The Standing Apart Podcast

Standing Apart is key not just in business, but in life. Join Nigel Ridpath as he explores why being different is so important for companies in a crowded field. And why so many get it wrong. WARNING: may contain bluntness which may apply to YOU!

The Standing Apart Podcast is a business podcast hosted by Nigel Ridpath, with 30 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Nigel Ridpath hosts The Standing Apart Podcast, a business show with 30 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  Episode #30

  #30 - Tough but Fair: Dr James Walsh on Conflict, Trust and Adaptive Leadership

  Aug 17, 202621 min

  Leadership looks straightforward until it isn't. When conflict is sitting in the room, when your natural style is the wrong one for the moment, when you have to be both tough and fair at the same time — that's where most leadership development leaves you on your own. In this episode, Nigel Ridpath speaks with Dr James Walsh : US Air Force veteran, retired Department of Defense civilian, lecturer at Park University, and author of You're a Leader — Now What? Build Trust, Inspire Teams, Drive Results (Business Expert Press, August 2026). James draws on nearly fifty years in and around military leadership — including time at the Pentagon — to address the questions that frameworks rarely answer: how do you distinguish constructive from destructive conflict? When should you intervene, and when should you let things run? And how do you adapt your leadership style when your instincts are pointing you in the wrong direction? Also in this episode: the One Minute Rant takes aim at AI content tells and the homogenisation of online voice; and the Superhero of the Week goes to a politician who chose to solve the problem over owning it.

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  Episode #29

  #29 - The Workplace Doesn't Work for Men Either | Brad Johnson & David Smith on Fair Share

  Aug 3, 202641 min

  Nigel Ridpath convenes a swift, probing conversation with Brad Johnson and Dave Smith that upends the usual arguments about gender fairness. What begins as a familiar debate quickly transforms into a story of hidden choices, unspoken stigma and a business-sized opportunity: when organizations support caregiving, everyone wins. Through lived stories and research - from ‘conflicted dads’ shut out by 20th-century workplace norms to leaders learning how to reboard and redeploy people after leave - the episode traces how policy, manager behaviour and simple empathy reshape careers, brains and companies. This is practical, surprising and urgent listening for anyone who leads people or wants work to fit real lives. You can find their book - Fair Share: on Amazon here .

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  Episode #28

  #28 - Why Gross Jobs Are AI-Proof - and What Every Business Can Learn From Pest Control, with Tim Whitt

  Jul 20, 202640 min

  In this episode, Tim Whitt and Nigel explore why physical, human-essential trades are proving uniquely resistant to AI disruption, how to identify - and deal with - the toxic personalities quietly undermining your organisation and the single customer question that added 27% to Tim's annual revenue. Tim also shares his thinking on referral programmes, building customer loyalty through multiple service lines and why maximising your existing client base almost always beats spending on advertising. Fair warning: this episode contains pest control content. There is one story in particular that you will not forget. You have been warned! Infested is available now on Amazon . If you found this episode useful, please subscribe and share it with someone building or running a business.

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  Episode #26

  #26 - What Are Human Leaders Actually For? Johan Roos on AI, Human Magic and the Amplification Curve (Part 1)

  Jun 22, 202631 min

  As AI takes on more of the work once done by people, a fundamental question is emerging for leaders everywhere: what exactly is your role now? It's a question I've been wrestling with myself. I've spent years teaching and writing about leadership skills - motivation, situational leadership, delegation, team behaviour - and wondering whether any of it still holds. My guest in this episode has been thinking about it far longer than most. Johan Roos is a management scholar, co-inventor of the globally adopted LEGO Serious Play methodology, Professor and former Chief Academic Officer at Hult International Business School, and Senior Advisor to the Global Peter Drucker Forum. His new book, Human Magic: Leading with Wisdom in an Age of Algorithms (Routledge, 2026), makes the case that the real competitive advantage in an age of AI is deeply, irreducibly human. In this first of two conversations, we explore: How Johan came to write Human Magic - and why the moment matters The Amplification Curve vs the Erosion Curve: the daily choice every professional now faces Why reaching for a quick AI answer might be quietly costing you more than you think How to use AI as a sparring partner rather than a shortcut Simple, practical ways to protect your human judgement right now Part 2 continues in the next episode - subscribe so you don't miss it. My book - The Time Traveller's Guide to Management - can be bought here .

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  Episode #25

  #25 - Doing Less, Better: Melissa Swift on Real Work Effectiveness

  Jun 1, 202629 minS0

  <p>Nigel sits down with Melissa Swift to untangle what really makes people and teams effective in a world drowning in meetings, notifications and shiny tools. Together they trace a path from the urgent scramble of modern work to quiet systems that deliver results: the fire‑fighter’s practiced rope, the ER doctor’s plan for interruptions and the consulting rituals that make good work repeatable.</p> <p>Through vivid examples and surprising research, Melissa shows how effectiveness is less about hustle and more about shaping the environment, choosing the right focuses and using technology as a tool - not a shor...

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