On this episode of the Radical Candor Podcast, we're taking a break from our GSD Wheel series and welcoming back to the podcast Russ Laraway, author of the book When They Win, You Win: Being a Great Manager is Simpler Than You Think, coming out on June 7, 2022. You can pre-order it now! You likely know Russ best as the OG co-host with Kim of season one of the Radical Candor Podcast.
Russ is currently chief people officer at Goodwater Capital; and also is the creator of Career Conversations; which is covered in Radical Candor, and to which Russ dedicates nearly 100 pages of his new book. Kim and Russ discuss how to make every manager (measurably) great and to rid the world of assclown managers everywhere.
Radical Candor Podcast Episode At a Glance
The world has conspired to confuse the average manager. Despite near-limitless resources — books, blogs, podcasts — that purport to teach us how to be great managers, the reality is that managers globally aren’t really any better than they were 30 years ago. (The evidence is this: as more evidence emerges that the manager is most responsible for employee engagement, global engagement is still at just 15% and 33% in the U.S.)
Managers are struggling due to a lack of regular formal check-ins on how they are doing as a manager. Their bosses have almost no context on how they are leading their people and therefore can struggle to coach them. Kim and Russ discuss:
Why managers are failing, and no one is helping.
What we need is to learn to lead in a way that measurably and predictably leads to more engaged employees and better business results.
We need a simpler and more coherent leadership standard, something with quantitative backing that shows it works.
People just want to do great work and be totally psyched while doing it.
People deserve to be led well.
The art of Continue Coaching. 


Pre-Order the New Book from Career Conversations Expert Russ Laraway
In When They Win, You Win, Russ Laraway, the chief people officer at Goodwater Capital who also developed Career Conversations, provides a simple, coherent, and complete leadership standard that teaches managers how to lead in a way that measurably and predictably delivers more engaged employees and better business results and show organizational planners how to make their managers great!
The book identifies The Big 3, or three key elements: clear direction-setting, frequent coaching and active engagement with employees on their long-term career goals. Russ also dedicates around 100 pages of the book to Career Conversations! Pre-order now >>