March 2025 Leadership Development Carnival

Welcome to the March 2025 Leadership Development Carnival! Horizon Point is excited to host the carnival this month, featuring  posts from leadership experts from around the globe on the topics of communication, development, engagement, motivation, productivity, team building, and more. 

The Framework for Organizational Excellence by John Spence

Excellence isn’t accidental—it’s built with purpose. My new Organizational Excellence Framework brings together the key elements of success: purpose, culture, strategy, innovation, and simplicity. Read to see how it all comes together.

How To Build a Better Relationship with Your Difficult (Icy) Boss by Karin Hurt 

You know the type: the difficult boss barely acknowledges you, keeps conversations strictly transactional, and never lets you see their human side. Frustrating right? Here’s what to do next.

Setting Clear Expectations for You Team by Bernd Geropp 

When was the last time you sat down and explicitly communicated your priorities to your team? If you are thinking “They should know”, think twice. Setting clear expectations is often underestimated.

No is a complete sentence. by Lisa Kohn 

Lisa Kohn of Thoughtful Leaders™ Blog presents “No is a complete sentence” where she shares that although we learned to say “no” at a very young age, we need to learn to say it again. Not always, not every time, not to everyone – but to use it in a way that builds our leadership, our Thoughtfulness, and our success.

How to Communicate a Merger and Acquisition to Employees in 9 Steps by David Grossman 

2025 is shaping up to be the year of strategic, purpose-driven transactions according to a report from PwC. Effective communication during M&As is essential to keep your employees engaged, informed, and focused despite the changes underway. Use this roadmap to help you strategically develop your plan.

Setting Limits: Moving Away From Dancing Around Solutions by Brenda Yoho 

The reality is, habits—good or bad—are reinforced by what we allow rather than what we say. If we want a workplace where respect, responsibility, and accountability thrive, we must move away from avoiding difficult conversations and start addressing issues head-on.

Why Didn’t You Tell Me? by Frank Sonnenberg 

If you keep your thoughts to yourself, they’re worthless. Here are 23 ways to recognize excellence, express your thanks, and demonstrate that you care.

Coaching vs Mentoring: Do you need both? by Dana Theus 

There are many ways to get stuck in your career. When you hit a wall, it’s time to ask for help. But where should you turn? Should you consider coaching vs mentoring? What kinds of coaches and mentors would be a good fit? What other kinds of support might you find to help you out? While coaches and mentors will both offer the most direct advice and support, depending on how and why you’re stuck, you’ll find support and good ideas from a variety of other people. Use them all!

Are You Leading or Just Managing? Let’s Find Out by Mary Ila Ward 

The terms manager and leader often get used interchangeably, but should they? “Leading versus managing” is a common search phrase. At HPC, we don’t really think it’s a “versus” situation. You can be a good manager without being a great leader, but you can’t be a great leader without strong management skills.

Love ‘Em, Grow ‘Em, Keep ‘Em by Bev Kaye 

AI isn’t just on the horizon—it’s already in our workflows, reshaping industries, and sparking new conversations (and concerns) about the future of work. Here’s the truth: AI isn’t just a technology challenge—it’s a people challenge. And if you want to keep your best people as AI transforms work, you need to double down on what makes leadership human.

Overwhelmed by Employee Development? Try ‘Microdosing’ by Julie Winkle Giulioni  

Feeling overwhelmed by the responsibility of developing your employees? The good news is, career growth doesn’t have to come in big, time-consuming doses. Just like in medicine, ‘microdosing’ small, intentional career conversations into daily interactions can lead to meaningful growth—without adding to your workload.

The need for moral leadership by S. Chris Edmonds  

Moral leadership is grounded in four pillars: Let Purpose Lead, Inspire and Elevate Others, Be Animated by Values and Virtues and Build Moral Muscle. Moral leaders foster higher standards of conduct by inspiring meaningful work grounded in shared values.

Navigating Uncertainty by Ann Van Eron  

The winds of change are blowing fiercely in every corner of our world. Everywhere I go, people are talking about the rapid transformations and the looming uncertainty. We, as a community, are experiencing this together. How do we be resilient and navigate the uncertainty?

How to Better Handle Embarrassing Moments by Marcia Reynolds  

Trying to never have embarrassing moments at work can stunt your growth. Learn how to rise above, even use embarrassment, to build confidence and enjoy life more.

The Impact of Change by Priscilla Archangel  

Leaders must ask all stakeholders to engage with them on a journey where they balance the need to operate differently, while building new and stable networks and processes. Leaders must generate trust along the way.

Fear of the Unknown by Bill Treasurer 

Drawing wisdom from Plato’s Republic, this post explores how humans naturally fear what they do not know. By intentionally increasing our exposure to unfamiliar situations or people, we can transform fear into familiarity and move confidently into the unknown.

“Can we all just get along?” Rodney King – Tips for Combatting the Political Divide in the Workplace by Diana Peterson-More  

The data are in: 91% of employees have witnessed or experienced political clashes at work; 51% actively avoid colleagues with different political views, while 93% believe leadership’s political bias influences workplace policies and promotions. WOW. It’s time for leaders to turn this around. This post offers proven tips on how to lower the heat, how to facilitate their teams to the win-win, and to ensure productivity does not fall victim to fear and divisiveness.

The futures after capitalism by Marcella Bremer  

We can’t create the future we want if we can’t imagine what that would look like. Andy Hines’s book Imagining After Capitalism provides great scenarios – food for thought for organizations, too. Let’s re-kindle our imagination and agency to shape the futures that we want! Recommended reading for all organizations

3 Priorities of Servant Leaders by Randy Conley  

Servant leadership is often misunderstood as simply being nice or avoiding micromanagement, but it’s much more than that. In this article, Randy Conley shares 3 priorities that distinguish servant leaders from the crowd.

Kaizen and Continuous Improvement: A CFO’s Perspective on Lean Efficiency by Jon Verbeck  

I’m always looking for ways to boost efficiency and streamline processes. Mark DeLuzio frequently talks about Kaizen, the practice of continuous improvement, and how essential it is to examine and refine our processes regularly. Given my deep family ties to Japan, I felt compelled to explore the true meaning and origins of Kaizen.

Two Unexpected Ways to END Your Next Meeting That Engage and Grow Your Team by Sean Glaze  

Team meetings can (and SHOULD) be culture-building experiences that inspire action, creativity, and growth. Your team gatherings are a prime opportunity to foster collaboration and engagement, especially if you rethink how they end.

Playbook for AI-Literate Leaders: How CEOs, CIOs & CPOs Can Stay Ahead! by Naomi Caietti  

In today’s AI-driven world, CEOs, CIOs, CPOs, and other senior leaders must do more than just embrace AI—they must lead the charge in AI literacy. AI isn’t just an IT initiative; it’s a business transformation tool that impacts everything from talent strategy to competitive advantage.

Reinventing Leadership for the 21st Century: Why and How Leaders Must Evolve to Thrive in Chaos by Julia Felton  

In today’s fast-changing, unpredictable world, the leaders who thrive are not those who rely on past successes, rigid structures, or outdated management playbooks. Instead, the 21st century demands adaptive, forward-thinking, and continuously evolving leadership—a model built on reinvention.

Thank you to the Lead Change team at Weaving Influence for continuing the LDC tradition!