Most leaders spend the early years of their career trying to accelerate forward.

Carles Farré stepped away.

Just a few years into his career at HP, he and his wife made an unconventional decision: they left the corporate world to spend several years in Latin America working with microfinance nonprofits—helping entrepreneurs in remote villages access small loans to start businesses.

S03 E04 Carles Farre

Some communities had no electricity. Getting there often meant navigating rivers, riding horses, or walking between villages.

What looked like a detour would become one of the defining leadership experiences of his life.

Carles eventually returned to HP, where he built a global career spanning engineering, research and development, worldwide operations, and commercial leadership. Today, he serves as Division President of HP Solutions Hybrid Systems, leading teams focused on building the integrated technologies shaping the future of work.

But the lesson that stuck with him from those early years isn’t about hardware, software, or AI.

It’s about people.

In this episode of Real Leadership, Carles reflects on the leadership journey that shaped his philosophy—from stepping away early in his career to leading global teams across multiple countries and business units.

He shares why culture is the true foundation of sustainable success, how leaders can build trust and empowerment at scale, and why the future of work must balance technological advancement with human connection.

In this episode of Real Leadership, we explore:

🔥 Why stepping off the traditional career path can reshape a leader’s perspective 🔥 The leadership lessons learned from working in remote communities across Latin America 🔥 Why culture is the bedrock of successful organizations 🔥 How trust and care inside teams drive speed, agility, and results 🔥 The balance leaders must strike between AI-powered productivity and human connection

03:02 — Introducing Carles Farré and HP’s evolving mission 06:20 — Measuring employee experience and human connection at work 11:31 — The future of collaboration and ambient technology 16:45 — Early leadership influences and personal values 19:31 — Leaving corporate life to work in Latin America 24:54 — The leadership lessons that experience created 27:43 — Why culture becomes the bedrock of organizations 33:10 — AI, productivity, and protecting human connection 37:01 — Advice for the next generation entering the workforce

• Carles Farré — LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carles-farre-hp/
• HP — Website: hp.com/
• HP — LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hp/
• HP Careers: jobs.hp.com/
• Jim Weaver — LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jim-weaver-36457418 Real Leadership Podcast: realleadership.oningroup.com
• Real Leadership — LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/104897916/

The Ōnin Group: oningroup.com/clients

Shawn Khan’s entrepreneurial journey started from the ground up in a way most founders never experience.

He didn’t inherit a company, raise venture capital, or even understand the industry he was stepping into.

Shawn bought a one-truck furniture delivery operation in New York City, rented the truck every morning, and learned the business by riding in the back making deliveries himself.

Two years later, he was ready to shut it down.

What changed everything wasn’t a new strategy. It was mentorship, perspective, and the willingness to stay in the fight long enough to evolve.

Today, Shawn leads Metropolitan Warehouse & Delivery, a company with 47 facilities nationwide, 3 million square feet of warehouse space, and partnerships with retailers like Costco, Amazon, Walmart, and Target.

But if you’re a leader, this episode isn’t just about logistics. It’s about:

• How businesses actually scale.
• Surviving the early years when the numbers don’t work.
• Knowing when to expand and when expansion will hurt before it helps.
• Shifting from being the operator to building the system.
• Turning labor challenges into ownership opportunities.

01:37 – The search for a business

03:42 – The near-failure and the partner who changed everything

06:06 – Riding the e-commerce wave with Costco and Anthropology

07:56 – Doubling the business during the chaos of COVID-19

16:27 – Turning drivers into business owners through the contractor model

25:29 – Why logistics is now a technology business

Shawn’s Company: GoMWD.com

• Metropolitan Warehouse Website: https://www.metropolitanwarehouse.com/
• Shawn’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawn-khan-38711187/
• Metropolitan Warehouse & Delivery LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/metropolitan-warehouse-delivery-corp/
• Jim Weaver — LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jim-weaver-36457418 Real Leadership Podcast: realleadership.oningroup.com
• Real Leadership — LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/104897916/
• The Ōnin Group: oningroup.com/clients

Zac Elkins didn’t wait for the supply chain to fix itself. He built his own.

As COO of LFG Manufacturing, Power Design’s specialty manufacturing division, Zac is leading one of the boldest vertical integration bets in the electrical industry. When COVID-era backlogs pushed switchgear lead times from 12 weeks to nearly two years, most contractors adjusted. Zac and the LFG team invested millions, bought the equipment, stocked two years of copper and steel…and started manufacturing their own.

LFG stands for “Let’s Freaking Go.” And it’s more than a name—it’s the mindset behind a company that refuses to blame the market.

In this episode of Real Leadership, Zac shares how a billion-dollar “mom and pop shop” is disrupting the electrical supply chain, why apprenticeship programs are the future of skilled labor, and how a scarcity mindset is the fastest way to lose.

In this episode, we cover:

🔥 Turning a 90-week supply chain crisis into a manufacturing company 🔥 Why holding two years of inventory isn’t risk—it’s opportunity 🔥 The data center boom and what it’s doing to construction economics 🔥 Reinventing apprenticeships (and cutting dropout rates from 80% to 20%) 🔥 Lessons learned from burning bridges early in your career 🔥 Building competitive, culture-driven teams that don’t think small

From digging ditches in his dad’s electrical business to overseeing 85% in-house switchgear production, Zac’s story is about ownership of mistakes, of opportunity, and of the entire supply chain.

If you’re in construction, manufacturing, workforce development—or just trying to build something that lasts—this one’s for you.

07:28: The Decision to Manufacture Switchgear

10:56: LFG's Manufacturing Journey and Innovations

14:15: Inventory Management and Financial Strategy

16:39: Industry Evolution and Future Outlook

24:15: Addressing Skilled Worker Shortages

28:56: Innovative Apprenticeship Programs

31:20: Lessons from the Family Business

36:40: Cultivating a Competitive Mindset

39:42: Setting Goals in a Growing Organization

• Zac Elkins — LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zacharyelkins/
• Power Design Inc. — https://www.linkedin.com/company/power-design-inc-/
• Contact Zac: zelkins@powerdesigninc.us
• Jim Weaver — LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jim-weaver-36457418 Real Leadership Podcast: realleadership.oningroup.com
• Real Leadership — LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/104897916/

The Ōnin Group: oningroup.com/clients