From Firestorms to Firewalls: What a Near-Fatal Fire Taught Brad About True Crisis Leadership

Welcome back to Data & Drams!In this episode, I was joined by Bradley Watson, the Founder and CEO of Akela Group, a leading consultancy that just celebrated its 5th anniversary.With over 30 years of experience spanning the Australian Army, the Australian Signals Directorate (ASD), and the public sector, his career has covered everything from cyber warfare and counterterrorism to disaster recovery.Today, he works directly with Boards and CEOs to design national frameworks and uplift cyber capabilities across critical infrastructure—but in this conversation, we strip away the corporate strategy to look at crisis in its raw form.Brad shares the story of a near-fatal house fire two years ago—a defining moment where his now co-owner, Jarod, saved his life. It’s a powerful discussion on how that terrifying experience reinforced the leadership lessons he learned in the military and still applies today.Now, for the drams. For those listening on Apple you may want to head to Youtube/Spotify to get the full experience as there are some moments where we taste and savour our drams.Mind you, it was less of a single pour and more of a tasting flight, Brad was generous enough to bring a lineup for our episode where we kicked things off with a Samoan Whisky that—to be honest I was expected beautiful tropical notes but actually—tasted a bit like paint stripper, he knew this as well and I’m fairly sure he just wanted to see me suffer.But we recovered quickly, moving through The Singleton 18 Year Old, a Sullivans Cove Double Cask, some local Dog & Gun, and a smoky Talisker 10 Year Old.The Talisker actually highlighted a fascinating point - Brad shared how the fire altered his sensory perception, to crave those intense, peaty flavours whereas before, he preferred a much smoother palate.We eventually finished on a high note with the Glenfiddich 23 year old Grand Cru. Matured in American and European oak casks and finished in rare French cuvée casks, it was a silky, refined conclusion to an incredible tasting lineup.This episode is a rollercoaster of emotion, high-level strategy, and whisky.So pull up a chair, pour yourself a drink (maybe skip the paint stripper), and join Brad and I for Data & Drams.

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