Advertise on podcast: Leadership Biz Cafe with Tanveer Naseer

Most organizations treat inclusion as a checkbox exercise - build diverse teams, implement training programs, and assume employees will automatically feel like they belong. But as Priya Nalkur reveals in this episode of “Leadership Biz Cafe”, this fundamental misunderstanding is exactly why so many workplace initiatives fail to create genuine connection. Priya is the President of The RoundTable Institute and has taught at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the Heller School for Social Policy and Management. She’s also the author of the book, “Stumbling Towards Inclusion: Finding Grace in Imperfect Leadership”. Whether you’re leading inclusion initiatives or simply want to understand how to create a workplace where every employee feels empowered to deliver their best, this conversation will give you the insights and practical strategies you need to make meaningful progress. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Have you set your leadership goals for this year? In this Leadership Espresso Shot, discover four essential goals that will help you build a resilient team ready to succeed.   Learn how shifting your focus from outcomes to empowering your people creates a stronger foundation for collective success.   Whether you're leading a small team or an entire organization, these goals will help you develop the capability and resilience needed to thrive this year.   Ready to strengthen your leadership approach? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There’s a commonly held belief that leadership courage is a trait that you either have or you don’t. That only the most rarefied few have what it takes to rally people around them to press ahead and meet the uncertainty - or adversity - that stands before them.   But what if courage is not a rare trait, but instead something every leader can exemplify in everyday moments?   In this episode of "Leadership Biz Cafe," I speak with Alex Budak, award-winning UC Berkeley faculty member and author of "Becoming a Changemaker", about his Harvard Business Review article where he describes the six forms of everyday courage leaders can develop to successfully drive change and lead their organization through periods of adversity.   And a quick note here that this will be the last episode of “Leadership Biz Cafe” for 2025 as I’m taking a break for the month of December.   But I’ll be back in January 2026 with more guests, more Leadership Espresso Shots, and more insights on how you can succeed and grow in your leadership role.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It seems there's not a lot everyone can agree on these days … except maybe how hard it can be to feel optimistic about things. After all, optimism is something reserved for when things are going well, not something we should expect during periods of uncertainty and disruptive change.   But what if our thinking about optimism is all wrong?   In this edition of my Leadership Espresso Shot series, I share a story from the life of an incredibly successful leader who faced a period of uncertainty much like we're experiencing now, the only difference is that his company was on the verge of bankruptcy.   But it’s what he did next that reveals a powerful lesson for how we should view optimism, especially during periods of uncertainty if we want to ensure we can continue to succeed and grow in the years to come.   I’ve shared this story in some of my leadership keynotes and I can tell you it really does help to inform and re-energize our understanding of what we can and should be doing to effectively lead our team through the fog of uncertainty and change. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Workplace conflict has doubled since 2008, with over a third of employees dealing with it constantly. But what if the solution isn't eliminating conflict, but transforming it into opportunities for connection and understanding, if not also increasing our own self-awareness?   In this episode of "Leadership Biz Cafe," Karin Hurt and David Dye, founders of Let's Grow Leaders and authors of "Powerful Phrases for Dealing with Workplace Conflict," share their proven framework for turning destructive conflict into constructive conversations.   You'll discover the four dimensions of constructive conflict, learn the 12 GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) powerful phrases that actually work to transforming conflict into connection, and gain practical strategies for handling everything from workplace bullies to passive-aggressive colleagues to overwhelming workloads. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Leaders everywhere are frustrated with employee accountability as reflected in various attention-grabbing catchphrases like quiet quitting, coffee badging, and micro-shifting. Unfortunately, what we don’t appreciate is that these are the symptoms of a deeper issue - of employees feeling a disconnect with the work they do.   That’s why in this Leadership Espresso Shot, I share a personal story that reveals how leaders encourage organizational accountability by creating conditions for employees to do meaningful work.   Whether you’re struggling with employee accountability or not, this is an important episode that will help you understand what will be needed in the months and years ahead to encourage your employees to commit their best efforts to your organization. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most leaders approach AI integration by focusing on the mechanics - which tools to buy, how to write better prompts, or which tasks to automate. But what if this tactical focus is exactly why so many AI initiatives fail to create meaningful transformation?   In this episode of "Leadership Biz Cafe," Faisal Hoque, thought leader and best-selling author of “Transcend: Unlock Humanity in the Age of AI,” challenges us to view AI not as a technology problem to solve, but as a mirror reflecting our collective humanity - and why this understanding changes everything about how we should lead with AI. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feeling the weight of nonstop change - and the change fatigue it brings? In this edition of my Leadership Espresso Shot series, I reveal three powerful leadership strategies to help leaders turn fatigue into resilience, uncertainty into clarity, and setbacks into momentum. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most leaders think inclusive teams automatically create belonging. Dr. Beth Kaplan reveals why this assumption is exactly why so many workplace initiatives fail to create genuine connection and leads to the rising levels of anxiety and disconnect we see today.   In this episode of "Leadership Biz Cafe," Dr. Beth Kaplan, who’s been hailed as the world’s leading expert on belonging, shares the critical difference between inclusion (what leaders provide) and belonging (what employees feel), plus practical strategies from her book "Braving The Workplace" on how leaders can create environments where people feel connected to something bigger than themselves without sacrificing who they are. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feeling powerless at work while questioning leadership decisions around you? You're not alone - but you might be thinking about power all wrong.   In this edition of my Leadership Espresso Shot series, I use a scientific principle to help us redefine workplace power and how to stop giving away the influence you already possess.   By the episode’s end, you’ll discover why power isn't about your title or position, but about something far more valuable that you control entirely. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For most leaders, uncertainty is like a storm you weather by cutting costs, delaying decisions, and basically waiting for calmer waters to return. But is it possible that this protective mindset is the very reason why organizations struggle to grow and evolve during periods of uncertainty? In other words, are the difficulties we have with uncertainty less to do with uncertainty itself, and more to do with how we choose to view and respond to it?   In this episode of "Leadership Biz Cafe," my guest Dr. Rebecca Homkes presents her findings and a model that challenges us to rethink uncertainty as the fuel for breakthrough growth rather than an obstacle organizations need to overcome.   Through our discussion of her book, "Survive, Reset, Thrive: Leading Breakthrough Growth Strategy in Volatile Times", Rebecca shares her proven SRT Loop framework - a cyclical three-stage process that will help leaders develop strategies to ensure their organization can withstand and grow whatever setbacks and market shocks that cross their path.   What You'll Learn: Why treating uncertainty as temporary is the biggest strategic mistake leaders can makeHow to use the Uncertainty Matrix to categorize and respond to different types of volatilityThe five hard truths about survival that most leaders get wrongRebecca's power moves for creating stable foundations during turbulent timesHow to define your beliefs and test assumptions when you don't have all the dataThe difference between Right to Play and Right to Win (and why confusion kills growth)How to identify your Ideal Customer Profile and why narrowing focus drives expansionWhat "must-win battles" are and how to maintain focus as conditions changeHow to use the Black Box of Execution to transition from Reset to ThriveCommon SRT Leadership Traps and how to avoid them  Whether you're navigating economic uncertainty, industry disruption, or organizational transformation, this conversation will fundamentally shift how you think about leading growth in volatile times. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For most leaders, workplace conflict is something you should avoid at all costs. While this might sound good in principle, the reality is this mindset limits your team’s ability to reach its full potential.   In this Leadership Espresso Shot, I share a framework of four proven measures that will allow you to create a workplace environment where your employees can effectively transform conflict from emotionally driven disagreements into productive, team-building breakthroughs.   After all, when done right, conflicts don’t tear teams apart, but makes them stronger and better equipped to face what’s next. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When it comes to AI, the present concern is over the potential job losses and fundamental disruptions to the way we work. But what about AI’s inevitable impact on leadership? Will AI lead to a more impersonal, authoritative form of leadership? Or will it actually be the catalyst for a more human-centric form of leadership?   In this episode of "Leadership Biz Cafe," Rasmus Hougaard reveals how AI can save leaders time, enable personalized leadership approaches, and help them to bring more humanity to their role, not less.   Drawing from extensive research shared in his new book, “More Human - How the Power of AI Can Transform the Way You Lead”, Rasmus explains why successful leaders must learn to manage their minds first, then develop three core human qualities that become even more essential in an AI-driven world.   What You'll Learn: The three powerful benefits AI brings to leadership (and why most leaders miss them)How to toggle effectively between human skills and AI capabilitiesWhy developing awareness, wisdom, and compassion is critical for AI-augmented leadersThe specific mindsets leaders need to increase their awareness using AIHow to use AI to develop wisdom without becoming cognitively lazyWhy compassion is the secret to building trust around AI adoption in your organization  It’s a thought-provoking and revealing conversation that will inspire you to realize the future has yet to be written, and how the potential is there for us to create a more human-centric workplace environment where employees and organizations succeed and thrive together. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Have you ever noticed how your biggest leadership disasters stick with you longer than your successes? There's a fascinating psychological reason why our brains hold onto negative experiences, and smart leaders have learned how to harness it to change how they respond to a crisis, and drive their team’s efforts forward.   In this edition of my Leadership Espresso Shot series, I share the story of my worst date night ever (spoiler: it involved being stranded on a highway on-ramp at night) and the unexpected leadership lesson that it reveals about how leaders can transform their most difficult moments into their most powerful teaching moments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most leaders approach organizational change by trying to manage individual behaviours and mindsets. But what if this fundamental approach is exactly why so many transformation efforts fail?   In this episode of “Leadership Biz Cafe”, Siobhan McHale, author of "The Hive Mind At Work," reveals why successful change happens when leaders tap into group intelligence rather than controlling individual responses.   Drawing insights from how bee hives operate, she introduces her revolutionary Hive LENS framework, a four-step process that helps leaders work with natural group dynamics instead of against them.   What You'll Learn: Why conventional change management approaches lead to failed outcomesHow to identify hidden patterns that actually drive organizational behaviourThe three critical mistakes leaders make that bees never doWhy "nudging" beats creating urgency when driving changeHow to prevent teams from reverting to old ways of working  Whether you're leading a major transformation or struggling with resistance to change, this conversation will completely shift how you think about facilitating organizational change. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.