The Connected Leadership Podcast

In this edition of The Connected Leadership Podcast, Andy Lopata and Todd Cherches take us on a fast paced ride around the English language and visual communication, discussing how they can help us to communicate more effectively and build stronger relationships. Todd Cherches, an academic from New York, talks about the use of metaphor and storytelling in visual leadership. Using a good metaphor c...

In this episode of Connected Leadership Gold, Andy Lopata interviews Janice Lintz about her successes in improving access for the hard of hearing and getting induction loops installed in a host of venues across the world. Her passion came from being the parent of a daughter with hearing problems and seeing the effect that a lack of access had on her growing up  with a normal life. Andy and Janice...

In a fascinating conversation with Rebecca Seal, journalist, food writer and author of 'Solo - How to Work Alone and Not Lose Your Mind', Andy Lopata explores with Rebecca how to cope with the psychological difficulties of being by yourself. They look at the mental challenge of solitude and strategies for creating an environment of discipline and boundaries that are successful. Working from home c...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership Podcast, Andy Lopata engages in a riveting dialogue with Samantha Hiew, an award-winning social entrepreneur, founder of ADHD Girls, and a reputed scientist. As a person diagnosed with ADHD, Tourette's, dyspraxia, and autism, Samantha shares her thought-provoking insights on the subject of neurodiversity. Neurodiversity covers a spectrum of neurodevelopm...

In this stimulating episode of the Connected Leadership Podcast, host Andy Lopata welcomes Molly Harvey, a leading authority in the world of leadership development as well as the founder of OWL (Outstanding Women Leaders). Molly Harvey is an author, facilitator, and speaker who has more than 30 years of experience that includes involvement with the United Nations. Focusing on the development of fu...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership Podcast, Andy Lopata interviews Marco Buschman, Dutch leadership expert and author of the book "The Connection Quotient." They delve into the topic of the human approach to connections, emphasising building a culture of connection within an organisation. Marco introduces the concepts of EQ (Emotional Quotient), IQ (Intelligence Quotient), and CQ (Connect...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership Podcast, Andy Lopata welcomes Sam Horn, CEO of the Intrigue Agency and the Tongue Fu! Training Institute. Sam's newly released book, "Talking on Eggshells," is the focus of their conversation, delving into conflict management and its impact on our professional lives. Sam emphasises that conflict is a natural aspect of life and highlights the need to addr...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership Podcast, Andy Lopata is joined by Eksteen De Waal; an international speaker, author and leadership consultant. He is a Fellow of PSA UK and President of PSA Netherlands. Eksteen describes himself as a team architect, explaining that he views teams as structures that require attention and maintenance, much like a building. He illustrates how his work enta...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership Podcast, Andy Lopata interviews Zaza Pachulia, a former professional basketball player and current executive at the Golden State Warriors. Zaza won two NBA championships with the Warriors and played over a thousand games in the NBA. He was born in Georgia and came to the US via Turkey, overcoming the enormous competition of traditional basketball-playing...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership podcast, Andy Lopata speaks with Annetta Marion, the producer of the biopic film "Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie", directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Davis Guggenheim. The film charts the career and struggles of Michael J. Fox with Parkinson's disease. Annetta shares her personal journey into the entertainment industry and her love for storytelling. She...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership Podcast, Andy Lopata chats with John Maguire, the Regional Vice President of Sales in EMEA for Sugar CRM. The conversation covers a wide range of topics related to managing professional relationships and customer relationship management (CRM) systems. They start by discussing the capture of information in conversations, the need to prompt interactions wi...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership podcast, Andy Lopata interviews Beth Sherman, speaker, comedian, and multiple Emmy Award-winning comedy writer, whose credits include The Tonight Show, Ellen and the Academy Awards. She passionately believes that humour is a skill that can be taught, and speaks to teams and leaders about how to use humour to connect quickly with customers, colleagues and...

Neil Mullarkey is a renowned comedian and an expert in communication. He began his career as President of Cambridge Footlights and then he teamed up with Mike Myers. Neil has also shared the stage with household names from Eddie Izzard, Dawn French, Paul Merton, Josie Lawrence, Eric Sykes and Christopher Biggins. He has participated in the Radio 4 shows I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue, Just A Minute an...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership podcast, Catherine Stothart, a leadership coach, speaker and author of How to Get On with Anyone: shares insights with Andy Lopata on using personality styles to build stronger relationships. Catherine explains the difference between trait approach and type approach, stating that type is best used for self-development rather than assessment and selection...

In this episode, Andy Lopata speaks with two incredible guests Jo Berry and Richard McCann about their experiences of trauma and forgiveness. Both lost a parent to violent acts - McCann's mother was murdered by serial killer Peter Sutcliffe in 1975, and Berry's father was killed in the IRA's bombing of the Conservative Party Conference in Brighton in 1984. Despite the immense tragedy, both found w...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership Gold, Andy Lopata interviewed Russell Best OBE who was Commander of HMS Cumberland and Head of Strategy Management at the UK Ministry of Defence, advising on defence and security issues. Andy and Russell discuss what underpins successful operations across the military and business worlds. Relationships are key in both but values are very different in ter...

For the next two weeks we will be exploring Connected Leadership Gold, past episodes that you may have missed. This week, Andy's guest is Itay Talgam, conductor of the Tel Aviv Philharmonic Orchestra.  Andy and Itay discuss what leaders can learn from the great conductors. A new conductor meeting with an orchestra, has to build trust often from resistance. The art of the conductor is to take a gro...

In this episode Andy Lopata speaks with Neil Jurd, OBE, who has extensive experience in leadership development from his time as a British Army officer and leading expeditions worldwide. Neil advocates for the power of relationships to break down hierarchies and reduce bureaucracy, which he has witnessed as being more effective in building stronger teams. Neil suggests that creating a safe culture...

In this episode, Andy Lopata is joined by Una Murphy and John Niland to discuss the importance of self-compassion, self-esteem, and self-worth in building strong relationships and networks. Una Murphy is an experienced executive coach working around wellbeing and resilience, and John Niland specializes in building professional identities both with teams and individuals, rooted in understanding sel...

In this episode of the Connected Leadership Podcast, host Andy Lopata talks to Gil Petersil, co-owner of Meet Partners, about the importance of professional networking and time management. Gil believes that most people know the importance of networking but don't really understand it. He suggests that people should spend more time nurturing the important mentors in their lives, and take following u...

With the rapid rise of AI, Andy Lopata asks his guest Ben Afia, if AI is going to replace humans and just how human are our connections in business now. Ben was a brand strategist for Boots and has worked with companies to build their brands and help them express themselves. There are distinct practical advantages to the use of AI; bringing data together, summarising meeting notes, marketing, gene...

A remarkable woman is Andy Lopata's guest in this week's podcast. Zafra Lerman is a Doctor of Chemistry, five times nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, recipient of the Presidential Award from President Clinton, honoured four times by the US Congress and winner of countless awards globally, particularly for her work on human rights. Her innovative approach to teaching science to under-privileged...

In this week's episode, Andy Lopata's guest is Frank Agin. From Columbus, Ohio Frank has much in common with Andy with his emphasis on the importance of creating a connection and building relationships. He also emphasises the importance of using stories to make connections. Andy and Frank discuss recognising opportunities and using your wider network effectively. They also look at mixing the perso...

Jennifer Fondrevay known as the 'MA Whisperer', is Andy Lopata's guest on this week's Connected Leadership Podcast. She is the author of the satirical book 'NOW WHAT? A Survivors Guide for Thriving Through Mergers and Acquisitions' and advises companies on the unexpected people challenges that may arise during the process.  Jennifer outlines the stages employees may face during a merger including...

 'One on One Meetings are Underrated; Group Meetings Waste Time'. The title of Lawrence Krubner's book is the theme of this week's Connected Leadership Podcast. Lawrence discusses with Andy Lopata how meetings can be essential for some people but an inordinately inefficient way to get things done for others. If you invite fifteen people to an hour's meeting, you have to be sure the meeting is actu...