PSHRA's Public Eye Podcast

Public Sector HR Association

The Public Eye Podcast uncovers and celebrates excellence at all levels of public sector HR. Produced by the Public Sector HR Association, providing human resource leadership, advocacy, professional development, and community for HR professionals in the public sector.

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Episode 38: The Road from Military Service to Cybersecurity

Episode 38: The Road from Military Service to Cybersecurity

Our guest Chris Starling is the Executive Director of NPower SkillBridge, which helps active duty service members in their last six months in uniform transition into cyber-warriors, giving them the skills to go from defending the nation to defending the network. Chris joins us to discuss how their program works, trends in skills-based hiring, the job market for cyber skills, and the challenges of transitioning from the military to the civilian sector.This marks the last episode of our first season of the Public Eye podcast. The pod is taking a hiatus for now, but we'd love to get your feedback on what we can do to bring it back better than ever!Share your feedback at https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/7689771/Public-Eye-podcast-survey-2024

Episodes

Episode 38: The Road from Military Service to Cybersecurity

Episode 38: The Road from Military Service to Cybersecurity

Our guest Chris Starling is the Executive Director of NPower SkillBridge, which helps active duty service members in their last six months in uniform transition into cyber-warriors, giving them the skills to go from defending the nation to defending the network. Chris joins us to discuss how their program works, trends in skills-based hiring, the job market for cyber skills, and the challenges of transitioning from the military to the civilian sector.This marks the last episode of our first season of the Public Eye podcast. The pod is taking a hiatus for now, but we'd love to get your feedback on what we can do to bring it back better than ever!Share your feedback at https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/7689771/Public-Eye-podcast-survey-2024

Episode 37: Filling the Cyber Pipeline With Skills-Based Hiring

Episode 37: Filling the Cyber Pipeline With Skills-Based Hiring

Will Markow is Vice President of Applied Research at Lightcast, a company that connects people with jobs by providing businesses, communities, and education institutions with the best labor market data possible. He joins us to discuss the gap between the demand and supply of cyber workers, the broad implications if this gap is to continue, and how skills-based hiring can narrow the gap and help fill the cyber pipeline.

Episode 36: The Art of Giving - and Receiving - Feedback

Episode 36: The Art of Giving - and Receiving - Feedback

Viva Asmelash and Michael Gregor, co-founders of Liberation Labs join us to discuss “feedback”: the importance of culturally aware feedback, how different segments of the population receive feedback, productive ways of giving and getting feedback, and best practices in ensuring a healthy "feedback culture." We look forward to your, er, feedback.

Episode 35: Preparing for AI-Driven HR Transformation: a Conversation on Navigating a Changing World

Episode 35: Preparing for AI-Driven HR Transformation: a Conversation on Navigating a Changing World

Neena Kovuru is a HCM thought leader and consultant who, through public speaking, shares ideas on many HR topics including strategic and purpose-driven leadership, HR technologies, company culture, and DEI&B. She has worked in both private and public sectors in her career and joins us to discuss data-driven decision making for strategic HR, and the role of AI in Human Resources.

Episode 34: Go Together: How the Concept of Ubuntu Will Change How We Work, Live and Lead

Episode 34: Go Together: How the Concept of Ubuntu Will Change How We Work, Live and Lead

Our guest Shola Richards is a sought-after workplace civility expert who speaks, coaches, consults, and is the best-selling author of two books on workplace bullying. He and his work have been featured on the Today Show, CBS, Forbes, Black Enterprise, and numerous other venues. Shola's most recent book is titled, Go Together: How the Concept of Ubuntu will Change How We Work, Live and Lead, which is what our conversation primarily focused on – with several detours into our shared passion for NBA basketball (and basketball podcasts). Warning: Parts of this episode touch on suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling with your mental health, call or text 988.

Episode 33: Key Findings from New MissionSquare Research Institute Report on Young Public Service Workers

Episode 33: Key Findings from New MissionSquare Research Institute Report on Young Public Service Workers

Dr. Rivka Liss-Levinson, Senior Research Manager at MissionSquare Research Institute, discusses their recently published report on the experiences of younger public service employees – a critical issue as attracting and retaining talent, particularly among those 35 and younger, is one of the top challenges public sector agencies face today. Rivka shares findings on job satisfaction, stress levels, factors that attracted younger employees to public sector work, and what leaders should prioritize in order to attract and retain more talent.

Episode 32: Strength Through Peacebuilding: Conflict Resolution in the Public Sector

Episode 32: Strength Through Peacebuilding: Conflict Resolution in the Public Sector

Dr. Jeremy Pollack, founder and CEO of Pollack Peacebuilding System, a conflict management consulting firm, joins us to discuss conflict psychology in the workplace. He defines the term peacebuilding, various points of conflict in today's typical public sector organization, best practices in conflict management, and the “5 Core Competencies of the Peaceful Leadership” style.

Episode 31: An Eye on Talent with PSHRA Publication's Editor Mark McGraw

Episode 31: An Eye on Talent with PSHRA Publication's Editor Mark McGraw

Pardon the pun, but this marks the third appearance on our pod of Mr. Mark McGraw, the editor of Public Eye, PSHRA's bi-monthly digital magazine, and editor of PSHRA's weekly digital newsletter, Of Public Interest. Mark gives us a tour d'horizon of the latest issue of the Public Eye (October/November), which focuses on talent: what agencies are doing to attract talent to public sector careers and to hang on to the talent they already have. He also gives us a preview of what he and his crack staff are working on for the year-end issue. A great convo with Mark, as always - check it out!

Episode 30: Adding a Touch of Disney Magic to Public Sector Leadership and Organizational Development

Episode 30: Adding a Touch of Disney Magic to Public Sector Leadership and Organizational Development

Pete Blank is a leadership expert, author, and national speaker who spent 13+ years at Disney and 13+ years in local government. He spoke to us from the PSHRA annual conference in San Diego. We discussed the differences between "Disney culture" and public sector culture, and how he fused the two experiences in providing training and organizational development support. We also discussed his two books - Employee Engagement: Lessons from the Mouse House and 55 Ways to Add Disney Magic to your Organization - and he gave us a sneak preview of his third, which is coming out in 2024.

Episode 29: How Public Sector Agencies Can Realize the "Proven" Benefits of a Four-Day Work Week

Episode 29: How Public Sector Agencies Can Realize the "Proven" Benefits of a Four-Day Work Week

If you're on the fence about the benefits of a four-day work week, this is the pod for you! Our guest Sarah Dickinson is Sr. Performance Management & Data Analyst—CountyStat, Montgomery County Government, and the founder of Four-Day Workweek Consulting. Sarah joins us to discuss its impact on productivity, retention, employee wellbeing, and gender equity. She also shares practical advice on implementation.

Episode 28: The "Great Retirement": Oracle's Alex Smith on Managing Transformative Change in the Public Sector Workforce

Episode 28: The "Great Retirement": Oracle's Alex Smith on Managing Transformative Change in the Public Sector Workforce

Alex Smith is Head of Strategy and Execution, HCM - Public Sector, for Oracle. She is responsible for driving HCM Cloud growth by working with customers throughout all stages of their lifecycle as well as working with internal Public Sector teams to develop and execute Oracle’s GTM strategy. Alex spoke to us about the challenges public sector agencies face as waves of employees retire: what public sector HR leaders can do to attract and retain young talent while remaining vibrant and productive during this period of transformative change.

Episode 27: Culture Change Made Easy

Episode 27: Culture Change Made Easy

We spoke with Jamie Notter, Co-Founder of and Culture Designer with PROPEL (formerly Human Workplaces), a coaching and consulting company that helps leaders achieve breakthrough performance and accountability by integrating culture, strategy, and execution. Jamie is also the author of four books, including "Culture Change Made Easy," which will be out in November. He joined us at the PSHRA Annual Conference in San Diego, where he was also a keynote presenter. We spoke about defining culture at work, how to fix a culture that's broken (mainly because of internal organizational politics), how to contend with employee survey fatigue, and managing competing commitments.

Episode 26: Fighting the Good HR Fight: a Conversation with the City of Richmond's Gerald Westry

Episode 26: Fighting the Good HR Fight: a Conversation with the City of Richmond's Gerald Westry

Gerald Westry is HR Division Chief of Labor & Employee Relations at the City of Richmond. Gerald joined us to discuss how his background in the military and as an HR professional with the U.S. Army, the U.S. Military Academy, and the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs informs his approach to building an inclusive workforce that optimizes organizational performance and growth. We also talk about using metrics to enhance leadership accountability, the value of IPMA-SCP certification in his professional development, and the challenges of attracting millennials to the public sector.

Episode 25: How People Analytics is Driving Performance at Public Sector Agencies

Episode 25: How People Analytics is Driving Performance at Public Sector Agencies

Jordan Katz, Head of Employee Experience (EX) Strategy, Public Sector at Qualtrics is responsible for the growth and performance of the Employee Experience business within their Public Sector unit. He joins us to discuss whether HR has gotten better at using people analytics to make them better at what they do, how public sector agencies brand themselves as a great place to work, how to measure engagement, and what insights HR can glean from the post-employment phase of an employee’s journey.

Episode 24: The Keys to Implementing a Successful Sick Leave Program

Episode 24: The Keys to Implementing a Successful Sick Leave Program

Ellie Voepel, Human Resources Director with the City of Garden City Kansas, joins us to discuss the keys to a successful sick leave donation program: what prompted them to implement one, the challenges along the way, the tangible benefits the organization realized, and what surprised her most about the experience.

Episode 23: What’s In the Public Eye: the hottest topics in Public HR with Editor Mark McGraw

Episode 23: What’s In the Public Eye: the hottest topics in Public HR with Editor Mark McGraw

Mark McGraw, the editor of Public Eye, PSHRA's bi-monthly digital magazine, and editor of PSHRA's weekly digital newsletter, Of Public Interest, joins us for a record-setting 4th time to discuss the contents of the latest August/September issue. Topics include AI’s impact on the workforce and its growing role (some surprising tidbits), what government agencies are doing to help employees maintain their mental health, and gender identity training. Mark also gives us a sneak preview of topics he’ll be covering in the next issue.

Episode 22: Workplace Wellness That Works

Episode 22: Workplace Wellness That Works

Laura Putnam is a workplace well-being expert, international public speaker, and author of "Workplace Wellness That Works." Laura has worked with over 15,000 CEOs and managers to implement workplace well-being strategies. Our conversation centers on the five ways employers can prioritize their employees' well-being.

Episode 21: Lessons in Leadership: a Conversation with Public Sector HR Professional Sandie Coutts

Episode 21: Lessons in Leadership: a Conversation with Public Sector HR Professional Sandie Coutts

Sandie Coutts is the Human Resources Director for the Jefferson Center for Mental Health. We speak about what brought her from the UK to the US in 2001, the lessons on leadership she took from the pandemic, and the lure that meaningful work has for today’s younger cohort entertaining a career in the private sector.

Episode 20: Empowering Women in HR: Taking Their Seat at the Head of the Table

Episode 20: Empowering Women in HR: Taking Their Seat at the Head of the Table

Dr. Kelly Drummond is the Director of HR for the City of Knoxville (TN). Dr. Drummond brings over 30 years of experience in developing employee relationships, succession planning, and policy development. She joins us to discuss her “sustaining” model and how it can help female HR professionals get a seat at the table and ensure they have a valued voice at the table.

Episode 19: How Public Sector Agencies Should Prepare for the "Silver Tsunami"

Episode 19: How Public Sector Agencies Should Prepare for the "Silver Tsunami"

Hank Kim is Executive Director and Counsel for NCPERS - the National Conference of Public Employee Retirement Systems. We discuss what public agencies are doing regarding retirement planning, the challenges facing HR in light of the "silver tsunami," and whether pensions are the answer to the public sector worker shortage.