People usually aren't the problem. The conditions around the work often are.
Most people want to do good work. But even capable, committed people struggle when the conditions around them make good work harder. Sylva helps organizations understand what is actually happening before deciding what to change. We get close to the work, listen to the people experiencing it and bring together the knowledge, perspectives and capabilities the problem actually requires.
Start with what you are seeing.
Maybe a property or team has to be ready to perform. The same problems keep coming back. Training isn't changing the outcome. Turnover is telling you something. Managers are struggling to communicate. You're growing and aren't sure what needs to come next. Or something simply isn't working and no one agrees on why.
You don't need to know which service you need before you call Sylva. Understanding that is part of the work.
The people closest to the work know things the organization needs to know.
That belief has shaped Greg Gorgone's work for more than four decades.
In 1981, his foodservice career began at a pot sink on a busy Friday night. From that position, he could see the whole kitchen — the pace, the handoffs, the friction and the people making the operation work. The next day, a sous chef noticed his questions, handed him a case of romaine and a French knife, and taught him something new.
That small act changed the direction of his career. It also left a lesson that still shapes Sylva: capability and useful knowledge can be easy to overlook when we see only a person's position.
Fresh eyes help us notice. Proximity helps us understand.
We work in the spaces between the boxes.
Operations · Human Resources · Learning and Development · Leadership · Technology · Equipment · Vendors · Frontline Teams
Important problems rarely stay inside one box on an organizational chart. Sylva helps connect what different parts of the organization are seeing so the whole problem becomes clearer.
How Sylva works
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ENGAGE
Get close to the work and understand what people are experiencing.
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DIAGNOSE
Look across the system for the conditions, patterns and friction shaping the outcome.
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CONNECT
Bring together the knowledge, perspectives and capabilities the problem actually requires.
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CREATE
Build a practical path forward, test it where the work happens and refine what we learn.
Where we help
Sylva often enters when something has to be ready, the same problem keeps returning, learning is not changing performance, an organization is preparing for growth or change, or leaders need a fresh perspective on something they cannot yet explain.
The answer may involve Sylva directly, a specialist capability or several pieces working together. We do not decide that before understanding the problem.
SHIFT the way you solve problems.
SHIFT is Sylva's problem-solving methodology: See → Hear → Identify → Focus → Test & Refine.
It helps organizations get close to the work, separate symptoms from conditions and learn from what actually happens.
Experience where people and performance meet.
Sylva can work with workforce-intensive organizations and with the companies, educators, associations and specialists that support them. Greg's experience is especially deep in hospitality, foodservice, healthcare, senior living, education and workforce development.
Create the conditions to flourish.
Sometimes the right answer is something Sylva provides. Sometimes it isn't. Our job is to help you understand what is needed and keep the effort coherent as the work moves forward.