Leaders rarely have all the information they'd like before making an important decision. But waiting for certainty can keep teams stuck and organizations from moving forward. Kelly Merryman Hoogstraten has navigated these challenges while helping build Netflix's streaming and international businesses, leading at YouTube, and co-founding Wonder Project. In this conversation with GLN President and CEO David Ashcraft, she shares why making an imperfect decision is often better than making no decision at all. You'll hear how Netflix's philosophy of "context, not control" empowered people to make decisions, why successful organizations must remain willing to change, and how Kelly's faith and personal convictions shaped her professional direction. It's a practical invitation to make thoughtful decisions, equip others to lead, and keep moving even when the path isn't entirely clear.

In this quarterly “Best Of” episode, Whitney Putnam and Eric Case revisit four conversations that create a practical pathway for helping people reach their potential: see them, know them, grow them, and release them. You’ll hear Lori Hermann describe what happens when leaders recognize potential before someone sees it in themselves; Thasunda Brown Duckett explain why knowing the whole person is connected to excellence; David Ashcraft challenge leaders to develop people beyond their own expertise; and Julio Garcia wrestle with what happens when someone you’ve invested in chooses an opportunity elsewhere. Together, these conversations challenge leaders to move beyond good intentions and ask a more practical question: What does the person you’re developing need from you next?

In this episode, Whitney Putnam talks with Global Leadership Network President and CEO David Ashcraft about a leader’s responsibility to create direction people can understand, remember and act on. David explains why leaders often need to repeat the vision more than they think, why collaboration and candor can sharpen direction, and how unclear communication from senior leaders can unintentionally send teams running in the wrong direction. He also shares a simple practice his teams use to distinguish between processing an idea and actually making a decision.