259: From Startup to Strategy: How to Spot Strategic Gaps & Lead with Confidence with Ashley Wright
Release Date: 07/15/2025
286: Executive Presence for Women in Tech
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
If performance were enough, more women in tech would already be promoted. They’re not. In this episode of Leading Women in Tech, Toni Collis breaks down executive presence for women in tech — what it actually means, why being good at your job isn’t enough at senior levels, and how leaders are really evaluated when promotion, influence, and trust are on the line. This episode is for high-performing women who’ve been told they need “more executive presence” — without ever being given clarity on what to change. You’ll learn why executive presence is not about confidence theatre or...
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285: How an Unconventional Career Path Can Become Your Greatest Strength in Tech Leadership with Lisa Ferrante-Walsh
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
If you’ve ever worried that an unconventional career path in tech leadership might hold you back — that your background isn’t “technical enough,” linear enough, or traditional enough — this episode will fundamentally challenge that belief. In this conversation, Toni Collis is joined by Lisa Ferrante-Walsh, SVP of Engineering at Native Instruments, whose career journey spans music, computer science, engineering leadership, mergers and acquisitions, and even stepping into an acting CTO role. Lisa’s story is a powerful example of how a nonlinear career path in tech can become a...
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284: Am I Ready to Be a Fractional Leader?
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
If the idea of going fractional feels exciting and terrifying at the same time — you’re not alone. In this episode of Leading Women in Tech, we explore what fractional leadership really looks like for senior women who want more autonomy, impact, and alignment — without blowing up their careers. This episode is for you if: ◾You’re curious about fractional work but worried about legality, stability, or time ◾You’ve been asked to “advise” startups or former colleagues — informally and often unpaid ◾You want meaningful, senior-level work without the full-time corporate trap...
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283: Leading in a Male-Dominated Industry, Leveraging AI, and Building Ethical Impact as a CEO with Shelley Copsey
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
What does it really take to lead in a male-dominated industry — and build an AI-driven company grounded in trust, ethics, and human impact? In this episode of Leading Women in Tech, I’m joined by Shelley Copsey, CEO & Co-Founder of FYLD — a fast-growing, AI-powered platform transforming how frontline teams in infrastructure and utilities make decisions, stay safe, and improve productivity in real time. Shelley brings over 20 years of experience at the intersection of physical infrastructure, digital innovation, AI strategy, and human transformation, and she shares powerful insights...
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282: Your 2026 Leadership Roadmap: Plan the Year That Moves Your Career Forward
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
Most leaders start the year with good intentions — but by February, meetings, emergencies, and team issues take over. And suddenly, your career is something that just happens to you. In this solo episode of Leading Women in Tech, Toni Collis walks you step-by-step through how to create your 2026 Leadership Roadmap — a clear, strategic plan to move your career forward intentionally, not reactively. This episode is for you if: • You’re working hard but not seeing progression • You feel overworked,...
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281: The Trust Crisis: How Cybersecurity Became Every Leader’s Job with Karen Kaukol, CMO of Entrust
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
In today’s episode, we’re going deep into one of the most urgent leadership topics of 2025: cybersecurity, AI risk, and the new era of digital trust. This is no longer a technical issue — it’s a leadership issue. I’m joined by Karen Kaukol, Chief Marketing Officer at Entrust, a global leader in identity, security, and trust. Karen brings decades of experience across global payments, financial services, and technology, including senior leadership roles at First Data and Graebel Relocation. Karen has a unique superpower: she translates complex cybersecurity and AI challenges into...
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280: Silencing the Inner Critic: Rewiring Your Mindset for 2026 Confidence
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
If you’re ending the year exhausted, mentally overloaded, or stuck in a spiral of self-doubt… this episode is your reset. In today’s conversation, we’re breaking down the inner critic, the mental load of leadership, and why high-performing women struggle most with overthinking, decision paralysis, and confidence dips at this time of year. You’ll learn self-coaching techniques for leaders, practical executive mindset tools, and the exact thought-reframing strategies I use with my clients to help them create clarity before burnout makes the decisions for them. Because you don’t need...
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279: Why You’re Still Feeling Stuck (Even Though You’re Overperforming)
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
Career stagnation isn’t caused by a lack of talent — it’s caused by the wrong strategy. If you’re a high-performing woman in tech who’s STILL feeling stuck (despite delivering more than everyone around you), this episode is going to hit home. In today’s conversation, Master Executive Coach Dr. Toni Collis breaks down why you’re overperforming but overlooked, why hard work stops working at senior levels, and how brilliant women end up trapped in career stagnation even when they’re doing everything “right.” You’ll learn: ✨ Why you’re not getting promoted (even with...
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278: When No One Listens — How to Lead When Your Voice Isn’t Heard
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
Struggling to feel heard at work? You share ideas, offer solutions, repeat yourself — and still nothing lands. Then someone else says the same thing, and suddenly it’s brilliant. You’re not imagining it. Being unheard isn’t a personal flaw — it’s a neuroscience and systems problem. In this episode, Dr Toni Collis unpacks why even great leaders struggle to be heard, and how to change that dynamic without shouting louder or working harder. You’ll learn: ✨ The neuroscience of leadership communication — why some voices carry more weight than others ✨ How bias, bandwidth, and...
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277: URGENT UPDATE: What’s Really Happening in the 2025 Tech Job Market (AI, Hiring & Recruiter Insights)
Leading Women in Tech Podcast
AI is changing how people get hired — and it’s happening fast. In this episode of Leading Women in Tech, Dr. Toni Collis sits down with Nicole Bugenske, a recruiter from Robert Half, to unpack what’s really going on in the 2025 tech job market. From fake résumés and AI-generated cover letters to the rise of quiet hiring and risk-averse employers — we’re breaking down what job seekers and hiring managers need to know right now. Learn how to stand out as the human signal in a sea of AI, what recruiters are really looking for, and how to future-proof your career in tech leadership. If...
info_outlineAre you missing the strategic blind spots that could unlock your next big move?
What if the key to leveling up your leadership wasn’t in working harder—but in thinking more strategically?
In this episode, we sit down with serial entrepreneur and strategy expert Ashley Wright, who shares how to spot the hidden gaps that slow teams down—and how to shift from reactive mode to confident, forward-thinking leadership.
With stories from her time at General Mills, launching an AI-driven startup in the green industry, and guiding founders through major pivots, Ashley brings a rare mix of big-picture vision and tactical insight. Whether you’re leading a team or building your own thing, this episode will help you lead with clarity, context, and purpose.
"You can either live your life trying to make someone else's dream happen, or live it trying to make yours happen." — Ashley Wright
What You’ll Learn in This Episode:
- How to identify strategic gaps before they become roadblocks
- What “Why me? Why now?” means—and why every founder needs to answer it
- How to make confident decisions from a place of opportunity, not fear
- The role of AI in niche industries (and why humans still matter)
- How to lead diverse teams with authenticity and clear deliverables
- What it looks like to play to win instead of playing catch-up
- The mindset shift that turns early-stage chaos into long-term clarity
🎧 Loved Ashley's insights? Take 5 minutes to reflect: Where are the strategic gaps in your work or team?
**Useful links**
- Connect with today’s guest, Ashley Wright:
- Connect with Ashley: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleywright3/
- Follow Plantista:
- Ashley’s current read:
- If you are ready to uplevel your career, get unstuck or you are simply ready to unlock those leadership time-management techniques then join us in my monthly career & leadership coaching program exclusively for women in tech: https://www.tonicollis.com/academy
- Catch the show notes, and more details about today's episode here: https://tonicollis.com/episode259
- Check us out on Youtube.
- Join the Leading Women in Tech community in Slack where we discuss all-the-things for women’s tech leadership, covering everything from early-career leadership to C-level executives.