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Season 10 Episode 26

Guest: Steve Robinson, former Chief Marketing Officer, Chick-fil-A

Chick-fil-A — and their cows — are now an iconic fast food brand. That type of brand recognition doesn’t happen by accident: it requires great leadership creating a culture of innovation. What can you learn from their success?

Steve Robinson unfolds the layers of leadership principles with real stories from Chick-fil-A’s history to demonstrate each one. Like other major brands, they’ve had PR bumps along the way, but worked through to continued success. Steve’s insights explain why — and it all wraps around leaders’ unique view of their stakeholders.

Here’s what Steve and Maureen cover:

1. The four layers of Chick-fil-A’s “onion” of success;
2. Why simple hospitality is a huge differentiator in business today; and
3. The moment the beef industry started feeling chicken about this restaurant chain.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Why Rare Leadership Is Well Done at Omaha Steaks with Nate Rempe
• Love at First Slice: Pizza & Passionate Leadership with Tom Krouse
• A Dozen Lessons Learned Running Dunkin’ Donuts with Robert Rosenberg

Season 8 Episode 13

Guest: Leah Lizarondo, Entrepreneur-in-Residence (Carnegie Mellon University) & Co-Founder of 412 Food Rescue

When an organization truly understands a problem and an innovative solution is implemented, people get behind it and true change happens. That’s the story of 412 Food Rescue.

Leah Lizarondo saw massive food insecurity, and food waste recovery was the solution. Moreover, she reimagined food recovery as an organization that solves multiple problems.

Leah joins host Maureen Metcalf to discuss food insecurity, entrepreneurism, and leading an NPO to such success.

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

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Noodling Solutions for Food Insecurity with Dr. Reza Soltanzadeh
• Do No Harm: Ethics for Leaders with Terri O’Fallon
• Women’s Leadership Journeys with Lisa DeFrank Cole & Sherylle J. Tan

Season 10 Episode 25

Guest: Dave Levy, Vice President of Amazon Web Services (AWS) Worldwide Public Sector (WWPS)

AI is all the buzz – but how do you lead your team through all the noise to find what works for you?

Dave Levy clears the noise in this episode. By helping governments discern the best AI tools to serve their communities, he sees the qualities any leader needs to look for…and security is right at the top of the list. So is education, including growing the talent pool to meet demand!

Here’s what Dave and Maureen cover:

1. Why “inventing” your own AI apps can be better in the long run than using a popular off-the-shelf system;
2. Why Amazon is willing to invest heavily in free AI and IT training and education programs for the public; and
3. The importance of having at least one leader on your board or in your C-suite who knows enough to safely spearhead your AI (and tech) efforts.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• How Moonshots & Robots Put Packages on Your Porch with Steve Armato
• Humans in the Loop: AI’s New Business Models with Suchi Srinivasan
• Leading with an Eye on AI with Neil Sahota

Season 10 Episode 24

Guest: Sander van ‘t Noordende, CEO, Randstad

The world is becoming talent-led. The talent pool is shrinking, which means leaders must radically shift their thinking on how to recruit – and retain – top performers.

Fortunately, Sander van ‘t Noordende sees a number of solid solutions arising from his vantage as CEO of multinational HR firm Ranstad. He shares them with host Maureen Metcalf in this episode.

Here’s what Sander and Maureen cover:

1. The Big Three issues nearly all corporations and governments will soon be facing (if they aren’t already);
2. Who the Assertive Third are in your team, and how quickly your competitors might scoop them up; and
3. Why DEI bashing, though politically popular, is a red flag to top talent.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Relentlessly Improving the Workplace with Laura Fuentes
• Hiring in the Great Resignation with Michelle Sanchez-Bickley
• Hiring for Keeps: The Rise of Recruiter.com with Evan Sohn

Season 10 Episode 23

Guest: Greg Moran, C-level leadership executive & consultant

The business landscape is littered with fallen firms of questionable ethics. Enron is just one example. But the stumbles of today’s organisations – from Boeing to Columbia University – may be rooted in the lack of a clear ethical framework from the top.

That’s the thesis of guest Greg Moran, who lays out the evidence with host Maureen Metcalf in this episode. It’s not mere philosophical debate; as Enron showed, missing a formal ethical code is a very real existential threat.

Here’s what Greg and Maureen cover:

1. The distinction you need to know between morality and ethics;
2. Why it’s concerning that so many college grads haven’t seriously pondered their values as they enter your workforce; and
3. The critical role ethics play in getting your organization through a crisis.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

– Leader Character with Dr. Mary Crossan (this is the episode Maureen referenced at the beginning of today’s show)

– Forming Your Firm’s Ethics with Greg Moran

– Transformational Leadership & Ethics with Ron Riggio

Guest: Tammy Alvarez, CEO of Career Winners Circle

Isn’t it time you did a little something for yourself? We usually talk about leadership in terms of how it helps your team or organization. In this episode, guest Tammy Alvarez shines the spotlight on you instead.

Specifically, she talks about taking control of your leadership career path. As leaders, we set the tone for our teams. If you don’t love your job, your team senses it. So Tammy shares her many tips for how to get your career back on the track you want…and start loving Mondays again!

Here’s what Tammy and Maureen cover:

1. How treating your career path like a business helps you see the opportunities that help move your career ahead;
2. Why it’s important to stop thinking you’re paid for what you do – and start being paid for what you know; and
3. Tammy’s personal story of feeling like an outsider as she climbed Wall Street’s executive ranks…then figured out that feeling was actually her strength.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• The Job I Love to Hate: It’s Never Too Late to Upgrade Your Career! with Tammy Alvarez
• The Power of Passion & Perseverance: Four Levels of Grit with Jim Ritchie-Dunham
• The Career Toolkit: Essential Skills for Success No One Taught You with Mark Herschberg

Seaon 10 Episode 21

Guest: Dr. Shaan Patel, CEO of Prep Expert

Here’s an unexpected formula for success. Step 1: Get a lower score than expected on your SAT. Step 2: Parlay your disappointment into a multimillion-dollar company.

That’s how Shaan Patel’s leadership journey began. It included a victory on Shark Tank, mentoring from Mark Cuban, and earning an M.D. It’s not the typical path to industry-leading CEO, but the lessons Shaan learned along the path are important for leaders in any sector. He shares those lessons with us in this episode.

Here’s what Shaan and host Maureen Metcalf cover:

1. Why winning is NOT the name of the game in business (but neither is losing!);
2. How embracing change instead of fighting it puts you far ahead of the competition; and
3. The mindsets Shaan keeps foremost to inform his leadership – and why that leadership is still evolving.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Women’s Leadership Journeys with Lisa DeFrank Cole & Sheryl J. Tan
• Women on the Rise: A Leadership Journey with Reta Jo Lewis
• The Secret Code to Uncommon Leadership with Ruchira Chaudhary
• Building Trust in Uncertainty: A Personal & Professional Journey with Dr. Mary Jo Burchard

Season 10 Episode 20

Guest: Stephanie Lemek, Founder: The Wounded Workforce

Your staff are probably dealing with trauma: in the U.S. alone, 70% of adults faced at least one traumatic experience. Those experiences manifest in different ways in the workplace, from perfectionism to absenteeism. Our trauma reactions are as unique as our fingerprints.

Being a trauma-informed leader can help your team – and, ultimately, your organization. Guest Stephanie Lemek draws on her deep experience in HR to share how to shape a trauma-informed workplace.

Here’s what Stephanie and host Maureen Metcalf cover:

1. The ways leaders can help team members deal with trauma…
2. …and the ways they shouldn’t – such as playing the role of therapist.
3. The seven principles of trauma-informed workplaces.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Remote Work & Mental Well-Being with Dr. Gleb Tsipursky
• Informed Leadership: The Power of Trauma with Rachael Kelly
• Nurturing Peace from the Ashes of Violence with Hyppolite Ntigurirwa & Mike Hardy

Season 10 Episode 19

Guest: Mike Morrow-Fox, Organizational Development Consultant

Many leaders plateau: they hit a certain level, then stop growing or maturing as a leader. But even into late adulthood, we remain able to grow and develop. Indeed, some people thirst for that growth!

Mike Morrow-Fox joins host Maureen Metcalf to discuss post-conventional leaders – people who have grown to a point where they can easily see the big picture, the ripple effects of decisions, understand complexity, and more. Best of all, he shares seven tips to use on your own leadership journey.

Here’s what Mike and Maureen cover:

1. The three major markers of a post-conventional thinker;
2. Seven tips for forging ahead with your own growth; and
3. Why you get bored with tasks or jobs that used to excite you.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

• Do No Harm: Ethics for Leaders with Terri O’Fallon
• Bringing Clarity to Confusion with Terri O’Fallon & Kim Barta
• You’re an Executive, But Are You a Leader? with Sonya Shelton

Season 10 Episode 18

Guest: Paul F. Austin, CEO of Third Wave

Why are C-suites adopting psychedelics? Some leaders say it gives them a competitive edge in innovation and thinking; others use psychedelics for stress relief and general mental health.

Paul F. Austin reviews the science and the trends behind this movement. He joins host Maureen Metcalf to discuss both how and why senior executives are moving these substances from taboo to corporate practice…and he provides important guidelines and limits on their use.

Here’s what Paul and Maureen cover:

1. How the link between leadership and psychedelics formed;
2. The five key elements to look for in a responsible facilitator; and
3. Though rare, the need to be aware of potential dangers.

Other episodes you’ll enjoy:

– Fringe or Mainstream? Leaders Explore Psychedelics with Paul Austin

– Changing Leadership Mindsets: Psychedelics with Ehren Cruz

– The Anxious Achiever with Morra Aarons-Mele