Episode 4: Anne Hjortshoj (Cisco)

Authority Issues

In this episode Kendall, rachel, and Anne Hjortshoj discuss:

• Let's get this out of the way: how does one spell and pronounce Anne's last name? :)
• What's it like getting acquired by a Very Large Company? How does communication change?
  • Do you change how you communicate with your team when you get acquired? How do you provide the necessary context of the larger company?
  • Just how Old are the hosts of this show? :)
• Strategy can be expensive, slow, costly, and not directly connected to getting a product out the door, so it is often perceived by leadership as an expensive luxury. How do you work around this perception and get useful things done?
• When a company is largely built from acquisitions, there are many cultures in place across the organization. How do you collaborate effectively?
  • Don’t demand too much of other people until you understand what their goals are.
  • Sometimes falling on your face is useful when you can show you're a good human in your acknowledgement of it.
• Is it possible to transition from introvert to extrovert, or the reverse?
• The Joy of Canceling Meetings :)
• Becoming a leader/manager means letting go of direct control, it can make you feel pretty messed up.
• How to mentor or manage people who are expert in a field or practice you're not really familiar with?
• When you're in a large org, you have more options to work with leadership above you.
• Executives are not just angry gods (most of the time). It's not productive to think of them simply as evil overlords.
• What sets 'senior' leaders apart from 'junior' ones?
• When you don't have time for social niceties...
• The skill of "when do I not get involved" is learned, not innate.

Special thanks to Mel Stanley for our theme music <3