Radio Free Leader

Paul Zak is the founding Director of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies and Professor of Economics, Psychology and Management at Claremont Graduate University. Pauls’s two decades of research have taken him from the Pentagon to Fortune 50 boardrooms to the rain forest of Papua New Guinea.  All this in a quest to understand the neuroscience of human connection, human happiness, and effective teamwork. His academic lab and companies he has started develop and deploy neuroscience technologies to solve real problems faced by real people. His latest book, Trust Factor: The Science of Creating High Performance Companies, uses neuroscience to measure and manage organizational cultures to inspire teamwork and accelerate business outcomes. In this interview, we discuss the key role trust building plays in enhances performance.

Josh Seiden is a designer who has spent most of his career working on the design of complex software applications and integrating design into the product development process. Over the course of 25 years working in technology Josh has developed specialities that include Lean UX, interaction design, service design, and user experience design in agile software development environments. Josh is the co-author of two books, both in collaboration with his writing partner, Jeff Gothelf. Eric Ries called their most recent book, "Sense & Respond," "A crucial framework for the modern world of business.” In this interview, we talk about the role of leaders in engaging customers in ongoing dialogue that shapes new, competitive products and services.

Heidi K. Gardner, PhD, is a Distinguished Fellow in the Center on the Legal Profession at Harvard Law School.  Her research focuses on leadership and collaboration in professional service firms. Gardner has lived and worked on four continents, including positions with McKinsey & Co. and Procter & Gamble, and as a Fulbright Scholar. She holds a BA in Japanese Studies from the University of Pennsylvania (summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa), a masters degree from the London School of Economics (with honors), and a second masters and doctorate in organizational behavior from London Business School. In this interview, we discuss how leaders (and all successful professionals) win by breaking down silos.

Jennifer earned her PhD in Social and Developmental Psychology at Brandeis University, and has been on the faculty of many top business schools including the Wharton School, Yale School of Management and NYU's Stern School of Business. She published the paper, “The Bias Against Creativity,” which went viral and was downloaded over 65,000 times—receiving more than 100 media mentions. Her book “Creative Change” reveals the answer she found to the question of why people desire but reject creativity. In this interview, we discuss the basic assumptions about how we recognize creative ideas, creative leaders, and the very fabric of how we structure organizations for innovation.

0804 | How to Create Meaning with Scott Mautz by David Burkus

Soren Kaplan is the author of the best-selling and award-winning book "Leapfrogging," an affiliated professor at the Center for Effective Organizations at USC's Marshall School of Business, a contributing writer for Fast Company, a leading keynote speaker, and the founder of InnovationPoint. In this interview, we discuss how to create a culture of innovation, and how you can use that culture to create a competitive advantage.

Laura Gassner Otting has spent the last 20 years working to strengthen organizations that weave our social and civic fabric. Through "Limitless Possibility," Laura collaborates with entrepreneurs and investors to push past the doubt and indecision that consign great ideas to limbo. In this interview, we discuss her catalytic perspective informed by decades of navigating change across the start-up, nonprofit, political, and philanthropic landscapes.

Brad Szollose is the foremost expert on cross-generational leadership development strategies and the award-winning author of "Liquid Leadership: From Woodstock to Wikipedia." Brad is a former C-level executive of a publicly traded company that he co-founded which went from entrepreneurial start-up to IPO in less than three years. In this interview, we discuss the new generation of business leaders, and how to help them maximize their cross-generational corporate culture, management expectations, productivity, and sales growth in The Information Age.

Justin Brady is the founder of the Creativity Cultivator podcast, a in-demand designer, and a consultant/speaker to companies large and small who want to help their people enhance their creative potential. In this interview, we discuss failure, in particular what the current "failure culture" misses and when are the right and wrong times to celebrate failure.

Sally Hogshead is an American author, professional speaker, chief executive officer of Fascinate, Inc and a former advertising executive. She is the author of Fascinate and How the World Sees You. Over the past decade, Hogshead has studied the science of fascination and what persuades and captivates people. In this interview, we discuss how individuals and leaders benefit from knowing what is so fascinating about them and how to put it to work.

Gareth Jones is a Fellow of the Centre for Management Development at London Business School. He is co-author (with Rib Goffee) of “Why Should Anyone Be Led By You?” and the new book “Why Should Anyone Work Here?” In this interview, we discuss how to create an authentic organization and unlock people to do their best work.

Greg McKeown writes, teaches, and speaks around the world on the importance of living and leading as an Essentialist. He has spoken at companies including Apple, Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, Salesforce.com, Symantec, and Twitter and is among the most popular bloggers for the Harvard Business Review and LinkedIn Influencer’s group. In this interview, we talk about how to focus in on what’s essential and pursue less but better in our life and career.

Dr. Seth Stone is an organizational consultant focused on helping leaders uncover latent potential and thrive in the global marketplace using the components of innovation. He’s also the host of the LeadThis podcast. In this interview, we discuss how the most innovative firms shape the future, and how you can too.

Cal Newport is a writer and an assistant professor of computer science at Georgetown University. He also runs the popular website Study Hacks: Decoding Patterns of Success. He is the author of "Deep Work" and "So Good They Can't Ignore You." In this interview, we discuss why deep work creates all the value and how to train yourself to work deeper.

Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg is a partner at The Innovation Architects, a management consulting firm in New York City. He is co-author of "Innovation as Usual." He is a frequent speaker at corporate events and has worked with managers in nearly all parts of the globe, including China, India, Russia, Singapore, Britain, France, the United States, and his native country, Denmark. He has founded two start-ups and serves as an adviser to BBC Worldwide Labs. In this interview, we discuss how to make creativity a habit, and how to bring innovation to life.

Srinivas Rao uses the internet to make things, and leads a creativity and innovation revolution while he does. Rao is the author of “Unmistakeable” and the founder of the Unmistakeable Creative podcast, where he's interviewed over five hundred creative people. Former guests on the show include Seth Godin, Elle Luna, Tim Ferriss, Gretchen Rubin, Simon Sinek, Adam Grant, and Danielle LaPorte. In this episode, we discuss why being the only in a niche is better than being the best.

Lisa Kay Solomon is co-author of "Design a Better Business." She is a well-known thought leader in design innovation with a focus on building the leadership skills required to ignite change and create lasting impact. Lisa is Principal Faculty and Managing Director of Transformational Practices at Singularity University, a global community of smart, passionate, action-oriented leaders who want use exponential technologies to change the world. In this interview, we discuss how leaders bear the responsibility to help design a better future...and talk tips and tactics for making that happen.

Amy E. Herman is the author of Visual Intelligence and the creator of The Art of Perception course, where she uses works of art to train police officers, medical professions, and everyone else how to be more effective on the job, more empathetic toward their loved ones, and more alert to the trove of possibilities and threats all around them. In this interview, we discuss why we miss so much of the world around us, and who we can see (and think) better.

Dr. Max McKeown is the author of 7 books, including the new book #Now, as well as The Strategy Book, winner of the Commuter Read at the Chartered Management Institute Book of the Year 2013 and Amazon's Best Business Books of 2012. He works as a strategic coach with Fortune 100 companies and is also a popular keynote speaker at conferences worldwide. In this interview, we define a "nowist" philosophy and show why nowists make great leaders.

Jurgen Appelo is a pioneering management consultant who helps creative organizations survive and thrive in the twenty-first century. He is the author of Managing for Happiness, andd the CEO of the global business network Happy Melly. In this interview, we discuss how the changing nature of work requires a change in management…and why management is too important to be left up to managers alone. In This episode, You’ll Learn: Why traditional performance measurement fails Why management is everybody’s business Why happy workers are creative workers Enjoy This Episode? If you enjoyed the show, please rate it on iTunes or Stitcher and write a brief review. That would really help get the word out and raise the visibility of the show.