Leaders Unscripted

Think upon how often Founders refer to their businesses as ‘their baby’ - could you imagine balancing that with an actual child of your own?

Between Co-Founding Cable and parenting two children, Natasha Vernier’s first CEO experience is about as intense as you could ask for.

With a noble mission to create global impact in anti-financial crime, we hear from Natasha about leaders as ‘stress absorbers’, the unique CEO challenges, and balancing the financials against family life.

This episode covers:

• Natasha’s background in financial crime through her role at Monzo
• The huge amount of laundered money that inspired Cable’s mission
• Having an outsized impact on your team as a Founder and CEO
• Balancing parenthood, business ownership, and postnatal depression
• A more holistic approach to businesses’ values and operating systems

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/

The world has been working remotely for three years - Kainar Kamalov has been doing so for more than eight.

All the challenges that we’ve faced, he’s already grappled with, and having held leadership roles in a remote-first, scaling startup, Pipe, he brings his expertise to such a challenging business environment.

Since recording this episode of Leaders Unscripted, Kainar has taken yet another step in his leadership journey, putting his skills into practice as a new Co-Founder, but you can join us now for his masterclass on leading a team in ten time zones.

This episode covers:

• How scaling is a challenge, balancing new team members with drop in productivity while onboarding
• An essential focus on team structure
• Pipe’s flat structure and clear communications
• The hardest aspect of remote-first teams and how to overcome it
• Differing experiences in companies who have and haven’t found their product-market fit

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/

When it comes to broad roles, they don’t come more varied than that of a COO.

Some of the most invaluable skills to help COOs navigate any challenge come from working with people, a transition that Jessica Zwaan has made look effortless.

Currently COO at Whereby, she uncovers the deepest aspects of such a fluid leadership role, your culture as a subscription product, and leading a team through huge business pivots.

This episode covers:

• The remarkable fluidity of the COO role
• Making challenging pivots within the business
• How surprisingly often leaders face ‘trolley problems’
• An outlook on culture as your team ‘subscribing to it’
• The lesser-spoken downsides of a COO role and promotion 

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/

The Director role is uniquely sandwiched, with expectations and emotions from both sides - it’s a huge shift, but one in which Sonal Mehta has made herself comfortable.

As Director of Engineering at Mailchimp, having worked through the ranks throughout her career, she’s perfectly placed to weigh in on the unique nature of the role.

Sonal shares her wonderful perspective with me on Leaders Unscripted, a must-listen for any budding first-time Directors.

This episode covers:

• Sonal’s transition into a director role, and how the experience is akin to parenthood
• The result of no longer ‘being in the weeds’ of day-to-day work
• Managing high stakes and expectations
• The balance between leaders’ and workers’ emotions, and staying level in the face of that
• How to build the essential tenet of trust

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/

When caring for a parent becomes basically a full time job, embracing humanity as a leader becomes absolutely essential, for both the leader and the team around them.

Engineering Director at Spotify, Nivia Henry, leads her team through innovation of the highest level, but with a mother in care she’s elegantly balancing these two worlds.

Join us on Leaders Unscripted as we share how you can manage the demands of leadership alongside the needs of aging family members, and look after yourself in the process...

This episode covers:

• Coming to terms with parents’ mortality
• Recontextualising your worldview and applying it to your leadership style
• Creating space for your emotions away from your team’s
• Being present with self-care and dignity
• Advice for leaders caring for parents when they can’t shift down a gear at work

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/

Being acquired by another company might seem like a simple scaling of what you’ve done before, but actually requires leaders to re-learn the basics.

Packet was a startup founded by brothers, Zac & Jacob Smith, operating with speed at its core. That said, they’ll attest to the mindset shift that came with their merger with innovation juggernaut, Equinix.

Join us on Leaders Unscripted as we dissect the ins and outs of acquisition, bringing your team on the journey, and how to ‘encourage serendipity’.

This episode covers:

• The origins of Packet’s creation
• Aligned goals between Packet and their now-parent-company, Equinix
• Bringing your old company’s team on your new journey
• The change of mindset from speedy startup survival to scaleable impact

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/

Few industries pose the same regulatory challenges as finance - that’s a heck of a place to cut your teeth as a first-time CEO…

Griffin’s inception was born of CEO David Jarvis’ entrepreneurial ambitions, and he leads with a wonderful sense of honesty and authenticity.

In this episode of Leaders Unscripted, we hear the hefty challenges that the startup has overcome so far, what values are essential in those joining the team, the necessity for leaders with honesty & authenticity, and much more.

This episode covers:

• Griffin’s inception and how David brought it to life alongside his Co-Founder, Allen
• Turning entrepreneurial aspirations into a first-time CEO role in a startup
• The ideal values in new hires
• Solving long standing, systemic problems
• Lessons from ‘sandbox’ leadership roles before becoming CEO
• Leading with honesty and authenticity

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/

People may often fight for a CEO role, but having had it bestowed on her among the founding members of Contenda, Lilly Chen is truly excelling as a compassionate leader.

Her first experience in leadership shows us that the questions you ask yourself lead you to become a better leader for others. 

We caught up with Lilly on Leaders Unscripted this week, summing up her Facebook years, chronic illness recovery, and passion for lifting others.

This episode covers:

• Dealing with chronic illness young, and finding her path in a monastery
• Working at Facebook, and balancing job fulfilment with financial gain
• Becoming a first time leader in an exciting startup
• Whether the CEO role is a blessing or a curse
• A company culture of moving work around your life, rather than the inverse
• Asking yourself what kind of leader you want to be

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/

Hiring isn’t cheap, but keeping hold of a wrong hire is infinitely more costly - not just to your finances, but to your company’s all-important culture.

The challenges of a scaling startup are many, and it’s in that challenge that Michelle O’Connor thrives as VP Brand & Global Communications at TaxBit.

In the latest episode of Leaders Unscripted, Michelle takes us through how to maintain the mission & culture through rapid growth, why you should slow down to speed up, and her love of the thrilling startup environment.

This episode covers:

• Michelle’s stellar career trajectory, from receptionist for a badass CMO to becoming a specialist scale-up VP
• Why she’s most fulfilled by the startup setting, and how the environment impacts the employee
• Retaining your culture and mission as a growing brand
• How a culturally ill-fitting employee can tank a team

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/

To seek a fulfilling job role is one thing, but to enable dozens of others to achieve the same is the noble next step for those who lead people.

Formerly VP of People at Griffin, before taking up the COO role after recording this episode of Leaders Unscripted, Maria Campbell’s journey is brimming with positive culture and work fulfilment.

Tune in this week to hear how Maria makes her mark on teams and the wider industry!

This episode covers:

• Maria’s progression into the people-focused role that she loves
• Finding fulfilment in helping others to have an enjoyable job 
• Positive culture and values being key in the financial services sector
• The huge potential impact of a financial infrastructure product

Visit Suzan's website: https://www.constellaryhq.com/