Frontline Innovators

Frontline Innovators

By frontlineinnovatorsTechnology
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Frontline Innovators episodes

  • Part of the Process - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 046

    Joshua Remerowski is the Director of Change Management, Strategy & Communication at Walmart. He used to work for Direct TV where he was installing satellites on roofs. He sees the knowledge it takes to get change going in a business and wants to share his knowledge. He joins host Justin Lake to talk about some of the issues facing frontline workers today.

     

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • Leaders need to do a better job of digitizing the modern workforce. Digital products can help enhance and enable your frontline workforce. 
  • We forget that there is an actual human who is having their environment changed when it comes to change enablement. It’s important to take that into consideration. 
  • Failure is part of the process. It’s ok to have something not work right, but you have to be able to get back the courage and try it in a different way until it works. 
  • Patience and persistence pays off. You have to keep putting the work in and eventually your time will come.  
  • You want to make sure everyone is on the same page. Change is only successful when everyone works together on it. 
  • You want to make sure you are fighting for your employees as a leader. Your employees might be overworked and you need to make sure they aren’t.
  • Leaders apply past frameworks for a job they did 20 years ago, but that doesn’t work as times change and situations don’t always apply. A leader has to have the desire to learn the knowledge behind the change. 




    • Quote of the show

     

    17:41 “I think when you have that formula of patience and persistence, whatever that goal is, or thing you set your mind to, it's going to be very difficult for it not to happen. But I think a lot of people have to understand that just like sports things are not always going to happen when you intend them to be.”








    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-remerowski/
  • Company Website: https://www.walmart.com



    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/qB4nMoPDXwA
    • 59 min
  • Embracing Change - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 045

    John Ross is the Strategic Change Administrator at Sunflower Electric Power Corporation. He knows that it’s important to make sure that frontline employees are respected and love what they do, as that makes work better for them. He joins host Justin Lake to discuss some of the other issues that frontline workers are facing. 

     

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • The biggest challenge facing the deskless workforce today is engagement. It can be difficult to get them to take on a task that can be a challenge. 
  • It’s essential to the growth of a company to build the confidence to have crucial conversations. 
  • Change has to be embraced by the entire culture of a company. If you don’t have everyone bought in then it won’t work.
  • You want to make sure that frontline workers understand what they get out of experiencing change. If they don’t understand it they might not want it.
  • Making sure that everyone is on the same page is important to make sure that change is properly implemented. 
  • A myth about change management is that everyone is going to follow the ADKAR method when in reality you need to find one that works for everyone. 
  • Having a consistent view of change management is something that can be a positive for employees. 




    • Quote of the show

     

    2:27 “One of the things that we see as essential to the company and its growth is building the confidence to have crucial conversations and to say to the manager or a project lead, I have some reservations about this, or I think that I have a better idea on how to do this. Those are the difficult things for us to do. We really want employees to speak up.” 



    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-ross-1a37b048/
  • Company Website: https://www.sunflower.net




    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/t7AFf6-n0K0 
    • 44 min
  • Sending the Right Message - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 044

    Hillary Carper is the Expert Product Manager at a major transportation logistics company. She knows the human side of change is incredibly important and can make a massive difference in a company. She sits down with host Justin Lake to discuss some of the challenges that frontline workers are facing and how they can be better helped. 

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • The biggest challenge facing the frontline workforce today is the struggle of working from and identifying between their corporate self at work and their life at home. 
  • Working from home can be challenging at times. Everyone is using the same wifi and slowing down the network, which makes work difficult. 
  • Change management is dealing with the people side of change. It requires a great skill set but it is very rewarding. 
  • Data driven results are a good way of measuring success. It shows all the data you will need and you can track the success of change. 
  • The people side of change is the crux of whether or not you are going to be successful. If people don’t change then there will be no ROI.  
  • You need to understand what others are doing in order to be successful. Building a foundation takes time but it starts with understanding others.
  • The sender of the message matters. Certain people will have a better way of communicating messages rather than others. 




    • Quote of the show

     

    38:04 “You know the analogy where you have the jar and you put the big rocks in of the things that are most important to you. And then the smaller rocks and the pebbles. I always used to tell people, change management in an organization is the sand. We’re the sand that touches all the places and that kind of keeps everybody together and connected.”



    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hillary-carper-308852224/
  • Company Website: https://www.jbhunt.com



    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/EqHkpEbcGsQ
    • 52 min
  • The Importance of Being Agile - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 043

    Danielle Cimek is the Business Change Manager at Gordon Food Service. She has over 14 years of experience in the food and beverage industry. She sees the importance of technology in the workplace and what difference it can make for a company. She joins host Justin Lake to sit down and talk about some of the issues facing frontline employees today. 

     

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • The biggest challenge that deskless workers are facing today is that it is difficult to get people in to fill the jobs that need to be done, which leave frontline workers with even more on their plate. 
  • Leveraging technology in the workplace can help employees to move forward and be more productive in their work. 
  • If the technology doesn’t meet the users' needs then it will be shelved and forgotten. It’s important to make sure that doesn’t happen. 
  • Understanding the “why” is important and you need to carry that forward. If you don’t understand the reason you are advocating for a change, it won’t do well. 
  • Technology is constantly changing so you need to be able to be agile and adapt to any change. 
  • S.A.F.e - Scaled Agile Framework. It brings each team of people that are impacted by change together and they talk about how they will handle the change. 
  • Increasing the sample size of who you talk to in an organization can help to make a smart-decision that is well informed. 




    • Quote of the show

     

    8:12 “We can build whatever technology we want, but if it doesn't meet the end users' needs, or if they're not ready for it mentally, then that technology will fail and be shelved and not used. So it really was just that interest of trying to figure out, what is that balance and how do you figure out that sweet spot of being able to try and keep that pace of being able to evolve and grow technology?”






    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniellecimek/
  • Company Website: https://www.gfs.com/en-us




    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/9hPJrML-99c
    • 51 min
  • Optimizing for the Future - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 042

    Debbie Simurda is the Vice President, Sales Enablement at Mainstreet, Inc. She enjoys helping stores reach their full potential with technology and making sure employees are happy with what they do. She joins host Eugene Signorini to sit down and talk about some of the issues that frontline workers are facing today. 

     

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • In terms of retail, it has been a difficult few years for those employees. They have had to deal with constant changes to their environment and rules. 
  • Retail isn’t for the timid. It can be very taxing on a daily basis having to deal with ever changing rules and regulations.
  • Maintaining your work equipment is extremely important. Paying to repair the technology takes it out of commission and affects all aspects of retail.
  • Being on the back end of technology allows you to really see benefit to it and how it helps the stores that are using it. 
  • You can’t sell something if you don’t know it. It’s important to know your product and how it could benefit others to use it.
  • The pandemic helped to implement new technology that some companies were hesitant to try out at first. 
  • There is a shift now of making stores more highly optimized and consumer friendly, such as including curbside pickup. 



    • Quote of the show

     

    9:19 “If a retailer has a device in their stores that isn't functioning, then that not only impacts customer service, it impacts uptime. It's a lot more money for them to maintain it. They need to invest in spares. And so with our clients, we tried to get them to kind of look at a ruggedized mobility solution like zebra. And I think more and more of them are embracing it”





    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbiesimurda/
  • Twitter: https://twitter.com/posatmainstreet
  • Company Website: https://www.mainstreetinc.net
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/POSatMainstreet/



    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/-BRAqF0Ai10
    • 44 min
  • The Science of the Employee Experience - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 041

    Sarah Lang is the Learning and Change Manager at BNSF logistics. She’s a Master of Science, Chemistry from Texas A&M University, and she found her way to helping manage change and says she uses her science skills everyday. She joins host Justin Lake to sit down and talk about some of the biggest challenges that frontline workers are facing today. 

     

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • The biggest challenge facing the frontline workers today is that they are overloaded with information. There are so many apps and different software that it can be daunting.
  • You need to understand the audience. You need to know who is using the technology and tailor to benefit them and make it easy to use.
  • It’s a good idea to have a system in place that goes over a step by step guide on what process to follow should frontline workers have any questions.
  • It’s easier to manage the change of new employees because they are like a blank slate and they will learn how to properly get things done. 
  • You want to focus your change on each individual person rather than a large group as a whole, that way everyone will understand the change thoroughly. 
  • Managers are critical in making change happen. Management is the one who has to sell it to the employees. 
  • When working with a manager to get their buy-in on the change, you need to benefit of it to them and their employees. 




    • Quote of the show

    32:58 “If you have a situation which typically you have seasoned people at your company, middle of the road for three or four years in, and then you have brand new people and you have a change coming, you really have to sit down and do that change impact for every single role. And then down to that individual level, I know that sounds really time consuming, but I promise, there's a benefit to doing that.”







    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saraholivard/
  • Company Website: https://www.bnsflogistics.com




    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/WIUUjAg860o
    • 54 min
  • Being A True Leader - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 040

    Sonya Shelton, CEO at Executive Leadership Consulting, joins host Eugene Signorini to discuss the importance of being a good leader to those on the frontline. Also the author of “You’re An Executive But Are You a Leader?,” Sonya shares her invaluable insight on what it takes to be a true leader.

     

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • Burnout is the biggest challenge facing the frontline workforce today. Going through the pandemic and supply chain issues has been a struggle and those on the frontline are the ones dealing with all the challenges.
  • Frontline workers experience anxiety just like everyone else, and their mental health should also be paid attention to.  
  • Culture and Strategy shouldn’t be enemies, but they should be working together in order to create a great employee experience.
  • You want to inspire people and be a leader. You want to have followers, not people who are compliant with you. 
  • A lot of companies lose sight of what it means to be a frontline worker. You want to make sure deskless employees are given everything they need to succeed.
  • It’s easy to lose sight of the small wins in a company because of what is happening in the world right now, but it’s important to celebrate even the little victories to motivate your employees.
  • Having a set process in place is critical. You need to have this so the employees know what steps to follow and it eases the burden on them. 




    • Quote of the show

     

    9:20 “If you're just relying on your position or your title, or the power that the organization has given you through that title, then you have compliance, you don't have followers. It's really about how can you inspire people and lead them towards a vision.”




    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ceosonyashelton/
  • Twitter: @SonyaShelton
  • Company Website: https://executiveleader.com
  • Book: https://www.amazon.com/Youre-Executive-But-Leader-Communicating-ebook/dp/B00K5DRNAC



    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/CUzKUGh0CU4
    • 49 min
  • Laying the Tracks for Change - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 039

    Sydney Henry is the Organizational Change Practitioner at Norfolk Southern Corporation. She’s an experienced and passionate change leader, and she comes from a family of railroaders. She joins host Justin Lake to talk about issues that frontline workers are facing today. 

     

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • Communication is the biggest issue facing the frontline workforce today. Constant communication is really important to keep them updated in the field. 
  • It’s important to ask questions throughout the year, as different issues can arise at different times with technology. 
  • A change manager should do a walk along with a frontline employee or talk with them in person, as it’s important to see what a day in their life is like for them.
  • Always make sure there is a backup plan. Not everything can be stopped until a new process is implemented, so having a backup plan is extremely important.
  • Observe frontline workers and how they do their job before you implement change. That way you can see if the change is necessary and how it will help.
  • There are many different ways of communicating with frontline workers, so it’s important to take advantage of those tools rather than using emails.
  • It’s important to be empathetic for those on the frontline. They are the ones facing the customers and having to answer questions while working in the field. 



    • Quote of the show: 

     

    0:47 “I've been a victim of the same thing: communicating in the very beginning with the frontline workers to get their opinion about something, but not following up enough throughout the process. 

     

    I think that initial testing, in the field or on the frontline testing, the technology or the process changes. It's very important, but even, especially using an agile methodology, that constant communication of, Hey, did something new come up or is there some special circumstance we can talk about that you didn't talk about before? I absolutely think that communication is key.”





    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydney-a-henry/
  • Company Website: http://www.nscorp.com




    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/0wK1d1V0F3s
    • 49 min
  • The Lighthouse of Change - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 038

    Ken White, Change Manager at Lowe’s, shares his experience having worked for the state department of Tennessee to bring all their workers online. Ken joins host Justin Lake to discuss some of the issues that are facing the frontline workforce today and ways that we can work on solving those issues. 

     

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • The biggest challenge facing the frontline workforce today is technology driven change saturation.
  • Communication is the backbone of change management. It helps to have a good back and forth communication to incorporate change and have it be positivity received. 
  • Project lighthouse was Duke energy’s flagship product to digitally transform itself. 
  • Never stop listening to the customer. You are there to digitally transform products to make their life easier. 
  • There’s no such thing as a bad idea. You want everyone in the company to feel heard and you can always learn something new from any idea. 
  • An empathy map is when you take a typical employee and you take how they feel about their job and what they do into account and try to make them happier. 
  • Every company is turning more and more to technology to get work done because of the pandemic. 




    • Quote of the show

     

    17:57 “An empathy map is taking your typical job roles, say line technician, and we divide them up into four categories. And as the development team, we talk about the typical line technician, and we talk about what the line tech is thinking, what they're actually doing on their job on a daily basis, what they're feeling about what they're doing and what they're saying about what they do and the organization.”



    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ken-white-66a98510/
  • Company Website: https://www.lowes.com




    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/Lr0-y1kEvT4
    • 50 min
  • The Readiness of Change - Frontline Innovators - Episode #037

    Kate DeGon is the Founder and CEO at Changesync. She’s a prosci certified management consultant. She was formerly the President of the Arizona chapter of the Association of Change Management Professionals (ACMP). She sits down with host Eugene Signorini to discuss what some of the challenges are that frontline employees are facing. 

     

     

    Takeaways 

     

    • The biggest challenge facing the frontline workforce today is time. These employees are incredibly busy and when change comes in, that adds extra work onto their plate. 
  • Most frontline employees are remote, so you want to make sure the change you are working on is something that can be done remotely for them and with ease. 
  • Most people are not a huge fan of surprises in the workforce. It’s best to take the time and slowly incorporate the change, so everyone is on the same page.
  • It’s imperative to use technology that is easier to use. There’s no need to use software that makes your job more complicated.
  • The employees are the ones who make the change stick, so making sure they are happy and they understand what is happening is key.
  • Change management teams are typically small, which allows them to quickly pivot to new changes and focus on what employees are saying.
  • You want to find people who will champion the change. They will help facilitate the change and address any issue with it. 




    • Quote of the show: 

     

    5:15 “Readiness is really helping to prepare the employees who are impacted regardless of the level of impact, really helping to prepare them for the impending change. And this precedes the actual formal training.  Let's be honest, most people are not huge a fan of opening up their computer or getting a message somehow and hearing that there's a big change. Those surprises just really aren't welcomed in the workforce.”



    Links

     

    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kate-tripalin-degon-bbb64046/
  • Company Website: http://changesync.com




    • Ways to Tune In:

     

    • Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS 
  • Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
  • Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
  • Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
  • Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
  • YouTube - https://youtu.be/yG-P74NaAV0
    • 54 min

About Frontline Innovators

From the publisher's feed

This is Frontline Innovators. Host Justin Lake speaks with experts who are leading the way and driving digital transformation to the frontlines. We explore how to overcome challenges and achieve success when we empower our essential workers.