Stacie Baird, Chief People Officer at Community Medical Services, offers insights on the intersection of self-care, resilience, and ethical AI to elevate the human experience.

She shares her professional journey to discovering her leadership purpose in addressing the opioid epidemic. She also shares the power of adversity in our personal lives to unlock our super powers and focus our contributions where it matter most.

Get practical tips for how you can self-regulate or co-regulate anytime, anywhere in the face of adversity. Lastly, explore simple ways you can begin to use AI for your own self-care as well as apply it ethically to enhance your team's resilience and impact.

Additional Resources:

Connect with Lee on LinkedIn
Learn more about Unleashing Leaders
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Learn more about PeopleForward Network
Connect with Stacie Baird on LinkedIn
HX in an AI World series
HX Podcast with Stacie Baird

Key Takeaways:

• Adversity is often the source of our strengths.
• Resilience is navigating the long-term journey; not a quick "bounce-back."
• Your career is a portfolio; curate it wisely.
• Self-care includes pausing, speaking to yourself with love, and asking, "What do I need?"
• Co-regulation with others is what makes us human.

Andrew Adeniyi, founder of AAA Solutions, shares how to create a team environment with psychological safety by identifying and celebrating personal values that are unique yet complementary to company values.

He shares his personal journey of experiencing both positive and negative workplace cultures and how it shaped his approach to leadership.

Adeniyi emphasizes the need for leaders to be self-aware of their own values and to understand the unique values of their team members. He also provides steps for how you as a leader can change a dysfunctional culture that maybe you inherited.

Adeniyi is the author of two books inspired by his journey. 'The Circle of Leadership' and 'The Building Blocks of Belonging' provide further insights and strategies for creating and leveraging culture in the workplace and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Additional Resources:
Connect with Lee on LinkedIn
Learn more about Unleashing Leaders
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Learn more about PeopleForward Network
Connect with Andrew Adeniyi on LinkedIn
Buy a Book or Schedule a Consult with Andrew Adeniyi

Key Takeaways:

• Accessing both shared Company values and unique Personal values are important for creating a positive workplace culture.
• Leaders should be self-aware of their own values and authentic about current organizational realities.
• Changing a dysfunctional culture starts with understanding the purpose and vision of the organization.
• Honesty, vulnerability, and consistency are crucial in aligning actions with stated values.

Managing a distributed team sounds tough—until you hear how Matt Tait turned it into a competitive advantage for his business.

In this episode Lee sits down with Matt, CEO of Decimal—a fast-growing bookkeeping and accounting firm that’s taking “boring” and turning it into brilliance.

Matt’s journey is anything but ordinary: from a failed restaurant tech startup to scaling Decimal from a two-person operation to a team of 80 across four countries, he's learned firsthand how to lead with vulnerability, humility, and a dash of humor.

Learn what it really means to “fail forward,” and how that mindset can help to navigate a remote-first, people-first business.

Additional Resources:

Connect with Lee on LinkedIn
Learn more about Unleashing Leaders
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Matt Tait on LinkedIn
After the First Million podcast
Learn more about PeopleForward Network
Listen to the original episode on Unlocked podcast

Key Takeaways:

• Embrace Vulnerability and Failure: Matt highlights the importance of “failing forward” and embracing vulnerability to grow as a leader.
• Building Remote Culture: Creating intentional connection points and valuing transparency is crucial to success in a remote workforce.
• Scaling with a People-First Approach: Matt emphasizes that business success stems from building a team that genuinely cares about each other.

In this episode of Unleashing Leaders, host Lee Scott teams up with Skot Waldron, host of the Unlocked podcast, to dive into one of the most significant challenges leaders face: limiting beliefs.

These are often partial truths that have helped us succeed in the past but are now holding us back. Lee and Scott explore how these beliefs affect not only us as individual leaders but also the teams we guide.

Learn to identify limiting beliefs and how to help team members overcome it. Tune in for practical strategies to illuminate and elevate your leadership impact, and learn how to accelerate positive change by leveraging the talents within your teams.

Additional Resources
Connect with Lee on LinkedIn
Learn more about Unleashing Leaders
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Learn more about PeopleForward Network
Listen to the original episode on Unlocked podcast

Connect with Skot Waldron on LinkedIn

Skotwaldron.com

In this episode, host Lee Scott welcomes Darren Virassammy, co-founder of 34 Strong, TEDx speaker, and talented bass player.

Darren shares his personal journey of discovering lateral leadership through his home life and how this has shaped his approach to workplace dynamics.

Explore the concept of lateral leadership across organizations, industries, and business relationships, with practical tips on how to build strong, lasting partnerships.

Tune in for actionable advice on how to build trust, handle conflict, and become an "Unleashed Leader."

Additional Resources
Connect with Lee on LinkedIn
Learn more about Unleashing Leaders
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Learn more about PeopleForward Network
https://www.linkedin.com/company/34-strong-inc-/ (34 Strong)
Connect with Darren on LinkedIn Strengths Whisperer (on PF

Bill Otterbeck, Deputy Director for Program Operations at the California Department of Healthcare Services, shares his insights on leading large-scale transformations. He emphasizes the importance of integrative thinking, which involves considering multiple perspectives and connecting the dots across different areas of an organization.

Otterbeck also highlights the value of collaboration and problem-solving, both internally and with external vendors. He discusses the need for effective communication, understanding the motivations of others, and finding common ground to achieve shared goals.

Otterbeck believes that an unleashed leader is someone who can build many leaders within their organization and foster a culture of collaboration and shared purpose.

Additional Resources:
Connect with Lee on LinkedIn
Learn more about Unleashing Leaders
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Learn more about PeopleForward Network
Connect with Bill Otterbeck on LinkedIn

John Crowder, Vice President of the Healthcare Vertical for Integrity Solutions has undoubtedly left an indelible mark on the sales and leadership consulting industry. The magnitude of his expertise is reflected in the impressive list of clientele he has worked with, including some of the largest organizations in the world.

In this popular re-released episode, John joins Lee Scott to share how leaders can have a greater impact by shifting their mindset from listening to respond to listening to understand. He discusses the power of information discovered and the importance of leaders being consultative and empathetic. This conversation is full of practical steps to elevate the performance of your teams and make a positive impact in your organization. You don’t want to miss it!

Additional Resources
Connect with Lee on LinkedIn
Learn more about Unleashing Leaders
Connect with John on LinkedIn
Learn more about Integrity Solutions
Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Learn more about PeopleForward Network
Original episode link

Michelle Cirocco, CEO of the Televerde Foundation and Chief Impact Officer at Televerde, is a driving force in transformative leadership. In this episode, Michelle shares with host Lee Scott her transformative leadership philosophy - empowering team members with the tools and resources they need to run their own "business." This insightful conversation dives into Michelle's incredible journey from overcoming personal adversity and imprisonment to contributing significantly to the success of Televerde—a company renowned for offering jobs and training to women in prison through its impactful foundation.

Michelle discusses the Televerde Foundation's initiatives, which have resulted in an impressive track record: low recidivism rates and high employment rates among formerly incarcerated women. This episode highlights the societal implications of incarceration, the need for better reintegration systems, and the economic benefits of tapping into this often overlooked talent pool.

Key topics include overcoming imposter syndrome, leadership evolution, the importance of meaningful connections, and fostering a culture of trust and respect. Michelle's emphasis on business growth and raising awareness, as well as her journey in Televerde over the past 25 years, serves as an inspiring case study in leveraging personal experiences for greater societal impact.

Additional Resources

Connect with Lee on LinkedIn
Learn more about Unleashing Leaders

Follow PeopleForward Network on LinkedIn
Learn more about PeopleForward Network

Connect with Michelle Cirocco on LinkedIn
Televerde
Televerde Foundation