Most organizations can point to a set of values or critical behaviors. The real test is what happens when honoring those values becomes truly expensive.

In this episode of The Eppley Experience, I talk with Michael Sneed, former CEO of Johnson & Johnson's Global Vision business and EVP and Chief Communications Officer. He is also a current board member at Kenvue and Wayfair.

Michael shares what he learned from decades inside one of the world’s most respected companies, including how the Johnson & Johnson Credo shaped difficult decisions involving product recalls, acquisitions, employees, and long-term reputation.

We discuss:

• Why strong financial results can temporarily hide a weak culture

• How leaders discover whether their values are real or simply slogans

• Why culture requires constant attention and honest conversation

• What board members should do to understand how employees truly experience an organization

• Why listening to others may be one of a leader’s most important disciplines

Michael is disciplined, generous, and thoughtful—and his experiences offer a powerful reminder:

You do not discover your values when decisions are easy. You discover them when doing the right thing carries a real cost.

I hope you’ll listen.

What if AI’s greatest value to an executive isn’t giving answers—but challenging how the executive thinks?

And what if some of AI’s “wrong” answers are actually useful?

In the latest episode of The Eppley Experience, I speak with Chris Helsel, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Goodyear. After 30 years of navigating a large, complex organization, Chris has developed a practical—and occasionally surprising—approach to using AI.

He doesn’t treat it as a better search engine. He gives it different roles.

As a trusted advisor, AI helped him question whether he had the right R&D structure for an industry facing new pressures. As a coach, it helped him quickly develop knowledge about race-car vehicle dynamics. As a thought partner, it helps him test strategy, assess market opportunities and uncover possibilities he may not have considered.

But Chris also understands the risks.

AI can hallucinate. It can give you inaccurate information—or simply tell you what it believes you want to hear. Yet sometimes its creative “hallucinations” can lead to an idea worth exploring.

The key, Chris says, is to approach AI more like a chess match: provide context, establish guardrails, challenge its responses and remain actively involved in the give-and-take.

His advice to other executives is simple: get immersed. This is a learn-by-doing technology, and today’s version is the worst it will ever be.

Our conversation explores what happens when an experienced executive stops merely searching with AI—and begins thinking alongside it.

Warning. This podcast is about 45 minutes in length. Chris simply had too much great input to go shorter.

#ArtificialIntelligence #ExecutiveLeadership #TheEppleyExperience

Kevin Hickey is someone I deeply respect personally—a leader of tremendous integrity, a lifelong student of effective leadership and management, and someone who brings both humility and a wonderful sense of humor. In this episode of The Eppley Experience, Kevin shares a candid and practical look at what it really takes to build and preserve a strong culture while scaling a successful business. From navigating private equity ownership and becoming more data-driven, to protecting organizational health as the company grew from 40 to 400 people with an international footprint, Kevin offers hard-earned lessons on leadership, trust, accountability, and the evolving nature of culture. He speaks openly about difficult seasons that required pay cuts, coaching, and tough decisions—and why those moments ultimately strengthened the business. If you are trying to grow a company without losing what made it special in the first place, this conversation delivers practical insight on trust, transparency, vulnerability, and the enormous “shadow” leaders cast every day.

Jeff Tibbitts is the SVP of HR for CESO, an engineering and architectural firm based in Dayton, OH. He and I have done multiple engagements over 20 years. As someone who has played baseball competitively and who has a son in the minor leagues of professional baseball, he brings an understanding of "the game" that few possess. In this episode of the Eppley Experience, Jeff shares his experience of working to achieve optimal structure in two different organizations, and from two different C-suite positions. You'll also appreciate the experiences Jeff shares of the work required to get your structure to align with your strategy. Listen and learn from Jeff!

Tammy Leitsinger is one executive who has seen her CEO literally do cartwheels on a stage to remind the organization how their "core" is for us as people as well as for her company. Physically showing your people your culture seems so practical and so much more powerful than talking about it. Why have I never heard about this before!? This episode is for anyone who wants creative ideas that can make their culture stronger. You'll love Tammy's energy and passion for her work and creating great companies and teams!

Denny Freudeman is one of those rare executives who's seen culture from a variety of roles and organizations that has earned him the right to give all of us advice. He was an employee in a company whose culture was so toxic he left. His next company taught him how powerful it can be as a motivator. As a C-suite exec in a large hospital system, he saw how changing a culture improved staff engagement and patient satisfaction. So when he speaks about how to make your culture a competitive advantage, we all should listen to Denny's practical and proven advice!

I've been fortunate to work with several people who are totally and enthusiastically committed to growing their people. Alan Crookes and Jackie Sample at BMW and Cathy Miller and Rick Packer at CompuServe Network Services are definitely in the top 5. And then there is Rob Goodwin at Necco Foster Care. Rob joins me in this episode of The Eppley Experience to share his insights gained from 30 years of developing talent. We discuss how much a person can actually change and how a manager can't delegate the responsibility for growing their people. Plus, you'll get to hear for the first time, Rob's "WOO" for which he's so famous. Listen and learn from one of the very best!

When I think of my best clients, one thing they have in common is knowing the parts of their P & L that most matter. They know the levers they need to pull that increase margin. They obsess about productivity. They understand that their biggest customers aren't their best customers, or even most important. This minilog is all about helping you become as involved in your financial results as you are the other parts of the business that probably give you more energy. If you want to be more profitable, this is five minutes you don't want to miss!