"High self-worth leaders want to create environments where everyone can flourish. Low self-worth leaders create environments that control people. So, if they're willing to work on their self-worth… we can build a democratic company in a Democratic Leadership style… seeing how employees feel differently when they work in a WorldBlu certified freedom-centered company, because suddenly they're seen. They're treated with dignity. They're treated with respect. They're treated as a person who has worth."

S03E02 of the Rethink Culture podcast shines the spotlight on Traci Fenton, a celebrated keynote speaker, coach, and author of Freedom at Work. Traci is the founder and CEO of WorldBlu, a well-known leadership, culture, training, and certification company dedicated to transforming leadership and workplace culture through freedom-centered principles. Recognized by Inc. magazine as a Top 50 Leadership Thinker and a recipient of the prestigious Thinkers50 Radar award, Traci founded WorldBlu during her senior year in college, with the vision of empowering 1 billion people to work in freedom-centered organizations. WorldBlu has already impacted 1.25 million people by training and certifying companies to foster cultures of democracy and freedom in the workplace.

In this episode, Traci dives deep into her experiences with organizational democracy and her personal journey of discovering the importance of freedom at work. She discusses the Freedom at Work Scorecard, a unique tool that measures the level of freedom and democracy within companies and offers practical advice on how leaders can build environments where both individuals and the team thrive. She also shares insights on the link between self-worth, knowing your inherent value, and leadership, and how businesses can foster a culture that balances individual empowerment with collective success.

The podcast is produced by Rethink Culture (rethinkculture.co). Our Culture Health Check helps you turn your culture into a competitive advantage, with data.

Production, video, and audio editing by Evangelia Alexaki of Musicove Productions.

Listen to this episode to discover:
• Traci’s college experience that sparked her passion for organizational democracy.
• Her eye-opening experience in Indonesia and the impact of witnessing a lack of freedom.
• Why organizational democracy is important.
• How cultural influences shape leadership styles.
• The Power Question Practice for overcoming fear.
• The importance of hiring people with high self-worth.
• How to foster a world where everyone lives, leads, and works in freedom, not fear.
• The Freedom at Work framework for building freedom-centered cultures.
• Measuring and improving organizational democracy with the Freedom at Work Scorecard.

Further resources:
• Traci Fenton’s LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tracilfenton/
• WorldBlu website: https://www.worldblu.com/
• Freedom at Work: The Leadership Strategy for Transforming Your Life, Your Organization, and Our World, by Traci Fenton: https://www.amazon.com/Freedom-Work-Leadership-Transforming-Organization/dp/1953295495

"I present a vision of the world the way it was meant to be… As we come together in organizations, we need leaders who know how to be good stewards of the people who join this organization, and we send them home fulfilled each night, which will create better families, heal the brokenness we're seeing in our communities… We could heal the brokenness in the world, if we had leaders who had the skills and courage to care."

S03E01 of the Rethink Culture podcast shines the spotlight on Bob Chapman, Chairman & CEO of Barry-Wehmiller. Under Bob's leadership, Barry-Wehmiller has transformed from a struggling $20 million business into a $3 billion global company with over 12,000 team members. His unique approach, rooted in people-centric leadership, has driven over 130 acquisitions while focusing on improving lives—not just for customers, but for employees too. Beyond his business role, Bob founded the Chapman & Co. Leadership Institute, emphasizing leadership training and cultural transformation. He's also the co-author of Everybody Matters and the newly released The Journey of Leadership, which explores servant leadership and building happier workplaces.

In this thought-provoking conversation, Bob Chapman redefines leadership with a powerful message: it's not about profits, it's about people. He highlights how traditional leadership often overlooks teaching leaders to care, instead focusing on using people for success. At Barry-Wehmiller, Bob flips the script, championing a culture where "The People are our Purpose." By seeing every employee as someone's precious child, he creates a workplace where people feel valued. The result? A thriving company that measures success by the impact on lives. Bob’s insights will challenge you to rethink what true leadership looks like.

The podcast is produced by Rethink Culture (rethinkculture.co). Our Culture Health Check helps you turn your culture into a competitive advantage, with data.

Production, video, and audio editing by Evangelia Alexaki of Musicove Productions.

Listen to this episode to discover:
• Bob Chapman’s revelations about the positive impact business can have on the world.
• Why leaders were not taught to care for the people they’re leading, and how they can start.
• How to shift from management to human-centered leadership.
• The importance of showing pride in your employees and addressing their needs with compassion.
• How to balance people, purpose, and performance equally.
• Why creating both human and economic value matters.
• The power of courageous patience and healing the poverty of dignity.
• If business is more like a family or a sports team.
• Whether Barry-Wehmiller's culture or business model is what drives its success.
• How the way we see people affects the way we treat them, and in turn their performance.

Further resources:
• Truly Human Leadership: https://www.barrywehmiller.com/blog
• Chapman & Co. Leadership Institute: https://www.ccoleadership.com/
• Humanistic Leadership Academy: https://humanisticleadershipacademy.org/
• Everybody Matters: The Extraordinary Power of Caring for Your People Like Family, by Bob Chapman and Raj Sisodia: https://www.amazon.com/Everybody-Matters-Extraordinary-Caring-People/dp/1591847796
• Bob Chapman – Truly human leadership – TEDxScottAFB: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01NQZrWIXno
• Impressions of Truly Human Leadership: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVyQ_IuzuKA

"I learned a very hard lesson in my early twenties when I was running my painting business. I had a lot of my painters quit partway through the summer and I didn't understand why they were quitting on me… I was dictating. I wasn't inspiring them. I wasn't sharing my vision with them or my goals. I wasn't treating them like teammates. I was being a dictator. And my dad said to me, Kristi, people are priority. If you don't have a great team of people, you've got nothing. So make people your priority. And so I would whisper in the ear to anyone, people are priority and play is powerful. Make people priority by having some fun with some play and because it's powerful, you'll get back a lot of value from doing so."

S02E01 of the Rethink Culture podcast shines the spotlight on Kristi Herold, the founder and CEO of JAM. JAM is a company that has brought the joy of play to millions of people at work through more than 4,000 corporate events across 30+ countries. JAM has been recognized with Canada's Most Admired Culture Award, while its founder, Kristi Herold, has been named one of Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women.

Kristi is the best-selling author of the book It Pays to Play. Driven by a vision to engage one million people in play annually, Kristi’s passion for fun extends beyond her business. In her 40s, she taught herself to play the guitar so she could sing along, and she loves to engage in various playful activities, from card games to theatre to singing. Kristi's mission is connecting people through play, and she shares with us her insights on why prioritizing people and incorporating play into the workplace can enhance team cohesion, employee satisfaction, and overall productivity.

The podcast is produced by Rethink Culture (rethinkculture.co). Our Culture Health Check helps you turn your culture into a competitive advantage, with data.

Production, video, and audio editing by Evangelia Alexaki of Musicove Productions.

Listen to this episode to find out:
• How JAM became a workplace where thousands of friendships, marriages, and business relationships have flourished.
• What are the benefits of prioritizing people and integrating play into the workplace.
• Why the first day at work should be a memorable and engaging experience.
• How play fosters meaningful interactions, creativity, friendship, as well as trust and vulnerability.
• If play is suitable for your business, even if it is a serious institution.
• How JAM incorporates playful aspects into the interview process.
• Why Kristi prioritizes hiring for cultural complement over culture fit.
• Why cutting play during the pandemic was detrimental to JAM's employee performance.
• Why Kristi prefers to hire people with workplace experience that can appreciate the culture at JAM.

Further resources:
• Kristi's website: https://www.kristiherold.com/
• Kristi's book offer for our listeners: https://www.kristiherold.com/rethink25/
• Kristi's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristi-herold/
• JAM website: https://jamgroup.com/
• It Pays to PLAY: How Play Improves Business Culture, by Kristi Herold: https://www.amazon.com/Pays-PLAY-Improves-Business-Culture/dp/1544536224