As IT professionals, we often hear and and even use the phrase, “People, Process then Technology,” when it comes to any type of transformation — digital or otherwise. Yet, so often, technology is the first change implemented, far sooner than examining the process. Thomas West, self-titled “improvement nerd,” and Co-Founder of Green Dot Consulting Group, joins us on this episode to geek out over all things process improvement and dare we say…even make it fun. Tom brings a very practical, human centered approach to the HOW and the WHY behind his philosophies; shunning the ideas of blame or shame and shifting the mindset of what success looks like. Tom discusses with Jeff Ton seemingly small steps that make a really big impact towards change, key indicators of success, and where teams often fall short or find the greatest challenges.
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After years of trying to lead individuals through change by telling people what to do, how to do it, and why to do it, Tom received feedback that shook his world. He realized he was doing it all wrong. Although the teams he led were getting results, one thing was obvious, they weren’t having fun and there was no passion.
After commiting to starting with why and helping people to experience joy at work, Tom has been blessed to see transformational change happen at the individual level and organizational level. As Tom puts it, “change is a personal decision to do something different.”
Tom shares that he is completely addicted to seeing the lightbulb go off in people’s heads when they realized they have had the answer all along. It was just buried beneath a bad process and a lack of tools and supportive culture to bring the idea forward. In Tom’s experience, empowering people to share their ideas and to get behind other people’s ideas is the secret sauce to organizations achieving breakthrough outcomes. In organizations where the best idea wins, good things happen for everyone involved. It all starts with giving people the tools, the skills, and the confidence they need to make and lead change.
To learn more please visit www.thegreendotgroup.com
