Rephonic
Artwork for HBR IdeaCast
Leadership
Artificial Intelligence
Generative AI
Innovation
Productivity
Entrepreneurship
Remote Work
Emotional Intelligence
Workplace Dynamics
Decision Making
Employee Engagement
Conflict Resolution
Harvard Business Review
Management
Business Strategy
Mental Health
Hiring Practices
Timeboxing
Enshittification
Work-Life Balance

A weekly podcast featuring the leading thinkers in business and management.

PublishesTwice weeklyEpisodes651Founded20 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
ManagementBusinessEntrepreneurship

Listen to this Podcast

Artwork for HBR IdeaCast

Latest Episodes

AI is advancing so quickly that companies can’t afford to treat it as simply another productivity tool; it is fundamentally reshaping strategy. In this final episode of our special four-part series on how AI is changing leadership, Wharton professor ... more

Optimism isn’t about ignoring problems or pretending everything will work out. It’s about acknowledging challenges while believing that your actions can still make a difference. Psychologist and researcher Michelle Gielan says leaders can cultivate t... more

AI is making it faster and cheaper than ever to turn ideas into prototypes, products, and businesses—but that abundance creates new challenges for leaders. In episode 3 of a special four-part series on how AI is changing leadership, we look at the wa... more

How do you know when to trust your previous experience in a transformation environment, and how do you know when to listen, observe, and adapt? Ron Johnson helped create the Apple Store and transform Target into a design-forward retailer. But when he... more

Key Facts

Accepts Guests
Accepts Sponsors
Contact Information
Podcast Host
Number of Listeners
Find out how many people listen to this podcast per episode and each month.

Similar Podcasts

People also subscribe to these shows.

Coaching Real Leaders
Coaching Real LeadersMuriel Wilkins
The McKinsey Podcast
The McKinsey PodcastMcKinsey & Company
Cold Call
Cold CallHBR Presents / Brian Kenny
Inside the Strategy Room
Inside the Strategy RoomMcKinsey & Company
Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques
Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication TechniquesMatt Abrahams, Think Fast Talk Smart

Recent Guests

Jeetu Patel
Chief Product Officer, Cisco
Cisco
Episode: How AI Is Changing Innovation: Why Speed Alone Isn’t a Strategy
Ron Johnson
Former CEO of JCPenney; Apple executive who led the Apple Store
Shop Different (Author)
Episode: What Retail Legend Ron Johnson Learned from Apple’s Success and JCPenney’s Failure
Matt Abrahams
Stanford Professor, author of Think Fast, Talk Smarter; host of Think Fast, Talk Smart
Stanford University
Episode: How AI Is Changing Communication: Weighing Efficiency with Efficacy
Wade Foster
CEO of Zapier, platform for integrating web apps with AI
Zapier
Episode: How AI Is Changing Communication: Weighing Efficiency with Efficacy
Nitin Nohria
Professor and former dean, Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School
Episode: What New CEOs Get Wrong About the Job
Paula Goldman
Salesforce's Chief Ethical and Humane Use Officer
Salesforce
Episode: How AI Is Changing Talent, Not Just Tasks: Rethinking Where Human Judgment Matters Most
Martin Seligman
Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, author of Agency
University of Pennsylvania
Episode: What It Takes to Make Progress When the Future Feels Out of Control
Danny Meyer
Restaurateur, founder Shake Shack; author
Shake Shack / Union Square Hospitality Group
Episode: A Leading Restaurateur on What It Takes to Scale a Winning Culture
(No additional guests)
Episode: A Leading Restaurateur on What It Takes to Scale a Winning Culture

Hosts

Audie Ignatius
Host of HBR IdeaCast
Adi Ignatius
Host of IdeaCast, Editor-at-Large at Harvard Business Review
Alison Beard
Host of the show

Reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars from 4.9k ratings
  • Interactive listener

    All episodes

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Cardinals#1953
    United States5 months ago
  • Partisan

    Claiming Wikipedia is a credible source is a non sequitur. They only allow leftist ideologues to edit now. Most editors suffer from Trump derangement syndrome. Let Trump say something and web pages will immediately change in a partisan attempt to discredit what he just said.

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    This Ken
    United Statesa year ago
  • Shifting into a new horizon? This is the podcast for you

    HBR IdeaCast delivers insightful conversations with industry leaders and experts - worth the listen, covering leadership, strategy, and innovation.

    Perfect for any professional seeking actionable takeaways and fresh perspectives on modern business challenges. This is one podcast you don’t want to miss.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    lavhill
    United Statesa year ago
  • Missed the boat again

    DEI episode missed the mark. Again. Good intentions don’t translate into results, nor fairness. So frustrating.

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    F500 Exec
    United States2 years ago
  • Pseudoscience

    Largely pseudoscientific “social science” offering little-to-no utility outside the classroom.

    Apple Podcasts
    2
    hugefitzpatrick
    Australia2 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Many reviews highlight the caliber of guests and the relevance to real-world business challenges.
Some episodes receive critique for perceived over-optimism about AI or a heavy academic tone.
Listeners value the practical leadership takeaways and evidence-based discussions.
A portion of feedback calls out political framing in some episodes.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

How AI Is Changing Communication: Weighing Efficiency with Efficacy
Q: How should leaders balance AI assistance with authenticity in writing and speaking?
Leaders should use AI as a thought partner to jumpstart ideas and organize information, but always review and synthesize the final output, maintaining human judgment, voice, and accountability.
What Retail Legend Ron Johnson Learned from Apple’s Success and JCPenney’s Failure
Q: What happened when you moved to JCPenney, and why did the same approach not work?
The key issue was resistance from employees and a culture that believed they had already survived and didn't need change; Johnson realized the need to build a team aligned with the transformation and to slow down to ensure buy-in from stakeholders.
How AI Is Changing Innovation: Why Speed Alone Isn’t a Strategy
Q: What is the long-term vision for AI at scale within a company like Cisco?
To deploy hundreds of thousands of agents as digital coworkers, with strong governance and human provenance for code, enabling continuous experimentation, learning, and dramatically accelerated product development and decision-making.
How AI Is Changing Innovation: Why Speed Alone Isn’t a Strategy
Q: What should executives focus on to safely scale AI in their organizations?
Implement diligent security practices, runtime monitoring, and guardrails; ensure humans retain oversight for consequential decisions and invest in culture and education to reduce fear and build trust in AI systems.
How AI Is Changing Innovation: Why Speed Alone Isn’t a Strategy
Q: How has Cisco changed internally to accelerate AI-enabled innovation?
Cisco moved to an integrated platform with a unified management plane, restructured roles, and empowered teams to move quickly; they achieved what would have taken years in months by prioritizing AI initiatives and organizational alignment.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
Gender Skew
Location
Interests
Professions
Age Range
Household Income
Social Media Reach

Frequently Asked Questions About HBR IdeaCast

What is HBR IdeaCast about and what kind of topics does it cover?

This show centers on leadership, strategy, and the practical application of AI and technology in business. Episodes feature high-profile leaders and thinkers discussing how to navigate rapid change, design effective organizations, and drive measurable impact—from culture-led turnarounds to AI-enabled decision making. Guests span tech giants, consumer brands, and academic thinkers, offering frameworks for team leadership, strategy, and execution that listeners can translate into real-world results. A notable pattern is the blend of rigorous, evidence-based discussion with vivid, actionable takeaways for managers and executives pursuing durable performance and responsible innovation.

Where can I find podcast stats for HBR IdeaCast?

Rephonic provides a wide range of podcast stats for HBR IdeaCast. We scanned the web and collated all of the information that we could find in our comprehensive podcast database. See how many people listen to HBR IdeaCast and access YouTube viewership numbers, download stats, audience demographics, chart rankings, ratings, reviews and more.

How many listeners does HBR IdeaCast get?

Rephonic provides a full set of podcast information for four million podcasts, including the number of listeners. View further listenership figures for HBR IdeaCast, including podcast download numbers and subscriber numbers, so you can make better decisions about which podcasts to sponsor or be a guest on. You will need to upgrade your account to access this premium data.

What are the audience demographics for HBR IdeaCast?

Rephonic provides comprehensive predictive audience data for HBR IdeaCast, including gender skew, age, country, political leaning, income, professions, education level, and interests. You can access these listener demographics by upgrading your account.

How many subscribers and views does HBR IdeaCast have?

To see how many followers or subscribers HBR IdeaCast has on Spotify and other platforms such as Castbox and Podcast Addict, simply upgrade your account. You'll also find viewership figures for their YouTube channel if they have one.

Which podcasts are similar to HBR IdeaCast?

These podcasts share a similar audience with HBR IdeaCast:

1. Coaching Real Leaders
2. The McKinsey Podcast
3. Cold Call
4. Inside the Strategy Room
5. Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques

How many episodes of HBR IdeaCast are there?

HBR IdeaCast launched 20 years ago and published 651 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact HBR IdeaCast?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for HBR IdeaCast?

Rephonic pulls ratings and reviews for HBR IdeaCast from multiple sources, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, and Podcast Addict.

View all the reviews in one place instead of visiting each platform individually and use this information to decide if a show is worth pitching or not.

How do I access podcast episode transcripts for HBR IdeaCast?

Rephonic provides full transcripts for episodes of HBR IdeaCast. Search within each transcript for your keywords, whether they be topics, brands or people, and figure out if it's worth pitching as a guest or sponsor. You can even set-up alerts to get notified when your keywords are mentioned.

What guests have appeared on HBR IdeaCast?

Recent guests on HBR IdeaCast include:

1. Jeetu Patel
2. Ron Johnson
3. Matt Abrahams
4. Wade Foster
5. Nitin Nohria
6. Paula Goldman
7. Martin Seligman
8. Danny Meyer

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

Find and pitch the right podcasts

We help savvy brands, marketers and PR professionals to find the right podcasts for any topic or niche. Get the data and contacts you need to pitch podcasts at scale and turn listeners into customers.
Try it free for 7 days