What happens when someone spends a career being the only woman at the table — and then decides to change who gets a seat?

In this episode, Laurel sits down with Molly Huyck, founder and CEO of Equitas Invest, a crowdfunding platform built to close the massive funding gap facing women entrepreneurs. Molly's path wound through Union Pacific Railroad, a startup she built and sold during the dot-com era, and a decade at PayPal helping scale operations to 400 million customers worldwide — all before she set out to tackle a problem she couldn't unsee: for every dollar invested, women-led businesses return more than double what male-led businesses do, yet access to capital remains stubbornly unequal.

Molly and Laurel dig into the real stories behind the founders on her platform — including a nurse practitioner turned med-tech entrepreneur building lifesaving devices for NATO — and what it actually takes, emotionally and operationally, to bring a founder's story to funders. They also talk candidly about the loneliness of entrepreneurship, the importance of community over competition, and how Molly has configured Claude as a kind of always-on advisory board (complete with a marketing persona, a CEO coach, and even an "antagonistic" voice to pressure-test her decisions).

And because one world-changing business apparently wasn't enough, Molly also shares the story behind Set the Bar, the women's sports bar she opened in Omaha — proof that when you build something rooted in your own values, community follows.

This is a conversation about capital, courage, and what it means to build a table wide enough for everyone.

"As Native people, we're closer to our own communities, so we know how to problem-solve in our communities. We're closest to the problem, we're closest to the answers."

Laurel Donnellan sits down with Angelique Albert, CEO of Native Forward (formerly known through its 56-year history of supporting Native scholars), for a candid, moving conversation about generational trauma, educational access, and what it takes to lead an organization at the center of both.

Angelique traces her path from growing up on the Flathead Indian Reservation in northwest Montana to leading the largest funder of Native scholars in the country. She shares the story of her grandfather, taken from his family at age five and forced into a Catholic boarding school — a history that shaped both her family and her life's work. From there, the conversation moves into the scale of what Native Forward does today: over 22,000 scholars funded across 56 years, 2,200+ Ph.D.s, and more than 2,000 tribal lawyers now practicing across the country.

But the conversation doesn't shy away from the hard numbers either. Native college attendance has dropped 45% since 2013, and this year Native Forward received 12,000 applications but could only fund 2,000 — a gap Angelique attributes largely to recent federal funding cuts affecting Native students, even though tribal citizens aren't technically classified as DEI beneficiaries. She also discusses a recent unrestricted gift from MacKenzie Scott, and how Native Forward is using it to build a scholarship endowment aimed at serving "the next seven generations."

The episode closes with reflections on authenticity in leadership, the importance of loving your whole life story — including the hard parts — and a preview of a new career-development collaboration Laurel is exploring with Native Forward's scholar community.

Laurel Donnellan sits down with David Cumberbatch, newly appointed Managing Director of North America for the Project Management Institute (PMI), for a wide-ranging conversation on education, career readiness, and leadership in a rapidly changing world of work.

David traces his path from a childhood in Trinidad and Tobago — shaped by a grandfather who ran the country's largest orphanage — through Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, to formative years at Procter & Gamble and Microsoft, and now to leading PMI's 800,000-member global community. Along the way, he and Laurel compare the British and American education systems, unpack why generation beta may hold 18 to 30 jobs across 7 to 10 career chapters, and discuss the delicate balance of introducing technology and AI to young learners.

The conversation turns to PMI's own AI transformation — including its new CPM AI credential, the PMI Infinity AI companion platform, and an updated PMP exam that now includes AI and sustainability content. David makes the case that durable "power skills" like critical thinking and interpersonal communication matter more, not less, as AI reshapes project work, and shares how PMI is building accessible pathways (like the CAPM certification) for people without a four-year degree to reach six-figure project management careers.

The episode closes with David's reflections on leadership: the foundational role of safety and trust in lasting relationships, the lesson he carried from PNG's promotion-from-within culture versus Microsoft's "up or out" model, and his belief that compassionate leadership and competitive excellence aren't in tension — they're the same thing.

David Cumberbatch is the Managing Director of North America for the Project Management Institute (PMI), overseeing the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean. Raised in Trinidad and Tobago, David earned a double honors degree in computer science and economics from the University of Kent at Canterbury, then studied at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. His career spans Procter & Gamble, Microsoft, the Gates Foundation, and ACT, with the last 20 years focused on the intersection of education, technology, and workforce readiness.

What does it take to build a career — and a life — after the justice system has already written you off? In this conversation, Laurel sits down with Larry Miller, founder of JUMP, and Ken Oliver, JUMP's President and CEO, to talk about second chances, systemic change, and the leadership lessons hiding inside both of their stories.

Larry and Ken met four years ago and quickly realized they were building toward the same goal from different angles. Together they founded JUMP — a workforce development and entrepreneurship organization for people coming out of incarceration — built around a simple but radical belief: this isn't charity, it's an untapped talent strategy.

What You'll Hear

About Our Guests

Ken Oliver
President & CEO, Justice & Upward Mobility Project (JUMP)
Charlotte, NC

Ken Oliver is the President and CEO at JUMP. Before his impressive career at the intersection of law, public policy, and philanthropy, Oliver spent 24 years in prison, including nearly a decade in solitary confinement. He successfully challenged the conditions of his confinement, securing an unprecedented settlement and his freedom through a landmark civil rights lawsuit in partnership with Stanford University and Mayer Brown. Oliver and his team are bringing together business leaders, policymakers, culture changers, and communities to drive sweeping, lasting change that gives people well-deserved second chances. A cornerstone of that work is confronting the very real problem of stigma and shifting narratives around people with records. April is now designated as Fair Chance Month, a recognition of those who face and overcome many of the challenges associated with arrest records in the United States.

Larry Miller
Founder, Justice & Upward Mobility Project (JUMP)
Chicago, IL

Larry Miller is the Founder of the Justice & Upward Mobility Project (JUMP), a national movement harnessing cultural influence to unlock education, employment, and economic mobility for youth and adults impacted by the justice system. He is also the current Chairman of the Jordan Brand Advisory Board, a division of Nike Inc. He has garnered international respect for his reputation as an inspirational leader who understands how to build innovative, cultural, and premium businesses in the world of sport and lifestyle, establishing the standard for athletic luxury footwear and apparel. His memoir, JUMP, co-authored with his daughter Laila Lacy, shares the organization's name and tells the story of his journey from the streets of Philadelphia to prison and ultimately to leadership at Nike and the Portland Trail Blazers.

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 Sarah Feeley and Laurel Donnellan host Dr. Kelly Monahan and KeyAnna Schmiedl for a wide-ranging conversation on AI, leadership, and the future of work. Laurel opens by tracing how dramatically career patterns have shifted across generations — from one job for a lifetime to a future where Generation Beta may hold 20-30 jobs across 7-10 career chapters — and frames CLC’s evolving focus on helping people find not just "lovable work" but "lovable transitions."

Monahan and Schmiedl agree that organizations remain structurally mismatched to this reality: businesses are wired for quarterly shareholder returns while treating people as a cost rather than the asset that creates value. Both push back on the dominant AI narrative, arguing that headlines about job cuts have created a self-fulfilling prophecy and that the real story is an economic one — inflation, market pressure, and years of disruption — for which AI has become a convenient scapegoat.

On leadership, Schmiedl argues that leaders need to "show up more human," trading the myth of having all the answers for authenticity, humility, and a willingness to crowdsource genius from the people closest to the work. Monahan adds three leadership shifts she sees as separating the leaders who get this right: suspending self-interest, getting curious, and sharing power rather than concentrating it.

Monahan offers a practical, three-part checklist for evaluating any AI use case: does it help you work faster, does it improve the quality of the output, and — most importantly — does it free you up to spend more time connecting with other humans in the physical world. Both guests caution against outsourcing critical thinking to AI and stress the importance of remaining "in the driver’s seat" of one’s own cognition.

The conversation closes with reflections on agency, the value of trades and caregiving work alongside knowledge work, and each guest’s life and leadership lessons — Monahan on staying in your lane and "sane leadership," and Schmiedl on the idea that the people we struggle most to understand often have the most to teach us.

In this episode of the Compassionate Leaders Circle Podcast, hosts Sarah Feely and Chelsea Stoll speak with Leigh Feldman, CEO of Youth Franchise Brands, the company behind Young Chefs Academy and Flour Power Cooking Studios. Leigh shares how these youth cooking franchises turn kitchens into classrooms for life skills, confidence, and community—while also creating meaningful opportunities for purpose-driven entrepreneurs.

Listeners learn how Young Chefs Academy’s membership model and belt-style progression system help kids grow from beginner cooks to “black jacket” executive-level young chefs, and how Flour Power’s camps and workshops invite families and adults into the fun. Leigh explains how cooking becomes a kind of “sport” for creative kids, blending STEM/STEAM learning, teamwork, and leadership in an environment that feels playful rather than academic.

The conversation also spotlights a new partnership with the National Mango Board, bringing mango-focused recipes and nutrition education to 53 locations in 31 states. Children discover how to pick, cut, and cook with mangoes while exploring global flavors and healthy eating habits.

Throughout, Leigh reflects on his winding path through teaching, franchising, and entrepreneurship, and what it means to “do good while doing well” as a compassionate leader serving children, families, and local business owners.

https://youngchefsacademy.com/

https://www.mango.org/

What we Discuss; 

The Shipyard & Engineering Brand Love Rick introduces The Shipyard — a leading independent agency working across advertising, PR, and digital — and unpacks their guiding theme: engineering brand love. He makes the case that technology should serve feeling, not replace it, and that the most enduring brands are "designed with feelings and fueled by feelings."

The Mental Health Mission — Mission SOAR After his business partner lost a 17-year-old son to suicide, Rick and his team committed the agency's creative resources to mental health advocacy. That mission led to a landmark partnership with Ohio State University on Mission SOAR (State of Ohio Adversity and Resilience) — a longitudinal study following thousands of families, modeled on the famous Framingham Heart Study. Rick explains why this kind of long-term research is the key to unlocking insurance coverage and better outcomes for mental health treatment.

Building a Safe Culture Inside the Agency Rick describes how The Shipyard created a workplace where employees can openly discuss mental health challenges — and why this has become the company's single highest non-financial retention driver. He's candid about the particular mental health pressures of creative work, where "it's personal by definition."

The Leadership Transformation Once "damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead" in his 30s and 40s, Rick reflects on what changed him — starting at home, not in the boardroom. He shares a counterintuitive truth: leaning into vulnerability and human-centered leadership didn't slow his business down. It accelerated growth, improved client relationships, and deepened everything at home too.

AI, Advertising & the Future of Creativity Rick pushes back on doom narratives about AI's impact on advertising. The industry itself is growing — AI platforms will be ad-supported just like Google and social media. His take: you won't be replaced by AI; you'll be replaced by someone who knows how to use it. And he's optimistic that the current wave of technological expansion will ultimately fuel a new era of creativity, not suppress it.

Truth-Telling as Leadership Practice Rick's parting wisdom is simple and direct: tell the truth. Not as a platitude, but as a daily discipline — in business, in relationships, with yourself. Rumor and spin, he argues, are always more damaging than an honest conversation.

What if faith isn't a four-letter word — but a five-letter superpower?

In this episode, Laurel Donnellan and Darryl Brown sit down with interviewer Sarah Feely to explore Principle #2 of the Donnellan Method: Faith — and its corresponding practice: Connect to Inspiration. Whether you approach faith through a spiritual lens, a religious tradition, or simply a deep belief in something good and positive beyond yourself, this conversation meets you exactly where you are.

Laurel reflects on the lives of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan — two women who, through extraordinary hardship and an unshakeable sense of calling, transformed the landscape of education and human possibility. Darryl shares his ongoing relationship with Father Joe Tetlow, a 95-year-old Jesuit priest and rock star in his community, whose embodiment of faith, discernment, and love has shaped Darryl's own understanding of discipline, freedom, and what it means to be "right-sized."

Together, the three explore the role of solitude, discipline, and practice in building resilience — and why preventative healing matters long before a crisis arrives. You'll hear a beautiful conversation about the paradox of freedom and discipline, what it means to hold hope as both a noun and a verb, and why compassion is always an act, not just a feeling.

This episode is part of a series that guides leaders through history, healing, and hope as they navigate change and growth. Come for the wisdom; stay for the warmth.

You'll walk away with:

I met Penelope Barton and Brittanie Bates the way you meet the most interesting people: in a coffee line. It was South by Southwest EDU (SXSWEDU), and within minutes, I knew these weren't typical school administrators. They were builders — the kind of quietly revolutionary leaders who don't wait for the system to change but build something new alongside it.

Barton is the CEO of Crimson Global Academy (CGA), and Bates is its Senior Vice President. CGA is a fully online, international high school serving nearly 3,000 students from 72 countries — and it's growing fast. But here's what makes it worth your attention: it's not an "online school" in the way that phrase tends to make parents nervously clear their throats. It's something genuinely new.

Join us for this insightful conversation about the future of education. 

Scott Schnell, Cofounder and CEO, built MedZed by reaching the people healthcare can’t — and staying long enough to change outcomes. He leads a team of compassionate, hardworking caregivers who help our country’s most vulnerable Medicaid patients. 

Here is a number that should stop you: insurance companies routinely classify between 15% and 20% of their most vulnerable Medicaid members as “unable to contact.” Most outreach organizations call, get no answer, while MedZed goes into the community and finds them wherever they are. 

By combining boots-on-the-ground community outreach with digital support and phone contact, MedZed finds upwards of 40% of member referrals that other organizations never reach. 

Schnell views the people MedZed serves through the metaphor embedded in the name of its technology platform, Tapestry. Each of us, he explains, has a rich, dense, multicolored weave — our lives, relationships, and resources. We help people with lives that have become worn tapestries. There are frays, gaps, and the colors have faded, and we seek to bring a little more color to their lives,” he said.