When organizations face extreme challenges that threaten their business, it’s easy to blame market conditions, the environment, or the competition…especially if you’re the CEO.
But it’s rare to find a CEO who realizes that they personally could be much of the problem.
This episode captures the story of an exceptional CEO who has done the introspective work necessary to transform himself as a leader and the organization–a journey that took the business from the brink of disaster to thriving success.
Gayle Lantz speaks with Mohammad Anwar, CEO of Softway and Frank Danna, Director of Softway. Softway is a business to employee (B2E) solutions company that offers experiences, services, and technology products to help build resilient, inclusive, and high-performing companies.
Mohammad shares his story of transformation so other leaders can benefit. Frank shares his perspective as a firsthand witness to the experience. Together they reinforce the importance of leadership behavior in shaping organizational culture.
Mohammad and Frank are co-authors of the book Love as a Business Strategy: Resilience, Belonging & Success.
More about guests for this episode:
Mohammad F. Anwar
Mohammad (Mo) is the youngest of five children and was born and raised in Saudi Arabia to Indian parents from Bengaluru. He graduated from the University of Houston (Go Coogs) with a B.S. in Computer Science and started Softway at the age of 20 where he still serves as the President and CEO. He is also the Co-Founder of Culture+, a culture-as-a-service company and wholly owned subsidiary of Softway.
Mohammad lives in Sugar Land, Texas with his amazing wife Yulia, a five-time Olympic medalist in diving from Russia, and his beautiful two children. In his spare time, he enjoys fitness, watching college sports, and butchering American idioms.
Frank E. Danna
Frank, is Director of Culture and Seneca. He’s the oldest of six children, can often be found perfecting the art of brewing, drinking and sharing coffee with friends and family. Frank is an entrepreneur at heart, having successfully sold his first startup at age 25.
Frank is a pop culture connoisseur, world traveler, and collector of limited-edition posters. In his spare time, he writes children’s books, makes silly videos, and enjoys fitness. Frank lives in Houston, Texas, with his gorgeous wife Megan and two awesome children.
This episode covers:
- How Love as a Business Strategy came to be
- The transformational journey of CEO
- Misconceptions about “love” in business (e.g., Love isn’t soft. It requires embracing hard conversations. Tough love isn’t about being nice.)
- How to create a “people-first culture” (even in a hybrid work environment)
- Looking for the “good”
- Efficiency vs. Effectiveness. Honesty vs. Harmony
- Leveraging the workplace revolution…bringing humanity back to the workplace
LINKS:
Love as a Business Strategy (Amazon)
