Leading
with
heart and data
Welcome to my blog, where I explore how to combine data, facts, and metrics with the human touch to be a better leader
Recent posts
I decided to refresh my knowledge on product management in Scrum recently, so I reached out to “The Professional Product Owner” by Don McGreal and Ralph Jocham. I did not expect any surprises from such a canonical book, but early in my reading, I was suddenly struck by the compelling message: Scrum is science-backed. Like, actual scientific method science. Here’s what hit me: Scrum isn’t valuable because of the fancy rituals or the specific cadence. It’s beneficial because it’s built on the scientific method. You make a hypothesis, and then you verify it through an experiment. In Scrum terms, you […]
In this blog post, I am seeking an answer to what challenges the rise of AI presents to people leaders. What will be the role of humans in a hybrid workplace shared with AI Agents? Will they be reduced to the maintenance staff, making sure the AI machine is properly oiled? Or will AI help people to use their full potential at work at a level we have not seen before? How can leaders help to realise the optimistic scenario of people blooming on AI steroids? What new skills will be required from them? How does the work itself need […]
Is one number enough to understand your team? It might sound too simple, but it can be a powerful start. In the drive for data-driven decisions, many leaders turn to complex people analytics dashboards. But these tools are often useless without a crucial foundation: trust. Trust Before Technology Before you introduce any metric or dashboard, you must build trust. People share honest feedback only when they feel safe and secure. It is essential to explain the purpose behind collecting feedback and, more importantly, to demonstrate that you act on what you learn. Without this psychological safety, any data you collect […]
Communities are the mirror of the culture “So, this is how I shape the culture of our company?” That was the question that popped up in my mind when I was asked to speak about the communities of interest as part of a presentation of our technology hub culture for the new CIO. When I volunteered to drive the CIONET Tribes at our Technology Centre almost six years ago, I was driven by my belief that the best growth is through knowledge sharing with professionals with diverse experiences from various organisations. When I created the Team Leaders Network, I wanted […]
LinkedIn and other social media are flooded with comparisons of leaders versus managers, often depicting the latter in a negative light as someone focused on tasks, procedures, controls, and data. On the other hand, the leader is presented as an empathetic listener who understands what people think and need, using her heart to motivate them intuitively. So, should the true people leader focus on the music playing in their soul and avoid checking the hard facts? If you follow only your heart, you may fall into many traps when making decisions. From my observations as a people leader, I see […]
If you miss a great mentor, read this post, and you won’t be waiting any longer. In the early years of my career, I dreamed of having a mentor – an experienced professional to guide my career. Unfortunately, I didn’t have such a guide, and I was envious of people who enjoyed such relationships. A few years later, I found a piece of advice that ultimately changed my perspective on mentoring. It said that instead of looking for a single “The Mentor,” you can learn from anyone you meet. Suddenly, I’ve shifted from the desert of mentoring to a sea […]
