Podcast Blog

Learn what you can do to bring about real change

Here we are in November already and I'm having such a good time re-sharing with you some of my favorite On The Brink podcasts. I'm bringing to you conversations I've had over the past five years with amazing women entrepreneurs, authors, change agents and overall trailblazers who have challenged me to think in new ways. And as a culture change expert, that's what I'm all about: helping you too see, feel and think in new ways. So today I bring you Maureen "Mo" Berkner Boyt, founder of her company The Moxie Exchange and author of Rock Your Moxie: Power Moves for Women Leading the Way. This podcast was a follow-up to one we did in January 2018, in which we dug into research Mo initiated with CEOs around the country to see how they were implementing changes (or not) to increase both the diversity of their workforce and the inclusion of that diverse workforce. Is diversity real or just a concept? Listen in, then share!

Hear how your organization should embrace change to grow  

George Swisher is a former marketing entrepreneur and management consultant. He has a 15-year track record of improving company performance and shifting cultures to effective change management. He currently is co-founder and CEO of www.changeforce.ai, a software platform that helps leaders manage organizational change more precisely by analyzing the sentiment of company conversations in real time. A really interesting platform. Remember, I'm a corporate anthropologist who, like George, helps companies change, so I loved this interview. So will you.

Hear how to create an environment where people love to work!

I always enjoy talking with Terry Nichols (H.E. Amb. Terry Earthwind Nichols). We had a great conversation during our first podcast in January of last year. Today we discuss how Terry’s life story has taken him in many directions, leading him to a splendid place where he is helping people find their own way. After learning that he is a Native American, he began to see his own life through a fresh lens. In the U.S. Navy, he experienced a range of tests and challenges which led him to become an innovator and visionary. Now as a Visionary Strategist, Terry works with those seeking to change the way they and their businesses achieve success. Listen in and learn!

Learn how to see your way forward to your best future! 

I met Alain Guillot when he interviewed me for his podcast and I was totally intrigued by his story. As an anthropologist who studied immigrants who relocated from Greece to New York, I remain endlessly fascinated by the ability of people to completely change their lives to thrive in a foreign environment. Alain and I spoke at length about what he himself did to thrive, and how he eventually became a full-time blogger and podcaster. But it was never easy or completely evident that his calling was to become a story merchant, as he calls himself. Listen in and be moved!

Learn how to bring your organization "in tune" through music!

What if you could listen to a podcast in silence? What might you hear? Your heart beating. Your breathing. Your mind quieting down so it can step out and look inside. What if you could learn how to use music to help your business find its own harmony, its melody, its rhythm, and its beauty? That is what Freddie Ravel does during this podcast. He and I talk about how you can tune up your life with music as a metaphor to give you focus, rhythm and beauty. Freddie is an absolute original and someone you really must listen to. Do enjoy.

Learn an important key to growing your business!

As a corporate anthropologist who works with organizations that need or want to change, it was truly a pleasure to bring Bill Flynn onto our show. We talked about all the things you need to develop to thrive in these fast-changing times. As Bill tells us, thousands of businesses are started every day. Most die, a few thrive and the rest struggle to survive — mainly through enormous effort, force of will and luck. There is a better way to take the guesswork out of growth: focusing on the few areas that make all the difference. Listen in!

Learn how to “see” where you want your team to go

At SAMC, we often work with people who need or want to change. That’s our job as corporate anthropologists. And what we have learned over the years is that people hate to change unless they can literally see what it is they have to move toward. The human brain is designed to keep us in today’s habits and not let us wander too far astray. But if you can see something new, you can begin to visualize how you can adapt it for yourself. In fact, without visualizing or experiencing the new, you don’t know what it is. You flee it or fear it. You are never sure what “it” is. In this podcast, I bring to you Todd Cherches who has just published a new book about Visual Leadership. It's said, if you can see it you can be it. Listen in as Todd shows us why this is true.

Hear how to realign your organization's culture for amazing growth! 

We were delighted recently to have another great interview about leadership and organizational development, this time with Kim Bohr. She was terrific. An author, excellent keynote speaker, executive advisor and CEO of The Innovare Group, Kim talked with us about how she works with companies and their leaders to assess, align and accelerate their strategic priorities. Notably, she helps them see that each of their decisions has a profound impact on their talent, company culture, and ultimately, their business’s growth. Want to grow? Listen in as Kim teaches us how!

Learn how to reinvent your reality and embrace change

As we work with our clients during this pandemic, we're noticing a recurring theme. They've figured out how to deal with living at home, working at home and being at home. But now they're beginning to be anxious about what's coming next. It's strange, isn't it, that without a clear vision of the future, it's very hard to live today. In this podcast, I talk about these feelings that so many of us are having, and how this crisis is an excellent time for you to innovate, reinvent your reality, and start doing the things you've been trying to do for a long time. Please listen, learn and share.

Hear how to embrace change so your business can grow

This podcast was a lot of fun. We love to listen to others who try to help organizations operate better and simplify their processes. Sharon Cully came to us from New Zealand where she is the owner and founder of Simply Processes, an organization which helps entrepreneurs find the time they need to grow their business, make more money and create more freedom. With 15+ years of experience working with leading global brands like Coca-Cola, Diageo and GlaxoSmithKline, Sharon has successfully helped companies around the world increase performance and minimize costs, all while meeting customer objectives.

Hear how to use this time of crisis to re-think, re-create and soar 

During the economic disruption tied to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are indeed living in chaotic times. But chaos is also an opportunity to work in new ways, re-creating our companies and ourselves for the future. Tomorrow is going to be very different from yesterday. The challenge for us all, however, is that we are uncomfortable with uncertainty. So stop, pause and give yourself a moment to re-group. Rather than flee the fear, turn this into a time to use new tools to think about how you could do things better, not how you've always done them. Please join us!

Learn how to successfully adapt to working remotely!

In this time of uncertainty, with a global pandemic, what do you need to know from a podcast? Perhaps how to adapt to fast-changing times. We knew that this would be very timely when we recorded our interview with Teresa Douglas about how to work remotely and love it. As she tells us, “The world is now your office! You can work from home, from a coffee shop, or even from the gym — but how do you keep on task and stay motivated when you’re on your own?" Let's learn.

Hear innovative teambuilding strategies to get work done!

Peter and I know each other from our experiences working with a Michigan client and The Simon Initiative for Entrepreneurship at Washington University in St. Louis. Peter is a Professor of Practice of Strategy and Organizations at WashU's Olin Business School, and also the Faculty Director for the Center for Experiential Learning at Olin, a university center that runs for-profit and non-profit student-led strategic consulting engagement, both globally and around the St. Louis region. We were excited to talk on our podcast about data analytics for workers. If we can use data to select the best athletes, what can we learn about workers with the right data? Enjoy.

Learn how to perform at your peak without making yourself sick!  

Marcey Rader changed her life and wants to help you do the same. During her 16 years in business, she always positioned herself as the go-to person to help staff become more efficient and productive. She ran 12 marathons, over 30 triathlons, and several endurance races. Always pushing, pushing, and pushing some more. And then she got sick, really sick. That’s when she learned that her life and her lifestyle were so closely connected that more of the same was not going to make it. So, she changed. Now she works with others, like you, to help you change your life as well. All of us deserve to be happy and enjoy our lives. Listen in and learn how!

Learn how to overcome obstacles, tackle challenges and succeed!

You might wonder why we invited German comedian, travel writer, television producer and soft skill trainer Michael Wigge to speak to our listeners about setting a record for the longest donkey ride in music television history, dressed as Henry VIII. Or about the time he crossed Germany on a Mibo Mastr scooter, covering 2,500 kilometers (1553 miles) in 80 days. Or how he's travelled the world for free, several times, and written two books about it. This is one guy who knows how to overcome challenges, find creative solutions, and persevere. And we can learn to do it too!

Learn how to turn Millennials into engaged, motivated employees!

Want to understand Millennials better? Or at all? Listen to my podcast with Chris Tuff. His new book, “The Millennial Whisperer,” is a practical how-to guide which shows those of us who work with or manage this demographic (between 25 and 39 years old) how to better understand them—the world’s largest generation—so we can turn the negative stereotypes (selfish, spoiled, self-absorbed) into great employees and highly motivated people. Great stuff we all need to know.

Learn actionable, lasting ways to manage change in turbulent times!

At SAMC, we routinely receive requests to lead workshops or provide consulting support for companies that have been struggling with changing their organization, especially in these rapidly-changing times. Is managing change something you're struggling with too? To help you initiate a change process that will stick and that your employees will actually buy into, we've put together three Ask Andi podcasts that take you through the key concepts of this unique approach to business challenges. Here's the first one. Enjoy, learn and share!

Now that you know the basics, it's time to go visually exploring!

Last week, I shared with you my Ask Andi session, "How To Find Your Blue Ocean Strategy® Step 1," in which I explained how Blue Ocean Strategy shows you how to go after nonusers, carve out a new, unoccupied market space and make the competition irrelevant. "OK," you may be saying, "what do I do next? I've done my strategic canvas but where do I go from there?" Now that you've started to see, feel and think in new ways about your business (visual awakening), you're ready to go visually exploring, which is a very exciting part of the Blue Ocean methodology. Here we go!

Ready to find your Blue Ocean Strategy and soar? Listen in! 

Tired of competing against all those "others" that you've been benchmarking yourself against for years, without much benefit? Are you ready to carve out a new market space and make the competition irrelevant? It might be time for you to find your Blue Ocean Strategy, the amazingly successful methodology that helps you see, feel and think in new ways about your business in these rapidly-changing times. In this "Ask Andi" podcast, I'll take you through the initial steps of a Blue Ocean Strategy so you can learn how to apply it to your own business. Listen in and learn!

Allen Adamson explains how to successfully stay ahead of change!

As I finish many of my Vistage CEO workshops, I marvel at how these CEOs run their businesses while also trying to push them forward, find new markets and stay relevant. Often, their clients are moving fast and furiously, leaving vendors or support teams far behind. The times they are a-changin,' as Bob Dylan sang to us a long time ago. And, they are continuing to change. The skills to adapt are often missing among the leadership of companies, men and women who know how to run their operations today but not how to adapt them for tomorrow. This conundrum is why I was so excited to have branding expert Allen Adamson as my guest for this podcast. Enjoy!