Transform Your Workplace

Most leaders think delegation is about getting things off their plate. Brad Federman, author of Never Delegate Again , argues it's actually one of the most powerful — and most misused — tools for growing your people, your company, and yourself. In this episode, Brad joins host Brandon Laws to challenge the outdated models that have shaped how leaders hand off work, and introduces a new framework b...

What happens when the people leading your organization are silently falling apart — and no one has a system in place to help them? Psychologist and author Melissa Doman returns to Transform Your Workplace to pull back the curtain on one of the most overlooked conversations in the workplace: leadership mental health. In her new book Cornered Office: Why We Need to Talk About Leadership Mental Healt...

Most leaders say they value trust. It shows up in mission statements and team meetings. But when trust breaks down, few can explain why performance slows, collaboration frays, or innovation quietly disappears. Dr. Paul Zak doesn't treat trust as an abstraction. As a behavioral neuroscientist with over 25 years of research, he studies trust the same way an engineer studies load-bearing structures....

Most of us think burnout only hits people who hate their jobs. Psychologist and bestselling author Guy Winch says the opposite is true. In this episode, Guy joins Brandon to unpack the hidden ways work takes over our lives, from the autopilot trap and procrastination to evening rumination and self-neglect. Drawing from his new book,  Mind Over Grind: How to Break Free When Work Hijacks Your Life ,...

Are your meetings indistinguishable from 1940s wartime sabotage tactics? You're not alone. In this episode, Rebecca Hinds, author of Your Best Meeting Ever: Seven Principles for Designing Meetings That Get Things Done , reveals why corporate meetings have become the single most dysfunctional practice in modern organizations—and how to fix them. Brandon and Rebecca explore a radical idea: what if w...

Perfectionism can look like "high standards," but in real life it often turns into burnout, bottlenecks, and teams that overthink everything. In this episode, Brandon Laws sits down with Jason F. McClennan , author of  The Magic of Imperfection , to unpack his  three-quarter baked philosophy : a practical way to ship smarter, get better feedback, and unlock innovation without lowering the bar. Jas...

Brianne Mees, CEO of Tender Loving Empire, shares how a people-first background in psychology and social work shaped the culture of a retail brand built to champion artists, makers, and small businesses. Brianne walks through the company's growth from a scrappy early storefront to seven locations (including airport stores), the toughest leadership decisions during the pandemic, and why mission ali...

In this episode of Transform Your Workplace , Brandon Laws is joined by Nae Hakala, HR Business Partner at Xenium HR, for a thoughtful and practical conversation about leadership, empathy, and building workplaces that truly support people. Nae shares her career journey, from managing creative teams early in her career to supporting organizations through complex and often difficult people challenge...

Compensation is one of the most sensitive and misunderstood topics in the workplace, and one of the most consequential. In this episode, host  Brandon Laws  sits down with Nicole Blevins to unpack what compensation structure really means, why informal pay decisions stop working as organizations grow, and how leaders can approach pay with more clarity, fairness, and confidence. Nicole explains how...

In this episode of Transform Your Workplace , Brandon Laws welcomes back Jacob Morgan to explore ideas from his upcoming book, The Eight Laws of Employee Experience: How to Build a Future-Ready Organization , releasing in February 2026. Drawing from more than 100 interviews with CHROs, Jacob shares why many organizations have lost direction since the pandemic and how well-intended employee experie...

In this episode of Transform Your Workplace , Brandon Laws sits down with Kate McKinnon , a fractional Chief People Officer with deep experience in high-pressure, high-visibility environments across sports and entertainment. Kate shares what it takes to protect culture when speed and stress are constant, how to address burnout and disengagement without pretending everything is fine, and why "stop,...

Van Lai-DuMone discusses her book on transforming curiosity into action through small steps. She shares her mother's refugee story of building the nail industry, emphasizes reframing limiting beliefs, and advocates for workplace cultures that welcome all ideas. The framework includes pausing, asking "what if" questions, and embracing creative chaos.   TAKEAWAYS Curiosity requires pausing to ask "w...

Sarah Escobar and Corinne Murray discuss their book "Work Then Place," arguing that return-to-office mandates alone won't drive transformation. They emphasize understanding how work actually happens before designing physical, digital, and experiential environments. The authors advocate for empirical approaches, building trust through small changes, and creating adaptive organizations prepared for...

Martha Lawrence discusses her biography of Ken Blanchard, author of The One Minute Manager . She explores his journey from rejected academic to leadership legend, emphasizing his authentic servant leadership philosophy of "catch people doing things right" and how he built a values-driven company focused on people over profit. TAKEAWAYS Ken Blanchard co-authored The One Minute Manager in 1982 after...

Lisa Skinner discusses Alzheimer's care beyond memory loss, emphasizing the importance of "joining their reality" rather than correcting false beliefs. She challenges myths about late-stage awareness and stresses early planning, caregiver self-care, and workplace support as cases are projected to triple by 2050.   TAKEAWAYS Validate emotions and join their reality instead of correcting false belie...

Nicole Blevins discusses HR burnout with Brandon Laws, describing HR professionals as the "emotional sponge" of organizations. She explains how HR workers struggle to recognize burnout in themselves despite helping others with similar issues, particularly solo practitioners lacking peer support. Nicole shares practical strategies including setting boundaries, scheduling breaks, using music for dec...

In this episode, host Brandon Laws sits down with executive coach and author Susanne Madsen to explore what it truly means to do the inner work. Drawing from her career in high pressure corporate environments, Susanne shares how chronic stress, misalignment with personal values, and ignored emotions can quietly erode well being and performance. The conversation highlights practical tools leaders c...

In this episode of Transform Your Workplace , host Brandon Laws sits down with Lawrence "Larry" Armstrong—architect, artist, and author of  Layered Leadership: Drive Double-Digit Growth and Dominate Your Competition with Creative Strategies and Execution.  Larry shares how his unique blend of art and business has shaped his multidimensional approach to leadership. Through vivid metaphors and real-...

In this episode of  Transform Your Workplace , host Brandon Laws welcomes back   Victoria  Dew , founder and CEO of  Dewpoint Communications , to unpack findings from her latest research report,  Connecting the Frontline: Current Trends, Challenges, and Strategic Opportunities in Workforce Communication . Victoria shares what her team discovered after interviewing communication leaders across 18 i...

In this episode of  Transform Your Workplace , host Brandon Laws sits down with Claude Silver, Chief Heart Officer at VaynerX and author of  Be Yourself at Work: The Groundbreaking Power of Showing Up, Standing Out, and Leading from the Heart . Together, they unpack what it really means to lead with humanity in today's workplace. Claude shares stories from her own journey—from leaving a two-decade...

HR consultant Nicole Blevins discusses building effective partnerships between internal HR teams and external consultants. She emphasizes starting with clear role definitions, addressing concerns through curiosity rather than defensiveness, and positioning consultants as supportive extensions rather than threats. Success requires open communication, regular check-ins, and customizing support based...

Danielle Dinkelman shares her journey into corporate wellness, shaped by personal injury and witnessing her husband's burnout. She emphasizes that effective wellness programs require shared responsibility between employers and employees, focusing on five key areas: rest, fuel, play, connection, and purpose. Success depends on authentic leadership commitment rather than incentive-driven programs. T...

Construction veteran and certified polyvagal professional Josh Durham returns to explore "embodied safety" — a whole-person approach that connects physical, psychological, and physiological safety. He and host Brandon Laws discuss why practices beat policies, how simple sensory cues (calm voice, clear signage, clean spaces, brief breathing drills) help teams operate in a focused "play zone," and p...

Leadership coach Nir Megnazi discusses leading calmly through uncertainty in this Transform Your Workplace podcast. He explains how overwhelming change causes leaders to freeze, micromanage, or become emotionally reactive. Megnazi emphasizes that effective leadership requires emotional awareness—identifying and naming feelings before acting on them. He argues leaders must shift from prioritizing r...

Melissa Swift discusses why modern work is dangerous, boring, and frustrating—comparing today's tech overload to the early industrial revolution. She advocates for human-centric workplace design, reducing work intensification, and treating employee feedback as valuable data rather than complaints. TAKEAWAYS Work intensification is real : Employees are doing more tasks per hour with denser workload...