The Impact List

Most bad hires aren't skill problems. They're fit problems. In this episode of The Impact List, host Laurie Fainer, Founder and CEO of Dynamic Alchemy Advisors, sits down with Amber Johnson, CEO of Forge Performance Group. Amber has spent over a decade helping companies in energy, construction, oil and gas, and healthcare hire and keep strong teams, and she breaks down why chasing the resume inste...

Intentional leadership is not a framework you learn in a course. It is a decision you make every single day about how you show up, who you trust, and what you do with the time you have. This episode is about what that actually looks like in practice. Robin Bailey, Managing Partner of Aria Benefits, host of the award-winning Success Leaves Clues podcast, and the person who, about a year ago, looked...

You know that leader who does it all - makes every decision, holds every piece, approves everything before it goes out the door? This week on The Impact List, Laurie sits down with Debbie Lariviere, the founder and head coach of Monter Coaching and host of the Real Estate Leadership Unlocked podcast.  They talk about what it costs to keep doing everything yourself, how to tell the difference betwe...

You know the person who's working against you? The one where the tension is real, the dynamic is off, and neither of you is saying it out loud? Michael Murphy was that person for Laurie. And instead of letting it become permanent, they named it. What happened next shaped the kind of leader Michael became and the kind he now deliberately builds around him. Michael Murphy is a Partner and AI Operati...

What if the most powerful thing a leader can do... is stop? In this episode of The Impact List, Laurie Fainer sits down with Caroline Baird, HR executive, leadership strategist, and holistic coach with more than 30 years of experience inside some of the largest organizations in North America. Caroline has held senior HR leadership roles inside multi-billion dollar companies, sat at the table for c...

Most leaders are trained to treat a stall as a failure signal - something to push through, smooth over, or explain away. Numrah Irfan sees it differently. In this episode of The Impact List, Laurie Fainer sits down with Numrah Irfan, founder of Wren Ave Consulting and former Deloitte leader with over two decades of experience inside large-scale transformation. Numrah makes a case that the moments...

The best leaders don’t have all the answers, and the ones who think they do often hold their teams back. In this episode of The Impact List, Laurie Fainer sits down with Hannah Yardley - who has spent two decades advising Fortune 500 companies, leading people strategy at a global SaaS platform, and earning a seat at some of the most consequential executive tables in tech -  to explore the leadersh...

What if you’re not burnt out… you’ve simply outgrown the life you built? In this episode of The Impact List , Laurie Fainer sits down with Simona Costantini, Founder and CEO of VOLT Productions, to talk about what it actually looks like to build a business rooted in values - not as a mission statement, but as a daily operating decision. Simona's values are kindness, care, and connection. She doesn...

What if the strongest leaders aren’t the loudest… but the most grounded? In this episode of The Impact List, Laurie Fainer sits down with Nadia Caira, Co-Founder of Beacon Talent Group, to explore what grounded leadership actually looks like in practice — inside the high-pressure, high-stakes world of executive search. Nadia brings a coaching lens to everything she does. She asks better questions...

What happens when you stop blending in… and start building something that actually reflects who you are? In this solo episode of The Impact List , Laurie Fainer shares the story behind the show and the turning point that led her to leave corporate and step into entrepreneurship. After years in executive HR and Chief of Staff roles, Laurie found herself asking a different question. Not “what’s next...

The Impact List is a leadership podcast for professionals who want more than soundbites and surface-level advice. Hosted by Laurie Fainer, CEO of Dynamic Alchemy Advisors, The Impact List features candid conversations with leaders shaping the future, not by titles, but by how they show up. Each episode explores the real moments behind leadership, the decisions made under pressure, the conflicts th...