In this episode of the ‘SuperConnector Show’, Ivan Hollingsworth talks to Paul (Lancaster) about how he helps individuals, teams & organisations to thrive. And how in a highly complex & challenging world the need for person-centred coaching, mentoring & learning & development has never been more important.
Ivan Hollingsworth (Director & Co-founder, Centric Consultants Limited) works to help individuals, teams & organisations to thrive. He argues that thriving is a deliberate mindset & cultural goal – it’s not about being happy every day but about setting an intention to create the best possible conditions for success while managing life’s inevitable “speed bumps & curve balls”.
The UK’s Engagement Crisis
Current data from Gallup paints a critical picture of the UK workforce:
- Less than 50% of the UK workforce reports they are thriving in their life.
- The UK ranks 30th in Europe for employee engagement.
- Only 10% of the UK workforce is engaged in their work.
- 75% are disengaged (apathetic, heads and hearts aren’t in it).
- 15% are actively disengaged which is a toxic problem, as it takes four engaged employees to counter the impact of one actively disengaged employee.
This low engagement drives down productivity, increases sickness, and impacts retention and the bottom line.
The Foundation of a Thriving Culture
Ivan defines culture as the observable behaviours within an organisation. He notes that the lack of thriving in the UK workforce is often rooted in leaders not having a clear sense of what their culture needs to be.
To build a thriving, high-performance culture, Centric Consultants focuses on these foundational elements:
- Start with the Leaders The hard work of culture change must begin with the senior leadership team. Leaders must be actively role-modelling the desired behaviours, recognising that “if the senior leadership team culture is here, that’s where the organisation will get to”.
- Identify & Celebrate Values Leaders must gain absolute clarity on their organisational values, viewing them as verbs (observable actions). Celebrate the employees who display these values & address (or remove) toxic individuals who are diametrically opposed to them.
- Prioritise Meaningful Connection Fostering meaningful connection is the starting point for building a high-trust environment. Connection helps team members understand each other & ensures that feedback & challenges are seen as constructive, not as threats.
- Establish Psychological Safety This is the ultimate goal for a high-performing culture. It is an environment where colleagues can challenge each other, ask questions & make mistakes without fear of punishment, judgment or microaggression. This reduces the “fight, flight or freeze” response that currently affects over 50% of the UK workforce, allowing the cognitive, thinking parts of the brain to engage.
The Athlete Mindset in Business
Senior leaders must adopt an ‘athlete mindset’ by constantly seeking support & critical feedback, regardless of their current success level. The best leaders do not need to have all the answers; they focus on three key attributes (according to Gallup):
- Leader as Coach
- Leader as Listener
- Leader as Collaborator
Ivan highlights the core principle of great leadership through the analogy of the US Navy submarine USS Santa Fe: instead of demanding permission (“Captain requesting permission to submerge”), the captain encouraged team members to state their intention and push information down (“Captain, I intend to submerge”).
This approach, detailed in David Marquet’s brilliant book Turn the Ship Around, led to a turnaround from the worst-performing sub in the fleet to the number one performing sub on every metric.
Navigating Uncertainty
In an uncertain corporate & global environment, Centric Consultants helps leaders cope & navigate by focusing on controlling the controllables. This involves adapting based on a shift in mindset & ensuring the leader is in the “best possible space” when they walk through the door. Difficult times can be an opportunity for innovation if the right conditions are created.
Want to work with Ivan?
Ivan & Centric Consultants Limited offer coaching for individual leaders, team-based work & organisational strategies focusing on resilience & performance.
- Follow & Connect with him on LinkedIn here.
- The Thrive Guy: Ivan shares personal focus, video content on platforms like Instagram @thrive_guy, TikTok @the_thrive_guy & a private Facebook group.
- Newsletter: Centric releases a monthly newsletter for practical resources to help individuals thrive at work. You can subscribe here.
ps You can also listen to this interview (& more) on Paul’s ‘SuperConnector Show’ podcast which is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Audible or Spreaker via our ‘Podcasts‘ page.
