Insights
Adobe’s Stacy Martinet on Adaptive Leadership, Brand Trust, and Showing Up with Empathy
This week, Jessica sat down with Stacy Martinet, Chief Communications Officer of Adobe, to discuss how her early newsroom experiences shaped her communication style and why trust, transparency, and empathy are essential for modern leaders.
The Accountability Dilemma of Global Outages
Last time it was CrowdStrike. This time it is Amazon Web Services. Every time it happens, the story feels the same. A major outage occurs, millions are affected, and the immediate response is to find someone to blame. When AWS went down, it was not just a technical...
Make HR Great… Not Again, But For The First Time
HR needs saving. The CHRO is struggling today the same way the CIO once did. For years, CIOs were seen as back-office support, focused on systems and infrastructure, quietly reporting to the CFO. They were necessary but not strategic. Then Y2K happened, and...
Eventbrite’s Julia Hartz on Building Resilient Culture, Leading with Empathy, and Redefining Connection in a Post-Pandemic World
This week, Jessica sat down with Julia Hartz, Co-Founder and CEO of Eventbrite,
“At Their Most Vulnerable”
This week I am giving a keynote at a hospital association conference where hundreds of healthcare leaders are gathering to talk about their biggest challenges. When I asked what those were on a pre-call with the event leaders, the answers came without hesitation:...
Train Your Team to Think Like Executives: How to Build Business Acumen at Every Level – November 13
This session will show you how to equip your teams with the mindset and knowledge to make high-impact decisions through experiential training that simplifies business strategy, finance, and operations.
False Haste: When Waiting Becomes Wisdom
People sometimes ask me how my Master of Divinity connects with my work in corporate culture. On the surface theology and organizational strategy look like they belong in entirely different worlds. But lately I have noticed the conversations overlap. And the overlap...
Alorica’s Max Schwendner & Mike Clifton on Co-CEO Unity, Curiosity-Driven Growth, and Leading with Decisiveness
This week, Jessica sat down with Mike Lifton & Max Schwendner, Co-CEOs of Alorica, discuss their shared “why” and how to drive decisiveness, accountability, and speed.
Once Again, Story Trumps Data
Over 800,000 people have been laid off this year, but you didn’t see many boycotts or hashtags about those folks. Then Jimmy Kimmel, an incredibly wealthy entertainer gets taken off the air and people who don’t even watch his show are galvanized to cancel their...
Measure What Matters: Looking Beyond Engagement Metrics – October 23
In this session, our Chief Culture Strategist, Dr. Jessica Kriegel, will explore how to move beyond traditional engagement metrics and define what truly matters.
How King Fahad Medical City Went from Blame Game to Breakthrough — Cutting ER TAT by 30 Minutes
How King Fahad Medical City shifted their mindset on accountability, aligned on new behaviors, and fostered ownership among their employees to turn their culture into a strategic advantage.
AI Isn’t the Villain. Fear Is.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/fiverr-going-back-startup-mode-micha-kaufman-jfe6f/?trackingId=vL67CL59Wv5CEcQ28l0Ikg%3D%3D Micha Kaufman, CEO of Fiverr, just announced he is laying off 250 people and going back to startup mode. His post was long, transparent, and...
Aflac’s Matthew Owenby on Hiring for Life, Leadership Legacy, and Prioritizing Customers in Crisis
This week, Jessica sat down with Matthew Owenby, Chief Strategy Officer at Aflac. Matthew shares his insights on leadership, family, and the mission of Aflac.
What If Instead of Leaning In, We Started Letting Go?
For years, I believed the story we were all told. That if I just leaned in harder, spoke louder, pushed further, and powered through, I could have it all. I thought success was a formula: show up, work harder, say yes, keep climbing. And when that formula did not...
Psychological Bravery > Psychological Safety
Years ago, when psychological safety became the buzzword du jour for business leaders, I was 100% on board. It was the answer to the power structures that kept employees silent, and finally we had a label for a common dynamic—and thanks to Amy Edmonson, some...
Humancore’s Mike Dolen on Leadership, Technology, and the Human Side of Change
This week, Jessica sat down with Mike Dolen, the founder and CEO of Humancore. He explains how Humancore uses generative AI and organizational psychology to offer in-the-moment leadership support that’s contextual and personalized for an organization–and why he thinks the process is more practical and effective than the current model of coaching and training.
Over-Accountable Leaders Hold Their Teams Back
I used to work for a leader who always took the ultimate accountability for results. On weekly calls he would frequently say, “The reality is we didn’t hit our goal and that’s on me.” He said it with pride, believing this approach built trust and loyalty with his...
Change Management in Action: Inspiring Buy-In, Beliefs, & Behavior – September 17
In this webinar, learn practical strategies for effective change management.
That’s Not What I Meant
We have all had moments when something we said or did landed in a completely different way than we intended. Maybe it was a joke that fell flat. Maybe it was feedback that was meant to motivate but ended up discouraging. In your mind, you were clear and constructive....
Skillibrium’s Bart Fanelli on Truth, Accountability, and Objectivity in Leadership
This week, Jessica sat down with Bart Fanelli, founder of Skillibrium. They talk about the danger of over-indexing on tools and dashboards, and why real performance still comes down to people having hard conversations, setting expectations, and holding each other to them.
You Can’t Lead It Until You Live It
One of the most common mistakes we see with our clients is the tendency to want to change others before changing yourself. Leaders will launch new values, reorganize teams, and roll out engagement initiatives, but if their own beliefs and behaviors do not match what...
How to Make Purpose Actually Work
Conscious Capitalism gave the business world something it desperately needed: a new definition of success. It challenged the idea that shareholder value had to come at the expense of employee wellbeing or societal impact. It showed that purpose and profit could work...
Kyndryl’s Victoria Pelletier on Navigating Change and Being Unstoppable
This week, Jessica sat down with Victoria Pelletier, Global Vice President at Kyndryl. Victoria also opens up about turning early adversity into her superpower, what it really means to be vulnerable as a leader, and why confidence is her exception to “fake it till you make it.”
Powering Culture with AI: 3 Strategies to Accelerate Workplace Transformation – August 28
Join Sarah Kessler, Senior Director of Product Marketing at Culture Partners, for organizational strategies to successfully integrate AI tools to unlock clarity, alignment, and accountability across the employee experience.
The Gig Economy Has Reached the Corner Office
We’re used to talking about the gig economy in terms of Uber drivers and freelance designers. But in 2025, it’s the CEO role that’s starting to look more like a contract gig. And the implications for culture are bigger than most people realize. So far this year, a...
Pretty Uneventful Week for CEOs, Right?
By now, you have probably seen the Coldplay video. The CEO of Astronomer, Andy Byron, attending a concert with his CHRO. The video spread quickly. Then came the memes. Then the resignation. What might have stayed an internal HR issue is now one of the most...
Udemy’s Greg Brown on Learning Technology, Corporate Transformation, and Embracing Change
This week, Jessica sat down with Greg Brown, former CEO of Udemy. They discuss AI’s impact on learning, the future of higher education, and why Greg believes corporations have a growing responsibility to educate the next generation of workers.
Fear and Faith Are Both a Belief in the Unknown
Fear and faith might feel like opposites. One holds you back. The other moves you forward. But underneath, they are the same thing. Both are a belief in something that hasn’t happened yet. In the workplace, we encounter the unknown all the time. A new leader steps in....
You Can’t Collaborate With a Negotiator
There is something I have come to believe about relationships of all kinds—whether it is at work, at home, or with friends. Every relationship eventually encounters friction. You hit a disagreement. Misalignment. A tough moment where two people need to figure out how...
Precisely’s Tendü Yogurtçu on AI Data Design, Remote Work, and Human-First Innovation
This week, Jessica sat down with Tendü Yogurtçu, the Chief Technology Officer of Precisely, which powers data integrity for more than 90 of the Fortune 100. Tendü explains how to align technical transformation with business goals, how to create momentum in remote environments, and why innovation is only sustainable when it’s grounded in empathy.
Your Culture Is Measured in Silence
When something goes wrong inside an organization, leaders often look for signs of disruption. Complaints. Conflict. Declining performance. But some of the most serious culture issues do not make noise. They go quiet. Silence is not a neutral signal. It is often the...
Culture Captures the Cost Savings
This week on CEO Daily Brief, I spoke with my friend John Frehse. John is a labor strategy expert, and one of the few people I know who can talk about cost-cutting with both depth and humanity. We’ve known each other for years, but somehow this conversation uncovered...
Ontra’s Megan Hansen on Empathy, Purpose, and The Power of “And”
Nikesh Arora, the chairman and CEO of Palo Alto Networks, joins Jessica to discuss how he inspires people, what makes culture stick, and how trust, fairness, and curiosity have shaped his leadership style.
Train Your Team to Think Like Executives: How to Build Business Acumen at Every Level – November 13
Learn about why business acumen is critical at every level and see a product demo of Zodiak, our gamified business simulation.
The Leadership Playbook: Drive Results through Culture, Change & Performance – July 23
Join Tracy Dodd, Senior Culture Strategist at Culture Partners, for leadership tools and frameworks designed to help you foster a culture where accountability drives alignment and performance.
You Have a Leadership Problem
Let’s talk about the A-word. Accountability gets tossed around in every leadership meeting, strategy deck, and performance conversation, but rarely with clarity. What we call accountability is often just thinly veiled evaluation: performance reviews, stack rankings,...
Palo Alto Network’s Nikesh Arora on Leadership, Listening, and Non-Linear Thinking
Nikesh Arora, the chairman and CEO of Palo Alto Networks, joins Jessica to discuss how he inspires people, what makes culture stick, and how trust, fairness, and curiosity have shaped his leadership style.
The Journey from Engagement to Fulfillment: Strategies for Leaders – June 12
Employee engagement is no longer enough. In today’s evolving workplace, leaders must focus on employee fulfillment to drive long-term success. Fulfilled employees are not only committed and innovative, but also deeply connected to their organization’s purpose, leading to higher retention and productivity.
Service Express’ Ron Alvesteffer on Service, Accountability, and People-First Culture
Ron Alvesteffer, the President and CEO of Service Express, shares how to scale culture through intentional leadership, why accountability is a form of love, and how he balances relentless growth with human connection.
How to Align Leadership Development with Business Strategy for Better Results
The three steps you can take to equip leaders and managers at any level with an understanding of how to foster accountability in themselves and across their teams.
Why That Offsite Didn’t Fix Anything
Everyone left the offsite feeling “jazzed”. The decks were slick, the breakout sessions were productive, and the whiteboard had a lot of arrows that made everyone nod. The best part was the keynoter who inspired everyone. That lasted about three days. But two weeks...
AI is Here. Three CEOs Responded—One Got It Right.
AI is transforming business. That much is clear. The real question is whether leaders are equipped to guide their people through the change. Some are. Others are trying to have it both ways, insisting they are “people first” while replacing…people. And a few are...
ABM’s Raúl Valentin on Fairness, Humility, and Collaboration in Leadership
Raúl Valentin, the Chief Human Resources Officer at ABM Industries. Raúl explains how his belief in fairness drives his leadership–everything from recruiting policies to acquisition strategy to the way ABM integrates AI into HR operations.
AI and Workplace Culture: From Fear of the Unknown to Future Growth
By working to build a culture that is adaptive, nimble, and ready — not resistant — to change, you can ensure your workforce is fit for purpose and primed to deliver business result with AI.
Change Management Is Dead. Long Live Change Leadership.
Let’s talk about change initiatives. You’re likely in the middle of one right now—a technology rollout, a reorg, a “new way of working.” We label it, build a timeline, hold a few town halls, maybe even bring in a consultant with a colorful 5-step model. We grit our...
Winning the AI & Digital Race: Why Culture is the Competitive Advantage, Featuring IBM – May 14
Join IBM Consulting and Culture Partners for real-world stories and insights into a belief-centric approach that connects culture to business outcomes by helping people shift their experiences and take aligned action at scale.
Denny’s’ Kelli Valade on Feeding the Soul and Making People Feel Seen
Raúl Valentin, the Chief Human Resources Officer at ABM Industries. Raúl explains how his belief in fairness drives his leadership–everything from recruiting policies to acquisition strategy to the way ABM integrates AI into HR operations.
Culture That Pays: How to Drive Revenue Growth Through A Quantifiable Culture System – May 28
Can culture really drive revenue growth? Yes—and we can prove it. Dr. Jessica Kriegel will walk through a practical framework for measuring culture’s ROI, share real-world case studies, and show you how to move culture from an abstract idea to a data-driven strategy.
The Inspired Performance Institute’s Dr. Don Wood on Resetting Trauma and Maximizing Performance
Dr. Don Wood, CEO of the Inspired Performance Institute and creator of a program to help people reset and reprocess trauma, discuss how this program applies to the workplace, especially for leaders trying to support younger teams and create cultures where people feel safe, focused, and resilient.
Wellby Financial’s Monique Robertson-Gunter on Creating Experiences, Purpose Fit, and a Culture of Continuous Growth
Monique Robertson-Gunter, Chief Experience Officer at Wellby Financial. Monique explains how Wellby reshaped its culture to hit ambitious goals–starting with the key results, and developing a culture of feedback, listening and continuous improvement to achieve them.