Leadership

Here’s the truth: Deals win or die by what happens after close. M&A isn’t just about numbers. It’s about envisioning the end state. I’ve seen too many deals get done for the wrong reasons—chasing revenue, ego, or momentum—without ever asking: What do we want this to look like after the dust settles? That’s why Buyer-Led M&A flips the script. We lead with clarity, not chaos. 🔹 Start by mapping the end state. Not just the financials—think operating model, customer experience, and decision-making structure. What does “success” actually look like? 🔹 Then dig into culture. Forget the surface-level values page. You need to understand how decisions get made, how people work, and how priorities shift under pressure. That’s the real culture. 🔹 Now you can start building a joint go-to-market plan. This is your integration thesis. What does the customer experience look like as a combined company? 🔹 Integration planning should run parallel to diligence. Same team. Shared information. Continuous learning. That’s how you get to Day 1 readiness—and avoid repeating diligence after you’ve already bought the company. 🔹 Finally: reverse diligence. Let the target get to know you. This is a two-way street. The more transparency, the more alignment, the more likely you’ll retain the people who actually make the deal work. M&A isn’t a race to term sheets. It’s a race to value creation—and that starts by leading the process, not just following it. This is how I define the Buyer-Led M&A™ mindset. What am I missing? Let me know in the comments. #MergersAndAcquisitions #BuyerLedMA #DealRoom

How can leaders transform their teams to be AI-first? It starts with mindset. An AI-first mindset means: Seeing AI as an opportunity, not a threat. Viewing AI as a tool to augment teams, not just automate tasks. Using AI to reimagine work, not just optimize work. As leaders, it’s on us to build this mindset within our teams. Here are 5 ways we do this at HubSpot: Use AI daily: Lead by example—trust grows when teams see leaders embrace AI themselves. I use it everyday and share very specific use cases with our company on how I use it. Now every leader is doing the same with their teams. The result is that we will have almost everyone in the company use AI daily by the end of year. Apply constraints: Give clear, focused challenges. We kept headcount flat in Support while growing the customer base by 20%+. Result - the team innovated with AI and over achieved the target. Smart constraints drive innovation. Establish tiger teams: Empower small, agile groups to experiment, innovate, and teach the organization. We have AI Tiger teams in every function - they share progress in Slack channels and there is so much energy with small groups experimenting and learning. Be a learn-it-all: Foster a culture of continuous learning. Share openly about successes and failures alike. We have dedicated 2 full days to learning and scaling with AI this quarter as a company - we have lined up great speakers, ways to experiment and gamified learning. Measure progress and share it: Measure which teams are completing learning modules, using AI everyday and share that openly. A little healthy competition goes a long way in driving AI-fluency. AI isn’t just a technology shift. It’s fundamentally reshaping how work gets done—and that requires shifting our mindset first. Leaders who embrace AI now will unlock creativity, performance, and impact. Are you building an AI-first mindset with your team? #Leadership #AI #Innovation #Mindset #FutureOfWork

A topic that has come up recently in some of my manager development programs is how to lead during times of change and uncertainty (which, let's face it, feels like the norm these days). The core question is this: How do you show up and lead others during periods of uncertainty and change when you yourself may feel uncertain about the changes happening? When one person asks this question, many others nod in agreement, highlighting the universality of what many leaders are experiencing today. In the hopes of sparking further conversations between your leaders and their peers on this topic, I wanted to share a few key ideas we discussed as potential actions for leaders to try: 📌Put on your oxygen mask first - As the saying goes, take care of yourself first. Before you respond to others, make sure you are in a good place personally amidst the change and uncertainty. It can be challenging to support others when you’re not taking care of yourself. Take time to reflect, seek support, or journal—whatever helps you process the situation. But before you lead, start with yourself. 📌 Map out what’s within your control - It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by uncertainty, but in reality, some things are within your control, and others are not. Define what’s in your control and focus your energy there. It’s not easy, but it helps reduce the stress of feeling powerless. 📌 Meet people where they are - Everyone has their own relationship with change and their own ways of coping with fear, uncertainty, and change. Your goal is to understand where each person is individually and meet them there, helping them move in the right direction. This requires listening and personalizing your approach to each individual. 📌Turn outward (and encourage others to do the same) -  During challenging times, it’s natural to want to turn inward and isolate yourself. While it’s completely reasonable to take care of yourself, remember the saying, “don’t suffer in silence.” If there’s uncertainty or change happening, you’re likely not the only one feeling it. Turn outward to your peers and colleagues. As a leader, model this behavior, and encourage your team to connect with their peers as well, if they feel comfortable. Many of society’s challenges have been solved through collaboration, and this situation will be no different. If you have other ideas or practices that are helping your leaders navigate change and uncertainty, I’d love to hear what you’re doing or trying! #leadership #leadershipdevelopment

I once worked with a team that was, quite frankly, toxic. The same two team members routinely derailed meeting agendas. Eye-rolling was a primary form of communication. Side conversations overtook the official discussion. Most members had disengaged, emotionally checking out while physically present. Trust was nonexistent. This wasn't just unpleasant—it was preventing meaningful work from happening. The transformation began with a deceptively simple intervention: establishing clear community agreements. Not generic "respect each other" platitudes, but specific behavioral norms with concrete descriptions of what they looked like in practice. The team agreed to norms like "Listen to understand," "Speak your truth without blame or judgment," and "Be unattached to outcome." For each norm, we articulated exactly what it looked like in action, providing language and behaviors everyone could recognize. More importantly, we implemented structures to uphold these agreements. A "process observer" role was established, rotating among team members, with the explicit responsibility to name when norms were being upheld or broken during meetings. Initially, this felt awkward. When the process observer first said, "I notice we're interrupting each other, which doesn't align with our agreement to listen fully," the room went silent. But within weeks, team members began to self-regulate, sometimes even catching themselves mid-sentence. Trust didn't build overnight. It grew through consistent small actions that demonstrated reliability and integrity—keeping commitments, following through on tasks, acknowledging mistakes. Meeting time was protected and focused on meaningful work rather than administrative tasks that could be handled via email. The team began to practice active listening techniques, learning to paraphrase each other's ideas before responding. This simple practice dramatically shifted the quality of conversation. One team member later told me, "For the first time, I felt like people were actually trying to understand my perspective rather than waiting for their turn to speak." Six months later, the transformation was remarkable. The same team that once couldn't agree on a meeting agenda was collaboratively designing innovative approaches to their work. Conflicts still emerged, but they were about ideas rather than personalities, and they led to better solutions rather than deeper divisions. The lesson was clear: trust doesn't simply happen through team-building exercises or shared experiences. It must be intentionally cultivated through concrete practices, consistently upheld, and regularly reflected upon. Share one trust-building practice that's worked well in your team experience. P.S. If you’re a leader, I recommend checking out my free challenge: The Resilient Leader: 28 Days to Thrive in Uncertainty  https://lnkd.in/gxBnKQ8n

First-time leaders: You're handling your manager's requests wrong by saying YES to everything. ⁣⁣ Every time you automatically agree to a task, you're setting yourself up for later problems: - Strategic priorities get diluted - Revenue-generating projects get delayed - Quality of execution suffers The way I respond to requests is fundamentally different. There's a difference between saying 'No, I can't' which means 'I've done no work, I'm too lazy to think about it... vs taking the hard path and coming up with a solution. Here's what effective leadership looks like: 1️⃣ Clarify the business impact: "I can do this, but here's what's going to get moved” Or “Here's what I can do without moving anything, but it'll be reduced scope." 2️⃣ Connect to objectives: Think through the ask - how does it relate to the overall company goals we're trying to achieve versus what's on your plate? Your manager might think they're asking for a quick 5-minute task when it's a mountain of work! They won't see this unless you show the full picture of your current priorities and bandwidth. ⁣⁣ This approach prevents three common failures: (1) Putting everything on your list until burnout (2) Doing each thing poorly (making you look bad) (3) Missing critical revenue opportunities. Share below: what’s your no. 1 priority for this quarter? 

Hybrid Meetings ≠ Inclusive Meetings. I’ve lived it - and here’s 5 practical tips to ensure everyone has a voice, regardless of location. I spent more than 10,000 hours in hybrid meetings while as a remote leader for The Clorox Company. I was often the 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 remote attendee - while the rest of the group sat together in a conference room at HQ. Here’s what I learned the hard way: 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲... ...by showing who gets heard, who feels seen, and who gets left out. If you're leading a distributed or hybrid team, how you structure your meetings sends a loud message about what (and who) matters. 𝟱 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝘆𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗱 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀: 1️⃣ 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 – who will actively combat distance bias and invite input from all meeting members 2️⃣ 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗲𝗿 – to monitor the chat and the raised hands, to launch polls and to free up the facilitator to focus on the flow 3️⃣ 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝗴 𝗶𝗻 - so that there is equal access to the chat, polls, and reactions 4️⃣ 𝗕𝘂𝗱𝗱𝘆 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 – pair remote team members with in-room allies to help make space in the conversation and ensure they can see and hear everything 5️⃣ 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝗽 𝗮 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘂𝗽 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻 – be ready with a Plan B for audio, video, or connectivity issues in the room 𝘞𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳? 𝗧𝗿𝘆 𝗮 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹-𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴. If even one person is remote, have everyone log in from their own device from their own workspace to create a level playing field. 🔗 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗽𝘀 for creating location-inclusive distributed teams in this Nano Tool I wrote for Wharton Executive Education: https://lnkd.in/eUKdrDVn #LIPostingDayApril

During a high stress moment of frustration, a CEO harshly told one of my students: “I need you to be a thought partner, not another task manager!” She swallowed the lump in her throat as she exited the video call, but... she knew he had a point. 😕 She’d been burning herself out checking boxes, clearing tasks, reacting to requests. And, in doing so, she was unintentionally making herself smaller (and less effective). The difference between a support person (tactical/ a task manager) and a Chief of Staff (strategic/ a thought partner) is about 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼. ➡️ So she made a shift, 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘦𝘧 𝘰𝘧 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘧𝘧 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦, and started operating like  a true thought partner. Here’s how that’s done: 1️⃣ 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. Instead of asking, “What do you need me to do?” she started showing up with recommendations (bringing solutions to the agenda, not just problems) 𝗛𝗢𝗪 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗖𝗔𝗡 𝗗𝗢 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗧𝗢𝗗𝗔𝗬:  when you become aware of or identify a problem or issue that needs a decision, 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲, 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗼𝗳 𝟮-𝟯 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗲. 2️⃣ 𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀. When her CEO asked for updates, she didn’t just list what she’d done, she explained how it moved their org-wide goals forward. 𝗛𝗢𝗪 𝗬𝗢𝗨 𝗖𝗔𝗡 𝗗𝗢 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗧𝗢𝗗𝗔𝗬:  Before every task or project you work on, ask yourself, “How is what I’m doing helping us win long-term?” Then document that so you have proof of your impact. 3️⃣ She built the habit of challenging upward. This one felt scary at first, but she learned to respectfully push back and ask her CEO tough questions like: 🤔 “What tradeoff are we making if we choose this option?” 🤔 “How will this decision impact the team next quarter?” 🤔 “Is this the best use of your time right now?” Her boss…? He loved it!! 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗲𝗳 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗳𝗳. It will work for you too. Start thinking like the person in the room who’s helping make the decisions, not just carry them out.

Your brain is wired to avoid conflict at all costs. Avoiding hard conversations doesn’t eliminate problems-it multiplies them. I’ve worked with countless first-time managers, VPs, and even senior executives who freeze when it’s time to: - Give tough feedback - Address poor performance - Set firm boundaries - Have that uncomfortable talk with an underperforming team member Why does this happen? Because biologically, your brain still thinks conflict = danger.  When faced with confrontation, your amygdala (the fear center of your brain) hijacks your response system. - Heart rate spikes. - Hands get clammy. - Your brain perceives the conversation as a threat, triggering fight, flight, or freeze.  This is why so many leaders either: - Overreact (aggressive, defensive, emotional outbursts) - Shut down (avoid the issue, sugarcoat, delay tough calls) The result? - Performance issues linger. - Low accountability erodes culture. - Leaders lose credibility. The best organizations-the ones that scale, retain top talent, and build elite teams-don’t just train leaders on strategy. They train them on emotional regulation and communication.  How Elite Leaders Stay Calm & In Control During Tough Talks  1. Hack Your Nervous System with Tactical Breathing Your breath controls your physiology. Try box breathing (4-4-4-4): Inhale 4 sec → Hold 4 sec → Exhale 4 sec → Hold 4 sec. Navy SEALs use this under combat stress—it works in boardrooms too.  2. Reframe the Conversation in Your Mind Instead of “This is going to be a brutal conversation,” say “This is an opportunity to align expectations and help someone grow.” Shift from confrontation → collaboration.  3. Use Nonverbal Cues to De-Escalate Lower your tone. Slow down your speech. Maintain open body language. People mirror your energy—if you stay calm, they will too.  4. Replace “Softening” Phrases with Direct, Clear Statements - “I feel like maybe there’s a small issue with your performance…” ✅ “Here’s what I’ve observed, and here’s what needs to change.” Clarity is kindness. Sugarcoating only confuses people.  Why This Matters for Companies Investing in Leadership Training - 85% of employees say poor leadership communication causes workplace stress. (Forbes) - 69% of managers say they’re uncomfortable communicating with employees. (HBR) - Companies with emotionally intelligent leadership see 34% higher retention rates. (Case Study Group at Cornell) If your company isn’t training leaders on handling tough conversations, you’re losing talent, productivity, and trust. Want to build a leadership culture where tough conversations drive growth instead of fear? Let’s talk. #LeadershipTraining #ExecutiveCoaching #CommunicationSkills #LeadershipDevelopment #CultureOfAccountability #EmotionalIntelligence #HighPerformanceTeams

Stop trusting everyone. 83% of people will betray you when given the chance. Sounds harsh? Let me share something personal... Last year, I led a high-stakes project where everything hinged on trust. My team was scattered across 3 continents, and we had never met in person. Conventional wisdom said it would fail. But here's what happened: • We delivered 50% faster than teams working in the same office • Zero conflicts or misunderstandings The secret? We didn't just "trust" blindly. We built it systematically: 1. Clear expectations from day one 2. Consistent delivery on small promises 3. Open communication channels 24/7 4. Regular acknowledgment of team wins 5. Space for vulnerability and mistakes Here's the truth about trust: It's not about blind faith. It's not about controlling everything. It's about creating an environment where people EARN trust through actions. The results? • Higher productivity (50% boost in high-trust companies) • Less stress (74% reduction) • Better team collaboration • Stronger relationships Think about your own relationships: Where are you building walls instead of bridges? Where could more trust transform your results? Trust isn't just the glue of life - it's the foundation of every success story. But it starts with you. ♻️ Share this to inspire someone. ➕ Follow me for more such posts.

Investing in both vision and execution is one of the most important, yet often overlooked, aspects of leadership. Absent execution, a leader’s vision is simply a dream. At the same time, marching off to execute without a clear vision begets confusion and even chaos.  Early in my career, it was often my job to help leaders create and articulate their vision, and then to collaborate across their organizations to bring the vision to life. Crystalizing a vision into a compelling national or institutional mandate is hard enough as it is. Making it a reality is even rarer. In those formative professional years, I had a front-row seat to great leaders and big successes, but more often, vision statements failed to leave the whiteboard. Disappointment follows when ambition isn’t met with a strategy for action. It takes significant, sustained commitment from the top to bring a strategy or vision to life. Learning this lesson early profoundly shaped my approach to leadership. Taking a hands-off approach to execution is tempting–nugging through execution isn’t nearly as exciting to most leaders as pronouncing initiatives–but is a major pitfall. So, how do you ensure your execution can bring your vision to life? Adaptability is key. The world doesn’t stand still. Market shifts, technological advancements, workforce changes—these factors demand that leaders refine their approach while staying true to their mission. A rigid vision, no matter how compelling, won’t survive an evolving landscape. Understand the relevant institutional cultures and incentives. In any sizable organization, execution happens through other people. Translating your vision into outcomes that can help advance their goals creates momentum. When people see the personal and organizational advantage in executing a strategy, they become champions of the mission. Questions I always ask myself include: What drives the team? What motivates stakeholders? Sell the mission advantage. While every stakeholder has different priorities, they all contribute to the bigger picture. When they see how the vision benefits not just the organization but also their own objectives, execution becomes second nature. In my experience, it is a cycle: Vision → Execution → Assessment → Evaluation → Refinement of Vision. The best leaders don’t just set direction; they ensure that every step forward brings the vision closer to reality. #Leadership #Strategy #Execution