From HR to Strategic Leadership: Steve Widdoss on Earning a Seat at the Table

This is Part 2 of a 2-part series on internships, and what happens when students move from the classroom into the workplace. Charlie Askew & Aoibhinn Murphy are students currently working on the award-winning BSc in Digital Business & Innovation at Dublin City University Business School (DCU), a programme started by our previous guest, Professor Brian Harney. Charlie has an internship with Enterprise Ireland, and Aoibhinn has an internship with PwC. Hear the top skills the students have learned in their internships, how part-time work experience can prepare students for internships, the importance of feedback in an internship programme, how much responsibility to give your interns, and why the students have become more confident throughout their internships. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Charlie & Aoibhinn at DCU.ie and on LinkedIn

This is Part 1 of a 2-part series on internships, and what happens when students move from the classroom into the workplace. Brian Harney is Head of School for Work, Psychology, and Strategy and Professor in Strategy & HRM (Human Resource Management) at Dublin City University Business School (DCU). He is founder and former Programme Director of the award-winning BSc in Digital Business & Innovation and former Programme Director of the award-winning MSc in HRM. Brian’s research focuses on the intersection of Strategy & HRM, with a particular focus on SMEs, growth, and knowledge-intensive sectors. Hear the critical thinking skills students learn in internships, how their perspective on failure changes, what makes a genuinely developmental experience in an internship, how to infuse a mentorship component into your internship programme, and how present & future leaders can navigate our complex world. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Brian at DCU.ie and on LinkedIn

In this special solo episode, Host Shirley Kavanagh explores the skill of leading yourself. Hear why we don’t spend nearly enough time on self-leadership, why leaders stall, how to choose growth over the comfort of the familiar, how to exercise bravery & openness as a leader, and how to keep learning throughout your career. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn

For 20+ years, Julia Payne has helped founder-led B2B companies sharpen their market position, improve commercial performance, and build systems for sustainable growth. She’s worked with 500+ organisations as a Founder, CEO, Board Director, Advisor, and Fractional CMO/GTM Lead. Today, she helps ambitious B2B companies reduce founder dependence, strengthen go-to-market capability, and build commercial organisations that scale without relying on individual heroics. Hear why the founder’s intuition stops scaling, how to get functional roles to come together to support growth, how to keep the strategic view as a leader, the leadership lessons Julia has learned from her competitive sailing background, and her advice for founders as they scale up. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Julia at Julia-Payne.com and on LinkedIn

Ben Beckley is the CEO of RevHealth, a full-service agency that partners with progressive healthcare companies to communicate cutting-edge science, launch novel therapies, and help life-changing treatments reach the patients who need them the most. He has over 20 years of experience in healthcare marketing & communications. Hear how to make yourself redundant as a leader, how to be a builder as a leader, how to deliver clarity for your team, how to make sure your values truly get adopted by your team & clients, and his hopes & fears when it comes to AI in the workplace. Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Ben at RevHealth.com and on LinkedIn