There are plenty of organizations that say they want to be “customer-focused”—but in practice? It’s easy to fall back on... more

If you’ve been on LinkedIn this past month, you’ve likely seen at least one post (or more than you’d care... more

Over the last nine years, The Ready has seen firsthand how organizations designed to be people positive (a.k.a. a foundational... more

Psychological safety is a buzzy topic every company claims to want—but only a handful actually achieve. Sometimes, it’s misunderstood as... more

While exploring bad meetings a few episodes ago, Rodney and Sam hit on something that doesn’t often get a lot... more

No burying the lede this week: Employee engagement surveys are broken. We expect them to tell us everything about a... more

We talk a lot about the importance of emergence—of being more comfortable with being uncomfortable. However, it’s hard to practice... more

It’s mailbag time! We’ve been diving into specific problem areas every episode—and turns out if you go deep, your audience... more

Planning a corporate workshop or off-site often feels like making a burrito. So many options—and so many opinions on what... more

It’s an unspoken truth in most knowledge work that summer is a wasted season. From late May to early September,... more

The world is changing faster than ever. But leadership teams seem a little… stagnant. Sure, there’s plenty of changeover as... more

It seems everybody’s up in arms about meetings these days. “There’s too many! They ones we have suck! We have... more

In the nearly five years since launching this podcast, our inbox has received one type of question more than any... more

The RACI matrix (as well its cousins DACI, DARCI, etc.) aims to neatly categorize stakeholders into roles—who’s responsible, accountable, consulted,... more

“Ask Us Anything” episodes were a Brave New Work tradition, and we knew they were going to live on in... more

For decades, traditional consulting (think “management” or “strategy” varieties now synonymous with the Big Three) has been a go-to move... more

For decades, face-to-face working has been the default way of working. Launching a new project; untangling an OS problem; updating... more

Every time something changes at work, someone’s bound to be upset. Digital transformations take resources from analog teams; restructuring a... more

Ask anyone about organizational silos and they’re bound to tell you they’re bad. When we run Tension and Practice exercises... more

You can’t throw a stone on LinkedIn without hitting at least one post about return-to-office policies. From CEOs to employees,... more

1:1s (or one-on-ones) are a ubiquitous part of our daily working lives. These two-person meetings (a manager + a direct... more

It's January! New beginnings? Ambitious plans? Giant commitments to change? They’re on everyone’s mind. Companies included—since now’s the time when... more

Whether it’s in front of clients or in front of a mic, we talk about change all day long. Having... more

In July, we began exploring what HR’s current reality looked like and how People teams could evolve into a better,... more

HR departments struggle to be all things to all stakeholders while delivering on the most strategic priorities of the business.... more

“Ask Us Anything” episodes are some of the most fun to make, so we knew we had to include one... more

Spooky season is here, so it seems fitting to share a horror story. Because there’s a monster draining time and... more

We’re living in a data-rich time. Searching for a study or report on, say, the benefits of a three-day return-to-office... more

Was it ever possible for our first AI episode to not be a two-parter? Probably not. So we’re back today... more

One midnight scroll through LinkedIn is all it takes to be overwhelmed with AI stories and hot takes. There’s a... more

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: A company hires a change agent (think anyone with “org effectiveness,” “change... more

Since last fall, we’ve spoken/joked/laughed/cried with hundreds of HR leaders and change makers about the Future of HR and the... more

The role of HR Business Partner is often a tale of two experiences. On the one hand, HRBPs are some... more

In this miniseries, Brave New Work’s Rodney Evans is joined by friend-of-the-pod and Ready OG Sam Spurlin to dive into... more

After decades of dealing with stagnant practices, burnout, and competing agendas, HR might be tempted to trade in the old... more

One of the toughest work tasks? Convince someone else to back your idea. And if you’re in HR, it’s exceptionally... more

It’s no secret things haven’t been working in HR for… a while. When you include the last few years of... more

Has it really been almost three and a half years since this wild ride of a podcast began? We’ve been... more

Sometimes, Rodney and Aaron stop by other people’s podcasts to nerd out on the hits we know and love: new... more

You didn’t think we’d do our first-ever Brave New Work live show and let you miss the party, did you?... more

Rebroadcast Note: We’re still sleeping off a taco- and margarita-filled weekend at SXSW, so we’re resurfacing one of our most... more

Rebroadcast Note: Some things never go out of style, which is why we resurface this foundational episode year after year.... more

We’re back with part two of our conversation about talent marketplaces. Last week, Rodney and Aaron explored what talent marketplaces... more

We’ve probably talked about the classic, old-school, hierarchical org chart hundreds of times on the show. Not because we love... more

We’ve all been there: trying to suss out what a colleague’s crossed arms meant during a presentation; reading between the... more

Whether your company is fully remote, fully in-person, or somewhere in-between, work in 2023 (and beyond) will require healthy and... more

Why are “Ask Us Anything” episodes our favorite ones to make? Because our listener questions are never not inspiring, provocative,... more

Emojis might seem like all fun and games—but they can also speak a thousand words about a company’s culture. If... more

There’s a lot of “Looking for a job” energy in the world right now—but interviewing can be a nerve-racking experience.... more

Work in 2022 felt…a little messy. Or a lot messy: Back-to-office ultimatums; wages not keeping up with inflation; waves of... more

Fancy clothes. Beef Wellington. Movies until midnight. We really are having lovely holiday breaks—which we’re still on! But we’d be... more

The podcast crew is taking a two-week holiday break for some R&R—but if you thought we’d say goodbye to 2022... more

Being influential sounds great, even desirable. But doing influence? That’s when alarm bells go off in our brains—because we tend... more

We won’t mince words: Layoffs suck. They heap very real stress and chaos onto very real people’s lives. And as... more

“Power.” It’s a loaded word that can conjure up feelings of negativity, fear, and general ickiness. And with good reason.... more

Sometimes, Rodney and Aaron stop by other people’s podcasts to nerd out on the hits we know and love: new... more

We’ve covered feedback before on the show, because learning how to give and receive it is a key part of... more

Picture it: Your company’s landed on an important and shiny new project and it needs a team to bring it... more

Spoiler alert: Your organization already has a Digital HQ. Because whether you’re back in an office Monday through Friday or working remotely... more

Show us a podcast that gets better questions than ours, we dare you. Listeners, you’re crushing the question game these... more

We often talk about complexity and work, but complexity is everywhere: at our schools, sports teams, churches, families… you get... more

Odds are you’ve discussed quiet quitting with your colleagues, your friends, your barista, your aunt Barbara… you get the idea.... more

[Rebroadcast note: The Ready gathers for its next retreat next week, so there’s no better time to re-air this episode... more

What exactly is OS coffee? It’s a specific meeting structure we use to explore topics related to our operating system... more

What’s going on in our brains when we have breakthroughs? Why do some of our most basic work habits and... more

[Rebreoadcast note: This episode originally aired in September 2021.] Patagonia’s purpose is clear: It’s in business to save our home planet.... more

Taking a break from work can look 1,000 different ways: You could learn how to make homemade pasta; you could... more

Where do our systems for organization and prioritization come from? How do we build discipline around new workflows? When and... more

[Rebroadcast note: This episode originally aired in July 2021.] If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a thousand times: Meetings... more

[Rebroadcast note: This episode originally aired in September 2021.] Today’s episode is a foundational survey class; we’re mapping the territory of... more

The relationship between structure and impact is an important one for organizations to explore. The same goes for social movements.... more

A big frustration we often encounter in our work concerns decision-making. Folks feel like their process is too slow; too... more

Our ears perk up when we hear about different systems practicing self-management. That was the case with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra,... more

Hey, how ya feeling? Exhausted? Stressed? Like a rubber band that’s finally snapped? Same. These days, the burnout paradigm seems... more

When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the American legal landscape instantly changed. So did the business landscape,... more

We’re coming at you with part two of the intimate conversation Rodney and Aaron cracked open last week. (Haven’t listened... more

In part one of a very special two-part episode from Brave New Work, Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan talk about…themselves.... more

Helping big systems learn how to evolve and sustain themselves; designing for long-term endurance rather than long-term liability; disrupting the... more

You keep having dope questions, so we keep offering our best answers. In this episode of Brave New Work, Aaron Dignan... more

Why does it always feel like there aren’t enough hours in the day to get work done? How did we... more

King-size is great when we’re talking about candy bars. But when it comes to designing impactful teams, we’re on team... more

The Covid-19 pandemic marked a sea change in how most people think about work. The mind-numbing norms and deeply-rooted inequities... more

We can draw connections between org design at work and org design IRL all day, every day. And today's no... more

New Belgium Brewing company has been making great beer for decades. It also decided right from the jump to design... more

Fact: We’re self-management nerds. (And if you’ve been hanging out with us for a while, you probably are, too.) We... more

This is the eleventh episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

This is the tenth episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

The past two-plus years have been defined by uncertainty and upheaval—so it’s safe to say that we’ve been having some... more

[Rebroadcast note: This episode originally aired in August 2021.] Odds are you’ve seen an article (or 20) about some company... more

It’s an open secret that many organizations’ parental leave policies in the U.S. are subpar—if they exist at all. And... more

Adopting new ways of working can come with a lot of excitement and buzz. It’s thrilling to move from having... more

Social networks aren’t new. Humans have always gathered together and forged communities. But deliberately organizing those networks around shared principles,... more

The world faces enormously complex and existential challenges. While specific solutions might feel elusive, it’s safe to say that in... more

We’ve talked a lot about action meetings on the show. And retrospectives. And governance. And strategy sessions. Maybe you’ve wondered,... more

Ask 10 different people to define sustainability and you could get 10 different answers. That’s because while more and more... more

Why can it feel tough to get people hype about self-management and the Brave New Work-ness of it all? How... more

This is the ninth episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

This is the eighth episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

This is the seventh episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

[This episode originally aired in June 2021.] With his organization Sociocracy for All, Ted Rau is helping organizations empower their... more

Have a young business or about to launch something new? This episode’s got your name on it. In today's episode... more

This is the sixth episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

This is the fifth episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

This is the fourth episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

Ready for a wake-up call? Today’s episode of Brave New Work is all about conscious leadership—a way of showing up... more

This is the third episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

This is the second episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

This is the first episode in a crossover mini-series between Brave New Work cohosts Rodney Evans and Aaron Dignan and... more

Dear awesome listeners: You’ve been asking us great questions, so it’s high time we take a stab at answering them.... more

If you won’t say it, we will: Making working agreements is dope. Doing so can give teams an equal opportunity... more

If you’re like us, you’ve binged all of Netflix’s docuseries about Formula 1 racing. And if you’re like Ready member... more

Doing the accountability dance in the world of self-management, where everyone’s balancing a different portfolio of projects and priorities, can... more

You’ve probably heard this advice before: “Find a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.”... more

Think you’ve been working from home during the pandemic? Writers Anne Helen Petersen and Charlie Warzel have news for you:... more

Believe it or not, a new year is just five days away. As we approach 2022, we’re taking a minute... more

Don’t be alarmed by the title of Ginny Hogan’s book: Toxic Femininity in the Workplace is the comedian and writer’s... more

Maybe you’re already deep into crypto, NFTs (or non-fungible tokens), and DAOs (or decentralized autonomous organizations). And maybe you only... more

You know pyramid thinking; it’s the pervasive mindset that compels us to ask, “Who’s up? Who’s down? Who’s in? Who’s... more

Wait, haven’t we already covered retreats? Yes. But if the first one explored key dos and don’ts, this one imagines... more

What is sludge? Friction. Paperwork requirements. Waiting time. Online forms filled with confusing jargon. Reduced operating hours. The tedious, arcane,... more

The workforce is changing. Millennials are turning into elder millennials and Zoomers are turning into employed adults, thus shifting the... more

We dedicate this episode to our favorite…excuses. That’s right, we’re cracking open the archive of reasons people frequently cite for... more

This might sound ominous but…we’re drowning in choices. The internet and its forever-multiplying avenues of information bombards everyone around the... more

Retailers around the country—and around the world—are facing complex challenges. One of the industry’s main reckonings: Many job openings; very... more

[Rebroadcast note: This episode originally aired in March 2020.] Our job is to keep the organization safe, right? And in order... more

Think “union” and what comes to mind? Collective agreements and community building? Power struggles and strikes? Sepia-toned photographs of early-20th... more

We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming to bring you an exciting announcement. The Ready is hiring a first-rate Market Maker,... more

Patagonia’s purpose is clear: It’s in business to save our home planet. And that clarity’s been present almost since day... more

What exactly does joy have to do with software development? If you ask Rich Sheridan, CEO and Chief Storyteller of... more

Today’s episode of Brave New Work is a foundational survey class; we’re mapping the territory of the work we do,... more

Talking about compensation at a job (a.k.a. the total pay and benefits you get in exchange for your labor) can... more

[This episode originally aired in May 2020] Most of us are working remotely. But we’re just treading water, we haven’t... more

Throughout the past year, many organizations have taken long-overdue looks in the mirror and started the hard but necessary work... more

The sit-down-and-slowly-zone-out-while-Joe-describes-50-slides type of meeting isn’t at all fun…but it is extremely common. Most work gatherings happen because someone wants... more

Odds are you’ve seen an article (or 20) about some company somewhere testing out a four-day workweek. And if you’ve... more

If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a thousand times: Meetings are the worst. Instead of being a meaningful... more

It’s a major question on many minds these days: When will the office reopen? Or rather: Will the office reopen?... more

It’s no surprise that we’re fans of self-management, and we talk a lot about its benefits and transformative potential. But... more

Say (or sigh) it with us now: burnout. As a physic state, it can be hard to precisely diagnose but... more

Instead of talking about Unicorn companies, we should be spending more of our energy on Zebras—companies that are black and... more

Let's talk about succession. No, not the show, but the concept. How do progressive, human-centric organizations deal with succession, and... more

With his organization Sociocracy for All, Ted Rau is helping organizations empower their members, and put a spotlight on equity.... more

There are elephants in the room, and then there are "Moose Heads on the Table." This book, by Lisa Gill... more

It's not a question, but a fact: the conventional legal doctrine governing the 21st century workplace is woefully far behind. In... more

In the past two weeks, Basecamp—a software company with a general track record of outspoken, progressive values—has lost a sizable... more

We're opening up the mailbag. In this episode of Brave New Work, Aaron Dignan and Rodney Evans tackle the topics... more

Kevin Kelly, the founding editor of WIRED Magazine, has spent years documenting and photographing life in the furthest corners of... more

Changing the way we work is a difficult task at a company with 150 employees. But what about one with.... more

Work is all about agreements—policies, processes, principles, goals, workflows, etc. So if you're starting a company from the ground up,... more

One of the most important aspects of organizational change and complexity is embracing fluidity. Rather than be mired in rigid... more