Leveraging Leadership

Melissa Schmidiger shares her journey from working at McKinsey & Company to becoming Chief of Staff at Ayala Land. She highlights the importance of building relationships, understanding one's career goals, and being authentic, which ultimately helped her move into roles like CMO and regional head positions. Melissa now helps high-achieving women through career coaching, focusing on building resilience during significant life transitions.

Links Mentioned:

• Connect with Melissa Schmidiger on LinkedIn

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?

If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:

00:00 Introduction to Melissa Schmidiger
00:52 Melissa's Career Before Chief of Staff
01:42 Transition to Ayala Land
02:25 Becoming Chief of Staff
03:13 Role and Responsibilities as Chief of Staff
03:45 Communication Challenges and Solutions
05:15 Learning and Growth in the Role
09:17 Strategic Contributions and Board Governance
13:40 Post Chief of Staff: Marketing and Beyond
17:07 Global Roles and Achievements
31:00 Career Coaching and Empowering Women
33:24 Conclusion and Contact Information

Emily Sander talks about deciding which battles to fight in a leadership role. She shares a story of a Chief of Staff who chose a short-term reorg plan to avoid conflict with a long-standing Chief Product Officer. Another example is a CEO who decided to replace a problematic Senior Vice President to prepare the company for a sale.

Links Mentioned:

• Clarity Call with Emily

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?

If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:

00:40 Example 1: The Reorg Proposal Dilemma
03:21 Example 2: The CEO's Staffing Challenge

Emily Sander interviews Matt Hartman, a Chief of Staff at Oracle, about his dual role overseeing employee-facing technology and a service group. Matt shares his strategies for prioritization, like focusing on company-wide goals first, utilizing delegation, and fostering teamwork across global teams. He highlights practices like implementing "Friye" for recognition and ensuring cross-training in his team to handle challenges effectively.

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?

If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:

01:44 Balancing Dual Roles
04:36 Delegation Strategies
12:54 Building Relationships and Influence
19:22 Handling Resistance and Finding Common Ground
23:59 Global Team Management
30:18 Effective Team Meetings and Icebreakers
40:39 Embracing AI and Technology
41:25 The Importance of Giving Back

Emily Sander discusses the importance of not losing your strengths while trying to fix your weaknesses. She shares examples like someone being too aggressive in communication and someone being too timid. Emily emphasizes that being direct can be a strength if balanced, just as listening can be, and encourages self-awareness and using feedback to improve leadership skills.

Links Mentioned:

• Clarity Call with Emily

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?

If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:

01:18 Example 1: Managing Aggressiveness
03:19 Example 2: Overcoming Timidity
05:26 Personal Example: Impatience
08:16 Key Takeaways: Self-Improvement

Emily Sander talks with guests Nikki Barua and Cheryl Couch about building and leading a professional development platform that helps businesses grow highly engaged, future-ready talent. Using community-driven, tech-enabled learning, they help top companies boost revenue, retention, and engagement while empowering diverse professionals to rise as resilient leaders. Their mission is to expand economic opportunity for all, guiding professionals from campus to the C-suite and creating a platform that accelerates success for everyone. Because when more of us have a seat at the table, everyone wins.

Links Mentioned:

• Connect with Nikki Barua on LinkedIn
• Connect with Cheryl Couch on LinkedIn

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?

If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:

01:55 Company Growth and Team Dynamics
02:43 Nikki and Cheryl's 13-Year Journey
05:04 The Role of Chief of Staff
07:18 Introducing the Chief of Staff Role to the Team
10:08 Evolving Responsibilities of Chief of Staff
21:32 Preparing for Series A Funding
26:29 Lessons from Past Experiences
27:42 The Importance of a Chief of Staff

Emily Sander discusses the benefits of flash reports in tracking company performance. Flash reports provide a quick overview with KPIs from each department and brief updates from department leaders. They help leadership teams stay informed and enhance board relations by facilitating clear and direct communication.

Links Mentioned:

• Clarity Call with Emily

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?

If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:

00:57 The Role of Flash Reports in Leadership
01:17 Components of a Flash Report
04:37 Benefits of Flash Reports
10:42 Iterating on Flash Reports

Emily Sander interviews Trent Smyth and Jeremy Costa from the Chief of Staff Association, exploring the relationship between a Principal and Chief of Staff. They discuss the role of a Chief of Staff and the association's programs at Oxford and Harvard, emphasizing alignment and personal development. The episode also covers the association's global reach, including networking opportunities and its new military membership initiative.

Links Mentioned:

• Chief of Staff Association Website

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?

If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:

02:40 The Genesis of the Chief of Staff Association
05:17 Defining the Chief of Staff Role
06:01 Challenges and Misunderstandings
13:35 Global Reach and Membership Diversity
17:05 Immersive Programs at Oxford and Harvard
22:15 Membership Benefits and Resources
26:28 Special Events and Conferences
30:40 Membership Process and Values

This episode of Leveraging Leadership focuses on defining the customer using three key questions. Emily Sander, Chief of Staff, discusses how crucial it is for everyone to understand their impact on the customer and what the customer really, REALLY wants. 

Links Mentioned:

• Clarity Call with Emily

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?
If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:
00:32 Defining the Customer in Balanced Scorecard
01:04 Question 1: Considering ALL Customers
03:15 Question 2: Understanding Customer Needs
04:38 Question 3: Company-Wide Customer Awareness

Maya Ayed, Chief of Staff at Amira Health, shares her journey from big tech to startups, including hosting events to build her network. She explains Amira Health's mission to help women with menopause sleep better using a wristband and cooling pad. Maya discusses the importance of storytelling, how her team uses OKRs, and her memorable experience at CES launching their product.

Links Mentioned:

• Clarity Call with Emily

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?
If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:
00:48 Maya's Journey to Chief of Staff
04:18 The Two-Week Trial Experience
08:33 Team Structure and Roles
11:30 Implementing OKRs
19:07 The Importance of Storytelling
22:49 Learning from Mistakes
25:57 Tools and Resources for Chiefs of Staff
29:56 Memorable Moments and Team Bonding

Emily discusses strategic alignment through the balanced scorecard, touching on corporate, business unit, and individual levels. She shares practical examples from her client management department and explains the importance of communication channels. The episode emphasizes visibility, transparency, and clear lines of sight in aligning everyone's goals.

Links Mentioned:

• Clarity Call with Emily

Free Resources:

• Strategic Planning Checklist 
• Chief of Staff Skills Assessment Checklist
• A Day in the Life of a Chief of Staff
• Chief of Staff Toolkit

Get in Touch With Emily:

• Connect on LinkedIn
• Follow on YouTube
• Learn more about coaching 
• Sign up for the newsletter
• Clarity Call with Emily

Who Am I?
If we haven’t met before - Hi👋 I’m Emily, Chief of Staff turned Executive Leadership Coach. After a thrilling ride up the corporate ladder, I’m focusing on what I love - working with people to realize their professional and personal goals. Through my videos here on this channel, books, podcast guest spots, and newsletter, I share new ideas and practical and tactical tools to help you be more productive and build the career and life you want. 

Time Stamps:
00:48 Understanding Corporate, Business Unit, and Individual Levels
02:58 Defining the 'What' and 'How' Elements
04:37 The Importance of Line of Sight
05:50 Transparency and Visibility in Scorecards
07:23 Decision Making with Clear Objectives
07:46 Effective Communication Channels