“ These obelisks are the world's first globally distributed product. Layers and layers of history - these obelisks moved around and stand in modern societies — that's a story to tell.” Mark Ciccone is a P&G Alum and author of the new book “OBELISK ODYSSEY: 26 Ancient Monoliths, 4 Continents, and 1 Monumental Search for Meaning.” With a presence on four continents, the 26 surviving granite monuments are history's most mysterious objects. and meaningful man made objects, each with its own voice and message for the world. Mark set out to see each one, embarking on a six month, 25, 000 mile odyssey from his town of Boston to Egypt, England, Italy, Israel, Turkey, Lebanon, and beyond, to discover what these ancient voices have to say about religion, technology, tribalism, and conflicts of all kinds. You can purchase OBELISK ODYSSEY here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCKP9PNL After 32 years with P&G, Mark became a consultant, first with the Monitor Group in Cambridge, Massachusetts, then as President of Retail Net Group, a boutique consulting firm specializing in retail innovation. Mark also is an instructor at Duquesne University’s semester abroad program in Rome where he has taught several undergraduate business classes. In semi retirement, Mark found meaning lying in the stone quarries of North Africa, the Egyptian obelisk. In this conversation amongst longtime Alum friends, you’ll hear about Mark + Qaisar’s many adventures, conversations, and reflections across the world. Hosting this conversation is longtime friend of the pod Qaisar Shareef, a fellow P&G alum and author, who’s led many parts of the organization from Pakistan to Ukraine to the US. This is a feature of an Alumni Leader’s published thought leadership. Got an idea for a future “Learnings from Leaders” episode - reach out at pgalumpod@gmail.com

“There is no bigger weight than the weight of trust. One of my leadership mantras became: You never need to earn my trust. You can only lose it.” Ravi Chaturvedi is an experienced leader with a proven track record of success across seven countries, both developed and developing. Ravi became P&G’s first ever Asian President and member of the Global Leadership Council, after a 2 decade long career with the company. Ravi was also Group Chief Executive of Jet Airways for a short tenure.Ravi has also served as a consultant and advisor to the Nitto Denko Corporation in Japan. For the CEO Council of Lighthouse Funds, Ravi advised portfolio CEOs of companies across industries. He’s also served as advisor to Marico and to Emami, Indian consumer goods companies that are expanding internationally.Ravi is a Senior Fellow in the Management Department of the Wharton School of Business, and has been a Lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania. Ravi received his BA from the University of Delhi, and Master of Management Studies from the Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, Master of Management Studies. You’ll enjoy this candid conversation between old colleagues - and hear the wisdom that has impacted many leaders from Ravi’s storied career. This is part of our Asian leaders series - hosted by P&G Alumni Emily Chang. Got an idea for a future “Learnings from Leaders” episode? Reach out at pgalumpod@gmail.com

“What does balance look like? It doesn't mean 50/50 all the time or 100% and zero. Balance is something that happens over time, it's a flow. It's not just an everyday balance - it's more like an ongoing balance.” Mary Carmen Gasco-Buisson is Pandora Jewelery’s CMO & SVP of Global Business Units, and a member of the company’s Executive Leadership Team. Mary Carmen’s 25+ years of experience across multiple industries - and cultures - have given her a unique perspective on navigating the elusive-for-many idea of “work /life” balance and creating structures that enable longer-term flow. She has more than 20 years of experience building and expanding consumer brands in categories such as fragrances, beauty, personal care, and women’s health. Mary Carmen previously served as Unilever’s Global Vice President working on mens personal care brands like Axe & Lynx. She spent 22+ years at P&G, getting her start as a product development engineer, and rising thru roles in brand and general management - from Haircare, Cosmetics, Skincare, Prestige Fragrances, Consumer Health, and P&G Ventures. Mary Carmen has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Cornell University and an MBA from Xavier University. You’ll enjoy this candid conversation on the importance of advocacy in one’s career, and clarity on priorities and the development of frameworks to create the life you want  This conversation is hosted by Ida Abdalkhani, Change Catalyzer — an award-winning entrepreneur, speaker, and P&G Alumni Board Member.

“ Money and time are eerily linked. There's free time, leisure time, time off, flex time, and down time. When we manage ourselves well, we have more freedom and better lives.” Bob Gilbreath is longtime friend of the Pod, and fellow P&G Alum - who's also a repeat startup founder with two exits. His latest post “Mind on your Money, Time and Freedom” is a continuation of last week’s post on time/mind management. For us, we need to remember that money and time are often linked. We spend time, save time, invest time, and buy time. Freedom is entwined with time, too. There’s free time, leisure time, time off, flex time, and downtime. Bob shares ways to improve your life by making better daily decisions about time, money, and freedom. From the basic, tactical choices — to laddering up to big-picture strategy with a personal story from his childhood that still drives him today. Bob now serves as Co-Founder and CEO of Hearty, a people-tech company, as well as a few other interesting ventures. While at P&G, Bob worked on brands like Tide and Mr. Clean - and Mr. Clean Auto Dry, and even Fit fruit and vegetable wash. Bob authored books and shares real-life stories of his business ups-and-downs in his weekly newsletter “the Workaround” - which you can subscribe to @ beheartly.substack.com This is a feature of an Alumni Leader’s frequently published thought leadership. Got an idea for a future “Learnings from Leaders” episode - reach out at pgalumpod@gmail.com

Bob Gilbreath, a seasoned startup founder and co-founder of Hearty, discusses the complexities of time and mind management. He reveals that while we have more free time, decision-making overload can lead to continuous busyness. Bob introduces concepts like To-Don't Lists and strategic meeting structures to regain control of our time. He emphasizes that better managing our minds is crucial for managing time effectively, ultimately leading to more meaningful moments in our daily lives.

"In your 20s learn how businesses work, how humans work. In your 30s implement your knowledge and make money. And in your 40s start giving back to younger people and society.”  Shaun Rein is the Founder and Managing Director of the China Market Research Group (CMR), the world's leading strategic market intelligence firm focused on China. Shaun is internationally popular economics speaker who works with boards, billionaires, heads of states, CEOs and senior executives of Fortune 500 & leading Chinese companies, private equity firms, SMEs and long/ hedge funds to develop their China growth, political and investment strategies. Shaun is the author of international best-sellers "The War for China's Wallet: Profiting from the New World Order," "The End of Cheap China"​ & "The End of Copycat China"​ — and has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, the New York Times, Forbes, Bloomberg Businessweek, CBS, CNN, BBC, CNBC, PBS, CNBC, NPR / APM Marketplace, and MSNBC. Born in New Hampshire, Shaun earned his BA from McGill University and his MA from Harvard. He’s previously taught executive education classes for London Business School and has served on the Board of Trustees for St. Paul's School. Shaun lives in Shanghai, China. This is part of our Chinese leaders series - hosted by P&G Alumni Emily Chang. Got an idea for a future “Learnings from Leaders” episode? Reach out at pgalumpod@gmail.com

”Being a writer is just bloody hard work and passion. It is a kind of madness, which compels you every day to go to say, ‘OK, let's do it again today’ “ Manreet Sodhi Someshwar is the author of nine novels - including the Long Walk Home, Radiance of a Thousand Suns, and most recently the Partition Trilogy - a historical fiction novel series about one of the great human tragedies of the 20th century. Manreet’s articles and essays have appeared in the NY Times, the International Herald Tribune, and the South China Morning Post, among others. Manreeet has taught for the New York Public Library and the City College of New York - and she’s a former corporate citizen having done stints in Asia, and a parent grappling with the world our kids will inherit. Manreet’s recently complete Partition Trilogy - a series of 3 books titled Lahore, Hyderabad, and Kashmir - are a historical fiction set during, before, and immediately after the Partition - and independence of - India and Pakistan of 1947. Partition is among the the great humanitarian disasters of the 20th century - and the largest mass migration in history. The history of Partition impacts and informs much of what is happening today, in both Asia, and the United States - from the tensions between India and Pakistan, and the rise of nationalism / extremism in our politics around the world. Manreet’s unique voice focuses not just on the personal musings of these larger than life historical figures - like India’s founding fathers Gandhi & Nehru, but she also breathes life into characters who represent the stats and figures that we sometimes gloss over when we hear of a tragedy (including the role - and subversion of women by history). This is a powerful conversation about the weaponization of history, and how storytelling - and fact-checking - have to work hand in hand to inform the next generation. This is a past conversation from Raman’s other podcast, Modern Minorities, where each week we share minority conversations for all of our majority years. You’ll enjoy this candid conversation that we hope will provide new perspectives and learnings.

“Delegation is making sure you’ve framed the work to expand the impact of you and your team, in a way that has healthy boundaries and the individual can build their skills.” Dawn Garibaldi Is an executive coach who partners with leaders to amplify their impact by mastering complexity, extending their influence, building unstoppable teams and breaking through barriers. Her clients create distinctive, enduring and outstanding transformations in business and organizational performance. Prior to becoming a coach, Dawn spent over 30 years at Procter & Gamble with responsibility for businesses up to $12 billion in revenue and managing organizations of up to 3,000 people. Her experience includes startup, expansion and restructuring international markets in Asia, North America, Latin America, Eastern and Western Europe. Dawn has guided 100’s of individuals, teams and organizations to achieve greater success through the confidence to push the boundaries of what is possible and deliver the extraordinary. Dawn is a Co-Active Coach with Certifications from the Coaches Training Institute and the International Coaching Federation. She holds a BS degree from the University of Rochester, is a member of Faculty at the UC San Diego Rady School of Management and speaks four languages. Dawn lives near Denver, CO with her family and enjoys snow skiing, traveling and reading cook books. This is part of our P&G Alumni Coaching series diving deep on relevant career coaching topics. Just as professional athletes have a coach to help them perform at their best, coaching can help you thrive in career and life, through powerful questioning, exploration, and action planning. P&G Alums can learn more and sign up for their first free first session @ coaching.pgalums.com

Alex Keith, CEO of P&G's global Beauty business, shares her insights on bold decision-making and the power of human connections. She highlights her significant turnaround of the beauty sector since 2017 and her commitment to corporate sustainability and LGBTQ+ inclusion. With a strong military upbringing and a background in chemical engineering, Alex emphasizes the value of adaptability and mentorship in career growth. Plus, she shares her love for Italian cooking and ambitions to travel to Newfoundland, along with reflections on impactful historical figures.

"Ignore arrogance and make convenience meet relevance. Consider these elements to know what is convenient and relevant for the customer.”  Bernd Pichler is Aston Martin’s Managing Director, Greater China. Bernd was previously Managing Director for Bentley Motors in the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macau, where he oversaw all local operations and sales in the company’s second-largest region. Having lived and worked in Asia since 2005, Bernd has more than two decades of leadership experience and a track record of driving commercial growth in China for major automotive brands, including within the luxury segment. This is part of our Chinese leaders series - hosted by P&G Alumni Emily Chang. Got an idea for a future “Learnings from Leaders” episode? Reach out at pgalumpod@gmail.com