Episode Details

In this podcast episode, Dr. Jonathan H. Westover talks with Dustin Snyder about his book, Sink or SWIM: Stop Managing Employee Behavior. Design Systems That Drive It.

Dustin Snyder stewards the trajectories of companies navigating critical inflection points. As founder and Chief Advisor of Wayforward, he personally developed Strategic Workforce Insight Mapping - the diagnostic methodology that defines the standard for organizational behavior consulting - and wrote the book on it. Sink or SWIM: Stop Managing Employee Behavior. Design Systems That Drive It is the definitive framework for diagnosing and solving workforce dysfunction at its root, deployed across organizations nationwide - from family businesses navigating generational transition to Fortune 500 multinationals launching new divisions. Dustin's client portfolio spans mid-market companies in manufacturing, healthcare, professional services, agriculture, distribution, and hospitality, alongside divisions of large enterprises in aerospace & defense, SaaS, and advanced manufacturing. He works extensively with executive teams charged with managing challenging, multi-stakeholder operations, to build structures that can sustain aggressive growth while preserving founding values. He serves on the AWS Workforce Development Advisory Committee and the Harvard Business School Research Advisory Group. His practice bridges psychology and executive business leadership. Prior to founding Wayforward, Dustin served as President of Aurubis AG's 600-employee US manufacturing division, leading it to profitability through an organizational transformation. Earlier HR leadership roles spanned tier 1 automotive supplier Oetiker Group, Kaleida Health, and Roswell Park Cancer Institute. He also founded an axe-throwing venue chain that was acquired in 2019. Dustin holds an MBA from SUNY Buffalo, an MA in Industrial Labor Relations from Cornell, and a BA in Organizational Psychology from Canisius University. He is a Six Sigma Black Belt and Myers-Briggs certified practitioner. His next book, Learn to SWIM, a practical field manual for HR executives, is currently in development. Outside work, Dustin practices muay thai, competes in strongman and shooting sports, and is an avid mountaineer working toward the goal of summiting the highest peak on all seven continents. Wayforward specializes in organizational diagnostics and change management for companies at critical growth or transition points. Its Strategic Workforce Insight Mapping (SWIM) process provides leadership teams with the most actionable insights and implementation roadmaps that consistently generate workforce buy-in on change.

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