Unpacking organizations: the practitioner's podcast
Episodes
Design with the Customer in Mind with Brandon Curry
03 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Shradha and Rupert are joined by Brandon Curry, CEO of WorkArts and a practitioner who has led org design from the shop floor to the C-suite. Drawing ...
Clarity is a Performance Lever with Janet Sherlock
20 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Shradha and Rupert are joined by Janet Sherlock, former Chief Digital and Technology Officer at Ralph Lauren and now founder and CEO ...
Rethinking Org Design in the Age of AI with Garth Andrus
06 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Shradha Prakash and Rupert Morrison sit down with Garth Andrus, author of The Technology Fallacy, and global leader in org and AI tra...
Leading Change That Sticks with Nathan Lavoie
23 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Shradha and Rupert are joined by Nathan Lavoie, Global Head of Organizational Change Management and Readiness at Sanofi. Drawing from his experience a...
Unsilencing the system: Leading org design from the inside out with Chelsea Jennings
09 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Hosts Shradha Prakash and Rupert Morrison are joined by Chelsea Jennings, a seasoned leader in organizational effectiveness at a major global bank. Wi...
Designing for Change: Rethinking Operating Models in the Age of AI with Paul Krasilnick
25 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Unpacking Organizations, Shradha Prakash and Rupert Morrison sit down with Paul Krasilnick, Global Lead of OD and People Analytics ...
Org design that works: Leading change with clarity, courage, and capability with Jodie Goulden and Richard Lucas
11 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What does it take to make organization design work in the real world? In this conversation, hosts Shradha and Rupert are joined by Jodie Goulden and R...
Rethinking operating models with Kent McMillan
04 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Shradha and Rupert sit down with Kent McMillan, Managing Director at Accenture and author of Rethinking Operating Models. Together, they dive into how...
Unlocking skills-based organizations with Michael Griffiths
21 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Rupert and Shradha sit down with Michael Griffiths, Deloitte US Organization, Workforce & Change Consulting Leader, to examine the shifting dynami...
Headcount vs. Workforce Planning: What you need to know, with Badr Ait Ahmed
14 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Rupert and Shradha are joined by Badr Ait Ahmed, a seasoned expert in workforce planning and people analytics. The conversation explores the critical ...
Navigating Workforce Planning: Insights from Cole Napper
07 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cole Napper, VP at Lightcast, joins Rupert and Shradha to explore the intricacies of workforce planning and analytics. They discuss the importance of ...
Understanding the spectrum of change management with Mark McAleer
30 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Shradha and Rupert delve into Mark McAleer’s journey into organizational design, unpacking the intricacies of change management. The discussion high...
Being complexity conscious and people positive with Sam Spurlin
23 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Hosts Rupert and Shradha are joined by Sam Spurlin, a consultant at The Ready, to explore the evolving landscape of organizational design and the futu...
Navigating the world of organizational planning and analytics with Alan Susi
16 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, hosts Shradha and Rupert chat with Alan Susi, VP and Global Head of Organizational Planning and Analytics at S&P Global. Alan sha...
Understanding integrated business planning with Jordan Pettman
09 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, hosts Shradha and Rupert engage with guest Jordan Pettman to explore the significance of Integrated Business Planning (IBP) in organi...
The art and science of change management with Hardeep Kaur
02 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Rupert and Shradha engage with Hardeep Kaur, who shares her extensive experience in organizational change and leadership. Hardeep discusses her journe...
Navigating organization design and culture with Julian Chender
26 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this engaging conversation, Rupert and Shradha welcome Julian Chender, an expert in organization design, to discuss his journey from corporate cons...
Digital Twin for Org Design with Don Miller
31 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this episode, Rupert and Shradha interview Don Miller from Deloitte about the concept of digital twin and its relevance in organizations. A digital...
The impact of workforce planning with Jade Christie
24 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Jade Christie, Director of Workforce Planning at Lululemon, discusses the importance of workforce planning in a rapidly growing organ...
Culture, org design and change integration with Sharon Dye Yates
17 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On this episode Rupert and Shradha interview Sharon Dye Yates, an org development and org design professional. Sharon shares her journey into the fiel...
Implementing job architecture & org design with Jules Siegel-Hawley
10 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jules Siegel-Hawley, a clinical social worker and organization design transformation expert, shares her journey and insights into the world of organiz...
Why job architecture is more important than ever with Otto Pretorius
03 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Shradha and Rupert are joined by Otto Pretorius to discuss job architecture and its importance in organizations. They explore the evolution of job arc...
CEO Agenda - own the org design with Himanshu Tambe
26 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Himanshu Tambe, an adjunct faculty in Indian School of Business and Singapore Business University, emphasizes how organizations of the future are shif...
Understanding business value chain as a core managerial skill
19 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Rupert and Shradha discuss the connection between understanding the work and the value chain of a business. They explain that the val...
Org design for the gig economy
12 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This conversation explores the concept of the gig economy and how organizations should approach designing for it. It discusses the challenges of incor...
Levels of Work vs Organizational Hierarchy
05 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The conversation explores the relationship between the level of work and hierarchies within organizations (yes, these are two different concepts). It ...
Shaping human behavior in organizations with Amy Kates
29 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week, our guest is Amy Kates. A guiding force for all of org design practitioners and enthusiasts out there. Amy shares her impressive journey of...
A lifetime of wisdom with Paul Tolchinsky
22 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we are honoured to have Paul Tolchinsky as our guest. Paul discusses his journey in whole-scale change management and the lessons he ...
Explain It! Strategic, Operational and Tactical (SOT) workforce planning
15 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Shradha and Rupert discuss the concept of time and how it relates to organizational design and workforce planning. They explore the d...
Designing effective Private Equity organizations with Alice Mann
08 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Alice Mann, founder of Mann Partners Inc., joins the hosts to discuss org design in the context of private equity firms. Alice explains the importance...
Importance of understanding the work and business value creation with Shefali Salwan
01 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Rupert and Shradha are joined by Shefali Salwan, co-founder of CEO Works, to discuss the concept of talent to value. The conversation...
Org design trap: no strategy, no org design
24 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Yet another organizational design trap is not identifying the strategy before embarking on the design journey. Many organizations lack a true strategy...
What is organizational capability?
17 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We believe 'organizational capability' is one of the most incorrectly used (and understood) terms in organizational design. In this episode, Rupert an...
Org design trap: "Designing around people"
10 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Let’s unpack one of the most common organizational design traps: "Designing Around People." Even seasoned professionals like Rupert and Shradha have...
Power dynamics in org design
03 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Rupert and Shradha explore the role of power in organization design. A thoughtful organization design recognizes and rewards natural ...
Org design doesn’t lead to layoffs, lack of org design does
27 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As we closed out the year 2023, layoffs remained top of mind. In this episode, Rupert and Shradha delve into the topic of organizational design in tha...
The one where we wrapped up season one and discussed critical roles
15 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The three dimensions of determining critical roles are relative impact, time to productivity, and number of people and positions occupying these roles...
All that AI is not just saving money
08 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Are we excited about AI because it is going to improve our employee experience, customer experience, and enhance the quality of our work, or are we sc...
How does OP&A interact with other HR departments?
01 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
There is a strong interconnection between OP&A and other parts of HR such as learning and development, talent acquisition, operations, talent mana...
Where should OP&A and org design sit?
25 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We are biased in our opinion that HR should own this capability but we are also curious on why HR doesn't own this function the way it should? What ca...
What is your bureaucracy index?
18 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Controls and tensions are an important part of the organization. Diverse points of view help us make better decisions. But as we start to add more app...
TAF (Target, Actual, Forecast)
11 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
One can easily get lost in organizational planning and analysis if we don’t know where we need to get to (Target), what is our starting point (Actua...
Are org design professionals bad people?
04 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Lets face it, org design practitioners are the ones behind all the layoffs, all the cost cutting and all the stuff that leads to uncertainty and unple...
Design Criteria vs. Design Principles
27 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Shradha can't tell you how many times in her early career she's used these terms interchangeably. In this episode she invites Rupert to unpack this. W...
HOWWIP (How will it work in practice?)
20 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Can you ever imagine a product being launched without testing? A team playing a match without practicing? So why do we feel so confident about an orga...
Getting to know Rupert
13 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we take the time to learn a little more about one of our presenters, Rupert Morrison.
Getting to know Shradha
06 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we take the time to learn a little more about one of our presenters, Shradha Prakash.
Accountability mapping
30 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Is it RACI, RAPID, DARE or 'I want to die'? Why we love creating responsibility mapping charts but never ever use then in reality (please ping us if y...
Rightsizing – a single size doesn’t fit all
23 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Rightsizing requires identifying the right approach to fit the right business context. Use the FIDRAM method of workforce planning to understand what ...
Always-on transformation
16 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Employee burnout, loss of culture and productivity, and disruption of business, to name just a few things. Org transformations are often equated with ...
To matrix or not to matrix?
09 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Every organization today works in some form of matrix structure. It is an essential construct to navigate organizational complexities and foster colla...
Explain it! Roles vs. Positions
02 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
The first rule of successful org design is to sperate out people and positions. But there is another consideration that is equally critical – diffe...
Explain it! Org capability, competency and skills
27 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Let’s not use them interchangeably, please. Org capability is what organizations have as combination of people, systems and processes. Skill is what...
Understand the work before understanding the workforce
27 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What do you do? What work does your team do? How does the work help create business outcomes? Do you enjoy doing the work? Should you even be doing th...
The macro and micro of org design
27 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What does org design even mean? Is it about changing the operating model or is it about tweaking the work on an ongoing basis? What design action is r...
OP&A, that missing HR department
27 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When we think about HR, we intuitively think about compensation, talent management, recruitment, etc. Rarely does OP&A pop up in our minds. Organi...