From Change Agent to Change Enabler: Aman Kochar On Leadership & Growth 7 | 9

Radical Candor: Communication at Work

Radical Candor

Business, Management, Careers

4.7 • 729 Ratings

🗓️ 26 February 2025

⏱️ 62 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Avoiding tough conversations? Lean in, speak up, and make them count.

Ever find yourself avoiding a tough conversation at work because, well…it’s just easier? We get it. But what if leaning into discomfort could actually make things better—for you, your team, and your company? In this episode, Kim and Amy sit down with Amandeep (Aman) Kochar, CEO of Baker & Taylor, to talk about how he uses Radical Candor to break down barriers, build trust, and create a culture where feedback fuels growth instead of fear. Aman gets real about his own struggles—navigating leadership as an underrepresented executive, learning to lead with vulnerability, and shifting from pushing change to making space for it. From leading a 200-year-old company through transformation to rethinking power dynamics in leadership, he lays out why transparency matters, how to handle resistance without backing down, and why the best leaders don’t just give feedback—they ask for it. The bottom line? Real change starts with real conversations. Ready to ditch the fear and lead with candor? Let’s go.

Get all of the show notes at RadicalCandor.com/podcast.

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Chapters:

(00:00:00) Introduction
Kim and Amy welcome guest Amandeep (Aman) Kochar, CEO of Baker & Taylor.

(00:00:58) The Meaning of a Name
Aman shares how his name reflects identity and leadership.

(00:07:23) Leading a 200-Year-Old Company
The challenges of driving change in a legacy organization.

(00:11:34) From Change Agent to Change Enabler
Gaining trust, embracing vulnerability, and leading with impact.

(00:18:27) Overcoming Resistance
Tackling workplace culture shifts and rebuilding trust.

(00:24:18) Creating Open Communication
Implementing town halls and fostering transparency.

(00:30:00) Empowering Employees
Strategies for shifting decision-making power to frontline employees.

(00:34:28) Rethinking Feedback
Turning feedback into a tool for growth, not fear.

(00:44:16) Repairing Relationships
Overcoming negative perceptions and fostering collaboration.

(00:47:15) Leadership & Self-Reflection
Unlearning cultural conditioning and using self awareness to grow.

(00:52:51) Filtering Feedback
Separating identity from work-related feedback to focus on growth.

(00:53:58) Radical Candor Tips
Lessons on trust, feedback, and fostering change.

(01:01:19) Conclusion

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, everybody. I'm Kim Scott. Welcome to the Radical Canter Podcast. I'm Amy Sandler. We tell a lot of
0:10.6	stories on this podcast. So we thought we'd invite someone else to come and tell you all a radical
0:16.7	candor story. And by the way, this is an expert in storytelling. We are so excited to welcome
0:22.8	longtime radical candor practitioner Amandip Amman Kochar to the podcast. Amman is owner and CEO of
0:32.2	Baker and Taylor, the near 200-year-old book distributor, content services, and software company.
0:39.0	He's also author of the children's book series, Jeet and Fudge, a passionate champion for early
0:46.2	literacy and education, serving on the board of directors for both United for Libraries,
0:51.8	a division of the American Libraries Association, and the National Book
0:56.8	Foundation. Welcome. And can you also share with us some of the stories you are sharing about
1:04.1	your name so that our listeners can not only pronounce it correctly and understand it, but also the
1:09.2	origin? Yeah, of course.
1:12.9	Thank you, Amy, for that lovely introduction.
1:16.1	Yes, welcome.
1:18.3	I would say, you know, for the longest time, I found my name to be fascinating because
1:24.1	in the Indian subculture, your names translate into something.
1:29.3	So, you know, when I asked my mother, we're two boys, me and my older brother,
1:34.2	so I asked her, how did you pick my name?
1:36.6	And she said, well, I had two names picked out, and whichever one of you was being born
1:40.7	first, I would need them there.
1:42.8	And okay, so in the, in the, in the sick culture, the holy book is called the guru
1:49.8	gruntsite.
1:50.5	Then the tradition is that when a child is born, after that, you know, you get a prayer
	...

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