40. The Art and Science of Teams with Jo McConnell

Jo McConnell is passionate about leading positive change, both in business and society. A 25-year corporate career in people and culture roles across various industries and countries culminated in Jo founding The People Collective, a consulting business bringing a unique perspective to helping complex, fast-paced businesses become the place that the very best people want to work. Jo is also the CEO of NFP The Gomo Foundation. In this episode, Jo shares her knowledge on developing leadership skills in your team members, as well as how you can become a stronger leader yourself. We discussed what to look for in a great operating model, and the value that this can add to your business. Jo shared her simple habits and rules to create a great leader, her top three retention strategies, and a great recommended reading list to take your own leadership skills to the next level! Links: LinkedIn The People Collective The Gomo Foundation Time Stamps: 00:29 - Jo's introduction and background 02:15 - How to evolve and nurture leadership skills in a security leader 03:33 - "You can't be what you can't see." - Jo McConnell 04:15 - Jo's reading recommendations on leadership 04:55 - How to develop your direct reports into great leaders as a CIO 05:57 - "Too many people in my experience don't consciously and deliberately think about how they show up every day as a leader." - Jo McConnell 06:36 - Senior leaders as workplace role models 08:23 - "Whether you are leading a team of 5 or 5,000, as a leader people are watching you and taking cues from you every day." Jo McConnell 09:20 - Simple habits and simple rules to develop a great leader 10:05 - Creating a dynamic workplace to help fill staff and skills shortages 13:09 - The value of a good operating model 14:00 - "I think of an operating model as the integrated engine that drives the execution of strategy in a business. It is the ecosystem of things that you deliberately architect to deliver your strategy." - Jo McConnell 17:15 - The art and science of salary benchmarking  20.18 - Top three strategies to retain leaders and professionals 22:03 - Changes in the current security workplace environment and function