{"podcast":{"title":"The Strategy and Leadership Podcast with Anthony C. Taylor","slug":"the-strategy-and-leadership-podcast-with-anthony-c-taylor-325713","podcast_index_feed_id":325713,"rss_url":"https://rss2.flightcast.com/bi6r13fwwecrpryrpynyq9xy.xml","website_url":"https://www.smestrategy.net/strategy-and-leadership-podcast","image_url":"https://files.flightcast.com/workspaces/ythfce9fd2fs3qpa2fheu2aj/podcasts/bi6r13fwwecrpryrpynyq9xy/azf85g98sqftm10ki93kmh4m.jpg","author":"SME Strategy Consulting INC","episode_count":365,"summary":"The Strategy and Leadership Podcast with Anthony C. Taylor explores strategic planning, strategy execution, and executive leadership in complex organizations. Hosted by Anthony C. Taylor, Founder & Principal of SME Strategy, the show features conversations with CEOs and senior leaders on business strategy, organizational alignment, leadership development, and change management. Episodes examine real trade-offs, decision-making, and the practical structures that turn strategic plans into measurable results and sustained team performance. Designed for CEOs and executive teams responsible for making strategic plans work in the real world. Learn more: https://www.smestrategy.net Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthonyctaylor604/","last_synced_at":"2026-07-31T02:17:25.531894+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-strategy-and-leadership-podcast-with-anthony-c-taylor-325713"},"episode":{"title":"How Tracy Nolan Led 24,000 People Through the Largest Telecom Merger in US History","slug":"how-tracy-nolan-led-24-000-people-through-the-largest-telecom-merger-in-us-history","published_at":"2026-07-30T13:53:30+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-strategy-and-leadership-podcast-with-anthony-c-taylor-325713/how-tracy-nolan-led-24-000-people-through-the-largest-telecom-merger-in-us-history","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-strategy-and-leadership-podcast-with-anthony-c-taylor-325713","url":"https://episode.flightcast.com/01KYSK4C547B4TRCEHA08V5VMJ.mp3","audio_url":"https://episode.flightcast.com/01KYSK4C547B4TRCEHA08V5VMJ.mp3","summary":"What does it take to lead 24,000 people through the largest telecom merger in US history — during COVID — and come out the other side with a stronger team? In this episode of the Strategy & Leadership Podcast, Anthony Taylor sits down with Tracy Nolan, SVP at Humana and board member at Dress for Success. Tracy has driven $31B in revenue through a $6B operating budget across a Fortune 100 career that includes leadership roles through the Sprint/T-Mobile merger, the Verizon/Alltel merger, 9/11, and Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico. Tracy shares the six ingredients she looks for in every team she builds, why \"if your name is on the invite, you've earned the right to be in the room,\" and the story of a goose in a parking lot that reshaped how she thinks about listening as a leader. Whether you're leading a mid-market company through change or building your first executive team, the fundamentals in this conversation apply. What you'll learn: • The six success ingredients Tracy uses to evaluate any team (trust, integrity, commitment, execution, teamwork, right people) • How to build two-way trust before you need it • The \"open bridge\" method Tracy used to lead 12,000 people through a merger during COVID • Why vulnerability at the executive level accelerates transformation • The concept of \"full circle leadership\" — managing your team, peers, boss, and customers as one system • The most overlooked element of transformation plans (and why decisiveness beats consensus) • How Dress for Success helps women re-enter the workforce Chapters: 00:00 – Introducing Tracy Nolan 01:11 – Heart + leadership: how Tracy defines her MO 03:09 – The six success ingredients 05:14 – Building trust during major transformation 06:11 – The Sprint/T-Mobile merger & the goose in the parking lot 10:59 – B…","meta_description":"What does it take to lead 24,000 people through the largest telecom merger in US history — during COVID — and come out the other side with a stronger team…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1639,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-strategy-and-leadership-podcast-with-anthony-c-taylor-325713/episodes/how-tracy-nolan-led-24-000-people-through-the-largest-telecom-merger-in-us-history/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-strategy-and-leadership-podcast-with-anthony-c-taylor-325713/how-tracy-nolan-led-24-000-people-through-the-largest-telecom-merger-in-us-history.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}