Leadership

In his interviews for the Sparkr Podcast, Christian Lundsgaard-Hansen unveils the mindsets, principles and world views of remarkable and inspiring people or organizations. 

Learn what great leadership means from an accomplished soccer manager, how to innovate like an entrepreneurs or how to become future proof by considering the insights of leading investors and visionaries.

Learn more on www.sparkr.ch/blog

Sparkr Podcast

Bertrand Piccard is an exceptional person. As adventurer, explorer and psychiatrist he flew around the world with the Orbiter 3 balloon which was the longest flight in human history and outcompeted famous billionaire Richard Branson when doing so. 

After breaking records with Orbiter 3, Bertrand Piccard set out to push the boundaries of the impossible again and after many years of perseverance and innovation, Piccard flew around the world in the first maned solar powered airplane known as Solar Impulse. Today he uses his influence and the Solar Impulse Foundation to collect more than 1000 profitable technologies who will contribute to a more sustainable future.

In this inspiring and personal podcast conversation we dive deep into what Bertrand Piccard learnt about taking risks, about getting back up after failures, making hard decisions, shifting paradigms and moving the boundaries of the impossible. Also, the power of the mind and how to train it became a recurring theme during the conversation thanks to his experience as a psychiatrist and hypnosis specialist.

Please enjoy this rich conversation which was recorded at the Swiss FinTech Awards Night 2021. The Swiss FinTech Awards are organized and made possible by Finanz und Wirtschaft Forum, Sparkr and many other partners and they award outstanding start-ups and influencers in the field of fintech.

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Sparkr is an angency for change makers and supports them with strategy, innovation and project management competencies. Sparkr offers customized studies, workshops or sparring sessions - always with the goal that you can use the future shaped by digitalization, technological and social change to your advantage. Learn more on www.sparkr.ch/en.

If you want to get in touch with Sparkr to contribute to your next business event as facilitator or moderator, please visit www.sparkr.ch/moderation-en

Explorer Bertrand Piccard - A crisis is an adventure you refuse

Frugal innovation is a mindset and innovation approach that has its origins in the developing world where amazing innovations and products are developed in the most difficult of environments. In this episode, you‘ll get to know numerous inspiring examples of frugal innovation from India, Africa and beyond.

That said, the power of frugal innovation can also be harvested in the rich economies of the gobal North and be applied by small and large organizations alike. Frugal innovation even has the potential to transform the entire economy for the better - towards a more sustainable and socially inclusive way of doing business.

My conversation partner in this episode is the leading frugal innovation expert Navi Radjou (www.naviradjou.com). In this interview he shares decades worth of his rich experience and insights. Besides inspiring examples of frugal innovation from all around the world we also learn some key principles and best practices so also you can apply the effective innovation mindset in your specific context.

So get ready for this engaging conversation with Navi - the Indian-French-American innovation & leadership thinker, TED speaker, contributor in the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Innovation & Entrepreneurship and co-author of the book „Frugal Innovation“.

PS: This conversation was recorded at the "Trend Day" conference by Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute (GDI) in Zurich in March 2022. To learn more about the great GDI, please visit https://www.gdi.ch/en.

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For more exciting conversations with leading minds in leadership, technology and innovation, please SUBSCRIBE to the Sparkr Podcast on your favorite platform (i.e. Apple Podcast, Spotify, Overcast etc.)

And if you like‘d this show please consider leaving a nice RATING. That‘s very much appreciated and helps the show.


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Sparkr is an angency for change makers and supports them with strategy, innovation and project management competencies. Sparkr offers customized studies, workshops or sparring sessions - always with the goal that you can use the future shaped by digitalization, technological and social change to your advantage. Learn more on www.sparkr.ch/en.

If you want to get in touch with Sparkr to contribute to your next business event as facilitator or moderator, please visit www.sparkr.ch/moderation-en

If you want to get in touch with Christian Lundsgaard for a personal virtual meeting, book one on https://calendly.com/christian-sparkr/30min

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Better with Less - The Power of Frugal Innovation with Navi Radjou

In this episode I had the privilege to talk to the leader who enabled hyper complex projects and teams with thousands of people to succeed and literally reach for the stars.

I‘m talking of none other than astrophysicist Prof. Thomas Zurbuchen. Till the end of 2022 he was the Chief Scientist at NASA and with that arguably the most powerful scientist on the planet with responsibility over thousands of people and a 8 billion dollar + budget. 

Under his leadership, NASA successfully launched the historic James Webb Telescope and landed robots on Mars - among dozens of other impressive missions.

In addition, Thomas promotes entrepreneurs, inovators and leaders to become the best versions of themselves whereever and whenever he can.

Over his impressive carreer, Thomas learnt a lot about high perfoming teams by building and leading them. In this conversation, Thomas shares his leadership lessons, decision making process, how you create an organization that learns faster than it fails and much much more.

So please enjoy this episode of the Sparkr Podcast which was recorded in front of a live audience im summer 2023 with the extraordinary human being Thomas Zurbuchen.

And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast and leave a positive rating if you enjoy this conversation.

CHECK OUT THE "HOPE FRAMEWORK" (www.hopeframework.com)
If you want to design and lead an inspiring life and find your true north star, then you want to check out the HOPE Framework - a step-by-step guide that helps you to develop yourself and your career holistically and strategically. With the HOPE Framework you can answer today who you want to be in a year. Check out www.hopeframework.com

ABOUT THIS SHOW
Sparkr Podcast is published by Sparkr. Sparkr is an angency for change makers and supports them with strategy, innovation and project management competencies. Sparkr offers customized studies, workshops or sparring sessions - always with the goal that you can use the future shaped by digitalization, technological and social change to your advantage. Learn more on www.sparkr.ch/en.

If you want to get in touch with Sparkr to contribute to your next business event or strategy workshop as facilitator, speaker or moderator, please visit www.sparkr.ch/moderation-en

If you want to get in touch with Christian Lundsgaard for a personal virtual meeting, book one on https://calendly.com/christian-sparkr/30min

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High-Performance Teams at NASA and Leadership Lessons with Thomas Zurbuchen

Ottmar Hitzfeld ist die Fussballlegende schlechthin im deutschsprachigen Raum. Als Fussballspieler und Trainer hat er unzählige Erfolge gefeiert aber auch bis heute unvergessene Niederlagen erlitten.

Im Sparkr Podcast erzählt Ottmar Hitzfeld was er in seiner 40-jährigen Karriere gelernt hat. Wir reden über seine Führungsphilosophie, die ihm zahlreiche Pokale eingebracht hat, wie er grossartige Teams formte, wie er gute Entscheidungen trifft aber auch was zu tun ist, wenn man als Mannschaft schmerzliche Niederlagen erleidet.

Wir reden über Integrität, Vertrauen, Authentizität und darüber wie man erfolgreich Kritik übt - keine einfache Aufgabe, wenn deine Gegenüber Oliver Kahn, Lothar Matthäus oder Stefan Effenberg heissen.

Im Sparkr Podcast bin ich im Gespräch mit ausserordentlichen und inspirierenden Persönlichkeiten, um von Ihnen zu erfahren, welche Mindsets und Prinzipien zum Erfolg führen.

Mehr zu Sparkr und dem Podcast gibt es unter www.sparkr.ch/podcast

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Der Sparkr Podcast wird moderiert und herausgegeben von Christian Lundsgaard-Hansen, dem Gründer von Sparkr - einer Agentur für den holistischen Blick auf strategische Transformationen in Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Lundsgaard-Hansen ist als unabhängiger, strategischer Sparring Partner, Netzwerker und Moderator tätig. Mehr auf www.sparkr.ch.

Auf dem Sparkr Blog finden Sie verschiedene Inhalte zu Strategie, Innovation, Technologie oder Leadership. Wie zum Beispiel das „Strategie Handbuch“ mit nützlichen Grundlagen, Methoden und Leitfragen für die Strategieentwicklung: https://sparkr.ch/strategie-handbuch/

Wenn Sie mit Christian Lundsgaard-Hansen ins Gespräch kommen möchten, können Sie einen virtuellen Termin buchen auf https://calendly.com/christian-sparkr/30min

Ottmar Hitzfeld über Leadership, gute Entscheidungen und Krisenmanagement

With Facebook being one of the most powerful and valuable companies today, this episode of the Sparkr Podcast examines the values, principles and performance hacks which are essential to the company's success and how it moves forward into the future.

I had the great pleasure to talk to Timo Pelz from Facebook about the company's culture and mindsets that empower employees to do their best work and feel good while doing so. Get an inside view into Facebook's operating system with this episode of the Sparkr Podcast.

Future episodes of this podcast will cover topics such as the power of storytelling in marketing or how design thinking improves collaboration (episode #4 with former Apple manager) or how you can train exponential thinking and approach risk (episode #5 with unicorn investor).

In his interviews for the Sparkr Podcast, Christian Lundsgaard-Hansen unveils the mindsets, principles and world views of remarkable and inspiring people and organizations from all walks of life.

Learn more about Sparkr and the podcast on www.sparkr.ch/en

Inside Facebook - Performance Hacks and the Importance of Culture

Die Swisscom unterhält im Silicon Valley einen Outpost, um neuste Trends zu erkennen und Brücken über den Atlantik zu bauen.

Im Sparkr Podcast erzählt Lukas Peter, Chef des Outposts, was zum Erfolgsrezept des Silicon Valley gehört und worauf es ankommt, damit auch Schweizer KMU in der digitalen Welt erfolgreiche sein können.

Wir reden über Innovation und Disruption durch Technologien, welche Mindsets und Firmenkulturen Erfolg versprechen und vor allem wie die Umsetzung einer neuen Idee in der digitalen Welt auch wirklich gelingt.

Der Sparkr Podcast ist eine Gesprächsreihe mit ausserordentlichen Persönlichkeiten und Organisationen, um von ihnen zu erfahren, was sie erfolgreich macht und wie sie die Welt sehen. Dazu gehören z.B. ein Gespräch über die positive Firmenkultur von Facebook oder eine Unterhaltung über Führungsphilosophien mit der Trainerlegende Ottmar Hitzfeld. Jede Episode bringt neue Einblicke, Denkansätze und Inspirationen.

Mehr zu Sparkr und dem Podcast gibt es unter www.sparkr.ch/podcast

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Der Sparkr Podcast wird moderiert und herausgegeben von Christian Lundsgaard-Hansen, dem Gründer von Sparkr - einer Agentur für den holistischen Blick auf strategische Transformationen in Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Lundsgaard-Hansen ist als unabhängiger, strategischer Sparring Partner, Netzwerker und Moderator tätig. Mehr auf www.sparkr.ch.

Auf dem Sparkr Blog finden Sie verschiedene Inhalte zu Strategie, Innovation, Technologie oder Leadership. Wie zum Beispiel das „Strategie Handbuch“ mit nützlichen Grundlagen, Methoden und Leitfragen für die Strategieentwicklung: https://sparkr.ch/strategie-handbuch/

Wenn Sie mit Christian Lundsgaard-Hansen ins Gespräch kommen möchten, können Sie einen virtuellen Termin buchen auf https://calendly.com/christian-sparkr/30min

Digitalisierung, Disruption und Innovation - Rezepte für Schweizer KMU

Daniel Gutenberg has an amazing track record as a business angel and investor. He invested early in Facebook or super-hot start-ups like Israel's Mobileye which got acquired by Intel for over $ 15bn earlier this year. Daniel Gutenberg can say with confidence that he is specialized in unicorns since has more than 10 of them in his portfolio.
 
In this episode of the Sparkr Podcast we talk about how he assesses risks and opportunities, the mindset of a contrarian, what investing has to do with surfing (Gutenberg was a surf instructor in Hawaii), what's the future of education and much, much more. Enjoy!

Get more on www.sparkr.ch/podcast

Inside the Mind of a Unicorn Investor

If you are innovating, working with start-ups or are generally open minded regarding the evolution of business practices, I am sure you’re familiar with the idea of ‘ecosystems’. 

Sooner or later digitalization transforms every industry as well as its customer expectations; and ecosystems can be a great strategy to face that change and make the most of it.

In this episode of the Sparkr Podcast it was my pleasure to talk to Dr. Bernhard Lingens from the Institute of Technology Management and the Helvetia Innovation Lab at University St. Gallen in Switzerland – a leading business and management school. Bernhard and his team are conducting research as well as industry collaborations in the context of business model innovations in ecosystems. 

We talked about the strengths, benefits and risks of ecosystems, why they matter, how organizations can tap into the potential of ecosystems to increase revenue, enter new markets and more.

If you want to build an ecosystem yourself, check out Sparkr's ecosystem services here: http://sparkr.ch/ecosystems_en/

Learn more about Bernhard and the Helvetia Innovation Lab here: https://item.unisg.ch/en/divisions/innovation-mgmt/research/helvetia-innovation-lab

And if you wish to listen to more episodes of the Sparkr Podcast check out: http://sparkr.ch/podcast/

How Innovation Ecosystems Change Business

“Having ideas is the best thing humans do”, says Horacio “Chacho” Puebla. Chacho is the Chief Creative Director of LOLA – a creative and strategically driven advertising agency with a Latin spirit and global reach. 

Their clients include top brands such as Burger King, Magnum, Rexona and new kids on the block like 9Gag. As a part of the MullenLoewe agency network LOLA has been winning dozens of awards for their creative work all over the world. Most notably, over the last couple of years, they have been awarded so many Lions from the festival in Cannes that you could repopulate the North of Africa with these noble wild cats.

Chacho is a creative pro and it was a great pleasure to sit down with him and chat about creativity and most importantly, how to hire, build and enable creative teams to generate new ideas every day. 

Learning what it takes to establish a creative power house is crucial in today’s world and the future where new ideas and concepts need to be thought off at an ever-faster pace. 

Therefore, I am especially thrilled to bring to you this episode of the Sparkr Podcast where it is my goal to uncover mindsets and tactics of people who are great at what they do and make their experience applicable for everybody. Let’s dive right in and talk about creativity.

For more please visit: www.sparkr.ch/blog

If you want to get in touch with Christian Lundsgaard for a personal virtual meeting, book one on https://calendly.com/christian-sparkr/30min

How to Hire, Build and Enable Creative Teams

In his interviews for the Sparkr Podcast, Christian Lundsgaard-Hansen unveils the mindsets, principles and world views of remarkable and inspiring people or organizations. 

Learn what great leadership means, how to build high-performance creative teams, how to navigate the world of business in todays rapidly changing environment or how to spot the trends that matter.

Sparkr is an agency for strategy, innovation and leadership. The Sparkr Podcast series features those who see, those who understand and those who create the future. Thank you for subscribing and sharing those episodes that bring value to someone you know.

Learn more about Sparkr on www.sparkr.ch

Do you want the host Christian Lundsgaard-Hansen to moderate or facilitate one of your business events (strategy workshops, conferences etc.)? Learn more on https://sparkr.ch/moderation-en/

Do you want to benefit from Sparkr as a strategic sparring partner or get access to Sparkr's free "Strategy Handbook" (only available in German)? Check out https://sparkr.ch/strategie-und-projektleitung/

Thanks to all the guests of the Sparkr Podcast who make this series so engaging and fascinating.