About the podcast

About the podcast
Sophie addresses current business conditions and explores ways to navigate the disruption. She shares informative insights and interviewing leading innovators who are providing or benefiting from transformative solutions that will allow companies to emerge with sustainable models, mindsets, and business practices.
Find out how to transition to more effective, productive, and supportive new ways of working—across locations, generations, and platforms—as we harness these challenging circumstances to drive significant, multidimensional changes in all our working lives.
LATEST EPISODE

LATEST EPISODE
Skills versus Jobs: Talent Mapping, Mobility, and Management in the Future of Work
Muriel Clauson brings a rich background in industrial and organizational psychology and psychometrics to the discussion about the importance of reorienting our employment focus from ‘jobs’ to ‘skills’. As co-Founder of Anthill—which enables adaptive talent management with employee buy-in using talent-mapping software—Muriel explains how we can emphasize people and skills, since talent, not technology, will ultimately determine competitive advantage. Read more
Recent Episodes
Reforming Capitalism, Promoting Human Capital Strategy, and Embracing the Future of Work
In this episode, Matthew Bishop—author of Philanthrocapitalism, visiting senior fellow of the Brookings Institution and a founder of the Social Progress Initiative—discusses how we can begin to rethink, and reform, capitalism and better value all workers’ contributions. As we plan to emerge from a period of extreme disruption, our economic framework needs to be reconfigured and the human capital of America assessed as to whether it’s well-suited for the Future of Work. Read more
Listen to the episode2021: Forecasting and Planning a Foundational Year
In this episode, Rob Tercek—author of Vaporized: Solid Strategies for Success in a Dematerialized World—discusses the reality of where we are, how to forecast appropriately, and plan strategically for 2021—understanding the opportunities and challenges. Rob poses questions to consider, identifies trends and advantages we can capture, as well as alerting us to dematerialization’s impact and how to work with it rather than be disrupted by it. Read more
Listen to the episodeReframing Leadership: Shifting from Transactional to Inclusive
Simone Sloan—diversity and inclusion specialist, business strategist and leadership coach—discusses how to become an inclusive leader. Simone shares her own early discovery that leaders with transactional management styles cannot nurture the kind of inclusive community at work that they need to succeed and advance. Bolstering practice with study and research, Simone explains how to lean in and understand team members’ experiences to: communicate differently, withhold judgments, connect and shift relationships, and improve collaboration. Read more
Listen to the episodeTransforming with Empathy: From Awareness to Application
Michael Ventura—Founder of Sub Rosa and author of Applied Empathy—discusses his process for integrating empathy practices in work environments. He recommends doing self-work first and attaining sufficient awareness to stimulate and present an empathetic self. For business situations, he emphasizes cognitive empathy which involves perspective-taking driven by inquiry, as well as identifying and unpacking top workplace challenges. For the broader setting, Michael suggests we have conversations to understand, rather than conversations to win. Read more
Listen to the episodeOn-Demand vs Remote Workers: Regulation, Opportunities, & Skills
Jeff Wald, founder and former CEO of WorkMarket, shares his data-rich perspective with authoritative clarity to discuss the evolution of the On-Demand Economy, including the impact of technology, regulation, and the pandemic on its future direction and potential. Jeff considers how new understanding about remote working affects opportunities for on-demand workers, what is the ‘future of the firm’, and the critical issues facing us all with shifting business conditions and labor markets. Read more
Listen to the episodeLeaning into Diversity and Inclusiveness with Empathy
Karyn Twaronite, EY’s Global Vice Chair of Diversity and Inclusiveness, explains the depth and breadth of diversity and how inclusiveness is at the core of a culture of belonging. She describes the importance of practicing empathy and being authentically and actively involved for nurturing these values. Karyn suggests what more we can all do to enable fully-supportive corporate environments. Read more
Listen to the episodeDiversity & Inclusion are Founded on Empathy
Diversity and inclusion are best addressed with a multi-dimensional approach founded on empathy believes Siham Jafaar, President and CEO of 3D Consulting and Communications, whose training and consulting focuses on educational, law enforcement, and corporate audiences. Siham shares her perspectives and insights about how empathy-driven awareness increases our knowledge and decreases our fear of each other to bridge gaps and build connections, showing us that we are more the same than we are different. Read more
Listen to the episodeEmpathy: At the Core of Corporate Culture
Mark Read, CEO of WPP, explains how strong cultural tenets help the organization connect with clients, support employees, and continue to innovate across the 100+ countries they operate in despite current circumstances. He emphasizes the importance of empathy for understanding evolving consumer behavior and workers’ different situations, as well as for responding to the protests sparked by racial injustice. Mark shares WPP’s commitments that ensure everyone feels comfortable to speak up and bring their whole self to work. Read more
Listen to the episodeWhy Culture Matters — Especially Now
Jey Van-Sharp, Principal at MyÜberLife, is an expert on culture. Jey discusses our many cultures as fundamental expressions of how we understand the world and each other. He explains why we are experiencing cultural dissonance and discomfort right now and how to step outside our own cultural codes. Jey offers insights into how companies and brands can make important cultural shifts. Read more
Listen to the episodeThe Integral Role of Empathy in Leadership and Business
Norman de Greve, the CMO of CVS Health, discusses the importance of practicing empathy, both as a senior leader and an executive of the largest health and wellness company in the US. He describes their ongoing response to the COVID19 crisis—listening to customers and employees, addressing their needs, and communicating frequently. Norman shares his views about the beneficial outcomes for leaders who take empathy-driven action to build trust, connection, and demonstrate commitment to helping people achieve what they want to achieve. He notes how CVS Health measures and rewards empathy-driven results. Read more
Listen to the episodeLeading with Empathy Through Uncertainty and Change
Disruptions, uncertainty, and social unrest have raised the bar for leaders, compelling them to adopt more personal styles and practice empathy. Sophie shares how we can learn new leadership styles incorporating empathy to ensure organizations can adapt for current conditions and ongoing changes. The Future of Work is NOW and we need to make long-term adjustments for the next normal—there is no going back to how things were. Read more
Listen to the episodeAdapting Our Systems and Ourselves for a Reset at Work
Global disruption has created the opportunity for a Great Reset. Gary A. Bolles, Chair for the Future of Work at Singularity University and Co-Founder of eParachute.com, believes we can redesign our business systems to be optimized to help people learn needed and evolving skill sets and develop agency. For individuals, he explains the new rules of work require constant self-inventory, experimenting to match skills, needs, and interests, and the benefits of identifying a personal Northstar. Read more
Listen to the episodeAligning Values, Collaborating in Crisis
When Kimmi Wernli took over as owner and CEO of Crazy Richard’s Peanut Butter Company, she brought a holistic perspective and vision—wanting to enrich people’s lives and diets with sustainable, healthy peanut products. She focused on elevating and articulating their mission, connecting customers and employees with their purpose, and the company became a B-Corp. They also chose vendors and retail partners who shared their values and this alignment has helped the company handle tough and unpredictable operating conditions. Read more
Listen to the episodeLeading Remotely and Adapting for What’s Ahead
Brian Day is the CEO of Fuze, a global cloud communications provider for enterprises. Fuze’s workforce went mostly remote in 2017. Brian shares his insights as an experienced leader of remote teams focusing on mindset, culture, communication, and tools. He also looks ahead towards a new normal and embraces productive new habits that are benefitting his organization. Read more
Listen to the episodeManaging Remote Teams and Workflow
Heidi Melin is the Chief Marketing Officer at Workfront which provides a work management application platform for the enterprise. She has been a remote leader for years and shares her first-hand experiences and recommendations. Heidi has seen how companies that understand their workflow have been able to pivot quickly and be less impacted by current conditions as well as be prepared to adapt as situations improve. Read more
Listen to the episodeNavigating Change: From Disruption to Sustainability
Sophie addresses the disruption we are now facing in our working lives. How can we navigate unprecedented changes due to the COVID-19 virus outbreak and technological advances? Sophie explains evolving conditions and how to adapt both in the short-term—transitioning to remote working—and for the longer-term, making important strategic changes. She describes sustainable ways of working to adopt that will enable your company to thrive in a digitized, less predictable business landscape when things turn around. Read more
Listen to the episodeWorkers’ Wellbeing – The Holistic Approach
Max Weiner is the Founder & CEO at Resilient, an organization that is providing inclusive insurance options to low and moderate-income Americans. It’s difficult for hourly workers to find consistent work that will pay for their health insurance. However, companies are seeing the benefits of providing more than just a wage to employees and are taking a more holistic approach towards supporting their low-income workers. Read more
Listen to the episodeOptimizing Skills For Today and Tomorrow
Sean Hinton is the Founder and CEO of SkyHive Technologies, an artificial intelligence firm that helps enterprises build their future workforces and facilitates market transformation and workforce reskilling. In today’s show, Sean explains that we still have time and our jobs are still safe as we enter into a more autonomous robot workforce. He also dives deeper into why companies need to focus more of their resources on reskilling their current talent instead of trying to hire from a small pool of outside talent. Read more
Listen to the episodeThe Secrets of Productive Remote Meetings
Beth Porter is the CEO and Co-Founder of Riff Analytics, a collaboration tool that uses AI, predictive analytics, and tailored feedback to bring more engagement in remote meetings. Beth explains why meetings feel like a waste of time and how their tool can optimize that experience so that everyone in the meeting can share their thoughts and feel heard. People in remote teams can now develop trust in each other with the use of Riff and with more trust comes more team collaborations! Read more
Listen to the episodeManaging Your Careers in the Future of Work
Ben Brooks is the Founder and CEO of Pilot Inc., a software-based employee coaching platform. Business leaders are struggling to find the right methods to keep their most talented employees away from the competition. Retention is highly personal and each employee has their own motivations, desires, and goals, yet we still approach retention with a one-size-fits-all approach. Ben explains on this week’s episode that there is a better way to keep those sought after employees. Read more
Listen to the episodeEMBRACING PROGRESS
FUTURE OF WORK ‘MUST-READ’ BOOK.
Executive MBA textbook and ‘visionary reading’* about the Future of Work, Sophie’s book helps you understand the new work environment— faster-paced, tech-driven, and talent-focused. Her research-supported insights help executives, managers, and teams understand and transition to the new world of work.
Learn more“The way we work is going through a profound transformation. With Embracing Progress, Sophie Wade provides an essential guide for businesses of all sizes to create a more flexible, empathetic, purpose driven, and human workplace that can meet the challenges and embrace the opportunities of this new era.”
ARIANNA HUFFINGTON
Founder and CEO, Thrive Global

SOPHIE IN THE NEWS

The 2021 remote influencer report
“Sophie Wade is one of the top 25 Remote Innovators and top 75 Remote Influencers.” February 2021

the 100 most influential remote experts
“Sophie Wade is included as one of "The following experts know that remote work is the future."” January 2021

the future of remote work report
“"A critical focus on empathy is essential for success in this new environment..." says Sophie Wade.” November 2020
TRANSFORMING WORK
PODCAST
Sophie addresses current business conditions and explores ways to navigate the disruption. She shares informative insights and interviewing leading innovators who are providing or benefiting from transformative solutions that will allow companies to emerge with sustainable models, mindsets, and business practices. Find out how to transition to more effective, productive, and supportive new ways of working—across locations, generations, and platforms—as we harness these challenging circumstances to drive significant, multidimensional changes in all our working lives.
Learn more Latest episodeTRANSFORMING
WORK
WITH
SOPHIE WADE

theworkinprogressreport
Expert intelligence and insights on Future of Work topics. Curated articles shared biweekly with updates on the latest trends.