The Future of Leadership

Want to be the next Uber and shake up your industry? Chances are you are doing it all wrong. Thinking a disruptive idea will create exponential change is missing the boat. Author, researcher and speaker Charlene Li says focus obsessively on your future customer and burn the boats to serve them best. This kind of commitment creates growth that is disruptive. Join us for some awesome and inspiring i...

Do you do annual anonymous culture reviews? Do you subject people to anonymous 360s? Should you do any of this? Here's the better approach than letting people hide behind surveys (and also when they might be good). Why you should listen: What needing anonymous surveys says about your culture 4 things you should look at instead Two situations when you SHOULD use anonymous feedback 👉🏼 Want to shar...

Did you scope a career, focus on getting the skills, and hoped the lifestyle would work out? That's how we were taught, back in the day. Gung-ho drummer extraordinaire Nick Gross is upending what it means to build a career, by helping students (and older folk like me) determine what lifestyle they want, what strengths they have, and THEN what career might work. Welcome to a new way of thinking abo...

What can art, train stations, and toilet seats tell us about problems in systems? In this Thought Nugget, we look at Italy and Japan - how values create entirely unique systems, and how you can use this to solve your own workplace challenges. Why you should listen: Book recommendation hits and misses Insights into systems that can save you wasted hours of work Fun insights into Italian and Japanes...

I met Colin Ellis a few years ago when he first arrived in Australia from Liverpool. He makes dapper cool again with his sensational dress sense and million dollar smile. He loves the people stuff as much as I do, and in this podcast episode we geek out on all things culture.  Why you should listen: Why culture change IS NOT HARD (like consultants say it is) and takes 9-18 months (not 3-5 years) H...

I was intrigued by Jo Metcalfe: as the Global Strategy Development Lead at GHD, I  wanted to know what it took to take on strategy for a global consulting firm for engineering, architecture, environmental and construction services. When I first spoke to her, I asked about the people stuff - what she found hard. She said, 'nothing! I love the people stuff!" First time ever I heard that response. Sh...

What can living in the jungle in a refugee camp teach us about leadership? Fearless Leadership expert Corrinne Armour shares wisdom and insights from the frontlines of guerrilla warfare, through to the tough conversations leaders need to have. She shares tips based on neuroscience to help people be more accountable, how to get people to take initiative, and how to create psychological safety. Why...

I met Craig Dower through LinkedIn when he commented on one of my articles about culture. I was intrigued by his global accolades as CEO: President of Avanade Asia Pacific out of Singapore, CEO Salmat, CEO Xenith Ip, and now CEO of Qantm IP. It's not the titles but the work he did: growing the business three-fold at Avanade, leading the largest transformation program in the company's 40-year histo...

Marene Allison is the Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer at Johnson & Johnson. Previously she was head of Global Security at Avaya where she secured the World Cup network in Korea and Japan in 2002. Before that she was an FBI Special Agent, working on undercover drug operations, terrorist bombings, and a mock nuclear terrorism exercise. She received a Bachelor of Science degree...

What does it take to build a wildly successful business? Author and entrepreneur Frank Fiume shares his deeply personal story on the highs and lows of creating a business based on passion. What looks like a linear journey is rarely that clearcut: Frank shares how he worked his way through each low and the lessons about life and leadership along the way. Why you should listen: Learn from Frank's ex...

Do you feel like a creative dunce? Do you think that creative people are born with talent, and you're just not one of them? Author, speaker, and creative powerhouse Kieran Flanagan breaks a few myths and lets us know we can all be commercially creative if we're prepared to do the work. Why you should listen: Learn the number one strategy to generating awesome ideas How to develop creative judgment...

Leadership expert Tim Collings joins me in sharing insights on his leadership path, and core tips for leadership that makes a lasting difference, and transformative leadership. Why you should listen: How to find your leadership calling that will sustain you through tough times Steal Tim's insights on how to lead mixed Gen X and Gen Y teams What to implement to be a transformative leader: imagine,...

Owner of AllBids Rob Evans is a successful Canberra business owner. He's been through many ups and downs and has now established the Fyshwick Business Association. He shares his struggles and insights. Why you should listen: Learn the specific steps Rob took to turn his workplace culture around that you can use too Find out about the most important strategy that led to business improvement: result...

Author of GREAT MONDAYS, 'one of the best culture books of all time' Josh Levine shares awesome insights about how to design a culture employees love. Why you should listen: Why you absolutely should NOT reward outcomes, and what to reward instead Learn the six steps to culture design Why Peak Perks has hit Silicon Valley and how it's a waste of money if you want to build a company to last  Simple...

Co-Founder of Love and Magic Company, Oshoke Pamela Abalu is a leading light for grace and privilege in work. She advocates for a change of language to focus on SYMPHONY, and not diversity. This interview was incredibly moving. Oshoke speaks to our higher nature, calls us all forward to our true human nature where we see, honour, and include each other. This was a TRANSFORMATIONAL interview for me...

Author of 6 books (nearly 7), personal branding expert Jane Anderson gives us the nitty gritty on how to manage people's perspective of you, namely your brand and reputation. Why you should listen: Learn how to figure out exactly what kind of reputation you do have (and is that a good thing or not) How to amplify your best facets and aspects of your personal brand What you absolutely must do to av...

Cindy Wigglesworth is best selling author of SQ21: The Twenty-One Skills of Spiritual Intelligence. Her work has had an enormous impact on my own perspective of leadership. The need to develop wise and compassionate leaders is needed more than ever. This is one of the most important interviews for leadership I have done so far. A must listen for those aspiring to make a bigger difference. We discu...

Science journalist David Robson, author of the brilliant The Intelligence Trap - Why smart people make dumb mistakes, takes us on a wild ride through the stupid things smart people do, and why. We explore: Why real life human vampires are more deserving of compassion than scorn How the ancient study of wisdom (and how to live our best life) is having a resurgence and renewal through the lens of Ev...

Do you struggle with perfectionism? Procrastination? These are some of the blockers to doing good work. Our very desire to do good work stops us from doing so! Lynne Cazaly is an author, international speaker, and master facilitator. She has published six books, including her latest Ish - The Problem with our Pursuit for Perfection and the Life-Changing Practice of Good Enough. We talk about: How...

He helps smart people be people smart. As the co-author of Forever Skills along with Kieran Flanagan, Dan Gregory is a leading thinker on what leaders can do to move people to sensible action. We explore how the real test of leadership is what we do when things go wrong, how the gaps in skills we need as leaders vary from industry to industry and culture to culture, how corporate Aussies are stron...

We are wired to belong. Contemporary workplaces are modern-day tribes, and yet so many leaders treat them as transactional places of misery. In fact, 82% of leaders have been found to be lacking in the required skills to lead effectively. There is a serious deficit in the soft skills. Author, consultant and tech startup leader, Shawn Murphy talks with me about the key principles of belonging in hi...

What do you do when your social drinking becomes a crippling habit in a downward spiral of destruction? We can admit defeat, we can surrender, we can ignore it, or we can own it. Rachel Hind chose complete responsibility. Her journey to sobriety is one of personal honesty, radical self healing, and personal transformation shows great courage.  We talk about how drinking for middle aged women has i...

What does it take to be a real man? Life Coach for Men, Greg Gillies, knows that it's not what we usually think. It's not about material success, business goal achievement, or a facebook narrative. He believes we need to clear the programming from our past so we can embrace the best of who we can be. Greg shares his own downward spiral from successful executive and business owner to numbed out alc...

How do we make sense of chaos and lead through it? What can we expect from Generation Z / Generation Alpha as leaders? What is the antidote to the pessimism we experience through post-modernism? These are some of the robust questions James and I explore in our conversation about his book, Metamodern Leadership - A history of seven values that will change the world. We travel through the historical...

Imagine in the lift at the end of the day, being asked for the 8th time, 'so, what happened to YOU?'. People with disabilities are confronted daily with intrusive questions about the intimate details of their physical condition. Something we would not dare ask others. This is but one of the challenges people with disabilities endure every day. Disability leader and advocate Christina Ryan wants us...