Catching the Next Wave
Aga and Łukasz Szóstek inspire leaders to reflect on the possibilities and challenges of 21st-century leadership through inspired conversations with amazing guests. They together discuss topics such as change, innovation, common sense, empowerment and more, each of them unique for one season of their podcast. Join them as they Catch The Next Wave.
S7.E3. April Mills. Do You See Your Invisible Box?
2020-09-22 16:50:05
The pandemic has shown us that what seemed impossible is actually quite possible after all. With our amazing guest, April K. Mills, an author and a change agent, we discuss the challenges of progressing rather than regressing with the change that started happening around us. We discuss the importance of not being held accountable for trying to change things but above all the importance of trust in building agency to create meaningful change. LINKS “ Everyone is a change agent ” by April K.Mills “ Change tactics ” (work-of-progess) by April K.Mills April’s assessment framework “ The Rickover Effect ” by Theodore Rockwell “ The Design of Everyday Things ” by Don Norman
The pandemic has shown us that what seemed impossible is actually quite possible after all. With our amazing guest, April K. Mills, an author and a change agent, we discuss the challenges of progressing rather than regressing with the change that started happening around us. We discuss the importance of not being held accountable for trying to change things but above all the importance of trust in building agency to create meaningful change.
LINKS
“Everyone is a change agent” by April K.Mills
“Change tactics” (work-of-progess) by April K.Mills
April’s assessment framework
“The Rickover Effect” by Theodore Rockwell
“The Design of Everyday Things” by Don Norman
S7.E2. Natalia Romero Herrera. Self-Experimentation for Change.
2020-09-22 16:45:16
Is behavior change possible? Sure thing, it is but under certain conditions. With Natalia Romero Herrera, an associate professor from Delft University of Technology, we discuss how necessary it is to embed behavior change in values and beliefs. We dig into the topic of self-judgement, self-experimentation and personal storytelling as one of the most crucial tools to inspire change in people. LINKS Article by John Zimmerman “ Designing for the Self: Making Products that Help People Become the Person they Desire to Be ” “ Cradle to cradle ” by Michael Braungart and William McDonough
Is behavior change possible? Sure thing, it is but under certain conditions. With Natalia Romero Herrera, an associate professor from Delft University of Technology, we discuss how necessary it is to embed behavior change in values and beliefs. We dig into the topic of self-judgement, self-experimentation and personal storytelling as one of the most crucial tools to inspire change in people.
LINKS
Article by John Zimmerman “Designing for the Self: Making Products that Help People Become the Person they Desire to Be”
“Cradle to cradle” by Michael Braungart and William McDonough
S7.E1. Aga & Łukasz Szóstek. INTRO. The Three Layers of Change.
2020-09-17 09:00:08
Year 2020 has brought an unprecedented change to the world as we knew it: change that we might have not been quite ready to embrace. In this seventh season of Catching The Next Wave podcast we decided to embark on a journey to understand what change means, what are the necessary conditions for it to happen and how it can be successfully implemented. We chose to look at it from three perspectives: the perspective of personal development, the one of organizational transformation and finally from the edge of introducing global change to the way people think. We hope to inspire you to change in the ways that help this new world we face be the one we all would like to live in.
Year 2020 has brought an unprecedented change to the world as we knew it: change that we might have not been quite ready to embrace. In this seventh season of Catching The Next Wave podcast we decided to embark on a journey to understand what change means, what are the necessary conditions for it to happen and how it can be successfully implemented. We chose to look at it from three perspectives: the perspective of personal development, the one of organizational transformation and finally from the edge of introducing global change to the way people think. We hope to inspire you to change in the ways that help this new world we face be the one we all would like to live in.
BONUS: Monika Jiang & Tim Leberecht. The Great Wave of the Beautiful Business.
2020-09-03 17:00:06
In the age of machines business needs more romanticism. In this bonus episode we talk to Tim Leberecht, an author of “The Business Romantic” and the co-founder of the Business Romantic Society and Monika Jiang, the communications and community manager at the Society about the need for radical change in the way business is conducted today. We also discuss their unique global conference The Great Wave, a networked event full of flavor of secret society with a ton of romanticism, of course. LINKS “ The Business Romantic ” by Tim Leberecht The Great Wave conference House of Beautiful Business Business Romantic Society
In the age of machines business needs more romanticism. In this bonus episode we talk to Tim Leberecht, an author of “The Business Romantic” and the co-founder of the Business Romantic Society and Monika Jiang, the communications and community manager at the Society about the need for radical change in the way business is conducted today. We also discuss their unique global conference The Great Wave, a networked event full of flavor of secret society with a ton of romanticism, of course.
LINKS
“The Business Romantic” by Tim Leberecht
The Great Wave conference
S6.E9. David Millen. The Immediacy of Delivering Something Valuable.
2020-05-14 17:10:01
Technological development should matter and should solve real problems, shouldn’t it? In this insightful conversation with David Millen, a Senior Manager of Design Research at IBM Watson Health and an ACM Distinguished Scientist, we dive into the topics of purposeful innovation, developing an organizational culture that is ready to take risks and the need for diverse teams with a common language. David discusses how IBM is in a very different business it used to be and how an organization needs to be able to morph over time. Finally, we get into futures thinking and its value as a tool to rehearse scenarios, so you’ve seen some of them before as fiction when you face them in reality. LINKS Seed Cards Steven Johnson, “ Where do the good ideas come from? ”
Technological development should matter and should solve real problems, shouldn’t it? In this insightful conversation with David Millen, a Senior Manager of Design Research at IBM Watson Health and an ACM Distinguished Scientist, we dive into the topics of purposeful innovation, developing an organizational culture that is ready to take risks and the need for diverse teams with a common language. David discusses how IBM is in a very different business it used to be and how an organization needs to be able to morph over time. Finally, we get into futures thinking and its value as a tool to rehearse scenarios, so you’ve seen some of them before as fiction when you face them in reality.
LINKS
Steven Johnson, “Where do the good ideas come from?”
S6.E8. Ton Kalker. Making Possible What Wasn’t Possible Before.
2020-05-14 17:05:24
Can you get too much attention to innovation? In this insightful conversation with Ton Kalker, the CTO at Xperi and an IEEE Fellow we dive into the aspects of predictability, risk taking and trust, and their relationship with radical innovation. We discuss the role of an innovation-focused CTO and also chat about what are the aspects worthwhile considering if you think of doing innovation that matters. LINKS Scientific American
Can you get too much attention to innovation? In this insightful conversation with Ton Kalker, the CTO at Xperi and an IEEE Fellow we dive into the aspects of predictability, risk taking and trust, and their relationship with radical innovation. We discuss the role of an innovation-focused CTO and also chat about what are the aspects worthwhile considering if you think of doing innovation that matters.
LINKS
S6.E7. Christoph Bartneck. The Impact On The World.
2020-05-14 17:00:01
Does scientific research equal innovation? Is there at least a common denominator? In an insightful conversation with Christoph Bartneck, a professor of human-robot interaction at Canterbury University in Christchurch, New Zealand, we discuss the actual need for constant progress and whether there is anything truly new “under the sun”. We talk about robots and their interactions with humans and also about innovation being about deliberate changes in our immediate surroundings to make our lives better. We, finally, look into the notion of whether “better” means the immediate impact in a form of instant gratification or an impact over time that truly changes the world for the better. LINKS Christoph’s Human-Robot Interaction Podcast Podcast episode with Anton Angelo Podcast episode with Joe Rogan and Elon Musk “ The Good Place ” - the Netflix series Jibo robot Robert Pirsing, “ Zen and the art of the motorcycle maintenance ” Alan F. Chalmers, “ What is this thing called science ”
Does scientific research equal innovation? Is there at least a common denominator? In an insightful conversation with Christoph Bartneck, a professor of human-robot interaction at Canterbury University in Christchurch, New Zealand, we discuss the actual need for constant progress and whether there is anything truly new “under the sun”. We talk about robots and their interactions with humans and also about innovation being about deliberate changes in our immediate surroundings to make our lives better. We, finally, look into the notion of whether “better” means the immediate impact in a form of instant gratification or an impact over time that truly changes the world for the better.
LINKS
Christoph’s Human-Robot Interaction Podcast
Podcast episode with Anton Angelo
Podcast episode with Joe Rogan and Elon Musk
“The Good Place” - the Netflix series
Robert Pirsing, “Zen and the art of the motorcycle maintenance”
Alan F. Chalmers, “What is this thing called science”
S6.E6. Ralph Talmont. Turning The Ship Around.
2020-05-14 16:55:09
Many organisations think they innovate, but do they really? Ralph Talmont, the photographer, writer and creator, talks about the power of imagination to change your mindset towards true meaningful and, above all, ethical innovation. We discuss the importance of taking into account the environmental costs of doing business and we talk about the differences between easy innovation and the difficult one, one that aims at the long-term impact on the world rather than being the selfish drive for biggest profit. We also consider stealing creative processes from artists as a way to start thinking differently. LINKS Boma.global Nassim Nicholas Taleb, David Chandler, “ Black Swan ” Marcus Aurelius, “ Meditations ” Salomon Ash Kazimierz Dąbrowski Kazimierz Dąbrowski “ Positive Disintegration ”
Many organisations think they innovate, but do they really? Ralph Talmont, the photographer, writer and creator, talks about the power of imagination to change your mindset towards true meaningful and, above all, ethical innovation. We discuss the importance of taking into account the environmental costs of doing business and we talk about the differences between easy innovation and the difficult one, one that aims at the long-term impact on the world rather than being the selfish drive for biggest profit. We also consider stealing creative processes from artists as a way to start thinking differently.
LINKS
Nassim Nicholas Taleb, David Chandler, “Black Swan”
Marcus Aurelius, “Meditations”
Kazimierz Dąbrowski “Positive Disintegration”
S6.E5. Jens Heitland. The Mindset of Innovation.
2020-05-14 16:50:11
Innovation takes time. You can only see its effects over time, so you need to step back and see a bigger picture. How to do so? In the conversation with Jens Heitland, a former Head of Innovation at IKEA Centres and now a business innovation designer at Fjord, we investigate how to create a powerful innovation team and what its role is in your organisation (and it is not one to create more innovation). We discuss the criticality of the innovation mindset and the importance of having a powerful North Star to ensure you are going in the same direction. We also talk about the need to get your hands dirty (not only on the operational level but also in the executive one) and the importance of good measurement. LINKS Jerry Z. Muller, “ The Tyranny of Metrics ” Eric Reiss, “ The Lean Startup ” Thomas Gordon, “ Leader Effectiveness Training ” Simon Sinek “ Start with Why ” Seth Godin “ Purple Cow ” Tim Ferris “ The 4 Hour Workweek ” About Warren Buffett by Alice Schroeder, Kirsten Potter “ The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life ”
Innovation takes time. You can only see its effects over time, so you need to step back and see a bigger picture. How to do so? In the conversation with Jens Heitland, a former Head of Innovation at IKEA Centres and now a business innovation designer at Fjord, we investigate how to create a powerful innovation team and what its role is in your organisation (and it is not one to create more innovation). We discuss the criticality of the innovation mindset and the importance of having a powerful North Star to ensure you are going in the same direction. We also talk about the need to get your hands dirty (not only on the operational level but also in the executive one) and the importance of good measurement.
LINKS
Jerry Z. Muller, “The Tyranny of Metrics”
Eric Reiss, “The Lean Startup”
Thomas Gordon, “Leader Effectiveness Training”
Simon Sinek “Start with Why”
Seth Godin “Purple Cow”
Tim Ferris “The 4 Hour Workweek”
About Warren Buffett by Alice Schroeder, Kirsten Potter “ The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life”
S6.E4. Steven Thomas. Are You an Innovator or a Commentator?
2020-05-14 16:45:20
Big breakthroughs are, in fact, a series of incremental steps. If you have one, it means that you were patient enough and humble enough to stick to your course. With Steve Thomas, an Innovation Director at JPI Media, we dive into the ways to set up your innovation machine (no matter whether you are a startup or a mature organisation). We discuss the importance of empathy not only towards the customers but also towards the internal stakeholders whose necks are on the line. We also talk that you can’t predict innovation but you can enable for it but in order to do so you need to have a “punk mentality”, a rebellious spirit informed by strong passion and purpose to become a champion of innovation. LINKS Story of Dyson making ventilators Story of Cristian Fracassi 3d-printing ventilators’ valves Story about helping to feed the frontline initiative Daniel Pink “ Drive ” Ryan Holiday, “ Ego is the enemy ”
Big breakthroughs are, in fact, a series of incremental steps. If you have one, it means that you were patient enough and humble enough to stick to your course. With Steve Thomas, an Innovation Director at JPI Media, we dive into the ways to set up your innovation machine (no matter whether you are a startup or a mature organisation). We discuss the importance of empathy not only towards the customers but also towards the internal stakeholders whose necks are on the line. We also talk that you can’t predict innovation but you can enable for it but in order to do so you need to have a “punk mentality”, a rebellious spirit informed by strong passion and purpose to become a champion of innovation.
LINKS
Story of Dyson making ventilators
Story of Cristian Fracassi 3d-printing ventilators’ valves
Story about helping to feed the frontline initiative
Daniel Pink “Drive”
Ryan Holiday, “Ego is the enemy”