B2B Leadership Podcast

I learned a very powerful leadership lesson long before I became a people leader. It was my senior year in college and I was ready to be done with school and start working in the professional world. I already had a job lined up that I would start at the end of the summer so things were good. However, I had to give a presentation in one of my classes that represented a big part of my final grade an...

In this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach, Nils Vinje, shares 5 essential steps to prepare for moving from an individual contributor to a manager. Podcast highlights: 1:39 - The most difficult shift - Why shifting from an IC role to a manager is one of the most difficult shifts? 5:06 - Importance of acquiring skills in advance - How acquiring the skills needed before getting into t...

On this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje explains how you can get promoted to the VP level and the specific strategies, tricks and skill sets you'll need to focus on along the way. Podcast highlights: 0:47 - Quick testimonials - How have leaders benefitted from the B2B Leaders Academy? 2:02 - Hesitation and fear - Are you comparing yourself to other leaders? 6:22 -...

On this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje speaks with Don Schmincke , Strategic Growth Advisor, Author and Keynote Speaker at Schmincke Research Alliance . What started with a story about being shot off an aircraft carrier evolved into a discussion about the 4 common myths that every leader should challenge. Podcast highlights: 0:31 - Being shot off an aircraft carrier -...

Employees leave bosses, not companies! The hard costs associated with an employee leaving are generally 1.5 - 2X the employee’s salary. The costs associated with lost time, opportunities, and productivity are much greater. When it comes down to it, you better be thinking about how to retain your best employees. On this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje explains how leade...

“There’s a belief that there aren’t that many black men in senior leadership roles in corporate America… and it’s true!” That’s how Jewel Edward Love, Jr, Founder and Executive Coach at Black Executive Men started our conversation on this episode of the B2B Leadership Podcast. From there, we discussed the Three S’s - Salary, Seniority, and Satisfaction… And that led to a powerful conversation abou...

Have you ever seen the series Seal Team? You get to see what it’s like inside of one of the most elite teams in the world - the Navy Seals. The way they prepare, train, think, and operate is on a different level than everyone else. Even among the Navy Seals, there is Bravo Team who is the elite of the elite. They are the center of the show. There are many parallels between the Navy Seals and leade...

There is one thing your team wants more than anything else… And, it doesn’t require any monetary investment… It’s Feedback! The reality is that most leaders do not give enough feedback or enough of the right kind of feedback. My hypothesis on why this happens is that leaders don’t have a reliable system to give their team members the feedback they want and deserve. On this episode, best-selling au...

“Alcohol’s reputation is crumbling…” And I agree! That quote is from James Swanwick , Founder and CEO of Alcohol-Free Lifestyle , my guest on this episode of the B2B Leadership podcast. In January, I shared the transformation journey I’ve been on in my relationship with alcohol publicly for the first time. The response and support blew me away. I heard so many inspiring stories and received so man...

When you get promoted from manager to Director level, the game changes… You are now going to be responsible for the performance of multiple teams… And, you will also be managing managers as well… How do you get yourself ready for this promotion? How do you end up as the #1 choice for Director when the time comes in your company… Or, how do you positing yourself as the best possible candidate while...

In a leadership position, what you say matters… Not just some of the time, all of the time. One statement can have the power to completely change someone’s day, week, month, year, or career. It is for this reason that any leadership position needs to be treated with the highest level of respect. On this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje speaks with Patrick Mirza , Direct...

For nearly the first 10 years of my professional career, I was not promoted… I did an average job and received an average amount of recognition for my contributions. In every role, I waited for my boss and my company to tell me what to do… I thought I was doing the right thing… Then, everything changed… When I invested in myself and began to deliver more value to my organizations, I understood wha...

How do you transition from a completely non-technical field to a successful leader inside a SaaS business? That’s what best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje sat down with Simon Cundall , Head of Customer Experience at CampMinder to find out. Discover the pivotal moments in Simon’s career as he reveals his path to leadership in an industry he loves. Podcast highlights: 0:19 - Simon's...

On this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje discusses how to choose a leadership coach and why you would hire a leadership coach in the first place. Podcast highlights: 0:55 - Speeding up success - The mindset that goes into why you would hire a coach. 2:19 - The stigma around coaching - Why do people only think coaching is for executives? 4:45 - What exactly is leadership...

A leader’s job is to do everything possible to make sure the people that work for them are successful. Success means different things to different people… And success might come in their current role, another role in the same company, or another role in a completely different company. Taking this approach builds a lot of trust. But, not every leader thinks or operates this way. In my opinion, this...

What you say as a leader may not be what is received by the person you are speaking to. Sometimes, things said with good intentions can have negative consequences. This is why communication skills and emotional intelligence need to be at the top of every leader’s list. In this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje speaks with Melissa Benua , Senior Director of Engineering at...

One of your greatest leadership secrets has been with you for your entire life. It was celebrated when you first started to use it and then it just became “normal”... It is something you use each and every single day, but you probably don’t think about it very much… It is your VOICE! In this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje speaks with John Henny about how leaders can t...

Confidence and trust are at the heart of great leadership. These two elements build great relationships with employees, employers, customers, partners, etc. whether the relationship is personal or professional in nature. While we see countless examples in the media where confidence and trust have been broken, there is always an opportunity to do the right thing and lead in a way that builds confid...

Have you ever wondered why people don’t meet your expectations? Maybe the reason is that you didn’t set the expectation properly or maybe the other person didn’t know it existed at all! Expectations are misset all the time and it causes real frustration and trouble for leaders and their teams. On this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje speaks with Francois Dellea , Senior...

Jake Jorgovan , Founder and CEO of Content Allies faced a big challenge when it came to developing leaders in his organization. He bought them books, gave them tips, spent time with them during 1:1s covering leadership topics. It was draining and not the highest and best use of their time together. Jake knew something had to change but was skeptical about “leadership coaching” programs based on hi...

What’s the point of A/B testing your leadership? The point is to get valuable data to inform decisions that will help you improve. This is the same thing that expert marketers do to bring awareness of a product to a target audience. In this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje speaks with Can Ozdoruk , VP of Marketing at Netomi . Can has an incredible ability to break down...

A lot of people get into leadership roles by accident. Someone excels as an individual contributor and then is offered the opportunity to lead the team. What happens when the star performer takes over the team? It can be an incredible move and produce amazing results. Or, it can end in failure with relationships destroyed. What’s the difference between these two outcomes? The difference comes down...

If you were to leave your position as a leader tomorrow, what would happen? Would everything continue running as normal because you built repeatable systems that are designed to run without you? Or would everything fall apart because the systems you have in place rely on you running them? This is a really important area where I spend a lot of time working with leaders in the B2B Leaders Academy ....

Doing the work as a leader is not enough!! You must market your leadership. You must tell the story of you, your team, and your accomplishments. If you don’t, nobody will truly know what you do. In this episode, best-selling author and leadership coach Nils Vinje speaks with Anu Shukla , Co-Founder and Executive Chairman at Botco.ai . We discussed how leaders need to market themselves to be heard,...

You will fail, but quitting is a decision… This is a really important distinction that my guest, Luke Hansen , Founder & CEO of CompanyCam , made during this episode of the B2B Leadership Podcast. When everyone else looks like they have everything perfectly put together, where does your focus as a leader need to be? Tune in to find out! Podcast highlights: 0:21 - Luke's background - Luke expla...