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The Strategy Skills Podcast: Strategy | Leadership | Critical Thinking | Problem-Solving
The Strategy Skills Podcast: Strategy | Leadership | Critical Thinking | Problem-Solving
CEOs, business leaders, management consultants, professors, journalists, athletes, and celebrities discuss key issues in business and society. The podcast offers insights on strategy, leadership, critical thinking, and problem-solving. It also promotes free access to a newsletter and training programs.
Episodes
660: Former Co-President and Board Member of WWE, George Barrios, on Systems Thinking, Conviction, and Leadership Under Pressure
George Barrios spent more than three decades moving between strategy, finance, operations, and general management before helping lead the evolution of WWE from a North American live-event business into a global media company. In this conversation, he reflects on the principles that shaped that career and the lessons learned while leading large-scale change under intense scrutiny. A central theme i
659: The Success Trap: Breaking the Cycle of Never Enough (with Brooke Taylor)
Brooke Taylor spent more than a decade inside high-performance environments, including leadership roles at Google, before turning her attention to a question that many accomplished professionals quietly wrestle with: why does achievement so often fail to produce a lasting sense of fulfillment? In this conversation, she examines what she calls the "success wound" — the tendency to attach self-worth
658: Market Engineering in the Age of AI with the CEO and founder of Traction Gap Partners, Bruce Cleveland
Bruce Cleveland has operated at the center of several major shifts in enterprise technology: Oracle's early growth, the creation of enterprise CRM at Siebel Systems, the rise of SaaS through investments like Marketo and Workday, and now the restructuring of software markets through AI. This conversation focuses on a core idea behind those experiences: strong products alone rarely create market lea
657: Adjunct Professor at Cornell University, Cheryl Strauss Einhorn, on Critical Thinking vs. AI
In this conversation with Cheryl Strauss Einhorn, the discussion examines what happens to judgment and critical thinking as AI becomes embedded in daily decision-making. Drawing on her background as an investigative journalist at Barron's, Einhorn explains how questioning assumptions and searching for disconfirming evidence shaped the development of her AREA Method for decision-making. She argues
656: The Habits and Systems That Shape Success (with Fredric Marshall)
Fredric Marshall spent decades helping companies including Apple, Pfizer, and Genentech solve problems in sales effectiveness, product launches, and organizational change. In this discussion, he explains why he views sales and leadership primarily as change management challenges: helping people move from where they are to where they want to be. The conversation centers on several practical ideas t
655: BCG Managing Director and Partner, Kristy Ellmer, on Why Change Fails and How Great Leaders Build Real Transformation
Kristy Ellmer has spent her career leading large-scale transformations across industries, countries, and operating environments. In this conversation, she explains why most change efforts fail — not because of bad strategy, but because organizations underestimate the human side of execution. A central idea from the discussion is the imbalance between the "what" and the "how" of transformation. Lea
654: Associate Director of Culture and Change at BCG, Philip Jameson, on Why Most Transformations Fail
Philip Jameson discusses why most organizational transformations fail despite strong strategic intent, significant investment, and broad awareness that change is necessary. Drawing on his work at Boston Consulting Group and the research behind How Change Really Works, Jameson argues that the core problem is often not strategy itself, but a poor understanding of "how humans behave during periods of
653: Joe Pine, Author and Lecturer at Northeastern University, on the Future of Business
Management advisor and author Joe Pine explores a question that sits beneath most business strategy discussions but is rarely addressed directly: what business is ultimately for. Drawing on decades of work spanning mass customization, the experience economy, and his latest research on transformation, Pine argues that many companies misunderstand the real value customers seek and therefore stop too
652: Can Democracy Survive Free Market Capitalism? (with Professor of Economics Emeritus at Stanford University, Mordecai Kurz)
Professor Mordecai Kurz argues that rising inequality is not simply the result of markets, but the combined effect of "technology, culture and policy" operating together over decades. Drawing on his forthcoming book, Private Power and Democracy's Decline, Kurz explains why he believes free market capitalism, left entirely unregulated, eventually concentrates both economic and political power. His
651: Ford School of Public Policy Adjunct Attia Qureshi on the Hidden Psychology Behind Effective Negotiation
Attia Qureshi examines negotiation not simply as a business skill, but as a core leadership capability that shapes influence, alignment, and decision-making. Drawing on experience across consulting, startups, academia, and international development, she explains why many capable professionals struggle in negotiations despite strong analytical skills. The discussion explores several practical theme
650: Climate Leader and Bestselling Author, Dr. Katharine K. Wilkinson, on Closing the Climate Action Gap
This discussion explores climate change through the lens of leadership, human behavior, and systems design, drawing on Dr. Katharine K. Wilkinson's experience across academia, consulting, and nonprofit leadership. Rather than revisiting scientific consensus, the conversation focuses on a more practical question: why progress remains uneven despite clear evidence and available solutions. A central
649: P&G and Walmart: The Story Behind the Groundbreaking Relationship (Strategy Skills classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic featuring an interview with the author of Collaborative Disruption, Tom Muccio. In this episode, Tom Muccio shares his experience leading Procter & Gamble's collaboration with Walmart. By breaking down corporate barriers and focusing on mutual understanding, Tom helped both companies grow dramatically and expand their business from $350 mil
648: Rethinking Careers in a Nonlinear World with Venture Capitalist and Lecturer at Stanford University, Arun Gupta
Arun Gupta challenges conventional notions of career stability, arguing that "you should be seeking meaning… in meaning, you'll find your stability." As institutions become less reliable anchors, purpose—not title or employer—becomes the more durable foundation: "the constant will be why you're doing what you're doing." He rejects the idea that clarity must precede action. In fast-changing environ
647: Former Deloitte's Chief Learning Officer on Reevaluating Our Relationship with Change, Ashley Goodall (Strategy Skills classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic featuring an interview with the author of The Problem with Change: And the Essential Nature of Human Performance, Ashley Goodall. Drawing on two decades spent leading HR organizations at Deloitte and Cisco, Ashley Goodall reveals in his book why change is not the same as improvement, and how, by prioritizing team cohesion (instead of reshuf
646: CEO of FCLT Global and Former Senior Engagement Manager at McKinsey & Company on Turning Investor Dialogue into Strategy (Strategy Skills classics)
Sarah Keohane Williamson, CEO of FCLT Global and coauthor of The CEO's Guide to the Investment Galaxy, offers a disciplined primer for executives operating at the intersection of corporate strategy and capital markets. Drawing from her background in investment banking, government, consulting, and asset management, she explains why "investors are not a single audience," how their incentives shape c
646: Former McKinsey Consultant Darryl Stickel on Building Trust With Consulting Clients (Strategy Skills classics)
Welcome to Strategy Skills episode 361, an interview with the author of Building Trust: Exceptional Leadership in an Uncertain World, Darryl Stickel. In his book, Darryl outlines his groundbreaking Trust Unlimited blueprint for building trust. Stickel moves away from the traditional approach of influencing people's willingness to trust—the con artist's tactic—to employing one or more of ten levers
645: Ex McKinsey expert on war games, John Horn. How to read your competitors (Strategy Skills classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic featuring an interview with the author of Inside the Competitor's Mindset, John Horn, where he shares proven techniques to help businesses think like the competition and understand why they act the way they do. Inside the Competitor's Mindset presents a systematic approach to competitive intelligence that starts with three frameworks to get
644: How to Tap the Hidden Wisdom of People Around You for Breakthroughs in Leadership and Life, with Co-CEO of Transcend, Jeff Wetzler (Strategy Skills classics)
For this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic featuring an interview with a former Monitor Associate partner and Chief Learning Officer of Teach For America, co-CEO of Transcend, and the author of Ask: Tap Into the Hidden Wisdom of People Around You for Unexpected Breakthroughs In Leadership and Life, Jeff Wetzler. In this book, Jeff offers a hands-on, surprisingly effective way to fin
643: Leading with Intent in an AI-Driven World with Louisa Loran, Google's Transformation Growth Lead
This discussion examines how senior leaders can navigate complexity, technology, and organizational change without losing clarity of purpose. Drawing on experience across global consumer brands, logistics, and technology, Louisa Loran outlines a practical approach to leadership that extends beyond execution into shaping direction. Key insights from the conversation: First, career progression at se
642: Leading for Innovation in Complex Organizations (with Harvard's Linda Hill)
Linda Hill, Professor at Harvard Business School, discussed how leadership must adapt to enable innovation in complex organizations. Drawing on research and fieldwork across companies such as Pixar and Pfizer, the conversation reframes leadership as the work of building environments where solutions are co-created rather than directed. Several core ideas stand out: Leadership for innovation begins
641: Former Bain & Company Director Michael Farmer — Differences Between McKinsey, Bain and BCG, Strategy Consulting, Helping Ad Agencies and Their Clients Navigate Change (Strategy Skills classics)
In this episode, let's revisit a Strategy Skills classic interview with the author of Madison Avenue Makeover: The Transformation of Huge and the Redefinition of the Ad Agency Business, Michael Farmer. He also wrote the award-winning Madison Avenue Manslaughter, an inside view of fee-cutting clients, profit-hungry owners, and declining ad agencies (Third Edition, 2019). In this episode, Michael sp
640: Jim Hemerling, BCG. Co-author of "Beyond Great" (Strategy Skills classics)
Jim Hemerling is Senior Partner at Boston Consulting Group's San Francisco office and a leader in the firm's People & Organization and Transformation Practices. He has been the leader of BCG Greater China and is a Fellow of the BCG Henderson Institute. His work with clients and his research focuses on holistic human-centric approaches to organizational transformation. Jim is a co-author of BCG's n
639: Growth at Scale in the Age of AI (with McKinsey's Marc Canal)
Marc Canal, a partner at the McKinsey Global Institute, examines how long-term economic progress is built and what current shifts in AI, demographics, and productivity mean for senior leaders. He explains that consulting is less about analysis than it appears and more about trust, judgment, and the ability to frame relevant questions. Building a small number of strong relationships is more valuabl
638: How to Lead and Live with Less Stress and More Joy (with Former C-Suite Executive and Advisor to Fortune 100 Leaders, Amy Leneker)
Amy Leneker, a former C-suite executive and advisor to Fortune 100 leaders, examines a common assumption in corporate life: that stress is an unavoidable cost of success. She argues that this belief is flawed, noting that when leaders feel disconnected from their values and priorities, "it doesn't feel like you're succeeding." The discussion centers on how stress operates at three levels: individu
637: Growth and Innovation at Scale, with Former IBM, Microsoft, and Salesforce Executive Jason Wild
Jason Wild discusses the discipline of building and scaling businesses through careful capital allocation, operational focus, and a clear understanding of risk. He explains how leaders often misjudge growth by pursuing expansion without fully understanding the underlying economics, noting that "growth only creates value when the returns exceed the cost of capital." He emphasizes the importance of
636: Dr. John La Puma on the Hidden Health Costs of Indoor Living
Dr. John La Puma discusses how everyday environmental choices shape sleep, cognition, and long-term health. Drawing on research from medicine, neuroscience, and environmental science, he explains why many professionals unknowingly experience what he calls "cognitive drag," the gradual decline in mental clarity caused by indoor lifestyles, poor light exposure, and excessive screen use. A central th
635: McKinsey Senior Partner Chris Bradley on The Real Drivers of Long-Term Economic Growth
Chris Bradley, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company and Director of the McKinsey Global Institute, discusses the ideas behind his book A Century of Plenty and the long-term drivers of economic growth. Bradley explains that much of the public debate about the economy assumes growth is limited or zero-sum. His research argues the opposite. Over long periods, societies have repeatedly expanded prospe
634: BCG's Julia Dhar on Why 70% of Major Change Efforts Fail
Julia Dhar, Managing Director at Boston Consulting Group and founder of the firm's Behavioral Science Lab, joins us to discuss why most organizational change efforts fail and what leaders can do differently. Drawing on behavioral science and her work advising major organizations, she explains why the challenge of change is rarely about strategy alone and more often about human behavior. Julia beg
633: The Invincible Brain with Johns Hopkins Professor Dr. Majid Fotuhi
Dr. Majid Fotuhi, neurologist, neuroscientist, and adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University, has spent decades studying how the brain ages and what determines whether cognitive performance declines or strengthens over time. In this discussion, he challenges one of the most widely accepted assumptions about aging: that deterioration of memory and thinking is inevitable. The evidence, he explai
632: Building Healthier Workplaces Through Attuned Leadership (with Nidhi Tewari)
Nidhi Tewari, a highly sought after wellbeing and work culture speaker who applies her experience as a licensed therapist to the work world, has spent more than a decade advising high-performing leaders on burnout, trauma, communication, and work culture. In this conversation, she brings a clinician's precision to a topic many organizations still treat superficially: why capable professionals dise
631: How Elon Musk Thinks (with Charles Steel)
Charles Steel reflects on "more than two decades in private equity, banking," combined with "public service roles, including advising Tony Blair," and how these experiences led him to a late but powerful discovery: "the best way to really find purpose in life is to be creative, to make stuff." He explains that "the things I'm writing about now I am only able to write about because of what I spent
630: Business Innovation and Strategic Growth Advisor, Lorraine Marchand, on Sustaining Growth Through Innovation
Lorraine Marchand, startup CEO, advisor to Johnson & Johnson, member of the Pharmaceutical Advisory Board at Columbia Business School, and faculty at Wharton, discusses how leaders can sustain growth through disciplined experimentation in an era shaped by AI and institutional risk aversion. Marchand's perspective is grounded in a career that spans large corporations and entrepreneurial ventures.
629: Ashley Herd, Former Head of HR North America at McKinsey, on What Effective Managers Actually Do
Ashley Herd, former Head of HR North America at McKinsey, joins this episode to discuss what effective leadership looks like in practice, especially in environments defined by speed, pressure, and increasing expectations around AI. Drawing on her experience training more than 250,000 managers, she introduces a simple but rigorous framework: pause, consider, act. In fast-moving organizations, leade
628: Northwestern Law Professor John McGinnis on Constitutional Stability in the Age of AI
John McGinnis, law professor at Northwestern University and author of Why Democracy Needs the Rich, examines constitutional design, democratic stability, and the accelerating force of artificial intelligence. Drawing on the Federalist Papers, Tocqueville, and public choice theory, he argues that a realistic understanding of politics is essential to preserving both liberty and effective state capac
627: How Overworked Leaders Can Find Peace Again (with Dr. Guy Winch)
Dr. Guy Winch explains why we must treat emotional injuries with the same urgency as physical ones. "We ruminate, we beat ourselves up, we criticize ourselves, we think we're weak… and we end up compounding the emotional injury." He introduces the idea of "emotional first aid" and why we need a psychological toolbox to stop that downward spiral. Guy breaks down the difference between how we respon
626: BCG Henderson Institute Senior Director Adam Job on Growth and Strategy in Uncertain Times
Adam Job, Senior Director at the BCG Institute and leader of its strategy research, offers a clear-eyed examination of growth, uncertainty, and value creation in today's business environment. Drawing on long-term empirical research, he explains why growth remains the primary driver of value over time, while also outlining why it has become structurally harder to achieve amid geopolitical tension,
625: New York Times Bestselling Author and Navy Seal Advisor Daniel Coyle on Leadership, Psychological Safety, and Flourishing Teams
Daniel Coyle, New York Times bestselling author of The Culture Code and adviser to organizations ranging from Navy SEALs to global technology companies, joins the Strategy Skills Podcast to explore what truly drives leadership, performance, and flourishing. Drawing on decades of research into elite performers and high-functioning cultures, Coyle explains why performance alone is not enough, and wh
624: From IQ to AQ: Agility as the New Leadership Advantage (with Liz Tran)
Liz Tran, former venture capital executive and author of AQ, examines why agility—not raw intelligence or experience—has become the defining capability for leaders operating amid persistent uncertainty. She introduces Agility Quotient (AQ) as the capacity to adapt thinking, identity, and decision-making when familiar structures no longer apply. Tran explains how traditional markers of success, fro
623: Bain's Rishi Dave, the Secret of Top Sellers (Strategy Skills classics)
In this episode with Rishi Dave, a partner in Bain's Commercial Excellence practice with deep expertise in B2B marketing and digital marketing, he explains the concept of a "Day 1 List" in B2B sales and marketing and the three things that will get a supplier or seller on the list. Rishi also discussed what a "sales play" is, how to build it, institutionalize the knowledge within the company, and
622: Leadership and Self-Deception with Arbinger Managing Partner, Mitch Warner (Strategy Skills classics)
In this episode, we dive deep into the critical topic of self-deception and its profound impact on leadership and personal effectiveness. Mitch shares powerful insights on how self-deception can undermine our relationships and professional success, often without us even realizing it. He explains the concept of self-betrayal and how it leads to a distorted view of ourselves and others, creating unn
621: Business Longevity Principles from Immigrant Entrepreneurs (with University of Oxford's Neri Karra Sillaman)
Neri Karra Sillaman, entrepreneurship advisor at the University of Oxford and author of Pioneers: Eight Principles of Business Longevity from Immigrant Entrepreneurs, discusses why immigrant-founded companies are disproportionately successful and tend to last longer than their counterparts. Drawing on her experience as a former child refugee and on research that began with her PhD, she explains ho
620: Former McKinsey partner on How to Turn a Profit and Improve Lives in the World's Toughest Places (Strategy Skills classics)
This episode examines what happens when strategy is applied in environments where institutional stability, reliable data, and conventional partners cannot be assumed. Former McKinsey partner and University of Notre Dame Professor Emerita Viva Ona Bartkus draws on decades of experience across management consulting, academic research, and frontline fieldwork in conflict-affected regions to explain w
619: Founder of McKinsey's Strategy and Corporate Finance Insights Team on Measuring and Managing the Value of Companies (Strategy Skills classics)
In this episode, Tim Koller, co-author of Valuation and a leading authority on corporate finance, offers a substantive examination of capital allocation decisions under real-world constraints. The discussion moves beyond theory to explore how CEOs and CFOs should approach resource deployment in mature, capital-rich companies—where investment opportunities are limited not due to lack of ambition bu
618: Rethinking Capitalism, Innovation, AI, and the American Dream (with Elizabeth McBride and Seth Levine)
Elizabeth McBride and Seth Levine return to discuss the ideas behind their book Capital Evolution and the shifts they see across capitalism, innovation, and work. They describe conversations with young people who believe "socialism is the right answer," and explain why "nearly half of people under forty now don't think that capitalism works." They share experiences from a World Bank launch event w
617: Inc 5000 fastest growing company on Psychology behind leadership influence and human behavior (with MichaelAaron Flicker)
Michael explains that people often struggle because "adding and adding must be more effective," yet humans are "more confident when just one advantage is presented." He shares that Five Guys succeeded because they "only do burgers and fries" and that "if you say you are best at one thing most of all, they're more likely to believe that." He emphasizes that "buyers…have a top force-ranked prioritiz
616: NYU Stern's Prof on How AI Is Rewriting the Future of Work (with Ben Zweig)
When most executives discuss AI, they focus on automation. Dr. Ben Zweig, NYU Stern professor and CEO of Revelio Labs, explains why the real disruption isn't machines replacing people, it's our failure to rethink how work is structured. "Labor markets are not as sophisticated as capital markets," Ben explains. "We allocate capital efficiently, but not labor. That's a huge weakness in how our econo
615: $12B Investment Firm CEO on Saving the American Dream (with Mark Matson)
In this conversation, Mark explains that "we often build our lives on things we are certain about that simply are not true." He describes how "we don't actually see the world… we see screens of how we think the world is." He explains that these screens create "a double paradox" shaping what we think is safe, what we think is risky, and how we choose to act. Mark describes the difference between so
614: Why Executive Leaders Feel Lonely
Adam McGraw is a Fortune 100 VP turned entrepreneur and co-founder of CREW, a leadership community. "We try and really curate it for folks that are in the VP and above through CEOs as well, founders, etc., so that they have this kind of safe white space atmosphere to really consistently plug in and build community." "Not just transact network-wise in things that are typically narrow and niche… we
613: Microsoft CTO on AI, Human Agency and the Future of Work
Technology is reshaping the world at a pace few people, inside or outside the industry, expected. But every so often, you meet someone who has not only witnessed the major waves of technological change, but helped build them. In this conversation, Marcus Fontoura, Technical Fellow and Corporate Vice President at Microsoft, CTO for Azure Core, walks us through the story of AI, what leaders are gett
612: How to Have More Hope with Dr. Julia Garcia
In this episode, Dr. Julia Garcia explains why hope is a habit and why it is critical for us to remove what blocks hope. She describes what happens inside teams when leaders lose hope, including "the culture that creates, the burnout that leads to, the discouragement and defeat." Julia shows how unprocessed emotions drain leaders even when they appear high-functioning. "If we emotionally feel disc
611: Former U.S. Intelligence Officer on AI, Leadership, and Thinking Like a Spy (with Anthony Vinci)
In this conversation, Anthony Vinci explains that "AI is going to be able to do more and more of what people do." He describes a future where "AI is going to get better and better at doing what people do," and highlights that leaders must understand "how do you figure out what AI is good at and then implement it to do that" and "how do you manage your workforce so that they are able to partner wit
610: Cas Holman on Play, Creativity, and the Future of Work
When was the last time you played, really played? For Cas Holman, founder and chief designer of Heroes Will Rise and star of Netflix's Abstract: The Art of Design, play isn't childish. It's the foundation of human creativity, resilience, and connection. She worked with LEGO, Disney Imagineering, and the LEGO Foundation and on a mission to help adults rediscover what children know instinctively: th
609: UCLA Professor and MD on How Gravity Shapes Your Health and Mind
Dr. Brennan Spiegel, Director of Health Services Research at Cedars-Sinai and Professor of Medicine and Public Health at UCLA, author of the book Pull, explains why illness is often a failure to manage gravity. He describes how our relationship with gravity defines strength, balance, digestion, mental stability, and emotional health. Take the Gravotype Quiz at BrennanSpiegelMD.com to identify how
608: Harvard Professor and former CEO of Medtronic, Bill George, on How Leaders Should Manage Challenging Times
Bill George, former CEO of Medtronic and Harvard Business School Executive Fellow, explains how leaders can stay grounded, principled, and effective in chaotic times. "It's a world of chaos and it requires a very different kind of leader than in more stable times." The skills that once mattered (process control, long-term plans) are now secondary to courage, self-awareness, and moral clarity. Geor
607: Raj Sisodia on Conscious Capitalism and How Business Can Heal the World
Raj Sisodia has spent his life asking one question: Can business make people's lives better instead of draining them? He holds a PhD in Marketing and Business Policy from Columbia University, co-founded Conscious Capitalism with John Mackey, the founder of Whole Foods Market, and has advised global companies from Tata Group to AT&T. But his path started in a factory in Bombay, earning a hundred do
606: CEO Readiness: How Boards Decide Who Gets the Top Job
Byron Loflin, Global Head of Board Advisory at Nasdaq and co-author of CEO Ready, explained on the Strategy Skills Podcast why many talented executives never make it to the top. " Because you perform well isn't going to automatically get you the job." Boards are looking for more than results. They look for humility, curiosity, and authentic relationships across stakeholders. Byron shared a persona
605: Harvard Economist John Campbell on How to Stop Losing Money to a Broken Financial System
John Campbell, Professor of Economics at Harvard University and co-author of Fixed, joined the Strategy Skills Podcast to explain why the financial system often works against ordinary investors and how to make better personal-finance decisions. After decades studying markets and investor behavior, Campbell saw a pattern: even educated, high-income earners routinely make avoidable mistakes in housi
604: How Design Thinking Rebuilt IBM and Reached 400,000 Employees
Phil Gilbert led one of the most significant cultural transformations in corporate history, as IBM's General Manager of Design, he helped the 400,000-person company reinvent how it thinks, listens, and builds products. In this in-depth interview, Phil shares the playbook behind "Irresistible Change", his approach to scaling design thinking, transforming culture, and helping teams adopt new ways
603: A $3.6B CEO on the "Poverty of Dignity" in Corporate America
Bob Chapman, CEO of Barry-Wehmiller, explains how he built a $3.6 billion company by placing human dignity at the center of leadership. He describes the moment he recognized that "our history does not give us the future that we deserve," and how this led to a disciplined focus on balance, diversifying customers, industries, and technologies to create a stable enterprise. Bob recounts the insight
602: Harvard's Scott Levy on His Path from Investment Banking to Public Education and Leading in Uncertain Times
Scott Levy spent two decades as an investment banker at firms like J.P. Morgan, advising corporate boards and senior executives on risk, growth, and capital decisions. Then he pivoted, serving on a public school board, teaching at Harvard, and writing Why School Boards Matter. In this episode, we discuss: How Levy broke into investment banking and the lessons that carried him through twenty ye
601: Former CNN and NBC News Anchor Lynn Smith on Building Authentic Presence and Excellent Communication
Lynn Smith, former national news anchor for NBC News, MSNBC, and CNN Headline New, and now executive communication coach, reframes public speaking as an internal leadership skill, not a performance. She identifies the recurring obstacle as the "brain bully", the inner critic that turns preparation into paralysis, and shows leaders how to retrain it so that clarity, calm, and connection become repe
600: Jamie Dimon & CEOs Are Rethinking Capitalism – Here's What That Means for You
Is capitalism still working, or is it due for an upgrade? In this must-watch episode, authors Seth Levine and Elizabeth McBride discuss insights from their book Capital Evolution, sharing what they learned from interviewing top CEOs, including Jamie Dimon, Dan Schulman (PayPal), Peter Stavros (KKR), and others who are helping to reshape the social contract of business. They explore: Why Jami
599: Joy at Work in the Age of AI: The Pain Is Optional (with Bree Groff)
"Most people can't remember the last time they went to bed and thought: today was fun." In this conversation with Bree Groff, author of Today Was Fun, we recenter the conversation on joy, pleasure, and meaning at work. Bree shares why her mom always said, "I have the best days," what it taught her about how we spend our lives, and why fun is not frivolous, it's the driver of creativity, performa
598: From Gas Station Cashier to Billion-Dollar CEO with Shirin Behzadi
What does it really take to go from working as a gas station cashier to leading a billion-dollar company? In this Strategy Skills Podcast episode, host Kris Safarova speaks with Shirin Behzadi, author of The Unexpected CEO and former CEO of Home Franchise Concepts, where she scaled the business to nearly $1B in sales across 12,000 cities. This is a remarkable entrepreneurship journey and CEO s
597: McKinsey Senior Partner, Vik Malhotra, on What Distinguishes the Best Leaders
Vik Malhotra, McKinsey senior partner and coauthor of CEO Excellence and A CEO for All Seasons, examines the strategic pressures that now define the CEO role: a "30- to 40-year tech revolution," intensifying geopolitics, shifting consumer behavior, and demographic change. As he notes, "every business at some level is a tech business," and this multipolar, fast-changing environment places a premium
596: Ex-Siemens & Alcoa CEO Klaus Kleinfeld on AI, Energy & Leading at the Highest Level
Few leaders have run Fortune 500 giants on different continents. Dr. Klaus Kleinfeld has. As CEO of Siemens (Germany) and Alcoa (U.S.), he has led global transformations across industries and advised presidents and heads of state. In this interview, Klaus shares: Why time management is a myth and energy is the real driver of performance How leaders must "AI-ize" their organizations or risk i
595: What AI Can't Replace: Former design lead at IDEO on Safe Danger, Trust, and the Future of Work
In this week's Strategy Skills episode, we spoke with Ben Swire, author of Safe Danger and former leader at IDEO. His thesis is trust and psychological safety aren't byproducts. They're designable conditions. And when designed correctly, they create room for calculated risk, creativity, and deeper collaboration. Below are a few insights that stood out: 1. Experiential culture > Instructional cultu
594: $2 Billion NYC Real Estate Broker on the Strategy of Homeownership
Scott Harris, a New York City real estate broker with more than $2 billion in career sales and author of The Pursuit of Home, reframes buying and selling property as an emotional journey—"a place where life is happening for you"—that requires the same discipline leaders apply to strategy, systems, and people. Drawing on two decades of high-volume practice, he shows how clarity, structure, and empa
593: New York Times Bestselling Author on How to Overcome Fear & Build Emotional Resilience (with Jim Murphy)
In this episode, Jim Murphy, New York Times bestselling author, shares how leaders can build resilience, reframe fear, and operate at their highest level under pressure. His approach blends performance psychology, neuroscience, and spiritual discipline. 1. Identity Beyond Roles Murphy emphasizes the risk of anchoring identity in professional roles or achievements: "When I lost baseball due to inju
592: London School of Economics Lecturer on AI, Strategy, and the Future of Marketing
This week's podcast features Jenna Tiffany, London School of Economics lecturer, sharing actionable insights on why most marketing misses the mark and what real value looks like in an AI-driven business environment. Key discussion points include: The real reason marketing sometimes fails to deliver measurable value, and why strategy must be linked to clear organizational objectives. How AI i
591: Founder and CEO of Xenopsi Ventures on Behavioral Science That Sells
MichaelAaron Flicker, founder and CEO of Xenopsi Ventures and coauthor of Hacking the Human Mind, explains how applied behavioral science transforms insight into repeatable commercial advantage across brands, products, and customer experiences. Drawing from his experience building multiple Inc. 5000–recognized companies, Flicker illustrates how understanding "the unconscious biases that drive our
590: Wall Street Journal Best Selling Author on What Good Leaders Can Learn From Bad Bosses
Mita Mallick, Wall Street Journal–bestselling author and workplace strategist, examines how everyday managerial choices determine whether organizations are resilient, humane, and productive. Drawing on her leadership roles in marketing and human resources, as well as her lived experience as a woman of color in corporate America, she reframes common leadership breakdowns as design failures that can
589: CEO of FCLT Global and Former Senior Engagement Manager at McKinsey & Company on Turning Investor Dialogue into Strategy
Sarah Keohane Williamson, CEO of FCLT Global and coauthor of The CEO's Guide to the Investment Galaxy, offers a disciplined primer for executives operating at the intersection of corporate strategy and capital markets. Drawing from her background in investment banking, government, consulting, and asset management, she explains why "investors are not a single audience," how their incentives shape c
588: Former CEO of Jamba Juice on Leading with Culture
James D. White, former CEO of Jamba Juice, current board chair, and coauthor of Culture Design, shares how culture becomes a management discipline rather than a slogan. Drawing on his eight-year turnaround of Jamba, service on more than 15 boards, and leadership toolkit, he explains how listening, rituals, and disciplined systems embed values into sustained performance. Key takeaways: Start wi
587: Globally Recognized Marketing Strategist on How to Build Brands That Dominate
Laura Ries, globally recognized marketing strategist and author of The Strategic Enemy, outlines a category-first approach to brand building. As she explains, "while people talk in brands, they really think in categories. The category is king." Her core message: focus, contrast, and clarity determine whether a brand leads or disappears. The conversation emphasizes why narrowing focus creates str
586: Father of the Cable Modem Rouzbeh Yassini-Fard on Innovation and the Global Broadband Transformation
Rouzbeh Yassini-Fard, founder of LANcity, author of The Accidental Network, and widely known as the "father of the cable modem", shares the story of how broadband was built and the lessons it offers for today's leaders navigating AI and emerging technologies. Arriving in the U.S. with $750 in savings, Yassini-Fard envisioned carrying "voice, data and video… over one cable instead of two" at a ti
585: Former Goldman Sachs Executive, Erin Coupe, on Rituals for Success, Meditation, and Self-Leadership
Former Goldman Sachs executive Erin Coupe shares how she transformed her life and career by replacing routines with rituals, practicing meditation, and stepping into self-leadership. In this episode of the Strategy Skills Podcast, Kris Safarova and Erin dive deep into practical lessons for entrepreneurs, consultants, and online business owners who want more clarity, energy, and independence. B
584: ESSEC Business School Professor on How Geopolitics Shapes Corporate Strategy
Srividya Jandhyala, professor of management at ESSEC Business School and author of The Great Disruption, offers a clear framework for how geopolitics is reshaping corporate strategy. Her central thesis is direct: "The fundamental idea, 'Where are you from?'—the nationality of the company—is the defining feature of the type of reactions you face from all stakeholders, not just governments, but also
583: The Four Pillars of Elite Teams (with Colin M. Fisher)
In this rigorous and insight-rich episode, Dr. Colin Fisher, author of The Collective Edge, deconstructs high-performing teams using decades of organizational research and field-tested frameworks. If you lead, manage, or influence teams, the insights here can recalibrate how you build and guide collaboration. We explore four foundational elements (Composition, Goals, Tasks, and Norms) and disman
582: McKinsey's Venkat Atluri, How to thrive in the ecosystem economy (Strategy Skills classics)
Venkat Atluri, McKinsey senior partner and coauthor of The Ecosystem Economy: How to Lead in the New Age of Sectors Without Borders, explains how value creation is shifting from stand-alone enterprises to coordinated networks of collaborators. Drawing on two decades advising leaders in technology, media, and telecom, he outlines what makes ecosystem businesses distinct from traditional conglomerat
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