Entries by James Culver

When is praise an insult?

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How praise gets delivered is also of importance to judgements of its sincerity. In some work cultures, being singled out for enthusiastic praise if front of a group would be gratifying to the person receiving it while cultures that use more restrained emotional styles might find expressive, public praise embarrassing and impersonal.

5 tips for internal HR consultants

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From my years working in HR, I know that employees don’t often ask HR for help. At least, that is what it was like for the companies I worked with. As HR consultants, it is our job to give guidance and support to enable our colleagues make better decisions. Our roles are operational, not strategic, […]

Sequential and Synchronic Views of Time

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Originally published on 20.03.2013 “Are we on time?” The question seems simple enough but that seemingly simple question can unlock different ways of viewing time and the commitments associated with our view of time. My experience with intercultural training has made me think about that question a bit differently. “On time” in Ghana It reminds […]

Virtual Teams: Pre-Meeting To Do’s

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What do you do before your virtual team meetings? Preparing for any meeting is important, especially for virtual meetings via teleconference or netmeetings.  It is difficult working in virtual teams as you don’t see your other team members face-to-face very often.  So, try not to put yourself at a further disadvantage by forgetting to do […]

Measuring Progress: What am I getting for my money?

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Am I getting my money’s worth? One key question for our seminar clients is, “Is paying for training experiences enough?” Most often, the answer is clearly, “Yes”.  Despite all of the talk about ROI, buying an experience makes sense when we realize the benefits of training in general from an employee’s perspective. When organizations invest […]

Intercultural Training: Internal vs External Control

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As a second generation Northerner in the US, a lot of my family comes directly from the South.  My family, like many others, was part of the second Great Migration of African Americans from the South to the North in the 1930’s – 1950’s.  One of my favorite memories growing up was talking to a […]

4 Ds of Presentations

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Do you know the 4 Ds? You are a good presenter — you are engaging, funny and energetic. You like the challenge of speaking in public and you are good at it. Yet you have the feeling sometimes that you could be doing more or doing things differently.  There are some situations in which you […]

Storytelling in Business – Why Not? Part 2

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It was part of our survival and development. Stories are all around us, from campfires to multimillion dollar movies, so why do we have to make a case for it in a business environment? This second part of a two-part blog post (part 1) covers the two remaining things we learned when preparing a seminar […]

Storytelling in Business – Why Not? Part 1

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It was part of our survival and development. Stories are all around us, from campfires to multimillion dollar movies, so why do we have to make a case for it in a business environment? Generally, I think the answer is fear. We are afraid to “lay an egg”, reveal too much of ourselves, show too […]

Managing High Performers: Miles Davis Part 2

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What does Miles Davis have to do with managing high performers in business? Good question. Miles Davis is rightfully acclaimed as an icon of jazz but he didn’t make music alone. Miles worked with the best of the best to create music that stands as among the highest forms of the genre. In part 1 […]