January 4th, 2019. Our first week in the office. A perfect time to be grateful for what 2018 brought to our lives and reflect on what is coming in 2019.

2018 was a testimonial to the fact that we do live in the VUCA (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex and Ambiguous) world. You see it practically everywhere you look. The economic uncertainties of being a part of North America, the climate change, the shifts needed to take place because of the technology furiously changing our ways, the political changes in Ontario and their impact on Toronto, the legalization of cannabis, the fear of AI taking over our world, are just a few things that illustrate the context in which we live and the preoccupations that we must take into consideration when running our businesses.

Organizationally, we know that the knowledge worker has won the war for talent and many of us are struggling to find, not the warm bodies, but the talent that can help maintain or build our competitive advantage.

The “whom we need in our organization” is crystallizing.  A few winning traits are being reinforced, and others are emerging more and more clearly.

Here are our top 10 traits to look for in your people – either in hiring or developing – so you thrive this year and create cultures that sustain your success in the years to come:

• Critical thinking and judgment – the ability to assess the situations faced and come to the right conclusions
• Curiosity – the willingness to try, learn, explore, and be more creative
• Execution or conscientiousness – the ability to commit to plans and execute on these commitments
• Ability to deal with ambiguity –the tolerance for an ever changing and not well-specified business realities
• Courage – the willingness take risks and capacity to assess their ability to make a difficult call
• Creativity – the ability to come up with or welcome unorthodox approaches to make the necessary advancements in the business
• Competitiveness – the fine line balance between wanting to win for self and wanting to win for the organization
• Ability to assert time to think (still a big one!) – the ability to know what to do and what not to do; being not only active in the moment, but able to develop foresight and anticipate what is to come
• Emotional agility and resilience – the ability to be flexible and mature in the way we deal with emotions and the emotions of others, particularity when the stress is high
• Empathy and compassion – the ability to connect on an emotional level and show care for our human selves

Once you have these 10 traits present, you will notice changes in your organization and fantastic things happen.

Last year was full of fantastic events for MarchFifteen too…

1. We experienced phenomenal growth –

• Our Assessment Practice has exploded. We are so happy to be working with a group of great consultants, who are really sophisticated in the way they predict performance, potential and fit.
• Our Family Business Practices has grown tremendously. I am quite overwhelmed by the feedback we get from our clients about the impact we have on their sanity and success.
• Our Coaching Practice has also grown. I think we are even more insightful and courageous in the way we support Leaders on their journeys of transforming businesses.
• We helped many teams align – not only on the team dynamics front, but looking at the strategic business alignment and readiness to face unique, and often tremendous, demands.
• Our ability to help create desired cultures is now recognized to be rigorous and sustainable.
• Admittedly without a strategic intent, our ability to help deal with conflict through a thoughtful mediation has been acknowledged to create a healthier work environment.

2. We brought a new tool to the MarchFifteen offering – Motivation Factor is being received very positively and we are convinced the insights are of value to the organizations and teams with whom we work. Especially now, when culture is known to be the differentiating factor in how the organization performs, this tool supports and facilitates your conversations about happiness at work, engagement, and alignment with the strategic direction. Bonus: Not only we can help you deploy the tool, we can also certify you to use the tool internally!

3. Our commitment to a higher purpose is unwavering. Many of you have helped with our various fundraising efforts, and we are truly grateful for your contribution.

4. We moved our office. And those who visited us – love it.  The team loves it. I am starting to feel it is my home.

5. On my side, the multiple experiences of personal loss this year were constantly in the back of my head and in my heart. They forced me to pause and cherish the memories while being present in the “now”. The empty sadness that overwhelms at times is still there, but, at the same time, I do remember that relations in life are very precious. And I am so grateful for all the fantastic people around me.  The Team that was stupendous, the Clients who turned out to be friends, the Partners who were always there.  As a self-proclaimed hermit, I stand corrected. Your presence was meaningful and heartwarming. It helped. Thank you.

2019 will be another great year – and we are here to support you.  As always,

Edyta