Leadership Jam Session

About Leadership Jam Session

Rob Fonte is the host of the Leadership Jam Session Podcast, where every other week you'll get to hear leaders at all levels of management share their practical solutions to the management challenges you face every day. On this podcast, Rob shares leadership experiences with listeners by bringing in leaders from all different levels to “Jam” on a variety of leadership topics. Some of the best insights are captured from just listening and learning from each other as they share their experiences. More importantly, we learn to see things through the lens of a different perspective and how to move forward with a different approach. With that concept in mind, the Leadership Jam Session podcast was born. Be sure to stay up to date at leadershipjamsession.com.

Publisher

Rob Fonte

Category

business · education · news

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

8 Oct 2019

Latest episode

2 Feb 2026

Latest episodes

5 of 108 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   2 Feb 2026TRANSCRIPT

   107: Inspiration vs Motivation, with Jeff Hartzler

   Jeff Hartzler, a healthcare leader, differentiates inspiration from motivation, emphasizing personalized approaches to understand individual drivers and build lasting engagement in this interview with the host.

2. 

   12 Jan 2026TRANSCRIPT

   106: People First, with Ryan Pawless

   In this episode, I sit down with Ryan Pawless, Vice President of Sales for a leading medical device company, to explore his people-first leadership philosophy and approach to developing talent at every stage of a career. Ryan draws on more than a decade of management experience—including leading global teams—to share his insights on balancing empathy and accountability, cultivating authentic relationships, and driving performance through intentional development. We dive into Ryan Pawless’s practical strategies for identifying and nurturing the hidden potential in individuals, managing large teams across multiple time zones, and designing effective development plans regardless of tenure or ambition. Listen in to hear real examples of career growth, promotional success, and the role of managers in actively supporting employees' ongoing learning—whether moving up the ladder or simply being the best in-role. Key takeaways: People-first leadership means prioritizing investment in team members, understanding what motivates them, and creating environments for success. Development is not just about career advancement, but also building new skills, behaviors within current roles. Authentic relationships—knowing employees beyond their work—are essential to effective coaching, retention, and performance. Intentional, regular development discussions (not just annual reviews) promote continuous growth and support business results. Balancing empathy with accountability is crucial: leaders must recognize when supportive conversations turn into unhealthy patterns and address them constructively. Leaders actively contribute to building each employee’s brand and influence, helping them embrace risk, learn new skills, and refine behaviors for career longevity and fulfillment. Whether you manage six or nineteen direct reports, this episode offers actionable advice and reflection points for leaders at every level seeking to inspire, grow, and empower their teams.

3. 

   6 Oct 2025TRANSCRIPT

   105: Biohacking Leadership with Dr. Scott Hutcheson

   Dr. Scott Hutcheson discusses biohacking leadership, explaining how leaders can align their biology with leadership behaviors to improve team connection, influence, and performance in this interview.

Inside a recent episode

107: Inspiration vs Motivation, with Jeff Hartzler

Published 2 Feb 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] And then as a leader, then if you understand that, now you can position those things in front of them, the motivators, in the right way that they're like, ah, here it is. And now maybe it's not just a short lived thing. Now it's a, it's more of a flat line versus the peaks and valleys that you get from a lot of different things. I try to say motivators are short. How so how often can you do that as a leader before you're worn out saying, ah, but if you can place things the proper way because you know and understand what that person's drivers are. Mm -hmm. Now that partnership goes deeper and deeper. […]

Who has been a guest on Leadership Jam Session

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Jeff Hartzler
• Dr Scott Hutcheson
• Dr Linda Henman
• Dr Calvin Lawrence
• Dre Baldwin

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.9 / 5

59 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 46 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

64

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

71

Questions about Leadership Jam Session