Motivated to Lead Podcast - Mark Klingsheim

This week, we interviewed Daron Lembi. Darin has led Learnit, a global training company for nearly three decades. In that time, they have upskilled over 1.8 million individuals in the workplace. Through this journey, he has gained insights into what helps organizations grow, how great leaders learn, and why learn-it-all companies outpace their competitors every time. Coming to business from a career in baseball, he brings an athlete's perspective on leadership and training to my informal mentoring of executives. He has distilled those hard-won insights into my bestselling book, The Learn-It-All Leader—Mindset, Traits, and Tools, and keynotes on leadership, entrepreneurship, and lifelong learning.   

This week, we revisited our conversation with Susan Templeton. Susan is a board member and served as Vice Chair of Sebold Capital Management, an investment advisory and financial planning firm serving high-net-worth individuals and families.  Susan is also on the board of directors for Claridges Trust Company where she sits on the investment and audit committee. In addition, she is on the advisory board of Seyen Capital, an early-stage venture capital firm. Susan has her BSBA from the University of Denver, MBA from the University of Chicago and is a graduate of the Board Governance Program- at Northwestern University. 

This week, we interviewed Dr. Denny Coates. Denny is the CEO of Grow Strong Leaders. For over 30 years he has published award-winning, brain-based assessment and learning programs used by millions of people worldwide, as well as hundreds of articles and a dozen books, the most recent of which is Grow Strong Character. A graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, he is a decorated combat veteran who retired from the U.S. Army as a lieutenant colonel after 20 years of service. He earned a Ph.D. from Duke University and has served on the faculties of the United States Military Academy, the Armed Forces Staff College, the College of William and Mary, and the Center for Creative Leadership. 

This week, we interviewed Scott Laster. Scott is an award-winning entrepreneur with 20+ years of global medical device and digital health leadership. His time spent within an FTSE 100 and Top 4 Global Medical Device Manufacturer was focused on high-growth markets and transformational commercial business models. His roles drove deep knowledge of business structure, process excellence, and commercial execution – honed by leading teams for product launches (4 platform systems), acquisitions and corporate integrations (>$300M USD), and consistent commercial execution (10x market growth). Scott holds 5 patents and 4 provisional applications. He has also co-authored 4 peer-reviewed scientific posters and 3 peer-reviewed publications and has lectured globally at key industry events such as the International Society for Technology in Arthroplasty (ISTA) and International Congress for Joint Replacement (ICJR) , among others. As MiCare Path's Chief Executive Officer, he oversees all functions across all aspects of the company.

This week, we interviewed Phil Olsen. Phil is the President of Know Your Strengths, he is a Certified DynaMetrics Professional (CDMP) with Professional DynaMetric Programs. CDMP is PDP's highest attainable credential dealing with the recognition of human potential and its applications in human performance. He is also credentialed by the Society for Human Resource Management as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR). In addition to a degree in business from Utah State University, Phil's business skills and visionary talents have been shaped and developed through three decades of entrepreneurial business endeavors. His business experience includes management consulting, real estate development, brokerage, investments, mortgage banking, syndications, and automotive dealerships. Phil's competitive drive was forged in the fire of athletic competition. He was a two-time football All-American at Utah State University, an NFL first-round draft choice, and a 9-year pro football veteran. Phil was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame in the State of Utah in 1985. He's a member of the Sports Hall of Fame at Utah State University and is also a member of USU's All Century Team. In 2000, Phil was selected by Sports Illustrated as one of the Top Fifty Athletes of the Century from the State of Utah. In 2003-2007 and again in 2011, he was selected to the final list of candidates for the NCAA College Football Hall of Fame. Phil's character and values are easily seen in his dedication to his family, his clients and his friends, as well as through his personal commitment to assist others. Phil and his wife Connie have been married for 43 years. They have two happily married daughters and five grandchildren.

This week, we interviewed Karen Davis. Karen is a seasoned executive coach, speaker, and author with over 25 years of leadership experience in the B2B tech sector. She brings nearly two decades of coaching mastery to high-performing executives, entrepreneurs, and fellow coaches. Karen is the co-author of How to Get the Most Out of Coaching: A Client's Guide for Optimizing the Coaching Experience, a go-to resource for making coaching more effective and transformational.  Known for her intuitive and heart-centered approach, Karen helps leaders uncover blind spots, reclaim clarity, and make bold, aligned decisions. She lives and works near Boulder, Colorado, drawing inspiration from nature, travel, andher vibrant family—including her life partner, adult children, and her beloved dogs, Jax and Pepper. Learn more at KarenDavisCoaching.com

This week, we interviewed Jeremy Laynor, the Senior Vice President of Sales at Providence Medical Technology. We discussed his book The Point Guard Approach. Jeremy offers some insight into what it takes to be a leader at work and at home. Jeremy has a strong track record of success in medical device sales leadership, with specific experience in the spinal implant market. He most recently served as Vice President of Sales at Paradigm Spine, where he was instrumental in growing their commercial effort since 2013. Jeremy held sales leadership positions at Medtronic and previously at Salient Surgical, where he helped the market development of their advanced energy platform to the standard of care for many common orthopedic and spine procedures. He began his healthcare career with Cardinal Health, where he specialized in cultivating national sales teams for new pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical technologies. Jeremy graduated from Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania, where he played point guard for the men's basketball team. He is a husband and proud father of four children, and the family currently lives in Dallas, Texas.

This week, we interviewed Nathan King. Nathan is a consultant who helps leadership teams achieve powerful execution for organizational growth. After leading a healthcare services business unit from $25M to $100M in revenue at Shearwater Health, Nathan launched a consulting practice dedicated to turning strategic intent into sustained organizational outcomes.  With over two decades of experience in high-growth publicly traded and PE-backed companies, Nathan specializes in two key areas: guiding organizational transformations and helping leaders build high-performing teams through executive coaching and facilitating leadership-team development. Nathan holds an MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia and resides in Nashville, TN.

This week, we interviewed David Dennis. David is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Eckerd Connects, one of the nation's largest nonprofits providing workforce development, Job Corps, juvenile justice, and child welfare services across the country. We talked about his book Gameness: Land on your Feet, not on your feelings. He has earned certifications as a licensed professional counselor, marriage and family therapist, and childcare administrator. He holds a bachelor's degree from Oklahoma Baptist University and a master's degree in marriage and family counseling from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He and his wife Becky live in Clearwater, Florida. They have five grown children.

This week, we interviewed Lori Chmura, the Chief Executive Officer and Board Director at Nyra Medical, an innovative medical device company developing a next-generation transcatheter mitral valve repair technology. Before joining Nyra Medical, she served as Chief Executive Officer, and Board Director at Soundbite Medical Solutions and Dune Medical Devices, where she led the restructuring of both businesses resulting in a cross-border licensing deal at one company, and an acquisition of the other. In addition, Lori brings leadership experience in several large multi-national medical device companies, including positions with Medtronic, Covidien and Johnson and Johnson, where she led the growth of the businesses in the United States and globally. Lori previously served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors at Bluestem Medical. She has also served on the Board of Directors, Audit Committee and Deal Team at OpSens Medical (TSX- OPS), which was acquired by Haemonetics (NYSE-HAE) in 2023, and on the Board of Standard Molecular. Ms. Chmura holds an MBA from Duke University and received her Bachelor of Science in nursing from Southern Connecticut State University.

This week, we interviewed Laura Stoltenberg. Laura is the President and Chief Executive Officer at Cryosa. Laura brings nearly three decades of experience in strategy, business development, and global general management. She has a passion for developing and commercializing novel products to improve the standard of care. Most recently, Laura was Sector Chief Executive at Halma PLC, responsible for $1B in revenue. While at Medtronic, she served as Vice President and General Manager at Medtronic Diabetes and built a new business focused on Type 2 patients. Laura served as Chief Commercial Officer at Exact Sciences Corporation, where she was responsible for developing the global commercial strategy prior to FDA approval. Earlier in her career, she held escalating commercial and leadership roles at General Electric, including leading GE Healthcare's global bone densitometry business and completing a number of acquisitions. Laura earned an MBA at Columbia Business School and bachelor's degrees in electrical engineering and management at Bucknell University.

This week, we interviewed Chuck Brynelsen. Chuck is currently the Chair of the Board of Directors at Envoy Medical; he serves on the board of Alebra Technologies and is a Venture Partner at SpringRock Ventures. Previously, Chuck served as a Senior Vice President of Abbot Vascular; Chuck Brynelsen led an organization focused on reducing cardiovascular disease's global impact. Chuck was previously the Global President of Early Technologies for Medtronic and President of Early Technologies for Covidien. Chuck has also spent seven years as CEO of Intrapace, a start-up medical device company treating obesity. Before Intrapace, Check spent 24 years at Medtronic in various regional, business unit, and corporate leadership roles. The company went from a $250 million pacemaker company to a diversified medical technology enterprise with over $10 billion in revenues.

This week, we interviewed John Hironimus. John is the CEO of Origami Surgical, an accomplished medical device executive with a track record of successfully commercializing novel medical devices. He has focused on scaling new technologies and applications to benefit patients, clinicians, and providers. His 25 years of experience span numerous areas of healthcare. An entrepreneur at heart, his passion is building world-class teams who relentlessly focus on improving patient care.   John began his career with United States Surgical Corporation, helping surgeons provide advanced procedures to their patients. He then built the domestic and international commercial team for Salient Surgical Technologies, culminating in a successful acquisition by Medtronic in 2011. Under his leadership, the business grew from $40M in revenue to over $350M. John has most recently led commercial teams at Outset Medical and Dilon Technologies.    John graduated from Indiana University, earning a Public Financial Management degree.

This week, we revisit our interview with Keith Grossman. He currently serves as Chairman of Nevro Corp. (NVRO), Vice-Chairman of Alcon, Inc. (ALC), and Lead Director of Outset Medical, Inc. (OM). Previously, Keith was the CEO and President of Nevro. Keith has over 40 years of experience in the medical device field. He served most recently, and for the second time, as the President, Chief Executive Officer, and director of Thoratec Corporation, leading up to its 2015 sale to St. Jude Medical.   Before Thoratec, he served as President, Chief Executive Officer, and director of Conceptus, a women's health medical device company, leading up to its sale to Bayer Healthcare. Before Conceptus, Keith served as managing director of TPG (Texas Pacific Group), a private equity firm, and was a member of its healthcare investment team. Prior to TPG, Keith served as Thoratec's President, Chief Executive Officer, and director for the first ten years of its growth as a commercial company.  Keith was chronicled in the book “Executive Intelligence: What All Great Leaders Have”, was named among the “Business Leaders to Watch” and the “40 Under 40” lists in the Bay Area and was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by his Medical Device CEO peers. Keith received a B.S. in life sciences from The Ohio State University and an M.B.A. from Pepperdine University.

This week, we welcome back Chuck Bolton. Chuck is a six-time bestselling author and executive coach to CEO's. As founder of The Bolton Group LLC, he provides leadership coaching and consulting in the medtech and healthtech sectors. We discuss Chuck's new book The CEO's AI Playbook and how a leader can lead with vision and purpose in the age of AI.He addresses how to build an AI-ready culture that puts humans first. Through The Reinvention Solution LLC, Chuck delivers Gen AI education and consulting to B2B clients. His acclaimed Gen Ai for CEOs and Gen Ai for Boards crash courses are essential learning for senior executives and board members seeking to create value through AI.

This week, we revisit our interview with Kara Goldin, the Founder of Hint, Inc., best known for its award-winning Hint® water, the leading unsweetened flavored water, and the author of Undaunted.   Kara has been named among Fortune's Most Powerful Women Entrepreneurs and Forbes' 40 Women to Watch Over 40. She is an active speaker & writer and hosts the podcast The Kara Goldin Show, where she interviews founders, entrepreneurs, and other disruptors across various industries. She lives in the Bay Area.   Follow Kara on all social handles @KaraGoldin  

This week we revisit our interview with Michael Bungay Stanier. Michael is the author of six books and is best known for The Coaching Habit, the best-selling coaching book of the century with over a million copies sold and already recognized as a classic. We discuss Michael's brand-new book, How To Begin. Michael was a Rhodes Scholar and plays the ukulele badly. He's Australian and lives in Toronto, Canada. Learn more at www.MBS.works.

This week, we revisit our interview with Aidan Kehoe. Aidan is currently the Founder and Managing Partner of Nadia Partners. Previously, he was the founder and CEO of SKOUT Cybersecurity (Acquired by Barracuda Networks). Mr. Kehoe was actively involved in all aspects of the firm's development and expansion since its launch in 2014. Prior to Skout, Aidan founded several other enterprises, including Oxford Global, a global risk management company, which was acquired by Willis Towers Watson in 2013. He also has many years of experience working in an investment capacity with an institutionally sized private family office investing in both private and public investment vehicles. Aidan is the chairman of the U.S. Leaders Council of Cordaid, serving the most vulnerable people in the most fragile places in the world. He also serves on the board of Autism Speaks. Originally from Ireland, he has served as a board member to both public and private equity-backed companies throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. He has extensive experience in leading and building teams who tackle the hardest problems.

This week, we revisit our interview with Dr. Jeff Holmes. Jeff has more than 24 years of experience in executive-level positions, including 12+ years in founder, executive, and lead roles. Jeff provides senior executive coaching, CEO advising, and C-suite consulting. A dedicated coach for over 30 years, he has worked with top leaders during times of crisis and helped numerous young high potentials move from graduation to placement in high-level leadership roles across the US. 

This week, we revisit our interview with Emily Jordan. Emily is a dynamic force in the world of marketing. She holds a remarkable track record across various sectors such as tech, sports/fitness, healthcare, retail and has led teams at global heavyweights like Nike and Google as well as nimble, high-growth startups like Tubi and Willow. Most recently, she was steering the ship as the VP of Marketing at Willow Innovations spearheading consumer awareness, brand strategy and performance marketing. She's an expert architect of brand campaigns, product launches, and digital initiatives and enjoys nothing more than masterfully constructing high-caliber marketing teams under a culture infused with innovation and collaboration. She has won a number of AdWeek and AdAge awards for her provocative brand campaigns and a Cannes Lion for her work on Google's first popup store and retail strategy.  Emily lives in Oakland California with her husband, Dan and daughter, Jovie. She credits much of her success to having a supportive partner, a helpful support system and her midwestern work ethic.

This week, we revisit our interview with Nick Damiano. Nick is a serial entrepreneur focused on solving unmet needs to improve patient care. He is currently CEO & Founder of Andromeda Surgical, which is developing autonomous robots for safer, better, more efficient surgery. Before that, he was CEO & Co-Founder of Zenflow, where he co-invented a novel implant for BPH (enlarged prostate) and led the product from inception through multiple clinical trials to commercial readiness, raising over $60M in funding. He was also CTO & co-founder at Nurep, later re-branded as Avail MedSystems. He was the key architect of the company's remote surgical support product for operating rooms that is now used in hundreds of medical facilities. Nick earned his M.S. and B.S. with Distinction in Management Science & Engineering from Stanford University and was an Innovation Fellow at Stanford Byers Center for Biodesign. He was the first medtech founder to be funded by Y Combinator twice and actively advises startups through StartX, UCSF Rosenman Institute, and Nucleate Bio. He also dabbles on the investor side as a Venture Partner at Pioneer Fund.

In this week's episode, we revisit our interview with George Bradt. George has led the revolution in how people start new jobs - accelerating transitions, so leaders and their teams reduce their rates of failure and fulfill potential. After Harvard and Wharton (MBA), he progressed through sales, marketing, and general management roles around the world at Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola, and J.D. Power's Power Information Network spin-off as chief executive. He is the Founder and chairman of the executive onboarding and transition acceleration firm PrimeGenesis, which has reduced new leader failure rates from 40% to below 10% since 2003. Author of 9+ books on leadership and onboarding including The New Leader's 100-Day Action Plan, over 650+ articles for Forbes, and 16 plays and musicals (book, lyrics and music).

This week, we revisit our interview with Dr. Carole Robin. She has been in the business of helping leaders grow for over 35 years. Most recently, she served as the Faculty Director of the Interpersonal Dynamics for High-Performance Executives Program and Director of the Arbuckle Leadership Fellows program at the Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB). She received the MBA Distinguished Teaching Award for her work in numerous courses, including Interpersonal Dynamics (the most popular elective course at the GSB for over 45 years). She is the Co-Founder of Leaders in Tech for leaders of high growth tech companies committed to building high-performing and culturally healthy organizations. In addition to her teaching, she has coached and consulted for individuals and groups of high-profile executives for the last fifteen years. Her clients work with her to develop their interpersonal skills, update limiting mental models, and learn to modify their style. She has become internationally known for her expertise in interpersonal relations and, particularly, experiential small group learning. This type of training gives participants the capacity to become more effective leaders, build higher-performing organizations, and have richer, more fulfilling personal and professional relationships.

This week we revisit our interview with Wayne Baker. Wayne is the author of the book All You Have to Do Is Ask, and the Robert P. Thome Professor of Business Administration and Professor of Management & Organizations at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business. He is also a Professor of Sociology at the University of Michigan and Faculty Associate at the Institute for Social Research. He currently serves as Faculty Director of the Center for Positive Organizations. His teaching and research focus on social capital, social networks, generosity, positive organizational scholarship, and values.  He has published numerous scholarly articles and four books.  His management and leadership articles appear in venues such as Harvard Business Review, Chief Executive Magazine, and Sloan Management Review. Prior to joining the Michigan faculty, he was on the faculty at the University of Chicago business school. He earned his Ph.D. in sociology from Northwestern University and was a post-doctoral research fellow at Harvard University.

This week ,we revisit our interview Shellye Archambeau. Shellye is an experienced CEO and Board Director with a track record of accomplishments building brands, high-performance teams, and organizations. She shares lessons learned from her life that she has written about in her new book, Unapologetically Ambitious: Take Risks, Break Barriers, and Create Success on Your Own Terms. A book that will inspire you, and provide the tools to enable you to fight the battles, make the tradeoffs and create the life you want. Shellye Archambeau currently serves on the boards of Verizon [NYSE:VZ], Roper Technologies [NYSE: ROP], and Okta [NASDAQ: OKTA]. She has also served on the board of Nordstrom [NYSE: JWN] and has been a strategic advisor to the Royal Bank of Canada, Capital Markets Group, and Forbes Ignite. Shellye has over 30 years of experience in technology. She is the former CEO of MetricStream, a Silicon Valley-based, governance, risk, and compliance software company. During her tenure, MetricStream grew from a fledgling startup into a global market leader. She is also a Forbes contributor and the protagonist of the Harvard Business School Case Study: Becoming a CEO. To learn more about Shellye, visit shellye.com

This week, we revisit our interview with Dave Murphy, and he shares lessons learned from his career. Dave served as President & CEO of Red Wing Shoe Company Inc. for fifteen years and retired in December 2015. Before joining Red Wing Shoe Company in 2001, Murphy spent 23 years in increasingly responsible positions at Minneapolis-based General Mills, a $12 billion global manufacturer and consumer foods marketer.   Dave is active in the local community, having served as Chairman of the Minnesota Public Radio and American Public Media Boards of Directors. In addition, he serves as Chairman of the Board for Wenger Corporation, a Board Member of Red Wing Shoe Company and Mortenson Construction. Dave has a bachelor's degree in Economics from Dartmouth College and an MBA degree from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

This week, we revisit our interview with Paul Batz, the CEO and Founder of Good Leadership Enterprises. Paul Batz has ushered in the golden era of executive team coaching, changing the conversation about what modern leadership looks like. He founded Good Leadership to help CEOs, business owners, executives, and community leaders grow and thrive with the idea that goodness pays. Paul's not-so-secret sauce teaches how alignment, commitment, and open accountability within teams are rewarded with great business results.   Paul's personal mission is to help teams weave goodness into their work, achieving more together than they ever could alone. He uses goodness as the subject for team coaching, training, speaking, and inspirational programming. The movement began when the Good Leadership Breakfast Series took off like a rocket. Since 2010, more than 30,000 guests have attended what is now the hottest leadership development networking breakfast series in the Midwest. In 2017, Paul started Good Leadership Press, a publishing label that produces positive books and tools to help good leaders create great results in their personal and professional lives.   Paul is blending the Seven Fs with his business partner and wife Melinda and their three adult children who all touch the business. He is hopelessly addicted to golf, an Elton John wannabee piano player, a philanthropist, and he loves hosting dinner parties at their home in Bloomington, MN.

This week, we revisit our interview with Dr. Vanessa Patrick. Vanessa is a Professor of Marketing and the Associate Dean for Research at the Bauer College of Business at the University of Houston. We discuss her book The Power of Saying No. Vanessa has published dozens of research articles in top-tier academic journals in psychology, marketing, and management, and popular accounts of her work have appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, Los Angeles Times, Business Week, Fast Company, Forbes, Huffington Post and Washington Post. In her research, she investigates strategies to achieve personal mastery and inspire everyday excellence in oneself and others and is a pioneer in the study of everyday consumer aesthetics.  She has a PhD in Business from the University of Southern California and an MBA in marketing and a BS degree in microbiology and biochemistry from Bombay University in India. Vanessa lives with her family in Houston, Texas

This week, we revisit our interview with John Milad. John has 25 years of experience as a start-up executive, venture investor, and banker specializing in healthcare innovation across the UK, Europe, and the US. He had 10 years of life sciences venture experience at a family office, Atlas Venture, NBGI Venture and Downing. Notable exits include Symetis, ACT/EPIX, BoneSupport and Medcast/WebMD. John is a Co-founder of Quanta Dialysis Technologies, which I led as CEO for 8 years. Notable outcomes include creating an award-winning, disruptive portable dialysis system; raising nearly $400m in funding; commercially launching in UK and US; and establishing trans-Atlantic commercial operations. For another 2 years, he served as an executive at Nitec Pharma, which was ultimately sold to Horizon Therapeutics. John has held multiple board positions across the sector. He has been an advisor to NIIR/I4i programme, mentor at the Enterprise Hub of the Royal Academy of Engineering.  He has been recognized in the Sunday Times Maserati List of the UK's Top 100 “Game Changing Innovators and Entrepreneurs”; Winner of the 2022 MacRobert Award from the Royal Academy of Engineering for outstanding engineering innovation.

On this week's podcast, we revisit our interview with Meredith Bell, co-founder and President of Grow Strong Leaders. Her company publishes software tools and books that help people build strong relationships at work and at home. Meredith is an expert in leader and team communications, the author of three books, and the host of the Grow Strong Leaders Podcast. She co-authored her latest books, Connect with Your Team: Mastering the Top 10 Communication Skills, and Peer Coaching Made Simple, with her business partner, Dr. Dennis Coates. In them, Meredith and Denny provide how-to guides for improving communication at work and serving as a peer coach to others.

 This week, we revisit our interview with Anjan Thakor, Senior Associate Dean, and John E. Simon, Professor of Finance at the Olin Business School, Washington University in St. Louis. Anjan was previously The Edward J. Frey Professor of Banking and Finance at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan, where he also served as chairman of the Finance area. He has served on the faculties of Indiana University, Northwestern University, and UCLA.  He has worked with many companies, including Whirlpool Corporation, Allision Engine Co., Citigroup, RR Donnelley, Dana Corporation, Anheuser-Busch, Zenith Corporation, Lincoln National Corporation, J.P. Morgan, Landscape Structures, Inc., CIGNA, Borg-Warner Automative, Waxman Industries, Reuters, The Limited, Ryder Integrated Logistics, AT&T, CH2M Hill, Takata Corporation, Tyson Foods, Spartech. He has published over 75 research papers and seven books. He is past managing Editor of the Journal of Financial Intermediation and past president of the Financial Intermediation Research Society. He has a Ph.D. (Finance) from Northwestern University.

This week we interview Dr. Brian Epperson. Brian is the Founder of Human Performance Advisors, a performance and executive coaching firm. He works one-on-one with senior leaders, helping them navigate challenging issues that impact them professionally and personally.  Prior to starting Human Performance Advisors, he worked in banking and telecommunications, where he gained extensive experience leading large-scale change and reengineering initiatives in finance, operations, information technology, engineering, human resources, and business development.  Dr. Epperson is a Full Professor of Business at Newman University, teaching leadership, cultural and, executive development in both the Master of Business and Doctorate of Business programs. at He is a frequent speaker, panelist, and trainer in the areas of coaching, leadership, leadership dysfunction, personal transformation, organizational change and innovation. Recognizing today's fast-paced and challenging corporate landscape, he developed a proprietary change and innovation model designed to lead change and innovation initiatives within organizations.  Brian earned his Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma and has conducted post-graduate work in positive psychology, sports psychology, and human development. Brian is a proud veteran of the U.S. Marines Corps.

In this episode, we revisit our interview with Lucienne (Lucie) Ide, M.D., Ph.D., a healthcare innovator, the Founder and Chairman of Rimidi. Her diverse experiences in medicine, science, venture capital, and technology to transform the delivery of chronic care management.   Before starting Rimidi in 2012, Dr. Ide was a physicist at the National Security Agency, Raytheon Systems Corporation, and Monarch Capital Partners, a venture capital firm. She holds a joint M.D./Ph.D. degree from Emory University.

This week we interview Kristi Piehl. Kristi started Media Minefield in 2010 following a 12-year career as an Emmy Award-winning television news reporter. Media Minefield is a national award-winning, one-of-a-kind public relations agency with a Storycentric Marketing approach specializing in earned media, social media, digital advertising and crisis communications. She is dedicated to creating a unique workplace culture with policies that value families, flexibility and health. She has been honored to receive the 2024 PRNEWS Top Women Award, the 2023 PRNEWS People of the Year Award and be named one of Minnesota's 500 Most Powerful Business Leaders. Media Minefield has also won numerous awards including Best Place to Work by Inc., Fortune Magazine and the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal, one of the fastest-growing private companies in Minneapolis and was voted the Best Public Relations Firm in Finance & Commerce's 2024 Reader Rankings. Kristi is passionate about supporting entrepreneurs of all genders and ethnicities. She is a founding member of The 25 at Bethel University, a four-year cohort program to empower women to use their strengths and skills to uncover their potential. She is also a founding member of the Women in Entrepreneurship Institute at DePaul University. She believes strongly in the power of stories and launched the Flip Your Script podcast in 2020. She interviews people who faced a critical turning point in their lives and explores how they found the inspiration to move forward. Kristi is an experienced speaker for keynotes, executive teams and a Vistage Resource speaker. She is frequently interviewed on various local and national news outlets and is a contributing writer for Inc.

This week, we revisit our interview with Heather Simonsen. Heather is the CEO and Board Member of Boomerang Medical, Inc., a bioelectronic medicine company focused on autoimmune diseases.  Throughout her career, Ms. Simonsen has served in numerous executive leadership roles, most recently as the President of PQ Bypass, Inc., a medtech company acquired in 2021 in one of the highest-valued vascular device exits in the past decade. Prior to that, she held senior leadership roles at both venture-funded medical technology startups, five of which were acquired, as well as Fortune 500 companies such as Abbott and Johnson & Johnson.  She spent the early part of her career in hospital administration and management consulting with a specialty focus on risk management for healthcare organizations. Her record of effectively and efficiently bringing multiple companies from start-up to liquidity, including the successful sale of PQ Bypass. In addition to her operating roles, Simonsen was one of the founding board members for the Healthcare Businesswomen's Association (HBA) in San Francisco and also served on the HBA national Board of Directors. Currently, she serves on the Founders Board of Advisors for Stanford's StartX incubation program for entrepreneurial companies focused on changing the future of healthcare. She has an MBA from Chicago's DePaul Kellstadt School of Business and completed the Executive Program at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.

In this week's episode, we revisit our interview with Alden Mills. Alden became a nationally ranked rower, a gold medalist in the Olympic Festival, and captain of the freshman and varsity teams at the U.S. Naval Academy. As a Navy SEAL, he led his platoon through multiple missions. After discharge from the military, he founded Perfect Fitness. He led it to growth of over 12,000% annual sales of $90 million, and Inc. magazine recognition as the fastest-growing consumer products in America in just three years. He developed over 40 patents, including the Perfect Pushup, Perfect Pullup, Perfect Sit-up, and Perfect Ab Carver. Alden's books include Be Unstoppable: The 8 Essential Actions to Succeed at Anything and Unstoppable Teams: The Four Essential Actions of High-Performance Leadership. He has been featured on ABC's Nightline, CBS This Morning, The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch, and more. He serves on the boards of several non-profits. For tools and resources to help you become unstoppable, visit Alden-Mills.com.

In this episode, we revisit our interview with Kristie Paskvan. Kristie is an experienced board member and CFO/COO/President with over 25 years of experience assisting diversified financial services, asset management, real estate, insurance, and professional services companies to grow their businesses worldwide. Kristie is a board director at First Women's Bank (FWB) - a de novo bank launched in 2021; SmithBucklin - a Chicago-based association management company; and the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI), which provides objective state insurance rate and loss cost recommendations. She is a member of the United Way of Metropolitan Chicago board of directors, where she chairs the Stronger Neighborhoods committee and the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce board. Additionally, she is a member of the University of Illinois Dean's Business Council for the Gies College of Business. Kristie is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), attaining Certified Board Director status. Kristie was a member of the Mesirow Financial board of directors for 6 years, participating in or leading numerous committees including strategy, audit, information technology, HR & compensation, and enterprise risk management. She is a part-time Associate Director in the Magelli Office of Experiential Learning at the University of Illinois Gies College of Business. Previously she was the CFO and COO at Mesirow Financial, a global financial services company. Kristie received her bachelor's degree in Accounting from the University of Illinois. She has an executive MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management. She is a member of the Illinois CPA Society for which she is a contributor to its quarterly Insight magazine.

This week, we revisit our conversation with Peter Greer. Peter is the president and CEO of HOPE International, a global Christ-centered economic development organization serving throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. Prior to joining HOPE, Peter worked internationally as a microfinance adviser in Cambodia and Zimbabwe and as managing director for Urwego Bank in Rwanda. He received a B.S. in international business from Messiah University and an MPP in political and economic development from Harvard's Kennedy School.  Peter's favorite part of his job is spending time with the entrepreneurs HOPE serves—whether harvesting coffee with farmers in Rwanda, dancing alongside savings groups in Haiti, or visiting the greenhouses of entrepreneurs in Ukraine. As an advocate for the Church's role in missions and alleviating extreme poverty, Peter has co-authored over 10 books, including Mission Drift (selected as a 2015 Book Award Winner from Christianity Today), Rooting for Rivals (selected as a 2019 Leadership Resource of the Year in Outreach magazine), The Spiritual Danger of Doing Good (selected as one of the top 40 books on poverty by WORLD magazine) and Created to Flourish (which his mom reviewed with five stars and a smiley face emoji).  More important than his role at HOPE is his role as husband to Laurel and dad to Keith, Liliana, Myles, and London. While his sports loyalties remain in New England, Peter and his family live in Lancaster, PA.

This week, we revisited our interview with Darrell Johnson. Darrell has built expertise in the healthcare industry, identifying how data systems may be applied to improve patient outcomes, decrease healthcare utilization costs, and increase provider care delivery efficiencies. His passion centers on not simply bringing technologies to market but the successful implementation and utilization of these technologies within the entire healthcare system, including patients. He has utilized his marketing and business skills for over twenty years to identify and develop transformational business models across multiple healthcare industries, including pharmaceutical, capital equipment, implantable therapy devices, and medical software. Darrell is the Chief Strategy Officer at RLDatix, a global SaaS healthcare company aiming to improve quality, safety, and risk outcomes. Before RLDatix, Darrell spent three years as Cerner's first Chief Marketing Officer and the global EHR leader and twelve years in various leadership roles with Medtronic, the largest medical device company in the world. Darrell is passionate about driving brand leadership and usability experience. He built the world's largest remote monitoring system that has over 1.5 million lives being monitored across 78 countries, with strong evidence reflecting the impact on both clinical and economic outcomes. With his vision of engaging patients, his team also developed the world's first patient smartphone application for personal device management. His efforts consistently resulted in number-one brand positions globally. Prior to joining Medtronic, Darrell worked at GE Healthcare in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for approximately eight years and held several key management and marketing positions. His data systems passion resulted in many firsts at GE Healthcare, including centralized remote monitoring, smart alarms, and a wireless digital portable x-ray technology. All of these technologies had significant value impact in improving clinical outcomes and improving care delivery efficiencies.  Darrell holds a bachelor's degree in economics and mathematics from the University of Minnesota and an MBA from the Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota.

 This week, we revisited our interview with Beverly Behan. Bev is one of the foremost global experts on board effectiveness, having worked with nearly 200 Boards of Directors (largely S&P1500s) over the past 25 years. She's worked with boards across the United States and around the world on a range of issues, including the design of genuinely worthwhile board and director evaluations and the development of comprehensive CEO and board succession plans. She also consults to Board Chairs and new CEOs about optimizing their effectiveness in leading and working with their boards.  Bev is the author of the governance classic, Great Companies Deserve Great Boards, named Governance Book of the Year by Directors & Boards magazine in 2012 and Board & Director Evaluations:  Innovations for 21st Century Governance Committees. Becoming a Boardroom Star, debuted as the #1 New Release on Amazon in corporate governance. We discuss her newest book New CEOs and Boards.

This week, we revisit our interview with Ryan Hawk. Ryan is the founder and host of The Learning Leader Show, a leadership podcast with millions of listeners in more than 150 countries. He inspires excellence in leaders looking to take their game to the next level. Forbes called his first book, Welcome to Management – How to Grow From Top Performer to Excellent Leader, “the best leadership book of 2020.” His second book, The Pursuit of Excellence, sold through its first print run in eight hours. It explores the uncommon behaviors of the world's most productive achievers. Forbes wrote, “The Pursuit of Excellence is the most dynamic leadership book of 2022, delivering a masterclass on how to apply the most useful habits to real life.” Ryan has served as the keynote speaker on leadership-related topics for hundreds of leadership conferences, national sales meetings, leadership retreats, and new manager trainings. He also facilitates Leadership Circles that offer structured guidance and collaborative feedback for new and experienced leaders, and I serve as a 1:1 leadership advisor for senior executives.

This week, we interviewed Rick Boven. Rick leads the Stakeholder Stategies. He was a strategic management consultant for over 25 years and was the founding partner of the Boston Consulting Group in New Zealand. He also served as the Director of the New Zealand Institute. An Accredited Fellow of the Institute of Directors, Rick's directorships have included ASB Bank, Sovereign Insurance, Wellington Drive Technologies, Simtics and SimTutor. Rick has worked with leading companies in Australia, New Zealand and the U.S.A in a wide range of industries including financial services, industrial distribution, energy, telecommunications, information technology and on-line, transport, manufacturing, and agriculture.  He has a Ph.D. in Environment Management from the University of Auckland, a Master of Business Administration from the Australian Graduate School of Management, and a Master of Arts (Psychology) from Victoria University of Wellington. Rick has university teaching experience in psychology, social work, research methodology, business strategy, and managing change. He has publications in social welfare, mathematical psychology, the educational sociology, strategic management, business ethics, and economic development.

This week welcome Andrea Schilling as our guest for our podcast. Andrea serves as a Strategic Advisor focusing on Talent and Culture. Her role at MPowered Capital spans the areas of organizational design, talent, and strategic communications. In addition, she is responsible for oversight of the firm's Multiplier Program, which brings experience and resources to diverse emerging investment managers to help reduce the start-up or scale-up cost and friction associated with launching a new firm or scaling an emerging firm. As a former Senior Managing Director at Värde Partners, Andrea serves as a bridge between the two organizations. Andrea led the development of Värde's Human Capital function as Global Head of Human Resources for more than a decade before transitioning into a role focused on Internal Communications and strategic projects. Prior to joining Värde, Andrea spent 10 years as Chief Human Resource Officer for a large national public accounting firm. In that role, she was a frequent speaker on the topics of flexibility/work-life balance and advancing women in the workforce. Andrea began her career in public accounting. Andrea holds a B.A. degree in Finance and Marketing from Bethel University in St. Paul, MN. She has served on the board of directors as an HR resource for several non-profit organizations and is currently a member of the Board of Trustees for Bethel University where she sits on the Academic Affairs Committee.

This week we revisit our conversation with Michael Critelli. Mike is the former Chairman and CEO of Pitney Bowes. He has been a Fortune 500 company leader, a mailing industry leader, a serial entrepreneur, and a member of multiple non-profit and for-profit fiduciary and advisory Boards, including a 22 ½ year tenure as an Eaton Corporation Board member.   He delivered a total return for Pitney Bowes shareholders that exceeded the S&P 500 index during his 11-year CEO tenure, despite a declining US mailing market.  He led the company through a transition to digital technology product and software transition and built the foundation for the company's later pivot to digital commerce. Pitney Bowes did 80 acquisitions and both a spin-off and multiple divestitures on his watch. He and Pitney Bowes won numerous awards for leadership development, diversity and inclusion, adherence to ethical standards, commitment to communities, and world-class health program.  He produced a full-length feature film called From the Rough, based on the true story of the first black woman to coach a men's college athletic team. He obtained his BA from the University of Wisconsin in political science and communications (1970) and his JD cum laude from the Harvard Law School (1974).

This week, we revisit our interview with Judy Zimmer, who is an executive coach, national speaker, and team leader. Judy has dedicated her career to showing already successful leaders how to leverage their brand, create more happiness, and be more productive.  As president of Coachology.us, Judy has had the privilege of working with 4400+ global leaders. In addition to personal branding, Judy helps clients with how to increase their leadership presence, be more effective communicators, be more productive, increase confidence, and make powerful connections with others.  You can learn more about Judy at coachology.us 

This week, we revisited our interview with Jeff DeGraff. Jeff is an advisor to Fortune 500 companies, a top innovation speaker, a business professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, and a bestselling author. He founded the Innovatrium, an innovation consulting firm focusing on creating innovation culture, capability, and community where he offers three kinds of coaching services: Executive Coaching, Innovation Project Coaching, and Personal Development Coaching. He earned his nickname, the “Dean of Innovation,” while working as an executive for Domino's Pizza in his youth, where he accelerated Domino's growth from a regional success story to an international franchise phenomenon. He is also the author on several books on how teams innovate, his most recent being The Innovation Code: The Creative Power of Constructive Conflict.

This week, we revisit our interview with David Burkus, one of the world's leading business thinkers. David's forward-thinking ideas and bestselling books are changing how companies approach innovation, collaboration, and productivity. As a skilled researcher and inspiring communicator, Burkus' award-winning books have been translated into more than a dozen languages, and his TED Talk has been viewed over 2 million times. By making cutting-edge organizational research accessible and applicable, Burkus pushes audiences to reconsider how they work both individually and in teams and unlocks the methods top performers use to thrive at work and in life. A renowned expert, Burkus' writings have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Harvard Business Review, USAToday, Fast Company, and more. He's been interviewed by NPR, the BBC, CNN, and CBS This Morning. Since 2017, Burkus has been ranked as one of the world's top business thought leaders by Thinkers50.

This week we revisit our conversation with Marilyn Gist; she is the author of The Extraordinary Power of Leader Humility. Marilyn helps others become the leader everyone admires by creating thriving organizations and great results.  She asks us to Imagine a world in which all leaders feel and display a deep regard for others' dignity.  This is what humility means, and it helps leaders resolve conflict, increase engagement, and optimize performance.  Marilyn speaks and consults widely, based on experience as a scholar, teacher, trainer, and senior leader.  Formerly Associate Dean, Professor of Management, and Executive Director of the Center for Leadership Formation at Seattle University, she began her academic career at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She later joined the University of Washington, where she held the Boeing Endowed Professorship of Business. Marilyn earned her BA from Howard University and her MBA and Ph.D. from the Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is a member of the Academy of Management, American Psychological Association, and the International Women's Forum.

This week, we revisit our interview with Dr. Mark Shrime. Mark is an internationally renowned speaker, surgeon, and author. He serves as the International Chief Medical Officer at Mercy Ships and a Lecturer in Global Health and Social Medicine at the Harvard Medical School. Mark has written a new book Solving for Why: A Surgeon's Journey to Discover the Transformative Power of Purpose. He received his MD from the University of Texas and received his Ph.D. in health policy from Harvard University, with a concentration in decision science. When not working, he is an avid photographer and rock climber and has competed on Seasons 8, 9, and 11 of American Ninja Warrior.

This week, we revisit our interview with Molly Fletcher.  Molly made a name for herself as one of the first female sports agents. During her almost two-decade career as President of CSE, Fletcher negotiated over $500 million in contracts and represented over 300 of sports' biggest names, including Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz, PGA Tour golfer Matt Kuchar, broadcaster Erin Andrews and basketball champion coaches Tom Izzo and Doc Rivers. Today she is one of the world's top 50 keynote speakers, and her TED Talk, “Secrets of a Champion Mindset,” has more than one million views. As host of the popular podcast “Game Changers with Molly Fletcher,” she interviews experts and celebrities in every field. Fletcher is the founder of Game Changer Performance Group training company and the author of five books, most recently “The Energy Clock.”

This week we interviewed Craig Sider. Craig is passionate about unleashing potential in others. He partners with leaders and organizations to help them identify - and move courageously toward - a preferred future. For over three decades, Craig has walked with and served leaders from business, non-profit, and education. He combines insights gleaned from his degrees in business, theology, and leadership development. Craig's approach is to listen deeply and then ask questions that draw out deeper reflection and inspire fresh thinking. Craig shares insights from his new book, “Beyond Your Box: Break Free to Pursue Your Dream”