Episode 399 — Vera Cherepanova on Boards of the Future
Vera Cherepanova, a Chartered Accountant and award‑winning ethics specialist, appears on Episode 399 to discuss her work with Boards of the Future, a nonprofit that advises corporate boards on ethics, risk and compliance. She highlights the growing need for directors with strong governance backgrounds and explains how the organization educates boards worldwide. Cherepanova splits her time between Milan and Los Angeles, serving as chair, director and ethics advisor for a range of global entities. The conversation underscores the strategic value of ethical leadership in today’s complex regulatory environment.
High Motivation Cannot Fix Broken Systems
Leaders often treat motivation as a cure for declining performance, rallying teams with urgency and extra effort. While this boost can temporarily raise activity, it merely exposes underlying systemic weaknesses. Sustainable execution depends on clear decision rights, defined priorities, and...
★ Squashing
CNBC ran a sensational headline claiming Tim Cook "squashed" retirement rumors, yet the Good Morning America interview showed Cook merely denying any public statement about stepping down and offering a vague, non‑committal response. The piece also revisits a wave of...
Problem-Solving Process & Practice
The article outlines a convergent decision‑making framework that moves organizations from simply being right toward influencing outcomes through structured problem‑solving. It presents a five‑stage process—Frame & Orient, Sense & Evidence, Generate Options, Decide with Proportional Governance, Deploy‑Monitor‑Adapt—integrating strategic, analytical, collaborative,...
Joe Kent Walks Away And Raises Bigger Questions About Leadership
Joe Kent resigned from his senior role at the National Counterterrorism Center, citing disagreement with the U.S. approach to the Iran conflict. The author contends that stepping down in a crisis reflects a lack of true leadership rather than principled...
Tim Cook Squashes Retirement Rumors, Says He ‘Can’t Imagine Life without Apple’
Apple CEO Tim Cook appeared on ABC’s Good Morning America to dismiss circulating retirement rumors, stating he has never indicated an intention to step aside. Cook emphasized his deep love for his role, recalling his 28‑year tenure at the company....
I’m in Trouble for Leaving for a Business Trip without a Late Coworker
An employee and a coworker were scheduled to leave at 5:30 am for a conference, but the coworker arrived 35 minutes late. The employee waited only 15 minutes before departing alone in the company car, arriving on time while the coworker drove separately....
Key Phrases to Use when You Talk to Your Boss
The article outlines seven practical phrases employees can use to improve conversations with their managers. By proposing solutions, flagging potential issues, seeking clarification, and requesting prioritization, workers demonstrate proactive problem‑solving and clear communication. Expressing gratitude for feedback and asking how...
How Executive Coach Improves Leadership Skills
Executive coaching offers leaders a structured pathway to strengthen self‑awareness, decision confidence, communication, emotional intelligence, and strategic vision. By pairing focused conversations, feedback, and reflective exercises, coaches help leaders identify blind spots and translate insights into actionable habits. The approach...
Why Leadership Growth Accelerates in the Right Room
Leadership growth accelerates when sales leaders learn alongside peers in a curated environment. The article argues that exposure to diverse perspectives, real‑world strategies, and honest feedback shortens the development curve far more than solo training. Programs like The Growth Collective...
How to Lead Analyst Personalities Across Every Generation
The latest 16Personalities blog series examines how Analyst personality types—INTJ, INTP, ENTJ, and ENTP—behave across four generations. It outlines shared traits such as a demand for competence, a preference for logic over harmony, and low tolerance for inefficiency. The post...
Employee Won’t Stop Hugging People
A nonprofit manager is dealing with a gregarious employee who habitually initiates full‑body hugs with visitors and volunteers, creating discomfort among staff and guests. The advice emphasizes addressing the behavior directly rather than drafting new policies, stressing immediate, clear feedback...
Don't Confuse Hard Work with High Potential
The Contrarian HR argues that hard work should not be equated with high potential, warning that conflating the two can mislead promotion decisions. He stresses that true potential is better gauged by learning agility, strategic impact, and the ability to...
Guy Carpenter Names FloodFlash Co-Founder Ian Bartholomew as Global Head of Parametric Advisory
Guy Carpenter has appointed Dr. Ian Bartholomew, co‑founder of parametric flood insurer FloodFlash, as Global Head of Parametric Advisory effective June 1, 2026. Based in London and reporting to Managing Director David Lightfoot, Bartholomew will lead the firm’s push into...
Arte France Appoints Clémence Marty-Chastan as Managing Director of Resources
Arte France announced that Clémence Marty‑Chastan will serve as Managing Director in charge of resources, effective March 23. She also joins the network’s Executive Board, taking over from the previous director. Marty‑Chastan will oversee human resources, finance, and operational budgeting across...
Founders Think Execution Lives in Tasks. It Actually Lives in Flow.
Founders often equate execution with task completion, but true execution resides in the flow of decisions, ownership, and information. In early startups, short decision‑to‑action paths make execution appear effortless, yet as headcount grows those paths lengthen and hidden friction emerges....
PKA Names New CIO as Long-Time Investment Chief Retires
After nearly four decades at PKA, including 25 years as Chief Investment Officer, Michael Nellemann Pedersen is retiring from Denmark’s largest healthcare professionals’ pension fund. He will be succeeded by Mads Skaaning, the deputy CIO since 2018, who assumes the...
Your Ego the Saboteur
The article frames ego as a hidden saboteur that drives reactive behavior in leaders. It identifies three ego expressions—Complier, Protector, and Controller—each undermining team dynamics. Practical action items include naming defensive reactions, pausing before saying “yes,” and soliciting candid feedback...
On How Mentors Can Improve EdTech Before They Are Tested in Classrooms
Early‑stage EdTech founders crave mentorship, yet most guidance centers on business and fundraising rather than learning science. A partnership between CcHub and the Gates Foundation introduced a structured, network‑driven mentorship model that connects startups with individual mentors and a pool...
Forever and Everlane, Amen
Everlane, the San Francisco apparel brand known for transparent pricing, appointed Alfred Chang as chief executive in early 2024. Chang arrives after the company secured an $85 million investment from L Catterton, a LVMH‑linked private‑equity firm, and after founder Michael Preysman’s departure...
Oracle Says AI Lets It Build Software With Fewer Engineers
Oracle reported Q3 FY2026 revenue of $17.2 billion and said its internal AI code‑generation tools let it develop software with fewer engineers, prompting a $2.1 billion restructuring provision for large‑scale layoffs. Atlassian announced a 10% workforce cut to reshape its skill mix...
Ten Questions with David Martinez — The Man Holding the Raindance Orchestra Together
David Martinez, Executive Director of the Raindance Film Festival, explains how his team functions like an orchestra, translating the founder’s vision into a sustainable operation. He highlights the distinct roles of programming, CEO, marketing, brand ambassador, programme coordination, and digital...
Hyke Appoints Olga Troyano as COO to Accelerate Growth and Scale Ops
Hyke announced the promotion of Olga Troyano to Chief Operating Officer, tasking her with overseeing operations, go‑to‑market execution, and cross‑functional alignment as the company scales its U.S. business. Troyano, who has spent over four years driving Hyke’s operational and product...
Leaders Who Make Relationships a Task to Achieve
The article warns that leaders who prioritize tasks often turn relationships into another checklist item. While this approach can earn short‑term productivity accolades, it typically leads to superficial gestures like forced lunches that fail to build genuine trust. Over time,...
Pivoting Industries Is Hard
Executives attempting an industry pivot often get ignored, not because of lacking experience, but due to mismatched vocabulary. Recruiters scan LinkedIn using industry‑specific keywords, and profiles that speak the wrong language fall out of the shortlist. A Regulatory Affairs Director...
10 Ways to Fight Fair
Most organizations avoid conflict, leading to mediocrity. A recent leadership piece outlines ten practical steps to foster “fair fighting,” encouraging small, invested groups, flattened hierarchies, honest yet kind communication, and protected constructive dissent. It stresses that once decisions are made,...
Eric Dickson on Building a Management System That Produced 200,000 Ideas at UMass Memorial
Eric Dickson transformed UMass Memorial Health from a $10 million‑a‑month loss and junk‑bond rating into a high‑performing system by building a Lean‑based management framework. Over 12 years, the system evolved through 18 versions, standardizing ten core processes and empowering 13,000 staff...
Global Vision
Global leaders are urged to adopt a comprehensive, multidimensional vision that integrates economics, technology, health, environment, culture, and governance. The article outlines how geographic inclusiveness and stakeholder diversity expand strategic reach, while systems thinking and evidence‑based analysis deepen insight. Cultural...
CEO Interview with Dr. Mohammad Rastegari of Elastix.AI
Elastix.AI, led by former Meta and Apple AI scientist Dr. Mohammad Rastegari, is building a reconfigurable FPGA‑based inference platform that promises dramatically lower cost and power consumption for large‑scale AI models. The company claims up to ten‑fold reductions in inference...
Are You Building Strategy or Building Strategists?
The article, the second in a six‑part series on building strategic capacity, argues that most CEOs treat strategy as an occasional activity rather than a core capability. Operational leaders often excel at execution but lack the "strategic bone" needed for...
The CISO as a Business Leader: Moving From the Server Room to the Boardroom
The article argues that the modern CISO must become a business leader, not just a technical specialist. It stresses translating technical risk into revenue‑impact language for the board. Key skills include aligning security initiatives with business outcomes, building executive relationships,...
Influence of Leadership
The article reframes leadership through a digital lens, emphasizing agility, data‑driven empathy, and ecosystem thinking. It outlines seven pillars—mindset shift, fail‑fast learning, iterative thinking, information‑driven empathy, informed intuition, personalization at scale, and digital savvy—that distinguish modern leaders from traditional commanders....
How Executives Can Turn Fragmented CX Efforts Into Enterprise-Wide Customer Obsession – Interview with Ray Gerber
Raymond Gerber, co‑founder of the Institute for Journey Management, outlines a nine‑stage blueprint that transforms fragmented CX projects into enterprise‑wide customer obsession. He warns that traditional, siloed CX initiatives often trigger an awareness stage when ROI fails to materialize. The...
Photonic Inc. Appoints New CEO, Chief Product Officer to Drive Commercial Growth
Photonic Inc., a developer of scalable quantum computing and networking solutions, announced the appointment of Don Mattrick as chief executive officer and Paul Terry as chief product officer following a $130 million financing round. Mattrick will steer the company’s commercial scaling,...
Bonding Through a Common Life Experience
Legendary coach Dawn Staley built trust with future WNBA star Bianca Cuevas by revealing a shared inner‑city upbringing, turning a defensive recruit into a top guard. The story illustrates how leaders can leverage common life experiences to break down barriers...
The Multifamily Operations Daily Huddle: Burnout Is an Operational Risk You Can’t Afford to Ignore
Burnout is increasingly recognized as a systemic failure within multifamily property management, where exhausted staff make poorer decisions, communicate less effectively, and disengage. The daily huddle format highlights that burnout is not merely an HR issue but an operational risk...
XAI Co-Founders Zihang Dai and Guodong Zhang Depart as Elon Musk Rebuilds Company Foundations
Elon Musk's AI startup xAI saw two of its original co‑founders, Zihang Dai and Guodong Zhang, leave the company this month. Their exits reduce the founding team from eleven members to just two remaining. Musk announced that xAI will be...
Cheryl Balchunas Named Executive Director of the HCC Educational Foundation
Howard Community College President Daria J. Willis announced Cheryl Balchunas as the new Executive Director of the HCC Educational Foundation, effective March 23, succeeding long‑time leader Anne Johnson. Balchunas brings more than two decades of fundraising experience, having secured over...
Samsung Electronics France Names Conor Pierce as President
Samsung Electronics France announced Conor Pierce as its new president, effective December 2025. Pierce, a Samsung veteran since 2015, previously served as vice‑president of the UK & Ireland business line. He most recently led Samsung’s Polish operations from 2022 through 2025. The appointment underscores...
Developing “High Performance Habits” With Brendon Burchard
Brendon Burchard, high‑performance expert, delivered a Vistage presentation on building habits that enable CEOs to thrive amid rapid change. He argues that top leaders shift from a strengths‑focused mindset to asking, “What must I do to serve?” expanding capabilities rather...
Respect: A Free Untapped Advantage
The article highlights how disrespect erodes employee commitment, with nearly 80% reducing engagement when they feel undervalued. It frames disrespect as a driver of learned helplessness and outlines seven concrete ways leaders can demonstrate respect, from actively describing others' viewpoints...
CREi Women of Influence: Aviva Sonenreich Honored for Outstanding Leadership in Commercial Real Estate
Aviva Sonenreich, Managing Broker of The Warehouse Hotline, was honored as a 2026 CREi Women of Influence. The award recognizes her leadership, innovation, and mentorship across commercial real estate, digital platforms, and industry events. Sonenreich also heads the nationally ranked...
Ohio State Quickly Finds a President
Ohio State University appointed Ravi Bellamkonda as president, bypassing a traditional national search after Ted Carter resigned amid scandal. The Board of Trustees unanimously approved the internal hire, citing Bellamkonda’s experience as executive vice president and provost. He will earn...
Remote Employee Is Doing Child Care Instead of Working, Should I Buy a Cake for a Jerk Who’s Retiring, and...
The Ask a Manager column answered four distinct workplace dilemmas: a remote employee appearing to juggle childcare during work hours, whether to provide a retirement cake for a disliked senior colleague, sharing photos of an aerial‑silks hobby, and coping with...
Can Engineering Management Scale to 50 Direct Reports?
Meta’s Reality Labs is piloting an ultra‑flat engineering org where a single manager oversees up to 50 engineers, relying on AI agents for status updates, meeting attendance, and one‑on‑one check‑ins. The experiment aligns with Zuckerberg’s “Year of Efficiency,” aiming to...
Organizational System
The article advocates a human‑centric organizational model that treats employees as whole people rather than interchangeable resources. It outlines core principles—dignity, autonomy, purpose, psychological safety, equity, wellbeing, clarity, learning, and empathy—and maps them to concrete design levers such as role...
Foxborough’s World Cup Standoff Is Over. The Leadership Lesson Isn’t.
Foxborough, Massachusetts resolved a standoff over roughly $8 million in security costs for the 2026 World Cup, exposing a deeper governance failure rather than a simple budgeting issue. The town demanded upfront funding while organizers promised later payment, but no concrete...
The Most Powerful Communication Skill Leaders Overlook: Talking Less
The article argues that the most powerful communication skill leaders overlook is listening, not speaking. It explains that rushing to give answers often triggers defensiveness because people feel unheard. By pausing, extending listening, reflecting back, and asking an extra question,...
The Hidden Cure for CEO Burnout Is Vision
CEO burnout often originates from decision ambiguity rather than long hours, as leaders carry the sole weight of interpreting a vague future. When a clear, written vision is established, it serves as a decision filter, aligning teams and reducing the...
Kelly Appoints Joel Leege as President of Kelly SETT
Kelly announced that Joel Leege will assume the role of President of its Science, Engineering, Technology & Telecom (SETT) division effective March 16, 2026. Leege joins the senior leadership team, reporting directly to CEO Chris Layden, to accelerate profitable growth across life sciences,...