How Russell Reynolds Associates Scaled Their Podcast Into a Top-Ranked Industry Show

As a global leadership advisory firm, Russell Reynolds Associates launched Redefiners to spotlight bold leaders shaping the future of business.

But as the show entered its fourth season, the team hit familiar challenges: 

• How do we grow beyond our current audience? 
• Are we reaching the right level of seniority?
• Which strategies are actually driving results? 
• How do we prove the podcast’s impact internally?

Their goal was to build a category-leading podcast that consistently engages C-suite executives. And to do that, they needed more than downloads; they needed data to guide decisions and validate performance.

From steady growth to a top-ranked industry podcast

With CoHost’s podcast analytics and audience growth services, Russell Reynolds Associates transformed Redefiners into an industry-leading show:

• Ranked #1 in the Careers category
• Top 10 Business podcast in the U.S.
• 300%+ increase in average season growth rate
• Increased ability to attract high-profile, high-value guests
• Validated reach among senior leaders and decision-makers

Beyond growth, the team gained something critical: Confidence that their podcast was reaching and influencing the right audience.

Data-driven insights to scale audience and impact

CoHost provided Russell Reynolds Associates with the tools and insights needed to scale their podcast with precision.

Targeted Marketing Support: Driving accelerated growth

With CoHost’s audience growth services, Redefiners broke out of stagnant growth and entered a new phase of audience expansion.

This helped them:

• Increase growth rates by over 300%
• Build sustained audience momentum
• Reach the right listeners across platforms like Apple, Spotify, YouTube, and beyond

B2B Analytics: Reaching the right decision-makers

CoHost’s B2B Analytics gave the team visibility into which companies, industries, and roles were engaging with the podcast.

This allowed them to:

• Confirm alignment with senior business leaders
• Ensure the show was reaching high-impact audiences
• Show internal stakeholders the podcast’s strategic value

Advanced Audience Demographics: Validating C-suite engagement

With deeper demographic insights, Russell Reynolds Associates could validate audience profiles even further through CoHost’s Advanced Audience Demographics.

This helped them:

• Strengthen confidence in their audience strategy
• Identify listener interests for future editorial direction
• Understand listener makeup like income, age, and behavior