The Conversation Factory

Leading with Respect with Marcy Syms

10 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Marcy Syms is a pioneering businesswoman and advocate for respect in leadership. She's seen leadership fads come and go. She was a CEO when people sti...

The Seven Everyday Habits for Transforming Systems

25 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Download free chapters from Good Talk and master the art of conversations big and small: https://www.danielstillman.com/good-talk Listen now 👇 🎙...

Innovation, Connection, and Conscious Leadership with Othership CEO Robbie Bent

06 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Get free chapters of my book, Good Talk, and master the art of conversations big and small: https://www.danielstillman.com/good-talk Please support th...

The Founder's Financial Compass: Navigating Emotions and Assumptions with Fractional CFO Lauren Pearl

24 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Get free chapters of my book, Good Talk, and master the art of conversations big and small: https://www.danielstillman.com/good-talk Please support th...

Join or Die: Behind the Scenes of Creative Collaboration

22 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Get free chapters of my book, Good Talk, and master the art of conversations big and small: https://www.danielstillman.com/good-talk Please support th...

Founder-Led Sales and Building Co-founder Relationships

03 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Get free chapters of my book, Good Talk, and master the art of conversations big and small: https://www.danielstillman.com/good-talk Please support th...

The Inner Work of Leadership with Carole Robin, PhD

14 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Master the art of conversations big and small - both inside yourself and in your teams and organization. Get free chapters of my book, Good Talk: http...

Your Brain on Beautiful Conversations with Anjan Chatterjee

26 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Download free chapters from Good Talk and master the art of conversations big and small Please support the podcast by subscribing on Spotify or iTun...

Changing the Political Conversation with Nick Troiano

30 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

If you want to change the game, changing the rules and incentives of the game is a powerful approach. Few people who watch the news - or those folks w...

The Secrets of Motivation and Systems Change with Becca Block, PhD

19 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Warning - this episode uses a specific curse word - a lot. And once we started using one, we started using more of them. So…if f-bombs, sprinkled li...

How to Turn a Conversation into a Public Park

22 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Sometimes the bold goals we set out to achieve actually happen, and sometimes something even more amazing happens - something better than we can imagi...

Art that Changes the Conversation

01 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Art has the power to change and even lead the conversation, to spark curiosity and fuel real engagement. But what comes first in a powerful creative p...

Leadership is Designing Moments of Impact

15 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Today my guests are Lisa Kay Solomon and Chris Ertel, the co-authors of the powerhouse 2014 book Moments of Impact: How to Design Strategic Conversati...

The Problem with Change and the Power of Stability, Humanity and Praise with Ashley Goodall

07 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is Ashley Goodall, a leadership expert who has spent his career exploring large organizations from the inside, most recently as an exec...

Reunion: Leadership and Creating a Culture of Belonging

29 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Rabbi Tarfon said: The day is short, and the work is plentiful…It is not your duty to finish the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it....

The Intentional Conversations that Build Powerful CoFounder Relationships

15 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guests today are Rei Wang and Anita Hossain, Co-founders of coaching platform The Grand, which was seed funded by Alexis Ohanian's firm Seven Seven...

From Transaction to Participation

20 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is James Rutter, Chief Creative Officer at COOK, the pioneering frozen food company, where he oversees internal and external branding a...

Divorce by Design - Shifting the Default Conversation with Suzanne Vickberg

05 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Today I share my conversation with Suzanne Vickberg, aka Dr. Suz. She is a social-personality psychologist and a Research Lead at Deloitte Greenhouse....

Conversation Wisdom from an AI-savvy CEO

07 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is Jay Ruparel, co-founder and CEO of VOICEplug AI, a Voice-AI company empowering restaurants to leverage AI and automate food ordering...

Designing Conversations to Unlock Strategic Foresight and Innovation with Kevin Bethune

31 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I'm excited to share my conversation with Kevin Bethune, a multidisciplinary design executive, entrepreneur, best-selling author and keynote speaker b...

A Leader's Guide to Managing Organizational Emotions During Layoffs and Beyond with Emily Levada

17 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today, Emily Levada, is a seasoned Chief Product & Technology Officer. Currently, she is the Chief Product Officer and Interim co-CEO at Emba...

Unpacking Mentoring with Jason Knight and Sandra Monteiro

14 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is Jason Knight, the creator, host, producer, editor and promoter of the One Knight in Product podcast, a B2B SaaS product consultant, ...

When the Mission Drives the Tech: Co-Founder Conversations

05 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's not every day that a patient-doctor relationship turns into a Techstars-Funded medical innovation startup. In this episode I sit down with Dr. On...

Give First: The Long Conversation of Being a Co-Founder

28 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

David Hoffman built and sold big-data and data analytics company Next Big Sound to Pandora in 2015. He's now building Beam, which helps people create ...

Cofounder Conversations: Pivoting while Staying Sane

21 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guests today, Ryan Horrigan and Armando Kirwin, bonded over their mutual fascination with the future of entertainment and their desire to do someth...

The Power of Intention

10 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I am excited to share my conversation with Leah Smart, who I had the pleasure of meeting at the Culture Summit where we were both giving main stage ta...

Leaders as Humble, Audacious, Z-Shaped Coaches

20 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I am excited to share my conversation with AJ Thomas, who I had the pleasure of meeting at the Culture Summit where we were both giving talks. AJ was ...

A Company Must be a Community of Practice

26 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode I talk with my friend Chris Murchison, who is a coach, a facilitator and a talented artist, too! We talk about his Four principles of ...

Coaching from Essence, Creating from the Future

16 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today, I sit down for a conversation with *my coach* Robert Ellis, about his new book, Coaching From Essence. Robert has been described as "one of Sil...

How to Think Strategically about Funding for Founders and Investors

09 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I first met Avantika Daing, a General Partner & Managing Partner at Plum Alley Investments (and Tedx Speaker!) while she was onstage at an Entreprene...

A Recipe for Team Agility: One Page, One Hour

10 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today my conversation partner is Matt LeMay! Matt is an internationally recognized product leader, author, and consultant. He is the author of Agile f...

The Surprising Power of Two Hour Mid-week Cocktail Parties

28 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In 2019 My friend Philip invited me to a 2-hour cocktail party at his tiny apartment in the Lower East side. True to his word, the gathering, which wa...

Launching a Remote, Asynchronous Venture Studio

13 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today I sit down with my friend Barry O'Reilly, who's a co-author of the bestselling book "Lean Enterprise" and author of "Unlearn: How to Let go of ...

Conscious Collaboration: Co-founder Conversations

15 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this conversation, I sat down with Beth Bayouth and Mario Fedelin, the COO and CEO (respectively) of Changeist, a non-profit organization dedicated...

Managing Healthy Conflict: Co-founder Conversations

10 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this conversation I talk with Jennifer Dennard and Dan Pupius, the co-founders of Range, software that helps teams be more connected, focused, and ...

Building an Integrity Culture: Co-Founder Conversations

25 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this conversation, I sit down with Huddle Co-Founders Stephanie Golik and Michael Saloio. Huddle is a platform for designers and builders to invest...

Community Building for Founders through Conversation and Hosting

20 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today my guest is Yehong Zhu, the founder and CEO of Zette. We discuss three key layers of conversation design:  + The conversation with yourself - e...

Clarity and Intimacy in Co-Founder Conversations

22 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this conversation, I dive into the nuances of co-founder relationships with Clarity.so co-founders Richie Bonilla, CEO and Eni Jaupi, CTO. Clarity....

Conscious Co-founders

25 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this conversation, I sat down with my friend Doug Erwin, the Senior Vice President of Entrepreneurial Development at EDAWN, the Economic Developmen...

Stories as Medicine

17 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I first met Dr. Paul Browde as part of a multi-month intensive men's work program we were both part of. We were just about to break out into a few par...

Prototyping Partnerships

20 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do you make a friend? How do you become lovers with someone? How do you become business partners? In RomComs, there's a "meet-cute"...the hilariou...

Wired to Create Together

30 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today I host a conversation with Carolyn Gregoire and Scott Barry Kaufman, the co-authors of the 2015 bestseller, Wired to Create. Their working title...

Building an Intelligence Engine

17 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I'm excited to share this rambling and wide-ranging conversation with Srinivas Rao. Srini is the host of The Unmistakable Creative Podcast, and has re...

The Power of Wondering and Wandering

09 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

This episode, Dr. Natalie Nixon and I dig into not just what it means to be creative, but also how leaders can create space for creativity and inspire...

Communities are Conversations with Carrie Melissa Jones, Pt. 3

20 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I'm thrilled to be able to share this conversation with Carrie Melissa Jones with you! Carrie is the co-author of Building Brand Communities, with Cha...

Turning a Challenge into an Agenda

19 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do you turn a question, a problem, or just a list of needs, into an agenda? At the close of a recent cohort of the facilitation masterclass, the p...

Communities are Conversations with Carrie Melissa Jones, Pt. 2

18 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I'm thrilled to be able to share this conversation with Carrie Melissa Jones with you! Carrie is the co-author of Building Brand Communities, with Cha...

Communities are Conversations with Carrie Melissa Jones, Pt. 1

11 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I'm thrilled to be able to share this conversation with Carrie Melissa Jones with you! Carrie is the co-author of Building Brand Communities, with Cha...

Coaching Executive Mindsets

18 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I can't believe it's taken me SO long to share this conversation with the Amazing Elise Foster. Elise is a powerful coach, an accomplished author, and...

Conversational Range

14 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Each of us has a conversational range. What size of conversation brings you alive? In this little audio experiment, I read aloud an essay of mine abou...

The Conversation Factory Book Club: The Creative Empathy Field Guide with Brian Pagán

27 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I'm so excited to share this book club experiment with you. I've been inviting alums of my facilitation masterclass and subscribers to the conversatio...

The Perfect Conversation

21 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

What is a "perfect conversation"?  What about the "perfect" conversationalist?  I'm thrilled to share this discussion that Michael Bervell and I had...

The Conversation Factory Book Club: Facilitating Breakthrough with Adam Kahane

01 Dec 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Conversation Factory book club is an experiment I've been running for a few months now. I'm experimenting with deeper conversations and collaborat...

Leading a Culture of Critique

07 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Recently, I've been reading a book called "Ethic of Excellence" by Ron Berger. He teaches teachers about how to invoke pride in students, to invite t...

The Conversation Factory Book Club: Making Conversation with Fred Dust

06 Oct 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Conversation Factory book club is an experiment I've been running for a few months now. I'm experimenting with deeper conversations and collaborat...

Leading Deeper Connection

09 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

I'm really excited to share my conversation with Kat Vellos, an amazing designer of experiences.  Today we talk about the art of intentionality and t...

The Conversation Factory Book Club: Sand Talk by Tyson Yunkaporta

09 Sep 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Conversation Factory book club is an experiment I've been running for a few months now. I'm experimenting with deeper conversations and collaborat...

Doing vs Experiencing Design Thinking

18 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

My guest is Jeanne Liedtka, Professor at the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business and an absolute rockstar of Design Thinking. She's the...

Coaching Executive Mindsets in Lean, Agile and Design Thinking

06 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

I am obsessed with culture, change and transformation…and always puzzling over how it really happens. One thing I know for sure: Forcing change, tel...

The Extraordinary Power of Leader Humility

14 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Imagine a world in which all leaders feel and display a deep regard for others' dignity. This is the world that Marilyn Gist, author of The Extraordin...

Growing by Giving

12 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

This episode is a little different than most…Today I do some live-coaching for Rashmi Sharma, a Global HR executive and TedX speaker, on shifting wh...

Rituals for Virtual Teams with Glenn Fajardo

07 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, Glenn Fajardo joins me for a conversation about virtual rituals and their power to help us make sense of the virtual waters we are sw...

Unapologetic Eating & Unapologetic Living

04 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

What on earth would a podcast about designing human conversations, facilitation, leadership and organizational change have to learn from a coach and a...

Sand Talk: How Indigenous Thinking Can Save the World

18 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

"Somewhere between action and reaction there is an interaction, and that's where all the magic and fun lies" So says author Tyson Yunkaporta, in his b...

The Leader you want to be

07 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

For almost two decades, Amy Jen Su has partnered with investment professionals, CEOs, and executives to sustain and increase their leadership effectiv...

The Art of Coaching with Alisa Cohn

12 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, Alisa Cohn and I talk through Art of Coaching and also one of my favorite ways of looking at Leadership: The Art of Showing up on Pur...

Mastering (Virtual) Presence

31 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Mike Sagun is a certified professional men's coach, and he has partnered with companies like DropBox, LinkedIn, and Google. Mike also partners with EV...

Facilitation and Self-Leadership

10 Mar 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Tomomi Sasaki and I sat down to talk in-depth about her journey of self-awareness and inner work as a facilitator. We met at an advanced facilitation ...

Decolonizing Design Thinking with Dr. Lesley-Ann Noel

25 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Lesley-Ann Noel PhD, is the Associate Director for Design Thinking for Social Impact, and Professor of Practice at the Taylor Center for Social In...

Negotiation with Compassion

18 Feb 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Today I have a deep dive conversation with the magnetic Kwame Christian, Director of the American Negotiation Institute and a respected voice in the f...

The Hybrid Future of Events

15 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Coming together is an essential human drive, one that not even a global viral pandemic can fully put a damper on. Many of us have been meeting *more* ...

Making Conversation with Fred Dust

25 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I'm so thrilled to share this conversation with you. Meeting Fred Dust came, as all the best things in life do, through a series of random conversatio...

Facilitating Breakthrough with Adam Kahane

13 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today I talk with Adam Kahane, a Director at Reos Partners. Reos is an international social enterprise that helps people move forward together on thei...

Designing Design Leadership

07 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today I talk with Demetrius Romanos, SVP of Design & Development at Ergobaby. Demtrius has been my boss, my client and is also my friend! Demetrius ha...

Draw to Win with Dan Roam

17 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

"Stop thinking about drawing as an artistic process. Drawing is a thinking process. If you want to think more clearly about an idea, draw it." This is...

The Future of Work

05 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Diane Mulcahy is an advisor to both Fortune 500 companies and startups, is a regular contributor to Forbes and is the author of the bestselling book "...

The Conversation (as) Project with Elizabeth Stokoe

28 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Conversation Analysis is a powerful tool that looks at large numbers of conversations to help build insights about what works and what doesn't.  Eliz...

Deep Listening

14 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I'm so excited to share this conversation with Oscar Trimboli, author of Deep Listening, a lovely book/card deck.   We talk about the costs of not li...

Facilitating complexity with Nikki Silvestri

11 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I'm thrilled to *finally* share my conversation with the amazing and electrifying Nikki Silvestri. We connected back in early March and recorded our c...

Innovation Theater with Tendayi Viki

14 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Innovation Theater.    Have you ever been guilty of performing innovation theater?   My guest today, Tendayi Viki, is a partner at Strategyzer (the...

The Power of Ritual with Casper ter Kuile

16 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

I'm so excited to share my conversation with Casper ter Kuile. He has a book coming out this month, The Power of Ritual. He breaks down the architectu...

The Conversation Business

16 Jun 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today I share my conversation with Ron J Williams. Fast Company rated him in the top 100 most creative people in business...back in 2012! He's starte...

Conversational Leadership with Gayle Karen Young Whyte

29 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today I talk to Gayle Karen Young Whyte, former Chief People Officer for the Wikimedia Foundation and currently part of the faculty for the Leadership...

Designing the Life you Love with Ayse Birsel

18 May 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Finding an opening quote from my conversation with Ayse Birsel – One of Fast Company magazine's 'World's Top 15 Designers' and author of Design the ...

Scaling Leadership Development with Cameron Yarbrough

11 Apr 2020

Contributed by Lukas

On today's episode, I talk with Cameron Yarbrough, the Co-founder of Torch, a leadership development platform integrating coaching, behavioral science...

A Game Changing Solution to Gender Inequality with Eve Rodsky

31 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

full transcript and show notes at https://theconversationfactory.com/podcast/2020/a-game-changing-solution-to-gender-inequality Eve Rodsky is working...

How to Interview (like) a Rockstar with Grant Random

03 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today I'm sharing an interview with self-described On-Air Personality on SiriusXM and Idiot Grand Random.  Grant has had  a long-time career in radi...

Leading Change with Esther Derby

24 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today I share my deeply lovely conversation with the amazing Esther Derby, Author, Coach and author of, most recently, 7 Rules for Positive Product Ch...

Leadership is Consistency with Stacey Hanke

15 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Influence and Leadership aren't things you turn on and off...it's a muscle you have to practice all the time. And while being "on" all the time might ...

Reinvention is Building a Conversation with Dorie Clark

15 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today's conversation with Dorie Clark taught me some essential lessons about how to build a following around one's ideas - which is no surprise - Dori...

Leading through Asking with Nancy McGaw

24 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Questions need silence. Great questions are provocative. Great questions defy easy answers. Answering them takes time - they can be the work of a life...

What is your Sales Metaphor? with Ian Altman

19 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Daniel Stillman Interviews Ian Altman I am so thrilled to share this conversation with author and speaker Ian Altman about a conversation we all have ...

Designing the Organizational Conversation with Jason Cyr

19 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Today we are talking to my friend and client Jason Cyr, Director of Design Transformation at Cisco. We have a wild and rambling conversation about des...

From Innovation to Transformation with Greg Satell

27 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Hey there Conversation Designers! Today I'm talking with Author, speaker and advisor Greg Satell about going beyond innovation to driving transformati...

Trust, Communication and Psychological Safety with Emily Levada

08 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever found a framework, a diagram, that perfectly summarized an important and subtle idea? That somehow made that important idea concrete and...

Disciplined Imagination

27 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Today's conversation is with my dear friend Jocelyn Ling, a tremendously talented Business Model Specialist in the Office of Innovation at Unicef. She...

Innovation is a Conversation

30 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Innovation. We love to talk about it, everyone wants it. Innovation is critical for people and organizations to grow. But we all mean different things...

Power, Ritual and Wayfinding

16 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Hey there, conversation designers! Today I'm sharing a conversation with Larissa Conte, who I connected with last year at the Responsive Conference in...

Organizational Change is a Conversation

19 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Buckle in, ladies and gentlemen, for some straight talk about the future of work, the nature of the universe and the power of changing systems to chan...

Grief and Loss in Organizational Change

27 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

  Design means change and change means loss of the old. Even if a new design is better in every way, there is no design so perfect that you can "flip...