The Global Nutcracker

The Global Nutcracker

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The Global Nutcracker episodes

  • You Can’t Manage Every Country The Same

    What works with one team can fail completely in another country.

    Mihaela Lemeni from 3Pillar Global joins The Global Nutcracker to talk about the real side of international growth: managing people across cultures.

    She shares why direct feedback works in some places, damages trust in others, and why global managers need adaptability more than authority.

    A practical conversation on leadership, culture, and scaling globally.

    12 min
  • The hidden pressure of remote leadership

    Building a global team is not just about hiring talent across borders.

    Susanne Drews, founder of Champ AI, shares what really happens behind the scenes — the pressure of middle management, the struggle to build culture remotely, and the importance of real human connection in distributed teams.

    From communication breakdowns to cultural differences, this episode explores what it takes to make remote teams actually work.

    A practical and honest conversation for founders scaling internationally.

    8 min
  • You shouldn’t hire everyone, even If they’re great

    Everyone talks about hiring the best talent.

    But what if the best candidate… isn’t the right one?
    In this episode of The Global Nutcracker, Rosane Marques (ITR Tech Group) shares a perspective most founders avoid:
    Sometimes the right decision is not hiring someone - even when they’re technically brilliant.
    From building a company from scratch to scaling across borders, this conversation goes beyond AI and tools - and dives into what actually makes teams work.
    We talk about:
    - Why great CVs can still lead to bad hires
    - The real reason people leave companies
    - Why soft skills matter more than ever
    - How to balance AI with human judgement
    A raw, honest take on hiring, culture, and the decisions that don’t show up in dashboards.
    🎧 Watch the full episode now.

    24 min
  • The biggest challenge in AI isn't the technology - it's finding the talent to execute the mission

    In this episode of The Global Nutcracker, we sit down with Daniel Victorino, co-founder of Galaxies, a Brazilian technology company that is redefining market research. Using advanced "synthetic personas," Galaxies helps enterprise giants like Nestle and Spotify predict consumer behaviour before it even happens.

    But expanding a high-tech startup from Brazil to global markets like the US, Europe, and China isn't just about code. Daniel reveals why the true "climax" of scaling a business isn't a product launch, but the high-stakes battle for talent in a hyper-competitive AI landscape where companies are constantly trying to poach the best minds.

    23 min
  • The real secret behind Revolut’s talent strategy | Andrei Oprisor, Head of People Product at Revolut

    Scaling a company is not just about strategy or funding.

    According to Revolut, it starts with talent density.

    In this episode of The Global Nutcracker, Skerdi Sino, CMO at Native Teams, speaks with Andrei Oprisor, Head of People at Revolut, about the philosophy behind building high-performance teams.

    We discuss how Revolut created an internal framework based on goals, skills and values, how they maintained culture while expanding globally, and why strong teams are the real engine behind fast-growing companies.

    Andrei also explains how Revolut People evolved from an internal system into a product designed to help other companies build meritocratic and performance-driven cultures.

    A conversation about scaling teams, managing global organisations, and building companies that actually perform.


    11 min
  • Cold Calls, AI Spam & Hiring for Talent | Linus Kruselok

    Open LinkedIn today and you will probably see the same thing:

    - Automated messages.
    - AI-generated outreach.
    - “Personalised” sales pitches that clearly aren’t.

    In this episode of The Global Nutcracker, Skerdi sits down with Linus Kruselok from KB Consultancy to discuss what is actually happening in modern sales and hiring.

    Linus shares why the explosion of AI outreach is creating more noise than opportunity - and why the people who focus on real conversations and human connection are starting to stand out again.

    They also dive into:

    • Why hiring is still the most important process in any company

    • The reality of building remote-first teams across different countries
    • Why culture becomes harder as companies grow remotely
    • Why cold calling is still one of the most efficient ways to close deals
    • How startups should think about scaling systems before scaling people

    A conversation about hiring, automation, sales, and why human connection might become the most valuable skill in an AI-driven world.

    13 min
  • Culture Before Scale: Building a 3,500-Person Global Mission

    Sama operates across Kenya, Uganda, North America and beyond — but according to CEO Wendy Gonzalez, scaling globally isn’t about infrastructure first. It’s about people.

    In this episode, we explore:

    – Why financial independence beats traditional aid

    – How East Africa became a digital-first AI talent hub
    – The complexity of managing culture across continents
    – Why repetition and clarity are leadership superpowers
    – And why “meeting people where they are” is the real key to change

    A candid conversation about mission, culture, AI adoption, and what it truly means to build a global company with purpose.

    16 min
  • One Team Member Can Make or Break a Company

    In this new episode of The Global Nutcracker, Skerdi speaks with Dr. Abdalla Kablan, Founder & CEO of Delta Wealth Partners.

    From AI exits to venture capital, Dr. Kavlan breaks down the uncomfortable truths behind scaling:

    • Why one person can derail growth

    • Why systems matter more than hype
    • Why leverage is the only way to grow
    • And why we’re “predictably irrational” when making decisions



    15 min
  • “Business happens after human relationship”| Scaling a Global AI Startup

    What does it really take to scale a company across continents?

    In this episode of The Global Nutcracker, hosted by Skerdi Sino, Sebastian Knorr, CEO of Nordic AI, shares the raw lessons from building an AI company focused on mental health, with teams across Norway, Chile, Mexico, India, Africa, Britain, and Eastern Europe.
    We discuss:
    • Why cultural adaptation is non-negotiable
    • Norwegian directness vs. global business norms
    • The power of showing up daily and asking for referrals
    • Why “business happens after human relationship”
    • Resilience, discipline and persistence
    • Scaling a mental health festival concept across Europe
    • And why the ultimate expansion goal might be… the planet
    🎙 Watch the full conversation

    8 min
  • Scaling a marketplace is harder than you think: Everyone is the customer

    Scaling a marketplace is not like scaling a traditional business.

    In this episode, we explore one of the most overlooked challenges marketplace founders face: in a two-sided model, you don’t have just one customer — buyers, sellers, and everyone in between all need to be served.
    Our guest shares hard-earned lessons from building and scaling a marketplace in the digital infrastructure space, where trust, relationships, and execution matter as much as the platform itself.
    We also talk about the realities of leading a distributed team, staying connected across markets, and why resilience is often the difference between growth and burnout.
    If you are a founder, CEO, or operator building a B2B marketplace, this conversation will resonate.

    13 min

About The Global Nutcracker

From the publisher's feed

Welcome to The Global Nutcracker Podcast, powered by Native Teams, where we crack open the toughest business challenges of scaling worldwide. Here, founders, HR leaders, and innovators share real…