Todd Wangsgard
Enterprising, results-driven, and grounded are words that describe Todd Wangsgard. He brings 24 years of leadership and organizational development experience to his clients.
Clients value his ability to create clarity out of the business fog that prevents most companies from enabling greatness and developing the capabilities of their associates.
Todd has excellent professional experience. He was Senior Manager of Training, Talent Management, and Communications for ATK Lake City, a government-owned, company-operated manufacturing center in Independence, Missouri. He organized the training department, developed and implemented all levels of leadership curriculum, and oversaw the operation’s succession planning and teambuilding strategies.
As the Manager of Professional Development for ATK, a $4 billion aerospace and defense company, Todd led the creation of employee and leadership assessment and development initiatives for operations in 23 states.
Todd worked for Intermountain Healthcare, Inc. in Salt Lake City, Utah, the intermountain west’s largest physician, clinic and hospital network. He founded IHC University and managed the implementation of curriculum as well as the administrative team of IHCU.
An industry cross section of Todd’s clients represent higher education, health care, insurance, manufacturing, aerospace, and defense.
Todd holds a PhD from Walden University in Leadership and Organizational Change. He has also earned his MBA from the University of Phoenix and a B.A. from Weber State University (Ogden, Utah) in communications.
Todd is affiliated with a number of professional organizations and holds certifications to teach a number of programs. He is a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR), a Master Facilitator for Achieve Global, and a Certified Professional Behavior Analyst (DISC).
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FranklinCovey Consultant Blogs | Todd Wangsgard | January, 2010
Change does not equal loss
How many times have you heard someone say, “Everyone fears change?” Employees have experienced profound changes in the workplace for decades and yet the headlines would suggest no one is ever prepared for change. Certainly we at least get a little better at navigating change, each time it is thrust upon us. But what is it that really paralyzes people each time a significant change is in the wind?
People don’t fear change.
I’ve never met a baby that didn’t want its soggy diaper changed. Most employees can think of at least a handful of things they’d like to see their boss do differently. The present economy is nothing to get excited about; the majority would certainly like to see some changes for the better. If I came to you and said, “Well, there are going to be some changes around here. We’re going to start with your compensation,” you might initially get nervous. Our first thoughts tend to be negative. “What are you taking away from me? How much more will we be asked to give around here?” What if I then told you, “We’d like to triple your salary?” Would you be okay with that kind of change?
People fear the possibility or the reality of loss.
Granted, a lot of the changes we are asked to swallow have a downside to them. But by assuming that all change is bad, we predispose ourselves to the paralysis of inaction, negative thinking, and helplessness. Most of us know someone who was victim of a corporate downsizing, only to share with you months down the road that his or her departure was possibly the best thing that ever happened. Of course, that can only happen when someone chooses to find the silver lining in a change that, at first, is quite devastating.
Think of the current or pending changes that are brewing in your workplace. Take inventory of the potentially positive upside to those changes. Channel your time and energy toward those activities that will bring about the good that often accompanies change. You will increase your value to the organization and find your positive outlook to be infectious. Seeing change as a force for constant improvement and innovation is a much more viable perspective, no matter where the landscape is moving.
The recent tragedy in Haiti has certainly commanded the world’s attention. No one would ever suggest that their change in fortune was good. Yet each day that we peer into the news of Haiti’s recovery, we learn of countless stories of rescuers and those being rescued who are making the most out of their circumstances, in the shadow of unimaginable devastation. These are the Haitians who are likely to thrive into the future and serve as a force for good in rebuilding an even stronger community and nation.
From change can emerge enormous good. Yet in change some might dwell on only the bad. Which will command your attention?
No Excuses
I don’t have time to [FILL IN THE BLANK].
This economy won’t allow our organizational to [FILL IN THE BLANK].
My boss won’t let me [FILL IN THE BLANK].
It’s too cold outside to [FILL IN THE BLANK].
There’s always an excuse, isn’t there? Excuses abound for why we don’t strive to restore a suffering relationship, expand into new markets, present new solutions to old problems, or go outside and get fit. Complacency is the course of least resistance. Getting out of my comfortable routine may require change, and after all, isn’t change painful?
The late business philosopher, Jim Rohn, said, “We must all suffer from one of two pains: The pain of discipline or the pain of regret.” Change might often be painful, but there is usually a much more profound pain of regret associated with inaction. Besides, we know that the second law of thermodynamics – or entropy – is hard at work in the mental and social realms, as well as the physical. When I don’t exercise my brain or spend time building important relationships, they will become weaker and eventually break down, just as muscle tissue, geology, or any man-made structure will eventually crumble without care.
Recently the weather here in the Midwest was unseasonably cold. For almost the first two weeks of January we experienced high temperatures in the single digits. The roads remained snow- and ice-packed for several days. I had every good excuse in the world NOT to go running outside. Oh sure, I could always force myself onto a treadmill or spin on my cycle trainer. But lately I’ve taken to finding every possible way to stay moving outdoors, if I can help it.
Just when I thought I might succumb to the passive, peaceful recesses of my La-Z-Boy, my wife introduced me to Yaktrax. Yaktrax are a commercially available strap-on cleat that goes over the sole of your boot or running shoe allowing the wearer to literally run on ice and packed snow. Jana discovered these gems while reading an entry on her cousin’s running blog (Thanks, Kristin). She immediately ordered me a pair, and before I knew it I had run out of excuses for why I couldn’t get outside to stay active.
Yaktrax: Making the impossible, possible.
So there I was, running in 6 degree Fahrenheit weather down the middle of a snow packed side street – every inch of skin covered with polypropylene, ski goggles strapped on securely. I’m convinced that each driver that passed by was thinking, “That guy is CRAZY!” I know that when I witness the occasional walker-biker-runner out braving the elements, I always think to myself, “Good for him!”
Let’s just call this what it really is: Be Proactive.
When you look at the current state of your team, your organization, your health, or any other aspect of life that is important to you, examine the obvious and hidden excuses that may be holding you back from achieving the greatness you are capable of. Get creative. Think outside the proverbial box. Study what other successful teams and individuals have done. Never accept “can’t” into your vocabulary.
Now, if I could just find some of those cleats for my road bike…
Refining Greatness in 2010
Recently I was pondering the differences and similarities between the FranklinCovey four-part definition of greatness – Sustained Superior Performance, Intensely Loyal Customers, Winning Culture, and Distinct Contribution – and the four categories that define Norton and Kaplan’s “Balanced Scorecard” approach to strategic planning and performance management. It occured to me that the greatness map at FranklinCovey includes all four of the “Scorecard” categories, plus one.
Under Sustained Superior Performance, FranklinCovey’s model includes both the Financial and Internal Business Processes areas of emphasis – two of the four Scorecard perspectives. The Intensely Loyal Customers category and Kaplan and Norton’s Customer perspective are virtually the same. Both emphasize concern for talent by calling out Winning Culture and Learning and Growth, respectively. However, the Scorecard methodology of planning and measuring falls short of requiring organizations to be clear about the Distinct Contribution that they are making to their communities, societies, and the world at large. This fourth category of emphasis in our definition of greatness is what sustains the motivation and energy required to stay focused on the wildly important.
If you have not yet defined the distinct contribution you are making to society, consider pondering your answers to the following questions:
- Would my community or industry really miss us, if our organization were gone tomorrow? In what specific ways would they miss us?
- In what ways are we giving back without the expectation of a direct benefit in return?
- What motivates us to continue improving and offering better, more innovative solutions in the future? Is our motivation purely profit or something more?
Each of these questions can also be applied to the individual. In other words: What legacy am I creating in my current position? How will people remember the value I’m adding on my projects and assignments? Am I the person my co-workers will think about when they are prompted in the future to think of a great example of leadership? How am I giving back in the workplace?
Greatness isn’t that far away, when we stop only thinking about what’s in it for me.