Innovating Leadership: Co-Creating Our Future

Guest: Dr. Juana Bordas What do leaders lose as DEI falls out of favor? A lot, particularly the richness of multiculturalism. The value of multicultural perspectives is almost incalculable, according to our guest, Juana Bordas. The benefits are profound for the business, but stretch deep into our communities, too. In this episode, Dr. Bordas shares the principles that set the foundation for cross-...

Guest: Bjørn Ekelund Leading across cultures isn’t easy. Success means very different things depending on where you live. Our guest, Bjørn Ekelund, looks at cross-cultural leadership, including the differences in trust and followership between the U.S. and his native Norway.   In the end, understanding these cultural contexts can lead to true flourishing at work! Here's what Bjørn and Maureen cove...

Guest: Kathryn Goldman Schuyler, Ph. D. From fostering smiles in the office to mindfulness, your personal practices have a major effect on your team – and your success. In fact, what you do as a person – not just as a leader – can ripple through your organization.   That’s one major takeaway from Dr. Kathryn Goldman Schuyler in this episode. She’s conducted extensive research on “waking up at work...

Guest: Ira Chaleff, former executive director of the Congressional Management Foundation Tyrants can only rise with our help. And they aren’t limited to heads of state. Family heads, corporate CEOs, a town mayor: any leadership role can have tyrannical qualities. As followers, we make them possible.   And we can push them to a better path.   Our guest, Ira Chaleff, studies followership in-depth. H...

Guest: Seth Casden, CEO & co-founder of Hologenix From the high-stress, competitive world of private equity to boosting human potential: Seth Casden had an unusual journey of leadership growth. In this episode, he tells that story – and how he met and partnered with inventor David Horinek to found Hologenix. Their innovative work is focused on amplifying human potential using body-generated en...

Guests: Peter Cunningham, Co-founder, & Patrick Sweet, Co-Director, of the Geneva Leadership Alliance Being a great leader means you can’t lead alone anymore. The leadership paradigm is changing. In this episode, Maureen speaks with Patrick Sweet and Peter Cunningham from the Geneva Center for Security Policy about the evolving nature of leadership. They explore how leadership is no longer jus...

Guests: Ryan Redington, Amazon Music GM, & Kara Hurst, Chief Sustainability Officer An open door is an opportunity – and a risk. Assess that risk a little easier with the one-way and two-way door framework. It’s just one of the tools Amazon uses to innovate better and faster.   In this episode, two Amazon execs explain how and why they innovate in areas outside of the company’s stereotypical r...

Guest: Mike Hardy, founder & former director, Coventry University’s Centre for Peace & Security Is peace relevant to business?   Absolutely, according to Mike Hardy. Profits and stability arise from peacefulness, yet we relegate its pursuit to nonprofit and government leaders. In this episode, Mike shares both his research and diplomatic experience to show how leaders in all sectors can cr...

Guest: Alicia Pittman, Global People Chair – Boston Consulting Group Fast and furious: that’s how change is hitting our workplaces with AI, multiple generations, and more. Yet Boston Consulting Group has figured out how to turn those changes into advantages. Their Global People Chair, Alicia Pittman, shares how to unlock all that potential in your business, too. Here's what Alicia and Maureen cove...

Guest: Greg Moran, Former Ford Senior Executive How do you negotiate the best deal possible?   Our guest, Greg Moran, shares the three key elements he discovered negotiating for Ford and other top corporations. The ultimate success, he found, came when both parties found great benefit in the results. Here's what Greg and Maureen cover: Why going for the win is less important than finding the win-w...

Guest: Christopher Washington, Franklin University Provost What awaits leaders in 2025? You’ll find out in this special future-scanning episode.   We turn the tables this week, as our host, Maureen Metcalf, is interviewed by guest Christopher Washington, the provost of Franklin University. Maureen has determined the five major global trends which will affect leadership in 2025. It’s based on her c...

Guest: Ken Moore How can you have solutions for your customers before they even know they need them? Or BE the change instead of reacting to change?   That’s all part of the job for Mastercard’s Chief Innovation Officer, Ken Moore. He says the rate of change for businesses will soon increase 400%, as if the world isn’t changing fast enough already! But no worries; Ken shares the keys to innovation...

Guests: Jennifer Marriner, Sr. VP,  & Sherri Haymond, Co-President, of Mastercard divisions What happens when innovation means life or death for your company?   In this first of a two-part series of innovation at Mastercard, guests Jennifer Marriner and Sherri Haymond describe the ongoing innovations in their divisions: Global Acceptance Solutions and Global Partnerships, respectively. As cust...

Guest: Éliane Ubalijoro, Rwandan Presidential Advisor, Consultant, & Professor Clues about the leadership you’ll need in the near future are coming from unexpected places: Africa and genetics.   Our guest, Dr. Éliane Ubalijoro, shares success stories in leadership development she’s seen in African communities. Nuance, cultural competencies, and persistence stand out as qualities not usually se...

Guest: Betsy Myers, Former White House Advisor, Author, & Leadership Consultant The concept of the ideal leader changed dramatically over the last few decades, and Warren Bennis was one of the first researchers to analyze modern leadership. Our guest Betsy Myers shares the traits he found, then merges that with her own extensive experience in leadership – which reaches right up to the Presiden...

Guest: Greg Moran, Former Ford Senior Executive We’ve distilled seven absolutely vital mindsets every leader must have to succeed. They’re extra critical in today’s business environment, which continues to evolve and change years after the infamous COVID quarantine. The only constant: there’s no going back to the old way of leading.   In this episode, Greg Moran joins Maureen to discuss these seve...

Guests: Gill Hickman, Jepson School of Leadership Studies Professor Emerita; Jorrit Volkers, dean of Deloitte University EMEA; and Cynthia Cherrey, CEO of the International Leadership Association “CEO clashes with their own corporate culture.” That’s the subtext of business headlines at least once a week. What’s going on? Simply put: they’re sticking with their old leadership styles, even though t...

Guests: Amazon Vice-Presidents Udit Madan (Worldwide Operations), Jamil Ghani (Worldwide Prime), & Sarah Rhoads (Workplace Health & Safety) Answer honestly: can you innovate? Most organizations can – but their leaders won’t. Fear of change is often cited, but the reality is they don’t know how.   Amazon’s success is predicated on constant innovation, so leaders there have deeply embedded i...

Guests: Cynthia Cherrey, CEO of the International Leadership Association, & Ajay Bramdeo, African Union Ambassador to the EU This classic episode, revisited, focuses on global challenges. Migration – legal and illegal – is just one major issue haunting the globe. As the world faces this, climate change, and other international challenges, what can you do? Plenty, as we learn in this episode! I...

Guest: Deb Liu, Ancestry President & CEO You are who came before…personally and as a leader. Your ancestors have been shaping you for generations.   That’s one key lesson from Deb Liu, who heads Ancestry, the world’s leading genealogical service. Even though we like to think we’re completely self-made, we’ve been heavily supported by our teams and communities. But, more invisibly, we’ve also b...

Guest: George Papandreou, former Prime Minister of Greece Do you want to lead like an Olympian…or a gladiator? The Olympics were founded by the ancient Greeks as a model for collaboration and cooperation, developing a city-state’s Olympians to their highest potential. That dovetails with the mission of today’s best leaders – and Greece’s former prime minister, George Papandreou, shares why that Ol...

Guest: Catherine Teitelbaum, Head of Family Trust at Amazon Your current skills can take you to surprising places. That’s the backstory for Amazon’s Head of Family Trust, Catherine Teitelbaum. It could be your story, too! Catherine started as a classroom teacher; she’s now a tech leader. And, as she tells host Maureen Metcalf, it was a natural progression…but one she never foresaw. In this episode...

Guests: Susan Cannon, Leadership Professor & Futurist, and Mike Morrow-Fox, Organizational Development & Leadership Consultant   What you know now probably won’t cut it in a few years. You need to adapt your leadership skills to succeed through the next generation – and today’s guests tell us how! Futurist Susan Cannon and consultant Mike Morrow-Fox emphasize the need for modern leaders to...

Guest: David Rodin, Chair and Founder of Principia & Former Co-Director of the Oxford Institute for Ethics, Law, and Armed Conflict Even the mightiest corporate juggernaut can crumble under an ethics scandal. But even minor ethics issues can taint your business – not just with PR, but in reduced employee morale, engagement, and more.   But ethics can be taught, forged, and grown throughout an...

Guests: George Papandreou, former Prime Minister of Greece, & Jorrit Volkers, Dean of Deloitte University EMEA Can you change the world? Our two guests have been doing it for years.   In the first half of this episode, former Prime Minister of Greece George Papandreou dives deep into defending democracy – and how the European Union has evolved into a model of independent nations resolving diff...