Interviews with CEOs and Entrepreneurs about the frameworks they are using to build and scale their businesses.
Episodes
Monday Sep 26, 2022
Monday Sep 26, 2022
Pat Clawson is the chairman and CEO of Resurface Labs, a software company that provides continuous API security by detecting and responding to API attacks at runtime. We discuss the four main types of sales research, working with APIs in your business, and API security best practices.
Time Stamps
[00:33] Pat's entrepreneurial journey
[03:58] Pat's success operating other people's businesses
[04:35] The four main types of sales research
[07:29] Why businesses cannot succeed without sales research
[08:35] Understanding the focused sales framework
[11:32] Drive results using a repeatable sales process
[12:24] What is an API?
[14:15] Risks of API integration and how to mitigate them
[15:43] How to know if you're engaging with APIs
[16:49] Working with APIs in your business
[18:39] How to protect yourself from a potential API attack
[22:30] Protecting your APIs from potential attacks
[23:44] API security best practices
[26:28] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Pat's email: pat@resurface.io
Monday Sep 19, 2022
Monday Sep 19, 2022
Srikant Chellappa is the president and co-founder of Engagedly, an employee engagement and development software platform that redefines the performance review process. In his spare time, Sri also produces movies, makes music, and hosts the People Strategy Leaders Podcast. We discuss the benefits of having engaged employees, how OKRs ramp up employee motivation, and where most companies fail with employee engagement.
Time Stamps
[00:47] Sri's entrepreneurial journey
[02:22] A simple framework to improve employee engagement
[05:49] Where most companies are failing with employee engagement
[08:45] Employees want to feel purpose in their work
[10:57] The 3Es engagement framework at Engagedly
[12:56] Performance reviews for employee engagement
[15:17] OKRs and performance management: How they work together
[17:46] How OKRs ramp up employee motivation
[19:18] How managers can use Engagedly to improve employee engagement
[21:22] Engagedly is a people strategy platform
[23:20] Why HR should be executives at the people strategy table
[25:23] 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 Sep 12, 2022
Monday Sep 12, 2022
Per Sjofors is a six-time CEO, pricing expert, and author of The Price Whisperer: a Holistic Approach to Pricing Power. We talk about price anchoring, the mistakes businesses make with pricing, and how low prices can potentially scare away customers.
Time Stamps
[00:40] Per's entrepreneurial journey
[04:08] Specific problems with modern pricing strategies
[07:00] Reasons why pricing is critical for business success
[09:56] How to develop a practical pricing framework
[12:03] The risk of overcomplicating pricing
[13:59] When and when not to hide prices on your website
[16:11] The psychology behind hidden prices
[18:19] What is price anchoring, and is it effective?
[22:42] How to defend and justify your pricing
[27:01] Can low prices scare away customers?
[28:37] The drawbacks of attracting price-sensitive clients
[30:52] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Per's Book - The Price Whisperer: A Holistic Approach to Pricing Power
Monday Sep 05, 2022
Monday Sep 05, 2022
Robin Landa is an ideation expert, an author of 25 books, and a distinguished professor at Kaen University in New York. And she is very prolific. We talk about strategic creativity, the benefits of being curious in life, and the difference between good copy and a sales pitch.
Timestamps
[00:40] How to become an expert in ideation and creativity
[02:01] The two main types of creativity
[03:54] Can creativity be taught?
[06:37] Why curiosity is an innate human trait
[08:24] Curiosity is the fuel for creativity
[10:41] What is strategic creativity?
[13:42] Creativity: How much is too much?
[16:41] How to unlock your creative potential
[19:45] Closing the gap from where you are and where you want to be
[22:42] The difference between good copy and a sales pitch
[25:36] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Strategic Creativity: A Business Field Guide to Advertising, Branding, and Design by Robin Landa
Monday Aug 29, 2022
Monday Aug 29, 2022
Charles Brecque is the founder and CEO of Legislate, a tech company that makes it easy for non-lawyers to safely create, manage, and search lawyer-approved contracts on a no-legal budget. We talk about advanced contract management, how business deals fall apart because of contracts, and what to do when dealing with one-sided contracts.
Timestamps
[00:29] Charles’ entrepreneurial journey
[02:07] When business deals fall apart because of contracts
[04:37] How Legislate helps remove the complexity out of contracts
[05:54] Reasonableness and good faith in contracts
[07:23] Having a system for creating contracts saves time
[10:10] The types of businesses currently using Legislate
[12:07] How contracts translate to different jurisdictions
[16:08] Advanced contract management at Legislate
[18:59] How to deal with one-sided contracts
[21:03] Legislate’s single phrase strategy
[23:08] Opening up contracts for better business opportunities
[25:45] 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 Aug 22, 2022
Monday Aug 22, 2022
Denis O'Shea is the founder of Mobile Mentor, an MSP helping clients find and maintain the right balance between securing devices, protecting data, and empowering people to be productive. We talk about cybersecurity for a remote workforce, how to go totally password-free, and how to turn your company into a “Category of One” business.
Timestamps
[00:36] Denis’ entrepreneurial journey
[03:24] How Denis helped people get more out of their smartphones
[06:06] The Endpoint Ecosystem and why it’s so important
[08:45] Cybersecurity for a remote workforce
[10:21] The right balance between cybersecurity and productivity
[12:47] How to go totally password free
[14:28] How to turn your company into a “Category of One” business
[17:39] The Endpoint Ecosystem and predicting the future of work
[20:38] How Denis helps companies balance between security and employee experience
[21:51] Cybersecruty for remote Gen Z workers
[23:24] How the pandemic shaped Gen Z workers and the future of cybersecurity
[28:22] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's New Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Monday Aug 15, 2022
Monday Aug 15, 2022
Jim Padilla is the founder and CEO of Gain the Edge, a sales service firm that provides business owners with top-notch sales teams, live events, and hands-free sales processes and systems. We talk about the Rainmaker Sales System, the role of emotions in buying decisions, and how to improve your control over the sales process.
Timestamps
[00:58] Jim’s entrepreneurial journey
[02:14] The difference between selling during and after a launch
[03:16] How to improve your control over the sales process
[04:29] What is the Rainmaker Sales System?
[07:52] Why the Rainmaker system works in all industries
[09:41] The role of emotions in buying decisions
[11:03] How to make the mechanism the message in sales
[13:34] Why you need to sell according to how your clients buy
[17:17] Things that stunt your ability to scale
[21:52] How to scale your business
[23:42] 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 Aug 08, 2022
Monday Aug 08, 2022
Alex Castro is an execution alignment expert, best-selling author, and the creator of ReM Score. We discuss the role of an execution alignment expert, reasons why businesses struggle with strategy execution, and how the ReM Score drives innovation growth opportunities.
Time Stamps
[00:26] Alex’s entrepreneurial journey
[02:39] The primary role of an execution alignment expert
[06:08] Reasons why businesses struggle with execution
[08:33] The biggest unsolved problem with strategy execution
[14:16] Understanding the gap between idea, strategy, and execution
[17:17] Strategy execution: How to escape the 80% failure rate
[20:33] The four phases of an effective execution framework
[22:49] The 14 modeling ingredients for effective strategy implementation
[24:11] Alex describes the strategy and benefits of using Rem Score
[26:09 How to use ReM Score as a small/mid-sized business owner
[28:15] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's New Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Measure, Execute, Win: Avoiding Strategic Initiative Debacles and Knowing What Your Business Can and Can’t Do Well by Alex Castro
Monday Aug 01, 2022
Monday Aug 01, 2022
Darryl Bates-Brownsword is the owner of Succession Plus, a boutique consulting firm that helps get businesses exit ready so owners can step back, maximize value, and leave on their own terms. We discuss the five steps to creating an exit-ready business, ways to add massive value to your business, and factors that shape a successful exit plan.
Time Stamps
[00:29] Darryl's entrepreneurial journey
[03:23] How to build an exit-ready business
[07:06] The five main stages of a strategic business exit strategy
[08:43] Reasons why every company needs a vision
[10:56] Expert tips on how to protect the value of your business
[13:36] Ways to add massive value to your business
[16:42] Key processes to formulating a successful exit strategy
[18:24] How to manage value and reinvent yourself after a successful exit
[21:46] Factors that shape a successful exit plan
[23:39] The benefits of measuring and monitoring business capacity
[24:47] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's New Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Darryl's Website: Succession.plus
Monday Jul 25, 2022
Monday Jul 25, 2022
Stacey Marmolejo is the Principal Owner of the Franchise Prep Academy, where she focuses on teaching military veterans how to explore franchise ownership as a potential post-service career. We talk about the skills that define a great franchise owner, how to find the right franchise to invest in, and the biggest challenges to growing a franchise business.
Timestamps
[00:30] Stacey's entrepreneurial journey
[02:12] Pros and cons of becoming a franchisee
[04:22] Skills that make you a great franchisee
[06:29] Are franchise investors visionary or non-visionary entrepreneurs?
[08:14] Personality traits for successful franchise ownership
[11:25] How to find the right franchise for you to invest in
[14:23] The difference between a franchise coach and a franchise consultant
[15:59] Ways to know if your business is ready to franchise
[21:30] Common franchise myths and realities about growth and success
[24:17] Biggest challenges to growing a franchise business
[25:57] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's New Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
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