Monica Federico's Recent LinkedIn Posts

I am a 56-year-old woman. And the only reason that matters today is this: I have a very clear memory of the last five decades. I remember being asked at job interviews whether I had a boyfriend. Whether I was planning to have children. I was told what to wear. Told how I should wear my hair. My skirts were too l…

The fastest way to destroy a company culture? Outsource it to HR. Culture is not built in policies. It is built in behaviour. And behaviour is modelled by the leaders. I was reflecting on this recently with one of my clients. It brought back a lesson I learned early in my career. Because I have lived the conseq…

5 interview questions to spot integrity: (Buffett was right) Most hiring processes obsess over capability: skills, speed, track record. Useful, but not the thing that decides whether someone will strengthen or destabilise your team. Integrity does that. It shows up when no one is watching, in the small choices,…

Gossip, favouritism and blurred boundaries often start when a leader uses the team to offload. I’ve seen this from both sides. As a leader, and as the employee who became the confidant. John C. Maxwell once wrote: "If you are leading others and you’re lonely, then you’re not doing it right." I think he’s right a…

More leadership training won’t make you a better leader. Because knowing what good leadership looks like and consistently practising it are two very different things. You know you should make time to step back, reflect and think strategically. But somehow the urgent stuff always wins. You know delegation should b…

I used to think: I shouldn’t have to tell you twice. When I was a young manager, having to repeat myself irritated me. I’d explained it, surely that should be enough. Fortunately, I realised quite quickly what an absurdly high bar that was. People forget things, hear something differently from the way we int…