Future Shapers: Next-Gen Leadership Stories Podcast

A podcast spotlighting the journeys of emerging leaders and told through the stories that shaped them. 

Emerging leaders from BRG, along with rising leaders from our client organizations, explore powerful stories that have influenced their leadership paths. Whether drawn from a personal experience, book, film, or pivotal moment in history, each story offers insight into how leaders can grow, succeed, and adapt in today’s environment. 

Subscribe and listen to all episodes at your convenience via any device at Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart, and Amazon Music. 

Difference Is the Superpower (Episode 2.5)

BRG Director Shantee Hope sits down with Heather Sager, an industrial-organizational psychologist and Senior Workforce Transformation consultant at Perceptyx, to discuss:

• why the things we are taught to hide often turn out to be our sharpest professional assets
• why it can be better not to fit the mold
• how Marvel Comics, and Spider-Man in particular, gave Heather a language for reframing difference years before she ever led a team
• why leading global, multigenerational, and increasingly artificial intelligence–augmented teams means letting go of the idea that there is only one right way to look, sound, or lead

View the transcript summary.

Season 2

Captain of Your Own Career (2.4)

BRG Director Kelli Foy and Rachel Gervin, assistant general counsel at NCR Voyix, discuss what the children’s book Grace for President can teach us about representation, hard work, and “leading from the front.”

Leadership Is a Muscle (2.3)

BRG Director Isaac Wong sits down with Hsiang Low, general counsel and director of operations at Riverchain. They take cues from Disney’s Mulan to unpack what it means to be a true leader in today’s business world.

There’s No Leadership Playbook (2.2)

BRG Director Mark Jennings talks with Stewarts partner James Breese about the leadership lessons in Home Alone, why adaptable (not one-size-fits-all) leadership matters, and how James built Stewarts’ policyholder disputes team from scratch on his path to partnership.

“Measured Sacrifice”: Making Partner at a Leading Law Firm (2.1)

BRG Director Thanh Do and Gibbs Giden’s Missy L. Griffin discuss what it takes to be a legal leader, drawing on her experiences from negotiating plea bargains in Uganda to becoming a construction law attorney and partner.

Season 1

Personal Agency: Leading with Intention (1.8)

BRG Director Jason Kuckkan and Moyo LaBode, former chief merchandising officer at Leslie’s Pools, discuss the concept of personal agency and its influence on leadership, inspired by ideas in the book Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity.

Empowering Strengths Through Trust-Based Leadership (1.7)

Nancy Cherashore and Natalia Zibibbo, counsel at Freshfields, discuss leadership while reflecting on the novel Watership Down, which highlights the power of empathy, trust, and collaboration in guiding teams.

Modern Leadership: How Can I Help? (1.6)

Jean-Gabriel Despeyroux and Mathilde Saltiel, a partner at Latham & Watkins LLP, explore key themes of leadership through the lens of lived experience and the television series New Amsterdam.

Career Evolution and Leadership Across Cultures (1.5)

BRG Director Li Li and Michelle Bock, a partner at Squire Patton Boggs, reflect on their global career journeys and leadership lessons they have learned along the way.

The Leadership Balance: Opposing Traits That Inspire Trust (1.4)

BRG Director Crosby MacDonald and Hugh Meighen, a partner at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, provide an insightful conversation on the leadership qualities of Robert F. Kennedy, drawing inspiration from the book The Last Campaign. 

Leading with Purpose: From Educator to Healthcare Executive (1.3)

BRG Director Garrett Mann sits down with Shannon Cermak, vice president of Ambulatory at Loyola Medicine, to discuss her career journey from teacher to healthcare executive and how her early experiences in education shaped her leadership style.

Finding Common Ground Through Open-Mindedness and Effective Communication Defines True Leadership (1.2)

Nelida Abi Saab and Lucy Preston, a senior associate at Mantle Law, explore the book Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know, which centers around open-mindedness, effective communication, and benefits of finding common ground.

Discovering Your “Why” and Embracing Leadership as Service to Drive Collective Success (1.1)

BRG Director Matthew McSheaffrey and Alex Lerner, a partner at Stewarts, explore key insights from the books Start with Why and Leaders Eat Last.