Navigating Forward

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Launch Consulting's Kevin McCall, Managing Director of AI, and Melanie Roberson, Director of Organizational Effectiveness, talk about the 5 Ds of AI: dull, dirty, dangerous, difficult, and double-time. The 5 Ds framework is a way of thinking about the type of tasks where AI can complement and augment human capabilities at work. With examples of each of the 5 Ds, they delve into how AI that's guided by humans can empower and support us in our roles, so that we have more time to spend on more meaningful tasks. Listen in to hear about how the collaboration between AI and humans plays into the future of work.  Find Kevin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-mccall-74b66/Find Melanie at https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanie-roberson-55a0a23/Learn more about Launch Consulting and AI at https://www.launchconsulting.com/ai-first

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee sits down with Shantha Mohan, who is an author, mentor, and Executive in Residence at Carnegie Mellon University. They chat about the challenges that people can face when making the jump from a technical individual contributor role to technical leadership. Shantha shares stories of her own career path from an individual role to eventually leading teams around the world — including some of the challenges she faced and how she overcame them. Hear some of the advice she gives her students, including what you should be doing every day and how to know when it's time to find something else to do. Find Lisa at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/Find Shantha at:https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanthamohan/ https://shanthamohan.com/Learn more about Launch Consulting at https://www.launchconsulting.com/

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee chats with Lynda Grindstaff, VP of Engineering at McAfee, and Creighton Adams, Senior Director of Cybersecurity at Launch Consulting. In the cybersecurity realm, they discuss personal cybersecurity posture, how to stay aware of what's important for your own situation, and how personal posture can impact enterprise security when working from home. Also, they give great ideas for people looking to break into (or pivot into) a cybersecurity career and they encourage anyone to go ahead and take the risk and try it out. Find Lisa at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/Find Lynda at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lyndagrindstaff/Find Creighton at  https://www.linkedin.com/in/creighton-adams/Learn more about Launch Consulting at https://www.launchconsulting.com/

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee sits down with Mita Mallick, Head of Inclusion, Equity and Impact at Carta and also the author of "Reimagine Inclusion: Debunking 13 Myths to Transform Your Workplace." Also joining Lisa is Melanie Roberson, Director of Organizational Effectiveness at Launch Consulting. The trio discusses how inclusivity issues can impact employee engagement and performance — and how the solution really starts at the kitchen table, not the conference room table. Along the way, Mita shares the 13 myths that she covers in her book, including which one seems to be sparking the most conversation. Complete with personal stories and reflections, it's an enlightening conversation that's sure to make you stop and think about your own workplace, leaders, and coworkers. Find Lisa at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/Find Mita at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mita-mallick-2b165822/Find Melanie at https://www.linkedin.com/in/melanie-roberson-55a0a23/Learn more about Launch Consulting at https://www.launchconsulting.com/

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee from Launch Consulting chats with author, entrepreneur, and philanthropist Aaron Hurst. In a wide-ranging conversation, they touch on topics from scaling innovation in the nonprofit sector, to the differences in how AI is perceived globally, and to the importance of lifelong learning for both today's leaders and the next generation of leaders.They also delve into the concept of the purpose mindset (including how it differs from "finding your purpose") and how it can help you create meaning on a daily basis. Plus, Aaron explains why work is changing from being like a high school band to being more like a jazz ensemble — and how that's related to the rise of AI in the workplace. Find Lisa at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/Find Aaron at https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronhurst/ and https://purposeeconomy.com/Learn more about Launch Consulting at https://www.launchconsulting.com/

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee, Managing Director of Data & AI at Launch Consulting, sits down with Russ Whitman, Chief Strategy Officer for The Planet Group to discuss the AI imperative. They discuss  what makes this AI moment different from other technological advancements that have come before and why it just might be the largest change management challenge in our lifetimes. The pair cover some key topics and trends that executives and leaders should consider as they think about their strategies for 2024 and beyond. Listen in for Russ's three main takeaways, including why he thinks NOW is the time to be bold and what could happen if you're not.Find Lisa at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/Find Russ at https://www.linkedin.com/in/russwhitman/Take the Launch Consulting AI Readiness self-assessment at https://www.launchconsulting.com/aiready

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Mike Halstead and Creighton Adams from Launch Consulting share highlights from the special Cybersecurity series. From trends and predictions to the benefits and potential challenges of AI and machine learning, and from best practices to getting the basics nailed down, listen in for tidbits from the season. Then be sure to check out the full episodes with Matthew Rosenquist, Rami Zreikat and Trinh Ngo, Mike Bochniarz, Jiong Liu, Clement King, and Bruce Hembree — along with a crew of internal Launch experts. To learn more about how to develop your organization's Future State of Cybersecurity, go to launchconsulting.com/cyber.Follow Mike Halstead at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-halstead-77bb6018/Follow Creighton Adams at https://www.linkedin.com/in/creighton-adams/

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Mike Halstead and Creighton Adams from Launch Consulting host Bruce Hembree, Field CTO for the Cortex division of Palo Alto Networks, in a wide-ranging discussion about cyber hygiene. They highlight how thoughtful automation and quality machine learning can enhance scalability of security efforts and allow engineers to spend time on creative pursuits that can ultimately increase the maturity level of the organization. They also touch on how AI will change the development and testing of products — and how humans will still be absolutely necessary for those tasks. Finally, they reflect on whether or not anything has changed since the SolarWinds attack and if it shifted the perceptions of cybersecurity teams.To learn more about how to develop your organization's Future State of Cybersecurity, go to launchconsulting.com/cyber.To download the Unit 42 report referenced in the podcast, go to https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/resources/research/2023-unit42-ransomware-extortion-reportFollow Bruce Hembree at https://www.linkedin.com/in/bruce-hembree-4679a6a5/Follow Mike Halstead at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-halstead-77bb6018/Follow Creighton Adams at https://www.linkedin.com/in/creighton-adams/

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Mike Halstead and Morganna Hodge from Launch Consulting are joined by Clement King, a risk management and compliance executive with extensive experience in the financial services industry, to discuss the compliance and regulatory aspects of cybersecurity. The trio chat about best practices, how they keep up with changes in the global regulatory environment, the importance of educating executives and the board about cyber risk, and how strong risk management practices can create a better customer experience and help an organization achieve its business objectives. To learn more about how to develop your organization's Future State of Cybersecurity, go to launchconsulting.com/cyber.Follow Clement King at https://www.linkedin.com/in/clement-king-iii/ Follow Mike Halstead at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-halstead-77bb6018/Follow Morganna Hodge at https://www.linkedin.com/in/morganna-hodge-056b4b13b/

In this episode of Navigating Forward, Mike Halstead and Roshan Soni from Launch Consulting speak with Jiong Liu, Senior Director of Product Marketing at Wiz, about cloud security. They cover recent trends in cloud threats and attack patterns, along with the increasingly complex nature of the attacks and the challenges of just keeping up with all of the data, tools, and environments that exist within an organization. They also touch on how this increases the complexity of a security team's work — and how it necessitates a mindset that security is a team sport that must include dev and DevOps teams, plus security champions across the organization.  To learn more about how to develop your organization's Future State of Cybersecurity, go to launchconsulting.com/cyber.Follow Jiong Liu at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jiong-liu/Follow Mike Halstead at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-halstead-77bb6018/Follow Roshan Soni at https://www.linkedin.com/in/roshan-soni/

In this episode of Navigating Forward, Mike Halstead and J.R. Reed from Launch Consulting sit down with Mike Bochniarz, head of Third Party Risk Assessment at Cross River Bank, to talk about third-party and supply chain risk. Topics include the necessity of carefully identifying risks upfront, as well as ongoing lifecycle monitoring — and how tools and automation may help some organizations with these crucial tasks. They also touch on the impacts and learnings from major events like COVID and the SolarWinds intrusion, plus the additional thought that must be given to fourth-party (and beyond) risk. To learn more about how to develop your organization's Future State of Cybersecurity, go to launchconsulting.com/cyber.Follow Mike Bochniarz at https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-bochniarz-esq-a1a92542/Follow Mike Halstead at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-halstead-77bb6018/Follow J.R. Reed at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jrreed/

In this episode of Navigating Forward, Creighton Adams, Kurt Alaybeyoglu, and Liz Gerson from Launch Consulting get together to discuss bridging the gap between business stakeholders and engineers. As Director of Cybersecurity, Director of Compliance, and Account Executive, they each bring a unique perspective to the challenges of a cybersecurity project — and where they all agree is that desirable solutions can't be built without trust, feedback, and communications. With real-world examples from collaborations with energy utilities, they delve into the challenges that teams can face on cybersecurity projects. They cover the bases from digging in to understand the real problems to gap analysis and risk assessments amidst technological debt — and how building trust between participants is the key to both a strong partnership and a successful outcome.To learn more about how to develop your organization's Future State of Cybersecurity, go to launchconsulting.com/cyber.Follow Creighton at https://www.linkedin.com/in/creighton-adams/Follow Kurt at https://www.linkedin.com/in/m-kurt-alaybeyoglu-b1a52395/Follow Liz at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lizgerson/

On this episode of Navigating Forward: the Cybersecurity series, Mike Halstead and Vidhya Sriram from Launch Consulting chat with Rami Zreikat, Chief Security Architect of xTerraLink, and Trinh Ngo, Director of IT Regulatory & Controls Assurance at an insurance company. They discuss best practices for measuring cyber risks and why it's important for organizations to understand their vulnerabilities and the potential impacts of a cyber attack.They also touch on why people are both an org's best defense and its weakest link — highlighting that ongoing education and awareness programs are a key component of risk management. Recognizing that there will always be residual risk and that what's acceptable now may not be acceptable in the future, they also emphasize that risk assessment is a journey and not just something that's one and done. To learn more about how to develop your organization's Future State of Cybersecurity, go to launchconsulting.com/cyber.Follow Rami at https://www.linkedin.com/in/rami-j-z-1338a84/Follow Trinh at https://www.linkedin.com/in/trinh-ngo-mba/Follow Mike at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-halstead-77bb6018/Follow Vidhya at https://www.linkedin.com/in/vidhyasriram/

Matthew Rosenquist, CISO at Eclipz, joins Mike Halstead and Creighton Adams from Launch Consulting to talk about current trends in cybersecurity, plus predictions for the future — from AI to quantum computing to government-funded malware. Security teams are under increased pressure with budgets decreasing and risks increasing as new and powerful technologies are weaponized by bad actors who tend to adopt new technology sooner than the good guys. So what can organizations do in the face of all of this? Check out the episode to find out what three big steps you can take to help mitigate risks (and how companies and bad actors are sort of like hikers and bears).   To learn more about how to develop your organization's Future State of Cybersecurity, go to launchconsulting.com/cyber.Follow Matthew at https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewrosenquist/Follow Mike at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-halstead-77bb6018/Follow Creighton at https://www.linkedin.com/in/creighton-adams/

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Mike Halstead and Creighton Adams from Launch Consulting kick off the Cybersecurity series with a sneak peek of what’s in store for the upcoming eight episodes — each focused on a different facet of today’s evolving cybersecurity environment. After introducing themselves, they’ll delve into why Navigating Forward is doing a deep dive into cybersecurity right now, and they’ll also share some info about the upcoming topics and what they hope listeners will take away from the series. To learn more about ways to improve your own cybersecurity posture, tune in each week for conversations with our special guests – and go to launchconsulting.com/cyber for even more information.  

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee, Managing Director of Data & AI at Launch Consulting, welcomes Rupal Hollenbeck, President of Check Point Software for a discussion about AI and cybersecurity. They delve into both the challenges and opportunities that generative AI brings to cybersecurity, including that bad actors can now use tools like ChatGPT to compose more convincing phishing emails and even to create malware. On the flip side, they also talk about how AI can also help companies supercharge their own cybersecurity efforts. They also touch on how important it is to make sure that employees are learning about generative AI both now and on an ongoing basis as technologies evolve. Additionally, they discuss how organizations need to communicate about the security and privacy implications of generative AI use so that well-intentioned employees aren't accidentally sharing sensitive data. Find Rupal and Check Point Software at:https://www.linkedin.com/in/rupal-hollenbeck/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/check-point-software-technologieshttps://twitter.com/checkpointswhttps://twitter.com/rupalshah1011 Find Lisa and Launch Consulting at:https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/https://www.linkedin.com/company/launch-consulting-group/https://www.launchconsulting.com/studios/data-ai

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee chats with Blake Kuhre, Co-Founder and CEO of SWIM. With a background that includes stints at Disney, Meet Group, and ByteDance, Blake has a passion for pursuing the next frontier in tech and entertainment. SWIM is a Web3 company with a new product currently in stealth mode, but Blake gives some hints about their direction in his wide-ranging discussion with Lisa. Their talk ranges from WeChat to Twitter to AI  to synthetic influencers and covers the transition from Web2 to Web3 — including the in-between state we’re in now that’s basically Web2.5. With an international perspective based on time they’ve both spent overseas, Lisa and Blake dig into super apps, decentralization and transparency of transactions, and the current AI race (and how maybe we need a kill switch).Find Lisa at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/Find Blake at https://www.linkedin.com/in/bkuhre/ and https://swim.eco/Launch Consulting Navigators in the Age of TransformationDisclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee is joined by best-selling author and former Silicon Valley CEO, Hilary DeCesare. Now, as the founder and CEO of The ReLaunch Co., Hilary helps women and businesses transform with her 3HQ framework. Featured in her book RELAUNCH! Spark Your Heart to Ignite Your Life, the framework focuses on the heart, the head, and the higher self. Hilary and Lisa delve into some of the challenges facing entrepreneurs, employees, leaders, and businesses as they navigate a post-pandemic landscape that has been impacted by quiet quitting, ongoing layoffs, and other stress-inducers. Key to thriving in this new world is reigniting the passion and energy of leaders who can then do the same with their teams. Hilary leads Lisa through a re-energizing exercise that starts with Lisa having to choose a song – and you’ll never guess which one she chooses. Listen in for a lively conversation that just might have you thinking differently about how you approach the new normal – which isn’t very normal at all. Find Lisa at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/Find Hilary at https://www.linkedin.com/in/hilarydecesare/, https://therelaunchco.com/ Launch Consulting Navigators in the Age of TransformationDisclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee chats with David Smith and Brad Johnson, co-authors of Good Guys: How Men Can Be Better Allies for Women in the Workplace and Athena Rising: How and Why Men Should Mentor Women. These former naval officers are dedicated to helping men become better allies, colleagues, and mentors for women — which in turn helps men become better and more inclusive leaders within their organizations. Lisa, Brad, and Dave discuss some common misconceptions and fears that men might have on their journey to becoming better allies, along with some ways to conquer their fears of disrupting the behaviors of other men. Along with effective strategies for allyship, they also talk about the different ways in which younger workers may approach the workplace and the different questions and concerns that they might have. They also touch on how gender equity starts at home, noting the importance of role modeling allyship at home. Find Brad at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wbradjohnson/Find David at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidgsmithphd/Find Lisa at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/ Website: https://www.workplaceallies.com/Launch Consulting Navigators in the Age of TransformationDisclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

On this episode of Navigating Forward, Lisa Thee speaks with Wendy Turner-Willams, former Chief Data Officer at Tableau. With over 20 years of experience in data, Wendy is an Advisory Board Member for several organizations, including the University of Washington Information School. She also recently joined Carnegie Mellon University as an Adjunct Professor in their Tepper School of Business Chief Data Officer program. Lisa and Wendy discuss the role of a Chief Data Officer and how the CDO focuses on not just data, but how it interacts with the unique people, processes, and technologies within a company. The conversation also touches on security, risk, and trust – and even the politics of data. In addition, they talk about data literacy and what it means and how its pursuit is perceived by both employees and executives, along with some advice for those looking to increase their own literacy. Finally, Wendy and Lisa chat about healthcare, invisible illness, and the ways in which data and automation intersect with medicine.Find Wendy at https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendy-turner-williams-8b66039/Find Lisa at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathee/Resources mentioned:https://www.womenindata.org/https://www.donatingplasma.org/donation/find-a-donor-center Launch Consulting Navigators in the Age of TransformationDisclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.