The WILD Factor: What High-Performing NGO Leaders Do Differently
Are you still trying to lead by "knowing everything" and carrying the weight of your organization alone? In the modern NGO sector, that old model isn't just outdated—it’s a recipe for burnout.
In this episode, I sit down with Fiona MacCaulay, Founder and CEO of the WILD Network (Women for Impactful Leadership in Development). We dive deep into why the "work harder" mentality is failing humanitarian leaders and explore the specific traits you need to succeed in 2026: curiosity, continuous learning, and the courage to build a network that supports you.
Fiona shares behind-the-scenes insights on the WILD Forum, the power of the "Catalyst Circle," and why normalizing failure is the secret weapon of high-performing teams.
In this episode, you will discover:
- The "Modern Leadership" Shift: Why agency and self-leadership matter more than your job title.
- The WILD Network Explained: How this global community is redefining professional development for women in the sector.
- Networking with Intention: How to design a career aligned with your values (without the "gross" networking feel).
Resources Mentioned:
- Check out the WILD Network & Forum
- Get the book "Aim High and Bounce Back"
Full Episode Transcript:
Torrey: [00:00:00] Leadership in the humanitarian and development sector is changing fast and many of us are really feeling it. The old models of working harder, knowing everything and carrying it all alone simply won't work anymore. In today's episode, I'm joined by Fiona McCaulay. Founder and CEO of the WILD Network to talk about what modern leadership really looks like right now from leading yourself to leading teams, to building that kind of network that actually will sustain you.
We also talk about why leadership growth doesn't come from perfection, but from curiosity. Community and learning how to bounce back from failure. So if you're feeling stretched, stuck, or ready for a new way of leading this conversation is for you. Hey, I'm Tori and welcome to the Modern Leader and welcome to the Modern Humanitarian and Development Leader Podcast.
Let's get started. [00:01:00] Fiona, it's so great to have you on the podcast and I just can't wait to talk about this year's WILD forum and everything that you've been up to. So I think we've had you on an a few times before in my previous podcast and some people might be familiar with you, but I also just love your story.
So can you share about, first of all, what does WILD Stand for? A little bit about the network. And what led you to create it? Like what was the gap that you were seeing?
Fiona: Thanks so much, Torrey I always learned so much being on these podcasts with you, so I'm grateful for the invitation and I love connecting with your audience because I feel like we, these are my people, so thanks so much for having me.
Of
Torrey: course.
Fiona: I'm Fiona MacCaulay and the founder, CEO of the WILD Network and WILD stands for Women for Impactful Leadership in Development. So the WILD network [00:02:00] for. Over 20 years, I was a practitioner in the global development space with a sector specialty in economic development, and I initiated the first and only sustained network of practitioners, donors, academics, youth leaders, advancing youth economic opportunities.
I myself enrolled in the Stanford University's Business School Executive Program for women leaders. It was kind of a gift to myself from having been working, you know, so hard as a practitioner in our industry.
And what I learned in that program, what just sort of literally like struck me was what I learned would've helped if I had had that kind of like knowledge network research earlier in my career.
I would've been able to have a more significant impact earlier, and I would've enjoyed my career more. And so [00:03:00] basically the, the initial idea behind the WILD network is how could we be bring something that was of the quality and relevance and evidence backed that. That Stanford program was to women working across global development, you know, and humanitarian aid and beyond.
And so over the last eight years we have been able to do that. And when I say we, I mean people like yourself, Torrey who offers like such, right? This podcast to people who offers like practical courses to help people see themselves as a leader. We have had speakers from over a hundred countries and we have had.
Professional women, men, people of all genders also participate from over a hundred countries. And when you come to a WILD Network event, you know, we basically have three brand promises for you. [00:04:00] You are going to hear people talk about authentic leadership experiences. People are gonna offer concrete takeaways, right?
Like behavior change, being an impactful leader, like it's difficult. And so it's also a lot of learned behaviors and using of tools that have been tried and tested. So we wanna make sure that you are leaving with those kinds of concrete takeaways and also that you will have a chance to connect with others who care about impactful leadership.
In a really meaningful way because growing that network, growing authentic relationships, deepening those kinds of relationships, at the end of the day, everything happens through people, right? Opportunities happen through people. Our impact happens through people. So the broader and deeper that our network is, the greater the impact we can have.
Torrey: I love that and I found that to be true for all the WILD forums that I've participated or attended over the last, I [00:05:00] think, four or five years that I always leave with something practical and some network benefit that has really helped me and in one way or another. So you're definitely achieving your goal there.
Fiona: Yeah.
Torrey: And, and the, and the WILD Forum itself is both virtual and in person, correct?
Fiona: Correct. So our in-person leadership for Social impact forum is May 6th in Washington dc and our online forum is the following week, May 12th and 13th. And in the online forum, we do live programming across 25 time zones over those two days.
And we have speakers from around the globe. So they are two separate events. And the reason is what I have observed is that when you add a virtual conference to an in-person conference, the virtual participants have really have a, have a second class experience. Like it's just not as good for them, [00:06:00] especially around interactivity.
And so we have these as two separate events. The online forum is really like buy and for the global community. We have speakers from, I think 22 countries this year ranging from Afghanistan to Rwanda to Peru, to the United States, to Canada, to Asia. And so the content really is buy and for global purpose-driven women in Washington DC We do have people who fly in from other countries.
At the same time, we've really curated it for more for a North American. Based, based audience. And at the end of the day, we wanna ensure that people who are participating in both events really have like an A plus experience, a plus networking, a plus content a plus, just like really enjoying the experience.
And then for both of those communities, when you have a ticket to the in-person or online forum, you're actually getting access to five months of leadership development opportunities. So we wanna [00:07:00] make sure that people can already start that networking, already start digging into networking skills, like how to show up as an impactful leader at these events.
So we have these leadership master classes that we offer before the forums that are online so everyone can participate. And then following the forum, we always have a workshop that's about translating ideas into action. So Torrey maybe like. We've had this shared experience, maybe others of you out there, but you'll go to a conference or a training course and you leave with like a notebook or your phone, like full of notes and ideas.
I'm gonna follow up with this poster and I'm gonna like try out that new leadership behavior. I'm gonna read that research and then you like get back to your desk and to misquote Muhammad on Lee. It's like you get punched in your face by your inbox, right? Your email inbox. So we have this workshop 30 days after the conference to connect you with the intentions that you made.
Whether it was the in-person leadership for social impact forum or the [00:08:00] online and reconnect you with that community and give you kind of small steps you could take towards big goals. So when you have like a ticket to the one event, it is this amazing conference, but then there's also these pre-imposed activities.
Torrey: Yeah. And, and you're so right, like this a, a missing piece to a lot of events is the follow up afterwards and making sure we put. What was learned in the action and practice and, and I know like also the community within WILD helps support one another in doing that. So yeah, it really is a great initiative.
And I'm curious, Fiona, for you, like when you think about today's humanitarian development context, things have changed so much even over the last five years. How would you define modern leadership in a way that maybe like. What does it require that it didn't 10 or 15 years ago?
Fiona: So I [00:09:00] think two things come up for me when I hear that question from Tori.
Hmm. The first one is around leader identity. Hmm. Meaning that whether you have formal leadership responsibilities. So by that I mean, is part of your job description, like, you know, managing, supervising, leading others, or not? Everybody really needs to think of themselves as a leader, both a leader of themselves, right?
I think as we have all seen and experienced, there is no guarantees in in the job market, and you need to be, make sure that you're really like leading your career, right? Like that you are the champion of your career to make sure that you can have the impact you want with the kinds of people that you want, and basically to create the life that's gonna work for you.
So number one, leading yourself. And secondly, I think everyone needs to think about how are they as a leader contributing to the [00:10:00] communities, the organizations, right? The country, the world that you want, because never has this kind of individual leadership been so important. We cannot necessarily rely on.
People with the terms like in capitals like leader, right? Political leaders, economic leaders, civil society leaders we all have a stake in crafting, as I say, the organizations and world around us that we want.
Torrey: Hmm.
Fiona: And so what does that require? You know, I think a huge part of, leading today, and by, and I mean everybody with formal, you know, whether they're formal leadership responsibilities or not, is about being genuinely curious.
Torrey: Hmm.
Fiona: As we see, like the world is changing quickly, right? There's a lot happening with ai. There's a lot happening in the global development and humanitarian industries at the moment. Shifting funding landscapes, and you have to be a continuous learner. You [00:11:00] have to be curious, whatever was working for you.
Five years ago needs a refresh and it needs an update. And again, you need to be in the lead of looking at the signals, like picking up on the signals around you and ensuring that you're staying curious and that you're staying to be a continuous learner. And that is for people at all levels.
Torrey: Hmm.
Fiona: For people at all levels, from early career to people who are also late career in order to stay relevant and in order to stay effective and impactful.
Torrey: Yeah. Wow. Yeah, I think that's, those are also great points and things that I talk about as well. It's like being, I saw that you have someone on the forum speaking this year about just like from like designing your own life, and I talk about that a lot too. It's like realizing that no matter where you are in the hierarchy, you have a role to play and that you can create change.
Yeah. [00:12:00] Even if you're not the top, you can start with just those in what I call your circle of influence, those around you, the people you work closest with. And, and part of that, like you're saying, involves learning, like being curious, learning about, you know, new ways of doing things and tools that can help you with that.
But, but yeah, I, I think that people sometimes they wait for the change, but. We need to realize that we are part of that change and that we can also lead that change regardless of, of what type of leader you are, like where you are, like you said in the hierarchy.
Fiona: Yeah, I agree with you a hundred percent Torrey and I'm so glad you bring up that speaker.
So aisha Burell is speaking at both the in-person leadership for Social Impact Forum in Washington DC on May 6th, and in the online forum May 12th and 13. She's the author of a book you may have heard about called Design the Life You Love. And first it's [00:13:00] like most wonderful kind of book meets workbook.
Very visual. And she has this wonderful activity that she will take us through about identifying who are our heroes.
Torrey: Hmm.
Fiona: Who are the people that inspire you, who you admire? Like what are the qualities that you see in them that you aspire to for yourself?
Torrey: Mm-hmm.
Fiona: And I, I, I mentioned this just to connect to what you were saying about like, be the leader that you want.
In the world. And I think sometimes when someone says, so what are your values? What kind of leader do you wanna be? Right. Sometimes like it's sort of like blank, like it's such a big question.
Torrey: Yeah.
Fiona: But if we break it down and say, who do you like, who do you admire as a leader? You know, oh, what are the qualities that you see in that person?
How do they move through the world? It becomes a lot easier to articulate, you know, what are our values? What do we value in leaders? But also what do those values look like? Day to day, [00:14:00] you know, what do those behaviors look like? Yeah. And I don't know about you, but like often I feel like. When I was just doing a lot of working as a subcontractor in Washington dc I would walk into like many prime contract, many, many, many, many tens of organizations and they would have like their mission statement behind the desk.
But I, you know, I always wanted to be like. What does that look like in practice for you? You know, what does that look like in practice for you? And I think that connects also to your question about what's needed by leaders today. It's like, what does that look like in, so I'll just circle back, like, what does it look like in practice to be a continuous learner?
Like what does it look like in practice to be curious? Yeah. And I think it looks like, right, like taking. So much incredible, freely available like courses that are out there these days, right? It means just like seeing who, who, who do you look up to as a leader and like, are you taking concrete steps to like.
Really develop a relationship, you know, with them. So, so that you know, or [00:15:00] follow them or find ways that you can concrete learning from them. How do you feel comfortable being that person who says, oh, tell me more. Whether it's in a meeting or in a one-on-one conversations, or like, I'm curious to learn more, or, I'm working that, working on that.
Right. This is like what being curious and a continuous learner looks like in practice.
Torrey: Nice. I'm glad that you articulated that. And I mean, I, I think this is kind of related to what you're saying as well, is like going beyond your job description in terms of, you know, the type of impact you wanna make and the type of leader you want to be, like, being intentional about, you know, like looking at your, your, your heroes, the people you admire, but.
I think that sometimes it's the same kind of like need to empower yourself or like realize that you have more ability than you think. [00:16:00] To design even like your future career, like I just publish, published an episode this week about this thing is like, a lot of times we wait around to see what's comes available, but why not create it?
Why not decide in advance, you know, what do you want, what is the type of role you would like to create? And then start looking how to do that through your network, through the, the learning and the skills like you're saying. It's, it's. It's a little bit of a mindset shift, but I think it, it's very self-empowering.
Fiona: I know a hundred percent. And just to build on that with two things. One is. Something that in the early years that we did, the Leadership for Social Impact Forum, what I would hear from people is, I've heard all these things that I wanna take forward. Like I'm motivated and like I need help. Like, it's almost like I wish I could be coming to the forum like every week just to kind of get juiced up and just to continue to like get that, those [00:17:00] concrete direction on the, on the how to.
So one of the things that WILD is now offering is what we call a WILD membership, where you get a ticket to the online or in or in-person forum, but then you also get six. One-to-one leadership coaching sessions, and I mentioned this because some of these behavior change or kind of bold steps. Mm-hmm. Of course we all need support with those and leadership coaching is a key way to do that.
And Torrey I know you're also a leadership coach and you're ex supported people through extra extraordinary like bold steps. And the second thing I wanna offer to people is thinking about if there's someone. Who you see out there, they're maybe not in your network yet, but they are, let's say, one of your leadership heroes or you feel you wanna learn from them.
Just to invite people to think about reaching out, I would say 99% of the population wants to help if someone reach reaches out, showing [00:18:00] that they've done their homework is clear on why they're reaching out, and you make it easy for them to like make it easy for them to be responsive. Then many times people are gonna respond in a positive way.
And I think sometimes what holds us back is like figuring we have to have it all figured out before we reach out with a question, right? Which is like, no, you actually, like, you're never probably not gonna be able to figure it all out until you start building your network out with new people and being in new situations.
So I just kind of wanna invite your listeners to think about setting a goal. Reaching out to someone who you feel like really is in a place where you wanna be, so that you can expand your network into new places. And whether that's about a career shift or gaining a new job in our, in a, in a space that you're in again, it really all happens through other people and most other people wanna help you.
Torrey: Hmm.
Fiona: Just. I'm gonna come back to doing the homework. Like never [00:19:00] tell someone you wanna pick their brain. Right? I think if you can tell someone why you're reaching out to them, which I call authentic flattery, right? Meaning like, you're authentically admire this person. Tell 'em that. We all love to hear that, right?
Torrey: Mm-hmm.
Fiona: And then you're really clear on what your question is for them, then that's gonna make that person feel like you value their time.
We have about 500 WILD fellows, what we call WILD network fellows every year. And so this is mid-career professionals based in the global south. Although sometimes people are, you know, maybe from the global south originally, but are now like, I don't know, doing a master's or PhD in Europe or they're mid, they're in North America and we support them to participate in all of those forum activities.
Then we also, those who really like show up the strongest, we show that they're really committed. They're really have like the time and interest to develop themselves as even more impactful leaders. We invite them to a [00:20:00] smaller group coaching process called the Catalyst Circle. And so, and the Catalyst Circle supports people through many of these.
To really feel more ambitious, to feel more equipped to have that community we're talking about for many of the themes we've touched on in this conversation.
Torrey: Hmm.
Fiona: So one of our Catalyst Circle participants who recently just graduated, she's in Myanmar and she works in the mental health space to de-stigmatize mental health and to also help more people get access to mental health services.
So, you know, doing, I think really like critical work and work and providing a service for which there's great demand and not enough providers.
Torrey: Hmm.
Fiona: And she was picking up on something you were saying She was working very, very hard, not necessarily focusing on developing the team around her. So there was a lot of reliance on her to be the [00:21:00] one who was providing mental health services.
To a number of people and institutions beyond what she could personally do and what she gained from actually initially being at the forum in this community of people who were all talking about being stronger leaders was like, oh wow, it's actually a strength. To recognize that you have areas for growth, right?
Versus like feeling like you have to have it all together and you have to know all the answers. Right now, a lot of women have come to that place of, I think having that armor like I am perfect. I will not show weakness for very good reason, right? Like they have picked up on the signals around them.
There's experiences that they've had where they feel like to get ahead and to. Make their way in the world. They like need to present as having it all together and there are times for that.
Torrey: Hmm.
Fiona: At the same time, I think being at the WILD Forum, what she shared is like she realized there was a whole global community of people in her region and around [00:22:00] the globe, like her accomplished.
Ambitious, and I always use, use the word ambitious in the most positive way. Leaders who co were coexisting with this idea of I am a successful leader and I have areas that I wanna strengthen so that I can have an even more significant impact and enjoy my career even more so. I think the forum really helped with that.
And she also said that she left with like some very concrete takeaways, like how to have difficult conversations. Like we had a workshop on how to have difficult conversations that year and she was like, there's a number of difficult conversations that I have been needing to have and not having them as taking up so much mental headspace and time.
So that was like one of her key takeaways was to like have those conversations that needed to be had in a way that would lead to positive outcomes and be a positive experience for her and the people she was speaking to. Nice. And then being in the catalyst circle, there was [00:23:00] work done on you know, thinking about delegation and how to shift that mindset.
Mindset shift between I've gotta do it all, and the hours that you work to actually thinking about how to really value your time and how you could get the greatest multiplier effect with. The time that you have. And so she gained specific tools around that area and all from, from our our leader, from the, from the coach who runs those group coaching sessions, but also from hearing from colleagues who came from different parts of the world about how they were approaching that challenge.
Nice. Wow. And I think, and I think that's pretty typical, right? I think as humans. I need concrete takeaways. I need to like know this is a safe place to learn. I wanna be around people who are like also struggling and succeeding. And I think these kinds of, these kinds of facets to like a professional growth opportunity are just like really important for all of us at all stages of our careers.
Even [00:24:00] the most successful leaders that you see, they also need these things and are working on these things.
Torrey: Yes. Yeah, agreed. It's always interesting to me how many leaders come. Like, like whether they're taking my course or like, you know, just in interactions and like hearing about, oh, I need to know it all, or I have to have all the answers, or I have to, yeah, be perfect.
And these are some of the things that I, I call high performance syndrome. And and then how. That, just the realization that, oh, well, actually being a leader, or especially when you're leading a team, is about surrounding yourself with people who have the answers, and so you don't have to have all the answers.
And it sounds like you know, that, that she came to the, that realization was able to be more productive from it, which is great. As such a, a [00:25:00] release, I feel like, of stress and weight off the shoulders of a leader when they realized those things. So, so yeah, if, you know, like, and just in like wrapping up here who do you think would benefit the most from attending this year's forum and what might they miss if they stood out?
Fiona: I love that question. So we have four tracks at both the in-person and online forum. So leading yourself. Team leading your organization and leading sector transformation. So if you're a manager figuring out how to step into a bigger role or to. Do even better in the managerial role that you're in right now.
We have a lot of like, we have a lot of content for you if you're a senior executive, asking how you could influence more strategically. Like that's the track that we have for you for leading organizations. And then I think a lot of the leading yourself track is [00:26:00] re relevant and resonant with for everybody.
Like that interactive session I mentioned, that's like design, the design, the leadership that you love. And because this. The virtual program runs across live programming during the workday in 25 time zones. 'cause we know how important that is for you. You're in the room with over a thousand people from over a hundred countries, and you are networking with organizations that range from the World Bank to save the children, to unicef, to McKinsey, to lean in foundation.
And that density of connection at that level I just think is very hard to find anywhere else. And because of that pillar of concrete takeaways and authentic connection it really helps you to grow and deepen those relationships in a very meaningful way. And we have so many times of interactivity, and Torrey we're so lucky to have you leading one of those.
That not only is there chance to like do a lot of interaction asynchronously and in the chat, but also in live breakout session rooms.
Torrey: [00:27:00] Yeah. That's, that's wonderful. And if you could speak directly to a leader listening right now who might feel stretched or stuck or not maybe just ready for a new way of leading, what would you want them to know about the WILD Forum?
Fiona: I think that when we are so busy, or. It can feel difficult to take time out for investing in ourselves. Mm. So, and I would say there is no better time to invest in yourself. Like if you really think about, okay, two for the virtual forum for two, three quarter days really like six months from now, are you gonna remember or is it gonna matter?
Like what of the run of the mill you were accomplishing on those times. Or is it gonna be more significant to you, your impact, your career, your organization, that you took time out to gain a whole bucket load of like inspiration, a whole truckload [00:28:00] of like concrete takeaways and tools you could be to a better leader and building your local and global network that you can mine over the course of your career.
Torrey: Hmm.
Fiona: Right. Like, you've gotta take that time to invest in yourself, I would say, in like very high quality interactive events because everything you accomplish is through other people. So you be like, gotta make sure that you're, you know, watering your network, building out your network, deepening your network, and also gaining that skills and inspiration that you need to continue to have like the impact that you wanna have.
Torrey: Yeah, such great points. I mean, the return and investment of just two days, you know, where you're learning and absorbing all these things can be much, much, much greater in the future. So yeah, definitely, definitely well worth it. And so, okay, so first of all, I just wanna say that all the links like to sign up for the [00:29:00] forum and all the information.
We'll make sure put in the show note. So people can find there. Anything you wanna add to that?
Fiona: Thanks, Tori. So the information on the in-person event in DC on May 6th and the virtual program May 12 and 13, is [email protected]. So WILD WILD leadership forum.org. So you can also find all the information.
Up there and thank you for including the links and so on in your show notes. So would love to hear from folks who are listening and would like hope that I see you in person or online in May. That would just be absolutely fantastic.
Torrey: Yeah. Yeah. No, we look forward to it. It's always really fun and exciting when the WILD Forum starts, and even beforehand building up to it.
And I, I, I also want to mention before we wrap up that. You know, you've been run running the FA Leadership Fail Lab for WILD for several years [00:30:00] now. And maybe you can just speak a little bit about that and I want to have you back on to talk about the book that's come out of it, but just, just like have a little teaser.
Tell us about it and what are you excited about?
Fiona: Well, the Leadership Fail Lab is. Every year the most popular element of the forum. And that says a lot because we have like New York Times Leadership book bestseller speaking. We have like world renowned leadership educators, you know, who in other settings would be getting paid like $50,000 by Google to be keynoting their leadership conference.
And in this very crowded space of really top-notch speakers and content, the leadership Fail lab is usually the, or one of the most popular sessions where we have. Women who are successful leaders by any measure are talking about a major flop or a setback that they experienced. How that was for them and also how they climbed out of it.
And I guess just as a little [00:31:00] teaser that prompted me to co-author Aim High and Bounce Back, Successful Women's Guide to Rethinking Rising Up from Failure. Hold it up. But I, I'll, okay, we can, can't it? But you know, I'd love to read the dedication that I wrote for this book, please. Which is: to the WILD leaders who turned their failures into fuel and inspired me to write this book.
Torrey: Oh, I love that. Oh, I can't wait to read it. Oh my gosh. Yeah. I mean, the thing is, part of what you're doing is like normalizing failure to making it Okay. Because you know, like, like the, the times where we grow the most, we learn the most is usually what went from our failures.
Fiona: Absolutely. As painful as it is.
As painful as it is.
Torrey: Yeah.
Fiona: So as women around the Globe, the virtual conference are listening to, you know, women from around the globe like talk so honestly about [00:32:00] like the pain and hubris and sometimes humor of terrible, terrible failures. What do you think is the most common comment they put into the chat?
Torrey: Mm, good question. I'm so glad you shared that.
Fiona: Yes, yes. So specifically It's me too. Me too. Me too. Me too. Me too. Ah. You know, and, and, and which I think translates right to like, oh, I'm so glad you shared that, because it's normalizing failure and like actually makes me feel better about my own setback and it kind of helps people to release the shame.
We'll talk more about that. But I'd love to come back on and talk about aim High, bounce back, because I think a lot of the social science and lessons that we have in this book are just really helpful for everyone.
Torrey: That's awesome. I can't wait to have you back on to talk about that. But yeah, thank you so much Fiona, for spending some time with us today and sharing about this year's WILD forum and we look forward to [00:33:00] participating.
And yeah. Anything else you wanna add?
Fiona: No, just that you know, we look forward for, to participation from people from around the globe or for people in the DC area or, you know, to come join us in, in Washington, DC and I just hope to see you all there.
Torrey: Great. Thank you.