Read Our Blog On Culture Change

All too often segmentation simply involves grouping employees into different levels of seniority or into functions. It’s far more effective to segment employees according to their attitudes towards whatever the engagement campaign is aiming to achieve. Gen Z, Millennials and Boomers are just generalisations based on people’s birth dates. Millions of people within each ‘segment’ can’t all be the same.

The amygdala is the part of the brain responsible for detecting danger and triggering fight-flight-freeze responses. When something seems threatening, the amygdala can bypass rational thought and act on instinct. This is useful when facing the danger of a predator in the wild but less helpful when we misinterpret an everyday work situation as an existential threat. Most employees still harbour an ever-present fear of losing their job.

As employers and employees embrace AI, many see it as a tool for handling repetitive, structured tasks that people would rather avoid. AI certainly adds value, from generating high-quality meeting notes to helping leaders summarise dense reports and extract key insights efficiently. Yet, for all its capabilities, AI cannot replace human judgment. Those who embrace AI as an enabler rather than a threat will be the ones who thrive.

The subconscious mind plays a crucial role in how we respond to the world around us. It operates beneath our conscious awareness, storing memories, associations, and emotional experiences from our past. The subconscious is vast, interconnected and can bring up emotional responses from moments as far back as childhood. The real challenge arises when these responses are triggered without us realising it.

While coaching culture transformation in many African organisations, I notice that some still operate on an outdated principle. Managers and supervisors scrutinise employee performance for mistakes to correct mistakes rather than successes to celebrate. When leaders shift their focus from fault-finding to recognising strengths, organisations see higher engagement, stronger performance, and more resilient teams.

As a coach in organisational culture transformation, I see the effort modern African companies are making to appreciate the value of diversity. But there’s a tendency to look for the easily visible signs of difference - ethnicity, gender, sexuality, or mobility - rather than the true diversity that lies within people. The concept - and fact - of Neurodiversity is often seen as a challenge, yet history proves it can be a remarkable asset.