john winter
Chief operating officer
Human relationships are complicated and multifaceted, as every manager knows. If we lack the tools and vocabulary to work skillfully with this fact, complications at work can easily devolve into messiness and dysfunction. I initially experienced this in my first management position within an organization that lacked the tools and awareness to train its managers to be effective leaders and mentors. I later realized this was extremely common, and wondered how contemporary business leaders were addressing this phenomenon.
My question led me to a graduate degree in leadership and organizational development. As it turns out, the challenge of fostering healthy, productive communication among teams of people is as old as antiquity. Today, the unprecedented pace and connectivity of our modern world provides a unique set of advantages and challenges in addressing this issue, and there are only a few places where writers, researchers, and entrepreneurs are seriously trying to address it beyond the usual clichéd “leadership development” rhetoric. ECHO is one such company, and I count myself lucky to work with such a dynamic group of people all enriched by a meaningful subject matter that has immediate, tangible, and helpful applications for the modern workplace.
My question led me to a graduate degree in leadership and organizational development. As it turns out, the challenge of fostering healthy, productive communication among teams of people is as old as antiquity. Today, the unprecedented pace and connectivity of our modern world provides a unique set of advantages and challenges in addressing this issue, and there are only a few places where writers, researchers, and entrepreneurs are seriously trying to address it beyond the usual clichéd “leadership development” rhetoric. ECHO is one such company, and I count myself lucky to work with such a dynamic group of people all enriched by a meaningful subject matter that has immediate, tangible, and helpful applications for the modern workplace.