Press Release

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TEACHING THE DINOSAUR TO DANCE

Moving Beyond Business as Usual

by Donna Kennedy-Glans

with contributions from Andre N. Mamprin

NEW BOOK OFFERS A PRACTICAL ROADMAP TO ADVANCE SOLUTIONS & MOVE ENTERPRISE BEYOND THE STATUS QUO

There is not a business, government, nonprofit or institution to be named which hasn’t been rocked in some fundamental way by the events of the past two years. From COVID-19 to the climate crisis to social justice movements like #MeToo and #BlackLivesMatter, it’s become clear to even the hardest of hardline resistors that disruption rules the day, and that inaction in the face of shifting expectations is a choice that can only lead to one end: extinction.

On Twitter and on Main Street, consumers, shareholders and voters have dialed up the pressure and made it clear that maintaining the “status quo” -- be it destruction of the planet, perpetuation of systemic discrimination, or simply doing nothing to solve society’s most urgent issues -- is no longer an option.

But the issues are meteorically large, and long-held beliefs, habits and systems are like bedrock. Even the most well-meaning enterprises and their leaders are making critical missteps and finding themselves caught between doing nothing (bad) and doing something for the sake of “doing something” (worse).

Enter TEACHING THE DINOSAUR TO DANCE: Moving Beyond Business as Usual [Milner & Associates, March 1 2022].

The new book from Donna Kennedy-Glans [Corporate Integrity: A Toolkit for Managing beyond Compliance, Wiley Canada, 2005], TEACHING THE DINOSAUR TO DANCE is a must-read for anyone open to fresh ideas and willing to do the work needed to move their organization to a preferred future.

Using the dinosaur as a metaphor for people who are attached to ‘business as usual’, in the book, Kennedy-Glans introduces a new framework -- “The Dance Moves” -- to move past fossilized thinking.

Filled with powerful case studies, tried-and-true organizational tools, and compelling narrative storytelling drawn from the author’s personal experiences in places as diverse as oil-rich Alberta and Nigeria, the farming communities of southern Ontario, and remote places in nations including Yemen, Indonesia and Colombia, TEACHING THE DINOSAUR TO DANCE offers a clear-eyed, solutions-driven roadmap that will empower the reader to rethink, redesign and execute enterprise revitalization… and possibly even transformation.

Written over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, the book has been informed and inspired by Kennedy-Glans’ nearly 40-year career in leadership roles in the private, nonprofit and public sectors, and is supported by contributions from Andre N. Mamprin, a strategist and leadership consultant whose Essential Elements of Leadership is the product of 15+ years of exhaustive applied research, observation and documented evidence from more than 4,800 leaders.

“It’s futile to keep running headlong at impenetrable power structures; to engage in polarized battles that have no genuine hope of dialogue; to keep pretending that marketing slogans reflect an organization’s values,” shares Kennedy-Glans. “The status quo isn’t working, and willpower and good intentions alone will not sustain efforts to rebuild or launch an enterprise in a post-pandemic world.”

“It’s going to be the job of all of us to figure out new ways to incentivize people who are stuck in their thinking to do things differently,” she continues. “While business as usual may be extinct, there is value in understanding how we got to this point, and in discerning what to preserve and what to discard.”

“In this particularly destabilizing time, I feel a responsibility to support the work of all enterprise builders—the new builders and the rebuilders—who seek to remain relevant and sustainable.”

Donna Kennedy-Glans will have availability for interviews, expert commentary and byline article/op-ed contributions to promote the release of TEACHING THE DINOSAUR TO DANCE. The topics she can speak to include:

• Finding fairer ways for capitalism to pull its weight: how the events of past two years have created enormous challenges for enterprise, but also a “remarkable opportunity” in public, private and nonprofit sectors
  
• What enterprise leaders can do to navigate today’s evolving expectations around net-zero commitments, diversity & representation, and community impact
  
• Self-censorship, cancel culture and “inclusiveness checklists” – how to create genuine dialogue and engage with stakeholders who hold different belief systems (or even oppose your enterprise goals) to build more resilient and innovative organizations
  
• How “Hail-Mary” attempts like highly visible corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives can backfire, and the many shortcomings of “willpower and good intentions”
  
• What is the future role of government, and where does the private sector fit in? Defining stewardship and making it a part of your enterprise story: taking the long view while remaining sensitive to the pressing issues of the day
  
• Why “efficient” organizations look great when the going is good, but fail spectacularly when a crisis crops up – the necessity of achieving balance between being quick, careful, nimble, and thoughtful
  
• Taking accountability for the decisions that created the “status quo”, finding the value in understanding how we got to this point and in discerning what to preserve and what to discard
  
• What are the personal leadership skills required to do this work?

About the Authors

DONNA KENNEDY-GLANS is a boundary-crosser. She has worked on the ground to add value to enterprising projects in over thirty-five countries, in the public, private and non-profit sectors.

Born a farmer’s daughter near Tillsonburg, in southwestern Ontario, Donna left the family cattle and tobacco farm to get a law degree at the University of Western Ontario and then headed further west, to Alberta, to work in the oil patch.

During her career in the energy sector, Donna held several unique and pioneering roles in risk management, corporate integrity and sustainability: she became the first female vice-president at Nexen; was an early architect of transparency initiatives in places like Nigeria; and again and again, demonstrated the ability to bring together investors, communities, advocates and governments on values-based issues.

Aside from a long career as an energy insider, Donna has varied experience across many sectors: founding a non-profit to build the capacity of women in Yemen, serving as an elected politician and cabinet minister, holding leading roles on boards of directors, and participating with her siblings in the stewardship of the family farm enterprise.

She is the author of Corporate Integrity: A Toolkit for Managing beyond Compliance (Wiley, 2005), and is now a political commentator, community builder, writer and speaker, weighing in on energy, leadership, governance, community and integrity issues.

Collaborating with others to design and implement smart solutions to vexing problems is a passion for Donna. Her goal has always been to figure out how to make better decisions within organizations, and to help others do the same, with greater agility and intention.

When she is not teaching dinosaurs to dance, Donna can be found hiking in some remote place, camera at the ready, or playing with her granddaughter, Kennedy.

Connect with Donna on Twitter (@dkennedyglans), Instagram (@dkennedyglans), LinkedIn (@dkennedyglans) and on her blog, beyondpolarity.blog

**

ANDRE N. MAMPRIN has been a student of both the art and the science of strategy and leadership for more than two decades. As Leader of Knowledge Architecture at The Next Institute and Executive Director of The Banff Centre Leadership Development, he has created a foundation for meaningful change through designing leadership learning content and delivering programs to more than 20,000 leaders.

Adjacent to his role at Next, Andre is currently working on several start-ups, including UpLift Studio Lab,™ a storytelling unit of The Next Institute; and The Next Learner Space,™ a global initiative to develop leadership skills for highly enterprising youth.

Andre is keenly interested in advancing new thinking and applied research in the fields of innovation, collaboration, leadership development and enterprise design. Andre served as Director, Centre for Innovation, Leadership & Management at Sheridan Corporate in Toronto, Canada. He was the co-architect of The Leadership Lab™ at The Banff Centre, exploring issues of organizational leadership worldwide.

As both a leader and entrepreneur in the oil and gas, manufacturing, and banking industries, he gained hands-on, applied experience in growing profitable business driven by solid leadership ecosystems, and he has translated that experience into designing and delivering intricate and often large-scale solutions for an array of blue-chip organizations across North America.

As a creative, trans-disciplinary thinker, Andre has a keen ability to analyze and apply a unique approach to a host of contemporary strategic issues. Placing great leadership at the heart of all individual and organizational success, he believes deeply that leaders can be developed.

Andre is an experienced international traveler, painter, sculptor, student of the martial arts and an avid cyclist. He and his family have built their life in Calgary, Canada.

**

Website: http://www.teachingthedinosaur.com/

TEACHING THE DINOSAUR TO DANCE: Moving Beyond Business as Usual will be released in hardcover and e-book on March 1, 2022.

ADVANCE REVIEW COPIES OF TEACHING THE DINOSAUR TO DANCE AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST

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