The Talent Shift

The Talent Shift

As AI transforms marketing and reshapes organizations, what skills and leadership qualities will matter most? Richard Sanderson, Partner at Spencer Stuart, explores how companies are rethinking talent, adapting team structures, and balancing automation with human judgment. Richard Sanderson is a Chicago‑based Partner and Consultant at Spencer Stuart, where he advises CEOs, boards, and people leaders on recruiting and retaining transformational marketing, customer, and growth executives. His work spans all industries, and he is retained to solve some of the most complex leadership mandates that require a nuanced understanding of modern marketing, product, and customer strategy.  Over the years, Richard has shaped high‑impact executive searches ranging from Chief Marketing Officers to senior customer, brand, digital, growth and experience leaders across a range of Fortune 500 companies, middle-market private equity backed businesses, and early-stage category disruptors. EPISODE CREDITS Produced, edited and mixed by Ria Tobaccowala Artwork designed by Ben Damiano Additional music licensed through Premium Beats LINKS Explore more about the new frontiers of work at Rethinkingwork.io [https://rethinking-work.io/] For more actionable insights that inspire subscribe to Rishad Tobaccowala's free weekly substack: The Future Does Not Fit In The Containers Of The Past. [https://rishad.substack.com/]  This show is also available on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@rethinkingworkshow] which includes visual supplements.  Rishad's Book Rethinking Work is available in print and audio. Click here for where to buy. [https://rethinking-work.io/whats-inside-2]

Dynamic Teaming

What if teams weren’t built around roles, but around problems? Britt Gage, founder and CEO of oAT (of All Trades), explores the shift from static org charts to dynamic teaming, where generalist operators execute, adapt, and connect across functions. As AI reshapes work, Britt argues the future belongs to flexible, problem-centered teams, and to organizations designed to move as fast as the challenges they face. Britt Gage is the founder and CEO of oAT (of All Trades), a company reimagining how teams are built in the age of AI. Drawing on 15+ years in early-stage startup operations across talent, growth and people functions, Britt launched oAT to offer organizations an alternative to rigid, specialist-driven hiring models. of All Trades (oAT) is built around a different kind of operator, embedded generalists who flex around problems rather than job descriptions. Over the past five years, oAT has grown from a solo practice to serving 50+ organizations from startups to nonprofits. At the core of their work is a proprietary Dynamic Teaming methodology, where teams form around problems and disband when problems change, where skills matter more than titles, and where generalists become the essential connective tissue holding it all together.  EPISODE CREDITS Produced, edited and mixed by Ria Tobaccowala Artwork designed by Ben Damiano Additional music licensed through Premium Beats LINKS Explore more about the new frontiers of work at Rethinkingwork.io [https://rethinking-work.io/] For more actionable insights that inspire subscribe to Rishad Tobaccowala's free weekly substack: The Future Does Not Fit In The Containers Of The Past. [https://rishad.substack.com/]  This show is also available on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@rethinkingworkshow] which includes visual supplements.  Rishad's Book Rethinking Work is available in print and audio. Click here for where to buy. [https://rethinking-work.io/whats-inside-2]

The Capability Stack

In a world where skills expire faster than ever, how do you stay relevant? Veronika Kryuchkova explores the idea of the “capability stack", a dynamic mix of core, human, and future skills, and why thriving in today’s workplace requires continuous reinvention, high agency, and the ability to learn, unlearn, and evolve faster than the market. Veronika Kryuchkova is the Global Head of Capability Building for the Reckitt Marketing Academy, where she leads initiatives to equip teams with the skills and mindsets needed to drive transformation at scale. The Academy reaches 90% of Reckitt’s marketers across 59 countries and has been recognized externally with the prestigious Learning Technologies Award for its impact. Her work focuses on how individuals and organizations build the capabilities required to adapt in a rapidly changing world, with a particular emphasis on continuous learning, reinvention, and high-agency performance. Beyond her corporate role, Veronika hosts the podcast Get Superpowered, where she explores the human side of transformation, including creativity, connection, and courage. Through her work, she champions the idea that thriving in the future of work requires not just new skills, but a new approach to growth—one rooted in curiosity, adaptability, and intentional development. EPISODE CREDITS Produced, edited and mixed by Ria Tobaccowala Artwork designed by Ben Damiano Additional music licensed through Premium Beats LINKS Explore more about the new frontiers of work at Rethinkingwork.io [https://rethinking-work.io/] For more actionable insights that inspire subscribe to Rishad Tobaccowala's free weekly substack: The Future Does Not Fit In The Containers Of The Past. [https://rishad.substack.com/]  This show is also available on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@rethinkingworkshow] which includes visual supplements.  Rishad's Book Rethinking Work is available in print and audio. Click here for where to buy. [https://rethinking-work.io/whats-inside-2]

Rethinking Compensation

What if we stopped paying for time and started paying for outcomes? Matt Seiler, founder and CEO of Excelerators Inc [https://exceleratorsinc.com/]., explores why traditional compensation models are breaking down in an AI-driven world, and how performance-based pay, better incentives, and a renewed focus on human value can reshape how we work, measure success, and reward impact. Matt Seiler is the founder and CEO of Excelerators Inc., a company focused on helping organizations rethink talent, incentives, and performance in an AI-driven world. A three-time CEO in the advertising and media industry, Matt has spent more than two decades leading and transforming companies, and the last seven to eight years reimagining what effective talent management looks like today. He has played a key role in building and scaling tech-enabled marketplaces that connect people to work they are most energized to do and organizations to the talent best suited to deliver results. With Excelerators Inc., Matt is expanding that vision beyond individuals to help companies redesign how they structure teams, measure value, and reward performance. Known for his focus on performance-based compensation and the intersection of technology and human potential, Matt brings a practical and forward-looking perspective to the future of work. EPISODE CREDITS Produced, edited and mixed by Ria Tobaccowala Artwork designed by Ben Damiano Additional music licensed through Premium Beats LINKS Explore more about the new frontiers of work at Rethinkingwork.io [https://rethinking-work.io/] For more actionable insights that inspire subscribe to Rishad Tobaccowala's free weekly substack: The Future Does Not Fit In The Containers Of The Past. [https://rishad.substack.com/]  This show is also available on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@rethinkingworkshow] which includes visual supplements.  Rishad's Book Rethinking Work is available in print and audio. Click here for where to buy. [https://rethinking-work.io/whats-inside-2]

The Orchestration Era

As AI accelerates and traditional corporate structures strain under pressure, what does leadership look like in the next era of work? Justin Billingsley, co-founder of Simbioniq and former Global CMO of Publicis Groupe, explores why the age of heroic managers is giving way to orchestrators who design systems that think, adapt, and coordinate at scale.  Justin Billingsley is Co-Founder of Simbioniq, an AI company creating psychologically complete digital humans for marketing research, and author of "Brandflow: The Marketing Orchestration Playbook." As former Chief Marketing Officer of Publicis Groupe, including seven years on the Management Committee, Justin led marketing transformation for one of the world's largest advertising holding companies. His earlier client-side experience includes leadership roles at Coca-Cola, Nokia, Orange, and Unilever. Justin writes Brandflow, a twice-weekly strategic newsletter for senior marketing leaders navigating what he calls "The Great Compression” or the simultaneous forces of budget decline, platform disintermediation, AI automation, and margin compression reshaping the industry. His work focuses on sustainable transformation practices, moving from "sidelines to arena," and building competitive advantage through systematic orchestration rather than heroic coordination. EPISODE CREDITS Produced, edited and mixed by Ria Tobaccowala Artwork designed by Ben Damiano Additional music licensed through Premium Beats LINKS Explore more about the new frontiers of work at Rethinkingwork.io [https://rethinking-work.io/] For more actionable insights that inspire subscribe to Rishad Tobaccowala's free weekly substack: The Future Does Not Fit In The Containers Of The Past. [https://rishad.substack.com/]  This show is also available on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/@rethinkingworkshow] which includes visual supplements.  Rishad's Book Rethinking Work is available in print and audio. Click here for where to buy. [https://rethinking-work.io/whats-inside-2]