ResponseABLE with Professor Nikki James

Heatherjean MacNeil is a professor of Organizational Behavior at Northeastern University, founder, sustainability advocate, mother, researcher, and much more. In this episode, Heather and Nikki sit down in Maine to discuss everything from career shifts to the role of intuition in career planning. Heatherjean shares her story of becoming a founder and her path to professorship—she connects her own experiences to the advice and wisdom she gives her students and mentees everyday. 

To stay connected with Heather or inquire more about her work, connect with her on LinkedIn.

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

In this episode, Nikki sits down with Grace and Wayne Leroux discuss to their lives in Cape Town, paths to each other, and the steady growth of their venture, Running Late Club. They unpack the realization that more isn't always better and that clear values drive a dream forward. 

To become involved with Running Late, check out their Instagram or website. Also, connect with Grace and Wayne on LinkedIn to stay in touch. 

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

The Cake Is Big Enough with Donna and Brent James

ResponseABLE with Professor Nikki James

Episode Summary

In this episode, Nikki sits down with Donna and Brent James — married for over 24 years, parents of three, and co-founders of Genesis Travel Solutions in Cape Town, South Africa. Genesis is the company behind the logistics that make Nikki's Northeastern study abroad program possible, and Brent and Donna have become close friends and mentors to her along the way.

Brent and Donna get candid about what it actually took to build Genesis — including two failed attempts before the business finally stuck, the tension of building a company as a married couple, and the season when Brent quit his job with no income to fall back on while Donna held down financial stability for the family. They talk honestly about how their strengths complement each other, how they learned (and are still learning) to manage money and trust as partners, and how they've built a company culture that prioritizes people and family over rapid growth. The conversation closes with the story of a $100 slushie that meant a lot more than it sounds like.

What You'll Hear

• How Nikki first met Donna and Brent through a mutual friend — and the surreal story of Donna baking Nikki a birthday cake before they'd even officially met
• The real story behind Genesis Travel Solutions: three attempts over roughly a decade, two false starts derailed by timing (a retrenchment, then COVID), before the business finally found its footing
• What it looked like for Brent to quit his corporate job and go all-in on the business while Donna held onto financial stability for the family — and the very different ways each of them remembers that season
• The moment Donna finally left her own job to join Genesis full-time, and the doubt that lingered even after she did
• What a business consultant's personality assessment revealed about why their partnership works, despite conventional wisdom that spouses shouldn't run a business together
• How entrepreneurship evolved for Brent from "how much money can I make" to building something that creates opportunity for other people
• The story of Charlie — a former construction worker Brent and Donna invested in, training and funding his tour guide qualification, who now owns his own tour company, Liminal Tours
• Why Genesis is intentionally built as a "family business" rather than a fast-scaling corporate one, including a hard rule that team members show up for their own kids' school events and games
• Lessons in financial stewardship and transparency as a married couple running a business together — and how their approach to money has evolved over the years
• The story behind the name "Genesis" and why it's stuck with them through every attempt
• The 100 RAND slushie: a small moment that captured what nine months of financial uncertainty — and its end — meant for their family
  
  

Notable Moments

• -On why the business almost didn't survive its first year: Brent describes "gangster conversations" with God during a rough nine-month stretch where nothing seemed to be working — until a single phone call changed everything.
• On what makes their partnership work: despite friends and even a professional consultant expecting a married couple in business together to fail, Brent and Donna's complementary strengths turned out to be their biggest asset.
• On what success looks like to them: rather than chasing rapid growth or owning a fleet of vehicles, Brent talks about wanting Genesis to stay small enough that everyone on the team can still make it to their own kid's netball game.

Reflection Challenge

This week's challenge from Nikki: think about how you show up in the partnerships in your life — whether in business, marriage, or friendship — and consider whether you're leaning into what the other person is genuinely good at, rather than trying to do it all yourself.

About Donna & Brent James

Donna and Brent James are the co-founders of Genesis Travel Solutions, a Cape Town-based travel and logistics company that partners with universities, tour guides, and transport providers across South Africa. Married for over 24 years and parents to three children, they've built Genesis around a philosophy of slow, intentional growth — one that prioritizes family, community, and investing in the people they work with over rapid scale.

Website: genesistravel.co.za
Follow them on Instagram: @genesistravelsolutions

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*ResponseABLE with Professor Nikki James helps college students and early career professionals navigate the real, unfiltered challenges of building a career and a life. Subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.*

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

Earl-Djehuti is a leader at TSIBA Business School in Cape Town, South Africa and partners with Nikki to facilite the partnership between TSIBA and Northeastern University each year. In the episode you will hear that Earl's leadership skills span far beyond the classroom and into many aspects of life. In the conversation you'll hear Nikki and Earl discuss topics from leadership, to ancestral reconciliation, to asking for help. 

To learn more about Earl, connect with him on LinkedIn or check out the programs at TSIBA Business School. 

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

Episode Summary

In this episode, recorded on the beach in Cape Town during the final days of Nikki's time in South Africa, she sits down with her friend Carmen Levendall — a motor mechanic turned laundromat owner turned community advocate. Carmen shares her winding path from a "lost teenager" in the northern suburbs of Cape Town to becoming one of the few women in South Africa's motor mechanic trade in the 1990s, to unexpectedly buying a laundromat in 2016 that would become a hub of dignity and healing for her community.

Carmen opens up about running Snow White Laundry as more than a business — offering warm clothes, coffee, and connection to homeless neighbors and elderly customers alike — and about her volunteer work at Paulsmoor Prison, where she co-founded Safe Harbor to support incarcerated mothers. The conversation closes on something every high-achiever needs to hear: what it really looks like to rest intentionally instead of pouring out until the cup runs dry.

What You'll Hear

• Nikki's signature opening question — "Who are you?" — and Carmen's answer: mom, wife, entrepreneur, volunteer, mechanic, recycler, and lifelong community person
• Growing up in Belhar, the culture shock of moving to Muizenberg after marriage, and realizing she'd been living with a "fixed mindset" about her own potential
• Landing in motor mechanics almost by accident — a NAMPAC bursary, a fear of "Spock" (electrical work), and becoming one of the only women training as a mechanic in 1996
• The unplanned leap into entrepreneurship: a customer's offhand comment, a laundromat that wasn't even on the market yet, and the leap of faith that became Snow White Laundry in December 2016
• Turning a business into a community — offering homeless neighbors clean clothes, hot coffee, and dignity, and watching lives change over the years
• Carmen's philosophy on business: people over profit, and why she believes it's actually more sustainable in the long run
• Her volunteer work at Paulsmoor Prison and the story behind founding Safe Harbor, an organization supporting incarcerated mothers
• A candid conversation about burnout — what happens when giving becomes pouring without ever refilling, and what "resting intentionally" actually looks like
• Carmen's big-picture vision for the next 25 years: a "human tune-up shop" combining the laundry, a mechanic bay, a coffee shop, and a landing space for women rebuilding their lives after incarceration

Notable Moments

• Carmen on discovering her potential: she describes moving from a "fixed mindset" to realizing "the potential is there" — a theme that shapes everything she's built since.
• On why she runs her business the way she does: profit isn't the point — job creation, dignity, and community are.
• On burnout: Carmen is refreshingly honest that doing deep, meaningful work with people she loves can bring "unbelievable joy" and "unbelievable burnout" in equal measure — and that learning to rest intentionally has been its own hard-won skill.

Reflection Challenge

This week's challenge from Nikki: find one thing that genuinely refills and recharges you — not just something that feels productive — so you can show up fully for the people and work you care about.

About Carmen

Carmen Levendall is a qualified motor mechanic, entrepreneur, and community advocate based in Cape Town, South Africa. She owns and operates Snow White Laundry, a neighborhood laundromat she's run since 2016, and serves as chairman of the board of Safe Harbor, an organization she helped found to support incarcerated mothers at Paulsmoor Prison.

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

Brianna Holmes is an engineer turned entrepreneur in her 20s, on a mission to demystify the FE exam for engineering students. For engineers and non-engineers, Nikki's chat with Breanna is an empowering reminder of the power that mindset has on every hurdle we face. They discuss the pros and cons of a winding career path, tips for showing up as your best self, and what actually led Breanna to starting her own business. 

To inquire about her business or learning opportunities, check out FE Made Easy. Also, to stay up to date, connect with Breanna on LinkedIn. 

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

Sinethemba Dangazele is an entrepreneur, leader, and lifelong learner based in Cape Town, South Africa. Both fortunate enough to work with TSIBA Business School, Sinethemba sits down with Nikki to discuss his path from not even using the word "entrepreneur," to building a business, to teaching others about the path to entrepreneurship. His commitment to his dreams and genuine effort to make the world a better place are made clear throughout the conversation. Connect with Sinethemba on LinkedIn to stay up to date on his work. 

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

This episode marks the six-month milestone of ResponsABLE. Nikki hops on the mic today to reflect on her podcasting journey. She shares the evolution of ResponABLE's mission and vision and as well as her key learnings so far. 

As mentioned in the episode, learn more about Systems Theory and Actor-Network Theory in the attached links.

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

Natasha and Ian Miller are the founders of Siyazana, an organization which empowers young people in South Africa with education, mentorship, and resources. While Siyazna does a variety of work, their goal is to “cultivate agents of change who will challenge prevailing socio-economic norms and inspire subsequent generations.” In this episode, you’ll hear about how Siyazana began, along with Ian and Natasha’s motivation to start and develop such an impactful organization. 

To stay connected, follow Ian and Natasha on Instagram.

Also, no matter where you are in the world, participate in Mandela Day AND help celebrate Nikki's birthday. Using this link, $4.13 can sponsor a meal for 10 people on July 17. By donating you will help the Siyazana team reach the goal of providing 2,000 people with a warm meal. 

https://www.givio.co.za/campaigns/0mZ7ubBLbV5f3foS1Axy

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn. 

Clayton Jardine is young leader, community builder, and social impact worker based in Cape Town, South Africa. In this episode, Nikki and Clayton sit down to Clayton's journey from being a student to working in social impact. From the way he's made the most of challenging moments, to his creative problem solving in both personal and professional life, listeners are sure to take something positive away from this conversation. 

To follow along Clayton's journey, check out is LinkedIn or Instagram. 

To learn more about ResponseABLE, check out the website www.responseable.org or follow Professor Nikki James on LinkedIn or Instagram.

ResponseABLE is produced and edited by Northeastern Alumni, Nora Shepard. For more from Nora, subscribe to Good Disaster on Substack or connect with her on LinkedIn.