Let's talk Transformation : The business leaders podcast

Collective intelligence is the most important intelligent asset an organization has.The conventional wisdom of “command and control” in leadership is crumbling. A rapidly changing world demands a different management model, one built on “power with” rather than “power over.”Rod and I dig into why nobody is smarter than everyone and explore the power of collective intelligence in organisations. In a fast-moving world, a top-down hierarchy stymies progress and innovation; networks require different leadership that is not based on levels or departments, i.e. not horizontal or vertical in structure. In fact, networks are the lever for effecting lasting change, and harnessing the potential of an organisation.Rod vividly recalls a pivotal moment at Blue Cross Blue Shield: “The world moves faster than any CEO can think.” He realized no single leader, no matter how brilliant, could keep pace with rapid change. This insight sparked a shift from traditional hierarchy to a networked approach. This led to the unlocking of collective genius. In an AI world, how can we keep that human creative genius ?We explore extending the principles of collective intelligence to the development of artificial intelligence and integrating the learning from human and crowd sourced wisdom.Rod shares his insights, experience and research from working inside and with organisations on building a more collective and distributed leadership and decision making structure.Are you inadvertently stifling your team’s collective genius?The main insights you'll get from this episode are :Culture-building meetings with external parties are often more productive - having internal leaders act as facilitators off-site and bringing together a microcosm of the business gives everyone the same voice.Success depends on seeking first to understand then to be understood; asking clarifying questions; engaging in small mixed-group discussions; ensuring diversity of opinion; no censorship; and participation over disruption.Debate often gives rise to ‘lowest common denominator’ solutions; preferable is looking at the outcome regardless of agreement and disagreement, always having group decisions and avoiding polarisation.Uncovering what we didn’t know we knew as well as what we didn’t know we didn’t know is very important in a rapidly changing world - networks are better at this; successful companies know that it drives efficiency and leads to growth.Mining and leveraging collective intelligence (CI) is based on four attributes that work together: diversity of opinion, independent thinking, local knowledge, and an aggregation mechanism.Bosses who become facilitators make growth, adaptability, innovativeness, and the ability to pivot more likely - intentional design for CI busts leadership myths and creates conditions for sustainable growth.Senior leaders must accept divergent thinking, which is traditionally sorely lacking in the West, and companies must be free markets of ideas (with a decision-making structure).In a network, miscreants become contributors and leadership is about facilitating constructive conversations where everyone is heard and diversity is welcome - everyone has an obligation to speak up in a safe space.

AI is changing work faster than people can change how they workThis requires a new approach to human adaptation, not just technology deployment.A rich discussion with Nikki about how to move past chaotic AI adoption to focused, fast-paced organizational learning cycles, understanding at the same time that AI speed is unprecedented. We explore how leaders can transform, innovate, and amplify their impact in the AI age.Many organizations are grappling with the “Shiny Object Syndrome” in AI adoption. It is vital to keep business fundamentals in sight given that AI is ‘just’ a tech to help meet business objectives, yet shiny object syndrome prevails in many companies - strategic business clarity does not come from AI.Now is an opportunity for every business, also to stay competitive – the fundamental operating cycles are getting faster, and models are changing (from pyramid to molecular).We discuss how to ensure sustainable transformation, through continuous iteration in rapid 90-day cycles. This sprint-based approach allows for quick wins, builds internal capability, and maintains relevance in a fast-changing AI landscape.The result is Agentic-Human Reinvention; where humans and AI amplify each other, where output becomes exponential without more hours. Where people become People Squared.Nikki shares insights from her 25-year career helping top brands reinvent their culture and capabilities.What specific business objective could AI help your organization achieve in the next 90 days?The main insights you'll get from this episode are :Organisational learning cycles help leaders trying to navigate the rapid changes AI is wreaking on work – it is the greatest disruption in modern human history, and most leaders are ill equipped to deal with it.It is not just a matter of AI adoption, but how to help humans adapt and relinquish evolutionary design to co-evolve with AI for a new reality that reshapes roles and value creation models.It is vital to keep business fundamentals in sight given that AI is ‘just’ a tech to help meet business objectives, yet shiny object syndrome prevails in many companies - strategic business clarity does not come from AI.Clearly defined AI projects create sustainable change, which requires continuous and rapid iteration – in cycles – for specific use cases to create the highest ROI and demonstrate the value of AI.The superficial application of AI erodes trust and wastes resources; this new tech must be taught rather than learnt, which makes it more valuable yet also more difficult to create a culture of trust in it.Deploying AI must begin with the people, not the project - AI is forcing a deep change in human beings who feel threatened evolutionarily by a lack of safety, certainty and comfort.Embracing risk and navigating uncertainty is an identity/mindset shift and the starting point to determine which zone of genius remains and what must go; AI as a co-worker follows the reinvention of the people, the process and the tools.Personal transformation is the first step towards reshaping the philosophy of leadership guided by core values; continuous learning is now the ultimate superpower to turn knowledge into wisdom.Clarity, courage,...

"The way we talk about change is more important than how we plan it.."88% of organizational change efforts fail to produce lasting results. What if the solution isn’t a new framework, but a new conversation?This episode challenges leaders to reconsider why change efforts fail, pointing to a surprising culprit: a lack of listening and communication. Jeff and I explore how shifting our approach to conversations can transform outcomes and build stronger, more adaptive organisations.We literally change the conversation, digging into the fact that individuals are often ambivalent about change, possessing both reasons to accept it and reasons to hesitate. This ambivalence is not fixed but fluid, and can be navigated intentionallyMotivational interviewing (MI), originally developed in clinical psychology, provides a framework for guiding individuals toward change they cannot be compelled to make. Motivational Interviewing teaches us to listen for “change talk” and “sustain talk” — people’s own reasons for and against change.This deep listening reveals the raw ingredients for productive dialogue, moving beyond fixed attitudes to address underlying concerns. It’s about meeting people where they are, acknowledging their ambivalence, and helping them clarify their own path forward. This approach doesn’t dismiss models; it feeds them the human insights they need to succeed.How do you differentiate between true resistance and genuine hesitation in your teams?The main insights you'll get from this episode are :Conversations about change need to be front and centre in organisations – organisational change requires communication, commitment and engagement, making it easy to find excuses not to undertake it. Failed organisational change comes at enormous cost, making successful organisational change essential for the bottom line - everyone is ambivalent about change, but leaders often interpret hesitation as resistance. Change management has unhelpfully popularised the word ‘resistance’, yet attitudes towards change are not fixed - the many reasons why people are for or against change fluctuate; tweaking this balance can move the needle towards change.‘Resistance’ attributes intention without discretion or discernment, whereas it might be due to a lack of understanding or training - calling people resistant is self-fulfilling; likewise silence does not always signify defiance. Motivational interviewing (MI) for organisational change can be defined as a set of conversational tools and skills for helping people move towards change that you can’t make for them – this makes it relatable and teachable. Understanding how to listen differently, speak differently, and help build belief in different modes of communication means that small steps can be interleaved with immediate effect (MI-inspired microskills). Learning to listen for change talk (someone’s own language of change) and sustain talk (someone’s own language against change) brings to light the ‘raw ingredients’ for a different kind of conversation.Frameworks and models (i.e. planning) for organisational change don’t work, are unsustainably expensive and alienate staff; ‘all models are wrong, some are useful’ is true if they are used consistently.

"Leadership is a collective ability. It’s not an individual skill set."Now more than ever this phrase rings true for leadership in teams, organisations and society as a whole. The inherited leadership model is destructive, not productive in today's interconnected world.Never has it been more important to challenge the status quo, to unlearn old formatting and build new patterns so that organisations and teams can thrive. The best way to avoid risk is to actually do nothing.- Celine's observation highlights a critical issue in modern leadership. Many organizations inadvertently foster environments where inaction is safer than innovation. I see this firsthand frequently.Leaders, fearing blame for mistakes, often maintain the status quo. This “risk of doing versus risk of not doing” dynamic stifles creativity and energy. We need leaders to challenge this complacency. Rather than trying to be the best, leaders should challenge themselves ethically and morally; pursue human pastimes to maintain emotional and creative ability; hold space to think and feel; and improve the quality of relationships with their people and between people - leadership is a collective ability, not an individual pursuit.Celine shares her insights and experience from working with leaders all over the globe and from researching her book : Dare to Unlead.The main insights you'll get from this episode are :The inherited leadership model is destructive, not productive: it is evident in the corporate world that leadership has been transformed into an industry, making it difficult to progress (business- and human-wise) in large, industrialised companies.Toxic patterns are reproduced, resulting in a male-dominated, ego-drive, territory-obsessed culture with the heavy infrastructure of prediction and control that is slow, outdated, inefficient, and comes at enormous personal, social and planetary cost.Red flags often come in the form of multiple small indications, such as cultural, ethnic, and gender homogeneity at decision-making level; a prevalence of no vs yes; and difficulties driving innovative projects forwards because leaders are risk averse.A lack of accountability for not doing the right/wrong thing leads to complacency and ‘yes’ people who maintain the status quo, leaving no room for new blood or change, which in turn produces stagnant energy that is directed into negative politics.In the workplace, we have to be with people we haven’t chosen or who aren’t like us, giving us an opportunity to develop our diversity muscle in terms of dealing with different opinions, worldviews, etc. against a clear mandate of making the business work.Leadership is about enabling something productive; creating value across the board; and mobilising all talent - energy and power are omnipresent and can be either a constraint or an opportunity, depending on the mindset.Familiar power structures are still honoured, e.g. one knowledgeable expert has the right to overrule all other opinions, but they are no longer applicable given that managers now are often less knowledgeable than their direct reports.Knowledge and relational work has changed the foundations of old decision-making systems, with more agility and diversity required - leaders must stop seeing themselves as the centre/top of the system, and rather as an

"If my top talent walked out tomorrow, or AI shook things up overnight, would I still know how to win with people ?"This is the question Kate and I discuss - the urgent need to rewire work and change the way we view talent, skills and the workplace. One of the shifts is moving from viewing individuals as mere “employees” to recognising them as “contributors.” This change fosters a sense of agency within any organizational system.The topic of agency highlights a crucial shift: workers have agency to choose and the long time loyalty contracts are gone. People, particularly the younger generations now prioritize health benefits, time off, and flexible working over pay raises. This signifies a deeper desire for lifestyle integration and genuine care from employers. It’s about feeling valued for one’s skills from day one, having a voice, and ensuring long-term employability, especially with AI on the horizon. If our identity is tied to what we know, how do we adapt when AI “knows more”?Historically, the more people got used to new tech, the less anxious they became. But with AI, it’s the opposite! The closer people get, the more nervous they feel. This isn’t just about understanding the tech; it’s about our identity and status tied to what we know versus what we’re willing to learn. This paradox calls for a fundamental shift: from being “know-it-alls” to “learn-it-alls.” Leaders must foster environments where learning and adaptability are paramount, rather than relying solely on existing expertise.If you had the opportunity to redesign work in this department how would you do it differently ? The insights you'll get from this episode are : -      It is people, not technology, who breathe life into businesses and keep them competitive; the pressure businesses are under puts a premium on talent and GenAI is increasing the gap between average and high-performing employees.-      Hiring, development and promotion must be right for a business to unlock opportunities, but workers have more options than ever before - Gen Z feel work is broken and the lift provided by augmented AI does not fix what is broken.-      The proximity paradox, i.e. the nearer people get to AI, the more nervous they are about it, is the opposite of past experiences with tech – if people are worried about losing their jobs and using AI, they will not innovate and look forward.-      This paradox is also a human paradox – GenAI provides no reassurance as it is always changing and learning, which is at odds with a system that values knowing over learning: know-it-all v learn-it-all is a threat to identity and status.-      Companies must care about guiding employees so that they stay relevant, and managers must have honest conversations with employees about how AI will change their jobs – this may well involve not having all the answers.-      The employee turnover rate is driven by the labour market and HR must know what the company’s reputation is externally to prevent the top talent from leaving in a flexible and fluid talent supply – motivation is key here.-      More agility in the workforce requires intentional work redesign - fixed v flex v fully flow roles - to solve real human problems and supply gaps through e.g. offshoring, right-shoring, making use of global capacity centres.-      Leaders must be able to work across temporal, digital, cultural and behavioural boundaries, and across generations, i.e. manage paradox, sense markets and people, have a global mindset, and embrace DE&I.-      Upskilling is crucial, as skills are the real

“Most organisations don’t fail through lack of strategy, but because the strategy never reaches the front line.” How do we ensure that our organisational strategy truly reaches the front line of operations, preventing it from remaining solely at the board level?Matt & I delve into this critical challenge facing leaders today. We uncover how to bridge this gap, ensuring your strategic vision translates into frontline execution and sustained growth.The tension between “explore” (innovation) and “exploit” (business as usual) is a constant balancing act for organisations. and we need to inherently foster both. But how ? The Square management system provides an architecture for leaders to scale their culture without stifling innovation, a critical balance for companies. Matt shares his journey, from transforming underperforming sports franchises to investment banking and corporate development, where he observed how different companies created or captured value. He realised the importance of intentional organisational design when asked how to maintain culture across multiple offices and states, leading to the development of his book and approach.“square” does not imply a rigid, binary system but represents a dynamic space for culture. He defines good culture as the alignment between an individual’s perceptions, beliefs, and values and the company’s systems and procedures. The “square” changes in size and shape depending on the company’s needs. Discover the four "I"s—Identity, Instruction, Intercommunication, and Information Feedback—that form the foundation of an effective organizational design. We discuss how leaders can utilize this system not just as a culture tool, but as a comprehensive operating framework, especially vital during M&A integrations or major reorganizations. How do you balance freedom for innovation with the need for operational consistency in your organization ?The main insights you'll get from this episode are : -      Regardless of sector, there are commonalities in terms of workplace cultures and thriving, i.e. understanding where value lies and how to create or capture it - the square management system is an architecture for leaders to scale culture without suffocating innovation.-      The Culture of Alignment is a philosophical exercise around how to run a company, a model for operationalising strategies into tactics, as strategy often stays at the top, without penetrating the front line.-      Rather than copying what others have done, it offers a way to intentionally structure a high-performing organisation, with direct tools to provide for growth and scale - not a blueprint, but an invitation to create a bespoke model.-      The system factors in both alignment and flexibility by understanding what the culture is and intentionally designing for it: the culture is the square, but the size of the square and the walls can change.-      The square comprises: identity (do customers and staff know what we stand for), instruction (expectation for performance standard across the organisation), intercommunication (flow of information across the company), information feedback (data and information on the company and employees).-      The fifth i in the middle of the square is constrained independence (the known degree to which an employee can action their own ideas) = culture; a lack of constraint leads to mini squares = chaos.-      Most companies fall short in one area: identity deviation erodes trust; instruction deviation leads to a varying standard of...

"Think about how stretchy you are and what you accept. Where are your breaking points?"One particularly striking data point: 70% of people face obstacles asking questions at work. This statistic underscores a core issue. Curiosity is often cited as a value, yet many environments make it unsafe to ask for clarification or challenge ideas. Fear of looking incompetent, challenging authority, or slowing down progress often silences valuable input.Julie and I discuss how curiosity, respect, and self-awareness can transform organisational life. We explore practical strategies for leaders to foster psychological safety and inclusive collaboration, using Julie's own unique journey and the powerful “Seven Forms of Respect” framework for guidance. We often talk about “soft skills” in organisations, but as teams become more global and complexity increases, these skills are anything but soft. They’re foundational. We discover a refreshing perspective to curiosity, respect, and self-awareness, showing us how to make these invisible dynamics tangible and actionable. This in turn allows leaders to shift from just “knowing” to truly “learning” — a real leadership superpower in our changing world.Recognising your “rubber band” stretchiness - Understand personal boundaries and breaking points, and communicate them to others is also key as it prevents snapping and strengthens relationships. This episode offers key insights into navigating complex team dynamics and maintaining a learning mindset in high-pressure environments.The main insights you'll get from this episode are : -      Being a self-taught organisational development consultant taught the critical value of sharing resources and building communities in times of crisis; there is tension and friction in any community but making the invisible relational dynamics tangible helps to understand them.-      When it comes to learning from other people, curiosity and self-assessment are required for the shift from knowing to learning, and to decode the different dynamics; curiosity requires questions, but do people feel safe enough to ask questions?-      Internal narrative and cultural formatting influence communication - we are all members of multiple cultures, communities and identities simultaneously, and inward curiosity is a prerequisite: What matters to me?-      Our multiple identities mean that we must slow down and reflect to enable good decisions to be made from a place of curiosity; leadership rituals (e.g. meeting facilitator rotation) can help teams maintain curiosity when under pressure, create empathy and force listening.-      Using the seven forms of respect as a framework for collaboration helps understand how respect is relative, dynamic, subjective and contradictory: Procedure, Punctuality, Information, Candor, Consideration, Acknowledgement, Attention.-      A useful analogy here is with language: the organisational level represents the national language; departments represent dialects; and the individual is represented by their own language – we all need to be multilingual.-      Intercultural working results in unclear messages, which lead to perpetuated actions and unmet expectations that were never made explicit - a team must understand what respect means to them, not by guessing, but by asking others.-      Inward curiosity is about self-reflection and admitting what challenges us and what our expectations are – this can be difficult to acknowledge given that it can be perceived as a challenge to our identity.-      Curiosity in practice means approaching...

"it’s faster to implement a piece of technology than it is to get 10,000 people to stop doing what they’ve been doing for a decade and start to do new things and work in new ways"Hilton and I unpack the hidden dynamics of organizational change, and the influence of informal power dynamics on transformation. Most change programs falter, not due to strategy, but because leaders often overlook the invisible power of trust and connection networks. Amidst the 'talent' lists and org charts, do you know where your powerful influencers are in your organisation ? Hilton shares his powerful “people, not pixels” philosophy, explaining how technology investments frequently overshadow the critical human element. It is difficult to budget for, and prioritise, translating a ‘people not pixels’ approach into culture change; similar to what we are finding with AI today, digital transformation stands and falls with the people and the culture of an organisation, not the technology. We also dive into the “3% rule" from Innoviser, exploring how identifying and activating informal power networks can create significant momentum and surface untapped potential and highlight the 'key influencers' in your organisation. This conversation challenges traditional views of leadership and offers a fresh perspective on cultivating a resilient, adaptable culture.Discover how to transform your approach to change by understanding the relational and emotional infrastructure that truly drives performance. Learn why acknowledging emotions and mapping your organisation’s real connections are non-negotiable for future success. Look at where and how you can unlock potential in your teams and organisations.How can you use data differently to understand the potential of your organisation ? The main insights you'll get from this episode are : o  C-suite is under such immense pressure that people are overlooked and investment is made in technology, which becomes an efficiency tool that is quicker to implement and yield results than changing people’s habits.o  We ignore previous failures and neglect to learn lessons, yet without an enthusiastic commitment of the culture to change, strategy will flounder and adoption will slow – the vital balancing act is to engage humans proactively: tech + humans, not tech v humans.o  The invisible part of culture is where it has been made amorphous and ambiguous, so that it is seen as the ‘soft’, human-related aspect of change when it is actually the most challenging aspect – to motivate, entice and energise others.o  How humans behave and make decisions within an organisation is important because of how we interact with each other across ecosystems – the many decisions that are made (or not made) on a daily basis must align with the strategy.o  Culture can be defined as the worst behaviour tolerated by management - this is pivotal to sustainable transformation because of the importance of the relational and emotional infrastructure when building culture and performance.o  Functioning informal power networks and humanly - not digitally - connected organisations are built on the basic tenets of humanity, i.e. trust, advocacy, commitment and energy, which in turn are reliant on relationships as the currency of systems.o  In terms of influence, leadership impact involves many other parties on the edges who build communities, create momentum, and unlock hidden potential (cf. Innovisor’s rule that 3% of employees drive 90% of change in an organisation).o  The inherently human approach of organisational network analysis to define the connectors in the organisation enables leaders to unlock potential by engaging those people who provide the ideas and the energy and invite trust.o  Agency is diluted by a lack of clear accountability – a more...

"The future won’t belong to humans or machines, but to those who master the hybrid skill set combining AI literacy and human literacy."The future of work is not about humans versus machines. Instead, it belongs to those who master a unique hybrid skill set. This blend combines AI literacy with essential human capabilities. Literacy in today's world lies in the ability to learn, unlearn and relearn - this has never been more true as it is in today's partnership with Agentic AI. Andréa and I delve into the what these combined forces could look like, and how to build the framework for operational implementation. Digital transformation requires a hybrid skill set that fulfils the three different facets of transformation (cognitive, behavioural and emotional), which in turn align with the aspects of workplace culture (how we think, act and interact). We discuss how to build a culture of trust in AI, essential for successful collaboration and highlight a critical distinction : humans interpret data semantically, giving it meaning and purpose, while AI processes it syntactically, based on patterns and probabilities. This difference impacts decision-making and ethical considerations. Leaders of the future must be honest about and clearly see what tasks should be augmented using AI and how the time saved should be spent, i.e. what does AI do best now and, consequently, what should humans do better?How are you ensuring that you, your teams & your organisation are developing the skills necessary to complement AI’s analytical power and drive results together. The main insights you'll get from this episode are : -      Democratising access to a hybrid skill set means defining how to navigate the ‘fear vs. opportunity’ narrative of human potential in a world of AI, harking back to ‘man vs. machine’ as opposed to embracing a ‘man with machine’ approach.-      Digital transformation requires a hybrid skill set that fulfils the three different facets of transformation (cognitive, behavioural and emotional), which in turn align with the aspects of workplace culture (how we think, act and interact).-      The cognitive transformation element, i.e. decision-making, is the most problematic for leaders as humans still believe in the old way of making decisions; leaders are most exposed to this risk due to their past successes.-      In the words of Rasmus Hougaard, “ego is the worst enemy of leadership” and hampers effective decision-making - AI makes new things possible and humans are taken aback by the exponential rate at which we must learn and unlearn.-      Prompting, data sense-making and re-perception mean that we need to craft better input for AI but also ask humans better questions - unexpected questions open our minds to novelty and creativity.-      Our inherited educational model rewards good answers, not good questions, yet this stifles creativity and re-perception; the latter goes against the human (and educational) grain, but AI tools represent a good sparring partner.-      Rather than a product-centric approach, we are now called upon to make sense of data, but AI and humans interpret data differently: humans interpret it semantically (adding their own perspective); AI interprets it syntactically (as tokens without understanding meaning).-      The problem inherent to AI is that it does not understand or give meaning to its decisions and has no conscience about the action taken - humans must have responsibility for giving data meaning and not outsource this to AI.-      AI learns on a binary basis without context; tasks that are too demanding...

"Any AI you use today will be the worst AI you will use. You need to really learn how to challenge AI and learn how to have AI challenge you."Rasmus and I delve into the research and questions of how leaders can embrace AI to become more human in their leadership, and how can this accompany them on the journey of navigating uncertainty and a more transactional workplace. Currently less than 20% of leaders are ready for AI, despite it being a strategic necessity – it is an uncomfortable prospect that AI will take our jobs, but we can counter this by embracing AI and being better human leaders. AI democratises knowledge, strategic thinking and decision-making - it will flatten organisations and leaders must embrace this, aiming to embody gratitude, humility and selflessness. This shift from ego to eco, and from doing to being is the key to leveraging what AI can enable in our humanity. Leaders must guard against cognitive laziness and human disconnection caused by AI, and actively challenge its outputs to ensure true human engagement.AI surpasses humans in information access and processing speed, making it unwise for humans to compete in those areas. Instead, leaders should focus on what AI cannot replicate : Awareness involves understanding oneself, emotions, biases, and others. Wisdom is the ability to ask good discerning questions, distinct from AI’s knowledge. Compassion stems from a true intention to support & connect on a human level, which AI lacks despite its ability to process emotional data.Rasmus shares his research and insights from his latest book 'more human' and from working with leaders and companies across the globe on how to create more human centred leadership in today's workplace. The main insights you'll get from this episode are : -      AI augmented leadership requires three core competencies of awareness, wisdom and compassion: AI will have more information and faster processing power than any human brain but cannot be completely human.-      AI can help make us more aware if we use it as a sparring partner, providing it with everything there is to know about us to help us make decisions based on multiple different perspectives - context and mindset are vital here.-      Our neuroanatomy is uniquely human in that we perceive, discern, then respond (sentience). In terms of leadership, this translates to awareness (of biases, emotions and systems), discernment (wisdom not knowledge) and compassion.-      We are formatted to ‘do’, but AI requires us to react using our soft skills and human traits - being human at work is the blueprint for future leadership, driven moreover by purpose.-      It is the choice of every individual leader to ask not just what AI can do for me, but also to me: AI makes us cognitively lazy given that it is confidently both wrong and right - we must not fall prey to accepting its output without question.-      AI also has huge user bias – we must challenge it and have it challenge us, deploying mental hygiene when engaging with AI to make us more aware, wise and compassionate, fostering a mindset of equanimity.-      Having an AI proxy carries the risk of putting information in the hands of a tech firm, but once it has all the requisite information, it can provide very helpful answers in the form of outside-in views with psychometrics, etc.-      Asking AI for compassion-based responses highlights blind spots and gives actionable feedback to push us back into human compassion and awareness, e.g. asking for the worst possible outcomes of a potential decision.-      The workplace...

"Holistic transformation is not just how are you implementing a piece of software, AI is a really good opportunity for us to start to explore this"Lindsay and I have a rich conversation diving deep into holistic transformation, the impact of AI, and how to navigate change in today’s rapidly evolving world. Organisational change management is often deployed too late, which speaks in favour of taking a holistic approach to transformation and asking from the outset: How do people change? How do they view themselves and their work?Digital transformation is not just about implementing new software but also about how people change their thinking. AI is an excellent example. To get actual value from it, individuals need to rethink their roles and personal value. It’s about micro and macro changes happening together.It is as ever, centred around the inner work we need to do as leaders to ensure that we are mastering what keeps us human, as well as looking at challenging the status quo constantly. AI is changing business models and the way we work, causing some organisations to dispense with this ‘inner work’ and hoping AI will do it for them. Curiosity is key! If people aren’t curious, they won’t help identify risks or roadblocks. We talked about how important it is to show up as ourselves, even in professional settings. We also discussed gender parity and how much more we need to do. Lindsey shared her strategy for dismantling stereotypes: present all facets and encourage others to do the same. The more people meet others who don’t fit their stereotypes, the more likely they are to abandon them. How can we create the conditions for curiosity to be present, and for leaders to learn, unlearn and relearn to enable more holistic and sustainable change ? The main insights you'll get from this episode are : -      Change must be internal first of all, as well as holistic, and also on a micro and macro level; AI is changing business models and the way we work, causing some organisations to dispense with the ‘inner work’ and hoping AI will do it for them.-      Yet 95% of AI pilots fail because it is not a plug n play solution – even companies that are taking an informed approach to AI have individual employees seeking their own tactical solutions.-      AI means that we must all be good prompt engineers to succeed in the future, but many people underestimate the learning and effort this requires, and want to jump straight to the productive output, skipping the hard work.-      It also demands organisational and individual buy-in, understanding how it changes people’s value proposition to the organisation and that they must redefine their inputs, outputs and added value, maybe redefining their identity.-      It is crucial at the beginning of a transformation project to understand where authority sits and how decisions are made – decision-makers must lead the process – and how much curiosity there is.-      A lack of curiosity is the biggest obstacle to change, and organisations must be open to different (external) perspectives and to pivoting mid-way through the project if necessary.-      A ‘levels of agreement’ exercise with the people involved can help to determine the way forward, seeing failure as a point of learning that is painful but productive – but overidentifying with a job makes it very difficult to fail.-      Particularly in the age of AI, we should try and separate ourselves from our jobs and find a working environment that suits us, where we can present multiple facets of ourselves to address bias and be authentic to elicit a positive...

"What if the key to economic transformation lies not in bigger budgets or top-down directives, but in fostering community ownership and equitable systems?"Alfredo and I discuss the need for more regenerative financial models and to start really working in small communities and joining together into a network of networks. Current models are very redistributive (e.g. taxing success, subsidisation for those with no access) but pre-distribution gives everyone a stake; if communities win, everyone wins and gains autonomy and agency.We discuss the need for more diverse thinking and more equitable access to funding and business opportunities. Generating new ideas by combining what already exists and creating surplus value that can then move around is the key, but we need to do this better, faster and in collaboration. Building entrepreneur-led ecosystems requires prioritizing ownership, pre-distribution, and maintaining a human scale. It is easier to build from scratch, and this will be the challenge of transforming established institutions and organisations, but they will have to transition, whether they like it or not.We know that innovation often stems from unconventional approaches and questioning established norms, where individuals without traditional backgrounds can bring fresh perspectives. Hitting “walls” in conventional paths can be a catalyst for divergent thinking, pushing beyond perceived limitations to realise that seemingly permanent constructs can be circumventedLeaders need to step outside their echo chambers, we spend way too much time talking to people who look and think like us and we should be actively broadening horizons by reading, talking to people outside our immediate circle, and exploring new ideas. This is not on one person or community, but is a generational effort to influence and impact the systems we seek to transformAlfredo generously shares his intentional design principles, experiences and personal journey to setting up the world’s first shared prosperity community corporation (SPCC) operates at the intersection of workforce, education and entrepreneurship with a focus on equity, economic transformation and rethinking leadership.The main insights you'll get from this episode are : -      Innovation comes from the fringes: when pursuing a goal, hitting a wall makes you realise you have to find a different way to get round things – these walls serve as ‘flexion points’ rather than obstacles on the path to a breakthrough moment.-      Community-based entrepreneurship makes innovation possible with few resources, as constrained resources force commitment, agency and risk-taking -asking for help from the right people creates something organically.-      Process of identifying an issue/problem and finding the most transformative thing to move forward and grow; this is generational work, starting small and moving through systems to aspiration.-      Design principles offer constraint, and the focus should be on ownership first (for ownership democracy and shared prosperity) for everyone to have an interest – distributed ownership is required for a regenerative economy.-      Current models are very redistributive (e.g. taxing success, subsidisation for those with no access) but pre-distribution gives everyone a stake; if communities win, everyone wins and gains autonomy and agency.-      Present VC models are designed around the founder and investors as opposed to everyone involved – a ‘winner takes all’ approach; pre-distribution means nobody does anything on their own, often building on others’ work and ideas.-      Humans evolved in small groups and that’s where we work best, small groups...

“Everything we know, do, & think is already out of date because the world moves so quickly.”Allister and I discuss what being future ready really means in today's workplace. Everything we know, do and think is already obsolete – whilst a scary concept, it is also an empowering way to look at the world and identify what we can improve, a paradigm shift from the old adage of ‘if it ain’t broke’ …Curiosity is highlighted as one of the 3 leadership superpowers. It involves challenging and questioning the status quo, similar to a child constantly asking “why.” This can help uncover hidden assumptions and new possibilities. Leaders should create environments where employees feel safe to share ideas without fear of ridicule, as they go through the FROST ready already cycle. Scaling through small yet impactful changes to our systems and cycles to create sustainable change. AI is discussed as a powerful tool. However, it has limitations and should be viewed as augmented intelligence rather than a replacement for human skills. It is important to stay focused on higher-level value-adding processes and uniquely human abilities such as critical thinking, creativity, and emotional intelligence. By developing these skills, individuals can remain indispensable in the workforce.Allister shares his stories, models and experience of working in and accompanying organisations and leaders across the globe. The main insights you'll get from this episode are : -      Everything we know, do and think is already obsolete – whilst a scary concept, it is also an empowering way to look at the world and identify what we can improve, a paradigm shift from the old adage of ‘if it ain’t broke’ …-      A Future-Ready Mindset builds on the growth mindset but adds ‘the fuel for your future’ – a heartfelt reason to do what you do in the service of others with a commitment and energy to bring about change.-      Focusing on the downstream consequences of our work helps to reframe our personal mission - our job enables the company to grow but we also use the company as a vehicle for our own skills.-      The FROST – Follow, React, Open, Surprise, Tell – growth model helps us change the way we think about ourselves and our mission; for companies to adopt this mindset at scale means embedding this new vocabulary.-      The Open phase sees curiosity as a superpower – CEOs are often scared of employees having ideas, but all ideas are improved by exposing them to other people. And AI cannot do curiosity!-      Like children who constantly ask why in order to feel safe and make sense of the world, we too must have the courage to question and challenge the status quo with a change already in mind.-      Having ideas to address the ‘why’ is the next superpower, moving from knowing to learning, asking questions of ourselves before asking others, and sharing our own ideas.-      The Tell phase is about using the brilliance of other people, designing the session to encourage the sharing of unfinished ideas and foster a culture of appreciating others’ input whilst being transformative in the process.-      The ReadyAlready cycle can be used to identify where to deploy AI - pattern recognition at scale makes it brilliant but not without limitations; it is augmented intelligence alongside our value-adding superpowers.-      Having a personal sense of direction is very important - repeating the ReadyAlready cycle will unlock something new every time and lead to either big or small improvements, but without...

"Whatever we have achieved as a species has nothing to do with one person alone."Why start a leadership book with a mammoth hunt? Nicolas and I delve into the human dimension of leadership and what it brings to society. Human behaviour is the most unmeasured risk in strategy implementation. To avoid pitfalls, be aware of evolutionary biases such as the false positive decision-making bias. Companies build echo chambers, where people raise a view that is not the same as their boss’s, and then avoid talking about it.A crucial point: humans achieve greatness through collaboration. A lone human has little chance against a mammoth. Hunting one requires strategy, the right people, and a shared purpose. This highlights a fundamental truth: our collective efforts drive success.Organisations should acknowledge the inherent tension between individualistic needs, collaboration, and competition among employees, fostering a culture where personal and company goals align.Nicolas shares his insights, experience and stories of working and researching the human dimensions of leadership and what it means for today's workplace. The main insights you'll get from this episode are : -      The human dimension of leadership and what it brings to society is key – a failure to understand ourselves and the people we lead is a big problem that is borne out by history (as far back as the time of the mammoth).-      Collaboration and strategy were needed to hunt the mammoth (cf. the big machine in modern times); nowadays we have lots of smaller, interconnected mammoths but we still need to know how to lead a herd of mammoths.-      To progress in an organisation requires sharing our learning and leading a team towards a goal: leaders need people with the right expertise and people they trust – very similar to a mammoth hunt.-      The human ego is problematic when it comes to achieving a common goal, with the apparent paradox between working for oneself and being wired for collaboration, i.e. the individual vs the collective.-      Leaders in the transactional corporate world must learn to be humble, lead by example, be purpose-driven and role model a positive culture – they need their team more than their team needs them.-      Leadership, followship and hierarchy counteract the vulnerability, slowness and weakness of the individual; leadership was originally task-related, with different leaders for different tasks, teaching how to lead and how to follow.   -      Today, one person becomes CEO without the relevant skills/knowledge for all the different tasks and must therefore understand when to lead and when to follow, going against the grain of what it means to be a ‘strong leader’.-      The ‘mammoth’ approach to leadership involves four levels of team performance - fight or flight, competitive, creative and flow – along with a leadership/ followship framework and a dynamic stability framework.-      These are old ideas to avoid pitfalls, e.g. if you don’t evolve, you die as an individual and die out as a species – the same is true for companies, yet human behaviour remains the most unmeasured risk in business strategy.-      Diversification is very risky – if the main aim is to survive and be sustainable, it is vital not to lose sight of the core business; what you do today is most important, otherwise there is no tomorrow.-      We must understand that as humans we have evolutionary biases (false positive decision-making bias, confirmation bias, anchoring bias), are risk averse...

"Transformation isn’t about control, its about letting go… teams that breathe together thrive together"Anthony and I explore the power of stillness and breathing into the present moment. The constant pressure to keep going and keep busy means we never find (the time to find) calm and we ignore the innate wisdom in our body. Bringing inner work to the outside world means being enough and understanding this. How can cultivating inner calm help us to navigate uncertainty and ground ourselves and our teams in purpose, presence and ultimately allow us all to perform to the best of our abilities ? How can we recognise the frame we live in and consciously build emotional resilience for the greater good in our teams, our organisations and our lives ? Leadership is about becoming aware of our inherent value and the impact we have, fostering a culture of care and connection through practices like conscious breathing. Anthony shares his richinsights from his personal journey and from accompanying leaders all over the globe on their journeys to transformation and serenity. The main insights you'll get from this episode are : -      Raising consciousness means appreciating how much power we have as human beings; being small is often easier but means we don’t understand the bigger frame of life.-      Breathing is the very first thing we do naturally, yet conscious breathwork is difficult - the significance of breath becomes ‘normal’ but there is so much to it physiologically, metaphysically and spiritually.-      The first breath of life is the only time we haven’t been hurt and we are filled with wonder and curiosity; the last breath of life is about letting go of everything, and we can be curious about that surrender.-      We only ever pay attention when we lose our breath, but emotional resilience and intelligence are about being able to take a breath when we don’t want to - we lose our choices and processing power when we don’t breathe properly.-      We tend to suppress trauma and panic and resort to fight, flight or freeze, which are not thinking processes; we can practise different types of breath for different states, e.g. anxiety, anger, etc., to have them at our disposal when necessary.-      The fourth choice after fight, flight or freeze is breathe: we lose our breath due to abuse or trauma but it lives on in our body. We can create space by breathing and (re)connecting with our inner child to find boundlessness and freedom.-      The BRIDGE technique is a way of saving the inner child without returning to the trauma, i.e. to repair our own wounds and become the agent of our own healing:B = Breathe, R = Recognise, I = Investigate, D = Dialogue, G = Gather, E = Exercise.-      All learning, including the somatic, is operationalised through discipline and consistency to leave the familiar and move forward - transformation isn’t about control, it’s about surrendering and being the architect of your own soul.-      The moment we remove the masks we wear and become present is tender, private and individual; we need our will to breathe in and surrender to breathe out, and whilst we do it all the time, we live in a world where wilfulness prevails.-      Being embedded in corporate life comes at enormous personal cost (burnout is increasing, immunity is decreasing), which leads to a lack of resilience; we associate surrender with weakness and only surrender as a very last resort.-      The constant pressure to keep going means we never find (the time to find) calm and we...

"Code doesn't transform organisations : people do ..."What truly drives innovation in the fast-paced world of technology? Is it solely the code, the algorithms, and the software? Michel and I discuss this and more and the answer is a resounding no. It’s people. We discuss how leaders can navigate the complexities of the tech world by prioritizing, understanding and nurturing the human element, as well as leading with context and clarity. Leaders must take advantage of the foresight and learning that comes from huge market shifts, and iterate on their blueprint for transformation.What constitutes the new playbook for tech leadership? What’s shifting? Why is this shift necessary?  We discuss the need for a new type of leadership, balancing technical expertise with cultural ambassadorship, inspiring teams with a clear vision and fostering open communication. Constantly reinventing connection and communication as the world evolves in more complex and numerous ecosystems is a call to simplify the human element intentionally. Transparent communication is vital to maintaining trust.As humans, we need to intentionally guide AI as it develops. While AI excels at aggregating and correlating data, one can question its current ability to anticipate the unknown. AI agents may become self-learning, but they may still lack the human capacity to correlate unforeseen needs and read the deeper invisible relational and emotional energies. Michel generously shares his experience and insights from his career in Silicon Valley and from working with start ups and leaders in the tech world. The main insights you'll get from this episode are : Cultivate Context: Engage engineering teams early with comprehensive information to avoid misalignment and foster collaborative problem-solving. 💡Embrace Multifactorial Leadership: Balance technical expertise with cultural ambassadorship, inspiring teams with a clear vision and fostering open communication. Reimagine Connectivity: Design innovative ways to reconnect distributed teams, promoting alignment and consensus through regular gatherings and transparent communication. Balance Chaos and Structure: Maintain a “startup kitchen” dynamic within large organizations to encourage fluidity, agility, and rapid adaptation to change. Prioritize Strategic Frameworks: Develop long-term strategic frameworks, encourage calculated risk-taking, and foster a culture of continuous reinvention to anticipate and navigate disruptions. Find out more about Michel and his work here:Beyond the Code: Unveiling the Human Factor in Technology Leadership Innovations - https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Code-Technology-Leadership-Innovation/dp/B0F6LVCXHQ LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellanglois/ Website - https://michellanglois.us/

"Personal agency is key, even within big systems. Ground yourself in self-assurance. and intentionally use your voice."Have you ever wondered what it takes to truly understand and drive transformation within your organization? Rethinking leadership itself. Prioritizing coherence, clarity, impact, and purpose can unlock potential you never knew existed.A great conversation with Erin Herman on rethinking leadership itself. Prioritizing coherence, clarity, impact, and purpose can unlock potential you never knew existed.Only 14 - 16% of leaders can articulate their 'why' : is this your biggest leadership challenge ? One of the ways of addressing this is to ground ourselves in self assurance. Self assurance provides a source of stability that confidence, reliant on external validation, cannot match.This is particularly important for women leaders, who are still working in and often constrained by a system that was not made for or by them. It’s about putting purpose over presence, owning your presence and recognizing that your voice needs to be heard, regardless of whether the system readily welcomes it. This will in turn create different relational patterns and dynamics in your teams and ecosystems.By prioritising presence and purpose, fostering self-assurance, and celebrating both successes and failures, you can unlock the potential within your team and transform your workplace. How do you cultivate self-assurance in your leadership?The main insights you'll get from this episode are : Prioritize purpose over presence to build self-assurance. Focusing on the “why” behind your actions makes your presence more genuine and impactful.Self-assurance, unlike confidence, is internally driven and resilient. It empowers leaders, especially women, to navigate uncertainty and advocate for equity.Organizations should foster “positive failure cultures” to remove the shame associated with mistakes, encourage risk-taking, and enhance team communication.Cultivate coherence by aligning personal values with organizational values, actions, and outcomes, which enhances personal value systems and team dynamics.Shift from control to curiosity to nurture potential. Leaders should ask more questions, actively listen, and build intentional relationships within their teams.Embrace mistakes and reject perfectionism to foster momentum and growth. Recognize that striving for perfection can hinder progress and innovation.Find out more about Erin and her work here : website : https://www.theerinherman.com/Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/in/erin-herman-97832217/

"In order to transform successfully, you need to take an intentional and deliberate approach above ground with the things you can see as well as below ground with the things you can't see to drive transformation"Matt and I delve into the world of digital transformation, and how to design an operating model that allows adaptability, impact and sustainable transformation. Digital transformation is often misunderstood. It’s best defined as working in new ways with new technology. Technology has rapidly advanced, but organisations need to focus now more than ever on aligning people and processes to leverage these technologies effectively. We also discuss the importance of aligning people and processes with technology, and explore the concept of scaling effectively through Centres of Excellence (COEs). The shift from project to product to experience ownership is key to driving better customer and employee outcomes. This shift forces organizations to take customer experience design out of a niche marketing function and integrate it throughout the entire organization. However, to do this there is a big cultural and leadership shift that needs to happen, and this needs an intentional and deliberate approach to both visible and implicit (cultural) aspects of transformation. This involves not only implementing new strategies, processes, and systems but also addressing behavioural failure modes, leadership styles and fostering new cultural characteristics.Matt generously shares his insights and experience from working with leaders all over the globe in scaling digital transformation successfully. What’s your biggest challenge in aligning people, process, and technology to effectively scale growth & digital transformation in your workplace ? The main insights you'll get from this episode are : Digital transformation hinges on bringing people and processes up to speed with technological advancements. Simplify the concept to working in new ways with new tech.Centers of Excellence (COEs) should be value-generating teams focused on specific areas: build, guide, share, or create. Avoid trying to be all things at once.Successful COE implementation starts with identifying the internal customer and their needs, then crafting a value proposition centered on them.Shift from project to product ownership by focusing on the experience; appoint experience owners who manage the customer and employee experience.Bridge the strategy-execution gap by establishing an operating committee that translates strategy into tactics, with experience owners playing a role.Successful transformations address both visible elements (strategy, systems) and less tangible human aspects like culture, values, and behaviours.Find out more about Matt and his work here : Website: www.treelinetransformation.comCOE Online Course: https://treeline-transformation.mykajabi.com/COE-courseLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mdevans/Email: matt@treelinetransformation.com

"Music is a unifier, and anything that can or could divide us, music can break through."Imagine a world where music transcends borders, uniting people through a shared experience of harmony and rhythm. Rick and I explore the unifying and transformative power of music and how it can be used to transform situations. We delve into the power of collective intelligence , transformational leadership, the unifying power of music and raising human consciousness through performance; Creative intelligence, something we’re all born with, plays a crucial role. The industrial era favoured hierarchical structures, a “power over” dynamic, while today, a “power with” approach is needed. Music mirrors this shift; it can be structured and disciplined, yet also liberating and creative.Rick shares his insights on music as a universal language, and how it fosters sustainable social change. We also discuss the vital shift from ego-driven leadership to a more collective, eco-conscious approach. Music possesses a unique ability to connect people, regardless of geographical, ideological, or cultural divides. It taps into something fundamental within us, creating a sense of shared humanity. How can we leverage music and deep listening to create more inclusive spaces?The main insights you'll get from this episode are : Music’s unifying power transcends borders and connects with fundamental human needs, fostering sustainable social change by promoting shared consciousness and breaking down barriers.Raising human consciousness is vital for transformation and leadership, shifting focus from ego-driven actions to collective well-being, supported by leveraging technology to empower individuals to pursue their passions.Leadership involves recognizing the ongoing societal transformation from old hierarchical styles to inclusive opportunities, utilizing technology and AI to enable people to follow passions and solve global problems.Improvisation in music mirrors adaptability in leadership, requiring a balance between structured knowledge and openness to creative, spontaneous solutions, emphasizing the importance of listening and embracing diverse perspectives.Jazz for Peace seeks to create a society that rewards unique artistic expression and leverages technology to support individuals in pursuing their passions, contributing to a more peaceful and unified world.Raising human consciousness, even incrementally, can drive innovation and create more regenerative social and economic models, underscoring the power of individual voices in contributing to a collective quest for positive change.Recognize the unifying power of music to transcend geographical, ideological, and cultural divides.Understand how raising human consciousness can drive sustainable social change and collective intelligence.Embrace creative intelligence and let go of ego-driven leadership for a more inclusive approach.Utilize technology to support individuals in pursuing their passions and solving global problems.Support artists and causes that promote peace and raise human consciousness for a better future.Find out more about Rick and his work here : Jazz for Peace: info@jazzforpeace.orghttps://rickdellaratta.com

"when you have this amount of change, we’re calling it the fog of change.”" Are you struggling to create lasting growth? In today’s interconnected world, the value creation process is no longer confined to individual departments or silos. The unit of value has become smaller, often residing within teams or even individuals. This shift requires a holistic, end-to-end view of the entire value chain.Tom and I explore how to create growth that truly matters. We explore the myths that leaders need to unlearn, particularly the idea that they can accurately plan for the future. The current environment is characterized by unprecedented change, making it nearly impossible to predict what will happen next. The old methods of strategic planning are now limited. The real challenge is to find ways to see through the change fog, constantly learning and adjusting. Discover how to build a legacy through value creation for people, organizations, and society.👉 Learn the pivotal role of adaptability in today’s world.👉 Uncover the biggest growth myth leaders must unlearn.👉 Explore Tom’s valuable formula for strategic excellence.What’s your biggest challenge in creating meaningful growth? Each person must understand their impact on the whole. From product creation to its end-of-life impact, every step matters. This concept aligns with sustainability principles, where the lifetime value and environmental footprint of a product are considered from the outset.Tom shares his wealth of insight, experience and foresight from working with leadesr and institutions around the world. The main insights you'll get from this episode are : Cultivate a growth mindset to embrace change, curiosity, and calculated risk-taking in both personal and organizational contexts, moving beyond the limitations of traditional planning.Unlearn the myth of predictable planning. Instead, adopt a scientific approach of trial and error, constantly adjusting strategies based on real-time feedback from the field to navigate the “fog of change.”Decentralize decision-making to empower those closest to customers and technology, fostering adaptability and innovation throughout the organization.Use the “valuable formula” by focusing on a core value proposition, strategically marketing it, and consciously allocating capital to create sustainable growth.Delay seeking external funding until the need is clear and the company’s capabilities are well-defined, retaining greater control and strategic flexibility.Embrace AI not just for productivity gains, but for discovering new business opportunities and models, and proactively address potential workforce displacement through upskilling and innovative solutions.Find out more about Tom and his work here : https://www.sagepartners.nethttps://www.linkedin.com/in/tomdoorley/https://open.spotify.com/show/4xDjK2tRJgHbX5WxSITJcF