Change Management Review Podcast

Why wellness programs aren’t enough—and what leaders must do to build healthier, high-performing workplaces.

John Rossman joins Theresa Moulton to explore why organizations must pursue “big bets” — high-ambition, high-risk initiatives — to remain competitive. He shares how leaders can use clarity, experimentation, and disciplined execution to manage risk while driving meaningful transformation.

Dr. Christie Smith explains emotionally mature leadership and why today’s leaders must move from self focused to human centered leadership. Learn how to lead distributed teams, apply AI responsibly, and handle return to office mandates with context and empathy.

Theresa Moulton talks with Vanessa Druskat about emotionally intelligent teams, why belonging fuels psychological safety, and the simple norms that boost participation, feedback, and change adoption. Practical tips for leaders and change pros.

When the world feels chaotic, great leaders stay grounded. Leadership advisor Tony Martignetti shares how to lead with compassion, build resilience, and inspire calm in the midst of change.

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Short summary of two to three sentences here

Renowned author and change expert Paul Gibbons explores how rapid shifts in technology, mental health awareness, and leadership demand more adaptive, human-centered approaches. He offers powerful insights on behavioral science, AI, and why it’s time to rethink traditional change models and DEI strategies.

Martin Gonzalez, creator of Google’s Effective Founders Project, shares his experience advising leaders across startups and large enterprises. He reveals critical insights into what it really takes to scale organizations successfully -—and why many leaders fall for myths that hold them back.

Urs Koenig - leadership expert, executive coach, and the author of Radical Humility, shares powerful insights on why radical humility is the key to effective leadership in today’s fast-paced world. Drawing from his experience as a NATO peacekeeping commander, ultra-endurance athlete, professor, and keynote speaker.

Explore a step-by-step change model by Richard Carson that empowers organizations by engaging people at all levels, ensuring lasting transformation and cultural sustainability.

Learn how Helen Palmer redefines change management through the lens of experience design. This insightful discussion delves into the principles and mindset behind creating intentional, change experiences for humans that drive meaningful behavior shifts and experiences of changing.

Unlock the secrets of successful change execution with Maria Darby, CEO of Conner Partners. Discover proven strategies for leadership, sponsorship, and risk management to drive impactful change and ensure long-term success in a dynamic environment! Part 2 of a 2-part conversation.

Unlock the secrets of successful change execution with Maria Darby, CEO of Conner Partners. Discover proven strategies for leadership, sponsorship, and risk management to drive impactful change and ensure long-term success in a dynamic environment! Part 1 of a 2-part conversation.

In conversation with Theresa Moulton, Atif Rafiq (Thinkers50) emphasizes that AI can be a powerful enabler in business problem-solving, especially when paired with human creativity. By combining AI's efficiencies with human ingenuity, organizations can redefine roles and enhance innovation.

Jason Little shares six big ideas that can help organizations move away from traditional frameworks and towards more effective, sensemaking approaches. Learn how to enhance your change management strategies and foster a more adaptable and resilient organization.

Norman Wolfe discusses embracing organizational change with The Living Organization® Approach. Learn effective strategies to reframe contexts and facilitate faster change adoption.

Discover how Conscious Change Leadership can elevate change capabilities, making transformational change more effective and sustainable in this insightful interview with Dr. Linda Ackerman Anderson.

Leadership expert Ashley Goodall explores why focusing on managing organizational change with stability is crucial. Discover practical insights on balancing change and stability to enhance employee well-being and organizational success.

Explore the essential role of "leadership in change management" with change expert Edwina Pike. Discover practical strategies and insights on how effective leadership can drive organizational change and enhance the human elements crucial for successful transformation.

Delve into the transformative power of AI coaching in change management with Dima Syrotkin. Learn how PandatronAI leverages AI to enhance organizational change, making coaching more scalable and effective.

Guest expert Mike Lee explore the correlation between mindfulness, peak performance, and leadership and provides practical insights for change management professionals to thrive amidst distractions and foster engagement in their organization.

Guest Sandra L. Stewart reveals how coaching can build core competencies of change in organizations.

Filippo Passerini reveals why when innovating business processes you should not overlook customer experience and the consequences of doing so.

Julien Mirivel, Ph.D. shares how you can quickly up your leadership game with a simple, but often overlooked skill: communication.

Robin Hill discusses how Emotional Intelligence and Artificial Intelligence work together (or against each other) in organizations and the importance of future proofing yourself as a Change Management professional and leader.

Miriam Dicks shares how to use change management principles to bring the people in your organization and teams with you during cultural and operational changes.

Dr. Wanda Wallace explains how to step out of your comfort zone and become an effective leader in today’s business world.

William Vanderbloemen reveals the 12 teachable traits which he finds all unicorns have in common.

With Build Your Model for Leading Change, Marsha Acker invites you to take an exceptional journey of personal growth that will have a direct impact on your ability to successfully lead others.

Explore the future of voice technology.

Explore the delicate balance between control and empowerment in leadership and the significance of vulnerability.

Liz Kislik discusses workplace conflict resolution.

Jennifer Krippner discusses how to help healthcare leaders build trust, respect, and compassion with team members.

Dr. Keera Godfrey discusses learning how to change direction beyond your comfort zone in pursuit of your goals and passion.

Dr. Grant Van Ulbrich talks about the importance of personal change and how we all can learn to manage it for ourselves and within our practice as leaders, coaches, and change makers.

Sue Noble and Amy Tarrant connected at a Change Management Institute event in 2018, quickly realizing the extent to which their skillset overlapped and the significant benefit there would be in blending these skill sets to deliver successful, long-term change.  Amy subsequently invited Sue to talk at one of the Change Management Institute’s events. This led to many conversations on the synergy between the two disciplines and the relevance coaching can have for change practitioners. They recognized that, although there were plenty of books on Change Management and many books on the subject of Coaching, there seemed to be very few which attempted to fuse the two subjects. Sue and Amy wanted to write a book which was not aimed purely at experienced coaches, but which encouraged non-coaches and change practitioners to embrace the many coaching tools and techniques that can help deliver lasting change. Editor-in-Chief, Theresa Moulton sits down with Amy Tarrant and co-author Sue Noble of ‘Coaching People through Organisational Change: Practical Tools to Support Employees through Business Transformation’ who talks us through their new book. In this podcast, these ladies uncover how to effectively coach people through transformation including the following: What catalyzed you to write this book? What are some of the best coaching tools that change professionals can use in their work? How does coaching actually improve adoption? Does a cm professional need a formal certification to add coaching practices to their work? What is the difference between mentoring and coaching? About the Guests Amy Tarrant has been delivering organizational change for 15 years, primarily in the insurance sector. Most recently she led the project delivery team for a London Market insurer. Although Amy’s professional life has been heavily focused on project and programmed delivery, she has been drawn to the discipline of change management. She joined the Change Management Institute in 2015 and in 2017, founded their South East Chapter. Over time, she started to recognize the many synergies between coaching and change, leading her to found the Change Management Institute’s Coaching Think Tank. Amy holds a BA in Modern Languages from the University of Salford, an MBA from Durham University, and a Bachelor of Laws from the Open University. She is currently studying for a Master of Laws at Queen Mary university. Amy is also a Trustee for the Brighton Yoga Foundation, taking the lead on fundraising to enable vital outreach work in the community. Amy lives in Sussex with her husband, Steve, and dog, Molly. Sue Noble is owner and Director of Noble Learning Ltd, a training and coaching organization specializing in all things coaching and mentoring and people-centered leadership development. Noble Learning is a recognized provider with Chartered Management Institute (CMI). She works with private and public sector organizations supporting them to embed a coaching and mentoring culture and supporting learners with supervision. Sue has membership with CMI, EMCC and Henley Business School. Sue holds a Level 7 qualification in Executive Coaching, a diploma in Coaching Supervision and in April 2022 achieved her Senior Coach Practitioner and Coach Supervisor accreditation with EMCC. Over the years, coaching and training has brought Sue into contact with a variety of people who are invested in self and professional development and who have recognized that in order to get to where they want to be, change is essential. Coaching only really works if the client is motivated, has the energy to change and is ready to move on in their journey. Sue lives in Sussex with her husband, Dave, and has one daughter and two granddaughters.

Oscar Trimboli defines listening as “the willingness to have your mind changed.” Through his decades of study, Oscar has identified five levels of listening. Each of these levels takes the listener – and the speaker – deeper into the conversation. In this podcast, Oscar and Managing Editor Brian Gorman dive into what it takes to be an explorer of deep listening, including the following. The importance of the numbers 125, 400, and 900 when listening deeply. The difference between active listening and deep listening. What it means to “listen to” and what it means to “listen for.” The difference between good and great listeners. The role of powerful questions when listening. The difference between questions of eight words or less and those that are longer, and why it is sometimes important to ask questions that are eight words or less. Powerful questions that are eight words or less. The one question in English-speaking Western workplaces that will change everybody’s mind the most. (Hint, while it may be the shortest question of all, it isn’t “Why?”) About the Guest Oscar Trimboli is an author, coach, marketing and technology industry veteran, keynote speaker, and the host of Deep Listening, an Apple award-winning podcast. Much of his work focuses on senior executives based on his belief that by listening more deeply they are able to transform their organizations. He heads the coaching faculty for the Marketing Academy Australia where he supervises thirty executive coaches and their clients throughout an immersive nine-month leadership development program.

Both guest Beth Banks Cohn and Managing Editor Brian Gorman have spent decades in the field of organizational change management. In this podcast they explore some of the many lessons that Beth has learned over the years that she wants to pass on the today’s change professionals. Tune in and hear Beth's answers to questions such as: Why do you find it important to pass on your approach to change to the next generation of practitioners? What is your approach to change management? How do you use scenario planning in change management and why is it important? You are also very intentional about using what are referred to as the three parts of the mind: cognitive/thinking, affective/feeling, and conative/doing. As you describe it, all too often, the conative mind is left out of the way practitioners approach change, yet this is where people’s instincts reside. Why is it important that change management professionals become much more intentional about the conative mind? About Beth Banks Cohn Beth Banks Cohn is an accomplished Organizational Consultant, Senior Executive Coach, Entrepreneur, and Thought Leader with more than 25 years of success in the healthcare, pharma, bio-tech, IT, hi-tech, retail, engineering and manufacturing industries. Leveraging her extensive experience in corporate culture, Beth is a valuable asset as she helps companies use organizational transformation to reach the next level of growth. Regarded by many as the authority on culture, leadership and change, Beth is a sought-after speaker on key aspects of executing organizational change initiatives that stick.  Her passion for educating and guiding people have positioned her clients to feel empowered to thrive in an era of uncertain times.  Beth holds a PhD in Human and Organizational Systems from the Fielding Graduate University.  Her dissertation entitled: Culturemakers: The role of organizational culture in individual decision making showed how culture is an active, rather than a passive part of organizations. Beth also holds an MA in Organization Development from Fielding Graduate University, an EdM in Human Resource Education from Boston University and a BA in International Relations from Simmons University.  She is certified in the Kolbe Index, the Denison Culture Index and Myers-Briggs.  Beth has authored numerous publications and has written for Change Matters on BizCatalyst360.com.

Culture is your company's best competitive advantage. Competitors can copy ideas and steal people; customer demands and markets can change in an instant. How well your teams work together, and how well your bonds hold in the face of change, will determine your success. When you eliminate dysfunction between leadership and employees, you end up increasing engagement and reducing turnover. Tune in and hear Paula's answers to questions such as: There's been a lot of articles on uncertainty and volatility and everything, but the culture piece has been mentioned and has been made more present, but what do you really do with it when everybody's in this uncertainty? How do you handle that from a change perspective? NOBL creates a change strategy for a client, do you actually build in that reflection time into your plan and your strategy? And for those of us who are listening, who have agile experience, is this retrospective technique from the agile approach Are there things that are cropping up for everybody, and that's where we should really focus our attention going forward. So that if it was a good thing, we make sure we double down on that and keep repeating that it's a lot easier to keep doing what you're good at? Or if it's a bad thing, we want to avoid it. Are there things that we can put in place to make sure that doesn't happen again? Or if we see it happening again? How do we how do we sort of head that off at the pass? What is the one message that you want to make sure listeners get from your discussion? About Paula Cizek Paula Cizek is the Chief Research Officer of NOBL Collective. Prior to joining NOBL, she was the innovation manager at the IPG Media Lab advising brands and media clients on emerging technology and senior innovation Consulting at Mandalah. She's lead customer behavior, consumer behavior and brand strategy research for brands around the world. Clients have included Warner Brothers Chanel, Capital One, Illumina and more. She graduated from Georgetown University majoring in marketing and international business.

Changing an organisation’s culture and the behaviours within it is one of the most difficult leadership challenges. Lindsey Agness and Theresa Moulton will explore why it is such a challenge and how to take practical steps to shift behaviour.  This podcast will deliver practical ideas and tips for behaviour change. Tune in and hear Lindsey's answers to questions such as: What is organisation culture ? What are the drivers of organisation culture? Why is it so hard to motivate staff to change their behaviour? How does NLP contribute to making culture change more sustainable? As a leader how do you get started? What lessons can I pass onto others after over 20 years in people change consulting? About Lindsey Agness Lindsey is one of the UK’s leading change specialists, specialising in staff engagement, performance improvement, behavioural change and motivation. Her career includes 11 years as a change management consultant, corporate trainer and coach for PwC and now as an entrepreneur running her own company. She has used her skills to build capability and capacity for change in large private and public organisations throughout the UK, Europe and the US. Her flexible, collaborative approach delivers proven, measurable results.  Lindsey is the first woman Master Trainer of NLP in the UK accredited through the American Board of NLP.  She is an author of four best-selling books on organisational change management and personal change.

There is no question about it. Generational differences exist and often lead to friction, disagreement, conflict, disengagement, turnover, and project failure. As change practitioners and leaders, it is important to understand How to navigate these differences successfully. Chris De Santis, author of Why I Find You Irritating, joins Management Editor Brian Gorman to explore the roots of today’s intergenerational conflicts in the workplace as well as how to navigate them successfully. Tune in and hear Chris De Santis’s answers to questions such as:   As one Baby Boomer to another, the only time I felt like I fit the Baby Boomer mold was when I served as a drill sergeant in the Air Force in the early 1970s. I think I have spent most of my career since then as a Millennial in a Boomer body. One of the important points you make in your book is that generational differences are real. The problem is not in recognizing and acknowledging those differences, but in stereotyping people based on them. Would you say more about this? Early in the book, you identify four caveats that I believe are important for our listeners. Generational narratives are not destiny Generational narratives are neither global nor universal Generational narratives apply primarily to the American middle class Generational shifts are distinct from “stages of life” Would you say a little about each of these? You raise several factors that served as catalysts for generational differences, ranging from the return of men from the military after World War II, to economic cycles, to the growth of women in the workforce and so on. One that seemed profoundly important as I was reading the book was the end of what you refer to as the covenant between employers and employees. Would you describe what you mean by this and how it has played out in fostering generational differences? One of the interesting facts that you point out is that as parents, we often were raising our children to fit into a different generation than our own, yet as managers and leaders in the workplace, we expect their generational peers to think and act like they belong to our generation. What have you found most useful in helping redefine those expectations? You wrote Why You Irritate Me during the Coronavirus pandemic. As we have come out of the lockdowns and entered what many are referring to as “the Great Resignation,” how do you see generational differences shaping the future of work? What are the implications of what you call a “post-trust society” and how do you navigate it? We’ve spent much of our conversation on generational differences, their roots, and their impact. As change practitioners and change leaders, the listeners to this podcast face generational challenges on their teams, with those who report to them, and often with those to whom they report. What do you see as the key lesson or lessons for successfully navigating those challenges? About Chris De Santis Chris De Santis is an independent organizational behavior practitioner, speaker, podcaster, and author, with over thirty-five years of experience working with clients in professional services firms both domestically and internationally. Over the past fifteen years, he has been invited to speak on generational issues in the workplace at hundreds of leading U.S. law and accounting firms, as well as many of the major insurance and pharma companies. Learn more at cpdesantis.com.

Early change management methodologies focused heavily on culture. As the profession has grown and matured, other aspects of organizational change have tended to take center stage, with less, if any focus remaining on culture. In his book The Culture Fix, Will Scott makes the case that culture does, in fact belong front and center and the organizational leadership should be maintaining a focus on culture as an ongoing part of their responsibilities. In this podcast with Managing Editor Brian Gorman, Will Scott addresses the following: In The Culture Fix, you speak of leaders who “see themselves as leading a culture, not just a company.” What is the leader’s role vis-à-vis culture and why is it so important? Your approach to culture begins with values. You write, “There needs to be some doing before defining of values to ensure there is a legacy from which to build and develop a culture. Although you could draft core values early in the inception of a business, it’s always good to keep them fluid in the early stages.” Why wouldn’t you want to clearly and definitively articulate values at the outset? The journey you describe in The Culture Fix is “from core values to valued culture.” You define this journey in terms of 9 deeds. Would you name and just briefly describe each? You state that “safety is not mere emotional weather.” What is the role of safety in the context of culture, and how do you work to achieve it? As you look at organizations, their core values play a central part in virtually every aspect of the culture from hiring to unhiring to process design to performance reviews to professional development and more. While we don’t have time to dig into each of these, would you briefly describe why values are important in a few of these areas? Toward the end of the book, you state that “the key to driving your business is forming a continuum of culture.” Would you explain what you mean by this? There are numerous illustrations of the importance of culture throughout the book. I would like to end with this one. “It’s not just about making the work environment more enriching, it’s also about making each and every individual feel like they belong to something bigger than themselves.” Could you give us a few examples of how this plays out in different types of work environments (e.g., manufacturing facilities, service organizations)? What else would you like to share with our listeners today? About Will Scott Self-described Culture Czar Will Scott, Founder and Actuator of The Culture Fix Academy, has had a lifelong attraction to creating environments where people thrive. As a boy growing up in Zambia, Will often built treehouses, forts, cave dwellings, and bamboo huts as places for people to gather. He “set rules and posted them—much like the popular posters of core values that you’ll see in many of today’s businesses—to keep us all on the same page.” Today, he works across industries globally, helping organizations define and live into a values-based culture. [email protected]

Hamza Kahn began his 2015 TEDx talk, Stop Managing, Start Leading, by telling his audience that there are three things about him that they should know: he was born in 1987 (28 years old), he loves hip hop, and he is a horrible boss. Through his own experiences, as well as the wisdom of long-time thought-leaders such as Peter Drucker and Douglas McGregor, Hamza then goes on to share with the audience what he then saw as the best ways to lead the workforce of the future. In this thoughtful and thought-provoking podcast with Change Management Review’s Managing Editor Brian Gorman, Hamza shares some of those key lessons and updates them for a future of work that is way less certain than it was in 2015. Tune in and hear Hamza Kahn's answers to questions such as:   In your TEDx talk, you described as a management paradox, “growing organizations require management and people don’t like to be managed.” How did that paradox surface for you? Because the ideas you put forth are still considered radical by some leaders today, and were even more radical in the context of 2015, would you share your beliefs that underlie your messages? “To bring out the best in your team, you have to bring out the best in yourself.” How do you do that in today’s virtual/hybrid world? You identified yourself in the talk as Generation Y, now more broadly known as the Millennial generation. You said, “how and why we work is out of sync with the traditional workplace. We are built for tomorrow’s workplace.” As we emerge from the almost total migration of the knowledge worker from the office to work from home with the onset of Covid, how do you see that workplace of the future taking shape? How well suited is your generation for it? Given our audience of change leaders and change management practitioners, what are the most important things they should be taking back to their everyday responsibilities of supporting successful change within their organizations? Would you briefly describe each of the four leadership characteristics that are at the heart of your book Leadership Reinvented? About Hamza Kahn Hamza Khan is the best-selling author of Leadership Reinvented: How to Foster Empathy, Servitude, Diversity, and Innovation in the Workplace. He is a global keynote speaker whose 2015 TEDx talk “Stop Managing, Start Leading” has been viewed nearly two million times. Hamza is a top-ranked university educator and respected thought leader whose insights have been featured by notable media outlets such as VICE, Business Insider, and The Globe and Mail. Hamza is trusted by the world’s preeminent organizations to enhance human potential and optimize performance. His clients include the likes of Microsoft, PepsiCo, LinkedIn, Deloitte, Salesforce, TikTok, and over 100 colleges and universities. As the Co-Founder of SkillsCamp, a leading soft skills training company, Hamza is on a mission to empower organizations to thrive in the future of work. From Fortune 500 boardrooms to international conferences, Hamza regularly shares actionable insights on the topics of leadership, resilience, and productivity.

In The Heart of Transformation: Build the Human Capabilities That Change Organizations for Good, Michael J. Leckie writes, “Throughout this book I will be talking about individual change as the basis for all change.” Michael and Managing Editor Brian Gorman explore the author’s perspective of organizational change as people-centric and how that perspective leads to a fundamentally different approach to organizational change management. Tune in and listen to Michael J. Leckie's answers to questions such as: You write, Organizations don’t exist. Only people exist. And an organization is simply an organized body of people with a particular purpose. As we talk about transformation, what is important about taking this perspective of organizations? Quoting from The Heart of Transformation, In the end, organizational structures are simply the rules or restrictions we put on who talks to whom about what. This is important because it means the power to change lies not in structure but in dialogue.” Judith E. Glaser, the renowned researcher on the neuroscience of conversation, wrote, To get to the next level of greatness depends on the quality of the culture which depends on the quality of the relationships, which depends on the quality of the conversations. Everything happens through conversation. What do you see as the most important changes in our approach to transformation to ensure that the level of dialogue that both you and Judith refer to takes place? As a certified coach, one of the foundations of my work with clients is curiosity, quite literally asking questions for which I don’t have answers. You write, Curiosity is at the heart of transformation. Historically, the practice of change management has been a consultative process. As you may be aware, the Association of Change Management Professionals and the International Coaching Federation are currently exploring the intersection of the two professions. What do you see as the role of coaching in organizational transformation? In writing about the shift from the industrial age to the age of the knowledge worker, Peter Drucker noted that in the former, the people served the system while in the latter, the system needs to serve the people. While you refer to “process” rather than “system,” you seem to be echoing Drucker’s perspective. This is also one of the key drivers we see behind the great resignation/great reshuffling. People are no longer willing to be seen as interchangeable, easily replaceable parts. What is required to ensure that this shift in the role of process takes place and is sustained over time? For me, the heart of The Heart of Transformation is what you refer to as six human capabilities that drive transformation. Could you briefly describe each of them? You state that A new reality of organizations is that managing change and transformation is leadership’s job working with everyone, not the job of Human Resources or a consultant working with some specialist function or team. Why? What are the implications for both leadership and for the change management profession? In the world of professions, change management is relatively new. I often tell practitioners that what I learned when I first trained in 1988 still holds true today. And our depth of understanding continues to unfold every day. In this way, hopefully each of us is what you refer to as a “learning worker.” You write, The learning worker has one very crucial individual they have to be sure they learn about. A being who is slippery, who tells them subtle lies, who resists being questioned. Themselves. As we look at change management practitioners through this lens, why is this observation so important? About Michael J. Leckie: Michael J. Leckie has spent his career helping people to make sense out of the world around them. He knows that it is the stories we share that guide us in discovering what we might become and living up to all we can be. He has been sharing the stories of change and transformation for over 20 years in all parts of the world. In his work with Gartner’s Executive Programs, he led the work to reshape what the idea of help truly meant to Gartner’s CXO clients and to ensure that his teams worked with their clients to find the right problems, not just work on solutions to the problems presented. In addition to his time at Gartner, Michael has held global roles for industry-leading companies in both people-centered roles and general management. Michael is Founding Partner of Silverback Partners, LLC.

“Written by a collaborative, diverse, and inclusive community of contributors and business experts, (The Secret Sauce for Leading Transformational Change) is about leading transformational change on an individual, team, organizational, and societal level.” Author Ian Ziskin is joined by two of the many contributors to this unique book in this podcast with Change Management Review Managing Editor and Consortium for Change member Brian Gorman. Listen as Ian, Jennifer, and Beth answer questions such as the following: Ian, not only did you take the lead in writing The Secret Sauce, you brought together 25 members of the Consortium for Change to contribute essays, there are 8 interviews with senior executives and change practitioners, and a survey of more than 100 leaders and practitioners responding to the question, “What is the single most important action or step a leader or organization can take to ensure successful and lasting transformational change?” What led you to the idea of The Secret Sauce, and to the high level of inclusivity that shaped it? The essays in the book are organized based on their focus at the individual, team, or organizational level. Beth, your essay is “Engaging All Three Parts of the Mind to Achieve Transformational Change Buy-In (and Success). It is the first essay in the individual section. What are the three parts of the mind that you refer to, and why is engaging all three so important in transformational change? Jennifer, your essay, which is focused on the organizational level, is “Mindset in Organizational Transformation.” You write, “Successful organizational transformation requires a mindset that all people in the system are key to the transformation.” The mindset you call for is based on three principles. Would you briefly describe them? While the first three questions were addressed to specific individuals, the next ones are open to everyone. One of the themes that stood out for me is the critical importance of trust in transformation. What are a few key leadership actions that help to build trust, and in what ways do leaders undermine it? Another theme that appeared often is that of relationship. When change management methodologies address relationships at all, they tend to do so at the role level (e.g., change sponsors and change agents). What role does relationship play in successful transformation, and how important is it to get beyond roles to person-to-person relationships? What did you learn from the survey question, “What is the single most important action or step a leader or organization can take to ensure successful and lasting transformational change?” There is so much more in The Secret Sauce that we don’t have time to explore today. But before we wrap up, Ian, one last question for you. What is the recipe for The Secret Sauce for Leading Transformational Change? About the Guests: Ian Ziskin, President of EXec EXcel Group LLC, has 40 years of experience as a business and human resources leader, board advisor and member, coach, consultant, entrepreneur, teacher, speaker, and author. His global business leadership experience includes 28 years in Chief Human Resources Officer and/or other senior leadership roles with three Fortune 100 corporations – Northrop Grumman, Qwest Communications, and TRW. Ian has written or co-edited four books, including the focus of this podcast, The Secret Sauce for Leading Transformational Change. Dr. Beth Banks Cohn, President of ADRA Change Architects, is an accomplished Organizational Consultant, Senior Executive Coach, Entrepreneur, and Thought Leader with more than 25 years of success in helping individuals and organizations use change as a strategic advantage. Jennifer E. McEwen, Ph.D., Co-Founder of LAITHOS | The Leadership Impact Company, has a track record of over 20 years leading large-scale organizational transformation. As an experienced coach and proven executive in Fortune 100 companies, she works with C-level executives and teams to align leadership, culture, and strategy to improve organizational health and relationships.

In their book Beyond Digital: How Great Leaders Transform Their Organizations and Shape the Future, PwC partners Paul Leinwand and Matt Mani posit that digitization is not enough to be a winner in the future; at best, it will allow you to continue playing. Through their work with global organizations, they have identified seven strategies that are key to gaining and maintaining competitive advantage. They draw on the experience of companies as diverse as Hitachi, Eli Lilly, Adobe, and Spanish multinational retailer Inditex to illustrate what is required to go “beyond digital.” Listen and get Paul Leinwand's answers to questions such as: An important premise of your book is that organizations can shape their future. In fact, your first chapter is “Shape Your Future,” and you begin the chapter with a quote from Nobel Prinze-winning physicist Dennis Gabor, The future cannot be predicted, but futures can be invented. You state at the outset that “the nature of competitive advantage has shifted—and that being digital is not enough.” What are some of the indicators you see that digitization is necessary but not sufficient for competitive advantage in the future? For those of us in professions such as change management where digitization is just beginning to touch the edges of our practice, do you see the need for focusing on “both/and,” a digitization strategy and a strategy to go beyond digitization? For our listeners who are not familiar with ESG, could you tell us what you mean? Would you provide just a brief summary of your seven strategies for going beyond digitization? We could spend days exploring these strategies, but for today we are only going to dive into a few. Your second strategy is “embrace and create value via ecosystems.” Would you describe what you mean by this in more detail, provide us with an example of an ecosystem, and share how it adds competitive advantage? Building a system of privileged insight with your customers, your third strategy, calls for a very different relationship with customers. Likewise, ecosystems, which we just discussed, don’t grow in traditional vendor relationships. How do you see inter-organizational and organization-customer relationships shifting in the future? Throughout your strategies, I see elements that are prescient given the uncertainties resulting from the Covid pandemic and the subsequent and ongoing Great Resignation. These include aspects of “reinvent the social contract with your people, “disrupt your own leadership approach,” and “make your organization outcome-oriented.” Each of these requires a major shift in mindsets and behaviors. As change practitioners, we know that culture change of this scale is among the least successful types of change. What do you see as the future for organizations that are unable or unwilling to make these changes? About Paul Leinwand: Paul Leinwand is the global managing director for capabilities-driven strategy and growth with Strategy&, PwC’s global strategy consulting business.  He is a principal with PwC US. Paul advises boards and management teams on the topics of strategy, growth, and capability building, with a focus on consumer products and healthcare. He is co-author of three books, Strategy That Works: How Winning Companies Close the Strategy-to-Execution Gap (Harvard Business Review Press, 2016), The Essential Advantage: How to Win with a Capabilities-Driven Strategy (Harvard Business Review Press, 2010) and Cut Costs and Grow Stronger (Harvard Business Review Press, 2009), and writes regularly for Harvard Business Review, strategy+business and other publications.

Are the metrics of change management the metrics of the change itself? Why can folks have an adverse reaction to being individually measured? What are the Dark Side of KPIs and how do we combat that? Dana will provide the 4-step process to reveal useful and meaningful measures for both change and change management. Tune in to hear Dana Houston Jackson's answers to questions such as: What do metrics and culture have to do with each other? What do metrics and executive attention and focus have to do with each other? How does this help or hinder our change work? With the "Great Resignation" and Hiring difficulties some companies are having - what about this is driving a spotlight on Metrics? You've been talking about the Dark side of KPIs: How are metrics and the hunger games similar? Walk us through this dysfunctional mindset on metrics you spoke to me about. What are some of the key errors in our change measurement process and how do we measure differently? Lastly - talk to me about Evidence-Based Measurement system - how does that work and how do we apply it in our world of change? About Dana Houston Jackson: Dana Houston Jackson is a Senior Change Management Advisor with 1898 and Co., the consulting arm of Burns and McDonnell. With her boots-on-the-ground career spanning 25+ years in dozens of roles for multiple industries including Utilities, Energy, Manufacturing, Technology, Non-Profit, and Academia. Her superpower is simplifying the complex, getting to the root and meat of issues, and simplifying solutions that move initiatives rapidly forward.

Lindsey Caplan shares with Managing Editor Brian Gorman the ways in which change leaders and practitioners can significantly increase the effectiveness of change-related gatherings (e.g., town halls, launches, offsites). Her approach helps to engage employees more fully in change efforts and to move from a “one-size-fits-all” approach to one that is “made-to-fit-me.” Tune in to hear Lindsey Caplan's answers to questions such as: Lindsey, you have an interesting background, going from screenwriter for shows such as Curb Your Enthusiasm to regular contributor to Fast Company and what some might refer to as a “gathering guru.” Could you briefly describe your own professional journey as a background to our listeners for this conversation? You refer to gatherings as “the most common tool we use to spark movement or change in our organizations.” Why did you choose the term “gathering?” When you and I were talking in preparation for this podcast, you spoke about the importance of focusing on participants’ connection to the content of the gathering. How is this accomplished? What are some of the key elements in successfully orchestrating a gathering? What have we learned about gatherings from the pandemic? What else do you want our listeners to know about creating more successful gatherings? How important is a call to action in a gathering? About Lindsey Caplan Lindsey Caplan is a screenwriter turned Organizational Psychologist who helps HR and business leaders script their change efforts for the effect they want. Her expertise is in scripting experiences that help boost morale, retention, and engagement for the long term. Her forthcoming book, The Gathering Effect, is based on her research and consulting practice. Lindsey has a Master’s Degree in Organizational Psychology from Columbia University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Creative Writing for the Media from Northwestern University. https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindseycaplan/

Given the turbulence and uncertainty of the future of work, Robin Hills' insights on emotional resilience in business are prescient for change practitioners and change leaders. In this podcast, Managing Editor Brian Gorman and Robin explore the role that emotional resilience plays in our work, the effect of emotion on resilience, and the importance of empathy. Listen and get Robin Hills' answers to questions such as: How do you define resilience, and why is it important in the realm of business? Our community consists of change practitioners and change leaders. What role do you seen emotional resilience playing in their lives? What is the relationship between resilience and emotional intelligence? What is the impact of emotion on resilience? What emotions enhance or facilitate resilience? You begin your book with a quote by Napoleon Hill, “The strongest oak in the forest is not the one that is protected from the storm and hidden from the sun. It is the one that stands in the open where it is compelled to struggle for its existence against the winds and the rains and the scorching sun.” In the business environment of today, it can feel like we are facing the winds and the rains and the scorching sun. What are some of the action strategies you recommend for developing resilience? In your book, you provide several strategies for “managing stress and weathering storms in the workplace.” What are a couple of those strategies that you would recommend our listeners begin to practice? More and more, empathy is surfacing as a critical skill for leaders and managers. What insights can you share on this? About Robin Hills: Robin Hills is a business psychologist and emotional intelligence trainer. He is the director of EI4Change, a company specializing in educational training, coaching and personal development focused around emotional intelligence, positive psychology, and neuroscience. His educational programs have been delivered to over 250,000 people in 185 countries. Robin is a keynote speaker and the author of two books, including The Authority Guide to Emotional Resilience in Business: Strategies to Manage Stress and Weather Storms in the [email protected]