The Best Strategy? Listen to Your Community Artwork

Unleashing the Power of People: Reimagining the Workplace

Experience Management Institute explores what inspires innovators and leaders in people experience—covering people management, mentoring, coaching, training, development, human resources, human capital systems and process improvement, organizational development, and internal communications.

Hear from experts and thought leaders about creating workplaces that are more productive, innovative, and human-centered—all focused on revolutionizing the people experience.

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Unleashing the Power of People: Reimagining the Workplace

The Best Strategy? Listen to Your Community

January 23, 2025 • Season 1 • Episode 6

Why Listen?

In this episode, members of the EXMI staff have a conversation with Supt. Dana Addis of Hudson City Schools, a Northeast Ohio suburban district that’s been dynamic for decades.

Emerging from COVID, the district worked hard to set a strong foundation for their strategic plan. The plan won an award from the Ohio School Public Relations Association: the coveted Mark of Distinction. This means the judges gave it an A grade—in a field of much stiffer competition than in previous years across all awards. Hudson won in the category of Special Purpose Publications.

According to Supt. Addis, “There’s nothing I do as a superintendent that isn’t vetted through our school community. We don’t ever want people to feel like they’re getting a top-down decision (except for snow days!).”

Guests

Supt. Dana Addis, Hudson City Schools
Vice President of Experience Steve Fujii, Experience Management Institute
Director of Marketing and Operations Erin Howell, Experience Management Institute

Topics

Supt. Addis and EXMI colleagues Steve and Erin discuss these topics focused on community engagement in the planning process:

Why the district decided to undertake strategic planning, and how it advanced with the help of a partner.
How an impressive level of community engagement unfolded.
How Hudson City Schools unleashes the power of its people—including students, educators, and the community.
Supt. Addis’ predictions for the future of work.

“Our people have the power to be creative and take chances,” says Supt. Addis. “I am seeing the best work ever from educators in my 34 years. We are doing more now than we’ve ever done…we are growing students more as people…The future [of work in education] is addressing individual needs—even more.”