Beyond Potential

Ep 94: The conversations that unlock team performance - with guest Brady Wilson

In this episode of the Beyond Potential podcast, Tom Emery and Tom Mason are joined by Brady Wilson, author, leadership thought leader and co-founder of Juice Inc., to explore how conversation can be used more intentionally to unlock performance, trust and collaboration in teams.

Brady shares insights from his work in leadership development, including why organisations struggle to have honest conversations, how conflict avoidance and over-agreeability can limit performance, and why shifting from “preferences” to “needs” can transform how teams operate.

The discussion explores the role of challenge, psychological safety, and intentional dialogue in building healthier organisational cultures. Brady also introduces practical tools and interventions that help leaders reduce tension, improve collaboration, and surface the conversations that too often go unsaid.

A practical and energetic conversation on leadership, communication, and the hidden dynamics that shape team performance.

Find out more about Juice Inc.

Brady's latest book: The Power of Conversation

Connect on LinkedIn

 

Ep 93: Leadership, silence, and the hidden risks in organisations - with guest Margaret Heffernan

In this episode of Beyond Potential, Tom Emery and Tomas Mason are joined by author, professor and eminent philosopher Margaret Heffernan. Drawing on a career spanning the BBC, technology start-ups, academia and bestselling books, Margaret explores why capable people and successful organisations often miss or ignore the warning signs that are directly in front of them.

The conversation focuses on her influential book Wilful Blindness and unpacks the human behaviours that drive poor decision-making, organisational silence and ethical failure. Margaret explains how exhaustion, conformity, hierarchy and excessive competition can all reduce a leader’s ability to see clearly, and why speaking up in organisations is far rarer than most leaders assume.

She also shares practical ways leaders can design environments where people are more likely to challenge, think clearly and raise concerns early.

A powerful and practical discussion for anyone interested in leadership, culture and how organisations can avoid repeating the same avoidable mistakes.

Connect with Margaret:
Website: Margaret Heffernan
Substack: Available via www.mheffernan.com

Ep 92: The inner work behind great leadership - with guest Max Klau

In this episode of Beyond Potential, Tom Emery and Tom Mason are joined by Max Klau, founder of the Centre for Courageous Wholeness, for a powerful conversation on servant leadership, shadow work, self-awareness, and the future of leadership development.

Together, they explore why every leader has both “light” and “shadow”, how unconscious behaviours shape teams and organisations, and why leadership growth starts with inner development, not just external performance.

Max shares insights from his work developing servant leaders across education, politics, and coaching, including the impact of helping leaders confront the gap between who they aspire to be and how they actually show up under pressure.

The conversation also explores:

• Why self-awareness alone isn’t enough
• How shadow shows up in leadership and organisational culture
• The relationship between coaching, integrity, and emotional responsibility
• Why AI is making inner development more important than ever
• How leaders can build habits of reflection without overcomplicating the process

A thought-provoking episode for leaders, coaches, and anyone interested in conscious leadership and personal growth.

 

Connect with Max on LinkedIn

Find out more about the Centre for Courageous Wholeness

Max's book: Developing Servant Leaders at Scale

Find out more about Max

Ep 91: Inclusive leadership in action - with guest Jonathan Stutz

In this episode of Beyond Potential, Tomas Mason and Tom Emery are joined by Jonathan Stutz, founder and president of Global Diversity Partners and an inclusion expert.

Drawing on his extensive experience at Microsoft, Amazon, and beyond, Jonathan explores what it really takes to build inclusive environments where people can thrive. The conversation dives into practical leadership behaviours, from daily habits and one-to-one conversations to hiring practices and speaking up when it matters most.

Together, they discuss how leaders can move beyond surface-level inclusion to develop deeper awareness, stronger judgement, and more intentional decision-making. It’s a grounded, insightful conversation about leadership, accountability, and the small practices that shape culture over time.

A practical and thought-provoking episode for anyone interested in leadership, culture, and better ways of working.

Find out more: Global Diversity Partners

Reach Jonathan at: jmstutz@gmail.com

Connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn

 

Ep 90: Coaching, therapy and the leadership potholes we keep hitting - with guest Tom Henschel

What’s the difference between coaching and therapy? Why do so many leaders struggle to speak up, set boundaries, and prepare with intention?

In this episode of Beyond Potential, Tom Emery and Tom Mason welcome back executive coach and host of The Look & Sound of Leadership podcast, Tom Henschel, for a thoughtful and wide-ranging conversation on leadership, coaching, self-awareness, and communication.

Together, they explore why preparation matters more than leaders realise, the growing challenge of speaking up and being heard, and how leaders can give feedback without judgement. The conversation dives into emotional responsibility, deep listening, leadership authenticity, and the pressure many leaders feel to “fix” every problem around them.

A standout moment is Tom Henschel’s brilliant analogy comparing therapy to repairing potholes in the road, while coaching helps people learn how to drive around them. It’s a simple but powerful way of understanding the role coaching can play in leadership development.

The episode also takes an unexpected turn into gardening, California wildflowers, and the importance of slowing down and staying curious.

A thoughtful, practical, and deeply human conversation for leaders, coaches, and anyone interested in personal growth.

Find Tom on LinkedIn.

Listen to The Look & Sound of Leadership Podcast: episode #246 Coaching versus Therapy.

Download the Giving Upward Feedback PDF.

Link to the Wildflower Hotline

Ep 89: The leadership time trap - with guest Adam Finch

In this episode of Beyond Potential, Tom Mason and Tom Emery are joined by Adam Finch, a high-performing coach and founder of 'That Training Guy'.

Adam shares his journey into leadership and development, from delivering sofas and studying for his CIPD in the evenings, through to leading L&D teams and building his own coaching and team development business.

The conversation explores the growing pressure leaders face in modern organisations, particularly the impact of constant meetings, operational demands and lack of space for meaningful development. Adam reflects on why leaders often become stuck in the day-to-day, and how this can unintentionally limit the growth and confidence of their teams.

The episode also focuses on the importance of team development and why organisations often prioritise developing individual leaders while overlooking the collective performance of teams. Adam shares his perspective on mindset change, high-performing team cultures and the role self-awareness plays in leadership effectiveness.

A practical and honest conversation about leadership, development and creating environments where teams can thrive together.

Connect with Adam on LinkedIn

'That Training Guy' - LinkedIn page

Ep 88: The future(s) of work - with guest Perry Timms

In this episode of Beyond Potential, Tom Mason is joined by Perry Timms, founder of PTHR, global speaker and author.

Perry shares his perspective on how leaders are approaching the future of work, and where many are getting it wrong. The conversation explores the tendency to look for a single answer, when in reality there are multiple possible futures, each shaped by different choices and conditions.

The discussion focuses on the shift from traditional job structures towards more dynamic, human-centred ways of working, where skills, capability and energy take precedence over rigid roles. Perry also highlights the increasing complexity leaders face, balancing legacy systems with emerging ways of working, and why this requires a different mindset.

A key theme throughout is the changing role of the leader, moving away from having the answers, towards creating the conditions where answers can emerge from across the organisation.

This episode offers a practical perspective on how leaders can navigate uncertainty and rethink how work is designed.

Follow Perry on LinkedIn

Discover Perry's books and substack

Visit PTHR

Ep 87: The human edge in leadership - with guest Jacob Morgan

In this episode of Beyond Potential, Tom Mason is joined by futurist, author and speaker Jacob Morgan.

Jacob shares his perspective on how leadership is evolving in the context of AI, and why organisations risk losing critical thinking as these tools become more widely adopted. The conversation introduces the concept of “human prompting” - the ability for leaders to ask better questions and draw out human insight, rather than relying on AI-generated responses.

The discussion explores how companies are approaching AI, where many are getting it wrong, and the growing gap between adoption and understanding. Jacob also reflects on the future of leadership, and why human skills such as judgment, discernment and communication will become more valuable as AI continues to advance.

This episode offers a clear and practical perspective on how leaders can adapt, and why the future of work will place greater emphasis on what makes us human.

Explore more from Jacob

Reach Jacob on email - jacob@thefutureorganization.com