MSMP 68: Jocelyn Kopac on Company Culture

What Does MSMP 68: Jocelyn Kopac on Company Culture Talk About?

In this episode of the Mads Singers Management Podcast, host Mads Singers and guest Jocelyn Kopac delve into the critical topic of company culture. They discuss the common pitfall where entrepreneurs describe their desired culture rather than confronting the reality of their current culture. The conversation explores how culture serves as the organization's heartbeat and how misalignment can hinder growth. Jocelyn shares her expertise in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), explaining that diversity encompasses more than race, including factors like military service, marital status, and parenthood. Equity involves providing tools for equal opportunities, while inclusion means embracing differences and creating processes for collaboration. The episode highlights the importance of outcome-based work over time-based work, the value of internal hiring, and the necessity of clear communication within teams.

Culture is the beating heart of any organization and when that’s muddled or off-track, everything suffers.Mads Singers

Who Is Featured on MSMP 68: Jocelyn Kopac on Company Culture?

Jocelyn Kopac is a serial entrepreneur and business strategist specializing in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). She started her first business at age 7, selling farm fresh eggs to Chicago city-dwellers. Jocelyn helps entrepreneurs build inclusive company cultures and navigate crucial conversations about DEI. She emphasizes that diversity includes various life experiences, equity ensures equal opportunities, and inclusion fosters collaboration despite differences. Jocelyn also shares her experience with a hire who lasted only one day due to cultural mismatch, highlighting the importance of trusting one's instincts during recruitment.

What Are the Key Takeaways From MSMP 68: Jocelyn Kopac on Company Culture?

• Company culture should be assessed based on what currently exists, not what leaders aspire it to be.
• Diversity in the workplace includes a wide range of differences beyond race, such as military service, marital status, and parenthood.
• Equity involves providing each team member with the specific tools they need to achieve equal opportunities for growth.
• Inclusion requires acknowledging differences and implementing processes that allow everyone to collaborate and succeed together.
• Outcome-based work is more effective than time-based work, and tracking time can help identify inefficiencies without micromanaging.

Diversity is not just about skin color or race but can refer to people being in the military or not, being married or single, or having kids or not having guardianship of anyone.Jocelyn Kopac

Is MSMP 68: Jocelyn Kopac on Company Culture Worth Listening To?

This episode is highly recommended for entrepreneurs and managers seeking to improve their company culture. The discussion provides practical insights into DEI, emphasizing that true culture change starts with honest self-assessment. Jocelyn's real-world examples, such as the one-day hire and the 32-hour workweek, offer actionable lessons. Listeners will gain a deeper understanding of how to foster an inclusive environment and avoid common cultural pitfalls. The episode balances theory with tangible strategies, making it valuable for both new and experienced leaders.

Who Should Listen to MSMP 68: Jocelyn Kopac on Company Culture?

• Entrepreneurs building or scaling their teams
• Managers aiming to improve company culture
• HR professionals focused on DEI initiatives
• Business coaches and consultants

What Are Listeners Saying About This Episode?

One of the ironies of discussing company culture is the fact that so often some of my coaching clients who are trying to grow as entrepreneurs describe their company’s culture as what they would like it to be, not as it actually is at the moment.  Culture is the beating heart of any organization and when that’s muddled or off-track, everything suffers.

My guest for this episode Mads Singers Management Podcast is someone who knows that in her core.  Jocelyn Kopac, like me, started her first business in her childhood.  I sold strawberries; she sold farm fresh eggs to city-dwellers from Chicago who were enjoying the countryside.  Jocelyn is a serial entrepreneur and business strategist who works specifically in the DEI field: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion.  In this vein she helps entrepreneurs build and develop an inclusive company culture as well as have crucial conversations with those members of the team who may not understand the importance of DEI.   

Jocelyn is passionate about DEI and helped me understand some things: 

• Diversity is not just about skin color or race but can refer to people being in the military or not, being married or single, or having kids or not having guardianship of anyone
• Equity is about giving each other the tools to make sure we have equal opportunities to grow and mature as people and team members
• Inclusion is understanding that differences between us exist, nevertheless, we can and should introduce processes that allow us to cooperate and win together despite those differences (a smart tool I use in this process is DISC)

You can guess that this naturally led to a discussion of company culture, and I lamented the fact that so often people talk about the culture they want to have instead of analyzing the challenges with the culture they actually have.  Jocelyn shared the story of a recent hire who lasted precisely one day (Jocelyn did note that she hired against her gut feeling, so she takes some of the blame) because the company culture “spit her (the new employee) out.”  It simply wasn’t a good fit.

Part of their culture is making sure there’s no micromanagement going on and that everyone is bringing their “A” game every day.  She also enjoys sharing the goals and perspectives of different departments of the company with everyone so that they can see the bigger picture, make better suggestions, and ultimately, better decisions.  I couldn’t agree with that perspective more, and is definitely part and parcel of why I prefer to hire from within my organization.

Key Learning Points:

1. Jocelyn talks about the first business she ever started...at the age of 7! - 2:47

2. Jocelyn shares the 32-hour workweek she has in place for her team of creatives - 11:36

3. Mads chimes in to share his agreement about outcome-based work instead of time-based work - 15:02

4. Jocelyn talks about how and why she tracks the time of her team - 17:00

5. Jocelyn explains her three strikes rule - 21:45

6. Mads talks about how important it is for culture to be “what actually exists” as opposed to “what people want to have” - 24:25

7. Mads shares the importance of communicating with people in the way that they will understand best - 29:20

8. Mads warns about the bottlenecks that entrepreneurs can create - 34:22

9. Mads shares a management lesson he learned the hard way - 39:45

10. Jocelyn talks about cultivating her team across the different departments of the company - 43:58

11. Mads notes why he prefers to hire internally - 48:45

Resources Mentioned: 

Track to Success Facebook Group

Connect with Jocelyn Kopac

Jocelyn Kopac