Why the Best Teams in History Excelled with Sam Walker

Scaling Up Business with Bill Gallagher

What can business leaders learn from the best sports teams that have had success for decades?

In this episode, Sam Walker joins host Bill Gallagher to discuss the leadership secrets of the world’s most successful sports teams. From the unassuming captains who drive dynasties to the cultural pillars that make teams legendary, Sam shares powerful insights for business leaders.

Sam Walker is the guy who cracked the code on what makes great teams tick. As a former global sports editor at The Wall Street Journal and author of the bestselling book The Captain Class, Sam’s obsession with leadership and teamwork has taken him into locker rooms, boardrooms, and beyond.

Topics explored in this episode:

- The surprising importance of unassuming captains in driving team success.

- Why Michael Jordan’s leadership wasn’t the key to the Chicago Bulls’ dynasty.

- How a culture of winning defines teams like the New Zealand All Blacks.

- Lessons from the 2004 Red Sox and their dramatic midseason turnaround.

- Why team success often depends on "invisible" leadership work behind the scenes.

- The value of dissent and conflict in building a strong team culture.

- How Ted Lasso humorously portrays key lessons about leadership and team dynamics.

- Why great leaders prioritize collective success over personal recognition.

- The Cuban women’s volleyball team’s dominance and their innovative approach to practice.

Chapters in this episode:

(02:20) Meet Sam Walker

(05:10) The Role of Captains in Sustained Success

(09:50) Bill Cartwright and the Chicago Bulls

(15:00) The 2004 Red Sox Story

(19:45) The New Zealand All Blacks

(27:50) The Cuban Women’s Volleyball Team

(40:06) Leadership Lessons from Ted Lasso

Thanks to Sam Walker for being on the show!

Sam will be the keynote speaker at our upcoming SCALING UP LIVE event on June 10-12, 2025 in Denver, Colorado: https://chiefexecutive.net/scaling-up/

Connect with Sam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-walker-captain-class/

Learn more about Sam: https://www.bysamwalker.com/

Get Sam’s book, The Captain Class: The Hidden Force That Creates the World's Greatest Teams: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0812997190

Bill Gallagher, Scaling Coach and host of the Scaling Up Business podcast, is an international business coach who works with C-Suite leaders to achieve breakthrough growth.

Join Bill in the Growth Navigator Coaching Program: https://ScalingCoach.com/workshop

Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.LinkedIn.com/in/BillGall

Bill on YouTube: https://www.YouTube.com/@BillGallagherScalingCoach

Visit https://ScalingUp.com to learn more about Verne Harnish, our team of Scaling Up Coaches, and the Scaling Up Performance Platform, which includes coaching, learning, software, and summit. We share how the fastest-growing companies succeed where so many others fail. We help leadership teams with the biggest decisions around people, strategy, execution, and cash so that they can scale up successfully and beat the odds of business growth.

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This episode was produced by Story On Media & Marketing: https://www.successwithstories.com