Sep 10, 2024
In episode 90 of "Austin Tech Connect", Thom Singer talks to Karen Gordon, CEO of Dynamics. Karen is a serial entrepreneur, who is passionate about helping people harness the power of differences to amplify outcome.
About Karen Gordon
Karen Gordon is the CEO of 5 Dynamics, a company that is
focused on making the world a better place one relationship at a
time. 5 Dynamics’ proprietary software, Simpli5, creates cultures
fueled by self and interpersonal awareness to bolster productive
collaboration, boost morale, accelerate timelines, and deliver
better results. Most leaders tend to focus on what people do,
instead of how they do it. In 3 minutes or less, Simpli5 determines
how a person works through different phases of a project–ideation,
alignment, planning and execution. Using these analyses, Simpli5
delivers customized development resources to leaders and their team
members.
Before launching 5 Dynamics in 2010, Karen led GTCI, a data
and telecommunications company, to over 1100% growth, landing GTCI
on the Inc. 500 list two years in a row. She is a former Ernst and
Young Entrepreneur of the Year finalist and was included in the
Dallas Top 25 businesses list. Louisiana Tech University named
Karen its 2006 Alumnus of the Year in the College of Liberal
Arts.
Her thought leadership has been shared in Money Inc,
Entrepreneur, The CEO Magazine, The Future of Everything, and many
other publications. Her entrepreneurial spirit, love of learning,
and commitment to excellence are attributes that she brings to all
of her endeavors. Karen’s TEDx presentation on “The Myth of
Difficult People” continues to be watched by thousands of people
each year.
As an author, educator and entrepreneur, she has over 25
years of experience leading organizations to reach their highest
potential. She has created and managed many businesses ranging from
a martial arts studio, to a telecommunications and data company, to
an employee experience platform. She is currently in the process of
developing a retreat space in the woods of Maine that will focus on
leadership development programs.
Karen splits her time between Austin, TX and Wilton, Maine.
When in Maine, she can be found at her lakeside camp enjoying
nature with a good book, a glass of wine and her faithful dogs,
Winston and Jasmine. Karen has also served on multiple non-profit
boards over the years that share her passions of helping children,
animal welfare, and social justice.
About Simpli5
Simpli5, powered by 5 Dynamics, unleashes human potential by
blending psychology, neuroscience, and technology to help
individuals and teams navigate complex social and professional
dynamics with creativity, empathy, critical thinking, and
confidence.
Their innovative platform analyzes individual’s and
team’s working styles by acknowledging their affinity for different
phases of a project cycle, which empowers adjustments and
corrections that lead to improved collaboration, personal
satisfaction, and superior outcomes.
Simpli5’s roots are grounded in the work of Mike Sturm, an
educator, a social psychologist, and a learning diagnostician.
Originally applied in educational settings, this model was quickly
brought by working parents into business applications.
Today, Simpli5 fosters cultures driven by employee and team
effectiveness, self-awareness, and interpersonal understanding. It
equips leaders and teams with the insights they need to adjust
leadership styles, predict performance, and address organizational
challenges throughout a project’s lifecycle. Their methodology is
being utilized in diverse organizations and learning institutions,
from Stanford and Harvard to LinkedIn, Sutter Health, UKG, and
IDEO. The methodology can be applied any place where two or more
people are working together on a shared outcome.