Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our Future
This podcast explores how leadership must evolve to keep pace with accelerating change, as demonstrated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Host Maureen Metcalf interviews world leaders, executives, thought leaders, and researchers weekly to provide diverse perspectives on innovative leadership. The show aims to help listeners grow their teams, businesses, and themselves by learning from a breadth of experiences. New episodes are available every Tuesday night on major podcast platforms.
Episodes
Leading on Overload: Managing Stress & Focus
Guest: Maryanna Klatt, Ph.D.
Everyone needs your attention. But you’re exhausted; how much do you have left?
When your days are filled with meetings, messages, and difficult decisions, pushing through the overload and stress becomes a habit. You keep delivering, but finish the day exhausted, distracted, and still replaying a conversation that ended hours ago.
Maureen Metcalf welcomes mindfulne
The Human Case: What AI Strategies Miss
Guest: Jack Myers, author of Your Third Brain
Your AI business case measures time saved and costs reduced. Does it measure the judgment ability your organization could lose?
Jack Myers joins Maureen Metcalf to explore how automation and management cuts can quietly dismantle the very human mentoring, relationships, and accountability that help organizations make sound decisions.
Drawing on five dec
What Good Bosses Do Differently
Guest: Mike Morrow-Fox
You thought this made you a good boss: you hired capable people and gave them room to work. But do they experience that freedom as trust, or as being left on their own?
The answer could indicate they see you as a bad boss instead.
Maureen Metcalf and Mike Morrow-Fox examine what separates a good boss from a leader who is simply good at running operations. Mike shares the
Let Others Decide: How DHL’s COO Shares Authority
Guest: Mike McLellan, COO, DHL Supply Chain North America
You hired capable leaders. Can they make a decision you wouldn’t have made…and still count on your support?
Mike McLellan, Chief Operating Officer of DHL Supply Chain North America, admits he likes control. But when a vice president proposed a reorganization different from his own vision, he recognized that his plan wasn’t better, dhl.com
Growing Beyond What You Do So Well
Guest: Lesley Southwick-Trask
You’ve earned a reputation for knowing what you’re doing. When did you last let yourself learn something you might be bad at?
Cultural anthropologist, CEO, and leadership strategist Lesley Southwick-Trask joins Maureen Metcalf to explore how unfamiliar experiences can help accomplished leaders see problems differently. Through stories of a skeptical engineer in an art
Beyond Process: Developing Better Decisions
Guest: Jonathan Reams
Your leadership team identifies a recurring problem, redesigns the process, and sees improvement…temporarily. Then the same problem returns wearing slightly different clothes.
What didn’t the leaders fix? According to adult-development researcher Jonathan Reams: “Themselves.”
In this conversation with host Maureen Metcalf, Jonathan explains why a decision process can perf
Forecast Isn’t Fact: Building Strength from Uncertainty
Guest: Paul Gibbons
What if your organization’s greatest strength is also making it dangerously fragile?
In this specially selected archival follow-up, Maureen Metcalf revisits a provocative conversation with Paul Gibbons, author of The Science of Successful Organizational Change. Paul explains why resilience -- returning to where you were before a disruption -- may no longer be enough. Truly an
From TEDx to Team Talk: How to Make Messages Matter
Guest: Ruth Milligan
Your expertise may earn you a seat at the table, but it doesn’t guarantee anyone will remember what you say.
Executive communication coach and TEDx pioneer Ruth Milligan joins Maureen Metcalf to explain why accomplished leaders struggle to influence a room, especially when their command of the subject tempts them to share too much. The audience rarely needs everything you kn
Design a Culture That Boosts Performance
Guests: Jim Ritchie-Dunham, Annabel Membrillo & Ana Claudia Goncalves
Why do organizations hire capable people, then squeeze them into systems that prevent them from contributing their best?
Jim Ritchie-Dunham, Ana Claudia Goncalves, and Anabel Membrillo join Maureen Metcalf to examine the invisible agreements that shape organizational culture, employee engagement, and business performance.
Dr
Making a Stronger Organization through Change
Guest: Paul Gibbons
Why do intelligent leaders approve sound change initiatives, then struggle to turn them into action?
In this episode, host Maureen Metcalf speaks with Paul Gibbons, organizational change expert and author of The Science of Successful Organizational Change. Drawing on behavioral science, philosophy, and decades of business experience, Paul explains why facts and rational argum
Leadership, Power, & the Psychology of Better Decisions
Guest: Manfred Kets de Vries
Every executive has experienced it.
A strategy looked sound. The data was convincing. The leadership team agreed. Yet the outcome still fell short.
Why?
According to renowned leadership scholar Manfred Kets de Vries, the answer isn't in the strategy itself, but in the psychology of the people making decisions.
In this thought-provoking episode, Maureen Metcalf sits dow
Leadership Skills Nobody Teaches: Wisdom & Compassion
Guest: Cindy Wigglesworth
Can leaders continue to grow after mastering emotional intelligence?
For years, leadership development has emphasized IQ and Emotional Intelligence (EQ) as essential capabilities. But there is another dimension that separates good leaders from truly exceptional ones.
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf welcomes Cindy Wigglesworth, founder of Deep Change and creator of the
Why Top Talent Says “No, Thanks” to Leadership Jobs
What if your organization's leadership shortage isn't a talent problem, but a leadership job design problem?
Many organizations are investing heavily in leadership development while watching their leadership pipelines grow weaker. Why? According to Gallagher's latest research, talented employees are looking at leadership roles and deciding they don't want them.
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf spe
Lasting Solutions for Labor Shortages
Guests: Dave DuBose & Will O’Brien
What if your labor shortage isn't really a hiring problem?
When workers are scarce, the conventional responses are predictable: raise wages, offer bonuses, hire earlier, add temporary labor, and hope you make it through the next peak. But what if those tactics are treating the symptoms while leaving the real problem untouched?
Supply chain leaders Will O'Brie
Decision Velocity: The Leadership System for Better Decisions
Guests: Greg Moran & Christopher Washington
What if your organization's biggest competitive disadvantage isn't your strategy; it's how long it takes to turn insight into action?
Many leadership teams are filled with smart, experienced people, yet they still struggle to respond quickly to problems. The issue is rarely the quality of their leaders. It's the system those leaders are working withi
Why Human-Centered Systems Outperform Technology Alone
Guests: Scott Dresser & Sandy Gordon, Amazon VPs
As organizations race to adopt AI and automation, many leaders are asking the wrong question. The challenge isn't how to deploy better technology. It's how to build human-centered systems that allow people and technology to thrive together.
In this special episode, Maureen Metcalf speaks with two Amazon executives responsible for making one of t
Why Smart Companies Make Bad Decisions
Guest: Mats Alvesson
If your organization is full of smart people, why does it keep making bad decisions?
In this thought-provoking episode, Maureen Metcalf and Christopher Washington are joined by Professor Mats Alvesson, one of the world's leading organizational scholars and author of The Stupidity Paradox.
Alvesson introduces the concept of “functional stupidity”—the tendency for intelligent in
Reciprocity: Why Giving Creates Better Teams
Guests: Brian Ahearn Chief Influence Officer
Many leaders believe their job is to deliver results, not to be liked. But what if that assumption is limiting their effectiveness?
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf welcomes back Brian Ahearn to explore the leadership power of liking and reciprocity. Drawing on decades of research in influence, Brian explains why people are more willing to support l
With Great Success Comes Great Responsibility
Guest: Holly Sullivan, Amazon VP of Worldwide Economic Development
What happens when leadership decisions affect not just an organization, but entire communities?
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf speaks with Holly Sullivan, Vice President of Worldwide Economic Development at Amazon. Holly oversees initiatives that influence billions of dollars in investment, workforce development, infrastructure,
The Leadership Strength You Have (But Aren’t Using)
Guests: Christopher & Sheila Cooke
Today's leaders face a paradox: the problems confronting organizations are increasingly complex, yet the leadership approaches we've relied on for decades are producing diminishing returns.
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf is joined by Christopher and Sheila Cooke, founders of Five Deep and pioneers in the study of human emergence, developmental leadership, a
How AI Preserves Humanity at Ancestry
Guest: Howard Hochhauser, CEO, Ancestry
Many organizations are rushing to embrace AI, launch new initiatives, and pursue growth. But in the process, they’re losing sight of the very things that made them successful in the first place: their mission, their customers, and their identity.
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf sits down with Howard Hochhauser, CEO of Ancestry, to explore how he helped retu
How Great Leaders Influence (without Manipulating)
Guest: Brian Ahearn, Chief Influence Officer
Most leaders assume their biggest challenge is strategy. In reality, the greater challenge is getting people to willingly move with you.
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf speaks with persuasion expert Brian Ahearn about the psychology of persuasion and why ethical influence has become one of the defining leadership capabilities of our time.
Drawing on th
Super Creativity: The Leadership Skill AI Can’t Replace
Guest: James Taylor, Supercreativity author
In this thought-provoking episode, we sit down with global creativity and innovation expert James Taylor to explore one of the defining leadership questions of our time:
As AI automates more routine work, what becomes uniquely human — and uniquely valuable?
James introduces the concept of “super creativity”: the amplification of human creativity through
Bridging Research & Practice: The Medical Model You Can Use
Guest: William Smoyer, MD
Healthcare is approaching a breaking point: costs are rising faster than inflation, outcomes remain inconsistent, and the current model is no longer sustainable.
In this episode, Dr. William Smoyer, Vice President for Clinical and Translational Research at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, shares a breakthrough approach called “Learn from Every Patient.” Instead of separa
From Hype to Impact: How to Get AI Right
Guest: Maria Angel Ferrero, CEO, Makia Labs
Most organizations are investing heavily in AI, but very few are seeing meaningful results
In this episode, Maria Angel Ferrero challenges one of the most dangerous assumptions leaders are making today: that adopting AI tools is enough to drive transformation. It isn’t.
As Maria makes clear, tools don’t change organizations; systems driven by people
Turning Conflict from Avoidance to Advantage
Guest: Mike Morrow-Fox, PhD
What if avoiding conflict is the very thing holding your team back?
Most leaders believe great teams minimize workplace conflict. But the reality is far more uncomfortable…and far more powerful.
In this episode, returning guest Mike Morrow-Fox breaks down why one negative team member can reduce productivity by up to 40%, why “bad apple” behavior spreads faster than
The 5% Problem: Rampant Change (& How to Survive)
Guest: Greg Moran, CTO of Pyx Health
The pace of change leaders are reacting to today is only 5% of what’s coming.
In this episode, host Maureen Metcalf sits down with CTO Greg Moran to explore what accelerating technological change actually demands from leaders right now. Moving beyond abstract conversations about disruption, they dig into the practical realities facing organizations: collapsing
Agape Capitalism: Can Ethics & Profit Coexist in Business?
Guests: Jim Grote, founder of Donato’s Pizza, & Tom Grote, Chief Catalyst, Edge Innovation Hub
What if the future of capitalism depends on something most business leaders rarely talk about, and even disdain: love?
In this episode, Jim and Tom Grote, leaders behind Donatos Pizza and the Grote Company, share their decades-long experiment in Agape Capitalism, a business model grounded in the prin
How Culture Steers Through Crisis: The Eventbrite Story
Guest: Julia Hartz, EventBrite Co-Founder & former CEO
In a matter of days, Eventbrite went from growth to crisis, processing more refunds than revenue as live events canceled worldwide
In this episode, Julia Hartz shares what it really takes to lead when the business you built suddenly stops working.
Drawing on a 20-year journey spanning startup, hypergrowth, IPO, global expansion, and ev
Getting Positive Results from Hard Conversations
Guest: Dr. Marcia Reynolds
Why do difficult conversations so often go wrong, even when you prepare for them?
In this episode, host Maureen Metcalf sits down with Dr. Marcia Reynolds to explore how leaders can turn resistance into meaningful results. While most approaches focus on what to say, Marcia reveals that real change happens when leaders shift mindsets, starting with their own.
Together
Why You Fight Against Your Own Interests: Lessons from a Peace Negotiator
Guest: Lord John Alderdice, House of Lords & Peace Negotiator
What if conflict isn’t driven by rational self-interest, but by something far more human?
In this episode, Lord John Alderdice—psychiatrist, political leader, and key architect of the Good Friday Agreement which brought peace to Northern Ireland—shares a radically different lens on conflict. Drawing from decades of peace negotiation
Building the Systems (& People) That Sustain Growth
Guest: Carla Morelli, Scale and M&A Exec
What really happens when organizations try to grow?
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf speaks with Carla Morelli about why many organizations struggle to scale, even when strategy and market opportunity are strong. They explore how growth exposes weaknesses in leadership, decision architecture, and culture, and why scaling successfully requires more than
The Illusion of Leadership: Neuroscience Finds Who’s Really in Control
Guest: Gary Weber, PhD
Your conscious mind may not be in control. That’s becoming clear to neuroscientists, and it explains why smart, experienced leaders miss obvious issues and disruptions so often.
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf speaks with neuroscience researcher Gary Weber about what modern brain science reveals about decision-making, confirmation bias, and strategic blind spots.
Research s
AI, Your Story, & the Professional Identity Crisis
Guest: Christopher Washington, Provost Emeritus
The real challenge for leaders facing disruption isn’t technical. It’s psychological.
In this episode, Christopher Washington joins host Maureen Metcalf to explore why transformation efforts fail, even when strategy, data, and logic are sound. Christopher argues that the missing lever in most change efforts is narrative.
Strategy tells people what to
Leading to Shape the Future: Scharmer’s Theory U
Guest: Otto Scharmer
In times of disruption, new strategies are not enough. According to Otto Scharmer, what determines the success of an intervention is the leader's interior condition.
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf sits down with Otto Scharmer, Senior Lecturer at MIT and co-founder of the Presencing Institute, to explore the principles behind Theory U and why traditional change management t
Leadership at the Edge of Uncertainty: Lessons from Davos
Guest: Helle Bank Jørgensen, Global Managing Director of Board Intelligence
What happens when global leaders gather at Davos amid rising geopolitical tension, collapsing trust, and compounding global risk?
In this episode, host Maureen Metcalf is joined by Helle Bank Jørgensen, a global pioneer in board effectiveness and a leading voice on governance, risk, and sustainability. Fresh from the World
High-Performance Medicine: Healthcare’s Lesson for Your Elite Teams
Guest: Brian Ferguson, CEO, Arena Labs
Burnout is a real and growing issue in the workplace.
The healthcare industry provides a perfect example. It demands life-and-death decisions under relentless pressure…yet doctors, nurses, and frontline teams are rarely equipped the way elite performers are in sports and the military.
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf speaks with Brian Ferguson, founder of
The End of Stability: Leading in a Disrupted World
Guest: Robert Bush, Jr., CEO, Mutombo Coffee
Volatility is no longer cyclical. It’s structural.
That’s one takeaway from Davos. In this episode, Maureen Metcalf speaks with global strategist, board advisor, and CEO Bob Bush Jr. about what leadership looks like when stability is no longer a realistic planning assumption. Drawing on insights from Davos, global operating models, and lived experien
Leveraging Technology to Deepen Human Performance
Guest: Brian Ferguson, CEO & Founder of Arena Labs
Technology is accelerating faster than most leaders can adapt. But speed isn’t the real challenge. In this episode, Brian Ferguson joins host Maureen Metcalf to explore why human performance matters more, not less, in an era of exponential change.
Drawing on examples from high-stakes environments such as medicine and defense, their conversatio
More than Experience, More than Degrees: Leaders Need More Values
Guest: George Limbert, former President, Red Roof Inns
In this time defined by AI disruption, post-COVID workforce tension, and growing leadership fatigue, trust has become the most critical (and most fragile) asset leaders hold.
In this episode, George Limbert, new president of Innovative Executive Solutions, joins host Maureen Metcalf to explore why modern leadership is no longer about control
Greater than Fact: The Power of Leading with Stories
Guest: Paul Smith, former Procter & Gamble VP
What if the most effective leaders didn’t need to explain more, push harder, or manage excuses?
In this episode, host Maureen Metcalf is joined by leadership storytelling expert Paul Smith for a thought-provoking conversation about how leaders can most effectively influence behavior…and why logic alone so often fail at this.
Drawing on neurosci
The End of Control - The Leadership Trends of 2026
Guest: Christopher Washington, Provost Emeritus
As we look ahead to 2026, one truth is becoming impossible to ignore: the leadership models that built today’s organizations are no longer sufficient for the world we’re entering.
In this annual trends conversation, Maureen Metcalf, our usual host, is interviewed by Christopher Washington, Provost Emeritus of Franklin University, to explore the dee
Leading When We’ve Stopped Thinking: AI’s Red Flag
Guest: Srini Koushik, 3-time Fortune 500 CIO
What if the greatest risk of artificial intelligence isn’t that machines become too human, but that humans stop thinking?
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf sits down with veteran technology leader Srini Koushik to explore why AI represents not just a technological shift, but a fundamental change in how humans think, decide, and lead.
Drawing on decad
What Leaders Miss in the Talent Shortage Myth
Guest: Doug McCollough, CEO of Color Coded Labs
What does leadership require once you have real influence? Then how do you attract top talent to your team?
In this episode, Maureen Metcalf is joined by Doug McCullough, a senior technology leader working across smart cities, workforce development, and community-based talent pipelines.Their conversation moves beyond surface-level discussions of di
Inside Amazon’s Big Bets: Leading on Climate and Delivery
Recorded live at Amazon's Delivering the Future event!
How do you lead responsibly at scale in a world defined by complexity?
In this episode, Amazon executives Kara Hurst and Sarah Mathew share how they approach some of the most pressing challenges in global business today: climate impact, water scarcity, customer expectations, AI-driven energy demands, and improving delivery across thousands of
When Women Lead: Courage, Change, and Representation
Guest: Joyce Beatty, U.S. Congresswoman
Joyce Beatty joins host Maureen Metcalf for a powerful conversation on leadership, resilience, and advancing equity in a rapidly changing world.
From growing up in segregated America to becoming an influential voice in Congress, Beatty shares the defining moments that shaped her leadership, including navigating bias, breaking barriers, and pushing for system
Leading Smart Cities: Transforming Work & Life
Guests: Nikki Greenberg, Futurist, & Ugo Valenti, SCEWC Managing Director
How do we build cities—and organizations—that can thrive amid AI disruption, climate pressure, demographic shifts, and rising expectations for livability?
In this episode, futurist Nikki Greenberg and Smart City Expo World Congress managing director Ugo Valenti reveal how urban design, public–private collaboration, and
Self-Awareness: The #1 Predictor of Leadership Success
Guest: Belinda Gore, PhD
Your leadership style affects everything: your decisions, your culture, your team, your impact.
But most leaders operate on autopilot, unaware of the unconscious patterns shaping their choices.
In this conversation, host Maureen Metcalf talks with psychologist and Enneagram expert Belinda Gore about the importance of self-awareness, the nine leadership personality types, a
Logistics as Lifelines: Amazon’s Disaster Relief Programs
Recorded live at Amazon's Delivering the Future event!
How can large organizations use their core capabilities to solve real community needs?
In this episode, we explore how Amazon applies its logistics network, technology, and innovation to support communities during disasters and address food insecurity at scale.
The first segment features Bettina Stix, Director of Amazon Community Impact, discu
Pets, Purpose, and Power: The Animal Science of Leadership
Guest: Rustin Moore, Dean: The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine
Is your dog trying to teach you how to lead better?
Dr. Rustin Moore joins host Maureen Metcalf to explore the profound connection between human physiology, emotional steadiness, and effective leadership. From the biochemical power of oxytocin to the social wisdom of packs, hives, and herds, Moore draws parallels
Tech with Purpose: Protecting People with Innovation at Amazon
Recorded live at Amazon's Delivering the Future event!
Amazon is reinventing the future of work. with robots that can feel, AI smart glasses for delivery drivers, and new safety-first systems that transform how millions of packages move every day. In this episode, we go behind the scenes at Amazon’s “Delivering the Future” event to explore how technology, robotics, and human-centered leadership ar
Our Emotional Recession: How to Lead When People Are Depleted
Guest: Joshua Freedman, CEO & Co-Founder of Six Seconds
Around the world, people are emotionally exhausted, socially polarized, and struggling to stay engaged at work. Global emotional intelligence scores have declined for several years, and leaders today face an unseen burden: an emotional tax on every interaction, decision, and relationship.
In this episode, emotional intelligence expert Jos
Think Acoustics, Not Optics: How Sound Will Transform Leaders
Guest: Brad Diskin, CEO of SGI
AI can see. But can it hear?
Meet Brad Diskin, CEO of Sound Genetics Inc. (SGI), the company teaching machines to listen. In this interview with host Maureen Metcalf, you’ll explore how acoustic intelligence is transforming security, leadership, and innovation across industries.
From detecting deepfakes and authenticating human voices to predicting infrastructure
From Stress to Strength: How to Rewire Your Brain for Resilience
Guest: Jon Wortmann, Leadership Coach & Principal at Novel Communication
What makes some overloaded leaders bounce back stronger, while others burn out?
In this episode, host Maureen Metcalf talks with executive coach and resilience author Jon Wortmann about how leaders can train their brains to stay calm, clear, and focused, even in chaos.
Wortmann draws from neuroscience, mindfulness researc
From Data to Dialogue: Why Leaders Need More than Numbers
Guest: Rens van Loon, Professor at Tilburg University
What do you do when logic and data aren’t enough? Today’s biggest leadership challenges—culture change, systemic disruption, complex decision-making—are wicked problems. They can’t be solved with old habits.
In this interview, Professor Rens van Loon, the world’s first Professor of Dialogical Leadership, explains how generative dialogue empower
Fear Less, Shine More: Build Confidence in Your Leadership (& Life)
Guest: Tonjia Coverdale, Ph.D., CEO at Lambiante
Fearless leadership doesn’t mean living without fear; it means learning to fear less.
In this episode, Dr. Tonjia Coverdale shares her seven-level framework that helps leaders align who they are with how they lead. Together with host Maureen Metcalf, she explores how to create clarity and confidence in yourself, and high-performing teams as a resu
Why Corporate Social Purpose Also Means Profit
Guest: John Heiser, founder/CEO of TRG
Can a business make money AND make the world better? John Heiser says yes.
John, the former president/COO of Magnetrol, shares powerful stories about transforming the manufacturing company into a true social institution. He discovered that for-profit companies really can thrive when they also embrace their role in helping their communities flourish.
Here's wh
What’s the Point? Why Your Leadership Needs Purpose
Guest: Ryan Gottfredson, Ph.D., leadership researcher
Most leadership development fails because it focuses only on skills and knowledge, but real transformation happens deeper…all the way down to upgrading your mental operating system.
Professor and researcher Ryan Gottfredson explains how upgrading your inner operating system (not just adding new “apps” of skills) shifts leaders from self-prote
Heroes No More: Why Good Leaders Step Out of the Spotlight
Guest: Gama Perruci
What if leadership really isn’t about leaders anymore?
We revisit our eye-opening conversation with the late Dr. Gama Perruci — former Dean of the McDonough Leadership Center — as he challenged the “lone leader” and “hero leader” narratives we love so much. Instead, he found what works best for business is a powerful five-component leadership model: Leader, Follower, Goal, Co
Reinvent, Collaborate, Succeed: A CEO’s Winning Leadership Formula
Guest: Susan Howe, CEO of Weber Shandwick
What does it take to lead a global organization through constant change? In this conversation, host Maureen Metcalf sits down with Susan Howe, CEO of Weber Shandwick, to explore the leadership strategies behind one of the world’s leading PR firms.
Howe offers practical strategies for executives navigating organizational transformation, AI-driven change,
A CEO’s Three Ms: Mountaineering, Mindsets, and Modernizing Leadership
Guest: Aldo Boitano
What does climbing K2 – the world’s second-highest and deadliest mountain – teach about leadership?
Pretty much everything, according to guest Aldo Boitano. The CEO, founder, consultant, and former International Leadership Association board member reveals how his mountain climbing and Antarctic expeditions taught him the most critical skills modern leaders need.
Here's what A
Disrupted! How to Break Free of Your Old Leadership Habits
Guest: Mark Monchek
What on earth is an Unconference?
Traditional leadership models are cracking under the weight of today’s rapid change. Strategist and unconference co-creator Mark Monchek reveals why legacy leadership models—top-down authority, rigid planning, and competition-first thinking—are no longer fit for a world defined by disruption. The solution will come through the unconference: a
Forget Power: How to Lead in a World of Chaos & Complexity
Guest: Michelle Harrison, Global CEO of Verian
What does it take to lead when trust is collapsing and change won’t slow down?
Based on the real-world issues faced by her clients, Dr. Harrison shares bold insights on leading through crisis, restoring public trust, and driving innovation in both government and business. She explores the role of intellectual curiosity, adaptive learning, and values
To Stop a Tyrant: The Power of Followers
Guest: Ira Chaleff
What can you do when leadership at work crosses the line into authoritarian control?
We talk about authoritarians in politics, but they’re in the business world, too…and on the rise there. In this timely and provocative episode, Maureen Metcalf interviews Ira Chaleff, author of To Stop a Tyrant and The Courageous Follower, to explore how power is exercised, and challenged, ins
The Power of Polarity Thinking: How Great Leaders Leverage Opposites
Guest: Dr. Barry Johnson
If you think you have to solve problems, think again. You might be better off leveraging tensions instead!
Dr. Barry Johnson, creator of the Polarity Map®, joins host Maureen Metcalf to explore how “both/and” thinking helps leaders navigate complexity, avoid false choices, and drive sustainable performance. From clarity and flexibility to structure and innovation, Barry sh
AI at Work: The Human Side of Tech Transformation
Guest: Neil Sahota, United Nations AI Advisor
From internal sabotage and mistrust to ethical blind spots and cultural misalignment, this conversation dives deep into the real reasons AI transformations succeed or stall…and the solutions you need to make AI work in your company. You’ll also hear powerful examples of machine-human collaboration, the rise of AI bosses, and why trust is now a core lea
Why AI at Work Fails – And What the UN’s AI for Good Advisor Says You Can Do Differently
Guest: Neil Sahota, United Nations AI Advisor
Most AI failures aren’t caused by bad code. They’re caused by bad leadership.
In this episode, host Maureen Metcalf talks with UN AI advisor and IBM Master Inventor Neil Sahota to uncover the 5 fatal mistakes most organizations make when adopting AI. From the myth that AI is "just software" to the risk of automating bad processes, Neil explains why 4
Leadership in Crisis: Why Leaders Fail (& How to Help)
Guest: Sebastian Salicru, Psychologist & Author
Are we training leaders for a world that no longer exists?
Leadership expert and psychologist Sebastian Salicru joins host Maureen Metcalf to tackle one of today’s most pressing challenges: the failure of traditional leadership in a world defined by complexity and change. More importantly, they explore what today’s leaders actually need to succ
How Great Leaders Are Made: Insights from The Economist’s "Boss Class"
Guest: Andrew Palmer, The Economist columnist & Boss Class host
What makes a great boss, and why do so many managers get it wrong? The Economist columnist and Boss Class host Andrew Palmer joins Maureen Metcalf to break down what actually works in leadership today. From radical autonomy at Supercell to intentional culture-building at Toyota, this episode explores real-world strategies for crea
Leading through Difference: Key Skills from the ILA Board Chair
Guest: Mike Hardy, ILA Board Chair
The real leadership crisis isn’t about performance. It’s about how we handle differences.
In this powerful episode, Professor Mike Hardy, Founding Director of the Centre for Peace & Security, joins host Maureen Metcalf to explore the defining leadership challenge of our time: Pluralism vs. Prejudice.
It’s critical: even if your organization only operates in o
From Tariffs to Tempests: DHL’s COO on Strengthening Your Supply Chain
Guest: Mike McLellan, COO, DHL Supply Chain (North America)
What does it take to keep your business humming through tariffs, tornadoes, and all the other disruptions in today’s world?
Mike McLellan of DHL shares insights on building resilience, both in your leadership and your supply chains, the importance of redundancy, and how DHL provides an example of supporting clients in navigating challen
How Purpose-Driven Women Redefine What It Means to Lead
Guest: Dr. Karen Longman, Professor Emerita, Azusa Pacific University
Why do so many capable, driven women still get overlooked for top leadership roles—and what can we do about it?
In this powerful episode, host Maureen Metcalf sits down with Dr. Karen Longman, a global scholar on leadership and gender equity, to unpack the deep-rooted biases that shape how we define (and reward) leadership. Ther
Why Principle Beats Process: Inside the Koch Leadership Framework
Guest: Steve Daley, Koch President of Principle Based Management
What does it take to build a resilient, innovation-driven culture—without relying on rigid rules or micromanagement?
In this episode, Steve Daley shares how Koch reimagines work through Principle Based Management. Hosted by Maureen Metcalf, this conversation dives into how Koch empowers employees by trusting them with responsibility,
Lessons from Governors, Athletes, & Activists on Growing Women Leaders
Guest: Dr. Susan Madsen, Professor of Leadership, Utah State University
How did ten female governors become powerful, authentic woman leaders? What can you learn from them for your own leadership path?
In this inspiring conversation, host Maureen Metcalf sits down with Dr. Susan Madsen, founder of the Women and Leadership Project, to explore how women grow into their leadership identities—not
AI, Agility, & the Death of Business as Usual
Guest: Greg Moran, Ford’s Former Chief Strategy Officer
The time to “wait and see” is over. Thanks to AI, no matter what your industry, you need to act now. On everything.
That’s the core message from guest Greg Moran as he surveys a behind-the-scenes revolution AI has already spawned: fast, cheap development of new ideas. New technologies drastically reduce the time and cost to develop and depl
From Turbulence to Triumph: ILA’s Keys to Adapting Your Leadership
Guest: Cynthia Cherrey, President & CEO, International Leadership Association
The turbulence you see in the world now isn’t going away. Your leadership style must change to meet it.
Fortunately, guest Cynthia Cherrey sits at the very center of both the most effective real-world leadership practices and the latest cutting-edge leadership theories. In this episode, she shares the leadership de
Culture Change at 30,000 Feet: An Airport CEO’s Playbook
Guest: Joe Nardone, President & CEO, Columbus Regional Airport Authority
In this episode, Joe Nardone shares a candid, behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to build a $2 billion airport terminal…and a future-ready organization.
Joe dives into the true drivers of successful change: a relentless vision, a culture rooted in respect and innovation, and the hard reality that transformation often
Unraveling Uncertainty: Tesla's Former Interim CEO on the Real Job of Modern Leaders
Guest: Michael Marks, Founding Managing Partner at Celesta Capital & Former Tesla Interim CEO
Politics aside, tariffs simply can’t work without devastating business. That’s just one candid, no-nonsense point Michael Marks brings in his conversation with host Maureen Metcalf.
Marks is one of the most respected tech investors in Silicon Valley, with a four decade track record that includes hig
How Inner Work Transforms Your Leadership: Tools for Growth from Jonathan Reams
Guest: Jonathan Reams, Chief Creative Officer
You’ve been through leadership training; why didn’t it work?
Because it wasn’t about you. That’s the conclusion Jonathan Reams – the CCO of Norway’s Center for Transformative Leadership – came to. You’re unique, and most off-the-shelf leadership programs don’t take the time for you to dig deep into yourself to discover what makes you tick as a leader
The Power of Simplicity & Clarity: How a Shell Oil CEO Led through Crisis
Guest: Jeroen van der Veer
Crisis and scandal hit your company. The very first thing you must do: abandon your gut instincts. Blame, downplaying, and delay will all make the situation worse. Then follow the example of guest Jeroen Van der Veer; he became CEO of oil giant Royal Dutch Shell in the midst of a major scandal.
He shares what he learned about navigating through crisis in this episode.
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