In this reflective and practical episode of the Big Careers, Small Children podcast, Leaders Plus Interim COO Helen Fraser speaks with Rupert Brown, author of Lost in Transformation and Leaders Plus Senior Leader Mentor.

Rupert has spent much of his career leading people change in multinational organisations, including international assignments in Switzerland, Singapore, Denmark and Dubai, while raising two children abroad. He shares what he has learned about making big career decisions when family needs change, leading transformation with more humanity, and staying honest with yourself in the middle of corporate upheaval.

Drawing on his experience working with people and culture, he shares the moment his teenagers asked why the family was “doing lockdown in the desert,” the family’s return to the UK, and how the sudden death of his father and his employer’s response reshaped his view of leadership and empathy.

✔️ How Rupert and his family navigated multiple international moves, and why their teenagers’ voices were central to the decision to come back to the UK for more stability.

✔️ What really happens to family life and career confidence when work and location decisions stop being “just” the parents’ choices.

✔️ Why he believes many corporate change programmes ignore basic psychology and the lived experience of the people affected, and what drew him to write Lost in Transformation.

✔️ Rupert’s PIE model: performance, image and exposure, and why hard work alone is rarely enough for progression, especially for working parents with limited time.

✔️ What the death of his father taught him about principle based policies, bereavement leave, and the quiet power of simple, human responses from leaders in moments of grief.

🔹 Ways to think through big career and location choices when your children start expressing their own clear preferences.

🔹 Practical ideas for building “spacious” relationships at work that help you stay resourceful and honest under pressure.

🔹 How leaders can respond to loss and difficulty with empathy rather than hiding behind rigid policies or avoiding uncomfortable conversations.

🔹 Questions to ask yourself if you are involved in leading change, so that you do change with people rather than doing change to them.

• Connect with Rupert Brown on LinkedIn
• Find Rupert Brown’s book Lost in Transformation on Amazon
• Learn more about the Leaders Plus: Big Careers, Small Children podcast and explore additional resources at leadersplus.org.
• Follow Leaders Plus on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Bluesky.
• Connect with Helen Fraser on LinkedIn.
• Connect with our CEO, Verena Hefti MBE on LinkedIn.
• Find out more about the work of Leaders Plus by signing up to our Newsletter.

Our multi-award-winning...

In this reflective and deeply thoughtful episode of Big Careers, Small Children, Verena Hefti MBE speaks with Ori Carmel, Founder and CEO at Sowen. Drawing on his lived experience as a father of two, Ori shares how working parents can make better decisions about work and family, build guardrails that protect what matters most, and avoid the regret that often comes from overwhelm or overcommitment.

Ori reflects on the moment he missed his daughter’s first smile while travelling for work, the subtle choices that shape daily family life, and the simple frameworks he now uses to stay aligned with his values.

Together, they discuss:

✔️ How working parents can use simple decision-making tools to avoid stress, regret and overwhelm

✔️ Why flexibility often leads to blurred boundaries and how to put guardrails back in place

✔️ The “bandwidth check-in” system Ori and his wife use to share the load on tough days

✔️ How cultural expectations and ego subtly influence men’s decisions about work and family

What you'll learn in this episode:

🔹 How to make clearer day-to-day decisions about work and family

🔹 How to recognise early signs of overstretch before burnout takes hold

🔹 Why decision-making frameworks help parents stay aligned with their values

🔹 How to course-correct when work starts to take up more space than intended

Ori’s reflections are an invitation to slow down, examine your decision-making patterns, and build structures that support both your ambition and your family life.

Show Notes:

• Connect with Ori Carmel on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Sowen here.
• Learn more about the Leaders Plus: Big Careers, Small Children podcast and explore additional resources at leadersplus.org.
• Follow Leaders Plus on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Bluesky.
• Connect with our CEO, Verena Hefti MBE on LinkedIn.
• Find out more about the work of Leaders Plus by signing up to our Newsletter.

Our multi-award-winning Leaders Plus Fellowships support parents committed to career growth while enjoying family life. Expertly designed to keep parents on the leadership path, our programme tackles gender pay gap issues and empowers parents to thrive. Learn more here: Leaders Plus Fellowship.

Episode 215 : Ahed Serhal – How to Turn Guilt into Growth: Finding Balance as a Working Parent Abroad

Episode 205: (C-Suite Series) Steph Hind - How to Balance Leadership, Parenting, and Wellbeing Without Sacrifice

In this research-rich and deeply practical episode, Verena Hefti MBE speaks with Prof Gudrun Sander, Director of the Institute for International Management and Diversity Management IIDM-HSG at the University of St. Gallen, about what workplaces must do if they genuinely want to support working parents and close gender progression gaps.

A global expert on gender equality, leadership, and organisational culture, Prof Sander brings decades of evidence-based insight into what really moves the needle and what doesn’t.

She unpacks why many well-intentioned initiatives fall short, the key levers that actually shift equality outcomes, and how organisations can redesign work so that parents can thrive without penalty.

Together, they explore:

✔️ Why having a family should be treated as a normal part of an employee’s career path

✔️ How organisations can remove systemic barriers that disadvantage working parents

✔️ The real reason visibility matters as much as performance for progression

✔️ Why women don’t need to be “perfect” to step into stretch opportunities

✔️ What companies get wrong when designing policies like parental leave

✔️ How hybrid work can either accelerate equality or deepen inequalities

✔️ Practical steps leaders can take today to build a more inclusive culture

✔️ How to support managers so they can properly support parents

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

🔹 How to design workplace systems that genuinely support working parents

🔹 Why visibility and sponsorship matter more than ever

🔹 How perfectionism and confidence gaps limit progression, and what to do about it

🔹 The organisational behaviours that predict better gender equality outcomes

🔹 How leaders can role-model balance without losing credibility

🔹 Why diversity policies fail and what makes them effective

Show Notes:

• Connect with Prof Gudrun Sander on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about the Competence Center for Diversity, Disability and Inclusion at the University of St. Gallen here.
• Learn more about the Leaders Plus: Big Careers, Small Children podcast and explore additional resources at leadersplus.org.
• Follow Leaders Plus on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Bluesky.
• Connect with our CEO, Verena Hefti MBE on LinkedIn.
• Find out more about the work of Leaders Plus by signing up to our Newsletter.

Our multi-award-winning Leaders Plus Fellowships support parents committed to career growth while enjoying family life. Expertly designed to keep parents on the leadership path, our programme tackles gender pay gap issues and empowers parents to thrive. Learn more here: Leaders Plus Fellowship.