About 15 years ago, I made a career change from family therapist to corporate America. The vice president who was interviewing me for a position in the Human Resources Department said:
Help me out here. How does your background as a therapist translate into this job as a management consultant in the business world?
I told him that all of the families I had worked with were dysfunctional. Heck, I told him, Who’s family is NOT dysfunctional? I continued by saying all businesses have a level of dysfunction to them, too. But, like coping with the dysfunctional components in our own families, we get used to them. After a while, we don’t even notice that things aren’t right. We stop questioning if things can or even should improve, because we stop noticing any problems at all. I closed by saying, The only real difference between the families I worked with and any company is that those families were told by the state or the court system that they needed to get help. And inside most companies, no one has the courage to point out that things can and should get better.
I got the job.
And over the next 15 years I was promoted to a variety of roles that included executive director of strategic communication and chief of staff of internal operations.
I am…
- an innovative, yet pragmatic, internal communications/employee engagement expert
- a creative strategist of solutions that align employee talent with key business initiatives
- a developer of award-winning teams strong in assessing and solving complex business challenges
- a versatile leader and communicator to all organizational levels
- a specialist in increasing employee motivation and promoting change
- an expert speaker on living, laboring, learning…and letting go
Additionally, I am an author, consultant and father.
~ Scott
