453: How to lead with authenticity (with Sabrina Horn)

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss speed. Far too many candidates focus on being faster. That is another myth. Speed is an outcome of having good technique. So if you are slow, deconstruct your technique, analyze weaknesses and develop a new way to solve arithmetic. That is key. Unless your technique improves aka "your process to solve math," you will never improve. We explain how in this podcast. Moreover, if an interviewer or practice partner indicates you are slow, think carefully if your technique can be improved, versus merely trying to speak faster. Note, there are many different techniques to solve arithmetic problems so do not search for the "best" technique. Find one that works for you. Enjoying our podcast? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

16 Jan 20238min

Welcome to an episode with Catherine Mattiske, a leading training professional, author, and publisher, with an internationally acclaimed career spanning 30 years across an array of industries including banking, insurance, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and retail. In this episode, Catherine speaks about her journey of becoming a successful entrepreneur and how she broke out of trading time for money. Catherine shares her advice to people who are trying to build a company from the ground up and also build a passive income. She highlighted the value of communication in forming and strengthening client relationships, leading to business success. Catherine Mattiske established 'The Performance Company,' a leading-edge training and consulting organization, in 1994. The Performance Company has offices in Sydney, Los Angeles, New York, and London. Catherine has earned a reputation for helping clients achieve their personal and business goals across Australia, the USA, United Kingdom, Europe, Africa, New Zealand, and Asia. Her client list has a global reach, including high profile Fortune 100 and 500 companies. Catherine Mattiske is an accomplished author and publisher. In 2021, Mattiske published her thirty-first book: UNLOCK INNER GENIUS: Power Your Path to Extraordinary Success. Recognized globally for her achievements in business, Catherine Mattiske was a member of the US Congressional Business Advisory Council. Mattiske has been awarded for her influence on US business and has also been nominated on several occasions for the prestigious Australian Business Woman of the Year. Since expanding her Australian business to the US and Europe in 2001, Catherine has worked with her team remotely and built a global virtual organization. Catherine knows the highs and lows of leading virtual teams, and she is passionate about helping leaders overcome their barriers to success when leading virtual teams. Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

11 Jan 20231h 21min

Welcome to an episode with CNBC's Senior Media & Tech Correspondent, Julia Boorstin. Get Julia's Book here: https://amzn.to/3ekjT4Y In this episode, Julia speaks about female leaders and their struggles in facing gender bias and "pattern matching" in largely male-dominated industries. She discusses the key commonalities of female leaders who thrived in spite of the challenges that made them uniquely equipped to lead and grow successful businesses. Julia also shared her journey of becoming a CNBC senior media and tech correspondent. As an expert, she shares tips on how to prepare for interviews, how to become a better communicator, and how to respond to opportunities. Julia Boorstin is CNBC's Senior Media & Tech Correspondent and has been an on-air reporter for the network since 2006. She also plays a central role in CNBC's bicoastal tech-focused program "TechCheck" delivering reporting, analysis, and CEO interviews with a focus on social media and the intersection of media and technology. In 2013, Boorstin created and launched the CNBC Disruptor 50, an annual list she oversees, highlighting private companies transforming the economy and challenging companies in established industries. She also helped launch the network's 'Closing the Gap' initiative covering the people and companies closing gender and diversity gaps. Julia is a graduate of Princeton University, she has been a reporter for Fortune magazine, as well as a contributor to CNN and CNN Headline News. She also was an intern for Vice President Gore's domestic policy office. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two sons. Get Julia's book here: When Women Lead: What They Achieve, Why They Succeed, and How We Can Learn from Them. Julia Boorstin. https://amzn.to/3ekjT4Y Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

9 Jan 20231h 1min

Welcome to an episode with an expert on organizational paradoxes, Wendy Smith. Get Wendy's Book here: https://amzn.to/3fF1b8C When faced with a tough decision-making situation, it is common for us to assess and select what we believe is the best deal and then move on. We tend to assume that we need to pick one option and eliminate the other. But what if we could actually succeed in pursuing both options? In this episode with Wendy Smith, we discuss how leaders and individuals can effectively respond to contradictory yet interdependent demands and have the mindset shift needed to successfully navigate a paradox. Wendy Smith is the Dana J. Johnson Professor of Management and faculty director of the Women's Leadership Initiative at the Lerner College of Business and Economics, University of Delaware. She earned her PhD in organizational behavior at Harvard Business School, where she began her intensive research on strategic paradoxes—how leaders and senior teams effectively respond to contradictory yet interdependent demands. Working with executives and scholars globally, she received the Web of Science Highly Cited Research Award (2019, 2020, and 2021) for being among the 1 percent most-cited researchers in her field and received the Decade Award (2021) from the Academy of Management Review for the most cited paper in the past 10 years. Her work has been published in such journals as Academy of Management Journal, Administrative Science Quarterly, Harvard Business Review, Organization Science, and Management Science. She has taught at the University of Delaware, Harvard University, and the University of Pennsylvania–Wharton while helping senior leaders and middle managers all over the world address issues of interpersonal dynamics, team performance, organizational change, and innovation. Wendy lives in Philadelphia with her husband, three children, and the family dog. Get Wendy's book here: Both/And Thinking: Embracing Creative Tensions to Solve Your Toughest Problems. Wendy Smith, Marianne Lewis, Amy C. Edmondson. https://amzn.to/3fF1b8C Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

4 Jan 202353min

Welcome to an episode with a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, Sean McLain. Get Sean's book here. This episode with Sean McLain revolves around the story of Carlos Ghosn, one of the world's most feared and admired business executives who had remarkable success, yet faced a catastrophic fall. He was accused of financial misconduct and arrested for a bevy of alleged crimes—all of which he vehemently denied. Sean is a reporter for The Wall Street Journal based in Los Angeles, covering EV startups like Rivian, Lucid, and Japanese and Korean automakers. Since 2016, Sean McLain has overseen The Wall Street Journal's coverage of the largest automakers in Japan, including Toyota, Honda, and Nissan, and received the Malcolm Forbes Award by the Overseas Press Club of America for his coverage of the former Nissan and Renault executive's arrest and detention. Sean graduated from St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland, and lives in Tokyo. Get Sean's book here: Boundless: The Rise, Fall, and Escape of Carlos Ghosn. Nick Kostov and Sean McLain Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

2 Jan 202359min

For this episode, let's revisit a Case Interview & Management Consulting classic where we discuss about the typical errors candidates make in trying to read too much into the behavior of interviewers: quiet, asking questions, rude, etc. One thing we always caution candidates is to be wary of assuming the friendly person likes them or that the unfriendly person does not like them. Friendliness does not equate to "like" and people display their emotions in very different ways. So, if the interviewer is very friendly, it could go either way. Enjoying our podcast? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

28 Dec 20229min

Welcome to an episode with a sought-after business leader and an expert in finance and investing, Candy Valentino. How do you create wealth and financial freedom? This question roams around almost anyone's mind. Yet, not everyone has achieved the "financial freedom" level. In this episode, Candy shares the most effective tips to build wealth through investment, sustainable and long-term business, and how to earn and save more. She discussed the right mindset about money and covered the six ordinary steps to achieve extraordinary financial freedom. Candy Valentino has over 24 years of business experience building and exiting companies in service, retail, product manufacturing, and real estate investing. During her two-and-a-half decades as an entrepreneur, Candy Valentino has been named to Top Business Leaders 40 Under 40, Top 50 Women In Business, 10 People Making a Difference, Top 10 Business Consultants by Yahoo Finance, and was the youngest female to receive the Governor's Award in Entrepreneurship in Pennsylvania. Success Magazine named her "Women of Influence" and "Leaders Who Get Results" alongside Tony Robbins and Brené Brown. She shares her gritty, real-world business and investing strategies with an audience of millions through her Founders Organization. Candy Valentino lives in Scottsdale, AZ. Get Candy's book here: Wealth Habits: Six Ordinary Steps to Achieve Extraordinary Financial Freedom. Candy Valentino Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

26 Dec 202252min

Welcome to an episode with Jennifer Smith, the CEO and co-founder of Scribe, Jennifer Smith. In this episode, Jennifer shared her career journey and how she came up with the ideas that led her to founding Scribe. We discuss the value of institutionalizing knowledge and unleashing know-how from a single person into an asset that's available across the company. We also speak about the massive possibilities that a knowledge management system can have for a company and the impact it can have on a business. Jennifer Smith is a former VC and McKinsey consultant turned accidental CEO. She interviewed more than 1,200 business leaders on a quest to understand everything there is to know about processes, best practices, and productivity. Now, with her startup Scribe, she's empowering people to own their processes by building the world's first operating system for know-how. Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo

21 Dec 202250min