Work Differently Imagined

What are the key leadership and culture challenges facing executives now?How can humanness be the magic that creates better cultures?And could technology and AI help us be better humans?In this episode of the Work Differently Imagined Podcast, we're reflecting on our series on Executive Leadership and exploring some of the key themes have resonated with us, looking at the most pressing skills and systemic factors impacting executive team and leader performance.We are in the midst of seismic shifts in commercial models through AI and technology as well as geopolitical and environmental factors. And that has to lead us to ask, what more or different is needed from our executive teams to navigate the sizeable risks and opportunities ahead.

What are the patterns of executive team behaviour that can enable or prevent high performance?  What are the invisible team dynamics, power plays and systemic structures that happen in the top team and what is their impact?Welcome to the Work Differently Imagined podcast, where we explore how thriving at work helps us perform at our best together.  Clare Russell and co-host Steph Robin and guests explore key topics from the world of work that matter to their clientsand perhaps also to you. In series three on executive leadership we explore how leaders and top teams drive performance in today’s complex organisations. In this episode Sile Walsh joins the podcast to explore teamdynamics of executive teams.  Sile Walsh is an award-winningleadership specialist and international best-selling author in leadership development.  

In this episode we look at a critical executive leader skill - communication. At a time when trust is decreasing, change is accelerating, business risk and opportunities increasing, the very human skill of communication becomes ever more important.We are looking to our leaders to create togetherness, purpose, even and especially hope. And all of that takes great communication.To explore and understand the complex nuance of effective executive communication, we spoke with Rob Shaw Cameron.Rob is a communications coach, actor and director with over 20 years of experience, Rob has worked extensively with CEO’s executive teams for some of the world’s largest global organisations, helping them bring to life the full spectrum of effective, inspirational, and impactful communication.

This is a special bonus to our last episode,  where we continue our conversation with Simon Hay on the impact of AI on how we lead organisations, manage risks and opportunities at pace and create cultures that enable success under todays circumstances. In this bonus we are: exploring what AI means for how organisations arestructured identifying the follow on implications for career developmentfuture casting what that means for learning andcross organisation collaboration.  

In this episode of the Work Differently Imagined podcast, we're welcoming Simon Hay to the podcast to explore how executive teams effectively respond to AI's rapid transformation of entire sectors and even the obsolescence of some lines of business (aka disintermediation).This is part of series three on executive leadership we explore how executive leaders and top teams drive performance in today’s complex organisations. We examine executive team effectiveness, the leadership mindset, approach and capabilities required to lead through disruption.How do we truly bridge technology and human leadership?How do traditional organisations respond and reshape to complete with AI first organisations?How do we adapt how we lead and how we structure organisations to lead and innovate at pace? Our guest Simon Hay has spent more than 20 years as a CEO, including experience in over 100 countries and the establishment of major partnerships across every continent. He's bought and sold multiple businesses from $1bn to $1. And has 10 years NED and board experience. Most recently, as the Executive Chair of Synerise, a rapid growth AI-first business whose mission is to understand each and every action as accurately as possible from all available data.

What does it take to lead an organisation through rapid growth, while maintaining performance and culture?In this episode of the Work Differently Imagined podcast, we speak with Roz Cawood, Managing Director of Property Finance at StreamBank. Roz was named Woman in Specialist Finance in 2021 and Elite Woman in Finance for three consecutive years.We explore:🌟 Leading at pace in a scaling organisation🌟 Balancing growth, pressure, and uncertainty🌟 Aligning commercial success with inclusive leadership🌟 Building capability and resilience in real time

In our new series, we’re exploring how executive teams drive performance in today’s complex organisations, and how they can shape, or strain, organisational wellbeing.In this first episode, Clare Russell and Steph Robin are joined by Nicholas Creswell and we dig into a reality many organisations know too well:Executive teams can become stressed, siloed, political, and overloaded, and this pressure ripples through the organisation, creating distraction, confusion and conflict.👉 But it doesn’t have to be that way.We explore how executive teams could instead become engines of organisational health - releasing energy, innovation and resilience across the whole system.

As we close out season two of the Work Differently Imagined podcast, Clare Russell and Steph Robin ask:👉🏼 What do we need to do now to stay ahead?The world of work is changing at lightning speed, and staying anchored in yesterday’s skills won’t prepare us for tomorrow’s challenges. The future is coming fast, and the time to uplevel our leadership toolkit is now.In this episode, we dig deep into:🔸 The critical skills and capabilities that leaders must focus on TODAY to thrive in the next decade.🔸 How to build the right structures, cultures, and practices for teams to be agile, resilient, and future-ready.

What does it really mean to lead with AI?In this episode of the Work Differently Imagined podcast, we’re delighted to welcome special guest Kevonne Holloway, Managing Director of Elsevier’s Global Content Partners.Kevonne and her team are at the forefront of integrating AI into their work, developing content for Elsevier’s books, eBooks, and digital solutions.She joins us to share her insights on how we can leverage AI as leaders today to drive innovation and change. This episode is packed with valuable insights on leading through technological transformation and the future of AI in the workplace.

In this episode, we explore how shifts in technology, team structure, and global collaboration are reshaping how we think about teams - and how we lead them. We are exploring topics such as: ⚡ The impact of agentic AI as a team member⚡ Leading teams that shift and evolve over time⚡ Creating clarity and performance through coaching and feedback⚡ What leadership really requires now - and what's coming for 2030 and beyondWe also welcomed Ross Hunter to join us for the show. Ross is Founder of @LIVIS, a human behaviour analytics company transforming how organisations understand and improve performance. At WDI Consulting, we’re partnering with Ross to enhance an evidence based approach to Executive team coaching and one-to-one performance coaching. This is a conversation for anyone rethinking how to lead effectively in a fast-changing environment.

In this episode, we're exploring one of the most powerful drivers of engagement, wellbeing, and high performance: a sense of meaning in the work we do. As we look ahead to 2030 and beyond, the ability to lead with purpose and create meaningful work environments is becoming not just a nice-to-have, but essential.Hosted by WDI Consulting, Clare Russell and @Steph Robin this episode features a rich conversation with special guest @Angela Rixon, author of Meaning Over Purpose: The CEO’s Strategic Blueprint for Growth and Lasting Engagement.Together, we’ll be asking:What’s the difference between meaning and purpose - and why does that distinction matter?How can you help your team feel their contribution truly counts?Why will leading with meaning matter even more in the future of work?

Welcome to the Work Differently Imagined podcast, where we explore how thriving at work helps us perform at our best together.  In series two we are focusing on what we need to know now to lead successfully in 2030 and beyond.  In this episode, Clare is joined by special guest @Elie Rashbass, CEO and Co-founder of ScultureAI, an innovative AI coaching platform designed to embed culture directly into the flow of work. At @WDI Consulting, we’re partnering with Elie and his team to scale culture transformation and drive real, lasting impact.We dive into:🔹 Why creating strong, values-led workplace cultures is harder than ever🔹 How AI is becoming an unexpected ally in making culture change stick🔹 What leaders need to do now to stay ahead in an AI-driven world of work

In this episode we are talking about the leadership experience of feeling we need to forever adapt, lead and work faster, leading to individual and arguably a culturally chronic experience of overwhelm for many.  Are you over the overwhelm?  How do you interpret this symptom of our workplace? And if you dig underneath it, what can you learn to create sustainable thriving?Welcome to the Work Differently Imagined podcast, where we explore how thriving at work helps us perform at our best together. Clare Russell and co-host Steph Robin and guests explorekey topics from the world of work that matter. In series two we are focusing on what we need to know now to lead successfully in 2030 and beyond.

What are the skills of a change ready leader that we all need to craft and develop, what might we need to unlearn? How can you make change leadership something that is no longer a burden to carry, but something that becomes a beacon for hope, possibility and a thriving future? In our final episode in our series on change, we bring together the different threads of the podcast series and look at how you can build your change leadership skill and mind set.

Are you grappling with a change that goes beyond your team? A change that impacts entire functions, cultures, or ways of working.In this episode of the Work Differently Imagined podcast we’re exploring what it really takes to lead change that reshapes an organisation and how to make sure people aren't left behind in the process.We're joined by special guest Elaine Bartlett, HR Operations Director at Maximus UK. With 20+ years’ experience leading people strategy through major change across global organisations, Elaine brings hard-won insights into how to make change stick - not just on paper, but in practice.Tune in to discover how can you build resilience, clarity, and connection in times of upheaval.

Are you leading your team through a change, or maybe yet another change in a long line of transitions?➡️ Are you noticing signs of change fatigue?➡️ Friction between team members that’s starting to impact performance?➡️ Wondering how to reset and re-energise the team around new goals?In this episode of the Work Differently Imagined podcast we explore what it takes to lead well during times of transition when the old ways no longer fit, and the new ways haven’t yet taken hold.

Have you ever faced a career change that wasn’t part of your plan?➡️ A restructure that reshaped your role?➡️ A redundancy that left you reeling?➡️ Life changes - health, caring, or even a surprise move - that pulled you in a different direction?In this episode of the Work Differently Imagined podcast, we’re exploring the often uncomfortable world of unchosen career change and how to navigate it with resilience and purpose.

When was the last time you went for a promotion, took the risk to take a lateral move or perhaps a full careerpivot? What was it like?  Was it planned or did an opportunity come to you that was too good to say no to?  What did you learn from the experience?Our careers are increasingly places where we need to be agile, and expect more change rather than less. Today we dive into how to do chosen career changes well.

In this series we are talking about change and work, and in our first episode we are focusing on ‘change and me’. How do you respond to change at work? Is it stressful or exciting? Or perhaps a bit of both?  Join us to learn more about how to successfully navigate the ups and downs of changes at work.