When it comes to social impact, Starbucks has been leading the pack for decades. In fact, it’s hard to keep track of all their initiatives, from local community grants to groundbreaking standards it created to source ingredients like coffee beans and cocoa. In this episode of Lead With We I got the chance to chat with Virginia Tenpenny, Starbucks’ Chief Social Impact Officer, who shared how Starbucks brings purpose to life on a daily basis, the future of leadership, localizing large scale impact...
May 31, 2021•28 min•Season 2Ep. 16
Lots of companies are talking about diversity, equity and inclusion these days, but what does it mean to actually move the needle in those areas? Each of us has a role to play in bringing about a better future, and business leaders are uniquely positioned to create lasting change. In this episode of Lead With We, I had the privilege of speaking with Michael Muñoz, Global Marketing Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Lead at Google, and Performance Paradigm’s Reggie Butler about the lessons they’ve...
May 24, 2021•39 min•Season 2Ep. 15
Our current food system is unsustainable. Luckily people like Tobias Peggs are re-engineering how food is grown and distributed in ways that are better for people and the planet. Tobias’ company, Square Roots, uses real time data and machine learning to create the right climate conditions for growing produce in refurbished shipping containers situated near local retailers, which drastically reduces waste and carbon emissions. In this episode of Lead With We, Tobias and I chat about how his exper...
May 17, 2021•31 min•Season 2Ep. 14
The modular flooring company Interface has one of the most forward-thinking sustainability visions in the building industry and the private sector in general. Interface’s late founder, Ray Anderson, pivoted the company to an aggressive sustainability path over 20 years ago, and it’s up to Chief Sustainability Officer Erin Meezan to continue and build upon his legacy. In this episode of Lead With We, Erin and I spoke about going beyond the “do-no-harm” approach to sustainability and actually rein...
May 10, 2021•35 min•Season 2Ep. 13
I first met Sherry Turkle about ten years ago at a conference where we spent hours chatting about how rapidly advancing technology is changing our relationships to each other and ourselves, and how that affects all sectors of society. It’s something Sherry has spent her life studying as a psychologist and sociologist at MIT. In this episode of Lead With We, I got the chance to reconnect with Sherry, who recently published a memoir called “The Empathy Diaries.” We spoke about how vulnerability is...
May 03, 2021•48 min•Season 2Ep. 12
Natasha Case started in architecture and landed in ice cream after one of her professors compared a project of hers to a layer cake. So she took her creative energy and co-founded the premium ice cream brand Coolhaus with her wife Freya Estreller in 2009. Since then Natasha has used the brand as a platform to inspire other LGBTQ+ millennial entrepreneurs. I thoroughly enjoyed my conversation with Natasha, chatting about the importance of partnering with other brands that share your values, how b...
Apr 26, 2021•37 min•Season 2Ep. 11
Jeff Dunn cut his teeth at Coca-Cola and gained even more experience in the food industry with the Campbell Soup Company. But where he found his passion was becoming CEO of Bolthouse Farms, a packaged foods company that grew out of a small Michigan farm in 1915. In fact, that passion led him to buy the company back from Campbell’s after selling it to them in 2012. In this episode of Lead With We, I had the pleasure of speaking with Jeff about how differences in company culture led to the buy-bac...
Apr 19, 2021•49 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Matthew Wadiak went from being a chef to founding Blue Apron, the first meal kit company to go public, and now he’s disrupting food yet again through Cooks Venture. In his newest endeavor, Matthew is pioneering regenerative systems that span the entire value chain of animal agriculture. I learned so much during my conversation with Matthew. Listen to the episode to understand more about the flaws he’s addressing in our current food system, building brand awareness online to challenge the status ...
Apr 12, 2021•43 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Following the company’s 65th anniversary, VSP Global's Chief Marketing Officer Wendy Hauteman decided it was time to craft a new purpose statement. It wasn't a marketing initiative, but rather a way to set VSP up for future growth in an increasingly competitive industry. Wendy and I worked together to bring purpose to life at VSP. Listen to our conversation to find out how she got buy-in from all levels of leadership and brought employees along during the process, how VSP has kept purpose alive ...
Apr 05, 2021•30 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Lynne Twist is one of the most incredible people I know. She became an activist after she was inspired by Buckminster Fuller’s vision of a global society in which no one was left behind, and since then she’s gone on to write her revolutionary book, ‘The Soul of Money’, examining our cultural attitudes towards wealth. Today, Lynne runs the Pachamama Alliance, an organization that connects leaders in business to indigenous leaders that protect the Amazon rainforest to support personal and collecti...
Mar 29, 2021•29 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Ashwin Cheriyan took the leap into entrepreneurship with his wife, Shiri Avnery, when he started the plant-based meal delivery service, Thistle, in 2013. He was a former corporate lawyer, and she was a climate scientist frustrated by how little people were talking about the environmental impact of reducing demand for animal products, let alone the impact on human health. They knew that getting people to shift their eating habits meant making plant-based meals more delicious and convenient. In th...
Mar 22, 2021•34 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Have you heard of the gut microbiome? There’s been a lot of buzz about scientific research about how the bacteria in our gut influences our overall health. And in this episode of Lead With We, I talk with first-time entrepreneur Marc Washington about how he launched a consumer nutrition brand called Muniq that uses gut health science to help people who struggle with health issues to take back control. We discuss the personal tragedy that led Marc down this path, his ambitious decision to launch ...
Mar 15, 2021•25 min•Season 2Ep. 5
Andrei Cherny has had a fascinating career. He worked with Al Gore in the early days of raising awareness about climate change and helped start the Consumer Protection Bureau with Sen. Elizabeth Warren. Now, he’s taking on the exact same issues through his company, Aspiration. It’s a pay-what-you-want financial services model that allows customers to divest from things like gun manufacturing and fossil fuels. In this episode of Lead With We, Andrei chats with me about what led him down this path...
Mar 08, 2021•29 min•Season 2Ep. 4
The B Corp movement was started by a group of conscious entrepreneurs in the early 2000’s who believed business should be about more than maximizing profits. Today, there are over 3,500 B Corps across the world. In this episode of Lead With We, I speak with Anthea Kelsick, the CEO of B Lab U.S. & Canada, which is the non-profit that certifies B Corps. We talk about the value of the certification process and accountability, how these companies collaborate on critical issues like reducing carb...
Mar 01, 2021•26 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Thanks for joining us for another season of Lead With We. I couldn’t think of a better guest to kick things off than my dear friend, futurist Sally Uren. Sally runs a leading sustainability non-profit called Forum For The Future that works directly with big brands and business leaders to create global change. Together we discuss the future of humanity (literally), and how we’re seeing very different trajectories play out simultaneously in real-time. And what I particularly love about this conver...
Feb 22, 2021•29 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Lead With We is back for Season 2 with new episodes every Tuesday! And to kick things off, I’m sharing my thoughts on 2021 so far. Things got off to a rocky start in January, but there are many reasons to be optimistic when it comes to the future of business, the planet and society. And that’s really what this show is about. I’m also sharing a bit about the amazing guests we have lined up for you this season. Together we’ll discover how to re-engineer business to be a force for positive change i...
Feb 15, 2021•7 min•Season 2Ep. 1
Season 2 of Lead With We is coming soon, and I couldn’t be more excited about the new episodes we’re working on. But this week I’m sharing one we did last summer with Jeni Britton Bauer, the Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Jeni’s Ice Cream. We were just a few months into the pandemic and people around the world were protesting for racial justice. Jeni’s known for being super creative and also making sure that each and every one of her 800+ employees is connected to the impact piece of the ...
Feb 08, 2021•29 min•Season 1Ep. 35
Season 2 of Lead With We is launching soon! And I’m looking forward to sharing all-new conversations with purposeful business leaders as we move through 2021. We’ll announce our launch date soon, but until then please enjoy my conversation with Adam Lowry, Co-Founder of Method & Executive Chairman of Ripple Foods. Adam is a prolific entrepreneur, and in this episode we talk about how he’s changed the world through disruptive startups like Method, which makes eco-friendly cleaning products, a...
Feb 01, 2021•30 min•Season 1Ep. 34
It’s a new year, but we continue grappling with the same big issues in 2021. For many, the events of last year made it impossible for business leaders to stand on the sidelines. But engaging with social justice issues is uncharted territory for most in the private sector. That’s why I’m re-sharing a conversation I had with Jay Curley, the Global Head of Integrated Marketing at Ben & Jerry’s. Ben & Jerry’s has been instrumental in paving the way for business to be a force for progressive ...
Jan 26, 2021•33 min•Season 1Ep. 33
Let’s face it, 2021 is off to a bit of a rocky start. And it can be easy to get bogged down in all the uncertainty and negativity, which is why I’m revisiting a conversation I had last year with Matthew Pohlson, the Co-Founder and CEO of Omaze. Matthew inspired me because he’s a real-life example of how changing your mindset can unlock greater joy and success, especially if you’re an entrepreneur. In this episode of Lead With We, I talk with Matthew about disrupting charity, the personal reasons...
Jan 18, 2021•27 min•Season 1Ep. 32
Lead With We is currently on break, but we’ll be back soon with all new episodes featuring some of the most inspiring purposeful business leaders out there. In the meantime, I want to highlight one of my favorite conversations from 2020, with Frank Cooper, Senior Managing Director, Global Chief Marketing Officer of BlackRock. It was fascinating to get Frank's perspective on how the world’s largest hedge fund is rethinking capitalism, like the threat climate change poses to business and how susta...
Jan 11, 2021•33 min•Season 1Ep. 31
I think we could all use a little rest right now, so the team and I are taking a little break in preparation for the new year. We’ll have more episodes for you soon, but for now please enjoy one of my favorite conversations from 2020 with Doug Palladini, the Global Brand President of VANS. What I love about Doug’s approach to purposeful branding, is that it’s all about supporting passionate, creative communities. Doug shared with me how he and his team have sustained the company’s legacy by real...
Jan 04, 2021•28 min•Season 1Ep. 30
When you look up ‘disrupter’, I’m pretty sure Kara Goldin’s name is the first one to pop up. That’s why I’m re-sharing the conversation I had with her in 2020. Kara is the founder and CEO of Hint, Inc., and she turned the bottled water industry upside down with her best known product, Hint water. As she was about to welcome her fourth child, Kara’s idea to help her lead a more healthy life, along with her bold scrappy approach, led to the creation of top-selling flavored waters without artificia...
Dec 28, 2020•31 min•Season 1Ep. 29
As we come to the end of 2020, the team and I are getting some much needed rest as we gear up for 2021. We’ll be back soon with new episodes of Lead With We, but in the meantime, I hope you’ll enjoy listening to my conversation with Tim Brown, the Co-Founder and CEO of Allbirds. Allbirds quickly gained a cult following after launching a simple and sustainable sneaker in 2016. And I got the chance to learn how Tim and his team are working to reduce their carbon footprint and bringing the rest of ...
Dec 21, 2020•26 min•Season 1Ep. 28
How would you describe 2020? Wait, don’t answer that question. I think it’s safe to say that we could all use a bit of a break, as well as a chance to reflect. Personally, as we wrap up 2020 and head into a new year, I’ve been looking back and appreciating my conversations with purposeful business leaders in our first season. So with this episode, I’ll take you through some of my favorite moments from the show, key takeaways and give a little peek into my own story. Simon Mainwaring Simon Mainwa...
Dec 14, 2020•16 min•Season 1Ep. 27
Sunny Vanderbeck launched his investment firm, Satori Capital, in the midst of the 2008 financial crisis. At the time, it was a difficult sell met with resistance within the institutional investment community: he wanted to invest in business as a force for good. In this episode, Sunny explains how he puts conscious capitalism into practice, from investing with longer time horizons to transforming the employee experience at the company-level, to going above and beyond minimum environmental standa...
Dec 07, 2020•29 min•Season 1Ep. 26
Andras Forgacs went from venture investor to entrepreneur when he co-founded two biotech companies with his father, Organovo and Modern Meadow, in a quest to bring about a more sustainable world. In this episode, Andras takes me through his journey, from pioneering lab-grown human tissues technology at Organovo for pharmaceutical testing, to applying that same technology to consumer products at Modern Meadow. With Modern Meadow’s lab-grown leather about to hit the market, I couldn’t be more exci...
Nov 30, 2020•33 min•Season 1Ep. 25
Warby Parker first disrupted the optical industry by offering direct-to-consumer glasses at an affordable price, but now the company is also shaking things up in the social arena. In this episode I speak with the company’s Founder and co-CEO, Dave Gilboa, about how the company has embraced access to voting in 2020 and partnered with other businesses to spread their message far and wide. We also discuss what’s next for this ten-year-old brand, the possibility of going public and choosing purpose-...
Nov 23, 2020•30 min•Season 1Ep. 24
Allbirds quickly gained a cult following after launching a simple and sustainable sneaker in 2016. In this episode of Lead With We, Allbirds CEO Tim Brown talks about how he and his team are working to reduce their carbon footprint and bringing the rest of the world along with them. From partnerships with “the competition,” to award-winning innovations and inventing a universal metric for carbon, Tim shares his many insights on how business can be a force for positive, rapid change. Tim Brown Ti...
Nov 16, 2020•26 min•Season 1Ep. 23
Founded in 1862, Mammut built its reputation amongst outdoor enthusiasts by creating the strongest mountaineering ropes out there. Now, as they look to the future, my dear friend Oliver Pabst is leading the company with a new purpose: to create a world moved by mountains. Listen to my conversation with Oliver to learn how the company is leaning on their purpose to reach a diverse set of global consumers, how they partner with other companies on sustainability, and more. Oliver Pabst Oliver Pabst...
Nov 09, 2020•25 min•Season 1Ep. 22
