ROGERS - Fifty four percent of the American workforce is not "engaged" in their workplace, the Soderquist Center for Leadership & Ethics told a group of leaders recently.

Citing a 2009 Gallup poll on the level on the U.S. work force, the center's director of business development Ryan Hale said the study also found that 29 percent of workers are engaged and 17 percent are actively disengaged.

"What that means is a third of your company is in drive, more than half is in neutral and nearly 20 percent is in reverse," Hale said. "You've got to figure out how to shift the disengaged at least into neutral, or how to shift them out of your organization."

Hale and colleague Wendy Soderquist Togami discussed using values-based decisions to drive company success during a presentation at the second annual Northwest Arkansas Business Conference & Expo. Their talk on "Leading A Culture of Engagement & Performance" explored building worker engagement by clearly defining organizational values.

The conference was the result of a partnership between the state's largest chamber, The Rogers-Lowell Area Chamber of Commerce, the Arkansas World Trade Center and the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal.

The Soderquist Center, available online here, is also bringing NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Roger Staubach to the Hammons Center in Rogers on August 24 where he will be the featured speaker at the Business Journal's annual Forty Under 40 luncheon.

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Siloam Springs, Ark. — John Brown University and The Soderquist Center have named Chuck Hyde the new Chief Executive Officer of the Soderquist Center. Hyde has been serving as the organization’s Chief Operating Officer for the past two years.

“Chuck has done excellent work serving as the COO during the past two years and this promotion recognizes his faithful and outstanding leadership at The Center,” said Dr. Chip Pollard, JBU president.

As The Center’s CEO, Hyde will be responsible for providing direct leadership in all areas of the Center including execution of vision and strategy, performance to budget, all human and capital resources, and long-term sustainability of the organization.

“I’ve come to believe that it really matters who you work with and for, and I know I’m tremendously blessed in that area,” Hyde said. “For 12 years, we’ve been able to do amazing work at the Center with some of the best companies and leaders in the world, and we are poised to do some special things going forward. I’m grateful for the confidence placed in me from Chip, Don and our team.”

Hyde originally joined The Soderquist Center in 2005. In addition to operations, Hyde has also served in customer relations and business development. Previously, he was a team leader for Kimberly-Clark Corporation, where he worked for over a decade in supply chain operations. Hyde holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Arkansas and a MBA from John Brown University.

The Soderquist Center offers a values-based approach to leadership, organizational and team development. Located on the campus of John Brown University in Siloam Springs, the Center was founded in 1998 in honor of Don Soderquist, former COO and Senior Vice-Chairman of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. For more information visit www.soderquist.org.

John Brown University is a private Christian university, ranked second by “U.S.News & World Report” in the Southern Region. JBU enrolls more than 2,000 students from 42 states and 45 countries. JBU is a member of Arkansas’ Independent Colleges and Universities and the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities.

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The story was very well produced and we are thankful to Sarah Hickman and her team at KNWA for sharing our story with the community.

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