Freedom of Work

Host Leah Cottham talks with William Tincup, Editor, Analyst, and Advisor at WRKdefined, about what really happens when global remote teams try to buy and adopt HR tech. William brings 25 years of experience as an outsider to the HR world, which gives him a sharp eye for the gap between a dazzling demo and software people actually use. The conversation covers why practitioners need to ask if a too...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Federico D'Alessio, Talent Leader and AI Builder, for an honest conversation about where AI genuinely helps hiring teams and where the human touch still matters. Federico shares how 15 years in tech and SaaS recruiting led him to start building his own AI tools after realizing recruiters were repeating the same tasks thousands of times.   Federico walks through Mik...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Heather Erickson, COO at Obra, to unpack why hiring feels broken and what teams can do about it. Heather brings a career spent at the intersection of HR, technology, and operations, and she explains how AI has flooded hiring inboxes with applications that all look the same.   The conversation digs into a clear shift happening now. Applications have quadrupled since...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Gareth Pratten, Global Talent Acquisition Leader at Nuvei, to unpack how AI is reshaping recruitment and where it actually delivers value. Gareth brings over 10 years of experience from high growth payment companies like Checkout.com and Stripe, and he shares a grounded view on where the hype ends and reality begins. The conversation covers why AI is most useful at...

Join Leah Cottham and Frank Berretty, Senior Manager of Employee Success People Consultants for EMEA at Salesforce, as they explore what it takes to scale people operations across one of the world's most dynamic companies. With 9 years at Salesforce, Frank has witnessed the company transform from transactional HR to strategic, AI-powered people operations spanning multiple regions and cultures. Fr...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Tannum Sullivan, People Experience and Culture Senior Manager at RentSpree, to explore building authentic employee engagement across distributed teams. Tannum shares her journey from the radio industry to managing employer brands for 4 different companies under Golden Hippo's umbrella, eventually creating dedicated people experience functions from scratch. The conv...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Nadia Vatalidis, Head of People at Doist, to explore the critical strategies for scaling remote organizations from 70 to 1000 people across 40 countries. Nadia brings extensive experience from GitLab and Remote, sharing practical insights on organizational design, performance systems, and the evolving nature of work in the AI era. The conversation covers essential...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Katrina Kibben, CEO and Founder of Three Ears Media, to explore how recruiters can maintain their humanity while leveraging AI tools effectively. Katrina brings deep expertise from her work helping recruiting teams optimize their processes and her extensive research into AI's impact on the industry. The conversation tackles the biggest misconceptions companies have...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with David Norman, global HR leader and employee coach at Bravely, to explore how organizations can maintain the human element in HR as they scale across borders. David brings insights from his extensive experience in global people operations and his current work coaching employees through workplace challenges.   The conversation tackles the tension between data-driven...

Leah Cottham sits down with Josh Hill, VP People at Tier 11 and co-founder of Super Hired, to explore his revolutionary approach to employment as a subscription service. Josh brings a unique perspective from his 10 years in the Australian Army to his 4 years transforming HR practices at a 50-person digital marketing agency. He shares how treating employees as internal customers fundamentally chang...

Leah Cottham speaks with Robin Schuchmann, co-founder of Employ Borderless, about his journey from Bali internships to building an unbiased EOR advisory platform. Robin shares how his experience hiring remote talent across Indonesia, the Philippines, and Eastern Europe led him to create a solution for companies struggling with global hiring complexities. He breaks down the biggest barriers compani...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Gina Sapien, Founder of The Remote Marketer, to explore why employer branding desperately needs a complete overhaul for the remote work era. Gina brings 10 years of startup marketing experience and 7 years leading remote teams across Asia, the US, and Latin America to this essential conversation about attracting global talent. The discussion reveals how Covid funda...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Filip Pesek, Founder and CEO of DonnaPro, to explore what European leadership teaches us about the future of global hiring. Filip shares his journey from door to door sales to building a virtual executive assistant agency that matches top European talent with CEOs and founders worldwide.   The conversation dives into the unique European approach to remote work, whe...

Leah Cottham sits down with Arvi Carkanji, Founder and CEO of Elite Talent, to explore how HR leaders are building technical sales teams globally with speed, precision, and strategic use of AI. Arvi brings firsthand expertise from helping SaaS companies achieve a remarkable 92% retention rate for pre sales and post sales talent placements. His recruiting firm specializes in roles from sales engine...

As we wrap up 2025 on the Freedom of Work podcast, we reflect on the conversations that shaped how we think about building companies in a remote-first world. This season features founders, people leaders, neuroscientists, and operators exploring the real challenges behind remote work, AI at work, people operations, psychological safety, learning and development, and building culture across time zo...

In this episode, we delve into the findings from our 2025 Global Hiring Report, which is packed with insights from over 300 HR and People leaders across the U.S., U.K., Australia, and Brazil. We explore the real challenges and exciting opportunities companies face when building and managing distributed teams worldwide. Tune in to discover why talent shortages hit larger companies hardest, how Lati...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Hudson Brock, CEO and Founder of AlloHire, to explore what truly sets top talent apart in today's rapidly changing work environment. Hudson shares his framework for identifying A players through three key traits that go far beyond traditional resume screening. The conversation dives into how AI is reshaping recruiting processes while emphasizing why human connectio...

Host Leah Cottham sits down with Marissa Goldberg, founder of Remote Work Prep, to explore how AI is reshaping remote team management without replacing human workers. Marissa brings years of experience building AI powered operational solutions for distributed teams and shares practical insights from her journey since 2015. The conversation tackles common misconceptions about remote work productivi...

Leah Cottham sits down with Renita Käsper, a global talent acquisition leader with 20 years of experience building multicultural teams across Asia Pacific, Europe, and beyond. Renita shares why cultural intelligence has become essential for remote leaders managing distributed teams and explains the critical difference between hiring globally and actually setting teams up for success. The conversat...

Explore how AI is transforming hiring, team building, and leadership—and where human expertise still matters. Katie, a fractional COO and startup founder, shares practical lessons for leaders navigating the AI era. In this episode, you'll learn: How to use AI as a tool, not a replacement, for tasks like candidate screening and data analysis Why building your processes manually first is essential b...

Host Leah Cottham chats with Gina Schinkel , founder of Driftawave , about how the future of work demands mission-driven leadership and strategic team retreats . From her journey at LinkedIn to launching a company that builds  transformational offsites , Gina shares how remote teams can create genuine connection and measurable business results.  They break down  ROI metrics , debunk common CEO mis...

Find out how a values-driven talent philosophy can transform your hiring process, strengthen culture, and improve retention. You'll learn why behaviors often matter more than skills, how to align employer branding with candidate experience, and the risks of rushing to fill roles. Plus, practical tips on building inclusive hiring systems, fostering curiosity and trust, and supporting internal mobil...

In this episode of Freedom of Work , host Leah Cottham sits down with Selina Purdie , Head of People at Monolith AI, to explore how people teams can borrow principles from product management to design intentional employee experiences. Selina shares her unique journey from scientist to people leader, explaining how she applies data-driven thinking to map employee touchpoints, build public roadmaps,...

80% of transformation programs fail - often because they overlook the human element. In this episode of Freedom of Work , Leah chats with independent program director Rita about how remote and distributed teams can lead transformation projects that actually stick. From radical transparency and agile pods to psychological safety and change agents, they explore what it really takes to build meaningf...

Structured games aren't just fun, they're powerful tools for uncovering how teams think, communicate, and collaborate. Alexandra Suchman , Co-Founder of Barometer XP, joins Leah our Host to explore how intentionally designed play can surface hidden patterns, build psychological safety, and drive meaningful team development. Drawing on real-life examples and insights from her work with global teams...