Leveraging Leadership

Emily shares a story about a Chief of Staff facing resistance from their boss who prioritizes efficiency and speed over detailed planning. The Chief of Staff is encouraged to roll out initiatives that may feel only 60% complete to get things started, with the idea that they can be improved over time. The central lesson is about meeting people halfway and making incremental progress in leadership s...

Richard Charette shares his journey from user experience design to becoming a Chief of Staff at Wells Fargo. He discusses the influence of the McChrystal group's four quadrants model on building trust and evolving into a strategic partner. Richard also highlights the importance of extreme ownership and alignment coaching in developing holistic professional leadership like that of elite warrio...

Emily Sander answers a listener's question about getting specific feedback in the Chief of Staff role. She suggests asking more focused questions and tailoring the feedback process to fit individual preferences, like providing options for written or verbal feedback. Emily also highlights the importance of building a culture of open feedback through demonstration and modeling. Links Mentioned:...

Emily Sander hosts Sara Dakin, Senior Coach Network Manager at AceUp, to discuss their coaching platform focused on leadership development using technology and data. They explore the use of 360-degree feedback reports, highlighting strengths and growth areas, with examples of how this has impacted leaders like Sara. They also talk about AceUp's team coaching initiatives and the integration of...

Emily Sander discusses the challenges of navigating office politics, identifying the "games" at play, and deciding if you're willing and able to participate. Examples include dealing with strong personalities or working long hours. She also talks about life changes affecting your willingness to play and shares strategies for shifting your approach over time. Links Mentioned: Clarity...

Emily Sander introduces Rob Giardinelli, an introvert with a long career in the tech industry, who has attended over 2000 networking events and founded Event Mindset to help others with similar experiences. Giardinelli offers specific strategies for introverts, like starting conversations by asking "What brings you here tonight?" and finding conversations at the bar line or during event...

Emily Sander discusses how we often let assumptions and predictions about future meetings or situations affect us. She shares examples like a boss announcing role changes and budget approval meetings to highlight the gap between our internal stories and reality. By reflecting on these differences, we can build evidence showing that negative assumptions rarely unfold as imagined and train our brain...

Rhea Concepcion shares her journey from an Executive Assistant at Ernst and Young to becoming a Chief of Staff in different countries and industries, like LA and Denmark. She emphasizes the importance of adaptability, communication, and building trust. Rhea discusses facing uncertainty in the role and the importance of being kind and respectful while driving business priorities forward. Free Resou...

In this episode of Leveraging Leadership, Emily explores the concept of removing obstacles to achieve goals instead of just adding new strategies. He uses examples like eliminating junk food to meet personal health goals, cutting unnecessary meetings to help a team meet deadlines, and simplifying pricing models to close more deals and beat competitors. It's all about identifying what's b...

Emily Sander talks with Rafael Mari about the role of Chief of Staff and its development in France compared to the US. Rafael shares his journey from financial consulting to Chief of Staff roles in various companies, including his current position at Swan, a European banking service provider. They discuss the importance of building trust with the CEO, having clear ownership of projects, and the ne...

Emily Sander discusses how Chiefs of Staff, particularly in smaller to mid-sized companies, can craft effective job descriptions. She shares a five-section structure: intro paragraph, what you'll be doing, what we're looking for, benefits and perks, and call to action. Emily provides examples, like including "what you'll be doing" bullet points and adding a unique attribut...

This episode of Leveraging Leadership features Claire Podulka, Chief of Staff at TXI, who discusses prioritization as a key part of business leadership. Claire shares how TXI uses the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) to set and align business goals, and explains strategies for keeping a 70-person organization on track. She also highlights the importance of understanding personal motivations...

Emily Sander, Chief of Staff to an executive leadership coach, discusses how to handle underperforming team members by involving others in the team. She shares a case where a founder had difficulty getting metrics from a team member named Sharon. To solve this, Emily suggests including Daniel, an individual contributor close to the data, in meetings. This helps uncover Sharon's hidden talent...

Emily Sander interviews Conor Cunneen, a former VP of Marketing turned keynote speaker and business humorist. Conor discusses the power of humor in business, using the "LAUGH" acronym to add humor to presentations. He shares examples like a neurosurgeon's humorous slide and suggests building a collection of anecdotes to make work environments more engaging. Links Mentioned: Conor Cu...

Emily Sander discusses how leaders can make strategic decisions when unexpected events occur, using an example of a project that fell behind due to industry changes. A company leader had to shift focus from their planned initiative to tackle a new urgent industry policy, which Emily explains was a necessary strategic adjustment, not a failure. She emphasizes that changing plans in response to sign...

Melissa Schmidiger shares her journey from working at McKinsey & Company to becoming Chief of Staff at Ayala Land. She highlights the importance of building relationships, understanding one's career goals, and being authentic, which ultimately helped her move into roles like CMO and regional head positions. Melissa now helps high-achieving women through career coaching, focusing on buildi...

Emily Sander talks about deciding which battles to fight in a leadership role. She shares a story of a Chief of Staff who chose a short-term reorg plan to avoid conflict with a long-standing Chief Product Officer. Another example is a CEO who decided to replace a problematic Senior Vice President to prepare the company for a sale. Links Mentioned: Clarity Call with Emily Free Resources: Strategic...

Emily Sander interviews Matt Hartman, a Chief of Staff at Oracle, about his dual role overseeing employee-facing technology and a service group. Matt shares his strategies for prioritization, like focusing on company-wide goals first, utilizing delegation, and fostering teamwork across global teams. He highlights practices like implementing "Friye" for recognition and ensuring cross-trai...

Emily Sander discusses the importance of not losing your strengths while trying to fix your weaknesses. She shares examples like someone being too aggressive in communication and someone being too timid. Emily emphasizes that being direct can be a strength if balanced, just as listening can be, and encourages self-awareness and using feedback to improve leadership skills. Links Mentioned: Clarity...

Emily Sander talks with guests Nikki Barua and Cheryl Couch about building and leading a professional development platform that helps businesses grow highly engaged, future-ready talent. Using community-driven, tech-enabled learning, they help top companies boost revenue, retention, and engagement while empowering diverse professionals to rise as resilient leaders. Their mission is to expand econo...

Emily Sander discusses the benefits of flash reports in tracking company performance. Flash reports provide a quick overview with KPIs from each department and brief updates from department leaders. They help leadership teams stay informed and enhance board relations by facilitating clear and direct communication. Links Mentioned: Clarity Call with Emily Free Resources: Strategic Planning Checklis...

Emily Sander interviews Trent Smyth and Jeremy Costa from the Chief of Staff Association, exploring the relationship between a Principal and Chief of Staff. They discuss the role of a Chief of Staff and the association's programs at Oxford and Harvard, emphasizing alignment and personal development. The episode also covers the association's global reach, including networking opportunitie...

This episode of Leveraging Leadership focuses on defining the customer using three key questions. Emily Sander, Chief of Staff, discusses how crucial it is for everyone to understand their impact on the customer and what the customer really, REALLY wants.  Links Mentioned: Clarity Call with Emily Free Resources: Strategic Planning Checklist   Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist A Day in the...

Maya Ayed, Chief of Staff at Amira Health, shares her journey from big tech to startups, including hosting events to build her network. She explains Amira Health's mission to help women with menopause sleep better using a wristband and cooling pad. Maya discusses the importance of storytelling, how her team uses OKRs, and her memorable experience at CES launching their product. Links Mentione...

Emily discusses strategic alignment through the balanced scorecard, touching on corporate, business unit, and individual levels. She shares practical examples from her client management department and explains the importance of communication channels. The episode emphasizes visibility, transparency, and clear lines of sight in aligning everyone's goals. Links Mentioned: Clarity Call with Emil...