Podcasts about processes

Want to Start or Grow a Successful Business? Schedule a FREE 13-Point Assessment with Clay Clark Today At: www.ThrivetimeShow.com   Join Clay Clark's Thrivetime Show Business Workshop!!! Learn Branding, Marketing, SEO, Sales, Workflow Design, Accounting & More. **Request Tickets & See Testimonials At: www.ThrivetimeShow.com  **Request Tickets Via Text At (918) 851-0102   See the Thousands of Success Stories and Millionaires That Clay Clark Has Helped to Produce HERE: https://www.thrivetimeshow.com/testimonials/ Download A Millionaire's Guide to Become Sustainably Rich: A Step-by-Step Guide to Become a Successful Money-Generating and Time-Freedom Creating Business HERE: www.ThrivetimeShow.com/Millionaire   See Thousands of Case Studies Today HERE: www.thrivetimeshow.com/does-it-work/  

This is episode 877. Read the complete transcription on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. This is an Office Hours: Sales Professors Unplugged sub-brand of the Sales Game Changers Podcast. Watch the video of this podcast on YouTube here. The Sales Game Changers Podcast was recognized by YesWare as the top sales podcast. Read the announcement here. FeedSpot named the Sales Game Changers Podcast at a top 20 Sales Podcast and top 8 Sales Leadership Podcast! Subscribe to the Sales Game Changers Podcast now on Apple Podcasts! Purchase Fred Diamond's best-sellers Love, Hope, Lyme: What Family Members, Partners, and Friends Who Love a Chronic Lyme Survivor Need to Know and Insights for Sales Game Changers now! The Institute for Effective Professional Selling has launched the Partner Revenue Academy for partner account managers who are looking to become more effective active sellers. The next 6-session cohort launches on October 16. Learn more here. Today's show featured an interview with Andy McGowan, Director of the Center for Professional Selling at Virginia Commonwealth Universisty; and Daniel Kane, Director of Training, Systems and Processes at Curbell Plastics. Find Andy on LinkedIn. Find Daniel on LinkedIn.  ANDY'S TIP: "Sales is hard. It's not easy. You have to learn to talk to people… You have to get out there and you have to talk to people." DAN'S TIP: "Invest in yourself… invest in your own learning too. You want to go buy that book, that book about sales, go buy it. Go spend the 12 bucks, go spend the 15 bucks, read it and learn from it and pass it on."

Failure becomes dangerous when you turn a bad outcome into a judgment about who you are.A loss is information.In this episode of The Level Up Podcast, Paul Alex breaks down how entrepreneurs can stop internalizing setbacks and start treating failure as data that improves the next decision.A rejected pitch does not mean you are incapable.A failed campaign does not mean the business is doomed.It means something inside the process needs to be examined.That distinction changes everything.In this episode, you'll learn:• Why separating your identity from business outcomes improves resilience• How failure can reveal weaknesses inside your systems and strategy• Why analyzing losses creates more useful lessons than simply reacting emotionally• How rapid iteration helps turn setbacks into operational improvementsThe truth is simple:Do not waste the loss.Study it.Find the exact point where the process failed.Ask what could have been handled differently.Then turn that lesson into a permanent improvement.Every setback should leave the operation stronger than it was before.Strip away the emotion.Read the data.Fix the system.Then get back into the market and test again.Your Network is your NETWORTH!Make sure to add me on all SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS:Instagram: https://jo.my/paulalex2024Facebook: https://jo.my/fbpaulalex2024YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGhDAD1JyGGzSQUPD9lc9HQLinkedIn: https://jo.my/inpaulalex2024Looking for a secondary source of income or want to become an entrepreneur? Check out one of my companies below to see if we can help you:www.CashSwipe.comFREE Copy of my book “Blue to Digital Gold - The New American Dream”www.officialPaulAlex.com

Inertia is one of the most powerful forces slowing sales in Japan. The buyer may already have a regular supplier. Or we may be introducing a solution they have never used before. In either case, buying from us requires change on their side. And in many Japanese buying situations, change is viewed first as risk, not opportunity. Doing nothing is easy. Staying with the existing supplier is easy. Changing systems, processes, vendors, internal responsibilities, budgets or routines is much harder. That is why salespeople in Japan need to stop thinking only about getting the first deal done. A better mindset is to think about the re-order. If we concentrate only on winning the initial sale, the slow pace and internal obstacles can become enormously frustrating. If we concentrate on creating a relationship that will generate repeated business, we are more likely to do the patient work required to reduce friction and make the first purchase successful. Why is buyer inertia such a major issue in Japanese sales? Buyer inertia is powerful in Japan because remaining with the familiar option usually feels safer than introducing change. The salesperson therefore has to overcome not only competitors, but also the buyer's preference for avoiding unnecessary risk. If the client already has a supplier, switching to us means disrupting an established arrangement. Someone has to approve the change. Someone may have to explain why the existing supplier is no longer sufficient. Processes may need to change. People may need to learn something new. Other divisions may be affected. If our solution is completely new, the uncertainty becomes even greater because the buyer has no internal history to rely on. The current situation may not be ideal, but at least it is known. That is a powerful psychological advantage. This is why the familiar expression, "better the Devil you know than the Angel you don't", applies particularly well to sales. We are the Angel they don't know. Our job is therefore not merely to prove that our solution is better. We have to make changing to our solution feel manageable, practical and sufficiently low risk. Do now: Before your next proposal, ask yourself: "What changes will the buyer have to make internally if they say yes to us?" Why can trying to speed up a Japanese sales process actually slow it down? Speed is not always interpreted positively in Japanese B2B sales. If the buyer believes a decision is being rushed before all risks have been examined, moving quickly can make the proposal feel more dangerous rather than more attractive. Salespeople naturally want momentum. We have targets. We have forecasts. We have reporting deadlines. We want the client to make the decision now. The buyer does not care about our schedule. As I remind myself, the buyer in Japan is never on your schedule. The buyer is concerned with what happens inside their organisation after they make the purchase. The salesperson may be talking to one section, but the consequences of that buying decision can spread across multiple divisions. Operations may be affected. Finance may need to alter payment arrangements. IT may have integration issues. Procurement may have procedures to follow. Managers may need to explain the change to employees. The faster we push, the more uncomfortable the buyer may become if those internal questions have not been resolved. Do now: Instead of asking, "How can I make them decide faster?", ask, "What is making this decision difficult to progress?" How can salespeople identify the internal stakeholders creating friction? The salesperson needs to use the client contact to map which sections will be affected by the change and which stakeholders are likely to support or resist the proposal. This is not always easy. We may never meet the people in the other sections. We may never hear their objections directly. Our contact therefore becomes enormously important. We need to ask them for the lay of the land inside their organisation. One useful question is: "I really appreciate all of your guidance and I understand that buying from us would be a new thing inside the company. I am sure there are many sections which would be directly impacted by making this change and based on your expert knowledge of the organisation, who would you say would be those most affected?" Then stop talking. This is important. Salespeople often ruin good questions because they become uncomfortable with silence and start talking again. Do not dilute the power of the question. Ask it. Then shut up. Give the buyer time to think. Their answer starts giving us a map of the internal decision-making landscape. Do now: Identify the sections most affected by the purchase, not just the people formally approving it. What should salespeople ask about each stakeholder's concerns? Once the affected sections have been identified, the salesperson should explore what each group is worried about and what information could reduce those concerns. Suppose the buyer mentions that Section ABC will be heavily affected. Do not stop there. We need to understand what ABC is likely to worry about. We can say: "It is natural for the key sections you have nominated to take this change seriously and for them to investigate all angles involved. Often I have found that we have information which may not be known to these sections, which would change their perception of the ease of making the change. What would you say would be the major concerns of the ABC section?" Again, stop talking. Let them answer. Notice the framing. We are not accusing ABC of being negative. We are recognising that careful investigation is natural and legitimate. That makes it easier for our contact to discuss resistance without appearing disloyal to colleagues. This is particularly important in Japan, where openly criticising another department can be uncomfortable. Do now: For each important stakeholder, ask: "What would make this change difficult from their point of view?" Why do salespeople need to probe two or three levels deeper? The first answer is often not the real obstacle. Salespeople need to keep probing because the most useful information frequently emerges only after the buyer has had time to think more deeply. Suppose our contact tells us ABC Section has one major concern. Good. Now keep going. Say: "Thank you for mentioning that. Apart from this concern, can you think of other major hesitations which we may need to work on solving for them?" This second or third level is often where the useful information appears. The first response may simply be whatever came immediately to mind. When we give the buyer more time to consider the issue, they can think through the internal consequences more carefully. Another concern appears. Then another. Now we are getting somewhere. We should repeat this process for all of the key divisions likely to be affected. By the end of the conversation, we are no longer simply selling a product or service. We are beginning to understand the internal mechanics of making the purchase possible. Do now: Never assume the first objection is the only objection. Ask, "Apart from that, what else might make this difficult?" How can sellers reduce friction once they understand the obstacles? Once friction points are visible, the salesperson should redesign the implementation so the buyer can change with less risk, less disruption and less internal resistance. This is where professional selling really begins. Perhaps we need to slow the process down. Maybe the client needs more time to prepare internally. Perhaps we should reduce the scope of the initial deal and introduce additional elements later. Maybe the payment schedule needs to fit the client's budgeting cycle or current cash-flow situation. Perhaps the buyer needs a pilot programme before they feel comfortable committing to a larger rollout. A pilot can be particularly powerful. It creates a low-risk opportunity for the client to see how the solution works. They can understand what internal adjustments are required. They can identify problems while the scale is still manageable. Once the solution is proven, increasing the size or frequency of the delivery becomes easier. The aim is not to force the buyer through their resistance. The aim is to remove the causes of resistance wherever we can. Do now: Look at every friction point and ask: "Can we remove it, reduce it, delay it or test it on a smaller scale?" Why should salespeople in Japan sell for the re-order rather than the first order? The real objective is not merely to win one transaction. It is to create a first experience that makes the second purchase easier, faster and more natural. This mindset changes how we behave. If all we want is the initial order, we may push too hard. We may promise too much. We may force the buyer to make changes faster than their organisation can comfortably absorb them. That may win the first sale and destroy the chance of the second. If we think instead about the re-order, patience becomes logical. We want the first implementation to work. We want the client's internal stakeholders to feel comfortable. We want those who supported the purchase to look good. We want the organisation to say: "That worked. Let's do it again." That is when the relationship becomes much more valuable. The first sale often requires enormous energy because we are unknown. Once the buyer has experienced successful delivery, trust grows and resistance falls. That is the point. Do now: Design the first transaction so that success naturally leads to the next one. How should professional salespeople reduce sales friction in Japan? There are no shortcuts. We need to understand what the buyer must go through internally to implement what we are proposing. That requires intelligent, carefully constructed questions. We need to identify who will be affected. We need to discover who is supportive and who is resistant. We need to understand each stakeholder's concerns. We need to keep probing beyond the first answer. Then we need to adjust the deal. Maybe we slow down. Maybe we simplify. Maybe we change the payment schedule. Maybe we begin with a pilot. Maybe we remove parts of the proposal and add them back later. The objective is to make the change as friction-free as possible. We are all creatures of habit. The buyer already knows the existing supplier, process or solution. They do not know us. That means we have to make the unfamiliar feel safe. Do that well and the first order becomes possible. Do it extremely well and the re-orders become easier. That is the real objective of professional selling in Japan. Author bio Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie One Carnegie Award (2018 and 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver programmes globally across leadership, communication, sales and presentations, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including the best-sellers Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery and Japan Presentations Mastery, as well as Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー). Greg also publishes daily business insights on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter and hosts six weekly podcasts. On YouTube, he produces The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery and Japan's Top Business Interviews for executives and professionals seeking practical strategies for succeeding in Japan.

Parliament will have a hectic week ahead in its legislative processes. Parliamentarians are expected to return from the constituency break to resume their fourth quarter programme. Both the Ad Hoc Committee and the Impeachment Committee are part of the line up. In addition, the Powers and Privileges Committee into allegations of alleged misconduct constituting contempt of Parliament committees by the EFF leader, Julius Malema, and fellow party MP, Sinawo Thambo, are on the scorecard of the political enrolment. Abongwe Kobokana reports...

State boards of pharmacy play a critical role in protecting the public, but they also have an imperative to support the well-being of the professionals they regulate. In this episode, we explore the Dr. Lorna Breen Foundation's Wellbeing First Champion Challenge and its efforts to remove barriers that prevent healthcare workers from seeking mental health care. The information presented during the podcast reflects solely the opinions of the presenter. The information and materials are not, and are not intended as, a comprehensive source of drug information on this topic. The contents of the podcast have not been reviewed by ASHP, and should neither be interpreted as the official policies of ASHP, nor an endorsement of any product(s), nor should they be considered as a substitute for the professional judgment of the pharmacist or physician.

From Lab to Startup: How Technology Is Changing the Future of Healthcare With Chris Yoo of Xcellerant Ventures AZ TRT S07 EP16 (298) 9-20/2027 What  We Learned This Week A Startup Is More Than an Idea A great idea is only the starting point. Investors also look at the founder, team, execution, market, technology and ability to adapt. Idea → Team → Execution → Business New Jetstream Fund for the average Investor. Venture Capital Is About De-Risking Early-stage investing isn't about eliminating uncertainty. It's about progressively reducing it. Research creates information. Information creates validation. Validation reduces risk. Technology Is Compressing the Timeline of Healthcare Innovation Genomics, sequencing, AI and computing are allowing researchers to perform certain processes dramatically faster and cheaper than in the past. That creates opportunities to move discoveries from the laboratory toward actual medical applications. Arizona Has a Growing Technology-to-Enterprise Pipeline Arizona's technology ecosystem isn't just startups. It includes: Universities → Research → IP → Entrepreneurs → Capital → Companies → Commercialization The universities and research institutions are important pieces of that pipeline. The Next Healthcare Revolution May Come From Data The conversation around genomics, eye scans, AI and precision medicine points toward a broader change: The human body is becoming a source of increasingly usable data. The opportunity is to turn that data into better diagnosis, more personalized treatment and potentially earlier prevention.     AZ Tech Show Notes — Chris Yoo, Xcellerant Ventures September 2026 Guest: Chris Yoo, PhD Organization: Xcellerant Ventures Website: https://www.xcellerantventures.com/ Jetstream Fund: https://www.jvf.vc/ WHY VENTURE CAPITAL? Venture capital is where tomorrow's wealth is created. For decades, venture capital has been among the strongest-performing asset classes for long-term investors. Invest in Tomorrow's Transformation   Xcellerant Ventures is a venture capital company that invests in technologies that power the future of healthcare by providing solutions that improve quality, efficiency, access, and delivery of care at lowered costs.   We lead with a people first philosophy. When we put our knowledge, power, and experience into people, we empower entrepreneurs to change the world for the better.   Bio Dr. Chris Yoo is not only a successful entrepreneur; he's an innovative visionary within the healthcare and life science startup ecosystem. With over 25 years of experience, Chris is building companies and the very foundation upon which future breakthroughs are made. Chris accomplishes this through his unique blend of scientific expertise, entrepreneurial acumen, and a deep commitment to fostering collaborative ecosystems.   As a serial entrepreneur, Chris consistently bridges the gap between cutting-edge science and impactful solutions. From co-founding Systems Imagination, a pioneer in AI for drug discovery, to shaping the future of cancer treatment with Systems Oncology, his ventures consistently champion disruptive technologies. Beyond these ventures, Chris' track record speaks volumes. He successfully founded and exited ventures including MedTrust Online, the world's first online cancer doctor community, TransMed Partners, the first boutique consultancy for translational medicine, and LabBook, the pioneering electronic lab notebook. His ability to not only identify these innovations but also shepherd them towards successful application solidifies Chris' position as a leader at the forefront of the bioscience revolution.   Partners:   John Shufeldt, MD, JD, MBA, FACEP General Partner ·         BA, Sociology and Criminology: Drake University ·         MD: The Rosalind Franklin School of Medicine & Science ·         MBA, JD, & Six Sigma Black Belt: Arizona State University ·         Certificate in Entrepreneurism and Innovation: Harvard ·         Certificate in AI: Massachusetts Institute of Technology   Douglas (Doug) Sylvester, JD, LLM General Partner ·         BA, University of Toronto ·         JD, University of Buffalo School of Law ·         LLM, New York University School of Law   Michael Shufeldt, MBA General Partner ·         BS, International/Global Studies, University of Arizona ·         MBA, Arizona State University   Focus: Technology, healthcare, life sciences, biotech, startups and early-stage investing Episode Overview Chris Yoo brings a unique perspective to the Arizona technology ecosystem, combining a background in cell biology and healthcare with venture capital and startup investing. With a PhD in cell biology from Yale, Chris has spent much of his career thinking about fundamental questions in medicine: Why do people get diseases? How can we diagnose them? And how can we develop better treatments? Today, through Xcellerant Ventures and the Jetstream Fund, he works with founders developing technologies in healthcare, life sciences, biotech and other emerging technology sectors. A major theme throughout the conversation was de-risking — taking something that is unknown and making it less unknown through research, data, testing, execution and commercialization.   Segment 1 — What Makes a Startup Investable? Startup ≠ Just a Great Idea A startup begins with an idea, but venture investors aren't simply investing in ideas. They are evaluating: The founder The team The market The technology The ability to execute The company's strategy The company's ability to adapt Chris emphasized the importance of the founder/funder relationship. The founder may have the original vision, but the company will evolve considerably as it moves from an idea toward a real business. Founder vs. Idea Chris is less concerned about whether a company has: One founder, or A founding team What matters is whether the people involved have clearly defined roles and responsibilities and whether those roles fit their individual strengths. A startup eventually needs expertise in areas such as: Engineering Sales Marketing Operations Product development Finance Those needs change as the company grows. The Founder's Dilemma One of the challenges for founders is recognizing that the company changes as it grows. The person who is perfect for getting a company from zero to one may not necessarily be the person who should manage every function when the company becomes much larger. The company needs to evolve. Different Stages Require Different Capital Chris discussed the distinction between different stages of startup funding. For example: Pre-seed → Seed → Early Growth → Later Stage And there is an important distinction between: Pre-revenue and pre-seed. A company can be extremely early while still having different levels of valuation, technology development and market evidence. De-Risking One of the most important venture capital concepts from the conversation: De-risking means making unknowns less unknown. Investors don't expect every question to be answered at the beginning. Instead, they want to see progress: Unknown → Research → Data → Validation → Commercialization Each stage provides more information and reduces uncertainty. Segment 2 — From Cell Biology to Technology Chris's background starts in healthcare and life sciences. He earned his PhD in Cell Biology from Yale, studying fundamental questions around disease: Why do diseases happen? How can they be diagnosed? How can they be treated? That scientific background influences how he approaches startups today. Think Critically About Problems A recurring theme was the importance of thinking critically about the actual problem before jumping to the solution. Technology creates new possibilities, but the technology still has to solve a meaningful problem. Technology Has Accelerated Healthcare The growth of computing, data, genomics and sequencing has dramatically accelerated life-science research. Processes that once took: Months Millions of dollars $ Large teams can now sometimes be completed in: Days At dramatically lower costs With significantly more data Genomic sequencing is one example. The cost and speed of sequencing have changed dramatically over the past several decades. Technology + Life Sciences Chris sees enormous potential where technology intersects with biology. Examples include: Genomics Gene sequencing Artificial intelligence Cell therapies Data analysis Precision medicine Drug development The goal isn't technology for technology's sake. The goal is ultimately to translate technology into medicine. From General Treatment to Personalized Treatment One of the biggest possibilities is moving toward treatments that are increasingly tailored to the individual patient. Instead of simply asking: "What drug treats this disease?" the question becomes: "What treatment is most appropriate for this particular patient?" That shift could fundamentally change medicine. Segment 3 — Arizona's Technology & Life Sciences Ecosystem Xcellerant Ventures focuses heavily on Arizona companies, particularly in: Healthcare Life sciences Biotechnology Technology Military/defense applications Dual-use technologies The Xcellerant team brings multiple areas of expertise to the table. Chris has the scientific background, while partners bring expertise in areas such as medicine and intellectual property. More Than Just Money A venture investor can provide founders with more than capital. They can bring: Industry knowledge Scientific expertise Operating experience Networks Business models Strategic guidance Commercialization expertise The objective is to help founders move from technology to enterprise. Arizona's Ecosystem Chris emphasized that Arizona has a much larger technology and life-sciences ecosystem than many people realize. Universities and research institutions play an important role. Organizations and institutions mentioned during the conversation included: Arizona State University University of Arizona ASU's medical programs Grand Canyon University University technology commercialization programs UA Tech Launch GC Ventures The Flinn Foundation Universities serve as important sources of: Research → Innovation → Intellectual Property → Companies An Example: Eye Technology Chris discussed Mu Medical, a Minnesota company developing a highly precise eye-drop delivery device called the NanoDropper. The company is led by a medical doctor, Elisa Song, and has a small founding team. Website: https://www.mumedical.com/   The broader opportunity involves oculomics — using information from the eye to learn more about a person's overall health. The eye can potentially provide biological information that extends well beyond traditional eye diseases. Segment 4 — The Eye as a Window Into Health One of the most interesting concepts discussed was the growing ability to use eye scans and imaging data to identify patterns associated with broader health conditions. Think about the progression: Eye image → Data → Pattern recognition → AI → Diagnosis/Prediction → Treatment/Prevention The opportunity goes beyond traditional eye conditions such as glaucoma. Chris compared the growing understanding of eye health with what we've learned about: Dental health Sleep Heart health Overall wellness The larger idea is that different parts of the body can provide data about the health of the entire system. Genomics and Oculomics Genomics looks at information contained in our genes. Oculomics looks at information contained in the eye. Both represent a broader movement toward using biological data to better understand individual health. Jetstream Fund — Opening Early-Stage Investing Chris also discussed the Jetstream Fund, which is designed to give investors access to early-stage technology investing with smaller investment amounts. Traditional venture capital funds generally have: General Partners (GPs) who manage the fund and Limited Partners (LPs) who provide capital. The Jetstream approach allows investors to participate with smaller checks, potentially around $5,000–$25,000, rather than requiring the much larger commitments often associated with traditional venture capital. The concept is to bring more investors into the early-stage technology ecosystem. The broader investment thesis involves finding technology that has already demonstrated meaningful development and helping companies commercialize that technology.     Tech Topic: https://brt-show.libsyn.com/category/Tech-Startup-VC-Cybersecurity-Energy-Science  Best of Tech: https://brt-show.libsyn.com/size/5/?search=best+of+tech   'Best Of' Topic: https://brt-show.libsyn.com/category/Best+of+BRT      Thanks for Listening. Please Subscribe to the AZ TRT Podcast.     AZ Tech Roundtable 2.0 with Matt Battaglia The show where Entrepreneurs, Top Executives, Founders, and Investors come to share insights about the future of business.  AZ TRT 2.0 looks at the new trends in business, & how classic industries are evolving.  Common Topics Discussed: Startups, Founders, Funds & Venture Capital, Business, Entrepreneurship, Biotech, Blockchain / Crypto, Executive Comp, Investing, Stocks, Real Estate + Alternative Investments, and more…    AZ TRT Podcast Home Page: http://aztrtshow.com/ 'Best Of' AZ TRT Podcast: Click Here Podcast on Google: Click Here Podcast on Spotify: Click Here                    More Info: https://www.economicknight.com/azpodcast/ KFNX Info: https://1100kfnx.com/weekend-featured-shows/  

When "national security" gets invoked, is it actually about protecting the country—or bypassing the law? Michael Steele uncovers how high-stakes foreign policy, quiet media blackouts, and bizarre proposals are being leveraged for political gain. You'll get a clear, unfiltered look at how fear is turned into electoral strategy, why key institutions are being tested, and what these precedents mean for your vote and the future of American democracy.Catch Michael Steele on The Weeknight Mondays - Fridays at 7pm EST on MSNBC: https://www.msnbc.com/weeknightFollow Michael on X: https://x.com/MichaelSteeleFollow Michael on Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/michaelsteele.bsky.socialFollow Michael on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chairman_steele/Follow Michael on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@chairman_steeleListen to The Michael Steele Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-michael-steele-podcast/id1412905534Watch The Michael Steele Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJNKzTkCZE9uNqPiKYw5eU5YkS_mMsr6oIf you enjoyed this, be sure to share it with a friend!

Hear more from Ru Kuwahata and Max Porter of Tiny Inventions on using grants and residencies in Europe to fund their animation practice, negotiating the slow, labor-intensive process of stop-motion animation with the demands of commercial clients, how even an Oscar nomination didn't prevent future failures or rejections, making the hard decision to shelve a feature film they'd worked on for years, and how they balance their time between family, teaching, and running a small business.    Aura House – Podcast sponsor, premium home fragrance diffusers that will make your home smell like a spa with scents that are cruelty free, vegan, and safe for pets! Get 10% off on top of their site discounts with our discount code STUDIO10 at www.aurahouse.com (*affiliate link)   "How to Find and Land Large-Scale Public Art Projects" – Register for co-host Nicole Mueller's upcoming virtual workshop! Use the code EARLYBIRD for 15% off through September 30th, 2026 at www.nicolemariemueller.com/workshops   Find links to resources mentioned throughout the episode here in our show notes:  beyondthe.studio   Submit to our Listener Spotlight: Listener Spotlight    Follow us on Instagram at: @beyondthestudio 

Welcome, welcome, welcome to the Distraction Pieces Podcast with Scroobius Pip!This week Pip is joined by the brilliant actor of stage and screen RALF LITTLE!Fresh from a huge theatre round of 'The Spy Who Came In From The Cold', Ralf joins Pip for a long overdue chat which seemingly goes off on a bunch of tangents, but on closer inspection you'll hear how connected each strand really is. Of course a huge section involves acting and the science behind the performance (or more accurately, how to portray a role while not losing touch with your own brain), but elsewhere there are great angles involving the upcoming 'Hunting Alice Bell' and where the story came from, working with David Baddiel, the all seeing eye of Simon Pegg, getting into and out of Twitter storms, the mental clarity one can achieve by simply putting the phone down, expectations of various societal groups and mansplaining the 'Me Too' movement to a non-male acquaintance. It's a lot! Enjoy.PIP'S PATREON PAGE if you're of a supporting natureIMDBTHE SPY WHO CAME IN FROM THE COLDHUNTING ALICE BELLSPEECH DEVELOPMENT WEBSTOREPIP TWITCH • (music stuff)PIP INSTAGRAMPIP TWITTERPIP PATREONPIP IMDB Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dennis Jackson is the Managing Partner at WorX Solutions, a company that helps small and midsize businesses simplify operations through automation, digital transformation, and tailored software. Drawing on a background in accounting and operations, Dennis identifies hidden inefficiencies, connects disconnected systems, and reduces repetitive data entry. His relationship-first approach helps owners improve visibility, cut unnecessary costs, and scale without adding staff. Earlier roles at Marathon Oil, 7-Eleven, and Frito-Lay shaped his expertise in process improvement.  In this episode… Manual data entry and disconnected spreadsheets can feel like business as usual. But their costs often hide in payroll. What are those workarounds costing you in profit today — and business value tomorrow? Dennis Jackson, an expert in operations and business automation, explains that manual work can limit a team's capacity, while better systems can support revenue growth and make a business more attractive to buyers. Start by mapping the tools employees use, where information gets reentered, and which reports arrive too late to guide decisions. Dennis recommends keeping the software that works and fixing one manageable bottleneck before expanding automation. AI should support sound processes, with people still involved in reviewing its output. The goal is more than saving time: it's building a business that can grow with its existing team and transfer to a buyer without depending on the owner for everything. In this episode of Owner's Profit Playbook, Pat Mancuso talks with Dennis Jackson, Managing Partner at WorX Solutions, about the hidden costs of manual processes and their impact on business valuation. Dennis shares how to identify profit leaks, start with one automation win, and grow without adding staff. He also explains why AI needs human oversight.

  Still tasked with doing more with less, agencies everywhere are focused on how to get more "bang for the buck," especially when it comes to AI.   In this week's episode of Feds at the Edge, technology leaders share how they are staying ahead in the era of AI without breaking their limited budgets.   Lorain County, Ohio's Todd Sharkey opens with some concepts that may not be obvious. Because most county staffs are, by definition, small, he suggests looking beyond your own organization for help and learning from others facing the same challenges. Khaled Twafik expands on the value of collaboration, particularly when it comes to sharing resources, setting standards and making the case for AI investments.   Priorities also matter when deciding where to invest. Kate May from Granicus discusses how organizations can identify the processes and workflows where AI may have the greatest impact, and how understanding true constraints can help set realistic goals.   Tune in on your favorite podcasting platform to hear practical perspectives on making AI more approachable, affordable and useful, even when budgets and resources are limited.  

In this presentation we will follow the brewing process and discuss each point where mechanical separation (centrifugation) can be used. From decanters for trub removal/wort recovery in the brew house to using decanters or sedicanters for heavy fermenter bottoms dewatering for beer recovery to disc separators for clarification of final product before packaging. We will highlight the pros and cons at each step, which systems are idea for different size breweries, and discuss how these systems are implemented. We'll touch on hygienic design, cleanability, service and maintenance, and some general process data to tie the whole thing together.Christian Pettit is the Flottweg regional sales/industry manager for brewing and distilling. He has 21 years experience as a service technician, process engineer and sales engineer with the company and has worked across all industries in his tenure with them. He has been a craft beer enthusiast since 1995 and thoroughly enjoys all aspects of the industry. His favorite brewery industry events are CBC, anything CBP related, and Dark Lord Day m/Join us in person for CBP Connects TampaDecember 7-9, 2026Come get inspired, leave with actionable strategies: https://cbpconnects.com/

Build Better Business Systems: Create Predictable Processes, Empower Your Team & Scale Successfully  Hi everyone, Carl Gould here with your #70secondCEO. Just a little over a one-minute investment every day for a lifetime of results.  That's a system: an activity or group of activities you can remove yourself from. Now, remember way back when we were talking about the discovery process, and we said, "Every job has a personality." Every industry has a personality. Well, in your business, each job will start to assume its own personality. Systems, by their very nature, are predictable; they're consistent, they're reliable, they're scheduled, and they're very structured. That comes with a slower pace. The pace will slow a bit. Just as you were being patient with yourself in stage three, it's now time to be patient with others, meaning your staff. You need to stay the course.  Like and follow this podcast so you can learn more. My name is Carl Gould, and this has been your #70secondCEO.  

Protecting Medicaid access starts with identifying coverage risks before paperwork problems interrupt care. In this episode, Asya Rudikoff, Co-Founder and CEO of AccessIQ, discusses how her experience as a physical therapist and home healthcare leader exposed the consequences of preventable Medicaid disenrollment. She explains how procedural issues, including missed forms, outdated contact information, and complicated renewal processes, can cause eligible patients to lose coverage. Asya also explores how these disruptions affect families, provider revenue, hospitals, health plans, and state healthcare spending. She shares how AccessIQ uses coverage signals to identify at-risk patients, help organizations prioritize outreach, and shift Medicaid coverage management from reactive problem-solving to proactive prevention. Tune in and learn how actionable data can help protect Medicaid coverage, preserve access to care, and support healthcare organizations. Resources Connect with Asya Rudikoff on LinkedIn. Follow AccessIQ Health on LinkedIn and visit its website. Connect with Asya Rudikoff via email at asya@accessiq.health

Creative Learning Processes occur when we choose scenario based learning solutions.You can use a variety of learning solutions.

Daniel Dines is one of the greatest European founders of the last decade. As the Co-Founder of UiPath, he has scaled the business to a market cap high of $ 44BN in 2021, with the company now generating $1.72BN in revenue, growing 15% year-on-year. The company raised $2BN before its IPO, backed by Sequoia, Accel, CapitalG, Coatue and Kleiner Perkins.  AGENDA:  05:00 Why Dario is Wrong About Millions of AI Einsteins? 13:00 Is AI Safety Becoming an Excuse to Kill Open Source? 21:00 Does UiPath Really Need 4,000 Employees? 28:00 Would You Help Train the AI That Could Replace You? 32:00 What Percent of Salary Spend Does Daniel Spend on Inference? 34:00 Can You Really Vibe Code Your Way Out of Paying for Software? 37:00 Why Would Anyone Take Their Company Public Today? 39:00 Could an OpenAI–Anthropic Duopoly Break Nvidia's Business? 45:00 Will AI Models Capture the Value—or Will the Apps? 49:00 Is Fireworks Still Undervalued at $15 Billion? 56:00 Has Europe Already Lost—and Should Founders Leave? 1:03:00 What Could Kill UiPath—and How Is AI Changing the CEO's Job? 1:06:00 60 Supplements a Day: How Far Would You Go to Live Longer?

Because we're all humans who see the world from our unique perspective, it is inevitable that we will experience conflict in all of our relationships. As we increase our emotional maturity we are able to lean into these conflicts to create connection rather than contention. But what does it look and sound like? That's what we're talking about on this podcast. I have lots of examples for you to understand where you are in your journey to stronger emotional maturity, and be sure to check out the show notes below for more podcasts that will grow your capacity and skills for having more emotionally mature conflict. Thanks for listening!  Want to learn more about this concept?  Check out these podcasts: #3 Resolving Conflict on Apple on Spotify #5 Learning to Listen on Apple on Spotify #20 Blame and Responsibility on Apple on Spotify #77 Other People's Opinions on Apple on Spotify #110 The Cost of Being Right on Apple on Spotify #117 Anti-Responsibility on Apple on Spotify #118 100% Responsibility  on Apple  on Spotify #147 Hijacked By Your Emotions on Apple on Spotify #148 Grace & Grudges in Our Relationships on Apple on Spotify #156 The Benefits of Being Wrong on Apple on Spotify #164 How Being in Control is Destroying Your Life on Apple on Spotify #165 I Would Never Act That Way on Apple on Spotify #166 Imaginary Friends on Apple on Spotify #167 I Didn't Sign Up For This on Apple on Spotify #193 No Back-Burner Issues on Apple on Spotify #194 When You Feel Sad, Or Bad, or Mad on Apple on Spotify #196 How to Break the Blame/Defense Cycle on Apple on Spotify #197 Connecting Through Conflict on Apple on Spotify #216 One Up and One Down Relationships on Apple on Spotify #239 How to Own Your Own on Apple on Spotify #242 Circling Back Around on Apple on Spotify #243 Having More Honest Communication on Apple on Spotify #244 The Relationship Circle on Apple on Spotify #245 Transactional Relationships on Apple on Spotify #251 Contention is a Choice on Apple on Spotify #258 Communication That Connects on Apple on Spotify #272 Stay In Your Lane on Apple on Spotify #286 How Miscommunication Destroys Relationships on Apple on Spotify #288 When You're in a Tough Marriage on Apple on Spotify #289 Why Our Relationships Needs Validation on Apple on Spotify #290 Resentment and Contempt in Our Relationships on Apple on Spotify #297 Why Can't We Just All Get Along on Apple on Spotify #298 Friendship in Marriage on Apple on Spotify #304 Personalities, Preferences, and Perspectives on Apple on Spotify #307 Curiosity, Not Criticism on Apple on Spotify #319 Get Ready to Rock The Boat on Apple on Spotify #331 Sense of Self on Apple on Spotify #332 Sense of Self – It's All In Your Head on Apple on Spotify #346 How to Stop Reacting and Start Responding on Apple on Spotify #357 How to Be More Understanding on Apple on Spotify #369 Normal, Difficult, Human Interactions on Apple on Spotify #370 Conscious Conflict on Apple on Spotify #386 Overcoming Resentment on Apple on Spotify #392 Vulnerability and Validation on Apple on Spotify #404: People Over Problems and Processes on Apple on Spotify #405: How to Create a Partnership on Apple on Spotify #408: When You Get Triggered on Apple on Spotify Are you curious about what it would be like to work with me? Here are three options: Group coaching classes are available at tanyahale.com/groupcoaching Talk with Tanya is a free monthly webinar where you can ask me anything and we can have a great discussion.  You can sign up for that at tanyahale.com/groupcoaching Interested in one-on-one coaching and a free 90-minute coaching/consult with me?  Access my calendar at: https://tanyahalecalendar.as.me/

Laura Bonamici - Former Global Head of Marketing, Fujitsu "Leadership is increasingly an act of translation." "The role of leadership was not to force speed, it was to create the conditions where speed could emerge." "Perfection was never the problem, but waiting for it was." "You become geographically global, but you're remaining intellectually domestic." "Ultimately, what you leave behind is that beating heart, and you leave that through people."   Laura Bonamici is the former Global Head of Marketing for Fujitsu and spent four years in Japan helping lead major transformation within one of the country's best-known technology companies. Born and raised in Sardinia, Italy, she built her career almost entirely outside her home country. After completing university, she moved to the United Kingdom, then Germany and eventually Japan. She describes her career as one of "leading away from home", repeatedly operating as an outsider who must understand a new environment while still delivering organisational results. Her original assignment in Japan was expected to last around 18 months, but the scale and complexity of the transformation extended her stay to four years. During that period, Fujitsu was pursuing an ambitious mid-term plan and expanding its Uvance digital services portfolio, with marketing playing an important role in the company's transformation. Japan ultimately forced Bonamici to question leadership approaches that had previously worked successfully elsewhere. The experience strengthened her belief that effective global leadership depends upon understanding context, translating between different perspectives and bringing people with you through change.   Laura Bonamici's lessons about leadership in Japan begin somewhere unexpected: mushroom hunting in Sardinia. As a teenager, she would accompany her father into the woods at six o'clock in the morning. It did not matter how late she had stayed out the previous night. If she had promised to go, she was expected to be standing at the door on time. The first lesson was trust: if people cannot rely on your word, nothing else works. Her father also taught her not to rush into the woods searching for mushrooms. First, they stopped, crouched down and allowed their eyes to adjust to the colours, light and patterns around them. The lesson she later carried into leadership was equally simple: without understanding context, people often cannot see what is actually there. Her four years leading transformation in Japan brought those childhood lessons back into focus. Bonamici describes modern leadership as an "act of translation". She is not referring simply to translating Japanese into English or vice versa. Leaders must translate contexts, perspectives and competing realities so that people can understand what change means and move forward together. One of the biggest tensions she encountered was stability versus speed. Japanese organisations possess formidable strengths in structure, process, alignment, consistency and execution. Yet technology cycles are shortening, AI has become a standard copilot and markets can change in months rather than years. Simply demanding greater speed from a system designed around careful execution can generate resistance. Bonamici instead created protected spaces where small cross-functional teams could experiment, learn and make mistakes. Speed was not imposed on the wider organisation. New approaches were tested, demonstrated and then scaled. Communication also required recalibration. Important ideas were often shaped through relationships, trust and smaller conversations rather than created inside large meetings. Small groups could explore ideas before larger forums validated decisions and accelerated implementation. The second tension was precision versus progress. Japan's commitment to quality encourages organisations to get things right before moving. Transformation, however, often requires learning while moving. In Fujitsu's marketing application of AI, Bonamici did not dismiss legitimate concerns about governance, accuracy and risk. Her team started with focused, lower-risk use cases and made the learning visible. The question gradually moved from "Is this perfect?" towards "What are we learning and how can we improve it?" A third tension involved global ambition versus local reality. Bonamici describes what she calls "Japan-to-Japan globalisation": Japanese companies expanding geographically by following Japanese customers overseas while retaining essentially domestic assumptions. International success requires more. Companies must understand different customers, markets and competitive dynamics. Technical excellence alone does not guarantee that customers will recognise value. Markets construct meaning around products. Marketing therefore becomes a bridge between global ambition and local relevance. For Bonamici, leadership is consequently not about eliminating tension. It is about becoming comfortable enough to hold competing realities simultaneously and helping other people navigate them. Her final insight concerns legacy. Processes, structures and playbooks can disappear after a leader leaves. The more enduring legacy resides in people. Leaders leave pieces of themselves in those they have developed, influenced and encouraged. The blueprint may change. The people carry the beating heart forward. Q&A Summary What makes leadership in Japan unique? Bonamici sees leadership in Japan as an exercise in understanding and translating context. Japan combines strong structure, process, alignment, consistency and execution with an increasingly urgent requirement for organisational speed. The challenge is therefore not simply deciding whether an organisation should move quickly or carefully. Leaders must work within both realities. She found that ideas in Japan were frequently developed through relationships, trust and smaller conversations before reaching larger forums for validation. Effective leaders therefore create environments in which ideas can emerge safely, gain support and ultimately move faster. Leadership becomes less about forcing change and more about creating the conditions in which change can occur. Why do global executives struggle? Bonamici experienced this herself. She arrived with energy, a transformation mandate and an initial assignment of approximately 18 months. Like many leaders, she was psychologically geared towards demonstrating results quickly. Japan challenged assumptions and methods that had previously contributed to her success. Her first six months were largely about "landing". By twelve months, it had become clear that 18 months would not be sufficient for the mandate. Her assignment was extended and eventually became a four-year experience. The wider lesson is that leaders arriving from overseas cannot assume that methods proven elsewhere can simply be transplanted into Japan. They have to observe the environment, understand the context and adjust without abandoning the objective. Is Japan truly risk-averse? Bonamici does not characterise Japan simply as risk-averse. Instead, she identifies a strong commitment to precision, governance, accuracy and careful execution. Her experience introducing AI into marketing illustrates the distinction. There were legitimate concerns about governance, accuracy and risk. Rather than arguing that these concerns were obstacles to innovation, her team worked with them. They created small, focused use cases offering low risk and high learning. Results and lessons were then made visible. The breakthrough came when the organisational conversation shifted away from demanding perfection before action towards asking what could be learned through controlled experimentation. What leadership style actually works? Bonamici argues for leadership based on translation, context and bringing people with you. Trying to impose speed can produce resistance. Creating small protected environments where people have permission to test, learn and make mistakes can allow new ideas to prove themselves before they are scaled. She also stresses the importance of breaking enormous transformation challenges into manageable horizons. Her own assignment developed through six-month and twelve-month checkpoints rather than being psychologically treated as one enormous four-year transformation. Most importantly, leadership means bringing others along rather than simply moving ahead personally. How can technology help? Technology itself is one of the forces increasing the pressure for organisational change. Bonamici notes that technology cycles are compressing and AI has become a standard copilot. Her experience with AI in marketing suggests that technology adoption does not require organisations to choose between innovation and governance. Focused experimentation can reconcile the two. Organisations can begin with lower-risk applications, learn from real experience and make those lessons visible. This allows confidence to develop through evidence rather than through argument. Technology therefore becomes both a driver of transformation and a practical environment in which organisations learn how to transform. Does language proficiency matter? Bonamici acknowledges that language translation is a significant part of leadership in Japan, but her larger emphasis is on context translation. For her, leaders must move between worlds, perspectives and competing realities and help their teams make sense of them. Her experience living and working in the United Kingdom, Germany and Japan reinforced another lesson: individuals from different cultures are often less fundamentally different than leaders assume. Group dynamics can vary considerably, particularly in Japan, but Bonamici prefers to search for common ground and build from there rather than treating cultural difference as an automatic barrier. What's the ultimate leadership lesson? Bonamici's ultimate lesson is that leadership is about people. Structures change. Processes change. Successors reorganise teams and replace systems. A leader who defines legacy solely through organisational blueprints therefore risks disappointment. Bonamici instead thinks of legacy as something carried through people. Her metaphor comes from visiting the island of Teshima with her daughter and recording their heartbeats for an artwork archive. She later realised that the digital recording was not actually her heart; it was merely a record of its mechanics. She sees organisational legacy similarly. Handovers, processes and playbooks are recordings. The "beating heart" survives through people. For Bonamici, the strongest leadership legacy is therefore not a spreadsheet or process that remains untouched. It is having influenced people who carry something meaningful forward, adapt it and eventually pass it to others. Author Credentials Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー). In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.

Get our free course to help women web designers stop undercharging and overdelivering and create a consistent, full-time income at https://webdesigneracademy.com/freecourse Ditching Hourly: A Web Designer's Guide to Value Pricing with Jonathan Stark Jonathan Stark, known as The Ditching Hourly Guy, joins Shannon Mattern to explain why hourly billing punishes you for getting good at your job, and how he builds every proposal around three value-based pricing options instead of a single hourly quote. In This Episode: Why hourly billing creates a mismatched incentive between you and your client The Why Conversation: the three questions Jonathan asks before he'll ever discuss price How to respond when a client's desired outcome is outside of what you can control Why every proposal should include exactly three pricing options (Goldilocks pricing) How Jonathan built his business through writing and podcasting instead of social media Why AI makes positioning more important, not less Resources Mentioned:  Value Pricing Calculator Hourly Billing Is Nuts Ditching Hourly Podcast Jonathan's Daily Newsletter The Package Matrix™ Method Related Episodes: Episode 189: How To Price Custom Web Design Projects with Shannon Mattern Episode 90: Profitable Proposals and Processes with Cass and Amanda of Foxtrot Branding Episode 164: The State of Web Designer Pricing in 2025 Jonathan Stark is a former software developer turned pricing consultant, known as The Ditching Hourly Guy for his mission to rid the world of hourly billing. He's the author of Hourly Billing Is Nuts and the host of the Ditching Hourly podcast. https://jonathanstark.com Shannon Mattern is a Pricing Strategist, creator of the Package Matrix™ Method, and the founder of the Web Designer Academy, where she helps experienced women web designers book higher-paying projects, charge more with confidence, run projects without overworking and burnout, and break through to their next level of income and freedom. Websites: webdesigneracademy.com | shannonmattern.com IG: @profitablewebdesigner | YouTube: @profitablewebdesigner | LinkedIn: shannonmattern

Fixing Broken Processes explains how leaders can identify failed workflows, restore forgotten policies and procedures, and rebuild operational consistency. Learn how to separate a bad process from poor execution and bring effective standards back into daily operations.Host: Paul FalavolitoConnect with me on your favorite platform: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, Substack, BlueSky, Threads, LinkTree, YouTubeView my website for free leadership resources and exclusive merchandise: www.paulfalavolito.comBooks by Paul FalavolitoThe 7 Minute Leadership® Handbook: bit.ly/48J8zFGThe Leadership Academy: https://bit.ly/4lnT1PfThe 7 Minute Leadership® Survival Guide: https://bit.ly/4ij0g8yThe Leader's Book of Secrets: http://bit.ly/4oeGzCIRed Key Leadership®: https://bit.ly/3SoKrpO

Business systems are what separate a great idea from a business that can grow beyond its founder. A concept may work brilliantly in one location with the right people, the right customers, and the founder closely involved. The bigger test comes when that same experience has to work in another location, another market, or another country. That challenge becomes even more significant when the customer experience depends heavily on people. Processes can be documented, technology can be standardized, and performance can be measured, but culture, service, and human connection are harder to replicate. Pete Hull has experienced that challenge firsthand. As Founder and CEO of Fitstop, he has helped grow a fitness concept that began in his parents' garage in Australia into a global brand with more than 170 locations across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United States. Fitstop's growth provides a useful example of how business systems can support expansion without removing the human elements that made the original concept successful. It also demonstrates why sustainable growth requires more than simply duplicating what worked once. Turn What Works Into a Repeatable System Pete's path to entrepreneurship began long before Fitstop became an international franchise. After two knee reconstructions ended his pursuit of becoming a professional motocross athlete, he moved into coaching and became deeply interested in strength and conditioning, human performance, and helping people make measurable progress. Eventually, Pete began considering how he could take the benefits of one-on-one coaching and create something that could serve more people. The challenge was not simply putting more people into the same workout. He wanted to preserve the progressive nature of athletic training while creating a model that could work in a group environment. That distinction matters in almost every industry. Scaling effectively requires identifying what actually produces the result for the customer and building business systems around those elements. For Fitstop, that meant developing a centralized training methodology rather than allowing every location or coach to independently decide what the customer experience should look like. Studios operate from the same underlying programming, while individual owners and coaches can still bring their personalities and energy to the local community. Pete described the balance simply: "Your vibe attracts your tribe." That balance between standardization and personalization is one of the more difficult parts of building a multi-location business. Too much variation can weaken the brand. Too much standardization can make the experience feel disconnected from the local market. Strong business systems establish the non-negotiables while creating room for people to deliver those standards authentically. Build Systems Around the Customer Experience Operational consistency matters, but consistency alone does not create customer loyalty. A business also needs to understand what keeps customers engaged and what ultimately produces the outcome they came for. Pete's approach starts with the member experience. He explained that the fundamental responsibility of a gym, personal trainer, or fitness business is to serve its members by helping them achieve their goals. Fitstop's systems were built around that objective rather than around simply getting people through a workout. The company's group training model deliberately creates interaction among members. People train together, support one another, push each other, and celebrate progress together. Pete describes the formula as combining the science of strength and conditioning with "the art of human connection." That connection becomes part of the business model rather than something the company hopes will happen organically. Fitstop also tracks progress and gives members milestones to pursue. Members advance through statuses based on participation, testing is incorporated into programming, results can be logged in the company's app, and achievements are celebrated inside the studio. Those systems do more than encourage participation. They create opportunities for customers to recognize their own progress. Progress can be one of the most powerful forms of customer retention. When customers can see evidence that the product or service is helping them move toward something they value, they have a compelling reason to continue. That satisfaction can also become a growth engine. Pete talks about creating "raving fans" who naturally promote the business because they are proud of what they have accomplished. Fitstop supports that behavior with a referral model that allows members to invite friends into the experience. The broader business principle applies well beyond fitness. Referrals become much easier when customers have a result worth talking about. Protect the System as the Business Grows Business systems become increasingly important as an organization adds locations and moves farther away from the founder's direct oversight. Fitstop began franchising in 2017 after Pete and his wife had self-funded the first two studios. Pete had been transparent with his managers about the financials, the direction of the business, and what they were trying to build. When managers wanted to buy the studios, it helped propel Pete into franchising. The model eventually expanded internationally. New Zealand provided an important test because Fitstop had to launch during a period when the team could not simply travel there and manage everything in person. The circumstances forced the company to improve onboarding, presales, coaching education, and other systems that could be delivered remotely. That experience demonstrated something important about scalability: if a business requires the founder or corporate team to physically solve every problem, it has not truly built a scalable system. International growth increased the stakes even further. Fitstop needed enough consistency that members could recognize the brand while still allowing local operators to build relationships within their own communities. This is where franchising creates both an opportunity and a challenge. Franchisees are business owners, and strong owners will inevitably have ideas. But allowing every operator to independently change the model can quickly erode the consistency that gives the brand its value. Pete's philosophy for handling that tension is captured in another memorable phrase: "We're curious, not furious." Instead of immediately rejecting an idea, his team asks questions and looks at the data. Fitstop can compare performance across studios and examine what its strongest operators are doing. If an idea has merit, it can move through the Franchise Advisory Council and potentially become a pilot program. Successful ideas can then be introduced more broadly. Pete summarized the approach another way when describing how he responds to changes that may be premature: "I'm not saying no, I'm just saying not right now." This creates a path for innovation without turning the franchise system into more than 170 independent experiments. Use Data to Strengthen Business Systems As an organization grows, intuition becomes less reliable as the primary management tool. Leaders need visibility into what is happening across the business. Pete describes Fitstop as a highly data-driven organization. The company uses performance information to support franchisees, compare locations, evaluate ideas, and identify where an operator may need additional support. Technology and AI are increasingly part of that infrastructure. Pete specifically points to Claude as a tool Fitstop uses for business modeling, financial modeling, and evaluating studio performance. The company also has systems that allow it to monitor planning, statistics, and other performance indicators across the network. The technology, however, does not eliminate the need for human observation. Pete says he blocks out time to look at studio social media because even a short story can provide clues about the culture inside a location. Fitstop's business performance coaches also conduct annual health checks that include studio visits, financial audits, and planning reviews. That combination is important. Dashboards can tell leaders what is happening numerically, but they may not fully explain why it is happening. The best business systems create visibility at both levels. Leaders need quantitative measures that reveal trends and qualitative signals that show what customers and employees are actually experiencing. As Pete noted, people who are progressing tend to be happier and more motivated. When performance begins moving backward, whether in fitness or business, intervention may be needed. Consistency Creates the Foundation for Growth There is a temptation to associate business growth with constant innovation. New markets, new products, new campaigns, and new strategies are exciting. Yet much of sustainable growth comes from doing the fundamentals exceptionally well and repeating them. That philosophy is evident in Pete's approach to both business and personal performance. When asked about his own routines, he did not point to an elaborate productivity system or unusual high-performance ritual. Instead, he emphasized a stable lifestyle built around basics such as sleep, nutrition, hydration, training, and physical activity. "Do the basics really, really well, but just keep showing up and be consistent with it." The same principle applies to organizations. A company does not become scalable because it documented a few procedures. Business systems have to become part of how the organization operates every day. People need to understand the standards, follow them, measure the results, and improve them when the evidence supports a change. Consistency is especially important when the company is expanding into new markets. Customers should not have to wonder whether the experience they receive depends entirely on which location they happen to visit. At the same time, consistency should not eliminate humanity. Pete's approach to Fitstop illustrates how a company can globalize the underlying brand and methodology while allowing local owners and coaches to build meaningful relationships in their communities. That may ultimately be one of the most important lessons for any leader trying to turn an idea into a larger organization. Growth does not require removing people from the equation. It requires building business systems that help people consistently deliver what made the idea valuable in the first place. Watch the full episode on YouTube. Join Fordify LIVE every Wednesday at 11 a.m. Central across your favorite social media platforms and catch the replay on The Business Growth Show Podcast for more conversations with today's leading business experts, entrepreneurs, and growth-minded leaders. About Pete Hull Pete Hull is the Founder and CEO of Fitstop, a global functional strength and conditioning brand with more than 170 locations across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United States. Pete's journey into the fitness industry began after two serious injuries ended his pursuit of becoming a professional motocross athlete. His rehabilitation sparked a passion for strength and conditioning, human performance, and helping people make measurable progress. That passion eventually led him to create a training model that brought structured programming, progressive training, and real coaching to everyday athletes. What began in his parents' garage in Australia grew into Fitstop, a franchise brand built around consistent business systems, a strong member experience, and genuine human connection. Today, Pete continues to lead Fitstop's global growth while maintaining the training methodology, culture, and community at the heart of the brand. About Ford Saeks Ford Saeks is a Business Growth Accelerator who has generated more than a billion dollars in sales worldwide by helping businesses attract loyal customers, increase visibility, and accelerate growth. As President and CEO of Prime Concepts Group, Inc., Ford has founded more than ten companies, authored eleven books, earned three U.S. patents, and advised organizations ranging from startups to Fortune 500 companies. A recognized expert in business growth, customer acquisition, leadership, franchising, marketing, and AI-driven business strategies, Ford helps business owners and leaders identify opportunities, improve performance, and achieve sustainable results. Learn more at ProfitRichResults.com and watch Fordify LIVE at Fordify.tv.

In this episode of The Fractional CFO Show, Adam Cooper is joined by Dan Maudhub, founder of branding agency Be Wonderful, now an investor, advisor and Non-Executive Director.Dan built and grew Be Wonderful before taking the business through an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) transaction - a very different route to the traditional trade sale, merger or management buyout that many agency owners might consider when thinking about their exit strategy.The conversation explores the full journey: building an agency with a future exit in mind, choosing an EOT, valuing and structuring the business for the transaction, and then dealing with something that receives far less attention in traditional business exit planning - what happens after the deal is done.Building a business with an exit in mindDan shares how Be Wonderful developed from a founder-led creative agency and why changes in the ownership structure became an important part of its growth.After initially building the company with several minority shareholders, Dan gradually bought those shareholders out. That gave him greater control over the direction of the agency and, ultimately, made the eventual exit process simpler.The discussion highlights an important lesson for anyone thinking about selling a business: exit planning can start many years before an actual transaction.Ownership structure, shareholder alignment, financial performance, management capability and founder dependency can all influence both business valuation and the range of exit options available.Dan also explains why scaling an agency organically can become increasingly difficult as the business grows. New layers of management, relatively short client contracts and the challenge of securing recurring revenue can all affect the route an agency takes towards greater scale and long-term value.Rather than waiting until he was ready to sell, Dan says the business developed its financial model with the eventual exit in mind.Why choose an Employee Ownership Trust?A major part of the conversation focuses on Employee Ownership Trusts and why Dan chose an EOT rather than a traditional M&A transaction or trade sale.Dan explains in straightforward terms how an Employee Ownership Trust works and how employees can effectively become the majority owners and beneficiaries of the business.He also discusses some of the financial and commercial considerations involved in an EOT, including:Business valuationTax considerationsThe structure and timing of payments to existing shareholdersFuture profitabilityEmployee incentivesLong-term financial performanceThe interests of different stakeholdersFor Dan, the decision wasn't simply about finding the exit route with the most attractive headline number.He wanted an approach that could allow him and his family to realise value from the business while also giving employees a meaningful stake in its future success.That made the EOT particularly relevant to Be Wonderful's existing culture and values as a B Corp certified agency.The financial realities of selling a businessOne of the most interesting parts of Dan's experience is the financial risk that remains after an EOT transaction.Unlike an exit where the founder receives all of their proceeds immediately, Dan discusses having a longer period over which value would be realised. That meant considering whether the business could continue generating sufficient profit over the years following the transaction.It required honest conversations about what the business might be worth, what could realistically be taken off the table initially, and what would happen if future performance didn't go according to plan.For founders considering how to sell a business, it's a useful reminder that the headline business valuation is only one part of the equation.Cash flow, profitability, financial modelling, deal structure and the ongoing ability of the company to perform can ultimately be just as important.What happens after the founder leaves?Dan describes the transaction itself as relatively smooth.The bigger surprise came afterwards.After years of being the founder and MD, Dan suddenly found himself returning to board meetings where he was no longer the person leading the conversation or making the final decision.Instead, he had become one voice around the table.Dan talks openly about learning when to contribute, when to step back and even when to bite his tongue as other people made decisions differently from the way he would have made them.There was also a more personal adjustment.The routines and responsibilities that had structured his working life for years suddenly changed. Meetings disappeared from the diary, his role within the organisation changed and he had to consider where he could make the greatest impact next.It provides an interesting perspective on an aspect of selling a company that can easily be overlooked: an exit isn't purely a financial event. For many business owners, it's also a major change in leadership, identity and purpose.Succession planning and founder dependencyPerhaps the biggest lesson came when the business had to operate without its founder.Dan had promoted internally ahead of the EOT and spent months preparing his successor for the MD role. But after Dan stepped back, some of the knowledge, processes and decision-making that had previously existed between them became much harder to replicate.As Dan explains, founders can believe they have everything covered within their team - but they don't really know until they leave the room.The conversation explores what happened next, including pressure on agency profitability, project margins and leadership capacity.Dan reflects on what he would do differently, including breaking down the founder/CEO role in much greater detail and identifying exactly who would take responsibility for each area.It's an important succession planning lesson.Processes and systems that appear obvious to a founder after years of experience may not actually be documented anywhere. Decisions may depend on intuition, experience and conversations that haven't yet been turned into repeatable processes.Removing founder dependency therefore requires more than appointing a successor.It means understanding everything the founder actually does, building the right management structure, documenting critical processes and ensuring the next generation of leadership has the information and support required to make good commercial and financial decisions.Dan also shares one of his biggest leadership lessons from the experience: being an excellent second-in-command doesn't automatically mean someone will be equally effective as the person ultimately responsible for the business.Life after selling your businessThe episode also explores Dan's post-exit career.Alongside his continued involvement with Be Wonderful, he now advises founders looking to scale their businesses, invests in startups and supports entrepreneurs and social enterprises through the Wonderful Foundation.Dan talks about the adjustment from concentrating almost entirely on one company to developing a portfolio career across different businesses and projects.It raises another important question for founders working on their business exit strategy:What are you actually exiting towards?Dan's experience suggests that good exit planning isn't only about achieving the right business valuation or completing the transaction.Founders also need to think about their personal goals, values, desired lifestyle and the role they want business to play in their lives afterwards.In this episode, we discuss:How Dan built and scaled Be WonderfulWhy agency businesses can become difficult to scale organicallyBuilding a financial model with a future business exit in mindHow shareholder structure can affect long-term business valueWhat an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) is and how it worksEOTs versus a traditional trade sale, merger or M&A transactionBusiness valuation when selling through an EOTThe financial and tax considerations behind different exit strategiesCreating incentives for employees under an employee ownership modelProtecting company culture during a change of ownershipManaging profitability and margins after the founder steps awayMoving from founder and MD to board member and advisorThe emotional and practical realities of life after selling a businessWhy succession planning needs to start well before an exitThe risks of founder dependency in growing agenciesWhy critical processes and systems often remain inside the founder's headChoosing and preparing the next generation of leadershipWhy a strong second-in-command doesn't automatically make a strong first-in-commandBuilding a portfolio career after exitAligning your business exit strategy with your personal goals and valuesIf you're an agency owner, entrepreneur or founder thinking about selling your business, succession planning, an Employee Ownership Trust or simply how to build a more valuable business that can operate without you, this episode offers a practical and experience-led look at what business exit planning really involves.Because preparing a business for sale isn't just about getting the numbers right.It's about building a company that can continue to perform when you're no longer the person in the room.

Get our free course to help women web designers stop undercharging and overdelivering and create a consistent, full-time income at https://webdesigneracademy.com/freecourse Ditching Hourly: A Web Designer's Guide to Value Pricing with Jonathan Stark Jonathan Stark, known as The Ditching Hourly Guy, joins Shannon Mattern to explain why hourly billing punishes you for getting good at your job, and how he builds every proposal around three value-based pricing options instead of a single hourly quote. In This Episode: Why hourly billing creates a mismatched incentive between you and your client The Why Conversation: the three questions Jonathan asks before he'll ever discuss price How to respond when a client's desired outcome is outside of what you can control Why every proposal should include exactly three pricing options (Goldilocks pricing) How Jonathan built his business through writing and podcasting instead of social media Why AI makes positioning more important, not less Resources Mentioned:  Value Pricing Calculator Hourly Billing Is Nuts Ditching Hourly Podcast Jonathan's Daily Newsletter The Package Matrix™ Method Related Episodes: Episode 189: How To Price Custom Web Design Projects with Shannon Mattern Episode 90: Profitable Proposals and Processes with Cass and Amanda of Foxtrot Branding Episode 164: The State of Web Designer Pricing in 2025 Jonathan Stark is a former software developer turned pricing consultant, known as The Ditching Hourly Guy for his mission to rid the world of hourly billing. He's the author of Hourly Billing Is Nuts and the host of the Ditching Hourly podcast. https://jonathanstark.com Shannon Mattern is a Pricing Strategist, creator of the Package Matrix™ Method, and the founder of the Web Designer Academy, where she helps experienced women web designers book higher-paying projects, charge more with confidence, run projects without overworking and burnout, and break through to their next level of income and freedom. Websites: webdesigneracademy.com | shannonmattern.com IG: @profitablewebdesigner | YouTube: @profitablewebdesigner | LinkedIn: shannonmattern

Rural news and events from Tasmania and the nation.

Explore the mechanics of human consciousness through abstract imagery and the complex inner workings of the mind.This visual analysis examines how we visualize abstract knowledge. By observing symbols like mechanical gears and cosmic landscapes, we consider the architecture of thought. It is for those interested in the bridge between philosophy and the nature of cognition. We break down how human consciousness processes complex ideas, moving beyond literal interpretation to understand the subconscious mind. By analyzing these surreal representations, we can better grasp the cognitive processes that define our internal reality. Subscribe for weekly explorations of the human mind, and comment below on which aspects of consciousness you find most fascinating.If you enjoyed this episode, the best way to support the show is to subscribe, leave a rating or review, and share it with someone who might find it interesting. You can find new episodes, links, and more at robbcast.com. Just a quick note: this podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing here is medical advice, and exploring altered states always comes with real risks and responsibilities. Until next time — stay curious.

Healthcare organizations are under increasing financial pressure, making efficiency, visibility, and better decision-making more important than ever.  In this episode, Jeff Norton, VP of Business Development at Multiview Financial, explains how automation and financial technology can help healthcare organizations reduce manual work, improve reporting, and potentially cut the time required for month-end close. He also discusses why organizations should approach AI strategically by first fixing inefficient processes and establishing clean, reliable data rather than simply accelerating broken workflows. Jeff's advice for healthcare leaders is simple: slow down to hurry up, do your homework, and make sure the technology you adopt delivers real value for your organization. Tune in to hear Jeff Norton's perspective on making AI and financial technology work for healthcare organizations, not just adding another piece of technology to the stack! Resources: Connect with and follow Jeff Norton on LinkedIn. Follow Multiview Financial on LinkedIn and explore their website.

In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I analyze how Aneel Bhusri is reshaping Workday's agentic AI strategy following his return as CEO.Highlights00:03 — Interesting conversations on the Workday FY27 Q2 earnings call last week. One of the things that came up here was the difference in their approach to agentic AI that's come about over the last several months since the return of CEO Aneel Bhusri.00:48 — One of the big things that happened here, he said, we don't necessarily want to have a whole lot of agents for a lot of simple functions. We want to focus on agentic AI that targets big, complex processes and challenges that our companies, that our customers are facing in HR and financials.01:08 — Here's one of the quotes that he gave on the Q2 earnings call. He said, "We have to have agents that deliver real ROI." He said, "We've killed a lot of agents since I've come back, or we've rolled small, simple agents up into bigger, more complex agents."01:27 — He said, "Anybody can solve the simple problems. That's not a place where we're going to be able to deliver this real ROI for customers." So, interesting time now for Workday, right? Because they're a big company, right? They're guiding to $10 billion in revenue for FY27, which will end January 31st.02:41 — I've got an article later that offers some more perspectives on this. Also, some comments from President and Chief Product and Technology Officer Gerrit Kazmeier. He goes into some detail about why this new wave of agents is so vital: that they've got to be able to be connected to everything, be able to handle these complex problems, and drive that big ROI. Visit Cloud Wars for more.

Part Two of a two-part conversation.Njideka Akunyili Crosby's portrait The Obamas: Springing Forth marks another chapter in an illustrious career shaped by Nigerian life, family histories and movement between cultures.Continuing her conversation with Emeka Okereke, she opens a window onto the decisions, uncertainties and encounters within her practice. From the Obama portrait to Lagos and Igbo proverbs, their exchange follows the relationships and inherited knowledge that sustain her work, including the foundations laid by her mother and father.For artists, students, researchers and curious listeners, this concluding part offers insight into how lived experience becomes artistic language—and how a practice continues to grow.Begin with Part One In this conversation- The artistic demands of a major portrait commission- Uncertainty, attention and the decisions within a painting- Images, specificity and the experience of recognition- Lagos, Invisible Borders and the importance of encounter- Family, language and knowledge across generationsChapters00:00:00 Painting Through uncertainty00:17:43 Inside the Obama Portrait00:32:26 Making the Images Yours00:43:48 A Painting as Journey00:51:09 Returning to Lagos01:03:53 Invisible Borders01:15:17 The Wisdom of IluAbout the guestNjideka Akunyili Crosby is a Nigerian-born artist based in Los Angeles. Working across painting, drawing, collage and photographic transfer, she brings family histories, everyday spaces and Nigerian popular culture into compositions that hold multiple places and experiences together.Explore further- NKATA Podcast- Njideka Akunyili Crosby — artist profile and work- The Obamas: Springing Forth — Obama Foundation- Invisible Borders — The Trans-African ProjectListen to more conversations from Art & Processes at NKATA Podcast.Portrait of Njideka Akunyili Crosby by Shaughn and John ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Part One of a two-part conversation.Njideka Akunyili Crosby's illustrious career has brought Nigerian life and family histories into some of contemporary art's most significant spaces. A 2017 MacArthur Fellow, she recently created The Obamas: Springing Forth for the Obama Presidential Center.In conversation with Emeka Okereke, she reflects on the foundations laid by her mother and father, growing up in Nigeria, and the crossings and choices that shaped her life in art. Questions of belonging, ambition and trusting an inner compass emerge through personal recollection.For artists, students, researchers and anyone curious about the life behind the work, this opening part offers a closer encounter with the experiences and thinking that nourish her practice.In this conversation- The foundations of a celebrated artistic practice- Family, upbringing and the worlds that shape an artist- Nigeria, migration and the possibilities of a life in art- Cultural belonging and defining success on one's own terms- Influence, intuition and the inner compass of makingChapters00:00:00 Introduction of Njideka00:03:59 Enugu, Lagos, Home00:25:31 Making From Little00:31:37 Dora's Quiet Lessons00:40:39 Surviving the Attack00:50:28 Moving to America01:02:39 Becoming an Artist01:13:34 A New Nigerian Culture01:23:26 Finding a Visual Language01:33:35 Trusting the Inner Compass01:47:23 Painting Through UncertaintyAbout the guestNjideka Akunyili Crosby is a Nigerian-born artist based in Los Angeles. Working across painting, drawing, collage and photographic transfer, she brings family histories, everyday spaces and Nigerian popular culture into compositions that hold multiple places and experiences together.Listen to Part TwoExplore further- NKATA Podcast- Njideka Akunyili Crosby — artist profile and work- The Obamas: Springing Forth — Obama FoundationListen to more conversations from Art & Processes at NKATA Podcast.Portrait of Njideka Akunyili Crosby by Shaughn and John ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

In this episode, I welcome Tracie Cantu, Chief Learning Strategist and author of Running L&D Like a Business. We discuss the operational challenges facing today's L&D teams, the critical distinction between workflows and processes, and the dangers of succumbing to “shiny object syndrome” in the era of AI. From the looming risk of a mid-level talent gap to predictions about the future of L&D itself, our conversation offers practical frameworks, strategic advice, and a glimpse into what it will take for learning leaders to thrive in an uncertain future.  You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in...06:39 Optimizing learning function operations08:14 Defining workflows vs processes16:33 Evaluating investment value in L&D18:35 Using the ‘5 Whys' method24:29 Discussing the problem-solving mindset30:09 Training models and workforce readiness36:45 AI in talent acquisition and L&D challenges43:09 Expectations and projections for L&D's futureThe Power of Process Over WorkflowTraditionally, L&D departments have been highly reactive—responding to requests, putting out fires, and churning out solutions, often without a clear line of sight to business goals. Tracy sees L&D as an optimizer of systems more than anything.She distinguishes between workflows—a series of tasks, often repeated for each new problem—and processes, which are more strategic, goal-oriented, and repeatable across scenarios. Many L&D teams are stuck in workflow mode, leading to reinventing the wheel rather than building scalable, impactful models. Processes enable organizations to rise above reactive task management, free up resources for strategic initiatives, and lay the groundwork for measuring real business value.People, Processes, and TechnologyTracie's operating model blueprint has three pillars—people, process, and technology:People: Are the right skills in the right roles? Or are teams over-indexed in content production but lacking capabilities in data and strategy?Process: Are you operating by checklists or by cohesive, strategy-backed processes that align to business goals?Technology: Do your tools work together as an ecosystem, or are they siloed, duplicating effort and data?L&D teams often falter at the process stage where prioritization, governance, and strategic trade-offs live. Without this backbone, even the shiniest technology will fail to deliver.Why AI Isn't a Silver BulletToo often, L&D falls prey to “shiny object syndrome”—embracing new technologies before understanding whether they solve any actual problem. Tracie shares the story of a company that spent half a million dollars on VR headsets for employee training, only to realize that what the team needed was human interaction and real feedback, not another gadget. Lots of organizations see AI as a means to crank out content faster, rather than as a tool to fundamentally rethink how we solve business challenges. For AI or any new tech to really be transformative in L&D, the back end—data, processes, and governance—needs to be tight. Otherwise, as Tracie says, “garbage in, garbage out, only louder with AI.”The Future of L&DTracie shares why she thinks L&D may be split into a production-focused function in the future, essentially an in-house content shop, and a more strategic workforce enablement team, possibly absorbed into talent or HR. The risk is that as organizations cut costs and chase efficiency, they neglect long-term skills development, creating a skills dearth by 2032.Who will be responsible for upskilling and reskilling when L&D is gone? If L&D disappears, the job may fall to talent acquisition or management, but neither is equipped to oversee ongoing learning at scale. L&D professionals who embrace business partnership, systems thinking, and continuous reinvention can still carve out vital space within organizations. The path forward requires tough choices—rethinking team structure, adopting true process discipline, and resisting the allure of fast fixes.  Resources & People MentionedRunning L&D Like a Business Shock of the New: The Challenge and Promise of Emerging Technology by Chad Udell and Gary Woodill  Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World by David Epstein Rep. Liccardo Introduces SKILL Act to Prepare Workers for AI-Driven Job Market ShiftsConnect Education To Jobs And Create An AI Workforce Transition PlanMEEK - Fabulous (Official Video) Connect with Tracie CantuTracie CantuTracie M. Cantu on LinkedIn Connect With RedThread ResearchWebsite: RedThread ResearchOn LinkedInSubscribe to WORKPLACE STORIES

Automating a bad process doesn't make it better. It makes the same problem move faster—and can leave your PI firm paying for technology it wasn't ready to use. Yuval Goren is the founder and CEO of Kobargo IT, which provides technology and AI leadership specifically for high-volume personal injury firms. After two decades in traditional IT, Goren shifted from reactive support toward treating technology as a lever for productivity, revenue, and competitive advantage—a model Kobargo IT now calls “IT and AI Leadership as a Service.” In this episode, Yuval joins Chris Dreyer to unpack what a PI firm must put in place before it deploys AI. They discuss where AI belongs in intake and lead follow-up, why undocumented workflows undermine automation, how firms should consolidate and secure their data, and why a firm's referral strategy can include cybersecurity.  You'll learn: Why process mapping and documented SOPs need to come before AI automation in a personal injury firm. Where AI-powered intake can strengthen lead follow-up without sacrificing the human connection behind client trust. What PI firms need to address when consolidating fragmented data for AI and automation. How cybersecurity and AI governance can protect sensitive client information while strengthening firm reputation. Head over to Rankings.io and see for yourself how we can help take your business to the next level.  Like what you hear? Hit Subscribe! We do this every week. If you want to keep learning from the best voices in PI, join us at PIMCON 2026. Buy your tickets now! Subscribe to our newsletter and get the freshest news every Monday: newsletter.rankings.io Get Social! Personal Injury Mastermind w/ Chris Dreyer powered by Rankings.io is on Instagram | YouTube | TikTok

GM Valentin Dragnev is a two-time Austrian national champion and former chess Olympian who has had memorable OTB encounters with GM Magnus Carlsen, Vasyl Ivanchuk, and many other top players. After achieving so much over the board, he has increasingly focused his attention on chess training and a community-focused website he co-founded, Chessivity.com. We discuss: The story behind Valentin's fast rise up the ranks after a relatively late start to tournament chess. The struggles he has observed that adult students have in developing consistent thought processes. The vision behind Chessivity, a website that aims to connect chess players and help them track and share their chess training. Stories from Valentin's chess career, including nearly beating Magnus Carlsen and cycling from Austria to Budapest to compete in the Chess Olympiad. This was a very insightful conversation with lots of good stories and practical chess advice. 0:00- Ready to have an AI that can tackle real work? Try Claude Cowork today — Claude.ai/CHESS.  03:05 GM Dragnev's rise up the ranks Mentioned: The Art of Planning in Chess by GM Neal McDonald https://www.amazon.com/Art-Planning-Chess-Move/dp/071349025X 12:14 Transitioning to Chess as a Career 15:31 Advice for Parents and Young Players 18:29 Coaching Adults vs. Kids 21:52 The Importance of Thought Process in Chess 26:53 The Birth of Chessivity 30:32 Integrating Chessivity with User Accounts Follow Ben here: https://chessivity.com/profile/bennyficial1 31:05 Future Features and User Feedback 33:11 Valentin's Chess Career Highlights 35:05 Playing Against Magnus Carlsen Check out the Sicilian game here: https://lichess.org/broadcast/european-team-championship-open/round-2/kLFgyBxS/QCqXtaGu 38:39 Training and Preparation Strategies 42:10 Working with Top Players 44:46 Balancing Coaching and Competitive Play 47:07 Misconceptions in Chess Improvement 52:22 Valentin tells the story of cycling from Austria to Budapest before competing in the Olympiad 56:03 Thanks to Valentin for joining! Find him on Chessivity: https://chessivity.com/profile/valentin Lichess coaches: https://lichess.org/coach/DrAgnevstein Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Topics covered in this episode: OpenAI's Python SDK has migrated to HTTPX2 TMOG - Native Task Manager for macOS, Windows, and Linux wrapture - one wrapper for mocking, tracing, and observability linkedin2md: turn your LinkedIn export into 40+ Markdown files Extras Joke Watch on YouTube About the show Sponsored by us! Support our work through: Our courses at Talk Python Consulting from Six Feet Up Connect with the hosts Michael: Mastodon / BlueSky / X / LinkedIn Calvin: Mastodon / BlueSky / X / LinkedIn Show: Mastodon / BlueSky / X Join us on YouTube at pythonbytes.fm/live to be part of the audience. Usually Tuesday at 7am PT. Older video versions available there too. Finally, if you want an artisanal digest of every week of the show notes in email form? Add your name and email to our friends of the show list, we'll never share it. Calvin #1: OpenAI's Python SDK has migrated to HTTPX2 The OpenAI Python SDK has migrated to HTTPX2, the Pydantic-stewarded fork of httpx. Pydantic picked it up citing "limited activity recently" in the original project, promising "a reliably maintained path forward." If you just use the default client, nothing to do. No code changes. The catch is TLS. Quoting the guide: HTTPX "previously verified certificates against the CA bundle provided by certifi. HTTPX2 instead uses the operating-system trust store, and the SDK no longer installs certifi." That "can break certificate verification in minimal container images without system CA certificates, environments using corporate TLS-inspecting proxies, and deployments that relied on a custom or modified certifi bundle." The fix is SSL_CERT_FILE or SSL_CERT_DIR, or pass your own ssl.SSLContext via verify. Deeper integrations need real edits: custom clients, auth handlers, hooks, and request mocking all take HTTPX2 objects now, and plain httpx is no longer pulled in transitively. So import httpx in your own code means declaring it yourself or moving over. Temporary escape hatch: a legacy HTTPX client Michael #2: TMOG - Native Task Manager for macOS, Windows, and Linux A native, deeply instrumented system monitor for macOS, Windows, and Linux, now in public beta - from Plummers' Software, i.e. Dave Plummer, who wrote the original Windows Task Manager and donated it to Microsoft in 1995. Wikipedia Three real native apps: Swift/AppKit on macOS, Win32 on Windows, C++/Qt 6 on Linux, with a shared C++ core keeping metric semantics aligned - no browser shell anywhere. One dense summary: CPU, clocks, thermals, GPU, memory, storage, network, energy, and the processes responsible for the load, all click-through. Per-core honesty: logical processor and NUMA views, P and E cores color-coded, optional kernel time, 60 FPS live meters. Memory with context: pressure, wired, compressed, cached, committed, available, and swap, plus configurable scrolling history. Processes that act like processes: tree view, filtering, sorting, follow mode, and native verbs including service and launchd control. Phosphor themes: light, dark, green, amber, blue, or mono, with color and saturation you tune yourself. Calvin #3: wrapture - one wrapper for mocking, tracing, and observability Graham Dumpleton, author of wrapt and the original New Relic Python agent, has released wrapture. The name is wrapt plus capture. The core idea: wrap real code instead of replacing it, so the real code still runs while you watch every call. Name a method with wrapture.binding(Class, "method"), open a timeline(), and you get a tape of what actually happened. Real return values, real nesting, arguments normalised against real signatures. tape.tree() prints the call graph as it ran. One mechanism, three jobs: monkey patching with a real lifecycle (apply, remove, suspend, plus returns, raises, transforms_args), unit testing that asserts on real call flow instead of a flat MagicMock call list, and ad-hoc tracing of a running app. The testing pitch is error paths. Inject TimeoutError at the payment gateway, then assert the ledger was never written. Stubs and mocks are strict and spec-required, and there is deliberately no bare Mock(). Tracing needs no code at all. A wrapture.toml naming targets and a sink, run with python -m wrapture main.py, and you get a live call tree with timings. It captures ordinary logging calls as nested events, and with the otel extra it exports spans, metrics and correlated logs with W3C trace ids that join across services. Every line of code and docs was AI-written under their direction, and they say so up front. Two weeks from first commit, eleventh alpha, over 1000 tests, 150+ pages of docs. Alpha on PyPI, needs Python 3.12+ and wrapt 2.4.0+. Michael #4: linkedin2md: turn your LinkedIn export into 40+ Markdown files Via Juan Manuel Daza - a Python CLI that unpacks LinkedIn's data-export ZIP into clean, per-category Markdown you can drop straight into an LLM. One command: linkedin2md Complete_LinkedInDataExport.zip, plus o for output dir, -lang en|es, and -pdf. 40+ output files: profile, experience, education, skills, connections, posts, comments, reactions, recommendations, endorsements, job applications, even ad targeting and LinkedIn's inferences about you. Built for LLM analysis: the README pitches NotebookLM, Claude Projects, Obsidian, and Ollama, with example prompts like "what patterns do you see in my career transitions?" PDF resume mode: -pdf renders an A4 CV via weasyprint, and degrades gracefully to Markdown-only if it isn't installed. Dependency note: "pure Python / zero-dep" holds for the Markdown path only - the PDF path needs weasyprint and markdown installed. Install: pipx install linkedin2md recommended, pip in a venv otherwise - 86% Python, 10 releases, v0.3.1 in May. Agentic dev angle: repo ships opencode config and an N3RV subagent pipeline, including a "judgment day" dual-model adversarial PR review. Extras Calvin: EVE Online Migrates to Python 3 Michael: Dinkus by Will McGugan Joke: Tao of Programming: Book 5 Maintenance

Links For The Occult Rejectshttps://linktr.ee/theoccultrejectsOccult Research Institutehttps://www.occultresearchinstitute.org/Substackhttps://substack.com/@theoccultrejects?r=7auau0&utm_campaign=profile&utm_medium=profile-pageCash Apphttps://cash.app/$theoccultrejectsVenmo@TheOccultRejectsBuy Me A Coffeebuymeacoffee.com/TheOccultRejectsPatreonhttps://www.patreon.com/TheOccultRejectsBibliographyCurses, Blessings, and Ritual HarmCannon, Walter B. “‘Voodoo' Death.” American Anthropologist 44, no. 2 (1942): 169–181.Faraone, Christopher A. Ancient Greek Love Magic. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1999.Gager, John G., ed. Curse Tablets and Binding Spells from the Ancient World. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.Graf, Fritz. Magic in the Ancient World. Translated by Franklin Philip. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1997.Ogden, Daniel. Magic, Witchcraft, and Ghosts in the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Sourcebook. 2nd ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2009.Stratton, Kimberly B., and Dayna S. Kalleres, eds. Daughters of Hecate: Women and Magic in the Ancient World. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014.Tambiah, Stanley Jeyaraja. “The Magical Power of Words.” Man 3, no. 2 (1968): 175–208.Placebo, Nocebo, and Medical CommunicationBarsky, Arthur J., Ralph Saintfort, Malcolm P. Rogers, and Jonathan F. Borus. “Nonspecific Medication Side Effects and the Nocebo Phenomenon.” JAMA 287, no. 5 (2002): 622–627.Benedetti, Fabrizio. Placebo Effects: Understanding the Mechanisms in Health and Disease. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.Benedetti, Fabrizio, Marina Lanotte, Lorella Lopiano, and Luana Colloca. “When Words Are Painful: Unraveling the Mechanisms of the Nocebo Effect.” Neuroscience 147, no. 2 (2007): 260–271.Colloca, Luana, and Fabrizio Benedetti. “Nocebo Hyperalgesia: How Anxiety Is Turned into Pain.” Current Opinion in Anaesthesiology 20, no. 5 (2007): 435–439.Colloca, Luana, and Damien Finniss. “Nocebo Effects, Patient–Clinician Communication, and Therapeutic Outcomes.” JAMA 307, no. 6 (2012): 567–568.Colloca, Luana, and Franklin G. Miller. “The Nocebo Effect and Its Relevance for Clinical Practice.” Psychosomatic Medicine 73, no. 7 (2011): 598–603.Enck, Paul, Fabrizio Benedetti, and Manfred Schedlowski. “New Insights into the Placebo and Nocebo Responses.” Neuron 59, no. 2 (2008): 195–206.Häuser, Winfried, Ernil Hansen, and Paul Enck. “Nocebo Phenomena in Medicine: Their Relevance in Everyday Clinical Practice.” Deutsches Ärzteblatt International 109, no. 26 (2012): 459–465.Inner Speech and DevelopmentFernyhough, Charles. The Voices Within: The History and Science of How We Talk to Ourselves. New York: Basic Books, 2016.Vygotsky, Lev S. Thought and Language. Revised and expanded ed. Edited and translated by Alex Kozulin. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1986.Winsler, Adam, Charles Fernyhough, and Ignacio Montero, eds. Private Speech, Executive Functioning, and the Development of Verbal Self-Regulation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2009.Rumination and Repetitive Negative ThinkingBrosschot, Jos F., Bart Verkuil, and Julian F. Thayer. “Conscious and Unconscious Perseverative Cognition: Is a Large Part of Prolonged Physiological Activity Due to Unconscious Stress?” Journal of Psychosomatic Research 69, no. 4 (2010): 407–416.Ehring, Thomas, and Edward R. Watkins. “Repetitive Negative Thinking as a Transdiagnostic Process.” International Journal of Cognitive Therapy 1, no. 3 (2008): 192–205.Nolen-Hoeksema, Susan. “Responses to Depression and Their Effects on the Duration of Depressive Episodes.” Journal of Abnormal Psychology 100, no. 4 (1991): 569–582.Nolen-Hoeksema, Susan, Blair E. Wisco, and Sonja Lyubomirsky. “Rethinking Rumination.” Perspectives on Psychological Science 3, no. 5 (2008): 400–424.Smith, Jeannette M., and Lauren B. Alloy. “A Roadmap to Rumination: A Review of the Definition, Assessment, and Conceptualization of This Multifaceted Construct.” Clinical Psychology Review 29, no. 2 (2009): 116–128.Treynor, Wendy, Richard Gonzalez, and Susan Nolen-Hoeksema. “Rumination Reconsidered: A Psychometric Analysis.” Cognitive Therapy and Research 27, no. 3 (2003): 247–259.Watkins, Edward R. “Constructive and Unconstructive Repetitive Thought.” Psychological Bulletin 134, no. 2 (2008): 163–206.Watkins, Edward R. Rumination-Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Depression. New York: Guilford Press, 2016.Self-Talk and PerformanceHardy, James. “Speaking Clearly: A Critical Review of the Self-Talk Literature.” Psychology of Sport and Exercise 7, no. 1 (2006): 81–97.Hatzigeorgiadis, Antonis, Nikos Zourbanos, Evangelos Galanis, and Yiannis Theodorakis. “Self-Talk and Sports Performance: A Meta-Analysis.” Perspectives on Psychological Science 6, no. 4 (2011): 348–356.Theodorakis, Yiannis, Antonis Hatzigeorgiadis, and Nikos Zourbanos. “Cognition: Self-Talk and Performance.” In The Oxford Handbook of Sport and Performance Psychology, edited by Shane M. Murphy. New York: Oxford University Press, 2012.Affect Labeling, Emotion, and LanguageBarrett, Lisa Feldman. “Solving the Emotion Paradox: Categorization and the Experience of Emotion.” Personality and Social Psychology Review 10, no. 1 (2006): 20–46.Lieberman, Matthew D., Naomi I. Eisenberger, Molly J. Crockett, Sabrina M. Tom, Jennifer H. Pfeifer, and Baldwin M. Way. “Putting Feelings into Words: Affect Labeling Disrupts Amygdala Activity in Response to Affective Stimuli.” Psychological Science 18, no. 5 (2007): 421–428.Lindquist, Kristen A., Lisa Feldman Barrett, Eliza Bliss-Moreau, and James A. Russell. “Language and the Perception of Emotion.” Emotion 6, no. 1 (2006): 125–138.Torre, Jared B., and Matthew D. Lieberman. “Putting Feelings into Words: Affect Labeling as Implicit Emotion Regulation.” Emotion Review 10, no. 2 (2018): 116–124.Self-Distancing and Reflective ProcessingAyduk, Özlem, and Ethan Kross. “From a Distance: Implications of Spontaneous Self-Distancing for Adaptive Self-Reflection.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 98, no. 5 (2010): 809–829.Kross, Ethan, and Özlem Ayduk. “Making Meaning out of Negative Experiences by Self-Distancing.” Current Directions in Psychological Science 20, no. 3 (2011): 187–191.Kross, Ethan, Özlem Ayduk, and Walter Mischel. “When Asking ‘Why' Does Not Hurt: Distinguishing Rumination from Reflective Processing of Negative Emotions.” Psychological Science 16, no. 9 (2005): 709–715.Kross, Ethan, Emma Bruehlman-Senecal, Jiyoung Park, Aleah Burson, Adrienne Dougherty, Holly Shablack, Ryan Bremner, Jason Moser, and Özlem Ayduk. “Self-Talk as a Regulatory Mechanism: How You Do It Matters.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 106, no. 2 (2014): 304–324.Moser, Jason S., Adrienne Dougherty, Whitney I. Mattson, Benjamin Katz, Tim P. Moran, Darwin Guevarra, Hannah Shablack, et al. “Third-Person Self-Talk Facilitates Emotion Regulation Without Engaging Cognitive Control: Converging Evidence from ERP and fMRI.” Scientific Reports 7 (2017): 4519.Affirmation and Counter-IncantationCascio, Christopher N., Matthew B. O'Donnell, Francis J. Tinney Jr., Matthew D. Lieberman, Shelley E. Taylor, Victor J. Strecher, and Emily B. Falk. “Self-Affirmation Activates Brain Systems Associated with Self-Related Processing and Reward and Is Reinforced by Future Orientation.” Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience 11, no. 4 (2016): 621–629.Cohen, Geoffrey L., and David K. Sherman. “The Psychology of Change: Self-Affirmation and Social Psychological Intervention.” Annual Review of Psychology 65 (2014): 333–371.Wood, Joanne V., W. Q. Elaine Perunovic, and John W. Lee. “Positive Self-Statements: Power for Some, Peril for Others.” Psychological Science 20, no. 7 (2009): 860–866.Implementation Intentions and ActionGollwitzer, Peter M. “Implementation Intentions: Strong Effects of Simple Plans.” American Psychologist 54, no. 7 (1999): 493–503.Gollwitzer, Peter M., and Veronika Brandstätter. “Implementation Intentions and Effective Goal Pursuit.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 73, no. 1 (1997): 186–199.Gollwitzer, Peter M., and Paschal Sheeran. “Implementation Intentions and Goal Achievement: A Meta-Analysis of Effects and Processes.” Advances in Experimental Social Psychology 38 (2006): 69–119.Schweiger Gallo, Inge, Andreas Keil, Kathleen C. McCulloch, Brigitte Rockstroh, and Peter M. Gollwitzer. “Strategic Automation of Emotion Regulation.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 96, no. 1 (2009): 11–31.Ritual, Identity, and Psychological FormationBell, Catherine. Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.Hobson, Nicholas M., Juliana Schroeder, Jane L. Risen, Dimitris Xygalatas, and Michael Inzlicht. “The Psychology of Rituals: An Integrative Review and Process-Based Framework.” Personality and Social Psychology Review 22, no. 3 (2018): 260–284.Rappaport, Roy A. Ritual and Religion in the Making of Humanity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999.Xygalatas, Dimitris. Ritual: How Seemingly Senseless Acts Make Life Worth Living. New York: Little, Brown Spark, 2022.Also want to remind people about the website, if you're into reading we have tons of information by multiple contributors, and we got t-shirts up on the site if you're interested. Fun fact, the art is all based on the eyeball. 

What happens to your income after your last federal paycheck, before OPM finishes processing your FERS retirement?  For many federal employees, retirement brings a big change in cash flow. Your regular paycheck ends, you might get paid for unused annual leave, and OPM may start sending interim retirement payments while your application is being processed.  So how can you keep paying your bills during this time?  In this episode of the Plan Your Federal Retirement Podcast, is discussed why cash flow is the heartbeat of retirement and how federal employees can begin preparing for the transition before their retirement date arrives.  As you approach retirement, it's essential to ensure that you have a plan in place to address any potential income gaps. Download your copy of our guide that can help you calculate this gap and offer practical strategies to bridge it - https://zurl.co/QLcgf    Have a retirement question on your mind? Give us a call at 907-931-1775 and leave us your question - we're here to help create solutions that fit your goals!  Need professional help with your retirement planning? Schedule a call today: https://zurl.co/AiAC  Visit our website: https://zurl.co/ykNww  Happy Planning! 

How surgical devices are cleaned and decontaminated determines the efficacy of the sterilization process. For this to be effective, each item must be cleaned according to its instructions for use (IFU). But, how do manufacturers validate cleaning processes for their instruments? In episode 157, host Casey Czarnowski speaks with Dr. William Levia of Medtronic about the manufacturer validation process. Dr. Levia describes the many detailed steps that manufacturers must go through to test cleaning protocols and the reasons behind them. He refers to the different classes of medical devices and discusses the roles of regulatory agencies, standards-setting organizations and testing laboratories. He also introduces listeners to ANSI/AAMI ST98:2022 Cleaning validation of health care products—Requirements for development and validation of a cleaning process for medical devices. Dr. Levia believes in bridging “the standards, the core science and the real-world setting.” Listen to learn more about how instrument manufacturers do their jobs, so we can do ours. ABOUT OUR GUEST Dr. William Levia Global Senior Program Manager for Sterile Processing Medtronic Dr. William Leiva received his PhD in Cybernetics and Statistics from Bucharest University of Economic Studies in 2024 and his MPH in Epidemiology and Health Economics from Andrés Bello National University in 2018. He has worked as a Senior Manager for Scientific Affairs at 3M Healthcare (2008–2023), sterilization and reprocessing subject matter expert at the FDA, and in a leadership role at Medtronic since 2024. He also holds a visiting professorship at Bucharest University of Economic Studies. Dr. Leiva is a recipient of AAMI's Kilmer Grant, serves as a reviewer of peer-reviewed articles, and has presented internationally, including at AAMI eXchange and WFHSS. His research topics include reusable medical device decontamination, terminal sterilization, sterile barrier systems and reprocessing economic epidemiology.   Earn CE Now

Business scaling is often portrayed as a race toward bigger numbers: more customers, more locations, more employees, and more revenue. But sustainable growth requires something far less glamorous and far more important: discipline. A company can generate demand and still struggle to scale. It can attract customers without having the systems to serve them, expand geographically while losing control of its financials, or create a strong brand without building the accountability required to consistently execute. The businesses that successfully move from entrepreneurial startup to scalable organization tend to build the infrastructure for growth while continuing to do the fundamental work that created success in the first place. For Dustin DiStefano, co-founder and COO of Franchise Operations at A Place at Home, that journey began with a problem close to home. Finding Opportunity in a Real Problem Long before business scaling became the objective, there was a family trying to figure out how to care for an aging loved one. DiStefano saw firsthand how difficult those decisions could become when his great-grandmother needed care. Living in rural Iowa, her options were limited, and moving into a nursing home took her away from the place she desperately wanted to remain: home. The experience exposed a problem that millions of families eventually encounter. An aging parent or grandparent suddenly needs help, and family members are left trying to navigate care options while balancing careers, children, finances, and their own responsibilities. That problem eventually became a business opportunity. At 28, DiStefano and his childhood friend and co-founder started A Place at Home with roughly $10,000 between them. The operation began in a basement before interviews moved to coffee shops and, eventually, a small executive office. There was no sophisticated corporate infrastructure behind them. There was simply a problem worth solving and two entrepreneurs willing to figure out how to solve it. Business Scaling Starts With Customer Value A Place at Home provides care for seniors, but the customer experience extends far beyond the person receiving that care. Families are often the ones trying to understand what happens next. They may be navigating hospital discharge, rehabilitation, insurance, veterans benefits, Medicare services, or decisions about how much care their loved one actually needs. Solving that larger problem became part of the company's value proposition. DiStefano describes home care simply: "It's really a customer service business." That perspective matters because business scaling becomes difficult when growth causes an organization to lose sight of why customers chose it in the first place. Marketing may attract attention, but customer experience determines whether the reputation behind that marketing continues to strengthen. For a service business, reviews, referrals, relationships, and trust can become some of the most valuable growth assets available. Reputation Has Become Part of the Growth Engine Today's customers rarely evaluate a business in isolation. They search online, read reviews, compare options, and increasingly use artificial intelligence platforms to help identify and evaluate potential providers. That makes a company's digital reputation much more than a marketing concern. It has become part of the infrastructure supporting business scaling. A Place at Home places significant emphasis on family feedback and encouraging customers to share their experiences publicly. Those reviews create a digital footprint that helps future customers evaluate the organization before they ever make contact. The lesson extends well beyond home care. Businesses cannot assume that doing good work is enough. Future customers need to be able to find evidence of that work through reviews, testimonials, referrals, search visibility, and customer stories. Scaling Requires Sales Activity A polished website and recognizable brand can support growth, but neither replaces a strong sales strategy. When A Place at Home was getting started, DiStefano and his co-founder spent much of their time developing relationships with referral providers rather than waiting for customers to find them. "Your number one is word of mouth and referral and partners. You've got to go out and do the calls." That principle became increasingly important as the organization began franchising. Business scaling requires repeatable activity, which means leaders need to understand which behaviors generate results and create systems that encourage those behaviors consistently. For A Place at Home franchisees, one of those measurements is meaningful conversations. A franchise owner having only a few meaningful conversations in a week cannot reasonably expect the same growth as an owner consistently having 25 or 30. The numbers create accountability. Instead of simply asking why the business is not growing, leaders can examine the behaviors that precede growth and determine what needs to change. Measure the Behaviors That Produce the Outcome Revenue matters, but revenue is ultimately a result. Strong operators also pay attention to the activities responsible for producing it. Meaningful conversations, referral relationships, opportunities entering the pipeline, conversion rates, customer feedback, and other leading indicators provide a clearer picture of what is happening inside the business before the results appear on a financial statement. DiStefano's franchise system eventually incorporated structured planning, quarterly priorities, scorecards, and coaching around specific performance indicators. The objective was not simply to tell franchise owners to grow. It was to identify the actions associated with growth and hold people accountable for executing them. "If you're not going to change your habits, you're going to stay where you're at." Business scaling becomes more predictable when leaders stop relying exclusively on lagging indicators and begin managing the behaviors that create those outcomes. Financial Discipline Cannot Be Optional Growth can hide operational weaknesses for a surprisingly long time, and financial management is one of them. Entrepreneurs often become skilled at generating revenue without becoming equally skilled at understanding the financial health of the organization behind that revenue. That becomes increasingly dangerous as a company scales. DiStefano encountered the problem when reviewing the books of franchise locations. Some owners were heavily focused on selling and operating their businesses but had not made bookkeeping the same priority. The solution was to create an internal bookkeeping service that standardized financial reporting across the franchise network. Years later, that decision created an unexpected advantage when franchise locations began moving through acquisition and resale processes because the financial records were already organized and normalized. A system created to solve an immediate operational problem ultimately produced value years later. That is one of the often-overlooked advantages of building infrastructure before it becomes absolutely necessary. Business Scaling Means Building Beyond Yourself Entrepreneurial businesses frequently begin with founders doing almost everything. They handle sales, customer service, operations, finances, hiring, and whatever problem happens to land on their desk that day. That versatility can be essential during the startup stage, but it cannot remain the operating model forever. Business scaling requires transforming individual knowledge into organizational systems that other people can understand, execute, and improve. Processes must be documented, expectations must be measurable, and financial information must be reliable. Employees and franchisees need coaching, while leaders need enough visibility into performance to recognize problems and opportunities before either becomes obvious. The organization gradually has to become capable of producing results without depending on the founder to personally create every outcome. That transition is one of the most important differences between owning a demanding job and building an enterprise. Discipline Creates Options DiStefano and his co-founder did not start A Place at Home with an acquisition as the end goal. They bootstrapped the original operation, raised relatively modest investments from friends and family when they began franchising, ran lean, and continued building. Years later, an opportunity emerged when a European home care organization looking to enter the North American market saw value in what they had created. The resulting acquisition allowed the original friends-and-family investors to realize roughly a tenfold return after seven years, according to DiStefano. The acquisition also created additional opportunities for the franchise system, including a program through which qualifying franchise owners could potentially sell their businesses back to the organization. Some franchise owners have already used that opportunity after spending years building their locations. That outcome illustrates one of the most important benefits of disciplined business scaling. A well-built business creates options. Owners may choose to continue growing, bring in investors, expand into new markets, develop leadership, create succession opportunities, or eventually sell. The objective does not have to be an exit, but building a scalable organization gives leaders more choices about what comes next. Passion Still Matters Systems, scorecards, financial reporting, and accountability are essential, but business scaling is not purely mechanical. There still needs to be a reason to keep going when the process becomes difficult. Entrepreneurship comes with uncertainty. There will be people who question the idea, markets that become more competitive, cash flow challenges, operational mistakes, and moments when walking away seems easier than continuing. DiStefano's closing philosophy returns to the motivation that started the journey: "Do something that you're passionate about. Don't do it because you think the industry is going to make you a lot of money." Passion alone does not build a scalable business. But passion supported by discipline, systems, measurable activity, customer value, and financial accountability can become a powerful foundation for growth. Business scaling is not simply about becoming bigger. It is about building an organization that is better equipped to handle everything that bigger demands. Watch the full episode on YouTube. Join Fordify LIVE every Wednesday at 11 a.m. Central across your favorite social media platforms and catch the replay on The Business Growth Show Podcast for more conversations with today's leading business experts, entrepreneurs, and growth-minded leaders. About Dustin DiStefanoDustin DiStefano is the co-founder and COO of Franchise Operations at A Place at Home, a senior-focused care organization that has grown from a single operation into a franchise network with more than 70 locations across the United States. After launching the company with his childhood friend and co-founder, Dustin helped develop the systems, coaching, financial disciplines, referral strategies, and franchise support infrastructure necessary to scale the organization. His entrepreneurial journey has taken A Place at Home from a bootstrapped startup to a growing national franchise organization and ultimately through an acquisition that opened new opportunities for the brand and its franchise owners. About Ford Saeks Ford Saeks is a Business Growth Accelerator who has generated more than a billion dollars in sales worldwide by helping businesses attract loyal customers, increase visibility, and accelerate growth. As President and CEO of Prime Concepts Group, Inc., Ford has founded more than ten companies, authored eleven books, earned three U.S. patents, and advised organizations ranging from startups to Fortune 500 companies. A recognized expert in business growth, customer acquisition, leadership, franchising, marketing, and AI-driven business strategies, Ford helps business owners and leaders identify opportunities, improve performance, and achieve sustainable results. Learn more at ProfitRichResults.com and watch Fordify LIVE at Fordify.tv.

Lucas Sherraden hosts Chris Berisford, a top real estate agent from Colorado Springs, in this insightful episode of the Built How Podcast. Chris shares his journey from military service to becoming a successful realtor. He emphasizes the importance of systems, processes, and consistent daily efforts in building a sustainable business. As they delve into team-building and leveraging support staff, Chris also highlights the challenges and strategies for recruiting and maintaining a quality team. This episode offers valuable lessons for real estate professionals aiming for growth and scalability in their business. Connect with Chris at https://www.explorespringshomes.com/ ---------- Be sure to leave a rating and review and don't forget to go to www.builthow.com and register for our next live or virtual event. Part of the Win Make Give Podcast Network

Osaic's Mark Matheny talks through the powerful abilities of Scribe - the powerful workflow documentation platform.  Uncork the bottlenecks in your office, helping your team by reducing errors. Scribe also creates better opportunities for faster training, improved accountability and easier scaling.  Transform institutional knowledge into context your teams and AI tools can read, without anyone lifting a finger. Learn more about Scribe.

Today's clip is from Episode 154, featuring Thomas Pinder. In this conversation, Thomas shares what he sees as the next steps for GPJax and how the project could become easier to use beyond its original research-focused audience.He discusses creating a higher-level interface that could make fitting Gaussian processes possible in just a few lines of code, while still keeping the flexibility and infrastructure that GPJax provides. He also talks about making the documentation more engaging by moving beyond synthetic examples and showcasing real-world applications, such as modeling ocean currents with Gaussian processes.It's a look at how GPJax could evolve from a powerful research tool into something that's even more accessible and practical for a wider range of users.Full discussion hereSupport & Resources→ Support the show on Patreon→ Bayesian Modeling Course (first 2 lessons free): Our theme music is « Good Bayesian », by Baba Brinkman (feat MC Lars and Mega Ran). Check out his awesome work!

Thabo Shole Mashao speaks to Nathalie Mat, Registered Dietitian discussing what metabolism is and metabolic processes. They also touch on how different diets affect our metabolic processes. The Clement Manyathela Show is broadcast on 702, a Johannesburg based talk radio station, weekdays from 09:00 to 12:00 (SA Time). Clement Manyathela starts his show each weekday on 702 at 9 am taking your calls and voice notes on his Open Line. In the second hour of his show, he unpacks, explains, and makes sense of the news of the day. Clement has several features in his third hour from 11 am that provide you with information to help and guide you through your daily life. As your morning friend, he tackles the serious as well as the light-hearted, on your behalf. Thank you for listening to a podcast from The Clement Manyathela Show. Listen live on Primedia+ weekdays from 09:00 and 12:00 (SA Time) to The Clement Manyathela Show broadcast on 702 https://buff.ly/gk3y0Kj For more from the show go to https://buff.ly/XijPLtJ or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/p0gWuPE Subscribe to the 702 Daily and Weekly Newsletters https://buff.ly/v5mfetc Follow us on social media: 702 on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/TalkRadio702 702 on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@talkradio702 702 on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/talkradio702/ 702 on X: https://x.com/Radio702 702 on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@radio702 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Links For The Occult Rejectshttps://linktr.ee/theoccultrejectsOccult Research Institutehttps://www.occultresearchinstitute.org/Substackhttps://substack.com/@theoccultrejects?r=7auau0&utm_campaign=profile&utm_medium=profile-pageCash Apphttps://cash.app/$theoccultrejectsVenmo@TheOccultRejectsBuy Me A Coffeebuymeacoffee.com/TheOccultRejectsPatreonhttps://www.patreon.com/TheOccultRejectsBibliographyRepetition, Fluency, and BeliefBacon, Frederick T. “Credibility of Repeated Statements: Memory for Trivia.” Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory 5, no. 3 (1979): 241–252.Begg, Ian Maynard, Ann Anas, and Suzanne Farinacci. “Dissociation of Processes in Belief: Source Recollection, Statement Familiarity, and the Illusion of Truth.” Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 121, no. 4 (1992): 446–458.Dechêne, Alice, Christoph Stahl, Jochim Hansen, and Michaela Wänke. “The Truth About the Truth: A Meta-Analytic Review of the Truth Effect.” Personality and Social Psychology Review 14, no. 2 (2010): 238–257.Fazio, Lisa K., Nadia M. Brashier, B. Keith Payne, and Elizabeth J. Marsh. “Knowledge Does Not Protect Against Illusory Truth.” Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 144, no. 5 (2015): 993–1002.Hasher, Lynn, David Goldstein, and Thomas Toppino. “Frequency and the Conference of Referential Validity.” Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior 16, no. 1 (1977): 107–112.Reber, Rolf, and Norbert Schwarz. “Effects of Perceptual Fluency on Judgments of Truth.” Consciousness and Cognition 8, no. 3 (1999): 338–342.Unkelbach, Christian. “Reversing the Truth Effect: Learning the Interpretation of Processing Fluency in Judgments of Truth.” Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition 33, no. 1 (2007): 219–230.Zajonc, Robert B. “Attitudinal Effects of Mere Exposure.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 9, no. 2, part 2 (1968): 1–27.Memory, Spacing, and RetrievalCepeda, Nicholas J., Harold Pashler, Edward Vul, John T. Wixted, and Doug Rohrer. “Distributed Practice in Verbal Recall Tasks: A Review and Quantitative Synthesis.” Psychological Bulletin 132, no. 3 (2006): 354–380.Ebbinghaus, Hermann. Memory: A Contribution to Experimental Psychology. Translated by Henry A. Ruger and Clara E. Bussenius. New York: Teachers College, Columbia University, 1913. Originally published 1885.Karpicke, Jeffrey D., and Henry L. Roediger III. “Repeated Retrieval During Learning Is the Key to Long-Term Retention.” Journal of Memory and Language 57, no. 2 (2007): 151–162.Roediger, Henry L. III, and Jeffrey D. Karpicke. “Test-Enhanced Learning: Taking Memory Tests Improves Long-Term Retention.” Psychological Science 17, no. 3 (2006): 249–255.Tulving, Endel, and Donald M. Thomson. “Encoding Specificity and Retrieval Processes in Episodic Memory.” Psychological Review 80, no. 5 (1973): 352–373.Whitehouse, Harvey. Modes of Religiosity: A Cognitive Theory of Religious Transmission. Walnut Creek, CA: AltaMira Press, 2004.Semantic Satiation and Verbal TransformationBalota, David A., and Sarah Black. “Semantic Satiation in Healthy Young and Older Adults.” Memory & Cognition 25, no. 2 (1997): 190–202.Jakobovits, Leon A. Effects of Repeated Stimulation on Cognitive Aspects of Behavior: Some Experiments on the Phenomenon of Semantic Satiation. PhD diss., McGill University, 1962.Kounios, John, et al. “On the Locus of the Semantic Satiation Effect: Evidence from Event-Related Brain Potentials.” Memory & Cognition 28, no. 8 (2000): 1366–1377.Pilotti, Maura, John S. Antrobus, and Monica Duff. “The Effect of Presemantic Acoustic Adaptation on Semantic ‘Satiation.'” Memory & Cognition 25, no. 3 (1997): 305–312.Ströberg, Kim, Lau M. Andersen, and Stefan Wiens. “Electrocortical N400 Effects of Semantic Satiation.” Frontiers in Psychology 8 (2017): 2117.Warren, Richard M. “Illusory Changes of Distinct Speech upon Repetition—The Verbal Transformation Effect.” British Journal of Psychology 52, no. 3 (1961): 249–258.Warren, Richard M. “Illusory Changes in Repeated Words: Differences between Young Adults and the Aged.” American Journal of Psychology 74, no. 4 (1961): 506–516.Speech, Song, and Musical RepetitionDeutsch, Diana. “The Speech-to-Song Illusion.” Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 134, no. 5 (2013): 4241.Deutsch, Diana, Trevor Henthorn, and Rachael Lapidis. “Illusory Transformation from Speech to Song.” Journal of the Acoustical Society of America 129, no. 4 (2011): 2245–2252.Jakubowski, Kelly, Sebastian Finkel, Lauren Stewart, and Daniel Müllensiefen. “Dissecting an Earworm: Melodic Features and Song Popularity Predict Involuntary Musical Imagery.” Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts 11, no. 2 (2017): 122–135.Margulis, Elizabeth Hellmuth. On Repeat: How Music Plays the Mind. New York: Oxford University Press, 2014.Marjieh, Raja, Pol van Rijn, Ilia Sucholutsky, Harin Lee, Thomas L. Griffiths, and Nori Jacoby. “A Rational Analysis of the Speech-to-Song Illusion.” Preprint, 2024.Vickhoff, Björn, Helge Malmgren, Rickard Åström, Gunnar Nyberg, Seth-Reino Ekström, Mathias Engwall, Johan Snygg, Michael Nilsson, and Rebecka Jörnsten. “Music Structure Determines Heart Rate Variability of Singers.” Frontiers in Psychology 4 (2013): 334.Breath, Vocalization, and Autonomic PhysiologyBernardi, Luciano, Peter Sleight, Gianfranco Bandinelli, Simone Cencetti, Lino Fattorini, Jacek Wdowczyc-Szulc, and Andrea Lagi. “Effect of Rosary Prayer and Yoga Mantras on Autonomic Cardiovascular Rhythms: Comparative Study.” BMJ 323, no. 7327 (2001): 1446–1449.Lehrer, Paul M., and Richard Gevirtz. “Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback: How and Why Does It Work?” Frontiers in Psychology 5 (2014): 756.Shaffer, Fred, and J. P. Ginsberg. “An Overview of Heart Rate Variability Metrics and Norms.” Frontiers in Public Health 5 (2017): 258.Zaccaro, Andrea, Andrea Piarulli, Marco Laurino, Erika Garbella, Danilo Menicucci, Bruno Neri, and Angelo Gemignani. “How Breath-Control Can Change Your Life: A Systematic Review on Psycho-Physiological Correlates of Slow Breathing.” Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 12 (2018): 353.Meditation, Chanting, and NeuroscienceFox, Kieran C. R., Matthew L. Dixon, Savannah Nijeboer, Manesh Girn, James L. Floman, Michael Lifshitz, Melissa Ellamil, Peter Sedlmeier, and Kalina Christoff. “Functional Neuroanatomy of Meditation: A Review and Meta-Analysis of 78 Functional Neuroimaging Investigations.” Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews 65 (2016): 208–228.Kalyani, B. G., G. Venkatasubramanian, R. Arasappa, N. P. Rao, S. V. Kalmady, R. Behere, H. Rao, M. Vasudev, and B. N. Gangadhar. “Neurohemodynamic Correlates of ‘OM' Chanting: A Pilot Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study.” International Journal of Yoga 4, no. 1 (2011): 3–6.Travis, Fred, and Jonathan Shear. “Focused Attention, Open Monitoring and Automatic Self-Transcending: Categories to Organize Meditations from Vedic, Buddhist and Chinese Traditions.” Consciousness and Cognition 19, no. 4 (2010): 1110–1118.Ritual, Attention, and Embodied PracticeBell, Catherine. Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.Hobson, Nicholas M., Juliana Schroeder, Jane L. Risen, Dimitris Xygalatas, and Michael Inzlicht. “The Psychology of Rituals: An Integrative Review and Process-Based Framework.” Personality and Social Psychology Review 22, no. 3 (2018): 260–284.McCauley, Robert N., and E. Thomas Lawson. Bringing Ritual to Mind: Psychological Foundations of Cultural Forms. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.Rappaport, Roy A. Ritual and Religion in the Making of Humanity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999.Xygalatas, Dimitris. Ritual: How Seemingly Senseless Acts Make Life Worth Living. New York: Little, Brown Spark, 2022.Also want to remind people about the website, if you're into reading we have tons of information by multiple contributors, and we got t-shirts up on the site if you're interested. Fun fact, the art is all based on the eyeball. 

The Defense Department has launched three pilot programs that promise to overhaul the Pentagon's equal employment opportunity processes. Federal News Network's Anastasia Obis has more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

For decades, drug development has been saddled with costly manufacturing, stringent biosafety requirements, and the limits of conventional carriers. But a new approach—born from cell-derived nanovesicles—could democratize access to advanced therapies and open entirely new doors for oral, topical, and even global vaccine delivery.This week, David Brühlmann welcomes Christopher Locher, CEO and Co-founder of Versatope Therapeutics. Christopher has shaped the translation of novel vesicle technology from idea to clinical pipeline, navigating both the science and the unstructured realm of first-in-class GMP manufacturing.Topics discussed:Tackling GMP manufacturing challenges and analytics development from scratch (00:34)Deciding what to outsource vs. insource as a small biotech, and the value of a robust tech transfer process (02:25)Perspectives on partnering with CDMOs versus managing manufacturing and analytics in-house (02:40)Geographic expansion goals and considerations for delivering low-cost biologics in underserved markets (04:26)Differentiators of Versatope's platform—endotoxin-free processes and non-pathogenic strains (05:05)Key advice on critical quality attributes and early regulatory planning for Phase 1 readiness (06:19)Lessons learned as a biotech founder—getting support, leveraging networks, and planning cost-effectively (07:57)Understanding end users, leveraging I-Corps™, and customer discovery in early product development (09:04)The science and promise of engineered nanovesicles: delivery routes, biological origins, and research applications (10:12)Business models for platform out-licensing and potential for co-development partnerships (12:58)Practical takeaways for scientists: setting "good enough" standards and focusing on lean, regulatory-aligned development (13:28)Smart insight: Christopher is honest about his blind spots, learning on the fly from CMC consultants, and the practical importance of “good enough” regulatory solutions delivers sharp advice for anyone charting the long road from discovery to human trials. Think monoclonal analytics, batch consistency, and the art of prioritization, all from someone who's made it work with a small team and limited resourcesIf Christopher's vesicle platform has you thinking about building a novel modality on an unconventional host, these four episodes go deeper on alternative production systems, microbial scale-up, and the CMC and cost decisions that get a first-in-class biologic to patients.Episodes 217 - 218: Silkworm Biomanufacturing: From Ancient Silk Production to Phase I Vaccine Trials with Masafumi OsawaEpisodes 239 - 240: Continuous Microbial Manufacturing: From Genetic Instability to 40-Day E. coli Processes with Juergen MairhoferEpisodes 231 - 232: From IND to BLA: The Biologics CMC Decisions That Determine Regulatory Success with Henri KornmannEpisodes 267 - 268: Why Affordable Insulin Is a Money Problem, Not a Science Problem with Eric MoyalConnect with Christopher Locher:Website: www.versatope.com LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-locher-biotechSupport the show

This special series of Defensible Decisions, discusses Ogletree's Talent Risk Assessor dashboard that helps employers integrate data from the full employment lifecycle to give management a birds' eye view of the legal risks associated with employment decisions. Episode one features shareholders Scott Kelly (Birmingham/Washington) and Chris Near (Columbia), who are are joined by Chrissy Blantz from the firm's Data Analytics team, to examine how Ogletree's Talent Risk Assessor evaluates selection and hiring processes for legal risk. Using a continuing hypothetical involving a multi-state employer, the group walks through stage-by-stage funnel analysis and explains why a statistical flag should prompt a legally informed inquiry rather than a conclusion about compliance. Scott, who is chair of the firm's Workforce Analytics and Compliance Practice Group, also previews the data quality and documentation considerations that will be addressed in the next episode of the series.

What if the best way to unlock durable, broad-spectrum immunity is to rethink the very vessels delivering our vaccines?While much of the industry focuses on refining existing delivery systems, Christopher Locher is charting a new course—one inspired by nature's own couriers. Imagine a future where oral vaccines and modular, on-demand manufacturing aren't just possibilities, but standard practice.Christopher Locher, CEO and Co-founder of Versatope Therapeutics, brings decades of experience in drug discovery from Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Opsona Therapeutics, and Maxigen. In this episode, he shares his journey from high school science classrooms to the helm of a company pioneering recombinant extracellular transport vesicles—nanovesicles that promise to transform vaccine delivery and immunomodulation.Topics discussed:How basic scientific curiosity and the inspiration from teachers sparked Christopher's career in biotechnology (03:39)The unmet needs in vaccine development for infectious and parasitic diseases, especially in regions below the equator (04:17)Engineering nanovesicles as immunomodulators and drug delivery vehicles, using microbial bioreactors for production (06:38)Co-producing proteins and vesicles in a single process, and the flexibility of the platform (08:28)Key benefits of Versatope's platform, such as cost efficiency, stability, and commercial scalability compared to mammalian exosomes (09:53)Prospects for multi-specific vaccines and the future direction for scalable bioprocessing (11:47)Adapting manufacturing processes and overcoming logistical challenges—from COVID-related shutdowns to supply chain bottlenecks (12:21)Strategies for navigating evolving regulatory requirements with agencies like the FDA, and experience with fast IND allowance (14:53)Analytical and characterization challenges of complex nanovesicle-based products versus simpler platforms like antibodies (17:30)The vision for decentralized or local vaccine manufacturing, especially in resource-limited settings (19:12)Smart insight: Christopher Locher highlighted that the FDA allowed their IND submission for a universal influenza vaccine in less than a month after review—and notably, with no hold clinical questions—when it was submitted just before the Christmas holidays and allowed on January 19th, 2025. This rapid regulatory turn-around was made possible by a strong regulatory team and collaborative CDMO efforts, showcasing how innovative platforms and well-prepared submissions can accelerate early-stage clinical development in biotech.If Christopher's vesicle platform has you thinking about building a novel modality on an unconventional host, these four episodes go deeper on alternative production systems, microbial scale-up, and the CMC and cost decisions that get a first-in-class biologic to patients.Episodes 217 - 218: Silkworm Biomanufacturing: From Ancient Silk Production to Phase I Vaccine Trials with Masafumi OsawaEpisodes 239 - 240: Continuous Microbial Manufacturing: From Genetic Instability to 40-Day E. coli Processes with Juergen MairhoferEpisodes 231 - 232: From IND to BLA: The Biologics CMC Decisions That Determine Regulatory Success with Henri KornmannEpisodes 267 - 268: Why Affordable Insulin Is a Money Problem, Not a Science Problem with Eric MoyalConnect with Christopher Locher:Website: www.versatope.com LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-locher-biotechSupport the show

Prepare for the worst, hope for the best. Scenario planning isn't just for financials. Whether markets drop or your business faces adversity, having thought about the worst-case lets you operate with confidence. In this episode, Jess Dewell talks with Jack Oujo, Founder at Oujo Wealth Strategies, about why it is BOLD to embrace the concept of less is more — especially in today's fast-changing world. The toughest leadership calls are often the ones we delay. Welcoming peer feedback and brutal self-assessment catapults businesses to top-tier success. Embracing worst-case scenarios in decision-making and strategic planning is necessary to navigate recessions, market crashes, and disruption. You'll discover: Why focusing on existing clients drives growth far more than chasing new ones How career transitions can open unexpected doors when you embrace curiosity and risk Why process and scenario planning outperform rigid sales goals How culture and non-financial aspects determine long-term business stability The confidence that comes from preparing for worst-case scenarios Why financial independence matters more than following buzzwords like "retirement" How internal insights often outweigh endless external meetings What it means to make decisions based on deeply held principles Success is determined by how you choose to use the extra time you have. What you choose to carry forward from your biggest learning experiences shapes how you take calculated risks and move forward with intention. Take this work and focus on your client experience for connection and retention through change. —--------- If you're ready to build the kind of business that doesn't just survive uncertainty but leads through it, check out the Driving Solutions Strategic Intensive program, designed to support leadership teams through high-stakes strategic decisions.    --------------------   You can get in touch with Jess Dewell on Twitter,  LinkedIn or Red Direction website.

Kim Alexander joins The Great Battlefield podcast to talk about implementing online access to campaign finance data and founding the California Voter Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to improve the voting process.

“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” That was Theodore Roosevelt, giving his thoughts on making a decision, and in this week's episode, I am answering a question about why we may be trying to solve a time management problem the wrong way. Links: Email Me | Twitter | Facebook | Website | Linkedin   Learn more about the Productivity Academy   Get Your Copy Of Your Time, Your Way: Time Well Managed, Life Well Lived Plan Your Week With Me: The Weekly Planning Matrix. The Working With… Weekly Newsletter Carl Pullein Learning Centre Carl's YouTube Channel Carl Pullein Coaching Programmes Subscribe to my Substack  The Working With… Podcast Previous episodes page Script |428 Hello, and welcome to episode 428 of the Your Time, Your Way Podcast. A podcast to answer all your questions about productivity, time management, self-development, and goal planning. My name is Carl Pullein, and I am your host of this show.  If you've followed this podcast for any length of time, you will have heard me talk about processes and routines. It's these little things that have the effect of automating your daily decision-making requirements.  If you always start your day in the same way, you no longer have to decide what to do when you wake up. You do it automatically.  And this is important.  Reducing the number of decisions you make each day prevents something called “Prefrontal Cortex Overload”, which is often called “decision fatigue”. And it's not woo-woo science. It's very real The prefrontal cortex is the part of your brain that deals with executive function. These functions include impulse control, evaluating something, and making choices. Basically, decisions.  When your prefrontal cortex becomes tired and fatigued, you find it harder to make logical, objective decisions, and instead your brain begins to use the amygdala, the part of your brain that controls emotions.  In effect, you begin making decisions based on how you are feeling.  And that leaves you picking the easy and exciting over the important, mundane tasks.  It also leaves you with little discipline, which often means you eat unhealthy food and stay up later than you should.  When overwhelmed, the brain defaults to the path of least resistance by delaying decisions, defaulting to the status quo, or refusing to choose at all. You then procrastinate, feel exhausted, anxious and overwhelmed.  When you set up processes and routines as well as setting some “if this then that” rules, you reduce the burden you place on your pre-frontal cortex.  And all that explanation now brings me onto this week's question. Which means it's time for me to hand you over to the Mystery Podcast Voice. Some say she's always on holiday; all I know is she's called “The Mystery Podcast Voice.  This week's question comes from Fabian. Fabian asks, hi Carl, you recommend that you should do your daily planning at the end of the day, not at the beginning. But I am always so exhausted at the end of the day that I find I just cannot do any planning. Is there anything I can do to consistently plan at the end of the day?  Hi Fabian. Thank you for your question.  When I read your question, my thought was that it might be because you are not getting enough sleep, or that your work causes you to make decisions all day about what to work on next. Nothing is pre-planned or pre-decided.  Both of which could be the underlying reason for feeling exhausted at the end of the day.  If you're not getting enough sleep, the effect you will experience would be the same as if you were experiencing decision fatigue. An inability to make decisions.  And that is why, at the end of the day, you find it so difficult to plan the next day. After all, what is planning? It's making decisions about what you will work on tomorrow.  So, if a lack of sleep is the issue, then the fix would be to look at your sleep cycle and make adjustments there.  However, for most people, the problem is making too many decisions throughout the day, leaving them feeling mentally drained and lacking in any motivation to do anything.  This is where routines, processes and rules come into play.  Every productive day is the result of hundreds of decisions: What deserves my attention? What can wait? What should I ignore? What should I delegate? When is “good enough” truly good enough? If each time you come up with something new and you have to decide whether something deserves your attention, whether it can wait, or whether you could ignore it, you're tapping into your prefrontal cortex's energy reserves.  And your prefrontal cortex does not have an 850cc engine that only draws a minuscule amount of energy. No. It has a full-throated V8 and drinks fuel like it's put a straw in a lake and called it a warm-up. This is why pre-establishing what your core work is matters. Once you know what your core work is and what that work looks like at a doing level, you are pre-deciding what deserves your attention. It's the work you are employed to do. It's important and must be done.  Now, all you need do is decide when you will do it.  And with core work, given that the type of work you're doing will be the same, you can pre-block time each day for doing it.  For example, you could protect 10 am to lunchtime for doing your core work each day. That means you are no longer deciding what to do each day. You've pre-decided; it's blocked on your calendar, and all you need to do now is turn up and do the work.  It's always fascinated me that the most stressed-out people I've come across in my professional life are the ones who've told themselves they can't do that, and that they have to be available for everyone immediately they ask.  Complete nonsense, of course, but there really are some people who believe that.  In this situation, a person is constantly having to decide whether they should respond to this person or that person. Who is more important? Should I call my boss, or perhaps send her a text message? “Oh shoot! This person's been waiting 10 minutes. I must call them immediately!)  It's also why the least stressed-out people are the ones who are comfortable turning on Do Not Disturb on their devices when they sit down to do some focused work.  They've made the decision that for the next hour or two they will work on a specific type of task. If something was a genuine emergency, they would be told somehow.  I remember last year, when we were changing our car, that the sales manager we dealt with was wonderfully laid-back. Within a few days of starting the process to change our car, I worked out that he would respond to our messages between 11:00 am and 12:00 pm or between 4:00 and 5:00 pm, depending on when we messaged him.  It was consistent, and I was hugely impressed.  When I picked the new car up, I asked him about it, and he said he gets so many messages and emails each day that he wouldn't be able to do any work if he responded instantly to everything that came in. So, he does an hour before lunch and an hour before he finishes the day.  Brilliant. And I bet you he never gets any complaints about it.  So, having a process for dealing with your communications is just as important as having time protected for doing the work that matters each day. Then we come to your routines. If you were to have a small fifteen-minute closing down routine at the end of the day, this would again minimise the decisions you need to make.  For example, at work, I will close down by clearing my desktop and tidying up my desk. I clear out Todoist and process my inbox. Then I open up my daybook and plan out tomorrow by writing in my appointments and the most important things I have to do tomorrow, and that's it. Done.  It tells me that my workday is now finished. There can also be other things you might do too. For example, at home, perhaps before you go to bed, you load the dishwasher and turn it on, or if you don't have a dishwasher, you wash all the pots and mugs before going to bed.  That's a routine. A going-to-bed routine. Pre-decided, and after a few weeks, you would feel uncomfortable if you didn't do that.  And then there are your rules, or standards.  Again, this helps you make pre-decisions so that, on a day-to-day basis, you don't have to.  For example, I have many of my coaching clients make a commitment to respond to their emails within a specified period of time.  Let's say you set a rule to respond to all your emails within 24 hours. This means that any email that is close to your time limit must be responded to today. Anything else can wait.  For emails that will require you to do a lot of work, the response time still holds, but the response is to reply with something like: “Thank you for your email. I will get it back to you as soon as I can” This way you filter out the genuinely urgent from the non-urgent. If the person you're responding to comes back to you saying they need it by such and such a date, now you know it's important, and you can prioritise it accordingly. If they respond with, “Thanks”. You know it can wait.  The difference between a rule and a routine is that routines happen automatically. You do the same thing at the same time. A rule is conditional. A sort of “if this, then that”.  If I have a presentation to do this week, I will protect an hour the day before for preparation, for example.  Processes are pre-decided methods for doing the different types of work you do. For example, “if I get a sales enquiry, this is the process I follow.” What these routines, processes and rules do is they reduce the number of decisions you need to make each day. This helps to prevent you from overloading your decision-making abilities, which in turn reduces the amount of mental fatigue and tiredness you experience at the end of the day.  Daily planning the day before is a decision-reducing routine. When you plan the day before, it leaves you knowing exactly what you need to do when you begin the next day. No decisions to be made. You know exactly what needs to be done and when you will do it.  You can then preserve your energy for the decisions that may need to be made if something changes and you have to decide what you will work on. The new circumstances.  This is why NASA's Mission Control in Houston in the 1960s practised every possible eventuality before any mission. It was this practice that enabled the brilliant people in Mission Control to get the Apollo 13 crew home safely in April 1970. They had practised that eventuality so many times that the decisions required were already made for them.  So there you go, Fabian. I hope that has helped.  Turn your daily planning into an end-of-day routine. Create a checklist to guide you (again reducing decisions). This daily planning will also help reduce the decisions you need to make the next day, which in turn will leave you feeling less exhausted at the end of the day.  Thank you for your question, and thank you to you too for listening.  Don't forget, my Productivity Academy is now open, and we have a date for our first live event. Sunday, 30 August. The topic will be where to start and a general Q&A session. Not to be missed. Joining now will give you plenty of time to do your homework before the session.  I'll leave the details of the Academy in the show notes for you.  It just remains for me now to wish you all a very, very productive week.