LeaderLab

In this episode, Ryan Burwell, Director of Training & Facilitation at TwentyOne Toys shares how leaders can use the joy, curiosity, and experimentation of play to create stronger teams and improve business results.  

• Play is a mindset of curiosity, experimentation, learning from failure and embracing diversity – it’s not about ping pong tables and team karaoke events. While social moments are important, play runs deeper. It is about how leaders invite teams to ideate, to try new things, and to think beyond what’s been done before.
  
• Leaders have a critical role in unlocking play for their teams. Great leaders allow teams to truly ideate in early stages of projects, are choiceful in their language (e.g., "let’s play with that more”), and avoid ‘shutting down’ ideation too quickly after failure.
  
• Play can drive better performance. Better business results are driven by the new, creative, and stronger ideas that are unlocked through play-inspired experimentation and open-minded thinking. Teams may experience stronger retention by creating an environment where individuals are having fun, thinking big, and feeling like they can introduce new ideas.
  
• Strong emotional intelligence is critical for leadership success. Empathy helps leaders tap into diversity and unlock innovation. Embracing failure helps leaders develop resiliency, strength, and confidence.

Connect with Ryan Burwell on LinkedIn here. Check out TwentyOne Toys here.

Meet Ryan Burwell

Ryan is passionate about play. He believes that organizations who approach work and teams with curiosity, experimentation, open-minds, fun and joy will ultimately achieve better results. Both for the business and for the human beings inside. As the Director of Training and Facilitation at TwentyOne Toys, Ryan has worked with executives, post-secondary organizations and teams all over the world increase their emotional intelligence through play. Ryan believes that playing is learning – and that we’ll never be too old or too accomplished to benefit from both. 

About TILTCO

Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. As our LeaderLab host, Tineke brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company, Accenture, and TILTCO to support today’s leaders achieve exceptional results.

In an era where the pace of change is rapid and relentless, the need for effective team communications is critical. People leaders will be the primary point of contact, and will need to be prepared and equipped to effectively engage and guide their teams forward.  

In this episode, we dive into the art of team communications with Lisa Durante, Chief Content Strategist at Jack Communications. She shares how people leaders can build personal connections with their teams to engage in two-way, productive conversations. 

In our conversation, Lisa shares the following insights:  

●      People leaders are the conduit of company messages, contextualizing information for their teams.
“The vision, the plan, the context of what is changing really does need to come from the top of the house, but the people leaders need to translating that for the employees. Oftentimes that’s missed. So, it’s providing people leaders with the information and time to consumer and digest it, as well as providing them the skills to be able to communicate it in a way that will resonate with their team.

●      The art of conversation is the foundation for effective communications for people leaders
“We’re actually losing the art of the conversation. We text, email. We spend time on Zoom or Teams – it’s a lot of one-way of conversing. And then we’re not in the office, so we’re not having those hallway interactions. We’re losing that art of the conversation – that ability to look someone in the eye, translate their body language or read the energy in a room – all of that is really important and necessary for communicating effectively.”

●      Connection fosters more open and receptive communication environments
“It’s the humanness of each of us, that we are more receptive and more willing to listen… Leaders that spend time connecting before sharing messages, especially if there’s going to be any hard message coming down, so being prepared and having that connection is the strong foundation that you can depend on no matter which way the business or environment requires you to go.”

●      Leaders should use any and all available communications methods to connect with their people
“I really think more leaders need to be active externally. This isn’t to share company information externally. It’s another way where your team is seeing you, where they can engage with you, where they can see what you’re thinking about or talking about. It will give another dimension of them to connect with you.”

Connect with Lisa on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ldurante/. Learn how Lisa can help you communicate internally and externally https://jackcommunications.ca/. 

Meet Lisa Durante

Lisa Durante is a storyteller obsessed with telling authentically human stories that help businesses and leaders build authentic connections with their people. Her 20+ year career started in journalism and has evolved with the ever-changing field of marketing and communications, spanning executive and internal communications, content marketing, thought leadership and social media marketing. She has successfully supported organizations from start-ups to F500 global companies, including KPMG, CPP Investments, Siemens and MetLife, better connect with their audiences and more successfully achieve their business objectives. Visit https://jackcommunications.ca/ for more information.

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today’s leaders achieve exceptional results.

The rapid and frequent changing dynamics affecting teams demands innovation. It also demands people leaders more actively facilitate innovation on their teams. 

In this episode, we talk with Robyn Bolton, Chief Navigator of innovation consultancy, MileZero, about how people leaders can create the synergies on their teams to innovate focused ideas that will move a business forward, while setting in place the structures to move ideas forward.

In our conversation, Robyn shares the following insights: 

●      Leadership matters more today in part due to innovation and evolving dynamics

“Leadership has always mattered, it matters more now than ever because change is happening so fast, and things are so uncertain and work requires so much interaction. And so, leadership is no longer managing and making things happen. It’s very much about truly leading people and setting a vision and encouraging people to follow you.”

●      Unlocking productive innovation starts with defining the problem clearly for your team

“If there is a problem that needs to be solved, frame it and give people somewhere to focus their attention. A lot of leaders worry: am I shutting down creativity. No, you’re not. Creativity thrives within constraints.”

●      Listening and critical thinking will fuel innovation on your team

“When you see a leader actually listening to someone, it changes the whole mood on the team, the whole atmosphere. The other thing is leading with questions, genuine questions, and then listen to the answer so you can engage in a conversation about ideas.”

●      Leverage the human-ness of your teams to innovate ideas
“Humans are messy and we can’t eliminate the mess. So how do we work with it? How can we take the things that make us human, our emotions, our perceptions, our intuition, and instead of being scared and trying to minimize them, how can we actually turn them into tools and data that help us work better?”

Connect with Robyn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robynmbolton/. Learn how Robyn can help you and your team innovate at https://www.milezero.io/.

Meet Robyn M. Bolton

Robyn M. Bolton is the Founder and Chief Navigator of MileZero, a consultancy that works with leaders of medium to large enterprises to use innovation to consistently and confidently grow their revenue. Her clients include Nike, Medtronic, Warner Bros Discovery, Curriculum Associates, and Motif Food Works. Previously, she was a Partner at Innosight, the consulting firm founded by Clayton Christensen, and also worked at the Boston Consulting Group and as a Brand Manager at P&G where she helped launch Swiffer and Swiffer WetJet. Visit https://www.milezero.io/ for more information.

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today’s leaders achieve exceptional results.

Companies tell us they want people to bring their whole selves to work, but leaders aren’t quite set up to accept, support and lead the whole human beings on their team. To add, leaders aren’t assessed, let alone rewarded, to do so. 

Yet, the data continues to show that happier, more engaged people perform better, are more productive, are less absent and less likely to leave their company. 

In this episode, Dan Pontefract, renowned leadership strategist, author and keynote speaker, calls on leaders to create a better mix of work and life factors to support their teams through the different seasons of their work and personal lives. This way, leaders and teams can thrive and bloom. 

In our conversation, Dan shares the following insights: 

• Leadership is increasingly impacted by the societal and personal pressures affecting people today.
  “There’s a palpable increase in stress, anxiety, burnout, loneliness and isolation. I don’t believe that we as leaders are actually paying enough attention to these societal factors.” 

• We can’t disconnect our work self and our life self, and leaders need to be sure they’re considering both when leading teams.
  “Work and life are inseparable puzzle pieces. People can’t completely check all that’s going on in their life at the door when they’re at work. So if you’re a leader you should be thinking about your people as holistic human beings and look at their well-being, their connections, their skills, their sense of meaning, do they feel respected, are the organizational norms here normal, etc. And, ask yourself what you need to do to help people see that you’re there to care about them as a whole human beings.”

• Human centered leadership requires understanding where people are in their life and supporting them through it, rather than penalizing them for it.
  “People’s lives are cyclical and they can fit into one of four quadrants: blooming, budding, renewal and stunted. We know that people aren’t at their best at times because of these cycles and seasons. So this model and this way of thinking can be a way for leaders to appreciate when people are on the downs and be able to offer them some tools to support them through the stage.” 

• Unlocking human potential and caring for your employees can be learned.  
  “You can always teach people to be better human beings, ergo leaders can learn and develop the muscle of what it means to be a more holistic, wholesome, empathic type of leader. There are certain large chasms to cross for certain individuals. There are others that are just genuinely awesome human beings, and typically, this type of leadership comes naturally to them. But this is learned, and you can get better even if these skills are or are not innate to you.” 

• Leaders have the tools to support their teams through the seasons of work and life, it’s a matter of knowing when to push and when to stand on the sidelines.
  “When you lead a team, presumably, you’ve been there before and you’ve got some experiences that can help your team from a work side. For the life side, there’s a point in which we want leaders to know they don’t want to go too far. You can stay on the periphery of it and just say, alright, let me know how I can help. But that doesn’t mean you wait a year to ask again, you’re sort of checking in regularly to make sure the balance isn’t off.” 

Check out Dan’s latest book: https://www.danpontefract.com/work-life-bloom-preorder/. 

Learn more about Dan and his work at https://www.danpontefract.com/

Meet Dan Pontefract

Dan Pontefract is a renowned leadership strategist, author, and keynote speaker with over two decades of experience in senior executive roles at companies such as SAP, TELUS, and Business Objects. Since then, he has worked with organizations worldwide, including Salesforce, Amgen, the State of Tennessee, Nestlé, Canada Post, Autodesk, BMO, the Government of Canada, Manulife, Nutrien, and the City of Toronto, among others.

As an award-winning and best-selling author, Dan has written five books: WORK-LIFE BLOOM, LEAD. CARE. WIN., OPEN TO THINK, THE PURPOSE EFFECT, and FLAT ARMY. Dan also writes for Forbes, Harvard Business Review, and other outlets.

Dan is a renowned keynote speaker who has presented at four TED events and has delivered over 600 keynotes . He is an adjunct professor at the University of Victoria’s Gustavson School of Business and has received over 25 industry, individual, and book awards.

Dan’s career is interwoven with corporate and academic experience, coupled with an MBA, B.Ed, and multiple industry certifications and awards. Notably, Dan is listed on the Thinkers50 Radar, HR Weekly’s 100 Most Influential People in HR, PeopleHum’s Top 200 Thought Leaders to Follow, and Inc. Magazine’s Top 100 Leadership Speakers.

Learn more about Dan at his website: https://www.danpontefract.com/ 

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today’s leaders achieve exceptional results.

AI is powerfully evolving jobs, organizations and industries. Will it redefine what it means to be a leader, too? 

In this episode of LeaderLab, we are joined by Levi Goertz, Head of Client Solutions at Valence, who helps us unravel how AI may automate and augment leadership with workforce trends and insights to speed up decision-making. But AI is only a tool and the value of human connection, empathy and intentionality will likely remain irreplaceable.

In our conversation, Levi shares the following insights:

Effective leadership has always been a combination of intuition and data.
“Psychological safety, trust, strong communication that hasn’t changed and I don’t think it will change. How you achieve it changes.” 

AI can be a valuable partner to people leaders, offering them the data and insights to make a greater impact on their teams.
“Rather than starting from a blank cursor or page, you can get a first draft ready based on a series of inputs… and so instead of spending time gathering all the data and prepping everything, you can spend a good 45 minutes thinking about how you’ll share the feedback and that will have a much higher impact on your team.”

Intentional reflection done consistently is a key practice behind the best people leaders. 
“Invest a bit of time in the reflection of your people, how you think your team is responding to you, maybe get some feedback from them on how you are doing, and also, most importantly, consider the impact you’re having on the people you’re leading.”

Learn how Levi and the team at Valence are using AI to build more successful and empathetic leaders and teams: https://www.valence.co/

Meet Levi Goertz

Levi leads Client Solutions at Valence and lives for you to make an impact with our tools. He joined Valence in the early days and has worked with 100% of our clients who use the tools. He wants to bring that knowledge to you.

Levi previously co-founded a software startup that grew organically to over 100 staff with operations in 22 countries across Africa and Asia.

He learned how to tuck in his shirt and support client success at McKinsey & Company where he advised on organizational transformations and IT projects.

Despite being a hippie in his youth Levi now has an MBA from UC Berkeley and a B. Eng from the University of Saskatchewan. He spends Saturdays riding a giant cargo bike taking his 2 children to hockey.

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today’s leaders achieve exceptional results.

Teams work together differently today. Team members also face different challenges and opportunities. This demands a new approach for people leadership and the people and systems that support them. 

In this episode, Stefani Okamoto, Director of Manager Excellence at ServiceNow, shares her deep passion for people leadership and offers insights on how companies can build a pipeline of amazing people leaders. 

In our conversation, Stefani shares the following insights:  

·      Care needs to be the heart of people leadership today, especially as we work differently than before and face rapidly changing dynamics.

“Having a leader that is more caring, that is more supportive and in tune to who you are as a human being, collectively – both professionally and personally – is more important than ever before. Before Covid, teams were together all the time, which made connecting as a team easier. Now, in our dispersed way of working, leaders really have to intentionally find ways to connect with each person.”

·      The role of people leader is more difficult than ever and they need a company and senior leadership that sets them up for success.

“The data show that people managers are burning out at a rate faster than employees. So, companies need to set managers up for success by clarifying their role at the company and really valuing it. This can come in a few different ways: flipping around the performance conversation and rewarding managers who are really showing up for their teams. Senior leaders also have a role to play, acknowledging people leaders for taking on this difficult role of caring for our employees.”

·      Clarifying roles with each employee is the most important thing you can do for your team.

“Whether it’s a new team or an existing team, it’s critical to clarify roles, first and foremost. Then, together with each person, define the goals within the description or definition of the role. Also, identify individual career goals, so you can make sure you’re getting the business objectives done collectively with your team, and helping each person find meaning in their work that can open them to future career growth and opportunities.”

Connect with Stefani on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stefani-okamoto-1376039/

Meet Stefani Okamoto
Management Excellence is my passion - Being an incredible manager is my purpose. I consider myself exceptionally fortunate to live my purpose and passion in the work I do every day.

In my 23 years at Microsoft, I reinvented myself many times. I grew from being a software tester to the leader of Management Excellence in Global Learning and Development. I was instrumental in redefining the Role of the Manager and landing the Manager Expectations: Model, Coach, Care. I worked to increase the skills and capabilities of Microsoft’s 30,000 managers every single day - while ensuring every manager prioritized authentically caring for each team member as human beings, especially during some of the most difficult times the world had seen. This work significantly impacted the culture at Microsoft.

In my current role, I am privileged to contribute to the success of ServiceNow, in owning Manager Excellence. I've crafted a manager excellence strategy that is designed to equip every manager with role clarity, explicit expectations, a segmented manager portfolio, and a system for recognition and accountability. My mission is to enhance manager skills and competencies, while ensuring that every manager places genuine care for each team member at the heart of their leadership. Simultaneously, I’m working diligently to ensure that each employee has a consistent, positive experience with their manager - in an environment where they can perform at their absolute best. I am dedicated to shaping the future of management at ServiceNow, ensuring that managers are well-equipped to lead effectively, and employees thrive under their guidance.

I’m proud that I not only own and drive this work, but I authentically and genuinely live and model it every day as a manager. It is my passion. It is my purpose.

About TILTCO
TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today’s leaders achieve exceptional results.

People leaders have always been a powerful force in organizations. With hybrid workplaces, a new generation in the workforce (Gen Z), rise of AI and digitization, quickly changing geopolitical concerns, and more is people leadership more important than ever? 

TILTCO Inc. gathered business leaders, consultants and academics for Season 6 of the LeaderLab to capture insights on the role for people leaders, what great looks like and what companies and people leaders need to do to be the people leaders employees need today. 

In our first episode of this season, we speak to a roundtable of participants who offered the following insights: 

• Trust and psychological safety are elusive; yet critical for greater success on teams.
  Todd shared: “People who build trust well within an organization by reliably doing what they said they would do. They get to know you as a person and they care and are more in it for the team than they are for themselves can build trust and psychological safety for their team.” 

• Giving feedback, like many parts of leadership takes intentional practice and a commitment to self-awareness.
  Diana shared: “Giving real time feedback, sometimes in very tough settings, you need to really have good EQ skills so that you can listen, you can deliver a message that’s appropriate to the person. It can be scary to give feedback, so it requires practice, because then it becomes easier over time.”

• Leadership has always been important, but in today’s context, leadership matters more than before.
  Jennifer shared: “Leaders will help steward how organizations will evolve their ways of working, helping to adapt to the ever-changing environment. In addition, the workforce is challenging a lot of organizations and companies to really change the way that they work, the way they listen to their employees.”

• The role of the people leader has changed, demanding a new set of capabilities and responsibilities.
  Eric shared: “I think a lot of times we look up to the leader to have all the answers and right now that’s probably the biggest miss of leadership. We need leaders to understand that you’re not going to have all the answers. Your team has to find some agency and that means, you as a leader, have to create the space for your team to be able to do that and be comfortable that you’re not all knowing.”

• With people leaders expected to fulfill different roles in a company, the people systems that support them must also evolve.
  Todd said: “Operating systems matter more than they’ve ever mattered. You need to build the operating systems of the company in a way that it is able to adapt faster to complex situations, build great culture and skill development, and handle these external factors as they come up.”

Thank you to our panelists:

• Diana Amenyogbe, Managing Director, Investment Portfolio Management, Office of the Chief Investment Officer at CPP Investments where she’s leading a multi-year culture initiative. Connect with Diana on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/diana-amenyogbe/

• Jennifer Keri Choi, Senior Strategy Manager at The Coca Cola Company. Connect with Jennifer on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-keri-choi-731a2816/

• Todd Scheidt, Tech Strategist and Operations Executive, formerly of Shopify, Google and McKinsey. Connect with Todd on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddscheidt/ 

• Eric VanDerSluis, Senior Director, L&D and Performance Strategy at Edward Jones. Connect with Eric on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-vandersluis-6b22846/

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her more than 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today’s leaders achieve exceptional results.

Conversation is a powerful way for leaders to inspire and motivate their teams. It's also an opportunity to learn and make more effective decisions. Yet, engaging in conversations across an organization isn't always easy.

In this episode of LeaderLab, we are joined by Dave MacLeod, CEO and co-founder of ThoughtExchange, to explore the importance of conversations in organizations.

Based on his research and insights shared in his new book, Scaling conversations: How leaders access the full potential of people, he offers strategies leaders can use to engage in more meaningful, inclusive and productive conversations across teams.

Dave shares the following insights:

• There's never been a more important time to include as many voices in the conversation: “There are a lot of problems to solve [in our organizations] and a lot of pressure to do it. There's a lot of change to our life and a lot of recognition of systemic racism and the recognition of power to drive our business, and there’s never been a more important time to hear from everybody who's impacted by these things.
• We’re at an exciting moment where leaders feel they can admit they have bias and enter the right conversations that will move things in the right direction. “That’s maybe a really exciting moment right now... that people can say, ‘Yeah, I agree. I admit I have bias. So now what?’”
• When dealing with polarizing topics, search for the common ground. “There’s ways to solve problems for two people who think very differently about how to make their business run faster and the same mechanism actually works when you have people who disagree strong – you have to find the common ground between them.”
• Use technology and tools to eliminate our bias from conversations. “The idea of getting people to share ideas and listen to each other without knowing exactly who said them will get us to really think deeply about and empathize with each other’s points of view.”

Pick up Dave’s book to learn more strategies to scale conversations in your organization. Order Scaling conversations: How leaders access the full potential of people here: https://www.thoughtexchange.com/scaling-conversations/

Meet Dave MacLeod

Dave MacLeod is the CEO and a co-founder of ThoughtExchange, the essential Enterprise Discussion Management platform for scaling conversations. Dave’s expertise helped create the game-changing platform that’s used by millions at some of the world’s largest organizations like GE Healthcare and McDonald’s. From corporations to schools, ThoughtExchange invites participants to share insights anonymously—removing bias and getting the most important ideas in front of the leaders who make them happen. Dave is also the author of Scaling Conversations: How Leaders Access the Full Potential of People. Prior to ThoughtExchange, he was a successful entrepreneur who designed businesses and events focused on analog group communication innovation. Outside of work, Dave keeps busy as a dad of three who loves the outdoors.

About TILTCO

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat, she brings her 20 years of leadership consulting experience rooted at McKinsey & Company and Accenture to supports today’s leaders achieve exceptional results.

After years teaching at the Harvard Law School Amy took a pivot in her messaging after discovering the importance of self awareness in conflict resolution. 

As suggested by Erica Ariel Fox (author: Winning from Within), self-awareness includes 2 parts:

State awareness:

• Being able to witness and recognize your own emotional state (the work of Ronald Heifetz refers to this as being on the balcony)
• Difficult situations can trigger reactive fight or flight mindset which will constrain your thinking and limit your ability to make decisions
• This awareness helps you manage these difficult situations

Profile awareness:

• This is about understanding your leadership style and strengths and knowing what is needed in one moment to then next
• Many leaders have strong intellectual ability (thinker warrior) but less developed in intuition, forward thinking or emotions
• Teams respond well to leaders showing vulnerability (admitting they are working on their leadership) – it increases trust and improves the team’s ability to work together

4 benefits of investing in self-awareness:

• Cognitive flexibility:
  • Mature leaders are much better able to include ideas from different perspectives – this makes them more future ready (e.g., not stuck in their own point of view and more open to innovation)
  • When leaders are learners there is much more psychological safety, collaboration and productive conflict
• Emotional intimacy:
  • Now that people are working out of their living rooms teams are becoming closer and sharing details of families and personal lives – this is creating more intimacy
  • Leaders who can create deeper conversations around purpose, mission, and values create a stronger sense of trust and engagement with their teams
• Adaptability:
  • People can only tolerate a certain amount of change and therefore building team’s tolerance of disequilibrium is an important task for leaders
  • Leaders who have practices for getting grounded will be better able to meet upcoming challenges
  • Come up with a tactic to ground yourself (meditation, walk in nature)
• Well-being:
  • Leaders who take care of themselves create better vitality and hopefulness that will give fuel to deal with stressors going forward (mental health, relational health and physical wellbeing)

Practical ways to build self-awareness:

• Read the book “Lead From Within” by Erica Ariel Fox
• Write down your life story and reflect: What have been your big events? Who have been your mentors? Where has there been limiting beliefs/behaviours? Use this reflection as a guide for future behaviour
• Build a kitchen cabinet of people that can help you along the way: give you constructive feedback and celebrate with you

Amy’s hope for leaders: See themselves as a source of orientation.

• Stay close to your own sources of joy
• Simple acts of generosity go a long way - remember someone’s birthday, ask about family member etc
• Lead from anywhere in the organization

More about Amy Fox:

Amy is a senior practitioner in transformational leadership. She leads immersive development for senior leaders in both the private and public sector. She is also the co-founder and CEO of Mobius Executive Leadership – a premier coaching, culture change and leadership development firm headquartered in both Boston and Geneva.  Mobius is comprised of a prestigious group of Senior Experts and over 200 coaches, mediators, facilitators and expressive artists. Amy is a psychotherapist by background with expertise working with family and collective trauma.

More about TILTCO:

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat who has over 20 years of leadership consulting experience with McKinsey & Company, Accenture and now TILTCO Inc.

Notable quote:

“Mature leaders are much more able to understand the full complexity of a picture and therefore more future ready and have a stronger innovation capacity”

Key resources:

https://www.mobiusleadership.com/

https://www.ericaarielfox.com/winning-from-within/

www.tiltco.ca

Supplemental reading:

https://hbr.org/2002/06/a-survival-guide-for-leaders

https://www.ft.com/content/aaa3b29a-ffb0-11e9-be59-e49b2a136b8d

Buckle up! It’s time to future-proof your skill set for the new-look decade ahead

https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/leadership/from-a-room-called-fear-to-a-room-called-hope-a-leadership-agenda-for-troubled-times#:~:text=From%20a%20room%20called%20fear,leadership%20agenda%20for%20troubled%20times&text=Leaders%20can%20make%20a%20difference,onboarding%E2%80%9D%20of%20all%20their%20people.?_lrsc=70af8951-a6e8-42c7-a3ba-5fc896689d01&cid=other-soc-lke

In this episode, Kanina Blanchard discusses:

• Her one big message for leaders during Covid-19 (01:31)
• Why it’s important to create a game plan for surviving a crisis (02:56)
• Why you should think about how your actions will be judged in the long term (03:22)
• The three C’s to keep in mind in a crisis (04:16)
• What great crisis planning looks like (05:38)
• What professional athletes teach us about preparing for a crisis (06:16)
• The importance of including diverse perspectives in crisis planning (07:12)
• Why it’s never too late to address a crisis (09:07)
• What leaders can be doing right now to deal with he impact of Covid-19 (09:53)
• The one aspect of culture she’d like to see leaders focus on right now (15:05)
• How to build collaboration and connection virtually (16:33)
• Why you shouldn’t try to be a superhero (18:50)
• Positive lessons from Covid-19 (21:04)
• What she does to recharge (23:51)

Kanina’s advice for leaders:

• Align your game plan with your values (03:06)
• Listen and show empathy (03:44)
• Prepare for worst-case scenario (06:55)
• Let yourself be uncomfortable (08:26)
• Think about who you (and your company) want to be when the crisis is over (09:30)
• Communicate in a way that creates trust (11:27)
• Make sure your actions and words match – and are consistent with your values (12:15)
• Don’t expect to have all the answers (13:05)
• Keep your employees’ needs in mind (17:57)
• Practice self-care (19:38)

More about Kanina Blanchard:

 Kanina Blanchard has led teams through crisis on four different continents, and is recognized for her ability to adapt, lead teams and projects, and navigate complexities across various sectors. She has extensive experience working in international business, the public service, non-profit and consulting in areas that include organizational and communication challenges as well as issues, crisis and change management.

Blanchard has coached thousands of CEOs, C-Suite executives and emerging leaders seeking to grow and develop their character, competencies and commitment over the last 30 years.  She is committed to providing targeted and customized strategic solutions to challenges that impact organizational and leadership brand, reputation and bottom line. 

She is a lecturer in management communications and general management at the Ivey Business School, the recipient of the Margaret Haughey Master’s Award for Best Master’s Thesis, and is currently working toward her PhD.

More about TILTCO:

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat who has over 20 years of leadership consulting experience with McKinsey & Company, Accenture and now TILTCO Inc.

 More about The Ivey Academy:

The Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School is the home for executive Learning and Development (L&D) in Canada. It is Canada’s only full-service L&D house, blending Financial Times top-ranked university-based executive education with talent assessment, instructional design and strategy, and behaviour change sustainment

Links to additional resources:

https://www.ivey.uwo.ca/academy/about/faculty/kanina-blanchard/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1o0YpWlEugY

https://iveybusinessjournal.com/publication/to-a-better-understanding-the-leadership-odyssey-explored/

Memorable quote:

“Especially in a time of crisis, leaders need to ensure that what’s being done is the right thing and that it’s being done the right way.”

Full Transcript:

TINEKE KEESMAAT: LeaderLab is focused on having inspiring leaders share their stories and practical leadership tips to help others be more effective. Today is April 19, 2020 and leaders across the globe are in the uncharted world of dealing with the global health pandemic of coronavirus. There's no perfect playbook for leaders as they tackle the enormous social, emotional, and economic challenges brought on by COVID-19. Our next few episodes will be focused on how leaders are managing through these times. And our hope is that by sharing these leadership stories, we can find ways to help each other navigate through the uncertainty of COVID-19.
ANNOUNCER: Welcome to LeaderLab, where we talk to experts about how leaders can excel in a modern world. Helping leaders for over 20 years, your host, Tineke Keesmaat.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Today I'm excited to chat with Kanina Blanchard. Kanina is a recognized public affairs and policy leader who has led teams internationally through crisis, challenge, and change. From bomb threats to environmental and human health disasters, she has helped teams and leaders in both the private and public sector navigate their toughest scenarios. Kanina is a lecturer at the Ivey Business School, where she focuses her research in the areas of women in leadership and responsible leadership.
Kanina wants to help leaders navigate successfully through COVID-19 by being purposeful, empowering, and passionate so they cannot just survive, but find a way to thrive into the future. Kanina, thank you so much for joining me on today's LeaderLab. I'd like to start by asking you, what's the one big message you want leaders to take away from our conversation today?
KANINA BLANCHARD: I think what we all need to do is start by stopping. And what I mean is to stop. Stop and take a step back from the firefight we find ourselves in. Because in times of crisis, whatever that crisis may be-- if it's a family issue or an illness, or some of my lived experience includes bomb threats and fires and explosions-- that we need to take a step back because we fall into this loop. And this loop is one where we have a sense of fear. We have a sense of powerlessness, a loss of control.
And there is this deep need to do something. And that itself creates a problem, because we just do. And we keep doing. And we're driven by this sort of primal instinct, because actually doing something in the middle of a crisis feels good.
But that's not good enough, not for a leader. And especially in a time of crisis, leaders need to ensure that what's being done is the right thing and that it's being done the right way.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that. So really, although we want to just act, act, act, what I'm hearing you say is pause and make sure that you are being purposeful. From a practical lens, what do you think leaders need to be thinking about as they're creating their crisis game plan?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Our game plan for surviving the crisis, but hopefully thriving when this is over, is an important place to start. And not just on what you need to get done, but the why you're doing it-- align those to your values and think about who you want to be remembered as when this is over. So not just you-- your team, your organization.
And sometimes when we think about these items, we may make some different decisions. Perhaps we still have to do what we have to do. For example, we're having to let people go. But how do we let people go, that matters. That matters for the kind of relationship you will have, the reputation you will have on the back end.
So listen more. Demonstrate through your words and actions that you care about we, not just me. So don't sit back and make decisions in a crisis and articulate them. Involve others. Help other people be purposeful. Find a reason yourself to be passionate, and remember that your attitude as a leader is truly contagious. And this may be a bad play on words, but truly think about, what do you want to be spreading right now as a leader?
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I know you talk about the 3 C's-- so crisis management, communication, and culture. And you've encouraged leaders in other talks to think about those three areas as they navigate through. So I'd love to spend a bit of time unpacking those and sharing your thoughts and tips. So if we can start with crisis management, can you talk to me about what that means?
KANINA BLANCHARD: In a crisis, we need to lead and we need to manage. But it's not business as usual. So when we talk about leadership in times of crisis, there needs to be a plan. We need to prepare to manage and lead through crisis. And we need to, hopefully, have practiced and been prepared to deal with the absolutely-not-business-as-usual challenges that come up.
I think about how many clients and people I speak to right now who say, you know, we've been trying to get a work from home policy in place for years and the company said no way. And now there are so many monitors being delivered to people's homes. So how do we manage? How do we adapt? How do we take on a mindset that we can manage through crisis?
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Can you talk to me a bit about planning? What does great planning look like in this context?
KANINA BLANCHARD: If we're going to actually lead through crisis, we have to accept that a crisis is different and that there are different emotions and different challenges. And it's uncomfortable to do this. So in a lot of large organizations and in my own professional career, we've done a lot of crisis management planning where we get down into the deep, the dirty, and sometimes the ugly and uncomfortable stories about what keeps us up at night.
What is it that we're afraid of, the worst-case scenarios? And we live in a bit of a culture where we don't want to talk about those things. And this is where we can take guidance from professional athletes and professionals in fields like astronauts, who a huge part of their life is to plan for the unexpected and to plan for the worst-case scenario.
I love this story that Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, the very well-known Canadian figure skating champions, talk about-- that when they were practicing for the Olympics, they basically had a protocol where their coach would do the completely unexpected-- where the music would die, where the lights would go off-- and they could continue their performance regardless. So they planned for that. So plan for continuation of your operations and those scenarios that you are most concerned about.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: And preparing, what does that look like?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Preparing looks like bringing the right people to the table to do the work. And this seems kind of obvious, but one of the things that happens is we bring people around the table who are like us, who think like us, who focus on the things we focus on. But in a crisis, what we need to do is think about our audiences, our stakeholders from a very broad perspective and bring to the table those people who truly represent the voice of our communities, of our suppliers, of government, of other stakeholders.
And so to prepare in a way that is mindful of not only kind of our worst-case scenarios or situations that we would normally not want to deal with, but to do it with people and get the insights of the people that matter the most, which is our audience in these situations.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Fantastic. And finally, practicing-- what do leaders need to think about there?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Absolutely. So you know, it's funny. When I work with a lot of my clients, when I work with students, we do things like role plays or situations or scenarios. And some people love that, and some people are absolutely petrified.
And I tell you, if you're petrified and I'm working with you, I am putting you on point, because we need to get past that. We literally need to practice stepping into the roles, making decisions, taking risk, and learning that there will be failure. There will be failure.
And this sort of leads to this idea of communications and culture, and why it's so important to be able to manage through a crisis.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: So Kanina, this sounds amazing. But I'm sure there's some people listening to you saying, gosh, I wish I had heard Kanina a year ago, because I would have done the plan, prepare, and practice. But now they're living through COVID. Is it too late for them? How do you talk to leaders about what they can do in the moment if they haven't had the opportunity to do your three P's before?
KANINA BLANCHARD: It's not too late. It's never too late. In fact, we know in life there are some crises and issues that we can prepare for and some things that just hit us out of the blue. So we can absolutely bring our best self forward when things start to unravel. And for a lot of us, things are unraveling right now. So what do we do?
Let's think about, have we thought through who do we want to be when this crisis is over? Have we planned for who we want to be at the end of this? Have we brought the right people together to talk about and prepare for not only doing what we're doing today better, but preparing for this crisis is not over. And if we're just living in the moment and focusing on the short-term, we're missing both other risks as well as other opportunities. So use this time to prepare.
Then the last thing is we can still practice. We can practice, because when we realize that the most important thing we can be doing as leaders right now is not only stepping up into managing and leading through the crisis, but being the best communicators we can be and ensuring that our culture is one that's going to support us through this initiative and this challenge. We can be focused on what's coming. And that's going to help us, hopefully, thrive.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: You bring us to the last two parts of your three C's. Communications was one that you mentioned up top. Can you talk to me a bit about what leaders should be doing or how they should be communicating during these uncertain times?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Everything that you've been taught from a communications perspective, from a leadership communications perspective in normal business operations, applies today. But it is magnified and it is amplified. So do you communicate with your audiences? Are you authentic in your communications? Are you transparent? Are you consistent?
Now, when I say things like "transparent" and "authentic," let's be clear, this isn't about saying whatever is on your mind. This is about putting your audience first. It's about purpose. As a leader, when you communicate you are purposeful in trying to motivate, inspire, compel, and influence others. When you communicate in a crisis, that's even more important. But it needs to be done in a way that people believe and they trust.
I've had clients, as well as people that I've been talking with, who've said, look, my company is saying all the right things, but no one believes it. They're not making us feel like they're doing the right things. And that's key about communicating as a leader.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I know some of the people that I've been talking to have raised this point around consistency of message during these times. Their leaders are saying one thing but then doing something else. Can you talk to me about that, how that comes to play and why it matters?
KANINA BLANCHARD: So when we talk about our values and all of these issues, what we say has to reflect who we are as an organization, who we are as people. And then we need to be very mindful to be consistent with that. So if we say to our employees in today's world that your health and welfare matters the most but then we back it up with actions and tell people to just go do things and take a risk, there isn't that consistency between what's being said and then what's being asked.
So that is really important, because that is your legacy through this crisis. Will people, including your own employees as well as your customers in the community, be able to trust you based on what you did? Don't expect that you are going to have all the answers, that things are going to work at the same pace, that things are going to happen exactly the way that everybody would have expected them in normal times.
But as a leader, set expectations. But work with people to bring their best selves forward. And you do that by connecting with people at the emotional level. And we could say, well, you know, how do you do that when everyone is leading at a distance?
So there's lots of literature on this topic. But at a very simple tricks and tips level that I would love to see people truly take in, if you're talking to somebody, you're trying to build connection, stop looking at your screen and look at where your camera is. Because the reality is that most of us are speaking on cameras most of the day while we're looking down at someone on the screen. Or we might be looking at ourselves on the screen.
What other people are seeing is you looking down at them. Lift your head, and know that that little aperture of your camera is your audience. And care enough to look at them and talk to them clearly, authentically, with purpose. Be values-based, and connect with them as human beings right now. That's what's going to motivate them to bring their best selves forward.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: The last of your C's was around culture. I'm curious, Kanina, what do you think are the most important elements of culture that leaders need to get right during COVID-19?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Well, there's so much about culture, right? It's hard to change a culture in the middle of a crisis in some ways, because we bring everything that we have been to that moment. However, crises create an incredible opportunity and a raison d'etre, or creates a bias for action. And so if there was one part of culture that I would love to see leaders focus on right now is collaboration.
If we lose touch and if we lose connection with people at this time, the good parts of our culture will start to erode. And in the vacuum of collaboration and connection, we will drive movement toward people feeling more isolated, less purposeful, perhaps not knowing where their place is-- which will create more fear. I know this adds a burden to a lot of leaders. It's spending more time trying to connect. But creating opportunities for people to bring their best selves forward to collaborate on aspects of your business continuity plan and your future plan right now can do more to keep your employees, your customers engaged and motivated than anything.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Any practical tips or insights about how to build collaboration when everyone is working at home and has slightly variant schedules and potentially is distracted by their own personal issues or complexities? Any suggestions for folks on how to build virtual connection?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Absolutely. There are so many, and we only have so much time. But just a few ideas. One, be patient. Everyone is in a different place. And what we know about communications as a field is that different people resonate with different kinds of communication.
So some people read. Some people are auditory. Some people are visual. So keep in mind that if your goal through your communication is to ensure understanding or build awareness or to create collaboration, you need to think about that all your employees or your stakeholders are also different. And so just doing things one way blanket in one email doesn't mean you've communicated. All that means is you've sent out information.
So think about the different ways you can communicate. You can write it. You can record a video. You could have open town halls. You could create social spaces like coffee or cooler discussions, where people who need that social interaction can self-select to come in.
Offer to do it at different times. If you're working in a global environment-- it's one of the things I've found working internationally, is that my colleagues in Asia were always the ones-- and when I worked in Asia, I learned this myself-- are always the ones starting the earliest and ending the latest. So if you're going to have a session with your employees or you want to meet one-on-one, think about what time zone they're in and do it at a time, it might be inconvenient to you. But boy, that's going to send a signal of collaboration and care to someone sitting in Hong Kong 12 hours away that very few other things can do.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's fantastic. And again, what I'm hearing from you, again, as a leader is really just thinking about your employees, stakeholders-- where they're at, and kind of bridging the gap by meeting them at that starting point versus just what's convenient for you. So again, some care and compassion in these times.
KANINA BLANCHARD: You know, someone might be out there listening going, how much more can I possibly do? It just seems like we load more and more on managers and leaders. And considering these times of opportunity to be the best you can be is really important. But I would say, don't go down the superhero path.
We've seen through the last many decades that superheroes tend to not only burn out and harm themselves and their families and their organizations, but that's not a way to win. We are in a marathon. COVID-19 is a marathon. It is not a sprint. So these are all best practices. And I hope the leaders listening are motivated by the difference they can make. But it also starts with self-care.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: And what does that mean, self-care? That's a hot term right now. But from your perspective, how can leaders practice that, or what do they need to be mindful of?
KANINA BLANCHARD: I think everybody is different, and so there is no one checkbox or list that's going to help. But I think that one thing I've seen developing over the last 30, 35 years that I've been in business is this idea of the importance of reflection, this importance of taking time-- whether it's even 10 minutes-- to stop and to think, and sometimes simply clear our minds. So there are people who are practicing meditation or mindfulness. It could be taking a walk. It's the small things that we do to take care of ourselves and take care of others.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: And it's interesting, as you've talked-- and a thread that I'm taking away from this call-- is a bit of this authenticity, right? We're all in it together. Saying I'm tired, my neck is hurting, and just putting that out there allows people to connect at a very human level-- which I think is really important during these times, because people are in that place of fear and uncertainty. So I love this message that I've been hearing anyway around just being you and being authentic, and sharing that with others.
So Kanina, you have seen the before and after of many crises through your career. I'm curious, from your vantage point as you think about COVID-19, do you foresee any positive impacts or lessons or practices resulting from this scenario?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Absolutely. I think about the things that I'm seeing in the news today-- we have young people who are starting businesses that aren't there to make money. But they're volunteering their skills to develop-- for example, in Portugal I heard about a young student who started a web app where people who cannot rent their homes right now are being matched with health care providers who can't go home in the fear of spreading disease. I've heard about people who have developed apps around COVID where they've been offered money for their apps and instead they've said, no, this is a public service.
We're seeing governments do things that are truly unprecedented. We have governments that are stepping up early and fast and trying. And of course, there's always going to be criticism and critique, and there's always going to be things that we can do better. But look at the packages that are being put together to help ensure that people, even in these hard times, we can have food on our table. We're trying to help marginalized people make sure that they have food on their tables. We're trying to help students.
There is an effort under way today that we will learn from. And in reality, when the next crisis comes-- and it will-- I think we will have learned so much, a lot of good and some bad. And if we embrace the failures and improve on the successes, we will together succeed moving forward and grow.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that, a feeling of hope and a recognition that even in these tough times, people are generally good and everyone is trying their best to kind of navigate through. Kanina, this has been fantastic. And I know I've taken a number of notes and lessons that I will use in my own world and share with friends and colleagues. So I really do appreciate your insights and your enthusiasm that you shared with us today.
ANNOUNCER: And now, let's get to know our guest a little better with some rapid-fire questions.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: As we wrap up, one of the practices that we would like to do on LeaderLab is to help our listeners get to know you even more as a person with some rapid-fire questions. So if you don't mind, I have five questions for you here around the themes of the time that we're spending at home. So don't think too hard, but your first response. Your go-to comfort food?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Gluten-free pasta.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Do you like to go for a workout or curl up with a book to regenerate yourself?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Oh gosh, neither. I'm working on my PhD, so I read when I have to. I love my audiobooks, and I love walking with my family and my ridiculous basset hound who howls and sings and always brings a smile to our face.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: Nice. One item you could never live without.
KANINA BLANCHARD: Well, I think my answer needs to be my husband right now. And I don't think I should call him an "item." But I think one of the things that we're learning-- we have eight people living under our roof right now. And what helps us survive, I think, is each other and that sense that you're not going through it alone.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's wonderful. Your favorite cartoon character?
KANINA BLANCHARD: I think it sort of maybe depends on the day. For some reason, just what popped into my mind right now is the Tasmanian Devil. I have no idea why. Maybe that reflects the way the world is feeling right now. That's what I've got for you.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: And your work from home attire-- PJs, fully dressed, or a little bit of both?
KANINA BLANCHARD: Absolutely a little bit of both. You'll never catch me in pantyhose. But at least from the waist up, I feel that I am more productive and I am engaging with the people who I'm speaking with in a respectful and honest and a professional manner when I've gone the business casual route, for sure.
TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love it. I love it. Amazing. Kanina, thank you again for the time today.
ANNOUNCER: Thank you for joining us today on LeaderLab. LeaderLab is powered by Tiltco, helping exceptional leaders achieve extraordinary results, and the Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School, Canada's home for learning and development. You can learn more about Tiltco and LeaderLab at tiltco.ca. And to find out more about The Ivey Academy, go to iveyacademy.com

In this episode, Angela Barkan discusses:

• Her role at S-Curve Records (02:01)
• How the music industry has been impacted by COVID-19 (02:51)
• How technology is helping her team stay connected (05:03)
• The importance of in-person interactions in creative fields and how her team is recreating that social atmosphere in isolation (05:58)
• What her team is doing to keep on top of pop culture and entertainment trends (07:37)
• How people are coming together to make promotions and entertainment work during social isolation (11:10)
• How they’re trying to learn from the risks they have to take (13:12)
• Changes she hopes will her team/industry will keep once the crisis passes (17:44)
• How the crisis has levelled the playing field for everyone in the organization when it comes to ideas and contributions (19:54)
• How she’s handling the crisis as a leader (21:29)
• Ways to check in on the mental/emotional health of employees and keep things light (24:28)
• Her advice to leaders (26:51)
• The one item she couldn’t live without during the crisis (29:54)

Angela’s advice for leaders:

• Be flexible and find ways to adapt (09:01)
• Don’t be afraid to take risks – especially when there’s no playbook (09:22)
• Don’t focus on perfection; try new things and learn from them (13:48)
• Empower all employees to feel like they have a voice (18:36)
• Be open to different perspectives from within the organization (19:41)
• Be kind to yourself (21:35)
• Show empathy for your team and each member’s situation during the crisis (23:53)
• Connect with your colleagues on a human level (25:29)
• Embrace small successes (27:01)

More about Angela Barkan:

Angela Barkan is vice president of marketing at S-Curve Records/BMG. She has more than 15 years’ experience in the entertainment industry, and has spearheaded integrated campaigns for global celebrities as well as developed new and rising talent.

She has worked closely with nationally recognized celebrities including Mariah Carey, Dave Matthews Band, Placido Domingo and Dolly Parton, as well as upcoming talent such as International YouTube stars The Piano Guys. At S-Curve Records, she works with a wide roster of artists including Andy Grammer, Netta and The O’Jays.

Barkan has been repeatedly recognized for top performance and selected to work with top company leaders. She’s a frequent speaker on industry panels for events with CMJ, MTV's Youth Marketing Forum and NYU/Stern Alumni. She’s also a member of the Arts Committee for Central Park Summerstage / City Parks Foundations, which brings free concerts and events to Central Park and 17 neighborhood parks in New York City.

Barkan holds an MBA from NYU and a BA from Cornell University.

Links to additional resources:

https://s-curverecords.com

https://cityparksfoundation.org/summerstage

Produced by:

Kara Kennedy from TILTCO Consulting 

More about TILTCO:

TILTCO is a boutique consulting company that helps leaders define and execute their strategies in order to achieve extraordinary business and personal results. Founded by Tineke Keesmaat who has over 20 years of leadership consulting experience with McKinsey & Company, Accenture and now TILTCO Inc.

More about The Ivey Academy at the Ivey Business School: 

The Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School is the home for executive Learning and Development (L&D) in Canada. It is Canada’s only full-service L&D house, blending Financial Times top-ranked university-based executive education with talent assessment, instructional design and strategy, and behaviour change sustainment

Full transcript: 

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Hi, it's Tineke here. Welcome to today's LeaderLab. As you know, LeaderLab is focused on having inspiring leaders share their stories and practical tips in order to help other leaders be even more effective. Today is March 31st, 2020, and leaders across the world are in the uncharted territory of dealing with a global health pandemic of coronavirus. There's no playbook for leaders on how to tackle the enormous economic, social and emotional challenges brought on by this epidemic.

Our next few episodes will be focused on how leaders are personally managing through these times, what they're doing and what they're learning. Our hope is that by sharing these lessons and stories, we can help each other as we navigate through these uncertain times.

ANNOUNCER: Welcome to LeaderLab where we talk to experts about how leaders can excel in a modern world, helping leaders for over 20 years. Your host, Tineke Keesmaat.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Today, I am thrilled to be talking with Angela Barkan. Angi is a results-oriented, pop culture savvy, media executive. In her role, she spearheads campaigns to bring the work of talented musicians into our homes. She's worked with global celebrities and develops new and rising talent. You'll be familiar with many of the artists she's worked with in her over 20 years in the business: Yo-Yo Ma, Mariah Carey, Dave Matthews Band, Christina Aguilera and The Piano Guys, to name a few.

In her current role at S-Curve Records, part of BMG, Angi serves as the vice president of marketing. There she works with a wide roster of artists including Andy Grammer, AJR, Leslie Odom Jr., Netta, The O'Jays, Duran Duran and many others. Angi holds an MBA from NYU and a BA from Cornell University. She's passionate about arts and the youth and is a proud member of the City Parks Foundations Art Committee, which provides free concerts to New York City parks. Angi also speaks at many industry events.

Angi, thank you so much for joining us on today's LeaderLab. So Angi, the music industry is fascinating and I'm curious if you can share a perspective on what you do within that industry.

ANGELA BARKAN: I'm the vice president of marketing at a record label called S-Curve Records, which is part of BMG. And basically, my role, to dumb it down, is once the music comes into me, it's my job to make sure that the world hears it in any way possible. So that's either by live concerts, on the radio, on TV, on digital platforms-- like Spotify, iTunes-- with brand partnerships and, then, the next level is, of course, to maximize all the revenue streams that come from that.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: So Angi, as we talked about, we're focusing our LeaderLab series around how leaders are navigating the uncharted territory of coronavirus. And I was curious if you could share with us how your industry and your role has been impacted.

ANGELA BARKAN: Everything has been thrown on its head and changed to really what everyone is calling the new normal. The most obvious impact in our industry would be live touring. Spring and summer festivals are postponed-- postponed or canceled. And that's impacting, of course, not only the artists, but everyone who's involved in that and some roles that you might not think about like the person who takes the tickets at the venues or the person who is setting up the bar, lighting, bus drive-- tour bus drivers.

It's really-- the trickle down effect has been pretty devastating for everyone. I think the second area that the virus has really impacted, obviously, is physical sales across all industries, right, because no one can go to the stores. Also on the production level, a lot of the plants and distribution centers are closing or operating at a much lower capacity, so it's just harder to get things out.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And I know that your leadership team at S-Curve, basically, decided that the show needed to go on in this environment. Can you talk to me a little bit about the conversation that your team had to make that decision and then to guide the actions that you guys have been taking.

ANGELA BARKAN: I wish it was-- I wish I could say it was a cautious, well-planned out decision, but really it was more kind of triage, right? Like every industry, like every team, I think, has had to do the show must go on, literally and figuratively. And we just had to hunker down and figure out how to adapt to what is our new reality, hopefully, for another month or so but who knows.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Can you give me some examples of how you've had to adapt or initiatives that your teams have put in place in this, hopefully, not forever new normal times?

ANGELA BARKAN: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I think, on a very granular level, when I'm not in the office, I'm in Toronto, some of our colleagues are in Florida and New York and California. We're all spread out. So technology has really been saving grace. Every day we've been doing one or two Zoom calls with the entire team, and that's really helped.

We've been communicating on Microsoft Teams, just really upped the communication as much as possible. There are certain things, I think, that it's very easy to take for granted when you can just walk over to someone's office or have a casual business talk over lunch, and you're, actually, really getting things done. And those types of interactions aren't there anymore so you have to figure out a way to replace that.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And has-- do you have some examples of how you've personally been replacing those?

ANGELA BARKAN: You know, the entertainment industry thrives on creativity. And so it's a little difficult sometimes to be creative when your little box is on a screen talking to each other.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: No doubt.

ANGELA BARKAN: And so some of the interactions, like, just at the coffee machine or when we go see one of our artists at a show, like, those types of moments where ideas come through just sort of natural conversation being in a creative environment, aren't there anymore. So we have done some fun things to try to recreate them. For example, we've been sending each other playlists on Spotify. We've been doing virtual happy hours, just to kind of chat, just to talk about what's going on in pop culture and keep our minds in a creative space where we know what's going on beyond the four walls of our apartments or houses where we're-- or, in my case, Airbnb-- where we're stuck right not.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I can imagine that some of those playlists are pretty incredible given the industry that you guys are in. So, hopefully, you're learning some new music and share-- getting to know each other better through that process as well.

ANGELA BARKAN: Being in a creative industry, and in the entertainment industry, our job is to entertain, that's our responsibility, and to help our artists continue to do that even with these unusual circumstances. So one of the things that we've been doing to keep the communication going is really simple. We've just been all contributing ideas onto a Google Document of different things that we've seen, different-- what different artists have been doing on social media, how our competitors have been responding to this, how, even brands and outlets beyond our industry, have been responding to try to keep their consumers engaged.

And so we've been doing it on a micro level just within our record label, but we've also been doing it on a larger level, globally with BMG. And it's really great because we can see what other countries are doing. This virus has, unfortunately, become an international situation. And so it's really interesting to just see how different cultures, different countries are responding to this and remembering that music is global, right? So we're not just talking about people in our country, we're really trying to reach the world with what we're doing.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that collaboration and creativity in this moment, right? Just no ideas, there's no perfect answer. People haven't done this before. So just any idea that people are seeing or feeling, just putting that out there for other people to learn from. I just love how dynamic that feels as you're describing it.

ANGELA BARKAN: Absolutely. I mean, adapt is the main word, right? Every single person from a grocery store to the ride share industry to travel industry to retail to music and entertainment has had to adapt and adapt really quickly. And I think there's a lot of trial and error and risks that are being taken that wouldn't have been taken before, and I think that's kind of a blessing.

We're all in uncharted territory. And, I think, there's something really freeing about being able to take some creative risks and just try some things out, knowing that it might not work but it might work, and it might be really cool, and that's kind of an exciting thing.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: You've done some pretty cool things with your artist and that probably would not fly in the old world, but you've pushed the artist and the technology to support the artists to try different things. Can you give us some examples of what that has meant in the last week or two?

ANGELA BARKAN: One of our artists, Leslie Odom Jr.-- you might know him from Hamilton on Broadway, he recently costarred in Harriet and he's also an amazing singer, shameless plug. He has a new album out called Mr. He was-- he's really been-- this whole campaign has really been impacted by this. We were in the middle of a promotion cycle. His tour has been postponed until the fall and, part and parcel of that, his TV appearances have been impacted.

So yesterday, he was supposed to do the TV show, Live with Ryan and Kelly on ABC. That show is based in New York, he's based in LA and his band is based all over the place. So we had to adapt. We really wanted the show to go on from an entertainment perspective, certainly, from a commerce perspective. We're in the middle of a campaign for a new single.

To his credit, and to the show's credit, we all really got together and took a really big risk. What we did was we filmed each of the musicians doing their parts, performing their-- performing their parts in their living room, in their basement, in their bedroom. And we edited all those parts together and, then, Leslie performed the song from his living room with a video of all the musicians behind him.

And-- and it was amazing. Ryan Seacrest was in his kitchen, broadcasting. Kelly Ripa was in her living room. And it was just this-- it was just this really amazing moment of everyone-- everyone from the show, from the producers, from the audio people, from the network, the musicians and, of course, the label, and, of course, Leslie really taking a risk and being vulnerable in this time.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Yeah, I was going to say, these artists-- so that's like a fantastic example and I know a few of your other artists have livecast concerts from their homes. And it does strike me that these artists are vulnerable at the best of times, but often they have a ton of support around them. They've got to have hair and makeup. They've had people soundcheck, test things and they're having to be authentic in these moments and put themselves out there in their homes, probably, with a little less support around them than normal.

And I'm just curious how that has felt for them or what you've experienced or observed from these artists that are exposing themselves in a new way. How did it go?

ANGELA BARKAN: It actually went great. It was-- it really-- it was really cool to see and it was successful. The song-- we saw the song immediately jump up to number 15 on the iTunes chart, the record jumped up to number 16. There was a ton of social media noise about it.

So I think, everyone really appreciated the fact that it wasn't a perfect scenario, but the show must go on. And it's a cliche, I think, for a reason because there's a lot of situations where the show must go on and this was-- this was a perfect example of it. And I think, was it perfect? No.

And we did do a post mortem right after. We all got on Zoom, we talked about it. We talked about ways that we might change the audio, change some of the angles, do some things differently for the next time. But the important message that, I think, we can all internalize and then-- and, then, take, just moving forward when things go back to normal, is sometimes it's important to take risks even though the output might not be perfect. There's something to be learned and that can push everyone forward.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that. And I think that there's also-- what I'm hearing is also this vulnerability, right? So putting yourself out there in that risk. You're-- you know that you're showing up in a way that you may not normally have or your confidence may not be fully there, but from the story that you told of yesterday or other artists that I've seen live streaming from their home, I don't know, for me, personally, I'm connecting more to them in these moments where their hair is maybe not quite as coiffed as normal or you see their children running in behind them.

I don't know, there's something about that authenticity that's happening right now and the vulnerability that it's making it easier to connect, than maybe when I see them perfectly on the screen or in a video. So there is something for me, personally, about that vulnerability and authenticity that is showing up in this moment.

ANGELA BARKAN: Totally. I mean, yeah, I love that and I-- and I agree with you. You know, there's really-- there's a connection that, I think, artists are able to make with their fans.

And the message is, really, we're all in this together, just like you're, maybe, working in your pajamas. I'm trying to write a song with my kids running around as I'm also trying to make them lunch. These are real-- these are real situations.

I also think-- it's interesting, we have another band called AJR, which is three brothers. And for them, now they're playing sold-out shows at Radio City and the Greek in LA. But they started as three brothers busking in Washington Square Park, just outside. And what's interesting with them is, in some ways, this has required them to go back to those roots.

The other day, they did an Instagram live from their living room. And they had a keyboard there and Adam, the bass player, had his base, but-- but the lead singer, Jack, obviously, a lot of the instrumentation was missing. And so what did he do? He grabbed a bottle of vitamins and used them as a shaker.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that.

ANGELA BARKAN: And it was, like, a perfect example of taking a risk and adapting and trying something. And it might not be perfect, but it was still something, and it was great. It was really, really cool.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I'm sure it's probably liberating, too, in some ways, right? Because people are able-- are being a bit more forgiving and recognizing that everyone's just trying their best right now, that if I'm an artist, I love sound and how can I add this vitamin D mix to the-- to the set and see how it feels. There might be some creativity and liberation that is happening for artists during this time-- in this, again, these strange, strange times that are right now.

ANGELA BARKAN: Absolutely. And who knows? If there's anyone listening who works for a big vitamin company, call me. You know, there could be some really interesting partnerships that come out of this. Who knows?

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that, I love that. So Angi, these are incredible examples of creativity and risk-taking and pushing technology and, I think, that they've been very meaningful in order to help people continue to connect to artists and to music in these periods of isolation and uncertainty. It sounds like you've had some fun experimenting. And I'm curious if there are things that you've been doing that you hope, actually, continue when the world goes "back to normal", quote, unquote.

ANGELA BARKAN: Absolutely. And I think the thing that I hope that we continue is really experimenting with technology and pushing ourselves and our partners to find new ways of doing things, to find new ways of entertaining, bringing music into the home, making it more accessible, making it more interactive. You know, some of the things Instagram is doing and TikTok are just incredible in terms of bringing-- bringing fans and the artist together. So we do think those things will continue. Maybe some artists that weren't as keen on it originally, now have been forced to use it.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Right.

ANGELA BARKAN: And-- and I'm hoping it will-- and I'm hoping it'll stay because it's really- it's really exciting. Something else I've noticed, just from a managerial perspective, is everyone at the table, let's call it at the Zoom table in their own little box, has been kind of empowered to come up with ideas. At S-Curve we're really not hierarchical at all, everyone does have a voice. But I'm noticing it even more now, anyone can come up with a good idea.

And, I think, everyone sort of feels empowered in what is the Wild West right now to come up with an idea because it's just sort of this free space of, like, with an attitude of, may as well try it. And so because of that, it's kind of fun and it's giving-- I hope it's giving some people that maybe aren't normally as vocal, at different levels in the company, a chance to really shine and have their ideas noticed more.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Hopefully, it allows people to feel like they can vocalize. But I'm also hearing an openness of leaders to, actually, hear the ideas differently than they may have in the past. Is that fair?

ANGELA BARKAN: Absolutely. I mean, I've been-- so I've been in this business for 20 years and I've never experienced anything like this before, right, and none of my colleagues have. And so years of experience is certainly helpful in navigating. It's also very obvious that this is the first time for all of us in this situation. And so anyone can really come up with a great idea.

And there's nothing to compare it to based on experience because this is our first time for everyone. It's everyone's first time in this unique situation. So in some ways, that's kind of very-- it really levels the playing field, but in a way that I feel in a creative industry, especially, is very exciting.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Angi, I love just this idea of leaders being open to new ideas because ideas can come from anywhere. And because there's nothing to compare them to right now, in this context, it does make listening to these ideas all the more important. One of the things that I'm really conscious of is that we are asking a lot of our leaders, in this context-- so you've got people that are having to push bounds within their business organizations.

You're having them lead teams where their teams are all going through different psychosocial economic challenges, and then you're putting these leaders in places where they have to work from home, where they've got children or aging parents or issues with things, just day-to-day tasks that are, what, how do I get groceries? And I think, the stress that leaders are under is incredible at this time. And I'm curious, for yourself, how are you personally managing through the challenges of this context?

ANGELA BARKAN: Yeah, I mean, it's a great-- it's a great question. It's a lot of trial and error. And-- and, I think, I'm just trying to be kind to myself and put a little less pressure on myself. In general, I'm a pretty regimented person in the sense that I like a schedule, I like a checklist, I like to complete my checklist by the end of the day, things like that. And the reality is it's just not happening now.

And so, I think, being forgiving with myself, that, just like everyone else is learning how to navigate this new work situation, so am I. And, I mean, I have a 7-year-old so, certainly, homeschooling has played a role in this now. And also just making sure that we're taking care of ourselves.

I mean, one good thing that's happened from this is I've started yoga and I'm forcing myself. The Nike app is now free and I've been forcing myself to do yoga every day. And I'm terrible at it, but I think it's helping a little.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: For sure. I've been forcing my husband and I, also, to make sure that every day we get some sort of physical activity. So just for the sanity, right, to keep-- to focus on myself for a moment, but also just to stay active physically. It really does help, I think.

ANGELA BARKAN: And I think, also, we can't underestimate that there's a lot of pressure right now. I mean, businesses, overall, are at a very vulnerable place, and it is a little scary. And so, I think, we have to really keep in mind that the job has to happen. We have to try to push and be aggressive and get as much done as we possibly can. But we can't forget the emotional element of all of this, which you mentioned.

On our team, alone, someone-- someone's family friend just passed away from the virus. Two people on our team, actually, have the virus. Luckily, it's not serious, but they're dealing with it. And so, I think, everyone just-- just needs to be flexible, but also empathetic and realize that people deal with trauma, which is really what this is. It's a traumatic situation, differently, and just to try to kind of be in tune with people's emotions, especially now.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And just tactically, how are you finding it to pick up on people's emotions through Skype or Zoom or Team? Are you able to detect or is there something that you're doing independent of that to keep a pulse of your individual employees?

ANGELA BARKAN: I think, we're been pretty good, even on our Zoom calls, in just checking in with people. Everyone's pretty intuitive, I think, in that way. We've added some fun elements to our Zoom calls. For example, one of the guys on our team has the most amazing vinyl collection, probably, I don't know, he probably has like 10,000, 15,000 records and he likes to sit his chair right in front of the vinyl collection. So every day, we have Steve's record of the day and he picks a very eclectic record out of his-- out of his wall and tells us some interesting obscure facts about the band.

And we all laugh about it because no one's ever heard it because it's no obscure. And-- and it's become-- it's just a little thing, but it sort of lightens the conversation a little bit and it just adds an element of, like, OK, we all still work in music. We can all still laugh. We can also have a little bit of fun.

Another one of my colleagues, we joke that she's dived into the world of TikTok, which is becoming increasingly important in the music industry. So we all talk about her different TikTok videos every day and we're just trying to connect on different levels. I had a call with one of my colleagues, yesterday, about how we're trying to homeschool our kids.

So, I think, it's just trying to find a way to add a human, non-business element to the group calls and then also individual-- just individual check-ins to be, like, hey, what's up? How are you feeling? What's going on? What-- how did your workout go other day? Just, how's your relationship going?

Just, like, basic-- basic human things-- basic human interactions, I think, are more important than ever right now.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: I love that, just connecting as individuals. And this conversations, not only feel light and fun, but they also show that you care about each other. And, I think, that care is so important at this moment. Do you have any advice for leaders in this moment? So one practical thing that you would advise leaders to do as we navigate through this uncharted time.

ANGELA BARKAN: I think, one thing that is really important for everyone to remember, not only-- not only leaders, which is everyone going through this, is, like, this too shall pass. This is a terrible time, but there are some good things that will come out of this. And, I think, we need to embrace the small moments, the small successes, where we're working as a team and things are going well, and just accept the things that aren't-- that aren't going so well and I know that they'll get better.

Look, 20 years ago-- 19 years ago, actually, I lived through September 11th, living in New York. Granted, these are very different situations, but that feeling of feeling bewildered, feeling confused, not knowing what tomorrow will bring, all of those feelings, I think, are similar. And we all got through it, and we'll all get through this. And, I think, reminding people that this is just another chapter will be helpful and especially taking care of some of the younger-- younger people on the team, especially in music.

I work with a lot of people in their early 20s who are living away from home, whose parents might be in other countries. And I think, just taking a page [INAUDIBLE] out of parenting, I think, and being a good friend and being there for emotional support, is one of the most important things leaders can do right now because that's how you'll inspire people and get the best work out of them [INAUDIBLE] as well. If people are feeling good, then they're motivated to produce.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Angi, this has been incredible. I think, in this conversation, I've just loved the messages about being creative, taking risks, being authentic, connecting as people. It's been truly inspiring to hear. So thank you, first of all, for taking the time, but secondly, for also having the show go on because I know that so many people are connecting to artists and to your work during these moments. So from the bottom my heart, thank you so much.

ANGELA BARKAN: Thanks so much for having me. This has been great.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: No problem. We do want to finish up with one thing that we do on LeaderLab is we ask our guests a bunch of fun questions, and we do want to wrap up with those. Again, don't think too hard, they are just intended to be fun.

ANNOUNCER: And now, let's get to know our guest a little better with some rapid fire questions.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: We're going to go with the theme of comforts at home in these times.

ANGELA BARKAN: OK.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: First question, your go to comfort food?

ANGELA BARKAN: Mac and cheese.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Your go to, do you go for a workout or curl up with a book?

ANGELA BARKAN: Oh, gosh, curl up with a book, but I'm really trying, really trying to make it a workout.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: That's [INAUDIBLE]. One item that you could never live without?

ANGELA BARKAN: Netflix, I'm addicted to Tiger King like the rest of the world.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Oh, you're the third person that has told me that in the last two days. That's so funny.

ANGELA BARKAN: I mean, it's so crazy.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Your favorite cartoon character?

ANGELA BARKAN: My favorite cartoon character is Snoopy.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: And your work from home attire: PJ's, fully dressed or a little bit of both?

ANGELA BARKAN: Well, I'd love to tell you that I'm wearing a Blazer right now, with a very cool rock and roll t-shirt underneath, but, in fact, I am wearing sweatpants from the Gap.

TINEKE KEESMAAT: Lovely. I'm in workout gear so, hopefully, that helps you feel better. Angi, again, this has been truly amazing and I really appreciate you taking the time.

ANGELA BARKAN: Thank you, guys, so much. This was really fun.

ANNOUNCER: Thank you for joining us today on LeaderLab. LeaderLab is powered by Tiltco, helping exceptional leaders achieve extraordinary results, and the Ivey Academy at Ivey Business School, Canada's home for learning and development. You can learn more about Tiltco and LeaderLab @tiltco.ca. And to find out more about the Ivey Academy, go to iveyacademy.com.