unSILOed with Greg LaBlanc

Despite our culture of rugged individualism, it’s widely accepted among psychologists today that we need social connections to thrive. And neuroscience may be the key to understanding how relationships impact us on a physiological level. Amy Banks is the founding scholar at the International Center for Growth in Connection. Her book, Wired to Connect: The Surprising Link Between Brain Science and...

Why does there seem to be such a struggle to get things done in some organizations? How can you unlock the mystery behind the persistence of bad management practices? What is the problem of inaction, and how are workplaces impacted by the human tendency to add rather than subtract? Robert Sutton is a Professor of Organizational Behavior at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and the author an...

Management oftentimes can be a difficult and precise artform. How does leadership at a company decide how the organization should be structured? What divisions should be created? And how will the inevitable problems that arise be handled?  John Roberts, a Stanford Graduate School of Business professor, is one of the leading thinkers on organizational economics and has written numerous books on the...

How can economics shape our understanding of healthcare? How can cognitive biases lead even seasoned doctors into harmful errors, and what potential does machine learning have to mitigate these mistakes?  Anupam B. (Bapu) Jena is a professor of Health Care Policy and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Associate Physician in the Department of Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital...

Far from just making things pretty, design has become an essential part of strategy and now has a dynamic role in organizations. It’s not just about design; it's about the transformative power of design. Vijay Kumar is Charles Owen Endowed Chair and Professor Emeritus at the Institute of Design at the Illinois Institute of Technology. He is also the author of 101 Design Methods: A Structured Appro...

How do human senses compare to those of animals? In what ways are they similar, how are they different, and how do they help us make sense of the world? Ashley Ward is a Professor of Animal Behavior at the University of Sydney, Australia, and also the author of several books about animal behavior. His latest book is titled Where We Meet the World: The Story of the Senses . Ashley and Greg discuss...

Ever wondered why allergies seem to be on the rise? How about the intriguing link between the industrial revolution and our own immune responses? Theresa MacPhail is an Associate Professor at the Stevens Institute of Technology, a medical anthropologist, and author of several books. Her latest is called Allergic: Our Irritated Bodies in a Changing World . Theresa and Greg discuss the history of al...

How do you measure the true productivity of a country’s economy? What gets missed if the only metric being examined is the GDP?  Robert J. Gordon is a professor of social sciences and economics at Northwestern University. His work focuses on the history of labor and capital productivity and has written numerous books, including, The Rise and Fall of American Growth: The U.S. Standard of Living sin...

In ancient times, debtors were treated with severe punishment, even sometimes being dismembered. So when did things start to shift towards debt forgiveness leading up to the modern-day concept of filing for bankruptcy? David Skeel is the S. Samuel Arsht Professor of Corporate Law at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. He’s the author of several books that look at the history of corpor...

How much does venture capital actually have to do with finance? It turns out, not that much. Rather, venture capital has more to do with psychology, network theory, and organizational dynamics.  Sebastian Mallaby is the Paul A. Volcker senior fellow for international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations. He’s written numerous books, including The Power Law: Venture Capital and the Making...

Why are only 8.5% of large projects completed on time and within budget? No matter what type of project you're involved in, whether it's home renovations or space exploration, this conversation promises a wealth of knowledge and insights. Bent Flyvbjerg is a professor at both Oxford University and the IT University of Copenhagen. He is also the author of several works, and his latest book is How B...

In this episode, we unravel the misunderstood philosophy of Epicureanism. Don't be fooled by common misconceptions - Epicureanism isn't just about hedonism. It's about a balanced pursuit of tranquility, ataraxia, and the good life. Emily Austin is a Professor of Philosophy at Wake Forest University and the author of Living for Pleasure: An Epicurean Guide to Life .  Emily and Greg compare and cont...

Strategic Insights are everywhere, but they often go unnoticed by leaders. How can leaders of organizations harness the ideas around them by opening up their strategic planning process? Christian Stadler is a Professor of Strategic Management at the Warwick Business School and the author of the books Open Strategy: Mastering Disruption from Outside the C-Suite (Management on the Cutting Edge) , En...

Is History driven by heroic individuals or by variation and selection? What determines the speed of innovation?  Matt Ridley is a science writer, journalist, and businessman. His books include The Red Queen , The Origins of Virtue , Genome , Nature via Nurture , Francis Crick , The Rational Optimist , The Evolution of Everything , and How Innovation Works . Matt and Greg discuss the integral role...

How does one tell the story of knowledge through the centuries? And what kind of knowledge is being discussed when looking at its history?  Peter Burke, a professor of history at Cambridge University, has written more than 30 books over the course of his lifetime and has taken a special interest in studying the history of knowledge and polymaths.  He and Greg discuss a couple of his major works li...

Nowadays, if someone wants to make a lot of money in finance, they don’t go and work for investment banks. The real money to be made is at private equity firms. With most of these firms controlling a huge percentage of the country’s overall GDP and doing so largely unchecked, is it time to take a hard look at the systems that protect and allow these actors to flourish??  Brendan Ballou is special...

Ever wondered why some people seem to have an aversion to gesturing while speaking? Or did you know that even in the absence of sight, human beings instinctively use gestures to communicate? Susan Goldin-Meadow is a Professor in the Department of Psychology and Committee on Human Development at the University of Chicago and also the author of the books Thinking with Your Hands: The Surprising Scie...

Is democracy and the idea of citizenship deteriorating because of the state of our country’s education system?  Victor Davis Hanson is the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. He’s written more than 25 books in the realm of classics, military history, and the American political system. His latest book, The Dying Citizen: How Progressive Elites,...

Ever wondered about the growing presence of asset managers in all aspects of our lives? Brett Christophers is a Professor in the Department of Human Geography at Uppsala University in Sweden and the author of several books. His latest work is titled Our Lives in Their Portfolios: Why Asset Managers Own the World, and next year, he has a new book coming out called The Price is Wrong: Why Capitalism...

Is it possible to simplify life without losing the comfort and complexity that enriches it?  John Maeda, vice president of artificial intelligence and design at Microsoft, has been writing about the intersection of design, technology, business, and life for years. His book, The Laws of Simplicity, explores the question of needing less while still getting something more.  He and Greg discuss some o...

Will the subjects we debate in education still be relevant a century from now? There are enduring controversies and tensions in education that continue even today. Jonathan Zimmerman is a professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania and also the author of a number of books in the field of Education History. His latest work is Whose America?: Culture Wars in the Public Schools , and he is...

What technological and societal factors led to the rise of the large corporation in 20th-century America? Richard N. Langlois is an economics professor at the University of Connecticut and the author of the book The Corporation and the Twentieth Century: The History of American Business Enterprise . His work examines the economics of organizations, business history, and theories of firm performanc...

Do you find communication a necessary evil rather than a tool for success? How can you use communication as a fundamental key to success in both your personal and professional lives? Matt Abrahams is a Lecturer in Organizational Behavior at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, podcaster, and author. His latest book is Think Faster, Talk Smarter: How to Speak Successfully When You're...

Many scholars and philosophers have taken the stance that empathy hinders the true pursuit of knowledge and justice. But our guest today takes the opposite approach. Heidi L. Maibom is a professor of philosophy at the University of Cincinnati and the University of the Basque Country. Her book, The Space Between: How Empathy Really Works , argues that not only is empathy indispensable, but it's imp...

Does the financial world need a shake-up? By venturing into the minds of Nassim Taleb and Benoit Mandelbrot, two outliers who challenge the status quo of modern portfolio theory and efficient market hypothesis, we can find groundbreaking theories with implications for the financial sphere, especially in the face of unpredictable "Black Swan" events. Scott Patterson is a journalist with The Wall St...