Leadership Discoveries #30: How to Matter Forever as a Leader with Dean McAlister, Inizio Biotech
What is Leadership Discoveries?
Leadership Discoveries™ explores how accomplished leaders exercise judgement, navigate complexity and create impact. Drawing on her experience as a senior executive, executive advisor and leadership scholar, I bring listeners inside candid conversations with CEOs, founders, board leaders and innovators. Together we explore the decisions, experiences and leadership thinking that shape organisations, careers and performance. Leadership Discoveries is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and your favourite podcast platform.
Episode #30
Three-time guest Dean McAlister, EVP, Inizio Biotech, has spent over 35 years in Fortune 500 pharma leadership, including nearly 3 decades at AstraZeneca. His book, How to Matter Forever, comes out at the end of 2026. Hear how to think about passing the baton as a leader, how to have good judgment as a leader, the importance of constructive dissent, how to have conversations with respect while not avoiding the issue, and how to be an accountable leader.
Here's a small sample of what you will hear in this episode:
What has shifted Dean’s thinking on leadership?
How did he get better at passing the baton?
What does good judgment look like?
How do you lead under uncertainty?
What are legacy vectors?
To learn more about Dean’s work, connect with him on LinkedIn.
Check out the episode and show notes below.
Show Notes
How to Matter Forever as a Leader with Dean McAlister, Inizio Biotech
[0:27] Welcome back to Leadership Discoveries!
[0:46] Connect with Shirley at ShirleyKavanagh.com and on LinkedIn, and Dean on LinkedIn
[2:32] What has shifted Dean’s thinking on leadership?
[4:02] Has he become more reflective?
[5:24] How did he get better at passing the baton?
[6:57] What does good judgment look like?
[10:48] Are the conditions interconnected?
[11:47] How do you lead under uncertainty?
[14:41] What is constructive dissent?
[18:15] How do you develop sophisticated leadership?
[19:50] How do you deal with reluctant team members?
[22:09] What is psychological safety?
[26:27] How do you get to a decision?
[27:40] What are legacy vectors?
[34:42] When will How to Matter Forever by Dean McAlister be out?
To learn more about Dean’s work, connect with him on LinkedIn