Archives: Podcast Episodes

How do you actually use your assumptions, experiences, and messaging to create a brand that truly connects with and speaks to people? Today Dava Guthmiller and I are going to tackle that very question. Dava is a believer in connections – what connects people with brands, eaters with foods, businesses with environments, creativity with the process, and communities with each other. We talk a lot about the creative process, the emotion behind all forms of creativity, and the role of empathy in the creative process as well as in connecting with your audience, be they consumers, constituents, or communities. 

Key Takeaways:

• Emotion matters to brand. There are emotions in the act of creativity for the creator and in the act of consumption from the consumer. 
• An empathetic brand comes down to the people – not just what you’re putting out, but how are you creating interaction and conversation.
• Listen and connect with those outside of your standard sphere, you never know what you will learn. 

“You either confirm five assumptions or you discover 100 opportunities. It’s better to discover the opportunities first, and then go ahead and confirm assumptions afterwards, if you feel like you need to.” —  Dava Guthmiller

About Dava Guthmiller: 

Dava Guthmiller, Founder and Chief Creative, Noise13

Co-Founder, InVisible Talks and InVisible Ventures

Dava Guthmiller is a believer in connections–what connects people with brands, eaters with foods, businesses with environments, creativity with the process, and communities with each other.

As the Founder and Chief Creative Officer at Noise 13, the San Francisco brand strategy and design agency, she is the driver behind building thoughtful, sustainable brands. From sustainability to diversity, to empathy & humanity, their renewed focus is to craft brands that are doing good for people and for the planet.

A design evangelist, Dava is the Co-Founder of In/Visible Projects. At its core, In/Visible Projects believes in the power of design. Healthy cross-functional collaboration leads to innovative decision-making. Design is the superpower that unlocks business value, but also advocates for the end-user. In/Visible Projects runs an annual conference, In/Visible Talks, in January, salons and smaller creative events year long, and manages the In/Visible Ventures community.

Always inventing, Dava is also an advisor, mentor, and investor. speaker, moderator, and artist. She sits on the advisory boards for all things good–Good People, Good Food Foundation, and the Visual Media Alliance. She is also part of the REGEN1 team building tools and big picture plans for a regenerative food system. Dava and Noise 13 have been featured in publications such as Forbes, The Dieline, Print Mag, and Creative Boom.

Connect with Dava, Noise13, and InVisible:

Noise13: noise13.com

Twitter: twitter.com/davag

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/davaguthmiller

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/in-visible-ventures/

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/noise-13/

Instagram: instagram.com/davag

Instagram: instagram.com/noise13design

Invisible Talks: http://2021.invisibletalks.com/

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice

In our world with so many diametrically opposed beliefs regarding politics, or policy, or religion, or anything else, is it possible to have too much empathy? Is it possible to connect with those who believe things that appear to be drastically different from our own beliefs? My guest today, Edwin Rutsch, and I talk about how the answer to what we need is, in fact, more empathy in the culture and more support for those practicing empathy. Edwin has created and rolled out a powerful framework for harnessing empathy and getting people from all walks of life to open up, talk, and truly listen to one another with Empathy Circles. Tune in to hear his great stories of putting up empathy tents at the most heated rallies and protests and what magically happened when he did.

Key Takeaways:

• The Empathy Circle is to discuss whatever the group wants to discuss in a safe space.
• Empathy Circles are not about coming to an agreement about policies, they are about finding understanding and connection, even when we disagree.
• Empathy burnout comes from too little empathy and support in the system, not from too much empathy. 

“Start to build empathy where you can in your environment – in your family, in your work, or in your school.” —  Edwin Rutsch

About Edwin Rutsch: Edwin Rutsch is the founding director of the Center for Building a Culture of Empathy. The center’s website, CultureOfEmpathy.com, is the internet’s most comprehensive portal for empathy-related material. It hosts many empathy-building projects including interviews with over 300 experts on the topic, trainings, and the Empathy Tent.  The Tent goes to public events and offers listening, facilitated dialogue, and conflict mediation.  Edwin is a world traveler, a “seeker,” a documentary filmmaker, and has worked in the computer technology field.

His focus now is on developing an online Empathy Circle Facilitation Training Course and Massive Open Online Course (MOOC). From his experience, the Empathy Circle process is the most effective gateway and first step practice for learning, practicing, and deepening empathic listening skills and mindset. The center is looking for collaborators to design and host the training.

Connect with Edwin:  

Center for Building a Culture of Empathy

http://cultureofempathy.com

Empathy Circle Website

http://www.empathycircle.com

Check out Edwin and an Empathy Circle in action in the documentary Trumphobia: What Both Sides Fear: trumphobiamovie.com/watch

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice

If you’re curious to hear what spycraft, leadership, and building strong relationships have in common, keep listening. Author, speaker and former FBI agent Robin Dreeke used to recruit spies for a living so he knows how to create a relationship and build trust with all kinds of people! Today Robin and I talk about how to shift the focus from yourself to others, the 6 signs to predicting behavior and inspiring trust, and how to avoid manipulation in sales or leadership by understanding also the crucial difference between convincing someone and inspiring someone. Stay tuned for a refreshing take on understanding human behavior and how that understanding can lead to rich relationships and phenomenal success.

Key Takeaways:

• Shift the focus from yourself and validate without judging. Validation doesn’t mean you agree, it means you seek to understand.
• Transparency is the key to ensure there is no manipulation or expectation of reciprocity. That’s great leadership
• Always take full accountability for your actions first when things go sideways.
• Don’t allow yourself to be collateral damage for other people’s insecurities.

You cannot have a great conversation where someone is going to be inspired to share information with you unless they trust you.  —  Robin Dreeke

About Robin Dreeke: Robin Dreeke is a best-selling author, professional speaker, trainer, facilitator, and retired FBI Special Agent and Chief of the Counterintelligence Behavioral Analysis Program. Robin has taken his life’s work of recruiting spies and broken down the art of leadership, communication, and relationship building into Five Steps to TRUST and Six Signs of who you can TRUST. Since 2010, Robin has been working with large corporations as well as small companies in every aspect of their business. Whether it is newly promoted leaders, executives, sales teams, or customer relations, Robin has crafted his People Formula for quick results and maximum success.

Connect with Robin:  

Twitter: twitter.com/rdreeke

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/robin-dreeke-3a5b8824

Facebook: facebook.com/PeopleFormula

Instagram: instagram.com/rdreeke

SPECIAL OFFER: Robin’s The People Formula Online Training Academy includes self-paced courses focused on building rapport, trust, healthy relationships, and assessing others.

Here’s a special 25% off coupon code for all of his online training: empathy25 

Just use it when checking out at peopleformula.com/online-training

**Offer is only good until 04/16/2021

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice

Do you ever wish you were a communications rockstar and the kind of person who can persuade, inspire, delight, and motivate in any given situation? Well, my guest today will share how it’s not a magic trick or something you have to be born with – you can learn to be a great communicator and feel like you have developed a superpower. On the show today, Bronwyn Saglimbeni and I discuss the essential ingredients to being a great communicator, how empathy plays a pivotal role in being a superstar on stage, and how to have No Enemy conversations that get powerful results and create lasting relationships. Bronwyn even reveals three of her favorite modern-day communicators and what you can learn from them.

Key Takeaways:

• When we meet an audience’s needs first, our needs get met tenfold, every time.
• You’re not born a good storyteller. We can ALL be good storytellers, it just takes practice!
• Warmth allows you to be direct.
• The greatest thing we can do is have a good intention.

“The skill of this new age is no longer going to belong to the people that are really good at fencing conversationally, it’s knowing how to reach across and create a handshake where there used to be fists.” —  Bronwyn Saglimbeni

About Bronwyn Saglimbeni: Bronwyn Saglimbeni is a communication coach, writer, and speaker devoted to helping people SHINE. Known for her playful, irreverent approach to coaching (and life in general), Bronwyn teaches serious transformation in how we communicate, inspire and connect with those around us. She is also the host of the Twenty Minutes with Bronwyn podcast.

Bronwyn has prepared clients for television appearances on American Idol, Real Time with Bill Maher, Bloomberg TV, CNBC’s Power Lunch, the Oprah Show, the Home Shopping Network, and PBS Newshour. Bronwyn has midwifed over a hundred and twenty TEDx, TED Global, and TED talks.

Connect with Bronwyn:

Instagram: instagram.com/bronwynsf

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/bronwyn

bronwyncommunications.com/subscribe

**Sign up to get access to the POWERFUL TECHNIQUE for getting better on camera!

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice

Isn’t it funny how we see certain professions as more empathetic than others? When you think of empathetic jobs, health care workers, counselors, or teachers come to mind; when you think of jobs that may result in a lack of empathy, you may believe that it could be a tax attorney, or someone that works for the IRS, or perhaps a divorce lawyer. Well, my conversation with today’s guest, Christopher Melcher, is going to shatter your myths about the importance of empathy in his success as a top divorce attorney in California. Christopher shares with us about the important role that empathy plays in his success and throughout, you’re going to learn how active listening can help a lawyer and any of you be a good advocate for your clients, customers, and employees.

Key Takeaways:

• The cases aren’t complicated, the people make it complicated. It’s 90% emotion and 10% law.
• The best leaders allow people to find their way and make their own decisions. People like to take ownership of how they get to the endpoint.
• It is about connecting, not about believing. The truth is hard to know.

“Listening is the most powerful part of communication.” —  Christopher Melcher

About Christopher Melcher: 

Christopher Melcher

Partner, Walzer Melcher LLP

Business owners, celebrities, and trust beneficiaries across California turn to Christopher C. Melcher for his assistance in protecting their most valuable assets. With deep experience in complex family law litigation and premarital agreements, Mr. Melcher helps his clients achieve successful outcomes despite extremely challenging circumstances. He understands the need to keep sensitive family matters private for his noteworthy clients and is dedicated to handling family law matters in a discrete manner that still gets the results his clients are seeking.

For more than twenty years, he has been helping his clients navigate all the financial aspects of divorce, including tax consequences of property division and alimony, corporate laws dealing with the division of a family business, and the definition of income for purposes of setting spousal and child support. He also handles appeals of family law judgments and writ proceedings from family law orders.

He has presented approximately 200 continuing legal education programs to other attorneys on the issues of complex family law issues. A published author, Mr. Melcher wrote the only treatise on California premarital agreement law, published by LexisNexis.

Christopher is also an adjunct professor of family law at Pepperdine University in Malibu.

Connect with Christopher Melcher:  

Website: WalzerMelcher.com

YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UCiOAB_SnBBn_40uaFaKX5Vw

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ccmelcher

Twitter: twitter.com/lafamlaw

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice

How do some people become master connectors? How can you create more meaningful connections for your life and your work? And, especially, what role does empathy play in forming meaningful connections, particularly in the business world? We’re going to talk about all of that and more today with my guest, Michelle Tillis Lederman. Michelle is known for helping people work better together and advance their individual impact. She is one of my go-to resources for effective networking, and more importantly, effective connections to benefit your own life as well as your work. Listen in as we answer these questions and how you too can be more comfortable and authentic when connecting even if you think it’s not your strong suit.

Key Takeaways:

• Networking is something you do, being a connector is who you are.
• Find a way to keep yourself engaged in the conversation by asking your brain questions around the conversation.
• You don’t have to agree with everyone you talk to. When you disagree, acknowledge and add – that keeps us in a conversation.
• Sometimes the curiosity of trying to understand and being provocative can do something for somebody else because you’re showing interest, and you’re also making them think.

“Look for opportunities to do the things that you can say yes to. If you want a place to start, start by saying, ‘How can I help?’” —  Michelle Tillis Lederman

FREE GIFT Link: MichelleTillisLederman.com/GiftPack

Book Bonuses: TheConnectorsAdvantage.com

Take the Connector Quiz: MichelleTillisLederman.com/Connector-Quiz

About Michelle Tillis Lederman: Michelle Tillis Lederman, one of Forbes Top 25 Networking Experts, is the author of four books including the internationally known, The 11 Laws of Likability, and her latest The Connectors Advantage. Michelle is a connection creator and CEO of Executive Essentials, which provides customized communications and leadership programs for fortune 500, non-profit, university and government clients. A former finance executive and NYU Professor, Michelle is a regular in the media appearing on NBC, CBS, Fox, NPR, the Wall Street Journal, NY Times, CNBC, and others. Michelle is known for helping people work better together and advance their individual impact.

Connect with Michelle:  

Website: MichelleTillisLederman.com

Facebook: facebook.com/MichelleTillisLederman

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/CommunicationExpertSpeaker

Twitter: twitter.com/mtlederman

YouTube: youtube.com/user/MichelleLederman

Instagram: instagram.com/mtlederman

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice

We have so much work to do in this country, in organizations, higher education, and our world at large around empathy, and bridging – healing – racial divides, inequity, and injustice. Today, I talk with Terri Givens about her own personal story and her experience researching and addressing racial inequity. She’s got so much great information to share with you today about how to start taking actionable steps towards radical empathy, what we need to do to heal our country and our world around racial injustice, and what higher education institutions can do to make sure that they’re paying more than just lip service and providing an inclusive environment that not only welcomes underrepresented groups and minorities but helps them be successful and graduate. Terri is an accomplished speaker and uses her platform to focus on inclusive leadership, and encourages personal growth through empathy.

Key Takeaways:

• Know your history. The history of racism is so critical to understanding where we are today.
• Be humble. Admit when you’re wrong. Listen, try to understand and respond in a way that let’s people know that you listened.
• Fairness is about making sure that people have what they need to succeed, even when that looks different for different people.
• Get to know the person. Get paststereotypes and take some time to get to know your community and the variety of cultures and people in your area.

“It’s wonderful to have empathy. But you have to take those next steps. You have to talke action to create change. That’s radical empathy.” —  Terri Givens

About Terri Givens: 

Terri Givens, Founder Brighter Higher Ed and author of Radical Empathy

Terri Givens founded Brighter Higher Ed after a successful career as a political scientist in immigration and European politics. As a former vice provost and provost, Terri has been a visionary leader in the areas of diversity and innovation in higher education. She is an advocate for improving access and opportunities for students through innovative curriculum and the effective use of educational technology. She is an accomplished speaker and uses her platform to focus on inclusive leadership and encourages personal growth through empathy.

Connect with Terri and Brighter Higher Ed:

Website: brighterhighered.com

Website: terrigivens.com

Twitter: twitter.com/TerriGivens

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/terrigivens/

Facebook: facebook.com/scholargivens

To learn more about and purchase Radical Empathy:

Amazon: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/1447357248/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_bJeMFbEJQP0WR

Independent bookstores:

https://bookshop.org/books/radical-empathy-finding-a-path-to-bridging-racial-divides/9781447357247

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice

Can we come together? You may ask yourself this within your team, organization – or perhaps in your community at large. We’ve had so many tough, but necessary, conversations this year about diversity, racial equity, social justice – but some folks still may believe these issues don’t impact their daily lives. In my conversation with Hart today, he shares why we’re all impacted by the social construct of race, how empathy can be a bridge to finding our common humanity, and why empathy is core to social and emotional intelligence if you want to truly be a great leader. 

Key Takeaways:

• In order for us to be able to meet each other and to be able to talk about race, we need to meet on the human level first.
• As a leader and an organization, you set the expectations with the statements you make. There needs to be responsibility and accountability behind every social statement.
• If people feel respected, valued, and trusted, then your employees will be loyal to you and they will bring their friends along. But you must show that you care. 

“We have to get to the point where we can talk about the social construct of race as it affects our individual lives day to day, but from a human perspective. It is possible – I’ve seen it and I’ve worked with groups of people where it does happen.” —  M.E. Hart

About M.E. Hart, JD 

Attorney, DE&I Strategist, Master Facilitator, and Executive Leadership Coach. 

M.E. Hart (who goes by Hart), JD brings a unique blend of training experiences – and expertise as an attorney, professional actor, and certified executive coach – to the design and delivery of highly effective learning solutions in the corporate, government, and not-for-profit sectors. Hart balances “life experience” with cutting edge research to teach critical communications, management, and leadership skills that are unmatched in the adult-learning field.

His career has taken him into Fortune 500 companies across the US and to interesting parts of the world. Hart has helped bridge cultural differences in Moscow and Ukraine; worked with global industry leaders in Belgium; conducted “emergency interventions” for organizations in crisis; produced interactive satellite and videoconference training for members of the federal judiciary; produced award-winning educational broadcast television programming; provided one-on-one executive coaching in the technology, finance, energy, and telecommunications sectors; and led interactive learning events on diversity, feedback & coaching, conflict management, and many other topics.

Hart received his BA in Russian Language and Literature and his Juris Doctorate from the University of Kentucky. He also completed the Senior Executive Leadership Certificate Program at Georgetown University. Hart is certified in the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, the Emotional Competency Inventory and has consulted using many other organizational assessment tools. He is committed to working with organizations to create inclusive, creative, and innovative cultures that empower people to accomplish their desired business goals while living their values. 

Connect with Hart:  

Hart Learning Group website: HartLG.com

Twitter: twitter.com/corporatepoet

Poetry: hartofapoet.com

Thriver’s Quest Book: amazon.com/Thrivers-Quest-M-Hart/dp/1618460552

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice

In today’s episode, we are going to go back to Empathy 101. With a wide range of experience as a licensed psychologist and advisor, today’s guest, Susan Spinrad Esterly, and I will be discussing Susan’s work with individuals, groups, and companies to achieve their highest level by bringing humanistic values, insights, and principles into consciousness. We explore the meaning we make of what happens in our lives and delve deep into what empathy actually means, how we define it, and why some people have more empathy than others. Never fear, though, because empathy can be taught and is a skill that we can all practice to strengthen individual empathy through one of the three access points we, as humans, have to empathy. 

Key Takeaways:

• As a leader with an empathic stance, your mission is to find out how you can make the people you’re leading be their best, look their best, and do their best.
• Empathy is a muscle that can strengthen. It may feel a little fake at first, but the more you do it, the more natural it becomes.
• Shared understanding, especially in the workplace, is worth its weight in gold. That shared understanding serves as the framework for empathy.

“When people feel heard, they feel less vulnerable and they feel like they can connect a little better. We all like to be heard, we all like to have a witness.” —  Susan Spinrad Esterly, Ph.D.

About Susan Spinrad Esterly, Ph.D.:

Susan Spinrad Esterly, Ph.D.

Psychologist and Advisor

Ph.D., Clinical Psychology, University of California Los Angeles

B.A., Human Biology, Stanford University

I grew up in a family that valued science, ideas, and intellect. My father was an accomplished computer scientist, high tech pioneer, and thought leader. He was Director of Xerox PARC during its heyday in the late ’70s and ’80s, and I witnessed close-hand the development of famously ground-breaking innovations in personal computing and technology. My own penchant for growth and invention started early. As a teenager, I co-created an overnight-success start-up with my mom and brother – selling Rock Woogies crafting kits to retailers in the Los Angeles area. I have come to realize that power of mind, so highly regarded by my family and certainly a key element of our essence, comprises only a part of our personal story – when we nurture and honor our mind, body, heart, and creative spirit altogether we open the floodgates to our full life force.

As a Licensed Psychologist and Advisor, I bring 30 years of wide-ranging experience to my work. I have been a clinical consultant, academic researcher, and instructor at Stanford University, UCLA, and the Department of Veterans Affairs, and I was Clinical Training Director for the Masters in Counseling Psychology Program at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology. I am expert in and make frequent use of the Enneagram, a personality typology that is a powerful instrument for personal and leadership growth.

I offer individuals, working groups, and companies the tools to achieve their highest level by bringing humanistic values, insights, and principles into consciousness, elevating how we engage with one another, and exploring the meaning we make of what happens in our personal and work lives. I maintain a vibrant, varied private consulting practice in Palo Alto and I am a Leadership Coach at The Center for Excellence in Nonprofits. Additionally, I work pro bono for A Home Within, a nonprofit that provides free psychotherapy services to current and former foster youth, and I serve on the Board of the nonprofit Acknowledge Alliance, dedicated to providing social-emotional learning to students and educators in the SF Bay Area. 

I keep my right-brain in shape by creating and recording music with my long-time rock & roll bandmates, with whom I have been writing, singing and playing guitar since 1998. In 2019 I co-founded the record company, Magiscope Records. 

Connect with Susan:  

Website: MagiscopeRecords.com

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/susanspinradesterly

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice

More and more, companies are learning that simply bragging about features and functions is not enough. Customers, especially those in the younger generations, want real value and a brand and story they can believe in. Today’s guest, Gina Hortatsos, is one of the modern marketing leaders that know how to make time to stay connected to the changing customer needs, even under constant pressure. In our conversation today, Gina shares how an empathetic, authentic culture attracted her to the company she is with now and how they continue to leverage those values for positive leadership and a high performing team. 

Key Takeaways:

• It is important to lead with confident vulnerability, communicate effectively, and not be afraid to model that vulnerability. 
• The role of a CMO is to drive change forward and help everyone in the organization understand the WHY of what the company does.
• An empathetic person knows the humanity behind a purchase decision – people buy with their hearts, not with their heads. 
• Empathy and purpose enable you to resist short-term pressures to achieve long-term success, with both employees and customers.

“It makes my job so much easier that our team truly feels like they can bring their authentic selves to work because it gives us a constant calibration that we wouldn’t have otherwise.” —  Gina Hortatsos

About Gina Hortatsos: Gina Hortatsos is the Chief Marketing Officer at LogicGate, an agile governance, risk, and compliance process platform. A servant leader, Gina brings 22 years of enterprise software marketing leadership experience to LogicGate. Prior to LogicGate, Gina served as VP of Marketing at FourKites, Inc., where she built and scaled the Marketing function for a high-growth start-up. As AVP, Global Marketing at Hyland, Gina oversaw global programs, field marketing, operations, events, and demand center. Outside of the office, Gina loves to cook, read, and travel (though not currently). She lives in Chicago with her husband Mike and their three sons. 

Connect with Gina and LogicGate:  

Website: logicgate.com/

Twitter: twitter.com/LogicGate

Facebook: facebook.com/LogicGate.Platform

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/logic-gate/

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ginahortatsos/ 

Don’t forget to download your free guide! Discover The 5 Business Benefits of Empathy: http://red-slice.com/business-benefits-empathy 

Connect with Maria: 

Get the podcast and book: TheEmpathyEdge.com

Learn more about Maria’s brand strategy work and books: Red-Slice.com

Hire Maria to speak at your next event: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-Ross

LinkedIn: Maria Ross

Instagram: @redslicemaria

Twitter: @redslice

Facebook: Red Slice