North Star Leaders: Positioning, Brand Strategy, and Leadership

Culture isn't what's written on the wall - it's what people actually do when nobody's watching. So how do you build a company where employees act like owners, customers feel like they belong, and brand values drive real business results? In this episode, Lindsay speaks to Zumiez CEO - Rick Brooks, who shares how a deeply embedded culture has shaped one of retail's most distinctive brands, why indi...

Brand isn’t just a logo. Culture isn’t just a mission statement. And customer obsession isn’t something you put in a slide deck. In this episode, Lindsay sits down with Ali Albazaz, CEO of Inkitt, to explore how a company built on AI, storytelling, and relentless customer focus grew from a scrappy startup into a global entertainment platform with more than a million paid subscribers. Ali shares wh...

How much of your buying decision is actually rational? And how much of it was made long before you ever started comparing options? In this episode, Lindsay Pedersen sits down with Bryan Law, CMO at Nerdio, for a fascinating conversation about the neuroscience behind marketing, why consistency drives growth, and what stories can teach us about influence and decision-making. Drawing on research, psy...

AI is making it easier than ever to create content, but also easier than ever to disappear into the noise. So how do you actually stand out when everything starts to sound the same? And what does it really take to balance short-term results with long-term brand in a world that’s moving this fast? In this episode, Lindsay sits down with Gautam Mehandru, SVP of marketing at CrowdStrike, to talk abou...

Is your brand working for you or just existing by accident? In this bonus episode, the tables turn on host Lindsay Pedersen as podcast producer Megan Dougherty steps in to interview Lindsay herself. Lindsay shares the thinking behind her approach to brand strategy, why she can't stand the term "personal brand," and what it actually takes to build something people remember. You'll hear them discuss...

Perfection. Hustle. Always being the smartest person in the room. Those are the things many leaders are taught to chase. But what happens when you realize those ideas might actually be holding you back? In this episode of North Star Leaders, Lindsay Pedersen sits down with Bill Glenn, SVP of Marketing at Esper, for a refreshingly honest conversation about leadership, vulnerability, and the long ro...

What actually separates marketing that moves markets from marketing that just explains things? And in a world where AI is rewriting the rules in real time, what does leadership even look like when your team might know more than you do? In this episode, Michael Atalla joins Lindsay Pedersen to unpack the real role of storytelling in modern marketing and why tension, transparency, and experimentatio...

AI is everywhere. Is your business actually using it with purpose, or just chasing the hype? In this episode, Lindsay sits down with Jeremy Korst, many time CMO and executive, to unpack the real relationship between strategy, brand, and AI. They get into why most companies are getting this wrong, how brand becomes the ultimate decision-making filter, and what leaders need to do right now to avoid...

And are B2B and B2C really as different as we like to pretend they are? AI is moving at breakneck speed, but what actually stays the same when everything around marketing is changing? In this episode, Lindsay sits down with Jason Ing, CMO at Typeface, to talk about curiosity in the AI era, why identity plays a bigger role in business buying than most people realize, and the timeless marketing prin...

Some leaders thrive on stability. Others thrive on chaos. So what does it actually take to lead marketing inside a company that’s scaling fast, solving new problems daily, and trying to democratize access to tools that were once reserved for big enterprises? In this episode, Apollo CMO Marcio Arnecke joins Lindsay to talk about resilience, moving fast without burning out your team, and why “progre...

Is playing it safe actually the fastest way to become invisible? In this episode, Lindsay sits down with Udi Ledergor to unpack why most marketing fails to get attention and what it really takes to stand out in a world where no one is paying attention. From bold Super Bowl plays on a startup budget to the uncomfortable truth about “boring” content, this conversation is packed with real-world strat...

Some leaders chase certainty. Others chase challenge, purpose, and the uncomfortable edge where real growth happens. In this episode of North Star Leaders, Lindsay sits down with Amanda Kahlow, CEO of 1Mind, for a grounded, honest conversation about leadership in the age of AI - where ambition, humanity, and self-awareness all have to coexist. Amanda shares how personal mission, spiritual groundin...

How does a founder stay deeply hands-on without slipping into micromanagement? And what really happens when you build a company around something the world has been taught not to talk about? In this episode, Lindsay and Ridhi Tariyal - CEO and co-founder of NextGen Jane, dive into the reality of leading a precision-medicine company in a space shaped by stigma, silence, and an explosion of new scien...

What happens when a tech leader decides to take on one of the hardest problems in healthcare - building a system that can actually save lives with data? How do you unite dozens of massive health systems, a pandemic, and a shared mission into one groundbreaking company? In this episode, Lindsay sits down with Terry Myerson, CEO of Truveta and former Microsoft executive, to unpack the story of how a...

How do you decide what to build when every day brings a hundred new possibilities? And how do you keep your focus without losing the spark of creativity? In this episode of North Star Leaders, Lindsay talks with Andrew Grauer, CEO of Learneo, the company behind well-known brands like Course Hero, CliffNotes, and QuillBot. Andrew opens up about what it’s like to lead through rapid change, why empat...

Plenty of leaders talk about collaboration. Far fewer can actually make it happen—especially when the stakes are high, and the timelines are brutal. So what’s the real difference between the buzzwords and the leaders who truly deliver? In this episode, Lindsay sits down with Amanda DePalma, Head of Global Marketing for Ultrasound at Siemens Healthineers. Amanda shares the real stuff: how she learn...

Every box on your doorstep, every item you’re ready to toss - could those be hidden opportunities to build community? Todd Dunlap, CEO and board chair of OfferUp, thinks so. In this episode, he joins Lindsay to talk about why local marketplaces are about far more than buying and selling. For Todd, it’s about people, trust, and connection - and the leadership lessons that keep him grounded while ru...

Selling doesn’t have to feel slimy. Open source doesn’t have to feel risky. And leadership doesn’t have to drain you. Dan Lorenc, CEO and founder of ChainGuard, has built a company - and a culture - around those beliefs. In this episode of North Start Leadership Podcast, Dan and Lindsay dig into what it means to build a “safe source for open source,” how to lead with authenticity, and why sometime...

You can’t “ing” your way to winning. At least, that’s how Latane Conant, CRO of 6Sense, sees it. For her, leadership isn’t about cranking out activities - it’s about shaping markets, chasing causes instead of jobs, and finding ways to make the work actually fun. In this episode, Lindsay talks with Latane about why she calls herself a Chief Market Officer, what it really takes to create product-mar...

What does it really take to keep growing as a leader when the playbook keeps changing? How do you hold onto curiosity and authenticity while also steering a company through massive shifts like AI? In this episode of North Star Leaders, Lindsay sits down with Gregg Johnson, CEO of Invoca, to talk about the art of building - whether that’s products, companies, or culture - and why leadership today i...

Are the hardest problems the ones most worth solving? Is leadership about being the smartest person in the room, or about creating space where everyone can bring their best? In this episode of North Star Leaders, Lindsay talks with Deborah Kilpatrick - former CEO and board chair of Evidation Health, co-founder of MedTech Women, and now partner at Sonder Capital. Deborah opens up about what drives...

Can company culture be engineered as intentionally as a product roadmap - and should it be? In this episode, Lindsay sits down with Robert Wahbe, CEO of Highspot, to explore how purposeful leadership, clear guiding principles, and a bias toward action fuel both performance and purpose. Robert shares how Highspot created a culture that values speed, detail, and humanity - and why having more values...

What does it really mean to build a business where purpose and profit don’t just coexist—but actively fuel each other? Can you scale without selling out, especially in a creative industry being disrupted by AI? In this episode, Lindsay speaks with Kakul Srivastava, CEO of Splice, a leading platform used by music creators worldwide. Drawing from her experience at values-driven companies like Flickr...

Is being the smartest person in the room holding you — and your business — back? What if the biggest leadership flex isn’t personal brilliance, but building a team that outshines you? In this episode of North Star Leaders, Lindsay Pedersen sits down with Joe Davy, CEO of Banzai — a high-growth SaaS company giving marketers AI-powered “superpowers” through tools like Demio, OpenReel, and Create Stu...

What if Olympic-level care wasn’t just for athletes—but for every woman navigating midlife health? In this energizing episode, Lindsay speaks with Olympic gold medalist turned tech entrepreneur Jennifer Heil, founder and CEO of Rya Health. From standing at the top of a ski slope under global pressure to building a health platform set to revolutionize women's care, Jenn shares the mindset shifts an...