Skip to main content
Barrier Busters: Women of Character

Barrier Busters: Women of Character

By Turknett Leadership Group

Listen in to the Barrier Busters: Women of Character Podcast and join host Turknett Executive Coach & Sr. Consultant, Anne Quiello, who gets to the heart of how women of achievement overcame stereotypical barriers and navigated multiple boundaries toward fulfilling the vision they hold for themselves. Our podcast guests have been carefully selected as models of Leadership Character, the foundation of our work at Turknett Leadership Group. Tune in on Anchor, or wherever you get your podcast.
Available on
Apple Podcasts Logo
Google Podcasts Logo
Pocket Casts Logo
RadioPublic Logo
Spotify Logo
Currently playing episode

EP 5: Bridging the Racial Gap - An Important Conversation About Race, ft. Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, President Emerita, Spelman College and NY Times Best Selling Author

Barrier Busters: Women of Character Sep 15, 2021

00:00
36:17
Dr. Nikki Schmitt, Scientist, Surgeon, and Story Teller: A Remarkable Journey to Researcher and Innovator

Dr. Nikki Schmitt, Scientist, Surgeon, and Story Teller: A Remarkable Journey to Researcher and Innovator

Listen in to the story of a leading cancer researcher and surgeon who developed a passion to cure the most devastating disease for all but especially for those who can afford treatment the least.  Dr. Nicole Schmitt (or Nikki) is a head and neck surgical oncologist and scientist and the Co-Director for Translational Research in the Head and Neck Program at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University. She shares her research and the future of cancer treatment, how the daughter of  two artists uses her genetic creativity in medicine, and the importance of leadership as a young surgeon.

Sep 26, 202221:57
Susan Steinbrecher, President, Steinbrecher & Associates, Author, Speaker, and Executive Coach

Susan Steinbrecher, President, Steinbrecher & Associates, Author, Speaker, and Executive Coach

Interested in how to hold an emotionally intelligent conversation with another person when conflict is likely and you’d rather avoid it altogether?  Listen in to Susan Steinbrecher an internationally acclaimed businesswoman, executive coach, speaker, author, and President of her own consulting company, Steinbrecher & Associates. Prior to her consulting career, Susan was a rising star with one of the country’s best-known hotel chains for 14 years. She was quickly elevated as the youngest general manager in its history, and then ultimately was appointed to lead all strategic training and development initiatives.  Learn how this achievement was possible.

Susan has authored five books, one of which is an Amazon best seller.  Her game-changing book, Meaningful Alignment: Mastering Emotionally Intelligent Interactions at Work and In Life is one I recommend often to my coaching clients, so we spend focused conversation time on how it came about and it’s application at work and in life.

Jul 01, 202228:02
Rosa Gatti, ESPN Pioneer and Tremendous Role Model for Ascending Women Leaders in Sports

Rosa Gatti, ESPN Pioneer and Tremendous Role Model for Ascending Women Leaders in Sports

Rosa Gatti was discovered by the founder of an upstart sports cable network while working as the Sports Information Director for Brown University where she oversaw all of the media coverage for the NCAA Men’s Frozen Four hosted by the university.  Impressed by her huge success with this event she was recruited in 1980 to ESPN, where she built the communications department from the ground up and created and drove the ESPN brand around the world.  She also introduced the need for diversity, equity, and inclusion and built the first of its kind program at ESPN in the early 1990’s.  Listen to her remarkable stories of leadership grit while navigating an all-male environment in ESPN’s earliest years and her approach to growing into executive roles of increasing strategic importance.

Apr 20, 202231:14
Early Lessons from a Non-Profit Entrepreneur; Shared by Jacqueline Merrill, Founder and President, His Soul Sanctuary

Early Lessons from a Non-Profit Entrepreneur; Shared by Jacqueline Merrill, Founder and President, His Soul Sanctuary

Listen in to a remarkable story of overcoming a difficult growing up experience which might have led to a very different outcome as it has for so many. You’ll hear her amazing journey that ultimately led her to create a non-profit organization, His Soul Sanctuary. Its mission is to: “Ensure every young adult that ages out of the foster care system can join society prepared to lead a successful life.” She has turned her “troubles into lessons” and her purpose is sure. But her journey is far from finished and there are lessons there for anyone interested in building and leading a non-profit.

Mar 24, 202229:03
Ep 7: Finding and Focusing on the Why – The Key to Catapulting A Career, ft. Elyse Hammett, APR, VP, Marketing and Communications, Community Foundation for greater Atlanta

Ep 7: Finding and Focusing on the Why – The Key to Catapulting A Career, ft. Elyse Hammett, APR, VP, Marketing and Communications, Community Foundation for greater Atlanta

Listen in to the latest episode of Barrier Busters: Women of Character Podcast. Host Anne Quiello is joined by Elyse Hammett, APR, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at the Community Foundation for greater Atlanta. Elyse shares her story of growing up in Middle Georgia, overcoming multiple family tragedies, and through it all discovering her “WHY.”



Jan 28, 202234:42
EP 6: Dialogue with A Woman of Influence, ft. Shan Cooper: 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award Honoree & Executive Director, The Atlanta Committee for Progress

EP 6: Dialogue with A Woman of Influence, ft. Shan Cooper: 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award Honoree & Executive Director, The Atlanta Committee for Progress

Woman of Influence, the 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award Honoree, and the Executive Director of The Atlanta Committee for Progress, Shan Cooper shares her insights to climbing major learning curves and crossing barriers as an executive in two very different manufacturing industries.  Listen to her decision process which led her to become a key influencer in the public-private partnership between the city’s top business, civic and academic leaders, and the Mayor of Atlanta to support areas important to economic growth and inclusion for the City of Atlanta.

Oct 28, 202131:17
EP 5: Bridging the Racial Gap - An Important Conversation About Race, ft. Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, President Emerita, Spelman College and NY Times Best Selling Author

EP 5: Bridging the Racial Gap - An Important Conversation About Race, ft. Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum, President Emerita, Spelman College and NY Times Best Selling Author

President Emerita, Spelman College and NY Times Best Selling Author of “Why Do All the Black Kids Sit Together in the Cafeteria, and Other Conversations About Race,” Dr. Beverly Daniel Tatum generously shares her expertise on racial identity and the critical importance of holding conversations about race in a racially sensitive context. Do not miss her decades-long research, wisdom, and teaching on how to bridge the racial gap in this country beginning with our children.

Sep 15, 202136:17
EP 4: Lessons in Confidence and Humility from the C-Suite, ft. Vicki Escarra, Sr. Advisor, Boston Consulting Group, former EVP/CMO of Delta Air Lines

EP 4: Lessons in Confidence and Humility from the C-Suite, ft. Vicki Escarra, Sr. Advisor, Boston Consulting Group, former EVP/CMO of Delta Air Lines

Find the balance between confidence and humility through the lessons shared by Vicki Escarra, Sr. Advisor, Boston Consulting Group, former EVP/CMO of Delta Air Lines, CEO, Feeding America, and Global CEO, Opportunity International, during this podcast. She provides practical advice to women aspiring to senior leadership positions and gives us insight to how and why she turned her focus from corporate leadership toward leading two of the largest non-profit organizations in the U.S. It’s an important discussion about aligning one’s life’s work with a core set of values.

Aug 17, 202130:01
EP 3: A Lifetime of Beating the Odds and Busting Barriers, ft. Oneda Castillo, LPGA Golf Professional and Director, Women In Golf Foundation

EP 3: A Lifetime of Beating the Odds and Busting Barriers, ft. Oneda Castillo, LPGA Golf Professional and Director, Women In Golf Foundation

Listen to the amazing journey of the third only African American LPGA golf professional, Lifetime Achievement Award winner, and enshrinee to the African American Golfers’ Hall of Fame.  But her story goes well beyond golf, beginning with being part of a failed school de-segregation program as a child,  then fast forwards to becoming a lone female engineer on a nuclear submarine program, a professional football player with the WNFL, and one of only a handful of African American professional golfers.  Hear how her character defines her above and beyond her lifetime of achievement.

Jul 19, 202128:12
EP 2: Leaving and Returning to the Workforce, Succeeding at Both, ft. Virginia Means, Chief People Officer, United Distributors

EP 2: Leaving and Returning to the Workforce, Succeeding at Both, ft. Virginia Means, Chief People Officer, United Distributors

In this episode Anne Quiello sits down with Virginia Means, Chief People Officer of United Distributors. A Woman of Character who, against the odds, successfully re-entered the workforce after leaving it for 10 years to focus on her family. More than 3 million women have left the U.S. workforce during COVID-19. Tune in to learn how Virginia not only came back but how she came back strong.  

Jun 08, 202126:32
EP 1: Building and Sustaining A Culture of Character, Ft. Marcia Taylor and Katlyn Foulks, Bennett International Group

EP 1: Building and Sustaining A Culture of Character, Ft. Marcia Taylor and Katlyn Foulks, Bennett International Group

In the first episode of The Women of Character podcast, Anne Quiello interviews Marcia Taylor, CEO of Bennett International Group, and Katlyn Foulks, Culture Ambassador of Bennett International Group. Join the three as they discuss building and keeping organization culture strong even during a pandemic. 

Apr 14, 202133:32
Women of Character Trailer

Women of Character Trailer

Welcome to the Women of Character Podcast. In this monthly podcast series join Anne Quiello, senior consultant for Turknett Leadership Group, as she explores stories and insights from various accomplished women in a particular area of leadership character (Integrity, Respect, and Responsibility). 

Apr 09, 202101:01