars for Leadership Excellence, 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence: A New Operating System for Education, 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence Toolkit

Follow Host Dr. Janet Pilcher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetpilcher/