by Kristen Ireland | Jun 22, 2026 | Company Culture, Feedback, Leadership
We’ll do a lot to avoid one honest conversation — so why is that? When people find out what I do for a living, the question comes fast. “Hey, can I ask you something? How would you handle this?” Out comes the story. An...
by Kristen Ireland | May 29, 2026 | Feedback, Leadership
Slips in employee engagement don’t show up randomly. They show up during your busiest seasons and that’s not a coincidence. Why Busy Season Is the Danger Zone for Engagement Think about what happens to your...
by Kristen Ireland | Sep 3, 2024 | Company Culture, Feedback, Hire and Keep the Right People, Leadership
We developed the People + Strategy Roadmap to identify areas of misalignment that curb our clients’ business success. An important aspect of this process is ensuring business systems truly support and square with the big-picture goals of the company. One area of...
by Kristen Ireland | Dec 5, 2023 | Feedback
Admit it: We all dread the annual performance review. Whether you’re the reviewer or the reviewee, the process typically feels as personal and inspiring as a mandatory ten-point car inspection. Starts on time? Check. Performs reliably? Check. Battery sufficiently...
by Kristen Ireland | May 2, 2023 | Feedback, Leadership
A few weeks ago, I was doing one of my favorite things: facilitating a two-day leadership development course for a client. During the session, I handed each participant one of our favorite resources, a bookmark featuring People Spark’s “Top 10 Phrases Every Manager...
by Kristen Ireland | Nov 1, 2022 | Company Culture, Feedback
Sometimes—okay, a lot of the time—we don’t say thank you enough. When we work with leaders and managers, we hear various explanations for this oversight: “Why should I thank someone for doing their job? I’m not here to hand out participation trophies.” “I’m so busy...
