Key Conversations for Leaders

Mike Horne, PhD coaches leaders to avoid, minimize and reduce poor outcomes related to people and culture actions and decisions. Mike is advancing Authentic Leadership in the world, coaching leaders to close the gap between probable and possible, and to bring their best in every situation to spur innovation. Mike is the author of Integrity by Design: Working and Living Authentically. Inside This Episode The 2 Keys to Leading with Integrity & Authenticity The Nearly Irrevocable Cost of Lying Recovering When There is a Break of Trust Common Barriers to Authenticity What To Do If Your Organization Out of Alignment Facing the Realities of Corporate Culture Why We Need to Make The Grass Greener Where We Are Using Values to Scale A Growth-Based Culture The Single Most Important Word You Need to Create Authentic Relationships Delivering Constructive Feedback A Simple Question From Edie Seashore To Expand Your Empathy Links: Website: https://mike-horne.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikehorne1/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikehorneauthor Book: https://mike-horne.com/#ibd-book

Tony Martignetti is a leadership advisor, entrepreneur, idea generator, and people connector. He brings together practical experience, formal training, and extreme curiosity, to elevate leaders and equip them with the tools to navigate through change and unlock their true potential. Before becoming a leadership development consultant, he was a finance and strategy executive with experience working with some of the world's leading life sciences companies. Along his journey, he also managed small businesses and ran a financial consulting company. Tony is the host of The Virtual Campfire podcast and the author of the soon to be released, "Climbing the Right Mountain: Navigating the Journey to An Inspired Life." Inside This Episode How Do We Know If We’re Climbing The Right Mountain? The Power Of Navigational Conversations Identifying Guideposts On Your Leadership Journey The Role Of Emotional Intelligence In Leadership How To Embrace Your Past Use Struggle To Create Strength Don’t Just Engage, Enrich Your Employees How To Evaluate Your Leadership Footprint How the Ripple Effect Shapes Culture Links: Website: https://www.inspiredpurposecoach.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tonymartignett1/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TonyMartignett1 Book: https://www.inspiredpurposecoach.com/book

Over the past 20 years, Julie Bartkus has helped leaders across the globe transform their workplace culture from negative and destructive to happy and productive. Julie has identified over 30 staff de-motivators that drain team members of their motivation and has developed The D.R.I.V.E. Method to help leaders attract the right staff to support their vision. Her Total Team Transformation System has propelled leaders out of feeling stuck and lost to experiencing tremendous joy in attracting, interviewing, hiring, motivating and retaining the team of their dreams. Inside This Episode Where to Start to Hire the Right People Challenges of Finding the Right Person Common Hiring Mistakes Interviewing Strategies How to Seamlessly Attract, Recruit and Train a High-Performing Team Reducing Turnover Building Connection Throughout the Organization The Power of Vision in Shaping a Culture Links: Website: https://www.juliebartkus.com

Dr. Mark Goulston is a psychiatrist, executive coach and consultant to major organizations. Mark is the author or co-author of several books including the international best-selling books: "Get Out of Your Own Way," "Just Listen," "Real Influence" and "Talking to Crazy.” His latest book is called, "Trauma to Triumph: A Roadmap for Leading Through Disruption (and Thriving on the Other Side)."He has contributed to Harvard Business Review, Biz Journals, Business Insider, Huffington Post, Fast Company, Psychology Today and appears widely in the media including CNN, Wall St. Journal, NY Times, Fortune and Forbes. He also appears frequently as a subject area expert on television, radio and podcasts. He hosts his own podcast called “My Wakeup Call” where he interviews influencers about their wakeup calls. Inside This Episode What is Imposter Syndrome? The Antidote to Imposter Syndrome The Difference Between Founder CEOs and Professional CEOs The Danger of Focusing Too Much on Your Exit Strategy The Difference Between Stress and Trauma Finding the Lessons From Trauma The Power of Gratitude through Struggle The VCG Trifecta Finding Courage as a Leader Beyond Fight, Flight or Freeze How to Handle Bullies Defeating Self-Defeat The Real Reason We Procrastinate Using Accountability to Create Massive Results Social Leadership Links: Defeating Self-Defeat: https://www.himalaya.com/courses/defeating-self-defeat-3129841 Website: https://markgoulston.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markgoulston/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarkGoulston Books: https://www.amazon.com/Trauma-Triumph-Roadmap-Disruption-Thriving/dp/1400228379

David Wheatley is a Principal and Chief Question Asker at Humanergy. He works with leaders who are engaged in transitions to new roles, new scope or improved results. A facilitator, trainer and coach, he has worked for twenty years with government, manufacturing, healthcare, law enforcement, technology and financial institutions. To challenge their thinking and push them ahead, David asks clients the right questions at the right time. He supports organizations through strategic planning and helps them overcome roadblocks using a framework of values-based commitment and stakeholder mapping. Originally from Leeds, England, David is a former Scotland Yard police officer. He is a graduate of Hendon Police Academy in London and is a Senior Fellow at the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy. David is the co-author of the books, "50 DOs for Everyday Leadership Lessons Learned the Hard Way (So You Don’t Have To)," and "What Great Teams Do Great: How Ordinary People Accomplish the Extraordinary." Inside This Episode The Power of Asking Questions What Great Teams Do Great Why don’t great teams just happen organically? Creating Personal Responsibility on a Team Common Mistakes When Leading Through a Transition The Need for Humility and Vulnerability A Simple Question to Get on The Same Page How to Shift from Being a Follower to a True Leader The Ripple Effect of Culture and Leadership Getting It Right the First Time Links: Website: https://humanergy.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/humanergy/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/Humanergy Books: https://www.amazon.com/David-Wheatley/e/B08BND9B93/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_book_1

Megan Gerhardt, PhD is a Professor of Management, Director of Leadership Development, and the Robert C. Johnson Co-Director of the Isaac and Oxley Center for Business Leadership at the Farmer School of Business at Miami University. She is also the creator of Gentelligence and the founder of The Gerhardt Group, LLC, a leadership consulting practice. Megan has published widely on individual differences, motivation, leadership, and generational differences in the workplace and her work on Gentelligence has been featured on Forbes.com, NBCNews.com, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, Inc. Magazine, The San Francisco Chronicle, MarketWatch, Business Insider and The Houston Chronicle among others. In 2017, her TEDx talk “Why I Love Millennials...and You Should, Too” was released, kicking off the Gentelligence movement. As the creator of the Gentelligence movement, Megan’s work focuses on leveraging individual differences to achieve leadership impact and extraordinary levels of performance. Inside This Episode Where Does The Conflict Between Generations Come From? What Are Some Of The Unique Challenges When Leading A Generationally Diverse Workforce? What Do Leaders Tend To Get Wrong When Managing A Generationally Diverse Workforce? A Framework For Understanding Different Generations Giving Feedback To Different Generations How To Use The Right Lens To Avoid Misunderstandings Encouraging Respectful Communication Between Generationally Diverse Employees Best Practices For Leading Teams With Older And Younger Generations Links: Website: https://profgerhardt.com/ Website: https://www.poweroftheages.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megangerhardt/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/profgerhardt Books: https://www.amazon.com/Gentelligence-Revolutionary-Approach-Intergenerational-Workforce/dp/1538142147

Dr. David Bradford is Eugene O’Kelly II Senior Lecturer Emeritus in Leadership at Stanford Graduate School of Business. Along with Carole Robin, he's taught interpersonal skills to MBA candidates for a combined seventy-five years in their legendary course Interpersonal Dynamics (affectionately known to generations of students as “Touchy-Feely”) and they have coached and consulted hundreds of executives for decades. In their book, "Connect: Building Exceptional Relationships with Family, Friends, and Colleagues," they show readers how to take their relationships from shallow to exceptional by cultivating authenticity, vulnerability, and honesty, while being willing to ask for and offer help, share a commitment to growth, and deal productively with conflict. He has written several other books including, “Influencing Up” and "Reinventing Organization Development: New Approaches to Change in Organizations." Inside This Episode Building Exceptional Relationships Why We Often Struggle To Build Solid Connections With Other People How To Say Anything To Almost Anybody Getting Back to Choice in Responsibility The Danger of Attribution The Sliding Scale Of Authenticity and Vulnerability Preventing Major Conflicts Before They Occur How To Handle Disagreement Strengthening Relationships Through Disagreements Delivering Effective Feedback To Colleagues And Employees Testing The Waters Before Managing Up Role-Modeling Excellence As a Leader Links: Website LinkedIn

Melody Wilding, LMSW is an executive coach for smart, sensitive high-achievers and author of "Trust Yourself: Stop Overthinking and Channel Your Emotions for Success at Work." Recently named one of Business Insider's Most Innovative Coaches for her groundbreaking work on "Sensitive Strivers," her clients include CEOs, C-level executives, and managers at top Fortune 500 companies such as Google, HP, Facebook, Netflix, Twitter, IBM, Citibank, JP Morgan, and others. Melody has been featured in the New York Times, O Magazine, NBC News, and spoken at Stanford University, Walmart, Adweek, Burberry and more. She's here to help you break free from self-doubt and imposter syndrome so you can use your sensitivity as the superpower that it is. Melody is a licensed social worker with a Masters degree from Columbia University, and a former researcher at Rutgers University. She is a professor of Human Behavior at Hunter College and is a contributor to Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Forbes, and Business Insider. Inside This Episode What are Sensitive Strivers? How Social Awareness is Changing Corporate Culture The Neuro Science of Higher Sensitivity The Nature of Being an Empathic Leader Developing Your Internal Compass The #1 Thing that Holds Back Sensitive Strivers Dealing with Imposter Syndrome How We Hold Ourselves Back from Success The Danger of Over-Apologizing Leading a Team as a Sensitive Striver The Dynamic of Over-Functioning Creating Interdependent Teams Links: Website: www.melodywilding.com LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/melodywilding/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/MelodyWilding Trust Yourself Book: www.melodywilding.com/book

Dorie Clark helps individuals and companies get their best ideas heard in a crowded, noisy world. She has been named one of the Top 50 business thinkers in the world by Thinkers50, and was honored as the #1 Communication Coach in the world at the Marshall Goldsmith Coaching Awards. She is a keynote speaker and teaches for Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and Columbia Business School. She is the author of Entrepreneurial You, which was named one of Forbes’ Top 5 Business Books of the Year, as well as Reinventing You and Stand Out, which was named the #1 Leadership Book of the Year by Inc. magazine. A former presidential campaign spokeswoman, Clark has been described by the New York Times as an “expert at self-reinvention and helping others make changes in their lives.” She is a frequent contributor to the Harvard Business Review, and consults and speaks for clients such as Google, Yale University, and the World Bank. She is a graduate of Harvard Divinity School, a producer of a multiple Grammy-winning jazz album, and a Broadway investor. You can download her free Entrepreneurial You self-assessment workbook at dorieclark.com/entrepreneur Inside This Episode: The Two Triggers of Personal Reinvention How to Take Control of Your Own Narrative Building Your Personal Brand Tailoring Your Brand to Your Audience Why Everyone Needs to Manage Their Identity The Three Main Levers to Becoming a Thought Leader Balancing Being an Expert and Being Approachable How to Get Started Even if You Don’t Know Your Passion The Power of Bottom-Up Conversations vs. Top-Down Playing the Long Game With Strategic Thinking Links: Website: https://dorieclark.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/doriec/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/dorieclark Books: https://dorieclark.com/books/

Monica Ortega is a professional on-camera host, speaker and author. She created the online travel show Monica Goes in 2014 to inspire others to break out of their comfort zones and go on adventures. As someone who's afraid of everything, she'll put herself through almost anything to show that if an average everyday person like her can do these things, anyone can. Monica has spoken openly about how her personal setbacks have helped her pivot into creating a life that she loves. She speaks at events around the country helping others to embrace change and create their own dream life. She is a co-host on the podcast Stumblin' Forward which is all about the missteps of entrepreneurship and life. She is also the author of The Power of Pivoting : How to Embrace Change and Create a Life You Love where she uses humor and wisdom to show you how you can lean into your own pivots and create opportunities from any situation, even the unexpected ones. Inside This Episode How to Know When It’s Time to Pivot Signs That You’re Resisting Change Why People Resist Change How to Get Started in Making a Big Change The Importance of Listing to Your Gut and Considering Timing The Unique Factors to Consider When Thinking About Changing Careers How Leaders Can Retain Employees and Have Important Values-Aligning Conversations How to Use the Outside World to Let You Know When It’s Time to Make a Change Links: Website LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Book

Kate Eberle Walker is the CEO of PresenceLearning, the leading provider of online special education services for K-12 schools. In this role, she leads a majority female employee population, whose mission is not only to provide students with learning needs, but to provide a flexible career path for nearly 1,000 special education clinicians, many of whom are working mothers. Kate became the CEO of The Princeton Review at age 39. Prior to that, she navigated the male-dominated investment world at Goldman Sachs working her way up through management roles. She shares tell-it-like-it is advice with her fellow managers and in her book The Good Boss: 9 Ways Every Manager Can Support Women at Work. Inside this Episode: Should Women Adapt to the Culture Or Should the Culture Adapt to Women? Hidden Realities of Being a Woman in the Corporate World Identifying Inclusive and Exclusive Behaviors on Teams Unconscious Micro-Aggressions And What To Do About Them What an Organization Filled with “Good Bosses” Looks Like How To Get Started on Becoming a Good Boss What It's Really Like For New Moms Returning to Work How to Immediately Engage Parents as They Return to Work Being Proactive and Asking For What You Want Links: Website LinkedIn Twitter The Good Boss

Heather R. Younger is an experienced keynote speaker and two-time author. She is the CEO and Founder of Employee Fanatix, a leading employee engagement, leadership development, and DEI consulting firm, where she is on a mission to help leaders understand the power they possess to ensure people feel valued at work. Known as The Employee Whisperer™, Heather harnesses humor, warmth, and an instant relatability to engage and uplift audiences and inspire them into action. Inside This Episode Turning Adversity Into Opportunity What It Takes to be an Employee Whisperer™ Why Real Change Takes Commitment and Consistency The Secret to Develop Undivided Attention The Difference Between Empathy and Compassion How to Know if You Are Truly a Caring Leader The Numbers Behind Becoming People-First Leading With Feelings The Main Ingredient to Helping People Find Their Voice Developing Trust In a Group Setting Links: Website LinkedIn Tedx Talk Twitter Books

Paul Robinson is the founder of Ensunet Technology Group, a San Diego based company specializing in M&A post-merger integration and IT enterprise architecture solutions, a company which is featured on Inc Magazine’s 2018 and 2019 list of the 5,000 fastest-growing private companies in America. To-date, Ensunet has supported more than $11 billion in pre- and post-merger IT planning, due diligence, and integration, including staffing projects throughout the United States, Central America, and the Asia-Pacific region. Paul likes to “pay it forward” on the streets of his hometown: San Diego. There, he mentors at-risk youth; he’s also certified as an elder-care volunteer. Always rising to new heights, he also makes time to go off-roading at dizzying elevations in the High Sierras, as the organizer of a group that’s now nearly 500 members strong. Inside This Episode When to Start Planning M&A The Evolution of Corporate Growth The Danger of Focusing Exclusively on the Numbers The Key Factors for Technological Integration Giving the IT Department A Seat at the Table The Need for Developing a Cybersecurity Plan The Biggest Risk When Growing Through Acquisition Developing Your Employer Value Proposition Why You Need to Train Like a World-Class Athlete Finding Your Strategic Parking Space Links: Website LinkedIn Email: probinson@ensunet.com

Emma Mills-Sheffield is a consultant, coach, speaker, and facilitator. She has over 15 years of industry experience. She’s worked with public sector organizations, FTSE100 and Fortune500 companies, charities and start-ups. In January 2020 Emma was named as one of 100 female entrepreneurs in the UK as part of the small business campaign f:Entrepreneur. Inside This Episode Where Leadership Really Begins The Basic Ingredients in Creating High Performing Teams How Slowing Down Can Increase Our Productivity The Power of Vulnerability The Importance of Authentic Leadership How to Know if You Have an Underperforming Team How to Create Empathy in a Corporate Culture Why Leadership is a Privilege, Not a Right Holding Space for Yourself and Advocating for Others Dealing with Insecurities as a Leader Scaling Up Through Leadership Why Leaders Don’t Want Clones Managing Engagement and Retention Through Change Links: Website LinkedIn Twitter Facebook

Kerry Wekelo is the Chief Operating Officer at Actualize Consulting, a financial services consulting firm. Her latest book is, “Gratitude Infusion: Workplace Strategies for a Thriving Organizational Culture” and her book and program, “Culture Infusion: 9 Principles for Creating and Maintaining a Thriving Organizational Culture,” is the impetus behind Actualize Consulting being named Top Company Culture by Entrepreneur Magazine, a Top Workplace by The Washington Post, and Great Place to Work-Certified. In her leadership, Kerry blends her experiences as a consultant, executive coach, award-winning author, mindfulness expert, and entrepreneur. Kerry has been featured on ABC, NBC, NPR, The New York Times, Thrive Global, SHRM, Inc., and Forbes. Inside this Episode: Identifying Cultural Red Flags Building Thriving Cultures at a Distance The Importance of Commitment and Consistency in Culture Building Connections with Remote Teams Creating a Gratitude-Focused Organization Why Gratitude Starts at the Top A No-Cost Approach to Creating Energy and Enthusiasm The Power of Questions in Creating Organizational Self-Awareness To Grow Your Company, Grow Your People Bringing Mindfulness Into Your Organization Links: LinkedIn Twitter Website Books

Alain Hunkins helps high achieving people become high achieving leaders. Over his twenty-year career, Alain has worked with over 2,000 groups of leaders in 25 countries. Clients include Wal-Mart, Pfizer, Citigroup, General Electric, Microsoft, among many others. In addition to being a leadership speaker, consultant, trainer, and coach, Alain is the author of CRACKING THE LEADERSHIP CODE: Three Secrets to Building Strong Leaders, which was endorsed by leadership luminaries Jim Kouzes, Barry Posner, and Marshall Goldsmith. A faculty member of Duke Corporate Education, Alain’s writing has been featured in Fast Company, Inc., Forbes, Chief Executive, Chief Learning Officer, and Business Insider. Inside This Episode Can you really “Fake it ‘til you make it?” The Importance of Performing as a Leader Why only 23% of employees think their leaders lead well How We Inherit Our Leadership Style The Need to Get Out of Industrial Age Leadership Practices The First Step to Cracking the Leadership Code The Future of Leadership Why Organizations Need to Become More Human-Centered The 3 Secrets of Effective Leaders Why We Need to Start with Connection The Difference Between Knowing and Doing in Regard to Empathy Embracing Emotions in the Workplace Overcoming the Bias of Self-Affirming Why Leaders Need to Actively Manage Perceptions The Real Business of Leadership A Powerful Question to Ask to Transform Your Culture Links: Website LinkedIn TEDx Talk Books

Jennifer Brown is an award-winning entrepreneur, speaker, diversity and inclusion consultant, and author. Jennifer is the founder, president, and CEO of Jennifer Brown Consulting, headquartered in New York City and has been featured in media such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, AdWeek, Bloomberg Businessweek, Forbes, and many others. Jennifer is the host of the popular weekly podcast, The Will to Change, which uncovers true stories of diversity and inclusion. She is also the bestselling author of two books; Inclusion, and How to Be An Inclusive Leader. Inside this Episode• What A Culture of Belonging Looks Like• Waking Up to Diversity & Inclusion• Recognizing Our Own Biases• The Problems Of A Self-Perpetuating Meritocracy• The Challenges of Becoming An Inclusive Leader• Staying Relevant in a Changing World• Starting to Look Through an Equity Lens• The Importance of Recognizing Identity• The Relationship Between Inclusiveness and Performance• Corporate Culture Transparency and Accountability• The Power of Empathy in Culture• The Inclusive Leader Continuum Links: Website LinkedIn Twitter Books

Pollyanna is one of Australia’s leading professionals in creating high performance cultures that transform results. For the past 20 years she has supported clients across Govt, Blue chip Corporate, NFPs and Mid tier professional services organizations. She achieves this by helping her clients to develop consistent high-performing teams, elevating leadership capability, lifting employee engagement and maturing the potential of all. Among her accomplishments are building a multi million pound business from the ground up, author of the book Women & Success, she was a regular contributor to Australia's best business blog, SmartCompany for 13 years writing as their expert on teams. Pollyanna is a regular contributor to Arianna Huffington’s Thrive. As part of the leadership team of Homeward Bound Projects, a global initiative to elevate the influence and leadership of women in STEMM globally. She was the onboard Leadership facilitator for HB3 which took to Antarctica supporting 80 women from 26 countries. A core focus of hers is working towards building a gender balanced workforce. Her Women & Success programs support women to navigate specific challenges that women face in the workplace. Inside This Episode Using Public Commitments to Create Accountability and Action The Power of Creating a New Identity The One Thing You Need When Your Chute Doesn’t Open (Literally) Micro Steps to Long-Term Success The True Power of Muscle Memory Prepared Spontaneity It’s Not About Confidence, It’s About Courage How The Success of Others Can Limit You The Unbelievably Long Timeline for Gender Pay Equality Links: Website: https://www.pollyannalenkic.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pollyannalenkic/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PollyannaLenkicConsulting Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pollyannalenkic/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/PollyannaLenkic

Rick Lite and his wife, Lori, ventured into publishing in 2003 with a line of books and CD’s through their company, Stress Free Kids. They even negotiated a deal on ABC’s Shark Tank in Season 1, Ep. 3. After achieving international success, they decided to form a new company in 2010 called Stress Free Book Marketing to share their knowledge and strategies to help other authors do the same. Inside This Episode How to Know If You Should Write a Book Why You Should Start In Reverse Using Your Book As A Part of Your Platform Finding the Right Marketing Mix for Your Message The Key to Avoiding Getting Stuck in a Writing Project The Ideal Scenario for Writing and Marketing Your Book The Main Ingredients for A Successful Book Launch The Reality of Independent and Traditional Publishing Links: Website LinkedIn Twitter

Karen Walker is an executive coach and consultant who advises CEOs and senior leaders on thriving in hyper-growth. She has worked with clients including Aetna, AWS, Pfizer, JPMorganChase, and BMC Software, as well as Inc. 5000 startups.Karen is also a board advisor, keynote speaker, and the author of No Dumbing Down: A Guide for CEOs on Organization Growth. As employee 104 at Compaq, Karen helped lead the then-fastest growing company in American history, growing it from $0 to $15 billion in revenue. Inside This Episode The Foundation for Hypergrowth The Power of “Up and To The Right” A Simple Question to Drive Performance No Dumbing Down: Optimizing Your Team The Key to Keeping Top Talent The Two Key Skills for Visionary Leaders Building a Collaborative Team Dealing with a Toxic Team Zen and the Art of Thinking Bigger Links: Website LinkedIn Twitter Book: No Dumbing Down