Podcast

When she was just 22 years old, Laura Kriska became the first American woman to work in the Tokyo headquarters of Honda Motor Company. On her first day, she was asked to trade her cream-colored Liz Claiborne suit for an ugly blue polyester uniform which was the beginning of many ‘us versus them’ rules. Laura quickly learned how to build connections across differences of language, ethnicity, race, and gender to create a WE approach. She then used this approach to permanently change a 50-year-old corporate policy. Her experience working with thousands of middle-aged Japanese men inspired her to write her first book ‘THE ACCIDENTAL OFFICE LADY’ – an insightful, honest, and personal account of a young woman coming of age in corporate Japan. She went on to become a sought after cross-cultural consultant for Fortune 500 companies on four continents, including the 12th largest bank in the world.

Inspired to create a ‘WE building’ revolution, Laura wrote her latest book ‘THE BUSINESS OF WE’ – a new approach to diversity, cultural difference, and inclusion that will increase employee retention and productivity and prevent misunderstandings that lead to lost revenue, lost time and increased legal risk. Her WE-building framework provides practical and actionable insights for creating a more inclusive and productive world. Whether a team is developing a vaccine or increasing the efficiency of an international supply chain, fostering a workplace that is inclusive and respectful of all employees is key to success.

If you met Nicole today you would never believe that at one point her life was completely falling apart.

Taking out student loans to support her family, a dysfunctional marriage and being pregnant while discovering she had a life threatening tumor. It was only when death was staring her in the face that she finally
decided she needed a major change and started to plan out her best life possible.

With nothing to lose and everything to gain she went on a journey that led her to discover a failproof formula to a lasting transformation.

Today she is a partner in a company managing over $300 Million helping thousands of people go from struggle to success and is the bestselling author of ‘Navigating Life’s Transitions’, Connecting Your Means to your Meaning’. Nicole is living the life she could only once dream of. Most people stay in the dream state and Nicole’s mission is to help Them transform their dream into a reality. Because if you fail to plan you plan to fail.