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Lawrence Lam has spent his career studying why founder-led companies consistently outperform, and his answer comes down to three traits: bold judgment, aligned incentives, and public influence. Founders with real skin in the game make decisions salaried executives rarely can.
Lawrence is Founder and Managing Director of Luminary Investment Management, which runs the Luminary Global Founders Fund, investing in listed companies where founders retain meaningful ownership and influence.
Lawrence unpacks findings from Luminary's global study of thousands of listed companies, explains why founder DNA often outlasts the founder, and shares lessons from Steve Jobs, Jensen Huang, and Chemist Warehouse's Jack Gantz. He also explores psychological ownership, the risks of "professionalising" too fast, and why long-term incentive design matters more than most boards realise.
Takeaways
Follow Lawrence Lam
https://lumenaryinvest.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lawrence-lam-354b84bb/
Lawrence’s book
The Founder Effect: Three Pillars of Success in Founder-Led Companies https://link.amazon/B0bLEzEQ6
Books recommended
Shoe Dog by Phil Knight https://link.amazon/B04Ccoaeu
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Working longer hours doesn't necessarily lead to better results. According to accountant and author John Briggs, the key to higher productivity is working in focused blocks, taking genuine recovery breaks, and measuring outcomes instead of time at a desk.
A CPA with a master's degree in tax, John built Insight Tax from a solo practice into a multi-million-dollar firm with almost 300 employees. After implementing his 3.3 Rule, the business grew 492% while averaging just 42-hour work weeks during tax season.
John explains the science behind cognitive load, why scrolling your phone isn't a real break at all, and how restorative pauses can improve focus, profitability and wellbeing. He also shares practical advice for leaders wanting to shift their teams from measuring hours worked to measuring meaningful results.
Takeaways
Follow John Briggs
https://therealjohnbriggs.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/therealjohnbriggs/
John’s book
Author’s book Take Breaks, Work Better: Measure Impact, Not Hours, and Transform Your Profitability https://link.amazon/B0bpQgyXA or https://takebreaksworkbetter.com/
Books recommended
Rich Relationships: Create a Million-Dollar Network for Your Business https://link.amazon/B0a82yqB4
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The biggest obstacle to growing your business may not be your strategy, your market or your team. It could be your own ego. In this roundtable discussion, the Evolution Partners coaching team explores how founders and CEOs can unknowingly become the bottleneck by shutting down ideas, limiting autonomy and creating cultures where people stop speaking up.
Brad Giles is joined by leadership coaches Andres Zylberberg, Richard Peake & Sue Turk, who collectively work with business owners and executive teams across Australia to help them build stronger leaders, healthier cultures and more valuable businesses.
Together they unpack the subtle ways ego shows up in leadership, why blind spots are impossible to see alone, and how curiosity, feedback and great coaching can unlock better decisions, stronger teams and sustainable business growth.
Takeaways
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The biggest threat to your team's focus isn't distraction from outside the business. It could be you. Shawn Vanderhoven, partner at the Wiseman Group, says driven leaders often unintentionally create the very chaos their teams are trying to escape.
Shawn helped grow his family software company 30-fold before moving into leadership development, later collaborating with Liz Wiseman on the second edition of her best-selling book, Multipliers.
Drawing on research into hundreds of leaders and employees, Shawn explains why personal productivity habits collapse under team pressure, and what leaders can do instead. He unpacks digital distraction archetypes, why "turning out your pockets" reveals hidden workload, and how tapping the brakes creates space for teams to do their best, most focused work.
Takeaways
Follow Shawn Vanderhoven
https://www.pausebook.co/
Shawn’s book
PAUSE: How to Lead Brilliant Work in a Busy World with Shawn Vanderhoven https://link.amazon/B0eMnTLXx
Books recommended
Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life: Life-Changing Tools for Healthy Relationships by Marshall B. B. Rosenberg https://link.amazon/B0cdlcC0g
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Under pressure, capable people don't lose their skills — they lose access to them, as fear shuts down the brain's decision-making centre. That's according to leadership advisor and psychotherapist Errol Amerasakara, owner of Bluestone Edge, who has spent almost two decades working with executive teams and elite sporting organisations on trust and performance.
Errol unpacks his concept of "adaptive safety", explaining how teams stay honest, connected and capable of learning when stakes are high, and why psychological safety is too often confused with comfort. He shares the micro-behaviours that build or erode trust in thirty seconds, how leaders should read silence in a room, and why the best teams debrief weekly rather than waiting for the next offsite.
Takeaways
Follow Errol Amerasekera
https://errolamerasekera.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/errol-amerasekera-a254154/
Errol’s book
From Fear to Flow: The Adaptive Safety Revolution https://link.amazon/B0aNthDCI
Books recommended
The Practice of Adaptive Leadership: Tools and Tactics for Changing Your Organization and the World by Ronald A. Heifetz https://link.amazon/B0gKTELR5
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The biggest productivity gains rarely come from adding more—they come from removing what no longer serves you. Productivity expert Donna McGeorge calls this “red brick thinking”: identifying what can be removed to create space for better decisions, clearer priorities and more meaningful work.
Donna is an international speaker and bestselling author of 15 books. Her practical approach to reclaiming time has been featured in Harvard Business Review, Forbes and Fast Company.
Donna explains why “addition bias” keeps organisations overloaded, how reducing meetings and protecting thinking time improves performance, and why the greatest gift you can give your future self is removing the red bricks that no longer belong. She also shares why leaders should aim to operate at 85% capacity instead of 100%, how to build room for better thinking, and why creating space – not filling it – is becoming one of the most valuable leadership skills of all.
Takeaways
Follow Donna McGeorge
https://donnamcgeorge.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/donnamcgeorge/
https://www.instagram.com/
Donna’s books
https://donnamcgeorge.com/books/
Red Brick Thinking: Make Space. Find Focus. Move Forward
The ChatGPT Revolution
The 1 Day Refund: Take Back Time, Spend It Wisely
The First 2 Hours: Make Better Use of Your Most Valuable Time
The 25 Minute Meeting: Half the Time, Double the Impact
Books recommended
It's Who You Know: How a Network of 12 Key People Can Fast-track Your Success https://link.amazon/B0exg5l0Z
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The central challenge of AI is not learning new tools. It’s learning to organise information, redesign workflows and lead change. Dave Hajdu argues that businesses focusing only on AI are solving the wrong problem.
Dave Hajdu is an entrepreneur, technology leader and founder whose career began at Microsoft before launching and scaling multiple technology businesses, including TinyPulse, the employee engagement platform acquired by WebMD. Today, as founder of Edge8 and the AI Officer Institute, he helps organisations prepare for the next generation of AI-powered work.
Dave explains why successful AI adoption is driven far more by information, processes and leadership than technology itself. He shares practical examples of compressing recruitment, marketing and business workflows, explains why prompting is becoming less important than business frameworks, and outlines how leaders can build organisations where humans and AI agents work together to create lasting competitive advantage.
Takeaways
Follow Dave Hadju
https://www.davehajdu.com/
https://www.ai-officer.com/
https://edge8.ai/
Dave’s book
https://www.davehajdu.com/books
Books recommended
The Innovator's Dilemma - Clayton Christensen https://amzn.to/4eowAqF
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review.
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The biggest risk of AI isn’t that it will replace us. It’s that we’ll stop exercising the critical thinking, judgment and curiosity that make us human. Speaker and facilitator Bethan Winn helps leaders and teams strengthen critical thinking, communication and decision making through her work at Human Skills Co. She works across business, government and education, helping people think more clearly, question assumptions and make better decisions.
Bethan explains why convenience always comes with trade-offs, how leaders unintentionally train people not to think for themselves, and why judgment is now a core leadership skill. She also shares practical frameworks for making better decisions, developing stronger thinking habits, and using AI to challenge our thinking rather than replace it.
Takeaways
Follow Bethan Winn
https://www.bethanwinn.com.au/
Bethan’s book
The Human Edge: Critical Thinking in the Age of AI by Bethan Winn https://amzn.to/43q8lDn
Books recommended
Why You Can't Pay Attention by Johann Hari https://amzn.to/4fS33In
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Customer service expert Monique Richardson argues that exceptional service starts long before a customer interaction. It begins with leadership, culture and how people inside the organisation are treated. Monique is an author, speaker and consultant, for more than two decades, she has helped organisations across Australia create customer experiences that build loyalty, trust and lasting relationships.
She explains why service is everyone’s responsibility, how leaders can create a culture that empowers employees, and why ease of experience is often the most overlooked driver of customer satisfaction. Monique also explores trust, service recovery, psychological safety, difficult customer behaviour and the powerful connection between employee experience and business performance.
Takeaways
Follow Monique Richardson
https://www.moniquerichardson.com.au/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/monique-richardson-customerservicetraining/
Monique’s books
World Class Service https://amzn.com/0645792721
They Serve Like We Lead https://amzn.com/0645792705
Managing Difficult Customer Behaviour https://amzn.com/B08HL8MJQS
Books recommended
Man's Search For Meaning by Viktor Frankl https://amzn.to/3PUJLqS
Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The biggest barrier to growth is often not a lack of talent, effort or ideas. It is the complexity that quietly accumulates inside organisations, consuming time, energy and attention. Lisa Bodell believes that when leaders focus on removing unnecessary work, rather than adding more, they create the space for better thinking, stronger performance and more meaningful results.
Lisa is a futurist, keynote speaker, and founder of FutureThink. Her work has helped organisations including Google, Pfizer, Citigroup and the U.S. Navy simplify how they operate.
Lisa explains why subtraction is a powerful leadership skill, how unnecessary rules and processes damage culture, and why simplicity creates a competitive advantage. She also explores the opportunities and risks of AI, the importance of protecting thinking time, and what leaders must do to build organisations where high performers thrive.
Takeaways
Follow Lisa Bodell
https://lisabodell.com/
https://www.futurethink.com/
Lisa’s books
Why Simple Wins: Escape the Complexity Trap and Get to Work That Matters https://amzn.to/4doNYuM
Kill the Company: End the Status Quo, Start an Innovation Revolution https://amzn.to/498E9Ql
Books recommended
The Social Animal: A Story of How Success Happens by David Brooks https://amzn.to/4vuVoEm Watch the episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheEvolutionPartners
Newsletter – each week I share interesting insights, articles and ideas you can use. Join other leaders and subscribe to The Evolution Partners newsletter https://evolutionpartners.com.au/subscribe/
Books – Learn more about our books https://evolutionpartners.com.au/books/
Made to Thrive: The practical, prescriptive guide on how to be a great CEO
Onboarded: How to bring new hires to the points where they are more effective faster. A business case for leaders on why you should commit to an effective onboarded process.
Onboarded for Managers: Helping managers bring new hires to the point where they are more effective faster.
Bigger isn’t Better, Better is Better: Avoiding the pressure of endless growth to build a better business (and better life)
Follow me:
on https://au.linkedin.com/in/bradleygiles
on https://twitter.com/Evolution_Perth
Enjoying the show? Leave a review
Support the show: https://www.facebook.com/evolutionpartnersperth
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
From the publisher's feed
A place for the world’s leading thinkers, planners and doers.
The Evolution Partners is a weekly podcast hosted by Brad Giles. Join Brad as he engages in conversations with some of the world’s sharpest minds, learning a bit more about them and delving into what makes them tick.