The Navigating Disruption Podcast

I have long held a belief in the power of a coaching approach to sales and customer relationship management. I think there is potential to expand coaching in business into customer relationships. In this episode I speak to Robert Gray, Certified Leadership Coach with Essential Impact, one my instructors during my coaching certification. He provides a perspective on what coaching is and how it benefits people in achieving what they want for themselves. Rob shares my view about the applicability of coaching to customer relationship management and in this episode we compare notes and see what he has to say about it.

In this episode I chat with Amy Ballon, a seasoned business coach and strategic advisor. Amy and I were seat mates in our first corporate job 22 years ago as newly minted MBAs. We were both grateful and eager but then the world changed, and that disruption set Amy on a very different path as an entrepreneur and co-author of the book Mom Inc.: how to raise your family and your business without losing your mind or your shirt. Today she works as an entrepreneur coach with the Business Development Bank of Canada and is the co-founder of Spark Consulting. She is dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs as they navigate their own journeys. Listen as we catch up for the first time in 20 years and trade lessons learned in our careers.

Alyssa Barry reminds us that it is possible to pursue a drive for helping others with a career in business. We met 9 years ago united by our passion for making the world a better place and improving quality of life for all. I had a feeling then we were deeply connected and this conversation confirms it.

Alyssa, principal and co-founder of irlabs, has created a firm to help organizations unlock hidden value. She has had an extensive career in strategy, investor relations, and communications. You would typically not associate these areas with the career of a self-declared activist but that is indeed where this activist inside found her calling.

Listen carefully to hear some lessons that we can all leverage to make an impact on people regardless of the profession we pursue.

One of my most rewarding projects in the last few years was writing a series of articles about how my early life experiences influenced my leadership practice. A central figure in those explorations was my Dad, Abdul Bharmal. Due to COVID, It had been more than two years since I last saw my Dad. When I could finally get on a flight to pay a surprise visit, I was hungry for deep conversations and quality time. So I packed my audio equipment and we sat down for this conversation about his life as an entrepreneur that started in rural Tanzania prepared him for his journey through disruption to create a better life for his family. Of course I learned about him, but I also learned more about myself and how patterns repeat themselves through generations. To read more about these stories you can find my blogs here https://www.shakeelbharmal.com/#latest-articles

There was a time when promotions came to the confident and bold individuals that always seemed to know the answer. Then something seemed to change and now there is a premium for leaders that are keenly aware that they don’t always know the answer and recognize that success only comes from drawing on the people, insights and knowledge around them. In this conversation I thought I would be talking with my guest about confident and candid leadership. But when I actually spoke with Jeff Knisley, Vice President of Business Development at startup Autozen, I experienced the unexpected. Over the years I watched as Jeff found his success in leadership by building an armour of confidence as he worked his way up to executive roles at companies like Purolator, Livingston, UPS, Autotrader, Yellow Pages, Postmedia and Rise People. He leveraged this confidence to push the people he led, to protect them, to provide clarity through complex industry disruptions, and to deliver the answers to difficult questions. Over time, and especially most recently, he has discovered that he needs to shift away from the traits that made him successful and face the uncertain future with courageous vulnerability as he navigates the disruption he has created for himself.

What is motivation capability? It’s a combination of self awareness, perspective, mindset and reflective practice to help individuals move from a feeling of futility and lack of influence to one of empowerment and impact. Given the amount of uncertainty in our lives today, we could all benefit from a boost here. In the Hercules Meets Buddha episode we referred to Motivation Factor as an approach which helped my guest Martha define purpose. I talked all about Motivation Factor in an episode of Joel Silverstone's podcast TFR (This Feels Right). Joel was kind enough to share the recording of the interview with me so I can share it with you here. Over the last 10 years, Joel and I have joyfully partnered on projects many times. In this conversation, I explain to him what motivation capability is and how people can take control of their motivation by understanding their needs, energy drainers and enhancers and their talents. This is something I do with my coaching clients that consistently helps them improve their performance. If you want to do a motivation factor assessment and some coaching to strengthen your motivation capability or define your purpose go to oceanbluestrategic.com/motivation or reach out to me at shakeel@oceanbluestrategic.com

What do an underground nuclear bunker, a little girl named Sophia and a semi-truck and trailer have in common? You will find out in this episode. I had the privilege of watching Christine McGuire take on big professional challenges with grace and enthusiasm. She and I were colleagues for several years before she became the Executive Director of The Diefenbunker: Canada’s Cold War Museum. In this conversation we talk about how to find personal growth, overcome challenges and lead with gentle persuasion instead of force.

When we were children, Egan Christensen was my best friend. But then at 11 years old, he just disappeared. I am not embarrassed to say I was a little heartbroken at the time. There was no easy way to stay connected in the early 80’s so we lost touch. In this conversation we catch up after exactly 40 years. We reminisce of course but then we discover how much we have in common in our approach to leadership, customer relationships and business. He has had an incredible career in sales, service and strategy in global technology companies. It makes sense why those childhood memories have stuck with both of us all these years. Although we didn't realize it at the time, we shared values. This is one my best examples of how influences and experiences early in life can carry through into our leadership.

I have been doing much thinking about the good and danger of social media, online searches, online shopping and digital transactions. On one hand, the web has empowered our social connections, fueled small business survival and the enabled the flexibility to work from home. On the other hand, we have experienced the impact of breaches of data privacy, the spread of misinformation and the ability to mobilize some terrible forces in society. Jon Lloyd, head of campaigns at Mozilla Foundation joins me in this conversation to share his perspectives on this important topic that has been unfolding before our eyes. Mozilla Foundation is a global non-profit dedicated to putting people in control of their online experience and shaping the future of the web for public good. Mozilla's for-profit business owns the Firefox browser. Our conversation went well beyond as we dived into leadership, empathy and trust. Link to Jon’s blog referenced in the episode. http://fundraisingisawesome.com/2018/03/18/trust-equation/

You just never know when you are going to find people that you so closely align with. I was first introduced to David Pyle, Senior Vice President at Cox Automotive by my colleague at The Summit Group. David was on an executive panel I was moderating at the global Strategic Account Management Association's conference in 2020. His responses to my questions about leadership and customer collaboration were so insightful and reflective that I made a mental note to book some one-on-one time with him. You can listen in to that conversation here. We chat about the power of self reflection, the ability of leaders to hold opposites, the shifts in the movement industries and how leaders can navigate this time of disruption.

She is not the typical persona you imagine when you think about a career accountant. Farah Bundeali is a Partner with global accounting firm KPMG.  Her emphasis on leadership and care for people may come from her role as the HR lead on the KPMG audit management team, but more than likely it comes from lessons from her parents. In this conversation she shares the influence of her Dad in shaping her career ambitions, how long it took her to feel settled in her career choice and most importantly her view on how leaders can put their own and their team's mental health front and centre.

My first meeting with Josh Blair was only about 3 minutes long. At the time he was Group President at Telus, responsible for a collection of cutting edge business units. That first short meeting intrigued me enough to do a bit of research about him thinking that I would find a reason to connect for a deeper conversation where I could learn more. It took a few years, but when I saw him announce his new venture, Impro.AI, on Linkedin, I knew the time had come. As the Co-Founder and CEO, he and his partners are innovating to bring the benefits of performance related executive coaching to the masses. We talk about this venture as well as the lessons he has learned about leadership from childhood through his 25 year leadership career.

He came to business school with a few years experience as a marketing research associate. Now 20 years after graduating, Dominic Atkinson and his partners have grown a small start-up, DIG Insights, into one of the most innovative and fastest growing customer insights firms in the country. They have far exceeded their early ambitions. Dominic and I were in a learning team together back in 1998 and this is the first time we are speaking since that time. In this conversation, we talk about his journey, entrepreneurship, leadership and the ingredients of a successful long term partnership. To learn more about DIG check out their website. http://www.diginsights.com/

I met Philip Styrlund at 33 when I worked at Purolator. He had been invited by our VP of Marketing, my boss at the time,  to share his thoughts on transforming our go to market sales approach. Nothing is random. We stayed in touch and years later, I became a partner in Phil's company, The Summit Group, before I went on to work in the non-profit sector. I am so fortunate to work with him again now. He advises sales and marketing leaders and CEOs at some of the world's leading companies. No exaggeration. He is one of the wisest and well read people I know. It was a treat to have this conversation with him and it is my pleasure to share this episode with you.

I remember that conversation in May 1993 so clearly. Shortly after graduation from university, I found myself in Neil Zambik's office in what I would realize later was a life defining conversation. Neil was the Director of People Development & Communications at Mohawk Oil (now owned by Husky Energy). In this episode I find out that he also remembers that chat very clearly. Neil re-affirmed for me how long lasting memories are when they are based in authenticity and genuine curiosity. After our time at Mohawk, I went on to graduate school and he started an HR consulting firm, People Insights, which he still runs 22 years later. Neil decodes for me some of the intentions behind the cultural change and meaningful lessons I experienced during that time in my career.

In this first episode of 2021, I speak to Amyn Bhimani, President of Hetek Solutions, a 65 year-old company in the industrial commercial leak detection and monitoring business. He and I formed a unique partnership in 1992 when an inspiring and formidable woman took a chance on two young kids with something to prove. We were appointed to senior roles on a very active operating board for a volunteer organization. In this conversation Amyn and I explore the lessons we learned from the mistakes we made and how they shaped our leadership in the years since. For the first time in thirty years, we talk about how our different leadership styles put our friendship to the test.

In this brief year-end episode I reveal the top 5 downloaded episodes of 2020 and share a quick and impactful segment from each of those episodes. Thank you to all my guests in 2020 and to all my listeners. You have made this experiment so rewarding for me.

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After my interview with Dr. Jody Anderson in the episode Journey to Purpose, she asked if she could interview me to get the story of how I found my purpose. So in this interview the tables have been turned. Jody asks me the questions and I describe my journey from 2000 to 2020 as I have sought to define my reason for being. I'll be honest, I do feel a bit vulnerable putting this out there but how can I expect others to share openly if I am not willing to share. At the end we had a great conversation about the mechanics of finding purpose which you might helpful if you are interested in defining yours.

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Since childhood I have been deeply fascinated by the integration of two ideas. The first is how to understand the needs and expectations of others and the second is how to organize engagement with others to exceed those expectations. I embrace the fact that makes me sound like 'geek' but lets call it being an aficionado for the sake of my guest. I discovered later in life that the integration of these two ideas has a name...."Customer Experience Management" or CXM for short. This fascination with CXM has been one of the drivers of my education, volunteer and career pursuits. Which is why I am so excited to share this conversation with you. Riaz Raihan, a fellow CXM aficionado, is the President at Alida CXM. His company essentially enables organizations, big and small, to move more easily from developing deep customer empathy to executing decisions to transform customer experiences, increase their relevance to customers' changing lives and create more value. Riaz and I hit it off 17 years ago when he supported my organization in defining a customer experience transformation. I am grateful for this opportunity to catch up on a topic we are both passionate about.

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The fact that Jennifer Jones is the President of The Toronto Library Foundation makes so much sense. Almost like it was meant to be. But the truth is that her path to this incredibly important leadership role was not direct. Rather it was a result of a series  of ricochets and  unique life experiences. She was raised to be an independent and confident woman and that was put to the test in high school when her parents packed up to live in India while Jennifer stayed behind to begin her adult life. Her search for clarity and meaning led her all over the world and then finally to the Ivey School of Business where she and I met. Her warmth, confidence and sense of humour made an impact on me from day 1. Yet I realize now that I didn't really know her. I am thrilled to have learned more about her in this one hour conversation than I did in two years together at grad school. I know you will enjoy learning from her story in this conversation.

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I almost called this episode "Joy" because that is what I feel every time I listen to it. I worked with Victoria on a brief project 8 years ago and realized pretty quickly that she was a special human being. Victoria Porter Cramer is the President of Lodging Dynamics Hospitality Group, a builder and operator of 50 premium brand hotels in the US. We talk about what she has learned from battling Cancer twice, the first time as a new Mom to 8-month old twins, training for mountain bike racing competitions and running an organization in an industry so severely impacted by the pandemic. As the author of the book, Living Life Loudly: How will you face your speedbump, she shares some very practical tips on how to snap yourself into resilience.

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When I was 21 and in university, I was volunteering at a community centre. There I met a 16-year old that demonstrated incredible leadership skills for someone his age. Zahir went off to university himself and over the course of the last 30 years, I have seen him a handful of times. Each time he was conquering a new professional challenge in a different part of the world. With a mix of gratitude, giving, growth and hard work he turned a summer job as a Pepsi taste patroller into his current role as a global EVP at Mastercard. Along the way, he worked for Sir Richard Branson, lived in Kabul, Singapore and Dubai, and held senior leadership roles in three different industries. I am sure you will hear the pride in my voice as the teacher becomes the student.

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When I went to my boss to quit my job in 1998 I was so anxious. The job I was leaving was considered by many as the best job in the company and I didn't want to let him down. I finally got a chance to debrief with him 22 years later in this conversation. Cosimo (Cos) got his start just as I did, pumping gas at a Mohawk gas station. After we parted ways from the head office of that company in the late 90's, he went on to start a career at a fledgling company you may have heard of...Starbucks. When he left a few years ago, after 18 years, he was running their entire US retail operation as Executive Vice President. In this conversation we catch up on what we have each learned from our earlier years in the gas business and what we went on to learn including leadership lessons from Starbucks founder Howard Schultz

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My last one-on-one conversation with Anthony Ostler was in a little restaurant in London, Ontario in January 1999. We were discussing an article on corporate strategy written by the late Professor C.K. Prahalad. Anthony was leading the recruiting efforts for the firm I was interviewing for a summer internship. It felt like a make or break conversation for me so I was a little nervous. Anthony made it easier for me because he was genuine, caring and curious. I reconnected with him 21 years later and you get to hear the conversation. He is now a Senior VP and Head of Stakeholder Engagement and Marketing at State Street a global financial company that service the investment industry. Since high school Anthony has been dedicated to being the best mentor he could be.  In this conversation we get the inside track on the mind of a mentor.

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He is a man of many cultures. Francis Pun came to Vancouver from Hong Kong as a child. After getting his engineering degree from UBC he traveled from Canadian forest to forest maintaining in a very traditional and old economy industry. He completed his MBA with me at Ivey Business School in 2000 and has been on the edge of innovation ever since. Working in tech and innovation in Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong for the last 20 years he has had a front row seat on disruption. As an ecosystem driver with the Hong Kong Science & Technology Park, he now has a role in the discovery of the next wave of innovation. He shares experiences and insights from his unique perspective.

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Many people aren’t able to find their purpose in life. For those that are, often the journey is long and winding with many stops along the way. That was certainly the case for Dr. Jody Anderson. When she discovered the burgeoning field of Corporate Social Responsibility in the late 90’s, she thought she had found it. She invested in a graduate degree at Ivey Business School and she embarked on her dream career. And then several years later she watched a close friend come to the end of their life and everything changed. In this conversation I catch up with my classmate from the class of 2000 to find her in a very different place than where she started.

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In his teens, Ruben Dua watched his Dad watering trees and saw an opportunity. He also observed him taking the time to connect with people in every day interactions in his practice as a physician. This was the inspiration for how Ruben decided to spend his life and make his mark on the world. Ruben is the CEO and founder of Dubb.com, a frictionless video communication platform that transforms the way people create trust in business relationships. In this conversation we talk about how he sees the  opportunity to more easily build trust through authentic communication and how he is leading his 21st century organization with an unconventional paradigm.

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What was a Canadian twenty-something pest control salesperson doing on a Belarussian subway with a backpack full of rubles? Listen to this interview with Tara Landes to find-out. While we both grew up in Vancouver, it took a decision to change our life direction for us to meet at our MBA program at Ivey Business School. For the past 12 years Tara has been the President of Bellrock Benchmarking, Inc., a company which she founded. In this very personal conversation we share memories and lessons learned about education, careers, mental wellness and the addictive nature of witnessing the impact of your efforts.

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In 1980 a child was born to a healthcare worker and a teacher in war torn Kabul, Afghanistan. That child grew up hearing stories about the "Golden Era"...what life was like before he was born. Instead of feeling resentful for not seeing those wonderful times, he decided to choose hope and equipped himself with the skills to help the people of his country get access to basic healthcare they needed. And so began his life of service. I met Dr. Fawad Akbari 7 years ago when he came to Canada under some difficult and unusual circumstances that might have broken many. Instead, he once again chose hope and continued his journey to develop his leadership capability. Today Fawad is responsible for Canadian global health programs that impact more than 3 million people in some of the most difficult parts of the world, including his home country of Afghanistan. Listen as we talk about his practice of servant leadership. 

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When I first met Dean Mills in 2004 he was a strategic account sales professional at Purolator Inc. I watched as he calmly and methodically grew his customer base to become a top performer and President's Club winner. As he succeeded he not only maintained his humility, he developed his strong inclination to teach and coach his colleagues to also become successful. I watched him continue to rise in increasingly senior leadership positions. I reconnected with Dean earlier this year, after 8 years, to find him in a role as the North American Vice-President of Sales & Marketing at TForce Logistics. We talk about the old days and how he led his team and helped customers to navigate through the challenges posed by the pandemic.

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In late October 1998, I was walking from my apartment to business school in London Ontario. It was the first snowfall and my first extremely cold day in Ontario. I was prepared with warm clothing but one of my classmates, Neeraj Monga was not. He had just recently arrived from India. I ran into him on the way into the building. He was freezing cold in a sweatshirt as he walked to school that day. You would have never known it by his performance in class. He was on fire as usual. Neeraj was considered by many of us to be a genius. In 1991 as an undergraduate economics student in India, he had learned that management consulting firms like McKinsey, Bain and BCG only hired the most brilliant minds. Setting his sights on a successful career at one of these firms led him to the Ivey Business School. Based on his performance in class, I was pretty sure nothing would stop him from achieving that goal.

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What do you get when you take a self declared introvert, combined with self confidence, an open mind and strong desire to develop others? You get one of the only female IT senior executives successfully leading one of the largest IT teams in corporate Canada. In this second episode of the "Days of Future Past" mini-series, I speak to Alison James, the SVP of Technology Operations at one of Canada's largest banks, CIBC. Alison graduated with me from the Ivey Business School 20 years ago. While I knew her, we just didn't seem to cross paths very much. That was my loss. Alison  is considered one of the Top 50 Women in Fintech in Canada and Chairs the Toronto chapter of Canadian Women in Technology. What is interesting is that Alison did not ever seek a career in technology. In this conversation I learn how this unlikely candidate climbed to one of top leadership roles in the mail dominated field of technology, by keeping an open mind, being inclusive and mentoring others.

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In a mini-series I am calling "Days of Future Past", I am commemorating my 20th anniversary of graduating from the Ivey Business School by interviewing classmates whom I have not seen in 20 years. Most of my classmates are now in senior leadership positions across multiple sectors and I am curious about what they have learned in the past two decades that will be helpful as we navigate the next two decades. In this first episode of the mini-series, I talk to Christina Cheung, CFO of The Procon Group of Companies. She was generous, humble and authentic. Listen in to this personal conversation and pick up a few pearls of wisdom.

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Now is the time for customers and suppliers to collaborate and innovate to thrive during this time of disruption. It is not just about their companies' survival, it’s about all of us. Unless businesses can understand the shifting priorities and needs of end consumers, they will not develop solutions that are relevant to our changing lives. In this episode, I share an interview from a few months ago with well-known expert in emotional intelligence, business acumen and customer relevance, Philip Styrlund, CEO of The Summit Group. He shares a pragmatic approach to help salespeople and their companies to be relevant to the needs of their customers during this uncertain time.

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