If you want vulnerable… you’ve come to the right place. If you want to listen to people who do not have it all figured out, are most definitely in process and are seeking to understand & learn… that’s here too.

This week’s episode features two of the co-founders of Kings of Hearts, Yenukwa (Nuke) Kombian and Andy Nguyen, whose mission is to create safe spaces for men, develop self-awareness & character skills while embracing vulnerability to live a life rooted in love & service. BOOM!

Without question, we are living in a world today where masculinity is almost a dirty word. It’s met with backlash, confusion and often a lot of hurt. And rightly so. And yet we are provoked to believe that we can change the narrative. This is a conversation about men being sometimes misunderstood, ways we can change & improve, and ways to switch the conversation from being all about gender to about humanity.

In this episode, you will learn:

Also mentioned on this show:

Connect with The Kings of Hearts:

How a CEO came to realize that he was standing in the way of building the strong culture his organization needed and what he did about it. On this week's episode of the CultureING Podcast, we are joined by Matt Diteljan! As the Founder & Futurist of Glacier GenZ Advertising, he gets to see things from a bird's eye view and focus on the future. Matt first grew Glacier from his dorm room in University to an international multi-million dollar company with hundreds of clients, 50+ employees, and a well-respected name in the Higher Ed. marketing sector. When he’s not at the Cascade office, Matthew is very active on several boards including the Entrepreneur’s Organization and the EO Accelerator Program, or you can likely find him sending it down a mountain on his mountain bike.

Some questions Tynan asks:

• How to start being proactive about helping people with their career plan, especially in an organization that is primarily of the same age demographic (e.g. millennials).

• How do you let your culture mature enough to authentically dictate your values, mission, vision & cultural framework?

• How can you funnel back to your organization the futuristic, lofty plans & ideas?

• What does a leader need to do to maintain open-handedness around control over all decision making, growth and ideas?

• What is the leaders preferred way to receive constructive feedback from a “lower level” employee? 

In this episode, you will learn:

• How to take your culture from fear-based culture to a world-class culture

• What it looks like to recognize you are standing in the way of the company’s growth

• How to transition from CEO to Futurist & Chairman

• How do you create a leadership vacuum that continually calls people higher and leads to internal promotions & increasing levels of leadership

• What it looks like to take a financial hit on the journey to fighting for your values

• How to manage the dynamic of a futuristic leader working alongside a day-to-day CEO

• How to bring your whole team into the future idea and have them begin thinking of how their role will need to change to fit into the strategic direction moving forward

• Futuristic thinking about whether or not we really have to fire people

One of most important yet hard-to-change elements of company culture is diversity and inclusion. Tayo Rockson has spent his career dedicated to bringing practical solutions to leaders to bring about more D&I workplaces.

Tayo Rockson is a writer, speaker, consultant, and media personality who runs UYD Management – a strategic leadership and consulting firm that helps organizations incorporate sustainable diversity and inclusion practices. As someone who has lived on 4 continents, he is an authority in communicating effectively across cultures. In addition to that, he’s been named a “Top 40 Millennial Influencer” by New Theory magazine. Tayo is the host of As Told by Nomads, a podcast ranked in the top 5 tier of the Top 25 Business Podcasts for Entrepreneurs on Entrepreneur.com. He’s the author of Use Your Difference To Make A Difference, and in 2020, he launched the national anti-racism campaign called #LetsTalkBias.

In this episode, you will learn:

Also mentioned on this show:

Connect with Tayo:

Our individual personal growth, development & mastery plays a critical role in the overall strength of our companies' cultures. Thane Marcus brings such spice to life and is a wizard when it comes to personal and professional development. As we continually examine the wonderful world of company culture, it’s always important to remember how much culture is influenced by each individual in our organizations. So is building an amazing culture the responsibility of the leadership team? Nope. It is shared. We all have a part to play. So this episode can help anyone from a CEO to a new grad, become an incredible individual contributor to a company culture you can be proud of.

Some questions Tynan asks:

• What does it look like to build a “teachable” culture in our organizations? Is there a way for both employees and leaders to learn from one another?

• What might be some examples of personal systems that people can use to become a more high-performing and effective at their jobs, especially when there are predefined systems in the workplace that may, or may not, be conducive to our personal growth?

• Why do we need to be healthy?

• If leaders are doing something that is actually compromising employees' health, are we actually shooting ourselves in the foot from having high-performing teams?

• What does it cost our businesses when we don’t make room for people to show up as their full selves at work: Body, soul & spirit?!

• What are millennials wanting to see in the workplace of the future that they’re not seeing right now?

In this episode, you will learn:

• Thane discusses that in a recent blog that self-employment is most certainly not for everyone.

• It can be extremely beneficial to begin to train ourselves in leading up the chain of command. In a way of honour and respect, we can gain influence and empowerment when we learn this skill, benefiting both parties.

• Our performance is tied to sleep, recovery, and self-care. Contrary to popular belief, sleeping less, eating terribly, avoiding exercise will not get us ahead, but rather, hold us back.

• Leaders have a responsibility to steward their roles well specifically by learning what makes millennials tick and helping them to use those traits as their advantage. Creating an atmosphere that leverages who millennials are, and how they’ve grown up is key. We can use who they are to better support who they can become as professionals in our organizations.

Also mentioned on this show:

• Thane’s blog post: An Honest Evaluation of Self-Employment

• Check out Thane’s podcast: The Up & Comers Show

• Jacko Willink’s Book: Extreme Ownership

• Thane’s Book: From Here To There | A Quarter-Life Perspective on the Path to Mastery

• Christopher Heuertz | The Sacred Enneagram

• Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much

Connect with Thane Marcus:

• Website

• Instagram

• LinkedIn

From varsity swimmer to one of Canada’s fastest growing companies, Talia Benson knows what it’s like to thrive in the fast lane. As the People & Culture Specialist at Inliv & Wello, two companies dedicated to pioneering a new frontier of healthcare, Talia has a lot to share with us about building a strong workplace culture. We take an inside look at the day-in-the-life of a person whose sole job is to focus on the culture of an organization… you may be surprised how much is on her plate and how pivotal her role is in the growth of her companies!

Some questions I ask:

• Contentious issue… should there be a difference between HR and the People/Culture function within your organization?

• What does the day-in-the-life of a culture specialist look like?

• How would you measure the success of a launch to a new performance management/development system?

• How can you bring innovative culture technology & ideas to the table with limited resources & budget?

• Why should employees and companies place a focus on healthy living?

• How do we effectively navigate transformation to our employee wellness programs?

• What are the major differences you’ve seen in your experience working in an established business versus a startup?

In this episode, you will learn:

• There is a difference between HR and People/Culture. We see the administrative role being critical and necessary from HR, but with People/Culture, there is a dynamic that is also needed, projects focused on culture-specific elements of the business.

• Tips for how to begin building out your People & Culture team.

• What it looks like to redesign your internal performance development programs.

• An industry “secret" predictor of high-potential hires.

• How to connect vision, mission & values to truly enhance your wellness program.

• The way to ensure your employees are living out the values of your company besides just putting them up on the wall.

Also mentioned on this show:

• Learn more about Wello, a virtual health-care platform

• Learn more about Inliv

Connect with Talia Benson:

• LinkedIn

Have you ever wondered what happens to those businesses you see on Dragon’s Den or Shark Tank? Well, today’s guest is one of those who has skyrocketed in growth, building a strong international reputation. Rachel Mielke, Hillberg & Berk's fearless leader is my guest today on The CultureING Podcast. Starting a jewellery empire from a prairie city in Canada of only 230k people is no small feat. From 2 commissioned pieces for Queen Elizabeth II and being featured on the red carpet at the Oscars, while becoming a staple jewellery brand for ladies all around the world. On this episode, we get the inside scoop on how Rachel built this wonderful organization, but more specifically, how she built a thriving company culture amidst the rapidly impressive growth! I’m just so impressed at Rachel’s character, helping women find their confidence and flourish, from the inside out.

Some questions Tynan asks:

• What was the moment when you realized company culture had to be top of mind?

• How do you know if people can rise to the challenge of being brave at work?

• How do deal with letting someone go?

• What does it look like for executives and leaders to invest in culture and keep a temperature check on their organizations?

• What other companies’ cultures have influenced the Hillberg & Berk culture?

In this episode, you will learn:

• How to get to the heart of people in an interview.

• What it looks like to effectively stay up-to-date on the culture of your organization.

• How to make the decision to create a centralized HQ versus having multiple locations… and how to incorporate remote workers too!

• The importance of marrying points from your employee surveys with those from 1-to-1 conversations to understand the pain points in your organization that you need to address swiftly.

• The complicated task of integrating remote workers into your culture and setting them up for success.

• How it's important to take the best practices and culture inspiration from other companies with a grain of salt and distinctly create your own unique culture.

Connect with Rachel:

• Instagram

• LinkedIn

Make sure to check out Hillberg & Berk’s Latest Collection!