AlchemistX: Innovators Inside The Big Bet Playbook for the Hyper‑Digital Era with John Rossman
In this episode of the AlchemistX Innovators Inside Podcast, Ian Bergman sits down with John Rossman, Keynote Speaker & Advisor—former Amazon leader and author of Big Bet Leadership—to break down the operating system senior executives need to win transformational bets. From T‑Mobile’s Un‑carrier playbook to Amazon’s working‑backwards method, John explains why most corporate transformations stall—and how to build the second playbook that actually ships change.
They dig into the three habits of “big bet” leaders—create clarity, maintain velocity, and accelerate risk & value—plus practical tools like narrative docs, DRIs/single‑threaded leadership, and the “Continue, Kill, Pivot (or Confusion)” decision cadence. John also shares why cost‑model innovation must pair with customer value, what it means to be an “active skeptic,” and the first step any leader should take tomorrow morning.
You’ll learn:
Why the hyper‑digital era demands a different leadership OS
How to frame a Big Bet Vector: name the problem and the future state
The three habits: create clarity, maintain velocity, accelerate risk & value
How to use writing & debate (not slides) to kill groupthink and analysis paralysis
The role of a senior DRI/single‑threaded leader in de‑risking innovation
A clean governance loop: Continue, Kill, or Pivot—avoid “confusion”
Why cost‑model innovation + 10x customer value drives real adoption
A simple starting move: write 3–5 hard problems in one paragraph each
For John’s book and frameworks visit https://www.alchemistaccelerator.com/podcasts.