Wisdom From The Top with Guy Raz

Latest Episodes:

From Lab to C-Suite, Then Turning Around a Startup, ft. George Scangos (Biogen) Aug 07, 2024

Show notes

For George Scangos, the art of decisive leadership is part of his biology, you could say. Scangos is a former lab researcher who rose to the top of the biotech world. Transitioning from a biology researcher at Yale to a pharmaceutical executive, his journey is a testament to the power of interpersonal skills and strategic thinking. As the CEO of Biogen, he transformed the company's performance, leading it to become one of the top performers in the S&P 500 within his first year. In this 2019 conversation, Scangos unveils his approach to tough decision-making and the culture-shaping strategies that drive success. Chief among those strategies: creating space for people to feel comfortable to fail. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Why Uncertainty Matters: Margaret Heffernan Jul 31, 2024

Show notes

Margaret Heffernan, an entrepreneur, CEO, executive leadership coach, and author of six books, delves into her often counter-intuitive insights on consensus-building, and decision-making. She and Guy discuss her book, Uncharted: How to Map the Future, where she explains why attempts to predict the future, even with today's AI and Big Data technologies, are often doomed to fail. Instead, Margaret offers alternative strategies for organizations facing an uncertain future—strategies rooted in human creativity and resilience. Plus, the importance of recognizing your inner super chicken. Known for challenging conventional business wisdom, Margaret’s perspective is a refreshing take on how to navigate the complexities of the modern world.

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Success Doesn't Teach You Much, ft. Cheryl Bachelder (KFC, Popeye's) Jul 24, 2024

Show notes

The former CEO of KFC and Popeye's doesn't love talking about success, of which she's had plenty. No, in fact she's more interested in life's stumbles, in the complexity of failures, and what they have to teach her and her team. Her leadership style is highly relational ("I must know you to grow you," she says). Bachelder became President of KFC years later, but a job that started as a major opportunity wound up being a massive failure. In this conversation with Guy Raz from 2020: How Bachelder learned from her failures and went on to turn Popeyes into one of the biggest success stories of the past decade.

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'Forget Vision:' Lou Gerstner's IBM Turnaround Jul 17, 2024

Show notes

The legendary CEOs of the 1990s included Jack Welch of GE and John Chambers of Cisco, who was on our show last season. Another dominant figure was Lou Gerstner of IBM, the first IBM CEO recruited from outside the company. When he became CEO in 1993, IBM was struggling against competitors like Microsoft, Dell, and Compaq. Gerstner famously declared, "The last thing IBM needs right now is a vision," and instead focused on breaking through internal bureaucracy and making tough decisions. His approach transformed IBM, boosting its market cap from 29 billion to 168 billion over nine years. In this 2020 conversation, Lou shares his journey to the CEO role and the principles behind IBM's turnaround.

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Why to Put a Chink in Your Own Armor: Brad Smith (Intuit) Jul 10, 2024

Show notes

Brad Smith, the former CEO and now Chairman of the Board at Intuit, knows first hand why vulnerability and failure are intrinsic to good leadership. At one point in his career he lost $40 million for a company and then...got promoted. Smith, heavily influenced by his father's wisdom (i.e. "put a chink in your own armor") leaned into the power of authenticity, humility, and vulnerability to inspire others. At Intuit, Smith led the company through one of its most significant transformations, reinventing it into a high-powered cloud-based platform and reigniting a startup culture within a decades-old software firm. In this 2019 conversation, leadership principles meet real-world application. The watchwords? Authenticity and vision.

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The Importance of a Near Miss: Sarah Lewis (Harvard) Jul 03, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, Dr. Sarah Elizabeth Lewis, a Harvard professor of History of Art and Architecture and African and African American Studies, joins Guy to discuss the role of failure in achieving mastery. Dr. Lewis, author of "The Rise: Creativity, the Gift of Failure, and the Search for Mastery," delves into the concept of the “ever onward almost” in art, athletics, and business leadership. Learn more from this 2022 conversation about how failure can be a powerful catalyst for success.

More about Dr. Lewis: She served on President Obama's Arts Policy Committee, and is the creator of the Vision and Justice project, which explores the intersection of visual art, race, social justice, and democracy. Dr. Lewis's project has led to an exhibition, an award-winning Aperture magazine issue, a popular TED Talk, and a Harvard class that's now part of the core curriculum.

Mentions:

--Franklin Leonard, who co-hosts The Black List Podcast. More info here: http://luminary.link/blacklist

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From Intern to CEO: Greg Wasson (Walgreens) Jun 26, 2024

Show notes

Greg Wasson jokes that he wanted to be a pharmacist because his two great uncles, both pharmacists, drove big Cadillacs. The Indiana native was, though, seriously inspired to enter the pharmacy school at Purdue. But before he even finished his degree, he started climbing the corporate ladder at Walgreens. New opportunities kept coming his way, and he eventually made it all the way to CEO during a tough time for the company. In this 2020 conversation, Guy explores with Greg the strategies Wasson used to evolve and grow the company into a set of community-focused health destinations. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Purpose-Driven Leadership: Capital One's Sanjiv Yajnik Jun 19, 2024

Show notes

Sanjiv Yajnik, is someone who embraces risk and adapts to change with remarkable resilience. Sanjiv's career began as a marine engineer, spending over a decade at sea, working for major shipping companies. His dedication and all-in approach to engineering propelled his maritime career. However, Sanjiv took a bold leap, leaving his promising career in India to move to Canada and pursue an MBA. Today, Sanjiv serves as the President of Financial Services at Capital One, renowned for his purpose-driven leadership and agile risk management. How a young man from Calcutta navigated from 13 years at sea to helping steer one of the most influential financial institutions.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Never Stop Improving: Lowe’s Marvin Ellison Jun 12, 2024

Show notes

Marvin Ellison is one of the few Black CEOs leading a Fortune 500 company. In this episode he shares his remarkable journey from retail security guard to CEO of two major corporations. Known for taking on the toughest jobs that others shied away from, Ellison became the go-to leader for companies like J.C. Penney and now Lowe’s during precarious times. He firmly believes that limiting failure also limits success. Discover the depth of his philosophy and leadership insights in this compelling 2019 conversation. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Why Some Never Break Through: Greg McKeown ('Effortless' and 'Essentialism') Jun 05, 2024

Show notes

Leadership strategist, business speaker, podcaster, and author Greg McKeown (New York Times bestsellers Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less and Effortless: Make It Easier To Do What Matters Most) writes about ideas and strategies that explain, at least in part, why some break through to the next level while others don’t. His philosophy, "Essentialism," is all about recognizing what's truly important--what matters most, then prioritizing it, and cutting out the rest. Greg's ideas apply not just in the workplace but also in personal life, offering a helpful framework for every important decision. If you've got decision fatigue, this 2021 conversation Guy had with Greg is the perfect motivator.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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