Gina Knepp, Senior Specialist at Petco Love, focused on Petco Love Lost, joined the podcast to talk about her incredibly successful and influential time in leadership at Front Street in Sacramento. Gina discusses how she turned potential into promise at the shelter, how she makes time for her team to build relationships, and what she thinks animal services needs to succeed in the future.

In this season finale of Better Leaders, Gina provides a ton of practical tips that leaders across the country can implement right away in their shelters.

Pinal County Animal Care and Control Director, Audra Michael, joined the podcast to talk about her approach to leadership from her young days at McDonalds to making the career move to animal control then leading the entire shelter. On this episode we discuss how Audra has developed a family-style culture at PCACC, how she recruit leaders in her organization, and how she helps her team through change and difficult times.

Dr. Kristin Barney, CEO, Humane Society of Southern Arizona joins the podcast to discuss leading through change, leading authentically, and building relationships for a more inclusive and enjoyable workplace.

Tawny Hammond, National No-Kill Advisor for Best Friends Animal Society, joins Meaghan to discuss her leadership journey through Fairfax, Virginia and Austin, Texas. In both shelters, Tawny led transformational change and needed to set a vision and build relationships to inspire people through change. A national though-leader in no-kill animal services, leadership has been a cornerstone of Tawny’s career.

Tawny Hammond Coaching:

https://tawnyhammondcoach.mykajabi.com

Animal services veteran and CEO of Hatching, Jose Ocano, joins Meaghan to discuss leadership through the lens of self-understanding, self-reflection, and self-regulation. Mindfulness and work-life integration are keys to success as a leader in today's animal services landscape.

Check out resources for Jose's 333 Routine here: https://www.amazon.com/333-RoutineTM

In this episode, Meaghan and Dr. Ellen Jefferson, President and CEO of Austin Pets Alive! sit down for a conversation about thinking big in leadership, creating vision, filling gaps, and getting through critique and criticism.

In this interview with Dr. Josh Fisher, Director of Animal Care and Control for Charlotte-Mecklenberg, Meaghan and Josh discuss the importance of having presence at your organization, building relationships, and recognizing when you are not the smartest one in the room. Josh has built a career on continuous learning and growth, a skill he encourages with his team through strategic mentoring for new leaders.

York County SPCA (PA) Executive Director Steven Martinez is 6 years into this role and has seen his organization build from a 53% save rate to over 90%. In this podcast, Steven and Meaghan discuss what can be learned from the for-profit world, how to schedule team meetings for maximum impact, and the importance of strategic planning for the phase your organization is in.