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 | Boss
Early Successes – “5 Choices” Continued
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Don’t we all wish we had gotten in on an early IPO of Apple, Google, or X stock? No, I can’t predict the future, but I’ve got a really good feeling about this one!
My first few sessions of 5 Choices have certainly lived up to all the early excitement. Participants (including myself) have derived new energy from the refreshingly holistic approach to time management that we take in the latest FranklinCovey offering. It helps that one of the 5 Choices, Fuel Your Fire, Don’t Burn Out, is all about regaining and maintaining mental and physical energy. My favorite part of this fifth choice is the best practices that we learn from each other.
Actual Participant Comments
“In 30 minutes you’ve addressed my discombobulation.”
“This has gone where I never knew to go; and I really needed to go there!”
“I cannot wait to get back and hold a Q2 Conversation with my boss, actually with my family, too.”
“Wow!” “Ahhhh!” “You’ve gotta be kiddin’ me!” (usually in response to the technical tricks we learn in the fourth choice, Rule Your Technology, Don’t Let It Rule You.)
Already I’m hearing success stories from participants who couldn’t wait until the end of the 5-Week Quickstart process, where they put all the magic into action.
Plus, as you may have expected, the take-away collateral (i.e. workbooks, videos, e-tools, bonus modules) are First Class.
Remember: Ordinary happens. Extraordinary is a choice!
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?
Success in the South: A lesson in leadership
For the past several weeks I’ve had the privilege of working with a large client in the Southeast on improving the overall trust in a large manufacturing plant, one leader at a time. I’m humbled to witness each frontline manager present his or her own case study in front of the senior leadership team to tell the story of how each one of them has been building trust with his or her associates in new and meaningful ways.
They are confronting the realities of sub-optimal performance. They are righting past wrongs. They are talking straight, clarifying expectations, practicing accountability, and, above all, making time to really listen to what employees are saying and feeling.
Today, folowing one group’s presentations to management, the VP of Operations explained how several frontline associates had approached him spontaneously in recent weeks to thank him for the training their managers are getting! Even employees who haven’t attended the training are recognizing the little things their managers are doing to lead at “the speed of trust.”
Most newly promoted managers in all organizations appreciate the least bit of guidance they get on how to be a good boss. G.E.’s 20-year-long CEO, Jack Welch, put it this way, “The moment you become a manager, it stops being about you and it starts being about them.” I couldn’t agree more.
Managers who get it will spend the balance of their careers recognizing and unleashing the hidden talent that exists in everyone.
What kind of leader are you? What kind of leader will you become?
Doing Common Things Uncommonly Well
No moving stories this week. Instead, I’d like to share the simple yet amazing results that come from applying the tools we teach. One of my favorite clients invited me to teach Project Management a couple weeks ago as part of his organization’s open enrollment education program. He and another colleague attended from the same division. I received an email from him two days later that included this excerpt:
[My co-worker] mind-mapped his Behavioral Based Safety Training, and used that to fill out his Project Plan on Microsoft Project. He filled out several of the other tools as well, and when he was finished he showed the whole thing to our boss (VP of Human Resources). Our boss was very impressed, and [my co-worker] made sure to tell him that all of it came from your workshop.
Of course, our goal isn’t just to impress the boss. Our mission is to “enable greatness in people and organizations everywhere” But that’s exactly what happened. In the very first few hours after attending this workshop, someone went back and ernestly applied the tools to his world. And it’s making all the difference! Greatness is being unleashed. › Continue reading