Leadership Conversations with Inspirational People

Welcome to the Leadership Conversations with Inspirational People. My name is Rishan Barat, and in this channel I will be sharing content and insight to help you with Life, Business and Leadership.

Kevin Peesker l Microsoft l President, Small, Medium, Corporate and Digital

Kevin Peesker l Microsoft l President, Small, Medium, Corporate and Digital recently joined me for a conversation about Leadership. As President of SMC & Digital at Microsoft, Kevin is responsible for leading a global team in the delivery of Cloud, Data & AI, Business Applications, Modern Workplace and security solutions for Small, Medium and Corporate business and government customers across North America, Latin America, Europe Middle East Africa and Asia.  Over this session, Kevin shared some of his stories from his early days in the Prairies in Canada, and the importance of foundations and values around respect, integrity and humility. In addition, it was inspiring to learn about his approach of bringing together multiple businesses within the organization, on being unified around a single vision for Small, Medium, Corporate & Digital businesses,  and his philosophy on cultural adaptability while driving performance consistency across different cultures.  As a long-time member and most recently Chairman of Canada’s Tech Nation, Kevin is a huge proponent of tech skilling and it was great to learn how he is approaching tech skilling on a global scale, and the role that Microsoft plays. Thanks, Kevin for the remarkable conversation.  RB

11-20
47:52

Deb Cupp l President, Microsoft US | Avanade Board Member

Deb Cupp, President, Microsoft US joined me over this session and discussed her Leadership Journey from sales rep to President of Microsoft, US. Deb also shared her approach on Leading with Insatiable Curiosity, Leading with Empathy and the value of learning and creating experiences by going out of the comfort zones.  Thank you, Deb for the incredible conversation and for the impact you're making to people and society every day!   RB

10-15
18:30

Ashley Haynes-Gaspar l COO of US Business Applications & Industry Clouds at Microsoft

Ashley Haynes-Gaspar l COO of US Business Applications & Industry Clouds at Microsoft joined me over this session to discuss her Leadership journey, the importance of building a personal brand. In addition, Ashley shared some really great insights on creating a space for authenticity and some vital ideas on how to deal with burnout.   Thanks, Ashley for the great conversation!   RB

10-05
32:25

Lillian Barnard l Leader l Managing Director l CEO at Microsoft South Africa

Lillian Barnard, Managing Director / CEO at Microsoft South Africa on her Leadership Journey, Diversity and Inclusion, the Importance of Resilience and much much more..

09-16
24:07

Tamara Myles l Author of The Secret to Peak Productivity

Tamara Myles, Author, Speaker, Researcher; Positive Psychology Instructor at the University of Pennsylvania. Tamara provides Peak Productivity leadership training and consulting for clients like Microsoft, Anytime Fitness, and Unilever. She is the author of "The Secret to Peak Productivity: A Simple Guide to Reaching Your Personal Best" and an international keynote speaker. Tamara helps leaders design systems and create cultures that make work meaningful and enable individuals and teams to thrive.

09-16
21:57

Dr. Mandeep Rai l International Best Selling Author of the book The Value Compass

Dr Mandeep Rai l Author of the book – The Value Compass joined me over this session for more about about this incredible book, the inspiration behind it and the overall impact it has had on the world.

09-09
15:48

Ehsan Youssef l Entrepreneur l Corporate Exec l People Leader, Microsoft Canada

Ehsan Youssef, Microsoft Canada Executive joined me during this session to talk about the criteria, lessons learned and overall components that go into Leading with Clarity, Building a Learn it all Culture and dealing with disappointments. Thank you, Ehsan for taking the time to have this conversation with me. RB 

04-20
36:38

David Ruggiero l Leading and Creating a People First Culture

David Ruggiero, Leader and Executive at Microsoft North America joined me for a conversation about People Leadership, and some of the stories that has shaped him into the leader that he is today.

04-20
30:32

Tom Castley, Global Sales Leader and Coach

During this session I caught up with Tom Castley, VP of Sales and Leadership Coach to talk about Selling with Value.

04-20
30:32

Mteto Nyati l The Corporate and Human CEO l Author of Betting on a Darkie

”Embrace your identity; don't deprive the world of who you are.”  I had the honour of connecting with Mteto Nyati, Author of the book Betting on a Darkie l Chief Executive at Altron, and the former Chief Executive of MTN and former President of Microsoft South Africa to discuss his book, and provide quality advice on how to maximize potential and become the best version of yourself.   Mteto, thank you for the incredibly inspiring conversation and for all the remarkable work that you're doing every day to impact human society.   Enjoy,  RB

04-20
37:05

Robert Pierce l North America Vice President, Oracle l High Performance Teams

Over this session, I was joined by Robert Pierce to discuss themes of building a high performance team.

04-20
30:32

Ashley Pillay l The Academics of Leadership

Ashley Pillay, CEO of Exponant recently joined me to share his experiences, learnings and the Academics of Leadership

04-20
32:58

Neal Rain l Entrepreneur, Corporate Exec and Entertainer

In this session, Neal Ramnarain joined me to discuss his journey behind the corporate ladder, entertainment, entrepreneurship and philanthropy.  Thank you for sharing your story, Neal.

04-20
30:32

Zuko Mdwaba l Inspire, Lead and Adopt a Winning Mindset

“Leaders don’t create followers, they create more leaders”   During this session I caught up with my good friend Zuko Mdwaba, Country Manager and President for Workday South Africa to discuss his journey, experiences and his leadership principles.   Zuko, thank you for sharing and continuing to inspire!   Enjoy,  RB

04-20
51:25

Leonard Brinson l Chief Information Officer & Vice President of South Jersey Industries

"Ideas are like light-bulbs, the more you ignore them, the more they dimmer out". In this episode, Leonard Brinson, CIO and VP of South Jersey Industries (a Utility services company in New Jersey, US) joined me to discuss his Leadership Principles, People impact, Technology Strategy and Partnership philosophies.   Leonard - thank you joining this session, and for all that you doing to make an impact and serve your teams and customers on a regular basis.

04-20
30:32

Negotiation Tribe with Allan Tsang and Dan Oblinger

Over this session, I was joined by the stepbrothers, and founders of the Negotiation Tribe Allan Tsang and Dan Oblinger to discuss Negotiation strategies.

04-20
36:41

Paul Lanigan l Make it your own - Tell the best story

Over this session, I connected with Managing Director of Sandler Training, Ireland to discuss communicating effectively virtually, and how to tell Great Stories.

04-20
30:32

Jack Devnarain l Award Winning Actor, Leader, Speaker, Humanitarian, Philanthropist and Activist

"It all starts with your happiness. When you understand, what it is that makes you happy in your life, you start to understand what you are meant to achieve in this lifetime"   Over the weekend, I caught up with my dear friend - the Legend, Humanitarian, Philanthropist and Activist; Jack Devnarain, who has had an incredible journey from studying law, joining the police force, becoming the South African hit star Rajesh Kumar on TV show Isidingo and receiving the Lead Actor award for his performance in the heist thriller 31 Million Reasons. Jack joined me to discuss his journey, core values and the pursuit of happiness.   Jack, thank you for the inspirational conversation and for all that you're doing for society.   Enjoy, RB

04-20
30:32

Donovan Goliath l Passing it On, Until we Go For Gold!

“Pass it on to the next person and the next person, until we go for gold”   In this session, I caught up with the legend Donovan Goliath to discuss his background and journey from graphic designer to stand-up, acting and becoming an entrepreneur.   Donovan, thank for sharing and for all you're doing for human society.   Enjoy, RB

04-20
34:27

Robert Pierce l North America Vice President, Oracle l Highly Effective People Leadership

"If you want to get what you want, help enough people get what they want". Some time ago, I had a conversation with Robert Pierce who is a good friend, mentor and executive sales leader, to discuss people leadership, motivating, and building successful teams.

04-20
44:31

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