Free Book! The War at Work

As you may already know, Seth Mattison will be the keynote speaker at the Second Annual Bay to Bay Learning Symposium held at USFSP on February 10, 2017.

What you might not know is that everyone who attends will receive a free copy of his most recent book, The War at Work: A Tale of Navigating the Unwritten Rules of the Hierarchy in a Half Changed World, co-written by Joshua Medcalf. Bay to Bay attendees will also have the opportunity to have it signed during the symposium.

cover of the war at work

The shipment of books for the event arrived recently, and of course, this bookworm snagged a copy and has already started reading it. As a lover of fiction, I was looking forward to reading this book, but I was completely prepared for a true “business book.” However, when the story began with a disgruntled employee taking a sledgehammer to his office I was immediately intrigued!

Mattison and Medcalf capture the challenges of the evolving world of work through the perspective of those confronting those changes head-on. Technology, networks, and access to information are among the many aspects discussed in this book. Along with Seth’s presentation at Bay to Bay, this book will be a great source of insight for what is to come in the workplace of tomorrow and how teaching and learning at USFSP can evolve to maximize on those elements as well.

Check out the summary of the book below and be sure to get your tickets for the Second Annual Bay to Bay Symposium today!

Book Summary

On a quiet night in the C-suite of Axis Medical Group, Brian Kelly holds a ten-pound sledgehammer, standing in front of a massive corner office. Staring back at him is his own name, etched across the door in polished block letters. He worked for twenty-five years to get it there, but tonight that has to change. And so, with every ounce of his strength… Brian starts to swing. We’re entering the age of the Network, a world of hyper-connectivity and constant flux, where disruption is the norm and autonomy, empowerment and meaning are basic expectations of the new workforce. Organizations are being forced to execute and perform today while simultaneously maintaining the discipline to reinvent themselves for a very different future. Successfully navigating the challenge of thriving in two very different worlds is the mandate of the modern day leader. This book will show you how. The fact is, we live in a half-changed world, where everything from communication and etiquette, policies and procedures, where and when work happens, and “paying your dues” are still influenced by a long list of “unwritten rules” established by the world that preceded the Network: the Hierarchy. Responsible for the creation of incredible efficiencies and scale over the past 150 years, the top-down structures and culture of the Hierarchy are still deeply embedded in our organizations and leadership ideologies today. Drawing from their experience guiding everyone from Fortune 500 executives to major-league coaches through the new world of work, Seth Mattison and Joshua Medcalf combine timeless truth with timely strategy in THE WAR AT WORK, a fable grounded in two leaders’ introspective journey from the top down world of the Hierarchy to the hyper connected world of the Network. For anyone seeking to embrace the future, find meaning, purpose, and mastery in their career and leadership capacity, this story is a compass, providing new perspectives and practical solutions to navigate the disruptive waters of change, unleash human potential, and bring genuine transformation to a world that desperately needs it.

 

The conversation of accountability

A recent article in The Chronicle of Higher Education highlighted an interview with a Missouri lawmaker introducing a bill which proposes a number of changes to the way his state universities are accountable to students, along with the removal tenure, which Rep. Rick Bratten called “un-American.” The bill (House Bill 266) also seeks to force universities to post information along with their degree offerings which include: estimated degree cost, types of employment associated with the degree, a prospectus of the job market, and other employment data.

While this post is not meant to offer a position on this matter, it is meant to highlight the conversation that is taking place in state legislatures across the country. There is another bill being introduced in Iowa proposing the removal of tenure as well. I suspect that bills of this nature will continue to be seen in the future. Where do we stand as a university?

The CITL, OLITS, and the Nelson Poynter Memorial Library are opening a dialog on the workplace of tomorrow and how we can support our students in it through our annual Bay-to-Bay Learning Symposium on Feb 10, 2017. Come and join us for a full day of interactive material with our dynamic speakers and specific take-home techniques you can use with your students. For tickets, which are going fast, contact David Brodosi via email.

Preparing and Teaching an Online Course: The Podcast

Podcast auf dem Smartphone

If you’re an instructor, instructional designer, or interested in education, then you should definitely check out a new podcast that the OLITS crew is debuting. If you’d like to be a fly on the wall as an instructor goes through preparing and teaching an online course, then give this podcast a listen. We will be updating with new episodes throughout the semester and mixing some strategies you may want to incorporate into your courses.

Download this episode (right click and save)