If I have learned anything from this podcast series it’s that communication is an essential component of effective leadership. Dr Jen Martin, Senior Lecturer in Science Communication at the University of Melbourne is today’s guest. Jen provides a compelling rationale for the ongoing development of effective science communicators. For me, the leadership lesson is that communication is a critical leader capability.

I would like to thank Mike House (speaker, facilitator and mentor) for sharing his views on his leadership pathway.  He discussed his views around key leader capabilities and his response – engaging hearts and minds, creating alignment which included grouped as direction, purpose, meaning and developing a shared understanding.  Mike provided an interesting response to the question – are leaders born or made?  His response - leaders are both born and made but he added two additional elements, individual choice and a capacity for lifelong learning.  Mike's new book is (Un)shakeable: More than resilience a very interesting read based on interviews with leaders from the State Government agencies, emergency services, not-for-profits, start-ups, small business, publicly listed businesses and schools both public and private.

Today’s guest, Dr Melinda Muth, educator, consultant, keynote speaker and facilitator shares a compelling story about her leadership pathway in Australia.  I am grateful for Melinda’s time and like my previous guests, she has an amazing talent for storytelling.  As usual I asked Melinda to identify what she believed are critical leader capabilities and her list included but not limited to understanding people and human behaviour, the ability to communicate amongst groups and individuals and being a strategic thinker.

Welcome to the first podcast for April 2021 and my thanks to Nic Danko, CEO and Co-Founder of Symple. It seems Nic missed his true calling as a motivational speaker, he expertly sells the idea of creating your own future by starting a business   I asked for his list of key leadership capabilities which included vision, inspiring others, communication, collaborating and demonstrating humility. Nic also outlined how he draws on the experience of others to improve his own leadership approach by asking (1) where have you been, (2) where are you now and (3) where are you going?

Thanks again for following the podcast and please share through your networks. I am always looking for leaders from across Australia and the world who want to talk leadership. You can contact me through LinkedIn or by emailing me at [email protected].

Today’s podcast guest served in the Australian military for 15 years and joined the Army at age 17. She is a keynote speaker specialising in the fields of leadership, resilience and change. It was great speaking with Major Matina Jewell (Retired) CSP and she clearly articulates her views of leadership. She also identified key leader capabilities which included (1) identified empowering people through delegation, (2) communication, and (3) knowing your people. A great storyteller and you can learn more about Matina's Army experience at www.matinajewell.com.

I would like to thank Ben Deverson my podcast co-host, the Founder, Director and Chief Organiser at Lawganised for helping me produce the podcast. Ben and I will continue to record these podcasts, stay tuned for more content.

For the existing and emerging entrepreneurs out there, this is a podcast you will find enlightening. As always a very big thank you to Sarah Prime.  Sarah is a Mentor in Residence with the Westpac Foundation W100 network, a Program Mentor with AgriFutures Australia and the Managing Director of Shadowbox Enterprises Ltd.  Sarah’s key entrepreneurial capabilities – being an astute observer (incorporating being a problem hunter, thinking like a designer and systems thinking), the ability to be a deep thinker, the ability to collaborate and learning to deal with rejection.

Welcome to another fantastic podcast made possible by today’s guest Chrissy Symeonakis. Chrissy is the Founder and Managing Director at Creative Little Soul.

Chrissy provided a compelling argument for leadership being a process of service to family and others. She mentioned a continual passion for learning and making the most of a network of formal and informal mentors to help develop her business. It was interesting to hear her views on engaging with potential clients and going through her own due diligence process to assess future business relationships.

Welcome back to the Leadership & the Australian Military podcast and as always a big thanks to my podcast co-host Ben Deverson, the Founder, Director and Chief Organiser at Lawganised. Ben and I were extremely fortunate to record a podcast with Brigadier Mark Ascough, CSC, DSM.

Amongst many insights, Brigadier Ascough identified four key approaches to managing his teams including, (1) seeing the bigger picture, (2) brilliance of the basics, (3) working as a team and (4) relationships matter. Ben asked Brigadier Ascough to identify what he considered key leader capabilities which were building trust and respect, being prepared to act and listening. As always thank you for listening.

Welcome to the March series of podcasts and today’s guest demonstrates what can be done if you choose to follow what you have a passion for.  Natalie Wade, is the Founder and Principal Lawyer at Equality Lawyers and her pathway to establishing a law firm that focuses on providing legal services for people with disabilities, their families and supporters.   As I tend to do in the podcasts, I asked Natalie for her views on what constitutes key leadership capabilities.  She indicated that communication was the most critical leader capability supported by identifying talented individuals, time management, goal setting and developing a strategic vision for the business.

This week’s podcast guest provided me with an opportunity to ask questions from a leader and entrepreneur perspective.  Andrew Barrett is the Executive Officer of the Rural Safety & Health Alliance and chief connector, coach and host of Safety on Tap.  As someone with significant expertise in health and safety, the discussion regarding leadership turned to discussing metaphors for how people interact at work.  He provided three examples - individuals interact as parts in a machine or viewing the organisation as an ecosystem or the most useful metaphor… humans interact through dialogue and create shared meaning through a collection of conversations.