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Some of the most consequential leadership in an organization happens far from the stage. Lori Hermann has helped lead the Global Leadership Summit team for 14 years, drawing on more than three decades of experience creating events and experiences that serve leaders around the world. In this conversation with David Ashcraft, Lori explains how she learned to recognize her influence even though she did not fit the image of an outspoken, visionary leader. She also offers a practical look at the leadership behind the Summit: assembling people with complementary strengths, developing a shared standard of excellence, encouraging honest collaboration and finding the courage to speak up when the work begins to drift. Lori’s approach demonstrates that excellence is not the same as perfection. It grows through continual learning, thoughtful preparation and leaders who care enough about the people they serve to ask difficult questions and keep improving.
IN THIS EPISODE:
02:47 Recognizing leadership beyond visible roles
05:42 The people who saw Lori’s potential
07:46 Discovering different kinds of leaders
09:42 Growing and developing as a leader
11:26 Building a team around character and collaboration
14:23 Pursuing excellence without demanding perfection
17:52 Developing a clearer standard for excellent work
20:00 Surrounding yourself with people who raise the bar
21:36 Finding the courage to speak up
23:53 Leading for the whole organization
26:56 Moving beyond “we tried that before”
28:45 Creating moments that make a lasting impact
33:04 Excitement for the 2026 Global Leadership Summit
34:40 Outro and takeaways
WHY THIS CONVERSATION MATTERS:
Leaders are often evaluated by the results people can see, but those results are usually shaped by quieter decisions involving people, standards, preparation and collaboration. Lori’s leadership offers a useful model for anyone responsible for creating meaningful work through others: know what excellence requires, invite expertise you do not possess, remain open to feedback and remember who the work is ultimately meant to serve.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Broaden your definition of leadership beyond the most visible or vocal people.
- Look for leadership potential in operational, administrative, creative and technical roles.
- Tell emerging leaders what strengths you see in them, then give them opportunities to use those strengths. Define excellence as giving your best with what you have—not eliminating every possible mistake.
- Study excellent work inside and outside your field to sharpen your judgment.
- Build teams with people whose skills and expertise exceed your own.
- Create enough trust for people to challenge ideas and improve one another’s work.
- When speaking up feels difficult, remember the people you are responsible to serve.
- At the executive level, distinguish between protecting your department and pursuing the good of the entire organization.
- Treat “we tried that before” as a prompt for better questions, not an automatic reason to stop.
WHO THIS EPISODE WILL HELP:
- Behind-the-scenes leaders who do not identify with highly visible models of leadership
- Managers responsible for identifying and developing overlooked talent
- Leaders of creative, production, event or cross-functional teams
- Experienced leaders who want to remain open to new ideas
- Department heads learning to contribute at an executive level
- Leaders working to maintain high standards without creating perfectionism
STANDOUT IDEAS:
- “I wasn’t that out front visionary leader, so I didn’t think I was a leader.”
- “It gave me permission to be okay with not being that upfront…person on the stage.”
- “I still have influence and I can still lead with that.”
- “Together everyone is better.”
- “Not any one person has…the perfect idea.”
- “Hopefully I don’t confuse [excellence] with perfection, because there’s no way to be perfect.”
- “Can I honestly say I’m really doing the best with what I have?”
- “It’s easier for me to stand up for other people than probably to stand on my own.”
LINKS MENTIONED:
Museum of the Bible
Global Leadership Summit
LISTEN:
Apple Podcasts | Spotify |YouTube
Special thanks to Museum of the Bible for sponsoring today’s episode.
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Leadership That Lasts
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