Extrology: Mastering People, Performance & Purpose

Not every business is lucky enough to say that their work has a genuine positive impact on communities worldwide. Kenneth Bérard, Chief Executive Officer of Optimy, is here to share his story; that businesses can serve as a force for good. 

Optimy is revolutionising how organisations manage their philanthropic efforts, with a highly configurable, positive impact platform, serving over 350 organisations across 25 countries. It’s an impressive feat and a truly inspiring episode. 

Lee and Kennth discuss:

• How Optimy helps organisations amplify their positive impact
• Why positive impact is no longer a nice-to-have but a must-have
• Navigating the complexity of working with multiple languages
• Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs looking to make positive impact

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

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Extrology:

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Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/

While we rightfully celebrate our NHS, it’s not without room for innovation - that’s where Navenio’s Connie Moser hopes to make her mark.

Simple technology used in a complex way is key to a solution that’s reducing wait times and connecting medical professionals with patients’ needs like never before.

Connie’s career has been a blend of innovative tech solutions and effective management strategies in healthcare, the culmination of which she shares in this week’s Extrology podcast. 

Lee and Connie discuss:

• Early, inspirational role models in Connie’s life
• The greater growth found in diversity of thought
• Differing attitudes towards learning from failure between the US and UK
• Navenio’s inception, greatest challenges, and medical innovation
• Evolving leadership styles in an increasingly digitised world

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

Send us Fan Mail

Get in touch: [email protected]

Extrology:

https://www.extrology.com/

https://www.instagram.com/extrologypodcast/

https://www.tiktok.com/@extrology

https://substack.com/@extrology

https://www.youtube.com/@extrology

Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/

The natural world is more than simply around us - for many, it saves lives.

That much is true of Isaac Kenyon, an eco-adventurer and world record-setting advocate for sustainability and mental wellbeing alike, noting the unbreakable link between our wellbeing and the world around us.

Isaac joins us on Extrology to detail his experiences with eco-anxiety, and how he was spurred to take on rows, runs and Ironmans.

CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains deep discussions around suicide, suicidal ideation and mental wellness - for those in need of immediate support, Samaritans are available by phone at 116 123.

Lee and Isaac discuss:

• Early experiences with nature, rooting a sense of exploration within Isaac
• Everyone’s responsibility as a sustainability leader
• Overcoming eco-anxiety and mental health challenges
• The inception of Isaac’s huge adventurous projects and world record-setting ways
• Businesses’ role in saving our planet for the future

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

Send us Fan Mail

Get in touch: [email protected]

Extrology:

https://www.extrology.com/

https://www.instagram.com/extrologypodcast/

https://www.tiktok.com/@extrology

https://substack.com/@extrology

https://www.youtube.com/@extrology

Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/

Some people’s fates are seemingly mapped out before their birth, and for Dr Craig Thayer, a life devoted to helping others was preordained.

Craig started life adopted at 9 months, and through his family upbringing became a surgeon with a faith as strong as his conviction to do good through his medical marvels.

Join us for the inspirational story behind Craig’s book - Saved: One Trauma Surgeon's True Accounts of the Miracles in His Life - and his remarkable journey through life.

Lee and Craig discuss:

• The catalyst for Craig’s passion in medicine and path to becoming a doctor
• His eventful upbringing, dealing with loss and struggle from an early age
• How Craig’s faith manifests in his surgery and medical help
• Turning pain into purpose

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

Send us Fan Mail

Get in touch: [email protected]

Extrology:

https://www.extrology.com/

https://www.instagram.com/extrologypodcast/

https://www.tiktok.com/@extrology

https://substack.com/@extrology

https://www.youtube.com/@extrology

Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/

Playing small does not serve the world, and by no means does Paula Reid ever play small. 

She ventures where most seldom dare, cycling across the entirety of 16 countries, and most recently adding a war-stricken Ukraine to that list in an adventure which exposed the remarkable, resilient nature of its people.

What kind of mindset takes the nub of an idea and turns it into such a bold pursuit? Paula returns to Extrology this week for us to learn more…

Lee and Paula discuss:

• Paula’s love of adventure 
• Regaining a sense of childlike wonder
• How much of our lives we should spend in the comfort zone
• The genesis of Paula’s cross-Ukraine cycle, and logistical challenges
• Handling the emotional weight of the stories that came from Paula’s encounters

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

Fundraise with Paula:
https://www.justgiving.com/page/paula-reid-siobhanstrust

Send us Fan Mail

Get in touch: [email protected]

Extrology:

https://www.extrology.com/

https://www.instagram.com/extrologypodcast/

https://www.tiktok.com/@extrology

https://substack.com/@extrology

https://www.youtube.com/@extrology

Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/

We don’t make relationships through ‘funnels’, but rather bonds are formed through considerate discussion - the power of a conversation is near-enough unparalleled.

Interview Valet began based on the tenet that we’re just one conversation away from creating limitless opportunities, and its Founder & CEO is the greatest advocate for better marketing through conversation - Tom Schwab.

Join us for a dive into the kiss of death in modern marketing, the art of the awkward conversation, and why the future is in rich audio.

Lee and Tom discuss:

• Why digital marketing might actually be hurting businesses
• The value of connections, and breaking out of obscurity
• Tools as amplifiers of brilliance and stupidity alike
• The two-way nature of magnetic marketing
• What makes podcasting such a lucrative marketing tool

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

Send us Fan Mail

Get in touch: [email protected]

Extrology:

https://www.extrology.com/

https://www.instagram.com/extrologypodcast/

https://www.tiktok.com/@extrology

https://substack.com/@extrology

https://www.youtube.com/@extrology

Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/

Since November 2020, when we last caught up with Sue Anstiss MBE, she’s become Director and Producer of a hugely powerful Netflix documentary, and that’s just scratching the surface…

Much has changed in 3 years for Fearless Women’s Founder - to have Sue return to the Extrology podcast is both an ultimate privilege, and a chance to observe the bountiful progress that women’s sport has enjoyed, and what’s yet to come.

Lee and Sue discuss:

• The inception of what became Sue’s stellar Netflix documentary - Game On: The Unstoppable Rise of Women’s Sport
• Significant shifts in media coverage for women’s events
• Unexpected production challenges that faced the making of the documentary
• Whether we need an approach of advocacy, activism or anarchy
• Immediate steps that governing bodies can take to achieve true equality and equity

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

Send us Fan Mail

Get in touch: [email protected]

Extrology:

https://www.extrology.com/

https://www.instagram.com/extrologypodcast/

https://www.tiktok.com/@extrology

https://substack.com/@extrology

https://www.youtube.com/@extrology

Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/

We sometimes need to come close to death, to realise how much life we’ve yet to live.

Jenn Drummond had once quit on herself - now she stands proud, having scaled the 2nd highest peaks on all 7 continents, arguably the most challenging climbs on the planet.

So how do you take a near-death experience and channel it into a new lease on life? Jenn’s story is an unparalleled inspiration, and she shares it all in this week’s Extrology.

Lee and Jenn discuss:

• How Jenn had come to quit on herself
• The car wreck that became Jenn’s catalyst for change
• Why the Seven Second Summits are such a challenging feat
• Practising the pause and seeking your summit

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

Send us Fan Mail

Get in touch: [email protected]

Extrology:

https://www.extrology.com/

https://www.instagram.com/extrologypodcast/

https://www.tiktok.com/@extrology

https://substack.com/@extrology

https://www.youtube.com/@extrology

Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/

For challenger brands, a PR strategy that takes a small budget a long way could be the difference between a flash in the pan, and an underdog story to admire.

Bringing her passion for sharing others’ stories with creativity and emotive messaging, CommsCo’s Founder Ilona Hitel is this week’s guest on the Extrology podcast.

We share how tech innovations are shifting the PR landscape, uncover her remarkable family roots, and touch on the perfect time to differentiate yourself.

Lee and Ilona discuss:

• Growing up with her father’s close experience with conflict
• Being atop the Berlin Wall when it came down
• How to differentiate in recessions and crises
• The challenge of evidencing creativity
• ChatGPT’s impact on the PR industry

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

Send us Fan Mail

Get in touch: [email protected]

Extrology:

https://www.extrology.com/

https://www.instagram.com/extrologypodcast/

https://www.tiktok.com/@extrology

https://substack.com/@extrology

https://www.youtube.com/@extrology

Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/

From writing for The Economist to guiding CEOs through the learnings of other leaders, Tim Jackson's business impact is immense. 

With shrewd economic insight and 4 books worth of entrepreneurial analysis, we speak to Tim about his role at Walking Ventures, his prolific journey to date, and the unseen futures into which our technological advances might take us.

Lee and Tim discuss:

• How his journalism background altered his entrepreneurial approach
• Knowing the perimeter of your circle of competence
• Tim's 5 top qualities of an investable CEO
• Staying ahead of disruptors in the tech industry
• The true role of a CEO coach

Extrology is sponsored by Progresso Talent Partners who for more than 25 years have successfully delivered interim and permanent leadership talent to transform businesses and to hire the talent you need to enable your business to thrive: https://www.progressotalent.com/

Send us Fan Mail

Get in touch: [email protected]

Extrology:

https://www.extrology.com/

https://www.instagram.com/extrologypodcast/

https://www.tiktok.com/@extrology

https://substack.com/@extrology

https://www.youtube.com/@extrology

Lee Cooper:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/leecooperrecruiter/