Home Podcasts Leadership Economics
Leadership Economics

Leadership Economics

Aaron Phipps and Spencer Clouatre 8 Episodes Aug 11, 2026

Leadership Economics is a podcast that rethinks leadership through the lens of economics, focusing on scarce resources, incomplete information, and decision-making under uncertainty. Hosts Aaron Phipps, an economist at West Point, and Spencer Clouatre, a retired Army Colonel and Special Operations aviator, explore how people actually decide and lead. They also interview leaders from various sectors to gain insights into their approaches. The show aims to provide a sharper way to diagnose problems rather than offering simple hacks or formulas.

Episodes

Uncertainty vs. Ambiguity and the Five Ways They Derail Leaders
Uncertainty vs. Ambiguity and the Five Ways They Derail Leaders Aug 11, 2026 4517 Aaron and Spencer draw the line between uncertainty, which the brain treats like a game, and ambiguity, which it treats like a threat, then introduce DICAO, the five failure modes ambiguity can produce in leaders and teams. In this episode, Spencer and Aaron expand on the Leadership Economics framework. Spencer opens by reviewing the show so far: scarcity, the production function, the AI
How Others Feel When You're in the Room
How Others Feel When You're in the Room Jul 28, 2026 3282 Ben Summers, head of Vanguard UK and one of the original authors of the economic ideas behind this show, on shutting down a business without abandoning the people in it, what a booby-trapped weapons cache taught him about letting success validate your own decisions, and why leadership comes down to how others feel when you're in the room. Ben Summers is Head of Vanguard UK. He served nea
The Only Deal Breaker Is Character
The Only Deal Breaker Is Character Jul 14, 2026 3362 Rob Shaw, founding President and CEO of Echelon Bank and a 27-year Tampa Bay banker, on the soft information behind every good loan, the culture of a brand-new bank, and why character is the only hard no. Rob Shaw has spent 27 years in Tampa Bay banking, from AmSouth's management training program through leadership roles at Northern Trust, Signature Bank, USAmeriBank, NorthStar Bank, and
The Person You're Trying to Become
The Person You're Trying to Become Jun 30, 2026 4762 West Point economist Dean Dudley on how the best leaders reduce ambiguity, shape who their people become, and turn conflict into a problem disciplined thinking can actually solve. Dr. Dean Dudley retires from West Point this month after 33 years teaching economics and game theory to more than 33,000 cadets. He returns to the show to trace one thread from identity to game theory to the be
Your Unit of Reward Will Change
Your Unit of Reward Will Change Jun 16, 2026 5095 Aaron and Spencer explore Andrew "Drew" Barnes's path from the job site to the classroom within the Leadership Economics framework, from why his students are paid from the neck up to negotiation as a master skill and why your unit of reward shifts from dollars to minutes. Most construction management programs are built around contracts, scheduling, and cost control. Drew Barnes built his
Great Is Good Over Time
Great Is Good Over Time Jun 2, 2026 3878 Aaron and Spencer explore LTC (R) Josh Richardson's experiences and leadership lessons within the Leadership Economics framework, from the pace of trust to knowing when to stay the course or pivot, and why great is just good over time.Episode three of Leadership Economics, and our first guest. Retired Army Lieutenant Colonel Josh Richardson is a West Point graduate, a Ranger, and a 75th R
The 6 Principles of the Economic Leader
The 6 Principles of the Economic Leader May 19, 2026 3958 Aaron and Spencer turn the AIME framework into a working playbook, walking through the six economic principles every leader actually uses: opportunity cost, marginal thinking, incentives, trade and trust, information, and command and control. Episode two of Leadership Economics. Aaron and Spencer build on the AIME framework from the pilot and lay out the six economic principles that turn
How we got here and why leadership is an economics problem
How we got here and why leadership is an economics problem Apr 28, 2026 2984 In the pilot, Aaron and Spencer argue that great leaders are quietly good economists, and introduce AIME (Allocation, Information, Motivation, Execution) as the four focal points of a leader's job.The pilot episode of Leadership Economics. Aaron and Spencer trace how the framework took shape. Spencer brings the operational side, a career flying assault helicopters and teaching at West Poi

Recommended