Boundaryless Leadership

In this episode, Nozomi and Eri discuss:

• How Eri’s childhood interest in pollution has guided her career path. 
• The importance of failures. 
• Giving space for the voices that need to be heard and giving space for creativity and failure. 
• Creating a safe environment and embracing your weirdness. 

Key Takeaways:

• Be willing to take risks and try new things, you never know where it will lead you or what changes you can make. 
• You do not have to have a title or a formal role to be a leader. 
• We need to make a change in higher education. There are greater mental health struggles with the next generation as they carry the burden of the prior generations. 
• Everybody has something to add. We all have different values and backgrounds. There is beauty in everyone and everything. 

"We cannot succeed without failing. We really need to be creative to be successful. And I feel that there are not enough opportunities for students to be really creative, because they are worried about failure." —  Eri Saikawa

"I want to be weird - that’s the only way you’re going to be unique!" —  Eri Saikawa

"Goals are just directions - sometimes the ultimate goal is not necessary to reach that goal, but really the journey that takes you by having that kind of goal set because it sets you on your next step direction." —  Nozomi Morgan 

About Eri Saikawa: Eri Saikawa is an Associate Professor at Emory University, a Winship Distinguished research professor of the environmental sciences, and the Director of Emory Climate Talks.

She conducts interdisciplinary research on the environment. I have worked on diverse projects that cover: 1) atmospheric chemistry (modeling aerosols and tropospheric ozone); 2) environmental health (assessing the adverse health impacts of air pollution); 3) biogeochemistry (modeling global soil nitrous oxide emissions and quantifying soil GHG/ammonia fluxes); 4) climate science (estimating emissions of non-CO2 greenhouse gases), and 5) environmental policy/politics (analyzing the impacts of environmental standards and trade as well as analyzing policymaking processes).

My main research questions are related to the source and the magnitude of emissions linked to air pollution, ozone depletion, and climate change, as well as the impacts of these emissions on humans and on society. I am also interested in what policy measures are available to reduce these emissions, and how politics play a role in the policymaking process. My current projects are: 1) assessing the impact of agricultural practices on soil GHG/ammonia fluxes; 2) using low-cost air quality sensors to measure air quality; 3) creating a prototype of anaerobic digestion for reducing food waste on campus; 4) assessing the impact of plastic burning on human health and ambient air quality in Guatemala; 5) assessing the link between air quality exposure and asthma and 6) understand and mitigate the current and possible future soil heavy metal and metalloid and other chemical contaminant exposure among children in the Westside of Atlanta.

Our research is funded by the Emory Global Health Institute, the Emory SVPR AT THE INTERSECTION Fund, Emory Halle Institute, Environmental Protection Agency, the National Institutes of Health, and Syngenta.

Connect with Eri Saikawa:

Website: https://saikawalab.com/

Email: [email protected]

Emory Climate Talks: https://climatetalks.emory.edu/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eri-saikawa-22aa67/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/esaikawa

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saikawalabemory

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. 

In this episode, Nozomi and Anthony discuss:

• How working in different countries has shaped the way Anthony leads. 
• Communicating and setting expectations. 
• Successfully executing change management in your organization. 
• Evolving individually and as an organization. 

Key Takeaways:

• You need to learn to communicate differently depending on where you are working and who you are working with. 
• There are 2 perspectives on change - dread and excitement. But the key to change is rethinking and refinement in your change management. 
• The world is changing and evolving at an ever faster pace. This is an exciting time and exciting opportunity, but it does mean company plans may need to be adapted as the world changes. 
• Bringing diversity into your organization will give your company strength and power that it would not otherwise have. 

"I've always loved working in roles that are global. What I love about it is the diversity - you can be on a phone call with Mexico in the afternoon, then you can be on a phone call with Sweden or China, and those conversations and dynamics are going to be very different. You travel during the day without leaving your office." —  Anthony Allard

"When you bring people in from the four corners of the world they can do amazing things in places you wouldn’t expect." —  Anthony Allard

"Be an authentic leader. Find your own way to bring your organization and your team where you believe it needs to go for the next 5 to 10 years." —  Anthony Allard

About Anthony Allard: Anthony Allard is the Executive Vice President, and Head of Hitachi Energy North America. 

Allard was most recently Chief Operating Officer of BECIS, Singapore's leading energy service solution provider. Having spent most of his career in the power sector at GE and Alstom in the US, he held several executive-level positions, including General Manager and Board Member for GE Prolec Transformers in the US. He was also General Manager for the GE-XD High Voltage Products partnership. He spent 10 years working in Strategy and Operations management roles for Alstom Grid in both North America and the Americas. 

Allard holds an MBA from Yale University and a Masters in Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications from the Institut Polytechnique de Grenoble, France.

Connect with Anthony Allard:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyallard/

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. 

In this episode, Nozomi and Sox discuss:

• Sox’s professional journey as a Japanese Canadian and relearning Japanese for business. 
• Understanding cultural differences and pushing barriers when needed. 
• Challenges of innovation and global marketing in Japan. 
• Being clear in the destination and the purpose, but enjoying the journey. 

Key Takeaways:

• Fundamentally, people worldwide are similar and have similar values. However, there are nuances in communication that you will need to learn and adjust to.  
• You can build your own culture within your team, regardless of the wider country's culture. 
• Diversity is more than just meeting a quota and goes deeper than just the optics. 
• Influence what you can influence, but don’t stress about what you can’t control. 

"We need to think out of the box. We need to be innovative as employees and not in a box, worried about the future. We need to take risks." —  Masaki “Sox” Konno

"Human beings look at optics - that's the first sense of you that makes an impression. At the same time, we're all different. And I think it's the internal diversity that matters, especially in Japan. When I was trying to build a diverse team, I realized, I don't need the optics, I just need the mentality of diversity." —  Masaki "Sox" Konno

"The clarity that you have is what really makes you a good leader. Because of that, then when people are following you, they know what to follow, because they know where you're heading." — Nozomi Morgan

About Masaki “Sox” Konno: Masaki “Sox” Konno is a Japanese Canadian with more than 25 years of management experience. He assumed his current leadership role in February 2022. As the head of Hexagon Manufacturing Intelligence in Japan, he is the representative director of four of Hexagon AB’s subsidiary companies: (1) MSC Software Ltd. (2) Hexagon Metrology KK (3) Vero Software KK, and (4) D.P. Technology KK. Hexagon is a global leader in sensor, software, and autonomous solutions. Sox oversees the overall business that has a footprint of over 350 employees in Japan.

His previous role was with the Strategic Customer Engagements team at Amazon Web Services and he was responsible for architecting and closing the most significant and most strategic deals in Japan.

Previously to this, he was the Managing Director of Asia Pacific South at Dassault Systèmes, where he oversaw the strategic direction and overall performance of the company and provided leadership to a team of over 700 while growing at double-digit growth and closing the second-largest deal in the history of the company.

Prior to this, Sox was Vice President of Accelrys, an industry-leading software company that provides global, collaborative product lifecycle experiences to transform scientific innovation.

He has also held senior executive positions at Gracenote and Sony. At Gracenote, he led the team behind many successful multi-division, multi-product, worldwide initiatives to promote the company’s entertainment technology and music database both in the cloud and for connected devices.

Sox spent his formative years in Canada, excelling in team sports such as football, and was drafted into the Canadian Football League by the Ottawa Renegades. He graduated with a B.B.A. in Marketing with a Minor in Economics from Bishop’s University in Quebec, Canada, before moving to Asia for his career and family.

Connect with Masaki "Sox" Konno:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/masakikonno/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/masaki.konno.98  

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

Audio production by  Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. 

In this episode, Nozomi and Subin discuss:

• Growing up as a third culture kid and her journey into coaching. 
• The concept of home and belonging. 
• The feminine and masculine energies in leadership and ourselves.
• Bringing more consciousness into the ways that we lead.

Key Takeaways:

• Belonging starts with belonging to yourself. You have to find and accept yourself, if you do that, you will find belonging wherever you are. 
• The more you know and accept who you are, the easier it is to lead and to allow your team members to shine as who they are. 
• Creating psychologically safe spaces and allowing your team to be themselves, as they are individually, requires more work from leaders than in the past. 
• You need to have empathy for the people who came before you. They did their best with what they knew. Appreciate what they did, but move forward from there. 

"What does it mean to return home? It is to first be home for yourself, to belong to yourself first." —  Subin Hong

"Who you are is how you lead." —  Subin Hong

"You can’t be lazy as a leader anymore. We are requiring so much more from leaders than we ever have in the past." — Nozomi Morgan 

About Subin Hong: Subin’s coaching practice lies in accelerating the personal and professional growth of middle and senior-level leaders operating in multicultural, complex, and dynamic environments. She is passionate about identifying and leveraging her coachees’ strengths, helping them transform into the leader they are called to be with authenticity & courage toward inclusive leadership. Using neuroscience and coactivity methods, her intuitive coaching style enables the leaders to deepen their self-awareness, explore their limitations and hone their leadership style to raise performance and contentment to find their sense of purpose within their organization in effectively driving positive impact. 

Being French Chinese, her international business background, entrepreneurial spirit, and fluency in French, English, and Mandarin have allowed Subin to engage with geographically and culturally diverse teams effectively and successfully navigate cross/multi-cultural complexities in a global context.

Connect with Subin Hong:

Website: https://www.subinhong.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/subinhong/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/subin8hong/

Episode References: 

• The Power of TED by David Emerald - https://www.amazon.com/POWER-TED-EMPOWERMENT-DYNAMIC-Anniversary/dp/0996871802
• Longpath by Ari Wallach - https://www.amazon.com/Longpath-Becoming-Ancestors-Antidote-Short-Termism/dp/0063068737
• Ari Wallach Ted Talk - https://www.ted.com/speakers/ari_wallach

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. 

In this episode, Nozomi and Joji discuss:

• Gaining an international experience in childhood.  
• The influences of our lives, both where we live and who we are around. 
• Having clear goals and objectives and holding yourself accountable. 
• The importance of a mindset of learning and practice. 

Key Takeaways:

• The social impact of the military in the United States and in Japan (the Self-Defense Force) is very different due to its history and background. Be curious, ask questions, and learn about other cultures. 
• We live in a diverse culture. What is ideal leadership for you, may not be the same for someone else. 
• Context and culture play an important role in understanding. If there is no understanding, there is no true communication. 
• The world is changing so fast. It is impossible to know it all and to be the sole expert in every single aspect of the business. 

"Because we live in a diverse culture and environment, I really stopped thinking about what the ideal leadership would look like, instead in I really wanted to be myself and focus on what I can do today, make decisions every single day, and be accountable for that." —  Joji Koda

"I think assumption is always the devil. If you assume they understand you, if you assume they think this way, that's when mistakes start happening." — Nozomi Morgan 

"Life is about choices and priorities, just be accountable for it." —  Joji Koda

About Joji Koda: Joji is an investment and finance professional with various experiences in PE (growth capital), cross-border investment, structured finance, real estate finance, securitization, workout, and special situations. He is also a seasoned executive as an investor, CFO/COO, board of directors, and advisor to managing all business cycles across geographies from start-up, growth, restructuring, and turnaround to distress in a variety of industries. Joji is currently a Director, Head of Joint Venture Partnerships at Ripple, a crypto solutions company that transforms how the world moves, manages, and tokenizes value, headquartered in San Francisco. He also serves as an Outside Director of the Board at HOMMA Group, where he assumed the CFO/COO role until August 2022. He joined MUFG Bank (formerly UFJ) in 2002, followed by a move to GE Capital in 2007, where he led various structured finance deals and equity investment transactions. At Cool Japan Fund, an investment arm of the Japanese Government which he joined as one of the early members of its investment team in 2013, Joji directed investments in 4 countries (UK, UAE, Singapore, and Vietnam). Before joining HOMMA, Joji spearheaded operational improvement projects at EY TAS for MNCs to help transform their global businesses. Joji has a BA from Hosei University and an MBA from Chicago Booth. While he was born and raised in Japan, Joji lived in Maryland and Rhode Island when he was young.

Connect with Joji Koda:

Website: https://ripple.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joji-koda-5208639/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JK326

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joji.koda

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. 

In this episode, Nozomi and Trevor discuss:

• Being the type of leader that you wanted when you were on the team. 
• Leading in a way that is good for people and good for business. 
• Taking leadership and DEI further than the Golden Rule. 
• Being honest, intentional, and connecting with yourself and your values. 

Key Takeaways:

• Different leadership styles are important - it can depend on the team, the situation, your own morals, and the personalities of you and your team. -
• DEI is not just a box to check. It is hard work to make people feel truly included, and that is a key aspect of a strong team. 
• When you learn to travel and take the time to learn about other cultures, you will start to understand the richness, beauty, and diversity of humanity. 
• Engage in stories that are different from your own. In that crucible, you will begin to understand what you do value and where you’ve created boundaries you didn’t know existed. 

"Our own ignorance, if we don’t confront it, creates boundaries that we don’t even know about." —  Trevor Williams

"The tension is to try to figure out how can you have a strong enough vision to create something and forge a path ahead, but also be humble and empathetic enough to listen to people along the way. And that, to me, is the real hard balance of being a leader." —  Trevor Williams

"You can see what you value and prioritize by what is on your schedule. Whatever is in your schedule that shows what you're valuing." —  Nozomi Morgan 

About Trevor Williams: A versatile digital journalist, Trevor Williams has spent more than a decade writing on international business and trade for Global Atlanta, an online news service covering Atlanta’s intersection with the global economy. In addition to local reporting that helped the company win the 2014 President’s E Award for Export Service from the U.S. Commerce Department, he has undertaken journalism trips to 30+ countries on five continents, uncovering stories that reveal both the perils and promise of globalization. His interviewees span the socioeconomic spectrum — from top executives and heads of state to workers and villagers in frontier markets. Trevor focuses intently on Asia and also has written extensively on foreign direct investment, trade and exports, Georgia’s ties with China, and Atlanta’s emergence as a payments hub, among other topics. Trevor graduated from the University of Georgia with dual bachelor’s degrees in Magazine Journalism and Religion, as well as a minor in Chinese Language and Literature. He is a proud husband and father of two young sons, as well as the editor "Making Men: Five Steps to Growing Up,” a book outlining five steps that fathers can use to grow their sons into manhood. His freelance work has appeared in China Daily, Site Selection magazine (online), Nuernberger Zeitung, InSite magazine, Breakaway magazine, Brio, Boundless.org, Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, AramcoWorld, and China Business Review.

Connect with Trevor Williams:

Website: https://www.globalatlanta.com/

Author Page: https://www.globalatlanta.com/author/twilliams/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jtkwilliams/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jtrevorwilliams & https://twitter.com/GlobalAtlanta

Episode Reference: 

• Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown: https://www.amazon.com/Essentialism-Disciplined-Pursuit-Greg-McKeown/dp/0804137382

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.

In this episode, Nozomi and Phil discuss:

• Innovation as a cultural effort. 
• Becoming resilient as an organization. 
• Risk adjusting. 
• The artificiality of boundaries and living in a global world. 

Key Takeaways:

• The career path to being a Chief Innovation Officer is non-linear. Follow your path, follow the innovation, and discover your journey along the way. 
• Long-term career maps are an antiquated thing. The careers of tomorrow do not yet exist. 
• Openness and a willingness to learn are key aspects of being a leader. 
• There is more that connects us, as humans, than divides us. In our increasingly globalized world, we need to remember that everything that happens, impacts people globally.  

"For a lot of leaders, the truth is, their path has been nonlinear. In the future, I think that's going to be actually the norm that a lot of careers are nonlinear." —  Nozomi Morgan 

"It's a willingness to be to go outside my comfort zone that has been one of the hallmarks of my career. I just follow things that seem interesting and that I want to want to learn." —  Phil Ventimiglia

"We are truly a globally connected world. Even when countries and organizations try to put up walls and boundaries, it doesn't work. And something whatever happens in one part of the world is going to impact the entire world." —  Phil Ventimiglia

About Phil Ventimiglia: As Georgia State University’s first Chief Innovation Officer, Phil Ventimiglia is helping shape Georgia State University’s exploration of new ideas for teaching, learning, and research through innovative uses of technology.

Phil has nearly two decades of experience in new technology development and strategy, working internationally and across industries, to foster the growth of new technologies, encourage entrepreneurship and help grow educational opportunities.

Phil currently serves on the advisory board for the Educause Learning Initiative (ELI) and as a mentor in Georgia Institute of Technology’s Flashpoint startup incubation program. Before joining Georgia State University, Phil was Vice President for Innovation and New Product Development at NCR Corporation, where he led a global team that acted as an innovation catalyst and development accelerator. Phil also held the position of Vice President & General Manager for the NCR Hyderabad Development Center in India. In Hyderabad, Phil was responsible for leading the creation of an independent, emerging-market development center with end-to-end, in-market product development capabilities, including engineering and product management. Also, while in Hyderabad, Phil helped facilitate the introduction of a new international school in order to improve educational options in the area.

Prior to NCR, Phil worked at Dell for over 10 years, helping to build and lead Dell’s entry into new lines of business, including Inspiron notebooks, Dell Printers, Dell Flat Panel Monitors, Dell TVs, and Dell Projectors. In addition, he spent over three years in Singapore, helping to lead and build Dell’s Singapore Design Center.

Phil began his career as a product marketing manager with the IBM Consumer Division and held various engineering positions at Lockheed Sanders. He holds a Master’s of Public and Private Management from the Yale School of Management and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Connecticut.

Connect with Phil Ventimiglia:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-ventimiglia-990394/

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.

"Your career is what you are paid for, your purpose is what you are made for." —  Mohammed Farshori

In this episode, Nozomi and Mohammed discuss:

• What a side resume is and how it connects to your happiness. 
• Investing in your dream job with clarity. 
• The importance of belonging in diversity and inclusion. 
• Activism throughout the generations to support the future. 

Key Takeaways:

• There is no such thing as work-life balance - sometimes one will take over and be more pressing than the other. 
• The world needs allies who understand their privilege. We all have privilege when it comes to different things. 
• Women’s rights are not just women’s rights. The same goes for any group of people. Learning about and standing up for others around you is the right thing to do. 
• We all have biases. In order to really understand others, we have to recognize that and do the work to not allow them to influence us. 

"If you remember a few years back, we only talked about diversity, then slowly, we started talking about inclusion, then we started talking about equity. Now we're talking about justice and belonging. If you miss one of them, then you're not achieving anything." —  Mohammed Farshori

"If you trust and have faith that there's beauty in everyone and everything then you will look for that." —  Nozomi Morgan 

About Mohammed Farshori: Mohammed Farshori is a Global Community Engagement Leader (Corporate Social Responsibility) at AT&T, member of the NAMI Board of Directors and a member of NAMI North Texas. As a strategic global CSR and DEI leader, he is recognized for his passion for diversity, inclusion, and community engagement. He has successfully led award-winning business diversity groups at local and national levels, and his efforts have been instrumental in taking nonprofits in the U.S. to new heights.

He is the co-founder of the nonprofit Faith@Work. Mohammed also serves on the advisory board of the United Nations Foundation Girl Up campaign and the University of Texas Dallas’s Diversity Advisory board. He also supports the North Texas AAPI community in his current roles, as Trustee India Association of North Texas, Vice Chairman — Asian Chamber of Texas, and advisor Mahatma Gandhi Memorial of North Texas.

Mohammed is a recipient of the Dallas Business Journal’s Minority Business Leader award 2019, Immigrant Journey Award 2020, and the Asian Chamber of Texas’s Diversity Leader Award. In his day job, Mohammed is Director of Global Community Engagement at AT&T, responsible for managing, building, and expanding community and employee engagement efforts in Europe and Asia.

Born and raised in India, Mohammed is a graduate of Osmania University, Hyderabad India. He also completed an MBA Essentials Program from the London School of Economics. He currently lives in Plano, Texas, with his wife Amra Sayed, a speech-language pathologist, and their two children.

Connect with Mohammed Farshori:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mfarshori/

Website: https://about.att.com/csr/home.html

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. 

"There's a different flavor that comes through in your leadership when you lead through the love of getting that thing done that matters to you, then if you are motivated by that love of power or love of money." —  Mari Kuraishi

In this episode, Nozomi and Mari discuss:

• Opportunistic career planning. 
• Having faith in yourself and being willing to try something new. 
• Leading through service versus leading through power. 
• Using all of the resources at your disposal. 

Key Takeaways:

• Women tend to only go for jobs they are overqualified for. Be willing to reach for something you want, even if you aren’t overqualified, and be ready to learn and grow and try. 
• Whether something turns out good or bad, you can learn from whatever you try - it’s not likely to be career-ending or organization-destroying. 
• There are entire communities that are structurally prevented from reaching their potential. These things can be addressed and changed. 
• By not addressing inequities, we are squandering human potential. 

"I have learned over the years, that liking and respecting the people you work with is a really important component of work satisfaction, even if you theoretically think that the job is cool, but you don't actually like or respect the people, that's not going to work." —  Mari Kuraishi

"If each of us really lives our life fully, that always impacts other people. If you do good, indirectly or directly, you’re changing people's lives for the good." —  Nozomi Morgan

About Mari Kuraishi: Mari Kuraishi is the president of the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, leading the Fund's efforts to create communities of belonging for the places and institutions that Jessie Ball duPont knew and loved by fostering inclusive growth and reducing structural and systemic barriers to resources and opportunity.

Prior to joining the Fund, Mari co-founded the groundbreaking crowdfunding philanthropy site GlobalGiving with Dennis Whittle, and served as President until 2018. GlobalGiving connects donors with grassroots projects around the world, providing a vetting platform for donors and training and education for nonprofits. Since 2002, GlobalGiving has connected more than 1.6 million donors to 32,453 projects in more than 175 countries around the world, generating more than $738 million in funding for their projects.

In 2011, Mari was named one of Foreign Policy’s top 100 Global Thinkers for “crowdsourcing worldsaving.” Prior to founding GlobalGiving, she worked at the World Bank where she created and managed some of the Bank’s most innovative loans and programs, including founding its innovation engine, the Development Marketplace. Mari currently serves on the boards of GlobalGiving, Mission Investors Exchange, DataKind, the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, and the Cummer Museum in Jacksonville, as well as on the advisory boards of the Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies at Harvard University, the U.S.-Japan Council, and LISC

Jacksonville.

In addition to her native Japanese, Mari also speaks Russian, Italian, and French. She earned an undergraduate degree in history from Harvard University and did graduate work in Russian and Japanese history and politics at Harvard and Georgetown Universities. Mari also completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.

Connect with Mari Kuraishi:

Website: https://www.dupontfund.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marikuraishi/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mashenka

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it. 

"Every different ethnic group, including Caucasians, code switch depending on which group you're in. We all do it, and it's not good or bad. It's just knowing when and how to use it." —  Khánh Vu

In this episode, Nozomi and Khánh discuss:

• What SASE is and the organization’s mission in diversity. 
• Creating a welcoming, safe, family culture. 
• Code-switching, cultural heritage, and ingrained values. 
• Identifying and acknowledging Asian talent. 

Key Takeaways:

• In looking at the number of Asians in STEM it seems high, but if you look at leadership levels, that number drastically decreases. 
• Peel back the layers of the tapes that play in your head and see if your inner, cultural habits are hurting your forward momentum in US business. 
• Words can be translated, but the meaning doesn’t always mean exactly the same depending on the context.
• Companies are looking for talented people and are willing to pay for it. Going to conferences, such as the SASE National Conference, can help you find those companies. 

"Every different ethnic group, including Caucasians, code switch depending on which group you're in. We all do it, and it's not good or bad. It's just knowing when and how to use it." —  Khánh Vu

"We need to get enough Asian leaders into the top ranks, whatever industry, whatever things we're trying to influence, to open the door for the rest of us to where it's more acceptable to be more reflective and to be more thoughtful, not just raise your hands because you have half the answer." —  Khánh Vu

"There is no ending to our development.  Until our last breath, we're always growing." —  Nozomi Morgan 

About Khánh Vu: Khánh and his family immigrated to the USA from Vietnam at the end of the Vietnam conflict. His family found their way to Colorado. He graduated from John F. Kennedy High School, a Denver Public School.

Khánh graduated from the Colorado School of Mines with a degree in chemical engineering and 3 minors: McBride Honors Program in Public Affairs, Latin American Specialization, and Environmental Science.

His passion for helping young adults and fondness for Mines led him back to accepting the position as the fourth Director of the Multi-cultural Engineering Program (MEP). MEP has come full circle because Khánh was part of MEP's inception in 1989 as a student and was instrumental in the founding of the Asian Student Association in the early 90s, which later became PASES (Professional Asian Society of Engineers and Scientists), eventually merged with SASE. As the MEP Director, he helped over 1,000 students with their recruitment, retention, and professional development.

As a Society of Asian Scientists & Engineers (SASE) volunteer, Khánh helped plan the 2011 National Conference. Khánh joined SASE full-time as the CEO & Executive Director in late 2011. Khánh oversaw the doubling of the collegiate chapters and tripling its membership during his 1st-year tenure with SASE. SASE has become the largest professional Asian American Organization in the US by number of chapters, conference size, and organizational support. He looks forward to growing SASE to its full potential.

Khánh enjoys spending time with his wife, Uyển, and 4 children: Thiên n “JP”, Thiên Sơn “Vincent”, Thiên Hải “Dominic” & Thiên Hà “Teresa”. His hobbies include youth ministry, volleyball, and being a foodie.

Connect with Khánh Vu:

Website: https://www.saseconnect.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vuqkhanh/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vu.q.khanh/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vuqkhanh/

SASE National Conference: https://conference.saseconnect.org/

Connect with Nozomi Morgan:

Website: https://www.michikimorgan.com/    

Book: In the works

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: https://twitter.com/nozomimorgan   

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NozomiMorgan

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nozomimorgan/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/nozomimorgan/

Show notes by Podcastologist: Chelsea Taylor-Sturkie

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