NBBA: Curating the Business Conversation

Phil Lind worked with Ted Rogers to build one of Canada's most iconic media brands. The NBBA-finalist sits down with host Mitch Joel to speak about his book, Right Hand Man: How Phil Lind Guided the Genius of Ted Rogers, Canada's Foremost Entrepreneur.

For over 60 years, CBC hosted the iconic Hockey Night In Canada. But in 2013, the NHL chose Rogers to take over as its national broadcaster. Longtime Globe and Mail hockey columnist—and NBBA finalist—David Shoalts takes host Mitch Joel off the ice, and into the boardroom, to discuss the NHL's surprising decision, the tense media faceoff that lead up to it, and the future of Canada's quintessential sports show.

Hunter Harrison got an antiquated industry back on track after pioneering precision scheduled railroading, and executing turnarounds at four major railroads. And while the brash, outspoken leader shook up the business from Memphis to Montreal, not everyone agreed with his approach. Author and NBBA finalist, Howard Green, sits down with host Mitch Joel, to speak about his biography, Railroader: The Unfiltered Genius and Controversy of Four-Time CEO Hunter Harrison.

As our systems—and our lives—become more complex, so do our failures. Chris Clearfield and András Tilcsik are the co-authors of Meltdown, and the winners of the 2019 National Business Book Award. Chris speaks with host Mitch Joel about what we can learn by analyzing some of businesses' biggest mistakes—from oil spills and plane crashes, to social media missteps and misconduct.

In this episode, Mitch speaks with Donald Savoie, Order of Canada recipient and author of 45(!) books, including the NBBA-nominated Looking for Bootstraps: Economic Development in the Maritimes. Here Savoie speaks on the economic history and future of the region, including the push-pull relationship between locals and shale gas; the cultural secret to combating brain-drain among young Maritimers; why the conversations about national unity in Canada don’t often focus on Atlantic Canada and the ultimate value of an economic union within the Maritimes. Produced by Julia De Laurentiis Johnson for Church + State.

In this episode, Mitch talks to James Darroch, co-author with Patricia Meredith, of Stumbling Giants: Transforming Canada’s Banks for the Information Age. James speaks on how Canada’s Big Six banks are scrambling to improve customer service in an age of digital immediacy; how when banks acquire fintechs to remember the importance of striking a balance between evolving the platform and retaining those who made it; and what the new digital wallets, like Apple Pay and Google pay, can learn from the original ATM boom. Produced by Julia De Laurentiis Johnson for Church + State.

In this episode, Mitch Joel speaks with Chris Turner, author of The Patch: The People, Pipelines, and Politics of the Oil Sands, about how the streets of Fort McMurray have become the front lines of a high-stakes collision between two conflicting world views – one, industrial triumph and the other, environmental stewardship in the age of climate change. And, importantly, what does this mean and how does this conflict affects the Indigenous population upon whose land this battle is occurring? How do we reconcile this disagreement? How is ‘fair’ defined and for whom? Turner talks about how he wanted to frame this global conflict through the eyes of those who live in it day-to-day and, crucially, what exactly will come next? Produced by Julia De Laurentiis Johnson for Church + State.

Mitch Joel in conversation with Jennifer Riel who co-authored Creating Great Choices: A Leader's Guide to Integrative Thinking along with Roger Martin.

They chat about the value of failing fast; why staying open to opposing, potentially uncomfortable perspectives may be the key to true integrative – and innovative - thinking; and, of course, how The Lego Movie does a good job of capturing the spirit of this book.

This is part of the 2018 National Business Book Award nominees podcast series.

Produced by Julia De Laurentiis Johnson for Church + State.