Tough calls, earning buy-in, and the ‘Courage to be Disliked’: Cisco’s Liz Centoni on driving big change

Former gymnast and current USA Gymnastics CEO and president Li Li Leung joined the organization after after a turmoil-ridden period marked by an abuse scandal, bankruptcy and rapid leadership turnover. She talks to Meet The Leader about what she did in her first days to rebuild trust with athletes, coaches and gymnastics communities across the country and build new policies that met their needs. She also shares what’s needed for psychological safety and the slate of new mental health resources created at the organization, from therapists to emotional support dogs, that are supporting both athletes and coaches.  Lastly, she shares what the sport has taught her about discipline and accepting feedback, and what’s key to coaching teams on results that matter. About this episode: USA Gymnastics https://usagym.org/ Future of jobs report https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/ Related Podcasts: Meet the Leader - Ballerina Misty Copeland: Unlocking potential and a leader’s most ‘vital’ role https://tinyurl.com/yd7zc3yc Radio Davos - How sport can save lives: Homeless World Cup https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsXULphhSzo Meet the Leader - Adam Grant: Future leaders won't succeed without this key trait https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buVVIpttzUA Check out all our podcasts on wef.ch/podcasts: YouTube: -    / @wef   Radio Davos - subscribe: https://pod.link/1504682164 Meet the Leader - subscribe: https://pod.link/1534915560

Big change can come with big fallouts and big feelings. Cisco's chief customer experience officer Liz Centoni runs a team with tens of thousands of employees and has 25 years of experience making the tough calls needed to drive needed technological change and earn critical buy-in and support. She shares what she's learned about tackling team fears and frictions head on and the importance of breaking down complex shifts into manageable ‘chunks’ to bring people along. She explains why she recommends leaders embrace the 'power of the pause’  -- and wait to speak in meetings -- and what's needed to get truly honest feedback in pivotal moments. Learn more about her approach –  and the empowering lessons she learned about transformation from books like ‘The Courage to be Disliked’ and the famed psychologist Viktor Frankl.  About this episode:Cisco: https://www.cisco.com/ Episode Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/liz-centoni-cisco-tough-decisions-big-change Referenced in this episode: Book recommendation - The Courage to Be Disliked, by Fumitake Koga and Ichiro Kishimi: https://www.amazon.com/Courage-Be-Disliked-Phenomenon-Happiness/dp/1501197274 World Economic Forum Research - Future of Jobs Report:  https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/ Related podcast:  7 women leaders on the books that shaped them https://tinyurl.com/vuketc78 How one global health leader plans for the unexpected: Gavi https://open.spotify.com/episode/0Sj2YMTzpZj54Q0DMhHVrr

The global retirement savings gap could grow to $400 trillion by 2050 -- a problem that can’t just be tackled by simple saving alone. Meanwhile, we’re living longer and longer, a reality that is changing the way we live in our later years while making it trickier to save. Yie-Hsin Hung, the CEO of State Street Investment Management, will break down this problem and the new multi-prong approaches from all parts of society that will be needed to fix it. She also shares the moments that shaped her as a leader (like the simple question she asked early in her career that has helped her get honest feedback to this day).   About this episode: State Street Investment Management Note: State Street rebranded to State Street Investment Management since this interview was recorded.  https://www.ssga.com/us/en/intermediary Related Initiative: World Economic Forum Longevity Economy Initiative: https://initiatives.weforum.org/financial-resilience-for-every-generation/home Related reports: Future-Proofing the Longevity Economy: Innovations and Key Trends: https://www.weforum.org/publications/future-proofing-the-longevity-economy-innovations-and-key-trends/ Global Risks report: https://www.weforum.org/publications/global-risks-report-2025/digest/ Related Podcasts:  The ‘inevitable’ caregiving cost nightmare: One young founder's story and solution: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/lily-vittayarukskul-waterlily-caregiving-costs/

How does the CEO of an organization brought in to help respond to fast-moving health crises like Mpox and other infectious diseases plan for the unexpected? Sania Nishtar heads up Gavi - The Vaccine Alliance, an organization that has helped vaccinate over one billion children in the world's poorest countries and prevent more than 18 million deaths worldwide. Sania talks to us about the planning, mindsets, technologies and scenario planning her team uses to be ready for any emergency. She explains the importance of securing ‘crystal clarity’ in advance for what its expected to deliver and how that helps the organization prepare for a range of circumstances and efficiently coordinate with governments and other global organizations when time is of the essence. This organization was launched at Davos 25 years ago and she shares what what’s needed for global health security and strengthened public health systems now and in months and years ahead. This interview was recorded in January 2025 at the Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. About this episode: Gavi: https://www.gavi.org/ Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/sania-nishtar-gavi-preparation-global-health Related podcasts: What most people get wrong about progress: Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2IJjZs4E7A&t=51s We’re ‘losing the war’ on modern slavery: What leaders can do - HPE’s John Schultz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlXggC3o08I&t=1s   

Non-communicable diseases like stroke and heart disease have swapped spots with infectious diseases as top global killers. Improving health access -- whether in the developed or emerging world -- can save the lives of billions. CEO Bernd Montag explains how Siemens Healthineers is partnering with providers around the world to deliver technologies and help reduce the complexities that can stand in the way of efficient treatment. He’ll also share his own unique background -- as a professional basketball player and later theoretical physicist -- and how it shaped how he makes decisions and leads. This interview was recorded January 2025 at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. About this episode:  https://www.siemens-healthineers.com/ Video podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ECEgJAlM72A Transcript:  https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/bernd-montag-siemens-healthineers Related podcasts: Bridging the gap in women's health technology, policy and more: Kearney: https://tinyurl.com/3jmahwwj Tackling these surprising blindspots can bridge gender gaps in health, opportunity and more: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0HfUaxq69cJBZfVgGctVMB?go=1&sp_cid=974f0d02895cc3e5dc6ee274371893a7&utm_source=embed_player_p&utm_medium=desktop&nd=1&dlsi=38d6c85af7df484e  

Nadya Okamoto launched her nonprofit Period as a teenager at the height of startup mania, hustle culture and girlboss memes. It grew to become one of the largest youth nonprofits in the world, but the fast growth led to burnout and a harsh cost to her well-being. She talks about how she learned to value rest, set boundaries and get 10 hours of sleep a day – and the moment she decided to pass the leadership torch for the organization’s next phase. Her non-profit Period, one that got started distributing menstrual pads to the homeless in San Francisco, and her current startup August, a menstruation care brand, both deal with tackling access to women's health products, health equity and ending period poverty. She discusses the unique challenges leaders face in this space and the boundary pushing ways she leverages social media and grassroots organizing to bridge gaps in awareness and funding and drive positive conversations and change. She also shares her lessons from her work in non-profits, policy work and startups on how any leader can be more accountable to what their organization needs right now. About this episode: August: https://www.itsaugust.co/Period: https://msha.ke/periodinc/ Related report: Prescription for Change: Policy Recommendations for Women’s Health Research: https://www.weforum.org/publications/prescription-for-change-policy-recommendations-for-women-s-health-research/ Blueprint to Close the Women's Health Gap: How to Improve Lives and Economies for All: https://www.weforum.org/publications/blueprint-to-close-the-women-s-health-gap-how-to-improve-lives-and-economies-for-all/ Related podcasts: 7 women leaders on the books that shaped their lives: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/7-women-leaders-books-recommendations/ Bridging the gap in women's health research, policy and innovation: Kearney https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/paula-bellostas-muguerza-kearney-womens-health/ How bridging design gaps in science and tech can tackle gender bias: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/nigina-muntean-design-equity-unpf/  

In this special collection episode, top women leaders in business, non-profits and more share the books that inspired them, informed them and changed their minds. These books will make you take a second read of a classic - whether it's a favorite business book or an Agatha Christie mystery. And these insightful picks will have you thinking differently about a range of big problems, from geography's role in a fractured society to how transit design can widen gender gaps. These books will help you get sharper at your role -- and even find new ways to make room for joy. Global Gender Gap Report 2025:  https://www.weforum.org/publications/global-gender-gap-report-2025/ Leaders featured in this episode: Liz Centoni, Chief Customer Experience Officer, Cisco Alicia Chong Rodriguez, founder, Bloomer Tech Nadya Okamoto Founder, August Kara Alaimo, professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University Makiko Ono, CEO, Suntory Beverage and Food Angela Oduor Lungati, Executive Director, Ushahidi Yie-Hsin Hung, CEO, State Street Global Advisors Books mentioned in this episode: The Courage to Be Disliked, by Fumitake Koga and Ichiro Kishimi From Good to Great, Jim Collins The Vagina Business by Marina Gerner Pleasure Activism by Adrienne Marie Brown Down Girl, Kate Manne Hood Feminism, Mikki Kendall Invisible Women, Caroline Criado-Perez Agatha Christie Mysteries The Power of Geography, Tim Marshall   Check out all our podcasts on wef.ch/podcasts:  YouTube: - https://www.youtube.com/@wef/podcasts Radio Davos - subscribe: https://pod.link/1504682164 Meet the Leader - subscribe: https://pod.link/1534915560 Agenda Dialogues - subscribe: https://pod.link/1574956552 Join the World Economic Forum Podcast Club: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wefpodcastclub  

Women's health is under-researched and under-funded, leading women to live longer in poor health than men. However, tackling this gap can boost lifespans and GDP, a fact Paula Bellostas Muguerza understands well. This global head of healthcare and life sciences at consulting firm Kearney, discusses the role that policy and collaboration can play in creating incentives for real change, and driving awareness and education. She'll talk about [w]Health, a special platform she helped found that has grown into a community of 350 organizations sharing best practices to bridge gaps and what leaders can do to make change happen for their own organizations.  About this episode:  Kearney: https://www.kearney.com/ [w]Health: https://www.kearney.com/industry/health/w-health Prescription for Change: Policy Recommendations for Women’s Health Research: https://www.weforum.org/publications/prescription-for-change-policy-recommendations-for-women-s-health-research/ Related podcasts:  How bridging design gaps in science and tech can tackle gender bias: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/nigina-muntean-design-equity-unpf/ Tackling these surprising blindspots can bridge gender gaps in health, opportunity and more: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/sahil-tesfu-essity-bridging-health-gap  

Slavery is not a problem cast to the annals of history. Modern slavery and forced labour are hidden in plain sight, found everywhere from nail salons to pristine factories, estimated to impact millions worldwide. Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s John Schultz explains more about this worsening problem and how it impacts economies and communities. He also explains how data and artificial intelligence are being leveraged in new ways to draw insights from sources such as from shipping reports, photos, supply chain data and victim impact statements to tackle this issue in a way that’s never been possible before. He shares the collaborations in place that are broadening data pools and the simple question business leaders must ask to dig deeper into their own firms to make real change possible. This interview was recorded at the Annual Meeting in Davos Switzerland, January 2025. About this episode: HPE: https://www.hpe.com/us/en/newsroom/blog-post/2024/06/hpes-2nd-annual-human-rights-report-three-takeaways.html About the World Economic Forum’s Global Data Partnership Against Forced Labour: https://initiatives.weforum.org/fldata/home Photographer Lisa Kristine: https://lisakristine.com/ About this podcast:Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/john-schultz-hpe-modern-slavery Related Podcasts:What most people get wrong about progress: Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2IJjZs4E7A&list=PL7m903CwFUgkDwzqiHQj0cjnZYJNJF8VQ&index=2&t=1s Understanding the housing affordability crisis - and what’s needed to fix it: Habitat for Humanity CEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crdJqhl8pGk&list=PL7m903CwFUgkDwzqiHQj0cjnZYJNJF8VQ&index=14  

Staffing giant president Christophe Catoir of Adecco got an early start at the firm as an intern. He’s had a front-row seat to how work has evolved since. He shares the insights from the firm’s annual skilling report, giving compelling statistics on the percent of workers globally trained in AI so far and what’s needed to keep workers both engaged and employed as upskilling cycles accelerate. He also shares his thoughts on how leaders in remote and hybrid workplaces will need to re-evaluate how they coach and train teams, how apprenticeship thinking can help, and how his own career journey has changed him as a leader. This interview was recorded in January 2025 at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland.   About this podcast: Adecco: https://www.adecco-jobs.com/ Transcript: https://www.weforum.org/podcasts/meet-the-leader/episodes/christophe-catoir-Adecco-upskilling-ai-jobs Related Podcasts: Adam Grant: Future leaders won't succeed without this key trait https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buVVIpttzUA How leaders can prepare teams for the future of work: ADP’s Chief Economist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShvNPomJ4mE&t=508s