Best Blogs for July

Right now, you need reading material more than ever, and our best blogs for July post includes a lot of good stuff, including stories on inclusive leadership, the common traits of great leaders and working from home, indefinitely.

Small Changes for Greater Inclusion

In June, protests were held around the world in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. These protests and the conversations around them have pushed some previously progressive ideas into the mainstream and the business world.

Perhaps because they see business and recruitment benefits to doing so, many companies are now revisiting their practices and taking steps toward greater allyship of minorities and groups that are traditionally disadvantaged in the workplace. These companies are striving for striving for greater inclusion at all levels of their respective organizations.

Greater inclusion doesn’t have to involve a massive overhaul of employee review practices. Small systemic steps can actually have a significant effect.

One small effective step that leaders can take is ensuring everyone has an equal platform for input and feedback. Leaders can be more inclusive by making sure many different backgrounds and points of view are represented in the actions they take.

Leaders should also lean into their natural curiosity and learn more about employees who come from different backgrounds than their own. Ideally, people in leadership should be looking to fill in knowledge for various kinds of people. They should hold ongoing conversations about making people feel heard, regardless of their background.

Read the whole story here.

The Traits of Great Leaders

You may have noticed that great leaders have many traits in common. Whether these qualities come naturally or not, they are seemingly essential to the success of great leaders and the groups they have led.

One of the most effective qualities a leader can have is being inspirational and inspiration starts with the actions of the leader in question. When someone in leadership projects confidence, communicates honestly, provides a strong vision and promotes a sense of belonging amongst their people, it helps inspire them to achieve more than they thought possible.

Great leaders are also very effective act setting goals for their team. Goals should be compelling, and they ought to inspire cooperation. Good goals speak to the intrinsic motivations of team members and too challenging to be achieved individually.

The ability to strategize effectively is also essential to great leadership. Good strategies are based on strong data, proven analytical methods and inputs from a diverse range of sources.

Read the whole story here.

Your Forever Home (Office)

When the COVID-19 lockdown hit, many companies shifted to a work from home model under the notion that everyone will come back to the office “when this is all over.”

However, as employees have effectively shifted through the gears of Zoom calls, collaboration tools and endless emails, companies are now taking a hard look at having their people work from home on a permanent basis. Companies are seeing productivity being maintained while looking at the possibility of reducing overhead costs.

Read the whole story here.