What if creating a great culture has less to do with programs and more to do with how we lead every day?

In this conversation, I talk with Kristen Fox about what it really takes to create a workplace where people can thrive. Kristen shares why curiosity and vulnerability are such powerful leadership tools, how to build the trust needed for honest feedback, and why leaders need to take responsibility for creating the conditions for their people to succeed.

Kristen Fox is a senior human resources executive with more than 25 years of experience helping organizations navigate growth, transformation, and cultural change. Her career has spanned healthcare, higher education, and some of the world’s largest and most complex operations.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• How moving from “expert” to curious leader can unlock the talent around you
• Practical ways to build trust so people feel safe giving honest feedback
• The powerful lesson Kristen learned from her rowing coach about putting people in the right “seat”
• How to create psychological safety by meeting your team where they are
• Why leaders can save time by involving the people who created an outcome in solving the problem
• How to discern between issues with performance, fit, or a lack of the right supports

Learn More About Kristen Fox:

• Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristen-fox-hr-executive/

Learn More About Heather Smith and Talent Elevated:

• Talent Elevated: https://www.talentelevated.org

What does leadership require of us when the old story of work no longer works?

That’s the question I explore in this conversation with Jonathan David Lewis, president and partner at McKee Wallwork and author of The Rebuilders: Daily Foundations for the Leaders We Need.

Jonathan and I talked about how dramatically the world of work has changed and how many of the assumptions that shaped previous generations no longer resonate with today’s workforce. If we’re trying to solve new problems with an old story, we’re going to struggle to find the right solutions.

One of the ideas that really stayed with me is Jonathan’s metaphor of “getting behind the stroller.” Leadership means recognizing that we have a responsibility to the people and communities around us, even when we didn’t choose the circumstances we’re leading through.

I loved this conversation because Jonathan doesn’t pretend that the changes we’re navigating are easy. Instead, he offers a different way of looking at them: things may be crumbling, but that doesn’t mean they have to stay that way. We can rebuild.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• Why today’s workforce is experiencing what Jonathan calls “transactional, futureless suffering”
• The leadership challenge of this moment
• What leaders need to create instead of optimizing everything for efficiency
• Why our people need a quest—a meaningful challenge and a future they can believe in
• What organizations look like when they rediscover their identity and get their “mojo” back
• What it means to answer the call to become a rebuilder

Mentioned:

• The Rebuilders: Daily Foundations for the Leaders We Need
• Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't, Jim Collins
• Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action, Simon Sinek

Learn More About Jonathan David Lewis:

• McKee Wallwork
• Connect on LinkedIn

Learn More About Heather Smith:

• Talent Elevated

What if employee wellbeing isn't a nice-to-have, but a fundamental part of how we create high-performing organizations?

In this episode of Culture by Design, I’m joined by Chris Carey, CEO of Calm Health, to talk about the changing relationship between mental health, wellbeing, and performance at work.

As AI takes over more of the information processing in our jobs, Chris argues that the skills that remain deeply human — decision-making, leadership, creativity, and meaningful collaboration — become even more important. And to perform at our best, we need to rethink how we approach mental wellbeing and recovery.

Chris and I talk about why organizations can't expect their people to sprint indefinitely, how leaders can model healthy habits, and why culture is built through everyday behaviors rather than words on a whiteboard.

Chris Carey, CEO of Calm Health, is an experienced leader passionate about building amazing teams striving to create healthcare tools to make the system work for everyone. At Calm Health, Chris is focused on creating a mental health platform for the world’s most trusted healthcare solutions by building and investing in simple, innovative solutions that address all dimensions of health.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• How stress directly impacts our ability to engage in constructive conflict, focused ideation, and creativity
• What organizations can learn from athletes about the importance of recovery to performance
• Why leaders should share their personal wellness habits and goals with their teams
• Why we need to shift mindsets about supporting mental health away from crisis management
• The three things Chris believes employers can do to support employee mental wellbeing

Learn More About Chris Carey:

• Calm Health
• Connect on LinkedIn

Learn More About Heather Smith:

• Talent Elevated

When conflict shows up at work, our instinct is often to solve it as quickly as possible or to prove we're right. But what if the strongest leaders do something entirely different?

In this episode, I'm joined by Patrick Payton, Managing Director at Consilium Business Labs, former mayor, founding pastor, business consultant, and author. Drawing on decades of leading through uncertainty and division, Patrick shares why the best leaders choose curiosity over certainty, collaboration over competition, and purpose over polarization.

If you're leading a team through change, navigating differing opinions, or working to build a stronger culture, this conversation offers practical insights that will challenge the way you think about leadership.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• Why great leaders choose wisdom over simply being right.
• How understanding another person's perspective builds trust and reduces division.
• The shift from competing with people to collaborating alongside them.
• Why a shared purpose is the foundation for alignment and healthy culture.
• Questions that move difficult conversations from posturing to genuine learning.
• How to lead teams through disagreement without becoming divisive.
• Patrick's advice for bringing people with you instead of leaving them behind.

Learn More About Patrick Payton:

• Website
• Consilium Business Labs
• No Neutral Moments Podcast
• Instagram: @patrickpayton_
• The Middle: How the Quiet Majority Can Mend a Divided Nation

Learn More About Heather Smith:

• Talent Elevated

Resources:

• 12: Serving People to Serve the Purpose: Dave Kuhnert’s Approach to Leadership and Accountability
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen R. Covey
• Celebrate Kids
• 8 Great Smarts: Discover and Nurture Your Child's Intelligences, Kathy Koch Phd

In this solo episode, I want to have an honest conversation about something I'm seeing in organizations everywhere and experiencing myself.

Leaders are carrying so much that many of us are operating without any margin. And while we often talk about burnout, I think there's another consequence we don't talk about enough: exhaustion makes us unpredictable.

The challenge isn't that tired leaders suddenly become bad leaders. It's that our teams never quite know which version of us they're going to get. Even with the best intentions, that inconsistency can quietly erode trust, create unnecessary anxiety, and shape the culture we're working so hard to build.

In this episode, I explore why leadership consistency matters more than perfection, how exhaustion changes the way we show up, and what we can do to close the gap between our intentions and the experiences our teams are actually having.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• How inconsistency impacts trust and psychological safety
• The difference between the leader you intend to be and the leader your team experiences
• Four ways executive exhaustion changes organizational culture
• Practical strategies for reducing decision fatigue and leading with greater consistency
• Why healthy leadership starts with intentionally managing yourself

Learn More About Heather Smith:

• Talent Elevated

When it comes to building culture, it’s not the idea itself that is complicated or difficult. Where we often find organizational leaders struggling is in the gap between intention and the existing day-to-day reality and understanding the actions that need to be taken to bridge that gap.

Today, I want to spend some time breaking down some of the key questions that we, at Talent Elevated, get over and over again.

How do I improve accountability?

How do I get people engaged?

How do I improve communication?

How do I get everyone aligned?

These are consistent pain points that we see in organizations we work with. I think it’s worth digging into some of the assumptions and perspectives that leaders might bring to these questions around culture, so that together we can make good culture a reality.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• Questions every leader should ask before trying to transform culture
• Why "accountability problems" are often really systems problems
• The gap between leadership intent and employee experience—and how to close it
• Simple ways to build culture through everyday decisions, conversations, and feedback
• Why mindset is the essential first step in any successful culture transformation

Learn More About Heather Smith:

• Talent Elevated

One of the hardest things leaders have to do is communicate change effectively to their teams.

I invited Dr. Rachel Boehm today to help me uncover the key reasons why it can be such a struggle to get everyone on the same page when changes are coming. Dr. Boehm is an expert in organizational psychology and in our conversation, we unpack what might be going on with your people when announcements fall flat or motivation flags, and most importantly, what you can do to better prepare for these conversations and guide your people through organizational change more successfully.

Dr. Rachel Boehm changes how leaders and teams thrive through chaos with customized Science-Backed, People-Proven® strategies. She holds a PhD in organizational psychology and a board certification with the National Center for Health & Wellness Coaching. RB Strategies exists to help small businesses stay in business by giving leaders and employees the skills they need to perform at their best in a high-stakes, deadline-driven, VUCA world through one-on-one and group strategic advisory and coaching.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• Why good change initiatives often fail.
• How leaders unintentionally create resistance to change.
• What psychological safety really means and what it doesn't.
• Why motivation is fleeting and what leaders can do instead.
• A simple framework for communicating change more effectively.

Mentioned:

• Amy Edmondson | Psychological Safety

Learn More About Dr. Rachel Boehm:

• RB Strategies
• https://substack.com/@drrachelboehm
• Connect on LinkedIn

Learn More About Heather Smith:

• Talent Elevated

What makes a business valuable? Many owners assume it's revenue, growth, or years in operation. But according to business broker and M&A advisor Angie Scheribel, the factors that drive business value are often the same factors that create a healthier, stronger company in the first place.

In this episode, I sit down with Angie to explore what buyers actually look for when evaluating a business, why owner dependency can dramatically impact value, and how culture, retention, leadership, and systems all contribute to a company's long-term worth. Angie also shares a few stories about businesses that had real heart–and one that didn’t–and how that impacted their ability to sell.

Angie Scheribel combines strategic mergers and acquisitions experience, an MBA, and bilingual fluency to help business owners across industries plan and execute successful exits. Known for her empathy and disciplined process, she consistently drives strong outcomes for her clients.

Whether you're planning to sell your business someday or simply want to build a company that can thrive beyond you, this conversation offers a fresh perspective on what makes a business truly valuable.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• What buyers really look for when evaluating a business
• How culture and employee retention affect business value
• The hidden risks of owner dependency
• Why every business owner should think about building a sellable business even if they never plan to sell
• How legacy-minded leaders create companies that can thrive long after they're gone

Learn More About Angie Scheribel:

• Transworld Business Advisors of Colorado
• Connect on LinkedIn

Learn More About Heather Smith:

• Talent Elevated

Resources:

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, Daniel H. Pink