Dean Brenner

Winston Churchill once famously said “the most important thing about education is the appetite.” We teach and coach communication skills all day, every day, here at The Latimer Group. And we see all kinds of people walk into our workshops. We see the willing, the unwilling, the motivated, the unmotivated… and everything in between. Some […]

We’ve written on this topic before, but it is such a global business issue, that I am writing about it again. We have clients across a range of industries and on five continents. And no matter where we go, no matter what the industry is, everyone complains about the exact same thing. Everyone wants their […]

I heard a keynote recently by a guy who built much of his talk around the distinction between the words “cooperate” and “collaborate.” His point was that the concept of collaboration was a few steps beyond the concept of cooperation. His use of the terms was that when people cooperate they do the bare minimum […]

Originally published with the Forbes Coaches Council, July 2018. Meetings are a ubiquitous part of the modern office across all industries. Think of meetings as a company’s blood flow: When they are well-run, ideas and decisions flow through them like oxygen through veins, invigorating every aspect of the business, stimulating new ideas and pushing strategy […]

Here’s a challenging one, with no easy answer. Do you make your work life harder if you become friends (non-romantically) with a colleague or colleagues? Does it become harder to do your job when your professional relationships are overlaid with personal friendships? I think the answer is “maybe.” Adding a personal component to a professional […]

This post was written by Dan Cooney, Director of Coaching and Senior Facilitator at The Latimer Group. On July 25, 2018, Facebook held its Q2 earnings call, during which Facebook stock dropped by 24%, and net value decreased by as much as $150B. What happened on that call? What was discussed? (Audio of the call […]

Our three-year-old daughter challenged us a lot this weekend. But I could write that sentence almost anytime. She is strong and stubborn and delightful and hysterical, all at the same time. My wife and I adore and encourage her strength. But we also believe in strong parenting, and rules and limits. Which means we lock […]

Originally published with the Forbes Coaches Council, July 2018. Showing your audience respect has a lot of great payoffs. It makes your audience feel engaged and positive, it can enable a culture of buy-in, in which people feel committed not only to execute a plan or implement a new product but to make it succeed, […]

I was working with one of our best clients last week, FedEx. And during one of the workshops, one of the participants opened the presentation with a quote from Fred Smith, FedEx CEO and Founder: “If change makes you uncomfortable, then you are going to hate extinction.“ Despite the fact that I can’t be certain […]

We have shared many past posts here on the need and importance of clarity and brevity in your communications. Clarity and brevity are often the price of admission to be heard in the 21st century — table stakes — the cost to simply be able to play in the big leagues and have people listen to you. But […]