In this episode of the Leaderful Podcast, Pablo and Jeff are joined by Lyndsay Sheldrake to discuss how fractional COOs can help leaders get out of operational quicksand and into their strategic role(s), activate people around vision through focus and with trust, and operationalize power through more conscious ways of working.

Lindsay Sheldrake is a wife, a mother, a project manager, a purpose-driven leader—and a trusted advisor at The Ally Co.

Be sure to connect with Lindsay on LinkedIn!

The Leaderful Podcast explores human-centred, systems-conscious approaches to leadership and building high-functioning teams. We focus on the core problems of burnout, disconnection, conflict, misuses of power, unethical leadership and stuckness on teams and within organizations.

Also mentioned in this episode:

• Leadership support

• The power dynamic (up-power and down-power)

• Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS)

• The Four Disciplines of Execution (4DX) framework

Got an idea for other topics you think we should be exploring? We’d love to hear it! Here’s where you can find us:

Website

Email us at team@theallyco.world

LinkedIn

In this episode of The Leaderful Podcast, Co.CEOs (Pablo Romero and Jeff Couillard) reflect on TACO's journey this past year. Part of their discussion focused on the latest positioning of our offerings in today's leadership and culture space, and what's become clearer in our work to create leaderful teams.

Some highlights from the conversation:

⚡ Foundational Alignment & Leaderfulness -- Any meaningful change (e.g. developing adaptive capacity) requires power-based and systems-conscious leadership. The cultivation of awareness, skill, and alignment across organizational levels starts at the top. 

🔄 Purposeful Direction & Ways of Working -- Leaders must clearly communicate how values will be (and not be) operationalized, and what expectations they have of themselves and others in aligning organizational intention and impact. How a team works together - decision-making, feedback, meetings, etc. - should reflect its core values, priorities, and intended impact. 

🌟 Trusted Advising for Impact-Conscious Leaders -- TACO is focused on supporting leaders and teams who want to use their power to positively disrupt outdated thinking, systems, and ways of working. Our two core leadership archetypes are known as Courageous Activists and Supporting Sponsors. 

🧩 Getting Unstuck & Achieving Clarity -- TACO's Trusted Advisor work helps leaders and their teams to get unstuck by helping them to cultivate new levels of awareness, skill, and capacity. This involves exploring behavioral patterns, redesigning workflows and processes, and fostering deeper levels of connection and performance.

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Learn more about our work with impact-conscious leaders by visiting our website, joining the conversation on LinkedIn or dropping us a note at team@theallyco.world.

Co.CEOs Jessica Xiomara García and Emily Drake of Learning for Action - an organization helping create and support equitable learning cultures in the social sector - join Jeff and Pablo to discuss the nuances of harmonizing equity-grounded and data-informed approaches into organizational practices.

Listen in as they explore:

• Co.CEO origins stories => Giving us insight into how Emily and Jessica's personal backgrounds and experiences helped shape their leadership and operational philosophies at Learning for Action.
• Equity-Grounded Leadership => Integrating attention to power, privilege, and identity to better serve our diverse communities.
• Data-Informed Decision-Making => Staying conscious of an over-reliance on quantitative methods, and valuing participatory and qualitative data.
• Relational Integrity => Working from the inside-out to develop alignment through equitable practices that foster healthy tension and debate and inform purposeful direction.
• The Direction of Social Sector Consulting => Sharing thoughts on how consulting practices can evolve to better support learning, effectiveness, and equity in the social sector.

About Jessica and Emily

Jessica Xiomara García is a dedicated advocate for racial equity and social justice with over fifteen years of experience at LFA. She excels in directing research projects, facilitating engagements, and providing diversity, equity, and inclusion consulting. Jessica brings a deep expertise in youth development, women’s empowerment, and environmental education.

Emily Boer Drake brings twenty years of nonprofit and philanthropic sector experience, specializing in learning systems, capacity building, and evaluation frameworks. Emily's expertise lies in understanding organizational dynamics, implementing learning questions, and customizing learning systems to match organizational culture and resources.

Thank you for tuning in!

• Find us on LinkedIn
• Explore our model for leaderful workplace cultures
• Connect with our Co.CEOs Jeff Couillard and Pablo Romero

Consultant, designer and strategist in the field of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), Denyelle Fraser, joins our Co.CEO Jeff Couillard to discuss the opportunities and challenges of leading sustainable and systems-conscious change and transformation projects with an EDI focus.

Listen in as they explore:

• The importance of moving beyond EDI check-box initiatives
• The value of centering the voices and perspectives of the people being served
• Denyelle's experience helping teams design and deliver more equitable and just services
• The Onion Tool from Community Wise Resource Centre

About Denyelle

As an equity-based designer, Denyelle brings a unique perspective to the table, focusing not only on driving systems change using innovative approaches, but also on designing for equity and social impact. She has a deep understanding of the ways in which design can be used as a tool for creating positive social change and is committed to using her skills to embed equity, diversity, and inclusion into all aspects of an organization. Outside of her work, Denyelle is a textbook introvert that values family time with her husband and 2 yr old. A true Torontonian at heart, still adjusting to "Yahoo" since her move to Calgary in 2021. And a lover of "mockumentary" style tv sitcoms.

Connect with her on LinkedIn here.

Educator, innovator and advocate in the field of neurodiversity employment, Dave Thompson, joins our Co.CEO Jeff Couillard to discuss the opportunities and challenges of fostering psychologically safe workplaces for neurodiverse employees - and how that effort benefits everyone.

Listen in as they explore:

• The importance of 'challenger safety'
• How coaching is for everyone - not just neurodivergent employees
• How to make sense of common terminology
• Dave's experience helping teams foster more meaningful connection and neuro-friendly workplaces

About Dave

As Director of Strategic Programs for Potentia, Dave supports companies in becoming more neuroinclusive through training on best practices, as well as recruiting and providing ongoing support to neurodistinct professionals. His work is fed by a desire to see the world of work continue to evolve through increased opportunity, flexibility, empathy, acceptance, and support for neurodistinct professionals. He believes that diversity, including neurodiversity, makes the world of work a better, more productive, innovative and understanding place. Outside of his work, Dave is a proud father, husband and punk rocker. 🎸

Find him on LinkedIn here.

• Find us on LinkedIn
• Explore our upcoming Transformational Leadership workshops
• Connect with our Co.CEOs Jeff Couillard and Pablo Romero

• The importance of creating psychologically safe spaces
• Practices and insights for staying grounded and present
• The importance of feedback and humility as a leader
• How the pandemic accelerated the re-design of our work lives

• Find us on LinkedIn
• Explore our upcoming Transformational Leadership workshops
• Connect with our Co.CEOs Jeff Couillard and Pablo Romero