Leadership Variations: Unfiltered

Leadership Variations: Unfiltered

By Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCCBusinessTechnologyEducation
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Leadership Variations: Unfiltered episodes

  • Cracking the Code: From Leadership to Legacy with Ashley Baptiste, CEO of Conferences Connect

    What happens when the way you’ve always worked -or the way you thought leadership was supposed to look stops working?

    In the Season 2 premiere of Leadership Variations: Unfiltered -  Cracking the Code: From Leadership to Legacy, Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto welcomes Ashley Baptiste, CEO of Conferences Connect.

    Ashley shares what she has learned about staying focused amid constant distraction, adapting when circumstances force leaders to rethink what has always worked, and building the relationships and trust required to create real influence.

    Then they tackle something many accomplished leaders know all too well: the pressure to be perfect.

    Ashley reflects on her early career, when doing things the “right” way often meant following expectations created by other people. Her experience eventually taught her a different lesson: you cannot be everything to everybody—and trying to be can pull you away from your authentic strengths.

    They discuss:

    • Staying focused on the goals that matter most
    • Finding a leadership routine that actually works for you
    • Adapting when established strategies stop delivering results
    • Building trust and influence through relationships
    • Letting go of other people’s definitions of success
    • Why authenticity and imperfection belong in leadership
    • Having the courage to dream big again

    Ashley closes the conversation with her Undeniable Take:

    Dream big. Don’t settle. And don’t allow the people around you to make your ambitions smaller.

    ABOUT ASHLEY BAPTISTE

    Ashley Baptiste is CEO of Conferences Connect and has 20 years of experience producing conferences, workshops, and leadership programs designed to help people learn, share, connect, and advance.

    ABOUT YOUR HOST

    Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC, helps organizations make smarter leadership decisions through executive assessment, leadership coaching, competency strategy, and high-potential development, with a specialty in women and technical/STEM leaders.

    Subscribe to Leadership Variations: Unfiltered and follow the Season 2 series, Cracking the Code: From Leadership to Legacy.

    Support the show

    Watch & Subscribe
    🎥 Watch this conversation and explore more Unfiltered leadership content:
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    Work with Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto
    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
    https://calendly.com/abladenshatto/30min
    🌐 Learn more → https://www.leadershipvariations.com
    🔗 Connect on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybladenshatto
    🔗 Like us on Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/leadvarunfiltered/
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    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    31 min
  • Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable with Dr. Wanda Toro Turini, Rare Disease Leader, Top Pharma

    In this episode of Leadership Variations: Unfiltered, Amy Bladen Shatto sits down with Dr. Wanda Toro Turini for a candid conversation about career reinvention, identity, entrepreneurship, and what happens when the version of success you once pursued no longer fits who you have become.

    Wanda began her career at Novartis, where she worked across oncology, marketing, sales, and product launches before leaving a successful corporate career to pursue entrepreneurship.

    For nearly two decades, she built companies, developed innovative technology, advised life sciences organizations, and created success on her own terms.

    Then she made another bold move:

    She returned to corporate life.

    Wanda shares why that decision initially felt like failure, how motherhood, COVID, changing priorities, and her own evolving identity forced her to reconsider what success meant—and why returning to corporate ultimately became an intentional leadership decision rather than a retreat.

    Amy and Wanda also explore the identity traps that high-performing women encounter when they become known for things they are good at—but no longer want to do.

    Because being capable of something doesn't necessarily mean it represents your unique brilliance.

    And being offered a “great opportunity” doesn't automatically mean it's the right opportunity.

    From coaching and asking for help to ambition, ego, motherhood, entrepreneurship, confidence, and career ownership, this episode challenges the idea that successful careers need to follow a straight line.

    Wanda's message for women who feel underestimated is equally clear:

    Before worrying about whether other people recognize your value, make sure you are not underestimating yourself.


    In this episode, we cover:

    • Leaving a comfortable corporate career to pursue entrepreneurship
    • Discovering the difference between capability and unique brilliance
    • How expectations from others can shape career identity
    • Why being great at something doesn't mean it should be your next move
    • The hidden cost of constantly chasing the next achievement
    • Why successful women can struggle to ask for help
    • How executive coaching accelerates clarity and growth
    • The emotional reality of leaving entrepreneurship after nearly 20 years
    • Redefining success after marriage, motherhood, COVID, and changing priorities
    • Why a career pivot isn't the same as failure
    • Bringing entrepreneurial thinking into corporate leadership
    • Taking ownership of your development instead of waiting for your organization
    • Using evidence of your accomplishments to rebuild confidence
    • What to do when your brilliance isn't recognized


    Chapters

    02:59 — Leaving Corporate to Become an Entrepreneur
    05:00 — Recognizing Career Friction
    07:21 — Listening to Yourself as a Leader
    09:50 — Claiming Your Unique Brilliance
    10:30 — When Your Strength Isn't Your Next Step
    10:56 — Why Experts Still Need Outside Perspective
    11:48 — The Carrot, the Blinders and the Cost of Constant Achievement
    13:42 — Asking for Help Isn't Failure
    15:55 — Celebrating Career Milestones
    16:13 — Returning to Corporate After 19 Years
    19:24 — Motherhood, COVID and Evolving Priorities
    20:25 — Letting Go Without Calling It Failure
    22:29 — Staying Entrepreneurial Inside Corporate Life
    24:37 — Creating Your Own Definition of Success
    25:58 — Take Ownership of Your Development
    26:23 — The Undeniable Take: Collect the Evidence


    Support the show

    Watch & Subscribe
    🎥 Watch this conversation and explore more Unfiltered leadership content:
    www.youtube.com/@leadershipvariations

    Work with Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto
    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
    https://calendly.com/abladenshatto/30min
    🌐 Learn more → https://www.leadershipvariations.com
    🔗 Connect on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybladenshatto
    🔗 Like us on Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/leadvarunfiltered/
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    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    29 min
  • Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable with Dawn Armstrong, Human Good

    In this episode of Leadership Variations: Unfiltered, Amy Bladen Shatto sits down with Dawn Armstrong, Vice President of Information Technology at Human Good, for a candid conversation about moving from underestimated to undeniable as a woman in STEM.

    Dawn shares how she built credibility across male-dominated technical environments, transformed dysfunctional IT teams, and learned that trust—not control—is what creates real performance. She also discusses the leadership skill that matters more than ever: adaptability.

    From AI and automation to career ownership, mentorship, resume bias, and negotiating for what you want, this episode explores the realities women leaders face when technical expertise is no longer enough to be seen as ready.

    Dawn’s message is direct: seize the opportunity, ask for what you want, and stop waiting for permission to lead.

    This episode is part of the Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable series, spotlighting women leaders in STEM who have built influence, credibility, and impact in complex environments.


    In this episode, we cover:

    • How to rebuild trust inside dysfunctional teams
    • Why technical expertise alone is not enough for senior leadership
    • The credibility challenge for women in STEM
    • Why adaptability is now a leadership requirement
    • How AI is changing strategy, productivity, and leadership decisions
    • What scarcity-driven leadership costs women
    • How mentorship helps more women advance
    • Resume bias, gendered language, and hiring systems
    • Why women must ask for promotions, raises, and opportunities


    ______________________________________________________


    Chapters:
    02:33 — What Dawn Built That Is Not on the Resume
    03:07 — Turning Dysfunctional IT Teams Into Collaborative Teams
    06:07 — Building Trust Through Honest Conversations
    08:19 — Moving From Technical Expert to People Leader
    10:31 — Gaining Credibility in Male-Dominated STEM Spaces
    12:16 — Why Adaptability Is a Leadership Superpower
    15:01 — AI, Productivity, and the Future of Work
    17:08 — Becoming the CEO of Your Own Career
    19:24 — Breaking the Cycle of Scarcity Leadership
    21:45 — Resume Bias, Gendered Language, and Hiring Systems
    25:56 — The Undeniable Take: Ask for What You Want


    Support the show

    Watch & Subscribe
    🎥 Watch this conversation and explore more Unfiltered leadership content:
    www.youtube.com/@leadershipvariations

    Work with Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto
    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
    https://calendly.com/abladenshatto/30min
    🌐 Learn more → https://www.leadershipvariations.com
    🔗 Connect on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybladenshatto
    🔗 Like us on Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/leadvarunfiltered/
    🔗  Follow us on Instagram:
    https://www.instagram.com/leadvarunfiltered/ 

    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    28 min
  • Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable with Lisa Imondi, The Mosaic Company

    In this episode of Leadership Variations: Unfiltered, Amy Bladen Shatto sits down with Lisa Imondi, Senior Vice President of Consulting Operations at The Mosaic Company, for a powerful conversation on what it really takes for women in STEM and technical spaces to move from underestimated to undeniable.

    Lisa shares how some of the most meaningful leadership moments in her career came from stepping into work she had never done before — building programs, leading transformation, and proving that confidence can grow through action, not certainty. She also opens up about navigating credibility, authenticity, and the pressure to “fit in” within traditional technical environments.

    The conversation also explores Lisa’s nonprofit, Her Story to Share, and her belief in the power of creative expression, storytelling, and personal branding as tools for healing, confidence, and growth.

    For women leaders, technical experts, high-potential talent, and anyone who has ever felt underestimated, Lisa’s message is clear: if you see something that can be better, go ask to lead it.

    In this episode, you’ll hear about:

    • Leading before you feel fully ready
    • Why stretch assignments can become career-defining moments
    • Building credibility without abandoning authenticity
    • The challenge of being different in STEM and technical spaces
    • How leaders can create room for multiple styles of success
    • Why women should ask for the opportunity instead of waiting to be chosen
    • The story behind Her Story to Share
    • Using creativity and storytelling as a path to confidence and healing

    Listen now and subscribe for more unfiltered leadership conversations.

    ____________________________________________________


    Highlight Chapters


    00:45 — Meet Lisa Imondi

    02:14 — What Leadership Doesn’t Show on a Resume

    02:48 — Taking on Work You’ve Never Done Before

    05:36 — The Red Thread Behind Career Growth

    06:14 — Authenticity in Ambiguous Environments

    08:27 — Credibility Challenges for Women in STEM

    09:03 — “Act More Like an Engineer”

    12:49 — Why Difference Is a Competitive Advantage

    14:47 — Navigating Generational Mindsets at Work

    16:39 — Her Story to Share and the Power of Creative Expression

    21:14 — The Undeniable Take: Go Ask for It

    Support the show

    Watch & Subscribe
    🎥 Watch this conversation and explore more Unfiltered leadership content:
    www.youtube.com/@leadershipvariations

    Work with Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto
    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
    https://calendly.com/abladenshatto/30min
    🌐 Learn more → https://www.leadershipvariations.com
    🔗 Connect on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybladenshatto
    🔗 Like us on Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/leadvarunfiltered/
    🔗  Follow us on Instagram:
    https://www.instagram.com/leadvarunfiltered/ 

    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    23 min
  • Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable with Dr. Andrea Garfinkel, Research & Extension Center, Univ of Wyoming

    In this episode of Leadership Variations Unfiltered, Amy Shatto interviews Dr. Andrea Garfinkel, a plant pathologist and agricultural leader whose career spans academia, agtech, and global farming systems.

    Andrea shares her unconventional leadership journey—from post-PhD fieldwork and career breaks to leading research in high-tech indoor farming environments. The conversation explores what it really takes to transition from technical expert to leader, particularly in male-dominated industries like agriculture and tech.

    They unpack the often invisible work behind leadership growth, including building credibility, navigating bias, and leveraging sponsorship. Andrea also offers a powerful perspective on why self-trust—not perfection—is the defining trait of leaders who rise.

    This episode is essential for women in STEM, emerging leaders, and organizations serious about developing high-potential technical talent.

    ___________________________________________

    Chapters:

     02:02 – Meet Dr. Andrea Garfinkel: From Agriculture to AgTech
     02:38 – The Hidden Leadership Lessons Not on Your Resume
     04:40 – Why “Non-Linear” Career Paths Build Stronger Leaders
     05:38 – From Expert to Leader: The Reality of the Transition
     08:02 – Credibility Challenges for Women in STEM
     10:15 – Sponsorship: The Career Accelerator No One Talks About
     11:16 – Leading in AgTech: Bridging Agriculture & Technology
     13:53 – Managing Strong Personalities Across Disciplines
     14:12 – Women Supporting Women: Breaking Internal Competition
     17:38 – The Undeniable Take: Self-Belief as a Leadership Strategy


    Support the show

    Watch & Subscribe
    🎥 Watch this conversation and explore more Unfiltered leadership content:
    www.youtube.com/@leadershipvariations

    Work with Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto
    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
    https://calendly.com/abladenshatto/30min
    🌐 Learn more → https://www.leadershipvariations.com
    🔗 Connect on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybladenshatto
    🔗 Like us on Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/leadvarunfiltered/
    🔗  Follow us on Instagram:
    https://www.instagram.com/leadvarunfiltered/ 

    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    20 min
  • Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable with Dr. Rosemary Bernal-Gomez, First Analytics

    In this episode of Leadership Variations: Unfiltered, Amy Bladen Shatto speaks with Dr. Rosemary Bernal-Gomez, a seasoned analytics leader and STEM advocate whose career spans over three decades in high-stakes environments.

    From developing predictive analytics models that helped eliminate workplace fatalities to navigating the realities of bias and credibility testing in leadership, Dr. Bernal-Gomez shares what it truly takes to rise from underestimated to undeniable.

    This conversation explores the intersection of technical expertise and leadership identity, including the moment she was publicly challenged in a high-stakes meeting—and how she transformed it into a defining career inflection point.

    Listeners will gain insight into:

    • The real transition from expert to leader
    • The role of AI and data in ethical, human-centered leadership
    • How to navigate bias, sabotage, and imposter syndrome
    • Why self-advocacy is a leadership competency—not a personality trait

    This episode is essential for women in STEM, senior leaders, and anyone navigating high-performance environments where credibility is constantly tested.

    Support the show

    Watch & Subscribe
    🎥 Watch this conversation and explore more Unfiltered leadership content:
    www.youtube.com/@leadershipvariations

    Work with Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto
    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
    https://calendly.com/abladenshatto/30min
    🌐 Learn more → https://www.leadershipvariations.com
    🔗 Connect on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybladenshatto
    🔗 Like us on Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/leadvarunfiltered/
    🔗  Follow us on Instagram:
    https://www.instagram.com/leadvarunfiltered/ 

    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    27 min
  • Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable with Pilar Baltar, Perplexity AI & Various Top Tech Firms

    In this episode of Leadership Variations: Unfiltered, Amy Bladen Shatto sits down with Pilar Baltar, Business Fellow at Perplexity AI and former senior executive across global Microsoft partner organizations, to explore what it truly takes to lead at the intersection of AI, revenue, and executive power.

    With over 20 years leading large-scale tech transformations across EMEA and the U.S., Pilar shares her journey from computational linguistics to AI strategy, and what women in technology must understand to rise — and stay — at the senior table.

    This episode dives into:

    • How AI is disrupting hiring, resumes, and executive recruitment
    • Why companies are flipping interviews in the age of generative AI
    • The shift from technical expert to leader-of-leaders
    • Navigating executive power as a woman in male-dominated tech
    • Why “likability vs. gravitas” is a false binary
    • The commercial truth women must understand to reach the C-suite


    If you're a woman in STEM, AI, tech consulting, or executive leadership — this is a must-listen.

    🎧 Listen now and subscribe for science-based leadership insights that drive real business value.

    ___________________________________________________

    Chapters:

    02:50 – From English Major to AI Leader
    04:00 – The AI Resume Disruption
    08:30 – Will Resumes Survive AI? 
    10:20 – AI Maturity in Organizations
    14:20 – The Shift to Leader of Leaders
    16:50 – Delivering Through Others
    19:00 – Gender & Executive Perception
    21:00 – Gravitas vs. Likability
    24:00 – Feedback Deficit for Women in Tech
    25:35 – The Undeniable Take


    Support the show

    Watch & Subscribe
    🎥 Watch this conversation and explore more Unfiltered leadership content:
    www.youtube.com/@leadershipvariations

    Work with Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto
    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
    https://calendly.com/abladenshatto/30min
    🌐 Learn more → https://www.leadershipvariations.com
    🔗 Connect on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybladenshatto
    🔗 Like us on Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/leadvarunfiltered/
    🔗  Follow us on Instagram:
    https://www.instagram.com/leadvarunfiltered/ 

    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    27 min
  • Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable with Biliana Veleva-Rotse, Amicus Therapeutics

    In this episode of Leadership Variations: Unfiltered, host Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC sits down with Dr. Biliana Veleva-Rotse, Global Medical Director for Fabry Disease at Amicus Therapeutics, to unpack what leadership really looks like for women in STEM who rise without the recognition they deserve.

    Biliana shares her non-linear path from neuroscience PhD and academic research to global leadership in biotech—revealing how credibility, influence, and impact are built without positional power, perfectionism, or having all the answers.


    Together, Amy and Biliana explore:
    - Why being the smartest person in the room can actually limit leadership
    - How trust, vulnerability, and cross-functional thinking unlock innovation
    - The hidden cost of “earning the right to speak” as a woman in STEM
    - How inclusive leadership becomes a strategic advantage—not a soft skill
    - What it truly takes to move from underestimated to undeniable


    This conversation is essential listening for senior women in STEM, biotech leaders, medical affairs professionals, and executives navigating technical-to-leadership transitions.

    🎧 If you’ve ever felt you needed one more credential before claiming your seat at the table, this episode is for you.


    🎧 Available on YouTube and all major podcast platforms
     📌 Subscribe for unfiltered conversations on leadership, credibility, and real behavior change

    _________________________________________

    Highlight Chapters:
    00:40 – About Biliana
    02:20 – Leadership Beyond the Resume
    04:50 – The Myth of the Clear Leadership Path
    06:30 – Leaving Academia
    08:55 – Credibility in Male-Dominated Spaces
    11:40 – Subject Matter Expert vs. Leader
    15:30 – Trust as a Leadership Accelerator
    16:20 – Leadership at Home
    17:50 – The Career Identity Crisis
    23:50 – The Undeniable Take


    #LeadershipVariationsUnfiltered #WomenInSTEM #WomenInLeadership

    Support the show

    Watch & Subscribe
    🎥 Watch this conversation and explore more Unfiltered leadership content:
    www.youtube.com/@leadershipvariations

    Work with Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto
    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
    https://calendly.com/abladenshatto/30min
    🌐 Learn more → https://www.leadershipvariations.com
    🔗 Connect on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybladenshatto
    🔗 Like us on Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/leadvarunfiltered/
    🔗  Follow us on Instagram:
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    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    26 min
  • Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable with Tara Hernandez, MONGODB

    What if the most important parts of leadership never show up on a résumé?

    In this episode of Leadership Variations: Unfiltered, Amy Blaydon sits down with Tara Hernandez, Vice President of Developer Productivity at MongoDB, for a candid conversation about what leadership in STEM actually demands—beyond credentials, titles, and technical brilliance.

    With a career spanning Netscape, Mozilla, Pixar, Google, and MongoDB, Tara reflects on why leadership success is less about solving technical problems and more about navigating people, alignment, credibility, and influence at scale.

    This conversation explores the invisible work of leadership:
     • Developing others as your true legacy
     • Transitioning from expert to people leader
     • Navigating credibility and bias in senior roles
     • Why sponsorship—not confidence—is the real accelerator
     • What senior leaders should optimize for as scope and complexity grow

    If you lead in STEM, manage senior talent, or are building leadership pipelines, this episode offers grounded insight into what actually moves organizations forward.

    🎧 Available on YouTube and all major podcast platforms
     📌 Subscribe for unfiltered conversations on leadership, credibility, and real behavior change


    ________________________________________


    Highlights

    00:10 – About Tara

    02:10 – From Technical Expert to People Leader

    04:19 – Leadership Is a People Problem

    08:41 – Aligning Smart, Opinionated Teams

    10:57 – Credibility and Perception in STEM Leadership

    15:29 – Mentorship vs. Sponsorship

    18:07 – The Readiness Trap

    20:11 – What Senior Leaders Should Optimize For

    20:59 - Are You Ready Enough For The Role?

    23:33 – The Leadership Legacy That Matters Most


    Support the show

    Watch & Subscribe
    🎥 Watch this conversation and explore more Unfiltered leadership content:
    www.youtube.com/@leadershipvariations

    Work with Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto
    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
    https://calendly.com/abladenshatto/30min
    🌐 Learn more → https://www.leadershipvariations.com
    🔗 Connect on LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybladenshatto
    🔗 Like us on Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/leadvarunfiltered/
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    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    27 min
  • Cracking the Code: From Underestimated to Undeniable with Dr. Natalie Crawford, DVM, Veterinary Pathologist, Operations EXEC, & Coach

    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered | Series 1, Episode 4 

    Leadership Challenges & Growth with Dr. Natalie Crawford, DVM, Veterinary Pathologist, Operations EXEC, & Coach

    In this powerful episode of Leadership Variations: Unfiltered, Dr. Natalie Crawford shares the unfiltered truth about leadership growth, identity, and resilience as a woman of color in STEM. With 20+ years across animal health, pharma, and medical devices—and a rare blend of scientific rigor, operational leadership, and DEI expertise—Natalie reveals what real leadership looks like behind the résumé.

    She opens up about:

    • Shifting from subject-matter expert to global leader
    • Learning to lead without being the “expert in the room”
    • Navigating identity, visibility, and underrepresentation in STEM
    • Why feedback, coaching, and a personal “board of directors” changed everything
    • How she overcame self-doubt, isolation, and high-stakes leadership pressure
    • And the one undeniable truth for women ready to rise into senior roles


    This episode is raw, insightful, and deeply grounding—a masterclass in leadership maturity for anyone advancing in STEM or navigating complex career transitions.


    Podcast Chapters:

    00:31- Meet Dr. Natalie Crawford

    02:01 - Leadership Skills You Don’t See on Resume

    03:54 - Leading During Difficult Moments

    07:26- From STEM Specialist to People Leader

    08:54 - The Identity Crisis of Leadership Advancement

    12:17 - How to Advocate for Your Own Coaching

    13:26 - Women of Color in STEM

    15:21 - Holding Identity Strong While Breaking Barriers

    18:20 - What She’d Do Differently (Or Not)

    20:07 - The Undeniable Take


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    #LeadershipVariationsUnfiltered #WomenInSTEM #WomenInLeadership #STEMCareers #LeadershipPodcast #ExecutiveCoaching #DEILeadership #LeadershipGrowth #STEMWomen #CareerDevelopment

    Support the show

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    📈 Tired of being underestimated? Partner with a coach who specializes in helping leaders in STEM break barriers and accelerate impact. Book a consultation →
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    About the Host
    Leadership Variations: Unfiltered is hosted by Dr. Amy Bladen Shatto, PhD, PCC, BCC — an Industrial/Organizational Psychologist with over 25 years of experience helping organizations make faster, smarter leadership decisions. She specializes in science-based assessment, executive coaching, and leadership development strategies that deliver measurable business outcomes.

    23 min

About Leadership Variations: Unfiltered

From the publisher's feed

Season 1: Cracking the Code – From Underestimated to Undeniable spotlights senior women in STEM who’ve broken barriers and redefined success. If you’re a woman in science, tech, engineering,…