Fearless Creative Leadership

This episode marks the three year anniversary of Fearless. When we started this podcast in 2017, none of could have forecast the state of the world three years later. One thing has become obvious - creative and innovative thinking has become even more critical as we start to build a new future. And leaders who can unlock creativity and innovation will be the most valuable and sought after resource for every business.  This episode is our tenth of Season 2 - which we’ve sub-titled, “Leading In The Time Of Virus”. These people are among the world’s best problem solvers.  Rosemarie Ryan is the Co-Founder of CO: Collective. CO describes themselves as a creative and strategic transformation partner for purpose-led businesses. They are some of the best strategic problem solvers and business builders I know.  Rose talked about creating a sense of community within your company, about being willing to confront your company’s biggest problems out loud, and explains why listening is the most important leadership attribute.

This episode is our ninth of Season 2 - which we’ve sub-titled, “Leading In The Time Of Virus”. In these conversations we discover how some of the world’s most innovative and creative leaders are adapting their leadership to our new reality. These people are among the world’s best problem solvers.  Emma Cookson is a partner at You & Mr Jones, which describes itself as the 'world's first Brandtech group' working to disrupt the world of traditional marketing and advertising. Before that, Emma was the chairman of BBH New York. She’s one of the clearest thinkers that I know. Emma talked about the need to focus on the important, not just the urgent, about assigning different groups to look at distinctive time horizons, and about the opportunity to forge more respectful relationships.

This episode is our eighth of Season 2 - which we’ve sub-titled, “Leading In The Time Of Virus”. In these conversations we discover how some of the world’s most innovative and creative leaders are adapting their leadership to our new reality.  These people are among the world’s best problem solvers.  Greg Hahn was, until recently, the Creative Vice Chairman of BBDO Worldwide, and the Chief Creative Officer of BBDO New York.  A few days ago, Greg was let go by BBDO. He is not the first leader to lose their job as a result of the pandemic, and he will not be the last. Within the advertising world, however, this was a significant moment as the industry struggles to redefine itself. Greg talked about the shock of getting fired, about how he unlocks creativity in others and about how he’s looking at the future. 

This episode is our seventh of Season 2 - which we’ve sub-titled, “Leading In The Time Of Virus”. These are shorter, focused conversations in which we discover how some of the world’s most innovative and creative leaders are adapting their leadership to our new reality.  These people are among the world’s best problem solvers.  David Lee is the Chief Creative Officer of Squarespace. David talked about the importance of creating opportunities for spontaneity, about getting away from a meeting culture, and about where ideas come from. 

This episode is our sixth of Season 2, which we’ve sub-titled, “Leading In The Time Of Virus”. These are shorter, focused conversations in which we discover how some of the world’s most innovative and creative leaders are adapting their leadership to our new reality.  These people are among the world’s best problem solvers.  Jonathan Mildenhall is the Founder of TwentyFirstCenturyBrand and the former CMO of Airbnb. Jonathan talked about the enormous difficulties of navigating a young business through these extraordinary times, about how brands need to come together to be relevant in the new society, and about why leaders need to take care of themselves as well as everyone else.

This episode is our fifth of Season 2, which we’ve sub-titled, “Leading In the Time of Virus”. These are shorter, focused conversations in which we discover how some of the world’s most innovative and creative leaders are adapting their leadership to our new reality.  These people are among the world’s best problem solvers.  Susan Credle is the Global Chief Creative Officer of FCB. Susan is not only one of the most creative thinkers that I know, she also has a rare ability to create practices that unlock creativity across diverse clients and multiple offices and cultures. Susan talks about why she sees people taking more chances, about the importance of setting some structure to each day and about why a generous mindset matters more than ever.

This episode is our fourth of Season 2, which we’ve sub-titled, “Leading In the Time of Virus”. These are shorter, focused conversations in which we discover how some of the world’s most innovative and creative leaders are adapting their leadership to our new reality.  These people are among the world’s best problem solvers.  Brad Hiranaga is the Chief Brand Officer for North America of General Mills - one of the most human leaders I know. Brad talks about casting the right personalities as well as the right skills in a virtual office, about the need to take time to connect with people on a personal level and about how companies will evolve if they’re to become part of the new society that is already being formed. 

This episode is our third of Season 2 - shorter, focused conversations in which we discover how some of the world’s most innovative and creative leaders are adapting their leadership to our new reality.  These people are among the world’s best problem solvers.  Nils Leonard is the Co-Founder of Uncommon - and one of the most thoughtful and original leaders I know. Nils describes the role of leaders in moments like this as dealers in hope. We also talked about recognizing the energy that different people bring and tapping into that. About the benefit of giving people time to focus. About what’s going to happen to society’s complacency. And why, to quote Virginia Wolf, “you can’t find peace by avoiding life”.

This episode is our second of Season 2, which we’ve sub-titled, “Leading In the Time of Virus”. These are shorter, focused conversations in which we discover how some of the world’s most innovative and creative leaders are adapting their leadership to our new reality.  These people are among the world’s best problem solvers.  Mindy Grossman is the CEO of WW - formerly Weight Watchers. Mindy is one of the clearest, and most effective leaders I’ve ever met.  We talked about hiring for culture, about practicing offense versus defense in times of crisis and about empowering other people to lead.

With this episode, we’re launching Season 2 - which we’ve sub-titled, “Leading In the Time of Virus”. These are shorter, focused conversations in which we discover how some of the world’s most innovative and creative leaders are adapting their leadership to our new reality.  These people are among the world’s best problem solvers. And that’s exactly what we need right now. Karim Bartoletti is living in Milan at the epicenter of the region hardest hit by the virus so far. Karim is a partner in Indiana Production - a multimedia production company.