The Step UP – Where Leaders, Talent Managers and Leadership Development pros find expert tips for Leadership excellence
The Step UP - Where Leaders, Talent Managers and Leadership Development pros find expert tips for Leadership excellence
Podcast Description
About the Podcast
The Step Up brings together experts who help leaders elevate their impact. Each 45-minute episode features conversations with thought leaders, practitioners, and innovators who are changing how we think about leadership development and helping leaders step up their game.
Why This Podcast Exists
Throughout my career—from my time at organizations like Korn Ferry, Cargill, General Mills, and Buffalo Wild Wings to my current work as an independent leadership consultant—I've witnessed firsthand how leaders struggle during moments of change and transition and when learning higher-level skills. Work never slows down, and leaders often find themselves trying to grow while in the thick of daily demands.
The Step Up is designed to provide practical wisdom and actionable strategies that busy leaders can implement immediately to enhance their effectiveness.
What to Expect
Each episode follows a two-part format:
Part One: Leadership Journeys
We explore our guest's background, expertise, and unique perspective on leadership development. You'll hear authentic stories about their experiences supporting leaders and the insights they've gained along the way.
Part Two: Actionable Strategies
Our guests share three specific, practical tools or approaches that you can apply to your leadership right away. We dig into each one, discussing how to implement it effectively in your unique context.
Your Host
Kent Kniebel brings over 20 years of experience in leadership development, talent management, and DEI consulting to each conversation. Drawing on his background in corporate HR roles and external consulting work, Kent guides discussions that bridge theory and practice, focusing on what really works in today's leadership landscape.
Connect with Kent
Have questions about the podcast or want to continue the conversation? Connect with Kent on LinkedIn or visit Kniebel Leadership Advisory to learn more about his work supporting leaders during critical transitions.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast focuses on themes of leadership development, change management, and coaching with episodes that explore various topics like how discomfort fosters growth, integrating leadership training into daily workflows, and the importance of coachability after promotions. Specific episode examples include insights on managing change with Nick Tasler and strategies for scaling leadership training with Bri Flynn.
About the Podcast
The Step Up brings together experts who help leaders elevate their impact. Each 45-minute episode features conversations with thought leaders, practitioners, and innovators who are changing how we think about leadership development and helping leaders step up their game.
Why This Podcast Exists
Throughout my career—from my time at organizations like Korn Ferry, Cargill, General Mills, and Buffalo Wild Wings to my current work as an independent leadership consultant—I’ve witnessed firsthand how leaders struggle during moments of change and transition and when learning higher-level skills. Work never slows down, and leaders often find themselves trying to grow while in the thick of daily demands.
The Step Up is designed to provide practical wisdom and actionable strategies that busy leaders can implement immediately to enhance their effectiveness.
What to Expect
Each episode follows a two-part format:
Part One: Leadership Journeys
We explore our guest’s background, expertise, and unique perspective on leadership development. You’ll hear authentic stories about their experiences supporting leaders and the insights they’ve gained along the way.
Part Two: Actionable Strategies
Our guests share three specific, practical tools or approaches that you can apply to your leadership right away. We dig into each one, discussing how to implement it effectively in your unique context.
Your Host
Kent Kniebel brings over 20 years of experience in leadership development, talent management, and DEI consulting to each conversation. Drawing on his background in corporate HR roles and external consulting work, Kent guides discussions that bridge theory and practice, focusing on what really works in today’s leadership landscape.
Connect with Kent
Have questions about the podcast or want to continue the conversation? Connect with Kent on LinkedIn or visit Kniebel Leadership Advisory to learn more about his work supporting leaders during critical transitions.
Trust isn’t built through big gestures. It’s built, and broken, through small ones. In this episode, Kent talks with leadership consultant and author Gerd Bents about his Leadership Map framework and what it actually takes to develop as a leader over time. The conversation covers why skills alone aren’t enough, how AI is going to break human trust before it builds it, and what it means to lead from a place of courage rather than confidence.
Guest: Gerd Bents is a leadership consultant, coach, and author with nearly 30 years of experience working with executives and organizations through change, drawing on backgrounds in psychology, sociology, and leadership development.
In this episode:
- 02:10 — Gerd’s background: from athletics to executive leadership consulting in the finance industry
- 03:42 — The Leadership Map: mindset, awareness, and practice as three dynamic, ongoing elements
- 06:45 — Why focusing only on skills is a fixed mindset trap
- 08:00 — Skills vs. mastery: using feedback as a case study, and getting your 10,000 reps
- 11:55 — AI, layoffs, and why human leadership skills are becoming more valuable, not less
- 18:33 — How trust erodes slowly and why AI is going to break it at scale
- 22:40 — Working with skeptical senior leaders in finance: how to bring mindset work to people who don’t expect it
- 28:57 — The three illusions from Profound Space: confidence, information, and freedom
- 34:05 — Gerd’s advice for leaders seeking promotion and leaders who just stepped up
Resources mentioned:
- Profound Space by Gerd Bents — createprofoundspace.com
- Radical Candor by Kim Scott
- Coachability by Kevin Wilde (Carlson School, former General Mills HR leader)
- Viktor Frankl on autonomy and mindset
- Simon Sinek on asking for advice instead of feedback
- Brene Brown on courage and vulnerability
- Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway by Susan Jeffers
Links for today’s show:
- Gerd Bents on LinkedIn(flag for Kent to fill in)
- createprofoundspace.com
- Profound Space Book
- Kent Kniebel on LinkedIn
- The Promoted Leader Toolkit
Music for this podcast comes from a live recording of the song Needle & Thread and is provided with permission by Pert’ Near Sandstone. Check them out on pertnearsandstone.com and on all major streaming platforms.
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Disclaimer
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