Let me tell you a little bit about myself…

ABOUT Me

Welcome - I’m Kate Pavlina! I am a Bay Area native with over 5 years of progressive HR experience. I am currently working full-time in the Employee Experience space, where I help organizations create inclusive and engaging cultures that foster innovation, collaboration and achievement.

Prior to my beginning MSOD journey, I served in various HR roles including Employee Experience, Operational Excellence, Internal Communications, HR Business Partnership, Technology + HRIS and Recruiting.

These rich experiences helped me shape the strategies and solutions that I help teams co-create. I know what it feels like to be in the trenches - when there’s too much work and not enough people or time. I also believe that employees work best when they can bring their whole, authentic selves to work. Because of this, I believe that teams are capable of overcoming any challenge as long as they’re truly working together.

I have also been teaching various modalities of yoga since 2012. Currently my focus is around leading trauma-sensitive and restorative practices that result in self-discovery and relaxation. Want to know more? Visit my yoga site, here.

Want to know more about what I’ve done? Here’s my resume: click here to download.

My Personal Point of View

People are expected to successfully work within groups in the workplace now, more than ever. Workplace values around collaboration and teamwork are becoming increasingly common, with some companies going as far as describing their culture as “team-first.” But can a person really put a team’s needs ahead of their own? Situationally, yes. However, I believe that overall people live in a constant game of tug of war: making conscious and unconscious choices between putting their own individual needs or the group’s needs first in any given situation. 

Neuroscience tells us that the brain naturally looks out for itself (and its body) first. It also tells us that people like to be part of a group. So in an increasingly “team-first” world, people must prioritize collaboration versus getting what they need - whether they know it or not. Both needs are almost always present in the workplace. This tug of war is expressed differently in different situations: 

When the pendulum swings in the way of personal needs, employees can be viewed as uncollaborative or “only looking out for themselves.” For example, one may hoard ideas or even take credit for the work of others, in an attempt to prove their competence or worth. However, we know that they likely feel threatened in one way or another. Ultimately they are just trying to protect themselves. 

On the other hand, when the pendulum swings back toward the group needs, on the extreme end we see people over index around group harmony. This can equally stall progress. For example, when one is unwilling express a dissenting opinion in exchange for keeping peace in the group, an opportunity for improvement or innovation can be missed. 

In a real life tug of war, when one side dominates the other, someone ends up in the mud. At work, this manifests as conflict, disengagement or stagnation within groups. 

If the tug of war were balanced in the example above, members of this group would be able to solicit ideas, give feedback, respectfully dissent - and then make the choice that’s ultimately best for the group, while still respecting individual contributions. When both sides are expressed in healthy proportions, and the whole system is strong. 

So the quest for OD practitioners is: To help organizations help their people balance these seemingly conflicting priorities. 

I believe that the first thing practitioners must do is help their clients recognize that this tension exists between protecting the personal and the collective. Only then can we begin the work of helping them create a safe space for individuals to also recognize this, and then be able to assess when and how to best take care of both themselves and the collective. Balance of these priorities underpins a group’s ability to communicate, make decisions and collaborate effectively; and so individual development in this area must be prioritized as part of the foundation for a successful team.

For supporting theories and resources, please check out my full POV here.

How I can Help