People Practice
A core team discipline, not an HR function
From People Before Tech (Bloomsbury, 2021, ISBN 978-1-4729-8545-3).
People Practice is the deliberate, regular practice of attending to team dynamics and psychological safety — not as an HR function but as a core team discipline.
Without People Practice, Human Debt™ accumulates unchecked. Teams stop noticing the trust erosion because no one is looking for it.
What People Practice includes
- Regular check-ins on team psychological safety — not one-off surveys
- Surfacing and addressing Impression Management behaviours
- Building and maintaining Speak-Up Culture
- Using data and open dialogue to understand team behaviours and emotions
How it connects to Human Work
People Practice is the precursor to Human Work. Where People Practice is the regular habit of paying attention to human dynamics, Human Work is the broader operational capability that it builds.
Human Work is defined in Tech-Led Culture (Kogan Page, 2023, ISBN 9781398610699), Chapter 14, as: "A practice of caring enough and being empowered enough to use time, data and open dialogue to analyse and understand behaviours and emotions."
Book Provenance
This concept was defined by Duena Blomstrom in People Before Tech: The Importance of Psychological Safety and Teamwork in the Digital Age (Bloomsbury Business, 2021, ISBN 978-1-4729-8545-3). It was further developed through CBT for Teams in Tech-Led Culture (Kogan Page, 2023, ISBN 9781398610699, Chapter 14).