Frequency

Conferences, Credibility & Cultural Expectations

Chuck and Jenni have both been on the road in the last week attending the IABC World Conference in Vancouver and Atomicon in Newcastle in the UK, and they kick off this episode with some of their reflections and learnings from both. 
 
Throughout the episode they reflect on the changing nature of workplace culture, the importance of meaningful connections, and the challenges of presenteeism. The conversation touches on Jim Collins' concept of 'Good is the enemy of Great' and the need for companies to strive for superior results and lasting impact. 
 
They explore the evolving expectations of employees regarding work social events and the signals that leaders send about taking time off when you’re sick. In this episode they discuss the challenges of workplace illness in a remote and hybrid world and the expectations placed on employees by leadership. 
 
They get into some recent research that shows the impact of gender bias in reporting misconduct in the workplace, with the conversation turning to the history of the witch trials! 
 
Finally, they address the rapid adoption of AI in organizations and the potential risks to employee autonomy and trust, emphasizing the need for thoughtful communication and support during these changes for employees.
 
Links and articles mentioned in this episode: 
Unhappy Hour: People used to relish getting sloshed with their colleagues after work. What happened?
Research: Why Employees Work While Sick—and How Leaders Can Stop It
Research: Women’s Complaints of Workplace Abuse Get Ignored More Than Men’s
Good is the enemy of great
Washington Post: More companies are mandating employees to use AI. Not everyone is on board
 
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali. You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.
 

Signals, Summits & Strategic Listening

In this episode, hosts Chuck Gose and Jenni Field discuss some of the latest stories about AI, employee experience, leadership and workplace challenges. They reflect on their health and energy levels during the recording, share insights about the upcoming Comms Reboot event in Toronto on June 25, and delve into the issue of negative signaling on social media.
 
The conversation transitions to the importance of employee experience in shaping organizational behavior looking at some of the latest research into the link between the two.
 
Jenni recently attended the Gallagher London Summit and shares some of the key stats and insights from the presentations across the two days. Some older stories that have bubbled up on social media are debated - specifically why venting isn’t the best thing to do to create change and they finish on a big question - how does work shift from 5 days on, 2 days off with the growing use of AI?
Links and articles mentioned in this episode:
How employee experience drives employee behaviors
Why venting isn’t the way to solve our problems
AI And The End Of Traditional Work: Are We Entering A Post-Work Era?
 
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali. You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.

Culture, Communication & Corporate Courage

In this conversation, Chuck Gose and Jenni Field discuss various themes surrounding corporate culture, employee experience, and the impact of recent changes in workplace dynamics. 
They explore the troubling shift in corporate culture from positivity to fear amidst the recent stories of cutting middle management roles. 
They explore the disconnect between executives and middle managers, the challenges of internal communication, and the cultural differences in how deskless and office workers receive information. 
They discuss the need for more strategic communication within organizations and the delicate balance businesses must maintain when addressing societal issues based on some recent research in the USA. 
The conversation also touches on the role of values inside organisations, the expectations of employees regarding workplace culture and the importance of focusing on relevant communication.
 
Links and articles mentioned in this episode: 
(05:55) From friendly faces to firing squads - the new corporate culture
(14:02) Not just slash and burn
(22:42) Workshop’s Internal Communication Trends Report for 2025
(31:57) Business is a new stabilizer in a divided nation
Additional resources
What do we mean when we talk about strategy and tactics?  
Tried-and-tested frameworks for communicating organisational change
What can fit inside the Indianapolis Motor Speedway?
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali.You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.
 
 Connect with Jenni Field and Chuck Gose on LinkedIn. 

Balance, Boundaries and Breaking Hustle Culture

In this episode of Frequency, hosts Chuck Gose and Jenni discuss some big topics in the world of internal comms, employee experience and workplace culture.
 
⚫️ Is work/life balance your responsibility or the organizations?
⚫️ Is it a surprise that AI is making boring work more fun?
⚫️ What happens to managers when organizations get too big?
 
They explore the latest news and research into generational differences in workplace preferences, the importance of choice in work arrangements, while also addressing the impact of AI on productivity and motivation.
They delve into a few recent podcasts that discuss work/life balance and the role of line managers as organizations grow and hierarchy gets in the way of getting stuff done.
In this conversation, they also explore the challenges of timezones, the pressure of hustle culture, and the importance of play in our lives.
 
Links and articles mentioned in this episode:
(04:00) Working from beach had its time in the sun. Now it’s back to offices  
(10:31) HBR Research: Gen AI Makes People More Productive—and Less Motivated 
(15:52) They're Lying About Work Life Balance –The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett 
(26:10) HBR IdeaCast: Amazon CEO Andy Jassy on Agility, AI Strategy, and the Changing Role of Managers 
 
Books mentioned in this episode:
📕 All It Takes is a Goal by Jon Acuff
📗 Long Haul Leader by Chris Ducker
📘 Playful Rebellion by Gary Ware 
 
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali. You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.
Connect with Jenni Field and Chuck Gose on LinkedIn.

Frontlines, Fusion & Friction

In this episode, Jenni Field and Chuck Gose explore the evolving landscape of employee communication and experience. 
They dig into the growing disconnect with frontline workers, the surprising decision by Moderna to merge HR and IT, and why internal communicators should start thinking more like journalists. The conversation also dives into Gallup’s “remote work paradox,” highlighting how employees can be both highly engaged and deeply stressed. 
Throughout, Jenni and Chuck emphasize the value of listening, the risks of surface-level metrics, and the growing need for clarity, connection, and courage in how organizations communicate.
The links and articles that inspired this week's episode:
(4:45) Frontline Friction Report from Unily and ScreenCloud 
(11:05) Moderna merges HR and IT departments
(16:45) From headlines to deadlines
(22:57) Remote work paradox
 
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali.You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.
 Connect with Jenni Field and Chuck Gose on LinkedIn.

Presence, Productivity & Powerful Storytelling

In this episode of Frequency, Chuck Gose and Jenni Field explore some of the latest themes related to employee satisfaction, engagement, and the return to office debate. 
They discuss the importance of understanding employee satisfaction versus engagement and delve into the complexities of the return to office debate, highlighting control issues and the need for organizations to address underlying problems rather than relying on superficial solutions. 
They explore the evolving definitions of productivity for knowledge workers, emphasizing the need for clarity in what productivity means in different contexts. They get into the age old debate of the importance of internal communications and the ongoing struggle to define its role within organizations. 
The conversation shifts to the significance of storytelling as a powerful tool for communicators, highlighting its potential to enhance engagement and understanding and question whether this is what communicators really mean when they are focusing on creativity. 
Finally, they reflect on the dangers of relying on short-form content for decision-making, stressing the value of long-form, nuanced information.
 
The links and articles that inspired this week’s episode: 
 
(09:03) Employee Satisfaction vs. EngagementBuild the Life you Want by Arthur C Brooks and Opray Winfrey
(16:53) Return-To-Office: It's Not About Productivity, It's About Power
(27:41) The Role of Internal Communications
(35:56) The Power of Storytelling in Internal CommsExtra - Adobe Creative Type quiz 
 
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali.You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.
 
Connect with Jenni Field and Chuck Gose on LinkedIn. 

Anxiety, Adaptability & Authentic Communication

In this episode, Chuck and Jenni explore the challenges for HR teams in 2025, whether the term Adaptability Quotient (AQ) is a buzzword or a real focus for leaders and the latest data in the Return to Office (RTO) mandate. They get spicy with conversations about data and metrics while questioning whether everyone is worried about work or if it’s how we are being made to feel by the constant reports in the media. 
They uncover more cultural difference in vehicle regulations and themed parties while they discuss the importance of understanding happiness…. and the future of Las Vegas! 
Through their conversation, they emphasize the importance of aligning organizational strategies with employee engagement and the need for effective communication in addressing workplace concerns.
 
The links and articles that inspired this week's episode:
(04:49) The Evolution of HR: Climbing the Peaks of Challenges
(12:06) Navigating Workplace Anxiety: The Disconnect Between Leaders and Employees
(20:07) Understanding Adaptability Quotient (AQ) in Leadership
(25:25) The Evolution of Hybrid Work
(30:53) Did automation kill marketing? Is Comms next?
 
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali.You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.
Connect with Jenni Field and Chuck Gose on LinkedIn.

Gaps, Guidance & Getting Communication Right

In this episode of Frequency, Chuck and Jenni discuss various aspects of communication, culture and employee experience. 
They explore the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion in leadership, and some of the latest research into the significant communication gaps between leaders and employees. The discussion emphasizes the need for credible leadership and effective communication strategies to foster a positive organizational culture. 
In this conversation, Chuck reinforces the complexities of communication within organizations, emphasizing the differences in communication strategies based on company size. 
The conversation also touches on the pressures of personal branding in the digital age and the misconceptions surrounding psychological safety in the workplace, advocating for a deeper understanding of these concepts to improve organizational culture.
The links and articles that inspired this week’s episode: 
(7:25) Marriott’s CEO spoke out about DEI. The next day, he had 40,000 emails from his associates
(16:27) Axios HQ 2025 Internal Communications Report
(28:57) The pressure of personal brand
(36:30) What People Get Wrong About Psychological Safety
 
 
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali. You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.
 
Connect with Jenni Field and Chuck Gose on LinkedIn.

Buzzwords, Bots & Bad Data

In this episode of Frequency, Chuck and Jenni tackle some of the most pressing and polarizing questions in internal communication today. From the ethics of recording meetings to the over-intellectualization of the profession, they pull no punches.
They unpack key research from Harvard Business Review and Stanford University, exploring employee trust in AI-generated CEO messages, the slippery slope of strategic comms jargon, and why giving employees some autonomy over where they work might be the best culture decision a company can make.
Along the way, they share personal stories, challenge long-standing norms in comms, and even debate how fast people really listen to podcasts.
The links and articles that inspired this week’s episode: 
(11:55)  Why CEOs Should Think Twice Before Using AI to Write Message
(17:40) Stanford Professor on Hybrid Working and Why Companies Should Let Employees Choose
(24:15) Is Comms Becoming Too Intellectualized?
(31:05) Should You Record That Meeting?
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali.You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.
 Connect with Jenni Field and Chuck Gose on LinkedIn.

C-Suite Shuffles, the Strategy Spiral and the Spice Girls

In this episode of Frequency, Chuck and Jenni explore the challenges for people managers, the importance of impact of communication leaders and whether or not employees are exhausted by the cycle of strategy shifts.
They delve into the challenge of employee engagement scores and work-life balance (a term Chuck doesn’t enjoy) and they discuss the challenges for first-time leaders who are often left without the support or skills they need. The conversation also dives into the distinction between change fatigue and strategy fatigue, why both are a factor for employees and Jenni and Chuck debate about which employee groups feel them. 
They share the news that the communications unconference Comms Reboot is coming to Toronto in June in partnership with Contact Monkey and as they discuss the week that’s been and the week ahead somehow the Spice Girls get involved!
Whether you’re feeling stuck in a strategy rut or just here for the zig-a-zig-ah, this episode brings both clarity and a little fun to the challenges we all face at work each week. 
 
The topics and articles discussed in this week’s episode:
(4:10) Employee Engagement Trends Report 2025: McLean & Company Publishes New Research on Shifts Shaping the Workplace
(12:35) Departed CCOs not being replaced
(19:30) How to Prevent Strategy Fatigue
 
🇨🇦 If you want to come along to Comms Reboot: Comms Reboot - The Communication Unconference - Toronto | Redefining Communications
📕 If you want to grab a copy of Jenni’s book you can get it on Amazon and you can get signed exclusive hardback copies directly from her: Nobody Believes You | Redefining Communications
 
🎶 Theme music for Frequency is “Blessed Be the Weary," produced by Poet Ali.You can find the track on Spotify, Apple Music, and wherever you stream music. We're grateful to Poet for setting the tone with his powerful, reflective sound.
 
Connect with Jenni Field and Chuck Gose on LinkedIn.