The Learning and Development Center
The Center for Excellence
Access New Professional Skills at the Learning and Development Center
Featuring Scott Minnix, General Services Department Director of the City of Houston
This interview with Scott Minnix, General Services Department Director of the City of Houston, was conducted and condensed by Mahogany Johnson.
MJ: At one point, you were an officer in the U.S. Naval Reserve. How did that influence your path?
SM: I think my experience in the Navy or aspects of it just helped me to develop, grow and evolve so it’s really just part of it, because military leadership is very defined. You have chain of command but within the chain of command there’s camaraderie. In the end, it’s really about the person that you’re next to and their best interests, and service. I didn’t really order my own steps. When I went into the military, I wasn’t expecting my leadership to develop there. It just does because of the nature of the work that you do, and the people that you are with.
I started out in the Washington State Work Training program at about age 13 or 14 as a janitor. I was a janitor at an elementary school, and I had to clean toilets, scrub floors and change all the light bulbs. That was my very first job. Fast forward to today. I have janitors who work for me, and I often go in and work with them. I don’t have a problem going in and cleaning a toilet. I will walk the floors with them and help scrub floors to this day. Some people say, “That’s not your job,” but I respond, “why not?” I know I’m the director, but I’m also the head janitor. I don’t separate myself from my team in any way, shape or form.
For example, in November the new City Council members get elected, the old ones can stay until December 31. If they decide to stay until the last day, then we have to get the desk and everything ready in a day or two, so I’ll come in and divide the tasks with my team. It’s an extra hand and I don’t see myself any differently. I think it’s part of the role, part of the Navy, part of my background. It’s just being more of a servant leader as opposed to a positional leader, which is just my job title.
MJ: GSD established the Sustainable Growth division under your direction. The division that is responsible for implementing green and sustainable property and energy management solutions with the intent of reducing operating costs and improving client satisfaction. What best advice or insights would you give to other government entities looking to duplicate this effort?
SM: Be intentional because we are not outside of the realm. It’s a continuum, right? We can improve our sustainability all the time; whether it’s operational use that is low-cost or no cost, to high-cost items changing out inefficient mechanical systems like chillers or HVAC systems and roofs. There’s a lot of low hanging fruit like turning off lights and shutting off computers at night. You have to do something so why not have a plan and do no-cost things right away. For instance, change the temperature of your water. Hot water is heated to 120 degrees, but most people can’t put their hands in water over 110 or 111 degrees. So why are they heating it to 120 degrees? That’s no cost and an instant money saver. Just be smart about what you do and do something.
In 2004, prior to Mayor Parker, there was a resolution that any building that we construct over 10,000 square feet must be built to LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standard. And anything we build now is built to LEED standard. We’ve also received grants from the American Recovery Act (ARA), which was Obama’s first initiative when he stepped into office, and we’ve completed about 9 million dollars of grant funded work for sustaining our building that really helped us during the drought. We’ve even changed out our irrigation. One of the things that Joe Turner, Director of Parks and Recreation, did was change some of the park lights to LED lights; so, now not only do we spend less money on the energy cost of the lights, he’ll no longer have to send bucket trucks out to replace them. We’ve also made many visible improvements in our buildings from putting film on windows to adding low-flush automatic toilets and sensor lights.
I’ve been very fortunate that sustainability is a priority for Mayor Parker. Then there’s Laura Spanjian, Director of Sustainability. She loves sustainability, and she really pushes that agenda. So it’s been a good marriage between the three of us, because now I’m the operator. We just need more money to do more with.
MJ: In keeping with the topic of sustainable growth, how is your department reducing operating costs, and in very stressed fiscal circumstances?
SM: I’m interested in piloting ways of having city employees in different environments or utilizing different buildings, like putting in an office at a fire station. Simply utilizing city facilities that are already wired for the City of Houston that people could easily access and check in online.
Another thing is that I don’t track employees, but I do track whether or not their assignments are complete. When it comes to training, I ask, “Did you complete it or not?” When there’s a huddle, I ask, “Were you there or not?” Part of being a good leader is being able to say, “Hey, you need to get stronger here. That’s what a good leader does, especially when you’re tuned in to your folks. We need to look at how we can advance this topic.
MJ: How do you get people on your team to live your leadership philosophy/commitment?
SM: The first thing is that you have to communicate what leadership is. It really starts with a clear direction of what the vision is, so that there’s no ambiguity. I tell folks, I want to be the service Provider of Choice, and I want people to pick us. If that’s the end goal; whatever we’ve got to do in between to make that happen, we’ve got to make it happen. You have to do that every day and be intentional.
Not only do I want our department to be the service Provider of Choice. I want to be the director of choice. Of all the places that people can go to work, I want them to come here. I know my employees, and I know that I have good employees. They could choose to go anywhere, but they choose to come here. And I would like for all of my employees subordinates to be able to say that about them. One of my measurements is to know when that is not happening, so I have to be tuned in. Part of my job is to be like an orchestra leader. The orchestra leader plays no instruments; but, without the leader, the band or the orchestra just makes noise, but by working together and having a good leader they make music, and hopefully they make really good music. In order to do that they have to be on the same page, tuned in and working together. So I spend a lot of my time trying to provide leadership or direction that is subtle like that of an orchestra director. It’s not about the leader; it’s about the music.
I believe that people will follow that leadership style if I get them to become masters or the experts at what they do. So I spend a lot of my time trying to let them become experts or masters at what they do, because I can’t be the master communications specialist or janitor. I can’t be the master design and construction person or architect. I hire those people to be really good at what they do, so that when the City of Houston has a building-related issue, we have the right people, in the right place, at the right time.
The other part of leadership is trying to give people autonomy and accountability. A lot of times when people hear the word autonomy, they think lack of accountability, but I link them together and I give people the room to be great. I give them the vision and let them put their spice into it, because it gives them ownership. And, when they do get stuff done, there has to be some recognition, and we still as a city are weak at that. I think as a director I’m pretty good at recognizing accomplishments with words, like writing it in a statement. In the military, you get ranking, badges, recognition, same in boy and girl scouts. You get things to show that you’ve accomplished something. In high school, you can make the honor roll and wear cords around your neck or graduate suma cum laude or valedictorian. Along the way in life we do that, but in city government, or at least where I work in municipal government, we haven’t quite figured that out.
I would really like to be smart enough to figure out how we can implement recognition as an accomplishment for municipal employees, not just for the City of Houston. I try to connect people to something greater than just a stack of papers every day. For instance, the guys that fix the door at the fire stations know that if the door doesn't go up when a fire gets called, it could impact the burning building; someone could get hurt, burned or even die. In that sense it’s a little easier to connect them to a greater purpose. For some of the executive assistants or administrative assistants who are processing lots of paperwork, maybe not so much. I know that I’m much better off helping you work on your improvement, and that helps you realize just how important you are.
I conducted an exercise yesterday where I completed the math of 10 times 10 times 10 times 10. If you have four employees and they’re all tens and you believe that their productivity is a multiplication of those numbers, which is 1,000. If you do the math on those numbers changing one person to a five, your productivity is one half of the total. If you have two people that are a five that’s a quarter, but if I go 10 times 10 times seven times seven, and I support you, then you perform at a seven. You see the number increases as a result of being tuned in and connecting to this greater purpose. It’s not just about me, it’s about all of us in this room and if we’re all getting a little bit better that beats four people being at tens and one person being a five. I love being here, and I hope people think that I love coming to work.
There’s something inside me, some intrinsic thing that says I want to provide service to people. I come here because I like being at work, I enjoy the people I work with and my environment. I like Mayor Parker’s mission, so I’m going to do better because I’m vested. However, it can be tough, though when you have people that don’t buy into it and it’s harder to move them, meaning, inspiring them and encouraging them.
MJ: It’s been said that when you blame others you give up the power to change. What has been the greatest challenge you have faced in your career to date, and how did you overcome it?
SM: I’ve only experienced despair once in my career. I literally felt like, “What am I going to do?” It was due to bad leadership and poor management. It was a bad environment and a negative workplace where people were pitted against each other; it lacked transparency, and everyone was being micromanaged. I was made to feel like there was nothing that I could do. That was probably the biggest challenge for me, and it wasn’t early on in my career. I was 15 years in when this occurred. It created an environment of bad energy for everyone that worked for that group, and no one knew what to do.
MJ: Tell me about the time you realized you had the power to do something meaningful.
SM: I used to work at a university, and I would go into communities of Native Americans who never thought they were going to college. I would match them up with a corporate sponsor, and they would come to school a summer before they began their freshman year. They would take their first class with a group of kids like them, and take the class without the stress of grades and performance. When the school year started, and before they were tossed in with everyone else, they knew what they were doing and it gave them confidence. I would see a group of kids get through and become engineers and scientists, basically because of the work that I was doing.
Because I grew up very poor, I remember when I got my first paper route. I would see my brothers and sisters always hungry, and I would say to myself, “I can go get money.” I remember riding my bike, delivering papers, getting paychecks, and taking my little brothers and sisters out to eat. I did that my whole life, so my life is truly about service.
In service, every time you serve someone you’re making an impact. I take a lot of the stuff that I do in terms of reducing energy costs into how many jobs I save. So for every million dollars that I save in energy costs, I probably save ten jobs; and, it’s because of a decision that I made. It’s all about serving to make a difference. I literally try to make a difference every day because it excites me.
IPMA Training-HR Developing Competencies for HR Success
About IPMA-HR
IPMA HR is the leading public sector human resource organization in the world. Serving HR professionals since 1906, IPMA-HR is your resource for comprehensive and timely HR industry news, jobs, policies, resources, education, and professional development opportunities. The organization is governed by an Executive Council and divided into more than 40 chapters, residing in four U.S. regions and abroad.
The Kingdomality series is based on the business book, Kingdomality: An Ingenious New Way to Triumph in Management, written by the owners of CMI and Sheldon Bowles, with an introduction by Ken Blanchard.
Kingdomality Series is available for anyone who would like to attend. First come, first serve for a maximum of 20 participants. All participants must register and complete the online assessment by Monday, March 9, no later than 12 PM, to be considered for this training session.
LDC TRADEMARK COURSES COMING IN MARCH!
New City Accreditation Program for Supervisors (CAPS) courses begin Tuesday, March 15, 2015. Participants must complete and submit the CAPS registration form with their supervisor's approval via Citypointe.
CAPS is our middle-management, multi-track program consisting of 18 sessions designed to assist supervisors develop competencies in managing various circumstances regarding employee workday considerations and performance. CAPS courses are held weekly every Tuesday and every Thursday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
CAPS Commitment:
Requests for academic accommodations are to be made during the first week of the semester, except for extenuating circumstances.
- All courses in LIP, CAPS and ADP are mandatory for completion of the program.
- We will permit those in current programs and provide exceptions related to Mayor calls, bereavement, or other tragedies that may impede attendance.
Click on the following link(s) to register:
Check out the latest AP 3-21: Workplace Violence training video:
The following self-paced, web-based training modules will allow you to take advantage of these course offerings at your own pace from the convenience of your desk.
E.O. 1-12: Controlled Substance & Alcohol Abuse
The purpose of this training is to provide applicants and employees the policies and procedures applicable to controlled substance and alcohol use. Download E.O. 1-12
Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt Training
AP 3-21: Workplace Violence Policy
EMPLOYEE LEARNING SPOTLIGHT
Interview with Nicholas Gatlin: Field Supervisor for the City of Houston's Public Works and Engineering Department
Mahogany Johnson sat down with Gatlin to acknowledge his educational accomplishments since his employment with the city and present the aspirations of field employees, which are sometimes overlooked.
MJ: You obviously value education, which you’ve impressively demonstrated. Who or what compelled you to invest in learning and development at the LDC?
NG: Mr. Greg Carter advised me of all the things that I could do at Street and Drainage. Actually, Braxton Cole, a manager at Northeast Maintenance Center, was responsible for motivating me, because I was having an issue attending college while working. He allowed me to work an earlier schedule while pursuing my undergraduate degree.
MJ: How have you applied the skills that you've learned in your current role as a field supervisor, and what type of impact has that had on the success of your career?
NG: The program that I'm undertaking now with Dr. Young on communication and the behavioral studies are helping me to better deal with my employees, by knowing how they think and just putting myself in their shoes at all times. The sessions are interesting, and I look forward to going. It’s just unfortunate that the managers are unable to attend.
MJ: In your opinion, what is the Public Works and Engineering department approach to learning and development, and how does this add to the ongoing discussions about the role of education in the development of City employees?
NG: Mr. Eric Dargan really pushes for education. He may even make it a requirement going forward. It gives you a different perspective on how to lead your team, so what they’re doing is a wonderful thing.
To nominate an employee who has obtained significant learning and development accomplishments from internal and external opportunities for the Employee Learning Spotlight (ELS), email ldcnewsletter@houstontx.gov.
Email: ldcnewsletter@houstontx.gov
VOLUNTEER INSTRUCTORS NEEDED!
Become a Learning and Development Center (LDC) Adjunct Instructor
The LDC is seeking third-party support on matters related to the Center for Excellence's quality of professional education programs offered as part of our newly developed course curriculum. This information is also designed to help your Learning and Development Center more effectively serve you to ensure that all requirements for course instruction have been met prior to the start of class.
Our Awesome Courses:
PowerPoint 2010
PowerPoint 2010 – Level 1
PowerPoint 2010 – Level 2
PowerPoint 2010 – Level 3
Excel 2010
Excel 2010 – Level 1
Excel 2010 – Level 2
Excel 2010 – Level 3
Excel 2010 Tips and Tricks
Excel 2010 Macros
Excel 2010 Formulas
Microsoft Office 2010 Basics
Word 2010 – Level 1
Word 2010 – Level 2
Word 2010 – Level 3
Outlook 2010 – Level 1
Outlook 2010 – Level 2
Come Partner with Us:
Turn your technical expertise, on-the-job experience and great communications skills into a rewarding volunteer training opportunity.
WHEN:
Monday - Friday
8AM - 5PM
Please complete the following form and provide as much of the information as possible.
Check Out Our Latest Course Offering(s):
Word 2010 - Level 2
If you need to learn about headers and footers in a Word document, then come join us in our Word Level 2 class. If tables give you a chill, then come learn how to create and format tables easily. If you struggle with Word’s mail merge feature, then this is the class for you. You will learn all of these and much more.
Upon completion of this class, participants should be able to use section breaks in a document, work with headers and footers, and create and format tables. Participants should also be able to use Word’s mail merge feature to create letters and labels as well as work with styles and the outline view.
This class focuses on:
• Creating and using multiple sections
• Creating and formatting headers and footers
• Creating and formatting tables
• Working with multiple columns
• Using Word’s mail mergefeature
• Inserting a preformatted cover page
• Working in Word’s outline view
Instructor Led: Bonnie Sandberg
Price: $35.00
Manager Approval Required: Yes
Thursday, Mar 12, 2015, 08:30 AM
Learning & Development Center | 4501 Leeland Street Houston, TX 77023
Upcoming Industry Webinars & Events
Prepare Now to Lead Later
Excelling later at your job means planning your career from the start. Determine the best path for you by assessing your own skills, gaining line experience, and becoming aware of the characteristics of your industry’s leaders. You also need to optimize your performance reviews and polish your image. Lastly, adopt the markers of a leader, including the ability to innovate, operate in uncertainty, convey ideas clearly, and influence others. This webinar will give you guidelines on how to prepare now so that you will be chosen to lead later.
Topic: Prepare Now to Lead Later
Date: Friday, February 20, 2015
Time: 12:00 p.m. EST
Host: Association for Talent Development
Register: http://webcasts.td.org/webinar/1414
About the Speaker(s)
Terri Tierney Clark, a graduate of Smith College and Dartmouth College's Tuck School of Business, is the #1 best-selling author of Learn, Work, Lead: Things Your Mentor Won’t Tell You. She was among the first female managing directors in investment banking on Wall Street and was elected to Merrill Lynch’s first women's steering committee. Terri has presented to corporations and colleges on a variety of professional topics and has been published on Forbes, Business Insider, Newsweek, Huffington Post, The Muse, Wall Street Oasis, Resume Edge, and several college career websites. You can find Terri at TTierneyClark.com and @TheNewCareerist.
Website: http://webcasts.td.org/webinar/1414
The Future Trends Of Organization Development
Predictions are commonplace in the stock market and real estate, but they should be just as common in organization development (OD), which can be as volatile, with people moving from one organization to another for many reasons. As OD practitioners, can we predict how or why employees leave? Where is the OD field going? What will it look like five or 10 years from now?
A successful OD practitioner must be able to see around the corner in at least three areas: work trends, global trends, and technology trends. In this session we will discuss current business issues that practitioners are facing today, identify emerging trends that will impact the future, and discuss how an OD practitioner can stay ahead of these trends.
Upon completing the session, participants will be able to:
- reflect on past and current conditions in the OD field
- compare their predictions about the future with other professionals
- review existing literature about emerging trends
- discuss how to prepare for the future
- brainstorm how OD can support future challenges.
Topic: The Future Trends Of Organization Development
Date: Monday, March 02, 2015
Time: 2:00 p.m. EST
Host: Association for Talent Development
Register: http://webcasts.td.org/webinar/1479
About the Speaker(s):
Ph.D. Candidate
Catherine Haynes is a dual title Ph.D. candidate in Workforce Education Development and Comparative International Education at The Pennsylvania State University. She is certified in Global Career Development and Facilitation (GCDF) and is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Advisor.
Catherine is from the Caribbean island of Grenada but resides in the United States. She is currently investigating the roles that indigenous tour guides have on tourists’ authentic experience in the Caribbean. After a 22-year career in the U.S. Army, Catherine retired as a Human Capital Manager where she was responsible for the successful operation and implementation of all human resources functions for soldiers and civilian employees including training, employee relations, evaluations, and professional development. As the EEO Advisor, Catherine was the senior counsel to commanders on all aspects pertaining to EEO and served as an advocate for employee issues.
Catherine is a graduate of the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI) and is the recipient of two Meritorious Service Medals. She recently co-authored two chapters inOptimizing Talent in the Federal Workforce (2014, Management Concepts); authored two chapters in Organization Development Fundamentals: Managing Strategic Change (2014, ASTD Press); and co-edited The Competency Toolkit, 2nd Ed. (2014, HRD Press).
Senior Partner, Rothwell & Associates
Aileen Zaballero is a senior partner of Rothwell & Associates and a dual-title Ph.D. candidate in Workforce Education and Development and Comparative International Education at The Pennsylvania State University. She is a Certified Professional in Learning and Performance (CPLP) since 2009. Aileen is currently working on a project that will produce a Competency Model and Career Map for the advanced commercial building workforce, utilizing the U.S. Department of Labor's competency model framework and aligning with the new Department of Energy supported and industry-developed Better Buildings Workforce Guidelines.
Aileen has recently authored and co-authored chapters in Performance Consulting-Applying Performance Improvement in Human Resource Development (2013, John Wiley & Sons); co-edited and co-authored Optimizing Talent in the Federal Workforce (2014, Management Concepts); co-authored a chapter in Organization Development Fundamentals: Managing Strategic Change (2014, ASTD Press); and co-edited The Competency Toolkit, 2nd Ed. (2014, HRD Press).
President, Rothwell & Associates
William J. Rothwell, PhD, SPHR, is the president of Rothwell & Associates and professor in the Workforce Education and Development Program at the University Park campus of Penn State University. As a researcher he has been involved with the last five competency studies conducted by Association for Talent Development (ATD, formerly ASTD). In 2012 he won the association's prestigious Distinguished Contribution Award. He is author of 81 books and 250 articles in the field and had 20 years of experience in government and the private sector before becoming a college professor in 1993.
Website: http://webcasts.td.org/webinar/1479
When Remembering Really Matters: The Power of Serious Games for Employee Learning and Retention
Remembering is hard. Forgetting is easy. Companies must train employees on policies, procedures, terminology, product knowledge, etc., and employees need to be able to recall this knowledge on the job. Employees have to complete so much training during the year that it is impossible for them to learn and retain everything that is asked of them. Training functions can unwittingly create a tsunami of content that results in almost zero retention.
This session shares research on remembering — and forgetting — and identifies techniques that foster long-term retention. It then connects these techniques to games and explains how games can help form long-term memories and business results. Sharon Boller and Steven Boller will share recent research on games and case studies that demonstrate how games can be used for learning.
In this session, you will:
- Identify the potential costs of not remembering.
- Gain an understanding of research-based learning principles such as spaced repetition, feedback loops and more.
- Identify the connection between research-based learning methods, serious games and tangible business outcomes.
Attendees will also be entered to win a free Knowledge Guru “starter” package for use in your organization.
Topic: When Remembering Really Matters: The Power of Serious Games for Employee Learning and Retention
Date: Thursday, March 12, 2015
Time: 2:00 p.m. EST
Host: Association for Talent Development
Speaker(s):
Sharon Boller - President, Chief Product Officer Bottom-Line Performance Inc.
Sharon Boller is the president of Bottom-Line Performance Inc. She founded BLP in 1995, and during the past 20 years, she has developed a wide array of learning solutions for corporate clients. Sharon has 25 years of experience in learning design, and she is the lead designer of the Knowledge Guru platform, a tool for creating learning games. She has spoken at numerous conferences — including ATD, ISPI and SALT on the topics of learning design and game design. Sharon holds a master’s degree in instructional systems technology from Indiana University, where she graduated magna cum laude.
Steven Boller - Marketing Director Bottom-Line Performance Inc.
Steven Boller is the marketing director at Bottom-Line Performance Inc. He is the editor of the popular “Lessons on Learning” and “Learning Game Design” blogs. Steven has written more than 100 educational articles and blogs, appeared on numerous content aggregators and industry websites, and developed content for several Knowledge Guru games. He has presented nationally at DevLearn, ATD TechKnowledge and ASTD International on the power of serious games for learning.
About the Learning and Development Center-The Center for Excellence
At a glance...
The Learning and Development Center (LDC) develops and provides programs designed to empower and enhance employee skills and competencies for improved performance and job satisfaction. Our services also extend to external businesses, organizations, and communities.
Our mission is to build a world-class, responsive and results-oriented workforce by providing the following:
- Learning that meets critical business goals and needs
- Lifelong learning opportunities that will prepare employees for life and work in an increasingly technological society
Facility Features
The LDC is a two-story, 54,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility featuring:
- An auditorium capable of seating 150 with fold-down desktops
- Instructor computers connected to HD projectors and the Internet
- 170 available campus parking spaces
- Break-room area with microwaves and refrigerators
- Welcoming lobby area
- Open atrium for al fresco activities
Email: ldcrooms@houstontx.gov
Website: http://www.houstontx.gov/ldc/
Location: 4501 Leeland Street, Houston, TX, United States
Phone: (832) 395-4900
Facebook: facebook.com/COHLDC
Twitter: @cohldc
A fully equipped conference room that seats up to 24
Twelve classrooms with seating capacities of 10-40 students
Three computer lab classrooms with a combined seating capacity of 33 students
Internal & External Room Rental Request Forms
University of Houston
Texas Southern University
Barbara Jordan-Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs For more information: http://tsu.edu/academics/colleges__schools/publicaffairs/ | Jesse H. Jones School of Business (pending)
Springfield College
For more information: springfieldcollege.edu/shshouston
Houston Community College
Lone Star College System
Sam Houston State University
University of Phoenix
Academic Partnerships
For more information: http://www.apdegree.com/houstontx
Louisiana State University (Academic Partnerships)
Master of Science in Construction Management
For more information: http://bit.ly/1x3NCN5 | Master of Science in Human Resource Education
For more information: http://bit.ly/Up4WQb
The Leadership Institute Program (LIP)
Cross-department Collaboration
A Growing Cadre of Leaders
Houston Employee Assessment and Review (HEAR)
HEAR is a system that provides a clear, two-way channel of communication between employees and supervisors. Work plans are aligned with department goals and the Mayor's five pillars. And employees are able to track and monitor job performance, giving them a clear road map for success. For more information: http://houstontx.gov/hr/hear.html
City Accreditation Program for Supervisors (CAPS)
Administrative Development Program (ADP)
Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us
Forget everything you thought you knew about how to motivate people—at work, at school, at home. It's wrong. As Daniel H. Pink (author of To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Motivating Others) explains in his paradigm-shattering book Drive, the secret to high performance and satisfaction in today's world is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, and to do better by ourselves and our world.
Drawing on four decades of scientific research on human motivation, Pink exposes the mismatch between what science knows and what business does—and how that affects every aspect of our lives. He demonstrates that while the old-fashioned carrot-and-stick approach worked successfully in the 20th century, it's precisely the wrong way to motivate people for today's challenges. In Drive, he reveals the three elements of true motivation:
*Autonomy—the desire to direct our own lives
*Mastery—the urge to get better and better at something that matters
*Purpose—the yearning to do what we do in the service of something larger than ourselves
Along the way, he takes us to companies that are enlisting new approaches to motivation and introduces us to the scientists and entrepreneurs who are pointing a bold way forward.
Drive is bursting with big ideas—the rare book that will change how you think and transform how you live.
About the Author
Daniel H. Pink is the author of several provocative, bestselling books about business, work, and behavior.
His latest is To Sell is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others, which uses social science, survey research, and rich stories to offer a fresh look at the art and science of sales. To Sell is Human is a #1 bestseller on the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post lists and is being translated into 27 languages. More than a dozen outlets, from Amazon.com to The Washington Post, selected it as one of the best books of 2013. It also won the American Marketing Association’s Berry Book Prize as the year’s best book on marketing.
In Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, Pink uses 50 years of behavioral science to overturn the conventional wisdom about human motivation and offer a more effective path to high performance. Drive is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, and Publishers Weekly bestseller — as well as a national bestseller in Japan and the United Kingdom. The book has been translated into 32 languages.
His articles on business and technology appear in many publications, including the New York Times, Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Wired, and The Sunday Telegraph. (See a sample of articles here) Dan has provided analysis of business trends on CNN, CNBC, ABC, NPR, and other networks in the U.S. and abroad. And he lectures to corporations, associations, and universities around the world on economic transformation and the new workplace.
In 2013, Thinkers 50 named him one of the top 15 business thinkers in the world.
Before venturing out on his own seventeen years ago, Dan worked in several positions in politics and government, including serving from 1995 to 1997 as chief speechwriter to Vice President Al Gore.
He received a BA from Northwestern University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and a JD from Yale Law School. He has also received honorary degrees from the Pratt Institute (2013), the Ringling College of Art and Design (2011), and Westfield State University (2010).
Dan lives in Washington, DC, with his wife and their three children.
Website: http://www.steveingle.com/books.html
LDC Tip: Discover The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us
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*Opinions expressed in interview statements and messages from featured articles are not necessarily the views of the staff of the LDC or employees of the City of Houston.