What happens to your team when the manager disappears for a week?
Paul Gladstone believes the answer reveals a great deal about the manager, the systems they have built, and the culture they have created.
Paul is the founder of Talk With The Scot and Head of SEO & GEO at Wadi Digital, where he has led the organic team for more than six years. In this conversation with Yoel, he draws on more than 25 years of management experience to explain what strong leadership looks like in practice.
They discuss the communication required to manage remote teams, why people need to feel safe making mistakes, how managers can give direct feedback without humiliating employees, and how to prevent management from becoming a bottleneck.
Paul and Yoel also explore Israel’s unusually direct workplace culture, the strengths of young Israelis, managing up to founders and executives, and the systems companies need as they grow from a small team into a larger organization.
Subscribe to IsraelTech for more conversations with the people building and supporting Israel’s technology ecosystem.
Hosted by Yoel Israel
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00:00 - Introduction & Meet Paul Gladstone
01:23 - Remote Management vs. In-Person Management
04:00 - What to Look For When Hiring a Remote Manager
06:51 - Essential Skill Sets for Remote Leadership
08:48 - Building Company Culture: Creating a "Safe to Fail" Environment
12:48 - The Real Test of Culture: What Happens When the Manager Leaves?
15:13 - Flat Hierarchy vs. Layered Management (Google Oxygen Case Study)
18:24 - Management Restructuring & Middle Management
21:00 - Israeli Work Culture vs. Western Business Norms
25:03 - Resilience in the Younger Workforce
28:27 - Supporting Team Well-Being & 1-on-1 Communication
30:37 - Why People Stay: Work Relationships & Camaraderie
32:25 - Lessons from Elite Sports Psychology
36:30 - How to Manage Up (Working with the C-Suite & Board)
42:35 - Scaling Teams: Adapting Culture as You Grow
47:29 - Final Thoughts: The True Impact of Great Leadership
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Thank you to our incredible partners for making this all possible!
IsraelTech is proud to partner with Rhydlwood. Rhydlwood is an exclusive online business hub designed for business owners, entrepreneurs, and CEOs, focused on providing clarity, decision-making support, and sustainable growth.
Check them out at Rhydlwood.com
IsraelTech is also proud to partner with Deel, the global all-in-one HR and payroll platform for teams in 150+ countries.
To support the show, please go check out our partner Deel at: https://www.deel.com/israeltech
Finally, we’re proud to partner with Wadi Digital, Israel’s leading tech marketing agency.
Learn more at WadiDigital.com
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