Cynthia Bowman

Rhonda Anderson, Ph.D.✨EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP COACH discusses her path from being a first-generation college graduate to founding Silver Hawk Coaching and Consulting after years of experience in talent development across various industries. She shares how her personal journey and expertise inspired her to help leaders and organizations grow. She highlights her book, The Influential Leader Blueprint, which offers practical tools for building trust and fostering growth mindsets. Silver Hawk Coaching and Consulting offers services including building talent infrastructures, leadership development cohorts, executive and team coaching, and team dynamics facilitation. Rhonda emphasizes the importance of trust, emotional intelligence, and adaptability, positioning her company as a resource for organizations aiming to develop strong, people-focused teams. Link to watch/listen in the first comment below. #podcast #collab #collaboration #business #LeadAtTheTopOfYourGame #Leadership #mindset #highperformers

Inclusion isn’t just a “nice to have” — it’s a strategic growth lever. Organizations that embed inclusion into the fabric of their culture and leadership don’t just create better workplaces — they deliver measurably stronger business results. 📈 More innovation. 🤝 Stronger customer outcomes. 💰 Higher revenue and market performance. Why? Because inclusive organizations unlock the full potential of their people, harnessing diverse perspectives to solve complex problems, fuel resilience, and drive sustainable growth. I’m glad to see SHRM bringing this conversation to center stage at #SHRMBlueprint. Sessions like this move inclusion from theory to real business strategy — exactly where it belongs. 👏 #Inclusion #FutureOfWork #Leadership #BusinessStrategy #SHRM

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When I think about the conversations that matter most in the boardroom right now, they all come back to one thing: Talent. Human capital now sits at the center of strategy, culture, and long-term value creation. For boards this shows up as questions like: - Do we have a clear, actionable succession plan for the CEO and key leadership roles? - Are we building a strong, diverse talent bench two layers down? - What is our culture really enabling or getting in the way of? - How are AI and technology reshaping roles? In my view, talent oversight works best when these questions are frequently on the board’s agenda. When boards regularly connect human capital to business outcomes, they are better positioned to manage risk, support leadership, and sustain the culture employees experience every day. How often does your board spend time on talent beyond updates on compensation or headcount metrics?

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I finished a live conversation with Patricia Frost, Chief of People and Places at Seagate Technology at HR Executive #hrtech and I couldn't stop thinking about it. She spent 32 years in the U.S. Army before taking on one of the toughest challenges in corporate leadership: helping 30,000 people redefine how they work in the age of AI. When she said, “My philosophy is leave no one behind,” I expected a leadership cliché. But she meant it literally. She’s making sure every employee, not just a pilot group, has access to GenAI tools. She even gave up headcount to fund software licenses so everyone could learn and experiment together. That’s what real transformation looks like. It’s not adoption. It’s embodiment. It’s a leader saying, “I will not let my people get left behind while the world moves forward.” Patricia also said something that I wont forget. “AI won’t build your culture. AI won’t build trust. That’s on us.” She’s right. The technology isn’t the hard part. The hard part is helping people redefine their roles, rebuild trust, and lead with curiosity instead of fear. If you care about where HR is headed and how leaders can truly prepare their people for what’s next, listen to this conversation. It’s one of the most honest and energizing ones I’ve had all year. Find links in comments...

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One of my favorite podcasts has quickly become Future of HR Podcast with JP Elliott, PhD The latest episode featuring Brian Glaser, Ph.D. dives into what it means to be a know it all vs. a learn it all, and how we can help leaders navigate turbulent times. A few highlights… - Thinking of “Next Practice” and not necessarily defaulting to best practice with learning — and what are the critical mindsets that need to change with our leaders? - How they are using AI to integrate learning into the flow of work and create a personalized development experience - Reinventing the role of HR with Product Thinking and how we can understand the moments that matter most for the workforce, and integrate across CoEs to support employee lifecycles from beginning to end Check it out: https://lnkd.in/gDqyZeZq

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A Fortune 500 CHRO pulled me aside after a recent keynote. "This is the first time our leaders have had language for what they've been feeling." Language. Not inspiration. Not motivation. Language. Your leaders already sense the tension. They see the burnout. They feel the disconnect. But sensing a problem and solving it are two different things. Without the right words, they spend time worrying instead of acting. I give leaders frameworks they use the next day. A shared vocabulary for psychological safety. Clear definitions of what alignment looks like. Concrete tools for when the pressure hits. The moment you name something, you gain the ability to change it. If your leadership team feels the strain but lacks the language to address it, we should talk.

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Grace in Urgency: ​Urgency doesn’t have to mean anxiety. ​In fast-paced environments, it’s easy to let the "rush" dictate our tone. Effective leaders share a common trait: They show grace in urgency. ​Efficiency is about how fast you work; grace is about how you treat people while doing it. ​Urgency asks for the result. ​Grace remembers the human behind the task. ​Next time the deadline is tight and the stakes are high, try to lead with clarity instead of chaos. ​#Leadership #WorkCulture #SoftSkills #lifesgood

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There are a million HR M&A scorecards out there, few of them particularly useful. That’s exactly why we created Mergenuity, the exclusive in-person strategy session at last year’s People Synergy Summit. Masterfully facilitated by Susan Hanold, Ph.D., the session had several dozen senior HR M&A leaders partner to tackle a challenge no one else in the industry had solved: 👉 What should the standard people metrics be for every M&A deal? That working session became the backbone of Jennifer J. Fondrevay's Forbes article, “The New M&A Scorecard.” The highlights are in today’s carousel, and the full article is linked below. 🤔What’s ONE people metric you wish every deal team tracked—but never does?

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There's no one single right way to practice the art and science of human resources. There are many ways. (And a few wrong ways as well.) If you are a Department of One, you are the head of HR. If you are a CHRO of a Fortune 500 company, you are also the head of HR. But these roles are vastly different. The skills and experience needed are very different. If you are an HR generalist in a Distribution company, your job looks very different than People Ops in a startup or tech company. Take inspiration from companies of different sizes and other industries. Read and watch what's going on in the world of work and the world. But don't feel like you have to jump on every trend or every Find a way for it to work for your company, and most importantly, your people. Find tools that work for your company, and your people. When looking for new tech to recommend to clients and friends, I love looking at newer or emerging tech. I've bought these systems before, and while sometimes that can be a bit scary if it's not a name you've heard, I have been impressed over and over again with how customizable these solutions are. Take WorkStory - I partnered with them because getting performance management right has been a problem for my entire career. And they get it right, through conversational feedback with insights powered by AI. It's one of the tools that I think works across industries - and allows performance management to go from a yearly event to something that happens in the flow of work - which is good for all of us. I've linked them below - definitely check them out! I've also linked SSR below, if you need help selecting tech tools. And let me know some of your favorite emerging tech tools below. (I'm particularly interested in those that work for Distribution, Manufacturing, Industrials and other similar industries, because I work with these industries daily!)

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