female leaders – Dov Pollack Executive Coaching

October 18, 2021October 18, 2021

Suchitra Rajendra, the Founder of QED!HR and Former VP of Human Resources for PepsiCo India: On Leading the Second Wave, Challenging the Status Quo, and the Best Advice She Ever Received

Suchitra Rajendra

Suchitra Rajendra is the Founder of QED!HR, a consulting firm focused on developing HR strategies and creating lasting impact. Suchitra has over 25 years in the HR field, including as the Vice President of Human Resources for PepsiCo India. She has also worked for major companies like Cerebrus Consultants and WorkVentures.

Suchitra is currently setting up a foundation for women’s advancement that strives to highlight opportunities, provide access to education, and promote human rights internationally.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

How Suchitra Rajendra dealt with unrest at a factory
Suchitra’s upbringing and how it influences her leadership
The key advice that changed Suchitra’s life
Why it’s so important to create and maintain culture
The story of Suchitra’s experience with culture in Thailand
Effectively leading change at big companies
What is QED!HR and how do they help other businesses?
How Suchitra is empowering women in the workforce

In this episode…

HR is often relegated as a less important component of a business. Marketing, product development, and corporate all drive the company externally — but, a good HR department can keep the business organized and thriving. More importantly, HR is at the heart of inclusion for people who are overlooked.

Inclusion and internal excellence are exactly what Suchitra Rajendra does best. Suchitra is the Founder of QED!HR and the former PepsiCo India VP of Human Resources. Under her leadership, their HR department succeeded in challenging the status quo and diversifying the business. She now works to help other businesses improve their HR departments and support women at major companies. Now she shares her vision with you.

Dov Pollack takes the time to sit down with Suchitra Rajendra, the Founder of QED!HR, to hear her perspective on HR and leadership. The two go over her personal journey and how it has changed the way she thinks about human relationships. They also discuss how to create and maintain culture, strategies for incorporating change at large companies, and her vision for empowering women. Hear it all for yourself on this episode of the Next Wave Leadership podcast.

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Sponsor for this episode…

Founded by Dov Pollack, Next Wave Leadership is an executive coaching firm focused on helping CEOs, executives, and emerging leaders to deepen their executive presence, differentiate their voice, and embrace the plot and promise of their story.

To know more about what we can do to help you grow as a leader, visit our website at NextWaveLeadership.com or send us an email at dov@nextwaveleadership.com.

September 20, 2021September 19, 2021

Lucy Basta, the Co-Founder of WorkWell: On Why Soft Skills Are Essential, How Communities Build Great Leaders, and the Importance of Speaking in Your Own Voice

Lucy Basta

Lucy Basta is an expert in technology, a leadership coach, and the Co-founder of WorkWell, a career-empowering community for women. Lucy and her co-founder, Whitney Cole, started the business to ensure that people of all kinds can equip themselves with successful careers in the tech industry. Lucy has had a diverse career, ranging from emergency room worker to Learning and Development Leader at Apple. From there, she found her niche in leadership coaching and professional preparation.

Lucy is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) through New Ventures West and has a degree in Business Leadership and Management from the University of California, Berkeley.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

What is WorkWell and why is their work so important?
How Lucy Basta transitioned from healthcare worker to leadership coach
The advantages and strengths of diversity
Lucy talks about cultivating skills in people to excel in their jobs
Community building and support for isolated employees
Important habits to unlearn in order to learn better habits
Why group coaching is more effective than one-on-one sessions
The power of working together and learning from others
Where Lucy sees herself in the future

In this episode…

Diversity has become more important than ever in the workplace. Not only is the topic essential as the cry for equality becomes unanimous, but it’s also an impediment for businesses. A lack of diversity can stifle creativity and stop you from reaching an expanding global market. A diverse team can reach new demographics and bring unexplored talents to the table. It truly is the best way for businesses to move into the future. And now, there are companies designed to help that process along.

WorkWell is a job accelerator that offers career search, interview skills, and a lifelong community for people entering the tech industry. Their goal is to help people secure these positions and help them transition into their new roles. There are some important skills that candidates should hone if they want to make it in the industry. So, what are they?

Dov Pollack sits down with Lucy Basta, the Co-founder of WorkWell, to learn about the importance of diversity in the workplace and the skills needed to work together. They start with Lucy’s own career and how she adapted at Apple as a fish out of water. Then, they chat about career preparation, the community building most corporations overlook, which habits to unlearn and how to replace them, and more. Find out more by tuning in to this episode of the Next Wave Leadership podcast.

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Sponsor for this episode…

Founded by Dov Pollack, Next Wave Leadership is an executive coaching firm focused on helping CEOs, executives, and emerging leaders create great places to work by creating great places to grow.

If you are a leader who is looking to differentiate your voice, own your story, and choose your path with purpose. Next Wave Leadership can help you get the results you want and need.

To know more about what we can do to help you and your team grow, visit our website at NextWaveLeadership.com or send us an email at dov@nextwaveleadership.com.

August 30, 2021August 31, 2021

Tensie Whelan, Clinical Professor of Business and Society at NYU Stern School of Business: On How Teaching Future Business Leaders to See the World Through the Lens of Sustainability Will Help Them View the World Differently

Tensie Whelan

Tensie Whelan is the Director of the Center for Sustainable Business and a Clinical Professor of Business and Society at NYU Stern School of Business. At NYU, she advocates for sustainable practices and equips students to address environmental challenges in their future positions. In her own career, Tensie has 25 years of experience working with national and international organizations on issues of sustainability.

Before starting at NYU, Tensie worked as the President of the Rainforest Alliance for much of her career, growing the organization from $4.5 million to $50 million. She also continues to serve as a Board Member for GlobeScan, which helps different institutions grow their brand and sustainability efforts.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

How do you change the mentality of an organization towards sustainability?
What led Tensie Whelan to transition from president of an organization to professor at a prestigious university
Creating an ecosystem that helps mothers in their careers
The balance between pragmatism and sustainability
Persuading board members with metrics and data
How did Tensie build an internal culture at the Rainforest Alliance?
Changes to the landscape of sustainability at universities
What does the future of environmental efforts look like?

In this episode…

Sustainability efforts are more important than ever. The environment continues to suffer as more and more problems arise from human exploitation. Yet in the world of business, sustainability is often a hot-button topic, typically seen as an impediment rather than a companion. It can be difficult to change any minds — but it’s not impossible.

Tensie Whelan has worked in sustainability organizations for most of her life. She spent 15 years as the President of the Rainforest Alliance and now works at NYU as a professor and director. Her goal is to educate and guide the upcoming generation of business leaders to see the value and importance of sustainability. She not only believes that change is possible, but crucial for the future. So what does all of that look like in practice?

Dov Pollack invites Tensie Whelan, the Director of the Center for Sustainable Business at NYU, to talk about the needed intersection between sustainability and the future of business. She dives into a host of topics, from persuading board members to developing an internal culture of environmentalism. They also discuss what’s on the horizon for sustainability and diversity in the business world. Find out more by tuning in to this episode of Next Wave Leadership.

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Sponsor for this episode…

Founded by Dov Pollack, Next Wave Leadership is an executive coaching firm focused on helping CEOs, executives, and emerging leaders create great places to work by creating great places to grow.

If you are a leader who is looking to differentiate your voice, own your story, and choose your path with purpose. Next Wave Leadership can help you get the results you want and need.

To know more about what we can do to help you and your team grow, visit our website at NextWaveLeadership.com or send us an email at dov@nextwaveleadership.com.

August 23, 2021August 24, 2021

Sowmya Murthy, CMO & Chief Customer Officer at Seven Lakes Technologies: On Navigating the Liminal Space Toward Transformation, Thriving in Chaos, and Why You Can’t Use a Stick on a Free Person

Sowmya Murthy

Sowmya Murthy is a business innovator, advocate for women in leadership, and the CMO and CCO at Seven Lakes Technologies. Along with their CEO, Sowmya has helped the company transition from a service-based business to a SaaS product enterprise. Sowmya and her team have received recognition for their work from notable firms like Frost & Sullivan.

Sowmya has developed her expertise in marketing and strategy across a laudable career, including her last position as the Head of Marketing at Unisys. She also helped create the JOYN SaaS brand, a platform that focuses on both in-field data capture and automation.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

Sowmya Murthy’s early scripting and how she found her career
What it means to “play small” and how to overcome it
Stepping into leadership and your full agency in the corporate world
The process of encouraging growth in organizations
Sowmya’s approach to staying comfortable in the chaos
Molding the potential of young, promising employees
How do you prepare for — and respond to — failure?
The cost of a mentally arrested employee

In this episode…

Here’s a hard pill to swallow: true transformation and growth can’t be forced. Business after business falls into the trap that pushing employees harder will equate to success. While that extra push may be necessary in some cases, it is rarely the catalyst for real change. An effective workforce is made up of driven individuals who can handle responsibility.

Authentic change starts with freeing the employee from their mental limitations. There are many ways to accomplish this, but the end result should be unmistakable: a self-possessed person who can adapt to change and push their company forward. Cultivating these employees requires a leader to encourage and guide them in the right direction. And, it takes someone who has done it countless times before.

Dov Pollack sits down with Sowmya Murthy, the CMO and CCO of Seven Lakes Technologies, to see what it means to transform your business and your employees. They walk through what it means to “play small” and how to come into your own as a leader. Sowmya breaks down her strategies for working with young employees, leading a company in a new direction, and keeping your focus amidst chaos. Learn all of this and more on this episode of Next Wave Leadership.

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Sponsor for this episode…

Founded by Dov Pollack, Next Wave Leadership is an executive coaching firm focused on helping CEOs, executives, and emerging leaders create great places to work by creating great places to grow.

If you are a leader who is looking to differentiate your voice, own your story, and choose your path with purpose. Next Wave Leadership can help you get the results you want and need.

To know more about what we can do to help you and your team grow, visit our website at NextWaveLeadership.com or send us an email at dov@nextwaveleadership.com.

August 16, 2021August 17, 2021

Sylvia Rohde-Liebenau, the Former Senior Expert, Leadership Development and Coaching at the European Investment Bank On: The Presence and Stillness of Leadership, Managing Your Own Stress, and Why Organizations Don’t Change

Sylvia Rohde Liebenau

Sylvia Rohde-Liebenau is the former Managerial Advisor of Leadership Development and Coaching at the European Investment Bank, where she advanced leaders for almost 18 years. Currently, she is both the Founder and Executive Coach at Connect4impact. She started coaching to help people and organizations emerge and excel as impactful leaders. She is an EMCC-accredited coach and works primarily with international and financial organizations.

Throughout her career, she also served as a Senior Consultant for Ramboll Management and a Programme Manager for the European Commission.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

How Sylvia Rohde-Liebenau blends her creativity with her corporate career
Addressing human interests and concerns in Sylvia’s coaching
Are there any differences between male and female leaders?
Connecting the body and mind for holistic improvement
How did Sylvia get into leadership coaching?
The most important question that Sylvia asks her clients
Embodying motion to better understand ourselves
Sylvia’s thoughts on power and how it affects our culture

In this episode…

It can be all too easy for leaders to get tunnel vision with their companies. With constant pressure and growing demands, the focus becomes fixed on the numbers while leaving room for little else. A lot can get lost in this in-between, from mental health to employee satisfaction to the long-term performance of the business. It’s not a sustainable model, and it often leads to stagnation in many organizations.

According to Sylvia Rohde-Liebenau, a successful coach and leadership expert, improving as a leader comes from self-awareness, stillness, and a priority for stress management. Sylvia has worked for the European Investment Bank and the European Commission, accumulating over 25 years of leadership development experience. She has witnessed the lasting effects of burnout, stress, and ineffective communication — so she decided to do something about it.

Dov Pollack invites Sylvia Rohde-Liebenau, the former Managerial Advisor of Leadership Development and Coaching at the European Investment Bank, on the podcast to learn about her unique approach to leadership coaching. She explains her techniques to center yourself and improve communication. She also dives into her philosophy on embodying your emotions and how that translates into performance. They even take time to go over her personal journey from corporate consultant to successful coach.

Resources Mentioned in this episode

Sponsor for this episode…

Founded by Dov Pollack, Next Wave Leadership is an executive coaching firm focused on helping CEOs, executives, and emerging leaders create great places to work by creating great places to grow.

If you are a leader who is looking to differentiate your voice, own your story, and choose your path with purpose. Next Wave Leadership can help you get the results you want and need.

To know more about what we can do to help you and your team grow, visit our website at NextWaveLeadership.com or send us an email at dov@nextwaveleadership.com.