Shows
Stop Blaming AvocadosBecoming Unlimited: Rebuilding Systems That Weren't Built for UsSeason 1 Episode Finale: Why are most leadership books written by white men? Eugina Jordan read nearly 50 leadership books during COVID and of those books, only 3 of them were written by a woman or person of color. As an immigrant woman herself and leader in the Telecomm industry, Eugina decided she needed to do something about it. So, she wrote and published a leadership book (linked below.) Why? Well, for one, a need for greater representation. On the other hand, and very important to consider: Leadership books written by...2023-08-1652 min
Mental Health @ WorkMental Health and Startups: Building Communities and Better Work Culture with Chava Vietze, Experience Design, Strategist, and Founder of Stop Blaming Avocados.Building Awareness around Mental Health and Work Cultures. How do we Design better, Strategize better and think about people centric cultures? How can we make companies profitable even with focusing on employees?
Disclaimer:
This podcast is for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical or mental health advice. If you are experiencing mental health symptoms, please consult a healthcare professional.
The information presented in this podcast is based on the experience and opinions of the hosts and guests. It is not intended to be a comprehensive or...2023-08-111h 01
Stop Blaming AvocadosDiversity and Success: Your Difference is Your PowerHumans want to fit in. We want to be included. Perhaps it is human nature, the need to be a part of the group. And when it comes to success, assimilating yourself has often been a part of survival. However, navigating the world looks different for marginalized groups. Homogenous groups are continuously trying to show why they are different, to stand out from the group... while marginalized groups are trying to find ways that they can fit in.Though, we are also told to bring our authentic selves to work, to "just be you". But for those w...2023-08-091h 07
Stop Blaming AvocadosThe Pivot: Defining Your Values and Finding Your FireHave you ever experienced something in life so incredibly substantial and life-changing that it led you to reevaluate your why? Many have, many will, and many currently are. We lived through a world pandemic. We're fighting for equal human rights. We're going through market shifts. These events, plus so many others, are influential in history but more specifically, impact us personally. Domenique Rice is an activist, a laid back California transplant savvy, Brooklyn Girl, wine and liquor sales guru, DEIB advocate, incredible mother of five, and she is an unapologetic truth teller.2023-07-191h 00
Stop Blaming AvocadosResponsible Artificial Intelligence: Democratizing AI Education and Building for EquityLori Mazor is the CEO and Founder of Synthetivity, an innovative company at the leading edge of executive education, specializing in training professionals on the transformative applications and implications of Generative AI (artificial intelligence) in various industry sectors. Synthetivity is a part of her fourth complete career transformation and is paving her path in Artificial Intelligence as an advocate for inclusive and responsible AI and as an educator, guiding organizations towards a future of creativity, collaboration, and growth with Generative AI.Artificial intelligence (AI) is and can be an extraordinary technology, allowing us to be...2023-07-051h 04
Stop Blaming AvocadosWhat's Success?: Understanding Our Conditioning and Creating RitualKatharine Smith, MA, CPCC, ACC is an Organizational Psychologist and Executive Coach. She has a unique approach to helping her clients prioritize their higher purpose, avoid burnout, redesign their relationship with work, and phase out fear-based cultures. Katharine and Chava dive into the conversation that really blossomed from a catch up where they were discussing "well what the heck is success?" In this episode, you'll learn about:how our unique conditioning throughout our lives requires well, unique solutions. how to start "editing" your career and making decisions of what to carry with you and what to le...2023-06-2858 min
Stop Blaming AvocadosFounder Journey: Leaning into Vulnerability and Building CommunitySara Chandran is the Founder of Fresh and Fearless, a consultancy that helps organizations build brave initiatives to create a workplace that is inclusive for all.Sara is an empathetic, people-first leader and change-maker. Throughout our episode, Sara gets real about the founder journey - the joys and the difficulties. She'll share how her personal experiences, including loss, grief, and redundancy, have helped inform the type of organization that she is building - one that supports its people (its employees) both personally and professionally, and one that champions vulnerability and celebrates diversity. We discuss the...2023-06-151h 19
Stop Blaming AvocadosAdvocacy: The Fight for Bereavement Support and Stillbirth PreventionDid you know that stillbirth is still very prevalent today, that it is often preventable, and that the U.S. falls well behind other first-world countries in stillbirth prevention and research? For most, the answer is no. We continue to fail pregnant people and families. Elizabeth O'Donnell, the Founder of Aaliyah in Action and Co-Director of Awareness for PUSH for Empowered Pregnancy is trying to change that. Through her work she is support pregnant people and families at all stages. Through PUSH for Empowered Pregnancy, she and her colleagues are working tirelessly to end preventable stillbirth. And...2023-06-081h 07
Stop Blaming AvocadosAAPI+ Month: Busting the Model Minority MythMay is AAPI+ Month (Asian American and Pacific Islander + Month). During this month, we celebrate, commemorate, and honor the accomplishments and contributions of Asian Americans throughout history. This is also a time that we can discuss and bring more awareness to the continuous work that still needs to be done to create more equity in our world. In this week’s episode, I am joined by Kim “Kimfer” Flanders-Rye, Founder of Inclusion Equals for a discussion on busting the “model minority myth”. Key takeaways from our discussion include: Defining what is the model minority myth and where/when...2023-05-031h 11
Stop Blaming AvocadosMental Health Support in the Workplace: Whose Responsibility Is It Anyway?Over and over we are seeing articles talking about mental health in the workplace. Finally, it's starting to take center stage! The importance of caring for one's mental health and the immense influence that work has on our mental health. Still, we continue to see burnout, unhealthy work environments, and teams unequipped to manage the stress that we endure. So whose responsibility is it anyway? Who should support employees mental health and wellbeing? In this episode, Chris Henrichs, Cofounder and Head of Partnerships at Boon Health, joins me to discuss the role of...2023-04-2654 min
Stop Blaming AvocadosLet the Adults Play: How Integrating Play Leads to Transformative SuccessAcey Holmes is a play advocate and enabler and the founder of BoredLess. She wants adults to engage in more play and thinks that they deserve more play. But why and what does that mean? As a former speech and language pathologist, Acey has decades of experience studying the effects of play and flow on the brain and behavior. Her passion for empowering adults to rediscover the joy of play has led to transformative success for both individuals and organizations. In this episode, Acey joins me to discuss what is play, what it isn't (hint...2023-04-191h 17
Stop Blaming AvocadosA Case for Generalists: A Multi-directional Conversation on Embracing the Path of a GeneralistLech calls himself a "cultural square peg". What is that? I mean literally, it's that he doesn't fit into the typical "mold" in traditional organizational practices that pigeon-hole people. Lech is a generalist. Guess what? So is your host, Chava. This fun conversation will go in a few different directions, but if you can stay with us, we hope you'll walk away with at least one or two key take aways. The term "generalist" hasn't yet been fully embraced. But it isn't a dirty word and it isn't a bad thing either. In fact, in this episode...2023-04-051h 05
Stop Blaming AvocadosBravery and Confidence: Empowering From Within to Evolve Organizational CultureThroughout her career, Shandia Drummond-Butt has remained rooted in her values and the concept that “if this is the place for me, then it will be for me. If it’s not, then I’m going to find the right place.” Shandi is the Director of People and Culture at IMPACT and she’s found that by leaning into her courageous voice, she’s been able to build a career that she is passionate about while creating supportive environments that not only she can thrive in, but that her colleagues can thrive in. Our conversation is both inspiring and...2023-03-2953 min
Stop Blaming AvocadosSuperpowers: Reframing Soft Skills and Leaning Into Your Natural AbilitiesCarrie Allen (founder of The Human Array) joins Chava Vietze to discuss truly how powerful "power skills" (formerly known as soft skills) are. We discuss:How to embrace your power skills and how to lean into them while acknowledging your areas of improvementHow to embrace other people's power skills to do amazing work together Why language is so important and how we use it to talk to ourselves and our colleaguesHow leaders can better help to better empower people and Carrie's take on one of the top things holding leaders back from progressCarrie Allen is the f...2023-03-1554 min
Stop Blaming AvocadosFlow: Discovering your non-negotiables to help you find your state of flowWe all want to feel good and that takes continuous work overtime. Life will ebb and flow and external factors can be intruding. But you are worth investing in. Your wellbeing is worth investing in. Teresa Clark joins Chava Vietze to understand how we can meet ourselves exactly where we are right now and how we can find our flow with our own wellbeing. These skills will evolve overtime as we evolve. Listen to hear anecdotes from Teresa and Chava about how they each have worked to find their flow, how we can develop habits to help u...2023-03-081h 05
Stop Blaming AvocadosWork, Work, Work: Creating Fulfillment and Evolving How We View WorkPeople Leader? Candidate? Manager? IC? Wherever you fall, you'll likely find at least one takeaway from my conversation with Lia James, founder and CEO of & Human. Lia is a executive coach, facilitator, career designer, and part-time woodworking (you'll learn about that toward the end of our episode.) In this episode, we discuss... Generational differences and similarities between Gen-Xers, Millennials, and Gen-Zers. How you can combine your passions and interests into your work (but hint, that doesn't mean if you love flowers you need to go become a florist). How work is evolving to meet the needs and...2023-03-011h 05
Stop Blaming AvocadosWage Justice: Building Equity in the Non Profit WorldAnu Menon is the Executive Director of Oasis for Girls, a non-profit based in San Francisco focused on empowering girls and supporting them with resources to enact equitable, inclusive change. Anu's career has been rooted in a passion and desire to help heal the world's problems. In this week's episode, Anu and Chava discuss wage justice with a focus on the non-profit sector where there's a stigma that to do non-profit work, folks have to accept that they will earn below market-rate wages while they're doing pivotal, life-changing work for their communities. Anu shares success she's had...2023-02-1547 min
Stop Blaming AvocadosDEI: We're done with performative Diversity, Equity, and InclusionKristen Bakalar is a workplace innovator and diversity advocate and she’s tired of performative diversity, equity, inclusive “initiatives”. Our conversation gets real about the work that needs to be done still and touches on what is going well across industries. You’ll learn a ton and I’m hoping you’ll walk away as inspired as I was to help continue to improve our workplaces. Follow us at @stopblamingavocados on Instagram. 2023-02-0253 min
Stop Blaming AvocadosFounder Story: The New Era of Cultivating Social ChangeCatharine Montgomery is the founder of Better Together, a VC-funded, purpose-driven, Black and woman-founded, Public Relations and Communications agency. In this episode, Catharine shares her founder journey, which was the result of a culmination of her impressive career, taking a chance on a Slack message, and a ton of hard work. She celebrates her highs and highlights her support system helping to get her through the lows. Listen to learn more about how Better Together plans to influence and support social change, an inside look at Catharine's journey as a founder, along with learning about purpose-driven work and a...2023-01-2638 min
Stop Blaming AvocadosLayoffs: They suck, but we can do betterLayoffs suck. And most of us will go through at least one layoff in our lifetime. But why is it that nearly every time layoffs are done they're done so with an archaic playbook? Kelly Ceynowa joins Chava to throw away the 40-year-old playbook and discuss what it means to look at layoffs through a new lens. Will it take creativity? Absolutely. Listen to learn where you can start, how these recommendations can work for both private and public companies, how to flip the table on how layoffs are done, and so much more. 2023-01-1847 min
Stop Blaming AvocadosChronic Stress: Break the Cycle with Integrative WellnessOn this episode, Chava is joined by Cindy Tsai, MD, the award winning, board certified internal medicine physician, TEDx speaker, and best-selling author to discuss: Breaking the cycle of chronic stress and approaching our health with integrative wellness. After experiencing the health implications that chronic stress can have on the body, Cindy set out to change how we approach our own health. Listen to learn practical approaches to transforming stress into strength. Cindy's book mentioned in the episode can be purchased here. Follow us at @stopblamingavocados on Instagram. 2023-01-1147 min
Stop Blaming AvocadosTrailer: Why are we blaming avocados?Welcome to Stop Blaming Avocados, hosted by Chava Vietze. Throughout episodes, Chava speaks with guests from many walks of life hoping to elevate their voices and their stories. Stop Blaming Avocados was created to break from "tradition", have thoughtful conversation about human-first work and inspire a more human-first approach to life, community, and organization.Don't forget to hit the subscribe button so you don't miss out on upcoming episodes!About the host: Chava is a people-first advocate, problem solver, dot connector, and creative strategist. She's worked in startups, people experience, and the tech industry for...2023-01-0402 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastAn open conversation about compensation structures and philosophiesOur guest, Erin McCann, has been a part of multiple fast growing startups where she's helped People Ops start from scratch and shaped processes. Over the course of our episode, you'll learn about her windy-road journey into People Ops and everything that growing organizations should be considering when it comes to setting up compensation structures and strategies at their orgs. Not a decision maker? Currently employed folks and candidates searching for roles alike have an opportunity to learn about all the different facets of compensation packages and even questions that you might consider asking potential or current...2022-07-0657 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastWant to be a CPO when you grow up?In this episode, Billy Moyer, Human Capital Thought Leader, joins us to talk about the when, why, and how on developing the role of Chief People Officer at organizations. We'll talk about his work partnering with CEOs and C-level executives on developing organizational culture and when is the sweet spot to bring in a People Leader. Along with diving deeper into Billy's work, you'll learn more how to identify: Who should be responsible for focusing on People from Day 1 of a businessWhy you need someone focused on understanding People from the inception of your business When to...2022-06-081h 00
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastThe evolving employee-value proposition: being an activist for your people and empowering working-parents"Take your judgment out of your policies." says our guest, Lorraine Vargas Townsend, People and Culture Executive and Chief People Officer at ESO. In this week's episode, our conversation starts with discussing how organizations should be supporting working-parents and over our time together progresses into discussing the changing employee-value proposition, what it means to truly listen to your people, how "HR" has progressed over time, how employees can become empowered, AND more. This is a must-listen episode with takeaways that are extremely thought provoking, whether you are an IC facing challenges in your own worklife, a...2022-06-0757 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastThe Concept of "Work from Here": Making hybrid work environments work for everyonePivot. Experiment. Try something new. Get comfortable with the uncomfortable. This is something that our guest, Tushar Pandit, knows quite well. Tushar is a People Experience and HR Leader with over 20 years of experience across a variety of industries. He is the former CPO of Affinitiv and helped lead the organization as they navigated the rapidly changing work environment and the COVID pandemic. The team worked tirelessly to put employee health and safety first and that was the driving force in all decisions that they made. In our conversation, you'll learn how A...2022-05-2450 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastOut with the old, in with the new: A better way to recruit"The old normal is dead. It's not coming back. Stop trying to get it back." - Trav WalkowskiIn this week's episode, People Ops leader Trav joins us for a reality check. Candidates and employees have taken back their power. They no longer will stand to be overworked or under appreciated and won't work under poor conditions. They want flexibility and healthy work environments and they're willing to go out an find it. In our episode, you'll hear Trav's take on what's going on in the talent world, how he has worked with...2022-05-1732 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastCreating a Holistic Coaching Culture: The what, how, and why with CPO, Rebecca WaitsEarlier this year, we had the chance to meet with Rebecca Waits, Chief People Officer, and Chief Coach, of SierraConstellation Partners. Rebecca's role supports business growth and transformation. And how does she do that? By being an ally and supporting her people first and foremost. You'll learn from Rebecca how to foster a coaching culture at your organization. Not sure what a coaching culture is? You'll learn about that, too. 2022-05-1132 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastWant an inclusive culture? Kristen Bakalar says start with an invitationOn this week's episode, Kristen Bakalar, joins us to advocate that organizations focus on creating inviting cultures, which are proactive and deliberate. We'll learn how to truly create an inclusive culture you first start with an invitation. About our guest: Kristen Bakalar is a workplace innovator and a diversity advocater. She runs her own consulting practice, where she specializes in what she calls "the fun part of HR", which includes: culture, DEIB, leadership development, talent management, career movement, and more.2022-05-0339 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastCandidate Experience: Tales of the optimal candidate experience and continuous growthOn this episode, we invite Chief People Officer, BJ Johnston to discuss his experiences over his career, how that has shaped his leadership style, and what is important to consider when designing the ideal candidate experience. BJ Johnston has had an incredible journey. He worked as the Senior Leader of Air Operations & Professional Military Education in the United States Air Force which led him to a variety of additional leadership experiences over his career including roles at the Washington Post and Bloomberg. He is now the Chief People Officer at Objective Area Solutions, an aviation consultancy with a focus...2022-04-2637 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastLeading multicultural organizations: Embracing differences, owning vulnerability, and navigating changeChief People Officer Loren Rosario-Maldonado joins us to discuss what it takes to lead multi-national and multi-cultural organizations through the constantly changing world and work environment, and, thought-provoking suggestions to leaders on key areas of self-development to consider. 2022-04-1941 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastPets and Vets: Managing mental health and burnout in the veterinary industryMaureen Joseph was the first hire at GoodVets as their Chief People Officer. If you ask Maureen, she'll tell you she's a coach and advisor first and foremost. We know that mental health and burnout are top of our concerns across many industries, especially in the past few years amidst a global health crisis and other humanitarian crises... But mental health and burnout have been long-standing issues in the veterinary industry. Maureen is working to tackle improving mental health and burnout from many different angles --- including a strategy to remove the stigma that exists around talking about mental...2022-04-1242 min
Pep Talks: The People Experience PodcastComing Soon: Human-first leadership, people leaders, and our whyOn this trailer episode, you will meet your host, Chava Vietze, ChangeEngine's Head of Content and Community and two of the founders of ChangeEngine, Andrew Higashi and Gaurav Saini. Here at ChangeEngine, we're building the next big workplace tech solution and paving the way for the future of work! As a part of that, we want to create a community of knowledge sharing and uplift voices of those trying to make a difference. So listen in for a sneak peak to our upcoming conversations with People leaders!2022-04-0511 min
Skimm ThisSkimm Special, Part 2: COVID, Women, and Their WalletsOver the last few months, most of us have faced some sort of COVID-related lifestyle changes that have disrupted our everyday norms. On today’s Skimm Special, brought to you in partnership with Northwestern Mutual, we’ll hear from a Skimm’r whose job disappeared as the US economy slid into a recession earlier this year … just weeks after she signed an expensive new lease. Making ends meet hasn’t been easy, but she’s still optimistic and hopes more education or even entrepreneurship could be on the horizon. Whether it’s revisiting our budgets or prio...2020-10-0512 min
EMPATHY EVERYWHEREE03 - Empathy in the WorkplaceHost Victoria Ferguson continues the dialoge with Chava Vietze from 'E02 - Empathy Through the Lens of Compassion' to 'E03 - Empathy in the Workplace' discussing Leadership from a compassionate/human first point of view, How to leave a better imprint in business by implementing mental health awareness/structures in the workplace & working on actions over reactions.*Chava is a start-up consultant with years of experience in tech who spent the last year exploring psychology, mental health, & mentoring. Her mission is to increase diversity & inclusion with an empathy-driven perspective in historically white & male dominated industries such as...2020-09-2335 min
EMPATHY EVERYWHEREE02 - Empathy Through the Lens of CompassionHost Victoria Ferguson is joined by Chava Vietze, who is a start-up consultant with years of experience in tech who spent the last year exploring psychology, mental health, & mentoring. Her mission is to increase diversity & inclusion with an empathy-driven perspective in historically white & male-dominated industries such as tech, VC, & start-ups. They'll be bringing awareness to everyday feelings/emotions on a larger scale, addressing the ability to grow from not only our own experiences but also through others, Why sharing our stories matters & helps others grow, & Tracking/Being conscious of our growth. Chava will also be joining us on E03...2020-09-1632 min