Amanda Cage has spent three decades working alongside frontline workers, from hog processing plants in North Carolina to Head Start classrooms in Boston to construction sites where women were breaking barriers in the building trades. Today, as President and CEO of Shift Work Forward, she leads a national network of over 30 communities working to redesign how workforce systems operate so that economic opportunity reaches everyone, not just those who already have access. Her conversation with Anthony explores a question that cuts across every industry: Is individual influence enough to create lasting change, or does real influence require something collective? Amanda makes a compelling case that collective influence produces better solutions because it forces leaders to persuade, listen, and refine ideas through genuine pushback. She challenges leaders to check their ego, use language that respects the people closest to the problem, and stop designing solutions for communities without including them in the process. Amanda also shares what she learned leading Shift Work Forward through a major rebrand, including why the process is always harder, more expensive, and more emotional than you expect, and why it forces an organization to answer the most fundamental question: Who are you? Takeaways: Build influence through movements, not personalities. Individual leaders come and go, but a committed base of people sustains change over time. Collective decision-making produces better ideas because it forces you to persuade, defend, and refine your thinking through real pushback. Check your ego before trying to lead. Your experience is often not the experience of the people you are trying to help. Use language that respects your audience. Jargon and acronyms signal membership in a club, but they lock people out of the conversation. Disruption is not destiny. History shows that who is at the table during times of change determines the outcome, not the technology itself. A rebrand is soul-searching. It costs more than you expect in money, time, and emotional energy, but it forces you to define who you really are. Quote of the Show: "What's important to me at this stage is thinking about how we create the next generation of influencers? How do we create the next generation of talent to be influencers? And how do we create a group of people who are listening, who have access to, or who have experience, or who have a broader perspective because of the kind of experiences they were allowed to have?" Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amandacage/  Website: https://shiftworkforward.org/ 

Lisa Lawson, President and CEO of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, has built a career creating change. From her earlier years as a lawyer and lobbyist to now leading one of the nation’s largest philanthropies focused on children and young people, Lisa has seen how influence works across business, government, philanthropy, and local communities. In this episode of Chief Influencer, Lisa joins host Anthony Shop to discuss why some of the most powerful influence is local, how leaders can identify the right messenger for the right audience, and what it takes to build an “infrastructure of influence” that lasts beyond any one person. They also explore the importance of pairing data with human stories, giving people a clear role in the change you want to create, and using your own influence to elevate others. Lisa shares lessons from her work with young people, the science behind her book Thrive, and decades of work at the Annie E. Casey Foundation to show what long-term influence can accomplish. Takeaways: Some of the most powerful influence is local. Issues become more personal and less abstract when people can see how decisions affect the communities, schools, businesses, and people they know. The CEO isn’t always the right messenger. Effective influence means thinking carefully about the message, the messenger, and the timing, then equipping trusted voices with the information they need. Build an infrastructure of influence. Lasting change requires more than one influential person. It takes data, advocates, researchers, organizations, lived experts, and an ecosystem that can sustain the work over time. Pair data with stories. Data establishes the scope of an issue, but numbers alone rarely move people. Lisa says, “Data and a story is influence.” Give people something to do. Influence shouldn’t stop at helping someone understand a problem. Leaders need to be specific about the change they want to see and help people understand their role in making it happen. Listen before you build the solution. Lisa encourages leaders to engage lived experts early, compensate them for their expertise, prepare them to participate, and follow up so they know how their contributions made a difference. Be a gracious steward of your influence. A leader’s platform doesn’t have to be about self-promotion. Lisa sees it as an opportunity to give visibility and influence back to the people and organizations doing important work. Influence belongs to all of us. Lisa believes social media and declining trust in institutions have shifted influence beyond a small group of traditional power brokers, giving everyday people more ability to create change. Quote of the Show: “You need to be able to go from a simmer to a boil….So you can't just decide today, ‘Oh, I wanna influence X.’ You gotta be evergreen in building that infrastructure so that when the opportunity happens, you can boil and you can seize a moment where public will or political will might be in your favor.” Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lawsonlisamaria/  Website: https://www.aecf.org/  “Thrive” Book Link: https://a.co/d/0ePCa4uS  Shout Outs: Thrive by 25 KIDS COUNT Network Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond UPS Foundation UCLA Center for the Developing Adolescent Solutions Journalism Network Soul Family Framework

Vivian Schiller has spent her career at the forefront of nearly every major transformation in modern media. From serving as President and CEO of NPR and Global Chair of News at Twitter to leading NYTimes.com and serving as Chief Digital Officer of NBC News, Vivian has repeatedly stepped into moments of disruption and helped organizations navigate what comes next. In this episode of Chief Influencer, Vivian joins host Anthony Shop to discuss what decades of leading through change have taught her about trust, influence, and leadership. They explore why soft power can be more effective than formal authority, why great leaders don’t need to be the smartest people in the room, and how curiosity, listening, empathy, and kindness help bring people together. Vivian also shares her perspective on the changing media landscape, the growing influence of creators, and why the biggest threat from AI may not be believing something fake, but reaching a point where people stop believing anything at all. Takeaways: Soft power is the real power. Influence built through relationships, collaboration, and trust can accomplish more than relying on a title or organizational hierarchy. You don’t need to be the smartest person in the room. Strong leaders know how to surround themselves with expertise, listen, connect the dots, and bring people together around a shared goal. Curiosity makes you a better listener. Vivian connects curiosity to listening, empathy, understanding different perspectives, and finding common ground. Meet people where they are. Leaders and institutions can’t simply expect audiences to come to them. They have to understand how people discover and consume information and adapt accordingly. Influence comes from providing value. Whether information comes from an individual creator or a major institution, Vivian believes authority is earned through the value, rigor, honesty, and transparency you bring to your audience. AI is creating a new challenge for trust. The greater danger may not be that people fall for one convincing deepfake, but that they begin to assume anything could be fake and stop trusting what they see and hear altogether. The tools change, but influence remains human. Technology and platforms continue to evolve, but Vivian believes influence still comes back to curiosity, listening, empathy, and finding commonality with others. Quote of the Show: “If your power is derived solely by an organizational chart and by your saying, ‘I’m the boss, you report to me,’ you’ve already lost. Soft power is the real power.” Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vivianschiller/  Website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/  Shout Outs: Søren Kierkegaard Patrick J. McGovern Foundation NPR The New York Times Twitter NBC News CNN Discovery Times Channel Craig Newmark Philanthropies

How do you create meaningful change when the people at the table don't always agree on how to get there? Randall “Randy” Rutta, CEO of the National Health Council, has spent decades answering that question. From contributing to the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act to bringing together nearly 200 organizations around a collective patient voice, Randy has built his career around finding common ground and turning influence into impact. In this episode of Chief Influencer®, Randy joins host Anthony Shop to discuss why influence begins with listening, how leaders can build consensus, and why relationships must be built long before you need them. They explore the idea of “diplomatic disruption,” the ability to challenge systems while maintaining trust and collaboration, and why expertise, honesty, human stories, and lasting relationships remain essential to creating meaningful change. Takeaways: Listen before you try to influence. Understanding the experiences and perspectives of the people most affected by an issue is the starting point for finding meaningful common ground. Build relationships before you need them. Influence isn't transactional or tied to one specific ask. The strongest relationships are built consistently over time. Consensus makes influence more powerful. Bringing different voices together around a shared goal gives decision-makers greater confidence that a solution has meaningful support. Pair expertise with lived experience. Data and credentials matter, but stories help people see the faces behind the facts and understand why an issue matters. Know when to be diplomatic and when to disrupt. Leaders can challenge systems without treating every disagreement as a confrontation. Change often begins with good-faith conversation and collaboration. Be honest about what you don't know. Credibility comes from sharing your expertise while being equally transparent about its limits. Keep people at the center of innovation. Whether you're developing policy, technology, or a new organizational strategy, involving the people affected by your decisions can lead to stronger outcomes. Turn influence into impact. Engagement for the sake of engagement isn't enough. Effective influence should ultimately move people toward a meaningful goal. Quote of the Show: “Influence is a 365-day-a-year sort of thing. It can't be transactional.” Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/randall-rutta-1622952/  Website: https://nationalhealthcouncil.org/  Shout Outs: PCORI: https://www.pcori.org/  Easterseals American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association Americans with Disabilities Act Coalition for Health AI Digital Medicine Society Consumer Technology Association Patient Experience and Innovation Center

In this episode of Chief Influencer, Anthony Shop sits down with JoAnne "Jo" Bass, the 19th Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force and the first woman to serve as the highest-ranking enlisted leader of any U.S. military service. Over 31 years in uniform, Chief Bass advised the Chief of Staff and Secretary of the Air Force on the readiness, resilience, and well-being of more than 600,000 airmen and their families, and she brings that experience directly to bear on how leaders build trust, communicate under pressure, and create cultures where people speak up. The conversation ranges from the debrief rituals Chief Bass used after every mission to gather honest feedback to her now-famous observation that leaders must not confuse the chain of command with the chain of communication in an era when information moves faster than any official channel can control it. She also speaks candidly about carrying the weight of being "the first" without letting it become the whole story, and about why showing up as a real, human leader online, not just an institutional voice, builds the kind of trust that makes harder messages land. Whether you're leading a military unit, a company, or a cause, this episode is a masterclass in earning trust before you need it. Takeaways: Build Trust Before the Crisis: Trust isn't built on speeches or big platforms — it's built in the small, everyday interactions, decisions, and relationships that form a leader's reputation long before any crisis hits. Don't Confuse the Chain of Command with the Chain of Communication: Hierarchy still matters, but information now moves instantly and horizontally. Leaders who rely solely on top-down messaging get outpaced by the narrative. Speed Beats Perfection in a Crisis: In today's information environment, whoever shares their version of events first tends to shape the narrative — regardless of accuracy. Waiting to "see if it blows over" can cost leaders the chance to shape the story at all. Institutionalize the Debrief: After every mission, Chief Bass and her team gathered to ask what went well and what could improve — creating a standing structure for honest, upward feedback regardless of rank. Let People See You're Human: Chief Bass learned that leaders who show personality and authenticity — not just polished institutional messaging — earn the kind of trust that makes people willing to engage with harder, more important content. Let the "First" Be a Byproduct, Not the Goal: Chief Bass didn't set out to be the first woman in her role; she focused on doing the job well and building strong teams, and let recognition follow rather than define her. Recruit for Mission Clarity: Veterans bring a rare ability to define a mission, communicate it clearly, and execute with limited resources — a skill Chief Bass believes is underused in corporate and academic leadership development. Quote of the Show: "Trust is built in the little things. It's not built on the speeches. It's not built on the big platforms." Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jo-bass/  Shout Outs: Face the Fight: wefacethefight.org  Deputy Secretary Paul Lawrence, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Simon Sinek