Podcast Episode - Community Table Talks II

After getting some positive feedback from our first edition, we are happy to offer the second episode in our format called GPS Community Table Talk. The concept is simple, we invite some interesting and fun people to answer the same 2 questions in about 5 minutes. It is a fun way to examine a topic in a quick way and get several different viewpoints from different people. 

You can find the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Breaker, and Anchor.

In our second Community Table Talks episode, we ask about leadership. This is one of the topics we tend to hear a lot about but can never get enough of. The questions we posed to our guests were pretty straightforward, trying to get at how they continue to grow and learn as a leader, and also to talk about important risks during the course of their careers. But as is often the case with our show, the conversations take a lot of turns and we learn a lot about our guests, about their leadership ideas, and we gain some really good lessons that most of us can relate to. 

There are a lot of really good studies, and books and trainings and programs you can find to learn about the philosophy of leadership. Through this kind of reading and academic pursuits, you can gain insights and explore new ways of thinking about your role as a leader and even how you may further develop over time. But in this episode, we present an opportunity to hear about real life thoughts and ideas from people many of you know, and who have proven and relevant experiences to share.

We had a really great roster of guests for this episode. First, we hear from Veronica Riley, Assistant Director of the San Joaquin County Department of Child Support Services. We have seen Veronica’s leadership style in person in our work with her staff, and among other things, she shares with us the idea that to be effective and to lead a group of people, you need to understand what’s going on not only in work, but in the world around you. 

Following Veronica, we spoke with Bryan Hubbard – many listeners may know Bryan from his time as the Child Support Director in Kentucky. He’s not in that role any longer but we’ve kept in touch and he joins us today in his new role as the Executive Director of the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office of Medicaid Fraud and Abuse Control. Bryan shares his ideas about the psychology of leadership, and how critical it is to understand yourself, and how critical it is to keep in perspective the idea that you happen to be in a leadership role. This fact alone doesn’t anoint you in some magical way. 

Next, we hear from Erin Frisch, the Director of the Michigan Office of Child Support in the Department of Health and Human Services. We have had the good fortune to work with Erin in many roles both in Michigan and on the NCSEA Board. Erin is focused on developing as a leader by learning as much as she can to better understand human nature. Her leadership style is focused on not just delivering a mission but is equally focused on applying her leadership toward the development of other people. 

We close the show with a returning guest, Irma Neal. She has had an amazing and storied career in human services, including several significant roles as a Child Support professional in both the public and private sector.  In her “retirement” from that career, she is working as a Certified Financial Coach and a partner with Onyx Rising Financial Services. Irma shares with us a lot about how her career journey was based on a sense of “no fear”, and understanding that risk is critical to moving a mission forward and to providing opportunity to the people you are leading. 

We hope you enjoy this second edition of the Community Table Talk, and if you have an idea for a future table talk, we would love to hear from you!