In this insightful podcast, Vince Molinaro engages with Michelle Sangster, CHRO of Eclipse Automation, to explore her three-year transformative journey. The conversation highlights Michelle’s strategic acumen in leading change and driving transformation. It delves into the challenges she faced in doubling the company’s size swiftly, shifting focus from technical expertise to prioritizing people and infrastructure. This pivotal shift paved the way for Eclipse Automation’s acquisition by Accenture, marking a significant evolution in scale and organizational dynamics. The podcast sheds light on the changing landscape of HR leadership, illustrating its critical role in driving business success and organizational transformation. Vince and Michelle’s dialogue is a testament to the resilience and adaptability required for effective HR leadership, emphasizing its impact on fostering a culture of accountability, purpose, and community within the corporate world.

Key leadership insights to listen for

• “People support what they help create.”
• The role of a leadership contract in facilitating the consolidation and strategic alignment of leadership teams throughout a merger and acquisition (M&A) process.
• How Michelle redefines HR leadership
• Human Capital as Infrastructure
• The Strategic Ecosystem

On this episode of the Lead the Future Podcast, Dr. Vince Molinaro is joined by Frank Stramaglia, General Manager of Astellas Pharma Canada. At the time of this conversation, Astellas is in the middle of a culture transformation. Frank explains how multiple, significant changes in the industry are requiring his organization to operate, deliver, and approach things in totally different ways. 

Frank reflects on the past couple years, in which the organization needed to downsize a few times, and on how they are now needing to pivot and scale up as they prepare to launch multiple products in the near future. Both scenarios have presented different, but equally important challenges. 

Vince and Frank discuss the importance of investing the time to get everyone on board in projects of such high impact and different strategies for doing so.

“I think getting people to get out of their comfort zone is the biggest learning when you’re going through a period like this, we always default back to what I did before, and my experiences, and you have to remind people that while those things can help you, it’s also very important to recognize that the environment we’re in is a unique environment. 

It’s one that none of us have dealt with before. And therefore, we’ve got to really be thinking differently about how we approach business challenges.” 

– Frank Stramaglia

New Gold Canada, Inc.’s Head of HR, Sharon Giraudel joins Dr. Vince Molinaro as a guest on the Lead the Future Podcast to discuss the importance of investing in developing a leadership contract and the vital role Human Resources plays in implementing the strategies, training, and resources for success.