We’re back — and bolder than ever. In this season premiere, Jill and Tia pull back the curtain on what’s changed in leadership, why surface-level conversations aren’t cutting it anymore, and how Real Talk is here to lead food forward. No guests, no fluff — just truth, courage, and clarity to kick off Season 3.

Learn more in THIS episode of Real Talk with Tia & Jill.

The moments you’re most under pressure are the moments your team and those around you remember most.

Not the calm days. Not the wins.
But the heat. The urgency. The curveballs.
That’s when leadership patterns get revealed—or rewritten.

And in food and manufacturing environments, pressure isn’t the exception. It’s the rhythm.

When firefighting becomes your leadership style

One of our clients—an operations leader in a national food brand—described their team dynamic like this:

“We’re so used to...

Here’s the truth most leaders won’t say out loud:

You’re already running out of time.

Not time in the year—but time to lead differently before 2025 becomes another blur of meetings, fires, and “maybe next quarters.”

We hear it from food industry leaders all the time:

“We meant to shift the culture this year… but we got caught up in the day-to-day.”

The pace of this industry doesn’t slow down. But leadership is a choice you make in moments—not quarters. And this season?  It might be your las...

You’ve got goals to hit before the year’s out.
Productivity targets. Culture shifts. Maybe even a major transformation in how your team works or leads.

But here’s the question most food leaders skip: Is your team actually ready for what you’re asking them to do?  Because if they’re not—and you haven’t checked—you’re not leading them to results.  You’re leading them to resistance.

The assumption that breaks culture.

At Catalyst, we work with food industry leaders who are running fast, aiming hi...

We’ve all been there.

You attend a webinar.
You journal in the morning.
You have the 1:1s. You check the box.

But if you're being honest… you're still leading the same way you always have. This is autopilot leadership. And the cost? It’s deeper than we realize.

What Is Autopilot Leadership?

Autopilot leadership happens when we think we’re doing the work of leadership—but we’re just going through the motions.

It sounds like:

• “I’m already a good listener.”
• “I went to that training last y...

You’ve read the values.
You’ve held the meetings.
You’ve sent the memo.

And yet—things still feel stuck.  The culture isn’t shifting the way you hoped.

If that’s familiar, you’re not alone. Many food industry leaders are pushing hard to improve safety, quality, and collaboration. But the results aren’t matching the effort. So what’s missing?

The Core Truth: Culture Doesn’t Change Unless Leaders Do

Culture is built—quietly and consistently—through daily behavior.  That means when we want to ...

In the fast-moving, cross-functional world of food manufacturing and operations, influence is essential—especially for those who don’t have direct authority. Maybe you're a quality supervisor needing production to adjust processes. Or a senior director driving a change initiative. In any of these roles, pushing people doesn’t work—not for long. Real influence isn’t about controlling outcomes. It’s about building trust-based relationships that make others want to move with you.

The Influence Myt...

In today’s food production environments, culture isn’t just a buzzword—it’s a business imperative. From food safety to employee retention, an empowered culture influences every layer of operations. When frontline employees feel valued and leaders are equipped to support growth, the entire organization benefits. But creating that kind of culture doesn’t happen by accident—it requires intention, alignment, and daily practice.

In this post, we’ll explore how food manufacturers can build an empower...

We all know food safety matters. But knowing isn’t the issue. The issue is how we lead.

Across the food industry, leaders are doubling down on protocols, procedures, and audits—yet food safety culture still struggles to move forward. Why?

Because we’re focusing on compliance, not commitment.

Compliance is about rules, checklists, and documentation. Necessary? Yes. Sufficient? Absolutely not.
Commitment is different. It’s personal. It’s what drives someone to speak up when they see something o...

How do you keep showing up as the leader you want to be—week after week, meeting after meeting? In this episode of Real Talk with Jill & Tia, we explore strategies for maintaining momentum in your leadership growth.  It takes more than just good intentions—it requires rhythm, reinforcement, and reflection. 

Whether you're fresh out of Catalyst’s Technical Leader Bootcamp, leading a plant floor team, or guiding strategy in a corporate setting, leadership growth isn’t a one-time event—it’s a prac...

Sometimes what looks like “improvement” is really avoidance in disguise. In this week’s Real Talk with Jill & Tia, we’re naming 3 common ways leadership quietly takes a backseat—masked by process changes, shiny tools, or CI initiatives. These approaches can be helpful, but when they replace courageous leadership instead of enabling it, teams start to feel the disconnect. We’ll explore what it looks like when people sidestep leadership, how to spot it, and what to do instead. Whether you're a lea...

We’re still riding the energy wave from Catalyst’s Leadership Summit—and we’ve got stories to share! On this week’s Real Talk with Jill & Tia, we’re giving you a behind-the-scenes look at what it took to bring the event to life, plus the powerful insights and takeaways that emerged. From standout sessions to unexpected moments, we’ll share what we heard, what we learned, and what surprised us most. You’ll also get a peek at participant feedback and what’s next on the horizon for Catalyst. Whethe...