The Fault Line

How much data is actually enough to make a call? In this episode of The Fault Line, Kim Scribner and Gary Lancina break down the difference between KPIs, leading indicators, and the metrics that actually drive action — plus why cluttered dashboards often signal busyness, not clarity. The real focus: sufficiency. Gary shares stories from CPG and hypergrowth startups where "we need more data" turned...

What happens when a consultant does too good a job? In this Fault Line Short, Kim Scribner sits down with Aniela Larson to unpack the tricky dynamic between consultants and the sponsors who hire them — and why doing less might actually be the more valuable service. Drawing on the neuroscience of change, Aniela explains why friction is essential to real behavior change, and how "expert mode" can qu...

Kim Scribner and Gary Lancina return from a late-summer break to tackle a phrase that grates on both of them: "we're doing this because [so-and-so] said so." Is blind compliance ever the right move, or does it just let people off the hook from understanding the why behind a decision? They dig into when knee-jerk, no-questions-asked action actually makes sense (crisis situations, fire drills), and...

In this revealing short conversation, Gary Lancina and Kim Scribner dive into the subtle differences between leaders who build, innovate, and galvanize. They explore how understanding your innate strengths and blind spots can dramatically reshape your career and organizational impact. Learn why a brilliant idea alone isn’t enough, and discover the critical roles of self-reflection, vulnerability,...

What separates a team you tolerate from one you'd follow into a snowstorm (literally)? Host Kim Scribner reunites with four former colleagues — Scott Bane, Lindsay Smith, Nate Carney, and Riley Nevil — for a candid conversation about what makes teams click. They dig into trust as something built through follow-through rather than declared on day one, why remote teams need extra intentionality to b...

Kim Scribner sits down with Sarah Smith, Chief Innovation Officer of Iconoclast Innovations, to talk about operational debt — the lesser-known cousin of tech debt. They dig into why onboarding often falls through the cracks, how understanding the "why" behind a process keeps it from going stale, and Sarah's Evolve Framework for assessing organizational health. Plus: how AI can help document your o...

The U.S. is short hundreds of thousands of electricians, millions of medical assistants, and countless other skilled workers — and the barriers keeping people out of these careers are often language, numeracy, or simple lack of confidence. In this episode of The Fault Line, Gary Lancina and Kim Scribner sit down with Vicki Greene, former CEO of the GED Testing Service and now with AI education sta...

Radical candor only works when the room can hold the truth. Kim Scribner and guest Aniela Larson unpack how to give direct feedback in workplaces where psychological safety is thin and hierarchy is heavy. This conversation was born from a LinkedIn debate a few weeks back. Here they explore why “care personally, challenge directly” can fail when the environment doesn’t support it, and what leaders...

What if the secret to better leadership is a mirror, not a manual? This week, Kim Scribner and Gary Lancina sit down with Julie McManus, author of The Leadership Mirror, to unpack how introspection is the real key to influence. From diamond mines in Botswana to Silicon Valley software teams, Julie breaks down the patterns that quietly sabotage leaders (defaulting to answers, ignoring feelings, ass...

Imagine a workplace where politics fade away, accountability is mutual, and team members operate as a cohesive unit committed to shared goals. That’s the power of trust in action. Drawing from military insights and real-world examples, Gary and Kim explore how trust amplifies purpose, leading to better decision-making, reduced miscommunication, and collective achievement. They reveal why tradition...

Most companies struggle to make responsible decisions fast enough, until they discover the power of small, deliberate moves. In this episode of The Fault Line, hosts Kim Scribner and Gary Lancina break down a simple approach to decision-making that builds confidence, reduces risk, and keeps projects moving in uncertain times. Through real-world examples from consumer products, automotive, and soft...

Most organizations struggle with clarity and alignment within matrixed structures—are your teams truly on the same page? Kim and Gary discuss how to turn complexity into a competitive advantage with proven strategies from industry leaders.

Most organizations are aiming for AI transformation, but real progress rarely happens through one big breakthrough. It happens through purposeful, incremental change — and often from the middle of the organization. In this episode, Melissa Reeve, author of Hyperadaptive, joins the conversation to unpack why AI is not a magic wand, but a continuous journey of adaptation. She shares how leaders can...

Practice isn’t just repetition, it’s how athletes and leaders get better with purpose. In this episode, Kim Scribner and Gary Lancina explore how deliberate practice, scenario planning, and small moments of focused improvement can help teams grow and become better equipped to perform at a higher level.

Most of us struggle with the gap between who we are and who we aspire to be, especially after leaving a high-performance space like sports. In this episode, co-host Gary Lancina and guests Kate McKinnon and Sara Bradley explore how the skills developed through sports — resilience, coachability, teamwork, adaptability, feedback, and competitive drive — translate into leadership, career transitions,...

Welcome to the second season of The Fault Line, the podcast where hosts Gary Lancina and Kim Scribner pinpoint the moments when strategy meets stress: when plans are tested and decisions define the outcome. Season 1 took us inside pricing strategy, go-to-market transformation, growth, and the human side of leadership. Season 2 goes further. This season, Gary and Kim bring in new voices to confront...

Organizations aren’t built to stay still, but too many still treat change like a one-time event instead of an ongoing evolution. In this episode of The Fault Line , Gary Lancina and Kim Scribner are joined by transformation strategist Kelly Geyer for a conversation about resilient organizations, adaptive leadership, and why structure alone won’t save a company from disruption. From construction me...

What does “go-to-market” actually mean beyond the buzzword? In this episode of The Fault Line , Gary Lancina and Kim Scribner unpack the real work behind bringing products, services, and new ideas to market. From brand positioning and pricing strategy to customer trust, operational readiness, and AI’s growing influence on buying behavior, they explore why successful go to market efforts require al...

AI is accelerating how work gets done, from content creation to complex workflows. But speed isn’t the same as value. In this episode, Gary and Kim are joined by Pat Fitzgerald to break down where AI excels, where it falls short, and why human judgment, creativity, and emotional intelligence still matter most. They explore the difference between generative and agentic AI, the risks of outsourcing...

Since 2000, as an industry, private equity has grown five times faster than the US economy. When PE invests, it changes how companies operate. In this episode, Gary and Kim unpack what it really means to compete in a PE-backed environment. From the pressure of a defined time horizon to the shift toward fewer, higher-impact priorities, they explore how leaders can adapt to increased speed, sharper...

Resiliency is often talked about, but rarely unpacked. In this episode, Gary and Kim sit down with Vicki Greene to explore what it actually takes to build it, both personally and as a leader. From navigating career setbacks to leading organizations through change, the conversation gets into the real work behind resilience: facing challenges head on, learning in motion, and choosing to keep going....

In this episode of The Fault Line , CMG sits down with David Bland to unpack what it really takes to move faster in uncertain environments. The conversation explores why organizations slow themselves down, how the pursuit of the “right answer” creates bottlenecks, and what separates teams that act from those stuck in analysis paralysis. From simplifying risk to testing assumptions earlier, the dis...

Subscription models promise predictable revenue, but they only work when they deliver real, ongoing value. This episode explores what separates sustainable subscriptions from short-term wins, from reducing friction and building trust to designing experiences people actually want to keep. It is not about locking customers in. It is about earning their commitment over time.

Kim Scribner and Gary Lancina look back on the first quarter of The Fault Line , reflecting on standout conversations, including AI’s growing role in go-to-market, what it takes to drive business growth, and why trust, choice, and leadership behavior shape execution. From practical strategies to the human side of change, this episode connects the threads from Q1 and sets the stage for what’s next.

What if your data could actually teach your organization something? In this episode of The Fault Line , Kim Scribner sits down with Melissa Reeve to explore how AI is reshaping experimentation from simple A and B tests to continuous testing at scale. They discuss how to build lightweight learning loops, avoid common shortcuts, and use AI as a thought partner to generate hypotheses, analyze results...