The Power of Love at Work with Marcus Buckingham

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.    I'm thrilled for this show for so many reasons. Today's guest has spent his career challenging how we think about people at work, what drives performance, what builds great teams and what actually helps people thrive. Marcus Buckingham is a New York Times bestselling author and a friend and one of the original pioneers of the strength movement. And now in his new book, Design Love In, he takes that thinking even further, arguing that love, when designed intentionally into how we lead and operate, is one of the most powerful forces in business.   THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…leaders, managers, and individuals who want to better understand what drives high performance and how to build roles and teams around what people naturally do best.   TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…We've been taught to focus on improving our weaknesses but that approach is fundamentally flawed. In this conversation, Marcus explains why excellence comes from doubling down on strengths, not fixing what's broken. He shares how organizations can unlock performance by designing roles around what people love to do, why engagement surveys often miss the mark, and how leaders can create environments where individuals thrive by doing more of what energizes them.   KEY TAKEAWAYS: People grow most when they invest in what they naturally do best. High performance comes from aligning work with what energizes individuals. Traditional feedback and engagement systems often overlook individual strengths. Great leaders focus on outcomes while allowing flexibility in how work gets done.   WHAT I LOVE MOST…Marcus' reminder that excellence isn't built by fixing weaknesses but by understanding and using your strengths every day. It's a simple shift, but it completely changes how we think about performance.   Running Time: 40:16   Subscribe on iTunes    Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Marcus Online: LinkedIn Buckingham Institute   Marcus' Book: Design Love In: How to Unleash the Most Powerful Force in Business

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.    This week's guest is someone whose work has shaped how millions of people think about their work, their strengths, and their lives. Tom Rath is a #1 New York Times bestselling author whose books, including Strengths Finder 2.0, have sold more than 10 million copies worldwide and transformed how organizations develop talent. For more than two decades, Tom has studied what helps people thrive at work and in life from strengths and wellbeing to leadership and meaning. His latest book, What's the Point? explores one of the most important questions we can ask: how do we turn purpose into something we actually live every day?    THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…anyone who wants to do more meaningful work, lead with intention, and better align their strengths with how they show up every day.   TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…80% of us go through our lives not doing what we're best at and that disconnect has a massive impact on our energy, engagement, and overall well-being. In this conversation, Tom challenges the idea that success comes from fixing weaknesses and instead makes the case for investing in what you naturally do best. He breaks down how leaders can create environments where people thrive, why well-being and performance are more connected than most organizations realize, and how small, intentional shifts can help you get more out of your work and your life.   KEY TAKEAWAYS: Your greatest opportunity for growth comes from investing in your natural strengths, not fixing every weakness. Well-being is directly tied to performance, decision-making, and long-term success. People do their best work when they feel energized, not just productive. Leaders play a critical role in helping others discover and use what they do best.   WHAT I LOVE MOST…Tom's reminder that doing your best work isn't about pushing harder, it's about aligning what you do every day with what naturally gives you energy and purpose.   Running Time: 28:55   Subscribe on iTunes    Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Tom Online: LinkedIn Website   Tom's Book: What's the Point? Turning Purpose Into Your Daily Superpower

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.   This week, I'm super excited to have Jon McNeill on the show. Jon's resume reads like a playbook. He was appointed by Elon Musk as president of Tesla after an introduction from Meta's Sheryl Sandberg. During his tenure, he helped scale revenue from $2 billion to $20 billion in 30 months. He later served as CEO of Lyft doubling revenue and leading the company's IPO. Today he co-founds and scales companies at DVx Ventures where he has launched 12 ventures and delivered 6x return to investors. His leadership experience spans every stage of growth, founder, CEO, board member at GM, Lululemon, and CrossFit. He also collaborated with historian Walter Isaacson to write The Algorithm, the first book written by any of Elon's direct reports.   THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…leaders, executives, and founders who want to scale innovation and speed without burning out their teams. If you've ever wondered how Tesla moved faster than traditional companies or how to build high-performing teams under extreme pressure, this episode will change how you think about leadership at scale.   TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…hypergrowth doesn't happen by chance. Jon shares the leadership principles and operating systems that allowed Tesla to scale quickly and consistently. In this conversation, he explains why innovation isn't just about smart ideas but about simplifying processes, removing friction, and giving teams the clarity and focus to execute at high intensity. He also shares why great leaders know where to get involved and where to step back, and how to build cultures where people feel empowered to solve big problems.   KEY TAKEAWAYS: Hypergrowth succeeds when leaders simplify processes and remove unnecessary friction. High-performing teams operate like "special forces," focused on the right problems during core hours. Leaders scale by knowing which decisions require their involvement and which they can delegate. Speed and performance don't come from working more hours, they come from working smarter. WHAT I LOVE MOST…Jon's reminder that breakthrough results come from designing the system, not burning out people. His story shows that you can move fast, scale big, and innovate without sacrificing clarity, focus, or humanity.   Running Time: 38:59   Subscribe on iTunes    Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Jon Online: LinkedIn   Jon's Book: The Algorithm: The Hypergrowth Formula That Transformed Tesla, Lululemon, General Motors, and SpaceX 

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova. I'm thrilled to welcome you back to a series I did with my dear friend, Roger Martin. He's the author of the amazing book, Playing to Win. In this episode, we discuss what makes a great strategist.   THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…leaders, strategists, and executives who want to strengthen their strategic thinking and better understand what separates great strategists from good planners.   TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…great strategy doesn't come from intellectual brilliance alone. Roger says the best strategists develop a mindset rooted in humility, curiosity, and practice. In this episode, Roger makes the case that great strategy starts with a deep understanding of customers and evolves through experimentation in complex systems.   KEY TAKEAWAYS Strategy should begin with a deep understanding of customers and their needs. Overreliance on data analytics can limit creativity and strategic thinking. Data should inform judgment, not replace it. Great strategists invent the future rather than simply extrapolating from the past.   WHAT I LOVE MOST…Roger's reminder that strategy is a skill anybody can learn. Even leaders like A. G. Lafley became great strategists through years of experimentation and learning. It's a powerful reminder that anyone can get better at strategy with practice.   Running Time: 25:51 Subscribe on iTunes     Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Roger Online: LinkedIn Website   Show Summary on Substack

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.    This week, I have the pleasure of welcoming Claude Silver to the show. She is on a mission to revolutionize leadership talent and workplace culture. She is the world's first Chief Heart Officer at VaynerX and partners with CEO Gary Vaynerchuk to drive their success. Claude has earned Campaign's U.S. Female Frontier Award and Adweek's Changing the Game Award. She is also the author of the new book, Be Yourself at Work.    THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…leaders who want to build high-performing teams without sacrificing humanity.    TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…in this conversation, Claude shares why she believes AI should enhance human potential and not replace it. She explains why burnout is often a leadership system's problem rather than a personal failure. And she challenges managers to create cultures where people feel safe enough to speak up, honest enough to name their imposters, and supported enough to grow.   KEY TAKEAWAYS: AI should enhance human capability while preserving meaningful human connection. Emotional fluency allows leaders to choose their response instead of reacting impulsively. Energy management matters more than time management in preventing burnout. Psychological safety creates the conditions for belonging and high performance. Leaders scale culture by modeling self-awareness and vulnerability first.   WHAT I LOVE MOST…Claude reframes leadership as something deeply personal before it's organizational. You can't build belonging for others if you haven't built awareness in yourself. Her reminder that "you are the CEO of you" feels especially powerful in a world that's moving faster than ever.   Running Time: 26:15   Subscribe on iTunes    Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Claude Online: Website LinkedIn   Claude's Book: Be Yourself at Work: The Groundbreaking Power of Showing Up, Standing Out, and Leading from the Heart

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.  This week, I'm really excited to have Dr. Linda Hill back on the show. She's a top-ranked thinker on Thinker's 50 List and the Wallace Brett Donnan Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. Linda doesn't just study leadership; she studies the chemistry of how humans actually get big things done together. She's the co-author of the management Bible, as I like to say, Collective Genius, and the viral HBR hit, Why Great Innovations Fail to Scale. She has a new book coming out called Genius at Scale.  THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…leaders who want to build organizations where innovation isn't left to chance but is built into how people work together every day. TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…innovation doesn't happen because you hire a few creative people or run a brainstorming session. According to Linda, real innovation results from disciplined leadership and intentional culture-building. In this conversation, Linda shares what leaders often get wrong about creativity, how to foster productive disagreement without chaos, and why collaboration, experimentation, and learning must be embedded into the system.  Key Takeaways: Innovation requires disciplined leadership, not just creative talent or good ideas. Collective genius emerges when leaders cultivate both safety and accountability. Productive conflict strengthens ideas when it is structured and purposeful. Experimentation must be normalized to enable continuous learning. Culture determines whether innovation thrives or stalls. WHAT I LOVE MOST…I love Linda's perspective that innovation is not about having all the answers as a leader, it's about building the conditions where great answers can emerge from the group. This shifts the role of leadership from being the smartest person in the room to being the architect of the environment where smart thinking can happen. Running Time: 31:02 Subscribe on iTunes Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X Find Linda Online: LinkedIn Linda's Book: Genius at Scale: How Great Leaders Drive Innovation

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.    This week, I'm thrilled to welcome Daniel Coyle to the show. He has spent the last two decades acting as a performance detective for some of the most elite organizations on the planet. While you may know him as the New York Times bestselling author of The Talent Code and The Culture Code, Dan's real work happens in the trenches. He served as a special advisor to the Cleveland Guardians. And work closely with Navy SEAL teams, Google, and top soccer academies to decode one simple question: why do some groups click while others crumble? He specializes in micro behaviors and the tiny repeatable signals that turn a group of talented individuals into a flourishing ecosystem.    THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR… leaders who want their teams to truly click. This conversation will shift how you think about performance, connection, and culture.   TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…we tend to believe that if you put talented people together, you'll automatically get a talented team. Daniel challenges that assumption. He says what actually determines whether a group flourishes isn't just individual ability, it's what happens in the space between people. Through real-life examples, Daniel shows the key ingredients to a flourishing team.    Key Takeaways: Talented individuals do not automatically create high-performing teams. Status management kills creativity, speed, and collaboration. The best leaders create space for agency and shared ownership. Questions build connection faster than answers do.  Flourishing combines performance with meaning and human energy.   WHAT I LOVE MOST…Daniel reframes leadership as creating moments where people feel they matter both as individuals and as contributors to something bigger. That simple shift from managing performance to cultivating meaning changes everything.   Running Time: 28:26   Subscribe on iTunes    Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Daniel Online: LinkedIn Website   Daniel's Book: Flourish: The Art of Building Meaning, Joy, and Fulfillment

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.    I'm thrilled to welcome you back to a series I did with my dear friend, Roger Martin. He's the author of the amazing book, Playing to Win. In this episode, we dissect the difference between strategy and planning.    THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…leaders who want to sharpen their thinking and make better strategic choices. If you're responsible for direction, decisions, or results, this conversation will challenge how you think about strategy.   TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…in this episode, Roger makes the case that real strategy is about making choices and accepting the trade-offs that come with them. He explains why too many organizations avoid hard decisions, how that avoidance weakens execution, and what it actually takes to build a coherent, winning strategy.    Key Takeaways: Strategy requires making clear, deliberate choices about where to play and how to win. Avoiding trade-offs leads to diluted focus and mediocre results. A strong strategy aligns resources, decisions, and behaviors around a single direction. Leaders must be willing to say no in order to build something truly differentiated. Execution improves dramatically when strategic choices are clearly understood.   WHAT I LOVE MOST…Roger's insistence that strategy isn't complicated but it's uncomfortable. The real challenge isn't intelligence or frameworks; it's the willingness to commit to choices and live with the consequences. That reframes leadership in such a practical, grounded way.   Running Time: 25:39 Subscribe on iTunes     Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Roger Online: LinkedIn Website   Show Summary on Substack

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.    I'm thrilled to welcome you back to a series I did with my dear friend, Roger Martin. He's the author of the amazing book, Playing to Win, and together, we're exploring the true meaning of strategy and how it's often misunderstood or misapplied in business today.   THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…CEOs, strategy leaders, and executives who want a clearer, more disciplined way to think about strategy. If you've ever questioned whether your strategy is actually driving customer behavior, this episode is for you.   TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…in this conversation, Roger revisits the most common ways organizations misunderstand strategy and explains why those misunderstandings persist. He walks through what real strategy requires, why execution often fails even when teams are aligned, and how leaders can move beyond planning frameworks to make decisions that actually lead to winning.   KEY TAKEAWAYS… Strategy succeeds only when choices reinforce one another and point toward a clear outcome. Many organizations confuse strategy with planning, which leads to activity without impact. Customer behavior is the ultimate test of whether a strategy is working. Poor strategic outcomes are often the result of incomplete or misaligned choices. Strong strategy requires leaders to be explicit about what they will and will not do.   WHAT I LOVE MOST…I love how Roger cuts through the noise and insists that strategy isn't mysterious, it's just demanding. His clarity around choice, discipline, and customer behavior challenges leaders to stop hiding behind complexity and start owning the real decisions required to win.   Running Time: 26:59   Subscribe on iTunes     Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Roger Online: LinkedIn Website   Show Summary on Substack

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.    This week, I'm excited to welcome Serin Silva to the show. She is a strategic advisor to women founders, CEOs, and leadership teams. She led integration communications for eight acquisitions in a single year at a billion-dollar telecom, helping bring Oracle's first CRM and human capital management platforms to market. She launched the original MSNBC digital brand for Microsoft, and drove strategy for an early food delivery robot long before it was cool. She led five restructures and turnarounds for mid-sized companies, doubled revenue for mid-market tech firms, and delivered 150% business increase in eight months by forcing the right business and mindset pivots, which is why I wanted her to join today.    THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…anyone feeling exhausted by trying to "push" alignment instead of creating it.   TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…drawing from her experience leading impressive acquisitions and product launches, Serin explains how leaders can shift from managing "by spreadsheet" to leading with human understanding. She discusses why high achievers often burn themselves out, how asking better questions changes outcomes, and what it really takes to guide people through change without losing momentum or yourself.   Key Takeaways: Leading change works best when leaders prioritize emotional alignment, not just operational efficiency. Asking better questions requires discipline, curiosity, and a willingness to challenge assumptions respectfully. Most resistance at work is emotional, even when it shows up as rational debate. Removing emotion from decision-making frameworks can unlock stalled progress and clarity.   WHAT I LOVE MOST…Serin's honesty about learning to temper her fire without losing it. Her insight that growth often comes from separating self-worth from outcomes is a powerful reminder for driven leaders who care deeply about their work.   Running Time: 29:20   Subscribe on iTunes    Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Serin Online: LinkedIn Website