
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or


A lot of managers want employees to go the extra mile, yet they treat the relationship like a transaction.
That mismatch is where trust starts to crack.
In this episode of Management Muse, Cindi Baldi talks with award-winning author Hanna Hasl-Kelchner about the workplace social contract: the unwritten agreement that determines whether employees lean in, pull back, or start polishing their résumés.
Hanna breaks down the five “speed bumps” that can block trust: approachability, recognition, bias, workload management, and conflict management.
From overlooked ideas to overloaded high performers, this conversation gives managers a practical way to spot where trust may be getting stuck, and a roadmap to get the relationship back on track.
Episode Highlights
About Hanna Hasl-Kelchner:
Hanna's a no-nonsense workplace fairness strategist and the award-winning author of 'Seeking Fairness at Work - Cracking the New Code of Greater Employee Engagement, Retention & Satisfaction.' Her straight talk and practical tools have helped organizations from startups to S&P 500 companies tackle the messy realities beneath the surface of employee engagement and retention.
Connect with Hanna:
Linkedin | Facebook | Blue Sky | Youtube
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/09HooWAQ7vM
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get a FREE chapter of The Uncertainty Playbook.
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
Your coworker probably isn’t a narcissist.
They may be stubborn. They may be self-important. But “narcissist” is a big word—and Cindi and Geoff think we’re throwing it around way too easily.
In this episode of Management Muse, they challenge the way we talk about narcissism at work. Cindi and Geoff separate the clinical meaning of narcissism from the management research on narcissistic traits, where confidence, visibility, and bold action can sometimes help leaders rise.
But the upside has a shadow. The same self-belief that helps a leader make a hard call can also make them resistant to feedback, blind to risk, and exhausting to follow.
They explore the line between leadership confidence and dangerous certainty, why high-level leadership often requires tolerating loneliness, and why calling someone a narcissist can flatten a complicated workplace problem into a dead-end diagnosis.
This episode is a smarter way to think about ego, power, conflict.
Episode Highlights:
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/R5OTDD-QuPg
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get a FREE chapter of The Uncertainty Playbook: https://managementmuse.com/newsletter/
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
Nothing reveals a company’s culture faster than how it lets people go.
In this episode of Management Muse, Cindi Baldi talks with Collette Revere and Kim White about the importance of empathetic exits: a more intentional, humane approach to layoffs, terminations, and voluntary departures.
Too often, companies invest heavily in employee engagement while people are useful to the organization, then sever the relationship abruptly when the employment arrangement ends. That sends a clear message not only to the person leaving, but to everyone who stays.
Collette and Kim explain why exits should be treated as part of the employee lifecycle, not an awkward administrative task to rush through. They discuss the hidden costs of cold layoffs, the importance of planning before a crisis, and why departing employees can remain valuable members of an organization’s broader network.
If you want to preserve trust, protect culture, and handle employee exits in a way that reflects your actual values, don’t miss this episode.
Episode Highlights:
**EXCLUSIVE Offering for Muse Listeners: The Empathetic Exits Consultation
A 30-minute diagnostic to help organizations find relief before, during, or after employee exits and workforce transitions.
This brief diagnostic is for leaders who want a more thoughtful, human, and effective approach to exits, offboarding, layoffs, or workforce transitions. In 30 minutes, we’ll help you identify where your current process may be creating unnecessary pressure, risk, confusion, or loss and uncover the next right step.
Available exclusively in May 2026 to the first 10 Management Muse listeners who claim it.
Claim Your Spot!
About Collette Revere:
Collette Revere is the Founder and CEO of Open360™, a psychology-based leadership and development company helping organizations strengthen trust, alignment, and performance through feedback and communication. A mental health professional, certified change management practitioner, and organizational development consultant, she has spent nearly two decades helping leaders improve performance management, navigate change, and build healthier workplace culture using practical approaches grounded in behavioral science.
Connect with Collette:
Website | Linkedin
About Kim White:
With a background in I-O psychology, product leadership, and AI-driven learning, Kim White helps teams and leaders bring their WOW—Work on What Matters—into view—when they’re at pivotal moments of growth and decision-making. Together we map bold new paths, co-create what fits, and turn crossroads into pathways.
Connect with Kim:
Website | Linkedin
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/zTG3tHa11Ns
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get a FREE chapter of The Uncertainty Playbook.
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
If you only read one book on motivation, you might be missing half the story.
In this episode of Management Muse, Cindi Baldi and Geoffrey Tumlin dig into the messy, controversial, and often misunderstood science of motivation. They explore intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation, how reward systems are easy to mess up, and why popular advice often oversimplifies what actually drives people at work.
From sales targets to healthcare metrics, Cindi and Geoff explore where well-intentioned rewards changes create frustration instead of motivation, and what to do instead.
Before you change compensation, bonuses, performance metrics, or incentives, listen to this one. Motivation is not simple — and your people will feel it if you treat it like it is.
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ACzmEnAqjxI
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get a FREE chapter of The Uncertainty Playbook: https://managementmuse.com/newsletter/
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
Your company might be one expired domain, missing admin login, or messy vendor contract away from a digital disaster.
In this episode of Management Muse, Cindi Baldi talks with Paige Wiese, founder and CEO of Tree Ring Digital, about the hidden digital weak spots that can turn into expensive chaos.
From wiped computers and missing website documentation to personal email accounts and AI tools, this conversation explores the everyday ways organizations accidentally build fragility into their digital ecosystem.
You’ll learn why leaders need to document who has access to what, why offboarding should include more than collecting a laptop, and how to avoid becoming the company that discovers its entire digital operation was held together by one person’s browser history.
This episode is for managers, executives, founders, and anyone who has ever asked, “Wait… who has the login for that?”
Episode Highlights:
About Paige Wiese:
Paige Wiese, Founder & CEO of Tree Ring Digital, has been involved in over 75 digital due diligence and post-acquisition projects, reviewing more than 300 digital data points per business. Through her proprietary Digital Asset Protection™ system and Ownership Mapping Framework™, Paige helps advisors and business owners prevent costly deal delays and protect valuation by ensuring full control of every digital asset before a sale.
Connect with Paige:
Linkedin | FB | IG | YT
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/QB3zXLdOXck
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get our FREE guide to the 6 Habits You NEED to Level Up Your Management Skills in 2026!
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
Should people at work know what everyone else makes?
In this episode of Management Muse, Cindi Baldi and Geoffrey Tumlin tackle the messy science and management reality of pay transparency. Too little transparency sends employees into the rumor mill. Too much transparency can make people obsess over small differences, narrow salary bands, and reduce room for negotiation.
The sweet spot? A Goldilocks approach: enough transparency to build trust and reduce speculation, but not so much that compensation becomes the only thing people can see.
Cindi and Geoff explore why salary satisfaction is often driven less by the absolute number on a paycheck and more by who employees compare themselves to. They discuss why job markets provide a reality check, how to leverage this information to get paid what you’re worth, and what managers should do when employees believe they are underpaid.
This episode gives leaders a practical way to think about compensation clarity without turning the workplace into a salary cage match.
Episode Highlights:
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vHhnHLQHpMk
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get our FREE guide to the 6 Habits You NEED to Level Up Your Management Skills in 2026!
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
Performance reviews eat up time, frustrate employees, and often fail to improve performance. So why are so many organizations still clinging to them?
In this episode of Management Muse, Cindi Baldi talks with Collette Revere, CEO of Open 360, about why traditional performance management is overdue for the trash heap. Collette explains how the model many organizations still use dates back to World War I. It made sense in a more rigid, hierarchical era, but work has changed.
Cindi and Collette unpack why performance reviews are often backward-looking, demotivating, and better at catching low performers than helping good people get better. Collette brings three simple shifts leaders can implement to improve performance management right now, even if their organization is not ready for a full system overhaul.
If you’ve ever sat through a review and thought, “What exactly is this helping?” this one’s for you.
Episode Highlights:
About Collette Revere:
Collette Revere is the Founder and CEO of Open360™, a psychology-based leadership and development company helping organizations strengthen trust, alignment, and performance through feedback and communication. A mental health professional, certified change management practitioner, and organizational development consultant, she has spent nearly two decades helping leaders improve performance management, navigate change, and build healthier workplace culture using practical approaches grounded in behavioral science.
Connect with Collette:
Website | Linkedin
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/QL4q6cHDWB0
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get our FREE guide to the 6 Habits You NEED to Level Up Your Management Skills in 2026!
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
Real workplace problems. No prep. No easy answers. Can the consultants be stumped?
In this special episode of Management Muse, Cindi Baldi and Geoffrey Tumlin put their management consulting instincts to the test with real workplace problems pulled from years of coaching leaders, managers, and organizations. One presents the dilemma, the other has to solve it on the spot before finding out what actually happened.
The dilemmas are messy yet highly relatable: a top performer aging out, a boss who refuses to respect work-life boundaries, and interpersonal drama that threatens operations. Cindi and Geoff reveal how executive coaches and organizational consultants think through leadership challenges in real time. Along the way, they explore one of the hardest truths in consulting: many workplace problems can be solved, but only if people are willing to have the tough conversations.
Fast-paced, funny, and packed with practical leadership advice, this episode is full of insights for managers, executives, HR leaders, and anyone navigating difficult people problems at work. Listen in and see whether the consultants crack the case—or get stumped.
Episode Highlights:
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/lu7ImQV5feY
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get our FREE guide to the 6 Habits You NEED to Level Up Your Management Skills in 2026!
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
Your team agrees with you. They nod in meetings.
In this episode of Management Muse, Cindi Baldi sits down with Leslie Ellis, CEO of Meaningful Change Consulting, to unpack one of the most frustrating leadership challenges: when alignment in the room doesn’t translate into action.
The problem isn’t as simple as individual resistance, it’s also how organizations fundamentally think about change.
Most companies still treat change as a one-time event: something to roll out, push through, and move past. But in today’s environment, disruption is constant, and that model is breaking down.
Leslie introduces a more effective approach: shifting from “change” to continuous reinvention. More importantly, she argues that reinvention can’t just be an initiative, it has to be embedded into the culture. When reinvention becomes part of how an organization operates, teams become more resilient, and organizations stay on the cutting edge amidst ongoing disruption.
Together, they explore why evolution beats revolution, how to build reinvention into your organization’s rhythm, and why leaders must model this shift before expecting it from anyone else.
If your change efforts aren’t sticking, this conversation will help you understand why, and how to build an organization that can actually keep up.
Episode Highlights:
About Leslie Ellis:
Leslie Ellis is an executive change advisor and CEO of Meaningful Change Consulting, helping leaders succeed in complex, high-stakes transformation. She works with senior teams navigating enterprise change, culture shifts, and reinvention. She focuses on what most organizations miss: leadership alignment, decision-making, and setting the right conditions before execution. With 20+ years of experience, Leslie has supported 55+ organizations across 42 countries, impacting over 900,000 stakeholders. She’s often brought in when change is stalled or at risk—or to prevent those outcomes entirely. Leslie is a Forbes Business Council member, Certified Change Management Professional, and Certified Reinvention Practitioner.
Connect with Leslie:
Website | Linkedin | Instagram | Facebook
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/J4ZZNBntXGE
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get our FREE guide to the 6 Habits You NEED to Level Up Your Management Skills in 2026!
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
What happens when your customers don’t just change… they disappear?
In this episode of Management Muse, Cindi Baldi and Geoffrey Tumlin unpack how demographic shifts are rewriting business strategy, often long before leaders realize what is happening. From aging populations and labor shortages to dropping birth rates and school closures, they explore how changes in population, behavior, and generational preferences can disrupt entire industries right under your nose.
And here’s the catch: too often, brands don’t realize the shift until it hits them over the head.
Using examples from healthcare, education, hospitality, and live events, Cindi and Geoff show why strategy cannot stay static when the people you serve are evolving. They tackle a key leadership challenge: how to adapt to new markets without abandoning the customers you already have.
If you lead people, serve customers, or build strategy, this is a shift you can’t afford to ignore.
Episode Highlights:
Watch This Episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/s14j_fp9N5Q
Get your copy of The Uncertainty Playbook: 14 Strategies for Work Success in a Chaotic World here.
→ Use code PLAYBOOK20 for 20% off.
Get Science-Backed Insights and Exclusive Perks Straight to Your Inbox:
→ Sign up for our newsletter and get our FREE guide to the 6 Habits You NEED to Level Up Your Management Skills in 2026!
Want to Go Deeper? Check Out Our Recommended Reading:
Join Our Community & Follow Us:
- Youtube Channel
-TikTok
- Website
From the publisher's feed
Management Muse is a leadership and management podcast for professionals who want to improve communication, increase employee engagement, and build high-performing teams. Host Cindi Baldi and…