Dan Strode, a culture and innovation strategist with a track record of transforming organisations across 32 countries, opens Season 2 of Culture de-cooded with a masterclass on leadership at scale.
From his formative years as Global Culture Lead at Santander Group to his current role as Principal at Coode, Dan shares a deeply practical, human approach to shifting behaviours and embedding cultural change in global systems.
In this episode, Dan unpacks what it means to lead with purpose and clarity in fast-moving environments. He reflects on the three guiding questions that shaped his work at Santander, exploring how they evolved alongside the organisation. He discusses how local and global cultures intersect, and why measuring cultural progress requires more than just metrics, it demands nuance, dialogue, and consistent alignment between strategy and lived behaviour.
Dan introduces listeners to the “Cyborg Mindset”, a philosophy that balances the rise of AI with core human traits like curiosity, empathy, and collaboration. With sharp insight and candid reflection, he explores the future of work, the importance of psychological safety, and how leaders can create conditions for innovation and autonomy to thrive.
Blending systems thinking with frontline experience, Dan makes a compelling case for culture as both a strategic lever and a deeply human endeavour, one that, when understood and nurtured, can unlock extraordinary performance across teams, geographies, and industries.
Podcast Chapters
00:00:00-Welcome to Season 2
00:01:24-Introducing Dan
00:02:24-Career Path to Santander
00:05:15-Global Culture at Santander Group
00:11:14-Becoming the first global culture lead at Santander
00:15:37-Three Core Questions & Adapting Over Time
00:20:01-Global vs Local Culture
00:26:34-Tracking Progress By measuring Culture
00:31:29-Life After Santander & Writing The Books
00:38:54-AI, Innovation & the Cyborg Mindset
00:44:42-Ants.
00:45:30-Dans leadership Journey in a Song