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Season 10 Episode 36

Guest: Betsy Myers, Former White House Advisor, Author, and Leadership Consultant

The concept of the ideal leader changed dramatically over the last few decades, and Warren Bennis was one of the first researchers to analyze modern leadership. Our guest Betsy Myers shares the traits he found, then merges that with her own extensive experience in leadership – which reaches right up to the President of the United States – to look at the continuing gender divide in corporate and political leadership.

The gender gap remains, and who perpetuates it may surprise you!

Here’s what Betsy and Maureen cover:

1. The key leadership traits that make a great leader, according to Bennis’ findings;
2. Why leading is just like being a parent: what you do is more important than what you say; and
3. The role of Tall Poppy Syndrome in keeping women out of the C-suite.

Produced in association with the International Leadership Association: https://ilaglobalnetwork.org.

 Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Top Leadership Lessons for Women from a Senior White House Advisor with Betsy Myers
• Epic! The Women’s Power Playbook with Carolyn Buck Luce
• The Bonobo Sisterhood: Ape Society’s Lessons for Leadership with Diane Rosenfeld

Season 8 Episode 6

Guest: John, Lord Alderdice, Peer in the House of Lords

Wars are raging again, yet peace IS possible. Getting there provides invaluable lessons for leaders dealing with conflict everywhere, whether it’s in the workplace or the battlefield. John, Lord Alderdice, has helped peace happen.

From the Good Friday Agreement that ended the Troubles and brought peace to Northern Ireland, to understanding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Lord Alderdice has been involved in numerous peace negotiations.  But finding peace requires a special kind of leader — one which may be in short supply lately.

Lord Alderdice reveals to host Maureen Metcalf the leadership qualities that bring peace, promote peace, and maintain peace.

Here’s what John and Maureen cover:

1. Why conflict is rooted in relationships – sometimes centuries old – more than specific actions or grievances;
2. How the factors influencing conflict go far beyond the two sides we see fighting; and
3. The importance of knowing that future generations pay the consequences of our actions today.

Produced in partnership with the International Leadership Association: https://ilaglobalnetwork.org.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Reality Lost: How Disinformation Shapes Your World with Tara McGowan
• The Good Fight: Using Productive Conflict with Liane Davey
• Empowering Women for the Prosperity of Nations with Amanda Ellis & Augusto Lopez-Claros

Season 2 Episode 51

Guest: George Papandreou, Former Prime Minister of Greece

Do you want to lead like an Olympian…or a gladiator?

The Olympics were founded by the ancient Greeks as a model for collaboration and cooperation, developing a city-state’s Olympians to their highest potential. That dovetails with the mission of today’s best leaders – and Greece’s former prime minister, George Papandreou, shares why that Olympic vision is all the more important now. As he shares with host Maureen Metcalf, it’s the key to solving so many of today’s global issues: from refugees to climate change. The first step: figuring out our common values, then building on them to work together across borders.

Produced in partnership with the International Leadership Association: https://ilaglobalnetwork.org.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Former Prime Minister Papandreou’s Path to a Just World with George Papandreou and Jorrit Vokers
• How Climate Change Batters Business Bottom Lines: A Prime Minister Explains with Kim Campbell
• Here’s Why This Prime Minister Gives Failing Grades to Today’s Leaders with Kim Campbell

Season 2 Episode 49

Guests: Cynthia Cherrey, President and CEO, International Leadership Association (ILA) & Ajay Bramdeo, African Union Ambassador to the European Union

This classic episode, revisited, focuses on global challenges. Migration – legal and illegal – is just one major issue haunting the globe. As the world faces this, climate change, and other international challenges, what can you do?

Plenty, as we learn in this episode! ILA CEO Cynthia Cherrey opens the conversation by discussing the frameworks and forum for the new leadership needed to develop solutions which the Association’s annual global conference provides. Then Ambassador Ajay Bramdeo steps in to point out how old-school leadership fails in light of illegal migration and other global challenges – and how redefining leadership is necessary to solve them.

Here’s what Cynthia, Ajay, and Maureen cover:

1. The needs Cynthia saw in the leadership community…and how establishing ILA’s global conference can help fill them;
2. The origins of the migration crisis, focusing on Africa’s emigres as an example of how poor leadership exacerbates the issue; and
3. Solutions – including the leadership traits you can practice in your own organization which, in the long term, can influence resolving global issues.

Produced in conjunction with the International Leadership Association: https://ilaglobalnetwork.org.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

– Empathy, Dialogue, & a Good Mood: An Ambassador Reveals What Leaders Need in Crisis with Ambassador Thomas Greminger & Peter Cunningham

– Work, War, and In-Between: An International Peace Negotiator’s Top Tips for Resolving Conflict with John, Lord Alderdice

– Cooperation, Leadership, & Empathy: George Papandreou’s Path for Meeting Challenges with the former Prime Minister of Greece

Season 10 Episode 33

Guests: Amazon Vice-Presidents Udit Madan (Worldwide Operations), Jamil Ghani (Worldwide Prime), & Sarah Rhoads (Workplace Health & Safety)

Answer honestly: can you innovate? Most organizations can – but their leaders won’t. Fear of change is often cited, but the reality is they don’t know how.

Amazon’s success is predicated on constant innovation, so leaders there have deeply embedded it into their business culture. In this episode, we hear from three high-level Amazon executives, each one encouraging innovative mindsets in different ways. They reveal their teams’ latest innovations, and their own leadership philosophies that keep their teams on the cutting edge.

Here’s what Udit, Jamil, Sarah and host Maureen Metcalf cover:

1. The secret sauce behind all Amazon initiatives: constant customer-back thinking;
2. How Prime uses AI to make shopping easier for those customers; and
3. The Six Pillars that fuel the goal of making Amazon the safest place to work on the planet.

Do a deeper dive on Amazon leadership with these interviews:

• To Err Is to Innovate with Beryl Tomay, Amazon VP of Last Mile Delivery & Technology
• Four Key Lessons on Trust & Safety from Amazon’s Head of Family Trust with Catherine Teitelbaum
• Putting People First with AI with Dave Levy, VP of Amazon Web Services WWPS
• How Moonshots & Robots Put Packages on Your Porch with Steve Armato, VP of Middle Mile & Tech at Amazon

Season 10 Episode 32

Guest: Deb Liu, President & CEO at Ancestry

You are who came before…personally and as a leader. Your ancestors have been shaping you for generations.

That’s one key lesson from Deb Liu, who heads Ancestry, the world’s leading genealogical service. Even though we like to think we’re completely self-made, we’ve been heavily supported by our teams and communities. But, more invisibly, we’ve also been shaped by decisions our ancestors made generations ago: when they immigrated, who they married, the jobs they worked, and more.

Deb discusses that and more with host Maureen Metcalf in this episode that looks back to help you look ahead.

Here’s what Deb and Maureen cover:

1. The many ways your ancestors continue to shape you (and your leadership);
2. The growing role of AI in finding and preserving historical documents; and
3. Why, as a leader, Deb looks for out-of-the-box thinkers to join her Ancestry team.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Why Rare Leadership Is Well-Done at Omaha Steaks with CEO Nate Rempe
• Leading with Care & Purpose with Raj Sisodia & Sudhanshu Palsule
• The Future Is Yours to Create with futurist Rebecca Ryan

Season 10 Episode 31

Guest: Catherine Teitelbaum, Head of Family Trust at Amazon

Your current skills can take you to surprising places. That’s the backstory for Amazon’s Head of Family Trust, Catherine Teitelbaum. It could be your story, too!

Catherine started as a classroom teacher; she’s now a tech leader. And, as she tells host Maureen Metcalf, it was a natural progression…but one she never foresaw. In this episode, she shares her journey, how those skills were perfect as online companies realized they needed trust and safety programs to maintain safe spaces online for kids and families, and the lessons learned as she ascended the leadership ladder.

Here’s what Catherine and Maureen cover:

1. Why authenticity might just be the most important quality any leader can have;
2. The key lessons for trust and safety, both for online users and for your own team; and
3. How trust is a vital bridge between company and customer, and between leader and team.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Shifting from Trusting Institutions to Trusting People with Daniele Henkel, Knight of the Order of Merit
• To Err Is to Innovate with Beryl Tomay, Last Mile Delivery Services lead at Amazon
• Digital Body Language: How to Build Trust and Connection with Erica Dhawan, author

Season 1 Episode 1

Guests: Susan Cannon, Leadership Professor & Futurist, and Mike Morrow-Fox, Organizational Development & Leadership Consultant

What you know now probably won’t cut it in a few years. You need to adapt your leadership skills to succeed through the next generation – and today’s guests tell us how! Futurist Susan Cannon and consultant Mike Morrow-Fox emphasize the need for modern leaders to develop higher-order skills to navigate the complexities and rapid changes happening now…and yet to come. The keys are adaptability, cross-cultural management, and emotional intelligence. Listen now to become a forward-thinking leader able to thrive in an increasingly volatile world.

Here’s what Susan, Mike, & Maureen cover:

1. Why your current skills aren’t enough to carry you into the future workplace;
2. How you can develop those critical leadership skills now; and
3. The evolution of leadership mindsets all these changes are creating.

Produced in association with the International Leadership Association: https://ilaglobalnetwork.org.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Prepare for the Future with Foresight with Dr. Ciela Hartanov
• Is Your Organization Designed for the Future with Mark Palmer & Eddie Moore
• The Future Is Yours to Create with Rebecca Ryan
• Coming Soon to a Business Climate Near You with Matthew Griffin

Season 10 Episode 30

Guest: David Rodin, Chair and Founder of Principia & Former Co-Director of the Oxford Institute for Ethics, Law, and Armed Conflict

Even the mightiest corporate juggernaut can crumble under an ethics scandal. But even minor ethics issues can taint your business – not just with PR, but in reduced employee morale, engagement, and more.

But ethics can be taught, forged, and grown throughout an organization. Guest David Rodin researches and teaches ethics for businesses and militaries, and he shares his wisdom and practical tips with host Maureen Metcalf.

Here’s what David and Maureen cover:

1. The difference between ethics and customs (or corporate culture);
2. His three basic tests to determine ethical behavior; and
3. The lesson of the Strategic Corporal we all need to learn!

Other episodes to help you with ethical issues at work:

– Do No Harm: Ethics for Leaders with Terri O’Fallon

– Transformational Leadership & Ethics with Ron Riggio

– How Missing Ethics Makes a Mess of Organizations with Greg Moran

Season 4 Episode 2

Guests: George Papandreou, Former Prime Minister of Greece, and Jorrit Volkers, Dean of Deloitte University Europe Middle East Africa (DU EMEA)

Can you change the world? Our two guests have been doing it for years.

In the first half of this episode, former Prime Minister of Greece George Papandreou dives deep into defending democracy – and how the European Union has evolved into a model of independent nations resolving differences to band together for the common good.

Then, Deloitte’s Jorrit Volkers unveils the reasons he cofounded the company’s own university, as it gains renown for developing leaders at all levels. It ensures the international firm maintains quality leadership using the latest research – providing a solid career and growth path for managers in the process.

Produced in collaboration with the International Leadership Association: https://ilaglobalnetwork.org.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Climate Change: Leaders in the Hot Seat with former Prime Minister of Canada, Kim Campbell
• Finding Peace in Conflict: Northern Ireland & Beyond with negotiator John, Lord Alderdice
• Growing Up Biden: Family Lessons on Leadership with presidential campaign manager Valerie Biden Owens