Tiffani Shaw of Clarivate: Five Strategies Our Company Is Using To Tackle Climate Change & Become More Sustainable

Personal motivation. Motivate young people to figure out how they can individually contribute and serve a personal role by helping them make an impact.

As part of our series about how companies are becoming more sustainable, we had the pleasure of interviewing Tiffani Shaw.

Tiffani Shaw is Chief of Staff at Clarivate. She leads the Customer Delight program designed to improve our customers’ experience and create scalable customer-centric models globally, M&A integrations and Sustainability. Tiffani is also responsible for the Customer Care, Sales Experience and Operations teams. She joined Clarivate from the University of Iowa Center for Advancement, where she was Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, overseeing operations and leading the strategic vision to advance the institution through engagement and philanthropy. Prior to that, Tiffani was the organization’s Chief Financial Officer for 10 years. Tiffani serves on the board of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, as well as the Council for Graduate Schools.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

I’ve always wanted to make an impact on the lives of others, on a global scale, and have a strong passion for advancing education, research and healthcare. I also believe our paths don’t happen by coincidence. We come across a certain number of people in our lives that inspire us to change our life trajectory and guide us towards where we can make the biggest and best impact. My career path has been guided by mentors, who, at opportune times, have helped me make the right decisions and life choices to help me grow and use my natural curiosity to make the greatest impact possible. Chuck helped me understand the role of a servant leader, and he guided me to realize my own talents and potential, shaping my career path throughout my life in a way I never thought would be possible.

I was attracted to Clarivate as the company mission, vision and values align very closely to my own personal values and I’m now in the exciting and humbling position where I can genuinely help a large colleague and customer population of tens of thousands of people to better understand what we need to do in order to build a better future for everyone.

What is the mission of your company? What problems are you aiming to solve?

As a global leader in providing trusted information and insights to accelerate the pace of innovation, our vision at Clarivate is to improve the way the world creates, protects and advances progress. We do this by partnering with our customers to deliver critical data, information, workflow solutions and deep domain expertise.

Our bold mission is to help customers solve some of the world’s most complex problems and reduce the time from new ideas to life-changing inventions. Those challenges include, for example, improving water quality, predicting cancer risks and analyzing the bioplastics landscape as a potential solution for a more sustainable future.

When it comes to sustainability, it is not just something we do. It is everything we do. In 2022, we are focused on continuing our efforts to address climate change, committing to set a science-based target and achieving carbon-neutrality by 2024 on our journey to a net-zero future.

We believe we can achieve this by weaving sustainability into the fabric of our corporate culture worldwide, making it fundamental to every decision we make whether it involves our global footprint or supplier relationship. We have created an interconnected, shared purpose and a strong operating philosophy that guides the actions of our leadership and colleagues worldwide. All these elements are built on the foundation of our clear purpose, vision and mission, underpinned by our values to guide our colleagues in everything they do — so our collective focus is growth for the greater good.

Our solutions and deep domain expertise help our customers solve some of the world’s most complex challenges, including the development and launch of life-changing drugs and treatments, helping leading academic institutions educate the next generation of pioneers, helping companies innovate world-changing technologies and advancing sustainable resource use.

Our customers are some of the world’s leading researchers and problem solvers. More than 45,000 universities, non-profits, funding organizations, libraries, corporations, law firms, government organizations and independent researchers trust us to help them reduce risk and accelerate the pace of discovering, protecting, and commercializing new ideas.

Can you tell our readers about the initiatives that you or your company are taking to address climate change or sustainability? Can you give an example for each?

In 2022, we are focused on continuing our efforts to address climate change, committing to set a science-based target and achieving carbon-neutrality by 2024 on our journey to a net-zero future.

One of our most valuable milestones when it comes to driving responsible business practices at Clarivate is our framework for quantifying our contribution towards the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). This highlights our product portfolio’s contribution to SDGs, helps us focus on where we can drive maximum impact now and enables us to further accelerate our contributions by embedding sustainability into our culture and long-term business strategy.

By mapping our solutions to the 17 UN SDGs, we have gained a clear view of our current state, identified four key focus areas where we can make the biggest impact and uncovered opportunities where we can continue to embed sustainability into our business strategy to broaden our impact worldwide. These focus areas include UN SDG 3 Good health and well-being; UN SDG 4 Quality education UN SDG 9 Industry, innovation and infrastructure and UN SDG 12 Responsible consumption and production.

One example is our commitment to helping to achieve UN Global Sustainability Goal 3 (Target 3.4) centred on reducing premature mortality by one third by 2030.

The medical community, governments and other public groups are grappling with major public health crises as well as other significant health threats. Intervention at the point of care — through a pharmacist or a physician — can enable patients to better manage medication adherence. Clarivate data shows that a significant percentage of patients with serious chronic conditions do not adhere to their prescribed medications which can result in devastating consequences. To achieve UN SDG Target 3.4, patients need access to trusted insights and information, which can be highly effective at reducing anxiety and confusion and ultimately lowering the number of premature deaths across the globe.

Clarivate will collaborate with global partners to distribute 100 million digital messages to our network of pharmacists to help prevent premature deaths in people suffering from conditions including: cardiovascular disease, cancer, respiratory disease, diabetes and diseases of the central nervous system.

How would you articulate how a business can become more profitable by being more sustainable and more environmentally conscious? Can you share a story or example?

We are boldly integrating sustainability into everything we do, ensuring our strategic priorities are focused on advancing a more sustainable world through our customer impact and by operating sustainably through responsible business practices. I believe being a sustainable company is key to long term success and therefore profitability. By mapping our solutions to UN SDGs, we support our customers to be more profitable and more sustainable.

We are proud that 46% of our global revenue is aligned with SDGs. 70+ of the most recent health technology assessments we supported have expedited life-saving drugs. 51% of companies ranked in the Down Jones Sustainability Index work in partnership with us. 2.5M+ inventions in our Derwent World Patent Index relate to green energy technologies. 2.4M+ citations in our Web of Science are related to SDG research areas. We have improved medicinal understanding for more than 80M patients with chronic diseases. And 48/50 of the top R&D companies work with us to accelerate innovation.

An example of how an entire industry can improve is the Future Water Association (FWA) in the U.K. Water is a very complex problem. It’s essential for survival and for sustainable development. The U.K. water industry has always aspired to be at the forefront of innovation, but they haven’t always had the data to prove their position. Partnering with Clarivate, FWA set out to do something different — drive transformational change through data-driven recommendations. Their CEO, Paul Horton, said: “Clarivate helped us understand where we stood in terms of innovation. We used that data to knock on the door of government and policy makers. Without data, nobody listens.” You can watch the entire story here.

The youth led climate strikes of September 2019 showed an impressive degree of activism and initiative by young people on behalf of climate change. This was great, and there is still plenty that needs to be done. In your opinion what are 5 things parents should do to inspire the next generation to become engaged in sustainability and the environmental movement? Please give a story or an example for each.

As a parent, the five things I believe we need to do in order to inspire the next generation include:

1. Lead by example. The most important part of engaging young people is to lead by example, making sure we do what we say.
2. Teach the basics, then further education at every opportunity. Teach young people the basics of what it takes to look after our planet together.
3. Personal motivation. Motivate young people to figure out how they can individually contribute and serve a personal role by helping them make an impact.
4. Community volunteering. Helping young people to find community-based projects that are closely aligned with their values and passions.
5. Advocacy. Inspire young people to become true advocates for living sustainable lives.

To weave together all of the above, I’m currently working with colleges and universities to help progress their student entrepreneurial programs. We’re looking at how to collaborate and work together to help these start-ups, lead by young people, be successful in the sustainability space and I’m very excited to help make an impact on a local level.

On a personal level this is fantastic timing as I’m also helping my two sons with their future thinking. My youngest is currently looking for his first job and has expressed an interest in working with supply chain related companies that have a sustainability lens so we’ve worked together to find a list of suitable companies, preferably late-stage start-ups that are moving at great pace and have a growth path, so that he can have the greatest impact

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?

1. The importance of mentorship
2. Align passions with work
3. Take a servant leadership approach
4. Be a visionary and believe in making the impossible possible
5. The importance of culture and values

These all can have a transformative impact, so to have awareness about their importance at an early age can help anyone have greater success in the world and along their personal career paths.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I agree 100%. Mentors were the key to my personal success. I have been incredibly lucky to have had a fantastic mentor in Chuck Kierscht, former JAG attorney, University of Iowa Center for Advancement board member and CEO of Kemper in Chicago. He called me every week for 20 years until he passed away from cancer and I was privileged to speak at his funeral. He was influential in teaching the importance of servant leadership and listening, forming my career path, to an executive, C-level.

I also have the privilege of being mentored by our current Clarivate CEO, Jerre Stead, who has been a friend and mentor for the last 15 years.

You are a person of great influence and doing some great things for the world! If you could inspire a movement that would bring the greatest amount of good to the greatest amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.

This is a great question, and if possible, I would like to inspire a movement around enhancing access and outcome to education for everyone. Education is crucial to transforming our world and bringing people together, but we have to transform our approach to ensure people don’t drown in debt, or don’t see the value. In addition, mental health challenges are at an all-time high. I believe we have to provide better access to education and mental health support so our students can flourish and create a curriculum that meets the needs of students today. By inspiring and engaging students and providing support to under-represented students so they can achieve the same outcomes, we can provide an excellent foundation for changing our future to create a better world together.

Do you have a favorite life lesson quote? Can you tell us how that was relevant to you in your own life?

My favorite quote is:

“Not everything that is faced can be changed. But nothing can be changed until it is faced.”
- James Baldwin

Change is a major imperative for us being able to stand together to adapt our ways for the climate and our future whether that’s on a global scale or a personal level. I’ve always remained open to, and welcomed change as a conduit towards progress and a better future.

What is the best way for our readers to continue to follow your work online?

A great place to start is with our latest annual sustainability report, which provides data-driven examples of what we have achieved so far and lays out our ambitious plans for the future.

We’re active across many social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook, and we love to engage with people that way.

You can also check out our newsroom for the latest news and insights from our experts, or read our blog for a deeper dive into topics across our industries — from Academia and Government to Life Sciences and Healthcare, and from Professional Services to Consumer goods, Manufacturing and Technology. We also have several podcast series which are well worth a listen.

Personally, I’m active on LinkedIn and I’m currently trying to share more information about building sustainable businesses. You can follow me on linkedin.com/in/tiffani-shaw/

This was so inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!

Tiffani Shaw of Clarivate: Five Strategies Our Company Is Using To Tackle Climate Change & Become… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Ebru Debbag of Soorty: Five Strategies Our Company Is Using To Tackle Climate Change & Become More Sustainable

Be patient: The industry is working towards a moving target, and it is the journey that matters the most as the target evolves as well.

As part of our series about how companies are becoming more sustainable, we had the pleasure of interviewing Ebru Debbag of Soorty.

Ebru has been a part of the global denim and jeans industry for over 3 decades and she has pioneered in the industry`s transformation to highlight its connection to the people and the environment at large. She is the Global Executive Director at Soorty and also runs her think-tank Indigofriends dedicated to educate, inform and interact with everyone striving to be an inspiration for change. Ebru is also a co-founder at the first permaculture NGO in Turkey dedicated to set examples that a sustainable lifestyle is possible for everyone.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

I had been involved in textiles and fashion at a very early age as my dad was a cotton farmer and my mom designed children`s clothes. I studied textile engineering and ended up in staying in my first job for 27 years at a great denim mill till 2017. 15 years ago, I have started in engaging more on the social and environmental impact of our jeans and how technology and new ways of thinking could revolutionize the way we manufacture and consume. I joined Soorty to deliver impact at scale and be a part of a team dedicated to implement communicate progress.

What is the mission of your company? What problems are you aiming to solve?

The mission of Soorty is to deliver denim and jeans which are kind to the people and to the environment. This is not a romantic story as it needs a solid business plan, use of technology, collecting and measuring data, collaboration with all supply chain stakeholders, communication, innovation, and investments. We are committed to build positive change however it is not easy to bear the costs when the industry is not willing to compensate for the investments.

Can you tell our readers about the initiatives that you or your company are taking to address climate change or sustainability? Can you give an example for each?

There are multiple projects that we are running at the same time, and I will try to highlight some of them as we are constructing our circularity model as a business structure.

We are working with science-based targets to measure and mitigate our impact on the environment as well as making sure that our communities benefit from our actions.

Pakistan is a developing country with multiple problems and Pakistan`s alternative energy agency is promoting the use of cleaner energy with a target to reach %61 by 2030. Soorty is one of the most leaders in enabling this target with its renewable energy expansion and besides the solar energy plant that empowers its garment operations, Soorty has also invested in a wind power generation project becoming the 2nd mill in Pakistan to hold an energy storage unit. We are committed to use %50 renewable energy from a 2016 baseline by 2030.

Soorty has also invested in a 4 year project called SOCI (Soorty Organic Cotton initiative) together with WWF and OCA (Organic Cotton Association) where the target is to link the impact of our manufacturing practices to the field and also to the farmers. We are providing agri-finance and crop insurance reaching out to over 1000 farmers.

Soorty is also the 1st mill out of Pakistan to become a contributor to ZDHC and we believe that our initiatives will also drive the global competition in the right direction.

We are also looking closely at the new EU legislations and proactively developing processes and products which will comply with the needs of the global consumers. Together with our supply chain partners, we are co-developing innovative products where recycled fiber content and sustainable materials ensure circularity schemes and requirements. Our latest collection has %100 recycled fiber content denim fabrics and we have been producing gold certified C2C denim and jeans for the past 2 years.

Our laundries are equipped with smart technologies to ensure minimum resource use as well as focusing on efficiency and workers` safety. We have launched our Zero Stone process removing the stones from the equation, reducing the need for water, energy and chemicals. The Smart Blue process where we use updated technology to carry chemicals on the garment with foam instead of water reduces the water need on an average of %80 per laundry.

Zero Cotton Imitative is working with sustainable fibers alternative to cotton and the Longevity imitative is making sure we can extend the use and the re-use of the garments we produce.

How would you articulate how a business can become more profitable by being more sustainable and more environmentally conscious? Can you share a story or example?

Sustainability efforts require investments and in the short term all the technology intense approaches will mean that the costs will initially increase. However, as these initiatives come to be preferred by the brands and retailers then the investments pay off both as competitive as well as the fact that there are savings on resource use. This is where scale impact makes the difference. The investment we have made for the Cradle-to-Cradle certified denim and jeans process will pay once the project scales.

The youth led climate strikes of September 2019 showed an impressive degree of activism and initiative by young people on behalf of climate change. This was great, and there is still plenty that needs to be done. In your opinion what are 5 things parents should do to inspire the next generation to become engaged in sustainability and the environmental movement? Please give a story or an example for each.

It is very important for us to present the interlink of systems that we are not immune to global problems and that we are all connected. What happens in the supply chain in global south will impact the industries in the global north.

Move and experiment — information is essential, but experience is what will make the difference. Take a trip to a waste disposal site to really present the impact of our wasteful actions.

Be optimistic — where these is a problem there also lies a solution.

Educate yourself so that you can tell better stories to inspire the youth.

Listen, mentor, and join the youth in action.

What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why?

Be patient: The industry is working towards a moving target, and it is the journey that matters the most as the target evolves as well.

Listen to your intuition and trust it.

It is OK to speak up and be in contradiction.

Do not give up on self-care.

Do not stress over things you cannot change and shift your focus where you can make impact and enjoy doing so.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

My mother has been an amazing inspiration for me. She has always found joy in learning and practicing new things and was always fearless even in the eye of the storm. During the lockdowns at 83, she started a project with a target to hand make over 1,000 toys for underprivileged kids using production leftover socks and accessories. She managed to finish 1,100 toys which were distributed to children via an NGO. I could not help but took a photo of her with the toys and tweeted about it. Her news went viral in 2 days and she had millions of people commenting; reaching out to her to thank her, wanting her to be a part of their TV show…She has always inspired and led me to be a better version of myself.

You are a person of great influence and doing some great things for the world! If you could inspire a movement that would bring the greatest amount of good to the greatest amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

I would start a permaculture gardening movement.

Do you have a favorite life lesson quote? Can you tell us how that was relevant to you in your own life?

Be the change you desire to be — this has inspired me to move forward and event at times where I would be confused, disheartened and struggled it was a thought to come back to to make me re-start.

What is the best way for our readers to continue to follow your work online?

Soorty`s www.future-possibilities.com and www.indigo-friends.com

This was so inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!

Ebru Debbag of Soorty: Five Strategies Our Company Is Using To Tackle Climate Change & Become More… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

People ask me “If you had to give up all the lessons you’ve written about in the last forty years except one, what would you want to hold on to?” It’s Simple Truth #5: The key to developing people is to catch them doing something right. Leaders need to stay positive. People often tell me that when they see their boss coming, they cringe. That sounds like a seagull manager to me. Seagull managers never come around until someone makes a mistake. Then they fly in, make a lot of noise, dump on everyone, and fly out. I think it’s so important to catch people doing things right and accent the positive.

As part of my series about “authors who are making an important social impact” I had the pleasure of interviewing Ken Blanchard, coauthor of Simple Truths of Leadership (https://simpletruthsofleadership.com).

Ken Blanchard is one of the world’s most influential leadership experts. He is the co-author of more than sixty-five books, including the iconic The One Minute Manager, with combined sales of over 23 million copies in forty-seven languages. In 2005, he was inducted into Amazon’s Hall of Fame as one of the top twenty-five best¬selling authors of all time. He is co-founder of The Ken Blanchard Companies, a leading international training and consulting firm.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive into the main focus of our interview, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory?

I grew up in New Rochelle New York. My dad retired as an Admiral in the US Navy and my mother was the ultimate home mom and cheerleader. My sister, Sandy, was 2–1/2 years older than me and was my hero. My elementary school was 90% Jewish and we merged with a 90% Black school in junior high. I won most of the elections — president of my class, president of the student body — as the “compromise candidate.” Because of the unusually (at the time) diverse environment at school combined with our strong family ties and my mom and dad’s inclusive, welcoming ways, the outcome of my childhood and school career were wonderful, lifelong friendships with all different types of people.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting mistake that occurred to you in the course of your career? What lesson or take away did you learn from that?

This isn’t really career related. My wife, Margie, tells people I’ve never been embarrassed. Once we were watching a play at a theater in the round. We had great seats — right in the front row. I was starting to get a little bored so Margie started poking me every so often to keep me from falling asleep. (Side note: I can sleep anywhere and at any time.) She started getting into the plot of the play and stopped paying attention to what I was doing. One scene got very quiet and suddenly, apparently, the whole room heard me snoring loudly. Margie said the actors actually stopped the scene to look at me! I occasionally start falling asleep in church and Margie’s right next to me, elbowing me in the ribs. Sometimes on Monday there are bruises to prove it!

Can you describe how you aim to make a significant social impact with your book Simple Truths of Leadership?

We hope this book makes an impact because it’s full of things you do with people, not to people. People will share this book with their colleagues or friends no matter what their social standing, income, background, etc. because these are truths that apply to everyone. Every reader will get something different out of reading this book. It will help people become better spouses, parents, friends, workers, and managers.

Can you share with us your favorite Simple Truth from the book?

People ask me “If you had to give up all the lessons you’ve written about in the last forty years except one, what would you want to hold on to?” It’s Simple Truth #5: The key to developing people is to catch them doing something right. Leaders need to stay positive. People often tell me that when they see their boss coming, they cringe. That sounds like a seagull manager to me. Seagull managers never come around until someone makes a mistake. Then they fly in, make a lot of noise, dump on everyone, and fly out. I think it’s so important to catch people doing things right and accent the positive.

What was the “aha moment” or series of events that made you decide to bring your message to the greater world? Can you share a story about that?

People come up to me all the time and say they love my books and writings, which is always nice to hear and I appreciate it. I often ask them, “How have you been using the concepts from the book?” And they look surprised and start mumbling and sputtering. People take in information, but they don’t do anything with it. The beginning of my mission statement is “I am a loving teacher and an example of simple truths.” This book is the ultimate attempt to summarize the simple truths we have been teaching for decades.

Without sharing specific names, can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?

I work with a woman who used to be an award-winning author of mystery fiction. When 9/11 happened she was working on her sixth crime novel featuring an antagonist who had committed despicable acts. She suddenly realized that she didn’t want to use her talent to put more negative ideas into the world. When she stumbled across the Blanchard website and saw that our vision was “to release the power and potential of people for the common good,” she knew she wanted to work with us. She came aboard as a temporary receptionist nearly 20 years ago, quickly became my in-house editor, and tells me all the time how much she loves the meaningful work we do. Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?

Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?

Community leaders, politicians, and society in general could focus on the good. Care about each other. Treat each other with respect. Follow the Three Secrets of the One Minute Manager: setting goals, catching people doing things right and praising them, redirecting people when they are off track. Those things seem simple but they are important and they make a difference.

How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?

Leadership is an influence process. Anytime you’re trying to influence the thinking, beliefs, or behavior of someone as they work toward accomplishing goals, you are engaging in leadership. We are all leaders — parents, friends, partners, people in organizations. It’s universal. It’s about going somewhere.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.

My wife, Margie, and I first came to California on sabbatical leave from the University of Massachusetts where I was a tenured professor. We met some folks from the Young President’s Organization who asked us what we were planning to do at the end of our sabbatical year. We said we were going back to Massachusetts. They said, “No you’re not, you’re going to stay here and start your business.” We couldn’t even balance our checkbook! They helped us and we learned some simple truths from our YPO friends: (1) Find something you love and do it well. (2) Figure out how to get someone to pay you for it or it’s just a hobby, not a business. (3) Make sure your expenses don’t exceed your income. (4) Improve continuously. And (5) Don’t forget to give back.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

The late, great Norman Vincent Peale, my coauthor on The Power of Ethical Management, had a saying I’ve repeated hundreds of times because it really rings true: “If you stop learning, you might as well lie down and let them throw the dirt on you — because you’re already dead.” People ask me, “Blanchard, when are you going to retire?” And I say, “Never! I’m having too much fun learning and doing things. I’m refiring, not retiring!”

Is there a person in the world or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. :-)

I’d love to have a conversation with Vice President Kamala Harris. I’d like to share ideas on how to turn Washington around from being a win-lose, me-oriented culture to a we-oriented culture where all sides work together on doing the greatest good for the greatest number. I don’t have any political aspirations but I wrote a paper a few years ago called “A Leadership Vision for America.” It crosses political lines and gets to the heart of what I feel this country needs.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kenblanchard1/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KenBlanchard

Blog: https://howwelead.org/

Author Website: https://www.kenblanchardbooks.com/

This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!

Social Impact Authors: How & Why Author Ken Blanchard Is Helping To Change Our World was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Social Impact Authors: How & Why Author Randy Conley of ‘Simple Truths of Leadership’ Is Helping To Change Our World

Take your work seriously, but yourself lightly. Work can be hard and stressful, but it can still be fun! The best leaders I’ve worked for have always taken their work seriously and done the best they are able, but they’ve also used humor to make work enjoyable. Happy people produce better work!

As part of my series about “authors who are making an important social impact” I had the pleasure of interviewing Randy Conley, coauthor of Simple Truths of Leadership (https://simpletruthsofleadership.com).

Randy Conley is the Vice-President of Global Professional Services and Trust Practice Leader for The Ken Blanchard Companies. He is a founding member of the Alliance of Trustworthy Business Experts, and INC named him a Top 100 Leadership Speaker. Randy is a contributing author of three books, including Leading at a Higher Level, with Ken Blanchard. Randy’s award-winning blog, Leading with Trust, has influenced over 4 million viewers since its inception in 2012.

When you were younger, was there a book that you read that inspired you to take action or changed your life? Can you share a story about that?

The Bible has been the most influential book (technically a collection of books) in my life. I became a Christian when I was 15 years-old and it sparked a life-long passion for reading, studying, and trying to apply what I’ve learned from Scripture.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting mistake that occurred to you in the course of your career? What lesson or take away did you learn from that?

I’ve made so many mistakes that it’s difficult to recall a specific one! A common takeaway from all my mistakes has been developing the ability to view them as “learning moments.” I’m reminded of the saying, “Success isn’t forever, and failure isn’t fatal.” Mistakes are part of life. If you’re not making mistakes, you’re probably not trying anything new. Rather than beating myself up for mistakes, I try to take an attitude of “Well, that didn’t work out the way I thought it would. What can I learn from that experience?”

Can you describe how you aim to make a significant social impact with your book Simple Truths of Leadership?

Ken and I believe the answer to today’s most pressing leadership challenges is to be a trusted servant leader. The world is filled with too many self-serving leaders who think being a leader is all about accumulating more power and control. The best and most successful leaders are those who place the needs of their followers ahead of their own. Leadership is a complex topic, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. What I mean by that is it’s easy to forget the simple truths that lead to leadership success. Trusted servant leaders set a vision for their team, clarify goals, and then work alongside their people to help them perform their best. We hope our book redirects leaders back to the basic principles that drive true and lasting success.

Can you share with us the most interesting story that you shared in your book?

Simple Truth #14 in our book is, “The best use of power is in service to others.” Ken shares the story of being elected president of his seventh-grade class. He came home excited about his accomplishment, and when he shared the news with his dad, who later retired as a rear admiral in the U.S. Navy, he received a valuable leadership lesson. His dad said, “Congratulations, Ken. But now that you’re president, don’t use your position. Great leaders are great not because they have power but because their people trust and respect them.” What a great lesson about how trusted servant leaders should view and use power!

What was the “aha moment” or series of events that made you decide to bring your message to the greater world? Can you share a story about that?

Rather than a singular “aha moment,” Simple Truths of Leadership was a “slow boil” over the course of several years. For more than 40 years, Ken has been distilling the complex ideas of leadership into simple truths. Having worked with Ken for over 25 years, I’ve adopted a similar approach to trust. Trust is a topic that goes wide and deep, so I’ve tried to take this nebulous idea of “trust” and communicate it to others in a way that helps them build trust in their relationships in simple, practical, and powerful ways. Ken and I had talked about writing a book together for many years, combining his work on servant leadership and mine on trust. We dabbled with it here and there, but the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 afforded us the opportunity to slow down and really get clear on what we wanted to do with the book.

Without sharing specific names, can you tell us a story about a particular individual who was impacted or helped by your cause?

A president of an organization contacted us to share how impactful Simple Truths of Leadership was to him. He felt the leadership principles we covered were exactly what he wanted he wanted to be exhibited in his organization, so he has started sharing one of the simple truths each week with his entire company. It serves as sort of a “leadership devotional” for his team for that given week as well as a point of discussion they can leverage for their own development.

Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?

Yes! First and foremost, leaders can remember that “it’s not about you” (Simple Truth #25). Too many leaders are wrapped up in their own ego, and the first step to countering toxic leadership is to realize that leadership is about serving others, not yourself. Second, people need to know that “leadership begins with trust” (Simple Truth #27). All good things in life begin with trust, and for leaders to be successful, they need to model trustworthiness and gain the trust of their followers. And third, “servant leadership is the best way to achieve both great results and great relationships” (Simple Truth #1). Too many leaders think their job is only about achieving results, and they’re willing to trample anyone, or anything, that gets in their way. The most successful leaders understand that great results are only achievable if they have great relationships with, and among, team members.

How do you define “Leadership”? Can you explain what you mean or give an example?

Put simply, leadership is an influence process. Anyone who is trying to influence another person is engaging in leadership. That means everyone is a leader in some aspect of their lives. Parents raising children, coaches teaching players, volunteers serving others, teachers instructing students, or supervisors managing employees — they’re all examples of people acting as leaders.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.

1. People are messy. Anyone considering a formal leadership role needs to remember that it’s all about people and people are messy in the sense they have hopes, dreams, fears, insecurities, talents, blind spots, and all the other things that make us human. People don’t leave those things at home when they come to work, and leaders must learn to manage the whole person.
2. Leadership is an inside-out proposition. Most of us move into leadership positions because it’s the next step in our career progression. I’ve learned that leadership is much more about who you are than what you do. It’s critically important to be clear on why you want to be a leader.
3. Leadership is about serving others, not “bossing” them around. Too many leaders let their power go to their heads and relish lording it over others. The most successful leaders have learned that their primary role is to be of service to their team and help them achieve their goals, not just boss them around to do all the dirty work.
4. Integrity is your most important asset as a leader. My first job was working at a fast-food burger joint. The manager was a real hardcase and hammered me about following all the rules and procedures, yet on his break he would go in the back of the kitchen and smoke a cigarette which was against the rules. I knew at that moment I couldn’t work for a leader I couldn’t trust and respect, and if I ever became a leader, I would do my best to make sure I walked the talk.
5. Take your work seriously, but yourself lightly. Work can be hard and stressful, but it can still be fun! The best leaders I’ve worked for have always taken their work seriously and done the best they are able, but they’ve also used humor to make work enjoyable. Happy people produce better work!

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

Mine is a passage from the Bible, Jeremiah 29:11 — ‘“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”’ I grew up with a single mom and we struggled financially. There were times we were on welfare, and I was always one of the kids at school who qualified for free lunches. I didn’t have much hope for the future, but God provided purpose and direction in my life and has given me hope and a future.

Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. :-)

From a leadership perspective, I would like to hang out with Mike Krzyzewski. As the all-time winningest coach in college basketball history, I’d like to pick his brain about leadership and trust. From a writing perspective, I think it would be interesting to share a meal with Stephen King or John Grisham. I enjoy reading their novels and it would be fascinating to learn how they come up with creative ideas and their process for writing.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

They can stay in touch with me via the following sources:

• Twitter: @RandyConley
• Linked-In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randy-conley/
• Blog: https://leadingwithtrust.com
• Book: https://simpletruthsofleadership.com
• Web: https://kenblanchard.com

This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!

Social Impact Authors: How & Why Author Randy Conley of ‘Simple Truths of Leadership’ Is Helping To… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Don’t rush into things and make big decisions blindly; not everything in life is a race. Think things through carefully and find out the facts and figures before agreeing to certain things/situations. It’s easy to get excited and say yes on the spot, only to be burnt later.

As a part of our series about “Filmmakers Making A Social Impact” I had the pleasure of interviewing Nikki Minty.

Nikki Minty’s self-published trilogy is sweeping up multiple indie book awards. With undercurrents of the importance of inclusion and looking beyond someone’s colour and creed, The Zadok Series touches on timely topics and aims to create a vivid, immersive experience for teens and young adult readers.

Thank you so much for doing this interview with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit. Can you share your “backstory” that brought you to this career?

I’ve always been a super creative person as well as a massive bookworm, but I have my son, RJ, to thank for inspiring The Zadok Series. We were sitting in the library waiting for his sister to finish her art class, when he brought up the topic, “I wonder what happens after you die”. RJ said, “Wouldn’t it be cool if every time we died, we reincarnated onto a different Planet?”. Of course, I jumped on this idea and together we discussed what the different races on the next planet would look like and what new capabilities/powers they would have. As a tribute, I’ve modelled a character after my son RJ. He has Aspergers/Autism and is quirky with a brain like an encyclopaedia.

Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your writing career?

While my American editors are wonderful and really helped to iron out all the creases in my books, we had some very interesting, and somewhat humorous, moments where Australian English and American English differ.

Example:

I didn’t know a “period” was the equivalent to an Aussie “full-stop”. I just knew it as a measurement of time or a girl’s monthly problems, so when my editors commented, “I think a period would work better here”, I was super confused.

Turns out they’d just meant a full-stop/period would work better than my use of a semicolon.

There were many small laughable miscommunications over the course of the three books.

Who are some of the most interesting people you have interacted with? What was that like? Do you have any stories?

My author idol is Amanda Hocking. I follow her on several social media sites and I’m always liking and commenting on her posts. Back in early 2021, just before Pastel Pink was released, I got an Instagram notification which flashed up with Amanda Hocking’s name. I’d assumed Instagram was informing me of her new post. As it turns out, Amanda Hocking started following me!

I was so excited I burst into tears.

She has since started following me on Twitter too.

Another exciting moment was when Khristine Hvam — one of my favourite book narrators — agreed to produce The Zadok Series into audiobook form.

Which people in history inspire you the most? Why?

I love that Nelson Mandela had the bravery to stand up against apartheid and dismantle it.

I’m also fascinated by the “Mandela Effect” in which a person and/or group have a false memory of an event.

As a young teen I was hooked on C.S. Lewis’ books, and completely spellbound by Vincent Van Gough’s artworks.

I’d love to be able to travel back in time and take a glimpse inside Albert Einstein’s brilliant mind.

Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview, how are you using your success to bring goodness to the world? Can you share with us the meaningful or exciting social impact causes you are working on right now?

My trilogy, The Zadok Series, has an overarching theme of the importance of acceptance and inclusion when it comes to different colours, cultures, and races. If we can learn to accept one another’s differences and work as one, the world would be a much nicer place.

Many of us have ideas, dreams, and passions, but never manifest it. But you did. Was there an “Aha Moment” that made you decide that you were actually going to step up and take action for this cause? What was that final trigger?

Having friends and family members of different races, lifestyles, and cultures, I find acceptance to be a super important aspect of life.

Although my book series is a work of fiction, I wanted to touch on real life issues that plague our world today, in the hope of making a difference.

While writing my first book, Pastel Pink, the “Black Live’s Matter movement” was all over the news, and I found myself questioning, “how, in this day and age, can we still be so prejudice and ignorant?”

Can you tell us a story about a particular individual who has inspired you to address this cause?

Growing up, I was a massive fan of Angelina Jolie. She is known for her humanitarian efforts and has received a Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award and was made an honorary Dame Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (DCMG), among other honors. She’s helped to promote various causes, including conservation, education and women’s rights. Most notably, she’s advocated on behalf of refugees as a Special Envoy for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Angelina Jolie has undertaken over a dozen field missions globally to refugee camps and war zones; including Cambodia, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Syria, Sudan, Yemen, and Ukraine.

Angelina Jolie has also adopted children from different backgrounds, creating her very own multicultural family.

Her strength, kind-heartedness, and open-mindedness has inspired me to become a better person.

Are there three things that individuals, society or the government can do to support you in this effort?

Times are changing, and the younger generations are learning more about acceptance and equality in schools, but it’s up to all of us, as individuals, to break down those barriers in everyday living. Be kind and respectful of others regardless of their differences. We are all the one species, and therefore, we should come together as one and strive for greatness. John Lennon’s song “Imagine”, is inspirational and one day I hope society could learn to “Live as one”.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.

• It’s okay to make mistakes. Being in the public eye can be overwhelming and we tend to put a lot of pressure on ourselves to be perfect, but nobody’s perfect, so just be you and try your best — that’s all you can do.
• Fight for what you believe in. Not everyone will agree with your opinions or what you are trying to achieve, but don’t let opposing opinions steer you off course. If you believe in something strongly enough, you should keep fighting for it until the bitter end.
• Don’t sweat bad reviews, they really aren’t the end of the world. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, bad or good, and not everything is for everyone. There are books and shows my friends have loved, yet I couldn’t get into them, and vice versa. Sometimes a bad review says more about the reviewer and their preferences than the book/show itself. Take note of the constructive criticism and move forward.
• Making bookish friends online is a great key to success. Make sure to embrace online friendships and don’t forget about those who helped to get you where you are today. A strong network of likeminded friends is vital, not only for achieving success, but for your own mental health. They become your number one support system.
• Don’t rush into things and make big decisions blindly; not everything in life is a race. Think things through carefully and find out the facts and figures before agreeing to certain things/situations. It’s easy to get excited and say yes on the spot, only to be burnt later.

If you could tell other young people one thing about why they should consider making a positive impact on our environment or society, like you, what would you tell them?

Think of your children, and your children’s children. Not only do we want them to be brought into a safe and loving world where we accept one another for who we are, we also need to take care of our planet so that it remains sustainable and livable for future generations. Do your bit to make this world a better place.

We are very blessed that many other Social Impact Heroes read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, whom you would like to collaborate with, and why? He or she might see this. :-)

Ziggy Alberts’ song, Together, is all about coming together and saving our people and country. I absolutely love this song, and if my books ever make it to film, I’ll be asking him and the producers if we can please use this song as a theme song, or at the very least, as a background song in the movie.

“And I wonder why
We seem to be
More concerned with our flags
And nationalities
Oh, then we are
With unity or love
More concerned with our differences
In different Gods above” — Ziggy Alberts

“And I will fight for this
Stand for right over wrong as
Our old trees are burning down
And I will write for this country I adore
And we can come together now
And I will stand beside you, won’t let hate reside here
Lock hands together in the crowd
And we will fight for this country we adore
In hard times each of us know how
Throw fear aside, regrowth can come along” — Ziggy Alberts

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

I think more people should reflect on this saying, and we should treat each other better.

How can our readers follow you online?

Twitter — https://twitter.com/NikkiMinty1

Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/nikstamint

Website — https://nikkiminty.com

Goodreads — https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21088034.Nikki_Minty

Amazon — https://www.amazon.com/Nikki-Minty/e/B08TG5CQJS

Audible — https://www.audible.com/search?keywords=Nikki+minty

This was great, thank you so much for sharing your story and doing this with us. We wish you continued success!

Social Impact Authors: How & Why Author Nikki Minty Is Helping To Change Our World was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.