TLP305: How to Keep Performance High, Turnover Low, and Culture Intact

Dr. Jeb Hurley is a leading expert on leadership and team dynamics in hybrid and remote workplaces. Jeb traces his passion for helping people become better leaders and keeping team dynamics healthy to his painful experiences with toxic managers, dysfunctional teams, and low trust cultures. Over the past ten years, Jeb worked with leaders and teams in Asia and worldwide while researching leadership from a behavioral science and neuroscience perspective. He developed deep insights into the root causes of healthy and dysfunctional leader-team dynamics through that work.   As organizations have increasingly recognized the value of influencing behavior and intrinsically motivating people, Jeb shares how to develop those skills by applying behavioral science in meaningful, proven, and sustainable ways. His insights will help you see how you can improve team performance and people's wellbeing.   Key Takeaways [2:20] There are two aspects of Jeb’s background: one is living a global life and career and two is holding the second shodan in karate. He expands on how both are related to being foundational in his path. [4:30] Jan asks Jeb where he would be if he was not able to ever travel again. [6:00] We humans are just simply wired for dysfunction because of our cognitive biases. Jeb explains how that is uncovered through his team trust dynamic model. [8:55] The main reason for bad self-awareness with leaders is the lack of trust. Jeb shares how leaders can operationalize trust. [12:10] Jeb breaks down trust in both behavioral and neurobiological aspects and how trust is wired in our reward systems. [14:50] The hallmark of high-performing teams is having tremendous clarity of purpose and alignment of their values. Jeb explains its importance and how these teams reject lone wolves. [19:05] Jim poses the question of the need for disruption when things get too comfortable and how that should be handled. [20:05] The real issue is that leaders assume value and purpose and they don’t test or revisit them. It opens up the opportunity for “values creep” into areas like mediocrity. [22:05] Jeb talks about the combination of behavioral science to identify what inspires people and influence as a powerful tool in leadership. [23:50] Jeb also shares the different building blocks of empowering team purpose and values, inspiring motivation, and nudging behavior change. [25:50] Finding the human solution to problems can reap the biggest results. [27:45] Jeb shares what his motivation triangle is all about and how it can help managers understand why their people do what they do. [29:25] Humans are driven by three core psychological needs: finding purpose in what we do, developing the skills needed to realize that purpose, and having the freedom to fulfill this purpose. [32:05] Jim asks Jeb where a manager’s responsibility starts and ends in the motivation triangle. [35:40] What Jeb has learned about leadership doesn’t come from studying leadership. He shares the one thing all leaders should focus on. [38:35] The Experience/expectation dynamic defines the essence of every relationship you ever had. Jeb provides some examples to explain its impact. [41:30] Jeb tells the story of how he and his partner started their company, Brainware Partners. [45:10] One of the best practices for nudges is that it’s not about the manager but it’s about the team solving a problem together. Jeb shares that’s what he observed in high-performing teams. [46:30] Listener Challenge: Put trust in psychological safety at the core of what you do.   Quotable Quotes “Eight years in Asia makes you realize that the Western constructs of how we go about seeing, behaving, and preaching leadership is very different from what happens in other parts of the world.” “It’s typically that combination of cognitive biases and not really understanding how to operationalize trust that makes it really challenging for team leaders and team members to be consistent in delivering performance and well-being.” “It’s (trust) not all about just simple logic, there’s a strong cognitive and emotional aspects or parts of it.” “What’s important is that everybody has this very clear sense that these are the values and this is what it means to be psychologically safe in this environment. So by doing that, those teams insulate themselves from lone wolves and toxic behaviors.” “Lightning speed is just really a relative thing. People pretend to get really busy doing lots of stuff but are they doing the things that matter that actually move the needle? I would argue, not so much.” “When we empower feedback, when we empower people in ways that build trust and psychological safety, it makes a huge difference.”   Resources Mentioned Sponsored by: Grab Jeb’s books: ,