99 Humans

What does it take to lead with purpose? In this episode of 99 Humans , EJ Kim, Co-Founder & CEO of NNABI , shares her inspiring journey from corporate life to bootstrapping a wellness startup laser-focused on perimenopause. Guided by her passion and purpose, EJ is forging her own path with what she calls a “portfolio career.” Her drive to change how women experience perimenopause—with support,...

When life changes in an instant, how do you build resilience to see the positive? Cristina Nuti is a marketing executive at Dell, an IronMan finisher, Paralympic Triathlete, and a Marathoner. After being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at the age of thirty-six, Cristina shares her inspiring journey to building a rich life, which includes being one of the first ever IronMan finishers with MS. She...

"Climb the ladder!" How do you foster the courage and self-awareness to get what you want out of your career, instead of what's obviously next? Jing Suk has held leadership roles in huge multinational corporations and smaller companies, most recently CEO at Skyrocket Studios. Jing shares stories about overcoming career inertia with deliberate steps to "move the ladder to a diff...

How do you foster creativity at the core of yourself and your company? Valerio Cometti is Founder and Creative Director at Valerio Cometti+V12 Design, the home of Deep Design Thinking. Product design is such a creativity-forward business, and yet as founder of the studio Valerio shares how he has built a mix of skills (and people!) who make the company thrive. From the beginning where he studied M...

Why are you a people manager, and how do you react when the going gets tough? Ted Fernandez is the Global Head of Product Marketing at TikTok, with an illustrious career across Tech Companies in the social, video, and education space. Ted shares a specific time when the perception of his team's work was not what he wanted it to be, and how he navigated the situation by customizing messages to...

You probably know that less than 10% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women. What's going on? Why isn't this changing despite it being a known inequity? Jennifer McCollum is a trailblazing leader, currently CEO at Catalyst Inc, she is making her life's work emulating authentic, human leadership while raising awareness and lifting women up through the leadership ranks. Women face a double (or...

What could one new habit do for you? Morris has a knack for building new habits... waking up early (4am!), going to the gym, months fasting from alcohol and social media, studying leadership, and more! Morris uses discipline to design a dream life filled with family, friends, and career while staying humble enough to talk openly about lessons he's learned from mistakes along the way. As a Mar...

What's the secret to expressing your personal genius? Tom Burke has coached TED speakers, C-suite execs, authors, Broadway singers and Hollywood actors for over 20 years as speech-language pathologist and voice coach. His job is to help people tap their passions, quirks, and sense of humor to find their voice, the raw ingredient for gorgeous language. Tom demonstrates human leadership as he u...

Service is selfless, but what's the most important ingredient in any meal? Pasquale Martinelli is the Founder and Executive Chef at Alloro New York Private Dining, brining authentic Italian experiences to his clients. It takes less than ten seconds to feel Pasquale's passion, an incredibly attractive leadership quality, amplified by his love for serving people. Pasquale shares his journe...

AI! It's everywhere, but how do you position yourself to take advantage of career opportunities? Enrico Santus has worked on, or advised for, AI work at companies like Bloomberg, Bayer, Hospitals, and the Women's Brain Project. So to say that his career is "having a moment" is an understatement. Enrico shares his story from a small Italian town to journalism to advising househo...

Do you give trust up, down, and sideways in your organization? What about to yourself? Kathrin Holzfurtner has been a Director of Talent Acquisition for companies like iDeals and Microsoft, making a career out of her ability to find, hire, and support high performance teams by leading them herself. Every high performance team wants to drive impact and to innovate, and Kathrin tells a powerful stor...

What's the last decision you made to drive your own career? Nils Vinje is the Founder of Leadership MBA, which helps people get promoted faster, save time, and build stronger teams. Before Nils could help others he first had to help himself, and that's the story he shares in this episode. From StengthsFiner to being the CEO of your own career, Nils shares what it was like to go from the...

Ever been laid off? Led a team through layoffs? This episode reveals the raw emotions and tough decisions behind those moments and how to make them less devastating. Natasha Davidson, currently CMO at Group GTI, has an incredible background of executive leadership positions. Among amazing career highlights, Natasha shares an incredibly challenging moment managing reorganizations that lead to layof...

What motivates you? Alfonso De Gaetano has succeeded in leadership positions at Consulting firms, at Google, and as a Founder of CRURATED. He credits this success to learning along the way... how to work hard; how to lead; and how to create. Alfonso shares how he creates a vision for where his life (and company) are going -- not necessarily how to get there. With a resume many strive to achieve, A...

After learning that she hated law, Julie Saxon started her illustrious career as a temp Secretary at an Ad Agency. Since then, she's been the CRO at The Weather Company, VP at Verizon, and most recently followed her own advice to be Head of Consumer Sales at X where she is working with a mentor and people she loves. What you see is what you get, a mantra for authenticity tested by Julie'...

Covid + School Districts = Complexity. How does human leadership help? Harold S. Henry, Jr. is the Chief of Schools at Baltimore Curriculum Project and spent six years as a principal in Baltimore City Public Schools. He's experienced the brunt of misperceptions about what leadership in school districts, and shares a powerful story of leadership through Covid to exemplify how empathy and human...

What do you really want? You won't get it if you don't spend time prioritizing your authentic goals. Paola thrives in difficult environments -- from influencing the Italian economy as one of few women in the space, to executive leadership in Big Tech. How? Resilience - having and focusing on the bigger picture, the bigger goal.  Paola shares how human leadership principles/platitudes lik...

You've heard of a non-profit, but what about a Zero Funds organization? Enter Neel Ghose, the kind of "human leader" who takes the challenge of leading in the philanthropic world to a new level. Neel created Robin Hood Army, a Zero Funds organization connecting what would be "food waste" to those in need, a fully volunteer led effort that has grown to 237,197 "Robins&...

What is leadership without language?  What about leadership in language? Milena Koralczyk is founder and CEO of the language school, "L'Ecole Parisienne de Langues," a premiere language school based in Paris teaching French to executives and ex-patriots seeking to find their place in French culture. Milena shares why language is important but also what made it important to her. From...

What would it take to reinvent yourself? What things would you need to lose in order to gain? Craig Siegel spent thirteen years as a gladiator in the wrong arena, pouring his energy and time into Wall Street before finally cutting the cord and becoming an entrepreneur. It was then that his passion for reinvention caught fire , he founded Cultivate Lasting Symphony (CLS) and inspired millions throu...

Do you cringe thinking about name tags and awkward conversations at “networking” events? Kurt Schmidt, Author and President of The Foundry, one of Inc Magazine’s fastest growing companies, shares how walking in ill prepared for one of his employee’s performance reviews sent him on a journey to sharpen his leadership toolset. Hear how he practices confidence in the face of natural uncertainty, by b...

Ever heard that GenZ doesn't want to work? Celine Chai busts that myth, sharing the story behind her co-founding of NightyEight and becoming a GenZ entrepreneur. Hear how Celine struggled through challenge to now embrace the mantra, "You can't plan life." Celine exemplifies human leadership as she works hard to lead a successful business without losing her passion for dance and...

"We hire women, don't we. We hired you!" How would you respond in the moment? Diana Agu is a strategist, business leader and entrepreneur who studied Law & Criminology in the United Kingdom but climbed the corporate ladder working in Project & Business management.  From Morgan Stanley to Capgemini to CEO of her own startup, Diana has proven herself in high pressure  corporat...

"When I went on mental health leave..." Can you imagine saying that? Newton Cheng is the Director of Health and Performance at Google, and he said those words when he mustered the courage to prioritize himself. So long as mental health conversations are stigmatized, it's hard for leaders to do right for themselves, their family, and their teams. Newton is looking for new ways to app...

Back-to-back meetings, pregnant, and contractions in the office. Ashley Patel shares a harrowing story when the demands of entrepreneurship collided with the birth of her child, highlighting the importance of making intentional choices with your life and career. Co-Founder of CurbWaste, Ashley is building a company on the forefront of waste management software, while growing her life and family al...