The Escalation Podcast

with Edyta
  • 0.0 (0)
  • Careers
  • Updated Weekly

The Escalation Podcast blends thoughtful solo reflections with candid conversations with high-performing leaders across banking, finance, law, and the wider corporate world. Each episode explores the psychology, culture, and unspoken dynamics of ambitious careers — from decision-making under pressure to identity, leadership, and the personal cost of success. Through lived experiences and honest dialogue, the podcast looks beyond titles and achievements to examine what it really means to build a career in an industry that shapes not only what we do, but who we become. This is where the professional and the personal meet — the human side of banking and finance.

Episodes

  1. May 28

    The Human Side of Leadership in Global Finance with Sol Kuckelman

    On this episode of The Escalation Podcast, I’m joined by Sol Kuckelman, who most recently served as General Counsel for the Americas and APAC at Man Group plc, the world’s largest publicly listed asset manager - a role that placed him right at the intersection of financial markets, regulation, and strategy. We first crossed paths years ago when I was at Man, and I remember how clearly his reputation stood out - calm under pressure, commercially sharp, and known for balancing legal precision with commercial reality. A rare combination of emotional intelligence, clarity, and leadership. In this episode, we talk about what it really takes to deliver - and keep delivering - in roles of this scale. About leadership under pressure, the importance of emotional intelligence, and the lessons learned from navigating success and failure in high-stakes environments. I'm excited to share this incredibly thoughtful and grounded conversation with you. A huge thank you to Sol for bringing such depth, openness, and insight to this episode. Connect with him: https://www.linkedin.com/in/solomon-kuckelman/ ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction — Who Is Sol Kuckelman? 01:35 Building a Career at Man Group 02:33 Why Sol Chose Law & Finance 03:21 What Lawyers Really Do 04:35 Early Days in Private Practice 05:55 Joining Man Group During the Financial Crisis 07:48 Letting Go of Perfectionism 09:39 AI, Emotional Intelligence & Modern Lawyering 11:16 The Skills Needed to Become General Counsel 13:36 Stakeholder Management & Building Influence 14:39 Managing Egos & Difficult Negotiations 17:14 Negotiation, Relationships & Getting to Yes 18:49 What Makes a Great Leader? 20:24 Developing Teams & Creating Growth Opportunities 21:35 Failure, Resilience & Learning From Mistakes 24:05 Commercial Awareness vs Legal Semantics 25:45 Sol's Biggest Career Successes 28:08 Why Culture & Conviction Matter 30:12 Did Sol Ever Want to Quit? 33:33 Is the Grind Still Necessary? 35:31 Grind vs Intentional Career Building 37:52 Career Advice for Aspiring Lawyers 40:48 Sol's Negotiation Playbook 43:25 The Future of Finance & Asset Management 47:11 What’s Next for Sol Kuckelman? 48:03 Handling Pressure, Crisis & Escalations 51:49 Final Reflections & Closing Thoughts

    53 min

  2. May 22

    Climbing Through the Ranks with Pascale Lebaillif

    On this episode of The Escalation Podcast, I’m joined by Pascale Lebaillif - a woman who’s lived at the very heart of global finance and now reshapes how leaders rise within it. Over two decades, Pascale climbed through the ranks of the world’s most powerful institutions - Crédit Agricole CIB, Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, and J.P. Morgan - leading global teams, steering strategy, and shaping the leadership pipelines that define corporate success. Today, she channels that hard-earned experience into her work as a Professional Growth Coach, guiding ambitious women to cut through the noise of corporate life, build real influence, and claim the recognition they’ve worked for. Beyond coaching, she’s also Partner and COO at Susten, an investment firm driving innovation in renewable energy. In this conversation, we uncover what it really takes to move from potential to power: the politics, the presence, and the mindset shifts that separate those who rise from those who stall. Connect with her: https://www.maximumpotentialcareers.com/ ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction — From Global Finance Executive to Career Coach 02:17 An Unexpected Start — Why Pascale Studied Law Instead of Medicine 03:30 Breaking Into Banking & Finance 04:49 Early Career Lessons & The Power of Supportive Teams 06:32 Career Turning Points — Morgan Stanley, London & New Opportunities 08:32 Building Teams & Learning Leadership at JP Morgan 10:45 The Mindset Shift Needed to Climb the Corporate Ladder 13:13 Women in Finance — Ambition, Perception & Double Standards 15:50 Work-Life Balance, Trade-Offs & Building a Support Network 19:30 Why Women Undersell Themselves 20:42 The “Good Girl Syndrome” & Confidence Challenges 21:38 Confidence vs Courage — The Key to Career Growth 22:43 Why We Chase Success & What Really Matters 24:13 Navigating Career Expectations from Family & Society 26:10 Is the Grind Essential for Success? 27:52 A Day in the Life of a COO 29:12 Focus, Productivity & the Pomodoro Technique 30:26 Remote Work vs Office Life — Where Do We Learn Best? 33:32 Managing Pressure in High-Performance Environments 35:04 Setting Boundaries Without Damaging Your Career 37:02 Building Confidence Through Action 38:34 Escalations, Conflict & Leadership Under Pressure 40:49 How Great Managers Handle Difficult Situations 42:14 Trust, Collaboration & the Human Side of Business 42:54 Self-Promotion Without Feeling Like You're Bragging 45:19 Final Reflections, Career Resources & Where to Find Pascale

    47 min

  3. May 20

    The Language of Corporate Emails

    Corporate emails: the rules everyone knows, but nobody writes down … and the ones that can make or break your career. From CAPS LOCK panic to CC chaos, “Quick Question” subject lines that are never quick, and the dreaded “As per my last email”, this episode of The Escalation Podcast dives into the unspoken rules of email culture. We all know it’s not just what you write — it’s how people read it. A full stop feels cold. A smiley face feels sarcastic. And sometimes, silence feels louder than any reply. In this witty but insightful breakdown, I’ll explore: - Why email isn’t just communication — it’s interpretation. - The 10 unspoken rules of corporate email culture. - How perception (and the “perception bubble” ‪@jayshetty‬ talks about) shapes our inbox anxiety. - Why sometimes an email is just text on a screen … and sometimes, it’s corporate theatre in 11pt Arial. If you’ve ever hit Reply All by mistake, fallen for the recall button placebo, or overthought a “Thanks,” this one’s for you. 🎧 Listen in and laugh at the chaos — because in the end, the only power an email really has … is the power you give it. ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 Corporate Email — The Most Dangerous Language at Work 00:51 Why Emails Matter More Than We Admit 02:00 The Emails That Shape Your Reputation 03:26 Overthinking Tone, Timing & Perception 03:45 CAPS LOCK Means War 04:02 The CC Chain of Doom 04:31 Weaponised Email Timing 04:57 Subject Line Psychology 05:25 The CC Olympics & Reply All Chaos 06:00 Formatting as Passive Aggression 06:19 Email Signatures & Corporate Identity 06:54 The Ghost Emailer & The Power of Silence 07:28 Attachments — The Bermuda Triangle of Email 07:53 The Corporate Passive Aggressive Dictionary 08:22 Why Email Is Really About Perception 09:00 Don’t Take Your Inbox Personally 09:33 Awareness, Sanity Filters & Final Thoughts

    10 min

  4. May 19

    What it Takes to Lead 300 Lawyers Across 3 Continents with Simon Welch

    Few leaders leave a mark on your career forever — Simon Welch is one of them. His CV is remarkable: senior roles spanning private banking, asset management, and investment banking. Most recently, he served as Global Head of Legal Sustainability at Credit Suisse AG, shaping the bank’s ESG strategy. Before that, he led global legal & compliance teams supporting more than 18,000 employees worldwide. Behind every big institution are leaders who quietly move the industry forward — Simon is one of those rare people. On this episode of The Escalation Podcast, we talk about what leadership at scale really means, navigating high-stakes decisions, and a few personal stories from our time working together. This one feels full circle for me — and I can’t wait to share it with you. Connect with him: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-welch-law/ ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction — Who Is Simon Welch? 01:22 Why Law? Simon’s Early Ambition 02:35 First Jobs & Learning to Deal With People 03:16 From Criminal Law to Banking & Finance 04:37 Breaking Into the Legal Profession 06:44 From Lecturer to Banking 08:24 First Days at Credit Suisse 10:01 Is Banking & Finance Worth It? 11:12 Managing 18,000 People 12:10 The Reality of the Grind 13:13 Building Culture & Leading Teams 15:13 Grind vs Hustle 15:52 The Cost of High Performance 17:27 What Makes a Great Leader? 18:02 Values, Difficult Decisions & Knowing When to Leave 20:07 Pressure, Stress & Banking Culture 22:46 Culture, Relationships & Lasting Impact 23:22 A Day in the Life of a Global General Counsel 24:51 Why Approachability Matters 25:36 Developing People & Future Leaders 26:35 Great Bosses vs Terrible Bosses 27:27 Career Growth & Escaping Pigeonholes 28:11 Creating Opportunities Through Hustle 29:22 Banking Culture, Diversity & Industry Challenges 31:36 Three Words That Define Banking 33:19 Credit Suisse Reflections 33:31 A Memorable Escalation 36:56 What’s Next for Simon Welch? 39:42 Final Reflections & Closing Thoughts

    40 min

  5. May 5

    Hustle Culture in Banking & Finance

    Is Gen Z breaking the hustle culture? For decades, we were taught to measure ambition by hours worked, emails sent, and meetings survived. But a new generation is flipping the script: freedom, flexibility, and purpose now outrank burnout-as-a-badge. If hustle was engineered to keep us running, maybe the real success is in choosing when and why we run at all. ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction — Your First Week at a Top Tier Bank 00:52 Welcome to The Escalation Podcast — The Grind Culture Episode 01:30 Edyta's Confession — Knowing the Grind Intimately 02:06 The Entrepreneurial Trap — When the Hustle Shapeshifts 02:50 How Grind Culture Was Engineered — Wall Street to the City 03:50 The Pandemic Intervention — Remote Work & the Grind Morphs 05:20 The Grind Is Back — Fiercer and More Unapologetic Than Ever 05:55 Enter Gen Z — The Generation Rewriting the Rules 07:04 Why Do We Keep Grinding? The Fear Beneath the Hustle 08:25 The Solution — Sustainability Over Scarcity 08:54 Why the Early Grind Was Solid Gold — Edyta's Immigrant Work Ethic 09:41 Home vs Office — It's Not a Binary Choice 10:13 When the Grind Is a Catapult, Not a Curse 10:48 Grind With Purpose — Choose Your Room 11:03 Closing Thought — Make Sure It's Your Wheels Turning

    11 min

  6. Apr 2

    Relational Capacity: The Missing Link to Thriving (with Kerry-Lyn Stanton-Downes)

    Your body knows before your brain does. The meeting hasn't started, but something in the room already tells you it's not safe to speak. In this episode, I sit down with Kerry-Lyn Stanton-Downes - relationship psychotherapist, advisor, TEDx speaker, and author of the forthcoming "Beyond Words: How to Lead People from Survival to Success" (May 2026) - to explore why workplace mental health can't be fixed with individual coping tools alone. Kerry-Lyn's work centers on a powerful idea: the brain is a relational organ, and psychological safety isn't something leaders declare - it's something people experience in the space between them. This conversation moves away from frameworks and into something more familiar, but rarely named. Together with Kerry-Lyn, we explore: • Why your nervous system reacts before logic has time to catch up • How people adapt their behaviour in real time depending on the room they’re in • Why “high performance” often sits on top of unspoken tension and misalignment • The difference between what organisations say about culture and what people actually experience • Why many workplace challenges labelled as “individual issues” are, in reality, relational dynamics playing out • What happens to communication, trust, and decision-making when relational safety breaks down • And why the most important leadership skill isn’t technical, but something far less visible This is not a conversation about fixing people. It’s about seeing the system - and our place within it - more clearly. We're living through something most of us can feel but few are naming. What Kerry-Lyn calls "relational poverty". Not only in workplaces, but in all the spaces in between us. We're more connected than ever, surrounded by an endless flow of information, yet somehow the human gets forgotten. The relationships we often glorify - because they fill a certain void - feel weaker than ever. The quality of our connection is measured in likes, views and follows. And its not because we're not capable. It's because we've been focusing on the wrong kind of connection. The future exists - between us. Connect with her: Website: www.berelational.co.uk LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kerry-lyn-stanton-downes Substack: Kerry-Lyn Stanton-Downes | Substack Newsletter: https://www.berelational.co.uk/#newsletter ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction — Who is Kerry-Lyn Stanton-Downes? 01:35 Mental Health in High Performance — Why Spending Isn't Working 02:26 Relational Poverty — The Real Root of the Crisis 04:22 Emotional Intelligence vs Relational Intelligence 05:13 Kerry-Lyn's Origin Story 06:50 The Brain as a Relational Organ 08:20 Patterns in High Pressure Environments 10:31 What Makes a Good Leader Today? 11:27 AI & the Relational Competitive Edge 13:27 Fixing vs Reorienting Organisations 16:29 Bridging the Generational Gap 17:19 The Eight Principles of Relational Capacity 24:17 Most Leadership Challenges Are Relational, Not Transactional 25:50 Three Practical Steps for High Stakes Meetings 27:29 Kerry-Lyn's TEDx Experience 30:03 "The Future Exists Between Us" 31:55 Beyond Words — The Book 35:14 Reading the Room — Beyond the 10% of Words 38:06 Thinking, Emotion & Body — The Three Functions 43:00 How to Expand Your Relational Capacity 46:31 Managing Emotional & Transactional Team Members 49:46 Listening vs Hearing 50:24 Escalations & Relational Capital 52:07 What Is Your Escalation Really in Service Of?

    54 min

  7. Mar 5

    Derivatives Expert Allan Yip: 30 Years Inside the Industry

    In this episode of The Escalation Podcast, I sit down with Allan Yip, a derivatives lawyer whose career spans more than three decades across private practice and global investment banks.   Allan began at the Bar before moving into banking and finance law at Clifford Chance during the industry’s expansion years. He later moved in-house at JPMorgan Chase and Bear Stearns, experiencing first-hand the shockwaves of the 2008 crisis, before returning to private practice as a partner at Simmons & Simmons.   He was at Bear Stearns when it collapsed. He was advising clients when Lehman Brothers fell. And he went on to build a leading buy-side derivatives practice during one of the most heavily regulated periods in financial history.   This is a conversation about defining moments and what they reveal.   We discuss: The realities of moving between in-house and private practice Why regulation is always reactive How negotiation is won through mindset, not ego The discipline of answering the question, not hiding behind “it’s standard” Managing escalation without retaliation Leadership that invites challenge rather than demands agreement   At its core, this episode is about longevity- what it takes to sustain a career in high-pressure environments without losing perspective, professionalism, or humility.   A huge thank you to Allan for sharing not only his technical insight, but the principles that shaped a remarkable career.   About Allan Yip:  Allan is a specialist in prime brokerage, derivatives, derivatives regulation and structured products. He advises hedge funds and institutional asset managers on all aspects of their trading relationships with market counterparties, including prime brokerage arrangements, derivatives documentation and broader trading agreements. He also provides specialist regulatory advice on derivatives and trading matters, including EMIR, SFTR, BRRD and BMR. Allan is a regular speaker and panelist at industry conferences, including those organized by International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) and Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA), where he shares insight on derivatives markets and regulation.   Connect with him:  LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/allanyip/?originalSubdomain=uk   ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction – Allan Yip’s 30-Year Legal Career 01:00 From the Bar to Banking Law 02:00 Growing Up & Falling Into Law 04:00 Joining Clifford Chance & Discovering Derivatives 06:00 Career Positioning & Work-Life Balance 09:00 The 2008 Financial Crisis – Bear Stearns & Lehman Collapse 12:00 Rebuilding After the Crisis 15:00 In-House vs Private Practice 17:00 Has the Industry Learned Since 2008? 20:00 Service, Humility & Career Lessons 23:00 Best Advice: “Great Change Comes Great Opportunity” 25:00 Why You Should Never Burn Bridges 26:00 Secrets to Successful Negotiation 29:00 Sun Tzu & Strategic Concessions 31:00 Handling Escalations Under Pressure 35:00 What Makes a Great Leader? 38:00 Final Reflections & Closing Thoughts

    40 min

  8. Mar 5

    Managing Upwards - Escalate Your Career by Mastering the Power Dynamic

    In January 2025, Forbes named managing upwards the number one skill for surviving—and thriving—in corporate life.   And they were on to something. Your career isn’t built on output alone; it’s built on perceived value — on how effectively you translate your work into the language leadership understands and responds to.   In this episode of The Escalation Podcast, I unpack the art of managing up.   You’ll learn: 💡 How to build influence and credibility with the people above you. 💡 The 5 expert-backed tactics for managing up without kissing up (from HBR, Forbes, and Cambridge). 💡 How to map the real power structures in your organisation — the shadow networks that actually move decisions. 💡 And why visibility isn’t arrogance, it’s career currency.   Managing the management isn’t about pleasing people. It’s about strategy, emotional intelligence, and owning your narrative.   If you’ve ever felt unseen, unheard, or underestimated — this episode is the spark your career needs.     ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 – The Anxiety of Managing Up 01:00 – Why Managing Up Is a Career Superpower 01:30 – Lessons from Credit Suisse 02:30 – Influence vs Technical Skill 03:00 – Perceived Value vs Performance 04:00 – The Danger of Invisibility 05:00 – Aligning With Management’s Agenda 05:30 – 5 Tactics to Manage Up 06:00 – Adapt to Leadership Styles (incl. Man Group) 07:00 – Strategic Questions & Visibility 08:00 – Emotional Intelligence in Power Dynamics 09:00 – Understanding Real vs Official Power Structures 10:30 – Managing Up at Senior Levels 11:30 – Final Reflection: Who Owns Your Narrative?

    12 min

  9. Mar 5

    Leadership, Pressure and the Human Cost of High Performance with Tom Ungi

    At some point in your career, success stops being about capability and starts being about capacity.   Capacity to think clearly. Capacity to lead. Capacity to stay grounded under pressure.   In today’s episode of The Escalation Podcast, I sit down with Tom Ungi to explore what really sits behind performance in high-pressure environments - leadership, identity, resilience, and the human cost of always operating at the top.   This is not a conversation about frameworks or surface-level optimisation.   Tom brings a rare perspective shaped by nearly two decades inside elite finance, including his time as Managing Director and Head of Trading at Millennium, where he helped scale the business across Europe and the Middle East. He understands first-hand what sustained pressure, responsibility, and decision-making at the highest level actually demand.   Today, as Co-Founder and CEO of True Partnership, Tom works with hedge fund leaders, traders, and senior executives who want more than short-term performance. His work blends direct, results-driven methodologies with a deeply relational and empathetic approach - grounded in lived experience and academic research, including doctoral work on leadership and trauma.   This is one of those conversations that stays with you long after it ends.   Get to know Tom Ungi: Tom Ungi is Co-Founder and CEO of True Partnership and a former Managing Director and Head of Trading at Millennium, where he spent nearly 20 years leading growth across Europe and the Middle East. Now an executive coach, Tom helps leaders challenge assumptions, navigate complexity, and drive meaningful results.  He holds an MSc in Executive Coaching and is pursuing a doctorate focused on leadership and trauma.   Connect with him: Website: https://truepartnership.com/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/truepartnership       ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 Introduction – From Millennium to Coaching 02:00 Alpha vs Self-Awareness 03:45 Why Awareness Requires a Pause 05:00 The Pivot: From Trading Floor to Coaching 07:55 What Coaching Really Is (Developmental, Performance, Transformational) 10:22 Emotions in Finance & Psychological Safety 13:39 Values Under Pressure 16:03 Patterns That Block Promotion 19:14 Why Hard Work Stops Working at Senior Level 21:55 Imposter Syndrome – Lean Into It 24:38 Burnout & Hidden Stress Signals 27:02 Leadership Responsibility & Awareness 28:07 The Desire to Be Liked in Finance 29:06 Losing Yourself to Fit In

    53 min

  10. Mar 5

    The Quiet Psychology of Imposter Syndrome

    Imposter syndrome is often framed as a weakness - something to fix, silence, or overcome. But in high-performance careers, that narrative misses something important.   In this episode of The Escalation Podcast, I explore imposter syndrome through a different lens: not as a flaw in confidence, but as a psychological signal that often appears at the edges of growth.   Drawing on psychology, behavioral research, and real-world experience from banking, finance, law, and consulting, this episode unpacks why self-doubt shows up most powerfully in environments where standards are high, expectations are relentless, and visibility matters.   You’ll learn: Why doubt tends to whisper rather than shout — and why that makes it so convincing How the brain’s survival wiring confuses unfamiliarity with incapability Why confidence doesn’t always rise alongside competence The different patterns imposter syndrome takes (perfectionism, over-preparation, paralysis, people-pleasing) How identity, upbringing, and corporate culture shape the way high performers experience self-doubt Why many of the most capable professionals struggle to internalise success And how reframing imposter syndrome can fundamentally change the way you approach growth, ambition, and leadership. This episode is for anyone who has ever  questioned whether they truly belong in the room, felt relief after success instead of pride, assumed confidence should come before responsibility or wondered why self-doubt intensifies just as their career progresses.   Rather than offering platitudes or surface-level motivation, this episode invites a deeper understanding of self-doubt - when to listen to it, when to challenge it, and when its absence might be a signal to re-evaluate whether you’re still stretching yourself. ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 – The Corporate Confidence Gap 01:17 – Why High Performers Feel Self-Doubt 01:38 – Your Brain on Uncertainty 03:00 – Survival Mode in Boardrooms 04:10 – High-Performance Culture & Comparison 05:00 – The Perfect Storm for Imposter Syndrome 05:40 – Identity Lag Explained 06:30 – The 5 Imposter Archetypes 07:20 – The 4 P’s: Perfectionism, Procrastination, Paralysis, People-Pleasing 08:20 – Reframing Doubt as Growth 09:28 – Practical Tools to Manage Self-Doubt 10:00 – Keep a “Confidence File” 10:30 – Act First, Confidence Follows 11:00 – Updating Your Professional Identity 11:30 – Walking With Fear, Not Fighting It ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About The Escalation Podcast   The Escalation Podcast blends thoughtful solo reflections with in-depth conversations with high-performing leaders across banking, finance, law, consulting, and the wider corporate world.   Each episode explores the psychology, culture, and unspoken dynamics of ambitious careers offering insight into how professionals navigate pressure, identity, and success at the highest levels.

    12 min

  11. Mar 5

    What Happens When Wall Street Meets Visionary Innovation with Gabino Roche

    On this week's episode of The Escalation Podcast, I’m joined by Gabino Roche Jr., CEO and Founder of Saphyre — a true visionary and fintech innovator, transforming how global financial institutions connect, trade, and share data.   With over twenty years of experience at the intersection of finance and technology, Gabino’s journey spans senior leadership roles at the NYSE, J.P. Morgan, and McKinsey & Company.    In 2017, he founded Saphyre to tackle one of Wall Street’s most persistent challenges — the inefficiency and duplication in client onboarding and pre-trade processes.   Today, Saphyre's revolutionary AI-powered technology provides solutions to some of the world’s largest financial institutions, helping them achieve real-time readiness and transforming how markets operate.    And the most exciting part? It feels like they're only just getting started!   In this conversation, we unpack the future of fintech innovation, what it takes to build products that truly transform the traditional system, and how to turn deep industry insight into global impact with a team that is led by pure vision.   A huge thank you to Gabino Roche Jr. for this incredible conversation — and for your time, honesty and insight. Your vision for Saphyre, leadership, and transformation in the banking and finance industry is truly inspiring.      Get to know Gabino Roche Gabino is the Founder and CEO of Saphyre with over 20 years of experience building products for Fortune 500 companies. He previously served as Managing Director at the NYSE and Senior Vice President at JPMorgan, where he led a $40M custody portfolio and modernized KYC/AML operations. He has also held leadership roles at McKinsey and Clarient Global, managing large-scale fintech initiatives backed by major global banks.   Connect with him: Website: https://www.saphyre.com/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabinoroche/     ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 – Intro: Meet Gabino Roche (Sapphire CEO) 01:00 – What Sapphire Actually Does 02:00 – Why Finance? Early Inspiration 05:30 – McKinsey & Product Thinking 07:00 – NYSE During the 2008 Crisis 09:00 – JP Morgan, KYC & Industry Gaps 12:00 – Why Finance Still Reconciles Data 15:00 – Founding Sapphire & Early Lessons 21:00 – Selling to Big Banks 29:00 – AI in Finance: What Actually Works 34:30 – The Breakthrough Moment (2018) 36:00 – Handling Escalations as CEO 38:00 – Resilience, Faith & Leadership 41:00 – The “Quest” Mindset & Closing

    42 min

  12. Feb 18

    The Power Of Corporate Escalations

    We shape-shift daily. It's almost a reflex - an on-demand habit we've been building and perfecting over the years. As we grow, so do the expectations. And in our industry that growth, that constant climb, is the game.   The better we get at it—chasing the next promotion, collecting new titles—the more eyes are on us. We crave admiration and recognition, but with that often comes exposure and judgment.   Welcome to The Escalation Podcast – where we talk about the reality of working in the banking and finance industry through the lenses of real people. In our opening episode, we’re going back to where it all started – before the titles and identity edits.   ⏱ Episode Chapters 00:00 – The corporate ladder & identity shifts 01:00 – Welcome to The Escalation Podcast 01:40 – The origin of “escalation” (Latin scala) 02:20 – Lyndon B. Johnson & the Vietnam-era shift 03:00 – Escalation as banking protocol 04:30 – The psychology of “urgent” emails 05:00 – Lessons from Credit Suisse 06:00 – Escalation of commitment & ego 07:00 – A new perspective after corporate life 08:00 – Why no one teaches escalation strategy 10:20 – Cultural silence & The Big Short 10:40 – Quote from Warren Buffett 11:00 – What to expect in Season 1

    12 min

Trailer

About

The Escalation Podcast blends thoughtful solo reflections with candid conversations with high-performing leaders across banking, finance, law, and the wider corporate world. Each episode explores the psychology, culture, and unspoken dynamics of ambitious careers — from decision-making under pressure to identity, leadership, and the personal cost of success. Through lived experiences and honest dialogue, the podcast looks beyond titles and achievements to examine what it really means to build a career in an industry that shapes not only what we do, but who we become. This is where the professional and the personal meet — the human side of banking and finance.

Information

  • Creator
    with Edyta
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    12
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © The Escalation Podcast, 2025
  • Show Website
    The Escalation Podcast