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At Work with The Ready

At Work with The Ready

By: Rodney Evans and Sam Spurlin
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 Rodney Evans and Sam Spurlin have helped teams around the world adopt more modern ways of working and on At Work with The Ready they’re sharing the inside scoop with you, too. Whether you’re struggling with a carousel of ineffective meetings, annual strategy sessions that go nowhere, or decision-making churn that never ceases, they’ve seen it all and are here to help. In each episode, they'll break down common workplace challenges and show you the moves—both big and small—to start making real, lasting change. (Formerly “Brave New Work” with Aaron Dignan and Rodney Evans)© 2024 The Ready Company, All Rights Reserved. Economics Leadership Management Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • 26. Unweirding Change with Michael Bungay Stanier

    26. Unweirding Change with Michael Bungay Stanier
    May 19 2025
    Despite an explosion of frameworks, toolkits, and “best practices,” the success rate of organizational change hasn’t improved in over a decade. For all the decks, comms plans, and transformation initiatives being sold, most companies still find themselves stuck, repeating the same plays and hoping for different results. This week, Rodney Evans welcomes back Michael Bungay Stanier—best-selling author, host of the new podcast Change Signal, and longtime friend of the show—who’s on a mission to cut through the noise and find what actually works. They explore why change still feels so weird, the real leverage points for shifting individual and organizational behavior, and whether it’s finally time to retire “change management” as we know it. Get a copy of Michael's change quadrants he talks about in this episode here: Michael's quadrants. Learn more about Michael: Follow him on LinkedIn Listen to his podcast, Change Signal. Subscribe to his newsletter, The Change Signal. Check out his website, MBS.works See his two prior appearances on our show, BNW Ep. 19 and BNW Ep. 75. -------------------------------- Want future of work insights and experiments you can try delivered to your inbox? ⁠Sign up here⁠. Follow us on your favorite platforms for more org design nerdery: ⁠LinkedIn⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠ -------------------------------- Mentioned references: Jason Fox's episode: AWWTR Ep. 17 John Kotter and the 8 Steps Depthfinding and the "Zones" Ron Heifetz Immunity to Change, book by Robert Kegan and Lisa Lahey Peter Block Winston Churchill "We Shape Our Buildings" Maslow's hierarchy of needs Larissa Conte: BNW Ep. 151 Katie Milkman: Change Signal Ep. 2 Caroline Webb: Change Signal Ep. 5 Timestamps: 00:00 Intro + Check-In: Do you have a non-work related goal that you’re working towards right now? 9:59 Michael’s journey to un-weird change 14:49 Michael’s individual and organizational unlocks for change 21:24 Importance of strong foundational habits to succeed in change work 25:37 Understanding of power dynamics in change work 33:27 Outdated change mindsets to let go of 38:38 Rodney and Michael’s takeaways 40:28 Wrap up: Leave us a review and share the show with your coworkers! Sound engineering and design by Taylor Marvin of ⁠⁠Coupe Studios⁠⁠.
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    43 mins
  • Depthfinding: Putting It All Into Practice

    Depthfinding: Putting It All Into Practice
    May 5 2025
    In this miniseries, we’re exploring Depthfinding—an easy-to-grasp framework designed to help leaders and teams solve their gnarliest cross-functional challenges. This week, Rodney and Sam reflect on what they’ve learned over the course of this eight-part miniseries—about the framework, their own Midnight Zones, and what it means to navigate complexity amidst uncertainty. They share how their thinking has evolved since launching the series, when Depthfinding is most useful (and when it’s not), and why every organization eventually has to ask: Who are we designing for? The end of the miniseries isn’t the end of Depthfinding. Now it’s time for you to dive in. Download the Depthfinding guide⁠ to get the template and examples of how to use it. Want to learn more about Depthfinding? Head here: ⁠theready.com/depthfinding⁠ -------------------------------- Want future of work insights and experiments you can try delivered to your inbox? ⁠Sign up here⁠. Follow us on your favorite platforms for more org design nerdery: ⁠LinkedIn⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠ -------------------------------- Mentioned references: Bob Vila The Ready's OS Canvas "strategy pancakes": AWWTR Ep. 2 "even/overs": BNW Ep. 44 "op rhythm": BNW Ep. 118 Yaggadang by BG & Coyote Radio 00:00 Intro + Check-In: What is the warning label on the back of your box? 04:26 Depthfinding’s impact on our work 08:19 New discoveries from the miniseries 13:50 Limitations of Depthfinding 16:34 Troubleshooting consultants stuck in one zone 22:14 What’s next for Depthfinding 25:14 What’s next for the podcast 27:11 Wrap up: Leave us a review and share the show with your colleagues This episode's theme music is ⁠Yaggadang by BG & Coyote Radio⁠. Sound engineering and design by Taylor Marvin of ⁠Coupe Studios⁠.
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    29 mins
  • Depthfinding: From Leadership to Stewardship

    Depthfinding: From Leadership to Stewardship
    Apr 21 2025
    In this miniseries, we’re exploring Depthfinding—an easy-to-grasp framework designed to help leaders and teams solve their gnarliest cross-functional challenges. This week, Rodney and Sam dive into one of the most pivotal (and misunderstood) aspects of the framework: stewardship. Depthfinding is built on the idea that organizations are like oceans, not aquariums. That means leaders have to show up in an entirely new way—not as a boss, a hero, or a disciplinarian, but as someone responsible for the ongoing health of a complex system. Embracing stewardship can be an uphill battle thanks to the ghosts of leadership past and the inner work required to show up well in complexity. But when facing down uncertainty, building the conditions for resilience and learning to steward across each Depthfinding zone offers a new way forward. Get the PDF Rodney and Sam talk about in this episode Download the Depthfinding guide to get the template and examples of how to use it. Want to learn more about Depthfinding? Head here: theready.com/depthfinding -------------------------------- Want future of work insights and experiments you can try delivered to your inbox? Sign up here. Follow us on your favorite platforms for more org design nerdery: LinkedIn Instagram -------------------------------- Mentioned references: "Intelligence vs information age" Jack Welch Model T assembly line efficiency gains Henry Ford quote about hands: The Future of Management, by Gary Hamel connection between Gantt chart and slavery Frederick Winslow Taylor MRI study about how power impacts your brain Employee Owned Trust (EOT) 00:00 Intro + Check-In: What is an underrated condiment? 03:46 Stewardship is how to put Depthfinding into action 08:32 Leadership ghosts of the industrial age: Henry Ford and the org chart 15:10 Leadership ghosts of the information age: Jack Welch and cult of personality 20:11 De-centering leaders and re-centering the organization for the future 23:50 Stewardship in the Midnight Zone playbook 28:13 Leaders modeling Midnight Zone moves is critical 30:29 Stewardship in the Twilight Zone playbook 35:46 Stewardship in the Sunshine Zone playbook 38:13 Stewardship in the Sky playbook 43:40 Wrap up: Leave us a review and share this episode with your colleagues! This episode's theme music is Yaggadang by BG & Coyote Radio. Sound engineering and design by Taylor Marvin of Coupe Studios.
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    46 mins

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