Dr. Ann Kowal Smith is Founder and Executive Director of Reflection Point, which facilitates story-based conversations in workplaces to foster inclusion and collaboration. Dr. Smith shares how creating environments outside of the framework of seniority creates ripples of empathy that drive lifelong learning.
More about our guest:
Dr. Ann Kowal Smith serves as Founder & Executive Director of Reflection Point. Reflection Point facilitates story-based conversations that deepen the quality of relationships and foster inclusion and collaboration at every level of the workplace. Ann has also served as Principal with Heidrick & Struggles International and Strategy Expert with McKinsey & Company. Prior to joining McKinsey, Ann practiced corporate and securities law in private and corporate settings. Ann earned her AB from Bryn Mawr College, her MA from the University of Michigan, and both her JD and DBA from Case Western Reserve University. Her dissertation examined organizational learning and innovation.
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Episode Guide:
0:00 - Intro
1:25 - What Is Innovation?
3:23 - Enabled by a Web of Social Networks
4:17 - The HUMAN social network
5:08 - Corporate ladders and disconnect
8:31 - Generalists vs Specialists
9:51 - Are we over-specializing?
10:56 - Establishing a common language: Specialists and Generalists
11:41 - What is Reflection Point?
16:22 - Technically inclined employees in Reflection Point environment
19:19 - Changing a leaders' comfort level of communication
23:51 - Empathy for people and not things
25:20 - Empathy: A driver
26:32 - Garnering insights through the years
28:03 - Reflection Point: The Origin
28:49 - Lifelong learning
32:22 - Hard and Soft Skills: Visible and Invisible
35:08 - Collective Sport: Immersive and Ongoing
37:17 - Effective Service: Iterative process
38:17 - Advice for Innovators
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OUTLAST Consulting offers professional development and strategic advisory services in the areas of innovation and diversity management.
