Allyship in Action

Sad to admit, after 350+ episodes, I have never dedicated a full show to sleep . I'll be the first to admit that I've been doing a ton of deep-diving into sleep lately . Between life changes, career shifts, and navigating perimenopause, my nights haven't exactly been peaceful . In fact, coming off a rough night myself, I'm sitting here with a massive afternoon coffee, fully aware that I reached fo...

When I started my business, I wanted to create spaces where every single person felt seen, heard, and like they truly belonged . It sounds so beautifully simple on the surface, doesn't it? But as we all know, making sure people feel heard at work can get incredibly messy . This week, I had the absolute pleasure of chatting with a peer of mine from grad school, Daniel Newton, an Associate Professor...

Jenny Bates Heaton is the founder of Bates Leadership and has a brilliant new TEDx talk. What really blew me away during our chat was how Jenny used her personal journey facing a massive medical decision after a cancer-risk mutation diagnosis to completely rewrite the script on how we make choices. It got me thinking about my own life and how often we make decisions based on what we think we shoul...

If you are feeling a bit battered by the cultural waves and political turbulence swirling around us right now, trust me—you are not alone. I'll admit, when I woke up the morning after the 2024 election, I felt physically sick worrying about what the fallout would mean for our businesses and the hard choices ahead. That is why I love this conversation with Tara Jaye Frank. She met me right in that...

This week, we dive deep into a topic that's been on everyone's mind—and probably in every news alert you've received lately: AI. While the world seems to be split between AI will save us all, and AI is coming for our jobs, our guest and AI expert, Christopher Lind, brings us back to earth with a much-needed reality check. As Christopher points out, the real risk isn't just the tech itself, but the...

This week, Rebecca Hinds, the brilliant mind behind what is officially my new favorite book, Your Best Meeting Ever, is with us at Allyship in Action. I'll be honest—I listened to this one on Audible, and hearing Rebecca's voice felt like she was sitting right there with me, narrating every meeting catastrophe I've ever lived through! We've all been there: trapped in a conference room (or a Zoom s...

In this episode of the Allyship in Action podcast, Julie Kratz connects with Dr. Shawn Andrews to discuss the critical intersection of leadership, gender, and emotional intelligence. Allyship is not a one-time declaration but a continuous practice of small, intentional behaviors that bridge the gap between good intentions and real impact. Core Themes for Inclusive Leadership Allyship as a Sustaina...

I recently sat down with the brilliant Alexis Redding, a developmental psychologist at Harvard who is doing the heavy lifting to help us understand what's actually going on with young adults today .  Alexis shared how we often look at the "kids these days" and think they're living in a completely different world, but Alexis's research shows that while the hashtags have changed, the big, messy feel...

It was such a treat to sit down with my friend Kelsey Kates and really geek out over a topic that we often leave at the playground: play.  I've felt that slow boil in my own career—trading my personality for steel-toed boots and a suit just to fit the corporate mold until I didn't even recognize myself in the mirror. Kelsey is here to remind us that we don't have to lose our joy to be high-perform...

Welcome back, everyone! I am just so thrilled to share my conversation with Sabrina Caluori, the CMO at Chief. You know, I talk a lot about capacity erosion—that feeling where your mental load is so heavy you're basically walking through quicksand while trying to run a marathon . Sabrina gets it.  She's been in those high-stakes rooms at Paramount, hitting a wall of burnout so thick she didn't eve...

I've always said that allyship isn't a proclamation you make—it's an aspiration that lives in the eye of the beholder . For a long time, we've been told that to be a real ally, you have to be this fearless, extroverted warrior constantly jumping into the line of fire . Let's be real: most of us are just trying to hit our step goals and remember to eat less salt without feeling like we're failing a...

I am just vibrating with excitement after my chat with Aiko Bethea ! If you've followed her work as I have, you know she's basically the gold standard for building cultures that actually mean something . We got into the nitty-gritty of her new book, Anchored, Aligned, and Accountable , and let me tell you, it is the blueprint we need right now . I even got a little unplanned coaching session mysel...

I am so excited to share this conversation with my wonderful colleague and friend, Dr. Catherine Kleshinski from Indiana University. We've all been there on a random Monday morning when someone asks, "How was your weekend?" and we're dying to share a picture of our new puppy or the chaos of a first birthday party. I used to think these me-search moments were just simple trust builders—and they are...

It is such a wild time to be in the world of training and development, isn't it? I've had this persistent hunch—call it a "zag" when everyone else is "zigging"—that as much as we're obsessing over AI, the real secret sauce is still our human intuition . I recently sat down with Anthony Salcito from Coursera, and it turns out my hypothesis wasn't just wishful thinking.  We've all seen those robotic...

This week, Celeste Warren, a globally recognized thought leader, author, and former Fortune 100 Vice President, returns to discuss her latest book,  The Truth About Equity . Celeste shares her insights on: Defining Equity: Moving beyond the buzzwords to understand equity as a pragmatic approach to meeting people where they are. The "Fence" Analogy: Exploring the systemic "isms" that create barrier...

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Janice Gassam Asare, founder of BWG Business Solutions and author of the new book, Rise and Resist: How to Reclaim Workplace Equity and Justice .   Following a period of intense personal and professional backlash—including being targeted by high-profile political figures—Janice discusses why looking to historical legacies of resistance is the key to enduring t...

Jennifer Brown is back to unpack her new book, The Shape of Change, the journey through allyship and change. Together, we discuss: How change can feel like being in a dark hallway and trying to find the path forward in uncertain times What inclusive leadership looks like when we are called to be brave in unprecedented times The tools to build resilience to shape the changes necessary to our import...

Culture isn't just a poster on the wall. Culture is the heartbeat of a thriving business. This interview with Teresa Johnson, CEO of Color Me Mine, explores the incredible journey from being a single mom to purchasing a pottery studio on a credit card, leading a franchise empire of over 150 locations. Teresa shares her secret sauce for scaling businesses through intentional culture and the unique...

In this episode, Julie Kratz welcomes Jennifer McCollum, President and CEO of Catalyst, a global nonprofit focused on workplace equity. They discuss the critical role of men in gender partnership and the release of Jennifer's book, Men at Work. The conversation delves into the systemic challenges women face, the data supporting inclusive leadership, and how men can transition from passive support...

In this episode of Allyship in Action, Julie Kratz is joined by HBR writer, executive and team coach, Kathryn Landis, to explore capacity erosion—the gradual depletion of energy and focus facing today's leaders. In an era of constant change and cognitive overload, Landis shares how leaders can reclaim their impact by shifting from micromanagement to intentional empowerment and strategic reflection...

Alyssa Dver, founder of the ERG Leadership Alliance, joins us this week to highlight the critical shift toward structured governance and the use of hard metrics to demonstrate how these groups drive corporate engagement and long-term business impact. My Key Takeaways: Governance is the future of ERGs: Alyssa emphasizes the shift from informal groups to structured organizations with clear governanc...

In this episode, Julie Kratz discusses global workplace culture strategies with Abi Adamson, founder of the Culture Partnership and a LinkedIn Top Voice. Abi introduces her "SERN" framework—Soil, Exposure, Roots, and Nutrients—as a way for leaders to move beyond performative DE&I and begin gardening their organizations for sustainable growth. Three Key Takeaways Cultivate Your Culture Like a Livin...

Lily Zheng is a no-nonsense DEI strategist and best-selling author of DEI Deconstructed and Fixing Fairness . They discuss the limitations of traditional Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives and introduce Lily's FAIR framework: Fairness, Access, Inclusion, and Representation. Lily challenges the industry's reliance on "one-and-done" training and advocates for a 90/10 split—prioritizi...

In this episode, I'm sitting down with the incredible Dr. Caroline Fleck, clinical psychologist and author of the transformative new book, Validation . We often talk about allyship as a series of seemingly small, intentional actions, and some of the most profound work happens in the small, everyday moments of how we see and hear one another. Dr. Fleck joins me to pull back the curtain on validatio...

This week, I welcome David Glasgow and Kenji Yoshino, co-authors of the new book How Equality Wins: A New Vision for an Inclusive America . As leaders of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging at NYU School of Law, David and Kenji discuss the legal and political landscape of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) following the 2023 Supreme Court decision on affirmative action....