Kelli Arena, CEO, Nat'l Cryptologic Foundation: How I Went From CNN to CEO
Stumbling Blocks: How Great Leaders Are MadeShow Notes
Kelli Arena spent her career at CNN telling the public what powerful people would rather keep quiet. She covered the Justice Department, won an Emmy, and reported the Moussaoui trial, the only 9/11 case tried in an American civilian courtroom. After Kelli left journalism, she went into another form of public service, serving as Chief of Communications for the National Security Agency, spending eight years helping the Agency find its voice.
Kelli has remade herself across four worlds: journalism, academia, government, and now the nonprofit sector, where she just became President and CEO of the National Cryptologic Foundation. A few things she gets into, worth your time even if you never press play: She took six months of maternity leave, three separate times, as an on-air correspondent. Everyone said it would end her career. It didn't. Younger women in the newsroom started thanking her, because she'd quietly given them permission. She earned back America's trust at the NSA the boring way: Through Consistency. Relationships. A rule that every reporter got a callback within 30 minutes, even when the answer was "no comment." And her advice for anyone starting over: "Listen more than you speak. Every single time I have listened to others before making a decision, it has been a better decision."
0:00:00 The Stumble that nearly ended my career 0:01:33 Meet Kelli Arena 0:02:52 A new chapter: President and CEO of the National Cryptologic Foundation 0:03:25 What cryptology is, and 500,000 open cyber jobs 0:05:30 AI's impact “can't be overstated” 0:07:30 Who gets displaced, and how we reskill them 0:08:40 Getting cyber smart as citizens 0:10:05 Becoming CNN's justice correspondent, then 9/11 0:12:05 Six months of leave, and the warnings that proved false 0:15:00 A day in the life: news as the ultimate team sport 0:18:10 Inside the Moussaoui trial 0:21:45 “I am Al Qaeda”: chaos in the courtroom 0:23:35 Why the jury chose life over death 0:25:16 Laid off: the 2009 budget cuts 0:27:25 Reinvention: teaching journalists to hold power accountable 0:30:15 The women who risked everything just to drive 0:32:50 Advice to young reporters in a hostile climate 0:35:20 A story Jonathan had never told on air 0:38:05 Inside the NSA: secrecy meets a journalist 0:42:00 Taking “no such agency” public 0:43:45 Re-earning America's trust after Snowden 0:48:00 Knowing when it's time to leave 0:49:30 What she's most proud of 0:51:30 Myron Kandel and the bag of work clothes 0:55:10 The reinvention lesson: listen more than you speak New here? Follow Stumbling Blocks so you don't miss what's next. A quick review is the best way to help other leaders find the show.
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