DECODING AQ - Adaptability For The Future Of Work With Ross Thornley

Ross Thornley + Special Guests
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DEVELOPING A NEW PLATFORM FOR CHANGE IN AN EXPONENTIAL WORLD.   Conversations with special guests on their stories of adaptability. From resilience, grit and motivation, to stress, mindset and support from those around us. We explore the science and real-life experiences of adaption. Helping HR leaders, coaches and consultants learn the tools, mindsets, and actions to thrive in an ever-changing world.  **New Episode Every Second Tuesday**

  1. 6D AGO

    Decoding AQ with Ross Thornley Feat. Alim A. Dhanji - Chief Human Resources Officer

    From the mailroom boy who kept replacing himself with machines, who was the ex-president of adidas Canada, and terms leading roles at scotiabank, and learning the art of diplomacy with 4 years at KPMG. Alim Dhanji is a globally recognized HR leader with over 25 years of experience driving transformation across Fortune 100 companies. Now Alim finds himself as the CHRO at TD SYNNEX, an IT ecosystem powerhouse with 24,000 team members. He shapes high-performance, and inclusive cultures that fuel innovation and growth.  A Harvard Business School alum and board advisor, Alim brings a strategic, people-first lens to global business leadership. Ross and Alim talk about optimism, investments compared to cost, purpose, scaling up, preference shifts, accelerating talent, future of work, crisis, rejuvenation, CHRO's, human resources, human inability to adapt, HR becoming CEO's, leadership, transformation, risk tolerance and upskilling. The pair also discuss sacrifice, psychological safety, being vulnerable, confidence, being open, Imposter syndrome, diplomacy, influencing people to support you, servient leadership, custodian's, redesign of work, AI disrupting jobs, learning to learn, AI inspiring people, curiosity, embracing fear and growth.  Timecodes: 00:15 Into to Alim01:26 Surprises from recent leadership event02:50 Investing in people and the pay off04:57 Balancing whitespace with over planning07:01 Key themes Alim is focusing on for leadership08:36 Leadership challenges10:30 Practical ways to help leadership initiatives14:38 Blending IT and people through tech education16:19 Evolution drivers18:49 Pressure bringing opportunites21:59 Diverse networks, adaptability skills and role diversity23:18 AQai's Model - Ability, Character and Environment24:48 Unpresidented role changes28:32 What would make 2025 the best year ever32:03 Preparation for exhaustion34:44:12 Investing in learning and growth mindset36:36 Earn, Learn and Serve37:41 When Alim interviews for jobs41:27 The last time Alim did something from the first time45:02 Final thoughtsConnect with Alim: LinkedInConnect with Ross: WebsiteLinkedInMoonshot Innovation

    47 min

  2. AUG 26

    Decoding AQ with Ross Thornley Feat. David H. Rosmarin - Thriving with Anxiety

    David H. Rosmarin is a Clinical Psychologist, Harvard Medical School Associate Professor, Founder of Center for Anxiety, Author & Keynote Speaker. His mission is to shift the paradigm around anxiety from something to be feared or avoided, to a trait that can be leveraged for resilience, purpose, and performance. His groundbreaking work has helped individuals and organizations unlock a healthier, more empowered relationship with anxiety. His most recent book, Thriving with Anxiety: 9 Tools to Make Your Anxiety Work for You, draws from over two decades of clinical experience and research. And with over half a million views, on his TEDx talk “How to make anxiety your friend” he really is helping change lives for the better.  David's 4 steps. Identify. Share. Embrace. Let GO. Ross and David talk about new conversations, anxiety, building relationships, being nervous, leveraging anxiety, emotions, depression, sadness, increasing awareness, anxiety being helpful, healthy anxiety, thriving, harnessing anxiety, embracing anxiety and emotional resilience. The pair also discuss struggle, internal growth, psychological safety, coaching, not acknowledging anxiety, embracing AI, leadership, feelings,  getting things off your chest, embracing anxiety, Dan Sullivan - The impact Theory, taking a Ted X talk and sharing. Timecodes: 00:16 Intro to David 01:34 Surprises from David's book 02:35 What is anxiety? 04:38 The Anxiety Scale 07:28 Performing with anxiety and phyisiology 08:43 Commonality in anxiety and different peoples levels 11:55 David's perfect year goals 14:16 Challenges and struggles 15:40 People who should embrace and engage with David 17:52 Improving over fixing 21:01 The human side of dealing with tech impact  24:25 Tips for effective ways of  sharing 29:25  Leader setting the tone and going first 32:04 Make anxetixety work for us and teams over self 35:12 Failure causing anxiety 39:46 Simulation training 42:39 The last time David  did something for the first time 47:15 Davids Masterclass Connect with David: LinkedInWebsiteMasterclassConnect with Ross: WebsiteLinkedInMoonshot Innovation

    49 min

  3. AUG 19

    Decoding AQ with Ross Thornley Feat. Kyle M.K. - Talent Strategy Advisor

    Kyle M.K. is a best-selling author, executive strategy advisor, and keynote speaker helping organizations become more emotionally intelligent and people-centered. Based in Austin, Texas, Kyle currently serves as Talent Strategy Advisor at Indeed, where he guides employers through the complexities of the future of work. He is the author of The Economics of Emotion: How to Build a Business Everyone Will Love, a book that explores how emotional intelligence can become a core business advantage. His career spans more than a decade of work across startups and enterprises, including Apple and multiple entrepreneurial ventures such as The Heart Company and Human Planet. Kyle’s strategic approach focuses on brand loyalty, leadership development, and transforming customer and employee experiences. His work has been recognized by organizations like the Disney Institute, which invited him to speak about customer experience, leadership, and emotional engagement. Known for blending heart and strategy, Kyle empowers leaders to design businesses that thrive by putting people at the centre. Ross and Kyle talk about cult brands, Apple, hiring, showing interest, Indeed, business around human emotion, work wellbeing, performance, advice for employers, prediction to preparation, optimising data,  mindset shifts, skills we've always had, helping people, unlocking human potential, adapting and changing jobs. The pair also discuss company growth, identifying change, empowering environments, reutilising talent, loving work, wellbeing, how people feel, business performance, AQ Index, skills first hiring, emotional intelligence, humancentric, matching jobseekers with employers, long term relationships, matching people, mentors, storytelling, enriching lives, being fulfilled, emotional nutrition and embracing negative emotions.   Timecodes: 00:19 Intro to Kyle 01:33 Surprises from Kyles book 02:41 Events leading to Kyles success 05:34 The role of a Talent Strategy Advisor 09:28 Future Kyle's perfect year 12:14 Work moving towards humanity 17:09 De-humanising, robotics and AI in a humane world 21:15 Helping businesses transition 26:52  Internal conflict and overcoming barriers with budgets 32:43 Advice for scaling up projects, hiring and talent strategy   36:52 Current exciting initiatives 42:19 The last time Kyle did something for the first time   46:47 Quantifying feelings  Connect with Kyle: LinkedInBookConnect with Ross: WebsiteLinkedInMoonshot Innovation

    52 min

  4. AUG 12

    Decoding AQ with Ross Thornley Feat. Matt Charney - Recruitment and Marketing

    Matt Charney is an award-winning marketing and communications executive known for transforming bold content into measurable results. He is currently the Chief Marketing Officer at Employer.com, where he leads brand strategy, messaging, and campaign development to elevate the company’s impact in the HR tech and employer branding space. With over 190,000 LinkedIn followers and a strong track record across roles such as Editor-in-Chief at Recruiter.com and Advisor to multiple HR tech startups, Matt is a leading voice at the intersection of talent and marketing. His career spans high-impact content roles for brands like Symphony Talent and Hootsuite, where his creative vision delivered measurable business outcomes. Matt is known for his authentic, no-nonsense writing style that challenges conventional thinking in recruitment and branding. His thought leadership has been featured across global platforms, and he frequently advises companies on how to cut through the noise with clarity, strategy, and wit. He currently advises several innovative platforms including ExactBuyer, Honeit Talent Solutions, and Symba, helping them scale through sharp messaging and differentiated positioning. Ross and Matt talk about serendipity, conversations, recruitment, monster.com,  marketing, branding, standing out, brand affinity, unleashed, AI recruitment, LinkedIn, Reddit, Indeed, Fishbowl app, hiring, candid experience, short vs long game, adaptability, knowing what you want to achieve, Mr Beast, Peoplesoft and generating buzz. The pair also discuss product affinity, entertainment, recruitment, HR, content marketing, Athlete recruitment, learning agility, describing job roles, job interviews, company recruitment, transparency,  oculus, repelling the wrong candidates, paths to mastery, growth, flying standby and bravery.  Timecodes: 00:15 Intro to Matt 01:09 Matt's Hats02:43 Matt's early journey05:54 Humour and professionalism08:01 What excites Matt12:11 Community platforms and ROI14:38 Things people don't know18:24 Naming AQai in 201920:05 Combating pushback to shifts and people buying in22:39 Earnings to employee ratio and billion dollar business of one24:41 Replicating businesses and the importance of brand  26:23 Content strategy31:30 Divergent career paths and transitioning peoples identity in recruitment35:04 Specific job roles changing in recruitment 39:12 Job role recruitment done well 43:57 The last time Matt did something for the first time 45:53 Reaching out to MattConnect with Matt: LinkedInWebsiteEmail - Matt@recruiter.comEmployerConnect with Ross: WebsiteLinkedInMoonshot Innovation

    49 min

  5. AUG 5

    Decoding AQ with Ross Thornley Feat. Gary Bolles - Transformation & The Future of Work

    Gary A. Bolles is a globally respected thought leader on the future of work, technology, and organizational transformation. He is the Chair for the Future of Work at Singularity University, where he advises leaders, organizations, and governments on navigating disruption and building adaptable, inclusive systems of work. Gary is the author of The Next Rules of Work, a widely acclaimed guidebook for leaders facing uncertainty in a fast-changing world. His work focuses on the intersection of human potential and exponential change—helping individuals and institutions unlock opportunity through mindset, skillset, and toolset transformation. As a global keynote speaker and educator, Gary has reached over 1.6 million learners on LinkedIn Learning. He is also a partner at Charrette LLC, co-founder of Next CoLabs, and co-founder of eParachute.com—a platform designed to support career changers and job seekers in LIFEwork transitions. His consulting and strategic design work has impacted clients including Google, Deloitte, London Business School, and the World Bank. Gary’s expertise stems from decades of innovation in workforce strategy, event facilitation, and future-forward thinking. Through his writing, speaking, and advising, Gary helps organizations not just respond to change—but become architects of it. Ross and Gary talk about transformation, playbooks, resetting, building systems to adapt, skills, work roles, problem solving, adapting, focusing on tasks, skills manifestos, simple visions, business values, human skills, living documents, refreshing to continually adapt, iceberg diagrams, helping individuals knowing their own skills, future value, workshops, generative AI, self inventory, encouraging people,  job titles, enterprise, taxonomy, constantly adapting and the Book - The Skills Powered Organisation. The pair also discuss stepping back, hiring managers, team guides, changing mindsets, compensation, incentives, skill to alternative routes, development, rethinking governance, going to the edge, changing organisations core, Book - Culture Transformation, relationships with the world of work, reskill index, collection problem solving, teams, skill building networks, constant assessment, becoming irrelevant, the consequences of inaction, leveraging tool, curiosity, testing your own AQ, expanding skill sets and changing environments. Timecodes: 00:21 Intro to Gary02:35 Inspiration for Gary's book (The Next Rules of Work)06:20 Works tasks and human skills08:20 Starting the transformation10:59 Great things from skills manifestos and mistakes to avoid13:51 Key assets17:37 Tasks being bigger than expected22:53 Ontology, framework and common language28:02 Resources to co-elevate and redo work29:54 Skills to problem solve32:29 Skills governance37:43 Barriers and tips for legacy organisations to gain freedom41:26 Talent Cycle & Skills Venturing46:53 Lifelong learning49:20 The consequences of inaction51:37 What is Gary excited about53:52 The last time Gary did something for the first timeConnect with Gary: WebsiteLinkedInConnect with Ross: WebsiteLinkedInMoonshot Innovation

    58 min

  6. JUL 29

    Decoding AQ with Ross Thornley Feat. John Tarnoff - Executive & Career Transition Coach

    John Tarnoff’s ‘Mid-Career’ journey began after being laid off in his 50s, prompting a career pivot that led him to DreamWorks Animation, Carnegie Mellon University, and eventually to coaching. He earned a master’s degree in psychology to deepen his understanding of the challenges professionals face in mid-career transitions. John is an executive and mid-career, transition coach, helping professionals land better, more meaningful jobs and overcome ageism in the workplace. As the founder of Mid-Career Lab and a LinkedIn Learning instructor with over 250,000 learners, John empowers professionals to rediscover purpose, rebuild confidence, and navigate career change with clarity. John’s work is a beacon for experienced professionals seeking to reinvent their careers and unlock their next chapter with strength and intention. Ross and John talk about identity,  mindset, pace of change, focus,  success being hard to change, education evolving, self knowledge, life stages, generating value, supporting people, building the future,  career spans,  burnout,   prosperity,  universal designs, team bonding, trust,  comfort, blame, courage, discomfort, resilience and adaptability. The pair also discuss creating your own narrative, projecting, creating the future, pivoting, reconciling the past, baggage in our lives, being transparent, making friends,  self reflection, specialists over generalists, asking for advice,  keeping going, building a community, growth mindset, enlightenment, curiosity, success and personal trainers. Timecodes: 00:26 Intro to John 01:51 Age and adaptability02:40 Identity transitions04:23 The concept of value and identity 07:22 Three career stages- Education, Work and Retiring12:47 A portfolio of careers14:10 Time usage and enjoying freedom20:22 Fear vs Trust motivation22:46 Changing state25:17 Not knowing what you what to do29:45  Resumes and holding things back36:50 Helping with moments of pressure and big company cuts40:28 Hopelessness47:29 Mindset and help shifting career 52:25 The last time John did something for the first timeConnect with John: LinkedInWebsiteConnect with Ross: WebsiteLinkedInMoonshot Innovation

    58 min

  7. JUL 15

    Decoding AQ with Ross Thornley Feat. Janine Yancey - Workplace Ethics

    Janine Yancey is a workplace visionary, entrepreneur, and subject matter expert on HR and compliance issues. She is the Founder and CEO of Emtrain, a culture technology platform that provides education, advice, and analytics to help companies prevent harassment, bias, and ethics issues. Since founding Emtrain in 2006, Janine has worked with Silicon Valley’s top companies, creating innovative tools to foster more inclusive and respectful workplaces. Janine’s thought leadership on workplace dynamics and compliance has made her a trusted advisor to both business leaders and policymakers. In 2018, she advised the California Senate on harassment legislation (SB 1343), contributing to the creation of new regulations that took effect in 2019. Before launching Emtrain, Janine practiced labor and employment law for over a decade. She was a Partner at Employment Law Partners, where she advised high-profile tech companies like Google, Dolby Laboratories, and Intuit on complex workplace issues. Earlier in her career, she served as Counsel at Liebert Cassidy Whitmore, where she trained thousands of public employees across California on employment law and performance management. Janine is a sought-after speaker and media expert, having been featured in The Washington Post, USA Today, ABC, MSN, CNET, Bloomberg Business, TechCrunch, and Startup Grind. Her insights on workplace culture and business transformation continue to influence the future of HR and corporate leadership Ross and Janine talk about returning to Transform, workplace harassment, trauma, people changing, perspectives, noticing patterns, humans being fallible and compliance training. The pair also discuss comfort with shared language, legislation, being right, vulnerability, racing to grow, economics, politics, entrepreneurs,  taking care of society, co-elevating and curiosity.    Timecodes:  00:20 Intro to Janine02:09 Janine's journey04:31 misunderstandings and miscommunication06:30 Book 'Blink' by Malcolm Gladwell07:31 Taking things personal08:25 Creating Emtrain10:02 Policies11:15 Integrative help13:35 Emtrain helping organisations16:47 Emtrain's energy and culture20:13 Legal issues and interpretations 26:19 Advice for organisations evolving, being naïve and ethics29:36 Humanoid robots 38:04 Ethical redundancy 46:10 Salim Ismail - Meaning of life47:05 Gender traits50:57 The last time Janine did something for the first timeConnect with Janine: WebsiteLinkedInConnect with Ross: WebsiteLinkedInMoonshot Innovation

    55 min

  8. JUL 1

    Decoding AQ with Ross Thornley Feat. Alejandro Reyes - Transformational HR

    Alejandro Reyes is a transformational HR and business leader with over 25 years of experience driving change and organizational effectiveness. He’s currently the Head of the People and Transformation Practice at Cintana Education, where he leads strategic talent and cultural initiatives. Alejandro is also a trusted advisor for venture capital firms and the author of the upcoming book "Leading Organizational Transformation." Alejandro’s expertise in change management and talent strategy has made him a sought-after advisor and thought leader in the business world. Alejandro’s expertise spans human capital planning, M&A stabilization, organization development, executive talent management, change management, talent acquisition, and diversity and inclusion. He has held senior leadership roles at companies including Dell Technologies, Motorola, Laureate Education, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, where he served as Chief People Officer for over five years. Alejandro is known for his track record of driving innovation, building high-performance cultures, and successfully leading organizations through complex transformations. In addition to his executive leadership roles, Alejandro is an author and a recognized thought leader in organizational strategy. His upcoming book, "Leading Organizational Transformation: Embracing Liberation, Vitality, and Expression to Build a Success-Capable Organization", is set to release in 2025. The book provides a comprehensive guide for CEOs and CHROs to drive long-term success through cultural and organizational transformation. Alejandro holds a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Metropolitan University in Mexico City and a master’s degree in Robotics and Automation from Monterrey Institute of Technology. He is a Certified Diversity Executive and a sought-after speaker on leadership, organizational effectiveness, and business transformation. Ross and Alejandro talk about learning, connecting, sharing new perspectives, HR, the future of HR, transformation, understanding, mindset, delegation, commitment, ambition, figuring things out, conversation, influencing leadership and breaking barriers. The pair also discuss changing mindsets, blindness in leaders, helping leaders remove fear, leadership liberation, living for success, curiosity, reading different books, ego,  reflecting, seeing things differently and new insights.  Timecodes: 00:22 Intro to Alejandro01:16 The 'Transform' event02:15 Thing which have stood out and resonated at Transform04:35 Extending the boundaries of Human Resources08:35 Getting through and reimagining bad habits11:25 Implementing new processes to big companies14:41 Compelling people over convincing them15:49 Driving factors to write a book19:22 Mindset and improving it24:04 Consciousness30:05 Struggling at an organisation and people thanking Alejandro33:15 Alejandro's challenges and liberation34:52 Permission to imagine35:52 Flow37:16 he last time A did something for the first timeConnect with Alejandro: LinkedInCintana EducationConnect with Ross: WebsiteLinkedInMoonshot Innovation

    42 min
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DEVELOPING A NEW PLATFORM FOR CHANGE IN AN EXPONENTIAL WORLD.   Conversations with special guests on their stories of adaptability. From resilience, grit and motivation, to stress, mindset and support from those around us. We explore the science and real-life experiences of adaption. Helping HR leaders, coaches and consultants learn the tools, mindsets, and actions to thrive in an ever-changing world.  **New Episode Every Second Tuesday**

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