Ally

What made Netflix as successful as they are? Erin Meyer touches on different aspects, one: people who are working at Netflix want to learn, to grow, to make a difference. That means that the intrinsic motivation is high. And as she points out, we still in the "post-industrialization" mentality: processes to produce. But now more and more businesses are emerging that need innovation. And Freedom is the Key to success. This is in alignment with all that creativity science says. Creativity is a process of creating, of courage, of experimentation, its FUN for the brain- Take a page out of Netflix playbook people #erinmeyer #culture #hr #innovation

Leadership, Change & People at the Center | Daniele Miele. Team Lead Tech at Bonial Germany -  Interview In this conversation, Daniele Miele, a team lead with a deep passion for software development, shares his leadership philosophy—where people are at the center. With Mel Lang and Sabrina Hauptman he talks about: ✅ Balancing persistence and flexibility in leadership ✅ How to motivate people beyond their comfort zone ✅ The role of explicit vs. implicit expectations in teams ✅ Why leadership is about shaping culture every day ✅ What he thinks every Leader need to know  "Set high standards—never accept mediocrity from your leader." Daniele reflects on his journey as a leader, the importance of deep thinking, and the courage it takes to stand up for your team—even when it creates tension with the system. https://lnkd.in/dWKn3pWg #leadershipintech #agilecoaching #teams #culture #hr

Our clients include employees, team leads, and individual contributors. What might happen if you develop agile coaches and HR/ people products and services like a Product Team? Instead of starting with the solution you are in love with (the training, the Innovation Days, the Meeting Rules, ..) you start by exploring and empathizing with the actual client which are the employees! 💖 This approach actually solves peoples problems and meets their needs much more efficiant than trying to "sell" them a solution This is how we do it 🎙️ We start with a question and invite people to participate in user interviews to explore their needs, desires, and pain points. 🧠 From there, we craft a point of view, a problem statement, and an opportunity statement. 💡 This forms the foundation for the brainstorming and ideation phase, where a diverse group from across the company or department collaborates. We share insights and personas to ensure ideas are deeply rooted in user needs. Once we have a range of ideas, 🤖 we assess, prioritize, prototype, and test to validate the solution ideas. We'll - thats product development with Design Thinking! #designthinking #hr #agilecoaches IDEO

Feedback is a big deal- a skills needed across the workforce. Yet, it often triggers defensiveness, frustration, or avoidance. Why? Because our brains are wired to protect us from perceived threats—even words. At Ally we're rebranding feedback by integrating modern psychology and neuroscience-backed tools. One powerful framework we use is The Gottman Institute “Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse”—common destructive communication patterns that show up in conflicts, feedback situations, and even self-talk. The Four Horsemen & Their Antidotes 1️⃣ Criticism 2️⃣ Defensiveness 3️⃣ Contempt 4️⃣ Stonewalling When we recognize these patterns in ourselves and others, we can consciously shift toward constructive communication—turning feedback from a battlefield into a tool for growth. 🧐 Curious which of these shows up in your reactions to feedback? Check out our post to do a quick self-assessment & start transforming the way you give and receive feedback. #Leadership #FeedbackCulture #PersonalGrowth #Communication #Coaching #SelfAwareness #GottmanMethod

The “soft” skills are the hardest… …and they outlast any tech innovation. In working with teams, one truth stands out: success isn’t just about tools or frameworks—it’s about how we communicate, collaborate, and navigate change. Here are key work-relevant life skills: 🗣 Communication – Words shape reality. Listening, expressing, and understanding others are game-changers. ⚡ Fighting Right & Repairing – Conflict is normal. Knowing how to debate constructively and repair builds stronger teams. 💡 Sharing Ideas – Protecting ideas is natural, but growth happens when we invite collaboration. "Yes, and…" > "But…" 🤝 Relationships & Community – Work isn’t just tasks; it’s people. Strong connections create resilient teams. 🌏 Cultural Awareness – Culture evolves. Understanding different perspectives makes teams stronger. 🪞 Self-Awareness & Emotional Intelligence – Growth starts within. Knowing our emotions helps us manage them. 🛡 Resilience & Psychological Flexibility – High performance isn’t constant pressure—it’s sustainable energy and adaptability. 🎭 Play – Not just for kids. Play sparks creativity, connection, and joy. We love The Gottman Institute - Fight right and repair #estherperell and Culture Amp #ErinMeyer "Culture Map" #DesignThinking #Feedback #agilecoaching

Our clients include employees, team leads, and individual contributors. We develop products the same way we train teams— by applying Design Thinking! Too often, agile coaches approach teams with a predefined product or service and try to sell it or simply implement it. We take a different approach. 🎙️ We start with a question and invite people to participate in user interviews to explore their needs, desires, and pain points. 🧠 From there, we craft a point of view, a problem statement, and an opportunity statement. 💡 This forms the foundation for the brainstorming and ideation phase, where a diverse group from across the company or department collaborates. We share insights and personas to ensure ideas are deeply rooted in user needs. Once we have a range of ideas, 🤖 we assess, prioritize, prototype, and test to validate the solution ideas. We'll - thats product development with Design Thinking! #designthinking #hr #agilecoaches #timbrown IDEO Stanford University

We work with Leaders, and why started interviewing them! Mel Lang and Sabrina Hauptman asked Bonial Germany Tech Team Lead Daniele questions around his Leadership Philosophy, how he manages expectations, the role of vulnerability and more. Ally: What is your philosophy about leadership? What principles do you rely on? Daniele Miele: I fully recognize myself in Bonial Germany principles, but lately "People at the Center" it catching more and more my attention. I see that having this principle constantly in mind really affects many long term and day-to-day decisions, it's extremely powerful and maybe also the most difficult to apply. The core of my philosophy is strongly based on embracing and enable change within the people around you. Ally: With team members from diverse cultural backgrounds, whose first language isn’t English (while it is the company’s official language), how do cultural differences influence teamwork and team cohesion? Daniele Miele: Communications sometimes do not flow as smoothly as you would expected if we were all speaking our native language.  Using English requires also extra care because some words might sound very different to different "ears" (the same English word might sound e.g. more aggressive if heard by an Italian than by an Indian). In general I have to say that our different backgrounds often brings many different perspectives, we most of the time challenge each other in a very healthy way and I would assume that this would happen more rarely if you close in a room 5 white male Italians. I think our differences make our team stronger. Ally: What questions, challenges, or aspirations are currently on your mind? What would help propel your leadership forward? Daniele Miele: Right now the biggest challenge is in some clashes/frictions between my vision and some parts of my organization.  I'm very passionate with changes and experimentation (both technical and cultural), lean and agile, self-management, technical excellence and quality, sustainability. I would love to have these topics on top of the agenda for more of our leaders. #leadership #agilecoaching #development

Mel Lang & Sabrina Hauptman in conversation about Stress. What can you learn from the Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla? Here the transcript of the convo: Mel: If I'm responsible for a team of people, I need to be strong, and so I need to make sure that I'm at the top of my game so that I can lead Who got me on the 💛 heart rate variability kick was I listened to a podcast with Joe Mazzulla who's the coach of the Boston Celtics. He started doing was learning how to manage his stress so that in the heat of the game or in a playoff situation, he can hold the team. He can carry them because he's dealing with the stress. He's centered. He's not just freaking out or whatever, but he's coaching through the stress. It's not that we're trying to eliminate stress. Stress exists. What we're trying to do is manage it and manage how we go through it. " Sabrina Hauptman: And there's also positive and negative stress, right? There's some stress that we need * to learn * to overcome a challenge * to solve a problem. And for certain time, , let's take innovation day, a hackathon. There's a timebox on it. you're given a limited amount of time. There are some constraints. You want the competition but you only do those events for 24 hours, 5 days is a stretch. You wouldn't want to do it. You want to do it for three days and then people are tired. it builds up like this. The energy goes up up. They're all the way up here and then it crashes. You cannot sustain a high level of stress. And I think when leaders lead through creating fear, this is what they're getting. They get people crashing. And this is when we are facing burndown. The leader wants a good thing, they want good company numbers right but how do you get there by actually embracing the human being's biology and working in harmony with it rather than against it. Mel Lang: Totally. Easy things that anyone can start doing now I would say understand understand how you are right now like you said *what am I eating every day *how am I sleeping *how much exercise am I getting * am I always glued to my phone or do I have moments where I'm not seeing anything digital *how are my relationships too how much am I interacting with people… if you ignore any one of it then you're out of balance and it's about balance. #coaching #hr #stressmanagement

🚨 The Middle Manager Crisis: Are We Setting Them Up to Fail? 🚨 Middle managers are burning out—juggling tight deadlines, workplace conflict, and excessive workloads while trying to balance both day-to-day operations and long-term strategy. 😵💫 A recent Fast Company article highlights a growing issue: Gen Z workers are increasingly uninterested in stepping into middle management roles. With high anxiety levels and a lack of proper support, companies could be heading toward a “manager crash.” So, how can we fix this? 🔹 Invest in programs that support middle managers 🔹 Provide mental health resources and ongoing check-ins 🔹 Help managers develop key skills: emotional resilience, stress management, and delegation ✨ This is where Ally can help! ✨ We’ve developed a training bundle specifically for managers, including the aspects mentioned in the article (and more) designed to: *Run effective meetings & make better decisions * Manage workloads & delegate effectively * Strengthen emotional awareness, resilience & stress management * Increase engagement & prevent burnout Supporting middle managers isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s critical to business success. #Leadership #Management #WorkplaceWellbeing #EmployeeEngagement #Resilience #hr

𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗶𝗺 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝘅𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, consider this (to work in synch with our biology to help creative and knowledge workers): 1️⃣ 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿 – Lead by example. Prioritize your own well-being (𝘀𝗹𝗲𝗲𝗽, 𝗻𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁) so your team feels empowered to do the same. 2️⃣ 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 – Create a space where emotions, stress, and well-being are not just tolerated but actively discussed. Psychological safety fuels engagement. 3️⃣ Recognize individual needs – One-size-fits-all leadership doesn’t work. People have different work styles, energy peaks, and personal circumstances—respect them. 4️⃣ 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗹𝗲𝘅𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 – Encourage breaks, support remote work when possible, and recognize that rest is a performance strategy, not a luxury. 5️⃣ 𝗘𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗹-𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 – Equip your team with knowledge on stress management, sleep hygiene, nutrition, and emotional intelligence. Awareness drives better choices. 6️⃣ 𝗘𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 – Sitting all day kills creativity. Try walking meetings, stretch breaks, or even a culture where movement is the norm. Bring in some fun and play. 7️⃣ 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀, 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝘁 – Some stress is natural and can be a motivator. The key is helping your team navigate it rather than being consumed by it. 8️⃣ 𝗙𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 – Teach your team how to recognize and process emotions. Emotional intelligence is a leadership superpower. 9️⃣ 𝗦𝗲𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 – Aim for excellence, not burnout. High standards should challenge, not exhaust, your team. 🔟 𝗕𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗮𝗴𝗲 – The way we communicate shapes culture. Use words that foster trust, collaboration, and psychological safety—not pressure and fear. 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘢 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩-𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘯𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘵𝘩? #Leadership #HighPerformance #WellBeingAtWork #burnout #agilecoaching