Transforming your organization into a “best place to work” can be a difficult task without competent and confident employees. In the new book from ASTD Press, The Brain-Friendly Workplace – Erika Garms, humanist and social scientist, uses lessons from neuroscience to address workplace challenges that affect employers and employees alike.
“As a person who has always needed to understand why things work the way they do and whether or not my work has the desired impact, I have been interested in brain science for decades. I found a handful of powerful “big ideas” from brain science that can have an enormous positive impact on individual and organizational performance and was driven to translate these for professionals in our field—and for managers in general – to use as well,” states Garms.
She adds, “It is an understatement to say that this is a difficult time to be a part of the American workforce. It is difficult for employees enduring the many seismic shifts in the work they do, the way they do that work, and the people with whom they collaborate in the workplace. And it is difficult for employers facing daunting challenges in hiring, training, retaining, and managing employees; implementing new ways of working; and redefining the work that the organization will do.”
The Brain-Friendly Workplace applies five “big ideas” from neuroscience, helping business leaders and managers shape workplaces where people can do their best work, work effectively together on high-performing teams, and maintain healthy and thriving work environments. By learning about these “big ideas” and adapting an organization’s culture to incorporate them, workplaces can be transformed.
Complete with a look inside award-winning organizations, tips on putting brain science to work, and an assessment tool, this book will help readers:
- measure and improve the level of brain-friendliness in organizations
- recognize the challenges facing today’s workplace, and what’s on the horizon
- identify brain-friendly productivity strategies
- enhance employees’ strengths and confidence by applying these strategies.
Garms illustrates how a few fundamental brain function principles can be incorporated into the fabric of a workplace to yield huge payoff, through:
- lowering turnover rates
- retaining key employees
- increasing time-on-task, engagement
- reducing negative, time-sucking gossipbuilding workplace commitment and pride.
Learn more about The Brain-Friendly Workplace by visiting the ASTD website.
About ASTD
ASTD (American Society for Training & Development) is the world’s largest professional association dedicated to the training and development field. In more than 100 countries, ASTD’s members work in organizations of all sizes, in the private and public sectors, as independent consultants, and as suppliers. Members connect locally in more than 120 U.S. chapters and with 10 international strategic partners. ASTD started in 1943 and in recent years has widened the profession’s focus to align learning and performance to organizational results, and is a sought-after voice on critical public policy issues. For more information, visit www.astd.org.
