The Inspiring Leaders Podcast

Leadership Reflections On 2020 - Part 1

Leadership Reflections On 2020 - Part 1

In this 38-minute podcast, our Managing Editor Emma Carroll speaks to Dr William Lo, Chair of Captcha Media (plus a Criticaleye Board Mentor), Catriona Schmolke, former SVP Operational Centres of Excellence, Jacobs, and Charlie Wagstaff, Managing Director, Criticaleye about the business challenges of 2020. After a year of not often getting what you want, but appreciating what you have, our leaders cover:

• How leaders have both captured and acted upon the lessons of the year
• Shared experiences of the early days of COVID-19
• The increased importance of employee wellness in 2020, and how employers took on the role as trusted reference points for their teams
• Responses from different regions - the opportunities arising in Asia as case numbers have fallen
• The challenges for leaders of balancing honesty with positivity, and the role of purpose in 2020
• How have we stayed close to and understood our customers in the last 12-months

Leadership in Uncertain Times - Episode 5

Episode 5 of our "Leadership in Uncertain Times" Podcast Series

Following our recent Asia Leadership Retreat (held on 26 November 2020), Criticaleye’s CEO Matthew Blagg and Director of Content Marc Barber reflect on some of the key discussion points in this 26-minute podcast, including:

• What leaders will be focusing on in 2021, and how challenges of customer centricity and employee behaviour are universal
• The opportunities we are likely to see in the next 12-18 months - what areas companies are likely to focus on when it comes to leadership, purpose and the people agenda?
• The key question of purpose - why do organisations exist and how do leaders align teams behind purpose?
• What change we will see across executive teams (are we are likely to see many executives making the move to a plural career after the changes in 2020?)
• How has the pandemic changed consumer behaviour long-term?

Leadership in Uncertain Times - Episode 4

Episode 4 of our "Leadership in Uncertain Times" Podcast Series

Following our recent CFO Retreat (held on 12 November 2020), Criticaleye’s CEO Matthew Blagg and its Director of Content Marc Barber reflect in this 28-minute podcast on some of the key themes:

• How finance leaders can remain resilient, the balance between cost-cutting and investment, data, talent and digitisation, plus much more
• In a poll taken at the Retreat, 84% said they see the current economic situation as an opportunity to accelerate operating model change
• The role of the CFO, and how this plays out when operating in a complex and fast changing market
• The CFO as ‘timekeeper of the current moment’ alongside the need to play an integral role in strategy and future innovation
• What the end of 2020 will bring in terms of future planning, what opportunities there are for 2021, as well as ongoing challenges that we will see into the New Year.

Leadership in Uncertain Times - Episode 3

Episode 3 of our "Leadership in Uncertain Times" Podcast Series

Following our recent virtual CEO Retreat (held on 15 October 2020), Criticaleye’s CEO, Matthew Blagg, and its Director of Content, Marc Barber, reflect in this 26-minute podcast on some key outtakes:

• 65% of CEOs at our CEO Retreat revealed they had doubted their ability to lead in the last six months
• Making difficult calls as a CEO, and how the pandemic has forced all leaders to be flexible on strategy
• The importance for leaders to stay calm and to give themselves time
• Views on the economy in Asia and if we are seeing a return to normal activity levels

Matthew comments “Experience is what you get when you don’t get what you want, and there are a lot of leaders getting a lot of experience at the moment.” 

Leadership in Uncertain Times - Episode 2

Episode 2 of our "Leadership in Uncertain Times" Podcast Series

In this 38-minute podcast, Criticaleye’s CEO, Matthew Blagg, and its Director of Content, Marc Barber, discuss the state of leadership in the current environment, the forward agenda for CEOs and senior executives and where they need to be focusing in the coming months.

Listen to Matthew and Marc talk about 

• Significant operating model change
• The future of the office – reintegrating furloughed employees
• Understanding the customer experience and how this has changed
• Management team performance and effectiveness
• Cost cutting – striking a balance between reduced cost and long-term opportunity
• The challenge between economic pressures and continued pressure of Covid19 on health

Leadership in Uncertain Times - Episode 1

Episode 1 of our "Leadership in Uncertain Times" Podcast Series.

In this 37-minute podcast, we'll be hearing from Criticaleye's CEO, Matthew Blagg, about how senior leadership teams are responding to the events of 2020 and planning for the future. 

Drawing on our latest CEO Research 2020, Matthew talks about 

• Understanding the short vs long-term impact of the pandemic 
• 58% of CEOs feel isolated in their role
• How Boards can support CEOs
• Why CEOs need to keep calm and think big
• The importance of downtime for senior execs this summer 

Watch a short clip of this podcast with Matthew here.

CEO Retreat Research 2018: How to Navigate Disruption

In this 20-minute podcast, we consider some of the key findings from our research conducted at Criticaleye’s 2018 CEO Retreat.

Criticaleye Host: Matthew Blagg, CEO

Guest: Neil Griffiths, NED at City Pub Company, StarStock and Criticaleye Board Mentor 

Listen to Matthew and Neil discuss business model disruption, strategic thinking in the top team, and how to evaluate leadership capability.