What happens when a foreign nation offers a sitting U.S. president a luxurious, $400 million "flying palace"? In this episode of America's Employee Handbook, host Dani Sterbinsky dives into Qatar's royal family's unprecedented May 2025 proposal to gift former President Trump a lavish Boeing 747-8. Using the sharp lens of industrial-organizational psychology, Dani explores the explosive reactions across Capitol Hill, dissects constitutional boundaries, and draws compelling parallels with historic presidential gifts and notorious corporate scandals. Through vivid storytelling, insightful expert commentary, and engaging listener challenges, discover how breaches in ethical guardrails ripple through organizations, influencing culture, trust, and compliance. Tune in as Dani navigates the turbulence of emoluments, ethics, and organizational accountability—because compliance isn't just paperwork; it's the safety harness keeping AmeriCo flying smoothly.

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Ever feel like national economic headlines hit a little too close to home in your workplace? In this episode of America's Employee Handbook, we're clocking in on the economy. Viewing the U.S. government as "AmeriCo," we explore how big-picture market swings—from inflation and consumer confidence dips to sudden economic shocks—profoundly impact the employee experience.

Join Dani Sterbinsky as she applies concepts from Industrial-Organizational Psychology to explain how economic uncertainty fuels employee anxiety, erodes trust, affects motivation, and shakes our sense of psychological safety. We'll look at real-world examples and discuss why understanding local labor markets (economic geography) is key to retention.

Please tune in to gain practical insights on the hidden ways the economy shapes your daily work life in AmeriCo, and discover what leaders can do to support their teams through turbulent times.

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The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative reveals a cautionary tale in change management. In this episode, Dani Sterbinsky applies principles of Industrial-Organizational Psychology to analyze what went wrong and what could have been done better. Learn how prioritizing empathy, fairness, and psychological safety can lead to more successful and sustainable organizational change.

References

Gustafsson, S., Gillespie, N., Searle, R., & Dietz, G. (2020). Preserving organizational trust during government restructuring: A case study of change management in a public agency. Organization Studies, 41(4), 645–664. https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840620901234

Hughes, M., & Zhang, L. (2024). Revitalizing Organizational Change: A Modern Take on Lewin’s Change Model in the Digital Age. Journal of Organizational Dynamics, 35(1), 45–68. https://doi.org/10.1177/0170840623112345

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AmericasEmployeeHandbook@gmail.com