The Art of Managing Diverse Personalities | Oscar Hedaya

Serial entrepreneur Oscar Hedaya, founder of SPACE and The Space Safe, joins Bill Lennan on the 40% Better podcast for a wide-ranging conversation on what real leadership looks like across industries. Oscar's career has taken him from visual merchandising in New York to touch-screen gloves, electric mobility, and now the world's first smart safe with a built-in camera, touchscreen, tamper sensors, and app connectivity. Along the way, he's built and led teams of 25+ people across hardware, software, firmware, and design, and he shares the hard-won lessons that came from managing very different personalities under one roof. The conversation digs into the messy, human side of leadership: how to handle conflict without letting it fester, why getting quiet team members to speak up can completely transform a team's output, and how psychological safety and employee happiness aren't soft extras but core performance drivers. Oscar and Bill also unpack the challenge of getting cross-functional teams speaking the same language, the power of extreme ownership when things go wrong, and why small gestures like better coffee or Friday pizza often matter more than a pay rise. Key Takeaways

Leaders who come from under-resourced backgrounds often develop stronger creative problem-solving instincts early onManaging larger teams means spending significant time on interpersonal issues, not just the work itselfBringing clashing team members together socially is often the most effective way to defuse conflictGetting promoted doesn't mean doing more of the same job; the role fundamentally changesQuiet, high-performing team members need time and consistent encouragement before they'll speak up in group settings, but it's worth the investmentCross-functional teams (hardware, firmware, software, design) each speak a different language; a good leader bridges that gapWhen something goes wrong, blame-minimising and accountability-taking from the top changes the entire team cultureEmployee happiness is a business metric: appreciated employees go beyond their job description, stay longer, and produce better workSmall perks (better coffee, free lunch, a nearby hotel room for late nights) create disproportionate goodwill and loyaltyUpgrading team equipment is one of the highest-ROI investments a leader can make

Connect with Oscar Hedaya: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oscar-hedaya-b1a76b3/ Website: https://www.thespacesafe.com If you found this episode useful, hit subscribe and leave a review. It really helps the show reach more leaders who want to build better teams.
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Connect with Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/wblennan/ 
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#40PercentBetter #BillLennan #Leadership #TeamPerformance #EmployeeEngagement #PsychologicalSafety #BusinessGrowth #Kaizen #EngineeringLeadership #Coaching The 40% Better podcast with Bill Lennan unlocks previously unheard-of performance levels in teams and leaders. Bill Lennan, founder of 40 Percent Better, interviews experts on employee engagement, psychological safety, engineering leadership, and actionable mental models. Learn how to foster high-performing teams, improve team productivity, and achieve sustainable success in business through a focus on human-centered systems. 
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