In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Raina Fryer, head of talent strategy at Titus Talent Strategies. Raina's confession takes her back to a training room early in her career, where she was young, eager to prove herself, and co-facilitating alongside someone she was supposed to be developing.Every time her teammate made a misstep, she stepped in. Mid-sentence, in front of the room, again and again. She told herself it was about safety. Looking back, she knows it was also about ego. Two months later, her teammate quietly asked for a new manager. That was the moment that stuck.Her lesson is simple and hard-earned: the points that actually count are the ones that make people feel safe enough to trust you.  Timestamps00:00 Introduction to Raina Fryer03:19 Raina’s Bad Boss Confession09:54 The Impact of Imposter Syndrome13:01 Training and Role-Playing for Managers16:47 Titus Talent’s Holistic Approach19:26 Top People Issues: Accountability Chart23:07 Culture Integration & Manager Elevation28:56 Continuous Learning & Personal Insights   Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.   Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast:🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey:🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@BethFaheyWant to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/orderDownload free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events

In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Ben Stern, EOS implementer and former integrator who helped scale a transmission remanufacturing company from 300 employees and $40 million in revenue to 850 people and $190 million. Ben's confession starts long before that chapter, back on a construction crew where being the hardest worker in the room felt like a leadership strategy.The conversation explores what happens when intensity without emotional intelligence becomes the culture, why the habits that make someone a standout performer can quietly poison a team, and what it actually took to close the gap. Ben reflects on nearly two decades of deliberate work, the people who helped him see what he couldn't see himself, and why learning Spanish to connect with his team is one of the things he's most proud of.His lesson is one every high performer eventually has to face: what got you here won't get you there.  Timestamps00:00 Ben Stern’s Background02:13 From Hammer to CEO06:17 Reflecting on Growth and Wins10:12 The Hard-Charging Boss14:59 Journey to Emotional Intelligence19:17 Work-Life Balance and Gen Z22:01 Leadership Through Parenthood26:27 Deprogramming and Human Connection30:12 Scaling Leadership and GWC35:15 Continuous Learning and Empathy   Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.   Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast:🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey:🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@BethFaheyWant to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/orderDownload free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events

In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Jeanet Wade, Expert EOS Implementer, ForbesBooks author of The Human Team, and one of the top 100 innovators and entrepreneurs in her region. Jeanet comes with two confessions, and they both involve the same person.The conversation explores what happens when dysfunction travels downhill, why secondhand feedback is its own kind of leadership failure, and what it looks like to stop the madness in real time and just tell the truth.Her lesson cuts through the noise: when the feedback doesn't feel right, it probably isn't.  Timestamps00:00 Introduction & Jeanet's Background03:10 The Allure of Entrepreneurship07:52 First Bad Boss Confession: Task Management11:56 Second Bad Boss Confession: Secondhand Feedback15:41 The Human Team: Bridging Nature to Nurture22:06 Team Dynamics in Entrepreneurial Settings27:30 Bossing Bosses & Overcoming Dysfunctional Teams33:00 Growth Optimization & Vulnerability39:19 Leadership Evolution & Personal Tattoo   Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.   Subscribe to the Bad Boss Confessional podcast:🎙️ Podbean: https://www.badbossconfessional.podbean.com▶️ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional The Bad Boss Confessional is where leaders come to tell the truth about the moments they rarely talk about out loud. The mistakes, the hard lessons, and what it actually takes to become a great boss. Hosted by Beth Fahey, Expert EOS Implementer, co-author of ROLLOUT, and creator of the Great Boss Workshop. Connect with Beth Fahey:🌐 https://www.bethfahey.com▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyWant to be a guest on the show? Visit https://www.bethfahey.com/podcast to inquire. Pick up a copy of ROLLOUT: Get Your Entire Team Running on EOS to Achieve Your Vision at https://www.rolloutbook.com/orderDownload free Rollout resources at https://www.rolloutbook.com Join Beth at the next Great Boss Workshop at https://www.bethfahey.com/events

In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Larry Garcia, co-founder and president of Strety, a software platform built for EOS-run businesses. Larry shares what happened when he stepped into a VP of Sales role against his better instincts and decided his first move would be cutting what looked like an inefficient meeting.He walked into a struggling company, saw an hour of rah-rah he thought nobody needed, and deleted it. What he didn't see was how much that hour was holding the team together. The conversation digs into what happens when a new leader moves before they've earned the right to change things, why culture is the first casualty of efficiency thinking, and how fast trust can disappear with a single calendar invite. Timestamps00:00 Introduction to Larry Garcia02:22 Larry’s Career Journey05:22 The Big Confession11:40 Impact of New Leadership on Culture16:30 BreakGage to Strety Transition20:01 Family Legacy and American Dream24:51 Culture and Software Development29:52 The Soul of Software   About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show LinksFor more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below.Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOSInstagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeosLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Larry is former CRO of BrightGauge and Current Strety Cofounder and President. He's based out of Arlington, Virginia and when he's not helping build the EOS software people love, he's a coffee farmer in Mountains of Colombia.  Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.

In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Mary Reilly-Magee, an entrepreneur, Expert EOS Implementer, and author who built a three-location swim school before exiting in 2018. Mary came prepared with a confession she has carried for years, and it starts with a sign on her wall: never try to teach a pig to sing.She walks through what it really means to believe in someone more than they believe in themselves, the bookkeeper she held onto long after the writing was on the wall, and the two clients she eventually had to walk away from. The conversation gets honest about why avoiding a hard conversation always makes things worse, and what it actually looks like to lead with clarity instead of hope.Her lesson is one every leader eventually learns the hard way: you cannot want it more than they do. Timestamps00:00 Introduction & Sponsor Shoutouts02:11 Meet Mary Reilly-Magee05:14 The Pig-Singing Dilemma08:42 Visionary’s Dilemma & People Development12:14 The Importance of GWC16:47 Addressing People Issues & Self-Forgiveness21:02 Not Your Business: The Implementer’s Perspective23:17 The Cost of Avoiding Difficult Conversations27:37 The Impact of Courageous Leadership30:03 Parenting & Personal Tattoos35:28 Conclusion & Book Promotion About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show LinksFor more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below.Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOSInstagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeosLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Mary Reilly-Magee is an entrepreneur, leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and Outgrow Revenue Growth Advisor who helps individuals and growth-oriented companies turn their visions into reality. She built a thriving three-location swim school business that employed 100 people before successfully exiting in 2018. Drawing on her experience as a teacher, coach, and facilitator, Mary now guides leaders through transformational growth - both personally and professionally.  Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.

In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Josh Hauser, certified EOS implementer, entrepreneur, and father of eight. Josh shares what happened when a rate crisis hit his growing insurance practice and exposed a gap he hadn't seen coming: he knew how to teach and coach, but he had never learned how to lead and manage.The conversation explores what it looks like when a leader's default mode stops serving the people around them, why victim thinking spreads fast inside an organization, and what it actually takes to close the gap between knowing something and living it.His lesson is one that cuts across business and life: the easy path creates complexity. The hard work is what makes things simple. Timestamps00:00 Introduction to Josh Hauser02:15 Josh’s Background & Entrepreneurial Leap06:40 The ‘Reach Teach Eliminate’ Confession11:33 Recognizing and Overcoming the Problem16:24 Positive Intelligence and Taming Ego21:51 Practicing Leadership Beyond Business29:04 From Running From to Running To32:06 Purpose-Driven Work and EOS36:57 Tattoo and Final Thoughts   About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show LinksFor more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below.Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOSInstagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeosLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ 3 time entrepreneur, father of 8, Josh wakes up everyday with a purpose to Reach one person/team, Teach one person/team, and help them Eliminate an obstacle or excuse that is keeping them from the joy, success, and humor life can bring. Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.

In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth sits down with Jule Salem, founder and managing director of Salem Solutions and host of the podcast Dialing In. Jule shares what happened during a season of overlapping transitions: a new leader joining the team, an office move, a family health challenge, and a business acquisition all arriving at once. On paper, it was shaping up to be the best year Salem Solutions had ever seen. But underneath the numbers, something was slipping.The conversation explores what disconnection actually looks like, why leaders who care deeply about people can still lose the thread, and why it's important to remember that a company's culture does not stay connected on its own; someone has to keep tending to it. Timestamps00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional03:06 Jule Salem’s Business07:09 The Bad Boss Confession: Disconnection14:14 Fostering Connection at Scale21:18 Navigating Boundaries: Peer to Manager28:54 The Importance of Sustaining Connection   About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show LinksFor more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below.Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOSInstagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeosLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Jule Salem is the Founder and Managing Director of Salem Solutions, a business specializing in building high-performing, connection-driven contact center teams for government and commercial clients. She is also the host of Dialing In, where she helps leaders turn human connection into a measurable performance strategy. Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.

In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Rocco Cozza, a business attorney, TEDx speaker, and founder of Cozza Law Group, a multi-seven-figure firm he built from the ground up in Pittsburgh. Rocco shares what happened when rapid growth pulled his focus inward and someone close to him began quietly reshaping the culture he had worked hard to build.The conversation explores what it costs a leader to keep their head down, why intuition matters even when the numbers look great, and how a single honest conversation from a trusted team member can crack everything open. Rocco reflects on the moment he looked up and barely recognized what his firm had become, and what it took to earn back not just trust, but confidence in his own judgment.His lesson is one every growing leader needs to hear: execution without presence is not leadership. The culture does not take care of itself. Timestamps00:00 Introduction to Rocco Cozza02:26 The Sabotage and Culture Crisis06:16 Confronting the Problem08:37 Ignoring Intuition and Blind Spots11:48 Learning and Decision-Making15:19 The Four Frames of Growth17:10 The Power of Kindness TED Talk21:07 Kindness as a Brand and Vulnerability24:07 Relationship-Based Business and Adversarial Industries27:42 Lessons Learned and Amor Fati   About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show LinksFor more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below.Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOSInstagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeosLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Rocco Cozza is a business leader, advisor and community advocate committed to helping people and organizations grow with clarity, discipline and purpose. With years of experience building and leading businesses, he brings a practical, no-nonsense approach to leadership, problem-solving and execution. Rocco is deeply invested in his community and focused on creating lasting impact through service, accountability and principled leadership, both in business and public life. Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.

In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey sits down with Shea Peffly, a former CEO and integrator who now guides other leaders through EOS as a certified implementer. Shea shares the moment a Vistage exercise forced her to sit in silence while her own team told her the direct truth: that her constant questions and close involvement weren't landing as support; they were landing as distrust.The conversation explores what happens when a leader's intentions and their impact are completely out of sync, why asking how someone needs your help matters just as much as offering it, and how the gap between knowing good leadership practices and actually living them can quietly widen over time. Shea reflects on what it took to move from command-and-control instincts to a style of leadership built on genuine curiosity and relationship.Her lesson is both humbling and hopeful: the feedback that hurts the most is often the feedback that changes everything.   Timestamps00:00 Unfiltered Feedback and Podcast Intro04:03 Shea’s Background and Business07:39 The Vistage Feedback Experience14:03 Processing and Acting on Feedback22:54 Redefining Leadership and Impact28:30 Leading with Love and Final Thoughts   About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show LinksFor more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below.Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOSInstagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeosLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ Shea Peffly is a certified EOS implementer with over 25 years of executive leadership experience. As a former CEO and integrator, she built and scaled a veterans services organization from five employees to over a hundred, helping veterans secure the benefits they earned. She is a Small Business Monthly Top Business Advisor, Wonder Woman Award recipient, Kolbe Certified Consultant, and certified Outgrow Advisor. Today she helps leaders create meaningful impact by leading with clarity, building strong cultures, and living their best version of life and leadership. Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.

In this episode of Bad Boss Confessional, Beth Fahey talks with David Kolbe, CEO of Kolbe Corp and co-developer of the Kolbe A™ Index, about the complicated decisions leaders face when values, performance, and people collide. David shares lessons from running a values-driven company and the leadership mistakes that taught him the most along the way.The conversation explores what happens when high performers fall out of alignment with company culture, why leadership communication matters just as much as the decisions themselves, and how easily trust can erode when the narrative isn’t clear. David also explains the idea of conative strengths and why understanding how people naturally take action can dramatically improve teamwork and leadership. Timestamps00:00 Introduction to Bad Boss Confessional02:46 Understanding Conative Strengths07:09 Kolbe Impact on EOS and Personal Life11:39 Firing a Top Performer: A Confession18:24 Lessons Learned from Terminations27:03 Navigating Leadership Challenges & Kolbe Scores30:51 Understanding and Leveraging Kolbe Scores38:19 Diversity in Teams43:23 Kolbe in Personal Relationships46:56 Kolbe & Gender Differences49:56 The Genesis of Kolbe Strengths53:18 Kolbe Tattoo & Final Thoughts   About: Beth Fahey is a leadership coach, Expert EOS Implementer, and co-creator of the How to Be a Great Boss Workshops. With nearly 40 years of hands-on leadership experience, Beth has worn many hats: from working in film and owning a bakery to leading a national trade association. Now, as the host of The Bad Boss Confessional, she shares candid stories about the challenges of leadership, mistakes made, lessons learned, and the path to becoming the kind of boss your team actually wants to follow. Through humor, honesty, and heart, Beth is on a mission to help leaders grow, one confession at a time. Show LinksFor more information about Beth Fahey follow the links below.Website: www.eosworldwide.com/beth-fahey Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethFaheyEOSInstagram: www.instagram.com/bethfaheyeos/TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@bethfaheyeosLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/bethfahey/Bad Boss Confessional YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badbossconfessional Beth's Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bethfaheyeos Website: https://implementer.eosworldwide.com/robert-hartline/ David Kolbe is transforming how the world understands human performance. He comes from a lineage of psychometric pioneers and is the CEO of Kolbe Corp, the leader in helping people leverage their instinctive strengths to achieve what they care about most. David helped develop the original algorithm for the Kolbe A™ Index — the only proven tool to unlock conative strengths. Sponsor LinksThanks to our SponsorsA big thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this episode possible: Titus Talent – Helping organizations make the best hiring decisions with performance-based talent strategies. Strety – Empowering teams through strategic planning and performance management tools built for modern workforces.