In this episode of the Inspire Greatness Podcast, I had the opportunity to chat with Mark S. Babbitt and S. Chris Edmonds, the inspiring authors of the best-selling book Good Comes First: How Today’s Leaders Create an Uncompromising Company Culture That Doesn’t Suck.

Mark, an author and speaker, is President of WorqIQ and CEO/Founder of YouTern. His work has appeared in Entrepreneur, Inc., and Forbes, and he was named one of Inc. Magazine’s Top 100 Leadership Speakers.

Chris, founder of the Purposeful Culture Group, is an author and top 30 organizational culture expert. He’s an Inc. Magazine Top Leadership Speaker and has presented at South by Southwest, with insights featured in The Wall Street Journal, CNN, and Fast Company

During our conversation, Mark and Chris discussed their three proven methods for inspiring greatness in team members:

1. Understanding that company culture comes from the top and can’t be delegated

2. Transitioning to a culture that equally values respect and results

3. Holding leaders and team members accountable for embodying company culture

Tune in to be inspired by their wisdom and passion!

In this episode of the Inspire Greatness Podcast, I had the opportunity to chat with Kelly Roddy, CEO of WOWorks.

As the president of Schlotzsky’s from 2012 – 2019, Kelly’s transformative leadership in the restaurant industry repositioned Schlotzsky’s from a sandwich deli chain to a high-quality eatery, doubling its sales.

In 2019, he took over Saladworks and successfully navigated it through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In 2020, he formed WOWorks, which now includes six thriving brands: Saladworks, Garbanzo Mediterranean Fresh, Frutta Bowls, The Simple Greek, Barberitos, and Z!Eats (formerly Zoup!). 

WOWorks is dedicated to offering healthy, flavorful meals with exceptional hospitality. The company has experienced significant growth, opening new locations throughout the U.S. and Canada. By expanding into non-traditional locations such as grocery stores, college campuses, and military bases, WOWorks demonstrates an innovative approach to increasing convenience and accessibility in the fast-casual sector.

During our conversation, Kelly discussed his three proven methods for inspiring greatness in team members:

1. Effective communication
2. Empowerment and trust
3. Continuous learning and development

Tune in to be inspired by Kelly’s wisdom and passion!

In this episode of the Inspire Greatness Podcast, I had the opportunity to chat with Robyn Bolton, author and founder of MileZero.

Robyn previously worked at Innosight, the consulting firm founded by Harvard professor Clayton Christensen, BCG, and Procter & Gamble, where she helped develop and launch the Swiffer. She is the founder and Chief Navigator at MileZero, a consultancy that helps leaders use innovation to confidently and repeatedly grow business revenue.

Robyn is the author of the forthcoming book Unlocking Innovation: A Leader’s Guide for Turning Bold Ideas Into Tangible Results. Her articles and perspectives have been featured in Fast Company, Harvard Business Review Online, The New York Times, and NPR’s Marketplace. 

During our conversation, Robyn discussed three proven methods for inspiring greatness in team members:

1. Doing the opposite of your instincts
2. Being honest about what you are and aren’t willing to do
3. Walking the talk

Tune in to be inspired by Robyn’s wisdom and passion!

In this episode of the Inspire Greatness Podcast, I had the pleasure of chatting with Debra Corey, an accomplished author and respected HR leader.

Debra has been recognized as one of the top 101 global employee engagement influencers. Throughout her career, she has worked for prominent companies such as Gap Inc., Quintiles, Merlin Entertainments, and Reward Gateway. During her tenure, she developed and implemented HR strategies in an unconventional manner, constantly pushing boundaries and challenging the status quo to drive genuine employee engagement.

Following her extensive corporate experience, Debra took on the role of Chief Pay It Forward Officer at DebCo HR. In this capacity, she motivates and collaborates with others to unleash their inner rebel and catalyze cultural and business change through employee engagement and management development.

Additionally, Debra is the author of Bad Bosses Ruin Lives: The Building Blocks for Being a Great Boss, a practical guide designed for aspiring great bosses. The book outlines common bad-boss tendencies and offers actionable solutions through the Great Boss Building Block™ model.

During our conversation, Debra discussed three proven methods for inspiring greatness in team members:

1. Awareness – Becoming aware of the blind spots and traps we fall into that unintentionally cause us to take on bad boss traits.

2. Acceptance – Looking in the mirror and accepting our own individual bad boss traits so that we can take ownership of them.

3. Action – Taking the right actions and leveraging the right knowledge, skills, and tools to become great and overcome our bad boss traits. 

Tune in to be inspired by Debra’s wisdom and passion!

In this episode of the Inspire Greatness Podcast, I had the opportunity to chat with Val Ries, author and founder of Executive Muse. 

Val is a former nurse and director of sales and training, with over 12 years as an executive coach working with leaders from companies like Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft. She also has 10 years of experience teaching and creating curricula on various leadership topics.

Val is the founder of Executive Muse, an executive coaching and management training company. Through Executive Muse, she coaches and trains high-impact leaders at startups, Fortune 500 companies, and small businesses. Her goal is to help them build powerful micro-cultures, increase productivity, decrease attrition, and improve employee engagement.

Val is also the author of the best-selling book Chief Inspiration Officer: How to Lead the Team Everyone Wants to Be On.

During our conversation, Val discussed their three proven methods for inspiring greatness in team members:

1. Inspiring yourself first
2. Knowing what your team CRAVEs

• Connection/collaboration
• Reliability
• Appreciation
• Value – making impact
• Effective communication

3. Gaining clarity on your real ideal

Tune in to be inspired by Val’s wisdom and passion!

In this episode of the Inspire Greatness Podcast, I had the chance to have a conversation with Claudius Hildebrand. He is a consultant at Spencer Stuart, focusing on CEO performance and leadership advisory services. 

Having analyzed the performance of over 10,000 CEOs and conducted interviews with 100 CEOs and directors, Claudius has been able to identify key success factors. He provides guidance to CEOs, CHROs, and boards on how to improve performance and unleash potential.

Claudius is recognized as an award-winning author and contributes regularly to the Harvard Business Review. His work is often referenced in leading publications such as the Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Forbes, and the Financial Times. 

He is also the author of The Life Cycle of a CEO: The Myths and Truths of How Leaders Succeed, which he co-authored with Robert J. Stark. The book explores the anticipated challenges and successes that CEOs encounter throughout their leadership journey.

The book combines unprecedented research and 100 in-depth interviews to reveal how successful CEOs navigate these cycles by developing fresh skills and strategies. It provides insights into personal growth, navigating crises, and unlocking higher individual and corporate performance.

During our conversation, Claudius discussed three proven methods for inspiring greatness in team members:

1. Planting flags and building roads
2. Giving up control to be in control
3. Playing to win or avoiding to lose

Tune in to be inspired by Claudius’s wisdom and passion!

In this episode of the Inspire Greatness Podcast, I had the pleasure of interviewing Jen Thornton, the founder and CEO of 304 Coaching. This renowned business consulting company is dedicated to helping organizations amplify their positive impact through progressive leadership.

Jen is particularly passionate about the adult development model and its profound influence on leadership. She specializes in guiding leaders through the critical transition from a reactive stage to a creative stage. Interestingly, only 30% of adults successfully progress beyond the reactive stage, making this transition essential for leaders who aspire to inspire their teams.

Jen emphasizes the importance of self-authorship in driving personal and team performance, as well as organizational success. During our conversation, she shared her three proven methods for inspiring greatness in team members: 

1. Understanding how social change propels leadership evolution
2. Developing the ability to self-author
3. Transitioning from a reactive to a creative leadership mindset.

In this episode of the Inspire Greatness Podcast, I had the incredible opportunity to chat with Genevieve Piturro, the inspiring founder of Pajama Program.

Pajama Program is a nonprofit dedicated to helping children facing adversities by providing them with the essentials for a comforting bedtime and a better quality of life.

Genevieve is also the author of Purpose, Passion, and Pajamas: How to Transform Your Life, Embrace the Human Connection, and Lead with Meaning. In her book, she shares her remarkable journey of discovering and following her true calling.

During our enlightening conversation, Genevieve revealed her three powerful strategies for inspiring greatness in team members:

1. Listening to your heart voice

2. Being a cheerleader for your team members

3. Understanding that true change comes from the power of one another, not just one individual

Tune in to be inspired by Genevieve’s wisdom and passion!

In this episode, I had an insightful conversation with Sunil Rajasekar, the CEO of Billtrust.

Billtrust is a cutting-edge financial services organization that provides cloud-based software and comprehensive payment processing solutions. Their goal is to enable finance teams to drive growth and to provide guidance and inspiration to businesses.

Sunil brings over 20 years of experience in the business software industry. Before leading Billtrust, he was the President of Mindbody, a prominent experience technology platform serving the fitness, wellness, and beauty sectors. Prior to that, Sunil held key roles as a General Manager at eBay and the CTO of Lithium Technologies. Additionally, he actively invests in and advises startups.

During our conversation, Sunil delved into his personal journey, sharing how he grappled with leadership challenges as a VP and how he realized the importance of adopting a leadership mindset as he transitioned to senior leadership.

This realization ultimately led him to develop the 8 tenets of leadership, which define his aspirations as a leader and provide support to other leaders within his organization.

In this episode I talked with Kendra Davenport, CEO of Easterseals.

Easterseals is a disability services organization which envisions all people having choices and opportunities to reach their potential.

Since 2022 Kendra has served as President and CEO of Easterseals and has also held other leadership positions at organizations such as Operation Smile, the Children of Fallen Patriots Foundation, and Africare.

In this episode, she’s going to share how her tendency to be a control freak was causing all sorts of problems for her while she was serving as chief of staff at Africare, and how she was able to solve those problems and go on to be very successful as a leader, now serving as the CEO of Easterseals.