What does it take to lead - and live - when the world won’t sit still?
Hosted by executive advisor and bestselling author Jimmy Allen, Founder’s Mentality: The CEO Sessions is a leadership development podcast that goes beyond the boardroom.
Each episode features a conversation with a prominent CEO—from the likes of Audible, Walmart, and AWS—who reflects on the lessons that reshaped their business and their personal growth. But you won’t just hear from business leaders. Jimmy brings in artists, musicians, comedians, and other unconventional thinkers who explore the same lessons through a completely different lens.
These conversations surface aha moments from some of the world’s most influential leaders and thinkers. Intensely curious and open to new experiences and perspectives, they seek inspiration in unexpected places as they constantly reinvent their businesses and themselves.
In turn, you’ll walk away with a fresh take on how we all grow as individuals, what we are capable of building, and the legacy we leave behind.
So, whether you’re a CEO, a rising executive, or simply passionate about leadership, influence, and business at scale, this podcast will challenge and inspire you—one story at a time.
About the Host:
Jimmy Allen is an Advisory Partner at Bain & Company with over 35 years’ experience advising leading organizations. He’s the author of multiple best-selling books on growth and leadership and the host and founder of Bain’s Global CEO Community Forum. James is a regular speaker at global business events, including the World Economic Forum, and serves on the Botswana Economic Advisory Council. Outside of consulting, James started his own record label (Abubilla Music) in 2008 and supports Singing Wells, a project dedicated to preserving Kenyan village music.
Bain & Company:
Founder’s Mentality: The CEO Sessions is brought to you by Bain & Company, a global consultancy trusted by the world’s most influential business leaders. With decades of experience guiding organizations through growth, transformation, and leadership development, Bain’s executive insights offer what it takes to lead at scale.
Jimmy Allen: What does it take to lead...well, and to live in a world that won't sit still? It takes a lot of grit, takes a lot of guts, and it takes a lot of agility. But we've also found that great leaders are endlessly curious and they discover inspiration and occasionally answers in unexpected places. So how do they maintain focus and energy? How do they scale an organization when the entire world is trying to distract them?
I'm your host Jimmy Allen, and I've had over 35 years experience at Bain & Company collecting stories from some of the world's most successful companies. And this is Founder's Mentality: The CEO sessions. It's a leadership podcast where you'll hear from great CEOs and founders from amazing companies like Walmart, like Audible, like Pizza Hut, like Mercado Libre…
Aaron Powell: I made it a point as of about a decade ago, when I see a legacy issue, I'm gonna attack it even if it doesn't help me, it's just right.
Tanuja Randery: It does not matter whether you are two months in or 10 years here. It doesn't matter what your title is. Have backbone, disagree, and commit.
Jimmy Allen: We'll also be talking to incredible artists, comedians, and musicians, because sometimes the greatest answers come from surprising voices. So whether you're a CEO, a rising executive, or just interested in the topic of leadership, we hope this podcast will challenge and occasionally inspire you.