UNWRITTEN RULES: HOW TO MAKE CHANGE STICK explores the ways science, sociological evolution, and human behavior affect workplace culture. Every day, humans scan each other for subtle social cues to figure out how to act, what to say, whether or not to speak up in a meeting, and even how to dress—and adapt their behaviors accordingly. Unwritten rules are the single biggest influence on behavior in organizations – yet most ignore this dynamic, and in doing so, undermine their chances of leading successful change.

After the success of their 2019 tour events, co-authors Jan Johnson and Jeff Leitner will continue to host national and international presentations and workshops in 2020 to further uncover and understand how unwritten rules align with the intentions of physical spaces and the work done within them. In cases where these unwritten rules are dysfunctional or completely at odds with an organization’s mission, these workshops will provide a framework for how to bring about real and lasting change.

Jan Johnson is vice president of workplace strategy at Allsteel and frequently writes, speaks and teaches. She’s shaping the emerging field of workplace strategy through important contributions to the field’s body of professional knowledge, such as The Six Factors of Knowledge Worker Productivity, and by shaping and teaching the field’s professional competencies.

Jeffrey Leitner is a fellow at New America in Washington, D.C., and the author of See Think Solve: A Simple Way to Tackle Tough Problems. Former innovator in residence at the University of Southern California, founder of Insight Labs, and co-founder of the international design initiative, UX for Good, Jeff has helped create change for governments, corporations, institutions, and NGOs around the world.

Why do unwritten rules matter to Allsteel? “Allsteel is really committed to bringing reliable and relevant science to our industry, especially the social sciences,” says Johnson. “It’s really helpful in understanding and shaping our own thinking, in our product development process, and the sorts of advice we give to our customers. We want to be able to understand and help our customers make sure their workplace is aligned with the behaviors they intend to support.”

Sociological evolution moves faster than biological evolution. The emerging field of cultural neuroscience tells us that the brain is not fixed, but is constantly changing in response to social environments. Humans can download and run complex mental programs, change their behavior, and as participants of the Unwritten Rules tour will come to find out, have a lasting impact on workplace culture.

“Jan Johnson and Jeffrey Leitner’s excellent seminar on ‘unwritten rules’ in the workplace clarifies why it’s so hard to change culture,” says Fran Ferrone, Senior Consultant at Advanced Workplace Associates. “Culture can’t be disseminated in memos, townhalls or handbooks; you can’t change it in a meeting or by publishing a set of rules. It’s about getting to the heart of what everyone knows (or should) but doesn’t talk about. Once you’ve uncovered those hidden gems (or jibes) you can start to plan a path to a future cultural state.”

Due to popular demand, Jan Johnson and Jeffrey Leitner’s multi-city tour supporting UNWRITTEN RULES will continue in 2020.