Fred Crawford on Embracing Executive Leadership with Balance, Vulnerability, and Trust

Fred Crawford on Embracing Executive Leadership with Balance, Vulnerability, and Trust

From Long Life Learning by Yale SOM Executive Education

May 19, 2025 · 37 min · Season 2 · Episode 3

About this episode

Fred Crawford discusses his journey in executive leadership and the importance of balance, vulnerability, and trust in leadership roles.

This week, Kavitha sits down with Senior Vice Chairman and former CEO of AlixPartners Fred Crawford to discuss his early rise to a C-suite position, and what advice he has for other aspiring executives on the same path. Fred speaks to the importance of not letting the job "run you," managing time to prioritize the most important "pizza pie" slices of your life, and knowing when to engage in smart, graceful, and smooth succession planning. Fre d explains to Kavitha why, despite thriving as CEO , he chose to transition to opportunities that have allowed him to embrace his passion for philanthropy, non-profit work , board service, and startup mentorship . He also shares the fascinating story of his succession at AlixPartners , which involved developing an innovative co-CEO system so successful that it endures to this day. Fred urg es t oday's leaders to embrace the kind of vulnerability that allows them to seek advice about decision-making, and speaks to the state of a global marketplace evolving so rapidly that the landscape of change management instruction is unrecognizable from a few years ago. F inally, F red shares why his t eaching for YGELP continues to inspire him by…

People in this episode

Host: Kavitha

Guest: Fred Crawford

Topics covered

  • executive leadership
  • succession planning
  • philanthropy
  • mentorship
  • vulnerability in leadership
  • global marketplace
  • change management

Keywords

  • executive leadership
  • succession planning
  • philanthropy
  • mentorship
  • vulnerability
  • global marketplace
  • change management

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: AlixPartners, YGELP

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