The Change Agent Podcast
The Change Agent, hosted by Eric, is a practical leadership and project management podcast for people who lead in the real world—not textbooks. Each episode explores the challenges of building, coaching, and sustaining high-performing teams across both in-person and remote environments.
Through thoughtful conversations and grounded insights, the show tackles motivation, collaboration, and the realities of modern management. You’ll hear honest discussions on what works, what fails, and how empathetic, disciplined leadership drives results—especially under pressure.
Whether you’re an experienced project manager, a people leader, or stepping into leadership for the first time, The Change Agent delivers actionable ideas you can apply immediately. If you believe leadership is about people first—and results that last—subscribe and start leading with purpose.
The Change Agent Podcast
Stay Curious, Lead Better - Simon Kardynal
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
Leadership in the military is changing — and so is authority.
In this episode of The Change Agent, Warrant Officer Simon Kardynal (Royal Canadian Air Force) discusses modern military leadership, generational shifts, empathy in structured systems, and what real accountability looks like at the senior NCO level.
With nearly three decades of service — from infantry to Aircraft Maintenance Superintendent to Chief Warrant Officer — Simon explains:
- How emerging leaders misunderstand authority
- Where empathy fits inside a rigid command structure
- Why failure is essential to leadership growth
- How to balance assertiveness with trust
- The danger of assumptions in command environments
- Leading Gen Z inside hierarchical institutions
- Self-awareness as a leadership weapon
Simon also shares practical tools: rehearsing hard conversations, preparing for discipline decisions, managing physiological reactions under stress, and developing guiding leadership principles.
This is a candid conversation about leadership maturity, emotional intelligence, command responsibility, and the cost of authority.
Topics Covered:
Military leadership
Royal Canadian Air Force
Senior NCO leadership
Empathy in leadership
Generational leadership gaps
Leadership mistakes and recovery
Authentic leadership
Command presence
Failure and accountability
Simon Kardynal - Trench Leadership Website
#Leadership #MilitaryLeadership #EmotionalIntelligence #Command #SelfLeadership #RCAF
Send us a message and let’s connect!
Support Our Show On Apple Podcasts!
Support Us On YouTube by Subscribing!
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Support the show to help us continue!
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2449509/support