Fearless Creative Leadership

Do you know yourself well enough to love yourself? In this episode of Fearless Creative Leadership, Charles Day speaks with Ndidi Oteh, CEO of Accenture Song — the $20 billion digital, creative, and technology transformation arm of global consulting firm Accenture. Named successor to founder David Droga, Ndidi brings to the role a lifelong creative sensibility, a deeply rooted leadership philosoph...

Do you know what you're doing — and why you're doing it? In this episode of Fearless Creative Leadership , Charles Day speaks with Erin Riley, CEO of TBWA , about leadership in an industry undergoing profound change. As consolidation reshapes the advertising landscape and creativity faces new pressures from data and AI, Erin reflects on the qualities leaders need most today: self-awareness, integr...

Does someone else have to lose for you to win? In this episode of Fearless Creative Leadership , Charles Day speaks with Amy Martin-Ziegenfuss, Chief Marketing Officer of Carnival Cruise Line , about redefining success — and rejecting the zero-sum mindset that often drives ambition. Amy reflects on her journey from a small-town theater kid to leading one of the world's most recognized travel brand...

What does courage actually look like in leadership? In this episode of Fearless Creative Leadership , Charles Day speaks with Rocky Novak and Brad Surcey, co-CEOs of Zeus Jones , about partnership, independence, and leading through uncertainty — both inside business and outside it. They discuss why independent companies can invest ahead of clients, how curiosity and optimism shape hiring, and why...

How much freedom do you give your people? In this episode of Fearless Creative Leadership , Charles Day speaks with Cat van der Werff , Executive Creative Director of Canva , about the paradox at the heart of modern leadership: setting clear standards while letting go of control. As Canva has grown from hundreds to thousands of employees, Cat's own evolution as a leader has mirrored that scale. A...

What kind of box are you building for your people? In this episode of Fearless Creative Leadership , Charles Day sits down with Aaron Starkman , Chief Creative Officer of Rethink and one of Adweek's 100 Most Creative People in the World. But this is not a conversation about freedom from structure — it's about why the most creative environments are built on the most thoughtful processes. Aaron shar...

What impact are you having? In this episode of Fearless Creative Leadership , Charles Day speaks with Andrés Ordóñez , newly appointed Global Chief Creative Officer of McCann. When this conversation was recorded, Andrés didn't yet know his future — which makes this a rare portrait of a leader reflecting not on a title, but on who he is. Across a deeply personal conversation, Andrés describes the f...

How alive do you feel as a leader? In this episode of Fearless Creative Leadership , Charles Day sits down in London with the newly announced founders of Ace of Hearts — Rick Brim, Martin Beverly, and Polly McMorrow — for their first recorded conversation as partners. Over the past seven months, Charles has interviewed them individually while they prepared to build something of their own. Now, you...

How do you react when people make mistakes? Patricia Corsi is the Chief Growth Officer of  Kimberly-Clark . Patricia has been named one of the Top 50 Most Influential CMOs of the World by Forbes in 2024 and 2025. She has very clear beliefs about how to unlock creativity and innovation in her business, and the kind of leadership that requires. Creativity and innovation are unpredictable. They deman...

Are you creating trust? David Rolfe is the Head of Production at  WPP . When David and I debated last year, whether one person could someday make a Super Bowl ad, it felt like a provocation. This year, we both agreed it's an inevitability. Which brings with it a bigger question. How will we tell the difference between what's real and what's synthetic? And will it matter? And that's the moment when...

How connected do your people feel? Phil Thomas is the Chief Creative Officer of  Informa Festivals . They're the company that owns Cannes Lions. And Phil has recently been named as Chairman of Comic Relief. One of the things that I've learned hosting this podcast is that the most powerful leaders rarely get remembered for their titles. They're remembered for how they made people feel. In this conv...

What's the 'this' in your business? Neil Waller is the Co-Founder and Co-CEO of  Whalar Group . They're a global creator company. Whalar have done as much as anyone, and more than most, to catalyze the creator economy. And as you'll hear, it was inspired by a conversation with and an unforgettable provocation from Sir John Hegarty. But behind their success lies a characteristic that I find is ofte...

Jill Cress is the Chief Marketing and Experience Officer for  H&R Block . She also serves on the board of the AdCouncil, and she's been recognized on Forbes' list of the World's 50 Most Influential CMOs. Before H&R Block, Jill spent 20 years at MasterCard. Now, a leader who spends most of their professional life working in financial institutions could easily build their success around the study of...

When do you stop and take a breath? If you've listened to Luther Vandross or Tina Turner, or Sting, or Chaka Khan, or Teddy Pendergrass, or Roberta Flack, then you've heard Lisa Fischer  sing. If you went to a Rolling Stones concert between 1989 and 2015, you saw Lisa as the band's lead female singer join Mick Jagger on stage. If you've seen her in person, as I've been fortunate to have done so tw...

Do you welcome the sounds of silence? Shu Hung is the Global Chief Creative Officer of  AKQA . In a complicated world, Shu has learned that knowing who you are is the foundation on which leadership success is built. Please come as you are. There is such profound truth in that request, and such enormous challenge. We spend so much of our lives wondering if we measure up, if we're doing things the r...

What should we expect from you? Nicole Parlapiano is the Chief Marketing Officer at  Tubi . When she arrived two and a half years ago, Tubi was an eight year old business that had no brand recognition. Today, with the help of their ad agency, Mischief, the streaming service has 97 million active monthly users, up from 20 million in 2019. Leading a challenger brand works best when you're willing to...

Sir Andrew Strauss is the former Captain of the England cricket team which he led to become the number one team in the world for the first time in England's history. He then became England's Director of Cricket and he's recognized as the architect of the country's first ever one day World Cup victory. In 2019, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for his services to charity, sport, and cricket. B...

Who do you trust? Jim Stengel is the former CMO of P&G, and he's now a hugely successful author, speaker, coach, consultant, and advisor. He's also the host of the brilliant CMO Podcast. In our conversation, Jim and I started to lay the framework for how we think that leadership is going to have to evolve as the confidence in most institutions, including government, continues to deteriorate. Being...

Welcome to the first episode of 2025. A year that promises to be unlike any other on so many levels. This episode is designed as a provocation, an inspiration, and a roadmap for the leaders of businesses, for whom unlocking creative thinking is critical. Over the last four weeks, I've talked to 12 exceptional leaders from a diverse set of experiences and perspectives. I've asked them how the best...

What does your company reject? Karl Lieberman is the Global Chief Creative Officer of Wieden + Kennedy . Wieden is a reference point among creative companies in many industries. For almost 45 years, they'd been impacting culture and driving business for their clients by unlocking the creativity of their people. . Creating the kind of environment in which people feel safe to put all their ideas on...

What are you willing to compromise? Lina Polimeni is the Chief Corporate Brand Officer at  Eli Lilly and Company . This is a business whose work is often the difference between life and death, where they are trying to cure cancer, and where the outcome is very personal. In the middle of that reality, your own leadership journey is fueled by a lot of food for thought. No one can lead effectively wi...

Edited highlights of our full length conversation. What are you willing to compromise? Lina Polimeni is the Chief Corporate Brand Officer at  Eli Lilly and Company . This is a business whose work is often the difference between life and death, where they are trying to cure cancer, and where the outcome is very personal. In the middle of that reality, your own leadership journey is fueled by a lot...

Are you centered? Kerry Sulkowicz is the Past-President of the American Psychoanalytic Association, and the Founder and Managing Principal of  Boswell Group . They provide leadership advice to boards and CEOs. Kerry and I have been friends for a long time, and he has taught me much about the psychodynamic aspects of leadership. Whenever we talk, his advice strikes me as clear and straightforward,...

Edited highlights of our full length conversation. Are you centered? Kerry Sulkowicz is the Past-President of the American Psychoanalytic Association, and the Founder and Managing Principal of  Boswell Group . They provide leadership advice to boards and CEOs. Kerry and I have been friends for a long time, and he has taught me much about the psychodynamic aspects of leadership. Whenever we talk, h...

What is your pain for?  Taban Shoresh is the Founder of  The Lotus Flower , a UK-based charity that supports women and girls that have been displaced by conflict, and helps them to build sustainable futures. Since 2016, the charity's projects have impacted more than 60,000 women, girls, and community members.  Every now and then, you meet someone whose story stops you in your tracks. Taban's story...