Leadership Discoveries

Dr. Shirley Kavanagh
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Leadership Discoveries™ explores how accomplished leaders exercise judgement, navigate complexity and create impact. Drawing on her experience as a senior executive, executive advisor and leadership scholar, Dr Shirley Kavanagh brings listeners inside candid conversations with CEOs, founders, board leaders and innovators, exploring the decisions, experiences and leadership thinking that shape organisations and careers.

  1. May 18

    Leading with Courage, Compassion, and Resilience: Deirdre Garvey, Secretary General of the Irish Red Cross

    In this episode, I speak with Deirdre Garvey, Secretary General of the Irish Red Cross, about courage, compassion, and resilience in leadership. Deirdre leads the staff team, supports the Board, and works alongside thousands of volunteers in an organisation dedicated to saving lives, alleviating suffering, and helping communities respond to emergencies and disasters. With senior leadership experience in the charity and nonprofit sector since 1995, Deirdre shares her reflections on taking risks, transitioning well between leadership roles, managing the deep emotion and purpose that characterise humanitarian work, and caring for yourself while caring for others. We also explore what people-centred leadership means in a world increasingly shaped by AI. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Deirdre at RedCross.ie and on LinkedIn

    52 min

  2. Apr 13

    Board Leadership with Sylvia Cronin, Chartered Director

    Sylvia Cronin is a highly experienced Chairperson and Independent Non-Executive Director (INED) with an exceptional leadership career spanning financial services, insurance, governance, and regulation. She also currently holds a number of major board roles, including Chairperson of Mercer Global Investments Europe and AIB Life, and Senior Independent Director of FBD Insurance and Canada Life. Hear her advice for board members of tech companies, how a board role differs from an executive leadership role, how to prepare leaders to lead through crises, whether organizations are maximizing their use of AI, and where we’re at in terms of diversity of thought at the board level. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Sylvia on LinkedIn

    32 min

  3. Mar 30

    The Leader as an Emotional Capitalist with John Broderick, RocheMartin

    John Broderick, MSc is a Senior Psychologist with considerable experience in assessment, training, and coaching in emotional intelligence assessment, leadership development, and psychometrics. He is a qualified trainer in a range of psychometric tools, the Emotional Capital Report (ECR) and ECR 360, the MMPI-2, and NEO Personality Inventory. He is a Founding Director of RocheMartin Ltd, a leadership development company. Hear how women & men often differ when it comes to emotional intelligence (EQ), how emotional intelligence can be developed, what emotional intelligence can add for leaders, the best way to measure your EQ, and how we should be thinking about AI from a leadership standpoint. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and John at RocheMartin.com and on LinkedIn

    34 min

  4. Mar 23

    Thriving Talent: How Great Leaders Drive Performance, Engagement, and Retention with Aoife O’Brien, Happier at Work

    Aoife O’Brien is a Workplace Culture Strategist, Podcast Host, and the Founder of the award-winning podcast Happier at Work. Her upcoming book, Thriving Talent: How Great Leaders Drive Performance, Engagement, and Retention, explores how leaders can create environments where people feel valued, aligned, and equipped, and where performance follows as a result. Hear how leaders can lift & sustain engagement levels, the important role of self-awareness, how to let your team have autonomy, the reality of hybrid work environments, and how tech & AI will continue to shape our relationships in the workplace. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Aoife at ThrivingTalentBook.com and on LinkedIn

    38 min

  5. 12/22/2025

    Conscious Competence: The Leadership Upgrade for 2026 with Dean McAlister, Inizio Biotech

    Returning guest Dean McAlister, EVP, Inizio Biotech, has spent over 35 years in Fortune 500 pharma leadership, including nearly 3 decades at AstraZeneca. Hear how to prepare to lead in an uncertain environment, how to develop conscious competence as a leadership skill, how to become more adaptable as a leader, how to stop your ego from getting in the way as a leader, and how to build the courage to say what needs to be said in meetings. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Dean on LinkedIn

    33 min

  6. 12/08/2025

    Digital Literacy & Digital Fluency with AI: Dr. Kisito Futonge Nzembayie on Leading Digital Transformation

    Dr. Kisito Futonge Nzembayie is an Assistant Professor at Trinity Business School, Director of the MSc in Entrepreneurship & Innovation, and a serial EdTech founder. Hear how to build entrepreneurial spirit within your organization, why AI readiness (Artificial Intelligence) is about more than just technology, the importance of digital literacy & digital fluency when it comes to AI, what causes digital transformation efforts to fail, and what he learned about cultural intelligence & cultural awareness from his experiences in China. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Kisito on LinkedIn

    41 min

  7. 07/28/2025

    Ailbhe Mc Namara - A Gen Z Take on Leadership

    Welcome back to our special Gen Z mini-series of Leadership Discoveries! In this episode, you’ll hear Ailbhe Mc Namara, 1st Year Human Resources Management (HRM) Student at Technological University Dublin. Hear how leaders can provide more guidance & mentorship, what we can learn from bad leadership, why Gen Z has the reputation of being more outspoken, why a strong purpose makes a strong culture, and a surprising Quick-Fire round. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Ailbhe at TUDublin.ie and on LinkedIn

    16 min

  8. 07/21/2025

    Barry Kavanagh - A Gen Z Take on Leadership

    Welcome back to our special Gen Z mini-series of Leadership Discoveries! In this episode, you’ll hear Barry Kavanagh, Customer Success Manager at Diligent. Hear how Gen Zers and Zillennials think about their career path, why Steven Bartlett is so inspiring, what goes into a holistic company culture, the importance of emotional intelligence (EQ) in a leader, and a Quick-Fire round filled with AI. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Barry at Diligent.com and on LinkedIn

    20 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Leadership Discoveries™ explores how accomplished leaders exercise judgement, navigate complexity and create impact. Drawing on her experience as a senior executive, executive advisor and leadership scholar, Dr Shirley Kavanagh brings listeners inside candid conversations with CEOs, founders, board leaders and innovators, exploring the decisions, experiences and leadership thinking that shape organisations and careers.

Information

  • Creator
    Dr. Shirley Kavanagh
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    25
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2024 Shirley Kavanagh Consulting
  • Show Website
    Leadership Discoveries