Podcast appearances and mentions of Leo Burnett

Rohit Bhargava, founder of the Non Obvious Company and IdeaPress Publishing, on augmented creativity, the human mode, and accelerated learning. Adjunct professor at Georgetown University with a background in marketing and advertising at Ogilvy and Leo Burnett, he argues the significance of live events, media literacy, and the role of the curator in the stories we tell in branding. Technology advancements and storytelling, he says are interlinked, but the future will always depend on the greatest storytellers, and in particular, those who find the non-obvious stories to tell.#Advertising #Business #Technology

What links McDonald's "Iconic needs no explanation" by Leo Burnett, KFC's gravy take over of the BFI and Kellogg's "See you in the morning" also by Leo Burnett? These three ads are the latest in a line of out-of-home posters that zoom in on products, alter or remove logos and have minimal text. Tesco, Heinz and B&Q have also created similar ads.While this might be a trend, it certainly isn't new. A 1990 Silk Cut ad "Slash" by Saatchi & Saatchi also had a similar minimalist style and more recently in 2023, Barbie released an entirely pink billboard with only "July 21" in the corner to promote the release of the film.Campaign's editorial team discuss if original ideas still exist in outdoor ads and if all the good ideas have been taken. Hosted by tech editor Lucy Shelley, this episode features editor Maisie McCabe, creativity and culture editor Alessandra Scotto di Santolo and deputy creativity and culture editor Charlotte Rawlings.Further reading:Is the art of out-of-home copywriting under threat?Playing with the logo is nothing new; but it might signal a return to intelligent advertisingThe distinctive asset in the room Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Amitesh Rao | CEO, Leo Burnett,South AsiaAmitesh is a  business leader and marketing professional with 24 years' experience and a firm belief that winning strategies in today's markets are predicated on stretching the boundaries of orthodox marketing and strategic thinking. Tell us about your career journey: An alumnus of IIM Bangalore, What are some of the things you've learned through your career transitionsYou believe that the mind is younger than the body- lets talk more on this.What are some of the stereotypes you've heard on your way to success?How can one overcome these stereotypes in a world of constant information?What would be your 1 big advice to people who want to grow in their career

I have been looking forward to talking with our guest, Louise Baxter, for several months. I met Louise through one of our regular podcast guest finders, accessiBe's own Sheldon Lewis. Louise has always lived in Sydney Australia although she has done her share of traveling around the world. She attended some college at night although she never did complete a college degree. Don't let that prejudice you, however. Her life experiences and knowledge rival anyone whether they have a college degree or not.   While attending college Louise worked in clerical positions with some marketing firms. Over time she attained higher positions and began working as a brand or product manager for a number of large well-known companies.   At some point she decided that she wanted to bring a more human-service orientation to her work and left the commercial world to work in not for profit organizations. Part of her work was with the Starlight Foundation in Australia, but she didn't feel she was challenged as much as she wanted to be. So, in 2007 she left Starlight, but in 2009 the Starlight board convinced her to come back as the CEO of the organization.   Louise has brought an extremely positive thinking kind of management style to her work. Starlight in general has to be quite positive as it works to ease the burden of sick children in hospitals and at home. You will get to hear all about Captain Starlight and all the many ways the foundation Louise directs has such a positive impact on sick children around Australia. The life lessons Louise discusses are relevant in any kind of work. I am certain you will come away from this episode more inspired and hopefully more positive about your own life and job.       About the Guest:   LOUISE BAXTER is Chief Executive Officer, Starlight Children's Foundation. Louise has significant experience in senior roles in the commercial and NFP sectors and is described as an “inspiring and authentic leader”. In 2009 Louise returned to the NFP sector as Starlight's Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director. Louise's focus on exceptional experiences and relationships has seen improved metrics across all areas of Starlight. Louise is regularly asked to speak on topics such a positivity, organisational resilience, diversity, and innovation. She is passionate about the creation of organisational purpose and believes this is key to delivering maximum impact through people. She practices positive leadership and has been successful in developing high performing teams within a culture where change is embraced, and innovation is embedded.   Always thinking like a marketer…. Louise's personal journey and reasons behind the shift from corporate to the For Purpose sector. After more than 20 years in marketing and advertising in roles at ARNOTTS, Accor & Johnson & Johnson & in agencies such as Leo Burnett working on brands from Mortein to Coco pops, Louise's journey and the insights she brings as CEO are unique. The very first time Louise became aware of Starlight was actually doing a promotion for one of her clients (when she was in sales/marketing) who was partnering with Starlight. Just seeing the work of Starlight, made her feel so pleased that there was now something that changed and reframed the hospitalization and treatment experience for families like a family she knew as a child with a child suffering from leukemia.    The business acumen needed to thrive and succeed in the For Purpose sector. Often the perception is NFP is a step into the slow lane. Far from it. Louise refers to leading Starlight as if it is in ‘eternal start up mode' and bringing business acumen, finding ways to be efficient and driving growth.     Our business… is the business of brightening lives…. The business growth and success of Starlight since she began from 65 people & 120,000 positive experiences delivered to children, to a team of more than 300 delivering over 1million++ positive Starlight experiences to seriously ill children including more than 13,000 children's Starlight wishes granted.   Louise has lead Starlight through some of the most challenging times. Her positive impact has seen Starlight grow from strength to strength. Starlight enjoys a tremendously creative and innovative culture. Including ‘Most Innovative Company' accolade - an achievement which was achieved under Louise's Leadership.   Starlight Programs growth will be stronger over the next 3 years than it would have been without Covid as programs which Transform and Connect rebuild and programs which Entertain grow. As does fundraising as we layer our face-to-face events back over our digital innovations which have taken off.  We have our creative/innovative culture to thank for this. Stories of personal connections made with Starlight children & families who began their journey more than 20 years ago and flourished thanks to the work of Starlight, including now adults Nathan Cavaleri and Dylan Allcott OAM.   Over the years Louise has been personally involved in many of Starlight's fundraising campaigns, once literally putting her body on the line as she flew over the handlebars and was carried away from the cycling course injured on Great Adventure Challenge.     Storytelling is at the heart of Starlight's success, growth & behind the organisations' ability to connect its stakeholders to its purpose. Louise's has largely led this approach to drive advocacy, differentiation & brand recognition – now one of Australia's most recognised children's charities Passionate about DEI: One of the first things Louise did as CEO was to deliberately approach diversity at Starlight and this continues today. To effectively support the people & families we support, our team members need to reflect this. DEI is addressed at every level.. Inc Board & Exec split to Captains in SER.    Louise considers herself very lucky – her birthday is actually on International Women's Day: IWD, 8 March. She is an active member of Chief Executive Women, an advocate for female empowerment & equity and in incredible role model.   Ways to connect with Louise:   Starlight Children's Foundation Australia Website: www.starlight.org.au Louise Baxter's LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/louisebaxter   About the Host:   Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog.   Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards.   https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/   accessiBe Links https://accessibe.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/   https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/       Thanks for listening!   Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below!   Subscribe to the podcast   If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can subscribe in your favorite podcast app. You can also support our podcast through our tip jar https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/unstoppable-mindset .   Leave us an Apple Podcasts review   Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts.       Transcription Notes:   Michael Hingson ** 00:00 Access Cast and accessiBe Initiative presents Unstoppable Mindset. The podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. Hi, I'm Michael Hingson, Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe and the author of the number one New York Times bestselling book, Thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion unacceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by accessiBe, that's a c c e s s i capital B e. Visit www.accessibe.com to learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us.   Michael Hingson ** 01:20 Well, hi everyone. Welcome once again to unstoppable mindset where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. It's a fun thing to say I am your host. Mike Hingson, our guest today is the CEO of the starlight foundation in Australia, Louise Baxter, we met Louise through Sheldon Lewis and accessibe, which is always fun. Sheldon is a good supplier of folks, and we can't complain a bit about that. It's a good thing. And so today we're going to learn about Starlight Foundation, and we're going to learn about Louise, and we'll see what else we learned. That's why it's often called the unexpected. Meet anyway, Louise, welcome to unstoppable mindset. We're really glad you're here.   Louise Baxter ** 02:04 Thank you, Michael, it's lovely to be here.   Michael Hingson ** 02:08 Well, why don't we start the way I love to start. Why don't you tell us kind of about the early Louise growing up and some of those sorts of things and adventures you got into, or anything that you want to divulge? Okay,   Louise Baxter ** 02:20 alright. Well, I live in Sydney, Australia, and have done my whole life I've traveled a lot, but I've remained here in Sydney. And so life in Sydney was just blissful. And I think what I remember most is just having fun with my friends. It was back in the day where, as a child, you'd leave home on your bike early in the morning, and nobody expected you back till later, often in the afternoon, before dinner, and we had Bush nearby. I can remember catching tadpoles I sailed from the age of eight. My father was a skiff sailor here in Australia and and I had my first time in a Sabo at age eight, we went to the beach a lot, so there was surfing and fun in the sun. I played a lot of sports. So I'm a netball player, which is kind of similar to basketball, but a bit different. I played squash, so a lot of things happening, a very busy life, and I grew up. And I think this is the important thing with parents who were not well off themselves, but were, I mean, we were. We had a lovely life, but they were always raising funds, and our house was a center for raising funds for people who were less fortunate, or that helping out with the local netball club and things like that. So, so I grew up with parents who were very committed to working hard but always giving back, even though they weren't, you know, high net worth people themselves. So I think that's, you know, a great basis for for who I am today.   Michael Hingson ** 04:18 So you went to school and and all those sorts of things like everybody else did. How did your attitude about dealing with people who were probably less fortunate than many and so on really affect what you did in school? Or did you really sort of hone that found that that that spirit later? No,   Louise Baxter ** 04:42 no, I was always involved at school and raising funds. And even, you know, it took us a couple of busses to get to the beach back in the day. So I was in a local youth group, and we made a decision to raise the funds so that we could have one of the fathers, so that we could. Buy a bus, have one of the fathers drive the bus and get us to the beach on Saturday in quick time. So always looking for ways to never taking no or that's hard for an answer, I suppose, always being able to be part of the solution and get things done. So that was happening while I was at school as well.   Michael Hingson ** 05:21 That's kind of cool. So you bought a bus so that everybody could get to the beach. How many people were there that had to get there and use the bus? We   Louise Baxter ** 05:28 had about 40 or 50 people. And during the school holidays, we convinced one of the, a couple of the parents to take us on a trip through far west into, I'm supposing, what into our outback. So we went into kind of desert type lands, and we camped and a shearing a sheep station let us sleep in the shearing sheds overnight. So that was quite an adventure as well. And we did that for one school holidays on that bus.   Michael Hingson ** 06:02 So was the the bus? Well, who owned the bus was it? Was it a school bus, or who owned it   Louise Baxter ** 06:09 the youth group that we, the group did fundraising? Yeah,   Michael Hingson ** 06:13 cool, yeah. That's pretty unique.   Louise Baxter ** 06:17 I have great memories of that with, you know, green tree frogs in the toilets. Whenever you went to use a bathroom, they were always there looking at you and all of those kind of funny things that you remember, you know, watching and learning farm life and seeing some of the animals sitting on the fence while they were being branded and castrated and all kinds of things, but from as a city kid that was that was really valuable,   Michael Hingson ** 06:47 pretty and unique, but certainly the experience was well worth it, as long as you embraced   Speaker 1 ** 06:53 it. Yes, exactly, yeah. So   Michael Hingson ** 06:57 does that bus still exist today? Or does the youth group still exists now with new youth, that's a very long time ago. Michael, well, I didn't know whether it might have continued with new youth,   Louise Baxter ** 07:07 no. And I, you know, moved locations in Sydney, so I'm not quite sure what's happening there. Now, it'd   Michael Hingson ** 07:14 be exciting if new youth came along and took it over, but yeah, things happen and things evolve.   Louise Baxter ** 07:22 I'm just gonna say their parents probably drive them everywhere now. Yeah, it's   Michael Hingson ** 07:26 gonna say probably the adventure isn't quite the same as it used to be. No   Louise Baxter ** 07:30 exactly,   Michael Hingson ** 07:31 and, and that has its pluses, I suppose, and its minuses, but there, there are also more scary things in one sense in the world now than there used to be. Don't you think,   Louise Baxter ** 07:43 yeah, there are, well, there could be, or maybe, maybe we know more about it now because of our media and communications. So you know, all the kind of predators that impact you as children were around then, I suppose the accidents in cars are up because use of cars has increased. So, yeah, there are. There are different things that impact people nowadays. But us human beings, we're pretty resilient and and we always work out a way through, yeah, well, there's also, there's also a story from my childhood that I think is very relevant for what I do at Starlight, and that story is that you know how you have those family friends, who you grow up with, and you go on holidays with, etc. Well, that family for us, their eldest son was diagnosed with cancer, and back then, survival rates for cancer were very different to what they are today, and much lower. And he died when I was about 12, but as a child, I observed him suffering the pain of the treatment, and there was nothing like Starlight back then. And I saw also the impact that his illness had on his family. And I often think back to him, to those moments now that I'm at Starlight, because Starlight would have changed that situation and made it very different and far more positive for that boy and his family, and I think about about him and what they went through kind of regularly. So it's one of those things that's a childhood. It's a lived experience from my childhood, which, you know still kind of resonates with me today.   Michael Hingson ** 09:44 Well, yeah, and you know, we're, we're constantly evolving. So you can, you can think about that, and you can think about what might have been, but at the same time, the the real issue is, what have you learned? And. How can you now take it forward? And I think, as I said, that's all about embracing the adventure,   Louise Baxter ** 10:04 absolutely, absolutely and so absolutely take that forward,   Michael Hingson ** 10:09 yeah, which is really what you have to do. So you went to college, I assume, yeah.   Louise Baxter ** 10:15 And I actually went part time at night, so I actually went straight into a work environment. And for an organization, and was in the marketing team, just doing basic clerical work, and then I studied part time at night, so did a bit differently.   Michael Hingson ** 10:33 Yeah, well, did you end up eventually getting a degree? No,   Louise Baxter ** 10:37 I have no degree. Which is, which is something that's not, is very unusual in the United States. I know, oh, I don't know   Michael Hingson ** 10:49 that it's that unusual. But the the other side of it is that what you learn and how you put it to use and how you evolve is pretty significant. And that's, of course, part of the issue. Not everyone has a college degree, and sometimes the people with college degrees aren't necessarily the the brightest spots in the constellation either. Absolutely, it's,   Louise Baxter ** 11:13 yeah, there's a lot through lived experience, but I have, yeah, I've studied at various times, and most recently, I was awarded a scholarship. And I've had the experience of doing two short courses at Stanford University in the States, and I'm now on the board of the Stanford Australia Foundation, and so that's been a wonderful experience as a mature age student.   Michael Hingson ** 11:42 That's fair. Yeah, I just recently was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, which formed the chapter at my university the year I was leaving, so I was able to go to the organizing meeting, but that was it, because then I got my master's degree and left and through circumstances, it was learned that all that happened. So last year, I was called and asked if I wanted to become an alumni member. So I got to be so I finally got to be a member of fraternity. Well, there you go. Congratulations. Well, it's a lot of fun, yeah, and I, and I treasure it and honor it a great deal, and spent a day down at my old university. I haven't really spent a lot of time there since graduating, well, back in 1976 with my master's degree in some business courses. So it's been 48 years. So there you go. Time flies. Well, so what did you do? So you you were working in the marketing world, in a clerical sort of thing, and what did you do from there? I   Louise Baxter ** 12:55 then became an assistant brand manager, a brand manager or product manager, whatever you want to call it, and I worked at Reckitt and Coleman. I worked at Johnson and Johnson and at Arnot snack foods. And Arnot snack foods was interesting because it was a joint venture with Pepsi foods from the US, because they were interested in the biscuit technology from Arnott's, and Arnot was interest interested in their snack food technology. And so what we had was a situation where we were sharing our expertise, and as a result, I was on the team, and we launched Cheetos, Fritos, Doritos into Australia, so they didn't exist here prior to that. Obviously Johnson and Johnson also, you know, big multinational, as is reckoned and Coleman. And then, after a number of years working on client side, I decided I wanted to move to the agency world. And I moved to Leo Burnett advertising agency, where I stayed for a decade. I was on the board there. I managed accounts like the Proctor and Gamble and kill on businesses as well as local businesses like tourism businesses and and wine so hospitality businesses here in Australia, very big wine company and and also the United distillers business back then. So had a lot of experience from both the client and agency side of working on big brands and growing big brands, which I absolutely loved, and we had a lot of fun, you know, along the way, in those days at all of the organizations where I worked, I made a lot of friends, and it's always important to have great friends from those experiences. And then I considered I actually left after i. Left Leah Burnett, I started an agency with two other people that's called Brave New World, which still exists to this day. I haven't been part of that for a long time, and then I had this moment of considering that I could potentially do something more worthwhile with my skills than than selling the products I'd been selling for all those years, and that's when I first made the decision to move to the what I referred to as the profit for purpose sector, and moved to Starlight in a role, and at that time, that was just a six month maternity position role. And I did that because I had great experience of brands from the client and agency side and promotions, so above and below the line. Promotions. I had worked on promotion supporting charity so cause related marketing campaigns. And I felt that the one thing I was missing if I wanted to go back into a corporate, into a corporate social responsibility role. Was that experience of working in a charity, and so I thought at that stage that my, my of journey was going to be back to a corporate because at that time, if you think this is over 20 years ago, triple bottom line was, and the third sector was really becoming important to organizations and to corporates. And so I thought I'd take my skills and go back to a corporate what I did instead was I went to starlight, as I said. It was a six month contract, but after three months, then CEO came out and said, What would it take to keep you here? I loved what I was doing, and I stayed at Starlight. I did stay for six, seven years. I then left and went back to corporate world, and I came back to starlight. So I left at the end of, what am I of? I left at the end of 2007 I came back in 2009 so I had that experience of back in the corporate world, and I came back as a CEO. It's   Michael Hingson ** 17:20 interesting. You started out in, as you said, in clerical work, but you started out in marketing, which, which you liked, what, what caused you to do that? Why marketing? Why marketing and sales, if you will?   Louise Baxter ** 17:33 Well, I love, I love marketing. I love brands, and I love the fact that, you know, brand is a living and breathing thing, and you can grow and change a brand. And I love, I love all the learnings around consumer insights. That was my specialty within marketing. So actually understanding that consumer behavior, and what I say about marketing is it's, it's hardly rocket science, because if you look at a young child, they recognize that they speak differently and use different language and words, etc, when they're speaking to their friends, when they're speaking to their grandparents, when they're speaking to their teachers, when they're speaking to their siblings, and so already, the concept of I have a different consumer in front of me, and I need to change my language and what I'm saying and my communication skills. Need to tweak. A child understands that from a very early age. So when I think about marketing, that's what you're doing the whole time. You're changing what you're the what you're saying and the way you say it, so that you engage more strongly with your consumer, and that's what I love about it, because communication is just so powerful, and you can take people on a journey. I'm also you know you can change behavior before you change the attitude, but ultimately you can move people and kind of change their thinking and their their their habits.   Michael Hingson ** 19:11 What's a really good example that you participated in of that I love a marketing story, loving sales and marketing as I do, I'd love to hear a good marketing story. Um,   Louise Baxter ** 19:22 well, there's, there's, there's quite a few. And I'll, I'll give you one. There was, I used to work on all the roads and traffic authority business, and at that stage, we were responsible for handling all the campaigns, from speeding to seat belts to drink driving, etc. And what was really powerful about those was your results were that every day you came into work and the road toll was there, and the road toll was, you know, up or down. And to work on campaigns which, over years, reduced the road toll because of the messages that you would keep. Communicate to people about speeding, etc. So whether people believed that they should be going, if you know, 10 kilometers slower in that particular zone or not, the messages of you know of penalties being caught, whatever the messaging you used to slow them down in that moment worked, and that saved lives. So, you know, that's, that's an example. I also worked on brands such as Special K, you know, and and for me, seeing, we created a fantastic campaign here that ran for about 20 years, and it was based on the the traditional Special K ads where women would wear clothes that they had years ago. And this one was about a mini skirt, but it was done in such a way that the woman was Stuart was the strength in the TV commercial. She was the lead. And that grew the business, and grew Special K at that time, at like, three times the market average for any, you know, product growth. So to see those things, and what I love is the results. And you you get it very strongly in those moments and and it's exciting.   Michael Hingson ** 21:17 You mentioned having been involved with working with Fritos and so on, which strikes a nerve when I lived in New Jersey, somewhere along the way, ranch flavored Fritos came into existence, but they didn't last very long, and I miss ranch flavored Fritos   Louise Baxter ** 21:34 we used to do when I worked on those snack food brands. We did so much testing and to to create tastes that are suitable, because tastes do change significantly, you know, region to region, and so ensuring that we had exactly the right flavors that would resonate and and sell here was really important to us. But along the way, we had some shockers, and we did have a lot of the specialist from FRITO lay in the states out working with us to craft those flavors. So we eventually got ones that worked here and for this region.   Michael Hingson ** 22:13 Yeah, and I'm sure that that must be what what happened that ranch flavored Fritos just didn't sell enough. In   Louise Baxter ** 22:20 cell Michael, you didn't have enough friends,   Michael Hingson ** 22:23 I guess not. Well, we didn't know enough people in New Jersey. What can I say? But, but we contributed as much as we could. My wife and I both loved them, and we we bought ranch flavored Fritos every chance we got. But unfortunately, that really probably wasn't enough to keep it going. So we, we mourn the loss of ranch flavored Fritos. But you, you did that, and it's interesting, because if I were to bake this observation, in a sense, although part of your job has changed, part of your job hasn't changed, because it's still all about marketing and educating people. Of course, now you're on the not for profit side, but that's okay, but what you're doing is teaching and educating, and now you're doing it for more of a social cause than a profit cause.   Louise Baxter ** 23:21 You're exactly right what we're doing every day because is, we're marketing our organization, and it's all about communication, and that communication might be very different with, you know, high net donors to community groups who support us in terms of how they connect with us. The impact stories are the same, although you also learn that certain individuals might prefer programs that support children, or might support prefer programs supporting older people, older children, or might support programs that support our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. And so you learn that through all your discussions. So it's all about hearing, because marketing is about really listening and and so I am still, you know, everything we do is about really listening and really hearing from the kids and the young people we support. You know, we need to listen to their situation and what, from our program's perspective, is working for them. So I feel it's very, very similar to what I did, because I was a product manager, so I was always listening to our customers to create more relevant products, and then communicating to people so that they we could sell those products. And the difference here is, back then they were the same people, so you would listen to your customers, then you'd be selling to them. And now what happens is our customers are the children and young people who are seriously ill and hospitalized, and our customers, the people where we're getting the funding from, are the donors who. Support those programs. So you break it into different groups, and we have far more stakeholder groups that you're managing in the profit for purpose sector than you do in the for profit sector. But that keeps it   Michael Hingson ** 25:14 interesting Well, so what is in in what you're doing today? And I'd be interested to to hear a contrast. But what does what does success mean to you today, and what did success mean to you when you were in the marketing world?   Louise Baxter ** 25:30 I think that that's always, you know, being the best you can be, and achieving the the metrics you need to achieve. So that's not changed, and always having really positive relationships with, you know, and partnerships. So for me, none of that's really changed. And I think that, you know, authenticity is very, very important. And so I constantly say, you know, with me, what you see, what you get, I'm the same person, no matter if you're a friend, a colleague at work, whatever, and I think that makes life much easier than if you were different people in different spaces. So I think there's a there's something that's very consistent about that. And I, I am that kind of person who doesn't take no for an answer. It's just okay. That's that's a bit trickier, but how can we get that done? So I'm always, always been solution focused, and I think that's been that's really important. And I think, you know, Obama has made comments about the type of people he wants to employ, people who get stuff done, and that's that's exactly me, and who I look to work with. So none of that has changed, but for me, it's now incredibly important. We're changing lives every day, and I think that what Starlight does in this country is we believe that that happiness in childhood matters, because happiness in your childhood is the strongest determinant of how you perform in your education, your employment, and with long term healthy life behaviors, children who are seriously ill have their ability to be happy significantly impacted. And so what we do is we sort support them with a whole range of programs. And I can talk about our theory of impact, but it builds their well being and resilience. And I know that that that you talk a lot about, you know about fear, and I think resilience is that thing that that gives you the strength to move through those things that may be frightening to you at some stage, and kids who are seriously ill are going through so much that is unfamiliar and frightening to them and painful. And so Starlight has been creating programs which are all about positive psychology and built on the tenants, if we can build, if we can distract a child by something that's positive help them to look forward to something positive. On the other side of treatment, it changes their engagement with their health care, and it changes their health outcomes for a positive and so that's incredibly important, and we were using this a decade before Martin Seligman even coined the phrase positive psychology and and now as as clinicians recognize, and they've recognized this for a long time, but are increasingly recognized the ways this this can be used to create improved health outcomes. And let's face it, you know, healthcare is one of the most innovative, fast moving sectors you can possibly work in, and clinicians have changed and improved health outcomes for every illness and disease you can possibly think of, and that's amazing. And so Starlight has been part of that improvement in healthcare, but the recognition that your mental health and well being is completely connected to your physical health and well being. And so while the doctors and nurses the clinicians look after the physical Starlight is engaging with the child within the illness and helping to lift their spirits, support their well being, resilience, giving back that joy of childhood. Because, you know, a clinician once said to me, Louise, in treating their illness, we steal their childhood. And so what we're about at Starlight is giving those kids back their chance to simply be a child and have that fun of childhood, which is where we started this conversation. You know, childhood should be about fun and having no inhibitions and not worrying, not a care in the world. And children who are seriously ill live in a very kind of adult world where they're dealing with concepts such as life and death. And that's not where any child should really be.   Michael Hingson ** 30:05 So when you're when you're dealing with a child, what, what? What do you do to bring the child back to the child, if you will, as opposed to all the the challenges that they're going through? Because certainly, when you're dealing with a disease like a cancer or whatever, it is, a very tough thing. So how do you bring that child back to being able to be a child at least for part of the time?   Louise Baxter ** 30:32 And that's, that's, you're absolutely right. It's about moments, because, and we talk about moments which matter. You can't do it for 100% of the time, but if you can lift that child and distract them and take them away from that, even if just for a moment, it changes everything. And I, I we have a whole range of programs that cater for this, in hospital and also in community. And last year, we created nearly 2 million so it was 1.9 million positive Starlight experiences for children. And that's the way we talk about it, because they're all so different. But we work in three general areas, and that is, we transform, we work in partnership with the clinicians to transform the healthcare experience, and we even build physical spaces in the hospitals, all the children's hospitals in Australia, which are manned by a character called Captain starlight. So we employ nearly 200 Captain starlights, who are all professional performers, and they work with the children, and they engage. They don't perform, but they use performance skills to engage with the child and the child's imagination, because a couple of things about children is that they are in they have incredible imaginations, and they are also easily distracted. And one of the things about most parents is they they try to work out how they keep their child focused? Well, we use the fact that children can be intensely distracted for good. So, you know, for example. So talking about that transforming the healthcare experience, some of our captain starlets will actually work in a treatment space with the clinicians, and they know how the treatment is going to unfold. Not so they could ever perform the treatment, but be so they know when to distract the child, when to keep the child very calm, etc, throughout that procedure. But let's say it's a burns dressing change that to a child. The pain of having a burns dressing change is like having your skin removed every time the dressing has changed, and what we do is we have our captain starlights there, and children don't have the psychology of pain in their mind. They will be intensely distracted, and their pain threshold then increases by up to 75% by simply distracting them, which means then they don't need to have an anesthetic for their treatment, which means that that child may not have to stay in hospital overnight because of that anesthetic and etc. So by using the power of a child's mind engaging with them, we can change that scenario. They won't feel the pain. Now, for an adult, that sounds weird, because if we were having that burn stressing changed on an arm, even if someone was distracting him, we'd be waiting for the pain, whereas a child just gets absorbed in the distraction and is not waiting for the pain. And so that's the difference. So we transform the healthcare experience, we provide opportunities for children to connect, because social isolation is one of the key issues associated with serious illness and treatment. They're pulled away immediately from their local friends and family, often into, you know, a hospital that's in the city, and that's the way our healthcare system works. The big children's hospitals are in the cities. The kids come out of regional areas and into that so they're away from everything, all their friends that their bedroom, everything that's familiar, and so that social connection is really important. That's part of what we do in our Starlight Express rooms, which are in every Children's Hospital. They also are TV stations within those hospitals and broadcast to the bedside of the child. So if the child's too sick to come into the Starlight Express room, they can be part of that and have that social connection from their bedside. So quizzes, for example, are really important for us, and we run a quiz every day, and sick children have lost that ability to compete in so many ways and have fun and have that little banter that you have with people when you are competing. Yet a quiz brings that all together. And we often have, we always have prizes, but it means a child in their bed who can't physically come into another space with another child for issues in terms of their illness and and. Um and infections and cross infections, etc, they can still be involved, and they can win the quiz, and, you know, be on television and chat with the other kids. So those things are very important. And we also promote entertainment, because entertainment is a great way of of distracting children. And so we talk about what we do. We transform the healthcare experience. We provide social connection that's so missing, and moments of entertainment. And our program sometimes deliver all three, but they're created for one specific reason, and so we're all about having fun. And for me, when I see a child come into a Starlight Express room, especially a child who's recently been diagnosed, you can see they're often in a wheelchair. They're holding an IV drip. They have their head down, their shoulders down, they have the weight of the world on their shoulders. They're looking like no child should ever look and you see this child come into our space and start to lift because a Starline Express room is a haven away from the clinical nature of the ward. They start to lift. They see the space. They see the captain starlights, and for me to observe that same child, 510, 15 minutes later, roaring with laughter, completely forgetting where they are and why. That's the power of starlight, and that's what we do through all our programs every day. And that moment lifts that child and gives them, builds their resilience and gives them the ability to go back into that next round of treatment, surgery, etc. So it is in that moment, and it changes everything.   Michael Hingson ** 36:40 How does the starlight experience differ in America and our healthcare model here as opposed to in Australia? Do you have any idea?   Louise Baxter ** 36:52 Yeah, well, we have, we man all of the spaces in our hospitals. So the hospital, when a new hospital is being built, they they they allocate a section that is the Starlight Express room space. We then build the Starlight Express room, and these are quite large spaces, and then we man it with our own paid team members and volunteers that would never happen in your healthcare system, just with legal issues and liability, etc, you'd never see that happening in in America. So that's, I think, the key, the key difference from things that we do in Australia, we also are a wish granting organization, and we are the largest wish branding organization in Australia, and we have programs called we have a program called Live Wire, which supports young people, so teenagers and up to the age of 20, and that is in hospital. So we then don't have Captain starlights. We have live wire facilitators, and then we have live wire online. We also have a virtual Star LED Express room, which we created and trial during COVID. Because obviously everything around the world and definitely in Australia, was in lockdown, and our programs were an essential service in the children's hospital, but we were restricted, and so we'd been toying with the concept of a virtual Starlight Express room for a long time, and so we used COVID as that opportunity to trial that, and we trialed it. It was very successful, and we're now rolling planet Starlight into every hospital across Australia. All people need there is a QR code. And so we put up beautiful posters, which are also games that kids can play that has a QR code, and they can go directly to Planet starlight. And planet Starlight is set up has live shows of Captain starlights during the day, but also games kids can play directions, how to do art. So if a child's seriously ill, but at home or in another hospital, they can do all of this stuff. And it's it's not that you need a full tank kit. We do it and understanding that children will be able to work with what they have that's near to them. We even have things like I spy for an emergency room space so that kids can stay distracted, no matter what part of a hospital they're in. We also now support families who are in at home palliative care, because 70% of children in this country who are in palliative care are at home. That's not necessarily end of life palliative care, but palliative care can go on for a number of years, and those families are incredibly alone and isolated, and so our Starlight moments program delivers things to uplift that family and have them know that someone's thinking of them during this time. And. Again, it is those moments which really, truly matter.   Michael Hingson ** 40:05 So, um, how did what? What do you know about how it works here, or what actually happens in America? Do you have any real notion about that? I mean, I understand all the legalities and all that, but how does it differ what? What do they do here to be able to foster that same kind of climate. Yeah,   Louise Baxter ** 40:22 they're still about happiness matters, right? Which is fantastic, and they do that with, I'm trying to think of the name now Fun, fun boxes that they have delivered into hospitals with toys, etc, for kids. In some hospitals, they are able to do a refresh of a playroom to make it a starlight space. But it's then not like ours are manned every day with team members. They have little carts that help kids transport round the hospital. So yeah. So they have a whole range of things that they can do within the limitations of the different health system. It   Michael Hingson ** 41:06 must be a real challenge to keep up the spirits of all the people who work for starlight. How do you keep a positive work environment and keep everyone moving forward and hopefully reasonably happy in what they're doing, because they they have to see a lot of challenges. Obviously, yeah,   Louise Baxter ** 41:26 we we're authentic with our commitment to positive psychology. And so getting close to 15 years ago, we started working with a group here in Australia called the positivity Institute, and we started training all of our team members. So every team member who joined Starline is trained in the tools of positive psychology, because you're absolutely right. And I use the airplane analogy, you know, if the plane's going down, you're always told that you put your you have to put your oxygen mask on yourself, because if you don't put it on yourself, you're of no use to anyone else, and POS, psychs like that, you have to care for yourself. And self care is so important, because if you are not caring for yourself, and if you are not topping topping up your own cup, then you're of no use to support and coach and help other people, and so we have positive psychology is the one authentic thing that, just you know, moves right through our organization. It's at the heart of everything we do for the children and young people. And importantly, every question we ask ourselves about every business decision is, will this improve the way we support the seriously ill children and young people, yes or no, and then what we do is we carry that through, because for us to be able to provide the support we do, and you're absolutely right, working often in very challenging situations, we need to know how we can look After ourselves. So POS site flows through the whole organization, and we are an organization that is a great place to work in Australia, there's actually, you know, a survey that's done annually, and corporates and other organizations are ranked, and we're always in the top group of performers there. So it's, it's also very critical to maintain a high performing team, because we need to be sure of able to have our team bring their best self to Starlight every day. And that's what post psych does for us. How does   Michael Hingson ** 43:37 that work? What? What do you do? I mean, you, you obviously have people who go into situations and they get hit with so many sad sorts of things, but obviously you're able to bring them out of that. How do you do that? Well,   Louise Baxter ** 43:52 as I said, Everybody's trained up front and recognizes the tools or has the toolkit for prossite, but we don't just leave it there. So the people who are working in hospitals have daily debriefs. They have a support crew from an employee assistance organizations who work with them. That's the same person who works with those teams. So they then have weekly debriefs, monthly, quarterly. So we're onto it. It's, it's, it's a, May, it's a, it's a, it's very strategic in the way we support them, and it's very considered. And so that support is there for people on a daily basis. So   Michael Hingson ** 44:35 you, you, I'm just thinking of a question I'm going to ask, you're doing a lot with children and all that, which I think is really great. Is there any chance that this kind of approach could also work for older people, adults and so on?   Louise Baxter ** 44:57 Absolutely, and it. It would also work. I mean, we're working with seriously ill, right, and hospitalized children, but it would also work with group, other groups of vulnerable children. So, you know, happiness and positive psychology is something that works for everyone, quite frankly. And so one of the things that's a side benefit of starlight being in a hospital is it lifts the morale of the whole hospital team. So the hospital, the hospital team, is happier. Because if you think of working in a children's hospital, if Starlight was not there, it can be a pretty dour place, and the challenges are every day, but with starlight, they're lifting the spirits, having fun, being silly. It changes everything for the clinicians I know, I've been at the door of a lift, an elevator, as you would say, and and before the lift, the doors open. A doctor who's been waiting there, notices that two captains walk up to hop in the elevator and and the doctor will say, I'm taking the stairs. I never know what those guys make me do between floors, but laughing. So you know, our captain starlights are about that fun. And the thing about Captain Starlight is they come from Planet starlight. So there's a mythology around them, and they fly to planet earth every day in an invisible rocket ship that lands on the roof of the Children's Hospital. And the great thing about this is that the children are then in the gun seat in because they understand everything about Planet Earth, and the captains don't. So the planet the captains will do silly things like pick up a pen and use it like a telephone and go, Hello, you know. And the children will go, No, not that. So it's that merge of slapstick and kind of vaudeville and the child engaging with the child. But they will, can they? Our captain? Starlets will do that silliness with doctors and nurses too, which is also hilarious. And that's the comment from the captain from the doctor. So Right? It keeps the morale of the entire hospital, because, you know, it changes from having children who are crying and distressed and frightened to children who are roaring with laughter, um, despite the fact that they're seriously ill, that's great.   Michael Hingson ** 47:25 How can we bring that to adult patients?   Louise Baxter ** 47:29 Well, do you know what I've been working or I've been walking with our captain starlights as they've had to move through an adult part. You know, some of our hospitals are adults and children's and then the youth are on the other side. As we've walked through, an elderly person stopped and said, Hey, captain, could you sing me a song? And so they had their ukulele there, and they launched into, you are my son. I think he might have requested, You are my sunshine. And you can see immediately the change in the person. So it, it is something that definitely works, but at the moment, we don't have the funding to meet all of the need that we have for children and young people. So while it's, you know, potentially a great concept, it's, it's not something that we can move into in the the immediate future. Yeah,   Michael Hingson ** 48:24 and you can only do what you can do, but it would certainly, it would seem to me be exciting if people would bring more of those programs to adults too, because adults could could use it. And I'm sure you know that I'm not saying anything magical at all, but I would think there are ways to bring a lot of this to adults that would help lift their spirits. I know when my wife was in the hospital, it was very boring for her. Now she was in a wheelchair, so she was in a chair her whole life. So she had other challenges being in the hospital when she needed to use a restroom or have help with a bedpan, sometimes it took a while and so on. So just a lot of things that could have been better for her, that I think would have made her experience better. And I realized that she was probably, in a sense, a harder case than some, but still, it would just be so nice if we could do more to help all of the different kinds of patients in hospitals and make it a better experience for them.   Louise Baxter ** 49:23 Yeah, that's that's what we're doing about, about changing that healthcare experience,   Michael Hingson ** 49:29 yeah. What about the whole concept of diversity, equity and inclusion and so on? How do you deal with a diverse population? So for example, in all the things that you're talking about, what if you discover that one of the children that you're dealing with is blind in the hospital? How do you adapt so that they get as included as other people in the things that you're doing? Yep,   Louise Baxter ** 49:53 we have. All of our team are trained in dealing with. Children who are blind, who are deaf. We actually recently had training, and we had our captain starlights. They were all blindfolded, and they were going through sensory experiments to teach them how they can better use sound and other things to work with children. So So our team is trained across all of those different areas, because you're right every day, we do deal with children who are deaf, who are blind, who are in wheelchairs, who are non verbal, who are on the autism spectrum, but all of those things. So we have to have teams trained. Our team is trained to understand how they can deliver an exceptional experience to those children, as well as children who don't have those differences. So   Michael Hingson ** 50:56 clearly you have a we got to get it done. Got a really positive attitude to get things done. Where did you learn that attitude? Because that's a very positive thing that I think more companies and more people in general ought to learn. The whole concept of, we're going to get it done no matter what it you know, I don't want to say no matter what it takes, but we're going to get it done, and we're very positive about that. Yeah,   Louise Baxter ** 51:25 I'm not sure that I learned it, but I think that there are people in life who you see that way. I always, I always jokingly call it waiters with their heads up, because, you know, you see when you're in a restaurant often, there's those people who walk past your table and don't pick up the dirty plates, who aren't looking for things to do. And then there are those other ones who you can see are going from table to table, doing stuff everywhere. And I always say they're the people I want to employ, the waiters with their heads up. So I think it's an attitude you have in life. And you can either kind of say, well, that's a challenge, and that's difficult, but how can I get that done? Or you can say, well, that's difficult. I just won't do that anymore. And and, you know, we need people who want to get stuff done and who always have a pot and having a positive attitude just makes you feel so much better than dwelling in the negative. And you know, I hate people who are always who those negative Nellies or nets or whoever they are, and they bring you down. So positivity is something that I think helps all of us every day. And why wouldn't you choose to be positive? Yeah,   Michael Hingson ** 52:37 and it is a choice. And the reality is that no matter what goes on, I think we can choose to be positive. One of the things that I've been saying for many years, that I learned because of the World Trade Center, basically, is don't worry about what you can control. Focus on what you can let the rest take care of itself. We're so worried about every little old thing in the world that we don't tend to be positive about anything, and that doesn't help any of us. No,   Louise Baxter ** 53:07 I think that being positive is so incredibly important. It makes you feel better and happier, makes everybody around you feel better and happier. So why wouldn't you do it? And I actually use this at Starlight too, because sometimes team members like you reach a point in your in your work life, and I did. I left Starlight because I needed a new challenge, and Starlight didn't have that challenge for me. So why hang around and become that disgruntled person in the corner who's just trying to pull everybody else into their negative little corner and finds fault with everything the organization does. Why would you stay? You know, and if you leave in that instance, you go to somewhere where you can contribute, and you feel great. You're doing a great job. The organization gets someone into your role who really wants to be there, and all that negativity stops. So in positive psychology, the end game is flourishing. And so I jokingly say at my team all the time, if you don't want to be here anymore, if you're not feeling challenged, please go flourish somewhere else. Don't stay here and become that negative person who tries to bring everyone into their negative corner. It's just not good for you or anybody else. So, yeah. So, so the Go flourish somewhere else is a bit of a joke that people say they're going to have printed on my coffee mug at some stage.   Michael Hingson ** 54:30 Well, you went away, but you also came back. That's   Louise Baxter ** 54:34 right, that's right. And so I went away because I needed a new challenge at that stage. And that challenge, potentially, was the CEO role that it wasn't available then. So I went and I did something else that I loved. And then, you know, the board came back to me some time later and said, Would you come back as CEO now? And I said, Yes. So there you go. And then I'd had a different experience, which actually helped. Me to be a better CEO. So as you say, if you're always moving forward, if you don't get hung up about things, and if you choose positivity, that really can set you up for a much better life. What   Michael Hingson ** 55:13 are some of the challenges that Starlight is facing in Australia today?   Louise Baxter ** 55:19 I think that for us it's a nice challenge, because as clinicians recognize the power of positive psychology and the power of the mind in improving health outcomes, they're very creative, and they're coming up with more and more ideas as to how star lack could be used, but we can only deliver if we increase our funding. And obviously, I think globally, communities are under pressure financially, and so those things kind of don't work together. And that's that's a challenge for us. I think we live in a world of increasing complexity and compliance and and we need to within that, ensure we meet the requirements and the criteria, but we do it in the simplest possible way, because simplicity is better for your mental health. It's more effective and efficient. And so sometimes within the the complexity of compliance, people are on making things even more bureaucratic than they need to. So really keeping things simple, I think, is is important against the backdrop of what's happening. And the exciting thing is we work in the sector of health care. And health care is always changing, always improving and and that's a great thing to be part of. What   Michael Hingson ** 56:48 do you think are well, what would you tell somebody from, let's say, one of your former jobs in marketing and so on, what kind of advice would you give them based on what you now know as being the CEO of starlight, for, my gosh, what? For 15 years, 14 almost? Well, 15 years, yes, almost 16 years. Yeah,   Louise Baxter ** 57:10 I think that. I think people have to be true to themselves. You know, you have to be authentic. Choose positivity is something that I would always give advice around, because, as you said, it is a choice, and I fail to understand why everyone, anyone would choose the negative, yeah, side of that equation and really focus on getting stuff done. So never sit back and be lazy. Always be working to be that, that person who thinks about themselves others and cares and gets it done,   Michael Hingson ** 57:55 yeah, we we spend way too much time, because I think we're taught so much to be negative when we don't get taught nearly as much about being as positive as we can be. I know that my parents were always encouraging to me and my brother. I'm not sure my brother always got it quite as much as I did in terms of understanding it, but we were, we were taught that positivity was a choice. We were taught that being innovative and moving forward was a choice. And we also were encouraged to make that the choice that we made too, which is part of the issue, yeah,   Louise Baxter ** 58:37 excellent. And the other thing is, I would say, Do not be a perfectionist. I'm an anti perfectionist. Yeah, I agree. It gets you nowhere. Doesn't exist. And you know, especially in this day, where we can move, and we're very agile, kind of, I say 70% out, because if you say 70% and out, it means people will probably go to 80 or 90% but those people who, if anyone in a in an interview, proudly tells me they're perfectionist, they're gone because all they do is drive themselves and everyone around them crazy. So I don't want to have them in the organization. It   Michael Hingson ** 59:17 seems to me that the thing to say is that I will always do the best that I can do, and I will always give at least 100%   Louise Baxter ** 59:25 Absolutely.   Michael Hingson ** 59:28 Yeah, perfection is something I don't think most of us understand anyway, but if we give it our best, probably we'll achieve perfection, in a sense,   Louise Baxter ** 59:37 yeah, and get it done and get it out, get it happening, right? Because the thing is, if it's not, if it's, you know, if it's not, if it's not perfect, you get it out and you get to use it, and you learn so much more. So you got actually a better shot at getting it towards it. You can tweak it after,   Michael Hingson ** 59:55 yeah, well, well, market, well. And what you do. Do is you do the best that you can do, but you're if you're wise and good leaders. Know this. You also work with a team, and sometimes somebody else on the team can take the lead and enhance what you're doing, which is always a good thing.   Louise Baxter ** 1:00:15 Absolutely, you've got to have way smarter people all around you? Yeah,   Michael Hingson ** 1:00:22 I don't think there's anything wrong with having smarter people around you. Your your smarts is in bringing the team together.   Louise Baxter ** 1:00:29 Yes, that's right. So   Michael Hingson ** 1:00:33 what can you think other regions and countries learn from the challenges that you're facing?   Louise Baxter ** 1:00:40 I think we have, I think the world is so consistent in this day and age more than it's kind of ever been. You know, when you travel, you know, you seek out those places where we're different. Of course, we're different, but there's a lot more that's the same in this day and age than there ever has been and, and, you know, in some instances, I think that's quite sad, yeah, but there's much more consistency. So I think that there's, and there's always something that we can learn from each other, always. And that's what I look for. I'm excited by up learning things and you know, and and something that doesn't go according to plan is fabulous, because you learn so much more from that than something that just smoothly goes along and does everything you thought it would do.   Michael Hingson ** 1:01:35 Nothing wrong with learning from things that don't go well. I don't like the term failure and even mistakes, I'm not a great fan of but I think that what happens is that things don't always go as we plan. And the real question is, what do we learn from it? Absolutely which is, which is so cool? Well, Louise, this has been absolutely fun to be able to spend all this time with you. Now it's 10 in the morning where you are, so we should let you go do other things and get something done today. But I want to thank you for being here, and I want to thank all of you who are listening for being a part of our podcast today. I'd love to hear your thoughts about what Louise had to say, and I hope that you will communicate with her. And that's a good point. Louise, how can people reach out to you if they'd like to talk with you and maybe learn more from you, and what you have to say, I'm   Louise Baxter ** 1:02:27 on LinkedIn. So if, if those listening are on LinkedIn, you can find me. Louise Baxter, Starlight, Children's Foundation, Australia and or you can go to starlight.org.au, we if you're looking for us, our website, and you'll find me through that as well. Cool.   Michael Hingson ** 1:02:47 Well, I hope people will reach out. And if you'd like to reach out to me, and I hope you will, you may email me at Michael, H, I m, I C, H, A, E, L, H, I at accessibe, A, C, C, E, S, S, I, B, e.com, and you can also, of course, go to our podcast page, w, w, w, dot Michael hingson.com/podcast, and Michael hingson is spelled M, I, C, H, A, E, L, H, I N, G, s, o, n.com/podcast, you can listen to all of our podcasts there. You can reach out to me. There lots of things you can do on the web. It's an amazing thing to be able to do things on the web. I also would really appreciate it if when you are thinking about us, if you'll give us a five star rating wherever you're listening to us or watching us, we really appreciate your ratings and your comments. So please do that. If you know of anyone who you think might be a good guest, and Louise, you as well. If you can think of anybody else who we ought to have on unstoppable mindset, would definitely appreciate you introducing us. We're always looking to have more people to come on and tell their stories and talk about what they do. That's the best way to learn, is learning by listening to other people and them telling their stories. So hopefully you'll all do that and again, Louise, I want to thank you for being here.

Anne Ganguzza (00:05.233) Hey everyone, welcome to the VO Boss podcast. I'm your host, Anne Ganguzza, and today I am so excited to be with very special guest, Luanne Regis. Luanne is a veteran voiceover agent and talent agency executive with over 30 years of experience. Her career spans everything voiceover, all voiceover, including... heading up scale departments at two LA boutique agencies, running the celebrity division at a top bi-coastal theatrical and commercial agency, as well as launching her own Chicago voiceover department in 2007. After a year at Sound and Fury Casting, she now owns and operates her own talent representation agency, Regal V.O. Luanne, thank you so much for joining me today. Luanne Regis (00:57.621) and thank you for having me, Anne. Anne Ganguzza (00:59.929) I love this. So I had such a wonderful time meeting you like fleetingly at MAVO and was so excited to get the chance to talk to you and work with you as well. You're gonna be coming up soon as a guest director for me on my VO Peeps group. So I'm very excited about that. And so for bosses that don't know who you are, give us a brief, kind of a brief. Luanne Regis (01:06.115) Yes. Luanne Regis (01:16.777) I can't wait. Anne Ganguzza (01:26.981) bio of you more than what I've given in regards to your evolution through the years as a talent agent and representative. Luanne Regis (01:37.067) Sure, of course. So I'll try to be brief because it is quite a long speech. And you know, voiceover, just, people ask you, how do you get into voiceover? And I'm like, I sort of really just fell into it, which I did. You know, back in the mid nineties, I answered an ad, they were looking for a voiceover assistant, an agent, and one of the partners at a boutique agency was looking for an assistant. And I thought, this is great. Let me just try this. And I quickly liked it. I liked the fact that Anne Ganguzza (01:41.124) Ha ha ha ha! Luanne Regis (02:04.703) The voice can really be anything. It has nothing to do with your aesthetic, what you look like, how tall you are, what color your hair is. I loved that. That to me was a very creative aspect for VoiceOver. And I started there and quickly became an agent, a scale agent, and was there for about five years. I have seen the business really, really grow and change to... And right around the early 2001s when all of the theatrical agencies were getting into voiceover because they poo-pooed and they snubbed their noses at voiceover for so very long, a major theatrical agency wanted to have a voiceover department. And so they plucked our entire department from the boutique agency, which was Special Artists, which is where I worked since the mid-90s. And we took our entire business, SpongeBob and all, and set up shop at Innovative Artists, which was the Anne Ganguzza (02:56.229) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (02:58.751) Bicoastal theatrical agency that I was at for 16 years, including what you mentioned in my bio, starting a Chicago voiceover department for them in 2007, just after the birth of my daughter. So I was there for 16 years and you wake up one day and you have 800 clients because you represent not only, we came with not only our voiceover department intact with all of our amazing clients, but we also were there to represent. Anne Ganguzza (03:00.314) Yes. Luanne Regis (03:26.591) their clients and they have a really healthy roster, a very well known TV and film actors. And that's where I began doing celebrity and overscale voiceover and really enjoyed it. But you know, like I said, you wake up one day and you have 800 clients and that's a lot to manage, especially in the way in which I agent. I was taught voiceover agenting by one of the best, she's a mentor, Marsha Hurwitz. you know, it's... Anne Ganguzza (03:29.735) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (03:43.441) Yeah. Luanne Regis (03:52.321) All hands on, it's more like a manager. It's not just submit an audition and whatever happens happens. It's you pitch, you sell, you call producers. We don't do that anymore because the business has changed. But you're on the phone, you're calling producers, you're selling people, you're saying, I think you should really listen to Nancy Smith. She's really good on this read. That's the way I voice over agent and it's really impossible to do that with 800 people. Anne Ganguzza (03:55.589) Yeah. Luanne Regis (04:20.641) 800 clients on your roster. So I went back to my small boutique agency, Roots TGMD Talent, which is formerly Tishman Agency. the owner, Kevin Motley, who's a dear friend of mine, had recently sort of reshaped his agency, gutted all of the promo and trailer announcer type guys, which was an avenue in which advertisers weren't going down anymore. And we built a really great roster of actors, well-known actors. Anne Ganguzza (04:28.993) Yep. Luanne Regis (04:50.761) working actors, which is all I know. I know about actors in voiceover as opposed to voice actors. And was there for four years doing that until the pandemic. And then after the pandemic, I thought, you know what, I want to try my hand on the buyer's side. I always wanted to try my hand at being on the other side of the business, not just rapping. And so I worked at Sound and Fury, which is one of the, if not the top voice casting companies in the entire country, if not the world. Anne Ganguzza (05:14.928) Mm. Luanne Regis (05:18.941) And you know, really enjoyed my time with that team. They're like a family to me. And I missed representing talent and agenting. And so after a year, I decided to go back to it, but do it on my own. And believe it or not, I kept a lot of clients with me even as I left the agenting side and went over to the casting side because I have a a really lovely roster of very loyal talent. Some of them I've had since I started in the mid 90s and you know they were very sad to see me leave the agenting side. So they sort of held on to me even while I was on the casting side and once I decided to jump back they were like well we're still here for the ride let's go and that's how I sort of built my roster, my independent roster I should say and again it just they just come at me. I have agents and managers and Anne Ganguzza (05:56.687) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (06:13.909) theatrical agents and commercial agents just wanting to work with me and they throw all their clients my way and I don't refuse them because I love to Anne Ganguzza (06:21.827) love that, I love that. You know, it's interesting because, you know, as we're talking, you're kind of going back and forth between casting and agent and manager. And, you know, for the benefit of our boss listeners, what is your definition of the difference between the responsibilities of each? Because I think it's important for us as voice actors to know when we're trying to develop relationships, you know, to understand. what is encompassed in your job because that makes us able to communicate with you easier and help you, because I really believe it's a partnership no matter what you're really looking for. And so I think it will help us as voice actors to work with agents or casting directors better. Luanne Regis (06:57.664) It is. Luanne Regis (07:06.443) Well, the reason why, and that's a great question, and the reason why the transition from agent to casting director back to agent was such a seamless one is because a lot of what my job entails as a voiceover agent is casting. We work with casting directors, but agents also work directly with buyers and producers, and they come to us looking for talent. And we sit there and cast. Anne Ganguzza (07:22.287) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (07:28.657) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (07:33.555) in pretty much the same way a casting director who gets paid to do it does it. I sit there, I go through my roster, who's right for this? And I do essentially do a casting. And so a lot of my agenting is casting, but that's just sort of like the day-to-day job of a voiceover agent. Again, back in the day when we had booths and actors would come into our lobby and read and have, you'd be distributing copy, you know, back in the day, pre-pandemic and all that. Anne Ganguzza (07:41.307) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (07:48.07) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (07:58.631) Look at Luanne Regis (08:03.611) A big part of my job also was directing talent, not just sitting at a desk and agenting. I would go into the booth. I need to know what my talent does. I need to be able to sell that person. So in order to do that, I'm in the booth, I'm directing, and I really, really love that directing process because it's, again, it hinges on such creativity. It's so creative. They get to play around. I get also to play around with them in terms of what they can do, what their range is. Anne Ganguzza (08:07.974) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (08:15.109) Right. Anne Ganguzza (08:21.264) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (08:32.991) And that's how I know what my clients can bring to the table so I can effectively sell them. So it's casting, it's directing, it's obviously selling. It's very managerial as well because I'm, like I said, very, very hands on. you know, like for instance, many times I go into the booth with a client and we'd spend an hour in there if we have the time. And the last five minutes of that hour really is recording the copy and auditioning. Anne Ganguzza (08:46.767) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (09:02.342) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (09:02.561) but the previous, how many ever minutes, spent catching up. How's your wife? How are the kids? How is life? How's your mom doing? Stuff like that. That's how you get to really know clients because what they share with you in the booth, you bring that to you as you're casting. You bring that to you as you're selling them. You have to really know them inside out. That's more of a very managerial, I think, position as an agent. Anne Ganguzza (09:08.646) Right. Anne Ganguzza (09:16.238) Right. Luanne Regis (09:30.641) not all agents agent that way. I just learned to do it that way. So it's manage it's managing talent. It's selling talent, agenting obviously, but it's also casting and directing talent in the booth. And then of course your negotiations skills come into play. Your knowledge of contracts, your knowledge of legal, legal procedures, as far as contracts go. That's all encompassing as a voiceover agent. Anne Ganguzza (09:33.484) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (09:48.355) Sure. Anne Ganguzza (09:54.34) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (09:58.767) It's such a broad base of that you need to have. And you said something before that I thought was so interesting. You said you had been working with, and it really, I think it goes to show the evolution of the business. You talked about actors who did voice acting rather than voice actors. And so I caught that little tiny nuance right there, which really speaks to your amount of time and experience in the industry. Luanne Regis (10:00.82) It is. Luanne Regis (10:16.416) Yes. Yes. Luanne Regis (10:23.829) Yes, yes. Anne Ganguzza (10:25.509) Because how often, like what would you say, I guess now in your, because you've been in business for so long, you must still, I suspect, deal with actors who do voice acting, as well as voice actors. And what are your thoughts on how you work with, let's say, actors now who do voice acting, or voice actors differently? Do you spend as much time, or how does that work today? Luanne Regis (10:33.877) We will. Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (10:53.737) The reason why for me, it's actors in voiceover, not only was I brought up in the business knowing that, because when I started at Special Artists, they were mainly a commercial, on-camera commercial agency, and this predated me, obviously, but when they started their voiceover department, they used their on-camera actors as the basis for their voiceover department. Anne Ganguzza (10:56.25) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (11:10.118) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (11:21.253) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (11:21.853) I come from a track record where the agents who taught me used actors and put them in voiceover and made them successful. The voice of SpongeBob, Tom Kenny, was a comedian, an actor. We put him, he made that transition because of how talented he is. So I do feel voiceover is not just a voice, you're acting. Anne Ganguzza (11:29.339) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (11:35.44) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (11:49.35) Sure. Yeah. Luanne Regis (11:50.529) You're bringing copy to life. You're selling copy, but you have to bring it to life. You have to connect with the product. You have to connect with what the words are saying. So at the end of the day, it really is about acting, which is why I favor having someone who has an acting resume, someone who's done work, because they have a certain measure of experience that they can bring to the voiceover table. Anne Ganguzza (11:59.761) Sure. Anne Ganguzza (12:08.358) Sure. Anne Ganguzza (12:15.463) Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And I love the emphasis on acting because even for something like I specialize in a lot of the corporate e-learning, the non-broadcast style stuff, but in order to really bring that material to life, and sometimes it needs a lot of help, just saying, because it can be a little bit dry and boring, you have to, I mean, every company, and I think whether you're dealing with commercial, Luanne Regis (12:27.894) Yes. Anne Ganguzza (12:41.959) Right? Any type of copy. mean, if you're dealing with a company or a client, they're ultimately, I mean, unless you're doing entertainment, right? Ultimately, they're trying to sell something. And so there's always a story. I good companies, I would say that, you know, it's marketing 101 that, you know, stories really sell better than, you know, Luanne Regis (12:49.375) Right. Absolutely. Anne Ganguzza (13:03.322) cold heart announcing facts sort of thing. And so if you can be the actor that can tell the story or understand the story that the company wants to sell or tell, that's gonna help them to sell. So I love the emphasis on acting. Luanne Regis (13:04.437) Yeah, yeah. Luanne Regis (13:14.749) Absolutely, and it really, you're absolutely right. When you say, a story, that is really what it is. I was telling actors yesterday, you have to, when you get a script, you create a narrative behind that script that those lines will support. Whether it's right or wrong, it's truthful and it's authentic. But you do have to connect with the product. You do have to connect with the lines. You do have to connect with the script. And the only way you do that is if you make it part of a story that you're telling. Anne Ganguzza (13:36.142) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (13:45.703) Yes, absolutely. And I think that's what so, at least with students when I'm working with them in the corporate narration or the e-lin, like what story? I'm delivering information. I'm like, but there is a story and you have to keep the listener's attention for longer than 30 or 60 seconds. This is not a 60 second commercial. And so even if I... Luanne Regis (13:58.849) We resist. Luanne Regis (14:04.372) You too. That's right. Anne Ganguzza (14:08.642) I think if the story doesn't make sense, right, if they're reading the words and they're like, well, I would never really say that, or you know, you have to create the scene in which those words make sense. And I guess my question to you is, what would you say is the main difference between on-camera acting and voice acting? Luanne Regis (14:17.173) That's right. Yes. Luanne Regis (14:26.939) on camera acting, you have so much more at your disposal. You have what you look like, you have the physicality of being on camera. And this is why I love voiceover, because with voiceover acting, you have to basically emit all of that just vocally. Whether you're in the booth and you're, you where you see the animation characters, they're in the booth and they're using their hands and all that, that's all well and fine, but that does not translate on camera in the way it Anne Ganguzza (14:31.59) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (14:44.708) Yeah, yeah, through your voice. Luanne Regis (14:56.417) would if you were an on-camera actor. really does have, so again, we go back to is telling that story. If you have a story to tell, it's gonna come out in the words, it's gonna come out in the smile, it's going to come out in the warmth that you bring out, or not the warmth, or the cold, or whatever it is, the stories that you're telling. But it all comes from the heart, it all comes from here. Anne Ganguzza (14:57.062) Right. Luanne Regis (15:22.313) as opposed to you being able to use your hands to gesture in a way that conveys whatever you're trying to convey in an acting, you know, when you're acting. Anne Ganguzza (15:26.49) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (15:32.231) So what would you say when you're working with talent? time is precious these days, so I imagine that you probably don't have as much time to work with talent, let's say on a job or an audition, as you would. What are the types of things that you find you're telling your talent to do most in terms of, know, either following direction better or their performance-wise? What are the kind of tips or tricks that you're speaking to most? Luanne Regis (15:40.437) Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Luanne Regis (15:59.487) Yeah. Well, it does vary from project and script to script, obviously, but a lot of it is what I just said, you know, creating that story, creating that narrative. A lot of times, and this specifically relates to commercial copy, a lot of times you get a script and you have no idea what the storyboards are. You have no idea what the visuals are. You just have maybe two or three lines and you sort of have to put it together. At that point, you have to make a very specific creative choice. This is the story I'm going to tell. Anne Ganguzza (16:02.171) these days. Mm. Anne Ganguzza (16:18.566) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (16:25.562) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (16:27.957) So that's one tip and we just spoke about that. There's a lot of non-announcery, non-polish, non-slick directives nowadays and I always have to tell my clients, so here's what I want you to do. I don't want you to think about yourself on mic. I don't want you to think about yourself up there as a speaker or as an announcer saying something. I want you to sit and talk to a friend at a bar and you say what you need to say and you come from that place. so that we can get you conversational, we can get you casual, and we don't have you coming out of the box like you're making a grand announcement. A tip, a trick I use sometimes is I will have them slate their name after they've done their session, after they've done their audition, because once you slate your name, Luanne Regis, you sort of go into this, okay, I'm here, I'm announcing mode, I just want you to tell me what you have to say on your copy, you can save the slate for later. So that's just one of the tips that I use. Anne Ganguzza (17:05.296) Sure, sure. Anne Ganguzza (17:17.808) Right. Anne Ganguzza (17:25.06) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (17:25.375) you know, the conversational thing, just sort of like bring it back home. If it's something that I feel they need to be a little bit more intimate with, I give them situations like, I want you to read this bedtime story to your six year old, or I want you to sit with your child and have a one-on-one conversation with him or her. you know, I just give them a place from which to emote so that we can bring that emotion into the copy. Anne Ganguzza (17:48.752) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (17:52.803) Speaking of emotion, find, for me, just on longer copy, because if you have a particular energy or emotion and you continue for over a minute or two or three, with that same energy, it doesn't necessarily allow the story to flow. And I feel that people might get into the rhythm of this particular emotion or this particular... Luanne Regis (18:03.958) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (18:14.887) Energy and I feel with with any good story right energy in your story changes and evolves and it can evolve throughout like the course of one sentence even and the energy you start with in the beginning or the story that you tell in the beginning isn't necessarily the same story that's happening or evolving when you're halfway through or three-quarters of the way through and for a lot of for a lot of my students I find that you know if they're if they forget Luanne Regis (18:25.502) Absolutely. Luanne Regis (18:37.152) Right. Anne Ganguzza (18:44.119) about the story halfway through, then it starts to turn into this kind of just into this, let's news, news broadcast read or, you know, something like that. And so in the middle of the script, do you ever have to kind of redirect or give another scene to help this through? Or are you finding that for the most part, you're working with with top caliber actors that already are doing that or have done that? Luanne Regis (18:51.041) Yeah. Luanne Regis (19:09.279) Yeah, know what, an actor is gonna find his or her way, again, depending on the story that they want to tell. The seasoned actors, the really good actors understand how to flow in and out, how to make a change, or how to sort of navigate around certain things. And I'm glad you asked that question, because one point I really wanna bring to mind is sometimes when you're directing talent, I can't tell you. Anne Ganguzza (19:13.723) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (19:18.042) Yeah. Luanne Regis (19:37.663) Yes, I can give you a line reading. Yes, I can tell you how to do it. But I want you to color it the way you would color it because that brings a certain uniqueness that no one else will do. You might put a pause in the middle of the copy for effect, or you could take a beat, or you could do a slight, And someone else will not necessarily do that. that... Anne Ganguzza (19:39.748) Yeah. Anne Ganguzza (19:44.613) Right. Anne Ganguzza (19:50.395) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (20:02.822) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (20:02.827) Completely changes the way that copy gets conveyed to to the audience. So a lot of times it's it's what you do specifically and not me directing you into that read because I want it I sort of wanted to come from you I want you to bring that that authenticity to it because at the end of the day authenticity is what will May not book you the job, but it will have the producer go. Wait a second. What can we hear what? And that's what you want to do Anne Ganguzza (20:27.787) Mm, it might get you on the short list. Luanne Regis (20:31.357) Exactly. That's what I'm glad you said that I was seeing this exact same thing yesterday. It's like, yes, you want to book the job, but don't focus on booking the job. Focus on wowing whoever's listening, focus on making an impact. So maybe you weren't right for that job, but perhaps you bring you back in for something else. Anne Ganguzza (20:42.17) Yeah. Anne Ganguzza (20:48.133) Yeah, yeah. And also I think then you're really, especially if it's an audition that you're submitting to your agent or casting director that is very familiar with working with actors in regards to, well, okay, it can showcase right away that you're an actor. And if you're an actor, you'll be able to follow direction no matter what the direction ends up being. Cause I have a lot of times people will say to me, but that's not what I hear in the actual commercial. Luanne Regis (21:00.321) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (21:06.037) Yes. Anne Ganguzza (21:16.229) you know, it sounds completely different. And, you know, I'm always like, well, you know, it really depends on who's directing you at the time and what the client is listening to and what they hear in their head as being the way they want the copyright. So you have to be versatile enough to be able to take any direction. I've turned in for me as a coach, I've turned to almost saying, well, here, I'm coaching you on how to get the gig, not necessarily on the final product, because Luanne Regis (21:17.878) Thanks Luanne Regis (21:22.251) That's right. Luanne Regis (21:28.415) Yes, yes. Luanne Regis (21:45.429) Right. Anne Ganguzza (21:46.129) Coaching you to get the gig is gonna make you the most authentic actor that you can showcase in the first or second sentence. So for me, Luanne, coming in in the first or second sentence is so important with a connection to the copy. Talk to the importance of maybe that, the first few words that come out of the actor's mouth or in the copy, how important is that? Luanne Regis (21:50.145) That's right. Luanne Regis (21:58.719) Yes. Yes. Luanne Regis (22:10.145) very, very important because again, when I worked at Sound and Fury and we got 800 casting, 800 auditions from one casting, they're listening and they know right away if this person's gonna nail it or not. So you wanna come in just hitting the mark immediately. even, obviously I don't have 800 clients, but you see that process with a casting director. They don't have the time to listen to the entire script if they feel you didn't hit it within the first. Anne Ganguzza (22:24.079) Mm. Anne Ganguzza (22:28.027) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (22:39.929) Or maybe not even hit it if you didn't do something in the beginning that made them go. let me keep listening because time is money and they do have to get through all of these these auditions and the same to a certain extent with me I mean I listen to every single audition all the way through but I know by the second or third line if someone has nailed that piece of copy or not just because obviously I have the the experience in the years of the instinct but again, it's that You can't put your finger on it. It's that je ne sais quoi. It's like, yeah, let me keep this. wow, she did that? Okay. It really is important to nail whatever you want to nail at the beginning of the copy as opposed to saving your best for last. Anne Ganguzza (23:24.047) Yeah. Now, I love that you said you listen to the auditions all the way through. Now, why? Why do you do that? Luanne Regis (23:32.085) For several reasons. One, and you said something that I wanted to sort of bring back to the forefront, so I'm glad you asked that question. A lot of times, again, I'm a casting, I'm sort of a casting director when I age, because I'm putting people on stuff and I'm wondering, is she right for it, is he right for it? I have to listen throughout the whole thing. One, because it's my client and they've done the audition and I need to hear what they did, they may not be right for it. Anne Ganguzza (23:33.732) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (23:48.848) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (23:54.715) Mm. Luanne Regis (23:58.805) That way I know, you know what, I'm not gonna put him or her on this anymore because I don't think they're right for it. Or I hear something that they do and I think, you know what, I've got something else that, I've got a different role that I think she's right for. I don't think I put her on the right role. I think I need to get her on this other one. So it gives me a clue. It clues me into what my clients can do, what they can't do, even as well as I know them, even as much as I know their range. Anne Ganguzza (24:04.314) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (24:23.494) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (24:25.481) I still am learning a lot about them as we go along. So it behooves me to listen to everything that they do. Anne Ganguzza (24:33.53) so interesting. I love that you listen all the way through because it shows that you really care and that you really care about your clients and you care about making the best fit and really choosing the best person for the job. That just requires a lot of, think, integrity and I love that. I think that's amazing. Plus, I think it's so interesting because maybe even... Luanne Regis (24:36.417) Mm-hmm. It does, yeah. Yeah. Luanne Regis (24:47.359) Yeah. Luanne Regis (24:52.883) Yeah. Anne Ganguzza (24:57.946) You know, people that you've known for a long time, I mean, we continue to grow and evolve and learn and discover. I find with myself, like, I discover new things about myself and it impacts, right, my acting in the booth. And, you know, in lots of different ways where all of a sudden I'll be like, well, gosh, I've been doing it like this for years and goodness, I should have maybe thought this way. And it just will bring something different out in me, which is kind of cool. And so that's just kind of being the lifelong learner sort of. Luanne Regis (25:02.678) Yes. Luanne Regis (25:12.607) Yes. Luanne Regis (25:27.05) Yeah! Anne Ganguzza (25:27.483) you know, always trying to grow my skills and craft. And you think like, well, have I reached this point? Well, now I've done it and I'm an actor. But I feel like you never quite reach the point where you're never not learning. Luanne Regis (25:31.583) All right. Luanne Regis (25:42.129) No, you always are learning and you're always trying new things and I'm always learning things about clients. I'm like, I didn't know you did that. That's good for me. I can sell you in a different way now. it's a learning process on both ends. Anne Ganguzza (25:49.508) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (25:53.05) Yeah. Yeah. Anne Ganguzza (25:59.142) So the sell, okay? I wanna talk a little bit about the sell. When you're trying to sell a talent, what is it when you're communicating with a client for a particular spot? So what's involved in the sell of it on your end? I'm just curious because I've never, I mean, I've cast people, but I've never really been had to like, hear my choices and then the client will ultimately make the... the end result, but when you're really trying to sell a talent, like what goes, what sort of qualities are you selling in the talent? Luanne Regis (26:36.605) So you're talking about me selling to a buyer a casting director or okay? So then it would it depends on if it's the buyer's a casting director or if the buyer is the actual buyer the producer the the ad agency or something You know if it's a casting director. It's because I want that person to understand He can do this what you're asking what you're asking for me to cast for you This guy can do this so I need you to Anne Ganguzza (26:39.876) Yeah, to a buyer, yes, yeah. Anne Ganguzza (26:45.766) Mm-hmm. buyer, right, Yeah. Luanne Regis (27:05.161) I send links, send if it's stand-up comedians they're looking for, I send a link to their stand-up. One of many different ways I keep all of my auditions, so I will curate a specific sample of voices so that they can hear. For instance, if they're looking for something specific, I go back and I pull auditions that they've done for that specific character and I said, listen, here's what he's done for me in the past. That's one tool I use to sell. Anne Ganguzza (27:20.75) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (27:32.622) Mm. Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (27:32.833) And that's to a cast director if I want to convince her that this client can audition for her on a project if it's a buyer the actual buyer the producer the ad agency or Yeah, well, it would be the producer of an ad agency because if it's animation is it's casting directors You know again, it's showcasing what they've done before showcasing the stuff that they've done showing them listen to this Anne Ganguzza (27:40.218) Got it, got it. Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (27:48.357) Yeah, yeah, yeah. Anne Ganguzza (27:55.206) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (27:59.647) I know you're looking for a guy that can do this. Listen to him right here. He's done this before. He's auditioned for this before. He's actually booked this before. Here's a spot that he's done. And you might want to listen to this. So that is, that's what I'm pushing when I'm speaking to producers. Sadly, don't get, don't have, agents don't have that direct link to producers anymore. It's really become so remote now and remote, in the sense of remote recording, but. Anne Ganguzza (28:12.003) Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (28:16.624) Got it. Luanne Regis (28:27.433) remote in the sense of we're far removed from these producers. I used to be able to pick up the phone and call a producer at Leo Burnett and say, listen to Nancy, she's really great for this. You want to hire her. And they would hire her. But they themselves, the producers, they're removed as well from their clients. Now it's the client, Walmart, that has to make the decision. The producer used to be able to make the decision before. Anne Ganguzza (28:30.181) Yeah. Anne Ganguzza (28:47.59) Sure. that's a, I'm so glad you made that distinction because I think for a lot of voice actors, they don't really know what happens once they submit that audition. then what is, like what's, how does my audition traverse, you know, to either get to the ears of the person who's hiring and who is the person that's hiring, right? You know, because I think if you're my talent agent, right, and I'm auditioning for you. Luanne Regis (29:03.478) Yes. That's right. Luanne Regis (29:11.638) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (29:17.219) What I love and what I've heard from you is that you must have a little file of me where you're keeping all my good auditions and you're keeping all the spots that I've done and I like that, right? You didn't just trash my audition if I didn't work for that particular spot, but you're like, okay, so you've got like bits and pieces of me there. And then, so if you're working with another, let's say, casting director, right? You can then send those files and sell me in that way. But then if you're actually talking to the client directly, Luanne Regis (29:22.527) Yes. Yes. Luanne Regis (29:28.619) Nope, keep everything. Luanne Regis (29:43.236) Right. Anne Ganguzza (29:47.342) Which is something I'm like, well, I've not been in this process. I speak with my clients directly, but probably not on the scale that you do because you're working on a broadcast scale. So I have a client that I've worked with for years and they'll ask me, who do you think would be good to do this for me? And I can refer, which is. Luanne Regis (29:55.937) you Luanne Regis (30:00.394) Right. Luanne Regis (30:05.569) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (30:09.817) on a small scale compared to what you do. Because you're talking to big time producers and agencies that have multiple projects going on. And so for me as an actor, I never quite know what happens once I submit that audition. So it's really nice that you just kind of explain that process. And the fact that you said you don't always get to talk to the producer like you used to be able to, which is what I sometimes I assume and I don't really know. Luanne Regis (30:11.457) Yes. Anne Ganguzza (30:36.548) you know, depending on the agency, depending on who it is and what your relationships are, which I think it comes all down to relationships. But you're right, now even the producer is removed because it really comes down to like, let's say the client Walmart or whoever that might be. So that's a very good thing to know from my perspective. Luanne Regis (30:42.518) Yes. Luanne Regis (30:53.621) And I'll tell you the reason, I'll tell you the reason for that, Anne, and I want to make sure people understand this because it was a very drastic change. think the reason that I was able to, first of all, be able to pick up the phone and call a producer and they would actually book, or the producer would call me and say, who do you have for this? We need to cast this job right away. Who do you have? book David Pasquese. He'd be great. And they would hire him. So how many ever years, 10, 15 years ago when, you know, the big Anne Ganguzza (31:09.666) Mm. Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (31:15.611) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (31:23.113) ad agencies, the DDB Needhams, the Chiat Days, you the big ad agencies, they had the bulk of the work, they had the majority of the work. And as time went by, these smaller agencies started picking up work. So the ad agency now sort of lost the power to be able to make that decision because they themselves are trying to hold on to their accounts. So they no longer can say, I can hire you for this Walmart voiceover. Anne Ganguzza (31:25.37) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (31:29.821) mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (31:41.527) Mm-hmm. Yes, yes, yes. Makes sense. Luanne Regis (31:49.953) they now have to check with the head of marketing or whomever at Walmart. That never used to be the case. They used to be able to pull that trigger and go, great, let's hire him. That's no longer the case. And I do firmly believe it's because of that change over in, in work, a lot of ad agencies lost clients, a lot of ad agencies are afraid of losing their clients. So they're really at the disposal at the mercy of their clients to make every single decision. Anne Ganguzza (31:52.944) Sure. Anne Ganguzza (32:20.359) That's very interesting and that really speaks to this, think also the size of the industry over the years that has really increased greatly. Luanne Regis (32:21.248) Yeah. Luanne Regis (32:25.183) Yes, yes. It has, yeah. No, it has. You've had a lot of these smaller or maybe ad execs from ad agencies sort of offshoots and go off and start their own small companies, and they're now getting the big jobs. They're now getting the big work as opposed to those big multimedia conglomerate ad agencies that they're not really getting those accounts anymore. Anne Ganguzza (32:41.616) Sure. Anne Ganguzza (32:46.544) Right? Anne Ganguzza (32:51.686) Well, and now also I think technology, mean, gosh, technology has certainly evolved over the years. And now a lot of times, like you said, you'd meet in the, and I from back in the day when I would go to a studio for a callback, and gosh, that's almost not the case too much anymore. But I miss the days when you would see all your voiceover friends in the lobby. And even though you'd kind of be a little bit nervous, you'd all be like catching up and seeing people you hadn't seen in a while. Luanne Regis (32:55.179) Yeah. Luanne Regis (32:59.188) It has. Luanne Regis (33:09.491) I know. Luanne Regis (33:14.185) Yeah. Luanne Regis (33:19.137) Yeah. Anne Ganguzza (33:21.375) And I kind of miss that. with the digital evolution and people having their home studios and the internet and I think a lot of those agencies too, mean, went online, am I not correct? Yeah, yeah. Luanne Regis (33:23.497) Yeah. Luanne Regis (33:34.943) They sure did. They sure did. Yeah, they really did. And to speak a little bit, I'm just going to hear my pet peeve about that. Again, I remember a day when ad agency would hire a studio here, hire a studio in Chicago, hire a studio where they are, and they would connect. Now that cost, because we've had a situation like the pandemic where everyone sort of had to get set up to record from home, a lot of ad agencies haven't gone back to that, gone back to hiring studios. Anne Ganguzza (33:49.52) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (33:59.366) Mm-hmm. Yeah. Luanne Regis (34:04.277) they figured out a way, wait a second, we don't have to hire a studio. We don't have to incur that cost. We can keep that budget under control and pass that cost on to the actor. That's one of my biggest pet peeves of the consequence of the pandemic where actors have now had to become engineers, incur their own costs for studios. I'm like, wait a second, you would hire a studio in New York and Los Angeles back in the day. We're like, how is that? Anne Ganguzza (34:29.489) Yeah. Luanne Regis (34:34.37) What do I know what you're doing. Anne Ganguzza (34:36.282) Yeah, and they're not necessarily, you know, claiming, I am correct in the assumption, they're not necessarily saying, well, hey, I've got a home studio. I should be charging for that studio. I should be tired. Theoretically, right, they are, but I don't know anybody that really, like, has a line item that says, hey, this is my studio cost, right? Luanne Regis (34:45.825) No! Luanne Regis (34:53.957) No, no, the actors sadly have had to fall in line, you know, and now we've gone, it's just everyone is now remote studio required, home studio required. I'm like, wait a second, you would hire a studio back in the day. I just think it's unfair because now the actor should be concentrating on his audition and he should be concentrating on the creative aspect. He should not be asked to upload stuff. He should not be asked to be an engineer in his own session. You know, it's just the way of the world now. Anne Ganguzza (34:58.35) Yeah, it got absorbed. Anne Ganguzza (35:03.504) Yeah. Yeah. Anne Ganguzza (35:23.567) It is such a luxury to be directed even in my home studio now. It's just, and it's lovely for, I will say at least they're Source Connect so that an engineer can take what I'm doing back here in my home studio and engineer it and I don't have to upload and he can just take it. That is a luxury. And also the fact of actually having a director is a luxury these days. And I love it. And I kind of wish we went back to it. Luanne Regis (35:27.403) Yeah. Luanne Regis (35:39.711) and do his own thing. Yes. Luanne Regis (35:47.198) Yeah. Luanne Regis (35:52.757) I know. Anne Ganguzza (35:53.33) And you never know, mean, maybe that will happen, maybe that will not, but I think in the end, right, is it not all driven by the customer, right, the client, like it's Walmart, like what do they want? And so ultimately, what type of voice are they gonna look for? How are they gonna hire? And I think that's something as a voice actor, we need to consider the business aspect of it, because how are we going to kind of shine in front of all of... it seems like obstacles, maybe not obstacles, but there's so many paths to getting hired these days, you know, and yeah. Luanne Regis (36:28.031) Yes, there are. And let me go back to a question you asked earlier about what happens when that audition goes off. And it's really important for actors to understand, because you don't book a job, that doesn't mean you weren't on a short list. That doesn't mean that you weren't listened to and someone was vying for you and that just, the client or whomever came in and said, no, let's go with a woman instead of a man. doesn't, you have... Anne Ganguzza (36:53.264) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (36:54.205) I have no idea what happens once it leaves my, you know, my coffers because no one says anything. And then you get on a short list and you have one of five on a short list and that's great, you're excited. And then it just goes away. But for me, that's a win. Like someone listened to you and someone put you on a short list and someone considered you for this job. And even beyond the short list, you don't know who listened and went, wow, I really like him. You know what I mean? It's like, there's so many. Anne Ganguzza (36:57.574) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (37:08.42) Yeah. Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (37:20.496) Sure. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I love that you brought that up. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Luanne Regis (37:23.837) intangibles and actors need to understand that just because you didn't book a job doesn't mean you weren't right for it. They could have changed their minds, changed the specs, changed the age, changed the gender. All of those things sort of are out of your control. Anne Ganguzza (37:36.432) Yeah. Anne Ganguzza (37:39.791) Yeah, there's so many aspects that are out of your control. And I think that's one of the most important things that a voice actor can also do is try to understand that and not let the mental, like, my gosh, I don't know what happened, or I'm not good enough, or that self-sabotage, get to them. And I think that's one of the biggest challenges that a lot of voice actors face is imposter syndrome that, because they didn't hear anything, they assume, right? Luanne Regis (37:53.119) I know. Yeah. Yeah. Luanne Regis (38:00.788) It is. Luanne Regis (38:06.399) Yeah, that's right. And by the way, that's another aspect of my job as an agent, to sort of manage their expectations and manage their disappointments. I had an actress tell me last night, she said, you know, I'm really just very dejected and sort of tired and fatigued with these auditions. I haven't had a callback, I haven't had this, I haven't had that. And for me, you know, I need to... Anne Ganguzza (38:15.171) Mm-hmm. Anne Ganguzza (38:19.792) Mm-hmm. Luanne Regis (38:32.841) I do need to boost her up, at the same time, I do need to understand her frustration and it's real. So, you know, my job there is to sort of maybe go, okay, let me reevaluate, reevaluate, excuse me, what I'm sending her. Maybe I'm not sending her the things that she's really gonna nail because at the end of the day, as an agent, you don't want to keep sending an actor hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of auditions and they're not booking because that debilitates them. Anne Ganguzza (38:38.63) Mm-hmm. Yeah. Luanne Regis (39:02.207) So part of my job is almost like a therapist of sorts. It's sort of like manage how they feel. Okay, let's do this then. Let's sort of reevaluate what we send you. Let me pull back a little bit so that you don't feel burnt out. How can I help you? Because obviously I believe in her. I don't want her to just go silent and not do auditions, but I have to kind of hold her hand along the way. Anne Ganguzza (39:06.086) Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Anne Ganguzza (39:26.727) Right, Sure. Luanne Regis (39:30.187) That's another aspect of the voiceover agent's job, at least mine. Anne Ganguzza (39:31.706) Yeah. Yeah. I love it. this has been such a wonderful conversation, Luanne. thank you. Thank you. Well, it's been a pleasure. And I'll tell you what, I cannot wait to have you as a guest director for my group, for my VO Peeps guys. So make sure you take a look for that coming up soon. Luanne Regis (39:37.824) I love your questions, the way. Your questions are very pointed. Luanne Regis (39:47.711) Yes, I cannot wait. Yes. Luanne Regis (39:54.08) Yes. Anne Ganguzza (39:55.916) And with that, I will give a great big shout out to our sponsor, IPDTL. You too can connect and network like bosses. Find out more at ipdtl.com. Luanne, this has really been amazing. Thank you so much. It's been a pleasure. Luanne Regis (40:08.373) Thank you, Anne, for having me. I really do love talking about this stuff. Anne Ganguzza (40:13.146) Bosses, have an amazing week and we'll see you next week. Bye. Luanne Regis (40:16.033) Bye!  

Doubling down on its main distinctive brand asset (Cornelius), Kellogg's and Leo Burnett, London have reimagined the brand and are using ethnography to unlock morning-time rituals that are fueling the next phase of creative work. Thanks to Tracksuit (the affordable brand tracking solution) for sponsoring this episode.

Mitch Dunn is the poster child for what (Un)Retirement is all about. He had an amazing career for 30+ years in the ad agency business, starting at the legendary Leo Burnett agency and eventually worked his way up to Senior VP at Empower. One fateful day his boss "uninvited" him to stay at the agency. This happens to so many talented people that are 50+, as companies want to drop a high salary. But Mitch was prepared! He had started a side hustle by founding the Cincinnati Pickleball Club for the community. He embraced his passion for pickleball and then took it next level. He thought, "What if, I take my passion project and create a for-profit company?" Mitch became a first- time entrepreneur in his mid-fifties. He launched The Pickleball Lodge with a partner. It's the second largest indoor pickleball facility in the country. They already have well over 1,000 members. "I'm the happiest I've ever been in my entire career!" he says. You will love this episode. It's chock full of savvy (un)retirement advice and we even talk a little bit about our mutual love for Cincinnati chili....and pickleball, of course.  • More about Mitch Dunn: https://mitchdunn.medium.com/the-year-of-reinvention-93b9648a6fba  • More about The PIckleball Lodge: https://thepicklelodge.com/  • Episode Content: https://pickleballmediahq.com/blog/Mitch-Dunn-Interview-Ad-Agency-Wiz-turns-into-Pickleball-Entrepreneur  • Sponsored by How to Retire and Not Die: https://garysirak.com/how-to-retire-and-not-die/  • Sponsored by Capital Advantage:  https://capitaladvantage.com/promotion/retirement-planning-guide/  • Join the "I Used to be Somebody World Tour":  https://pickleballmediahq.com/tour/  • Subscribe to the "I Used to be Somebody" newsletter: https://pickleballmediahq.com/contact/subscribe 

Creative people bring color to an otherwise lifeless and monotonous workplace. They lie at the heart and core of many companies and organizations. How can you keep their innovative spark burning? How can you be the leader that creative people need? Best-selling Author, International Speaker, and “arms dealer for creative leaders,” Todd Henry graces The Ripple Effect Podcast with his captivating insights and approach to creativity. Todd Henry is the author of seven critically acclaimed books — The Accidental Creative, Die Empty, Herding Tigers, Daily Creative, The Motivation Code, The Brave Habit, and Louder Than Words. He also hosts the podcasts Daily Creative and Herding Tigers, which have garnered over 20 Million downloads. Todd has helped individuals, leaders, teams, and organizations find passion in their work and bring out their brilliance. Among Todd's long list of clients are corporate giants and top advertising agencies such as Google, Intel, P&G, Leo Burnett, and Publicis Groupe.    So, is there such a thing as hacking creativity?  If you're working in the creative industry or someone leading a team of creatives, you will 100% resonate with this episode. And if you think you're not creative, this video will change your mind! Don't miss the chance to learn from our incredible guest. ____________________________________________ Learn more about Todd Henry's work:  accidentalcreative.com toddhenry.com   Connect with Todd Henry on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/toddhenry1

“In 10 years' time, are you going to look back and be happy with how you spent the last 10 years?” This is a special episode only available to our podcast subscribers, which we call The Mini Chief. These are short, sharp highlights from our fabulous guests, where you get a 5 to 10 minute snapshot from their full episode. This Mini Chief episode features Nigel Marsh, Former CEO Leo Burnett and Y&R Brands, Founder Earth Hour, viral TEDx Talker, bestselling author and podcaster. His full episode is titled Following your own path to achieve balance, getting cut-through, and authentic success. You can find the full audio and show notes here:

In this episode of 'The Wisdom Of' Show, Simon Bowen explores transformative insights with Kim McDonnell, founder of Thankful and visionary social impact entrepreneur. From her roots in Mount Isa's outback to speaking at the United Nations, Kim shares powerful lessons about turning gratitude into action, creating authentic purpose-driven organizations, and catalyzing global change through interconnected solutions.Ready to unlock your leadership potential and drive real change? Join Simon's exclusive masterclass on The Models Method. Learn how to articulate your unique value and create scalable impact: https://thesimonbowen.com/masterclassEpisode Breakdown: 00:00 Introduction and background 08:15 The power of thankfulness as action 15:23 Purpose beyond marketing 22:47 Interconnected global challenges 31:16 Long-term impact versus short-term gains 38:42 Future-proofing food systems 45:15 The journey from Mount Isa to global impactAbout Kim McDonnell Kim McDonnell is a visionary leader and innovative entrepreneur who has founded Thankful, an organization combining philanthropy and business to drive positive, sustainable, and scalable impact. With over 25 years of experience in the Australian advertising, digital, and data-driven marketing industry, Kim worked with international agencies including Leo Burnett and Publicis Worldwide before founding her award-winning agency CUBED Communications in 2005, which was later sold to Publicis Worldwide in 2014. After selling everything she owned and relocating to New York, Kim dedicated herself to creating global change through various initiatives, including Thankful for Farmers and the tech start-up Saveful. Her work spans multiple critical issues, including gender equality, climate change, food waste, food security, and LGBTQIA+ rights. Kim has spoken at the United Nations, served as a member of the Professional Business Council Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center, and was an Honorary Adviser to the NGO Committee on Sustainable Development NY.Connect with KimWebsite: https://www.kimmcdonnell.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimmcdonnell1/About Simon Bowen Simon has spent over two decades working with some of the most influential leaders across many complex industries and circumstances. His very clear finding is that thinking is valued less than doing in almost every situation in our modern world. However, Simon has conversely observed that the power and success of any business, project or organization will be in direct proportion to the level and quality of thinking of the people and the quality of the idea or ideas on which it is built. As such, Simon is leading the renaissance of thinking.Connect with SimonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonbowen-mm/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/officialsimonbowen/Website: https://thesimonbowen.com/Get Simon Bowen's Personal Newsletter for Leaders, Thinkers, and Entrepreneurs!

Dr. Ngozi Ezike, the face of Illinois' response to the COVID-19 pandemic, admitted to an ethics violation for taking the CEO job at Sinai Chicago and will pay a $150,000 fine. Crain's health care reporter Katherine Davis discusses with host Amy Guth.Plus: Startup investments still sluggish in Chicago, Publicis Groupe merges Leo Burnett and Publicis Worldwide to form new creative unit, NASCAR quietly lost a massive local sponsor of its Chicago race and Illinois attorney general pushes back on Walmart's plans to roll back DEI programs.

In this episode, we continue the “Made of Caribbean” journey by taking listeners deeper behind the scenes of the campaign's creation and inspiration. Featuring insights from Scott Peiffer, Executive Creative Director at Unique Vacations Inc., the worldwide Representative of Sandals and Beaches Resorts, and Mikal Pitman, EVP Executive Creative Director at renowned ad agency, Leo Burnett, we explore the creative vision that brought the campaign to life. Listeners will get an insider's view of what it's like behind the camera lens and on set, discovering how the team expertly curated and captured the essence of the Caribbean to bring it to life across screens, in magazine, and your Instagram feed -- sharng the authentic, immersive experience that guests encounter from the moment they set foot on the islands. To watch the “Made of Caribbean” film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-v07S4BO-6I

This exclusive episode unveils Sandals' new global brand campaign, “Made of the Caribbean”, as told by the visionary leaders behind its creation. Executive Chairman Adam Stewart, a champion of the Caribbean and a torchbearer of his father's legacy, discusses how this powerful campaign embodies the essence of Sandals and Beaches Resorts. Created in collaboration with renowned ad agency Leo Burnett, the campaign captures the heart and soul of the region, showcasing its beauty and spirit to the world. To watch the “Made of Caribbean” film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-v07S4BO-6I

Timestamps: 2:08 - An infamous meeting with Japanese business people 12:13 - A sock subscription in the 90s? 19:50 - Getting raw materials from all over the globe 37:51 - Tracking customer metrics in the 90s 39:33 - Bootstrapping in e-commerce  This episode was co-produced with EO Zürich. Check out their upcoming event, Entrepreneurs Summit 2025. About Samy Liechti: Samy Liechti is a co-founder and the former CEO of BLACKSOCKS, the Swiss e-commerce sock company that invented the “sockscription” back in 1999. He holds a BA in Business Administration from HSG and worked for marketing agencies like Leo Burnett, Burson-Marsteller and Wirz before starting BLACKSOCKS in 1999. It all began when Samy found himself at a tea ceremony, after a business meeting with some Japanese clients, where he had to take off his shoes, and embarrassingly found he was wearing mismatched socks. The solution to the problem of forgetting to replace old socks was, in his mind, an online sock subscription — but it was 1999: if you sold socks, you did it on catalogs or through the phone; e-commerce was still called e-business back then, and vanishingly few people ever bought anything online. To make matters even more difficult, Samy's co-founder quit after a few months. But none of these deterrents could stop Samy, and 6 months after the official launch of the company, BLACKSOCKS had already 1000 customers. 20 years in, some of their sock models have been sold millions of times.  In 2023 BLACKSOCKS was acquired by Rohner Socks, and Samy left the company.  The cover portrait was edited by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.smartportrait.io⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. ‍ Don't forget to give us a follow on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠and⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Linkedin⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, so you can always stay up to date with our latest initiatives. That way, there's no excuse for missing out on live shows, weekly giveaways or founders' dinners.

Marta Hooper | Group Creative Director at AntiSocial/ThinkingboxToday, Monica chats with Marta Hooper, Group Creative Director at AntiSocial - the social media division of Thinkingbox. In this episode, Marta discusses:Social-first thinking in your brand strategyHow she got her start in advertising (as a plan B to becoming a pro tennis player)A deep dive into the craft and creativity of advertisingThe value of mentorship in creative fields like advertisingThe impact of remote culture on mentorshipMarta Hooper has 20 years of experience with increasingly senior titles at some of Canada's top agencies. Most recently she was chief creative officer at Rain, and before that ECD at doug&partners. Earlier stops include trevor//peter, Leo Burnett, Sid Lee, and Taxi, working on some of the biggest brands in the world including Nike, Spotify, Honda, Ford, Dell/Alienware, Telus, Red Bull, Diageo, Labatt, and HBO.Marta's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marta-hooper-6543b71b/Marta's Website: https://www.martahooper.com/ResourcesFigma Jam: https://www.figma.com/figjam/If you want a shoutout in a future episode please leave us a written review on Apple podcasts. From CRY, a Creative, Production, and Post house based in New York City. Brought to you by CRY www.filmcry.com Intro mixed by Micheal Hartman - michaelhrtmn4@gmail.com

The Chicago ad community came together for this fun Holiday Ads Special. A sold out crowd watched Christmas ads, laughed, cried and applauded. We guessed how they rated with consumers and then heard the reality. Oops! Thanks to our panelists Joe Nio, CSO at HighDive, Samantha Cescau, Head of Strategy at Leo Burnett, Chad Broude, CCO of Highdive and Andrew Tindall, SVP Partnerships at System1. Thanks also to our live tour sponsors, WARC, Tracksuit and The Effies. And to Highdive for hosting. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to everyone.

In this episode of Dear Art Producer, host Heather Elder is joined by Melissa Le Nicol, a freelance senior art producer with over 20 years of experience in the industry. Melissa shares her journey from working at renowned agencies such as Leo Burnett and Ogilvy to her passion for discovering top photographers and production solutions. They discuss the evolving role of an art producer, the importance of treatments, budget transparency, and the dynamics of creative calls. Additionally, Melissa reveals her fascinating background as an acupuncturist and forensic genealogist, highlighting the diverse interests and skills she has developed alongside her illustrious career in art production. In an industry where the rules are always changing, it's helpful to hear from those on the front lines. Heather Elder is the visionary behind NotesFromARepsJournal.com; visit HeatherElder.com for industry updates, stunning photography and video, and the artists behind the work.   More about our guest: Connect with Melissa Le Nicol on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissalenicol/  Melissa's website: https://melissalenicol.com/   More about your host: Heather Elder's Bio Heather Elder's Blog Heather Elder on Instagram Heather Elder on Twitter Heather Elder on LinkedIn Heather Elder on Facebook  

“A CEO client of mine said that when he dies, his to-do list will be full. Not empty, full. In 10 years' time, are you going to look back and be happy with how you spent those 10 years?”   In this episode of The Inner Chief podcast, I speak to Nigel Marsh, Former CEO Leo Burnett and Y&R Brands, Founder Earth Hour, viral TED Talker, Bestselling Author and Podcaster, on following your own path to achieve balance, getting cut-through, and authentic success.

ชะ-ชโลธร นวนทอง โฮสต์ดีกรี Creative Director แห่ง CJ WORX ชวน มอส-ธิติ บุญเกิด Deputy Executive Creative Director แห่ง Leo Burnett มาคุยถึงแคมเปญที่ทำให้กับ Krungsri FirstChoice ที่เน้นย้ำให้ความรวดเร็ว อนุมัติไว ให้เห็นเป็นภาพความเร็วขึ้นมา กลายเป็นหนังโฆษณา What The Fast ที่ร่วมงานกับ อั๋น-วุฒิศักดิ์ อนรรฆพร ผู้กำกับมือฉมังแห่ง FACTORY01 โดย มอส-ธิติ จะพาเล่าไปตามกระบวนการการทำงานของแคมเปญ ตั้งแต่ไอเดียไปถึงโปรดักชั่น ก่อนจะถกกันถึงนิยามของคำว่า revise ว่าอะไรคือ revise ที่ดีกันนะ https://linktr.ee/Final_revise2 #SalmonPodcast #FinalRevise2  —-- ติดต่อโฆษณาได้ที่ podcast.salmon@gmail.com Follow Final_Revise2 on Instagram Salmon Podcast https://www.instagram.com/salmon_podcast ชะ ชโลธร https://www.instagram.com/chalomejai Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Unser heutiger Gast hat sein Studium an der Universität der Künste Berlin mit einem Bachelor of Arts in Kommunikation im sozialen und wirtschaftlichen Kontext abgeschlossen. Während seiner Studienzeit engagierte er sich im Studierendenparlament und war Teil des Berliner Kommunikations-FORUM e.V. Seine ersten beruflichen Erfahrungen sammelte er in der Werbebranche, unter anderem als Praktikant bei Leo Burnett und in der politischen Kommunikation im Bundestag. Nach einem kurzen Abstecher ins PR- und Campaigning-Team bei foodwatch entschloss er sich, den Schritt in die Unternehmensberatung zu gehen und dort neue Arbeitsweisen zu prägen. 2013 gründete er die Beratungsfirma Intraprenör in Berlin, die sich als menschenzentrierte Unternehmensberatung auf innovative Ansätze für moderne Personal- und Organisationsentwicklung spezialisiert hat. Als mehrfach ausgezeichneter New Work Pionier hat sein Team zahlreiche Unternehmen bei der Transformation hin zu einer „People Company“ begleitet. Zudem ist er Mitbegründer des Shift Collective, einem Zusammenschluss innovativer Beratungen, und Co-Initiator der größten deutschen Pilotstudie zur 4-Tage-Woche. Neben seiner Rolle bei Intraprenör engagiert er sich als Dozent und Speaker zu den Themen New Work und Unternehmenskultur. Seit siebeneinhalb Jahren haben wir uns in nun schon 456 Folgen mit weit mehr als 500 Menschen darüber unterhalten, was sich für sie beim Thema Arbeit geändert hat und was sich weiter ändern muss. Wir sind uns ganz sicher, dass es gerade jetzt wichtig ist. Denn die Idee von “New Work” wurde während einer echten Krise entwickelt. Welche Rolle spielt die 4-Tage-Woche im Hinblick auf die Arbeitszufriedenheit und das Wohlbefinden der Mitarbeitenden? Welche Herausforderungen entstehen durch die 4-Tage-Woche in anspruchsvollen und stark frequentierten Branchen, und wie lässt sich möglicherweise wachsender Druck und Stress vermeiden? Wie können Unternehmen durch eine menschenzentrierte Sicht auf das Thema Arbeit nachhaltig flexible Arbeitsmodelle etablieren? Wir suchen nach Methoden, Vorbildern, Erfahrungen, Tools und Ideen, die uns dem Kern von New Work näher bringen! Darüber hinaus beschäftigt uns von Anfang an die Frage, ob wirklich alle Menschen das finden und leben können, was sie im Innersten wirklich, wirklich wollen. Ihr seid bei "On the Way to New Work" - heute mit Carsten Meier. [Hier](https://linktr.ee/onthewaytonewwork) findet ihr alle Links zum Podcast und unseren aktuellen Werbepartnern #NewWork #onthewaytonewwork #blackboat #newworkmasterskills #Intraprenör #4TageWoche

My guest this week is Nic Chidiac, Chief Strategy Officer for Razorfish, where he oversees brand and experience strategy. He's worked with CMOs from the biggest brands in the world across a wider range of categories, including QSR, travel, tech, automotive and government. Formerly with Leo Burnett, Nic brings a global lens to his CMO perspective as well, having spent his career working across markets in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and North America. We talk about everything you need to know about working with an agency, how to effectively use AI and what the changing role of the CMO means.

Kada volite posao kojim se bavite to je zaista blagoslov. Kada pritom povežete različite industrije koje povezuje kreativnost poput medija, filmske i muzičke industrije a onda to zaokružite advertajzingom, onda zaista možete da budete ponosni na svoju karijeru. O profesionalnom razvoju, kako ostati relevantan, kako tokom godina održavati motivaciju i nivo angažovanosti i rada u advertising industriji, razgovarali smo sa Andrejom Milkićem, Group Account direktorom u agenciji Leo Burnett. Andreja je u ovom razgovoru nesebično podelio svoja iskustva iz višedecenijske karijere sa posebnim osvrtom na advertising i sve one izazove sa kojima se ova industrija susreće poslednjih desetak godina. Razgovor koji i mladima i onima malo starijima iz adveertising industrije zaista može dati neke sjajne uvide i razmišljanja. Andreja Milkić, Group Account Director @ Leo Burnett https://www.linkedin.com/in/andreja-milkic-41128b16/ Teme u epizodi: - Uvod i predstavljanje - Karijera od četrneste godine - Posle 15 godina i dalje idem nasmejan na posao - Kako biti motivisan i relevantan u dužem periodu - Šta znači kada radiš za veliku međunarodnu kompaniju? - Novi kadrovi, gen Z, promena koju su doneli? - Kako se advertising industrija menjala kroz godine - TV reklame – zašto su i dalje tako bitne - Rad sa velikim kreativcima - Content kreatori postaju sve veći igrači? - Rad u strukovnim udruženjima i strukovne nagrade: IAA i Effie nagrada - Work life balans - Edukacija i važnost prenošenja praktičnog znanja mlađim generacijama koje dolaze - Pitanje i poruka za kraj Prijavite se na naš YouTube kanal: https://bit.ly/3uWtLES Posetite naš sajt i prijavite se na našu mailing listu - https://www.digitalk.rs Pratite DigiTalk.rs na društvenim mrežama: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Digitalk.rs Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/digitalk.rs/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/digitalkrs Veliku zahvalnost dugujemo kompanijama koje su prepoznale kvalitet onoga što radimo i odlučile da nas podrže i daju nam vetar u leđa: Partneri podkasta: - Raiffeisen banka - https://www.raiffeisenbank.rs/ Digitalne usluge Raiffeisen banke koje preporučujemo za mala i srednja preduzeća: - Kompanija NIS - https://www.nis.rs/ - Ananas - https://ananas.rs/ - kompanija Idea - https://online.idea.rs/ U Ideinoj online prodavnici unesite promo kod 1000digitalk i očekuje vas 1.000 dinara popusta prilikom vaše online kupovine! Prijatelj podkasta: - BiVits ACTIVA Brain Level Up Booster - https://bivits.com/proizvod/brain-level-up/ Kada želiš da živiš i radiš na višem nivou, uzmi BiVits Brain Level Up za više energije i bolju koncentraciju tokom dana! - Izdavačka kuća Finesa - https://www.finesa.edu.rs/ U ovoj epizodi podelićemo dve knjige "Ovo je marketing" izdavačke kuće Finesa onima koji budu najbrži i najkreativniji sa komentarima, a možete nam slobodno pisati i na info@digitalk.rs i direktno nam uputiti komentar, sugestiju ili primedbu. Takođe, svi oni koji na Finesinom websajtu poruče knjige i unesu promo kod digitalk dobiće 10% popusta na već snižene cene izdanja na sajtu: https://www.finesa.edu.rs/

In this episode of JUST Branding, we are thrilled to welcome Tom Roach, Vice President of Brand Strategy at Jellyfish and one of the most respected figures in the advertising world. With over 20 years of experience at top agencies like BBH, Leo Burnett, and AMV BBDO, Tom has become a leading voice in the fusion of brand and performance marketing. Join us as Tom shares his journey from traditional agencies to his current role at Jellyfish, where he's reshaping the future of branding in a digital-first landscape. We'll dive deep into his unique approach to bridging the often-divisive gap between brand strategy and performance marketing, explore the power of creativity for long-term brand growth, and hear his vision for the future of brand planning. Whether you're in branding, marketing, or advertising, this episode is packed with valuable insights for anyone looking to build sustainable, high-performing brands. Tune in!

"If you got one foot in tomorrow and one foot in yesterday, then you're squattin' on today." - Brian's grandma Our favorite stories: 3x author, professor, and agency chief turned clinical therapist Over 20 years in China leading perhaps the most storied industry-shaper J. Walter Thompson on accounts like Kraft, Nike, and Microsoft. There was a lot of proud when you saw your work up there... there was a lot of social cache. Investment banking was a big thing and consulting was too, but there was no shame in saying "I went to a business school and went into advertising." "There was never a CMO... the relationship between agency and client was taken very seriously. Agency reviews were meant to consolidate relationships instead of cracking open fissures that might be helping in reducing fees." On moving to China: "You could tell very quickly who was going to thrive... I came in and was immediately moved by the aspirational sparkle in their eyes... the willingness to absorb information..." Big moments from doing the work: "There was tremendous focus on strategy and creative as the center of gravity... Leo Burnett and JWT had review boards making sure the leadership of the agency was collectively endorsing what was going on. There was no question the decision making was not focused on media." "I helped launch Lunchables... the marketing head and I were very good friends and I knew his family and we went to multiple football games... cookouts... that relationship was particularly warm but not unheard of at the time." "Living in the lanes... not a high rise where the ex-pats were... once you learn the language (Chinese), it gives you insight into how the Chinese view their relationship between the individual and society and the cosmos..."Career advice we'll live with: People are very frightened about digital technology. The people who have command over the digital ecosystem are the new aspirational characters in the industry.Down-funnel: a shift in the center of gravity; those who could understand and could harness the power of data vs ideas. Ideas were left by the wayside. "Clearly there are areas in communication communities that are still brand-centric. The question that I have is, whether people that are part of these part of these functions are ultimately going to scale the ladders of the power structure." Ask yourself, where can I feel most at home? The fundamentals of what a good insight is... what a good brand purpose is -- these are not being taught, in fact they are being slightly ridiculed. You fall back on brand guide books that are overly prescriptive. Find us us on Twitter, Instagram, and at The Bad Podcast dot com

Ever wonder how personal experiences fuel creativity? On episode 46 of The B-side with James Barrow podcast, I catch up with Jonathan Seidler, an author, creative director, and music critic who brings a fresh perspective on culture and mental health. He's written for The Guardian, Sydney Morning Herald, and The Australian, and has a column for Esquire that dives into men's mental health and fatherhood. With a background at agencies like Leo Burnett and M&C Saatchi in Australia and London, Jonathan knows how to craft campaigns that resonate.His memoir, It's A Shame About Ray, got rave reviews and was even turned into a live performance at the Sydney Writers' Festival 2023. Plus, his debut novel, All the Beautiful Things You Love, is out now from Pan Macmillan.We kick it off talking about Jonathan's background and how he went from studying law to find a home in the creative industry. He shares some personal stories about the people and experiences that shaped his creative journey, what fuels his creativity and how his diverse influences come together in his work. He also talks about his love for music (being an unashamed Nu-metal apologist) and how creative polymaths like Tyler, the Creator and Pharrell inspire him.We jam on his creative process, exploring how he goes from a rough idea to a finished project using the 12 box method. Jonathan opens up about the emotional heart of his memoir, It's A Shame About Ray, and why writing about his father's struggles with mental illness felt so important to him. Then we get into the inspiration behind All the Beautiful Things You Love. Jonathan reflects on the experiences he and his ex-partner went through after their breakup, including selling their shared belongings and the interesting characters he met along the way.He also gives some great tips for beating creative block and staying inspired. Plus, he reflects on a piece of work he's particularly proud of and talks about how having diverse experiences and interests shapes his storytelling. And as we wrap up, he shares some solid advice for anyone looking to follow a similar path, along with his creative philosophy.This was a fascinating conversation, full of insights that are both inspiring and practical. If you want to learn more about how personal experiences drive creativity and the value of diverse perspectives in storytelling, give it a listen. Cheers!All the Beautiful things you love is available here: https://www.panmacmillan.com.au/9781761269547/or here: https://www.amazon.com.au/All-Beautiful-Things-You-Love/dp/1761269542 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rohit Bhargava is a person you should know and follow. He is a pioneering thinker renowned for his expertise in non obvious thinking, a philosophy he champions through his speaking, consulting and body of work. We invited Rohit to tell us about his new book, Non Obvious Thinking: How to See What Others Miss. Rohit believes in the necessity of non obvious thinkers to drive innovation and disrupt conventional business paradigms, a vision he communicates through books, podcasts, and newsletters. He also carried this through by founding Ideapress Publishing so that he could help lift up the work of other great thinkers. He firmly believes that everyone can build the skill of seeing what others miss. Highlights of our conversation: - Why encouraging individuals to embrace non obvious thinking and recognize its value in uncovering insights and generating creative ideas will help businesses thrive in the future. - A CEO must see fostering an innovative mindset as an imperative in all team members and not just a specific innovation team. - That non obvious thinking can be learned, which is why he has written his latest book. - A tenant of non obvious thinking emphasizes the importance of supporting female leaders for opportunities in business to lend to diversity and inclusivity in innovative thought processes. - Rohit is passionate about promoting innovative thinking through various platforms like podcasts, book awards, newsletters, and speaking engagements and all CEOs and business leaders need to recognize that they can also elevate their thoughts and voice in the same way. - The Non Obvious Book Awards were established to honor outstanding nonfiction and business books, promoting insightful literature and unique perspectives. Rohit Bhargava is on a mission to inspire more non-obvious thinking in the world. He is a 3-time Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author of ten books and is widely considered one of the most entertaining and original speakers on trends, innovation, and marketing in the world. Rohit has been invited to deliver “non-boring” keynotes and workshops in 32 countries around the world to change the way teams and leaders think at the World Bank, NASA, Intel, LinkedIn, MetLife, Under Armour, Univision, Disney, and hundreds of other well-known organizations. Rohit's body of work, including his bestselling trend reports, aims to inspire individuals and organizations to think creatively, cover blind spots, and foster a culture of curiosity and risk-taking. To further amplify his message, he established the Non Obvious Book Awards, recognizing exceptional nonfiction and business literature, and continues to advocate for diversity and innovative thinking as catalysts for progress. Prior to becoming an entrepreneur and founding the Non-Obvious Company and Ideapress Publishing, he spent 15 years leading marketing strategy at Ogilvy and Leo Burnett where he advised global brands on human behavior, marketing, and storytelling. Connect with Rohit: Website: https://nonobvious.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohitbhargava/ Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Rohit-Bhargava/author/B001JRWL64?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1728051894&sr=8-1&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true Connect with Allison: Feedspot has named Disruptive CEO Nation as one of the Top 25 CEO Podcasts on the web and it is ranked the number 10 CEO podcast to listen to in 2024! https://podcasts.feedspot.com/ceo_podcasts/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allisonsummerschicago/ Website: https://www.disruptiveceonation.com/ Twitter: @DisruptiveCEO #CEO #brand #startup #startupstory #founder #business #businesspodcast #podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is your October CX Pulse Check. Once a month, we check in to find out what's happening in the world of customer experience and discuss ideas and insights customer experience leaders can learn from.In this episode, Jeannie Walters is joined by special co-host Rohit Bhargava, Founder & Chief Trend Curator at Non-Obvious Company. We dissect the evolving retail landscape and examine why major players like Walmart are pushing holiday shopping earlier each year. We also delve into language tactics businesses employ, such as using terms like "inflation-free options" to entice shoppers.Exploring beyond the aisles, we touch on how technology is redefining the art world and reshaping luxury preferences. We also have fun comparing everyday items like the cult-favorite Scrub Daddy to traditional brands, showing how consumer culture influences even the most mundane products. The conversation expands to the power of understanding people and media narratives, with discussions on trends like "FridgeScaping" and viral challenges.About Rohit Bhargava:Rohit Bhargava is on a mission to inspire more non-obvious thinking in the world. He is the 3-time Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author of ten books and is widely considered one of the most entertaining and original speakers on trends, innovation and marketing in the world. Rohit has been invited to deliver “non-boring” keynotes and workshops in 32 countries around the world to change the way teams and leaders think at the World Bank, NASA, Intel, LinkedIn, MetLife, Under Armour, Univision, Disney and hundreds of other well-known organizations. Prior to becoming an entrepreneur and founding the Non-Obvious Company and Ideapress Publishing, he spent 15 years leading marketing strategy at Ogilvy and Leo Burnett where he advised global brands on human behavior, marketing and storytelling. Outside his speaking and consulting, Rohit has taught persuasive speaking and global marketing as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University, is frequently quoted in the global media and writes a monthly column on non-obvious ideas for Inc magazine. Rohit lives in the Washington DC area with his wife and is a proud dad of two boys. He loves the Olympics (he's been to five!) and actively hates cauliflower.Follow Rohit on...LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohitbhargavaX/Twitter: https://twitter.com/rohitbhargavaFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/rohitmarketingauthorArticles Mentioned:Walmart kicks holiday season off early (Retail Customer Experience)The Art Market Is Tanking. Sotheby's Has Even Bigger Problems. (The Wall Street Journal)The Scrub Daddy Sponge Has a Cult Following. But Is It Better Than This Wirecutter Favorite? (The New York Times: Wirecutter)Fridgescaping is everywhere. But is it safe? (The Washington Post)Resources Mentioned:Experience Investigators Website -- experienceinvestigators.comWant to ask a question? Visit askjeannie.vip to leave Jeannie a voicemail! (And don't forget to follow Jeannie on LinkedIn! www.linkedin.com/in/jeanniewalters/)

Is it risky for brands to pick a new agency without a proper pitch process, or is it time to reevaluate how agencies win business?Last month B&Q appointed Leo Burnett without a pitch, pushing out the incumbent Uncommon Creative Studio who had held the account since 2019. In this episode, Campaign's editorial team investigate the risks and benefits of a pitchless process, what is considered good practice and how it impacts creativity.With Campaign editor Maisie McCabe, deputy editor Gemma Charles, and deputy media editor Shauna Lewis, this episode looks into the role of intermediaries, why public sector clients are mandated to have a pitch process, and what happens to the incumbents when agencies are picked without a pitch. The episode is hosted by tech editor Lucy Shelley.Further reading:Why the Pitch Positive Pledge remains a diamond in the roughSpecsavers shows Pitch Positive Pledge commitment with OMD reappointmentMother calls on clients to shorten pitch process at chemistry meetingsTesco moves £110m account to BBH Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

En el episodio de hoy me siento con Isaac Pagán Muñoz, VP y Executive Creative Director para Pepsi Foods North America. Isaac me cuenta cómo fueron sus años creciendo en Puerto Rico, el impacto que tuvo el Miami Ad School en su desarrollo profesional, sus años trabajando en agencias de publicidad como Ovilgy y Leo Burnett, y la transición a ser director creativo de Pepsi Foods North America. También hablamos sobre la diferencia de ser director de arte vs director creativo, cuándo las marcas deben utilizar el mercadeo de celebridades, el rol de la publicidad paga en una estrategia creativa y el impacto que ha tenido la cultura latina en el mercadeo global. Tres "takeaways" de este episodio: 1. Para crear un ambiente creativo saludable, tú necesitas tener una diversidad de pensamiento que haga que el trabajo sea mejor cada vez. 2. Los premios son un resultado del gran trabajo. El fin no es ganar un León de Cannes, el fin es hacer una gran campaña. Gane o no gane. 3. Cuando vayas a hacer algo, asegúrate que te apasione. Y una ves encuentres que te apasiona, aplícate y trabaja más de lo que se espera. Puedes conectar con Isaac aquí: LinkedIn No olvides suscribirte a nuestro canal de Youtube.

Join us this week on TechTalk as Dr. Jay and Brad interview their friend, Johann Marron. Johann Marron is the Principal & Creative Partner at Studio Grafo and the Advertising Manager at ChiroHealthUSA. Johann oversees the collaborative flow of work among all members of the team and leads the design/creative aspect of every project. He started his career in the creative field, working at some of the most recognized advertising agencies, such as Grey Advertising and Leo Burnett. He then “jumped to the client side,” where he spent many years championing marketing, marketing communications, and advertising for several companies. During the last twelve years, Studio Grafo has completed projects for more than 200 local and regional businesses in the US, Europe, Latin America, and Asia. Studio Grafo is a design studio located in Washington, D.C. that provides cross-platform marketing communications, advertising and graphic design to meet organization's needs. It's in their core to create the most innovative and effective visual communications, flawlessly and on time. For more information, visit Johann at https://studiografo.com/ or email him at johann@studiografo.com.

“Ideas aren't the problem. People have lots of ideas, but they don't have time to think. Thinking has become a daring act within organizations, and in our culture, because we are part of the ‘cult of busy'.” Chapters: 00:00 Introduction to Lisa Bodell and the Importance of Simplicity 03:20 Eliminating Complexity and Drowning in Work 07:17 Challenging Assumptions and Reversing Unproductive Rules 13:09 Simplification as the Route to Innovation 16:11 Generosity: Giving Time and Helping Others 19:02 From Managing to Leading: Prioritizing Meaningful Work 20:42 Cultivating a Culture of Simplicity and Meaningful Work 21:08 The Importance of Vulnerability and Killing Stupid Rules 22:26 Asking Quality Questions to Identify and Eliminate Unnecessary Tasks 24:05 Change as a Choice: Recognizing the Power to Simplify 30:37 Setting Boundaries on Time: Prioritizing Tasks for Improved Productivity Episode Summary: Lisa Bodell, a global leader on simplification, collaboration, and innovation, discusses the importance of simplicity in organizations. She emphasizes the need to eliminate unnecessary complexity and create space for thinking and innovation. Lisa shares strategies for challenging assumptions, reversing unproductive rules, and managing time effectively. She also highlights the value of generosity and the difference between managing and leading. Overall, Lisa advocates for a cultural shift towards simplicity and meaningful work. In this conversation, Lisa Bodell and Shannon Cassidy discuss the importance of simplicity and how to eliminate unnecessary rules and tasks in order to create a more efficient and productive work environment. They emphasize the need for leaders to model vulnerability and be open to killing stupid rules. They also discuss the challenges of implementing simplicity when the leader is resistant to change. The conversation covers topics such as identifying and eliminating unnecessary rules, simplifying processes, setting boundaries on time, and the importance of asking quality questions. The key takeaways include the importance of simplicity as a strategy, the need for leaders to empower their teams, the value of questioning why, and the recognition that change is a choice. R.O.G. Takeaway Tips: Eliminating unnecessary complexity and simplifying processes is essential for innovation and creativity. Challenging assumptions and reversing unproductive rules can lead to more effective and efficient work. Managing time is not the same as leading; leaders prioritize meaningful work and create space for thinking. Generosity is not just about giving money, but also about giving time and helping others reach their potential. A cultural shift towards simplicity and meaningful work is necessary for organizations to thrive. Simplicity should be a strategy and a principle in the workplace. Leaders should model vulnerability and be open to killing unnecessary rules. Asking quality questions, such as 'why' and 'what is holding you back,' is important for identifying and eliminating unnecessary tasks. Change is a choice, and being busy is a choice that can be changed. Setting boundaries on time and prioritizing tasks is essential for simplifying and improving productivity. Guest Bio: Lisa Bodell, a global leader on simplification, collaboration, and innovation, has a solution. Lisa shows organizations how to eliminate complexity and leverage simplicity – unleashing creativity and sparking the energy so essential to innovate and compete in a rapidly changing world. FutureThink, which she founded in 2003, works with leading brands worldwide and has become the largest source of innovation research, tools, and training in the world. Lisa is the author of two groundbreaking books, Why Simple Wins: Escape the Complexity Trap and Get to Work That Matters and Kill the Company: End the Status Quo, Start an Innovation Revolution. She ranks on the list of Top 50 Speakers Worldwide and captivates audiences with her energy and humor. Lisa's keynotes leave audiences inspired to change and arms them with radically simple tools to get to the work that matters.  After earning her business degree from University of Michigan, Lisa launched her career at Leo Burnett in Chicago, where she discovered a gift for uniting strategically-driven ideas with forward-thinking themes. She went on to build two successful businesses before moving to New York and focusing on the simplification and innovation space with FutureThink. Lisa brings a compelling perspective to the sought-after topics of simplification and innovation to over 100,000 people each year.  A thought leader and serial entrepreneur, her transformational message has inspired executives at top-ranked organizations such as Google, SAP, Citigroup, and the Department of National Intelligence. Lisa has contributed her expertise to a wide variety of media. She is a monthly contributor to Forbes and has frequently appeared in other media including: Fast Company, WIRED, The New York Times, Inc., Harvard Business Review, and CNN. She has also been featured in many major books such as Warren Berger's A More Beautiful Question, Adam Grant's Originals, and AfterShock, the 50-year celebration based on futurist Alvin Toffler's Future Shock.   Lisa has taught innovation at both American University and Fordham University and has a TED talk on the topic.  She has served on the board of advisors of several organizations, including the Global Agenda Council for the World Economic Forum, the United States National Security Agency, the Association of Professional Futurists, and the Novartis boards of Diversity & Inclusion and Culture. Resources: Why Simple Wins Kill the Company: End the Status Quo, Start an Innovation Revolution  Follow Lisa on LinkedIn Follow Lisa on X View clips of Lisa's presentations Visit FutureThink Where to find R.O.G. Podcast: R.O.G on YouTube R.O.G on Apple Podcasts R.O.G on Spotify How diverse is your network?  N.D.I. Network Diversity Index What is your Generosity Style?  Generosity Quiz Credits: Lisa Bodell, Sheep Jam Productions, Host Shannon Cassidy, Bridge Between, Inc. Coming Next: Please join us next week, Episode 199, Special Guest, Edwige Robinson.

Leandro Vieira e Raphael Pinho, CEO da powerhouse Spark, conversam sobre Marketing de influência, como funciona a relação entre marcas e influencers e qual o segredo para encontrar o influenciador certo para seu produto ou serviço. Conteúdo patrocinado MOVIDA Saiba como reduzir os custos com gestão de frotas na sua empresa em até 30% https://adm.to/movida2 CARREIRA Conheça o curso IA na Prática, da Trybe, e saiba como dominar a Inteligência Artificial, utilizando-a para evoluir na sua carreira https://adm.to/trybe_IASobre o entrevistadoRaphael Pinho é CEO e fundador da Spark, além de uma das principais referências em Marketing de influência no Brasil. A powerhouse de marketing de influência que atende a clientes como Grupo L'Oréal, Unilever, Vivo, Nivea, Renner, Pierre Fabre, Pepsico e várias outras marcas de peso no mercado nacional e global. Pinho tem passagens em agências de publicidade como Ogilvy & Mather, Leo Burnett, W/McCann e 9ine, somando mais de duas décadas de atuação no segmento. Hoje, além de liderar a Spark com o sócio Rafael Coca, ele também dirige o Resenha Digital Clube, mediatech de conteúdo esportivo que alcança mais de 40 milhões de pessoas por mês. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brandon Rochon is the Chief Creative Officer (CCO) at HZ Ad Agency. He moved to Atlanta a couple years back from Los Angeles where he was CEO and chief creative officer at Kastner & Partners, heading up creative for the shop's longtime partner Red Bull. He joined independent Atlanta agency Hothouse as its executive vice president, head of creative and is now at HZ. He has worked with some of the biggest brands, including leading the Samsung account for Leo Burnett, Coca-Cola for Ogilvy Paris and working with Absolut Vodka, McDonalds, PlayStation, Heineken and Nissan at TBWAParis. *In the podcast episode, we talk about: * * The 5 P's in Advertising and how knowing them can help in your script analysis * Ad Agency's view of AI and using it in voice over * What role the VO plays in commercials * What a “natural, authentic voice” means, from an agency perspective * The life cycle of an ad and where VO fits CLICK HERE for 15% off a Voice123 Membership ($359 tier and up, for first-time members) - https://bit.ly/3uPpO8i Terms & Conditions - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CcYMkdLxWfbmwbvu-mwaurLNtWYVpIBgkJpOQTYLDwc/edit?usp=sharing *LET'S CONNECT! * facebook.com/atlantavoiceoverstudio instagram.com/atlantavoiceoverstudio twitter.com/atlvostudio tiktok.com/@atlantavoiceoverstudio YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/atlantavoiceoverstudio Atlanta Voiceover Studio & ProVoiceoverTraining's Classes & Workshops www.AtlantaVoiceoverStudio.com www.ProVoiceoverTraining.com **Sign up for FREE weekly VO tips: https://bit.ly/AVSemail

Andrés Marantá es gerente de Diseño de Alpina, la empresa láctea líder en Colombia.Andrés lidera la estrategia de diseño y los aspectos visuales del packaging, la comunicación de marcas y nuevos lanzamientos en Alpina.Con más de 15 años de experiencia en agencias de publicidad como Leo Burnett, Lowe SSP3, Sancho BBDO, JWT y Ogilvy, él ha sido reconocido en los festivales de creatividad más importantes del mundo. Ha trabajado para marcas como Pfizer, Grupo Ferrero, Postobón, Grupo Aval, Chevrolet, Ecopetrol, Alpina, y P&G, entre otras.En este episodio, Andrés comparte su visión sobre la importancia de la belleza en el diseño de packaging. Relata su experiencia en agencias de publicidad y su transición a trabajar del lado del cliente. Nos sumergimos en el arte y la estrategia del diseño de envases, y cómo trabajar en estrecha colaboración con los clientes puede dar lugar a un trabajo creativo innovador.Links Relevantes:Andrés Marantá LinkedInAlpinaGuto StudioSeguinos:BRANDERMAN websiteBRANDERMAN InstagramHernán Braberman LinkedInMy packaging design agency TRIDIMAGEPACKNEWS BlogSuscribite:Suscribite a BRANDERMAN en tu App de Podcast favorita para no perderte ninguno denuestros próximos episodios.SpotifyApple PodcastsYouTubeOvercastIvoox

Welcome back to another episode of The Barber's Brief! Where Marc and Vassilis discuss marketing and business news that has caught their eye, they highlight our marketing moment, get into audience QA, and finish off by highlighting an ad of the week. Enjoy the show! Our Hosts: Follow our updates here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/sleeping-barber/⁠⁠ Get in touch with our hosts: Marc Binkley: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbinkley/ Vassilis Douros: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vassilisdouros/⁠ Timestamps 0:00 - Introduction 1:01 - Consumer Still Feeling teh Inflation Squeeze 3:26 - Tik Tok Tightens Teen AD Targeting 5:52 - Apple's Vision Pro 1.4bn Failure 8:49 - The Growing Pains of Retail Media 12:05 - Marketing Moment: XBOX Football Manager 16:46 - Ad of the Week: McDonald's Retro Birthday Party Links: Title: Consumers still feeling the squeeze despite falling inflation Source: Link: https://www.marketingweek.com/consumers-squeeze-inflation-data/ Summary Title: TikTok tightens teen ad targeting and boosts AI transparency Source: Search Engine Land Link: https://searchengineland.com/tiktok-teen-ad-targeting-ai-transparency-443986 Title: Apple's Vision Pro $1.4bn failure shows importance of market orientation Source: The Drum Link: https://www.thedrum.com/opinion/2024/07/15/apple-s-vision-pro-600m-failure-shows-importance-market-orientation Title: The growing pains of retail media: Dodging ROAS gremlins Source: Marketing Week Link: https://www.marketingweek.com/retail-media-roas-gremlin/ Marketing Moment: Highlighting Case studies (3-4 minutes): XBox Football Manager (FM24) Video Game Everyday Tactician - McCann London https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elq83mERXv0 Background If you've seen Wrexham docuseries they have been promoted to EFL One There's a huge advantage for teams that get promoted - more $, better players, better coaches etc Bromley had been in the lower leagues for 132 years Bromely paired with Xbox to recruit talent using their FM24 game Like moneyball but with gamers Filmed a documentary, promoted on social & the game Results Hired the “Everyday Tactictian” a guy named Nathan Owolabi who was a tour guide at Wembly Became part of the team's backroom staff and worked for the club's manager Campaign won a bunch of awards including Cannes Lions Grand Prix Picked up a lot of press 1.5B impressions 190% increase in FM players Most played version ever Bromely FC promoted to EFL two for the first time in the past 132 years Ad of the Week McDonald's serves up retro birthday party ad to celebrate 50 years in UK Link: https://youtu.be/MgBs3DgLZBk McDonald's is kicking off a major new campaign celebrating 50 years since opening in the UK with a faithfully recreated reminder of the joy of its childhood birthday parties. McDonald's new campaign commemorating 50 years since its first UK location opened in Woolwich, London. The campaign features a nostalgic ad filmed in the original restaurant, meticulously recreated to evoke the ambiance of 1980s childhood birthday parties. Produced by Leo Burnett, the 60-second spot aims to celebrate McDonald's heritage and appeal to sentiments of joy and nostalgia associated with its early years in the UK.

Catherine King, Chief Strategy Officer at Leo Burnett, Professor Carl Rhodes, Dean of UTS Business School and author of Woke Capitalism, and purpose lead Marketer extraordinaire Adam Ballesty discuss the finds from the latest round of the Good Study. ‘The Good Study 2024', by Leo Burnett Australia, in partnership with UTS Business School and Zenith Australia, found that while Australians overwhelmingly agree it's important for brands to do some form of good in the world (96% up 8% from 2022), only 39% believe they should take a position on social and political issues. We hear and read a lot these days about the importance of brands and businesses doing good, as ESG continues to climb the corporate ladder and the UN Sustainable Development Goals see government and business integrate these into society. But what impact does doing good have on business? And what is the impact on consumers and customers? Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/managing-marketing/id1018735190  Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/75mJ4Gt6MWzFWvmd3A64XW?si=a3b63c66ab6e4934  Listen on Google: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zb3VuZGNsb3VkLmNvbS91c2Vycy9zb3VuZGNsb3VkOnVzZXJzOjE2MTQ0MjA2NC9zb3VuZHMucnNz  Listen on Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/managing-marketing  Listen on Podbean: https://managingmarketing.podbean.com/  For more episodes of TrinityP3's Managing Marketing podcast, visit https://www.trinityp3.com/managing-marketing-podcasts/  Recorded live on Zoom H4n and edited, mixed and managed by JML Audio with thanks to Jared Lattouf.

En este episodio de Oye.Cracks continuamos con la serie de episodios dedicados a la publicidad con un experto en el área: Federico Russi, CEO de Leo Burnett, agencia ganadora de un León de Plata en el Festival Cannes Lions 2024 en la categoría “Creative Commerce”. ¡Acompáñanos a conocer su experiencia y las nuevas tendencias en esta industria!

Campaign's editorial team takes you behind the week's biggest headlines, with the views from our news desks. Hosted by tech editor Lucy Shelley, media editor Beau Jackson and reporter Charlotte Rawlings discuss all things media and creativity.We delve into the breaking news of Natalie Cummins leaving Zenith UK and the speculation surrounding the rival agency she'll go to next. Plus, Jackson explains the leadership shuffle that Cummins has left in her wake as Sannah Rogers and Jon Stevens, managing directors of Zenith UK, have stepped up to lead the agency following her departure.In other breaking news, a very popular story closed the month with L'Oréal UK and Ireland switching its £220m media account to a new agency.Covering creativity, Rawlings talks through Leo Burnett's first work for Vodafone UK after the hotly contested pitch last year.Plus, we talk through the beginning of Pride Month with a black and white campaign from Pride in London and Jackson goes head-to-head with AI in light of adland's response to Mark Read's deepfake debacle.Further reading:Total Media acquired by Serviceplan Group's MediaplusMediaSense to acquire PwC UK teamAd industry bodies criticise Edinburgh OOH banBBH opens applications for next Barn cohortSupercell signs up Chris Hemsworth and Christina Ricci for star-studded ads Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Follow us on social @doseofblkjoy and learn more about “A Dose of Support” from the 4A's (American Association of Advertising Agencies): ⁠https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdEW1U3sVdZRCQHPVtmwxAITUEA5I4ojWGAgKJMMp3Tc63l-A/viewform?usp=sf_link⁠ Dani Jackson-Smith is an award-winning creative powerhouse who champions justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion within the industry and beyond. Dani's worn several hats over her career, ranging from her early days as a freelance videographer and reporter at WKBW ABC 7, covering events including the BET Hip Hop Awards and Rip the Runway. After college, she launched Street Knowledge Media with her friends in New York City, helping to launch the career of the late Nipsey Hussle. Eventually, Dani moved home to Chicago, where she excelled at some of the world's largest agencies, including Leo Burnett, Havas, and Edelman. Most recently, as VP of Influence at Edelman, she led partnerships for brands including Starbucks, Noxzema, Del Monte, Barilla, and Pivotal Ventures. While VP of DEI & Multicultural Marketing, she developed cultural strategies for brands including Foot Locker and Church & Dwight. As a Sr. Producer, she produced experiences with Kellogg's, Nintendo, and Samsung. Dani has been recognized as the ADCOLOR Rockstar and Chicago Ad Federation Rising Star. She's also won a Silver Addy and a Gold Clio for her brand production work. When she isn't working, Dani volunteers as an auxiliary board member for Chicago's oldest Boys & Girls Club, Off The Street Club.

In this episode of The Self-Employed Life, I had the pleasure of speaking with Peter Wilkin, a branding expert, about the importance of understanding personal brand DNA. Peter shared valuable insights on the components of brand DNA, including role, beliefs, promise, benefits, spirit, and icons. He emphasized the significance of brand DNA as a compass that guides individuals through turbulent times in their self-employed businesses. Peter's concept of brand DNA as a life jacket in rough seas resonated with me, highlighting the importance of anchoring oneself in personal values and beliefs. Overall, the episode provided a compelling perspective on the role of brand DNA in navigating the complexities of personal branding and business success. Peter, a veteran of the advertising golden era, led agencies for Ogilvy, Leo Burnett, and BBDO across global hubs. As Head of BBDO Asia Pacific, he oversaw 14 markets, shaping iconic brands like Coca-Cola and IBM. Now, through Dolphin Brand Strategy, he guides clients in brand and strategic planning, sharing insights from his book "Dim Sum Strategy" and speaking on unleashing creative thinking for impactful change. A family man based in Vancouver, Peter enjoys globetrotting, sports, and wildlife, especially otters, tigers, and, of course, dolphins. And be sure to subscribe to The Self-Employed Life in Apple Podcasts or follow us on Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts so you don't miss an episode. Everything you need can all be found at jeffreyshaw.com.  Peter Wilken, thank you so much for being here! Remember, you might be in business FOR yourself but you are not in business BY yourself. Be your best self. Be proud and keep changing the world. Guest Contact – https://www.peterwilken.com/ Peter Wilken on LinkedIn (@peterwilken) Contact Jeffrey – SelfEmployedNewsletter.com JeffreyShaw.com Books by Jeffrey Shaw Business Coaching for Entrepreneurs Watch my TEDx LincolnSquare video and please share! Valuable Resources– The Self-Employed Business Institute You know you're really good at what you do. You're talented, you have a skill set. The problem is you're probably in a field where there is no business education. This is common amongst self-employed people! And, there's no business education out there for us! You also know that being self-employed is unique and you need better strategies, coaching, support, and accountability. The Self-Employed Business Institute, a five-month online education is exactly what you need. Check it out! Take The Self-Employed Assessment! Ever feel like you're all over the place? Or frustrated it seems like you have everything you need for your business success but it's somehow not coming together? Take this short quiz to discover the biggest hidden gap that's keeping you from having a thriving Self-Employed Ecosystem. You'll find out what part of your business needs attention and you'll also get a few laser-focused insights to help you start closing that gap. Have Your Website Brand Message Reviewed! Is your website speaking the right LINGO of your ideal customers? Having reviewed hundreds of websites, I can tell you 98% of websites are not. Fill out the simple LINGO Review application and I'll take a look at your website. I'll email you a few suggestions to improve your brand message to attract more of your ideal customers. Fill out the application today and let's get your business speaking the right LINGO! Host Jeffrey Shaw is a Small Business Consultant, Brand Management Consultant, Business Coach for Entrepreneurs, Keynote Speaker, TEDx Speaker and author of LINGO and The Self Employed Life (May 2021). Supporting self-employed business owners with business and personal development strategies they need to create sustainable success.

Networking is a crucial aspect of any business. Whether you are just starting out or a seasoned business professional, building relationships can help you gain valuable insights and find new business opportunities.  This series shares conversations with four extraordinary business women, from the Warrior community, to discuss the skills of networking. Many people struggle with networking, or get started too late, and this is the conversation to put us on the right path. We will discuss how we can cultivate the proper mindset and what tips, stories and perspectives we can learn that will make us better networkers.We continue our series with Nancie McDonnell Ruder and she will share with our community her foundational principals of true relationship building.  She embodies concepts like “help and kindness”and shows us what good practices are around networking and relationship building.  She has a very thoughtful way of approaching these ideas, bringing clear and actionable tools that someone either early or late stage in their career can benefit from. Nancie McDonnell Ruder has dedicated her career to strengthening brands and the people who build them.With over 25 years of experience in marketing strategy, marketing training, branding and consumer research, Nancie has vast experience accelerating growth for companies by helping build their internal marketing strength – so external marketing efforts are focused and most effective. Nancie began her professional career with the Leo Burnett Company in Chicago, Illinois, where she spearheaded Leo Burnett's global new business efforts. Since launching Noetic Consulting, a marketing and leadership consultancy in 2002, Nancie has provided strategic guidance to clients large and small, including: AT&T, Discovery Channel, Georgetown University, Nike, Vail Resorts, Samsung Electronics, SC Johnson, Mayo Clinic, the Walt Disney Company and others. Noetic is proudly female owned and WBENC-Certified as a diversity owned business.(3:30) Nancie shares her philosophy and mindset around relationship building?(5:40) How does she teach her philosophy to people coming to work at Noetic?(9:38) Does Nancie find there is a difference between relationship building and networking?  How does she define each concept?(14:26) How does Nancie evaluate the health and well-being of her network?(16:40) The power of thoughtful introductions and how Nancie's philosophy is so effective.(20:09) - What advice does she have for someone who is in the early stages of their career?(23:52) When thinking about the arc of her own career, what stands out to Nancie as a pivotal relationship building experience?(26:53) How do these skills help Nancie in her personal life?(29:03) What does Nancie ask, offer and acknowledge to the Warrior community.  Connect with Nancie McDonnell Ruderhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/nancieatnoetic/Subscribe: Warriors At Work Podcasts Website: https://jeaniecoomber.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/986666321719033/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeanie_coomber/Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeanie_coomber LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeanie-coomber-90973b4/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbMZ2HyNNyPoeCSqKClBC_w

On this episode of Taste Buds with Deb, host Debra Eckerling speaks with adman Murray Kalis, who has worked on everything from Taster's Choice Decaffeinated Coffee, Kraft Foods, and KFC to Noah's Bagels, Starbucks, and Dave's Hot Chicken.   Kalis started his career in advertising in August 1970. He went from copywriter to VP/creative director with Leo Burnett in Chicago. He then moved to Los Angeles as creative head for Young & Rubicam, before starting his own agency. While Kalis has not solely worked on packaged goods (aka food), they have been a significant part of his creative endeavors over the years.    “The technology changes, people don't change,” Kalis says. “They're looking for that new taste, that new thing … or they're looking for the memory of something wonderful.”    He adds, “If they've tried you, you want to give them a reason to try you again. … People need to eat, but they want something special.”     Kalis shares how he got his start in advertising, some of his favorite food - and non-food - ad campaigns, and more. He also shares his recipe for Mexican No-Matzo Matzo Brei, which you can find at JewishJournal.com/podcasts. Connect with Murray Kalis on Linkedin. For more from Taste Buds, follow @TheDEBMethod on social media.

Welcome to a journey of leadership, personal growth, and impactful change. Brooke Skinner Ricketts hosts an inspiring conversation with Melissa Healy, who shares her journey from creative director to SVP at Leo Burnett, focusing on Employee Belonging and Participation. Melissa opens up about her evolution from early creative ambitions, through the trials of motherhood, to advocating for her disabled daughter. She illustrates how her unique, nonlinear path led to a fulfilling role that focuses on enhancing workplace culture and fostering employee engagement. The conversation explores the profound importance of community building, cultural enrichment, and the pivotal role of personal values in driving business success and societal impact.  Melissa's narrative is a testament to the power of authenticity, strategic relationships, and value-driven leadership. Visit our website where you will find show notes and links to all the resources in this episode, including the best way to get in touch with our special guest.  

Follow us on social @doseofblkjoy and learn more about “A Dose of Support” from the 4A's (American Association of Advertising Agencies): ⁠https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdEW1U3sVdZRCQHPVtmwxAITUEA5I4ojWGAgKJMMp3Tc63l-A/viewform?usp=sf_link⁠ “There is no better story than life itself.” Lewis Williams is EVP, Head of Brand Impact at legendary PR Agency Weber Shandwick. He has had successful careers at iconic agencies Leo Burnett and most recently Burrell Communications where he held the position of Chief Creative Officer. Having over 3 decades of Total Market and Multicultural consumer marketing experience, he's partnered with CMO's of some of the world's best-known brands to create award-winning creative and drive strategic and emotional connections to their customers. Lewis has deep experience working in automotive, food service, beverage, technology, financial, entertainment and consumer goods. Among those that he has represented are Toyota, McDonald's, Ancestry, The Coca-Cola Company, Google, U.S. Army, Walt Disney World, American Airlines, Disney and Procter and Gamble. Lewis has been recognized as one of Adweek's Creative 100, The Ad Club of New York's Icons, Rock Stars and Innovators, winner of creative accolades from The One Show, Communications Arts, London International Awards, Kelly Awards, New York Festivals, Clio Awards and serves on the Creative Review Committee for The Ad Council. He previous served as a PR Cannes Juror and was a juror member of Cannes Lions 70. Glass: The Lion for Change. He also was selected as an inaugural fellow for the Visiting Industry Professionals Fellowship at DePaul University College of Communications. Lewis is an advocate for significant representation for diversity in creative in the communications industry. As part of his commitment to diversity and mentorship, he is an instructor for The One School for African American students, sponsored by The One Club for Creativity.

Today's show is all about brand positioning. Learn how to think about developing it, how to make yourself unique, and how to make yourself stand out in your market. Our guest Ulli Appelbaum is an award-winning marketing and brand strategy consultant with more than 20 years of experience. Ulli's held leading strategy roles at some of the largest advertising agencies in the world, including, BBDO, Leo Burnett, Fallon Worldwide, and SapientNitro. He's contributed to seven Effies and an Advertising Research Foundation Ogilvy Award for Excellence in Research. In 2016, he founded a brand strategy firm called First The Trousers Then The Shoes Inc. He's also the author of the bestselling Brand Positioning Method Cards and you can find all of that at www.first-the-trousers.com This is the Brands On Brands Podcast with Brandon Birkmeyer CONNECT WITH ME Connect with me on social media: https://www.brandsonbrands.com/hotlinks JOIN THE PODCAST BRANDING ACADEMY Get tactical podcasting trainings and access to one-on-one coaching! https://www.podcastbrandingacademy.com THE PODCAST WALKTHROUGH & WORKSHEETS Quickly attract your first or next 1000 listeners. Get your free copy of The Podcast Walkthrough and worksheets. https://www.brandsonbrands.com/the-podcast-walkthrough

My guest this week is Nic Chidiac, Chief Strategy Officer for Razorfish, where he oversees brand and experience strategy. He's worked with CMOs from the biggest brands in the world across a wider range of categories, including QSR, travel, tech, automotive and government. Formerly with Leo Burnett, Nic brings a global lens to his CMO perspective as well, having spent his career working across markets in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and North America. We talk about everything you need to know about working with an agency, how to effectively use AI and what the changing role of the CMO means.

(Season 8 is in partnership with ⁠ADCOLOR⁠. ADCOLOR champions diversity and inclusion in creative industries) Danielle E. Wilburn is a Director of Program Management at Meta, leading brand excellence and infusing technology and innovation across the portfolio of brands with over 3.45B users. She sets an environment for fearless creativity to thrive by bringing cultural insights, strategic and operational rigor and motivational momentum. With every initiative, she navigates a multi-functional marketing organization, influences decision-makers, and aligns stakeholders across the company. Prior to switching over to tech, Danielle worked at advertising agencies FCB, Leo Burnett, and Ogilvy & Mather, which all contributed to her becoming an impactful team leader and creative marketer across a range of industries. She has a proven track record of building brands and relationships that drive business growth for Fortune 500 companies including The Boeing Company, Unilever, Kraft-Heinz, Burger King, and Whirlpool Corporation.   Danielle's recognition of the power of diversity has propelled her to be a change maker. Her sphere of influence spans beyond marketing to impact companies' culture at large. She has influenced many organizations to be anchored in inclusion, empathy, empowerment and solidarity. Danielle has been steadfast in her quest to ensure underrepresented people have a seat at the table to be decision-makers. She sparks honest conversation and creates programming to foster meaningful change around recruitment, hiring, and retention of people of color in the communications industry.      A natural born nurturer, Danielle lends her expertise as a mentor to anyone who asks and in some cases to those who don't. As an alum of the 4A's Multicultural Advertising Internship Program (MAIP) and ADCOLOR FUTURES program, she is passionate about developing and giving back to young professionals. A testament to this was her receiving the Coalesce Chicago 2015 Champion of Growth award and the ADCOLOR 2019 Unsung Hero award.  Danielle completed her B.S. and MBA at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and currently resides in Atlanta, GA. When not working, you can find her on an island, sipping on whiskey gingers dancing to the beat.

In this enlightening conversation, Executive Producer Chris Wurst shares his insightful journey from working on movies, reality shows, and music videos to becoming an integral part of the advertising industry at Leo Burnett. Chris talks about his initial interest in production, exposure to reality TV, transition into the music video world, and finally his role as executive producer at Leo Burnett. Chris also emphasizes the value of collaboration, authenticity, personality, and respecting time and effort in the ever-evolving creative industry. In an industry where the rules are always changing, it's helpful to hear from those on the front lines. Heather Elder is the visionary behind NotesFromARepsJournal.com; visit HeatherElder.com for industry updates, stunning photography and video, and the artists behind the work.   More about our guest: Find Chris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopherwurst/      More about your host: Heather Elder's Bio Heather Elder's Blog Heather Elder on Instagram Heather Elder on Twitter Heather Elder on LinkedIn Heather Elder on Facebook  

“Enjoy the journey, take stock in how you're learning, how you're building your experience, your brand. It's that openness and that patience that actually creates the opportunities for exponential success.” Andrew Swinand is the CEO of the Creative Group across all Publicis agencies, as well as the CEO of Leo Burnett As CEO, Andrew leads the agency by emphasizing the power of transparency in regards to data, and balances that with the creativity needed to drive businesses forward for clients. He was also the founder and CEO of marketing startup, The Abundancy, and co-founded its holding company Abundant Venture Partners (AVP), an incubator focused on building media and healthcare companies. Prior to that, he was president of Starcom MediaVest Group, the world's largest media agency. He also proudly served his country as a platoon leader in the U.S. Army. Andrew has been recognized by Advertising Age as a "Media Maven," and was inducted into the American Advertising Federation Hall of Achievement in 2008. Andrew has founded 9 companies, with 7 exits. And even worked on the Reflect Brand at P&G. You'll enjoy this candid conversation about focusing on problems to solve, cultivating a curious soul, and practicing kind leadership.

You should hear how Paanii Annan explains why Nikola Jokic is the best person to learn from as an Account Person.  Or what it's like to be a Brand Director on Nike at Wieden + Kennedy.  Or what it's like to move from Denver to Chicago for his first job at Leo Burnett in Chicago.  You should listen to his best advice for aspiring account professionals and the key attributes he exemplifies and looks for when he is hiring.  And you can ask him directly about these things after you listen, because he gives out his email at some random point in the podcast.  But, we will leave that for you to find; along the way, you will learn about his life and some valuable advice for all aspiring advice.  Listen to Paanii, for the golden nuggets of advice that could be the difference.  Links https://www.linkedin.com/in/paanii-annan-77285765/ https://www.crowbarawards.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/breaking-entering-podcast