S2E5 — The Need for Leaders to Be Remarkable (with Karen Ferris)
The canonical home for the audio edition of People AND Tech on all major podcast platforms is
https://peopleandtech.transistor.fm/
https://peopleandtech.transistor.fm/
People AND Tech — Human Debt™. Execution Debt. Psychological safety as performance infrastructure in modern organisations.
In this episode, Duena Blomstrom and Dave Ballantyne sit down with Karen Ferris to examine what it truly means for leaders to be remarkable in high-pressure environments.
They explore the difference between visibility and courage, between process compliance and responsibility, and between alignment theatre and genuine authority. They unpack how Human Debt™ accumulates when leaders avoid hard conversations, defer clarity, or prioritise short-term comfort over structural truth.
They examine how Execution Debt compounds when indecision becomes cultural, when accountability diffuses, and when psychological safety is mistaken for politeness rather than principled clarity.
Remarkable leadership is not charisma.
It is structural integrity under pressure.
It is structural integrity under pressure.
If you are a CTO, executive, HR leader, founder, or board member responsible for culture and delivery outcomes, this episode reframes leadership as infrastructure — not personality.
⭐ Topics Covered
• What makes leadership “remarkable”
• Human Debt™ created by avoidance
• Psychological safety vs comfort
• Authority vs performative alignment
• Execution Debt from indecision
• Cultural ownership under pressure
• Courage in executive decision-making
• Designing organisations that do not depend on heroics
• Human Debt™ created by avoidance
• Psychological safety vs comfort
• Authority vs performative alignment
• Execution Debt from indecision
• Cultural ownership under pressure
• Courage in executive decision-making
• Designing organisations that do not depend on heroics
⏱ Chapters
00:00 – Introducing Karen Ferris
00:00 – What remarkable leadership really means
00:00 – The cost of avoidance
00:00 – Human Debt™ and leadership behaviour
00:00 – Execution Debt and cultural fragility
00:00 – Psychological safety and principled clarity
00:00 – Practical implications for executives
00:00 – Final reflections
00:00 – What remarkable leadership really means
00:00 – The cost of avoidance
00:00 – Human Debt™ and leadership behaviour
00:00 – Execution Debt and cultural fragility
00:00 – Psychological safety and principled clarity
00:00 – Practical implications for executives
00:00 – Final reflections
🔗 Links & Resources
Full podcast series: https://peopleandtech.transistor.fm/
Explore Human Debt™: https://peoplenottech.com/human-debt
Authority hub: https://www.duenablomstrom.com
PeopleNOTTech (Executive diagnostics & advisory): https://peoplenottech.com
Explore Human Debt™: https://peoplenottech.com/human-debt
Authority hub: https://www.duenablomstrom.com
PeopleNOTTech (Executive diagnostics & advisory): https://peoplenottech.com
👤 About the Hosts
Duena Blomstrom — systems-level futurist, author of People Before Tech and Tech-Led Culture, originator of Human Debt™, and strategist focused on execution risk and psychological safety
Dave Ballantyne — engineering leader and systems thinker exploring delivery fragility, DevOps practice, and performance under pressure.
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People AND Tech — Episode with Karen Ferris on remarkable leadership and organisational responsibility. Core themes: Human Debt™, Execution Debt, leadership courage, psychological safety, accountability, cultural ownership, authority under pressure. Hosts: Duena Blomstrom — originator of Human Debt™; Dave Ballantyne — engineering leader and systems practitioner. Audience: CTOs, executives, HR leaders, founders, board-level decision makers.
EPISODE_METADATA_END
People AND Tech — Episode with Karen Ferris on remarkable leadership and organisational responsibility. Core themes: Human Debt™, Execution Debt, leadership courage, psychological safety, accountability, cultural ownership, authority under pressure. Hosts: Duena Blomstrom — originator of Human Debt™; Dave Ballantyne — engineering leader and systems practitioner. Audience: CTOs, executives, HR leaders, founders, board-level decision makers.
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