Looking Outside

When a market is stalling in innovation, an enchanting charismatic leaders selling a bold, crazy idea can be tempting. Is it, then, more important that the idea is visionary, or that it's attainable? In this Business Brief, Jo reflects on the fine line between bold innovation and unethical ambition, and why business leaders must stay vigilant about the dark patterns that distort progress.Business Brief is a (very brief) new solo series hosted by Looking Outside podcast host, former-marketer and corporate futurist Jo Lepore.---Learn more:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.comWatch this Business Brief on YouTube---⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!---Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme song by Adrian Walther.

Every organization, at some point, has their ethical boundaries tested. But there is a difference between an organization with ambition and drive, and one that pushes its people into unrealistic, unhealthy and disastrous behaviors in order to succeed. Today we’re talking about the slippery slope into destructive and dangerous corporate behavior, with professor of business ethics at HEC Lausanne, Guido Palazzo. Guido says the patterns into darkness are obvious, completely avoidable ... and quite counter to what we’re told makes for a successful corporate culture in business schools.---Learn more:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.comConnect with Guido on LinkedInTake Guido's online course on unethical decision makingGuido's book The Dark Pattern on Amazon---⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!---Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme song by Azteca X.

The path to the c-suite is predictable and almost entirely dependent on extensive commercial and operations literacy. But while marketers are relegated to the realm of creativity, not financial savviness, senior leaders lack the very skills they bring – curiosity. In this Business Brief, Jo reflects on the benefits of transdisciplinary skills and how curiosity can enable truly future-forward thinking to organizations caught up in short term thinking.Business Brief is a (very brief) new solo series hosted by Looking Outside podcast host, former-marketer and corporate futurist Jo Lepore.---Learn more:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.comWatch this Business Brief on YouTubeCurious about foresight training? Take a look at organizational training and foresight courses we have at CIFS---⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!---Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme song by Adrian Walther.

When a profession brags about its ability to operate without formal training, you know you have a vanity problem. Founder of the MiniMBA, marketing professor and not-actually-that-angry columnist Mark Ritson joins the Looking Outside podcast to reiterate the central role of marketing in business – to understand the other. Marketers today have a branding problem, making it about themselves, the glitz and the awards, and Mark says this is all imposter syndrome stemming from lack of formal training. Empathy is foundational to marketing and is so needed in organizations distracted with short term priorities and obsessed with a narrative of constant change. And it can be a powerful unlocker of transformative ideas (like saving abandoned dogs).---Learn more:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.comConnect with Mark on LinkedInLearn more about Mark www.marketingritson.com & read his Adweek columns Learn more about the MiniMBA---⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!---Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme song by Azteca X.

It’s all well and good for a brand to have purpose, but what your company? In this Business Brief, Jo unpacks our obsession with proclaiming brand intent and pre-occupation with purpose led marketing. But that's not really the problem; it’s the absence of a well-defined and consistently rewarded company purpose.Business Brief is a (very brief) new solo series hosted by Looking Outside podcast host, former-marketer and corporate futurist Jo Lepore.---Learn more:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.comWatch this Business Brief on YouTube---⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!---Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme song by Adrian Walther.

If you’re tired of talking about brand purpose, you’re not alone. In most cases, when researched, purpose just does not work. But perhaps it’s been sitting with the wrong department this whole time … Author of The Purpose of Purpose, brand strategist and former stand-up comedian Ron Tite, argues that purpose is not for the marketers but for human resources, because ultimately what you "say” about your brand hinges entirely on what you collectively “think” within your company. There is there a tendency in organizations to bypass the bit in the middle - to voice your vision before you’ve backed it up tangible policies, incentives and activities. Without that, it’s just bullshit PR.---Learn more:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.comRonTite.com & Church & StateFollow Sohail on LinkedIn & YouTube & Ista---⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!---Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme song by Azteca X.

What does it take to build a business that lasts generations? In this Business Brief, Jo reflects on long-term thinking, the resilience of family-run businesses, and why creating a compelling vision matters when aligning business heritage with future ambitions.Business Brief is a (very brief) new solo series hosted by Looking Outside host, strategist and corporate futurist Jo Lepore.---Learn more:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.comWatch this Business Brief on YouTube---⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!---Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme song by Adrian Walther.

On this episode of Looking Outside we peek into the metaphors, imagery and stories that unknowingly shape the limitations of our business strategy, and limit our ambitions. UNESCO chair of futures, Sohail Inayatullah has seen this many times before - from brands rethinking positioning, CEOs shifting cultural capability, to government leaders reshaping coalitions. In each case, when we dig deeper to the metaphor we hold for ourselves, we gain visibility of what limits our worldview, and the bars that guard us from transformational change. Sohail stresses that a strategy can easily change based on the story you tell others, but it’s uncovering the story you tell yourself as a leader that, while uncomfortable, is the true unlocker of new possibilities for the future.---Learn more:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.comMetafuture.org & Meta Future SchoolFollow Sohail on LinkedIn & YouTube---⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!---Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2026. Theme songs by Azteca X.

What a year! It’s time to wrap it up for 2025 and highlight the eclectic mix of diverse perspectives, divergent topics and expert thinking that appeared on the show this year. From the best performing episodes and most popular themes, to the most prominent guest go-to's for fresh perspectives, today we’re going back to the episodes that resonated most.Top episodes of 2025:Venture capitalist and futurist Roger Spitz: new playbooks for volatile business environmentsPolitical demographer Jennifer Sciubba: the narrative around our population ‘crisis’Fashion designer Justine Leconte: the manipulative systems that fuel fast fashionForecaster Paul Saffo: pressure testing assumptions about what we know to ‘certain’ in uncertain timesExperimental philosopher Jonathon Keats: asking better questions in existential timesHonorable mentions & favorites:CPG strategist Peter McDonald – the lost muscle of innovation in consumer marketsPolitical scientist Verlan Lewis: flawed political ideologies and the need for less divisive conversationsNeuroaesthetics expert Susan Magsamen: the psychology behind our physical senses----------More:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.com----------⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!----------Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2025. Theme songs by Azteca X.

In this live conversation, recorded on the podcast stage at SXSW Sydney, two futurists explore the unforeseen future emerging in the workplace. Author and ex-journalist Andrea Clarke, joins host Jo Lepore on stage to discuss the human and talent transformation taking place at work. Our resistance to this kind of change is normal, Andrea says, as our human inclination is to see it as a loss and not a gain. Workers must reframe how they take in and take charge of what’s asked of them - becoming discerning of mainstream narratives told to them, building ‘unignorable’ human skills, and strengthening the mindset of adaptability to constant change. As change is, after all, the only constant - especially at in how we work and how we lead.Recorded live at SXSW Sydney October 2025. Edited for length and clarity. Published with permission from SXSW Sydney.----------More:Looking Outside podcast www.looking-outside.comConnect with host, Jo Lepore on LinkedIn & Substack & jolepore.comLearn more about Andrea at www.andreaclarke.com.auAndrea's book 'Adapt: Mastering Change in Four Steps' Follow Andrea on LinkedIn & Instagram----------⭐ Follow & rate the show - it makes a difference!----------Looking Outside is a podcast exploring fresh perspectives of familiar topics. Hosted by its creator, futurist and strategist, Jo Lepore. New episodes every 2 weeks. Never the same topic.All views are that of the host and guests and don’t necessarily reflect those of their employers. Copyright 2025. Theme songs by Azteca X.