Walking Toward the Chaos with Marie Johnston

What if the messiest situations in business are also where the greatest leadership impact lives? Marie Johnston has built her career around walking into complicated situations and helping organizations move forward. As a finance and operations executive specializing in turnaround and transformation work, she has led teams through financial crises, compliance failures, organizational restructuring, and the intense pace that comes with fixing what is broken. In this conversation with Dr. Amy Athey, Marie shares what she looks for when she first enters a struggling organization, why she wants to meet the person everyone calls a complainer, and how curiosity, grit, and a willingness to speak up can make someone an invaluable member of a turnaround team. Marie also explains how she coaches teams through pressure and setbacks. Her approach centers on understanding the why, communicating openly about the problem and the temporary solution, creating room for people to try and fail, and continually returning to the next step that moves the organization forward. The conversation also explores working with private equity firms, managing the pressure for rapid results, and the importance of showing progress through consistent communication. Marie closes with the personal philosophy that keeps her grounded through demanding seasons: knowing your why and using your work to help others grow. A conversation about leadership, resilience, turnaround work, team development, accountability, and finding impact in the middle of chaos.