Expressions of Leadership
Leaders emerge from every walk of life. Whether you’re defining your leadership style or evolving it, learning from others can be transformative. Join leadership advisor and coach Michele Kawamoto Perry as she sits down with a diverse range of leaders—from startup CEOs pioneering new technology, to teachers challenging the status quo, doctors delivering compassionate care, and artists pushing creative boundaries. Together, they explore leadership styles, philosophies, and breakthrough practices. Discover fresh perspectives and actionable insights to help you lead with greater impact. Michele Kawamoto Perry is the founder of The Forward Project, a consultancy focused on leadership development and cultural transformation. As a corporate coach, she helps organizations cultivate stronger foundational leadership skills, empowering individuals who are ready to create change. Michele believes in the power of personal leadership and is on a mission to help build a more inclusive, engaging, and innovative world—one leader at a time. Follow us on Instagram and YouTube @ExpressionsOfLeadership. You can also listen every weekend at noon Pacific Time on Radio Evolve.
Episodes
In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, Michele Kawamoto Perry speaks with entrepreneur, innovator, and former Walmart executive Andy Ruben for a conversation about leadership, reinvention, and building what doesn’t yet exist. From his early days at Procter & Gamble to leading strategy, sustainability, and omnichannel innovation at Walmart, Andy shares the experiences that shaped his approach to leadership and transformat...
Lauren Cantor’s career journey defies convention, from studying astrophysics at Columbia and working in an observatory in Chile to managing billion-dollar portfolios on Wall Street, earning an MFA in her 40s, and becoming an AI advisor and educator. In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, Lauren shares how curiosity, adaptability, and a willingness to take risks shaped her path across finance, design, technology, and teaching...
In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, Michele Kawamoto Perry speaks with musician and social entrepreneur Brad Wolfe about how a deeply personal loss shaped his life’s work, from creating music to founding Reimagine, a global community centered on healing, connection, and meaning.
Together, they explore how people can move through grief and transform it into purpose through storytelling, creative expression, and acts of ser...
In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, Michele Kawamoto Perry speaks with Rachel S. Moore, President and CEO of The Music Center of Los Angeles—one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States.
Rachel’s leadership journey began on stage as a professional ballet dancer with American Ballet Theatre before a pivotal turning point set her on a new path into executive leadership. Today, ...
In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, Michele Kawamoto Perry sits down with Bob Riddle, a lifelong educator whose nearly four-decade journey, from math teacher to Head of School, offers a powerful perspective on what it means to lead with purpose, courage, and authenticity.
Together, they explore the defining moments of Bob’s leadership, including coming out and leading with greater authenticity, as well as bold institution...
In this episode, Michele Kawamoto Perry interviews Katie Mednick, a founder and TEDx speaker who bootstrapped Spark TS into a North American rail industry leader before successfully exiting in 2025. Katie shares how she navigated complex regulations, built trust across unionized teams and regulators, and scaled a product under intense pressure.
This conversation goes beyond entrepreneurship into the heart of leadership. Katie refle...
Ellie Shapiro has spent her career bringing imagination to life for iconic brands like Barbie and Disney Princess, but her most powerful story is about the life she chose to build. In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, host Michele Kawamoto Perry speaks with Ellie to explore her journey from corporate marketing to independent toy inventor, including the moment she took on a multi-billion-dollar company in a landmark lawsuit...
What does love have to do with leadership? For Dr. Kerry Neal, everything.
In this episode, Michele Kawamoto Perry traces the arc of a remarkable journey, from hospital orderly to Doctor of Education, from a devastating personal moment to the founding of Black Love Reimagined, a movement that has been quietly transforming how communities talk about love, accountability, and connection for 15 years.
This is a conversation about rein...
In this episode, Michele Kawamoto Perry speaks with Erica Rife, Executive Director of the Architecture Foundation of Oregon, about her journey from the startup world to nonprofit leadership, and how design literacy can expand who has a voice in shaping the built environment.
They explore Erica’s path into design-focused work, her decision to return to school to deepen her understanding of equity and philanthropy, and why early expo...
Host Michele Kawamoto Perry speaks with Michelle Bacharach, CEO and Board Chairman of FindMine, about her journey from UC Berkeley to acting, product leadership, and ultimately founding an AI platform that helps brands translate their creative expertise into inspiring, shoppable experiences for consumers.
Michelle shares how burnout led her to step back and rethink what she wanted to build, the leadership lessons she learned along ...
Host Michele Kawamoto Perry interviews Cathy Derksen, founder of Inspired Tenacity, to explore her remarkable journey from medical genetics and financial planning to becoming a publisher, international speaker, and 23-time #1 bestselling author. Cathy shares how a midlife reinvention led her to discover the power of authorship and community as catalysts for leadership, visibility, and purpose.
In this conversation, they discuss lea...
Host Michele Kawamoto Perry speaks with Dr. Sarah Zappe, Assistant Dean for Teaching and Learning and Director of the Leonhard Center for the Enhancement of Engineering Education at Penn State, about what it means to lead with authenticity at the intersection of engineering, innovation, and the arts. As the first non-engineer to serve in her role within the College of Engineering, Dr. Sarah Zappe shares how she integrates cr...
Host Michele Kawamoto Perry interviews David Silverstein, founder and CEO of Amaze Health, former nuclear submarine officer, strategist, entrepreneur, and healthcare reform advocate, about his 25+ year journey leading organizations, challenging broken systems, and driving meaningful change in healthcare.
From military discipline to helping advance federal healthcare price transparency rules, David shares what it takes to influence ...
On this episode of Expressions of Leadership, host Michele Kawamoto Perry sits down with award-winning filmmaker and SheTV Media founder Meredith Yinger to explore how storytelling becomes a powerful act of leadership. Through documentaries like Scars Unseen, now used in hundreds of educational institutions nationwide, Meredith spotlights domestic violence survivorship, resilience, and the power of shifting narratives to spark real...
Host Michele Kawamoto Perry welcomes serial entrepreneur and technologist Chad Patterson to Expressions of Leadership for a conversation on leadership rooted in humility, service, and trust. Chad shares how his upbringing influenced his commitment to creating access and dignity for overlooked talent, and how he builds systems that support small businesses around the world.
Together, they explore trust as leadership currency, the po...
Host Michele Kawamoto Perry sits down with Amy Christine, Master of Wine and winemaker, to explore her unexpected journey from performer to winery co-owner, and how leadership can emerge through curiosity, creativity, and courage.
In this episode, Amy reflects on how acting, wine sales, and the rigorous Master of Wine program shaped her leadership style, from listening deeply and reading the room to knowing when to pivot. She also ...
In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, host Michele Kawamoto Perry speaks with Holly Uber, a human-centered technologist, product leader, and innovation catalyst whose career spans education, AR/VR, and healthcare technology. From her early days as a teacher to launching products in highly regulated environments, Holly reflects on how curiosity, systems thinking, and inclusive design have shaped her leadership journey.
Toget...
In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, host Michele Kawamoto Perry explores leadership through storytelling, trust, and creative courage with Jeremiah D. Higgins—radio host, executive producer, and director of programming at Radio Evolve Santa Barbara. With more than 20 seasons behind the microphone and a global audience through Radio Evolve Santa Barbara and the Evolve Entertainment Network, Jeremiah shares how deep listeni...
In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, Michele Kawamoto Perry sits down with artist Flora Kao to explore a nontraditional leadership journey shaped by courage, persistence, and creative risk. From studying environmental science and public policy to working in strategy consulting—and ultimately choosing a life rooted in art—Flora reflects on redefining success, navigating rejection and personal upheaval, and grounding decisio...
In this episode of Expressions of Leadership, host Michele Kawamoto Perry sits down with Dr. Diana Hoppe, board-certified OB/GYN, founder of Amazing Over 40, breast cancer survivor, and women’s health advocate, for a powerful conversation about leadership, self-care, and reinvention at midlife.
Drawing from nearly 30 years in medicine — and a personal wake-up call that reshaped how she lives and leads — Dr. Hoppe shares insights on...
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