The Innovation Meets Leadership Podcast

“Look for the impact that you want to have, and then prioritize based on impact rather than market.” – Esther Gons In this episode, the founder and CEO of GroundControl, Esther Gons discusses how innovation accounting can help organizations measure success when launching high-risk projects. She explore the need to start multiple ventures in order to predict success, and the importance of implement...

“A lot of skillsets you can teach, but the culture you can't.” - Marc Reifenrath Is a company’s culture critical to achieving and maintaining success? In this episode, the CEO of Spinutech, Marc Reifenrath encourages leaders to invest more time in building culture and core values for better retention and growth. He breaks down key strategies for onboarding new team members, creating an environment...

“The more people you have thinking about the problem you're trying to solve, the further you're going to get as an organization.” - Sohail Abbasi Are you adapting to digital transformation and continuous change? In this episode, Sohail Abbasi, the VP of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Hamava Innovation Factory, discusses how to overcome the not invented here syndrome - a tendency to avoid using...

“Think about some people you can pull alongside you to help you be a zero gravity thinker, to think outside the box and to look differently at problems that you're trying to solve.” - Natalie Born What is holding back explosive growth and breakthrough ideas? In this episode, Natalie and Aaron Born disclose the importance of innovation and how to foster it in an organization. They break down the 3...

“Self-ownership of issues or mistakes is huge because that's where that's where I learn and I know that's where other people learn.” - Bob Hasson Are you ready to gain courage and clarity on how to achieve the life you dream of? In this episode, Bob Hasson stresses the importance of having a strong character be seen as an asset and a value to your company during difficult times. He discusses how a...

“Just because an idea's not original doesn't mean it's not effective.” - Michael F. Schein Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, we are catching up with Micahel F. Schein. Michael is the founder and president of MicroFame Media, a company that specializes in making consultants and coaches famous in their fields. Some of his clients have included eBay...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Kathya Acuña of Change Strategy at LOCAL focuses on the human aspect of change. She discusses the importance of communication and bringing people along in the process. By effectively engaging employees, organizations can have faster adoption and establish a healthy work culture. Kathya is the Director of Change S...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, we welcome Shea Gerhardt. Shea talks about how to develop an effective product that could compete with the bigger players in the market. She reiterates the importance of focusing on the customer needs and being a solution to a problem and that product development never stops. Shea Gerhardt is the Founder and CEO...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Helene Cahen talks about innovation and collaboration in organizations. She explains how fear of failure can prevent us from innovating and why it’s important to create a culture that allows for risk-taking and creativity. She also shares insights on design thinking principles and ideation, and how teams can coll...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, we welcome Alex Castro of M Corp. He discusses how to identify and address the root causes of failed strategic initiatives to make future attempts at execution more successful. He also shares his thoughts on recognizing and overcoming cognitive bias, utilizing data in decision-making, and being adaptive to change...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Sunny Han discusses Fulcrum’s mission to transform the manufacturing industry with technology. He talks about how outdated software and processes can hinder an organization's ability to scale. However, he reminds us that newer doesn’t always mean better and there is always value to the mundane. He also digs deep...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Payitoff Founder and CEO Bobby Matson talks about turning a problem into a business possibility. Frustrated by his own student loans, he founded a debt infrastructure company to bring more transparency to the repayment process. He details how to dig deep into a personal pain point and discover the demand for a so...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, William Santana Li of Knightscope discusses the importance of innovation in public safety and why robotics is the solution to crime and terrorism. ASRs provide real-time surveillance across multiple locations and are designed to help law enforcement be a lot more effective at doing their job. He also offers insig...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Justin Skerbetz talks about how the healthcare industry has evolved in the last years incorporating technology and people’s demand. With a distinct focus on customers, Justin strives to always provide great his clients with the best customer experience. Justin Skerbetz is the Chief Marketing & Communications...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Bryan Clayton started by mowing his neighbor’s lawn as a side hustle and ended up founding a multimillion-dollar lawn care business. From customer-centricity to self-improvement, he joins us to share his secrets to success. Bryan Clayton is CEO and co-founder of GreenPal, an online marketplace that connects homeo...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Jay Goldman reflects on how building a bespoke tool for their company made them realize the universal need for better technologies in workplaces. Now, he and his team at Sensei Labs are committed to providing leaders with data-driven digital solutions to propel their businesses forward. He also discusses the conc...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, we share a conversation about self-discovery. Karen Hardwick, the author of The Connected Leader, joins us to talk about how leaders must first connect deeply with themselves in order to connect with others in a healthy way. We also focus on empathy, one of Karen’s 7 strategies to empower our true selves, and the...

Leaders need to be authentic and transparent with their teams in order to create a sustainable and successful relationship and scale. In this episode of the Innovation Meets Leadership Podcast, Natalie Born and Michael King explore one piece of advice for leaders when it comes to capacity - being able to understand their team and how they're doing.  They discuss understanding your team's enga...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Kevin Mills takes us behind the scenes of podcasting, the pitfalls and benefits of starting your podcast, and how you can use this powerful tool to your advantage. Kevin Mills is a co-founder of Streamlined Podcasts, a full-scale podcast production agency. Streamlined Podcasts helps its clients edit and produce t...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Thomas Watkins breaks down the ins and outs of effective design. He emphasizes the need to consider the user experience and that the process of design development must be centered around it. The key is making people’s lives easier and avoiding over-complicated systems. Thomas Watkins is a thought leader, speaker,...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Shaunak Roy discusses innovation in education through technology. Backed by evidence, it goes to show that active and engaged learning results in better outcomes. By being aware and taking part in the dialogue, the future of better education can become clearer and more feasible. Shaunak Roy is the founder and CEO...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Brad Smith talks about blind spots and how we can better address these issues through self-awareness. Without recognizing our natural tendencies, we tend to refuse proper delegation and thus, lack exponential growth. By understanding ourselves and our capacities to learn, we can stay intentional with what we do....

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Michael Sahota discusses what it entails to unlock the creative potential of people in the organization. He reveals the oppression behind the traditional systems and how leaders must make the daily choice of evolving. By prioritizing people over process, it is possible to create an agile space. Michael K Sahota i...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Rosemary Rein tackles hybrid work and how companies adapt. By effectively utilizing technology, applying positive reinforcement, and providing an avenue for collaboration, organizations can enable a better employee experience. Rosemary is an author, consultant, and international speaker on leadership, employee en...

Welcome to Innovation Meets Leadership! I’m your host, Natalie Born. In this episode, Paula White joins us to expound the concept of music as a metaphor in leadership. She highlights the importance of recognizing the different roles and tapping into your whole self to pivot while being in the metrics-driven world of sales. Paula White has an unwavering passion for music that she applies in order t...