What happens when your highest performer is also hurting the team?

In this episode of Middle Manager Mastery, Shruti Rustagi sits down with Shailendra Singh who brings two decades of experience across FMCG, retail, and e-commerce, including leadership roles at HUL and Nykaa.

Shailendra shares practical lessons on building and leading high-performing teams - from inheriting a struggling team and making tough calls to coaching low performers and identifying the difference between will and skill.

The conversation explores why strong individual performance isn't enough, why managers need to understand the root cause behind performance issues, and how empathy and coaching can turn struggling employees into valuable contributors.

About Shailendra:

Shailendra Singh is a senior business leader with 18+ years of experience across e-commerce, retail, and FMCG. He has held leadership roles at Nykaa and Hindustan Unilever, where he led P&Ls, digital transformation, e-commerce growth, and large teams.

At HUL, he scaled the e-commerce business 40X in three years and helped build the function from the ground up. At Nykaa, he leads Beauty Retail and Omnichannel Strategy across 150+ stores, focusing on sustainable growth and seamless consumer experiences.

Timestamps:

01:23 - Inheriting a struggling team at Nykaa
01:42 - The first 30 days: Observe, understand, and act
04:00 - Why managers need to start from the ground up
05:09 - Getting an unfiltered view of your team
05:42 - What to look for when assessing a team
07:10 - Identifying teams that are out of sync
08:23 - The “bad apple” problem
10:15 - Having difficult conversations as a manager
11:16 - When letting someone go may be the right decision
12:01 - Can a low performer become a high performer?
12:36 - The “will vs. skill” framework
14:00 - Coaching, empathy, and finding the root cause
15:16 - Why people are a leader’s greatest capital
15:50 - Why people switch managers, not organizations
16:58 - Building a team from scratch
17:47 - Defining roles and expectations before hiring
19:00 - Hiring for passion, intent, and potential
20:01 - Key lessons for middle managers

What does sustainable high performance actually look like? In this episode of Middle Manager Mastery, I sit down with Rich Hua, former Chief EQ Evangelist and Worldwide Head of the EPIC Leadership Program at Amazon, for a conversation about emotional intelligence, purpose, performance, recovery, and personal growth.

Rich shares his journey from believing emotions were a weakness to helping build a large EQ community at Amazon - and the lessons he learned along the way.

About Rich:

Rich Hua is a global expert in emotional intelligence, leadership, and innovation. As Amazon’s former Chief EQ Evangelist and Worldwide Head of EPIC Leadership, he built a 70,000+ member EQ community and developed the EPIC framework - Empathy, Purpose, Inspiration, and Connection.

A sought-after keynote speaker, Rich helps leaders build emotionally intelligent, resilient, innovative, and high-performing cultures in an AI-powered world.

Timestamps:

00:17 - From “Genius Robot” to discovering EQ
02:46 - Why IQ alone isn’t enough
05:03 - How one EQ talk sparked a movement at Amazon
09:53 - Finding your Ikigai
12:13 - Job crafting and creating more meaningful work
14:14 - Making a living vs. making a life
16:18 - Control what you can control
18:32 - Why recovery matters as much as productivity
22:04 - Knowing when to push and when to pause
24:28 - The power of “loving critics”
26:36 - The secret to long-term success: give yourself a break
28:46 - When a strength becomes a weakness
33:49 - Rich’s four-word life mantra: Learn. Love. Live. Give.

Why do we procrastinate - even when we know exactly what needs to be done? And what is actually happening inside the brain when we struggle to start?

In this conversation, James breaks down the neuroscience behind procrastination, motivation, dopamine, progress, and productivity - and explains how understanding the brain can change the way we work and manage people.

From making tasks smaller to creating visible progress, you'll learn practical ways to work with your brain instead of constantly fighting against it.

About James:James has a background in brain and behavioral science, with around 22 years of experience in the field. He began his career conducting basic science research in laboratories before moving into applied work, translating scientific research into practical tools and strategies that can make a difference in people's lives.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Introduction

01:35 - What Really Happens When We Procrastinate?

04:10 - Hedonic Adaptation

06:54 - Why Your Brain Hates Starting but Loves Continuing

08:38 - The 5-Minute Strategy to Beat Procrastination

10:08 - Starting With No Resistance

11:58 - Breaking Tasks Into Smaller Pieces

12:38 - The Power of Single-Tasking

15:46 - The Neuroscience of Dopamine

17:18 - How Motivation Works in the Brain

18:13 - The Role of Progress in Motivation

18:46 - Making Invisible Progress Visible

19:20 - The “All Through” List

20:05 - Why To-Do Lists Can Kill Motivation

21:38 - The Problem With Anti-Progress

22:34 - Building a Culture of Visible Progress

23:24 - KPI vs. KBI

24:25 - Creating Visual Representations of Progress

25:47 - Why Visual Progress Motivates Us

27:37 - Recap: Starting Small and Creating Progress

27:57 - Managing With the Brain in Mind

29:00 - Brain-Based Solutions to People Problems

What does it really take to lead when everything around you is changing?

In this episode of Middle Manager Mastery, I speak with Deepali Agarwal. We explore how middle managers can build resilience during disruption, lead teams through changing strategies, recover from wrong decisions, and adapt to the rapidly changing world of AI. Deepali also shares practical lessons on strategic thinking, consumer insights, managing overflowing calendars, building strong allies, and making the most of experience as you grow in your career.

From knowing when to tear up a carefully made plan to learning how to “zoom in and zoom out,” this conversation offers practical insights on leading with clarity, adaptability and empathy.
A conversation for anyone navigating middle management, leadership, strategy and career growth.

About Deepali Agarwal

Deepali Agarwal is a business and marketing leader with close to 20 years of experience across Unilever, J&J, Danone and Philips. She has built and scaled businesses across 10+ consumer categories and led teams across Asia-Pacific markets including Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam. She has also founded and headed her own premium D2C skincare brand. Deepali has been recognized among India’s top 40 marketers under 40 and among the country’s most powerful marketing influencers, with her teams winning 50+ national and international awards.

Timestamps

00:00 - Introduction to Deepali Agarwal
01:54 - What to do when your entire market flips overnight
06:59 - Leading teams when strategy changes
11:13 - Making wrong calls and learning to bounce back
14:19 - Why vulnerability is a leadership strength
17:07 - The mindset shift managers need in the age of AI
21:59 - How to earn a seat at the strategy table
26:43 - Managing overflowing calendars and competing priorities
29:31 - Building allies to work more effectively
33:25 - The ability to “zoom in and zoom out”
35:27 - What strategic thinking actually means
38:08 - Turning consumer insight into a winning strategy
40:44 - Career growth, patience and enjoying the ride

Why is it so hard to stay focused, even when you really want to?

We live in a world of constant notifications, messages, emails and distractions. But losing focus isn't simply about having “bad concentration.” There is a lot more happening inside the brain.

In this episode, we explore the neuroscience of focus and distraction, including the task-positive network that helps us stay present and focused, and the default mode network involved in mind-wandering, reflection, dreaming and unexpected insights.

We also unpack why notifications are so difficult to resist, how dopamine reinforces our distraction habits, and why being focused for too long can actually leave us uninspired and burned out.

Most importantly, this conversation challenges the idea that being productive always means being focused.

Sometimes your brain needs deep focus.
Sometimes it needs to wander.
And sometimes, the most productive thing you can do is step away.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Why staying focused is getting harder
01:15 - The brain networks behind focus and distraction
02:00 - The task-positive network vs. the default mode network
03:00 - Why mind-wandering can actually be productive
04:00 - When too much focus leads to burnout
06:12 - When mind-wandering becomes rumination
07:15 - The real key to productivity: balance
07:41 - What happens when a Slack notification breaks your focus
08:28 - Why your brain keeps switching tasks
09:30 - How notifications train us to become distracted
10:00 - Dopamine and the curiosity behind distraction
12:15 - How your senses can bring you back to focus
13:49 - What meditation does to your focus network
15:12 - A simple sensory technique to regain attention
15:50 - The dentist-chair trick for stopping rumination
17:32 - How to deliberately shift your brain back into focus
18:24 - When to focus and when to let your mind wander
19:02 - Why productivity is really about knowing what your brain needs

The takeaway:You don't need to force yourself to focus all the time. Understanding when to focus, when to pause, and when to let your mind wander may be the key to working better without burning yourself out.

What if you could get people to listen, collaborate and take action, even when you have no formal authority over them?

In this episode of Middle Manager Mastery, Shruti Rustagi speaks with Soumak Nasker, Country Lead at Publicis Health India, about one of the most valuable and often overlooked leadership skills: influencing without authority.

Drawing from nearly two decades of experience across healthcare, CPG, advertising and technology, Soumak shares practical lessons on building trust, creating alignment and getting people to move toward a shared objective without relying on hierarchy or designation.

The conversation explores why influence starts long before you get a leadership title, and why the first few years of your career are the perfect time to start building this skill.

About Soumak:

Soumak Nasker is the Country Lead for Publicis Health India, with nearly two decades of experience across healthcare, CPG advertising and technology. He has worked with global pharma, healthcare and consumer brands across India and Southeast Asia, specialising in leadership, cross-functional collaboration and influencing without authority.

Timestamps:

01:10 - Meet Shaumak Naskar
01:51 - Why Authority Alone Doesn't Create Influence
03:00 - A Leadership Lesson From Singapore
05:22 - Put the Organisation at the Centre
08:28 - Building Your Social Currency
09:30 - Learning to See Problems Through Their Lens
14:07 - When Influence Goes Wrong
16:33 - From Mandate to Genuine Ownership
18:00 - Stop Making It About You
20:00 - Influencing Senior Leaders Without Authority
22:04 - Bringing Alignment Into the Room
23:26 - The Power of Pre-Binding
24:38 - Why You Should Build This Skill Early
25:00 - Practice Is What Turns Influence Into a Leadership Muscle

If you're a middle manager navigating cross-functional teams, managing stakeholders or trying to make things happen without having formal authority, this episode offers practical ideas you can start applying immediately.

What does it take to become a better middle manager, not just someone who gets the work done, but someone who builds capable teams, manages priorities, and creates strong relationships across an organization?

In this episode of Middle Manager Mastery, I speak with Anil Chilla, a corporate leader with 25 years of experience across digital businesses, transformations, and multi-market leadership.

We discuss the realities of middle management through practical examples from Anil's career, covering delegation, coaching, prioritization, burnout, managing upwards, disagreement, and stakeholder relationships.

About Anil:

Anil Chilla is a bestselling author, leadership educator, and former senior executive at L’Oréal, Levi’s, and Dell with 25+ years of leadership experience across Asia. He combines practical business experience with insights from the Ramayana and Indian Knowledge Systems.Timestamps:

01:14 - Why delegation feels terrifying
02:23 - When too much delegation goes wrong
05:07 - When should a manager step in?
07:12 - Relationships vs. deliverables
09:04 - Three ways to get a project back on track
13:08 - Delegating when your team is already overloaded
13:35 - The “ball should never be in your court” principle
15:44 - Preventing burnout through prioritization
17:59 - The 70/30 rule for managing priorities
19:19 - Coaching instead of firefighting
23:02 - Why one-on-ones should start with the person
24:51 - Managing agencies and external partners
26:01 - How to disagree with leadership effectively
28:16 - A real example of “disagree but commit”
33:00 - The art of managing upwards
35:00 - How to say no without being abrasive
36:55 - Never bring a problem without a solution
38:45 - Practical ways to push back
41:24 - The biggest leadership lesson: invest in relationships
43:29 - Final takeaway

What separates great leaders from overwhelmed managers? Often, it's not intelligence or experience—it's the ability to delegate effectively.

In this episode of Middle Manager Mastery, I sit down with Nitika Nagpal to discuss why delegation feels so difficult, how to avoid becoming the bottleneck, and what it truly means to lead high-performing teams.

From micromanagement and strategic thinking to navigating organizational change, AI disruption, and authentic leadership, Nitika shares practical lessons from nearly two decades of leading global teams across P&G, MediaCom, and the LEGO Group.

Whether you're a first-time manager or an experienced leader, this conversation is packed with actionable insights you can apply immediately.

About Nitika:Nitika Nagpal is a marketing leader with 17+ years of global experience driving brand growth, innovation, and high-performing teams across leading companies including P&G, MediaCom, and the LEGO Group.

Timestamp:

00:00 – Introduction: Meet Nitika Nagpal
01:23 – Why delegation feels so difficult
03:42 – The moment Nitika realized she was the bottleneck
05:52 – Should you step in or let your team figure it out?
08:01 – How her approach to delegation evolved over time
11:12 – Leading through AI, uncertainty, and constant change
15:16 – Communicating organizational transformation without creating panic
19:10 – Handling career progression concerns during change
21:23 – Coaching teams through AI anxiety and career uncertainty
23:29 – Honest leadership vs. oversharing
26:16 – Boosting team morale during difficult decisions
33:30 – What strategic thinking actually means
37:38 – When strategy fails: Lessons from a product launch
43:30 – How to make time for strategic thinking
47:51 – Advice for first-time managers
50:46 – Final leadership lessons: Cause good trouble

In this episode of Middle Manager Mastery, I sit down with Yogesh Garde, Vice President of Digital Strategy & Transformation at PepsiCo. With over 22 years of experience across PepsiCo, Deloitte, IBM, and consulting, Yogesh shares practical lessons on transitioning from being an exceptional executor to becoming a strategic business leader.

The conversation explores what separates high-performing middle managers from executives, how to develop strategic thinking, influence without authority, navigate AI-driven disruption, and create psychologically safe teams that innovate and grow.

About Yogesh

Yogesh Garde is the Vice President of Digital Strategy & Transformation at PepsiCo. Over the past two decades, he has led large-scale digital transformations, built global capability centers, scaled product organizations, and helped organizations navigate complex change through strategy, innovation, and leadership.

Timestamps:00:00 Intro & Welcome
01:16 Why strategic thinking matters for middle managers
02:15 The career shift from execution to strategy
05:25 How to build strategic thinking as a daily habit
11:15 Using OKRs to prioritize what truly matters
15:39 Influence without authority & speaking your stakeholders' language
17:51 The biggest mindset mistakes middle managers make
24:18 AI, disruption & keeping teams motivated through change
31:50 Is AI making us less creative?
36:07 Does AI free up time- or just create more work?
39:40 Building psychological safety in teams
43:45 Final leadership advice for every middle manager
45:18 Outro

How do you influence people who don't report to you? How do you build trust across teams, disagree with leadership without damaging relationships, and get work done when everyone has different priorities?

In this episode of Middle Manager Mastery, I sit down with Nishith Kumar, Head of Partnerships at NextHealth and former leader at Uber, to unpack the practical skills every middle manager needs to lead through influence rather than authority.

Drawing from over two decades of experience across fintech, mobility, and healthcare, Nishith shares real stories about stakeholder management, cross-functional leadership, escalation, constructive dissent, and building relationships that accelerate execution.

Whether you're managing projects across teams, navigating matrix organizations, or preparing for leadership roles, this conversation is packed with actionable frameworks you can start applying immediately.

About Nishith:

He has spent 20 years building the partnerships that move industries forward. He scaled ecosystems across fintech, mobility, and healthcare, and he knows what it takes to lead without a title in some of the world's most complex organizations. Today, as head of partnerships at NextHealth, he is writing the future of how healthcare connects.

Timestamps:

00:00 - "You don't lose because your idea is wrong—you lose because you pitched it in your language, not somebody else's."

00:08 - Introduction to Nishith Kumar and today's topic: influencing without authority.

00:53 - The challenge of leading cross-functional teams without formal authority.

01:39 - The Uber connected-car story: why the idea initially failed.

02:37 - Stop selling the feature. Start selling the future.

03:23 - Speaking the language of every stakeholder.

04:00 - Understanding what keeps different teams up at night.

05:33 - Why relationships are built through work, not outside of it.

06:01 - The three foundations of strong professional relationships.

07:05 - The Christmas Day story: relationships that saved a critical deal.

08:16 - Why relationships are the infrastructure behind execution.

09:41 - Not every relationship needs the same level of investment.

11:21 - Learning the hard way: waiting too long to escalate.

11:30 - The two types of escalation every leader should know.

12:50 - Escalate outcomes—not people.

14:13 - Finding bridges instead of creating conflict.

15:23 - Shruti's framework for solving cross-functional blockers.

17:11 - Executing a strategy you don't completely agree with.

18:24 - Becoming the bridge between strategy and execution.

19:14 - Three questions every middle manager should ask before executing.

19:39 - Why global strategies often fail without local context.

21:02 - Challenge assumptions, then commit to execution.

22:08 - Focus on the intent behind the strategy.

23:03 - Why leaders must keep repeating the "why."

24:48 - The right way to disagree with leadership.

25:16 - Why timing matters when expressing dissent.

26:11 - Replace "I disagree" with "Let's stress-test this assumption."

28:22 - Bring solutions, not just problems.

29:08 - The power of thoughtful language in difficult conversations.

31:22 - Help people look good while influencing change.

33:16 - Resource constraints create clarity.

34:12 - Building a single source of truth.

36:03 – Accountability comes from clarity, not authority.

37:55 - Final advice: Assume people want the same outcome as you.