Face Your Fears and Make Your Workplace Better
Recently, while coaching a frustrated Chief People Officer, he vented to me about his company’s plan to bring back the workforce – 3 days in the office, two from home. The leadership team would prefer to have everyone in every day, but they know that will make it almost impossible to recruit new hires and could further damage their already falling engagement scores. And now, they are struggling with a whole set of new problems: how do they track who’s coming in and when, and what do they do about those who aren’t following the guidelines? Why don’t the employees appreciate that the “gift” of flexibility that is being bestowed upon them? It seems like whatever solution the company offers some portion of the work force is unhappy.In talking with executives, this story comes up over and over. The leaders want things to go back to “normal” – meaning pre-pandemic times – and employees want something else. And they are puzzled by how to respond. Yet when I ask if they are partnering with their employees to find solutions, I often get blank stares in return. The idea of asking employees what they want in this situation seems to horrify many leaders.
Missing a big opportunity for buy in and guidance
Based on my own days as a CHRO navigating this kind of challenge, I am struck by how much these leaders are missing by taking this view. There are clearly so many advantages to involving your workforce in their future workplace! We are all in this together after all – and designing the workplace of the future should be exciting and fun.Imagine the enthusiasm for the outcomes that will follow if representatives of all levels and departments contribute to the solution and the deeper understanding of business needs that would come from their involvement. And by pulling in key leaders, they will benefit as well, because they will develop better insights and respect for the challenges and constraints many employees are experiencing.
Why leaders are afraid
I realize leaders are afraid to involve their workforce when considering their workplace of the future and other changes. Why? I see 3 primary reasons:
- It takes too much time
- Employees may lack the critical business insights needed to make informed decisions
- Participation might lead employees to have unrealistic expectations for the outcome
It’s true, the planning and preparation can take longer, when getting more input and involving more people. And sometimes employees don’t have the “big picture” regarding the business needs. And, if you aren’t careful, participants in the change may have unrealistic expectations. But I can tell you, having had the pleasure to lead many corporate teams that had a balance of members from all parts/levels of the organization, these challenges are easily mitigated. And worth managing, because the outcome will lead to better business outcomes, provide sustainable solutions, and increase employee engagement and commitment.
Paving the way for a quantum give back
I’ve led and watched successful teams help their companies drastically change their performance management approach, implement department re-organizations, enhance their employer brand, and develop new sales strategies. In each case, the additional time upfront saved us time later when we avoided re-work and re-communication due to poorly conceived ideas. We carefully set the stage by explaining the challenges and needs and ensuring that the team consisted of individuals from a variety of levels throughout the organization to ensure a strong business focus.We also made it clear to the participants the criteria and boundaries that were involved, who needed to approve it, and how their recommendations would be managed. I have found time and time again, our employees are grown-ups and if treated that way, will behave that way. They can handle being told no if they understand the “why” behind the “what." In fact, I have had employees approach me after townhalls and other group meetings, where the leadership had to say no to some employee requests, with a handshake and a thank you for being transparent and trusting them to understand and support good business decisions.
Asking your employees for help gets you more than you can imagine
Perhaps my favorite example of a time when a team of employees and leaders worked together to improve the business was with an organization that was working on improving the employee perception of their Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) efforts. The company was very committed and had implemented many solutions to ensure improved representation and inclusion for all, and especially for their women and people of color. And yet, they were confronted with a steady decline of employee perception of company commitment to DEIB. To change this perception and make things better, the organization spent months engaging over 100 of their employees and leaders in teams to find ways to improve.Within one year, the organization really moved the needle:
- Numerous organizational and programmatic changes were firmly in place based on the teams’ recommendations and employee perception rose from 78% favorable to 83%.
- Deep friendships and connections were made across those teams and leadership opportunities emerged for many of the employees that participated, an important goal of the initiative in the first place.
- The executives involved were surprised and delighted by the new insights and awareness they gained from the process, as well as the progress made on a complex challenge.
Was one year a long time to take to achieve all of that? I don’t think so.I have been afraid before, too, for the reasons mentioned here. But I promise you, if you take the time to do it right, you will soon forget your fears and find there’s a better way of operating: improving the future with your employees – not doing it for them or to them.
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From top-down to judgment all around: The AI imperative for organizations
Each business revolution has reshaped not only how businesses operate, but how they organize themselves and empower their people. From the industrial age to the information era, and now into the age of artificial intelligence, technology has always brought with it a reconfiguration of authority, capability, and judgment.
In the 19th century, industrialization centralized work and knowledge. The factory system required hierarchical structures where strategy, information, and decision-making were concentrated at the top. Managers at the apex made tradeoffs for the greater good of the enterprise because they were the only ones with access to the full picture.
Then came the information economy. With it came the distribution of information and a need for more agile, team-based structures. Cross-functional collaboration and customer proximity became competitive necessities. Organizations flattened, experimented with matrix models, and pushed decision-making closer to where problems were being solved. What had once been the purview of a select few, judgment, strategic tradeoffs, and insight became expected competencies for managers and team leads across the enterprise.
Now, AI is changing the game again. But this time, it’s not just about access to data. It’s about access to intelligence.
Generative AI democratizes access not only to information, but to intelligent output. That shifts the burden for humans from producing insights to evaluating them. Judgment, which was long the domain of a few executives, must now become a baseline competency for the many across the organization.
But here’s the paradox: while AI extends our capacity for intelligence, discernment, the human ability to weigh context, values, and consequence, is still best left in the hands of human leaders. As organizations begin to automate early-career work, they may inadvertently erase the very pathways and opportunities by which judgment was built.
Why judgment matters more than ever
Deloitte’s 2023 Human Capital Trends survey found that 85% of leaders believe independent decision-making is more important than ever, but only 26% say they’re ready to support it. That shortfall threatens to neutralize the very productivity gains AI promises.
If employees can’t question, challenge, or contextualize AI’s output, then intelligent tools become dangerous shortcuts. The organization stalls, not from a lack of answers, but from a lack of sense-making.
What organizations must do
To stay competitive, organizations must shift from simply adopting AI to designing AI-aware ways of working:
- Build new learning paths for judgment development. As AI replaces easily systematized tasks, companies must replace lost learning experiences with mentorship, simulations, and intentional development planning.
- Design workflows that require human input. Treat AI as a co-pilot, not an autopilot. Embed review checkpoints and tradeoff discussions. Just as innovation processes have stage gates, so should AI analyses.
- Make judgment measurable. Assess and develop decision-making under ambiguity from entry-level roles onward. Research shows the best learning strategy for this is high-fidelity simulations.
- Start earlier. Leadership development must begin far earlier in career paths, because judgment, not just knowledge, is the new differentiator.
What’s emerging is not just a flatter hierarchy, but a more distributed sense of judgment responsibility. To thrive, organizations must prepare their people not to outthink AI, but to out-judge it.
BTS acquires Nexo to strengthen its position in Brazil and Latin America
P R E S S R E L E A S E
Stockholm, May 5, 2025
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN – BTS Group AB (publ), a leading global consultancy specializing in strategy execution, change, and people development, has agreed to acquire Nexo Pesquisa e Consultoria Ltda., Nexo, a boutique consulting firm headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil.
Nexo has been growing continuously since it was founded in 2017. With revenues of approximately 12 million Brazilian Reales (approx. 2.1 million USD) in 2024, and a highly capable team of 21 members, Nexo has built a strong reputation for delivering transformative projects in strategy, innovation, leadership, and culture.
Nexo collaborates with a great portfolio of clients across sectors such as financial services, consumer goods, and technology, assisting both local and global companies in navigating uncertainty, unlocking creativity, and activating strategy through people. Their work encompasses culture transformation, leadership development, employer value proposition, innovation culture, and vision alignment – supported by proprietary methodologies and frameworks.
BTS currently operates in Brazil servicing both local and multinational clients with a team of 13 employees. By acquiring Nexo, BTS not only increases the Group’s footprint in Brazil but also adds significant capabilities in culture and transformation services. Nexo’s client base has limited overlap with BTS, creating strong growth potential and synergy opportunities.
“Nexo is known for helping leaders and organizations tackle some of the most complex, human-centered challenges with creativity, empathy, and strategic clarity and the Nexo team is loved by their clients,” says Philios Andreou, Deputy CEO of BTS Group and President of the Other Markets Unit. “Their products and services complement and elevate our existing offerings, especially in culture transformation, and we are thrilled to welcome the Nexo team to BTS.”
“We’re excited to join BTS. We’ve long admired BTS’s approach and unique portfolio to support large organizations and leaders in connecting strategy with culture across the organization,” says Andreas Auerbach, co founder of Nexo. “Becoming part of BTS, allows us to scale our impact and bring more value to our clients while staying true to our values and culture,” adds Mariana Lage Andrade, co-founder of Nexo.
Upon completion of the transaction, Nexo’s business and organization will merge with BTS Brazil. Nexo’s founders will assume senior management roles in the joint operation.
The acquisition includes a limited initial cash consideration. Additional purchase price considerations will be paid between 2026 and 2028, provided Nexo meets specific performance targets. A limited portion of any such additional purchase price considerations will be paid in newly issued BTS shares. The transaction is effective immediately.
BTS’s acquisition strategy continues to focus on broadening our service portfolio, expanding our geographic reach, and enhancing our capabilities to support future organic growth in a fragmented market.
For more information, please contact:
Philios Andreou
Deputy CEO
BTS Group AB
philios.andreou@bts.com
Michael Wallin
Head of investor relations
BTS Group AB
michael.wallin@bts.com
+46-8-587 070 02
+46-708-78 80 19
High-performing teaming
Work today is too complex for individuals to succeed in isolation. Almost every critical decision, innovation, or transformation depends on teams working effectively together. Leaders rely on their teams to deliver results. Teams, in turn, rely on their leaders to create the conditions where performance is possible. This exchange, what leaders need from their teams, and what teams need from their leaders, sits at the heart of what we call teaming.
When teaming is strong, leaders get what they need from their teams [creativity, resilience, execution] and teams get what they need from leaders [direction, support, and the conditions to thrive]. It’s how strategy becomes action, how uncertainty becomes opportunity, and how businesses stay competitive in a fast-changing world.