I’m honored to welcome Dr. J. Bruce Stewart—a nationally respected leader, scholar, and change agent whose life’s work sits at the intersection of resilience, inclusion, leadership, and human connection. Dr. Stewart is a Retired Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Air Force and formerly served as the Federal Government’s Diversity & Inclusion Thought Leader, where he designed the New Inclusion Quotient—a metric-based engagement model now used as a benchmarking standard across the federal sector. He also served as Acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Office of Workforce Diversity and Inclusion, where he: Co-chaired the White House Committee on Increasing Diversity in STEM Led the implementation of President Obama’s Executive Order on Diversity & Inclusion Helped reduce systemic bias through data-driven, people-centered solutions Dr. Stewart’s expertise has taken him to some of the most influential institutions in the world, including MIT, Harvard, West Point, NASA, the Pentagon, NIH, CDC, Lockheed Martin, and Johnson & Johnson, to name just a few. As a primary expert consultant on Race and Ethnicity for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), he played a key role in shaping Racial and Ethnic Equity Plans (REEPs) across NIH institutes—work that continues to influence national policy and organizational culture. He is also a best-selling author and thought leader, with powerful works including: Cultural Leadership: The New Chemistry of Leading Differently The Click Code: Why Some Teams Click and Others Don’t The Race Ahead: Breaking the Cycle of Racial Bias by Rewiring the American Mind Linked: How to Connect a Disconnected World (coming March 2026)Currently, Dr. Stewart serves as CEO of Small World Solutions Consulting and as an Adjunct Professor at American University, shaping the next generation of values-driven leaders. In this conversation, we’ll explore:How positivity and a growth mindset strengthen relationshipsWhy resilient connections matter more than ever in a disconnected worldHow leaders can intentionally build social networks that thrive under pressureWhat it truly means to create environments where people “click”This is more than an interview—it’s a masterclass in leadership, mindset, and meaningful connection.