The Backstory

The Backstory, formerly the High Stakes Podcast, is a new, limited series from Jarrard Inc. President and Co-Founder Anne Hancock Toomey.

For nearly two decades, Jarrard – one of the nation’s top communications consulting firms for healthcare – has partnered with thousands of leaders across the country who are striving to make healthcare better every day.

But this isn’t a podcast about healthcare, or politics or even communications. It’s about authentic leadership.

The Backstory is about demystifying respected leaders who’ve had a lot of success along the way because of the kind of leaders they’ve chosen to be.

Each person Anne interviews is visionary, of course. They’re smart as hell, and they’re fierce about their business and their mission. They’re also humble, kind and create the kind of environments in which people can thrive. They’re not perfect. But they are real. And it’s the combination of those two things that makes each one of them great.

In every episode, Anne’s guest digs into who they are, where they come from and what’s influenced them to be the person and the leader that they are today.

Business News
1
Backstory Sessions 2026: Teresa Sparks
13 min
2
Backstory Sessions 2026: Vijay Patel
13 min
3
Backstory Sessions 2026: J.R. Greene
12 min
4
Backstory Sessions 2026: Jenn Adams
12 min
5
Backstory Sessions 2026: David Dill
12 min
6
BONUS 211. From Plowing Snow to Leading Healthc...
39 min
7
210. From Local Newspaper Delivery to National ...
39 min
8
209. From Pumping Gas to CEO of Leading Childre...
35 min
9
208. From Serving Frozen Yogurt to National Hea...
39 min
10
207. From Clinical Dietician to CEO of Allina H...
43 min
11
206. From Dairy Farmer to Intermountain Health ...
40 min
12
205. From Bike Mechanic to Oura CEO, with Tom Hale
40 min
13
204. From NFL Center to Tech CEO, with Chris Sp...
43 min
14
203. From Seafood Clerk to CEO of Top Veterinar...
39 min
15
202. From Camp Counselor to Elite Athlete, Auth...
45 min
16
201. From Burnt-Out Young Lawyer to Healthcare ...
40 min
17
Welcome to Season 2 of The Backstory
1 min
18
18. From Hardware Store to Healthcare Entrepren...
40 min
19
17. From Basketball Coach to Physician Executi...
37 min
20
16. From Post-War Microlending to Healthcare Pr...
42 min
21
15. From Passing out in Biology Class to Health...
40 min
22
14. From Kiwifruit Farming to Academic Medicine...
38 min
23
Bonus: 13 Leaders, One Big Question
17 min
24
13. From Peace Corps to Healthcare Industry Cha...
42 min
25
12. From Life Flight Nurse to the Healthcare C-...
40 min