Podcasts are a popular and contemporary entertainment medium, but they can also serve as a convenient and effective learning tool. In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Department of Revenue, our weekly leadership podcast meeting is one component of a holistic leadership development ecosystem currently in development.
The voluntary program is intended for leaders of all levels within our agency, including executives, bureau directors, division chiefs and front-line supervisors. This leadership podcast directly connects to the agency’s vision, “to be an innovative, customer-focused and employee-centered agency.” Being employee-centered requires committing both time and resources to meet our government agency’s strategic goal of, “developing our workforce for current and future growth.”
The intentional focus on leadership development programming began in 2014 and was geared toward current leaders and supervisors. Then in 2018, based on a group project completed in the leadership development program, a new employee engagement survey was released. The responses, which included open-ended questions, were analyzed and revealed definitive trends highlighting the need to create more human connections and provide additional training on how to lead. In response, in April 2019, the leadership podcast workshops began. Leadership podcast formed as a small and informal, grassroots leadership conversation. During the first Tuesday of each month, agency managers and supervisors would convene in person to listen to an industry-relevant podcast and discuss the content.
The leadership podcast series had almost reached one year of existence when in-person commonwealth offices were shuttered due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The programming evolved in response to this crisis and became a weekly virtual event, instead of a monthly occurrence. The move to a weekly leadership discussion was something our leaders looked forward to and provided hope in professionally and personally uncertain times. The group flourished during this timeframe and more leaders were added to the conversation.
To gather feedback and continue improving upon the programming, a survey was sent to attendees of the leadership podcast series. Respondents said that besides the whole group discussions, they wanted the opportunity to meet in smaller groups, still virtually, to discuss what they had learned. Additionally, a suggestion was made to integrate panel discussions. These panel discussions would be comprised of leaders from all levels and provide the opportunity to share leadership insights and experiences with the group in a collective setting.
In August 2020, the revamped leadership podcast series debuted in thanks to the concentrated efforts of a small planning workgroup. This is when the program really began to take the form it still holds today: The leadership podcast program has evolved to address one key leadership theme each month. In a typical month, three existing podcasts are selected, and Department of Revenue leaders gather virtually for one hour each Tuesday morning to listen to the content, and then engage in reflection and discussion. We seek out podcasts from relevant industry leaders, such as John Maxwell, Brené Brown, Kim Scott, Charles Feltman and more.
During the fourth meeting of the month, a collaborative application activity is held, which is connected to the specific theme. The activity may involve a more formal leadership panel discussion or a lightly scripted small group discussion facilitated by volunteer leaders. Small groups consist of the volunteer facilitator and about five to six attendees within a breakout room, allowing group members to feel more comfortable sharing their personal experiences, while also forming connections with leaders from other areas of the agency. The small groups return to the larger group and highlight key takeaways shared within the breakout rooms, which are also combined into a summary emailed to all invitees. The post-discussion summary provides insight into existing experiences, challenges, strengths and growth opportunities.
The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue’s leadership podcast allows learners to hear prominent voices on various leadership competencies. On average, a weekly session attracts 35 percent of invitees. Learners receive information quickly in a collaborative setting, no matter the employee’s physical location across the state. In 2023, we provided training on the following topics: emotional intelligence, motivation, strategic planning, giving and receiving feedback, employee and leader wellbeing, components of 21st-century leadership, meaningful conversations, balancing empathy and accountability, and building and restoring trust.
This year, we encouraged leaders to be open to exploring new modalities, such as somatic practices. For example, when covering the topic, “Can Leaders Teach Accountability?” we concluded the workshop with a five-minute empathy meditation to balance the need for both accountability and empathy. Listening to that brief meditation encouraged leaders to provide empathy to themselves first, and then others. When requesting feedback on the meditation, one leader shared, “At first I was skeptical, but I enjoyed it and have been more at peace.”
We intentionally design several key elements of learning each month. This starts with a pre-podcast email communication. It is sent to all potential attendees approximately 24 hours before the workshop and reminds leaders of the monthly theme, the essential learning questions for the month and the specific topic to be covered that week. The group convenes via Microsoft Teams, and we always play music as leaders join. This has been a popular gathering addition and sets a human-centered tone by creating conversations about music, concerts and other commonalities.
After a brief introduction to the content, we screen share the podcast and listen as a group. Often, individuals will post “a-ha” moments in the group chat or start discussions in the thread. After the podcast, we always discuss what was heard. Within 24 hours, a post-podcast email communication is sent. This provides a link to the podcast, notes from the session, and follow-up resources. The resources are also housed on our leadership development SharePoint site for easy storage and access.
We request attendee feedback via a three-question poll during the final leadership podcast session of the month. From this poll, leaders consistently report that the content helps further their leadership development, the discussions help make connections to their leadership challenges and opportunities, and the monthly series is an effective use of their time. One future-focused goal is that our leaders will use the information learned in a podcast, coupled with a provided learning guide, to host discussions with their respective teams. This will provide a more inclusive leadership development approach for our nearly 1,600 agency employees.
Our mission at the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue is to fairly, efficiently and accurately administer Pennsylvania tax and Lottery programs. This might conjure images of number crunchers and busy call centers, not necessarily leadership capabilities or leadership development programs.
Since 2014, our agency has been actively striving to change the culture and mindset around agency leadership. Our weekly leadership podcast training series enhances efforts to intentionally develop our leaders for the benefit of employee growth and retention while also being in service to our customers. This program demonstrates that learning can occur in a variety of settings, and organizations can effectively leverage existing leadership content to enhance holistic programming and support human connections.
