Lead the Person, Not the Drivers with Matt Martocci

What does real leadership look like when the pressure is high, the market is noisy, and results still matter?

Matt Martocci, Chief Commercial Officer at hc1, shares lessons from a career across healthcare, pharma, SaaS, and commercial leadership, including roles at Salesforce, Definitive Healthcare, GHX, Millennium Health, and Novartis.

In this conversation, he breaks down why great leaders focus on people before metrics, why motivation is often misunderstood, and how presence, feedback, and recognition shape high-performing teams.

The episode also explores the future of healthcare technology, the growing role of diagnostic data, and how better leadership decisions can lead to better business and patient outcomes. Matt shares practical insights on standing out with customers, keeping teams engaged during tough stretches, celebrating wins, and leading in a way people actually remember.

Chapters
00:00 Intro
02:29 What Matt does at hc1
03:47 Why the hospital lab matters more than people think
05:19 How hc1 uses data to identify anemia risk before surgery
06:19 Prevention, healthcare, and the role of diagnostic tools
08:22 Why Matt joined a smaller, entrepreneurial company
09:17 From pharma rep to people-first leader
12:06 Why leadership is often more about motivation than coaching
13:38 How to keep teams motivated when results are not going your way
15:16 How to stand out with customers in a world full of meetings
16:24 Why it is okay to ask customers for feedback
17:01 Practical ways to get real-time feedback in the room
18:53 “Never miss an opportunity to tell somebody they did a good job”
20:51 Why great leaders start debriefs with the positive
23:28 Where face-to-face business still matters in an AI world
26:48 Why attention spans are changing how we communicate
27:38 The importance of celebrating wins
28:42 Matt’s mantra: be present
29:37 “Lead the person, not the drivers”
30:48 Where to find Matt

Connect with Matt Martocci
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattmartocci

Coachful Coaching
Website: https://coachfulcoaching.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@coachfulcoaching
Spotify: https://spotify.link/NTBgVJIL3yb
Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/41Cz5gI

For more conversations on leadership, growth, and bringing more joy to your hustle, subscribe on YouTube and follow on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

In this episode of the Coachful Coaching Leadership Podcast, we sit down with Ian Watts — author, speaker, and go-to expert on workforce transformation.

Ian has scaled HR systems, recruited and retained hundreds of team members, and helped transform leaders across 30+ industries, from middle America to the Middle East. As the founder of SB Dream Coach and Employee Success Group, he’s shared stages with speakers like ET, the Hip Hop Preacher, and has been featured on Fox News (Detroit) and PBS (Detroit). After two decades as a servant-leader, Ian’s mission is simple: **build businesses that bless the world.**

In this conversation, we get practical about:

- Why “money doesn’t hug you back” (and what actually drives loyalty)

- The ACTS Method: Aspirations, Calling, Transformation, Support

- How to lead when deadlines are brutal without losing your culture

- Why small acts of appreciation create outsized loyalty over time

- How to create more joy through focus, gratitude, and daily “priming”

Find Ian:

Website: employeesuccesscompany.com

CHAPTERS

00:00 Intro: Ian Watts + the “money doesn’t hug you back” idea

00:43 “Build businesses that bless the world”

00:56 Detroit, poverty, and the money chase

03:48 When chasing money feels empty

05:43 Sales pressure, performance culture, and the BMW chase

07:40 Why Ian started Employee Success Group

10:04 The ACTS Method (Aspirations + Calling)

12:10 Transformation + Support (showing people they matter)

13:47 The IKEA story: why small gestures stick for decades

15:54 Short-term targets vs culture (leading under pressure)

17:02 “Little hinges swing big doors” (small appreciation, big impact)

20:10 Ian’s “big door” right now (perspective, meaning, emotion)

23:24 Who shaped Ian: Uncle Kelvin + Pastor Christopher Brooks

26:11 Finding purpose: faith + the SHAPE framework

28:31 “Life is a team sport” (you need others to see yourself clearly)

32:36 More joy: focus, gratitude, enjoying the journey

35:26 Priming + the RAS (your brain finds what you focus on)

37:34 Where to find Ian + closing

AI is moving so fast that a “right answer” from two days ago can already feel outdated.In this episode, I’m joined by Kyra Meyer-Johanson (Senior Product Marketing Manager at ServiceNow, focused on Platform + AI). We talk about what that pace of change is doing to people, why the fear is real, and how leaders can create an environment where teams stay grounded and move forward anyway.We also get practical about a simple practice Kyra uses called “glimmers”: small moments of good that train your brain to notice hope, not just risk.In this conversation, you’ll learn:* Why AI uncertainty is hitting people so hard right now* A simple way to lead when your team is anxious or resistant* How to create “space” for people without lowering standards* How to use glimmers to bring more joy into your day (even when life is busy)Connect with Kyra* LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyrameyerjohanson/Follow Coachful Coaching* YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@coachfulcoaching* Spotify: https://spotify.link/NTBgVJIL3yb* Apple: https://apple.co/41Cz5gI#Leadership #AI #Coaching #Change #JoyInTheHustle----------------------------------------CHAPTERS0:00 Intro0:01 Welcome + Kyra’s background0:57 Creating space for people to flourish2:28 Why AI change feels so intense right now4:27 Humans hate change, and the pace is accelerating7:35 “Born in uncertainty”: Kyra’s immigrant story10:54 A principal’s leadership lesson: space over conformity12:08 Building an environment where people thrive (even with AI fear)16:08 Who influenced Kyra’s leadership mindset20:42 Instant gratification culture and why we misread “progress”22:06 What to say to people resisting AI and feeling threatened23:35 Slow down: notice fear, then choose your response24:21 Validating emotions without getting stuck in them26:14 What Kyra wants to give back: ripple of positivity28:31 Negativity bias and training the “glimmers” muscle30:14 Joy advice: laugh more and notice the glimmers34:05 Where to find Kyra (LinkedIn + email)34:39 Closing + subscribe