Radio Free Leader

Aaron Olson and BK Simerson are the authors of Leading with Strategic Thinking: Four Ways Effective Leaders Gain Insight, Drive Change, and Get Results. In this interview, we discuss why leadership and strategy are mistakingly treated as separate topics and how effective leaders drive strategic change.

Fred Kiel is the author of "Return on Character." He is is a founding partner of the leadership development and strategic analytics firm KRW International and a pioneer in the field of executive coaching. In this interview, we discuss his recent research showing how the character of corporate leaders can make a tangible difference to the bottom line.

Mike Figliuolo is the Founder and Managing Director of thoughtLEADERS, LLC - a leadership development and training firm. He's also the author of "Lead Inside the Box" and "One Piece of Paper." Mike graduated as an Honor Graduate from West Point and served in the US Army. He was a consultant with McKinsey & Co. and also had several executive roles at Capital One Financial and Scotts Miracle-Gro. In this interview, we discuss how smart leaders guide their teams to exceptional results.

Josh Davis, Ph.D., is the director of research and lead professor at the NeuroLeadership Institute, a global institute dedicated to synthesizing scientific research and guiding its use in the business and leadership domains. He has taught at Columbia University, New York University, and Barnard College of Columbia University. He is the author of "Two Awesome Hours: Science-Based Strategies to Harness Your Best Time and Get Your Most Important Work Done." In this interview, we discuss why work so rarely happens at work and how to get your best work done.

Susan Fowler is the author of "Why Motivating People Doesn't Work...And What Does." She is the lead developer of The Ken Blanchard Company's Optimal Motivation program, which has been implemented worldwide. In this interview, we discuss strategies for optimal motivation and what Maslow’s hierarchy won’t tell you about motivation.

Jean-Philippe Vergne is the author of "The Pirate Organization." He is an assistant professor of strategy at the Richard Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario. His ongoing research on the global arms industry received the inaugural Grigor McClelland Doctoral Dissertation Award in 2011. In this interview, we discuss how pirates and misfits preserve the spirit of capitalism.

Ryan Hartwig is Chair and Associate Professor, Department of Communication Studies at Asuza Pacific University, where he teaches courses on Group Communication and Leadership. He is co-author of "Teams That Thrive." In this interview, we discuss the myth of meaningful work, its leadership implications, and Ryan's recent TEDx talk on the subject.

Todd Henry is the founder of Accidental Creative, a company that helps creative people and teams be prolific, brilliant and healthy. He regularly speaks and consults with companies about how to develop practices that lead to everyday brilliance. His new book, Louder Than Words, outlines the role of a authentic voice as an individual and a leader.

Donald Sull is a global expert on strategy and execution in turbulent markets. He is a senior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management. Kathleen Eisenhardt is the S. W. Ascherman Professor of Strategy at Stanford, a highly cited author, and the co-director of the Stanford Technology Ventures Program. The are the authors of the new book "Simple Rules: How to Thrive in a Complex World." In this interview, we talk about the complexity that surrounds all of us, and how by developing a few simple yet effective rules, people can best even the most complex problems.

Lee Cockerell is the former Executive Vice President of Operations for the Walt Disney World Resort. As the Senior Operating Executive for ten years Lee led a team of 40,000 Cast Members and was responsible for the operations of 20 resort hotels, 4 theme parks, 2 water parks, a shopping and entertainment village, and the ESPN sports and recreation complex. In this interview, we discuss how Lee created and led Disney magic and how you can too, no matter who you work for.