Brilliant People Podcast

What does it take to transform a team, ignite a movement, and build a future that didn’t exist before? In this episode, Linnea Jungnelius sits down with Dr. Allison Barber – trailblazing leader, former president of the Indiana Fever, and now the force behind Marvella Academy, the first-of-its-kind youth sports and leadership campus built entirely for girls. From reimagining a professional sports franchise to shaping the next generation of leaders, Allison shares lessons from the locker room, the boardroom, the Pentagon, and beyond. Her stories reveal how vision, conviction, and the courage to show up, again and again, can create lasting impact in business, sports, and life.What You’ll Learn:How to reimagine and rebuild a brand from the ground upThe framework used to turn fans into loyal, lifelong advocatesHow to prepare your team for a transformational “lightning strike” moment andsustain itWhy the best leaders show up in the community, not just the corner officeHow investing in girls’ sports creates a talent pipeline for future CEOs and leadersTimecodes:00:00 Intro01:23 Allison Barber: Trailblazing Leader 03:41 Building a Championship Culture05:20 The Electric Caitlin Clark Moment11:02 The Movable Middle: Fan Engagement 19:29 The Power of Optimistic Leaders 28:58 From Teacher to Pentagon Leader35:44 A Day That Changed Everything: 9/11 Reflections37:46 Leadership Under Pressure: Lessons from Crisis40:44 A New Mission: Founding Marvella Academy42:45 Empowering Girls Through Sports: The Vision of Marvella Academy44:59 The Impact of Sports on Leadership and Mental Health50:10 Building the Future: Marvella Academy's Ambitious Plans52:43 The Business of Women's Sports: Opportunities and Challenges01:03:59 Lightning Round: Personal Reflections Resources:Dr. Allison Barber:  Website:  https://www.marvellasports.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-barber-phd-06201a2/ Linnea Jungnelius: LinkedIn:  www.linkedin.com/in/linneajungnelius X:  https://x.com/itslinnea Explore the Podcast: Spotify:  https://acertitu.de/allison-barber-spotify-podcast Apple Podcasts:  https://acertitu.de/allison-barber-apple-podcast Blog:  https://acertitu.de/allison-barber-blog Found Value? 👍Tap Like. And Subscribe: https://acertitu.de/rate-brilliant-people-podcast Stay Updated on Acertitude: LinkedIn:  www.linkedin.com/company/acertitude X:  https://www.x.com/acertitudeInstagram:  https://www.instagram.com/acertitude Website: https://www.acertitude.com

Peter Browning, a boardroom legend with experience on over 14 public company boards, shares his insights on leadership and governance. He discusses the importance of courageous listening and the often-overlooked role of personal resilience in effective leadership. Peter highlights the evolving dynamics of board responsibilities, particularly in CEO succession planning, and the critical need for diversity and trust within boards. He emphasizes that true leadership is forged through real-life challenges, offering inspiration for current and aspiring leaders alike.

For Charlie Turano, legacy isn’t just nostalgia. It’s strategy. As Executive Director at Heritage Werks, Charlie is helping pro sports teams, leagues, and now even universities unlock the untapped power of their history—not just to preserve the past, but to propel the future.Before that, he co-founded Genesco Sports Enterprises, shaping it into one of the industry’s most respected corporate representation firms, advising global brands on how to maximize their presence in sports. But it all started with the Dallas Cowboys, where Charlie got his first taste of the business side of sports, an experience that sparked a career defined by innovation, storytelling, and the pursuit of enduring value.What You'll Learn:– How to turn your team's history into a high-ROI brand asset– How to drive fan engagement and revenue with digitized legacy content– The power of cutting through the noise with story-driven brand campaignsResources: Charlie Turano:  Website: https://www.heritagewerks.com/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlie-turano-7605302/   Linnea Jungnelius: LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/linneajungnelius/ X: www.x.com/itsLinnea Explore the Podcast: Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/4q2SyG7jTqV109lC37RtOV  Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/brilliant-people-podcast/id1582636185 Blog: www.acertitu.de/charlie-turano-blogStay Updated on Acertitude LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/acertitude/  YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCaRywuMZMbDfHR77TyzEQZQ  X: www.x.com/acertitude  Instagram: www.instagram.com/acertitude  Website: www.acertitude.com 

Today, as Go-to-Market Operating Partner at Sixth Street, Paul brings both commercial operator chops and deep empathy to help CEOs, CROs, and deal teams turn strategy into sustainable results.He doesn’t do playbooks. He does pattern recognition. His approach is high-trust, high-discipline, and highly customized. Whether he’s transforming revenue orgs or coaching commercial leaders, Paul shows up like an athlete: focused, gritty, and committed to continuous improvement.

Today, as Managing Director of Technology and Digital at CD&R, Chris helps companies do the hard work behind “digital transformation” with no buzzwords, no shortcuts, and a sharp eye on what the business actually needs.His path has been anything but linear. But the throughline is clear: build great teams, make bold decisions, and lead from deep in the trenches.

Before Jimmy Holloran was leading talent strategy for a $16B private equity powerhouse, his path ran through classrooms, consultancies, portfolio companies, and boardrooms—and, in the very early days, behind the bar at his family’s Irish pub in St. Louis.Today, as Talent Partner at American Industrial Partners (AIP), Jimmy is reshaping what it means to drive value through people. He built the firm’s talent function from the ground up—advancing it from Talent 1.0 (better hiring, structured feedback), to Talent 2.0 (proactive leadership development, early diligence, a repeatable CEO playbook). Now, he’s laying the groundwork for Talent 3.0: a full-cycle leadership engine anchored by the Alpha Lab to grow and promote the next generation of C-suite talent.

As Founder & CEO of WestRiver Group—a thematically driven investment platform that funds and builds companies across the global innovation economy, and Vice Chairman of Topgolf Callaway Brands, Erik has led and scaled some of the most iconic and forward-looking brands in sports, tech,and entertainment. Under his leadership, Topgolf became a globalphenomenon, reimagining how people connect through play. He’s also a recognized visionary at Singularity University, where he helps organizations embrace exponential technologies to tackle complex global challenges.

Ram Charan, world-renowned business advisor, has spent decades inside boardrooms guiding CEOs and leadership teams through transformative decisions. Fortune calls him "the most influential consultant alive," and for good reason - his insights on leadership, strategy, and talent development have shaped the course of global businesses. Joining him in conversation is Kevin O’Neill, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Acertitude, a firm dedicated to unleashing human potential through executive search. Together, they delve into the forces shaping today’s business landscape and what separates great leaders from the rest.

From professional basketball to private equity, Rob Delaney's journey is as diverse as it is impressive. Now Managing Director at Carrick Capital Partners, a growth-oriented investment firm, he is laser-focused on helping entrepreneurs scale their software and tech-enabled services companies, with a keen eye on the payments space.In this dynamic episode of the Brilliant People Podcast, Rob joins host Linnea Jungnelius, Global Head of Marketing & Strategy at Acertitude, to unpack: -Focusing on the critical few factors that move the needle in business-Building unshakable trust with management teams-Carrick's value creation playbook, showcased through DailyPay's meteoric rise-The role of artificial intelligence in private equity and portfolio companies-Maintaining peak performance and keeping your “monster" in check

Mark Fiske, seasoned marketeer and master of digital, is Operating Partner and Head of Digital Transformation at H.I.G. Capital, one of the largest and most influential private equity firms in the middle market, managing $65 billion in capital across a portfolio of over 100 companies. In his role, Mark drives the digital transformation strategy and co-leads the Generative AI practice, partnering with portfolio management to accelerate value creation. Before making his mark in PE, Mark led the marketing teams at fast-growing powerhouse brands like Ancestry and Credit Karma. In our latest episode of the Brilliant People Podcast, Mark joins host Linnea Jungnelius, Global Head of Marketing & Strategy at Acertitude, to explore: -The evolution of the operating partner role and its impact on growth -Proven marketing strategies for driving scale and success -Navigating the shifting landscape of the modern CMO -Harnessing Generative AI as a powerful tool for value creation