

The Strategy Skills Podcast: Strategy | Leadership | Critical Thinking | Problem-Solving
FirmsConsulting.com & StrategyTraining.com
CEOs and business leaders, management consulting senior partners, ground-breaking professors, thought-provoking writers and journalists, record-setting athletes and coaches, and award-winning actors and celebrities discuss the key issues facing the business world and broader society.
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Get free access to our newsletter, Monday Morning at 8 am, along with sample episodes from our training programs on www.strategytraining.com. Go to https://www.firmsconsulting.com/promo.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Sep 27, 2023 • 24min
384: Great Management Consultants are Artists (Strategy Skills classics)
Outstanding management consultants have the skills of analysis, problem-solving, and communication, but what sets them apart is their artistic mindset. This podcast explores the approach used in well-managed strategy studies and emphasizes the importance of aligning choices with passion and purpose. It also discusses a new approach to problem-solving that considers emotions and the importance of commitment, working in isolation, and providing unique value to clients.

7 snips
Sep 25, 2023 • 14min
383: How to handle a "horrible" client (Strategy Skills classics)
Learn how to handle difficult clients with respect and professionalism. Explore the impact of the Broken Windows theory on client relationships. Maintain a positive mindset and avoid judgment for success in the consulting industry. Discover strategies for navigating difficult client relationships and building trust.

Sep 20, 2023 • 13min
382: How and when a consultant must disagree (Strategy Skills classics)
This podcast explores the challenges consultants face when expressing differing viewpoints, using a power sector study as an example. It emphasizes the importance of offering valuable solutions to clients while minimizing disagreements. Strategies for managing disagreements within a consulting team are discussed, along with the significance of clear communication and prioritizing helping the client.

Sep 18, 2023 • 57min
381: How to get to $500k per month in 4 years (with Samuel Moses)
Samuel Moses, Founder and CEO of Sockrates Custom Socks, shares valuable insights on starting and growing a business. He discusses finding the right manufacturer and supplier, managing SEO for an online business, acquiring customers, and building relationships with employees. If you're an entrepreneur or thinking of starting your own business, this episode is a must-listen.

Sep 13, 2023 • 1h 3min
380: Private Equity Firm CEO on Power, Success and Getting Results (with Rick Walker)
Welcome to Strategy Skills episode 380, an interview with an experienced founder, leader, and thinker across a variety of domains, Rick Walker. In this episode, Rick walks us through his leadership journey, how he built his first company in his 20's, the lessons he learned across multiple domains, and how he was able to do multiple things successfully, simultaneously. He also shared his views about fear, pride, faith, religion, and ethics in relation to leadership and business. Rick Walker scaled his first company to 400 employees when he was 26, and simultaneously, as Chairman, scaled a 53-country international nonprofit from 800 to 2,100 team members, simultaneously while helping his hometown of Houston attract over $5 Billion in job-creation investments. Rick's volunteer service also includes stints as a Director of a college in the middle east and Chairman of a $250 Million charitable foundation. His 3:30 AM wake-up call helps fit everything in. Rick hosts a podcast to help multi-domain leaders learn well - and has interviewed friends, who also happen to be world-class leaders, such as billionaires, musicians, members of the President's Cabinet, US Senate, US Congress, and great thinkers. The podcast is hosted inside a 13,000-square-foot mansion, which was the former party mansion of a Fortune 500 CEO, which Rick restored and uses for his family office, charitable events, and podcasts. Rick lives in Houston with his wife and 3 girls, where he spends much of his time serving alongside the best team members in his commercial real estate private equity firm. Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

26 snips
Sep 11, 2023 • 49min
379: Ex Microsoft AI Strategy Expert on Strategy and Vision in the era of Artificial Intelligence (with Brian Evergreen)
Brian Evergreen, author of 'Autonomous Transformation: Creating a More Human Future in the Era of Artificial Intelligence', discusses the importance of human skills, problem solving vs. future solving, and the value of vacations and supportive spouses. He also recommends valuable sources and books for AI knowledge and shares his realizations and future goals.

Sep 6, 2023 • 36min
378: Director of the Advanced Management and Leadership Programme at the University of Oxford's Saïd Business School, Dr. Andrew White — The New Archetype of Business Leadership
Dr. Andrew White, Director of the Advanced Management and Leadership Programme at the University of Oxford's Saïd Business School, explores the challenges and changes in leadership. He discusses the negative tone in leadership discussions, the importance of active listening, understanding culture and motivations, and the need for a shift in media focus on organizational innovation and leadership.

Sep 4, 2023 • 38min
377: The Fourth-Generation CEO of Premier Dental, Julie Charlestein — How to Create a Healthy Succession Plan
Julie Charlestein, the fourth-generation CEO of Premier Dental, shares her leadership adventure in her book and offers actionable strategies for those leading their own family businesses. She discusses growing up in a family business, the challenges faced by family businesses, celebrating unique culture, and dealing with resistance to change.

Aug 30, 2023 • 46min
376: The Global Customer Growth and Innovation Evangelist at Salesforce, Tiffani Bova — The Experience Mindset: Changing the Way You Think About Growth
Welcome to Strategy Skills episode 376, an interview with the author of The Experience Mindset: Changing the Way You Think About Growth, Tiffani Bova. This book details exactly how your company can adopt an Experience Mindset, at scale. It's not enough to know that happy employees equals happy customers. You must have an intentional, balanced approach to company strategy that involves all stakeholders – IT, Marketing, Sales, Operations, and HR – with KPIs and ownership over outcomes. Tiffani Bova is the global customer growth and innovation evangelist at Salesforce, and the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Growth IQ. Over the past two decades, she has led large revenue-producing divisions at businesses ranging from start-ups to the Fortune 500. As a Research Fellow at Gartner, her cutting-edge insights helped Microsoft, Cisco, Salesforce, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Oracle, SAP, AT&T, Dell, Amazon-AWS, and other prominent companies expand their market share and grow their revenues. She has been named one of the Top 50 business thinkers in the world by Thinkers50 twice. She is also the host of the podcast What's Next! with Tiffani Bova. Get Tiffani's book here: https://rb.gy/bcal2 The Experience Mindset: Changing the Way You Think About Growth Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

Aug 28, 2023 • 54min
375: The first Chief Digital Officer in the history of the Fortune 500, Atif Rafiq — Decision Sprint: The New Way to Innovate into the Unknown and Move from Strategy to Action
Atif Rafiq, the first Chief Digital Officer in the history of the Fortune 500, shares breakthrough methods to drive innovation, creativity, and growth. He discusses his experience transitioning to McDonald's, implementing changes in service models, and navigating established organizations. The podcast explores the Decision Sprint method, crafting clear problem statements, building a following on LinkedIn, and ways to learn more about 'Decision Sprint'.


