One Simple Thing That Will Make You A More Innovative Workplace Leader

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in life, it’s that success isn’t necessarily about having all the answers, but knowing who we can go to for the answers.

That’s why I’m so excited to introduce a new podcast designed to inspire innovation in the workplace. It’s called (you guessed it) the Workplace Innovator podcast!

If you’re the kind of workplace leader who likes to challenge the status quo and who is always looking for great ideas to try, this podcast is definitely for you.

First, I’ll share a little about who I am, how this podcast came to be and what you can expect when you tune in.

Who’s This Mike Petrusky Guy, Anyway?

Speaking of people who don’t have all the answers, this is probably a good time to mention that I don’t have a background in facilities management. I am, however, a huge fan of 80s music who started out as a radio DJ back in my Virginia Tech days. (You can still call me D.J. Mike P.) Then I became a marketer who stumbled into the FM world about 10 years ago. And I discovered the nicest, most humble group of people, people with a service mentality. I realized I could learn a lot from them and form partnerships that would help the industry. Albert Einstein once said, “Try not to become a person of success, but rather try to become a person of value, and success will follow.”

I wanted to bring value to the world of facilities management by bringing together some of the best people and ideas. That’s how I started my marketing agency, Kayrell Connections, and my first podcast, the FM Innovator.

Why The Workplace Innovator?

I’ve admired iOFFICE for years as a leading provider of solutions for facilities managers and workplace leaders. I’ve had iOFFICE’s CMO, Elizabeth Dukes, on our podcast as a guest, and I couldn’t be more excited to be working in partnership with her and her team now.

Since joining forces with them, I’ve rebranded my FM Innovator podcast as the Workplace Innovator podcast, powered by iOFFICE.

The new name reflects the expanded role of facilities managers today. They’re not just managing buildings; they’re managing people, technology and workplaces. And, of course, it’s not just facilities managers who are responsible for the workplace. It’s executives, professionals in corporate real estate and leaders in HR and IT.

We wanted to broaden the conversation to focus on building collaboration between all these groups while encouraging them to enhance employee experiences by embracing the digital workplace.

Why You Should Tune In

On each 20-minute episode, I’ll talk with a workplace leader who has unique expertise in workplace strategy or technology. Some of my guests have included Jacob Morgan, bestselling author of The Employee Experience Advantage, as well as Dr. Roscoe Hightower, centennial eminent scholar, professor and chair for facility management and marketing at Florida A&M University and Lorri Rowlandson, senior vice president at BGIS.

We’ll talk about the latest workplace trends, challenges and the future of the built environment, as well as the human side of things when it comes to technology. We’ll also get to know a little bit about them personally, because we are all people first. We have common hopes and dreams, and we face similar challenges. We share some the same fears—the fact that things are moving so fast, and it can really feel overwhelming at times.

We know we have to reach outside our comfort zone and ask for help to keep pace with all these new technologies and changes impacting our world. If we’re going to be leaders, we have to be lifetime learners. So we must understand how to evaluate and implement the strategies and technologies that are transforming the way we all will work. This isn’t the Breakfast Club anymore. We have to get outside our assigned roles and learn to work together, just like they did.

You can find the Workplace Innovator wherever you get your podcasts. There will be a lot of valuable information, a little singing, and some laughs. You can also count on a few Star Wars references and some 80s movie quotes.

I look forward to getting to know you, and I hope you’ll check it out!