Thriving Leaders Podcast

I’m thrilled to share the latest episode of the Thriving Leaders Podcast, featuring an insightful conversation with Claire de Carteret, Managing Director of Gallup APAC. If you’ve ever wondered what truly drives high performance in teams, this episode is a must-listen. Gallup is renowned for its global research on engagement, wellbeing, and leadership. Claire brings the data to life with real-world strategies that leaders can apply immediately. We talk about the 12 conditions required for high performance, how to shift away from outdated hierarchies, and why "having a best friend at work" is more than just a feel-good phrase. In this episode, we cover: – The evidence behind Gallup's definition of engagement and how it's linked to high performance –The enduring power of the Q12 elements—and what makes them still relevant today – Why most engagement strategies fail (and what to do instead) – The four key needs of followers and how great leaders meet them – How to create meaningful conversations that drive trust, stability, and hope One of my favourite takeaways? Claire’s simple but powerful strategy: One meaningful conversation a week. That alone can shift the dynamic of your team. If you're committed to building a thriving team culture, this episode will give you fresh ideas and evidence-based frameworks to do just that. I’d love to hear what resonates with you. Where to get the book, Thriving Leaders: Learn the Skills to Lead Confidently: Physical:  ⁠Purchase here⁠ International:  ⁠Amazon⁠  ⁠Booktopia⁠  ⁠Barnes & Noble⁠ Audio:  ⁠Audible⁠  ⁠Spotify⁠ For all other resources:  – ⁠Learn more about our leadership programs⁠  – ⁠Join our fortnightly newsletter⁠  – Want to connect directly with Claire? ⁠claire.gray@thrivingculture.com.au⁠  – Follow on ⁠LinkedIn⁠  – Visit: ⁠www.thrivingculture.com.au⁠ 

In this Thriving Leaders Podcast I meet with Dermot Crowley—productivity expert, bestselling author, and founder of Adapt Productivity. Dermot’s practical and people-focused approach to productivity has reshaped how thousands of professionals manage their time and teams. In this episode, we dive into the critical habits and systems that allow leaders and teams to perform at their best—without burning out. We explore what causes teams to get bogged down in busy work and how they can reclaim their time and energy through smarter collaboration, clear communication, and prioritisation that actually works. This conversation is full of actionable strategies to help leaders go beyond individual productivity and build team cultures that thrive on clarity, consistency, and effectiveness. In this episode, we cover:  – The two types of productivity erosion and how to prevent them  – Why individual systems matter just as much as team tools  – How to make work visible and reduce friction in collaboration  – The three productivity cultures that shape every team's success  – Simple shifts to streamline meetings, emails, and communication One of my favourite takeaways? “Make work visible.” Whether it’s through Asana, Planner, or another tool, clear visibility helps teams align, prioritise, and collaborate without chaos. Whether you're a seasoned leader or new to leading teams, you’ll find actionable gems that can transform the way your team works—starting tomorrow. Where to get the book, Thriving Leaders: Learn the Skills to Lead Confidently: Physical:  Purchase here International:  Amazon  Booktopia  Barnes & Noble Audio:  Audible  Spotify For all other resources:  – Learn more about our leadership programs  – Join our fortnightly newsletter  – Want to connect directly with Claire? claire.gray@thrivingculture.com.au  – Follow on LinkedIn  – Visit: www.thrivingculture.com.au 

Amy Edmondson, a Novartis Harvard Professor and top management thinker, shares her groundbreaking insights on building thriving teams. She explains the crucial distinction between trust and psychological safety and how to foster both. The conversation delves into redefining accountability as a privilege, encouraging open dialogue, and the power of intelligent failure. Edmondson emphasizes that psychological safety shouldn't just be the goal but the environment enabling teams to excel. This discussion is packed with practical strategies leaders can instantly implement.

This is our last episode of Season 1 of the Thriving Leaders podcast. Change is normal, but it can be uncomfortable. We are constantly evolving, improving and adapting the way we do things. Thriving leaders need to lead and communicate change effectively. This creates certainty even when we live in an ambiguous world. To assist you in communicating and leading change, we cover:Understanding change at a deeper level, including the 4 stages of changeThe mindset transition when facing changeVUCA environmentsWhy we need to see the value in change to commit to itWhat to focus on when communicating change effectively That brings season one - Thriving Leaders: Learn the Skills to Lead Confidently – to an end.  Thank you for tuning in, for taking notes, for sharing this podcast with your friends and colleagues, and, most importantly, for applying the teachings of this book so you can become a thriving leader and start leading confidently now.Stay tuned for Season 2!  Where to get the book, Thriving Leaders: Learn the Skills to Lead Confidently: Physical: Purchase here International: Amazon, Booktopia, Barnes & Noble Audio: Audible & Spotify For all other resources: Learn more about our leadership development programs Join our fortnightly newsletter Want to connect directly with Claire? claire.gray@thrivingculture.com.au Follow along on Linkedin Check out our website 

Following on from our previous 2 episodes on Communication (ep. 16 Communication and ep. 17 Communicating with Purpose), we continue the conversation by diving into structuring your communication so its most effectively received.  In this episode, we explore:  Why repetition is so important  Be compelling and engaging; how to maintain their attention  Clearing outlining what you’ll be communicating  Key messaging and the rule of three  The mini conclusions and the strong close  Once you master the art of structuring your communication, then it’s time to communicate change to your team.  In our next episode, we cover Communicating and Leading Change. Be sure to tune in.  Where to get the book, Thriving Leaders: Learn the Skills to Lead Confidently:  Physical: Purchase here International: Amazon, Booktopia, Barnes & Noble  Audio: Audible & Spotify  For all other resources:  Learn more about our leadership development programs  Join our fortnightly newsletter  Want to connect directly with Claire? claire.gray@thrivingculture.com.au  Follow along on Linkedin  Check out our website 

When we connect people to purpose, we inspire them. Purpose is a key driver of employee engagement.    This isn’t a new topic: humans have been searching for meaning and purpose in their personal lives and their careers for some time—seeing as we spend so much time working.    So, in this episode, we’re diving into:     Starting with Why    The Golden Circle Model    The art of storytelling    Will Brook shares  Brookfarm’s "Why". He also shares how they communicate that to their team, how they connect their team to their purpose and how that then translates to the market.   In our next episode, we go deeper into communication with a structure for communication. Subscribe now so you don’t miss it.  

Everyone needs to be effective at communication—thriving leaders even more so. It is the most universal skill. Effective communication is how thriving leaders engage and inspire their people to follow them.    In the next 4 episodes, we will be breaking down effective communication.    In this episode, we cover:  What is communication  Identifying the barriers to effective communication  The impact of not having effective communication  How to communicate effectively  Understanding your audience  And we hear from Will Brook, CEO of Brookfarm, on how he effectively communicates with his team and connects them to purpose.    In our next episode, we take communication another step further by connecting it to purpose. Stay tuned. 

As a thriving leader, you need to make decisions that balance the best interests of your team and the organisation. But by instilling a culture where your team members feel equipped to make their own decisions, reduces the need for everything to be ran by you, which is a time-consuming and disempowering process.     In this episode, we cover:  How to avoid decision-fatigue and make effective decisions – even if you tend to be indecisive.  Empowering your team to make their own decisions, by building trust and self-accountability.  How to create a culture of accountability within your team.  Building the systems that support an accountability culture.     To further support communicating with your team, in our next episode we unpack effective Communication – so stay tuned. 

An operating rhythm creates a repeatable cadence, so team members know what to expect week in, week out. It creates certainty and removes ambiguity, which leads to higher performance.  Structure and expectations are important for your team—especially in times of change.     That’s why in this episode, we cover:  The importance of having a transparent and agreed upon operating rhythm.  How to run effective meetings, including team and 1:1s  Transparency, roles and responsibilities and visible work, allowing for the removal and ambiguity and creating a high-performance culture.   We hear from Jimmy Stewart (JVAT) on how they created JVAT Day, their operating rhythm method, which consistently creates structure and focus so they can operate at their best.  We hear from Sandy Morrow (Koala) on how accountability and ownership bought comfort to their team, which ultimately lead to them feeling more valued and engaged.  It might take a couple of iterations to find the operating rhythm that works for your team or organisation, however, don’t let that put you off implementing one.  We work with many clients to design and roll out the right operating rhythm for their business. 

A strategy articulates what makes your organisation unique and different and provides value. It informs what areas to invest your time and money in, the organisation’s structure, resource requirements and how you respond to market and stakeholder needs.    Operationalising strategy is where the rubber hits the road.    In this episode, we take you through exactly how to do that:  The strategic pyramid: how you can build your own organisation strategy.  How to operationalise your strategy to ensure its successfully implemented.  Effective goal setting using Objectives and Key Results (OKRs).  Breakdown of how effective OKRs work.  We hear from Sandy Morrow (Koala) again on how implementing OKRs early on, led to role clarity, accountability and increased productivity.  We also hear from Jimmy Stewart (JVAT) on how they rolled OKRs out at an organisational level, and maintained their flat structure in the process.