Valerie Polunas

Culture is happening in your organization whether you designed it or not, and, if you’re an HR/People Leader, you already know the uncomfortable truth: stated values don’t create culture, behavior does.  Culture is what people do when deadlines hit, when someone is frustrated, when the “easy” shortcut is right there, and when conflict shows up in unexpected ways. Here’s what that looks like in the real world: Values are listed on the wall, but meetings feel unsafe . Leaders say “We value...

Most teams have a set of operating guidelines. They know their goals, deadlines, priorities, and metrics, but when tensions rise, teams struggle to stick to them. That’s because conflict rarely shows up in explicit ways. It shows up like this: A sharp tone in a meeting Avoidance after a disagreement Side conversations that turn into gossip Decisions that get revisited again and again A manager trying to “keep the peace” by lowering expectations If you’re an HR leader, you’ve probably seen...

December has a way of speeding up just as we’re running out of steam. Deadlines pile up, inboxes overflow, and everyone’s trying to squeeze in “one last thing” before the year ends. When I worked on teams, that push to the finish line was rough, but even then, it felt important to pause just long enough to: Reflect on our work together Dream about what we might take on next Clear up any lingering tensions Have a little fun Show real appreciation for what we’d just pulled off together I didn’t...