What’s The Next Step‪?‬ Sarah Harper and Rachel Boyd

Michael Woodford talks about how his journey as a salesman began when he was a child and how his career at Olympus came to an end when he, as President and CEO, uncovered huge fraud. His book, Exposure: from President to Whistleblower at Olympus, tells the full story. We also talk about his passion and commitment to saving lives through working with governments all over world to improve conditions for cyclists on roads.

As First Deputy Commissioner for NYC’s Office of Emergency Management, Christina is at the helm of coordinating the response to crises in one of the world’s largest cities. In this episode, she shares her motivations for pursuing a career in public service, a day in the life of an emergency manager, insights into some of the lesser known threats being prepared for as well as how she’s managed to juggle her own family commitments whilst being the first woman to hold this position.

Pippa Letchworth is a Consultant in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Imperial College NHS Trust, but her special interest in global maternal health and subsequent education and volunteer work has seen her career impact extend beyond multiple international borders. In this episode, Pippa talks about what motivated her to pursue this career path and lifts the lid on some of the real challenges associated with women giving birth in areas of conflict and countries with less access to medical care. We also talk about her leadership experiences during COVID and it’s impact on the NHS.

Mike Jibson takes a break from performing in the successful West End production of Stranger Things for a chat with us about life as an actor. His passion began when he joined an Amateur Dramatics group as a teen and he has gone from strength to strength since then, including being a two time Olivier Award nominee. He talks about the need to be able to take rejection well, how to deal with stage fright and the importance of looking after yourself physically if you want to stay in the game.

In 2023, Maddy Warren - aka the Queen of Dialysis - celebrated 25 years of not just surviving but thriving by doing nocturnal home haemodialysis after being diagnosed with kidney failure as a teenager. In this episode, she shares the inside track on how she dealt with this devastating diagnosis at such a young age and how she has gone on to thrive in both fulfilling her career ambitions, whilst managing her health. She also shares her advice for those managing a chronic health condition in the context of work as well as managers. It’s an inspiring conversation with an extraordinary person, which is sure to leave you with a reality check on the choices we all have available to us, in order to make the most of this thing called life.

Nigel Wood joins us for a fascinating conversation about his career as an RAF fighter pilot, lead test pilot and NASA astronaut. He shares what training at NASA entails, the enormity of everything that came with preparing to be the first Britain in space and the culture at NASA, including its flaws, which contributed to the Challenger explosion. We talk about what it takes to have a career as a fighter pilot and astronaut, given the potential risks involved, how he built himself back up when it was clear that he wasn’t going to get to space and the leadership lessons he has learnt along the way.