Welcome back to Networking Unleashed, Building
Profitable Connections. I'm your host, Michael
Foreman, speaker, strategist, and firm believer
that connections is the currency of leadership.
Today's episode dives into something every leader,
entrepreneur, and changemaker is facing right
now, the evolving challenges of leadership in
a rapidly shifting workforce. From employee engagement,
and cultural shifts to remote dynamic and generational
differences. It's no longer just about managing
people. It's about meaningful connecting with
them. My guest today brings deep insight into
the modern leadership experience and how intentional
networking can be to unlocking trust, collaboration,
and long -term impact. If you're leading a team,
growing a company, or building influence in your
space, this conversation will challenge and inspire
you. Ilya, I want to welcome you to the podcast.
I want to thank you for your time because you
have such a vast background. Would you mind introducing
yourself and telling us a little bit about your
background? Absolutely. I just want to say thank
you. I'm very honored to be part of this podcast.
And I'm Ilya Jekyll. I'm the founder of Sharpen
Leadership. Our mission is very simple but powerful.
We want to equip business professionals, leaders,
and entrepreneurs with the skills, the tools,
and the insights so that they can become great
leaders regardless of their job title. I have
over 20 years experience in the pharmaceutical
and healthcare industry. So my experience is
in business, leadership, and marketing. I'm also,
besides being a trainer, I'm also a speaker.
I like to bring my experience to conferences
and events, sharing stories that can empower
the audience. So that's in the nutshell, my background.
Thank you for that. And let's just dive right
into the questions. And first question. What
are the most pressing challenges leaders face
in today's rapidly changing workplace? There
are multiple factors that are impacting leaders,
but I'm just going to focus on three challenges
that I'm seeing repeatedly with some of my clients.
And the first one is managing highly talented
teams, okay? It can be both exciting and challenging,
but especially when team members' expertise surpasses
sometimes the leader's, it can certainly create
some insecurity in the leader and also make it
more difficult to lead with confidence. Also,
talented individuals, they tend to have higher
expectations. They are strong. They have strong
opinions. And they need somebody that can lead
them effectively. And leading these kind of teams,
it requires a balancing act. The leader needs
to give them guidance, support, but at the same
time, give them autonomy. The leader in this
nowadays is mostly like a facilitator where they
communicate the vision, the expectations, but
then and the outcomes they want. But then they
step back and allow the team to take ownership
of their work and the process. And this is important
because this type of high talented individuals,
they. perform better when they are motivated
and they embrace then collaboration instead of
competing and they bring their best to the table
when you give them that autonomy. The second
I will say is the fear of failure, especially
in high pressure situations that most leaders
experience today. But this is fear of failure,
something that we all going to experience sometime
in our career is how we respond to that fear
that will show our true leadership. OK, so fear
can be very paralyzing and detrimental. for the
leader, for the team, and the organization. So
let me give you an example of how it usually
tends to show up. Let's say there is a leader
that is leading this multi -million dollar project,
okay? If the person becomes paralyzed by the
fear, that leader will start trying to micromanage
every aspect of their project and their team,
which instead is going to be detrimental, right?
And instead of second guessing, he also heard
decisions and actions. So on the other hand,
you have the leader that understands that fear
is a natural part of doing business. And they
reframe that fear into opportunities to learn,
to grow, to be resilient. And that's what I will
tell you about the fear of failure. It's how
you respond. The third one, I think, is the most
challenging of all and is navigating uncertainty.
The best leaders are the ones that will build.
They understand that ambiguity is part of business
nowadays. You can never have completely full,
100 % all the facts, but they build trust and
they rally their team around their vision. so
they are not following them because they have
all the answers but they are following them because
they believe and they trust that leader and that's
one of the best ways to navigate the complexity
in today's business yes very good and you hit
on so many marks that I speak about between networking
and leadership and the difference between leadership
and being a boss. And it just you encompassed
everything very well. I want to thank you for
that. Let's change this around a little bit.
How has the shift to remote work affected leadership
strategies and team dynamics? Can you repeat
that question? How has the shift to remote work
affected leadership strategies and team dynamics?
How the shift from working in an office to remote
and how it affected the leadership and the team
dynamics itself. Oh, yes. It's absolutely, it
has changed because before everybody was in one
place. Now the leader is completely different.
The leader has to understand that they have to
trust those people or that. They are accountable.
They have to be accountable for what they do
in their own space at a home where they are working.
So it modernized everything like right now what
we're doing in Zoom. We used to use Zoom for
certain meetings, but now you can see that Zoom
is done for everything. We can have chats and
people in different rooms. And so everything
is being modernized. I believe that. Just working
from home, it can have some benefits, but also
can be detrimental to that team dynamics. Do
you believe that a team should get together face
-to -face once a week, once a month, once a quarter,
something like that? You know, that's hard to
tell because it depends the team, it depends
the manager. But I think some face -to -face
interaction is important to continue to build
that collaboration and that relationships they
have. You also know this. When you do an event
face -to -face with people, it's completely different
from when you do one through Zoom. The interactions
are different. So, yes, I think that human touch
is important. Yeah, exactly. That's what I talk
about when I go on the road, because you need
the vibe of the person. You need the vibe of
the room. You get a whole different feeling than
when you're just... having a Zoom conference.
Okay, but what innovative networking approaches
are leaders using to boost employee engagement
and retention? Some of the tips that I can tell
you about networking is most of these leaders,
they not only do things and dynamics inside the
workplace, but also in a more relaxed environment,
okay? But for me, networking is investing in
the future of your business and your career.
It really shifts the trajectory of a business
and a career. And for me, it's very important.
And when I was leading some of these teams, for
me, it was very important that we go outside
of the workplace. That's when you really get
to know. different people. There are so many
things that sometimes we don't know from the
people that we are leading. So golf is wonderful.
They do a lot of golf. They do a lot of boot
camps. And inside the work is when you do meetings,
I think the leaders that are very effective are
the ones that talk less and listen more. Very
good. Yes. I believe that as well. How are leaders
leveraging diverse networks? to create more inclusive
work environments? That's a hard one to answer.
I think one of the things to be inclusive, okay,
to especially when you're making very high profile
decisions, it's not just about collecting data,
but if you have a team that is diverse, they
can bring in. And when I say diverse, I said
not just of race, but I think experience. And
everybody have different experience, different
expertise. And that's what I'm talking about,
bringing diversity. But when you as a leader
need to make a decision, you should bring your
team to brainstorm with you to bring their ideas
and share their perspective. Because then even
though they are not making the decision, you're
giving a better perspective to that leader. And
those are great leaders when they are able to
include the diversity in their team. I believe
that. And I believe it's more effective when
you're doing it in person rather than through
Zoom. Because there's no other distractions.
There's nothing else. You can just concentrate
on work. But that was a very good answer. Let's
go to a crisis management question. Can you share
an example of how effective networking helped
you navigate a leadership crisis? Wow, that's
a good one. For example, when you're navigating,
wanting to keep, let's say, wanting to keep your
team motivated during a disruption, a big disruption
could be layoff. It can be a merger, okay? So
what these... leaders that are very effective
is that they're very transparent they they meet
with their team they're very transparent to what
is happening yes there is a reorganization yes
there is a layoff but they know they have them
they are The ones that you can tell right away
because they believe and they focus on the human
side of business. They focus on their team, okay?
And those leaders, they open the channels of
communication with their team. They are able
and they are empowered to bring their concerns.
But at the same time, they redirect them to move
forward. And to keep them motivated and focused
on what they can control. Because there are certain
things that nobody can control, and especially
in a layoff and in the organization. But these
kind of leaders, they are wonderful at understanding
the concern, be transparent with them, and guide
them. Good, very good. How important is mentorship?
in developing future leaders and how can networking
facilitate this? I believe in mentorship. I personally
have a couple of different mentors that actually
their help was incredible and how they open opportunities
was something that I could have never. imagine
without them. Your mentors are the ones that
if they are part of the organization or outside,
they can give you that perspective. They are
the ones that advocate for you when you are not
in the room with the decision makers. Also, they
are a great resource because what I'm seeing
is a lot of the first -time leaders that sometimes
they have questions and they don't know exactly
what to do, but they don't want anybody to know
because they don't want to look like they don't
have it together. So mentorship plays an important
role in that. One thing I've been developing
is that once or twice a year, and I do this sometimes
internationally through Zoom, of course, through
Zoom, but I gather people that are pretty much
at the same level of experience. And they have
to sign a contract that whatever is discussed
in there stays there. So these leaders can bring
their concerns, their challenges, their different
situations with people that are in the same,
have the same amount of experience. And they
can brainstorm together. And some of them already
have passed through that kind of situation. They
can facilitate insight. So it's very, it's amazing
to see the weight of their shoulder coming off
and the insight and the tools that they get from
that. And that when they finish that mentorship,
they can go back and apply what they have learned
in their situation. Because these are situations
that hit home. For them, because it mirrors some
of the things, situations and challenges that
they are facing on the job and in their role.
That's exactly correct. And one thing you have
to realize is that no matter what part of the
spectrum you're in, it's like I coach, I have
people that I coach, I mentor, but I have a mentor
as well. So it keeps going up the chain. So I
may have the answers for. my people but i still
have questions for my mentor so it goes it works
both ways and it's very much needed because i
think that people can't get ahead of where they
are without their mentors absolutely we all don't
have all the answers and the person that tell
you they have them all oh because i don't think
there is one that can tell you they have all
the answers so yes I have had throughout my career
different mentors and they have been critical
for my continue to advance in my career and also
as a professional. Yes, yes, absolutely, absolutely.
How is technology changing the way leaders network
and build relationships within their organizations?
That's a difficult one to answer, but... For
example, we need to keep with the times, okay?
Because if a leader is not keeping with the times
and understanding, technology is changing so
fast. Look right now with AI. AI is not just
for typing and retyping, it's for videos. It
does everything for you. So there are great benefits
to that, and there might be some things that...
you have to be mindful of. I, for myself, try
to keep with the technology, okay? Especially
for your teams. If you have teams that are in
one space, that's a little bit different. But
when you have teams that have hybrid jobs that
they were most of the time either at home and
only a few days out of the thing, you need to
have the technology to be able to communicate
the projects. For everybody to, if they are doing
one project, but everybody has a different part
of the project, they have to have the technology
and the system to everybody to be synchronized.
One great tool that is Asana, it helps, it's
a system that helps you to connect with your
team to see where everybody is in their project.
So it gives you overview. So technology, it can
be a blessing, but it depends how you use it.
Absolutely. Very well said, because I truly believe
that it is a tool in your tool belt. And if you
use it correctly, it will be magnificent. If
you don't use it correctly, it's like, why bother
having it in the first place? But very well said.
Let's go a little bit to work -life balance.
How are leaders addressing work -life balance
issues while maintaining the strong professional
network? It's like I said, you need to be sensitive
and you need to be focused on the, for me, I
always focus on the human side of business because
to reach any goals, to reach any results, your
team, your human employee, your employees come
first. Without them, there is no business. Okay.
So to me, I, I, I tried when they comes with
situations, especially My female leaders, they're
not only leaders, but they also are moms. And
sometimes the stress of work and at work, that
combination can be difficult and very challenging.
So I try to be empathic, use the emotional intelligence
and be empathic, putting myself in that person's
situation and try to listen. But that doesn't
mean that all the time I'm going to agree with
them. Sometimes there are decisions that are
hard decisions that you need to make. But I always
try to be empathic and try to really listen and
try to do what I can to help that individual
so that they can actually balance their work
with their home. I used to be a business owner,
pizzerias, restaurants, things like that. And
I know the value of the employees and you have
to keep them happy because if they're not happy,
then how can you expect them to make your customers
happy? But you have to draw that line saying,
look, I understand what you're going through.
I can give you this little bit of leeway. But
you have to understand that I have a business
to run and this has to be done a certain way.
So you're right. You have to feel where that
line is, draw it and just see where it goes.
But again, that was very good. What metrics do
you use to measure the impact of leadership initiatives
on workforce productivity and satisfaction? Let's
say that I trained a group of leaders in our
organization or even business professionals,
right? The first thing is we start with a baseline
of how they were doing prior to a training and
getting new skills or even modifying and gaining
more insight on the ones that they have. After
that, we work with the organization to see how
immediately they were able to apply what they
learned, and if they are able to make a sustainable
transformation in their jobs, in their role,
and affecting their department. And they can
do that by looking at the collaboration, if the
collaboration and morale increase. They can look
at performance by seeing how it has increased
the performance, the innovation also. Because
one of the main things that most of this organization
is they are struggling sometimes to innovate.
How do you get that team motivated to innovate?
So all these things, once you give them the tool,
the insight, and a space where they have room
to experiment, learn, and grow, they're able
to put all that together in their role. And then
the organization immediately, you can start immediately
seeing those results. But more than anything,
what they want is that. sustainable transformation
because a lot of places they said we have an
inside training programs but the problem is they
haven't seen a sustainable transformation with
us they do because when you immerse these people
in situations that they face on the job but sometimes
their skills is not there yet, and you need to
equip them, and you give them tools and insight,
and now they are able to come back and use what
they have learned, then that's something that
is going to be sustainable. Because now they
learn it. So those are some of the things. And
of course, there are many tests that you can
give before and after, metrics that you can give
before and after, and depending on the organization
and what they want to use. I hope that answer.
It really does. It really does. And let's just
bring this full circle. Let's talk a little bit
about the future. How do you see the role of
leadership evolving in the next five to 10 years?
And how will networking play a part in this evolution?
What I see is the leadership is going to be more
about becoming shifting and evolving to be facilitators.
not an influencing, not about the title that
you have or the authority that you have. Networking
is huge. Let me give you an example. When I first
started building my career, I became really intentional.
And this is what I advise to all my clients.
Be intentional when you are collaborating in
initiatives and in projects in your organization.
And not just with your team, but across departments.
Because when you're networking and connecting
with people of different departments, your visibility
increases. Your access to the leadership and
the decision to make it is all of a sudden expanded.
So when a promotion is coming up, when you...
A new opportunity is rising. Guess what? Those
that have more visibility and showing their leadership
are the ones that come top to mind, right? They
are the ones. And in networking, that is gold.
Because you're the one that's going to have access
to opportunities, access to resources, and everybody
started to see you differently. So networking
is huge for building a career, as well as launching
and expanding your business. There was a time
that I moved from California to Illinois, right?
So I knew I had great, solid experience and a
wonderful resume, but I knew it wasn't enough
for me to move to a new state just by going to
maybe Lincoln. and sending some requests, right?
Connecting requests blindly and then expecting
that that was going to work. It is very daunting
and it's ineffective. So what I did, I rallied
the network that I have in California and I have
very open conversations to them. And I told them,
hey, I want to move to Illinois and these are
my aspirations and the two industries that I
was interested. What happened is I asked also
one question, and it's who do you know in Illinois
that I should meet? That conversation opened
access to doors that I could have never done
alone. It was incredible. I have warm introductions
to business professionals in Illinois, and that
actually turned into direct job offers. That's
how powerful your network is. That's how powerful
it is. That's the name of the game. The networking
is gold. It's your go -to. It's your everything.
I believe that networking is the basis of every
business. Absolutely. Any business that they
want to, any person that wants to launch a business,
expand a business, they need to understand that
it's more than selling. OK, focus on connecting
and building those relationships with your customer,
your vendors, your community, because when it's
time to buy a service or a product, they only
do it. People only do it with people they trust
and who have been connected to. They feel connected.
If they know you, if they like you and trust
you, then they'll do business with you. So that's
the mantra. of networking. Ilya, I have to tell
you, this was a great conversation. You're a
great guest. And if anybody wants to get hold
of you, whether they want to be coached, ask
a question, or see what they can do with their
job, how can they reach you? Sure. They can go
to my website, Sharpen Leadership, or they can
go to my LinkedIn profile, Ilya Jacob, J -A -K
-E -L. And they can connect with me. Very good.
Outstanding. So thank you so very much for coming
on the podcast today. Thank you for having me.
Well, hold on, folks. Don't go anywhere. Let
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-U -P -K -I -D -S .org. Well, that's a wrap,
folks. A huge thank you to our special guests
for sharing such incredible insights today. And
of course, a big shout out to you, our amazing
listeners, for tuning in and spending your time
with us. Remember, networking isn't about being
perfect. It's about being present. So take what
you've learned today, get out there, and make
some meaningful connections. If you enjoyed this
episode, don't forget to subscribe, leave us
a review, and share it with someone who could
use a little networking inspiration. Let's keep
the conversation going. You can find me on Apple,
Spotify, YouTube, or my website, Michael. Remember.
Until next time, keep practicing, keep connecting,
and keep building those relationships. This is
Michael A. Foreman signing off. Take care and
happy networking.