

People Strategy Forum
Sam Reeve & Char Miller & Sumit Singla
Every great leader inspires, motivates and rewards their people for performance. Welcome to the People Strategy Forum podcast, a show that guides leaders to elevate the workforce. People are at the heart of successful organizations. Team members’ well-being and career development are essential. This show discusses practical and effective leadership strategies for top executives, senior professionals, and talent managers. Aligning employer and employee objectives is a must. Every team member needs to feel fulfilled and satisfied in order to be fully productive and accountable. This show helps leaders create an engaged workforce that is happily accomplishing daily responsibilities and committed to the organization’s future success. Episodes focus on innovative and integrated talent management tools, including employee recognition, compensation, and development, as well as strategies for building a healthy workplace culture and improving the workforce experience. On a deeper level, the podcast centers around attracting, growing and retaining top talent. It addresses employee motivation, communication, performance, productivity and the genuine human connections that are essential for every successful organization. Each team member brings their own unique strengths, talents, interests, and passions. By touching on these personal areas, leaders create an environment where employees perform at their best. Sam Reeve, Howard Nizewitz, and Sumit Singla host the podcast. Sam has 20-years of diverse compensation experience at leading firms. His time at Barclays, BlackRock, and Automatic Data Processing (ADP) allowed him to see companies evolve from the startup phase to rapidly growing to mature organizations Sumit has over 15 years of talent management practice across different sectors. His expertise in organizational framework, design thinking, performance management, and business storytelling is unparalleled. He is a favorite speaker at talent management conferences and events across the country. With these three forward-thinking, passionate people professionals at the helm of the podcast, talent-centric organizations can find relevant and helpful advice. Special guest co-hosts thought-leaders impart essential tips for making every workplace inspiring and rewarding. Beyond theoretical ideas, these experts share experiences as business leaders that shed light on overcoming challenges and celebrating wins. Even with generous budgets and advanced tools, having the right team in place is crucial to achieving goals and succeeding. By putting effective programs in place, leaders can expect deeper connections that result in healthy working relationships that spell success across the organization. Join Sam Reeve, Howard Nizewitz, and Sumit Singla on the People Strategy Forum podcast and learn the keys to elevating the workforce.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jul 27, 2025 • 41min
Michael Wenderoth - Partners In Progress: Empowering Teams For Promotion And Growth
Getting a promotion at work requires more than just hard work. It demands a strategic understanding of power, politics, and influence. Michael Wenderoth, an executive coach, Stanford MBA, host of the 97% Effective podcast, and author of Get Promoted, challenges the common belief that promotions come solely from merit. He emphasizes the importance of developing relationships, understanding power dynamics, and utilizing politics and influence ethically. Michael shares a three-step roadmap and a snowball strategy. This path helps build credibility, expand your network, and gain momentum without compromising your values. He provides essential insights for individuals seeking career advancement. He also helps leaders cultivate a culture of promotion and retention.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!

Jul 26, 2025 • 48min
Dr. Larry Schooler - Making Conflict Your Friend: Embracing Healthy Workplace Dynamics
Avoiding conflict at all costs may not always be the best course of action to take for your organization. Sometimes, you can use it as your greatest leadership tool. Dr. Larry Schooler of The University of Texas at Austin joins the People Strategy Forum to discuss how healthy conflict can unlock creativity, deepen trust, and reenergize a workplace culture. He explains the right way to manage emotional temperature and the importance of clear communication in dealing with conflict. Dr. Larry also explores the future role of AI tools in conflict management, forever transforming how humans resolve their differences.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!

Jul 25, 2025 • 36min
Frankie Berkoben - Leveraging Your Strengths To Minimize Friction In Your Leadership
Leadership is often riddled with a long list of challenges and problems, and these lead to tons of friction. Frankie Berkoben, executive coach for overwhelmed and ADHD leaders in tech, explores how to turn cognitive chaos into creative brilliance. In this conversation with People Strategy Forum, she explains how understanding your executive functions and taking care of your human operating systems can help you work flawlessly even during your most stressful moments. Frankie also emphasizes why having a neurodivergent mind should be seen not as a leadership setback but as a superpower that unlocks even bigger opportunities.

Jul 8, 2025 • 39min
S. Chris Edmonds - Creating And Sustaining Your Ideal Culture
Workplace culture isn’t just a buzzword—it’s your biggest competitive advantage. In this episode, workplace culture expert S. Chris Edmonds, founder of The Purposeful Culture Group and author of The Culture Engine and Good Comes First, shares a roadmap for how leaders can create respectful, results-driven cultures where people actually want to work. From uncovering toxic behaviors to formalizing values-based behaviors and holding leadership accountable, S. Chris breaks down how to align, refine, and sustain a healthy organizational culture. Whether you're leading a team or transforming a company, this conversation reveals the key actions to build a culture where both people and profits thrive.

Jul 7, 2025 • 31min
Kathy Parry - PowerUp Leadership - Engage, Energize And Retain Your Team
PowerUp Leadership is more than motivation—it’s a framework for energizing your people, your culture, and your impact. Corporate Energy Expert Kathy Parry brings decades of frontline experience to this dynamic conversation about building resilient teams and sustainable momentum. From burnout recovery to trust-building, Kathy shares her signature PowerUp Principles and explores how leaders can create joyful, purpose-driven workplaces where people stay, grow, and thrive—even through rapid change and uncertainty.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!

Jul 4, 2025 • 42min
Dr. Yoram Solomon - The Secrets Of Building Trust In The Workplace
Trust in the workplace isn't just a value—it's a strategy. Dr. Yoram Solomon, renowned researcher, prolific author, and the mind behind The Book of Trust, breaks down how building trust unlocks innovation, fuels creativity, and transforms leadership effectiveness. From managing remote teams to handling constructive feedback and navigating leadership missteps, Yoram offers a radically honest and data-backed approach to cultivating trust. With real stories from the battlefield to the boardroom, he shows why trust is the foundation leaders can't afford to ignore.Love the show? Subscribe, rate, review, and share!

Jul 3, 2025 • 37min
Dan Roberts - Leading Through The AI Storm: Building Resilience In Times Of Disruption
Navigating the complexities of change management in the age of AI demands more than just technical know-how; it requires a deep understanding of the human element. Join us as distinguished leadership expert Dan Roberts, founder of Impactful Performance and the visionary behind the transformative Sea Change method, dives deep into how leaders can master effective transitions. Dan shares invaluable insights on strategically preparing teams for AI integration, championing transparent communication, and nurturing emotional readiness to truly thrive amidst unprecedented disruption. Discover how to transform potential pitfalls into powerful catalysts for organizational growth and individual empowerment.

Jun 27, 2025 • 36min
Piers Fallowfield-Cooper - In The Age Of AI... Are You Still The Future?
Wondering if you are still the future in the age of AI? This conversation challenges founders and executives to stay human, relevant, and true to what great leadership requires: curiosity, courage, and connection. Join us as Sam Reeve welcomes Piers Fallowfield-Cooper, an executive coach and mentor with decades of experience guiding top executives through reinventions, reckonings, and revolutions, and author of Are You Still the Future? Learn how to lead with heart and persevere to stay on the leading edge in our fast-changing world.

Jun 26, 2025 • 34min
Shree Lakshmi - Optimizing Rewards - The Magic Behind The Co-Creation Of Programs
Designing equitable workplace culture starts with rethinking how power, rewards, and mindsets shape human systems. Shree Lakshmi, a researcher, strategist, and designer at Optimistic Design, shares how organizations can transform internal processes by co-creating solutions with the very people impacted by them. With a background spanning global health, education, and government innovation, she reveals how inclusive design and systems thinking uncover the root causes of disengagement and empower leaders to create cultures of true belonging, alignment, and impact.

Jun 20, 2025 • 41min
Marilee Lloyd - The Blueprint Of A Thriving Workplace: Integrating Design With Strategy
Marilee Lloyd, Associate Principal and National Laboratory Planning Leader at HED, has over 35 years of experience in crafting environments that foster scientific breakthroughs. She discusses how integrating design with human needs can elevate performance. Key topics include transforming workspaces for collaboration and creativity, the importance of thoughtful lab design, and the role of AI and robotics in shaping future workplace environments. Marilee also highlights the need for inclusive design to enhance organizational culture and employee engagement.