Interviews with CEOs and Entrepreneurs about the frameworks they are using to build and scale their businesses.
Episodes
Thursday Dec 22, 2022
Thursday Dec 22, 2022
Dave Fink is the CEO and Co-Founder of Postie, a marketing technology company that has transformed Direct Mail by enabling it to perform like a digital channel. We discuss the new age of direct mail marketing, why customers prefer direct mail over other marketing channels, and the benefits of testing everything in your business.
Time Stamps
[01:10] Dave’s entrepreneurial journey
[04:50] Using direct mail to get past the toughest gatekeepers
[07:15] The challenge with people working from home
[09:22] The evolution of direct mail marketing
[14:09] Comparing the effectiveness of direct mail versus digital marketing
[15:22] How to measure the success of direct mail marketing
[19:06] Ways to get people to open and respond to your direct mail
[22:30] Consistency and authenticity are key to business success
[25:41] Why you should never be afraid to test everything
[27:12] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Monday Dec 19, 2022
Monday Dec 19, 2022
Joyce Durst is the co-founder and CEO of Growth Acceleration Partners (GAP), a leading nearshore software development company that partners with US-based clients to develop custom software applications. We break down what it takes to keep customers for life, how to run remote teams successfully, and ways diversity can be a company's secret weapon.
Time Stamps
[00:50] Joyce's entrepreneurial journey
[04:21] Learning to be the CEO of a successful startup
[06:38] How Joyce and her team managed to generate a 40% yearly growth rate
[09:14] What it takes to keep your customers for life
[11:58] How to create alignment around your company "why"
[13:44] Breaking down GAP's company culture
[18:10] Diversity can be a company's secret weapon
[23:01] Creating a culture where everyone can be a leader
[26:12] Ways to become more effective at execution
[29:00] Take care of your team, and they will take care of your customers
[31:40] Do's and don'ts of remote working
[35:00] Benefits of having in-person meetings as a remote company
[36:20] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Growthaccelerationpartners.com
Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business by Gino Wickman
Friday Dec 16, 2022
Friday Dec 16, 2022
Ayush Singhvian is an experienced engineer, entrepreneur, and Founder of Byldd, a venture studio that helps early-stage founders build and launch revenue-generating platforms in under a month and for less than $10K. We discuss proven ways to find a technical co-founder quickly, the basics of product validation, and how entrepreneurs can build a minimal viable product (MVP).
Time Stamps
[00:40] Ayush's entrepreneurial journey
[03:39] What is a Minimal Viable Product?
[06:20] Why most startups fail
[09:02] How to identify a problem worth solving in your business
[11:40] Proven ways to find a technical co-founder quickly
[14:22] Product validation: When and why to do it
[16:17] Things entrepreneurs should do while product development is going on
[18:01] Understanding the SaaS business model
[19:53] Reasons customers would want to pay a monthly subscription
[22:07] The real pressure to succeed as a startup
[24:10] Differences between a good engineer and an excellent engineer
[26:31] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Monday Dec 12, 2022
Monday Dec 12, 2022
Julian Chapman is the President of Forrest & Company, an organizational transformation firm that helps companies achieve strategic competitive advantage through consulting, coaching, and training. He is also the author of The Managerial Leadership Journey: An Unconventional Business Pursuit. We discuss what it means to be a servant leader, the science of structuring an organization, and the difference between military and business leadership.
Time Stamps
[00:30] Julian's entrepreneurial journey
[01:31] Difference between military and business leadership
[03:18] Army leadership principles that don't apply to business leadership
[05:01] How military leaders use empowerment to build trust and excellence
[06:19] The Leading Leaders and Managing Managers framework
[08:47] Key differences between leadership and management
[11:30] What it means to be a servant leader
[13:20] Was Winston Churchill a servant leader?
[14:50] How to become a transformational leader
[17:13] How Julian and his team grow leaders of character
[20:56] The science of how to structure an organization
[22:14] Four factors that define human capability
[24:47] The intersection between cognitive skills and leadership performance
[27:48] Dissecting the Managerial Leadership Journey
[30:28] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Julian's website - Forrestandco.com
Managerialleadershipjourney.com
The Managerial Leadership Journey: An Unconventional Business Pursuit by Julian Chapman
The Pursuit of Prime by Ichak Adizes Ph.D.
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Thursday Dec 08, 2022
Thursday Dec 08, 2022
Enrique Alvarez is the Co-Founder and Managing Director at Vector Global Logistics, which is dedicated to changing the world through supply chain. We discuss the benefits of having financial transparency in an organization, how the self-managing "sell-cells" at Vector work, and the secrets of great results in an organization.
Time Stamps
[00:30] Enrique’s entrepreneurial journey
[02:30] The Vector Culture Model and how it works
[05:12] Logistics with purpose: The passion for giving back to the community
[06:31] The Self-Managing "Sell-Cells" at Vector
[09:20] How the "Sell-Cells" work and remain productive
[11:44] How to cultivate a results mentality in your organization
[15:40] Does financial transparency improve employee confidence?
[19:51] Key benefits of financial transparency in an organization
[22:15] Importance of trust in the workplace
[24:13] Vector's disaster relief efforts in Ukraine
[29:02] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It: The Results-Only Revolution by Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson
Monday Dec 05, 2022
Monday Dec 05, 2022
Caleb Gardner is a sought-after speaker and founding partner of 18 Coffees, where he helps leaders navigate change and get a foothold in the future. He is also the author of the recently released No Point B: Rules for Leading Change in the New Hyper-Connected, Radically Conscious Economy. We discuss the rules for leading change, the importance of prioritizing change initiatives, and how to articulate a message for different stakeholders.
Time Stamps
[00:50] Caleb's entrepreneurial journey
[02:46] What Caleb learned managing Obama's Twitter account
[04:58] What is the Communication Canvas?
[06:30] The four main elements of the Communication Canvas
[09:32] How to articulate a message for different stakeholders
[11:52] Caleb's new book: No Point B
[15:04] Understand that change never stops
[16:30] What it takes to do change well
[18:41] Confusion and distraction in change management
[22:00] The importance of prioritizing change initiatives
[23:54] Why you need to create time for social impact
[26:18] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
No Point B: Rules for Leading Change in the New Hyper-Connected, Radically Conscious Economy by Caleb Gardner
Thursday Dec 01, 2022
Thursday Dec 01, 2022
Abhishek Nayak is the CEO and founder of Appsmith, the first open-source, low-code platform that helps businesses with all types of custom internal applications. We discuss business models for open-source software, the steps to creating a remarkable product, and the main tenets of a solid remote culture
Time Stamps
[00:40] Abhishek's entrepreneurial journey
[02:55] Understanding app modularization
[04:32] Steps to finding product-market fit for your products
[08:05] How to uncover your product's unique selling point
[09:50] There's no shortcut to experience and knowledge
[11:17] Tips for creating a remarkable product
[13:54] Business models for open-source software
[16:30] Startup funding processes and stages
[18:18] The pros and cons of selling to developers
[22:56] How to shape company culture in remote organizations
[26:21] The science of reading versus listening
[29:41] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Monday Nov 28, 2022
Monday Nov 28, 2022
Wayne Mullins is a passionate entrepreneur and the CEO of Ugly Mug Marketing, a digital agency whose core business is to deliver results for growth-oriented business. We discuss the benefits of exceeding customer expectations, how businesses can turn strangers into raving fans, and why company culture is your competitive advantage.
Time Stamps
[00:45] Wayne's entrepreneurial journey
[03:50] Wayne's natural progression management blueprint
[05:43] Permission Marketing: Turning strangers to friends to customers
[07:55] The "Know, Like, Trust" factor in business
[09:37] How to turn your customers into brand evangelists
[10:56] Proven strategies to meet and exceed customer expectations
[13:25] Why your culture is your ultimate competitive advantage
[17:51] Balancing autonomy and alignment with accountability
[21:55] How to take your business to new heights
[23:51] Importance of effective communication in an organization
[26:25] Why every entrepreneur needs a coach
[29:20] Parting thoughts
[30:06] Why Wayne named his company "Ugly Mug"
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
SEO Agency Louisiana | Ugly Mug Marketing
Thursday Nov 24, 2022
Thursday Nov 24, 2022
Dara Rosenbaum is the founding partner of Rosenbaum & Taylor, a boutique law firm specializing in high-quality legal representation of businesses throughout New York. We discuss the "Set It and Forget It" management blueprint, what to do when people underestimate you, and how to handle power imbalances in a negotiation.
Time Stamps
[00:49] Dara's entrepreneurial journey
[03:29] Difference between working for a law firm and running your own business
[05:01] Dara's "Set It and Forget It" management blueprint
[08:41] Prenups but for business partners
[11:19] Handling power imbalances in a negotiation
[13:32] Ways to ask for what you want in a non-threatening way
[16:14] How to set rules and regulations in business
[17:58] How information imbalance leads to chaotic negotiations
[20:29] What to do when people underestimate you
[23:29] Difference between corporate and entrepreneurial-type attorneys
[26:21] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Monday Nov 21, 2022
Monday Nov 21, 2022
Danny Cohanpour is the CEO of Trove Tourism Development Advisors, a New York-based digital strategy and marketing agency that helps tourism authorities, boards, associations and tour companies improve international visitor growth through innovation. We discuss the ingredients to successfully market a tourist destination, how to run a global tourism team, and the state of the post-pandemic tourism space.
Time Stamps
[00:36] Danny's entrepreneurial journey
[02:10] Ingredients to successfully marketing a destination
[04:20] Understanding tourists' expectations from emerging destinations
[05:47] The number one critical success factor in business
[08:18] Why people are the most important part of a business
[10:59] The dos and don'ts of managing a global team
[13:20] How to set up a typical tourism destination team
[15:06] Team structure when executing a tourism project
[17:48] How virtual reality is being used in the tourism industry
[20:53] Trends in the post-pandemic travel industry
[24:48] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain