Podcasts about Harvard Business Review

What does it really mean to be happy? Even the happiest people aren't happy all the time. Maybe happiness isn't a constant emotion at all — maybe it's a philosophy. A way of living. A sense of meaning shaped by what you do and who you do it for. Stephanie Harrison has spent years studying what truly makes people happy — and she believes many of us have been chasing the wrong version. She is the creator of the “New Happy” philosophy, a powerful rethinking of happiness that has reached millions through art, a newsletter, a podcast, and programs around the world. Her work has been featured in Fast Company, Forbes, and Harvard Business Review. You can learn more at https://www.thenewhappy.com. She is also author of New Happy: Getting Happiness Right in a World That's Got It Wrong (https://amzn.to/3WxgOlR). This conversation will challenge how you define happiness — and offer a refreshing, practical way to pursue a deeper, more lasting kind of joy. PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS QUINCE: Refresh your wardrobe with Quince! Go to ⁠⁠⁠https://Quince.dom/sysk ⁠⁠⁠for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada, too! HIMS: For simple, online access to personalized and affordable care for Hair Loss, ED, Weight Loss, and more, visit ⁠⁠⁠https://Hims.com/SOMETHING⁠⁠⁠ for your free online visit!  SHOPIFY: Sign up for your $1 per month trail and start selling today at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://Shopify.com/sysk⁠⁠⁠⁠ DELL: Dell Tech Days are here. Enjoy huge deals on PCs like the Dell 14 Plus with Intel® Core™ Ultra processors. Visit ⁠⁠⁠https://Dell.com/deals⁠⁠⁠ PLANET VISIONARIES: We love the Planet Visionaries podcast, so listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you're listening to this podcast! In partnership with The Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Helen and Sarah borrow brilliance from a powerful Harvard Business Review article by James Elfer, Siri Chilazi, and Edward Chang on the science of behaviour change at work.They unpack the “Four T's” model, a practical framework used in big organisations to drive measurable behaviour change. But instead of keeping it theoretical, they apply it to real team challenges like:- Reducing interruptions in meetings- Prioritising important work over easy tasks- Keeping objectives alive (not just setting them)- Moving from “busy” to genuinely impactfulYou'll hear how to get specific about the behaviour you want to change, design simple interventions that fit your culture, introduce them at the right moment, and measure whether they're actually working. If you've ever said, “We know what to do… we're just not doing it,” this episode will give you a structured, science-backed way to close that say-do gap, without adding more noise to your workload.Episode 539

Subscribe to our Newsletter:https://theultimatepartner.com/ebook-subscribe/Check Out UPX:https://theultimatepartner.com/experience/ The Shift from Attention to Trust In this compelling episode, Ashleigh Vogstad, CEO of Transcends, joins Vince Menzione to discuss the tectonic shifts occurring in the global partner ecosystem. Ashleigh shares her firsthand experiences studying AI at Oxford, the rise of the “Trust Economy,” and the controversial Amazon vs. Perplexity lawsuit. They dive deep into the practicalities of becoming a “Frontier Firm,” the importance of building proprietary AI agents, and the ways Gen Z and AI-driven marketplaces are revolutionizing the buyer journey. Whether you are looking to win Microsoft Partner of the Year or navigate the demise of traditional SaaS, this conversation provides a strategic roadmap for leading through the AI revolution. Key Takeaways The economy is shifting from a focus on human attention to a foundation of verified trust. Future commerce will involve “selling to machines” as AI agents begin making purchasing decisions on behalf of humans. Microsoft is prioritizing “Frontier Firms” that integrate AI into every customer interaction and internal process. Gen Z buyers are prioritizing product value and “dupes” over traditional brand names, with 75% of buyers expected to be Gen Z by 2030. To win Partner of the Year, organizations must publicly celebrate “better together” stories with validated customer wins. Modern leaders should transition from a “growth mindset” to a “frontier mindset” to keep pace with rapid technological change. https://youtu.be/xJmd43NvfnI If you're ready to lead through change, elevate your business, and achieve extraordinary outcomes through the power of partnership—this is your community. At Ultimate Partner® we want leaders like you to join us in the Ultimate Partner Experience – where transformation begins. Key Tags Trust Economy, Selling to Machines, Amazon vs Perplexity Lawsuit, Frontier Firm, AI Agents, Copilot Studio, Anthropic Claude, Microsoft Partner of the Year, B2B Marketplaces, Gen Z Buyer Behavior, Digital Freedom, AI Therapy, Ray Kurzweil Singularity, Substack Growth, Co-selling Partnerships, MCI Funding, Azure Accelerate, Agentic AI, Transcending Tech, Ashleigh Vogstad. Transcript Asleigh Vogstad Audio Podcast [00:00:00] Ashleigh Vogstad: The attention economy is about selling to human beings. Now, if you look at something like the Amazon versus Perplexity lawsuit, the whole underlying premise is around the shift of no longer selling to humans directly, but of selling to machines. [00:00:19] Vince Menzione: We just finished Ultimate Partners Winter Retreat here in beautiful Boca to a sold out crowd. Today I’m joined by Ashley Waad. The CEO of transcends for this compelling discussion. Ash, welcome back to the podcasts. [00:00:34] Ashleigh Vogstad: It’s so good to be here, Vince. Thank you. Uh, [00:00:37] Vince Menzione: so well, we’re back in Boca again and we were just here yesterday for the Ultimate Partner Executive Winter Retreat in person. [00:00:44] Vince Menzione: What a great event we had together. [00:00:46] Ashleigh Vogstad: It was phenomenal. Thank you so much for having us there and on stage and, and genuinely the community is like a family, so seeing so many familiar faces and spending some quality time was just great. [00:00:57] Vince Menzione: It has really, truly become like family. It really, I’m, I’m, I’m having so much fun with this and getting to watch. [00:01:04] Vince Menzione: Not just our business grow and our community grow, but to see all of our friends and, uh, organizations like Transcends that have been with us since the beginning, since the very first ultimate partner acting even before the first ultimate partner. And, uh. We were just talking about. I’d love to catch up with what you’ve been doing. [00:01:22] Vince Menzione: Like you just came, you’ve been on a whirlwind. I mean, you’re always, every time like it’s, where’s Ash? She’s, uh, she’s on a plane again, or she’s on, she’s on the slopes. But tell us where you were just this week. [00:01:34] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah. The week started in a snowstorm, actually transporting myself from Whistler. I didn’t know if I would make it to the airport, but then down to Silicon Valley and [00:01:45] Vince Menzione: Nice. [00:01:46] Ashleigh Vogstad: Wow, that place is just inspiring and eyeopening. I mean, seeing the Nvidia campus, a MD, it’s really just other worldly and it had me reflecting on, it’s [00:02:00] Vince Menzione: not Whistler. Yeah, it’s [00:02:02] Ashleigh Vogstad: definitely not Whistler. Definitely not Whistler [00:02:05] Vince Menzione: about, [00:02:06] Ashleigh Vogstad: um, yeah, it just had me reflecting on being down there. I used to spend a lot of time in the Valley around 2017 and. [00:02:13] Ashleigh Vogstad: In this theme of AI and kind of what’s really coming, I was, I was thinking about, I had met this woman, Julia Moss Bridge, who’s a neuroscientist studying ai. She had a project called Loving Ai, and I was down there when they had borrowed Sophia, this humanoid robot from S and Robotics. [00:02:32] Vince Menzione: Oh yes. Yes. [00:02:33] Ashleigh Vogstad: Really interesting. [00:02:34] Ashleigh Vogstad: Sophia’s actually a citizen of Saudi. Mm-hmm. First, first robot to actually be made citizen of a country. So they had Sophia set up and the part that was just mind boggling at the time was that Sophia was hosting in real life therapy sessions with actual human beings sitting across the table. And what really struck me as. [00:02:59] Ashleigh Vogstad: Kind of just, you know, that was only eight, nine years ago. And that was esoteric. Wacky and [00:03:05] Vince Menzione: eerie. [00:03:05] Ashleigh Vogstad: Weird. [00:03:05] Vince Menzione: Eerie at the time. [00:03:06] Ashleigh Vogstad: Incredibly eerie. Yeah. I mean, a, a human getting, uh, you know, therapy sessions from a robot sitting across the table. Yeah. And it just had me thinking how far we’ve come today. In 2025, Harvard Business Review said that therapy is actually the number one use case for ai. [00:03:26] Vince Menzione: I’ve heard that. That is striking. I go back to COVID. We were having this conversation last night at at the dinner for the Ultimate Partner event, and I think that COVID allowed us to transcend, [00:03:42] Ashleigh Vogstad: mm-hmm. [00:03:42] Vince Menzione: No pun intended there, but actually accelerate where we are today, that the acceptance of AI and the acceleration, or the ability to accept change so quickly. [00:03:56] Vince Menzione: Started with COVID because we were so, so we were forced on whatever it was, March 10th I think, here in the United States to shut down everything and move to this remote life. [00:04:08] Ashleigh Vogstad: Mm-hmm. [00:04:09] Vince Menzione: And I think we’ve been shocked by that. I think our systems have all been shocked by that. And then here comes chat GBT in November of 2022 and we’re like. [00:04:20] Vince Menzione: Shocked in some respects, but like really everyone has embraced it in such a strong way, and now we’re getting. It’s almost daily update. You know, we’re gonna talk, I know we’re gonna talk about Anthropic and some of the things that’s been happening just in this last month that are striking and changing that have a lot of organizations trying to navigate, which is what, you know, you, you help organizations do. [00:04:43] Vince Menzione: But it feels like this is happening so fast and will continue to happen so fast. And as I said yesterday, I don’t know what this world’s gonna look like by 2030. [00:04:53] Ashleigh Vogstad: You know, and I think the thing is, is that nobody knows what the world is gonna look like in 2030. I’ve been reading Ray Kurz Well’s, the Singularity is nearer, so the original book, the Singularity is near and he’s known to be a very accurate predictionist on the future. [00:05:11] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah. But even with someone like that, you know, there, there nobody really knows what the world is gonna look like. And when you talk about COVID. At transcends, we have a value of digital freedom. So I founded the business in 2018, which was pre COVID. I as a fully remote organization, and at the time that was, you know, more groundbreaking, but then very quickly with CI that, that became the so-called new normal. [00:05:37] Ashleigh Vogstad: But we’re always thinking about. You know, remote first doesn’t mean remote only, and I think in this tide of what you’ve talked about, technological change being more acceptable and the pace of change. One of the interesting things that we see as a go-to-market agency is that in-person events are increasing. [00:05:56] Vince Menzione: Yes. [00:05:57] Ashleigh Vogstad: People want and crave the face-to-face. Just like with the ultimate partner series. [00:06:02] Vince Menzione: I felt it. So it was striking yesterday. It, it seems like it’s, again, this was event number nine for us, but to see the, um, uh, receptiveness isn’t the right term, but it was this, uh, people, the, the embracing. Of seeing each other and hugging each other and being in the same room with each other. [00:06:22] Vince Menzione: And even people that didn’t know each other, like by the, the, as the day evolved, this, uh, connection that they all seemed to have with one another during the sessions and participating, everyone actively participated in the sessions. And, um, I said this in the beginning, we’re not a Slack channel and we’re not like some post on LinkedIn. [00:06:43] Vince Menzione: Uh, we’re there, there’s no playbook that’s set today around partnerships or even go to markets and marketing that we could espouse and say, this is the playbook for the next year. Right. It’s, it’s changing so rapidly. [00:06:55] Ashleigh Vogstad: So rapidly, [00:06:57] Vince Menzione: and you’ve embraced it. And I, and what we’re gonna talk about right now, I mean, I, I, you know, you’ve embraced AI in such a strong way. [00:07:04] Vince Menzione: Um, personally and with your business, I want to, I wanna dive in here a little bit. First of all, a couple things For those of those who are listening who don’t know you, I think maybe just a moment about transcends and your role, and then I wanna dive in on how you’re thinking about ai because I know you’re doing some things personally. [00:07:22] Vince Menzione: I want you to share that with, with our listeners and viewers today. [00:07:25] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah, great. And I just wanna comment that it was a cool moment yesterday being up on stage with yourself and Mark Monday from ServiceNow and having the audience so engaged and active and Nina Harding from Microsoft stepping up and entering the conversation. [00:07:40] Vince Menzione: So cool. [00:07:41] Ashleigh Vogstad: It just made for such a collaborative experience, which was a cool moment, but yeah. Um, so. I founded this business, transcends a go-to-market agency after being at Microsoft myself. And really our differentiation is deep strategic partnerships with hyperscalers, whether that’s AWS, Google, Microsoft, and you know, that. [00:08:03] Ashleigh Vogstad: It comes with a challenge to be on the leading edge of technology. [00:08:08] Vince Menzione: Yes, [00:08:09] Ashleigh Vogstad: it, it’s really an imperative for our business and we are an AI first firm. Microsoft talks a lot about Frontier Firm, and I’ll take a, a different kind of angle on it. You know, when I think about Frontier. I now think about it as instead of the growth mindset, I now think about a frontier mindset. [00:08:28] Vince Menzione: Frontier mindset. You have to change my principles. [00:08:32] Ashleigh Vogstad: You know, maybe, like you said, the world is changing so rapidly. Yeah, it’s [00:08:36] Vince Menzione: changing rapidly. [00:08:36] Ashleigh Vogstad: And what a frontier mindset means is that as we’re approaching work for our clients, we are thinking about AI innovation in every single customer. Interaction, customer innovation. [00:08:49] Ashleigh Vogstad: So today we’re building AI agents into much of the work that we’re delivering for clients. And as a business owner and leader, I’ve been challenged to also think critically around how I’m choosing to run the company. And right now we’re going through a huge overhaul of where we have data sitting in silos and different applications. [00:09:09] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yep. And getting that into one place with one view so we can start layering on more insight. AI innovation. [00:09:17] Vince Menzione: Yeah. And data’s such an critical part, part of this, as we, we talked about yesterday. But you know, even the, what you said, which is, would, would’ve been striking a year ago to say, we’re an AI first, uh, agency isn’t as striking anymore. [00:09:32] Vince Menzione: Uh, we heard Nina when we were having this conversation on stage yesterday, say that it’s an imperative at Microsoft that the agencies that they choose to work with, the third party vendors that they work with have to be an AI first organization. I have to be a frontier firm, and so I’m a, I am sensitive to the word frontier firm. [00:09:53] Vince Menzione: I understand why Microsoft uses it and I understand the value of what we used to call, you know, customer zero or back in the day we used to say eating your own dog food, but essentially being an organization that has leaned in, in a way, and with ai. Even more so, so important to do it. So tell us, I know you’ve done some things personally as well, but tell, tell us what you’ve done with the organization. [00:10:18] Vince Menzione: Uh, you talked about data and making data available and having, having a true data state as opposed to silos of data, but then you also made some personal investments and sacrifices. I would say. [00:10:30] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah. [00:10:30] Vince Menzione: Yeah. In terms of what you’re doing around ai, [00:10:32] Ashleigh Vogstad: so I mean, let’s start on the personal side. I’m the CEO of my organization, and you can read in books or news articles that it is critical for AI transformation to start at the C-suite and specifically in the CEO seat. [00:10:46] Vince Menzione: Yes. [00:10:46] Ashleigh Vogstad: And that really. Landed for me and so I’m personally leading in About two weeks ago, I built an agent, just end-to-end on my own, got into copilot studio. Wow. Got comfortable with the interface. You know, I was clunky moving around in there at first, chose my model. You know, I went with one of the anthropic Claude models for this particular project and built up an agent that can deliver executive communications like. [00:11:14] Ashleigh Vogstad: Thought leadership blogs, uh, LinkedIn posts, but in a particular human being’s voice by ingesting things like their social profiles, their SharePoint sites, where they live and work. And it has been so surprising doing an ab test between just what a chat GBT or a copilot could produce. [00:11:32] Yeah. [00:11:33] Ashleigh Vogstad: In comparison with the authenticity of the voice coming from the agent. [00:11:37] Ashleigh Vogstad: Uh, it was just a really cool experience to roll up the sleeves and get in there. But also I think the, the investment that you’re referring to is, I made a big decision to return to school and uh, got accepted to go to Oxford. [00:11:52] Vince Menzione: Wow. [00:11:52] Ashleigh Vogstad: And I’m studying artificial intelligence there. [00:11:54] Vince Menzione: That is incredible. That is incredible. [00:11:57] Vince Menzione: Oxford, uh, we’ve heard of that school before here in the United States. [00:12:03] Ashleigh Vogstad: You know, it’s been a really great experience. It’s in person, so I’m traveling there about every 60 to 90 days and living on campus. I mean, really, Oxford isn’t. Formally a campus, it’s sort of a, a city and a university all, all ruled into one and the experience has been really powerful. [00:12:21] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yes. One of the things I wanted to get outta the program was a more global perspective, and it’s been fascinating to me that about half the faculty so far, or or professors, guest lecturers that have been coming into the program have been from China or very direct experience working in the Chinese market. [00:12:38] Vince Menzione: That is fascinating. [00:12:39] Ashleigh Vogstad: It’s been a completely different view. Or for example, you know, really digging into some of the legal cases that are driving precedence for how AI is interacting with corporations. [00:12:51] Vince Menzione: Mm. [00:12:51] Ashleigh Vogstad: One of the big ones for me has been looking at Amazon versus p perplexity. This is still a live case that’s happening right now. [00:12:58] Ashleigh Vogstad: And you know, I think it was Forbes magazine that the headline was the End of Commerce for this case because it’s really about. How human beings are being replaced with machines and hearing some of the world’s leading thinkers, leading AI researchers on these topics has just been really expansive. [00:13:19] Vince Menzione: It’s fascinating. [00:13:20] Vince Menzione: I mean, it’s, this started a couple years ago with, uh, Hollywood, in fact. Suing the industry or suing the technology companies with regards to, uh, employment, right? Mm-hmm. About the, the, uh, copyright infringement and what’s gonna happen in the entertainment industry. And I think that was just a one very small example. [00:13:40] Ashleigh Vogstad: You know, voice people think about DeepFakes. Yeah. And they think about video, but actually voice is a big issue. And you look at the, um, you know, the what happened between Scarlett Johansson and her voice in her, and then open AI rolling out a voice that sounded identical. Sounds like her. [00:13:59] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:13:59] Ashleigh Vogstad: To Scarlett Johansen and, and where that went. [00:14:01] Ashleigh Vogstad: It’s, it, this is a new ground for, for everybody that we’re going through right now. [00:14:07] Vince Menzione: It is. We can dive and go in so many different directions, but let’s talk about marketing and advertising since that’s kind of. Transcends core, and a lot of the people that watch and listen to us are in the partnership world. [00:14:22] Vince Menzione: They’re leading organizations, they own organizations, the the chief executives or CVPs of organizations. Let’s talk about advertising and where that’s going. [00:14:32] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah, great. [00:14:33] Vince Menzione: Yeah, [00:14:33] Ashleigh Vogstad: I mean, uh, I love Marshall McCluen. He’s a Canadian theor, uh, media theorist, and in 1964, he very famously said, the medium is the message. [00:14:43] Ashleigh Vogstad: And what that really means when you peel back the layers is that every type of communication medium has these inherent biases. And I think what we’re experiencing right now is this new medium of artificial intelligence, and I’m really interested in exploring what that means for the media world. So. If I gonna take you back to 1997, there’s this really famous, the Innovator’s Dilemma. [00:15:10] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yes. Kind of a classic business 1 0 1 type book by Clayton Christensen. Yes. And he talks about this theory of disruption where new technologies, emerging technologies start at the low end of the market. They gain this momentum and they eventually displace incumbents. And you know, sometimes seemingly out of nowhere. [00:15:28] Vince Menzione: Yeah. And Microsoft was a good example of this at that time. [00:15:32] Ashleigh Vogstad: Def, [00:15:32] Vince Menzione: yeah. [00:15:33] Ashleigh Vogstad: All the big players. All the big players. I mean, Google go for search as well, right? So that’s one of the classic examples. And so. If we look at storytelling technology, you have things like chat, GBT and Sora entering the scene. And in the beginning, you know, they’re producing a shitty first draft. [00:15:51] Ashleigh Vogstad: Uh, you know, it’s things like post-apocalyptic dogs with five finger human beings. Yeah. Things like this. But, you know, and they really lacked emotional resonance. But as we all know. That’s not the case anymore. No, it’s [00:16:05] Vince Menzione: not. [00:16:06] Ashleigh Vogstad: AI is increasingly producing content that is very powerful and is starting to resonate with people. [00:16:13] Ashleigh Vogstad: You know, I’m definitely not a neuroscientist, but if we, we look into the neuroscience, it’s your cortical sal circuit that. Kind of is responsible for pattern recognition and it compares what you’re seeing in the real world with what you expect to see. So when you take this into a space of advertising, you know, if there’s an ad that is AI generated, that is just weird and kind of. [00:16:38] Ashleigh Vogstad: Tweaking for you. [00:16:39] Vince Menzione: Like that robot we were talking about earlier, [00:16:41] Ashleigh Vogstad: like the robot we were Exactly, yeah. Like Sophia, you enter what psychologists call the uncanny valley, so it’s like what you’re looking at isn’t exactly what you’re expecting to see and the Spidey sense is, is tweaking. You know, that’s a low place of emotional resonance. [00:16:58] Ashleigh Vogstad: This world is changing really, really quickly and we’re seeing AI generated media make huge impacts in the market Now, tools like Luma Dream Machine, I mean, it’s incredible what they can achieve today. [00:17:11] Vince Menzione: It’s fascinating. We see it in, you know, I spend a lot of time on LinkedIn. That’s sort of the world of our business community, and you can very easily detect when someone is doing a post. [00:17:22] Vince Menzione: Or they’re writing an art, whatever they’re doing. Right. Some type of draft of something. Uh, and you can tell when it’s ai, I mean, it’s so easy to tell, and even people are generating reports and claiming that their research papers or studies or whatever they call them, uh, and it’s AI generated and it’s just the authenticity isn’t there. [00:17:39] Vince Menzione: The, the sense that this is real. That it can be trusted is not there. And I think trust is what we’re talking about here too, as well. [00:17:47] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah. I mean, let’s go to authenticity ’cause that’s super important. Yeah. And I know a lot of your listeners, you come from the hyperscaler world of partnerships. You need to have that differentiated, better together story. [00:17:59] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah. It’s really important to have an authentic voice in market. And I think about that also in terms of platforms and channels. We’re seeing a decrease in certain major social media platforms, and yet Substack spiked 48% in monthly active users last month. [00:18:15] Vince Menzione: That’s [00:18:16] fascinating. [00:18:16] Ashleigh Vogstad: Um, you know, and I think that one of the reasons is it’s viewed as a more authentic channel where you’re getting thought leadership from people that you’re, you know, genuinely interested in hearing their, their points of view. [00:18:28] Ashleigh Vogstad: And I think that’s really an important piece in here. [00:18:31] Vince Menzione: Yeah, you mentioned this yesterday and you had me thinking about it as well because we have used LinkedIn for everything internally, our newsletter, which has been around for six or seven years now. But that Substack is really, and I go to Substack too, to, if I really wanna dig in on a topic. [00:18:47] Ashleigh Vogstad: Mm. [00:18:47] Vince Menzione: And there’s a particular author that I like their point of view, I’ll follow, I’ll follow them on Substack. [00:18:53] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah. I mean, and this comes, maybe brings us around to who is the buyer and who is the audience, and who do we need to be thinking about when we’re designing sales and marketing programs. And really we’re, we’re shifting into the place of the Gen Z buyer by 20 30, 70 5% of buyers are gonna be Gen Z. [00:19:12] Ashleigh Vogstad: They’re gonna control 12 trillion in. Spend [00:19:16] Vince Menzione: by 2030. ’cause we, we’ve been, we’ve been saying that the millennial is the new buyer the last three years. I think Jay said it right here at this stage. [00:19:23] Ashleigh Vogstad: Mm. [00:19:24] Vince Menzione: Um, so now it’s Gen Z. [00:19:27] Ashleigh Vogstad: And they’re buying online. Yeah, they’re buying in marketplaces. Yeah. So a stat recently was that roughly half of them made purchases on the social platforms of YouTube, Instagram, or TikTok in the last month. [00:19:39] Ashleigh Vogstad: I mean, that buyer behavior of being inside. Social type application and directly making a purchase. And I think in the B2B world, we need to take lessons from here and start thinking more front and center than we even have been around marketplaces. I mean, part of my reason for being in Silicon Valley this week was to celebrate a $12 million transaction that happened via Marketplace and two years ago that would’ve been a huge deal. [00:20:06] Ashleigh Vogstad: Huge, [00:20:07] Vince Menzione: huge. [00:20:07] Ashleigh Vogstad: And, and it still is a really big deal, but these things are becoming. More and more common experiences. Very much so. We need to be there and in that conversation. [00:20:16] Vince Menzione: So how are you thinking about it? How are you directing your clients to behave or act around it? What are you, what are you doing exactly that we could take to this community perhaps and share with them. [00:20:28] Ashleigh Vogstad: I’ll bring it back to the authenticity piece because you need to have a product that delivers value first and foremost. There is, there is no substitution for that. Yeah, and what I would say is. One of my professors at Oxford, Eric Zow, he has this theory that I’m really digging into and finding very fascinating, which is that for the last several decades we’ve been in the attention economy, and that’s shifting to the trust economy. [00:20:55] Ashleigh Vogstad: Now the attention economy is about selling to human beings. Yeah. It’s about the, the business model is essentially that you need human being eyeballs on lists of recommendation links. Yeah. Whether that’s from Google or from, you know, searching, shopping on Amazon, you get this list of recommendation links and the economic engine that drives that business model is advertising. [00:21:19] Ashleigh Vogstad: Now, if you look at something like the Amazon versus Perplexity lawsuit, the whole underlying premise is around the shift of no longer selling to humans directly, but of selling to machines, or in other words, agents who are making purchases, s on behalf on your behalf. And an agent isn’t going to be razzle dazzled by some inauthentic story. [00:21:44] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:21:44] Ashleigh Vogstad: They’re gonna be looking for third party validation on Exactly. You know, they need to be sure that they’re making the right decision. [00:21:51] Vince Menzione: They’re gonna look at surveys, they’re gonna look at customer comments. Like if I went through my Amazon site and I was looking to see what people said about the purchase or the product and specifically Exactly. [00:22:01] Vince Menzione: The agent’s gonna do this on my behalf, is what you’re saying. [00:22:04] Ashleigh Vogstad: This is what I’m saying. Yeah. And, and. I believe that to layer on top of, you know, Eric Z’s philosophy, I’ve been thinking about this in terms of the hyperscaler world, and I think that this is the time to lean into co-selling partnerships. [00:22:18] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah, because being third party validated by somebody like AWS Microsoft and having all that co-sell data, what are your recent wins? Yes, that’s really high integrity, trusted data source for an agent to make a purchasing decision, and marketplaces are a key part of that. [00:22:35] Vince Menzione: So we’ll move from AI will take a, a more active role in the marketplace. [00:22:40] Ashleigh Vogstad: I definitely believe so. [00:22:42] Vince Menzione: Which makes total sense. I, you know, we’ve been doing this for nine or 10 years now, and when I was at Microsoft, we started co-selling. In fact, it was, uh, Aaron Feiger was up on stage yesterday talking about it. Right? January of 2016, co-selling began. [00:22:55] Ashleigh Vogstad: Mm. [00:22:56] Vince Menzione: And there were only a few companies doing it. [00:22:59] Vince Menzione: Right. So she worked with one of the very first ones that were doing it. Uh, the challenge we have today is there are tens of thousands of partner organizations in the marketplace that are all trying to get the attention of the Microsoft sellers. Hmm. As, or the Google sellers or the AWS sellers and tell their story. [00:23:19] Vince Menzione: And a seller only has so many minutes in a day, they have a quota that they have to hit. These quotas are tens, if not hundreds of millions of dollars of annual quota of cloud consumption. And I wanna sell my $50,000 widget, whatever it is. Yeah. Right. And I, I don’t understand why I’m not getting a callback. [00:23:38] Vince Menzione: And this, this is the dilemma we’ve faced because of, because of this, uh, scarcity of time and this over overwhelming of tech, you know. Tech, tech buyers trying to make this all happen, so now the AI can come in and help me solve for it as a seller, right? [00:23:55] Ashleigh Vogstad: The AI is definitely acting as an interface to make recommendations to field sellers in different organizations and. [00:24:04] Ashleigh Vogstad: To, to kind of take this on a, a tangent. Dupes. So a dupe. I know people of my generation, we’d think about this like a knockoff Right. You know, a knockoff handbag. [00:24:15] Vince Menzione: Yep. [00:24:15] Ashleigh Vogstad: Dupes have exploded. [00:24:16] Vince Menzione: Fake. Fake Rolexes. [00:24:18] Ashleigh Vogstad: Exactly. The fake Rolex for sure. And I think it was in December, P WC rolled out a survey. 81% of Gen Z were planning to purchase a dupe this holiday season. [00:24:29] Vince Menzione: That’s wild. [00:24:30] Ashleigh Vogstad: Dupes can be, you know, we gave luxury, good examples, but Louis [00:24:34] Vince Menzione: Vuitton and yeah. So, [00:24:35] Ashleigh Vogstad: but furniture, these sorts of things. And the important takeaway here for tech is the same principle will land, is that people are looking for value out of a product, not necessarily a name brand. AI is accelerating this whole process, and agents are gonna be looking at the same thing. [00:24:56] Ashleigh Vogstad: They’re looking for that authenticity in terms of the actual product value. So, you know, beware there’s lots of disruption happening in the market right now with this dupe mentality, which is actually a cultural shift talking about I appreciate value over a superficial. Brand name. In some cases, there’s also a, a small contrary trend where certain luxury goods are rising because yes, things are never that simple. [00:25:22] Vince Menzione: So you work with a lot of these tech companies, a lot of SaaS companies, is we, we call them ISVs, we also call them, uh, software development companies. Now we keep changing these acronyms around. Uh, there’s been a lot of, uh, consternation in that segment, I would say, around ai. Right, because a lot of them are getting told that they’ll be outta business in a few years. [00:25:43] Vince Menzione: Mm-hmm. I think Satya Nadella famously said this last year that SAS will go away. Right? He’s predicting the demise. How do you help some of these organizations to differentiate? And there’s some of these are huge value organizations. We have have them in the room with us, ServiceNow and Veeam and Adobe. [00:26:01] Vince Menzione: Um, how do you help them achieve their results? ’cause that’s what you, you know, your organization is really helping these organizations to achieve their pinnacle as a partner. What do you, what do you say to them now and how do you help them through this time? [00:26:16] Ashleigh Vogstad: I’m on the side of the fence that I really can’t see an organization ripping out something like Salesforce, Adobe, ServiceNow. [00:26:24] Vince Menzione: Agreed. [00:26:24] Ashleigh Vogstad: I mean that the amount of change management and. The extent to which these, these platforms are embedded, actually running and operating organizations. I personally, if, if we’re calling those companies, SaaS companies, I don’t agree that that layer is gonna go away. I mean, we’re seeing these organizations lean into AI in a huge way to borrow Microsofts. [00:26:50] Ashleigh Vogstad: Term, you know, they’re all becoming frontier firms. [00:26:54] Vince Menzione: Yes. [00:26:54] Ashleigh Vogstad: So where I would go to, to answer that question, we do work with many, you know, organizations on that caliber, on things like their marketplace strategy on how to light up the fields of different hyperscalers. It really does come down to things like having a strong drumbeat with the Microsoft field, celebrating your win stories. [00:27:15] Ashleigh Vogstad: Maybe that’s where I’ll land as Please do the marketer, because it sounds so simple, and I don’t know why we kind of continue to come back to this, but we’re talking about that third party validation and really, um, in order to have that, like what the hyperscalers want is you jointly celebrating success. [00:27:36] Ashleigh Vogstad: Here’s the kicker. Publicly. [00:27:38] Vince Menzione: Publicly, [00:27:39] Ashleigh Vogstad: you know, you need a customer story on your website, a press release that contains a quote from your customer. Ideally, also a quote from an executive at one of the hyperscalers. Like, actually lean in to live the value of your better together story. And when you do that, when you, when it comes around to partner of the year time, and we talk to you about, okay, what client stories are we gonna feature? [00:28:03] Ashleigh Vogstad: We’re even gonna know because when we Google you, we can see the public press of the joint wins that you’ve been celebrating. And I can tell you that that is a huge indicator on whether or not you’re well-placed to be in the 4% of partners who actually win Partner of the Year award’s. [00:28:20] Vince Menzione: Fascinating to me. [00:28:21] Vince Menzione: ’cause to me it would feel like table stakes maybe ’cause where we sit is ultimate partner and where this room sits with all the top partners that I just assume that everybody follows that. That, that guidance. [00:28:34] Ashleigh Vogstad: Mm. [00:28:34] Vince Menzione: And so this is really impactful and I want to get here because I know you spent a lot of time here and we’ve talked about it before, but I think the partner of the year awards, when we first met many years ago, that was a you, you’ve expanded the business, but that’s still a core mission and and value that you bring to the community and to the partner ecosystem is helping them through this process. [00:28:55] Vince Menzione: So I know that that’s gonna be coming up soon, so I thought maybe we’d spend a couple moments on that. [00:29:00] Ashleigh Vogstad: Partner of the Year awards, regardless of which partner, I mean, Salesforce has their own awards there. There’s more and more award programs coming out, and they’re a great way to celebrate the incredible work that your organization has done. [00:29:13] Ashleigh Vogstad: Jay McBain is brilliant on this. He’ll talk a lot about the increase in valuation. Yeah. The, the increase in stock valuation or the likelihood that if you’re looking to be acquired, that you’re acquired within 12 months of a partner of the year win it. It’s really impressive. There is strong business value there. [00:29:33] Vince Menzione: He like, he likes, he likes to tell the story of that when the award is handed to them and they go back into the audience, that the private equity people are all over them right then and there and making offers. I mean, that’s the visual that you get [00:29:47] Ashleigh Vogstad: and it’s very powerful. Yeah. Very powerful. It’s very powerful and it, it can make it worthwhile to invest in the process, but don’t invest in the process if you haven’t been investing in the process for the 12 months. [00:29:57] Ashleigh Vogstad: Prior, [00:29:58] Vince Menzione: exactly. [00:29:58] Ashleigh Vogstad: The Microsoft field or you we’re talking about Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards. They need to know about your win that that needs to be top of mind for them. Yeah. How much Azure revenue is it driving? Was it a huge marketplace? Build sales and. You know, one of the questions I get asked a ton, everybody wants to know how do we get money out of the hyperscalers? [00:30:20] Ashleigh Vogstad: How do I get access to marketing development funds or all these different programs? Yeah. You know, at Microsoft, some of these programs are like EI and customer investment funds or Azure Accelerate, you know, and there’s millions and millions and millions of dollars in these, these buckets of funds, but. [00:30:36] Ashleigh Vogstad: An interesting point of view is that it’s actually a scorecard metric for many people at Microsoft who have partnership roles for you to be drawing down those funds. [00:30:45] Vince Menzione: Yes. [00:30:45] Ashleigh Vogstad: You know, your interests are actually aligned here, and so again, when it comes to Partner of the Year awards, how much money have you pulled down? [00:30:54] Ashleigh Vogstad: How much have you been an activating partner of key Microsoft programs that they’re pushing? What are you doing with marketplace rewards? How are you resing? Those into your business. These are the types of things that you really wanna be thinking about. Sitting it. You know, this time of year we probably will get the awards were likely be due in July. [00:31:13] Ashleigh Vogstad: They haven’t officially announced timelines, but you’ve got a few months to start moving these pieces into place. [00:31:18] Vince Menzione: And there are quite a few of them. And to your point, Nina, when she was up on stage here yesterday, there were at least 10 or 12 award. Uh. Funding categories that were on her, that were on her slide. [00:31:31] Vince Menzione: Her partner, her partner slide. So, [00:31:33] Ashleigh Vogstad: and what great looks like for a partner is that you understand your end-to-end funnel as it is mapped to Microsoft’s SEM model, the Microsoft customer Engagement model. Mm-hmm. The first stage there, inspire and design. That’s really the marketing space of lead generation. [00:31:50] Ashleigh Vogstad: So how are you generating leads with webinars, in-person, event activations, digital campaigns, and then at the very end, in the fifth column, you have the Microsoft outcomes that you’re driving. Yes. Whether that’s Azure consumed revenue, marketplace build sales, co-pilot, monthly active usage, these sorts of things. [00:32:10] Ashleigh Vogstad: And in each of those SEM swim lanes. There’s Microsoft funding associated to it. And that’s one of the things that Nina Harding was showing yesterday. When and where does it make sense to make requests for EA funds versus Azure accelerate the MCI funding? There’s different workshop proof of concept funding, and those all fall at specific stages in that EM model. [00:32:33] Vince Menzione: And what you’re also pointing out in this conversation is that the co the partners need to understand that mm, they need to understand MM. We talked about it years ago. I’ve had, haven’t had anybody on stage recently talk about m You could probably take us through that if we wanted to devote some time here, uh, and then understand all of those categories and how to access those funds. [00:32:52] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah, it’s critical and. The number one place we point partners, if you want a quick overview of what that looks like is to Microsoft’s FY 26 solution playbooks. Nice. They’re available on the web for download. There’s, well, there used to be three, but they’ve added a few agen being, being one. So, so there’s a handful of, they had [00:33:11] Vince Menzione: simplified it, now they’re, now they’re expanding it back again. [00:33:14] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah, exactly. I think there’s now a breakout for security as well. Yes. So take a look at those playbooks. It will map programs and incentives very specifically to each solution area and to each sales play that are gonna be available to you. And then we’re always happy to guide people through the details [00:33:32] Vince Menzione: as well. [00:33:32] Vince Menzione: I love that. I love that. And reach out to the. Ashley is just amazing at this process. I’ve, I’ve watched her for years now, work with some of the top, what have become the pinnacle partners of Microsoft and with the award season coming up. So we wanna make sure we have a plug there. But I also wanna talk about like, podcasts with you. [00:33:50] Vince Menzione: Um, you’ve been on this podcast multiple times, been in the studio before doing this, and I understand you have your own podcast now. So tell us about that. [00:33:58] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah, Vince, I just wanna say. As a friend and a mentor. You’ve been so inspiring. Thank you. And I think from years ago when we met, there was this seed in my brain of, you know, I, I should really get out there. [00:34:13] Ashleigh Vogstad: And you talk a lot about growth mindset and fear setting is, is one of Tim Ferriss’s terms? Yes. And models. [00:34:21] Vince Menzione: I love Tim Ferris. I’ve been, been a fan of his for 10 years now. So that’s settled. We all got started with this. Sorry. Sorry, I [00:34:26] Ashleigh Vogstad: interrupt. No, no, not at all. [00:34:27] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:34:28] Ashleigh Vogstad: And. I think it’s just been, it’s been back there. [00:34:31] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah. That I’m really passionate around having voice is how I think about it. And as a marketing agency, we’re really amplifying the voice, um, or helping companies to find their voice, particularly in hyperscaler partnerships. And what better way to assist, you know, authentically the amazing people in our network, in our community and our clients than with our own channel where we can celebrate their stories and success? [00:35:00] Vince Menzione: Very cool. [00:35:01] Ashleigh Vogstad: So the podcast is called Transcending Tech. It’s about [00:35:06] Vince Menzione: very cool transcending tech. Just so you don’t [00:35:08] Ashleigh Vogstad: transcending tech. [00:35:08] Vince Menzione: It’s out there now. [00:35:10] Ashleigh Vogstad: It, we just released our first episode. Okay. I think two days ago. [00:35:13] Vince Menzione: So by the time we’re live, yes. We’ll, we’ll be able to access it. Good. [00:35:17] Ashleigh Vogstad: You will be able to access it. [00:35:18] Ashleigh Vogstad: The first episode is with Alyssa Fit. Patrick from Elastic. [00:35:21] Vince Menzione: Oh my goodness. [00:35:22] Ashleigh Vogstad: And the concept of the podcast, it’s long form and it’s really about getting to the people behind the platforms. [00:35:29] Vince Menzione: Very cool. [00:35:29] Ashleigh Vogstad: And to the stories that transcend technology. So we’re here to get to know the human beings behind. Agents. [00:35:38] Vince Menzione: Yeah. [00:35:38] Ashleigh Vogstad: And taking the time to, to go in deep and really explore that. [00:35:43] Vince Menzione: So I am excited to see all the developments here with the, with the podcast. And you’re gonna be joining us again. You were just here, you in Boca. But you’ll be joining us again in Bellevue. Not too far a little bit. Closer ride or travel, uh, for you to come to Bellevue. [00:35:57] Vince Menzione: We’re gonna be hosting the first ultimate partner live, which is our larger events in this beautiful facility, this new Intercontinental hotel, which is fabulous. And, uh, you’re gonna be taking a more active role. Your leadership around AI is. Palpable and we’re gonna love to have you on stage and talking through some of the changes. [00:36:17] Vince Menzione: I, I suspect by the time we get to Bellevue we’ll have a lot more to talk about. That hasn’t even happened yet. [00:36:23] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah, I’m really excited. I’ll have been through my next cohort at at Oxford, kind of coming out hot from there back to the Pacific Northwest, and really excited to just share the learnings and Awesome. [00:36:35] Ashleigh Vogstad: Genuinely. It’s also helping me in my own research, really formulate particularly around the role of ag agentic AI in hyperscaler partnerships. [00:36:43] Vince Menzione: That’s so cool. And then what I’ll say is this, and I don’t know, we on the space perspective, and I’ll, the team will probably hang me for this because we haven’t done it yet, but if you wanna bring the podcast along with you, there might be, we’ll see if we can find an extra room for you to set up. [00:36:58] Vince Menzione: If you wanna do some interviews while you’re. In, at the event. So [00:37:02] Ashleigh Vogstad: you’re so generous, Vince. [00:37:03] Vince Menzione: That’s [00:37:04] Ashleigh Vogstad: amazing. [00:37:04] Vince Menzione: Thank you. Again, I can’t say for certainty yet, but, uh, let’s see, let’s see what happens with that. So, uh, let, let’s, uh, you know, I always, we, we have known each other for years and I just assume everybody knows this amazing Ashley sda. [00:37:19] Vince Menzione: But, um, we always, I like to ask this question because it helps us kind of dig in a little bit about you personally. And it’s my favorite question. I ask all my guests this question now, and it’s, um, you’re hosting a dinner party, Ashley, you are, pick a pace, place, you wanna have this dinner. We could talk about parts of the world. [00:37:36] Vince Menzione: You’ve traveled all extensively. Uh, and you can invite any three people, guests from the present. Or the past to this amazing dinner party you’re throwing. Whom would you invite and why? [00:37:52] Ashleigh Vogstad: It’s a beautiful question, Vince and. Instantly I go to a place in terms of the location, since you asked that part, which was surprising. [00:38:01] Ashleigh Vogstad: I, I like that is my home. I, I love where I live up in Whistler, Canada and [00:38:08] Vince Menzione: I hear it’s beautiful. I haven’t been yet, [00:38:10] Ashleigh Vogstad: it’s so gorgeous and it’s, it’s my own sanctuary. You know, I live on a plane 75% of the time and coming back to that place is really grounding for me. Yes. So, so I would love to have it at, at my home and to invite. [00:38:24] Ashleigh Vogstad: Pippa Malrin would be one. She, Pippa [00:38:26] Vince Menzione: Malrin. [00:38:27] Ashleigh Vogstad: Yeah. She’s sure. I get an advisor to the White House for many administrations. Okay. She’s an economist and she just has really interesting perspective on geopolitics. Uh, I follow her on Substack ’cause she’s a big substack. Okay, now [00:38:41] Vince Menzione: I need to look. This is awesome. [00:38:42] Vince Menzione: The [00:38:43] Ashleigh Vogstad: mal, she’s fantastic. I would say Dr. Lisa Sue, the CEO, Dr. Lisa of a md. [00:38:49] Vince Menzione: Okay. Yes, yes. I know a little bit about her. [00:38:51] Ashleigh Vogstad: So she was one of Time Mag, I think she was the only woman in Time Magazine’s, group of people of the year, which was basically this AI cohort in including, you know, the Elon Musks of the world. [00:39:03] Ashleigh Vogstad: Uh, it’s just so impressive what she’s doing with leadership in a MD. I don’t think it’s as public as. Anybody else who is on the cover of that magazine, but it’s incredibly powerful. [00:39:14] Vince Menzione: Yeah, they’ve made a com uh, turnaround’s probably not the right word, but it seems like they’ve made a tremendous, uh, gains turnaround probably in the last few years. [00:39:23] Ashleigh Vogstad: I would say that many would say turnaround. And then lastly is Dr. Fefe Lee, who. For those in the AI space, particularly AI research space. I mean, she’s arguably number one. Um, she’s leading at Stanford currently. [00:39:37] Vince Menzione: Wow. This is gonna be a heady conversation, but you know, I love conversations. So if you don’t mind, maybe I’ll bring dessert and come, come in for a few moments, maybe do some podcast interviews there. [00:39:48] Vince Menzione: How’s that? [00:39:49] Ashleigh Vogstad: That sounds absolutely perfect, Vince, [00:39:50] Vince Menzione: so, so good. So good to have you here today. So great. Good to have you in the studio again, and, uh, excited for transcends and all the great work you’re doing. Um. This time with ai. I think you, uh, we talked about this a little bit last night. I think you’ve made some really wise, personal and professional decisions about how to lead and how to take this forward and not kind of rest on your laurels, which you see so many organizations do People fear change [00:40:17] Ashleigh Vogstad: Hmm. [00:40:18] Vince Menzione: And you embrace it, which is just, it’s astounding to me that you do that and, um. I look forward to working with you in the future and for years and years to come. So I will ask you one more question though, because we are still at the precipice of these tectonic shifts and we’re still early in 2026. And so for our listeners and our viewers today, what would be the one thing you would tell them that they need to go do now that possibly they haven’t done yet as they prepare for 2026 and beyond? [00:40:52] Ashleigh Vogstad: The generic phrase would be, be curious, but if we want an action, it would be go build an agent. [00:40:59] Vince Menzione: Go build an agent [00:41:00] Ashleigh Vogstad: if, if you haven’t already. Yeah. And, and I’m, yeah. Speaking hopefully to like a business audience, you know, to, to anyone. Yeah. Really, um, find something that is interesting that you’re passionate about. [00:41:12] Ashleigh Vogstad: A, a use case that it doesn’t have to be some big thing. It could be quite mundane, but just something that’s gonna help you in your role. It’s, you know, what is creativity is an interesting question, and I can tell you that sitting down and hands-on keys and actually creating something is, is a beautiful, powerful experience. [00:41:32] Vince Menzione: Yeah. Awesome. All right. We’re all gonna go create agents this weekend, so thank you for listening. Thank you for viewing the Ultimate Guide to partnering on our YouTube channel, ultimate Partner, and on each end of your platforms at the Ultimate Guide to partnering. Thank you for being with us and supporting us all these years. [00:41:50] Vince Menzione: Thank you. Don’t forget, ultimate Partner Live is coming soon, May 11th through the 13th in beautiful Bellevue, Washington. I hope to see you there.

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3930: Paula Pant explores how the “1 percent margin for improvement,” popularized by Dave Brailsford and echoed by thinkers like Wilhelm Steinitz and Leo Babuta, can transform finances, health, learning, and business results. By pairing ruthless prioritization with tiny, consistent gains, she shows how small daily actions compound into extraordinary outcomes. Listen to discover how micro-progress can help you finally move the needle on the goals that matter most. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://affordanything.com/one-percent-margin-for-improvement-aggregation-of-marginal-gains/ Quotes to ponder: “We searched for small improvements everywhere. Forget about perfection; focus on progression.” “Prioritization is the ‘what.' Marginal gains is the ‘how.'” “One percent improvements create champions over time.” Episode references: Fresh Tilled Soil: https://www.freshtilledsoil.com/ Tour de France: https://www.letour.fr/en/ Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You don't have a feedback problem. You have a reaction problem. If employees aren't speaking up, it's not because they're disengaged. It's because your leadership system may be punishing honesty. In this episode, Tammy J. Bond breaks down: Why employee silence is a leadership signal What Amy Edmondson's research on psychological safety actually means How subtle retaliation destroys trust Why surveys don't fix culture The leadership behaviors that either build or collapse trust Harvard Business Review research shows employees withhold feedback when they believe nothing will change — or when they've seen others "pay the price" for speaking up. Feedback without visible follow-through is performance theater. If you want real accountability, real ownership, and real culture transformation, it starts with how leaders respond. Learn more about COMMAND™, the Leadership Behavior Operating System:

In this episode, Niall speaks with Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman, a cognitive scientist, humanistic psychologist, and author of “Rise Above”. Scott has spent his career redefining human potential and helping people overcome limiting beliefs. Despite being placed in special education as a child due to an auditory learning disability, he earned his PhD and is now one of the most cited psychologists in the world. In this conversation, they explore: — The difference between being a victim and having a victim mindset — Why vulnerable narcissism can block self-actualisation — How the stories we tell ourselves shape our potential — The value of shifting from “why” questions to “what” questions — Scott's approach to self-actualisation coaching and connecting to your core self And more. You can learn more about Scott's work at https://scottbarrykaufman.com. --- Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman is a psychologist, coach, professor, keynote speaker, and best-selling author who is passionate about helping all kinds of minds live a creative, fulfilling, and self-actualized life. His early educational experiences made him realize the deep reservoir of untapped potential of students, including bright and creative children who have been diagnosed with a learning disability. Dr. Kaufman is among the top 1% most cited scientists in the world for his research on intelligence and creativity. Dr. Kaufman is a professor of psychology at Columbia University and director of the Center for Human Potential. He hosts The Psychology Podcast which has received over 30 million downloads and is widely considered among the top psychology podcasts in the world. He is also a regular keynote speaker. If you'd like him to speak at one of your events, you can make a request here. Dr. Kaufman's writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Scientific American, Psychology Today, and Harvard Business Review, and he is the author and editor of 11 books. In his most recent book Rise Above: Overcome a Victim Mindset, Empower Yourself, and Realize Your Full Potential, his explores the limiting beliefs and widespread anxiety that puts us in boxes, lowers our expectations, and holds us back in our lives. In addition to teaching at Columbia, Dr. Kaufman has also been a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and NYU. Dr. Kaufman received a B.S. in psychology and human computer interaction from Carnegie Mellon, an M. Phil in experimental psychology from the University of Cambridge under a Gates Cambridge Scholarship, and a Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from Yale University (see his dissertation Beyond General Intelligence: The Dual-Process Theory of Human Intelligence). He is founder of Self-Actualization Coaching, receiving his formal coaching training from Positive Acorn. He is also an Honorary Principal Fellow at the University of Melbourne's Centre for Wellbeing Science. --- Interview Links: — Dr. Kaufman's website: https://scottbarrykaufman.com/ — Dr. Kaufman's book: https://amzn.to/4rvXC4C

How can organizations become more adaptable in a world of constant change? In this episode, Kevin sits down with Phil Le-Brun to explore why traditional change efforts often fail and what companies should do to succeed in today's complex environment. Phil introduces the metaphor of the octopus organization, a model for agility and continuous learning. He contrasts it with the outdated tin man approach that views people as interchangeable parts in a machine. Kevin and Phil discuss the difference between complicated and complex systems, emphasizing why leaders must move beyond linear plans and embrace learning as the path to change. They also discuss how clarity, ownership, and curiosity form the foundation of adaptability and why leaders must foster environments where these traits can thrive. Phil's Story: Phil Le-Brun is the co-author of The Octopus Organization: A Guide to Thriving in a World of Continuous Transformation with Jana Werner. He is an executive in residence at Amazon Web Services and a former corporate VP and international CIO at McDonald's Corporation. At McDonald's, he co-led the consolidation and modernization of technology across thirty-eight thousand restaurants globally. In his current role, Phil engages with Fortune 500 executives and their teams and with public-sector customers to mentor, advise, and guide them on their journeys to become more adaptable organizations. He is a sought-after speaker and has been featured in Harvard Business Review, the Wall Street Journal, and The Guardian. https://www.theoctopusorganization.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/phillebrun/ This Episode is brought to you by... Flexible Leadership is every leader's guide to greater success in a world of increasing complexity and chaos.  Book Recommendations The Octopus Organization: A Guide to Thriving in a World of Continuous Transformation by Phil Le-Brun and Jana Werner Genius at Scale: How Great Leaders Drive Innovation by Linda A. Hill, Emily Tedards, and Jason Wild Like this? Wiring the Winning Organization with Gene Kim Handing Over the Mic: Exploring Flexible Leadership with Julie Winkle Giulioni Join Our Community If you want to view our live podcast episodes, hear about new releases, or chat with others who enjoy this podcast join one of our communities below. Join the Facebook Group Join the LinkedIn Group   Leave a Review If you liked this conversation, we'd be thrilled if you'd let others know by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. Here's a quick guide for posting a review. Review on Apple: https://remarkablepodcast.com/itunes    Podcast Better! Sign up with Libsyn and get up to 2 months free! Use promo code: RLP  

Learn more about Michael Wenderoth, Executive Coach: www.changwenderoth.comMost women have lived as the side dish – supporting everyone else while putting themselves last. When I shared that line with my wife, she didn't hesitate: “That's me.” In this episode of 97% Effective, I speak with Deborah Grayson Riegel — executive coach, leadership communications expert, and co‑creator of TheMeMenu, a new personal growth platform designed for women over 50 who are ready to reclaim agency, imagination, and momentum in their lives. Deb shares how she teamed up with celebrity chef Carla Hall to build something that blends coaching, creativity, and AI — all through the metaphor of cooking and their Six Flavor framework. We discuss what's different for women 50+, how AI can democratize coaching (and where humans still matter most), and what partners can actually do — practically — to support the women they love. I also share what surprised me most in this conversation — including what I learned after asking my own wife what actually helps (hint: “How can I help?” isn't always it). By the end of this episode, you'll see cooking as a powerful lens for work and life. While The ME Menu is designed for women over 50, the key message — navigating obligation and agency — applies to anyone ready to write their next chapter.SHOW NOTESTheMeMenu storyWhy so many women spend decades as the “side dish,” what it means to reclaim main-dish energy – and why that mattersHow Deb connected with Carla Hall, celebrity chef, and why the collaboration clicked so wellWhat TheMeMenu actually is: A way of thinking and being + 6-week self-paced coaching program + An AI-powered “Sous Chef” for spot-coachingWhat makes TheMeMenu unique: Built by women over 50 for women over 50, Carla Hall's “secret sauce”, and a mission to democratize access to coachingWhy Deb sees AI as a complement to human coaching, not a replacementInside the CollaborationDeb, Carla, and Kirsten: three women, three strengthsTheir creative process: cooking vs bakingWhy “nothing works if the raw ingredients aren't good”The importance of creating their “mise en place”Over 100 iterations – and why “there's no such thing as done”Building a product while the technology was still emerging Practical TakeawaysWhat partners, spouses, kids, and friends can most do to support the women in their livesTwo powerful questions to ask – and 1 micro-behavior that mattersWhy “How can I help?' can be taxing – and why it's often better to just make offersThinking in terms of a lifelong conversation, not a one-time check-inLightning Round laser insights: Deb on the hard truth about personal change, the key to collaboration, the power of her summer in Spain, and the focus of her new book, Aim High and Bounce Back: A Successful Woman's Guide to Rethinking and Rising Up from Failure BIO AND LINKSDeborah Grayson Riegel, MSW, PCC is a keynote speaker, leadership communications expert, executive coach, and author. She is the co-creator of TheMeMenu.com, a self-paced coaching platform designed to help women reclaim purpose and momentum in midlife and beyond. Deb is a regular contributor for Harvard Business Review, Inc., Psychology Today, Forbes, and Fast Company – and author of multiple books include Go to Help, Overcoming Overthinking, and her newest book, Aim High and Bounce Back (2026), which explores how women experience failure differently — and how to rise after setbacks. She is a certified executive coach (ICF PCC) and holds a BA from University of Michigan and MSW from Columbia University. Connect with DebTheMeMenu: https://www.thememenu.com/aboutDeb's website: https://deborahgraysonriegel.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahgraysonriegel/Deb's new book, with Fiona Macaulay – Aim High and Bounce Back: A Successful Woman's Guide to Rethinking and Rising Up from Failure https://a.co/d/05NJJNcn People and Things referencedCarla Hall, celebrity chef: https://carlahall.comStanford Business School WIM groups: https://tinyurl.com/yc6zssc2Halle Barry at the DealBook Summit: https://tinyurl.com/ymmcuk54What exclaiming “poo-poo-poo” means (Jewish expression): https://tinyurl.com/yn6ny9t3Hybrid Intelligence: 2025 Columbia University Coaching Conference https://tinyurl.com/4ss3s2cr“Mise en place” (French culinary phrase for “putting in place”): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mise_en_place More from 97% EffectiveMichael's Award-winning Book: Get Promoted: What You're Really Missing at Work That's Holding You Back: https://tinyurl.com/453txk74Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@97PercentEffectiveAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On a souvent tendance à considérer l'intelligence artificielle comme un vrai coup de pouce, notamment dans le cadre professionnel. Elle serait synonyme de gain de temps et d'efficacité. Beaucoup l'ont d'ailleurs déjà adoptée et l'utilisent au quotidien. Pourtant, cet outil pourrait produire l'effet inverse de celui recherché. Au lieu de nous faire gagner du temps, il se pourrait même qu'il nous en fasse perdre. C'est en tout cas ce que met en lumière une étude menée par des chercheuses de l'Université de Berkeley en Californie, et publiée en février 2026 dans la Harvard Business Review. Comment est-il possible que l'IA nous fasse perdre du temps ? Et quel impact cela a-t-il sur notre charge de travail ? Écoutez la suite de cet épisode de "Maintenant, vous savez". Un podcast Bababam Originals écrit et réalisé par Magalie Bertet. À écouter ensuite : Quels sont les métiers les plus menacés par l'Intelligence Artificielle ? L'IA a-t-elle vraiment bouleversé nos relations humaines ? L'IA va-t-elle tuer le cinéma ? Retrouvez tous les épisodes de "Maintenant vous savez". Suivez Bababam sur Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does your CFO actually want to hear from you?In this episode of That's What I Call Marketing, Conor Byrne sits down with Michael Kaminsky former analytics leader at Harry's and Founder & CEO of Recast to unpack the real tension between marketing and finance. After Michael's Harvard Business Review article on the CMO–CFO relationship circulated widely (and resonated strongly with CFOs and CMOs), this conversation goes deep on:Why marketing forecasts keep missingWhy finance doesn't trust marketing numbersHow to talk about ROI and risk crediblyThe problem with last-click attributionHow to structure experiments properlyWhat “expected value” really means for marketersWhy brand investment must be framed as capital allocationIf you're a CMO, Marketing Director, Head of Performance or brand leader trying to build a stronger relationship with your CFO — this episode is essential.⏱️ Chapters 01:02 – Michael's time at Harry's: analytics, growth & experimentation 05:00 – The early days of podcast advertising & growth bets 06:15 – False precision in marketing measurement 07:23 – Brand tracking, survey data & real signal 08:42 – The Harvard Business Review article 09:07 – Why CMOs and CFOs feel tension 10:13 – Speaking the language of finance 14:21 – Discounted cash flow & thinking in timelines 15:00 – The credibility killer: marketing marketing 15:32 – Why being willing to be wrong builds trust 18:20 – Talking about risk & expected value 22:18 – Incrementality & structured experimentation 25:05 – Recast: forecasting & bridging marketing and finance 28:28 – The forecasting trap: last-touch attribution 30:19 – Compounding learning & agency transparency 32:00 – Final reflections: marketing as growth co-pilot

Lily Zheng, Fixing Fairness Lily Zheng is a sought-after speaker, strategist, and organizational consultant who specializes in hands-on systemic change to turn positive intentions into positive outcomes for workplaces and everyone in them. A dedicated changemaker and advocate, Lily has had their work published in the Harvard Business Review, New York Times, and NPR. They are the author of Fixing Fairness: 4 Tenets to Transform Diversity Backlash into Progress for All (Amazon, Bookshop)*. When it comes to fairness in the workplace, our society is quick to zero in on what divides us. Yet, there is broad agreement across all demographics on many key principles. In this conversation, Lily and I explore how leaders can influence the system to better work for everyone. Key Points Many of us assume that fewer people support the value of diversity than actually do. When asked, 82% of people support pro-diversity statements. The most popular/traditional approaches to fixing fairness in the workplace tend to be the least effective. Our tendency is to focus on the behavior of individuals, when in fact organizational systems have the most significant impact on fairness. When considering a fairness initiative or intervention, begin with the practice of understanding and storytelling, just like many change initiatives. Resist the temptation to check boxes with “quick fixes” such as simply bringing in a speaker or hosting a one-time event. This rarely helps in any sustainable way and sometimes worsens existing dynamics. If you have a seat at the leadership table, make the case for thoughtful design and involvement of stakeholders at all points in the process, just as many effective organizations do on any strategic change initiative. Resources Mentioned Fixing Fairness: 4 Tenets to Transform Diversity Backlash into Progress for All by Lily Zheng (Amazon, Bookshop)* Interview Notes Download my interview notes in PDF format (free membership required). Related Episodes Supporting Return to Work After Maternity Leave, with Danna Greenberg (episode 639) The Power of Unlearning Silence, with Elaine Lin Hering (episode 678) How to Lead a Meaningful Cultural Shift, with David Hutchens (episode 755) Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic. To accelerate your learning, uncover more inside Coaching for Leaders Plus.

Your story is not just your story. It's part of a larger narrative about whose voices are heard and whose are erased.I'm thrilled to have Janice Gassam Asare back on the podcast. She's an organizational psychologist, equity consultant, and author of the new book Rise and Resist - and this conversation went places I didn't expect.What struck me most is how Janice reframes resistance. Not as something dramatic or career-ending, but as the small, daily choices we make: amplifying someone else's idea in a meeting, speaking up when it's uncomfortable, refusing to let an important story quietly disappear. Those aren't small acts. They're how culture actually changes.We also get into what it takes to develop your voice when you've spent years being rewarded for staying in your lane. If that hits close to home, this episode is for you.Janice and I talk about:Why storytelling is preservation and power, not just communicationHow personal stories build connection that expertise alone never canThe everyday acts of resistance that shape workplaces and culture more than we realizeHow to find your voice when you were taught not to rock the boatWhat to do when you speak up and face criticism or pushback for itAbout My Guest: Janice Z. Gassam Asare, Ph.D. is a Ph.D.-trained organizational psychologist and the founder of BWG Business Solutions, an award-winning consultancy designed to help organizations create cultures built on equity. Dr. Janice provides consultations, facilitates workshops, provides guidance, delivers keynote speeches and “Awareness Talks” to spark important dialogue about equity in the workplace. Dr. Janice has had the opportunity to collaborate with Google, Amazon, Yale University, Nordstrom, H&M, and Paypal/Venmo among many others. Dr. Janice is the author of three best-selling books, including her latest “Rise and Resist: How to Reclaim Workplace Equity and Justice” coming in February 2026. She is a senior contributing writer for Forbes having authored over 500 articles, a Harvard Business Review contributor, a LinkedIn Learning and Udemy Business instructor and EBSCO Learning facilitator. In 2022, Dr. Janice was recognized as a LinkedIn #1 Top Voice in Racial Equity. In 2023 she was recognized by Gusto as one of the 25 Top Workplace Experts to Follow. She is a 2-time TEDx speaker, the host of the Dirty Diversity podcast and an adjunct professor at Columbia University. During her free time, Dr. Janice enjoys volunteering as a job coach for the Coalition for the Homeless.Links:Show notes at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/461/ Janice's website: https://www.drjanicegassam.com/ Get Janice's new book “Rise and Resist: How to Reclaim Workplace Equity and Justice”: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/808352/rise-and-resist-by-janice-gassam-asare-phd/ Forbes article by Janice: “How Carol Cox Is Helping Women Speakers Get Paid What They Deserve” = https://www.forbes.com/sites/janicegassam/2019/12/01/how-carol-cox-is-helping-women-speakers-get-paid-what-they-deserve/#1f5c3921533f Discover your Speaker Archetype by taking our free quiz at https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/quiz/Apply for our Thought Leader Academy = https://www.speakingyourbrand.com/academy/ Connect on LinkedIn:Carol Cox = https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolcoxJanice Gassam Asare (guest) = https://www.linkedin.com/in/janicegassamphd/ Related Podcast Episodes:Episode 156: Visibility Strategies That Get You Noticed with Janice GassamEpisode 257: Writing a Book Gives Your Ideas Depth and Longevity with Tiffany HawkEpisode 378: The Power of Women's Voices and Stories to Change the World with Carol Cox

In this episode of The Workplace Podcast, William Corless speaks with Dr. Nicki Macklin about the strategic power of organisational kindness. Often dismissed as “soft,” kindness is frequently misunderstood in leadership. But research featured in Harvard Business Review - co-authored with Amy Edmondson and Thomas Lee - shows the opposite: kindness drives performance. In this conversation, they explore: Why kindness is not the same as niceness The real cost of workplace incivility How managers lose up to seven weeks a year dealing with poor culture How to measure kindness using metrics you already track This is a practical, research-backed discussion for leaders who want to balance performance with humanity — and understand the real business case for culture.

Presented by Megan W. Gerhardt, PhD, Miami University's Farmer School of BusinessSTFM Conference on Medical Student Education Scott Fields Lecture | Saturday, January 31, 2026It's time for smarter intergenerational conversations. With five distinct generations currently in today's workplace, organizational leaders and teams frequently encounter frustration and complexity when managing intergenerational dynamics. In this engaging keynote, Megan W. Gerhardt, PhD, pushes back on lazy generational stereotypes to understand why generations bring different norms into the workplace. Using the Gentelligence® framework, Dr Gerhardt shares actionable, practical strategies to help transform generational diversity from a perceived challenge into a competitive advantage for your organization. Using powerful questions, Dr Gerhardt talks about ways to dismantle harmful age-based stereotypes, identify and address barriers to effective intergenerational collaboration, and develop practical approaches that replace generational bias with genuine curiosity and openness. Using the 4 practices of Gentelligence®, Dr Gerhardt will walk through how to have meaningful intergenerational dialogue to create organizational cultures that leverage the unique strengths each generation brings to the workplace. By the end of this engaging session, attendees will possess concrete tools to foster understanding, connection, and collaborative success across all generational cohorts within their teams.Learning ObjectivesUpon completion of this session, participants should be able to:Develop practical strategies for replacing generational stereotypes and judgment with genuine curiosity and openness to different perspectives.Create smarter intergenerational conversations through strategic “power questions” that foster understanding and connection.Apply four key practices of Gentelligence® and ways to apply them to workplace challenges.Copyright © Society of Teachers of Family Medicine, 2026Megan W. Gerhardt, PhDMegan W. Gerhardt, PhD, is a professor of Management and Leadership at Miami University's Farmer School of Business. In addition to her academic work, she consults and speaks with leading organizations worldwide on leveraging generational diversity in the workplace and is the author of "Gentelligence: A Revolutionary Approach to Leading an Intergenerational Workforce".Her Gentelligence® framework was featured as Harvard Business Review's Big Idea in March 2022 and selected for Harvard Business Review's Top 10 Must Reads for 2024. Through her work (www.gentelligence.org), Dr Gerhardt focuses on harnessing individual differences to drive impact and exceptional performance.

Big goals are easy to write and hard to live.When strategies promise transformation but leave people asking what do I do on Monday, momentum dies and the execution gap widens.We sat down with Andrea Olson -  behavioral scientist, Harvard Business Review contributor, TEDx speaker, and founder of a change agency that works with companies from $300M to $36B. She's helped some of the biggest organizations in the world figure out why their strategy looks great on paper and dies in execution. We unpack how to move from lofty visions to daily behaviors that actually change outcomes.We'll chat about:Why "getting the right people in the right seats" is nearly meaningless without a definition of rightThe mistake most companies make at the top with their strategy that cascades down into chaosWhat Andrea calls a "Rosetta Stone" — a simple tool to translate high-level strategy into real behaviors for every person, from the CEO to the janitorWhy SMART goals aren't the answer at the strategy level (and what is)The 2 things that actually change behavior at work: confidence and beliefWhy culture and strategy aren't two separate things, and why treating them that way is costing youHow to help your team make better decisions in uncertainty without just telling them what to doThe Undercover Boss move every executive should be making right nowWhat AI adoption really requires, and why "everyone just use it" is not a strategy...This one is for every leader, business owner, and striver who's tired of watching great plans go nowhere. Expect concrete language, role-level guidance, and a step-by-step way to cascade strategy without crushing initiative.Subscribe, share with a leader who needs a clearer path from plan to action, and leave a review telling us the one behavior you'll change this week.Connect with Andrea:Personal website: andreabelkolson.comPragmadik: pragmadik.comLinkedIn: Search Andrea Belk Olson Andrea's work:Articles on Harvard Business Review, Entrepreneur Magazine, Inc. Magazine, and World Economic Forum — just Google "Andrea Belk Olson" or check out one of my favorites, "Jargon is Hurting Your Strategy"Her book What To Ask: How To Learn What Customers Need but Don't Tell You — available on her website and everywhere books are soldHer upcoming book Execution Drift: The Invisible Forces that Derail Strategy Implementation and How to Fix It — available for pre-order at andreabelkolson.comText Me Your Thoughts and IdeasSupport the showBrought to you by Angela Shurina Behavior-First, Executive, Leadership and Optimal Performance Coach 360, Change Leadership & Culture Transformation Consultant

Have you ever heard the phrase "healthy competition?" Competing is often viewed as a positive: we are told that it motivates us, drives innovation, and helps us excel. But what if this approach were mistaken, and competition actually causes more harm than good? In this panel discussion, author Ruchika T. Malhotra will be joined by Ijeoma Oluo, Ekin Yasin, and La'Kita Williams to explore the central ideas of her new book, Uncompete: Rejecting Competition to Unlock Success. Author Ruchika Malhotra offers a different framework for success than what we are used to. Uncompete argues that competition leads to exhaustion, anxiety, burnout, and an isolating lack of community. It encourages a scarcity mindset and keeps us from reaching our true potential. Instead, Malhotra argues, we should be investigating this cultural norm and even rewriting it into ways that are likely unfamiliar, such as by tapping into benign envy or finding joy in other people's victories. Drawing on interviews as well as Malhotra's own experiences working with corporations as an inclusion strategist, Uncompete promotes a culture of collaboration and mutuality. The book offers that this approach leads not only to a happier workplace, but one more likely to succeed. Likewise, it can also lead to happier and healthier lives even outside of work. Malhotra subverts the dominant, dog-eat-dog paradigm and makes a radical argument: there is room for everyone at the table and everyone can succeed. Ruchika T. Malhotra is the founder of Candour, a global inclusion strategy firm that has worked with some of the world's biggest organizations. She is a regular contributor to Harvard Business Review and was a founding editor of The Establishment, a women-funded-and-led media website, has written for The New York Times, Forbes.com, TIME, Bloomberg, Wall Street Journal, Quartz, The Seattle Times, and more. She was an adjunct faculty in Communications at University of Washington and Seattle University and is the author of INCLUSION ON PURPOSE: An Intersectional Approach to Creating a Culture of Belonging at Work, MIT Press' top selling book of 2022. Ijeoma Oluo is a Seattle-based writer, speaker, and internet yeller. She is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling first book, So You Want To Talk About Race, Mediocre, and Be a Revolution. Her work on race and gender has been published in the New York Times, the Washington Post, and NBC News; and she has been featured on The Daily Show and NPR's All Things Considered. Named on the TIME 100 Next list and The Root 100, she's been awarded the Harvard Humanist of the Year Award, the American Humanist Association's Feminist Humanist Award, Gender Justice League's Media Justice Award, and the Equal Opportunity Institute's Aubrey Davis Visionary Leadership Award. Dr. Ekin Yasin is a professor, researcher, and program leader with expertise in communication, emerging technologies, and leadership development. As Director of the Communication Leadership graduate program at the University of Washington, her work explores how technology transforms identity, storytelling, influence, and global communication. She collaborates with universities around the world on program development, AI-integrated curriculum design, and responsive education models that meet the needs of a shifting global landscape. La'Kita Williams is the Founder and Principal Strategist of CoCreate Work, a future-focused coaching and consulting company specializing in executive coaching and organizational development. She holds a Master's in Social Work and is a Certified Professional Coach (CPC). La'Kita developed the 5 Components of Inclusive Culture, a step-by-step framework to help organizations, small businesses, and emerging companies build responsive workplaces that put humans first. La'Kita teaches graduate courses in the Department of Communication Leadership at the University of Washington, including Resilient and Inclusive Leadership for The Future of Work. She has been quoted in the New York Times, written for Harvard Business Review and MSNBC Know your Value, and has appeared on numerous podcasts to discuss leadership and the future of work.

The business purposes of digital data collection are not so obvious to all, and things will get even more complicated in an internet dominated by AI agents. We will today revisit the history of Digital Analytics and its evolution from Marketing-centric Analytics to Product Analytics and, eventually, Customer Experience Management (CXM). From there we will address the origins and current state of the composable MarTech stack and the activation, personalization, or demand generation possibilities it unlocks, with a new generation of Customer Data Platforms and Data Warehouses at its core.We do this with the best possible guest. Adam Greco is one of the leaders of the data industry. As one of Omniture's earliest customers and employees and a data consultant, he has helped thousands of organizations improve their digital properties through data. Adam has blogged extensively about data and authored the preeminent book on Adobe Analytics. He has held strategic roles at Salesforce, Amplitude, and several other leading organizations, having also served as a board member of several data technology providers and winning several awards from the Digital Analytics Association. Adam is a product evangelist at Hightouch, where he helps leading organizations strategize around using data to accelerate growth.References:* Adam Greco at Hightouch* Adam Greco on LinkedIn* Tejas Manohar: Data activation and composable CDPs in a privacy-first world (Masters of Privacy, January 2024)* What is Customer Experience Management? (Harvard Business Review, April 2025)* A deeper look at AI crawlers: breaking down traffic by purpose and industry (Cloudflare, August 2025)* Learning more about Digital Analytics: Marketing Analytics Summit (Santa Barbara, April 2026). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mastersofprivacy.com/subscribe

What happens when you walk away from the big logo—and discover that your thought leadership gets sharper, not smaller? In this episode, Peter Winick sits down with David Lancefield, host of Lancefield on the Line podcast, a strategy coach to CEOs, C-suite leaders, and founders who has advised more than 50 CEOs and hundreds of executives over three decades. David writes on strategy, leadership, and culture for outlets like Harvard Business Review and MIT Sloan, and he's deeply focused on what strategy looks like in practice, not just on slides.  David breaks down what thought leadership actually does when it's done well: it differentiates you, attracts the right conversations, and creates a platform for real debate. But he's equally blunt about what it becomes when it's done poorly—a "glorified brochure" sitting on top of a product. If you've ever wondered why some "insights" feel alive and others feel like marketing copy, this is the distinction.  You'll hear how David approaches thought leadership now that it's tied to his name, not a firm's brand. He's intent on building a credible voice in a cluttered marketplace by staying rooted in the work he cares most about: strategy as an operating system for day-to-day decisions, leadership behaviors that actually move outcomes, and culture as a lever—not a poster. His writing isn't just content. It's credentialing. It's a signal. And yes, it drives leads—though he's candid about the reality: quality varies, and discernment matters.  The conversation also goes deep on collaboration as a serious thought leadership growth strategy. David argues that one voice is rarely enough anymore—and that co-creating with the right partner can make 1+1=3, if you do it intentionally. He lays out what "good collaboration" looks like: shared premise, distinct lenses, complementary audiences, and—most importantly—operating standards. Deadlines. Quality. Mutual ownership. No babysitting. No chaos. Just professional chemistry that produces better ideas faster.  Finally, David unpacks a subtle but important shift many leaders miss when they move from institution to independence: the definition of "enough." Inside big organizations, "enough" rarely exists—there's always another growth target, another push, another rung. Outside, you can reverse-engineer your needs, design your capacity, and choose work that fits your life without losing intensity or impact. It's not about working less. It's about working with agency. Three Key Takeaways: • Thought leadership is either a differentiator—or a brochure. At its best, it creates a platform for debate, positions you as an originator, and connects directly to real services and outcomes. At its worst, it's "a glorified brochure on top of a product."  • Independence forces clarity on your voice, not your résumé. When you leave the big brand, people care less about who you were and more about who you are now—and what you stand for. Your writing becomes proof of credibility, not just content.  • Collaboration can be a growth strategy—if your operating standards match. The upside is 1+1=3: shared premise, complementary lenses, expanded audiences. The risk is misalignment on deadlines, quality, and effort—so you have to set expectations early like pros. If you liked David Lancefield's take on credibility and differentiation, listen to Episode 9 with Charles H. Green ("The Trusted Advisor").  Charles shows how trust is the real engine that turns thought leadership into better conversations, faster decisions, and stronger client relationships. It's the perfect companion to David's message: don't just sound smart—become the advisor buyers believe and choose. 

Codes promos, recommandations ou partenariats forcées... 61% des internautes ne font desormais plus confiance aux influenceurs, selon une étude de la Harvard Business Review. Alors entre obligation de transparence, défiance massive des audiences et arrivée des influenceurs virtuels, le business de l'influence traverse une crise sans précédent.  Pourquoi est-ce qu'on se méfie de plus en plus des influenceurs ? Les influenceurs peuvent-ils regagner cette confiance ? Qui sont ces influenceurs artificiels ? Écoutez la suite de cet épisode de "Maintenant Vous Savez". Un podcast Bababam Originals écrit et réalisé par Ludivine Morales. À écouter ensuite : Marché des influenceurs : que se cache-t-il derrière ? Qui sont les « jinfluenceurs », entre journalistes et influenceurs ? Qui sont les désinfluenceurs, qui combattent la surconsommation ? Retrouvez tous les épisodes de "Maintenant vous savez". Suivez Bababam sur Instagram. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Porto's construction is a bit of a headache, Walt and Abe are swapping places finally, we talk about “the Josh Effect” and “Experience Intelligence”, A chance to meet Bob Gurr and see a great documentary, a limited time tour is coming to Disneyland, we talk Epic Universe and Josh as the CEO with Philander, and more! Please support the show if you can by going to https://www.dlweekly.net/support/. Check out all of our current partners and exclusive discounts at https://www.dlweekly.net/promos. News: Walls for the construction of Porto's have moved outwards, causing a bottleneck near World of Disney and the tram loading area. The extended walls are necessary for the construction work going on, but causing crowd control issues at peak times. The resort did open an alternate route backstage in DCA, but that just caused extra confusion. – https://www.micechat.com/431774-disneyland-update-sold-out-parks-opera-house-split-chaotic-construction/ The switchover has finally been made at the Disneyland Opera House and Walt Disney – A Magical Life is rotating with Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. As of this past weekend, Lincoln is featured from open until 1:30pm, then Walt from 2pm to 8pm. Be sure to check the times in the Disneyland App for the day you are in the park, just to be sure. – https://www.micechat.com/431774-disneyland-update-sold-out-parks-opera-house-split-chaotic-construction/ We are just a little under a month from Josh D'Amaro becoming the CEO of the Walt Disney Company. Last week, the Harvard Business Review published a story about Josh D'Amaro, describing him as having “experience intelligence.” They defined this as “the ability to read and shape the human experience.” The author of the article followed Josh around and witnessed the “Josh effect.” This effect is people being genuinely happy to work for him. – https://www.micechat.com/431774-disneyland-update-sold-out-parks-opera-house-split-chaotic-construction/ Any Weeklyteer in the Southern California area the weekend of February 28th should pick up some tickets for a screening of “Bob Gurr Living By Design. Bob Gurr himself will be there for the screening and will be autographing merchandise. General admission starts at just $39, and will take place from 3pm-6pm on February 28th at the Fine Arts Theater is Beverly Hills. Tickets can be purchased at the link in our show notes. – https://www.micechat.com/431774-disneyland-update-sold-out-parks-opera-house-split-chaotic-construction/ https://www.tickettailor.com/events/fandomproductions/2016940 There is a limited time guided tour called Women who Make the Magic. This tour will be available from March 6th through May 10th, which is Mother's Day. The tour is 90 minutes, includes a photo op with an it's a small world doll. – https://www.micechat.com/431774-disneyland-update-sold-out-parks-opera-house-split-chaotic-construction/ The next Disney Pixar feature will be Hoppers, coming to theaters March 6th. The gallery area on the second floor of the Pixar Place Hotel is currently featuring artwork from the movie. There is concept art, paintings, and models of the characters and scenes from the film. – https://www.micechat.com/431774-disneyland-update-sold-out-parks-opera-house-split-chaotic-construction/ SnackChat: Din Tai Fung – https://disneyland.disney.go.com/dining/downtown-disney-district/din-tai-fung/menus/dinner/ https://dtf.com/en-us/locations/anaheim Discussion Topic: Epic Universe with theme park fan and Disney Cast Member Philander Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Boss Better Now 3.0 arrives in March! Joe shares why the podcast is shifting and why he's excited about what's coming. After reflecting on what has worked best over the years, the show is returning to conversations that center real leadership experience, encouragement, and practical wisdom for people who lead others. New episodes are on the way, featuring thoughtful conversations with leaders, experts, and practitioners who care deeply about employee engagement, employee relations, and workplace culture. Thanks for sticking with the show. The next chapter starts soon. To subscribe to Joe Mull's BossBetter Email newsletter, visit https://BossBetterNow.com For more info on working with Joe Mull, visit https://joemull.com For more info on Boss Hero School, visit https://bossheroschool.com To email the podcast, use bossbetternow@gmail.com #transformativeleadership #workplaceculture #companyculture #talentretention #employeeengagement #employeeretention #bossheroschool #employalty Joe Mull is on a mission to help leaders and business owners create the conditions where commitment takes root—and the entire workplace thrives. A dynamic and deeply relatable speaker, Joe combines compelling research, magnetic storytelling, and practical strategies to show exactly how to cultivate loyalty, ignite effort, and build people-first workplaces where both performance and morale flourish. His message is clear: when commitment is activated, engagement rises, teams gel, retention improves, and business outcomes soar. Joe is the founder of Boss Hero School™ and the creator of the acclaimed Employalty™ framework, a roadmap for creating thriving workplaces in a new era of work. He's the author of three books, including Employalty, named a top business book of the year by Publisher's Weekly, and his popular podcast, Boss Better Now, ranks in the top 1% of management shows globally. A former head of learning and development at one of the largest healthcare systems in the U.S., Joe has spent nearly two decades equipping leaders—from Fortune 500 companies like State Farm, Siemens, and Choice Hotels to hospitals, agencies, and small firms—with the tools to lead better, inspire commitment, and build more humane workplace cultures. His insights have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Harvard Business Review, and more. In 2025, Joe was inducted into the Professional Speakers Hall of Fame (CPAE). This is the speaking profession's highest honor, a distinction granted to less than 1% of professional speakers worldwide. It's awarded to speakers who demonstrate exceptional talent, integrity, and influence in the speaking profession For more information visit joemull.com.

Send a textDr. Barbara Kellerman is a Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School's Center for Public Leadership. She was the Founding Executive Director of the Center, and a member of the Kennedy School faculty for over twenty years. Kellerman has held professorships at Fordham, Tufts, Fairleigh Dickinson, George Washington, Christopher Newport, and the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. She also served as Director of the Center for the Advanced Study of Leadership at the University of Maryland.Kellerman received her B.A. from Sarah Lawrence College, and her M.A. M.Phil., and Ph.D. (in Political Science) degrees from Yale University. She was awarded a Danforth Fellowship and three Fulbright fellowships. At Uppsala (1996-97), she held the Fulbright Chair in American Studies. Kellerman was cofounder of the International Leadership Association (ILA) and is author and editor of many books. Kellerman has also appeared on media outlets such as CBS, NBC, PBS, CNN, NPR, MSNBC, Reuters, and BBC, and has contributed articles and reviews to the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Boston Globe, the Los Angeles Times, and the Harvard Business Review.From 2015 to 2023, she was listed by Global Gurus as among the “World's Top 30 Management Professionals.”A Few Quotes From This Episode“He is an inveterate bad boy who is not content unless he is stirring the pot.”“Follower is the only antonym of leader we have. And sometimes followers become leaders.”“The importance of context is as real in politics as it is in organizational life.”Resources Mentioned in This Episode Barbara's BlogBook: Leader's Who Lust by KellermanBook: Bad Leadership by KellermanBook: The End of Leadership by KellermanAbout The International Leadership Association (ILA)The ILA was created in 1999 to bring together professionals interested in studying, practicing, and teaching leadership. About  Scott J. AllenWebsiteWeekly Newsletter: Practical Wisdom for LeadersBlogMy Approach to HostingThe views of my guests do not constitute "truth." Nor do they reflect my personal views in some instances. However, they are views to consider, and I hope they help you clarify your perspective. Nothing can replace your reflection, research, and exploration of the topic. ♻️ Please share with others and follow/subscribe to the podcast!⭐️ Please leave a review on Apple, Spotify, or your platform of choice.➡️ Follow me on LinkedIn for more on leadership, communication, and tech.

Disney CEO Josh D'Amaro told the Harvard Business Review that Millennium Falcon Smugglers Run doesn't live up to its potential, and Disney is actively redesigning it. Plus, Luke Combs is getting his own venue at Universal CityWalk, Shanghai Disney celebrates 10 years, and a Hannah Montana 20th anniversary special is coming to Disney+. In today's episode:

When brewing, you follow a scientific process. You know what yeast characteristics will yield what flavor profiles, and how to intervene if fermentation isn't progressing properly. Why should the people side of your business be any different? This session will serve as a crash course in evidence-based, repeatable best practices for selecting employees with the right traits, skills, attitudes, and competencies to help you meet your business objectives.We'll cover how to:• Find the perfect recipe: discuss how to determine which combination of knowledge, skills, abilities, and attributes are most important in your key roles.• Gather your equipment: review various selection methods (interviewing, assessments, etc.), and learn the strengths, limitations, and appropriate uses of each• Take measurements: Investigate various methods and metrics for measuring and quantifying the impact of your selection strategy to your operational budget.As a measurement strategist, Whitney Martin's passion and expertise lies in the field of surveys and assessments. A self-professed “data nerd,” Whitney has a Master's degree in the area of Human Resources Measurement and Evaluation and has conducted extensive research on the predictive validity of various hiring assessment strategies.Thanks to over a decade functioning as a “vendor-agnostic” consultant, Whitney provides a unique perspective on the broad landscape of the testing and assessment industry, and employee selection strategies, in general. She is a firm believer that there are no one-size-fits-all “best” products, and that tools and vendors should be selected based on their ability to solve a specific problem. She spends much of her time studying the available tools in the marketplace, scrutinizing the science, and analyzing the strengths, weaknesses, and appropriate uses for each.Whitney has been a highly rated speaker at several National HR Conferences and has authored articles on assessments for several books and publications, including Harvard Business Review. She is a member of the Society for Industrial & Organizational Psychology (SIOP) and has two decades of experience working in the assessment industry.Stay up to date with CBP: http://update.craftbeerprofessionals.org

Melani Sanders is a digital creator and the fearless founder of the We Do Not Care Movement™. Her viral WDNC reels and posts capture the humor, heart, and chaos of perimenopause and menopause, midlife in general, motherhood, and real life. Get a copy of her book The Official We Do Not Care Club Handbook: A Hot-Mess Guide for Women in Perimenopause, Menopause, and Beyond Who Are Over It Greg McKeown is a two-time New York Times bestselling author, one of the most sought-after public speakers globally, and has spoken to over 500 companies while traveling to more than 40 countries. His clients include Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Nike. He hosts The Greg McKeown Podcast, ranked in the Top 5 of all Self Improvement podcasts (and Top 10 in Educational podcasts on Apple Podcasts. Guests have included Harvard professor Arthur Brooks, Matthew McConaughey, Maria Shriver, John Hope Bryant, and Ariana Huffington. His work has been covered in print media, including The New Yorker, The New York Times, Time, Fast Company, Fortune, Politico, Inc., and Harvard Business Review. It has also been featured on NPR, NBC, FOX, and multiple times on The Steve Harvey Show.

If you've ever heard me talk about Superconsumers, SuperGeos, or why you should Name, Frame, and Claim your new category - all of that thinking comes from today's guest, one of my heroes: Eddie Yoon.Eddie is one of the world's leading thinkers on category design. He's a longtime Harvard Business Review contributor, co-founder of Category Pirates (a top Substack you must subscribe to), and has spent decades advising Fortune 100 companies on how to create new categories instead of just fighting for scraps of market share.I've studied Eddie's work obsessively for years because he doesn't just teach marketing - he teaches thinking. AND in this conversation, we jam together (riffing on ideas, building on each other's thoughts) about why everything you've learned in marketing strategy is likely wrong.We talk about K-pop Demon Hunters, how Nespresso and Gillette grew massive categories, and why breakthrough categories don't come from better features or nicer packaging - they come from deeply understanding what outcomes your super consumers are looking for.This episode is PACKED with real-life brand examples: Velveeta, Keurig, Tesla, Spam Musubi, frozen peas, and more. Eddie brings category design to life with stories that will completely change how you think about growing your business.Next Steps: Go find your K-pop moment, your Velveeta insight, your frozen peas problem - that's where exponential growth lives!In This Episode You'll Learn:Why 99% of CPG brands are playing the wrong game - stealing market share vs. growing categories, and why the biggest companies are least likely to create new categoriesBenefits are dead, outcomes are everything - The Velveeta $100M growth story: how solving one super consumer outcome (getting kids to eat greens) unlocked massive growthThe power of super consumers & super geos - Why you should hire your super consumers, and the shocking Cherry Garcia data: 3,000 of 30,000 stores drove 80% of salesLightning strike marketing - How to turn a £60K budget into £600K of impact (the Dude Wipes strategy of keeping 75% of marketing unplanned)Don't be afraid to niche down - Why 99% of experts are wrong when they say you're leaving people behindUseful linksConnect with Eddie Yoon on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/eddie-yoon-ewg/Connect with Category Pirates on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/category-pirates/https://www.categorypirates.com/https://www.youtube.com/@categorypiratesMentioned in This Episode: Books & Frameworks:Competitive Strategy by Michael PorterSuperconsumers by Eddie YoonClayton Christensen's "Jobs to Be Done" (milkshake example)Byron Sharp (mentioned as conventional wisdom)Mentioned in This Episode: Brands & Case Studies:Gillette (China market expansion)Keurig vs. Starbucks VerismoNespressoVelveetaBen & Jerry's Cherry GarciaSpam & Spam Musubi (Hawaii)TeslaNvidiaK-pop Demon Hunters (Netflix)Dude WipesRogaineRoyal CaninAnheuser-Busch============================================================Thanks to Brand Growth Heroes' podcast sponsor - Joelson, the commercial law firm=============================================================If you're a founder, you already know how much of your energy goes into building the perfect product, creating standout branding and connecting with your consumers.But don't forget that scaling a CPG business also comes with a maze of legal complexities that can make or break your business journey. From contracts, term sheets and regulatory compliance to protecting your brand's intellectual property as you expand, it's essential to get it right.And that starts with the right legal partner.So we're thrilled to introduce you to Joelson, a leading commercial law firm that specialises in guiding the founders of scaling CPG brands, as Brand Growth Heroes' sponsor.With long-term relationships with clients like Little Moons, Trip, Eat Natural, Bear Graze, and Pulsin, Joelson is also famous for advising the innocent founders in their landmark sale to Coca-Cola! As a female team, we are especially impressed by Joelson's commitment to championing female founders in CPG.Not many law firms are also BCorps, nor do they specialise in helping founders navigate the legal challenges of scaling without stifling the creativity and momentum that got you here in the first place. So thanks, Joelson—we're delighted to have you on board for the second year running.If you'd like to get in touch to find out more, why don't you drop them a line at hello@joelsonlaw.com==============================================.Please don't hesitate to join our Brand Growth Heroes community to stay updated with captivating stories and learnings from your beloved brands on their path to success!Follow us on our Brand Growth Heroes socials: LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.Thanks to our Sound Engineer, Gyp Buggane, Ballagroove.com and podcast producer/content creator, Kathryn Watts, Social KEWS.

Netizen'de Atıf Ünaldı'nın konuğu Harvard Business Review'dan Serdar Turan, 2000'lerden bugüne dijital dönüşümün iş dünyasını nasıl değiştirdiğini anlatıyor. Harvard Business Review Türkiye deneyimi, dot-com balonu, ERP ve CRM sistemlerinden yapay zekâ çağına geçiş, içerik ekonomisi ve liderlik dönüşümü bu bölümde detaylı şekilde ele alınıyor. Şirketlerin “insan kaynağı” yerine “insan değeri” kavramına geçişi, sürdürülebilirlik stratejileri, ekosistem modeli ve içerik odaklı medya yaklaşımı üzerine çarpıcı analizler paylaşan Serdar Turan, belirsizliğin yeni normal olduğunu vurguluyor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Scott Kaufman is a psychologist, coach, professor, keynote speaker, and best-selling author. He is a professor of psychology at Columbia University and director of the Center for Human Potential. He also hosts The Psychology Podcast which has received over 30 million downloads and is widely considered among the top  psychology podcasts in the world. Scott's writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Scientific American, Psychology Today, and Harvard Business Review, and he is the author and editor of 11 books. In his most recent book Rise Above: Overcome a Victim Mindset, Empower Yourself, and Realize Your Full Potential, he explores the limiting beliefs and widespread anxiety that puts people in boxes, lowers expectations, and holds them back. In addition to teaching at Columbia, Scott has also been a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and NYU. Scott received a B.S. in psychology and human computer interaction from Carnegie Mellon, an M. Phil in experimental psychology from the University of Cambridge under a Gates Cambridge Scholarship, and a Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from Yale University. In this episode we discuss the following: Scott's definition of intelligence: the dynamic interplay of engagement and abilities in the pursuit of goals. When we give people a chance to go deep into an area that they love, over a long period of time, they can develop expertise and brain structures that can override some of our IQ limitations. The thing that surprised Scott most as he researched intelligence was just how predictive IQ is. Scott thought he was going to be on a vendetta against IQ but ended up falling in love with the science of IQ, intelligence, and the brain. Differences in ability are both natural and valuable, and recognizing them—rather than denying them—creates better paths for growth and contribution. Unlocking our potential requires intellectual honesty, patience, and environments that allow passion and skill to reinforce one another over time.  

There's an article in the most recent issue of the Harvard Business Review making the rounds arguing that organizations are doing too many transformations, too often, and that constant change is damaging. The authors point to change fatigue, shaken confidence from customers and investors, and leadership teams spending more time “doing transformation” than building products, serving customers, and creating value. They even recommend getting off what they call the “transformation treadmill,” and instead building a system that senses change early and makes steady adjustments.No question, the diagnosis of change fatigue is real. If you've ever watched a company reorganize itself three times in two years, you know exactly what they mean. People stop believing anything is real. They wait it out. The organization learns helplessness. The best people leave. So yes, random change, change for optics, and change that is disconnected from a real business problem, that is destructive.But here's where I want to rebut the conclusion.We are entering a period where the rate of change is not just high, it's accelerating, and it's being driven by artificial intelligence. And AI is not a productivity feature you bolt onto last year's workflow. AI is a general-purpose capability that changes how work is performed, who performs it, what skills matter, and how decisions get made. Treating it like an “add-on” is the corporate equivalent of adding a turbocharger to a horse.--------------**Real Estate Espresso Podcast:** Spotify: [The Real Estate Espresso Podcast](https://open.spotify.com/show/3GvtwRmTq4r3es8cbw8jW0?si=c75ea506a6694ef1)   iTunes: [The Real Estate Espresso Podcast](https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-real-estate-espresso-podcast/id1340482613)   Website: [www.victorjm.com](http://www.victorjm.com)   LinkedIn: [Victor Menasce](http://www.linkedin.com/in/vmenasce)   YouTube: [The Real Estate Espresso Podcast](http://www.youtube.com/@victorjmenasce6734)   Facebook: [www.facebook.com/realestateespresso](http://www.facebook.com/realestateespresso)   Email: [podcast@victorjm.com](mailto:podcast@victorjm.com)  **Y Street Capital:** Website: [www.ystreetcapital.com](http://www.ystreetcapital.com)   Facebook: [www.facebook.com/YStreetCapital](https://www.facebook.com/YStreetCapital)   Instagram: [@ystreetcapital](http://www.instagram.com/ystreetcapital)  

What does it really take to speak up when something doesn't feel right, especially in systems that quietly reward compliance and silence?In this episode of the Sacred Changemakers Podcast, I'm joined by Dr. Sunita Sah, award-winning Cornell professor, organizational psychologist, and one of the world's leading researchers on authority, compliance, and defiance. Dr Sah's work challenges the idea that defiance is disruptive or extreme, reframing it instead as a grounded act of integrity and courage.We explore why good people so often go along with things they don't agree with, how subtle psychological forces like Insinuation Anxiety shape our behavior, and why compliance is not a personal failing but a deeply human response to pressure. Dr Sah shares insights from her research, her background in medicine and systems leadership, and the practical frameworks she's developed to help people move from inner knowing to ethical action.This is a rich, illuminating conversation for coaches, leaders, and changemakers who sense that something essential is lost when we stay silent, and who want to reclaim their agency without becoming combative, burned out, or disconnected from their values.About Dr. Sunita SahDr. Sunita Sah is an award-winning, tenured professor at Cornell University and a leading expert in organizational psychology. A trained physician who practiced medicine in the UK, she has also worked as a management consultant and served as a Commissioner on the National Commission on Forensic Science. Sunita is a sought-after international speaker and advisor to government agencies, and her research has been widely published in leading academic journals and media, including The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, and Scientific American. She is the author of the bestselling book Defy: The Power of No in a World That Demands Yes, now available in paperback from February 24th.Learn More About Today's GuestDr. Sah's latest book Defy paperback launches on Feb 24th 2026 → https://www.sunitasah.com/defyDr. Sah's website ****→ https://www.sunitasah.com/Dr. Sah's TEDx talk → youtube.com/watch?v=d-SWWnl3WLMDr. Sah on Substack ‘Defiant by Design' → sunitasah.substack.comDr. Sah on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/drsunitasah/About the HostJayne Warrilow is the founder of Sacred Changemakers, a global community and learning space exploring the intersection of human resonance, regenerative change, and conscious leadership.Learn more at sacredchangemakers.com

Today's episode features a conversation between myself and Ashley Coffey talking about this week's AI news. We get into a study from the Harvard Business Review indicating that AI doesn't make work any easier, it just stresses us out more - and OpenAI's ChatGPT is starting to get ads included on the lowest tiers. Links:AI Doesn't Reduce Work - It Intensifies It (Harvard Business Review)ChatGPT rolls out ads (TechCrunch)  Sign Up for The Weekly Email Roundup: NewsletterLeave a Review: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Follow Me on Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@danielhillmedia⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The State of JavaScript 2025 survey results are in this week, and there's some givens and some surprises this year. Givens: Vite's still a favorites and devs want more native TS features. Surprises: ChatGPT usage declined, no one's using Windsurf, and Bun is the third most-used JS runtime. And thanks for making us the most written-in podcast of the survey! We appreciate it!An 8 month study conducted by the Harvard Business Review reports AI tools don't shrink work for employees, they actually intensify it. Employees work faster, take on more tasks, and work longer hours, which can lead to burnout, cognitive fatigue, and lower quality work over time. And there's yet another new React2Shell flaw that's being exploited by the ILOVEPOOP toolkit to scan and target vulnerable Next.js and RSC environments. Patch your React apps, folks.Timestamps:0:59 - State of JS survey results23:53 - Harvard Business Review's report on how AI is changing work35:30 - React2Shell exploits and ILOVEPOOP40:08 - The largest domain name purchase ever43:00 - Adobe Acrobat can turn PDFs into podcasts46:48 - We hit 100k downloads!47:55 - What's making us happyNews:Paige - State of JavaScript survey results 2025Jack - React2Shell exploitsTJ - HBR reports AI didn't shrink work for employees, it intensified it and the burnout is getting realLightning News: Thanks for helping us reach 100k downloads!The largest publicly disclosed domain name purchase everAdobe Acrobat can turn PDFs into podcastsWhat Makes Us Happy this Week:Paige - San Diego Zoo Safari ParkJack - Bambu Lab H2CTJ - Ubuntu OSThanks as always to our sponsor, the Blue Collar Coder channel on YouTube. You can join us in our Discord channel, explore our website and reach us via email, or talk to us on X, Bluesky, or YouTube.Front-end Fire websiteBlue Collar Coder on YouTubeBlue Collar Coder on DiscordReach out via emailTweet at us on X @front_end_fireFollow us on Bluesky @front-end-fire.comSubscribe to our YouTube channel @Front-EndFirePodcast

Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez got fired for trying to bring project management to a top consulting firm.Today, he's the most published expert on project management in Harvard Business Review and a Thinkers 50 global authority.His new book "Powered by Projects" makes a bold claim: Every organization is project-driven, but the leaders don't know it.IN THIS EPISODE:The Origin Story:- Almost went professional with Real Madrid (broke his knee)- Got fired for pitching project management ("too tactical")- The moment that sparked his missionGetting HBR to Listen:- Chased Harvard Business Review for 5 years- The pitch: "Everyone's a project manager but nobody knows it"- Became their most published PM expertCOVID Changed Everything:- 3 days to do what used to take 3 months- Laser-sharp focus on priorities- Then we lost all that knowledgeThe Project-Driven Organization:- Shift from operations to transformation- AI taking over operations; people work on projects- "Back to normal" doesn't existThree Dimensions Framework:1. Organization (culture, structure, governance)2. Leadership (prioritization, HR, performance)3. Value Creation (operations, execution)Key Examples:- Haier: Stop projects if no value in 3 months- Fixed to exponential mindset- Lean governance (match intensity to risk)Best Advice:- Do the hardest thing first every day- Care about people (Marshall Goldsmith)- Speak up constructively to leadersKEY QUOTES:"Your projects are your future. If you do them wrong, you put your future at risk.""During COVID we did in 3 days what took 3 months. Then we went back to thousands of projects going nowhere.""There's no back to normal. Change will happen."About Antonio:- Author: "Powered by Projects" & "HBR Project Management Handbook"- Thinkers 50 ranking (2023, 2025)- 25 years corporate (PwC, BNP Paribas, GSK)- Website: antonionietorodriguez.comBetter at Work - Making work better, one conversation at a time.New episodes every Thursday (+ special Sunday episodes!)Hosted by Cathal Quinlan & Annette Sloanbetteratwork.net

Impact sur l'emploi, utilisation malveillante, perte de contrôle... L'intelligence artificielle soulève toujours autant d'interrogations et d'inquiétudes. Des démissions jettent le trouble et alimentent les questionnements. Et aussi : l'actu de la semaine.

We kick things off in FOLLOW UP with the ongoing "nuclear war" between Automattic and WP Engine, where discovery has revealed Matt Mullenweg's alleged hit list of competitors and a desperate attempt to bully payment processors—because nothing says "open source" like an eight-percent royalty shakedown. Meanwhile, the Harvard Business Review confirmed what we already knew: AI isn't reducing our work; it's just compressing it until we're all working through lunch and burning out faster while Polymarket turns our collective brain rot into a literal "attention market" where you can bet on Elon's mindshare.Transitioning to IN THE NEWS, Elon has officially pivoted SpaceX from Mars to the Moon, presumably because building a "self-growing lunar city" is easier than admitting the Red Planet is hard, though his xAI all-hands rant about "ancient alien catapults" suggests he's been staring at the sun too long. Between X allegedly taking blue-check lunch money from sanctioned Iranian leaders, Meta facing trials for creating "predator-friendly hunting grounds," and Russia finally pulling the plug on WhatsApp, the internet is looking more like a digital dumpster fire than ever. Add in Discord leaking 70,000 government IDs, OpenAI shoving ads into ChatGPT while safety researchers flee the building like it's on fire, and a "cognitive debt" crisis eroding our ability to think, and you've got a recipe for a tech-induced psychosis that even crypto-funded human trafficking can't outpace.In MEDIA CANDY, we're wondering about the soft-core porn intro in the latest Star Trek: Starfleet Academy while Apple buys the total rights to Severance for seventy million dollars—because in-house production is the only way to keep those ballooning budgets under control. Super Bowl trailer season gave us a glimpse of The Mandalorian and Grogu and a Project Hail Mary teaser, while Babylon 5 has finally landed on YouTube for free, proving that even 90s serialized sci-fi eventually finds its way to the clearance bin.Over in APPS & DOODADS, Meta Quest is nagging us for our birthdays like a needy relative, while Roblox had to scrub a mass-shooting simulator—because "AI plus human safety teams" is apparently just code for "we missed it until it hit the forums." Ring's Super Bowl ad for "Search Party" accidentally terrified everyone by revealing a mass surveillance network for pets that's a slippery slope toward a police state, and Waymo is now paying DoorDashers ten bucks just to walk over and close the car doors that autonomous tech still can't figure out.Wrapping up with THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE, we dive into the Mandalorian Hasbro reveal where Sigourney Weaver's action figure comes with no accessories because her existence is enough of a flex. We explore the grim reality of "RentAHuman," where humans are paid pittance to pretend AI agents are actually doing work, and look at "Trash Talk Audio," which sells a $125 microphone made out of a literal old telephone for that authentic Gen-X "get off the line, I'm expecting a call" aesthetic. From Marcia Lucas finally venting about the prequels and a rare book catalog specifically for our aging generation, we're reminded that while the future is a chaotic mess of "GeoSpy" AI and corporate reshuffling at Disney, at least we still have our cynical memories and some free versions of Roller Coaster Tycoon to keep us from losing it completely.Sponsors:CleanMyMac - Get Tidy Today! Try 7 days free and use code OLDGEEKS for 20% off at clnmy.com/OLDGEEKSDeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/733FOLLOW UPAutomattic planned to target 10 competitors with royalty fees, WP Engine claims in new filingAI Doesn't Reduce Work—It Intensifies ItPolymarket To Offer Attention Markets In Partnership With Kaito AIIsrael Arrests Members of Military for Placing Polymarket Bets Using Inside Information on Upcoming StrikesIN THE NEWSUnable to Reach Mars, Musk Does the Most Musk Thing PossibleWe'll Find the Remnants of Ancient Alien Civilizations': Read Musk's Gibberish Rant from His xAI All-Hands MeetingElon Musk's X Appears to Be Violating US Sanctions by Selling Premium Accounts to Iranian LeadersMeta Faces Two Key Trials That Could Change Social Media ForeverWhatsApp is now fully blocked in RussiaRussia is restricting access to Telegram, one of its most popular social media apps. Here's what we knowDOJ may face investigation for pressuring Apple, Google to remove apps for tracking ICE agentsDiscord Launches Teen-by-Default Settings GloballyDiscord says hackers stole government IDs of 70,000 usersFree Tool Says it Can Bypass Discord's Age Verification Check With a 3D ModelTesting ads in ChatGPTOpenAI Researcher Quits, Warns Its Unprecedented ‘Archive of Human Candor' Is DangerousOpenAI Fires Top Safety Exec Who Opposed ChatGPT's “Adult Mode”Anthropic AI Safety Researcher Warns Of World ‘In Peril' In ResignationMusk's xAI loses second co-founder in two daysAmerica Isn't Ready for What AI Will Do to JobsMonologue: No, Something Big Isn't ComingThe Scientist Who Predicted AI Psychosis Has a Grim Forecast of What's Going to Happen NextCrypto-Funded Human Trafficking Is ExplodingMEDIA CANDYShrinkingStar Trek: Starfleet AcademyPoor ThingsProject Hail Mary | Final TrailerMinions & Monsters | Official TrailerDisclosure Day | Big Game SpotThe Mandalorian and Grogu | A New Journey Begins | In Theaters May 22Babylon 5 Is Now Free to Watch On YouTubeApple acquires all rights to ‘Severance,' will produce future seasons in-houseOptimizing your TVAPPS & DOODADSTumbler Ridge Shooter Created Mall Shooting Simulator in RobloxHere's how to disable Ring's creepy Search Party featureWaymo Is Getting DoorDashers to Close Doors on Self Driving CarsTikTok US launches a local feed that leverages a user's exact locationApple just released iOS 26.3 alongside updates for the Mac, iPad and Apple WatchTHE DARK SIDE WITH DAVEDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatControl LoopOnly Malware in the BuildingWe Call It ImagineeringYour First Look at Hasbro's 'Mandalorian and Grogu' Figures Is Here (Exclusive)I Tried RentAHuman, Where AI Agents Hired Me to Hype Their AI StartupsTrash Talk AudioRoger Reacts to Star Wars - A New HopeMarcia Lucas Finally Speaks Out | Icons Unearthed: Unplugged (FULL INTERVIEW)What's wrong with the prequels?Rare Books, Gen X editionGeoSpyCLOSING SHOUT-OUTSRobert Tinney, who painted iconic Byte magazine covers, RIPBud CortSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode Overview This episode reframes common leadership myths. Instead of framing leadership outcomes as products of personality (“confidence” or “presence” in the room), we explore how consistent organizational performance is tied to designed leadership operating systems—not ephemeral personal performance. What separates inconsistent execution from repeatable results isn't charisma or emotional mastery alone, but clarity of structure, decision rules, and infrastructure that protects quality under pressure. Key Themes & Takeaways 1. The Fallacy of Performance-Centric Leadership Leaders often assume that meetings succeed because of their presence, intensity, or confidence. Real-world inconsistency comes not from personality gaps but from whether clarity and decision frameworks were in place beforehand. When structured systems are missing, leaders compensate with personal energy—but this doesn't scale as complexity grows. 2. When Linear Growth Models Fail Traditional assumptions about leadership presume: Inputs → Strategy → Execution → Results In simple contexts, this holds. But as organizational complexity increases, effort and talent no longer produce proportional outcomes. The stall isn't lack of ambition—it's limits of leadership systems. 3. Leadership as Leverage—Only When Designed Early growth often depends on leaders filling structural gaps with personal skill. Over time, if outcomes hinge on how leaders feel or show up, performance becomes unpredictable. The leverage of leadership becomes reliable only when embedded in repeatable systems. 4. Systems That Protect Decision Quality Consistent performance under pressure comes from infrastructure, including: Clear decision rules Pre-commitments before stress escalates Weekly operating rhythms that reduce ambiguity Filters that stop emotional reactions from driving strategic action This shifts leadership from performance to infrastructure. 5. Calm Outperforms Charisma Charisma may win moments; calm, structured leadership wins quarters and years. Research indicates decision quality deteriorates under cognitive and emotional load when structure is absent. High-performing organizations rely more on clarity, repeatable processes, and defined roles than on heroic leadership behaviors. 6. From Emotional Mastery to Decision Mastery Emotional regulation matters but alone is insufficient for repeatable outcomes. Leaders perform best not by suppressing emotion, but by designing systems so emotion doesn't hijack execution. Effective systems ensure setbacks trigger review—not panic; uncertainty triggers structure—not avoidance. Practical Implications for Leaders • Prioritize System Design Over Personal Performance Leadership development should emphasize creating frameworks that make alignment, decision-making, and execution consistent—regardless of personality variables. • Build Operating Rhythms That Reduce Ambiguity Create weekly and quarterly rhythms that clarify role expectations, key decisions, and escalation pathways. • Embrace Structural Calm Temper leadership advice that leans heavily on mindset or presence. Invest equally in the infrastructure that keeps decisions stable under pressure. • Shift the Leadership Narrative Encourage teams to see leadership not as a moment-driven performance, but as a designed, repeatable infrastructure that creates leverage at scale. Quote for the Episode “Leadership remains the leverage—but it becomes repeatable only when it is designed, not performed.” Recommended Further Listening & Reading Related Breakfast Leadership Show episodes on organizational systems and decision quality Articles on decision-making under pressure (Harvard Business Review) and organizational health and execution excellence (McKinsey) linked in the original article. Actionable Steps You Can Take This Week Audit one recurring decision process: identify where ambiguity arises. Define or refine the decision rule governing that process. Map the operating rhythm (who, when, how) for that decision cycle. Adjust meetings or check-ins to reduce reliance on individual presence and increase systemic clarity.  Source article:  https://www.breakfastleadership.com/blog/leadership-is-the-leverage-but-only-if-its-designed-not-performed  

In this podcast episode, Dr. Jonathan H. Westover talks with Alaina Love about her book, PERMISSION TO BE YOU: Discover Your Purpose And Passions To Bring Your Best Self To Everything – And Everyone.Alaina Love is CEO of Purpose Linked Consulting and a sought-after expert who coaches leaders and their teams on defining their purpose and using their passions to build healthy, productive workplaces and flourish in daily life. She is co-author of the bestselling book The Purpose Linked Organization and was formerly a research scientist and the executive director of global human resources at Merck & Co., Inc. Love is a graduate of the University of Michigan's Change Leadership Program, studied medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine, and holds a degree in medical technology from Monmouth University. Certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources, Love is a member of Marshall Goldsmith 100 Coaches. An avid leadership thinker, she has written for Bloomberg Business Week, The Washington Post, and Harvard Business Review. Love lives in Raleigh, North Carolina. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this podcast episode, Dr. Jonathan H. Westover talks with Alaina Love about her book, PERMISSION TO BE YOU: Discover Your Purpose And Passions To Bring Your Best Self To Everything – And Everyone. Alaina Love is CEO of Purpose Linked Consulting and a sought-after expert who coaches leaders and their teams on defining their purpose and using their passions to build healthy, productive workplaces and flourish in daily life. She is co-author of the bestselling book The Purpose Linked Organization and was formerly a research scientist and the executive director of global human resources at Merck & Co., Inc. Love is a graduate of the University of Michigan's Change Leadership Program, studied medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine, and holds a degree in medical technology from Monmouth University. Certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources, Love is a member of Marshall Goldsmith 100 Coaches. An avid leadership thinker, she has written for Bloomberg Business Week, The Washington Post, and Harvard Business Review. Love lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.  Check out all of the podcasts in the HCI Podcast Network!

Feb 12, 2026: In this episode of Future-Ready Today, I break down four major stories that reveal how the workplace is recalibrating in 2026. Ford is boosting companywide bonuses to 130% after major quality improvements — a clear signal that performance discipline is back. At the same time, 60% of Gen Z say they plan to pursue skilled trade careers, challenging the long-standing college-to-corporate pipeline. I also dive into a new Harvard Business Review study showing that AI isn't reducing workloads — it's intensifying them. Employees are working faster, taking on broader responsibilities, and extending their hours, often voluntarily. And as AI adoption accelerates, safety leaders at major AI firms are quitting, raising deeper questions about ethics, speed, and institutional trust. If you're a leader trying to understand compensation strategy, talent shifts, productivity pressure, and cultural tension in an AI-accelerated world, this episode is for you.

What if the real challenge in your career isn't working harder—but figuring out who you actually are?Guy Kawasaki sits down with Suzy Welch—NYU Stern professor, former editor-in-chief of Harvard Business Review, and bestselling author—to explore purpose, resilience, and leadership. Drawing from her new book, Becoming You, Suzy shares a practical framework for aligning values, aptitudes, and economic reality, along with candid insights on grit, forgiveness, and why so many impressive careers still feel wrong.This episode is a thoughtful guide for anyone rethinking success or navigating a major life or career shift.--Guy Kawasaki is on a mission to make you remarkable. His Remarkable People podcast features interviews with remarkable people such as Jane Goodall, Marc Benioff, Woz, Kristi Yamaguchi, and Bob Cialdini. Every episode will make you more remarkable.With his decades of experience in Silicon Valley as a Venture Capitalist and advisor to the top entrepreneurs in the world, Guy's questions come from a place of curiosity and passion for technology, start-ups, entrepreneurship, and marketing. If you love society and culture, documentaries, and business podcasts, take a second to follow Remarkable People.Listeners of the Remarkable People podcast will learn from some of the most successful people in the world with practical tips and inspiring stories that will help you be more remarkable.Episodes of Remarkable People organized by topic: https://bit.ly/rptopologyListen to Remarkable People here: **https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/guy-kawasakis-remarkable-people/id1483081827**Like this show? Please leave us a review -- even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!Thank you for your support; it helps the show!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What employees want most is not what many organizations are built to provide. In this episode, Hall of Fame keynote speaker Joe Mull, CSP, CPAE, reframes a familiar question and explains why employee commitment is rooted less in perks or policies and more in whether work contributes to a joyous, prosperous life. Joe explores how employee engagement, employee relations, and long-term retention are shaped by the daily realities of work, including economic pressure, workload, flexibility, and how people are treated by their leaders. He reflects on why minimizing unnecessary suffering at work and increasing fulfillment through meaningful contribution, belonging, and trust are central to building commitment that lasts. The conversation also highlights the outsized role managers play in shaping the employee experience and why leadership behavior often determines whether a job becomes a stabilizing force in someone's life or a source of ongoing stress. If you want to strengthen engagement, improve employee relations, and build a workplace where people stay, care, and give their best effort, this episode offers a clear leadership perspective grounded in real workplace experience. To subscribe to Joe Mull's BossBetter Email newsletter, visit https://BossBetterNow.com For more info on working with Joe Mull, visit https://joemull.com For more info on Boss Hero School, visit https://bossheroschool.com To email the podcast, use bossbetternow@gmail.com #transformativeleadership #workplaceculture #companyculture #talentretention #employeeengagement #employeeretention #bossheroschool #employalty Joe Mull is on a mission to help leaders and business owners create the conditions where commitment takes root—and the entire workplace thrives. A dynamic and deeply relatable speaker, Joe combines compelling research, magnetic storytelling, and practical strategies to show exactly how to cultivate loyalty, ignite effort, and build people-first workplaces where both performance and morale flourish. His message is clear: when commitment is activated, engagement rises, teams gel, retention improves, and business outcomes soar. Joe is the founder of Boss Hero School™ and the creator of the acclaimed Employalty™ framework, a roadmap for creating thriving workplaces in a new era of work. He's the author of three books, including Employalty, named a top business book of the year by Publisher's Weekly, and his popular podcast, Boss Better Now, ranks in the top 1% of management shows globally. A former head of learning and development at one of the largest healthcare systems in the U.S., Joe has spent nearly two decades equipping leaders—from Fortune 500 companies like State Farm, Siemens, and Choice Hotels to hospitals, agencies, and small firms—with the tools to lead better, inspire commitment, and build more humane workplace cultures. His insights have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Harvard Business Review, and more. In 2025, Joe was inducted into the Professional Speakers Hall of Fame (CPAE). This is the speaking profession's highest honor, a distinction granted to less than 1% of professional speakers worldwide. It's awarded to speakers who demonstrate exceptional talent, integrity, and influence in the speaking profession For more information visit joemull.com.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is intensifying workloads rather than alleviating them, leading to increased burnout and declining decision quality, according to findings published in the Harvard Business Review and cited by Dave Sobel. The episode underscores that AI lowers the cost of producing outputs such as drafts and summaries but raises throughput targets and introduces new verification burdens. Economic gains from AI remain concentrated where capital and skilled labor already exist, while negative impacts—like displacement and wage pressure—are felt locally. These dynamics highlight the need for robust governance, particularly for managed service providers (MSPs) who deploy AI solutions.Supporting studies referenced include the International AI Safety Report, which details heightened uncertainty around AI development and its risks, as well as research from Oxford documenting the unreliability of AI chatbots in real-world medical decision-making. Experts warn that rapid automation without corresponding improvements in control systems creates structural constraints, making traditional software governance frameworks inadequate for unpredictable AI behaviors. Without proactive measures, these gaps risk exacerbating economic inequality and liability in regulated environments.Additional developments include OpenAI's release of upgraded agent features—such as GPT-5.2, improved context retention, managed shell containers, and a new skills standard—presented as operational enhancements but raising concerns about black-box context handling, auditability, and dependency risk. T-Mobile's AI-powered live translation service offers greater convenience but eliminates audit trails, shifting compliance risk to customers and prohibiting independent verification. Quark Cyber's launch of an internal cyber risk score introduces further complexity, as the scoring methodology is embedded within a financial product structure and lacks transparent validation.For MSPs and IT service leaders, the key takeaway is to treat new AI features and risk metrics as tools with significant tradeoffs. AI deployments should focus on governance layers that include workload caps, quality gates, and measurable outcomes rather than simply accelerating productivity. New features should be used for low-stakes workflows and carefully avoided in high-risk or regulated contexts unless auditable controls and deterministic checkpoints are established. Vendor-managed risk scores and warranties require independent validation before being positioned as client-facing truth standards.Four things to know today00:00 Harvard, Oxford Studies Find AI Raises Workload, Delivers Inadequate Medical Advice05:01 OpenAI Updates Deep Research and Adds New Agent Runtime Capabilities07:33 T-Mobile Tests Real-Time Call Translation Built Into Its Network09:17 Cork Cyber Rolls Out New Risk Score for Managed Service ProvidersThis is the Business of Tech.   Supported by:  ScalePad Small Biz Thoughts Community

Learn more about Michael Wenderoth, Executive Coach: www.changwenderoth.comMost leaders were taught to leave their emotions at the door. Today's guest says that advice isn't just outdated — it's costly. In this episode of 97% Effective, host Michael Wenderoth sits down with Dina Denham Smith, executive coach and bestselling author of Emotionally Charged, to unpack why emotional skill is now a core leadership capability, not a “soft” add-on. Drawing on behavioral science and her work as an executive coach and strategic advisor, Dina explains why emotions are data, how leaders unknowingly perform massive emotional labor, and what it really takes to manage triggers, prevent burnout, and unlock performance. As Dina puts it: “Emotions are money.” By the end of this conversation, you'll see why ignoring emotions is bad for you and bad for business – and what to do instead.SHOW NOTESDina's story — and why this work mattersOne surprising thing about Dina you won't find on the internetHow Emotionally Charged would have helped Dina earlier in her own careerWhat sparked Dina's interest in the science of emotionsHow the pandemic and technology shifts dramatically increased the emotional demands placed on leadersCore ideas from Emotionally ChargedThe key takeaway: Emotions are information“Emotions are money”: how feelings directly translate into performance, retention, and resultsThe biggest myth Dina wants to retire: that emotions get in the way of good business decisionsWhat “emotional labor” really means — and why research shows leaders perform as much of it as customer service professionals (and in more complex ways)The three layers of every emotion: physiology, cognition, and behaviorWhy suppressing emotions is like trying to hold beach balls underwater Practical tools you can use immediatelyBeach balls, masks, and “letting it all hang out”: finding the right balance at workWhy expanding your emotional vocabulary dramatically improves self-regulationDina's BRAVE framework for managing triggers in real time: Breathe, Refocus, Accept, Verbalize, Engage Restoration (not “self-care”): four evidence-based ways leaders recover from emotional strain: Detachment, Relaxation, Mastery, Control Power, leadership, and team cultureWhy leaders consistently underestimate their emotional impactHow power amplifies everything you feel and showWhy everyone cues off their leader's emotional signals (often unconsciously)How leaders can normalize emotional expression on their teams — without turning meetings into complaint sessionsSimple ways managers can reset emotional culture inside their own sphere of influenceDina's reminder: emotional skills are learnable — and improvable at any stage of your career. BIO AND LINKSDina Denham Smith is an executive coach and strategic advisor who helps senior leaders build their capacity, scale their impact, and thrive in complexity. For more than a decade, she has partnered with executives at some of the world's most successful companies, helping them navigate the demands of operating at the highest levels. Dina holds an MS in Industrial/Organizational Psychology and an MBA from the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, and she is credentialed by both the ICF and EMCC as an executive and team coach. A prolific thought leader, Dina has published more than 60 articles on leadership for Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Forbes, and other premium outlets. She is the lead author of Emotionally Charged: How to Lead in the New World of Work (Oxford University Press, 2025).Connect with DinaWebsite: https://dinadsmith.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dina-denham-smith/Her book: https://dinadsmith.com/book/ People and Books ReferencedDr. Alicia Grandey — Dina's co-author https://psych.la.psu.edu/people/aag6/Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker https://a.co/d/07CbSJAYMore from 97% EffectiveMichael's Award-winning Book: Get Promoted: What You're Really Missing at Work That's Holding You Back: https://tinyurl.com/453txk74Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@97PercentEffectiveAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Portnox is an enterprise access control platform that eliminates passwords and enforces zero trust security. The company was bootstrapped for over a decade, plateauing at a few million in ARR before investors brought in Denny LeCompte as CEO four years ago. Since then, Portnox has grown 8x. But this episode isn't about that growth story. Denny, a former cognitive scientist and professor who taught psychometrics, uses his scientific background to systematically dismantle Net Promoter Score—explaining why it's methodologically flawed, how it misleads organizations, and which metrics actually correlate with business performance. This is a contrarian take grounded in measurement science, not marketing opinion. Topics Discussed: The fundamental psychometric flaws in NPS: why single-item questionnaires are unreliable and why throwing out 7s and 8s violates basic statistical principles How NPS scores fluctuate based on survey UI presentation independent of actual customer sentiment Why NPS creates incentive structures that encourage gaming rather than improving customer outcomes The case for gross revenue retention and net revenue retention as the only ungameable metrics that matter How measuring human behavior changes that behavior (the Heisenberg principle applied to business metrics) Why investors care about retention rates above 90% but don't ask about NPS scores GTM Lessons For B2B Founders: Single-item questionnaires violate measurement principles: Denny's background in psychometrics immediately flagged NPS as unreliable. One-item measures lack the redundancy needed for reliability, and the methodology of throwing out middle responses (7s and 8s) then subtracting detractors from promoters is statistically nonsensical. At a previous company with thousands of data points, he observed NPS scores drop and rise based solely on how the survey rendered on the page—no business changes, just UI differences. When presentation affects your metric independent of the underlying construct, your instrument is broken. Founders with technical backgrounds should trust their instincts when measurement methodology feels scientifically unsound. Compensation drives behavior more than metric accuracy: Portnox structures customer success compensation as 50% gross revenue retention and 50% net revenue retention. These are determined by finance and can't be manipulated. Denny had to rein in his CS team when they became overly focused on time-to-value because any number you give a team becomes their obsession. With NPS, teams game survey timing, cherry-pick recipients, and optimize for score rather than outcome. This is the Heisenberg principle applied to business: measuring changes the behavior. Choose metrics where gaming the number aligns with improving actual business outcomes. Investors evaluate retention rates, not satisfaction surveys: When Denny presents gross retention above 90%, investors don't ask about NPS. Renewal behavior reveals actual satisfaction—customers voting with budget rather than survey responses. The test for any metric: "What are we doing differently if this number is up versus down?" If it doesn't drive distinct actions or reveal information not already visible in financials, eliminate it. NPS often becomes a number that exists because "we've always measured it," inherited from previous leadership without questioning its utility. Question inherited practices ruthlessly: NPS gained adoption through Harvard Business Review credibility in 2003 and consulting firms building practices around it. The promise of "one number you need" appeals to executives wanting simple solutions. But herd behavior—"everyone else measures it"—perpetuates bad methodology. Denny's advice to founders stuck with NPS: give your team something else to focus on (gross retention is straightforward: don't let customers churn), then stop doing it. Sometimes you need to point to external validation to break internal momentum. The question isn't whether NPS correlates somewhat with growth—it's whether better alternatives exist that can't be gamed. // Sponsors: Front Lines — We help B2B tech companies launch, manage, and grow podcasts that drive demand, awareness, and thought leadership. www.FrontLines.io The Global Talent Co. — We help tech startups find, vet, hire, pay, and retain amazing marketing talent that costs 50-70% less than the US & Europe. www.GlobalTalent.co // Don't Miss: New Podcast Series — How I Hire Senior GTM leaders share the tactical hiring frameworks they use to build winning revenue teams. Hosted by Andy Mowat, who scaled 4 unicorns from $10M to $100M+ ARR and launched Whispered to help executives find their next role. Subscribe here: https://open.spotify.com/show/53yCHlPLSMFimtv0riPyM

The future of work is evolving each day. Jason dives into his observations, reflections, and research about the growing trends as it relates to developing people and culture. Jason shares his strategic forecast for the year ahead, analyzing the critical people and culture trends shaping organizations in 2026. Please rate and review the podcast to help amplify these messages to others! Summary: As we step into 2026, the workplace is simultaneously becoming more technological and more human. In this season premiere of The Thermostat, Jason V Barger unpacks the shifting landscape of work, drawing from his own consulting experience across industries and data from sources like Harvard Business Review and Gallup. He challenges leaders to move beyond the old label of "soft skills" to embrace "human-centered leadership" as the primary driver of performance. This episode confronts the reality of a decade-low in employee engagement and provides a roadmap for reversing the trend. Jason explores five essential shifts: the rise of employee-driven values, the necessity of re-skilling senior leadership, the transition of AI from a mere tool to a daily practice, the strategic imperative of well-being (shifting from balance to rhythm), and the permanence of flexible, hybrid work models. Essential listening for C-Suite executives, HR directors, and team leaders, this discussion offers actionable strategies to recalibrate your culture, ensuring you attract talent and drive results in a rapidly evolving environment. Episode Notes & Timestamps: [00:00] Season 10 Kickoff: Jason welcomes listeners to the new season (over 315 episodes!) and sets the stage for a year focused on authentic leadership and compelling cultures. [00:02] The Power of Sharing: A reminder on how rating, reviewing, and sharing the podcast helps amplify positive messages in a noisy world. [00:05] The Evolving Future of Work: Jason introduces the context for 2026, noting that organizations must adapt to what people need now to remain sustainable. [00:06] Trend 1: The Engagement Crisis: With global engagement hovering around 21%, Jason discusses the shift toward employee-driven cultures where values alignment is non-negotiable for job seekers. [00:09] Trend 2: Human-Centered Leadership: Why "soft skills" are now the skills. A look at how empathy, adaptability, and trust-building are becoming core competencies for senior leaders. [00:12] Trend 3: AI as a Practice: Moving beyond fear, successful teams are using AI as a "thought partner" to automate tasks while doubling down on human judgment and connection. [00:13] Trend 4: Well-Being as Strategy: Jason reframes "Work-Life Balance" to "Work-Life Rhythm," explaining why employee health is a performance strategy, not just a perk. [00:15] Trend 5: Flexible & Hybrid Models: The experiment is over. Jason explains why personalized, role-based flexibility is the new standard for retaining diverse talent. [00:18] Questions to Ponder: Jason concludes with critical questions to help leaders identify which trends need immediate attention in their own organizations. Key Takeaways for Leaders: From Soft Skills to Core Skills: Empathy and trust are no longer optional; they are the primary metrics for effective senior leadership. Work-Life Rhythm: Replace the static goal of "balance" with a dynamic, performance-based rhythm that supports mental health and prevents burnout. Tech & Touch: Leverage AI for efficiency, but prioritize human connection to solve complex problems and build culture. Listen to the full episode and access show notes at: https://jasonvbarger.com/podcast/people-culture-trends-2026/ Bio: Jason Barger is a husband, father, speaker, and author who is passionate about business leadership and corporate culture. He believes that corporate culture is the "thermostat" of an organization, and that it can be used to drive performance, innovation, and engagement. The show features interviews with business leaders from a variety of industries, as well as solo episodes where Barger shares his own insights and advice. Connect: Subscribe to our channel: https://www.youtube.com/@JasonVBarger Make Your 2026 Effective! Book Jason with your team at https://www.jasonvbarger.com Like or Follow Jason

Jane Hyun is the leading authority for leveraging culture and differences to drive innovation. Often called an "interpreter," she has been a trusted coach for over 20 years to thousands of leaders at Fortune 500 companies including PepsiCo, Clorox, Merck, and USGA, as well as schools and nonprofits, guiding their growth by building their cross-cultural capability. She is the pioneering author of Breaking the Bamboo Ceiling: Leadership Toolkit for Asians and the co-author of Flex: The New Playbook for Managing Across Differences. Through her Cultural Fluency in Leadership Project, Jane enjoys helping leaders forge stronger teams by closing the gaps that get in the way of growth and collaboration.She has been featured on CNN, CNBC, and NPR and has written for Harvard Business Review, Forbes, Fast Company, and The Wall Street Journal on the topics of culture, career development, and onboarding. As a sought-after speaker, Jane has keynoted at Microsoft, ESPN, the International Coaches Federation (ICF), and the Conferences for Women. Recently, Jane received the Marshall Goldsmith 50 Leading Global Coaches Award as the #1 Coach for Cultural Fluency and the NAAAP Vision 100 Award.Her life's calling is to help others flourish in their workplaces and in their communities.In today's episode of Smashing the Plateau, you will learn how to build a meaningful, sustainable consulting practice by leveraging cultural fluency and staying true to your values.Jane and I discuss:Jane's career journey from corporate to consulting [03:02]How Jane developed her cultural fluency specialty [05:27]Assessing and improving cultural fluency in leaders [08:32]How Jane's business has evolved over 20 years [12:31]The importance of saying no to the wrong clients [14:45]The role of community and peer support in business growth [17:42]Integrating personal and professional life as an entrepreneur [19:35]The strategic importance of rest and self-care [22:11]Seeing growth as an iterative process [24:00]Learn more about Jane at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jane-hyun?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app , https://www.instagram.com/janehyun_author/, and Substack ______________________________________________________________About Smashing the PlateauSmashing the Plateau shares stories and strategies from corporate refugees: mid-career professionals who've left corporate life to build something of their own.Each episode features a candid conversation with someone who has walked this path or supports those who do. Guests offer real strategies to help you build a sustainable, fulfilling business on your terms, with...

In this podcast episode, Dr. Jonathan H. Westover talks with Kathryn Landis about effectively leading diverse teams.Kathryn Landis helps organizations accelerate success by empowering growth-minded leaders and their teams with executive coaching, team coaching, offsites, and leadership development training in today's dynamic business environment. Kathryn's insights and strategies have gained recognition in prestigious publications like Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, and Forbes, further establishing her reputation as a sought-after expert in the field. She holds an MBA from Northwestern University, Certificate in Executive and Organizational Coaching from Columbia University, Certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University and BS from Indiana University. Moreover, Kathryn is a National Diversity Council Certified Diversity Professional (NDCCDP), Associate Certified Coach by the International Coaching Federation (ACC) and Professor of C-Suite Leadership New York University.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this podcast episode, Dr. Jonathan H. Westover talks with Kathryn Landis about effectively leading diverse teams. Kathryn Landis helps organizations accelerate success by empowering growth-minded leaders and their teams with executive coaching, team coaching, offsites, and leadership development training in today's dynamic business environment. Kathryn's insights and strategies have gained recognition in prestigious publications like Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, and Forbes, further establishing her reputation as a sought-after expert in the field. She holds an MBA from Northwestern University, Certificate in Executive and Organizational Coaching from Columbia University, Certificate in Diversity and Inclusion from Cornell University and BS from Indiana University. Moreover, Kathryn is a National Diversity Council Certified Diversity Professional (NDCCDP), Associate Certified Coach by the International Coaching Federation (ACC) and Professor of C-Suite Leadership New York University. Check out all of the podcasts in the HCI Podcast Network!

Trying to motivate your employees may be the wrong goal entirely. In this episode, Hall of Fame keynote speaker Joe Mull, CSP, CPAE, challenges one of the most common leadership assumptions and explains why motivation is not something leaders can give to people, but something employees experience when the conditions at work are right. Joe reframes how leaders should think about employee motivation, employee engagement, and employee relations, especially when teams feel checked out or burned out. He explores why perks, incentives, and pep talks rarely lead to sustained effort, and how daily leadership behavior plays a much bigger role in whether people care, try, and stay committed. The conversation focuses on how leaders shape the employee experience through trust, clarity, and attention to the realities of people's work lives, and why creating the right conditions matters more than trying to energize people directly. If you want to improve motivation, strengthen engagement, and build a workplace where effort comes from within, this episode offers a grounded leadership perspective for today's workplace. To subscribe to Joe Mull's BossBetter Email newsletter, visit https://BossBetterNow.com For more info on working with Joe Mull, visit https://joemull.com For more info on Boss Hero School, visit https://bossheroschool.com To email the podcast, use bossbetternow@gmail.com #transformativeleadership #workplaceculture #companyculture #talentretention #employeeengagement #employeeretention #bossheroschool #employalty Joe Mull is on a mission to help leaders and business owners create the conditions where commitment takes root—and the entire workplace thrives. A dynamic and deeply relatable speaker, Joe combines compelling research, magnetic storytelling, and practical strategies to show exactly how to cultivate loyalty, ignite effort, and build people-first workplaces where both performance and morale flourish. His message is clear: when commitment is activated, engagement rises, teams gel, retention improves, and business outcomes soar. Joe is the founder of Boss Hero School™ and the creator of the acclaimed Employalty™ framework, a roadmap for creating thriving workplaces in a new era of work. He's the author of three books, including Employalty, named a top business book of the year by Publisher's Weekly, and his popular podcast, Boss Better Now, ranks in the top 1% of management shows globally. A former head of learning and development at one of the largest healthcare systems in the U.S., Joe has spent nearly two decades equipping leaders—from Fortune 500 companies like State Farm, Siemens, and Choice Hotels to hospitals, agencies, and small firms—with the tools to lead better, inspire commitment, and build more humane workplace cultures. His insights have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Harvard Business Review, and more. In 2025, Joe was inducted into the Professional Speakers Hall of Fame (CPAE). This is the speaking profession's highest honor, a distinction granted to less than 1% of professional speakers worldwide. It's awarded to speakers who demonstrate exceptional talent, integrity, and influence in the speaking profession For more information visit joemull.com.

Rebecca Hinds is a leading expert on organizational behavior and the future of work. She earned her BS, MS, and PhD from Stanford University, and founded the Work Innovation Lab at Asana as well as the Work AI Institute at Glean, first-of-their-kind corporate think tanks dedicated to cutting-edge research on the future of work. Her research is consistently featured in top-tier publications and has appeared in Harvard Business Review, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fast Company, Wired, TIME, CNBC, Bloomberg, and the Washington Post, among others. And most recently, Rebecca is the author of the book, Your Best Meeting Ever. In this episode we discuss the following: At a time when our calendars are packed with meetings, Rebecca reminds us that meetings shouldn't just happen—they should be designed. Her "Meeting Doomsday" experiment was interesting: a simple 48-hour calendar purge saved employees an average of 11 hours per month by forcing them to rebuild their schedules with intentionality. A few simple strategies can go a long way: treat our meetings like a product. Fight our instinct to add, and instead use the "Rule of Halves" to cut the duration and/or attendees by 50%. Measure our "Return on Time Investment" (ROTI) with simple post-meeting pulse checks. If we want to overcome organizational inertia and Parkinson's Law—where work expands to fill the time allotted—we have to stop using meetings as a knee-jerk default and start seeing them as our most expensive, yet least optimized, business asset. And then design them carefully.