Shows
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11 Ep17: To Stop a Tyrant: The Power of FollowersGuest: Ira Chaleff
What can you do when leadership at work crosses the line into authoritarian control?
We talk about authoritarians in politics, but they’re in the business world, too…and on the rise there. In this timely and provocative episode, Maureen Metcalf interviews Ira Chaleff, author of To Stop a Tyrant and The Courageous Follower, to explore how power is exercised, and challenged, inside both governments and organizations.
Here's what Ira and Maureen cover:
How authoritarian behavior is rising in business as well as politics;
The difference between disse...2025-07-2932 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS4 Ep11: The Power of Polarity Thinking: How Great Leaders Leverage OppositesGuest: Dr. Barry Johnson
If you think you have to solve problems, think again. You might be better off leveraging tensions instead!
Dr. Barry Johnson, creator of the Polarity Map®, joins host Maureen Metcalf to explore how “both/and” thinking helps leaders navigate complexity, avoid false choices, and drive sustainable performance. From clarity and flexibility to structure and innovation, Barry shares how thriving organizations—and societies—balance competing values rather than pick sides. It’s called polarity thinking…and it works. Packed with stories from the U.S. Navy, Singapore Airlines, and South Africa, this conversation...2025-07-2234 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11 Ep16: AI at Work: The Human Side of Tech TransformationGuest: Neil Sahota, United Nations AI Advisor
From internal sabotage and mistrust to ethical blind spots and cultural misalignment, this conversation dives deep into the real reasons AI transformations succeed or stall…and the solutions you need to make AI work in your company. You’ll also hear powerful examples of machine-human collaboration, the rise of AI bosses, and why trust is now a core leadership metric.
Here's what Neil and Maureen cover:
The #1 reason AI rollouts fail – and how you can avoid it;
How to assess your organization’s readiness for AI; and
Practica...2025-07-1539 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11-Ep15: -Why AI at Work Fails – And What the UN’s AI for Good Advisor Says You Can Do DifferentlyGuest: Neil Sahota, United Nations AI Advisor
Most AI failures aren’t caused by bad code. They’re caused by bad leadership.
In this episode, host Maureen Metcalf talks with UN AI advisor and IBM Master Inventor Neil Sahota to uncover the 5 fatal mistakes most organizations make when adopting AI. From the myth that AI is "just software" to the risk of automating bad processes, Neil explains why 4 out of 5 failures are human and leadership-based, not technical. Learn how treating AI like a high-energy intern, not a black box, transforms your success rate. This...2025-07-0838 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS4-Ep10: Leadership in Crisis: Why Leaders Fail (& How to Help)Guest: Sebastian Salicru, Psychologist & Author
Are we training leaders for a world that no longer exists?
Leadership expert and psychologist Sebastian Salicru joins host Maureen Metcalf to tackle one of today’s most pressing challenges: the failure of traditional leadership in a world defined by complexity and change. More importantly, they explore what today’s leaders actually need to succeed in a high-velocity world.
Here's what Sebastian and Maureen cover:
The breakdown and downfall of the heroic leader;
Why the billions of dollars spent on leadership development aren’t delivering results...2025-07-0118 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11-Ep14: How Great Leaders Are Made: Insights from The Economist’s "Boss Class"Guest: Andrew Palmer, The Economist columnist & Boss Class host
What makes a great boss, and why do so many managers get it wrong? The Economist columnist and Boss Class host Andrew Palmer joins Maureen Metcalf to break down what actually works in leadership today. From radical autonomy at Supercell to intentional culture-building at Toyota, this episode explores real-world strategies for creating high-performance teams and organizations.
Learn how qualities like self-awareness, transparency, and systems-thinking separate mediocre managers from truly effective leaders. Whether you’re new to management or shaping culture as a CEO, these stories and in...2025-06-2436 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS2-Ep53: Leading through Difference: Key Skills from the ILA Board ChairGuest: Mike Hardy, ILA Board Chair
The real leadership crisis isn’t about performance. It’s about how we handle differences.
In this powerful episode, Professor Mike Hardy, Founding Director of the Centre for Peace & Security, joins host Maureen Metcalf to explore the defining leadership challenge of our time: Pluralism vs. Prejudice.
It’s critical: even if your organization only operates in one city, odds are your team will have people from different generations, family cultures, and hometowns…much less religions and ethnicities. Bonding them all into one cohesive team is essential.
Mike m...2025-06-1733 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11-Ep13: From Tariffs to Tempests: DHL’s COO on Strengthening Your Supply ChainGuest: Mike McLellan, COO, DHL Supply Chain (North America)
What does it take to keep your business humming through tariffs, tornadoes, and all the other disruptions in today’s world?
Mike McLellan of DHL shares insights on building resilience, both in your leadership and your supply chains, the importance of redundancy, and how DHL provides an example of supporting clients in navigating challenges. The discussion also touches on the evolving roles of senior leadership, driving cultural excellence within the organization, and the transformative power of strategic planning.
Here's what Mike...2025-06-1031 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11-Ep12: Why Principle Beats Process: Inside the Koch Leadership FrameworkGuest: Steve Daley, Koch President of Principle Based Management
What does it take to build a resilient, innovation-driven culture—without relying on rigid rules or micromanagement?
In this episode, Steve Daley shares how Koch reimagines work through Principle Based Management. Hosted by Maureen Metcalf, this conversation dives into how Koch empowers employees by trusting them with responsibility, rewarding contribution, and fostering leadership at every level.
Here's what Steve and Maureen cover:
Why Koch abandoned traditional job descriptions;
Why even Charles Koch receives a formal performance review; and
Why leaders are expected to no...2025-05-2741 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS2-Ep52: Lessons from Governors, Athletes, & Activists on Growing Women LeadersGuest: Dr. Susan Madsen, Professor of Leadership, Utah State University
How did ten female governors become powerful, authentic woman leaders? What can you learn from them for your own leadership path?
In this inspiring conversation, host Maureen Metcalf sits down with Dr. Susan Madsen, founder of the Women and Leadership Project, to explore how women grow into their leadership identities—not just in the boardroom, but over a lifetime. Leadership development begins in childhood, with fathers playing a critical role. Decades later, midlife becomes a perfect time to develop and grow your...2025-05-2017 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11-Ep11: AI, Agility, & the Death of Business as UsualGuest: Greg Moran, Ford’s Former Chief Strategy Officer
The time to “wait and see” is over. Thanks to AI, no matter what your industry, you need to act now. On everything.
That’s the core message from guest Greg Moran as he surveys a behind-the-scenes revolution AI has already spawned: fast, cheap development of new ideas. New technologies drastically reduce the time and cost to develop and deploy apps, products, and services. It means leaders must now be more agile, adaptable, and willing to experiment to maintain competitiveness.
Here's what Greg and...2025-05-1324 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS4-Ep13b: From Turbulence to Triumph: ILA’s Keys to Adapting Your LeadershipGuest: Cynthia Cherrey, President & CEO, International Leadership Association
The turbulence you see in the world now isn’t going away. Your leadership style must change to meet it.
Fortunately, guest Cynthia Cherrey sits at the very center of both the most effective real-world leadership practices and the latest cutting-edge leadership theories. In this episode, she shares the leadership development information that really works – and that you need – learned from global leaders successfully navigating and thriving in our increasingly complex world.
Here's what Cynthia and host Maureen Metcalf cover:
The need for ada...2025-05-0624 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11-Ep10: Culture Change at 30,000 Feet: An Airport CEO’s PlaybookGuest: Joe Nardone, President & CEO, Columbus Regional Airport Authority
In this episode, Joe Nardone shares a candid, behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to build a $2 billion airport terminal…and a future-ready organization.
Joe dives into the true drivers of successful change: a relentless vision, a culture rooted in respect and innovation, and the hard reality that transformation often means losing good people who no longer fit the mission.
If you're navigating major change (or preparing to), this conversation offers powerful lessons in leadership grit, cultural evolution, and the courage required to build so...2025-04-2934 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11-Ep9: Unraveling Uncertainty: Tesla's Former Interim CEO on the Real Job of Modern LeadersGuest: Michael Marks, Founding Managing Partner at Celesta Capital & Former Tesla Interim CEO
Politics aside, tariffs simply can’t work without devastating business. That’s just one candid, no-nonsense point Michael Marks brings in his conversation with host Maureen Metcalf.
Marks is one of the most respected tech investors in Silicon Valley, with a four decade track record that includes high level leadership and management – including a stint as interim CEO at Tesla, and building Flex from an $8 million to $24 billion company as CEO. His unparalleled success and real-world experience offers rich leadership lessons...2025-04-2234 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11- Ep8: How Inner Work Transforms Your Leadership: Tools for Growth from Jonathan ReamsGuest: Jonathan Reams, Chief Creative Officer
You’ve been through leadership training; why didn’t it work?
Because it wasn’t about you. That’s the conclusion Jonathan Reams – the CCO of Norway’s Center for Transformative Leadership – came to. You’re unique, and most off-the-shelf leadership programs don’t take the time for you to dig deep into yourself to discover what makes you tick as a leader…and as a person. He and host Maureen Metcalf discuss that, and the solutions available to you right now.
Here's what Jonathan and Maureen cover:2025-04-1535 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS4-Ep13: The Power of Simplicity & Clarity: How a Shell Oil CEO Led through CrisisGuest: Jeroen van der Veer
Crisis and scandal hit your company. The very first thing you must do: abandon your gut instincts. Blame, downplaying, and delay will all make the situation worse. Then follow the example of guest Jeroen Van der Veer; he became CEO of oil giant Royal Dutch Shell in the midst of a major scandal.
He shares what he learned about navigating through crisis in this episode.
Here's what Jeroen and Maureen cover about crisis management and more:
Why owning the situation, even if you didn’t cre...2025-04-0814 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS11-Ep7: Cultivating W.O.N.D.E.R. - A Futurist on Unleashing Innovation in Your BusinessGuest: Theo Edmonds, Culture Futurist®
We explore the declining state of American innovation in this episode, focusing on the pivotal role of wonder and creativity in driving growth and innovation in the workplace. Our guest, futurist Theo Edmonds, has identified the key innovation barriers: fear, frustration, and fragmentation. He also identifies solutions to overcome them. It taps into something he calls “The Wonder Economy.”
.Here's what Theo and Maureen cover:
Why innovation in business requires much more than simple creativity;
The economic benefits of innovation (and how most American companies are missing out); and
How t...2025-04-0136 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS4-Ep6b: The Leadership Balancing Act: CEO Michelle Harrison on Work, Life, & Leading InclusivelyGuest: Michelle Harrison, Global CEO, Verian
Join us in an engaging conversation with Michelle Harrison as she discusses the challenges of balancing leadership responsibilities with family life. Michelle shares her personal experiences, the importance of transparency, and the contextual nature of decision-making as a leader. She also dives into inclusivity, gender issues in the workplace, and the significance of creating an environment that allows for both professional and personal fulfillment. This candid discussion is a must-listen for anyone juggling leadership roles and family commitments.
Here's what Michelle and host Maureen Metcalf cover:
W...2025-03-2519 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS3-Ep4: Deloitte’s Dean Explains Why Your Old Leadership Style Doesn’t Work AnymoreGuests: Gill Hickman, Jepson School of Leadership Studies Professor Emerita; Jorrit Volkers, dean of Deloitte University EMEA; and Cynthia Cherrey, CEO of the International Leadership Association
“CEO clashes with their own corporate culture.” That’s the subtext of business headlines at least once a week. What’s going on?
Simply put: they’re sticking with their old leadership styles, even though the world – and their own organization – has changed around them. The solution is simple: change…and change quicky.
That’s the underlying message for our guests, as Gill, Jorrit, and Cynthia talk with host Maureen...2024-10-2236 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS2-Ep50: Cooperation, Leadership, & Empathy: George Papandreou's Path for Meeting ChallengesGuest: George Papandreou, former Prime Minister of Greece
Do you want to lead like an Olympian…or a gladiator?
The Olympics were founded by the ancient Greeks as a model for collaboration and cooperation, developing a city-state’s Olympians to their highest potential. That dovetails with the mission of today’s best leaders – and Greece’s former prime minister, George Papandreou, shares why that Olympic vision is all the more important now. As he shares with host Maureen Metcalf, it’s the key to solving so many of today’s global issues: from refugees to climate change...2024-09-2426 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep15: Living Models for Reimagining LeadershipGuests: Cynthia Cherrey (CEO) & Mike Hardy (board chair), International Leadership Association
Leadership theory is one thing; real-world leadership practice is another. But the International Leadership Association does both: taking cutting-edge leadership research from academics and incorporating them in the ILA's daily operations.
Their goal is to identify and find solutions for the global challenges today’s leaders face. They chose Geneva, Switzerland, for their 2021 international conference; the city has the largest number of multi-lateral organizations in the world. The conference theme: Reimagining Leadership. ILA’s president/CEO Cynthia Cherrey joins board chair Mike Hardy for an ove...2024-07-1652 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS10-Ep9: AI Must Earn Your Board's Trust - The CEO of Competent Boards Explains WhyGuest: Helle Bank Jorgensen
Does your board of directors have the slightest clue what to do with AI?
As AI creeps into your organization, your board has a fiduciary duty to determine its parameters in the workplace AND in the boardroom…such as figuring out how much information is relevant, and whether it’s trustworthy, misinformation, or just way more than you need. There are ethical considerations, too.
Fortunately, guest Helle Bank Jorgensen has tips to help. She’s the founder and CEO of Competent Boards, and routinely helps boardroo...2024-02-2145 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS10-Ep3: Curing Complexity in HealthcareGuest: Carsten Engel
There’s a big gap between resources and patient needs in the healthcare sector. That’s just one area of healthcare requiring change; without it, lives truly do hang in the balance.
Carsten Engel and the International Society for Quality in Healthcare have studied healthcare systems around the globe extensively, and they have practical solutions for patients, practitioners, and the leaders of the medical industry. He shares them with host Maureen Metcalf in this episode. And most of them can help leaders in any industry.
Here's what Carsten and M...2024-01-1537 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep51: Amazon’s Innovation Secret from their VP: Look to Failure for Your SuccessGuest: Beryl Tomay
One of the biggest keys to success is failure.
It seems counterintuitive, but the reality is we ALL make mistakes. Highly successful leaders embrace stumbles and fumbles, and learn from them.
As Beryl Tomay points out, that’s especially true at Amazon. Their innovation culture is so highly effective because Amazon learns from each step, good or bad, and builds from it. Indeed, some of Amazon’s most successful products wouldn’t have seen the light of day if not for what was learned from products that didn’t make the cut...2023-12-0532 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep50: AI Is Changing Your Business Model; Boston Consulting Group’s Managing Director Explains HowGuest: Suchi Srinivasan
AI is disruptive. It’s already disrupting society, and is disrupting business faster than the internet did. It’ll disrupt you, too. But is that bad…or good?
The answer is up to you. Guest Suchi Srinivasan of Boston Consulting Group shares her comprehensive view of the effects of AI on business now – and in the near future. The bottom line? Artificial intelligence is a tool like any other: embrace it and adopt it wisely, and it can be a significant boon to your operations and for your staff. And it has th...2023-11-2947 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep49: The Rationale of IrrationalityGuest: Greg Moran
When your competitor’s (or CEO’s) decisions don’t make sense, pause: there’s something to learn there. What do they know that you don’t?
That’s just one insight guest Greg Moran offers about dealing with the irrational in your organization. Sometimes a decision is just bad; but more often than not, it’s been made from a perspective or with information you don’t see. And that perspective might just be the missing key to your success!
Here's what Greg and Maureen cover:
The impact of rational and...2023-11-2242 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS5-Ep4: Evidence-Based Best Practices for Leadership DevelopmentGuests: Gama Perruci, Sadhana Warty Hall & Karen Ford
Are you spending a hefty budget on leadership training, and wondering if it’s worth it?
You’re far from alone. According to the American Society of Training and Development, U.S. businesses spend more than $170 billion on leadership-based curriculum…and many wonder about the results. McKinsey reports "There is no silver bullet for successfully developing leaders—more than 40 key actions must be taken to increase chances of success to 80 percent."
So how do you boost your chances, and make the most of your investment? Our gues...2023-11-1343 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep47: Coming Soon to a Business Climate Near You!Guest: Matthew Griffin
Feeling uncertain about the future as a leader? You have good reason: a staggering 55% of a company’s fate lies beyond the CEO’s grasp. In fact, 40% of CEOs believe their companies won’t survive the next decade. So what can you do?
Futurist Matthew Griffin shares his insights in this episode — with game-changing strategies that will reshape the way you perceive your own future leadership.
Here's what Matthew and host Maureen Metcalf cover:
What the statistics say about the growing irrelevance of today’s type of CEO;
The qualities...2023-11-0759 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep46: Avocados - When Produce Produces InnovationGuest: Alvaro Luque
Innovation is key to success in our changing world. And avocados are the key to innovation!
They’re a superb example, at least. By fostering innovation, Alvaro Luque — president and CEO of Avocados From Mexico — boosted the overall market for avocados in the United States. And that market is still growing.
One major move involved the Super Bowl, a move no one in the produce sector had ever tried before. Learn the results, and Alvaro’s tips for fostering innovation, in this episode!
Here's what Alvaro and Maureen cover:2023-11-0155 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS5-Ep2: When Your Path Is Unclear - Embodied Leadership & Way-ShowingGuests: Donna Marie Laskin & Chellie Spiller
What can the Maori traditions of New Zealand teach you about leadership?
Recorded at the 2018 International Leadership Conference in West Palm Beach, this episode explores embodied leadership and way-showing. With influences from Maori culture, guests Donna Laskin and Chellie Spiller reveal way-showing and embodied leadership as ideal practices for leaders to use when navigating uncharted territory where the path forward is unclear.
Ethics help guide you as a leader, too. They’re critical to build trust and inspire followership.
Together, ethics, way-showing, and embodied leadership pr...2023-10-3040 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep45: Amazon Execs Share How Innovation Delivers Your FutureGuests: David Carbon, John Love, Dr. Vin Gupta, and Tye Brady
Do you want to foster a work environment that sparks innovation and fuels creativity? You can learn from Amazon’s success!
In this episode, Amazon execs David Carbon, John Love, Dr. Vin Gupta, and Tye Brady discuss how the e-commerce giant delivers the future through its highly successful innovation culture – using examples of new developments in robotics, drones, and a unique patient-centric pharmacy-in-your-pocket. Underneath them all is a common thread of improving customer experience with convenience and speed. Their experience becomes your takeaway to boost...2023-10-2554 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep6: Work, War, and In-Between: An International Peace Negotiator’s Top Tips for Resolving ConflictGuest: John, Lord Alderdice, Peer in the House of Lords
Wars are raging again, yet peace IS possible. Getting there provides invaluable lessons for leaders dealing with conflict everywhere, whether it’s in the workplace or the battlefield. John, Lord Alderdice, has helped peace happen.
From the Good Friday Agreement that ended the Troubles and brought peace to Northern Ireland, to understanding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Lord Alderdice has been involved in numerous peace negotiations. But finding peace requires a special kind of leader — one which may be in short supply lately.
Lord A...2023-10-2251 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep43: The 10 Leadership Skills You Need to Safely Adopt AI -- from the UN's AI AdvisorGuest: Neil Sahota
You need help with AI. Artificial intelligence requires developing a new set of ten leadership skills. And fast!
Do you know what they are? Neil Sahota and Maureen Metcalf do. They share them in this episode, along with the risks you face if you don’t reskill your leadership team. For example, up to 1/3 of workers using ChatGPT don’t tell their bosses. And that opens your company up to a wide swath of potential liability!
Here's what Neil and Maureen cover:
The most important skills leaders need in this...2023-10-1150 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS6-Ep9: The Changing Roles of Women in Leadership, According to a Former Prime MinisterGuest: Kim Campbell, First Female Prime Minister of Canada
As our world is changing at a rapid pace and our leadership strategies are changing, what does this mean for women in leadership? In this program, we will be discussing the changes of women in leadership with an experienced leader who has had significant worldwide leadership roles. Right Honourable Kim Campbell will share her insights from women in leadership from the early 1990s to now and where women in leadership hope to go in the future.
Produced in partnership with the International Leadership Association: https://ilaglobalnetwork...2023-10-0949 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep42: The Strength of VulnerabilityGuest: Jacob Morgan
There is strength in vulnerability. It sounds like a Zen master’s saying, but it’s a fundamental truth of today’s workplace: leaders who display vulnerability have greater success.
But there are five different aspects to vulnerability, and Jacob Morgan shares them with host Maureen Metcalf. The loud, short-tempered leader who pretends to know it all is outdated and now hinders the growth of organizations. Jacob helps build stronger connections within your team — and beyond.
Here's what Jacob and Maureen cover:
The common thread of vulnera...2023-10-0456 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS2-Ep50: Adaptive Leadership & Culture ChangeGuest: Ron Heifetz
In times of change, people often try to hold onto the values of their culture that have had personal meaning and significance to them. When dominant cultures are confronted with stresses, they are called to examine their values and take on very difficult integrative work. The leadership required must point out values their cultural values; in the United States, for example, one would be: We stand for freedom and respect for all people, and our policy does not align with what we say we stand for.
How do we make space for...2023-10-0133 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep40: None Shall Pass: Crossing the DeathlineGuest: Dr. Karen Tilstra
Here’s the painful truth: following old established procedures and avoiding risk stifles your growth…even your survival. What’s the answer?
Innovation. But, as Dr. Karen Tilstra points out in this episode, fear keeps your team from embracing innovation. She calls the point of fear the Deathline. Deathlines may doom your organization’s long-term success. Fortunately, Dr. Tilstra shares a wealth of proven tips on overcoming this killer of human and business potential!
Here's what Karen and host Maureen Metcalf cover:
The origin of the Dea...2023-09-2052 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep39: Boosting Workplace Well-BeingGuest: Cameron Stockdale
Can a four-day workweek be just as productive – even more productive – than a five-day workweek?
The answer is an unquestionable “yes!” Cameron Stockdale talks about this and other workplace wellness initiatives with host Maureen Metcalf in this episode. Cameron is the CEO of the Work Wellness Institute in Vancouver, British Columbia. They’ve experimented with many different ways of improving employee wellness, with sometimes surprising results! For example, the staff overwhelmingly prefer taking walks outdoors over chillaxing indoors on yoga mats during their regular 17-minute breaks.
What would w...2023-09-1349 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep38: The Rise of Humanness (The Role of People in an AI World)Guests: Chris Nolan & Michael Schindler
In their zealous rush to incorporate Artificial Intelligence, most corporate leaders are forgetting one thing: you.
Chris Nolan and Michael Schindler remind execs to remember humanness in their plans. AI may be a great time- and money-saving tool, but humans remain an important equation in the mix. A complete reliance on AI overlooks the nuances and insights humans bring to the table.
And, they warn, there’s one job that analysts already say AI may be able to do better than a human: CEO!
The...2023-09-0650 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep37: Stop Managing and Start Leading: Your Call to Action from a Former Disney ExecGuest: Sonya Shelton
Where is passion bred: in the heart or in the head? An executive may not care, but a leader knows how critical passion is – along with purpose and culture.
In this episode, Sonya Shelton reviews these and other critical elements of true leadership with host Maureen Metcalf. In a process called Red Thread Leadership, Sonya helps leaders tease out the elements that make their leadership – and their organizations – strong. It’s all based on her proven experience working in and carefully observing Disney and other companies.
Here's what Sonya and...2023-08-3045 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep36: Be Human, Lead HumanGuest: Jennifer Nash
In corporate America through the years, CEOs lost sight of something: humans. Humans fell so far off the radar that, when corporate leadership was analyzed, the majority of executives were actually leading processes and procedures, not people!
Do you work for one of those execs? Are you one of them?
There’s hope! Some leaders – like Ford’s Alan Mulally – began putting humans back in the equation, making their companies stronger. Dr. Jennifer Nash joins us to discuss Mulally’s techniques and other ways to lead with humanit...2023-08-2352 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep34: Sheba & ShEquity: Empowering Women-Owned BusinessesGuest: Pauline Koelbl
40% of small and medium-sized businesses in Africa are owned by women. But expanding those businesses is tough: in 2022, single female founders and exclusively-female founding teams received only around 2.4% of investments that went to startups in Africa. Pauline Koelbl is out to change that and narrow the extreme gender gap.
Born in Rwanda, Pauline faced the challenges of life as a young refugee yet managed to secure not one but two Fulbright scholarships. Now she leads ShEquity, an impact investing fund addressing the gender funding gap in Africa. Discover how she’s shaping th...2023-08-0955 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep32: Back to the Future...of WorkGuests: Jim Ritchie-Dunham, Suzie Lewis, & David Dinwoodie
Here’s a common business myth: the key to navigating all the complexity increasing in the world is simply working harder and longer. But the results aren’t there. Neither is the science.
In reality, the future of work requires agility, and adaptive problem-solving. In this episode, guests Jim Ritchie-Dunham, Suzie Lewis, and David Dinwoodie bring their expertise with host Maureen Metcalf about what works – and what doesn’t – in company cultures.
Here's what our guests cover:
Why we need to rely on the people...2023-07-2659 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep31: Why Pet-Friendly Means Productivity-Friendly in this Mars VP’s WorkplaceGuest: Lisa Campbell
Pets in the workplace can boost productivity, well-being, and those vaunted “water cooler” conversations. (Although they become “water bowl” conversations instead…)
Those are just some of the benefits for both businesses and employees Lisa Campbell, VP of Corporate Affairs for Mars Pet Nutrition North America, shares in this episode. Sure, there’s some prep work to be done, but the benefits are many and lasting. If you’ve been thinking of (literally!) letting your workplace go to the dogs, this is a must-listen podcast.
So sit, stay, and hit play. Th...2023-07-1939 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep30: Changing Leadership Mindsets - PsychedelicsGuest: Ehren Cruz
In this supplemental episode, we learn that psychedelic drugs have entered the C-suite. After decades as a societal pariah, why are psychedelics finding a home among America’s corporate leaders?
Focusing on plant medicine, Ehren Cruz gives some of the background, history, and science behind the many business uses leaders are finding. The Wall Street Journal is paying attention – so we’re taking a look at it, too.
Here's what Ehren and host Maureen Metcalf cover:
The goals leaders have for their psychedelic journeys;
The neurochemistry behind these p...2023-07-1630 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep29: Seeking Success in SimplicityGuest: Rini Das
Simplify. Streamline. Succeed. Seems simple enough, but most big organizations do the opposite, bogging teams down with more and more complexity. But as the world itself becomes more complex and changes (like AI) arrive more rapidly, resilience is absolutely key for any organization’s survival – much less success!
Rini Das knows complexity; she worked in healthcare early in her career, which has layers upon layers of processes. Fortunately, she knows simplicity and resilience, too. In this episode, she reveals the ironies and challenges faced by leaders striving to create simpler, more...2023-07-1249 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep28: ITP - Building the Resilience Every Leader NeedsGuests: Christina Grote and Pam Kramer
We tell our teams not to stress, and to have a good work-life balance. But what about us: their leaders? Too often, leaders ignore their own advice – and the stress becomes overwhelming.
Integral Transformative Practice (ITP) is one answer. More than just another mindfulness practice, it’s a way of growing and developing, created to help you explore your full potential. In short, to help your skills and talents move from ordinary to extraordinary!
In this episode, Christina and Pam go over the basics of ITP...2023-07-0545 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep27: The Anxious AchieverGuest: Morra Aarons-Mele
Does anxiety plague your leadership role? Just push through it isn’t a solution: the constant stress and strain of anxiety can take a toll on both your mental health and workplace performance. It's time to stop ignoring the issue and start implementing effective strategies to manage anxiety.
Morra Aarons-Mele lives with anxiety, too, but has researched it deeply. Now, she’s dedicated to helping others navigate its challenges. In this episode, Morra shares her personal story with host Maureen Metcalf, and offers practical advice for anxious leaders across all industries. The unex...2023-06-2732 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep26: Working & Living in JoyGuest: Pamela Larde, Ph.D.
Does the struggle to balance work and personal life sound familiar? Have you bought the myth that working harder leads to? You’re not alone. But the truth is, that leads to burnout, stress, and decreased productivity. It’s time to break free and discover the power of joy in professional settings. By prioritizing joy and well-being, you can enhance your personal and professional life, build mental stamina, and create a positive work environment.
Pamela Larde joins us with details on building your joy. And by incorporating joy into your lead...2023-06-2049 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep25: Getting on Code: Leaders Walk Their TalkGuests: Ricky Robinson & Keith Powell
Are you on code?
“On code” is like authenticity on steroids: as a leader you not only walk the talk, but give back, bring others along (mentor and sponsor), and fight for change when you see inequity. Being on code can be tough; after all, as guest Ricky Robinson points out, “In reality, most organizations don’t want you to be your authentic self.”
But fear not; Ricky and Keith Powell, the founders of C-CRETS, join host Maureen Metcalf to explain the many ways of getting on code…and...2023-06-1347 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep23: Unleashing the Power of Human-AI CollaborationGuest: Neil Sahota
The jobs of tomorrow are being incubated right now.
Artificial Intelligence – AI – is already rapidly transforming our world. You have two years, maybe up to five, before it transforms your work, too. But IBM Master Inventor Neil Sahota sees hope, not gloom: throughout human history, technological transformations meant more and often better jobs. The key is to be ready, and Neil tells us how.
Here's what Neil and host Maureen Metcalf cover:
The five skills every job will require;
The fact that we don’t teach three of thos...2023-05-3152 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep20: How Hilton Became a Global Best Place to Work: Hilton’s CHRO Tells AllGuest: Laura Fuentes
Joy, learning, friendship: that’s how Laura Fuentes believes the ideal workplace should be. When she arrived at Hilton, Laura found a culture and leadership team that was thinking along the same lines. Since then, she’s been instrumental in guiding the growth of that culture into one of inclusion, wellness, growth, and purpose – the four pillars of Hilton. It’s just one way Laura and Hilton commit to the well-being of Hilton’s employees. The goal: make Thrive at Hilton something every employee feels every day. Laura shares that journey, which has plenty for you to...2023-05-0949 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep19: Leadership Is RelationshipsGuest: Kvon Tucker
If there’s one key thing that’s common to all effective leadership theories, it’s this: leadership is all about relationships. Kvon Tucker distilled this through both academic scholarship and real-world experience at Netflix, Google, and Amazon. Those companies remain high-performing outliers because of their unique leadership culture, and an emphasis on relationships (and writing!) are key.
Losing sight of that leads to more than just sterile numbers on morale, low engagement, or layoffs. It leads to real pain for people, real depression, and – as Kvon saw – real suicide.
Kvon...2023-05-0336 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS5-Ep36: Lasting Solutions for Distribution Center Labor ShortagesGuest: Will O’Brien & Dave DuBose
The labor shortage is not going away. Workers are more transient, looking for better pay, plus Amazon, Walmart, and other large online retailers are continuing to drive up competition for distribution center (DC) employees. So, most DC operators resort to wage increases and retention bonuses as the quick solution to this really challenging people problem. Will O'Brien and Dave DuBose joins the show to share the better answer, which is a set of more robust solutions that better serve the operators’ longer-term needs and mitigate their dependence on short-lived “quick fix” wage and...2023-04-3044 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep18: Working Together: Leading a Hybrid AI-Human WorkforceGuest: Greg Moran
Odds are Artificial Intelligence isn’t going to replace you at work. It’s going to join you.
Greg Moran sees AI integrating much the same way breakthrough technologies always have. It will help us be more efficient, and help leaders make better decisions. Of course, it’s not all rasterized rainbows and Unix unicorns; to thrive, people will have to be able and willing to continually learn new skills and processes. In short, the obsessively curious will rise to the top. Greg shares the details in this episode.
...2023-04-2650 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep17: When Tragedy Informs Responsible Leadership: The C-Suite Journey of Pernod Ricard’s CEOGuest: Ann Mukherjee
Ann Mukherjee’s life is one of complete inspiration, both personally and professionally. Her mother was killed by a drunk driver when Ann was just 14; as an adult, she endured alcohol related violence.
Yet today, she leads the second largest wine and spirits company in the world. Far from a contradiction, it’s a calling – one which sees not just customers and ROI, but caring and ROR (Return on Responsibility). The two are intertwined; even as Pernod Ricard promotes safe, responsible drinking, their profits have soared.
Here's w...2023-04-1940 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep14: Prepare for the Future with ForesightGuest: Dr. Ciela Hartanov
Change is accelerating. Volatility continues unabated. And no business is immune. What’s a leader to do?
Develop foresight and become future-ready, of course! Ciela Hartanov joins us in this episode to detail her practical process for developing foresight. As a futurist, she’s developed many tools for probing potential paths’ future outcomes. She’s distilled those tools into her foresight process. That, in turn, helps leaders adapt their mindsets, enabling them to make their organizations future ready.
Here's what Ciela and host Maureen Metcalf cover:
The defini...2023-03-3055 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep13: Reality Lost - How Disinformation Shapes Your WorldGuest: Tara McGowan
Misinformation and disinformation have become the lifeblood of social media – even some cable channels hungry for ratings. But, as a leader, you need hard facts and straight information.
How did we get here, and what can you do to find the good data your decisions need? Tara McGowan, founder and publisher of Courier Newsroom, notes that propaganda and disinformation have always existed…but social media’s algorithms have amplified it exponentially, creating hard echo chambers that can be hard for truth to get through. And, she says, that puts not just yo...2023-03-2257 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep11: Top Leadership Lessons for Women from a Senior White House AdvisorGuest: Betsy Myers, former Senior White House Advisor
We may gripe about the pandemic, but it gave us one very positive change for women in the workplace: flexibility. It also highlighted for everyone that old-school leadership won’t cut it anymore. Betsy Myers says head and heart leadership is the model for today’s leaders. It fuses data-driven strategies and decisiveness with qualities such as warmth, compassion, empathy, and collaboration. In short, the head sets the purpose for an organization, but the heart engages your people to follow and bring their best selves to the team. Here's what Bet...2023-03-1548 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep10: Groundbreaking Solutions in Healthcare from Mass General Brigham’s CEOGuest: Anne Klibanski
Healthcare begins and ends in the home. At least, it should: you’re more likely to heal a bit faster and your outlook tends to be brighter at home instead of a hospital. Further, COVID revealed and amplified medical staff burnout and other issues already brewing in our healthcare system.
It’s overwhelming for most healthcare leaders, but our guest – Dr. Anne Klibanski – tackles these issues head-on. The president and CEO of Mass General Brigham, she and her team created, and continue to develop, groundbreaking solutions for their hospitals...and, more importantly, their pati...2023-03-0759 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep9: Is Your Organization Designed for the Future?Guests: Mark Palmer & Eddie Moore
Forget about future ready; you’re not ready for now!
Most leaders operate at a disadvantage: they don’t have a formal blueprint of their organization. Yet organizational design is vital if you want to be ready for whatever the future brings to your business. From your supply chain to internal communications, organizational design is far, far more than an org chart. In this episode, guests Eddie Moore and Mark Palmer explain how absolutely vital design is in making your business future-ready!
Here's what Mark, Eddie, and M...2023-03-0150 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep8: In Your PowerGuest: Sharon Melnick
Pushy. Manipulative. Lofty.
We have a lot of negative views for powerful leaders – but that’s not what real power is about. When a leader is in their power, they raise everyone around them. It’s the difference between simply having power, and being IN your power.
With her latest book, In Your Power, Sharon Melnick explores the ways women leaders, in particular, both grow and leak their power. She discusses those, as well as how turning down an invitation to the White House led to her epiphany about giving away y...2023-02-2249 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep6 - Women on the Rise: The Leadership Journey of the Export Import Bank’s PresidentGuest: Reta Jo Lewis
"It's not just about the the betterment of you and your family. It's about the betterment of the community."
That is one of the core values that helped guide Reta Jo Lewis through an eventful leadership journey, culminating in her current role as president and chair of the board of the Export Import Bank of the United States — the first African American to accomplish this. She is a passionate advocate for women in entrepreneurship and has a long history of working in politics and law.
In this epi...2023-02-0849 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep4: Intentional Leadership in a New Work WorldGuest: Monique Jefferson
Are you a hybrid leader yet?
That’s what today’s work world demands. Most workers prefer work from home. Others prefer to be in the office. Still others like hybrid work: a combination of both. In this episode in our Connex Partners Executive Insights series, we ask—How do you lead people with such opposing preferences? And how do you accommodate the breadth of diversity in the workforce?
Monique Jefferson says the answer lies in being intentional. The Chief People Officer of NYC’s Community Preservati...2023-01-2555 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS7-Ep31: Leading in Emerging IndustriesGuest: James Brenza
By their very nature, emerging industries (such as EVs, private spaceships, and cannabis) present unique leadership challenges – and opportunities – rarely encountered in long-established businesses. In addition to general entrepreneurism, you’re creating something new for the marketplace…and forging the team to shepherd it.
Emerging industries often lend a new twist on old businesses: they allow the opportunity to relook at established practices, sparking innovation in the business sector. James Brenza joins the show to discuss his venture into an emerging industry -- and how that provided him with new challenges...2023-01-2248 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS7-Ep43: Staying Cool in Challenging Situations (Recognizing & Managing Your Stress Triggers)Guest: Janet Fouts
We recognize the many layers of stress we are under day-to-day. Those stresses are very real – and often increase as we move up the leadership ladder. That stress has consequences, both physical and mental. What can we do?
Janet Fouts has distilled some very simple tools that can help us be less reactive and more responsive to what life throws at us. They’re based on her deep dive into mindfulness as she dealt with the extreme stress of working as a full time digital marketer while caring for a dying...2023-01-2148 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS7-Ep2: The Future Leader - Skills & Mindsets to Succeed in the Next DecadeGuest: Jacob Morgan
There has been a lot written about leadership for the present day, but the world is changing quickly. What worked in the past won’t work in the future – so how do we prepare leaders who can successfully navigate and guide us through the next decade and beyond?
What’s required of leaders, even the types of leaders we need, is in flux. So what can a struggling leader do now?
Jacob Morgan wondered, as well, so he interviewed over 140 CEOs, then partnered with LinkedIn to survey almost 14,000 of their...2023-01-2042 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep2: What Leaders Won’t Talk About (When Scaling their Business)Guest: Greg Moran
When young companies scale their business, there are many challenges…some obvious, and some no one talks about. Greg Moran joins the show for a discussion about the topics that are often avoided. Some have even been considered taboo! We’ll learn about back-office processes and tooling, hiring and diversity, space: culture and people, keeping the value chain in balance, pricing and value creation, establishing ESG processes, and minimizing distraction. It’s a primer for entrepreneurs on the threshold of growth!
Here's what Greg and Maureen cover:
The struggles that happened before t...2023-01-1956 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep3: Courageous FollowershipGuests: Neil Grunberg & Ira Chaleff
“He who cannot be a good follower, cannot be a good leader.”
Aristotle shared that wisdom over 2,000 years ago, but today we chafe at being labeled a follower. Yet, as Ira Chaleff and Neil Grunberg point out, if no one is following, then no one can be leading, either!
Followership is critical in any organization. Think of followership and leadership as a yin and yang: each of us needs to be good at both of them, and each of us needs to know when to pla...2023-01-1843 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep4: Building Communities within Your BusinessGuest: Alice Yoo LeClair
Contrary to old-school management beliefs, having a work-best-friend boosts productivity. Having an entire work community? That boosts a lot of people’s productivity, morale, even longevity with the organization. Best of all, the communities you foster at work don’t need to be work-related to have these effects: gamers, Trekkies, and football fanatics in your workplace all benefit.
So how does an HR leader drive community building within their organization? Does remote work make it more difficult? How does it fit with the CHRO’s other responsibilities? And how do you focus on thi...2023-01-1755 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS3-Ep46: Implicit Bias - What You Don’t See Hurts You!Guest: Rebecca Heiss
From our archives, a special show about our hidden biases.
We all have bias. In various forms, it’s built into our brains. But implicit bias creates a disadvantage for leaders and their organizations. Dr. Rebecca Heiss has studied bias extensively, and shares what implicit bias is and how it impacts each of us. As leaders, we need to understand and manage implicit biases because they impact our hiring choices, promotion and succession decisions, company policies—even how closely we pay attention to someone in a presentation. To truly ensure we hi...2023-01-1641 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep8: Hiring in the Great Resignation - Developing Your Culture, Communications, & Pipeline in a CrisisGuest: Michelle Sanchez-Bickley
Amidst the Great Resignation, exceptional organizations are still retaining their top employees, and recruiting new staff. Renown Health is one of them.
In the second of our Connex Executive Insights series, Michelle Sanchez-Bickley of Renown Health joins Maureen Metcalf to discuss the challenges of the Great Resignation for HR departments. It’s particularly challenging in the health care sector; the strains of COVID on our medical system put particular pressure on doctors, nurses, and hospital support staff. That’s led to 30% or more turnover.
Using a combinati...2023-01-1456 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep10: ShEquity - A Refugee’s Path to Empowering Women & Their BusinessesGuest: Pauline Koelbl
Surviving life as a refugee is one thing. To turn that life into a mission to empower other women is quite another.
That’s exactly what Pauline Koelbl did. Escaping the war in Rwanda, she found herself a homeless refugee. Eventually, Pauline found a home in Tucson, Arizona. More importantly, she found mentoring and support there – and now “pays it forward” as the founder and managing director of ShEquity, and investment firm providing capital and other resources to women-led and -owned businesses in Africa. Women are the key to unlocking eco...2023-01-1350 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep2: Using Storytelling to Elevate LeadershipGuest: Chris Nolan
Does your world feel chaotic, unpredictable – lunging beyond your understanding or control? You’re not alone: in fact, the US military felt the same, and created the concept of VUCA to maintain a defensive edge. The good news: you can readily apply VUCA to your organization to maintain YOUR defensive edge!
In this episode, Emmy award-winning filmmaker Chris Nolan reveals the power of storytelling to help leaders navigate the rapidly accelerating VUCA Max world. It’s an inspiring how-to in creating a compelling vision to shape and rebrand your future…and drive success...2023-01-1151 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep11: Workforce Demographics & an Inclusive CultureGuests: Nadia Younes, Gamiel Yafai, & Louise Carvalho
Slow as molasses. That’s one way to describe how leaders have responded to the rapidly changing workplace. The work environment was already changing before the COVID pandemic; now, there’s no going back to the old “industrial” model. It doesn’t meet rapidly evolving employee expectations nor the major shifts in workforce demographics. That, in turn, means the Great Resignation should have come as no surprise at all!
The new, effective workplace models all embrace DEI: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Inclusive business cultures hold many advantages for staff, leaders...2023-01-1051 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep12: Power, Charisma, Hormones: Science Studies LeadershipGuest: John Antonakis
Power does tend to corrupt. Especially the more testosterone is added to the mix.
That’s just one finding that the scientific study of leadership has revealed. Yet, despite the legions of leadership consultants plying their theories, very little research in the field has been conducted with scientific rigor. Even science basics, such as control groups and identifying variables, are missing. That punches big holes in many leading leadership philosophies and best-selling books; they look at what top-performing companies have in common…but don’t check to see if the worst performing companies...2023-01-0955 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep13: How HR Drives New BeginningsGuest: Fara Palumbo
Change is probably the biggest single consequence of the pandemic on organizations in every sector and of every size. Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina not only weathered that change, but thrived – even winning awards. Their Chief People Officer, Fara Palumbo, talks with host Maureen Metcalf about the positive opportunities the pandemic presented to her HR department in launching initiatives – and making Blue Cross/Blue Shield an even better place to work. They discuss change, transformation, and how HR acts as the primary driver for those shifts.
This interview is part of the...2023-01-0855 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep14: Getting Lost in the Language of LeadershipGuest: Jonathan Reams
Leadership is nothing without thought -- and research shows we (literally!) think with our hearts as well as our minds. Neurocardiology is just one way we're learning about how a good leader thinks. The development of more robust thinking skills is vital in growing as a leader. Jonathan Reams, of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, discusses the mindsets required for leaders to be effective.
Here's what Jonathan and Maureen cover:
What the science of neurocardiology shows about how a leaders’ emotions physically affect their teams;
How the fall of Super...2023-01-0756 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep17: Cultivating Empathy through AuthenticityGuest: Jason Lioy
Authenticity boils down to one key concept: be yourself. That concept is critical at Dawn Foods; their passion is their people, and their goal is to create a psychologically safe environment for people to bring their whole selves to work. In short, every Dawn employee can truly “be yourself.”
Making the workplace a safe space took a lot of effort, but Dawn succeeded. The Great Resignation barely touched the company; taking DEI, empathy, and authenticity to a whole new level has driven both retention and core business strategy. Their I Am staff...2023-01-0654 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep21: Achieving Employee-Centric Leadership - A Leader’s Food for ThoughtGuest: Heather Krentler
Employees want to be heard. They want to know their employer wants the best for them. Continental Services heard – and worked hard to innovate their company culture to fully focus on the employee journey. Heather Krentler, Continental’s chief administrative officer, joins host Maureen Metcalf to explore Continental’s employee-led culture and how it came to be; the changes made not just to engagement, but sourcing the best talent in the first place; and how leaders embraced the new employee-centric culture. The results have been remarkable: a happy staff really does lead to a pleasant b...2023-01-0554 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS9-Ep1: The Job I Love to Hate: It’s Never Too Late to Upgrade Your Career!Guest: Tammy Alvarez
You shudder when Monday rolls around. You dread checking overnight work messages on your phone when you wake up. Yup: it’s easy to find yourself in a career you don’t love, and not know how to get out.
Take heart! Tammy Alvarez has been there. She found her way out…and now coaches people to help them forge the path to careers they actually love. She shares some of her tips with host Maureen Metcalf in this episode. One key mindset: think of your career as a business, and you are it...2023-01-0453 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep23: How to Harness HonestyPeter Kozodoy was peeved at the number of lying, dishonest managers, CEOs, and other leaders he had to contend with. So he analyzed honesty…and found that honest leaders not only do better, but their teams function better, too. Peter discusses:
How to use strategic brutal honesty to improve far more than morale: it improves sales, marketing, recruiting, and so much more;
The simple 2-question technique that teaches us how to shake off self-limiting talk that prevents us from success; and
How to use honesty like a Jedi mind-trick to spark creativity, resolve interpersonal conflicts, and become a more...2023-01-0357 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep33: Growing a Powerhouse City - Leading TogetherGuest: Kenny McDonald
It takes a village to raise a city. That twists traditional wisdom, but it’s true: no one leader can improve an urban landscape alone. It takes a group of leaders in public and private partnership. When they’re united by one vision, their city can grow into a powerhouse. Kenny McDonald oversees that for Columbus, Ohio – a city that’s launched into a bold future…most recently, as the site for Intel’s newest, largest chip plant. As president of the Columbus Partnership, McDonald upholds and advances the shared vision of the city’s CEOs. In this e...2023-01-0253 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep38: The Power of Passion & Perseverance - Four Levels of GritGuest: Jim Ritchie-Dunham
There’s more to grit than determination – a whole lot more. Knowing that can help you harness this incredible power of passion and perseverance.
Building on the work of Angela Duckworth and her seminal book, guest Jim Ritchie-Dunham shows how there are four levels of grit in an organization...an insight which dovetails neatly with his own work in ecosynomics. Leaders often unknowingly determine how it cascades through various parts of their business – but because they’re not aware of it, they may be reinforcing the wrong kind for a particular department, team, or emp...2023-01-0155 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep41: What Your Team REALLY Thinks...in Real Time!Guest: Greg Moran
"Good afternoon, staff. I'm listening."
If only your boss truly listened, like Frasier Crane! The reality is most folks high up the chain have little clue about what the front line -- and the customers the front line interacts with -- are thinking. As the staff at one major company said, "They're not even listening to us."
The solution is easy. Slack, Teams, and other chat channels have replaced the watercooler as your company's own internal social media. Listening to those conversations reveals a wealth of information...and solutions to...2022-12-3159 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep53: 5 Trends to Know: Leadership in 2023Turning the tables, Christopher Washington -- the provost and Executive Vice President at Franklin University – interviews our host, Maureen Metcalf, on the top five trends leaders will contend with in 2023. The key it to lead with a scientist's mindset, experimenting and creating opportunities to help your organization navigate the destabilizing effects of the trends, and to take advantage of the opportunities they create.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
1. How will issues of sustainability and energy security impact businesses?
What are the implications of inflation and food insecurity on your workforce, and your ability to retai...2022-12-2753 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep52: Do No Harm: Ethics for LeadersGuest: Terri O'Fallon
Few leaders set out to harm others – but it can happen despite our best intentions. The key is to look outward from our decisions to all the ripple effects they generate.
And the best way to look outward is to look inward!
It’s hardly a secret that our emotions affect our cognition. Our guest, Terri O’Fallon, founder of Stages International, reveals in this episode that identifying and naming our emotions helps us become better leaders, and increases our sense of well-being. With host Maureen Metcalf, Terri delves into the co...2022-12-2156 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep24:The Secret Code to Uncommon Leadership - with Ruchira ChaudharyFeatured Guest: Ruchira Chaudhary
Something was wrong with the company.
Working for a large corporation in Singapore, Ruchira Chaudhary realized there were too many issues blocking a thriving work environment…and it all stemmed from poor leadership. Now an international executive coach and author of Coaching: The Secret Code to Uncommon Leadership, Ruchira joins us to reveal how coaching is more than a nice skill for leaders – it’s the secret sauce of truly extraordinary leadership.
Coaching is more important today than ever before: our turbulent times require leaders that empower, elevate and enable...2022-12-1953 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep42: Curing Corporate Short-Termism - with Gregory MilanoFeatured Guest: Gregory Milano
A leader’s lust for short-term profit often means pulling tomorrow’s results into today’s reports. Those intentions may be well-meaning, intending to please shareholders and the board. But they can result in bankrupting the future. After all, if you’re crediting next quarter’s returns into this quarter, how will you make next quarter look as appealing? It’s unsustainable.
In his new book, Curing Corporate Short-Termism, Gregory Milano guides senior managers who want to encourage more investment in the future of their companies. Many corporate practices are counterproductive, creating sti...2022-12-1855 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep34: How to Own the AI Revolution - with Neil SahotaFeatured Guest: Neil Sahota
Many people fear the Artificial Intelligence revolution that’s underway. But like every other major societal revolution in human history, you can play it to your favor. The key? Innovative thinking. In reality, these upheavals create newer, better jobs for people – though, from the sabot to the Luddite, people who don’t think differently, innovatively, even disruptively miss the opportunities these advancements create. IBM Master Inventor Neil Sahota joins host Maureen Metcalf to detail the key strategies for thriving through the AI revolution.
Other episodes you'll enjoy:
- The Future Is Your...2022-12-1856 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep51: Growing Up Biden: The President's Sister Shares the Family's Lessons on LeadershipFeatured Guest: Valerie Biden Owens, First Female Presidential Campaign Manager
It’s said that leaders are made, not born. That’s certainly true of the Biden family. Although Joe Biden is in the spotlight as the 46th President of the United States, his three siblings are all leaders in their own right, too. And Joe’s sister Valerie Biden Owens says that forging of strong leadership began in childhood with deep family values.
Valerie joins host Maureen Metcalf to discuss her book, Growing Up Biden. She shares the challenges she faced breaking gender barriers, the import...2022-12-1325 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep27: The Five Lost SuperpowersFeatured Guest: John Reid
Adulthood is kryptonite.
We’re all born with superpowers. Curiosity is the most easily recognizable. As children, we’re flooded with it. But as adults, instead of being rewarded for having a million questions, we’re expected to have the answers. Leaders, in particular, believe they should have all the answers.
Your superpowers are still there, and truly great leaders know how to unlock them. John Reid will help you rediscover yours, too! Author of The Five Lost Superpowers, Reid joins host Maureen Metcalf to identify the powers we’re all born wi...2022-11-2256 min
Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our FutureS8-Ep30: Humbitious: How to Be Ambitious Without the Ego - With Amer KaissiFeatured Guest: Amer Kaissi
A major myth in politics and business is that arrogant, over-confident people are better leaders. But reality reveals the opposite: humility combined with ambition drives the best leadership performance – and that, in turn, improves the entire organization.
Author and Trinity University professor Amer Kaissi discusses the details with host Maureen Metcalf. His new book, Humbitious, digs deep into the reasons the humble-yet-ambitious leader delivers the best results…for everyone from front line staff to the board of directors. This isn’t academic theory; Kaissi studied real-world leaders from Napoleon Bonaparte to New Zeala...2022-11-0255 min