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Kate Tarling — consultant, trainer, and author of The Service Organization — joins Lily and Randy to discuss what it takes to deliver great services inside large, complex organizations. The conversation covers the distinction between products and services, why transformation so often stalls, how to make the business case for change using existing investment, and how product people can contribute to, and benefit from, a more service-oriented way of working.Chapters00:01:30 — Introduction and Kate's background00:04:00 — Defining services vs. products00:07:00 — Product organizations vs. service organizations00:09:00 — Why service delivery is hard00:11:30 — Transformation in practice: there is no magic process00:13:30 — Starting with one area and cutting across silos00:15:30 — Common mistakes organizations make00:19:30 — Measuring progress and making the business case00:22:30 — Redirecting existing investment: a UK government example00:25:00 — Triage functions and portfolio management00:26:00 — How product people can contribute in service organizations00:30:30 — Kate's 12 principles00:34:00 — Summary00:37:00 — Examples of good service organizationsOur HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She's currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She's worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury's. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group's Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He's the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager's Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon's music stores in the US & UK.
" When we talk strategy, we mean let's get through the next 12 months. Have a three year outlook, but be prepared to change it in six months' time if we have to." This is a special episode only available to our podcast subscribers, which we call The Mini Chief. These are short, sharp highlights from our fabulous guests, where you get a 5 to 10 minute snapshot from their full episode. This Mini Chief episode features Paula Martin, the Executive Director, Regional NSW and Visitor Economy at Business NSW. Her full episode is titled Learning from everyone, adapting to shorter strategy cycles, and genuinely receiving feedback. You can find the full audio and show notes here:
Penny Hopkinson is the Founder & CEO of Manual Magic AI® and one of the franchising world's most respected authorities on operations manuals and Standard Operating Procedures. A Companion of the British Franchise Association (BFA), she has spent four decades helping franchisors, multi-site operators, and ambitious SMEs — from solopreneurs to iconic brands including Costa Coffee, Premier Inn, and AA Driving School — capture their know-how, standardize delivery, and protect brand consistency at scale.Website: https://www.manualmagic.ai Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/penny-hopkinson-founder-mark-stephen-pooler
Rich Mironov has spent decades watching product teams lose the room because they were speaking the wrong language. In his new book Money Stories, he makes the case that product managers need a second vocabulary: one built around revenue, retention, and return. In this conversation, he walks through the core framework, why order-of-magnitude estimates beat false precision, how to build a roadmap that holds its ground against sales pressure, and what the AI moment has in common with the early days of mobile. Chapters02:03 — What are money stories, and why do executives need them?03:59 — How accurate do you actually need to be? The case for order-of-magnitude thinking05:52 — Using money stories as a sorting mechanism — and how to handle the "close this deal now" pressure10:54 — Tagging roadmaps with revenue ranges and the "or principle"15:58 — Does every PM need this, or just senior leaders?21:46 — The two flavors of ROI: earning your keep vs. feature-level returns26:57 — Why feature-level ROI almost never works — and why product leaders need to push back30:33 — The story archetypes: upsell stories explained38:02 — The retention/churn story archetype41:32 — Why product people get this wrong: fear of commitment and the need to be understood44:52 — How AI changes (and doesn't change) the money story framework48:58 — How to build financial literacy as a product managerOur HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She's currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She's worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury's. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group's Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He's the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager's Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon's music stores in the US & UK.
Episode 215 with Luc-Etienne Dandrieu, General Manager of AlphaSeeds, a philanthropic investment company supporting sustainable agribusiness SMEs across Africa. In this episode we explore the future of African agribusiness, agricultural investment, and food security, and how patient capital can unlock new opportunities for entrepreneurs across the continent.Luc-Etienne brings more than twenty years of experience across agriculture, food systems, research and development, and sustainability management, with previous roles spanning global food companies and Mercy Ships Switzerland. In this conversation we examine one of the most critical challenges facing African agriculture today: the massive financing gap for agribusiness SMEs and why innovative investment models are needed to support entrepreneurs building the next generation of food and agricultural businesses.Luc-Etienne explains how AlphaSeeds combines the discipline of investment with the long term perspective of philanthropy to support early stage agro processing companies in Africa that create jobs, strengthen food security, and build more resilient local economies. From providing seed equity and strategic expertise to working directly with founders on supply chains, production, and operational challenges, he shares how patient capital and impact investment can help agribusinesses scale sustainably.What We Discuss With Luc-EtienneWhy Africa's agribusiness sector still faces a significant financing gap for agricultural SMEs despite employing a large share of the continent's workforce.Why agro processing and local value chains may be the real engine for job creation, food security, and economic growth across African economies.How philanthropic investment and patient capital can support agribusiness entrepreneurs in ways traditional venture capital and development finance often cannot.Why building profitable agribusinesses that strengthen communities and supply chains may be more powerful than short term aid driven interventions.What the next generation of African agribusiness models could look like as climate resilience, regional food systems, and local processing become central to economic growth.Did you miss my previous episode where I discuss The Trade That Kills Silently: Falsified Medicines and Pharmaceutical Crime in Africa? Make sure to check it out!Connect with Terser:LinkedIn - Terser AdamuInstagram - unlockingafricaTwitter (X) - @TerserAdamuConnect with Luc-Etienne:LinkedIn - Luc-Etienne Dandrieu and AlphaSeedsMany of the businesses unlocking opportunities in Africa don't do it alone. If you'd like strategic support on entering or expanding across African markets, reach out to our partners ETK Group: www.etkgroup.co.ukinfo@etkgroup.co.uk
In 2021, the European Commission and the EU High Representative launched the Global Gateway, a new European strategy to boost smart, clean, and secure links in digital, energy, and transport sectors, while also strengthening health, education, and research systems across the world. This panel discussion provides an accessible overview of the Global Gateway, outlining its objectives, priority sectors, and delivery mechanisms. The discussion explores what Global Gateway means in practice for Ireland, examining how Irish businesses, including SMEs, can engage with EU-backed financing instruments and international infrastructure projects, while ensuring alignment with sustainable development objectives and the priorities of partners in the Global South. The panel also situates Global Gateway within the broader context of the Global Europe Instrument and Ireland's Presidency of the Council of the EU in the second half of 2026, highlighting Ireland's potential role in shaping and delivering this flagship EU initiative. The event begins with opening remarks by Barry Andrews MEP, Chair of the European Parliament's DEVE Committee, on the nature of the Global Gateway Strategy and is followed by the panel discussion. The panel includes: Barry Andrews MEP, Chair of the European Parliament's DEVE Committee Jane-Ann McKenna, CEO at Dóchas Anne Lanigan, Divisional Manager, Local Enterprise & Regions at Enterprise Ireland Ruth Parkin, Director, EU Unit, Development Cooperation & Africa Division, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
CX Goalkeeper - Customer Experience, Business Transformation & Leadership
This episode dives into the real challenges of building and growing startups, with practical advice from Guillano Demon. Listeners get insights on leadership, product-market fit, team alignment, and customer experience. The discussion is honest, energetic, and packed with actionable tips for founders and innovators. About the guest: Guillano Demon is an ex-EY Partner with deep cross-functional experience in building, transforming, and scaling businesses across healthcare, consumer products and technology. He is a co-founder of ventures including Ohana Health, Admiral Freight and KompiTech.AI, works closely with startups and SMEs as a strategic advisor. His mission is to help founders turn bold ideas into real, scalable companies by combining disciplined execution with human-centered leadership. Relevant links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guillano-demon-264881/ Keay Take-aways: Blend conviction with openness: Startup leaders must be stubborn yet open to feedback and learning from others. Engage customers early and often: Constantly involve customers to ensure products are usable and meet real needs. Team alignment and governance matter: Having the right team and clear governance helps resolve issues and drive success. Chapters: 0:00 - Intro 0:35 - Introduction to Business Transformation and Startup Insights 1:57 - Giullano's Mission: Supporting Startup Founders 3:21 - Essential Leadership Qualities for Startups 4:36 - Engaging with Teams and Customers Effectively 5:39 - Overcoming Challenges in Fundraising and Market Fit 8:25 - Strategies for Achieving Product Market Fit 13:03 - Success Case: Launching a Pharmaceutical Startup 15:13 - Learning from Failure: The Importance of Team Alignment 18:43 - Quickfire Round: Insights on Business Challenges and Strategies 20:17 - Golden Nugget: Balancing Dreams with Reality 20:52 - Conclusion and Wrap-Up Please, hit the follow button and leave your feedback: Apple Podcast: https://www.cxgoalkeeper.com/apple Spotify: https://www.cxgoalkeeper.com/spotify About the host: Gregorio Uglioni is a seasoned transformation leader with over 15 years of experience shaping business and digital change, consistently delivering service excellence and measurable impact. As an Associate Partner at Forward, he is recognized for his strategic vision, operational expertise, and ability to drive sustainable growth. A respected keynote speaker and host of the well-known global podcast Business Transformation Pitch with the CX Goalkeeper, Gregorio energizes and inspires organizations worldwide with his customer-centric approach to innovation. Follow Gregorio Uglioni on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregorio-uglioni/
Sales Game Changers | Tip-Filled Conversations with Sales Leaders About Their Successful Careers
This is episode 817. Read the complete transcription on the Sales Game Changers Podcast website. 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! On today's show, we interviewed Mark Amtower, author, speaker, podcaster, and consultant who helps SMEs, government contractors, and consultants gain visibility, credibility, and traction in the federal market. Find Mark on LinkedIn. MARK'S TIP: "Anytime you do an outreach, particularly to a Fed, put it in context. Why do you want to connect and what are you bringing to them? Not what they can do for you, but what you can do for them."
د. عامر الوزان هو مهندس نفط عراقي بأكثر من 30 سنة خبرة بالقطاع النفطي، يشغل حالياً منصب مدير ضمان الانتاج والتدفق في شركة Dragon Oil. ولد في الكوت، درس هندسة البترول في جامعة بغداد، وبدأ رحلة امتدت من اليمن الى ماليزيا الى الولايات المتحدة والإمارات.بهالحلقة من تجارب، نناقش وياه مسيرته من التدريس في معهد الكوت الى العمل بأعماق خليج المكسيك على مشاريع Ultra Deep، ونتعمق بموضوع Flow Assurance وشلون يضمن المهندس استمرار الانتاج بدون مشاكل. نتطرق لأنواع الشركات النفطية والفرق بين كل وحدة، ثقافات العمل بين الدول، وشنو يحتاج المهندس العراقي الشاب حتى ينجح بهالقطاع.نغطي همين رؤيته لمستقبل القطاع النفطي العراقي: كلفة الانتاج المنخفضة وكيفية استغلالها، دور القطاع الخاص والشركات الصغيرة والمتوسطة، القيمة المضافة من تكرير النفط بدل تصديره خام، واستخراج الليثيوم من المياه المنتجة. ونناقش مقترح "بغداد عاصمة الطاقة العربية" وشنو يحتاج العراق حتى يوصل لهالهدف بالطاقات المتجددة والأحفورية.الفصول:0:00 مقدمة1:06 النشأة في الكوت ودراسة هندسة البترول في جامعة بغداد2:05 مغادرة العراق: اليمن، ماليزيا، وبداية رحلة الغربة5:01 جودة التعليم العراقي وقيمة شهادة جامعة بغداد7:12 ليش اختار هندسة البترول تحديداً8:56 مشروع Ultra Deep في خليج المكسيك بعمق 7800 قدم10:35 أنواع الشركات النفطية: المشغل، الخدمات، الهندسة، EPCI14:13 نصيحة للمهندسين: جربوا كل أنواع الشركات17:36 الانتقال الى الولايات المتحدة وتحديات سوق العمل20:34 ثقافة العمل الأمريكية والفروقات مع جنوب شرق آسيا26:09 تجربة العمل في هيوستن قلب الصناعة النفطية32:46 ابتكار تقنية On Fly Pigging ونشر بحث في OTC33:52 أهم الدروس الشخصية: الهدف، الأمل، والتعلم المستمر36:15 هل يشعر بالذنب لمغادرة العراق؟37:22 ما هو Flow Assurance (ضمان التدفق)؟38:33 مشاكل الشمع والهايدريت وكيف تعلق الأنابيب42:21 الأقسام الثلاثة لضمان التدفق44:14 حوادث حقيقية: هايدريت بعد الأعاصير46:22 السلامة HSE بالعراق47:04 كلفة انتاج النفط: مقارنة بين العراق والعالم50:39 كلفة انتاج العراق المنخفضة وكيفية تحسين الكفاءة52:38 الاستثمار بالعقول العراقية والطاقات البشرية54:37 دور الشركات الصغيرة والمتوسطة SMEs بالقطاع النفطي57:57 دور القطاع الخاص وإدارة الحقول1:00:35 عقد هار بن عمر: أول حقل تديره شركة عراقية بالكامل1:02:24 قانون النفط والغاز وجولات التراخيص1:08:39 أزمة الميزانية والاعتماد المفرط على النفط1:09:18 القيمة المضافة: من النفط الخام الى عشرات المنتجات1:11:28 استخراج الليثيوم من المياه المنتجة والطاقة الحرارية1:13:48 الذكاء الاصطناعي والصناعة النفطية1:15:45 تقييم كفاءة الحقول العراقية وتحسين HSE1:16:44 بغداد عاصمة الطاقة العربية: الرؤية الكاملة1:19:18 الطاقة المتجددة بالعراق: الشمس، الرياح، والحرارية1:20:45 لماذا القطاع الخاص متردد بالطاقات المتجددة؟1:24:34 الوقود الأحفوري ومستقبله: COP28 وتقليل الانبعاثات1:28:17 تجربة Dragon Oil بالعراق وحقل الفيحة1:30:02 البيروقراطية والروتين وتأثيرها على الاستثمار1:31:28 دخول الشركات الكبرى والتكاليف المقارنة1:33:04 دروس من الحوادث الكبرى بالقطاع النفطي1:35:36 هل دراسة هندسة النفط ما زالت مجدية؟1:40:04 نصيحة للشباب المقبلين على القطاع1:45:43 ما يتمنى رؤيته بالصناعة النفطية العراقية1:48:14 سرعة اتخاذ القرار وتهيئة الجيل الجديد1:49:39 إعادة زيارة ثقافة العمل والمنظومة الأخلاقية1:51:12 ختام الحلقةتكدرون تشوفون كل حلقاتنا على منصتكم المفضلة عن طريق الرابط: www.tajarib.showارسلولنا اقتراحاتكم للضيوف على الإيميل: hello@tajarib.showللتعاون والرعاية: sponsors@tajarib.show
Stephen Grootes speaks to Luncedo Mtwentwe, Managing Director of Vantage Advisory, about how escalating geopolitical tensions are filtering through to South Africa’s small-business economy. As conflict in the Middle East pushes oil prices higher and raises shipping and insurance costs around key global routes, the knock-on effects are already being felt locally through rising fuel prices, freight costs and currency volatility. For many SMEs that depend on road logistics and imported inputs, these pressures can quickly squeeze margins and cash flow. The Money Show is a podcast hosted by well-known journalist and radio presenter, Stephen Grootes. He explores the latest economic trends, business developments, investment opportunities, and personal finance strategies. Each episode features engaging conversations with top newsmakers, industry experts, financial advisors, entrepreneurs, and politicians, offering you thought-provoking insights to navigate the ever-changing financial landscape. Thank you for listening to a podcast from The Money Show Listen live Primedia+ weekdays from 18:00 and 20:00 (SA Time) to The Money Show with Stephen Grootes broadcast on 702 https://buff.ly/gk3y0Kj and CapeTalk https://buff.ly/NnFM3Nk For more from the show, go to https://buff.ly/7QpH0jY or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/PlhvUVe Subscribe to The Money Show Daily Newsletter and the Weekly Business Wrap here https://buff.ly/v5mfetc The Money Show is brought to you by Absa 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/CapeTalk 702 on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@radio702 CapeTalk on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@capetalk CapeTalk on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ CapeTalk on X: https://x.com/Radio702 CapeTalk on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CapeTalk567 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Our HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She's currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She's worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury's. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group's Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He's the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager's Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon's music stores in the US & UK.
Enterprise Ireland has today announced the launch of Propel Ireland, a new innovation centre designed to drive collaboration, innovation and supply chain development across Ireland's offshore wind sector. Propel Ireland represents a key action under Powering Prosperity: Ireland's Offshore Wind Industrial Strategy, supporting the development of a globally competitive offshore wind industry and positioning Irish companies to capitalise on significant domestic and international opportunities. Offshore wind is central to Ireland's energy future and economic growth, with national targets of up to 37GW of offshore renewable energy capacity by 2050 – creating a significant opportunity for enterprise development, job creation and export growth. Propel Ireland will bring together developers, SMEs, researchers and Government stakeholders to strengthen collaboration across the offshore wind ecosystem and accelerate innovation. Propel Ireland will: • Connect Ireland's offshore wind industry and support collaboration across enterprise, research and Government • Enable companies to address shared technical and commercial challenges • Support the development of a competitive Irish supply chain for domestic projects and global export • Accelerate the commercial deployment of later-stage technologies The initiative will be supported by a cross-sectoral steering group, including representatives from Government Departments and agencies, industry and the research community, ensuring alignment with national policy and industry needs. Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke TD, said: "Developing a strong offshore wind industry is a key priority for Government, supporting enterprise growth, innovation and job creation. Propel Ireland will play an important role in strengthening Ireland's supply chain and supporting companies to seize the opportunities in this rapidly growing global sector." Minister at the Department of Climate, Energy and the Environment, Timmy Dooley TD, said: "Offshore wind will play a central role in delivering Ireland's climate and energy ambitions. Initiatives such as Propel Ireland are important in supporting innovation, building capability and ensuring we maximise the economic benefits of the transition to renewable energy." Minister of State with special responsibility for Further Education, Apprenticeship, Construction and Climate Skills, Marian Harkin TD said: "Collaboration between industry, research and Government is critical to delivering innovation in emerging sectors such as offshore wind. Propel Ireland will support the development of knowledge, skills and research capability needed to underpin Ireland's long-term success in this area." Jenny Melia, CEO, Enterprise Ireland, said: "Offshore wind presents a significant opportunity for Ireland to build a new, globally competitive sector. Propel Ireland will support Irish companies to collaborate, innovate and scale, enabling them to compete internationally while contributing to the development of Ireland's offshore wind capability." The launch of Propel Ireland reflects a coordinated, cross-Government approach to developing Ireland's offshore wind sector, aligned with national climate, energy and enterprise policy. Ireland's strong research base, growing enterprise capability and natural resources position the country to become a leading location for offshore wind innovation and supply chain development. Propel Ireland will support this ambition by providing a platform for collaboration, innovation and commercialisation. Enterprise Ireland will now engage with industry partners to support participation in Propel Ireland and to ensure that Irish companies are well-positioned to benefit from opportunities in offshore wind, both domestically and internationally. More about Irish Tech News Irish Tech News are Ireland's No. 1 Online Tech Publication and often Ireland's No.1 Tech Podcast too. You can find hundreds of fantastic previous episodes and su...
Exploring how organisations can design meaningful, flexible and future-ready work environments with Barry Winkless, Chief Strategy Officer and Head of the Future of Work Institute at CPL Group. Episode OverviewWhat if everything we think we know about work is already out of date? In this episode of The HRLocker Room, Barry Winkless, Chief Strategy Officer and Head of the Future of Work Institute at CPL Group, joins us to explore the forces reshaping how people work, lead and create value.Barry has spent more than 25 years working globally with some of the world's most respected organisations. He leads the award‑winning Future of Work Institute, a team dedicated to questioning, exploring and designing future work solutions with organisations around the world. A recognised expert in his field, Barry was named one of the Top 50 Global Influencers on the Future of Work by Onalytica. He also heads the Future Work World Network and hosts the Future Work World podcast.His new book, Future Work World, is a strategic companion for leaders navigating the next era of work. It takes readers through four key stages: mindset, meta wave, model and move, offering a practical, user‑friendly journey for designing work worlds that excite, entice and engage.In this episode, Barry argues that the future of work isn't defined by AI or hybrid policies alone. It's shaped by shifting expectations, new workforce models and a fundamental rethinking of how organisations create value. In this conversation, he breaks down the trends leaders need to understand — and the opportunities SMEs are uniquely positioned to seize.Key topics we exploreWhat the future of work really means and how to think strategically about the 3WsThe workplaceThe workforceThe work itselfHow the rise of the workforce salad, including permanent, contract, gig, and project-based workers, is becoming the new normal.Why individuals (and their expectations) are becoming the most important organisation in the worldThe importance of culture in a multi-modal workforce and how a narrative blueprint helps build culture consistentlyHow using AI only for efficiency creates a mindset gap, but a human-centred approach supports creativity, inclusivity and collective intelligence.How the next era of leadership is shifting to facilitation, psychological safety and shared responsibility.How SMEs' ability to move fast, design flexible work models and access global talent in ways that large enterprises can't presents a unique opportunity.Tune in to hear Barry's insights on designing future‑ready organisations, embracing new workforce models and leading in a world where technology and human expectations are evolving at speed.Would you like to know how HRLocker can help you with your people management in 2024? Click here to get in touch today!
Welcome to Building Brand You™, the podcast that helps you accelerate your success by unlocking your greatest asset – you. KEY TAKEAWAYS: Leadership is about listening to others, creating safe spaces to have conversations and connecting together to agree on a shared vision and make a bigger impact. When you are in the service of others, and helping them to grow and be at their best, you need to make sure that you are also being your best. Listen for understanding, appreciate what works and acknowledge what you're seeing and experiencing every day. More and more, we need to invest in active learning strategies and this requires humility - the willingness to listen and to do more than learn about each other but to learn from each other as well. RESOURCES MENTIONED: Time to Think by Nancy Kline; https://www.amazon.co.uk/Time-Think-Listening-Ignite-Human/dp/0706377451 BBY Show S8 Ep13: Unlocking collective agency https://apple.co/3V0Bb8T ABOUT OUR GUEST: Natacha Wilson's mission is to help leaders shape positive futures. As a leadership coach, facilitator, and founder of Cambridge Insights, she works with leaders and organisations in the world of research, innovation and impact. She creates tailored development workshops and provides human centred coaching, which combine 21st century skills, mindsets and wisdom, to boost leadership capabilities and nurture innovative cultures- for impact. Natacha's experience in international settings includes consumer brands, technology start-ups/SMEs, consultancy firms, and the University of Cambridge! She uses her rich knowledge in Strategy, Impact and Leadership and draws on cross-disciplinary research (inc. NeuroLeadership, Systems thinking, Positive Psychology, Appreciative Inquiry) to provide a breadth of perspectives, encourage reflection, navigate transition points towards behavioural change. She is an advisory board member of Form the Future (a community interest company which connects young people to a world of career possibilities, inspires them to dream big and empowers them to fulfill their full potential) and a coach for the Homeward Bound Leadership Programme which aims to develop a globally diverse leadership network of 10,000 STEMM women working on the sustainability of the planet. CONNECT WITH NATACHA WILSON: Email: natacha.wilson@cambridgeinsights.co.uk Website: www.cambridgeinsights.co.uk LinkedIn : https://www.linkedin.com/in/natachawilson/ X: @caminsights ABOUT KYM HAMER: Kym is an international leadership and personal branding thought leader, an executive coach, and a programme design and facilitation practitioner. She is also the creator of Building Brand You™ - a methodology helping organisations, teams, and individuals to build reputation, presence, and gravitas. Kym works with leaders - both individually and in organisational development initiatives - to inspire and engage thinking styles and behaviour that achieve results and leave legacy. In 2020, just one year after launching her business, she was nominated by Thinkers360 as one of the Top 100 Women B2B Leadership influencers and is currently in the Top 15 Personal Branding and Top 10 Marketing Influencers in the world. For 5 years running Kym has also been one of Thinkers360's Top 10 Thought Leaders on Entrepreneurship and in 2023, 2024 and 2025, was recognised as one of their Top Voices globally. She has been part of Homeward Bound Projects faculty since 2020, a global initiative reaching 1.8 billion people, equipping women and non-binary people with a STEMM background to lead conversations for a sustainable future. She is currently the Program Design and Faculty Lead for the 10th on-line cohort and was part of the on-board faculty who voyaged to Antarctica in 2023 and 2025, to deliver the initiative's immersive component. In between all of these things, you'll find her curled up in a corner with her nose in a book. Building Brand You™: JOIN the BBY Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/buildingbrandyou SUBSCRIBE to the BBY Podcast on: (Apple) - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/building-brand-you/id1567407273 (Spotify) - https://open.spotify.com/show/4Ho26pAQ5uJ9h0dGNicCIq CONNECT WITH KYM HAMER: LinkedIn - https://linkedin.com/in/kymhamer/ Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/kymhamerartemis/ Request to join the BBY Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/buildingbrandyou TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@kymhamer Thinkers360 - https://bit.ly/thinkers360-kymhamer-BBY Find out about BBY Coaching - https://calendly.com/kymhamer/bbychat/ HOSTED BY: Kym Hamer DISCLAIMER: The views, information, or opinions expressed during the Building Brand You™ podcast series are solely those of the individuals involved. They do not necessarily represent any other entities, agencies, organisations, or companies. Building Brand You™ is not responsible and does not verify the accuracy of any of the information in the podcast available for listening on this site. The primary purpose of this podcast is to educate and inform. This podcast does not constitute legal advice or services
SME's face various challenges when adopting digital tools in Ireland, which is why empowering SMEs with accessible technology is critical to economic growth. A fast and simple ERP can redefine the market dynamics for small business success and one man who knows all-out this is Morgan Browne founder and CEO of Enterpryze. I recently caught up with Morgan to find out more.Morgan talks about his background, cloud erp solution, AI and more.More about Morgan Browne:Morgan Browne is the Founder and CEO of Enterpryze and is a highly regarded member of SAP's Global Partner Executive Council and was a finalist in the EY (Entrepreneur of the Year Awards) in 2015.He spent a year studying Computer Science at the Institute of Technology Tallaght before catching the entrepreneurial bug. An avid businessman and technology enthusiast, Morgan Browne is passionate about helping SMEs succeed financially, and empowering them to achieve their full potential.With this in mind, Morgan purchased Milner Browne 10 years ago and developed it from a reseller business into a solutions company using SAP technology as a key platform provider.The Milner Browne Group develops business management software to help SMEs work smarter and more effectively, Milner Browne is a Deloitte best managed companies platinum member and a fast 50 finalist.In 2017, Morgan officially launched Enterpryze, the world's first mobile-first solution for SAP Business One.
Irish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) overwhelmingly believe artificial intelligence (AI) can benefit their business, yet most are still struggling to translate that opportunity into action, according to new research released today. The study, commissioned by Google in partnership with Amárach Research and based on a survey of 400 Irish SMEs, shows that while 80% believe AI can positively impact their business and 65% expect it to drive growth in 2026, adoption remains limited. The findings indicate a significant confidence and capability gap. The main barriers preventing greater AI adoption include fear of making mistakes (30%), lack of skills (27%) and cost (24%), with many business leaders unsure of where to start (16%). More than half (57%) believe they are behind competitors in adopting AI, while 50% are concerned their business could be left behind without it. The research also highlights that micro-businesses, longer-established firms and non-exporters are most at risk of falling behind, underscoring the need for targeted, practical support that meets SMEs' varying needs. The research is being launched today at an event hosted by Google Ireland at The Foundry as part of Local Enterprise Week. In partnership with the Local Enterprise Office (LEO) network, Google also announced the launch of AI Works for Ireland, a series of complementary, face-to-face regional events aimed at equipping SMEs with practical AI skills for business. The series begins today in Dublin, followed by events in Galway (April 30th), Cork (14th May) and Monaghan (28th May). Each event will feature insights from Google AI experts on how SMEs can use AI to drive growth, creativity and efficiency, alongside dedicated AI workshops offering support for founders and business leaders. As part of the initiative, Google and the Local Enterprise Office network are providing up to 10,000 AI scholarships to workers across Ireland. Delivered through Coursera, the Google AI Professional Certificate offers practical training across more than 20 real-world AI business use cases, from data analysis and content creation to customer communications. This research and initiative follows the release of the government's National Digital and AI strategy, which includes key pillars to empower people, workers and businesses to develop cutting-edge skills and foster digital and AI literacy, alongside growing a digitally innovative and competitive enterprise sector within Ireland. Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation, Niamh Smyth, TD, said: "AI has the potential to boost productivity and enhance competitiveness across Ireland's SME Sector. As we advance the ambitions of the recently published National Digital and AI Strategy, a key priority of my department is to fast?track enterprise adoption digital and AI technologies. Initiatives like this one, delivered in partnership with Google and the Local Enterprise Offices, are vital in ensuring that businesses of all sizes, in every region, have the skills and confidence they need to adopt AI at pace." Vanessa Hartley, Head of Google Ireland, said: "Irish SMEs are clear about the opportunity AI presents, but this research shows many are being held back by uncertainty rather than ambition. AI Works for Ireland is about closing that gap – providing practical, trusted support that helps businesses move from awareness to action, and from experimentation to real impact. At Google, we are committed to helping people and businesses across Ireland build the skills they need to succeed in an AI-powered economy. Through initiatives like this, we want to ensure SMEs have access to high-quality training, tools and expertise that empower them to grow, innovate and compete with confidence." Kieran Comerford, Chair of the Local Enterprise Offices, said: "Local Enterprise Week is all about helping businesses and entrepreneurs improve and showing them the resources available to them....
Edward Chin, managing director and head finance broker at CZM Finance, has built a reputation for turning "Band-Aid" financial fixes into long-term growth strategies. In this episode of Elite Broker, host Annie Kane sits down with the Brisbane-based broker to unpack his 10-year career and his obsession with efficiency and agility – working with everyone from local butchers and cafes to large-scale manufacturing and medical clinics. Tune in to find out: The reality of the "Band-Aid versus sustainability" approach when dealing with ATO debt and working capital. How to handle complex M&A (mergers and acquisitions) and identify operational efficiencies for clients. The impact of upcoming reforms, including Payday Super and the removal of tax deductibility on ATO interest. And much more!
What does it actually mean to manage your money in a way that supports the life you want - not just survive month to month and hope for the best? In this episode, I'm joined by accountant and financial strategist Karen Woller (founder of Thrive NZ) for a refreshingly practical and no-nonsense conversation about money, business growth, and what it really takes to build financial clarity as a business owner. Karen works with SMEs and service-based businesses to help them understand their numbers, manage cash flow, and make smarter decisions — so their business actually funds the life they want to live. We get into the real, sometimes uncomfortable, and deeply important side of business finance, and why so many entrepreneurs are working hard but still feel financially stuck. In this episode: Why cash flow problems aren't always what you think — and the two main culprits behind them The difference between profit and cash in the bank (and why confusing them is costing you) How to set payment terms that actually work for your business — and enforce them Good debt vs. bad debt, and when borrowing to grow actually makes sense Why fear around financial decisions is usually a data problem, not a confidence problem How to break down a scary hiring decision into a number you can actually work with The CEO mindset shift that founders resist — and why it's holding them back Contractors vs. employees: how to build capacity without overcommitting Why reconciling your Xero regularly is the single most important habit you can build How to use 90-day sprints to stay focused on the right financial levers Karen's framework for financial clarity: Understand your baseline (what you need) vs. your thriving number (what you want). Know where you are now. Map what needs to change to get there. Review it every 12 months — because every business and life has seasons. About Karen Karen Woller is the founder of Thrive NZ, an accounting and financial strategy firm working with small to medium businesses across New Zealand. She helps business owners cut through the fear and confusion around their finances, understand what their numbers are actually telling them, and build businesses that work — for their goals and their life. Karen is direct, practical, and deeply invested in making sure her clients aren't just profitable on paper, but genuinely thriving.
saas.unbound is a podcast for and about founders who are working on scaling inspiring products that people love, brought to you by https://saas.group/, a serial acquirer of B2B SaaS companies.In episode #9 of season 6, Anna Nadeina talks with Simon Manz, founder of entitys.io, a cloud-based Product Information Management (PIM) and Digital Asset Management (DAM) platform specifically designed for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the B2B sector.Simon joins the podcast to unpack one of the hardest pivots in SaaS: transforming a professional services company into a product-focused software business.----------- Episode's Chapters -----------0:05 — Introduction & Product Overview1:24 — Simon's Background & Journey to Entities3:03 — Pivoting from Services to SaaS Product7:14 — Culture Change & Team Transformation12:36 — Identifying the Right ICP15:00 — Building Relationships in B2B Mid-Market22:38 — Why Bootstrap vs VC Funding25:48 — Positioning & Marketing Strategy28:13 — Building Reviews & Community36:19 — Wins, Failures & Key LessonsSimon - https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-manz/entitys - entitys.ioSubscribe to our channel to be the first to see the interviews that we publish - https://www.youtube.com/@saas-groupStay up to date:Twitter: https://twitter.com/SaaS_groupLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/14790796
Discover how biodegradable air pillows are changing the game for UK packaging. From dodging the Plastic Packaging Tax to meeting 2025 recycling rules, this episode reveals why SMEs are making the eco-friendly switch... and how easy it really is.Info: https://www.globepackaging.co.uk/protection/loose-fill-packing-peanuts/air-pillows-cushions.html Globe Packaging City: Hayes Address: Unit 5, Caxton Trading Estate Website: https://www.globepackaging.co.uk/
EP 412 - How far should UK employers go when it comes to looking after staff?In this episode we break down the real cost of being a “nice” employer - from UK statutory sick pay (SSP) and full sick pay policies to employee benefits, pensions, flexible working, and permanent health insurance (PHI).With major UK employment law changes coming, SMEs face difficult trade-offs:Is full sick pay worth the payroll cost?Does unlimited holiday actually work?Can generous benefits create legal risk?Are employers responsible for employees' long-term wellbeing?Featuring insights from Oury Clark's employment lawyer Jessica Bass and financial adviser Freddie Pattenden, this episode is a practical guide for SME founders, directors, and HR leaders navigating sick leave, compliance, retention, and post-COVID workplace expectations.If you run a UK business and want to balance competitiveness, fairness, and sustainability - this one's for you.*For Apple Podcast chapters, access them from the menu in the bottom right corner of your player*Spotify Video Chapters:00:00 Caring Without Going Broke00:57 Meet the Experts01:27 What Staff Really Want03:38 Compliance Value Competition05:28 PHI Income Protection Debate11:22 Post Covid Flex and Mental Health15:36 Legal Minimums Sick Pay Changes21:54 Morality Consistency and Flex26:15 Being Nice Can Backfire29:10 Structuring Benefits and Contracts32:09 Unlimited Holiday Pitfalls32:51 Unlimited holiday pitfalls34:50 Perks arms race37:07 SMEs vs big firms38:35 Pension basics explained39:43 Qualifying earnings trap42:41 Pensions and retention47:17 Salary sacrifice demystified54:43 Self employed pension gap55:06 Death in service cover57:15 Private healthcare reality59:19 Tailoring PMI benefits01:03:00 Managing premium increases01:04:43 Virtual GP and AI support01:06:16 Avoiding Benefit Red Herrings01:08:14 Flexible Benefits Allowance01:11:20 Renewals and Underwriting Traps01:13:47 Flexible Working Rights01:15:33 Office Returns and Discrimination01:19:49 Mental Health Boundaries01:21:46 Best Benefits and Compliance01:27:10 Business or BS Quiz01:27:55 Maternity and Paternity Debate01:34:28 Wellbeing Apps and Final WrapWatch and subscribe to us on YouTubeFollow us:InstagramTikTokLinkedinTwitterFacebook
THE Presentations Japan Series by Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo, Japan
Change is easy to talk about and hard to embrace. Most people don't refuse change out of logic — they resist it out of instinct. Try the classic "fold your arms the other way" exercise: nothing meaningful is at stake, yet your body argues back. So if a tiny shift feels awkward, imagine what your team feels when you ask for a restructure, new CRM, new KPIs, or a new strategy. This transcript is a practical talk design that helps people move from grumbling compliance to genuine buy-in — especially when the change is big, public, or politically messy. How do you define the change so people can actually embrace it? If the change isn't crystal clear, your audience will fill the gaps with fear, rumour, and resistance. Leaders often say "We're transforming" or "We're becoming more customer-centric," but that's fog, not a destination. Define the change like you're writing a survey question: precise, measurable, and impossible to misunderstand. In a Japanese context (where ambiguity can be read as risk), clarity matters even more; in a US or Australian context (where speed is prized), unclear messaging triggers frustration and scepticism. Spell out the outcome: what stops, what starts, what stays. Name the systems involved (Salesforce, Microsoft Teams, SAP, OKRs), the timeframe (this quarter, post-pandemic reality, as of 2026), and what "good" looks like. People embrace what they can picture. Do now: Write the change in one sentence + three bullets (Stop/Start/Continue). Read it aloud until it's clean. Why should you design the closing before the opening? Because your close is what people remember when they decide whether to support you — or quietly sabotage you. Most presenters obsess over the opening and then improvise the ending, which is backwards. Start at the end for design clarity: you need two closes. Close #1 is what you say before Q&A. Close #2 is what you say after Q&A — and that second close is vital, because one random question can hijack attention. If a listener leaves thinking about an off-topic tangent, your recommendation dies in the carpark. Great executives at companies like Toyota, Rakuten, Amazon, and Atlassian know messaging discipline wins. Your final words should "ring in their ears" after the talk is over. Do now: Draft two 20–30 second closes: one to summarise, one to re-anchor after questions. What questions will kill your credibility — and how do you pre-empt them? Unprepared Q&A is where good change proposals go to die. You can have a brilliant idea, but if you stumble on obvious questions, people don't just doubt the detail — they doubt you. Anticipate likely objections: cost, workload, timing, fairness, risk, and "what's in it for my team?" Think in categories: frontline (time and tools), middle managers (authority and KPIs), executives (risk and ROI), and support functions (process and compliance). In multinationals, you'll also face "global vs local" questions; in SMEs, it's "we don't have resources." Pre-empt with short, confident answers and one supporting example each. You're not trying to win an argument; you're trying to protect trust. Do now: List the top 10 brutal questions. Write crisp answers. Rehearse them out loud with a colleague playing the sceptic. How do you justify the need for change without sounding pushy? People accept change faster when you give a clear "why" and a compelling "proof," not a lecture. Your justification has two parts: (1) a direct statement of the need, and (2) an example that makes the need undeniable. The "why" should connect to real-world pressures: customer expectations, competitor moves, cost blowouts, quality issues, cyber risk, talent retention, or post-pandemic work patterns. The example should be specific: a client churn story, a missed deadline, a compliance near-miss, a sales cycle slowdown, or a service failure. In Japan, the example must be respectful and non-blaming; in the US, it can be more direct; in Australia, it should be straight but not self-righteous. Make it human, not abstract. Do now: Write your "why" in one sentence. Add one concrete example with numbers (even rough ones) and a short story. Why do you need three viable solutions, not one "obvious" answer? If you present one "perfect" option and two silly decoys, people feel manipulated — and they'll resist on principle. The goal is credibility. Offer three genuinely workable solutions, each realistic in cost, capability, and timeline. This signals balance and respect. Option sets also help different cultures and personalities: some audiences prefer incremental change (risk-managed), others want bold change (speed). Your job is to show you've done the thinking. Then — and this is the trick — you list pros and cons for each option in detail. Real options have real downsides; naming them makes you look objective and trustworthy. You're not hiding the pain; you're managing it. Do now: Build three options that could all work. For each, list 3 pros + 3 cons, including cost, time, and operational impact. How do you recommend "Option 3" without sounding like you've already decided? You earn the right to recommend Option 3 by making Options 1 and 2 feel genuinely credible first. Then you place your preferred choice last because recency bias is real: people remember what they heard most recently. But don't just declare it — prove it. State clearly: "We recommend Option 3." Then give evidence: impact on customers, speed to value, risk controls, resource fit, alignment to strategy, and what success looks like. If possible, anchor it in known frameworks (Kotter's change model, ADKAR, OKRs) or operational realities (training time, adoption curves, budget cycles). Finally, design an opening that punches through distraction — phones, notifications, social media — because the hardest part of public speaking in 2026 is winning attention in the first 30 seconds. Do now: Make Option 3 last, strongest, and evidence-backed. Write a punchy opening that earns attention fast. Conclusion If you follow this delivery structure — Opening → Need → Example → Option 1 (pros/cons) → Option 2 (pros/cons) → Option 3 (pros/cons) → Recommendation → Close #1 → Q&A → Final Close — you dramatically increase the odds of people adopting your change willingly. Getting people to change is hard. Getting them to embrace it takes design discipline. We have a bonus for you packed with free resources—one that'll make you go, 'Yep, this is exactly what I wanted.' Head to the link now. dale-carnegie.co.jp/en/about/freebundles 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, 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. Greg 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 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, which are widely followed by executives seeking success strategies in Japan.
IP Fridays - your intellectual property podcast about trademarks, patents, designs and much more
I am Rolf Claessen and together with my co-host Ken Suzan I welcome you to Episode 172 of our podcast IP Fridays. Today's interview guests are Co-Founder & CEO of Inception Point AI, Jeanine Whright, and Mark Stignani, who is Partner & Chair of Analytics Practice at Barnes & Thornburg LLP. https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeaninepercivalwright https://www.linkedin.com/in/markstignani Inception Point AI But before the interview I have news for you: The Unified Patent Court (UPC) ruled on Feb 19, 2026, that specialized insurance can cover security for legal costs. This is vital for firms, as it eases litigation financing and lowers financial hurdles for patent lawsuits by removing the need for high liquid assets to enforce rights at the UPC. On Feb 12, 2026, the WIPO Coordination Committee nominated Daren Tang for a second six-year term as Director General. Tang continues modernizing the global IP system, focusing on SMEs, women, and digital transformation. His confirmation in April is considered certain. An AAFA study from Feb 4 reveals 41% of tested fakes (clothing/shoes) failed safety standards. Many contained toxic chemicals like phthalates, BPA, or lead. The study highlights that counterfeiters increasingly use Meta platforms to sell unsafe imitations directly to consumers. China's CNIPA 2026 report announced a crackdown on bad-faith patent and trademark filings. Beyond better examination quality, the agency will sanction shady IP firms and stop strategies violating “good faith” to make China’s IP system more ethical and innovation-friendly. Now, let's hear the interview with Jeanine Whright and Mark Stignani! How AI Is Rewiring Media & Entertainment: Key Takeaways from Ken Suzan's Conversation with Jeanine Wright and Mark Stignani In this IP Fridays interview, Ken Suzan speaks with two repeat guests who look at the same phenomenon from two angles: Jeanine Wright, Co-Founder & CEO of Inception Point AI, as a builder of AI-native entertainment, and Mark Stignani, Partner and Chair of the Analytics Practice at Barnes & Thornburg LLP, as a lawyer advising clients who are trying to use AI without stepping into a legal (or ethical) crater. What emerges is a clear picture: generative AI is not just “another tool.” It is rapidly becoming the default infrastructure for creative work—while the rules around ownership, consent, and accountability lag behind. 1) What “AI-generated personalities” really are (and why that matters) Jeanine's company is not primarily “cloning” real people. Instead, Inception Point AI creates original, fictional personalities—characters with backstories, ambitions, and evolving arcs—then deploys them into the world as podcast hosts and content creators (and eventually actors and musicians). Her key point: the creative work still starts with humans. Writers and creators define the concept, tone, audience, and story engine. What AI changes is speed, cost, and iteration—and therefore what is economically feasible to produce. 2) The “generative content pipeline” isn't a magic button A recurring misconception Ken raises is the idea that someone “pushes a button” and content pops out. Jeanine explains that real production looks more like a hybrid studio: A creative team defines character, voice, format, and storyline. A technical team builds what she calls an “AI orchestration layer” that combines multiple models and tools. The “stack” differs by format: the workflow for a long-form audio drama is different from a short-form beauty clip. This matters because it reframes AI content not as a single output, but as a pipeline decision: which tools, which data sources, which QA, and which governance steps are used—and where human review happens. 3) The biggest legal questions: origin, liability, ownership, and contracts Mark doesn't name a single “top issue.” He describes a cluster of problems that repeatedly show up in client conversations: Training data and “origin story” Clients keep asking: Can I legally use AI output if the tool was trained on copyrighted works? Even if the output looks new, the unease is about whether the tool's capabilities are built on unlicensed inputs. Liability for unintended harm Mark flags risk from AI content that inadvertently infringes, defames, or carries bias. The legal exposure may not match the creator's intent. Ownership and protectability He points to a big gap: many jurisdictions are still reluctant to grant classic IP rights (copyright or patent-style protection) to purely AI-generated material. That creates uncertainty around whether businesses can truly “own” what they produce. Old contracts weren't written for AI A final, practical point: many agreements—talent contracts, author clauses, data licenses—predate generative AI and simply don't address it. That leads to disputes about scope, permissions, and—crucially—indemnities. 4) Are we at a tipping point? The “gold rush” vs. “next creative era” views Jeanine frames AI as “the world's most powerful creative tool”—comparable to previous step-changes like animation, special effects, and CGI. For her, the strategic implication is simple: creators who learn to use AI well will expand what they can build and test, faster than ever. Mark's metaphor is more cautionary: he calls the moment a “gold rush” where technology is sprinting ahead of law. Courts are getting flooded with foundational disputes, while legislation is fragmented—he notes that states may move faster than federal frameworks, and that labor agreements (e.g., union protections) will be a key pressure point. 5) Democratization: more creators, more niche content, more experimentation One of the most concrete themes is access. Jeanine argues AI will: Lower production barriers for independent filmmakers and storytellers. Reduce the need for “hit-making only” economics that dominate Hollywood. Make micro-audience content commercially viable. Her example is intentionally niche: highly localized, specialized content (like a “pollen report” for many markets) that would never have made financial sense before can now exist—and thrive—because the production cost drops and personalization scales. 6) Likeness, consent, and “digital performers”: what happens when AI resembles a real actor? Ken pushes into a sensitive area: what if someone generates a performance that closely resembles a living actor without consent? Mark outlines the current (imperfect) toolbox—because, as he emphasizes, most laws weren't built for this scenario. He points to practical claims that may come into play in the U.S., such as rights of publicity and false endorsement-type theories, and notes that whether something is parody or “too close” can become a major fault line. Jeanine explains her company's operational approach: They focus on original personalities, designed “from scratch.” They build internal checks to avoid misappropriating known names, likenesses, or recognizable identities. If they ever work with real people, the model would be licensing their likeness/voice. A subtle but important business point also appears here: Jeanine expects AI-native characters themselves to become licensable assets—meaning the entertainment economy may expand to include “celebrity rights” for fully synthetic personalities. 7) Ethics: the real line is “deception,” not “AI vs. human” The ethical core of the conversation is not “AI is bad” or “AI is good.” It's how AI is used—especially whether audiences are misled. Mark highlights several ethical risks: Misuse of tools to manipulate faces and content (“AI slop” and political misuse). Displacement of creative workers without adequate transition support. A concern that AI often optimizes toward “statistical averages,” potentially flattening originality. Jeanine agrees ethics must be designed into the system. She describes regular discussions with an ethicist and emphasizes a principle: transparency. Her company discloses when content or personalities are AI-generated. She argues that if people understand what they're engaging with and choose it knowingly, the ethical problem shifts from “AI exists” to “Are we tricking people?” Mark adds a real-world warning: deepfakes are now credible enough to enable serious fraud—he references a case-like scenario where a synthetic video meeting deceived an employee into authorizing a payment. The point is clear: authenticity and verification are no longer optional. 8) The “dead actor” hypothetical: legal permission vs. moral intent Ken raises a provocative scenario: an actor's estate authorizes an AI-generated new performance, but the actor opposed such technology while alive. Neither guest offers a simplistic answer. Jeanine suggests that even if the estate holds legal rights, a company might choose to avoid such content out of respect and because the ethical “overhang” could damage the storytelling outcome. She also notes the harder question: people who died before today's capabilities may never have been able to meaningfully consent to what AI can now do—raising questions about how we interpret legacy intent. Mark underscores the practical contract problem: many rights are drafted “in perpetuity,” but that doesn't automatically settle the ethical question. 9) Five-year forecast: “AI everywhere,” but audiences may stratify Ken closes with a prediction question: in five years, how much entertainment content will significantly involve AI—and will audiences care? Jeanine predicts AI becomes the default creative layer for most content creation. Mark is slightly more conservative on the percentage, but adds an important nuance: the market will likely stratify. Low-cost, high-volume content may become saturated with AI, while premium segments may emphasize “human-made” as a differentiator—especially if disclosure norms become standard. Bottom line for business leaders and creators This interview lands on a pragmatic conclusion: AI will change how content is made at scale, and the competitive edge will go to teams that combine creative taste, operational discipline, and legal/ethical governance. If you're building, commissioning, or distributing content, the questions you can't dodge anymore are: What's the provenance of the tools and data you rely on? Who is responsible when output harms, infringes, or misleads? What rights can you actually claim in AI-assisted work? Do your contracts and disclosures match the new reality? Ken Suzan: Thank you, Rolf. We have two returning guests to the IP Friday’s podcast. Joining me today is Janine Wright and Mark Stignani. Our topic for discussion, how is AI transforming the media and entertainment industries today? We look at the issues from differing perspectives. A bit about our guests, Janine Wright is a seasoned board member, CEO, global COO and CFO. She’s led organizations from startup to a $475 million plus revenue subsidiary of a public company. She excels in growth strategy, adopting innovative technologies, scaling operations and financial management. Janine is a media and entertainment attorney and trial litigator turned technologist and qualified financial expert. She is the co-founder and CEO of Inception Point AI, a growing company that is paving new ground with AI-generated personalities and content through developing technology and story. Mark Stignani is a partner with Barnes & Thornburg LLP and is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is the chair of the data analytics department with a particular emphasis on artificial intelligence, machine learning, cryptocurrency and ESG. Mark combines the power of artificial intelligence and machine learning with his skills as a corporate and IP counsel to deliver unparalleled insights and strategies to his clients. Welcome, Janine and Mark to the IP Friday’s podcast. Jeanine Whright: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much for having me and fun to be back. It feels nostalgic to be here. Ken Suzan: That’s right. And you both were on the program. So it’s fantastic that you’re both back again. So our format, I’m going to ask a question to Janine and or Mark and sometimes to both of you. So that’s going to be how we proceed. Let’s jump right in. Janine, your company creates AI-generated actors. For listeners who may not be familiar, can you briefly explain what that means and what’s now possible that wasn’t even two years ago? Jeanine Whright: Sure. Yeah, we are creating AI-generated personalities. So new characters, new personalities from scratch. We design who these personalities are and will be, how they will evolve. So we give them complex backstories. We give them hopes and dreams and aspirations. We every aspect of them, their families, how they’re going to evolve. And in the same way that, say, you know, Disney designs the character for its next animated feature or, you know, an electronic arts designs a character for its next major video game. We are doing that for these personalities and then we are launching them into the world as podcast hosts, content creators on social platforms like YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. And even in the future, you know, actors in feature length films, musicians, etc. Ken Suzan: Very fascinating. Mark, from your practice, what’s the single biggest legal question or dispute you’re seeing clients wrestle with when it comes to AI and media creation? Mark Stignani: Well, I think that, you know, it’s not just one thing, it’s like four things. But most of them tend to be kind of the origin story of AI data or AI tools that they use because, you know, but for the use of AI tools trained on copyrighted materials, the tools wouldn’t really exist in their current form. So a lot of my clients are wondering about, you know, can I legally use this output if it’s built upon somebody else’s IP? The second ask, the second flavor of that is really, is there liability being created if I take AI content that inadvertently infringes or defames or biases there? So there’s the whole notion of training bias from the training materials that comes out. The third phase is really, you know, can I really own this? Because much of the world does not really give IP rights into AI-generated inventions, copyrighted materials. It’s still kind of a big razor. Then at the end of the day, you know, if it’s an existing relationship, does my contract even contemplate this? So everything from authors contracts on up to just use of data rights that predate AI. Ken Suzan: And Janine and Mark, a question to both of you. How would you describe where we are right now in the AI revolution in media and entertainment? Are we approaching a tipping point? And if so, what are the things we need to watch for? Jeanine Whright: Yeah, I definitely think that we’re at a phase where people are starting to come to the realization that AI is the world’s most powerful creative tool. But that, you know, storytelling and point of view is what creates demand and audiences. And AI doesn’t threaten or change that. But it does mean that as people evolve in this medium, they’re very likely going to need to adopt, utilize and figure out how to hone their craft with these AI-generated content and these AI-generated toolings. So this is, you know, something that people have done certainly in the past in all sorts of ways in using new tools. And we’ve seen that make a significant change in the industry. So you look at, you know, the dawn of animation as a medium. You look at use of special effects, computer-generated imagery in the likes of Pixar. And this is certainly the next phase of that evolution. But because of the power of the tool and what will become the ubiquity of the tool, I think that it’s pretty revolutionary and all the more necessary for people to figure out how to embrace this as part of their creative process. Ken Suzan: Thank you, Janine. Mark, your thoughts? Mark Stignani: Yeah, I mean, I liken this to historically to like the California gold rush right now, because, you know, the technology is so far outpaced in any of the legal frameworks that are available. And so we’re just trying to shoehorn things in left and right here. So, I mean, the courts are beginning to start to engage with the foundational questions. I don’t think they’re quite there yet. I just noticed Anthropic got sued again by another group of people, big music group, because of the downloaded works they’ve done. I mean, so the courts are, you know, the courts are certainly inundated with, you know, too many of these foundational questions. Legislatively, hard to tell. I mean, federal law, the federal government is not moving uniformly on this other than to let the gold rush continue without much check and balance to it. Whereas states are now probably moving a lot faster. Colorado, Illinois, even Minnesota is attempting to craft legislation and limitations on what you can do with content and where to go with it. So, I mean, the things we need to watch for any of the fair use decisions coming out here, you know, some of the SAG-AFTRA contract clauses. And, you know, again, the federal government, I just, you know, I got a big shrug going as to what they’re actually going to come up with here in the next 90 to 100 days. So, but, you know, I think they’ll be forced into doing something sooner than later. Ken Suzan: Okay, let’s jump into the topic of the rise of generative content pipelines. My first question to Janine. Studios and production companies are now building what some call generative content pipelines. This is where AI systems produce everything from scripts to visual effects to voice performances. What efficiencies and creative possibilities does this unlock for the industry? Jeanine Whright: Yeah, so this is quite a bit of what we do. And if I could help pull the curtain back and explain a little bit. Ken Suzan: That’d be great. Jeanine Whright: Yeah, there’s this assumption that, you know, somebody is just sitting behind a machine pushing a button and an out pops, you know, what it is that we’re producing. There’s actually quite a bit of humans still in the loop in the process. You know, we have my team as creators. The other half of my team is the technologists. And those creators are working largely at what we describe as the the tip of the sphere. So they’re, of course, coming up with the concepts of who are these personalities? What are these personalities, characters, backgrounds going to be a lot of like rich personality development? And then they’re creating like what are the formats? What are the kind of story arcs? What is the kinds of content that this this character wants to tell? And what are the audiences they’re desiring to reach and what’s most going to resonate with them? And then what we built internally is what we refer to as an AI orchestration layer. So that allows us to pull from basically all of the different models and then all of these different really cool AI tools. And put those together in such a way and combine those in such a way that we can have the kind of output that our creative team envisions for what they want it to be. And at the end of the day, what you what the stack looks like for, say, a long form audio drama, like the combination of LLMs that we’re going to use in different parts of scripting and production and, you know, ideating and all of that. And the kinds of tooling that we use to actually make it and get it to sound good and have the kinds of personality characteristics that we want to be in an authentic voice for a podcast is going to be different than the tech stack and the tool stack that we might use for a short form Instagram beauty tip reel. And so there’s a lot of art in being able to pull all of these tools together to get them to do exactly what you want them to do. But I think the second part of your question is just as interesting as the first. I mean, what is what possibilities is this unlocking? So of course you’re finding efficiencies in the creative production process. You can move faster. You can do things were less expensive, perhaps, and you were able to do it before. But on the creator side, I think one thing that hasn’t been talked about enough is how it is really like blown wide the aperture of what creators can do and can envision. Traditionally, you know, Hollywood podcasting, many of these businesses that become big businesses have become hit making businesses where they need to focus on a very narrow of wide gen pop content that they think is going to get tens of millions, hundreds of millions in, you know, fans and dollars in revenue for every piece of content that they make. So the problem with that is, is that it really narrows the kinds of things that ultimately get made, which is why you see things happening in Hollywood, like the Blacklist, which is, you know, this famous list of really exceptional content that remains unpredited, unproduced, or why you see things like, you know, 70 to 80% of the top 100 movies being based on pre-existing IP, right? Because these are such huge bets that you need to feel very confident that you’re going to be able to get big, big audiences and big, big dollars from it. But with AI, and really lowering the barrier to entry, lowering the costs of production and marketing, the experimentation that you can do is really, really phenomenal. So, you know, my creative team, if they have an idea, they make it, you know, they don’t have to wring their hands through like a green lighting process of, you know, should we, shouldn’t we, like we, we can make an experiment with lots of different things, we can do various different versions of something. We can see what would this look like if I placed it in the 1800s, or what if I gave this character an Australian accent, and it’s just the power of being able to have this creative partner that can ideate with you and experiment with you at rocket speed. With the creators that are embracing it, you can see how it is really fun for them to be able to have this wide of a range of possibility. Ken Suzan: Mark, when you hear about these generative pipelines, what are the immediate red flags or concerns that come to mind from a legal standpoint? How about ethics underlying all of this? Well, Mark Stignani: that was not, that’s the number one red flag because I mean, we are seeing not just that in the entertainment industry, but it literally at political levels, and the kind of the phrase, to turn the phrase AI slop being generated, we’re seeing, you know, people’s facial expressions altered. In some cases, we’re seeing AI tools being misused to exploit various groups of individuals and genders and age groups. So I mean, there’s a whole lot of things ethically that people are using AI for that just don’t quite cover it. Especially in the entertainment industry, I mean, we’re looking at a fair amount of displacement of human workers without adequate transition support, devaluation of the creative labor. I mean, the thing though that I’m always from a technical standpoint is AI is simply a statistical average of most everything. So it kind of devalues the benefit of having a human creator, a human contribution to it. That’s the ethical side. But on the legal side, I see chain of title issues. I mean, because these are built on very questionable IP ownership stages, I mean, in most of these tools, there has been some large copying, training and taking of copyrighted materials. Is it transformational? Maybe. But there’s certainly not a chain of title, nor is there permission granted for that training. I mentioned SAG-AFTRA earlier, I think there’s a potential set of union contract aspects to this that if you know many of these agreements and use sub-licenses for authors and actor agreements, they weren’t written with AI in mind. So that’s another red flag. And also I just think in indemnification. So if we ultimately get to a point where groups are liable for using content without previous license, then who’s liable? Is the tool maker the liable group or the actual end user? So those are probably my top four red flags. But I think ethics is probably my biggest place because just because we can do something from an ethical standpoint doesn’t mean we should. Jeanine Wright: Yeah, if I can respond to both of those points. I mean, one from a legal perspective, just to be very clear, I mean, we are always pulling from multiple different models and always pulling from multiple different sources. And we even have data sources that we license or use for single source of truth on certain pieces of information. So we’re always pulling things together from multiple different sources. We also have built into our process, you know, internal QAing and checking to make sure that we’re not misappropriating the name or likeness of any existing known personality or character. We are creating original personalities there. We design their voice from scratch. We design their look from scratch. So we’re not on our personality side, we’re not pulling or even taking inspiration from existing intellectual property that’s already out there in creating these personalities. On the ethical side, I agree. I mean, when we came out of stealth, we came out of stealth in September. There was certainly quite a bit of backlash from folks in my—I previously co-founded a company in the audio space. I mean, there’s been many rounds of layoffs in audio and in many other parts of the entertainment industry. So I’m very sensitive to the feedback around, like, is this job displacement? I mean, I do think that the CEO of NVIDIA said it right when he said, you’re likely not going to lose your job to AI, but you will lose your job to somebody who knows how to use AI. I think these tools are transforming the way that content is made and that the faster that people can embrace this tooling, the more likely they’re going to be having the kinds of roles that they want in, you know, in content creation and storytelling in the future. And we are hiring. I’m hiring AI video creators, AI audio creators. I’m hiring AI developers. So people who are looking for those roles, I mean, please reach out to me, we would love to work with you and we’d love to grow with you. We also take the ethics very seriously. For the last few months or so, I’ve met regularly with an ethicist, we talk about all sorts of issues around, you know, is designing AI-generated people, you know, good for humanity? And what about authenticity and transparency and deception, and how are we in building in this space going to avoid some of the problems that we’ve seen with things like social media and other forms of technology? So we keep that very top of mind and we try to build on our own internal values-based system and, you know, continue to elevate and include the humanity as part of the conversation. Ken Suzan: Thank you, Janine. Janine, some argue that AI content pipelines will level the field for filmmaking, giving independent creators access to tools that were once available only to major studios. Is that the future you envision? Jeanine Wright: I do think that with AI you will see an incredible democratization of access to technology and access to these capabilities. So I do think, you know, rise of independent filmmakers, you won’t have as many people who are sitting on a brilliant idea for the next fantastic script or movie that just cannot get it made because they will be able to with these tools, get something made and out there, at least to get the attention of somebody who could then decide that they want to invest in it at a studio kind of level in the future. The other thing that I think is really interesting is that I think, you know, AI will empower more niche content and more creators who can thrive in micro-communities. So it used to be because of this hit generation business model, everything needed to be made for the masses and a lot of content for niche audiences and micro-communities was neglected because there was just no way to make that content commercially viable. But now, if you can leverage AI—we make a pollen report podcast in 300 markets, you know, nobody would have ever made that before, but it is very valuable information, a very valuable piece of content for people who really care about the pollen in their local community. So there’s all sorts of ways that being able to leverage AI is making it more accessible both to the creator and to the audience that is looking for content that truly resonates with them. Ken Suzan: Mark, let’s talk about the legal landscape right now. If someone creates an AI-generated performance that closely resembles a living actor without their consent, what legal recourse does that actor have? Mark Stignani: Well, I mean, I think we can go back to the OpenAI Scarlett Johansson thing where, you know, if it’s simply—well, the “walks like a duck, quacks like a duck” type of aspect there. You know, I think it’s pretty straightforward that they need to walk it back. I mean, the US doesn’t have moral rights, really, but there’s a public visage right, if you will. And so, one of the things that I find predominantly useful here is that these actors likely have rights of publicity there, we probably have a Lanham Act false endorsement claim, and you know, again, if the performance is not parody, and it’s so close to the original performance, we probably have a copyright discussion. But again, all of these laws predate the use of AI, so we’re going to probably see new sets of law. I mean, we’re probably going to see “resurrection” frameworks, we’ll probably have frameworks for synthetic actors and likenesses, but the rules just aren’t there yet. So, unfortunately, your question is largely predictive versus well-settled at this point. Ken Suzan: Janine, your company works with AI actors. How do you navigate the questions of consent and likeness compensation when creating digital performers? Jeanine Wright: I mean, if we—so first of all, if we were to work with a person who is an existing real-life person or was an existing real-life person, then we would work with them to license their name and likeness or their voice or whatever aspects of it we were going to use in creating content in partnership with them. Not typically our business model; we are, as I said, designing all of our personalities from scratch and making all of our content originally. So, we’ve not had to do that historically. Now, you know, the flip side is: can I license my characters as if they’re similar to living characters? Like will I be able to license the name and likeness and voice of my AI-generated personalities? I think the answer is yes and we’re already starting to do that. Ken Suzan: Let’s just switch gears into ethics and AI because I find this to be a really fascinating issue. I want to look at a hypothetical. And this is to both of you, Janine and Mark: an AI system creates a new performance by a beloved actor who passed away decades ago, and the actor’s estate authorizes it, but the actor was known to have expressed opposition to such technology during their lifetime. Is this ethical? Jeanine Wright: This feels like a Gifts, Wills, and Trusts exam question. Ken Suzan: It sounds like it, that’s right. Jeanine Wright: Throwing me back to my law school days. Exactly. What are your thoughts? It’d be interesting to see like who has the rights there. I mean, I think if you have the legal rights, the question is around, you know, is it ethical to go against what you knew was somebody’s wishes at the time? I guess the honest answer is I don’t know. It would depend a lot on the circumstances of the case. I mean, if we were faced with a situation like that where there was a discrepancy, we would probably move away from doing that content out of respect for the deceased and out of a feeling that, you know, if this person felt strongly against it, then it would be less likely that you could make that storytelling exceptional in some way—it would color it in a way that you wouldn’t want in the outcome. And I feel like there’s—I mean, certainly going forward and it’s already happening—there are plenty of people I think who have name, likeness, and voice rights that they are ready to license that wouldn’t have this overhang. Ken Suzan: Mark, your thoughts? Mark Stignani: Yeah, I mean, again, I have to kind of go back to our property law—the Rule Against Perpetuities. You know, from a property standpoint to AI rights and likenesses—since most of the digital replica contracts that I’ve reviewed generally do talk about things in perpetuity. But if it’s not written down for that actor and the estate is doing this—is it ethical? You know, that is the debate. Jeanine Wright: Well, gold star to you, Mark, for bringing up the Rule Against Perpetuities. There’s another one that I haven’t heard for many years. This is really taking me back to my law school days. Ken Suzan: It’s a throwback. Jeanine Wright: The other thing that’s really interesting is that this technology is really so revolutionary and new that it’s hard to even contemplate now what it is going to be in a decade, much less for people who have passed away to have contemplated what the potential for it could be today. So you could have somebody who is, perhaps, a deceased musician who expressed concerns about digital representations of themselves or digital music while they were alive. But now, the possibility is that you could recreate—certainly I could use my technology to recreate—that musician from scratch in a very detailed way, trained on tons of different available data. Not just like a digital twin or a moving image of them, but to really rebuild their personality from scratch, so that they and their music could be reintroduced to totally new generations in a very respectful and authentic way to them. It’s hard to know, with the understanding that that is possible, whether or not somebody who is deceased today would or would not agree to something like that. I mean, many of them might want, under those circumstances, for their music to live on. These deceased actors and musicians could live forever with the power of AI technology. Mark Stignani: Yeah, I really just kind of go to the whole—is deep-faking a famous actor the best way to preserve them or keep them live? Again, that’s a bit more of an ethical question because the deep fakes are getting good enough right now to create huge problems. Even zoom meetings in Hong Kong where a CFO was on a call with five synthetic actors who all looked like his coworkers and they sent a big check out based upon that. So again, the technology is getting good enough to fool people. Jeanine Wright: I think that’s right, Mark, but I guess I would just highlight the same way that it always has been: the ethical line isn’t AI versus human, the ethical line is about deception. Like, are you deceiving people? And if people know what it is that they’re getting and they’re choosing to engage with it, then I think it isn’t about the power of the technology. In our business, we have elected—not everybody has—but we have elected to be AI transparent. So we tell people when they listen to our show, we include it in our show notes, we include it on our socials. Even when we’re designing our characters to be very photo-realistic, we make an extra point to make sure that people know that this is AI-generated content or an AI personality. Like, our intention is not to deceive and to be candid. From a business model perspective, we don’t need to. I mean, there’s already people who know and understand that it is AI, and AI is different than people. Because it is AI, there’s all sorts of things that you can do with it that you would not be able to do with a real person. You know, we get people who ask us on the podcast side, we get all sorts of crazy funny requests. You know, people who say, “Can I text with this personality? Can I talk to them on the phone? Can they help me cook in the kitchen? Can they sing me Happy Birthday? Can they show up at my Zoom meeting today because I think my boss would love it?” You know, all sorts of different ways that people are wanting to engage with these characters. And now we’re in the process of rolling out real-time personalities so people will be able to engage with our personalities live. It is a totally different way that people are able to engage with content, and people can, as they choose, decide what kind of content they want to engage with. Ken Suzan: Jeanine and Mark, we’re coming to the end of this podcast. I would love to keep talking for hours but we have to stay to our timetable here. Last question: five years from now, what percentage of entertainment content do you predict will involve significant AI generation, and will audiences care about that percentage? Jeanine? Jeanine Wright: I mean, I would say 99.9%. I mean, already you’re seeing—I think YouTube did a survey—that it was like 90% of its top creators said that they’re using AI as material components of their content creation process. So, I think this will be the default way that content is created. And content that is not made with AI, you know, there’ll be special film festivals for non-AI generated content, and that will be a special separate thing than the thing that everybody is doing now. Ken Suzan: Mark, your thoughts? Mark Stignani: Yeah, I go a little lower. I mean, I think Jeanine is right that we’re seeing, especially in the low-quality content creation and like the YouTube shorts and things like that, you know, there’s so much AI being pushed forward that the FTC even acquired an “AI slop” title to it. I do think that disclosure will become normalized, that the industries will be pushed to say when something is AI and what is not. And I think it’s very much like, you know, do you care about quality or not? If you value the human input or the human factor in this, there will be an upper tier where it’s “AI-free” or low AI assistant. I think that it’s going to stratify because the stuff coming through the social media platforms right now—I can’t be on it right now just because there’s so much nonsense. Even my children, who are without much AI training at all, find it just too unbelievable for them. So, I think it will become normalized, but I think that we’re going to see a bunch of tiers. Ken Suzan: Well, Jeanine and Mark, this has been a fantastic discussion of an ever-evolving field in IP law. Thank you to both of you for spending time with us today on the IP Friday’s podcast. Jeanine Wright: Thank you so much for having me. Mark Stignani: Appreciate your time. Thank you again.
In this forward-looking Episode 101 of the Cybersecurity Readiness Podcast Series, Dr. Dave Chatterjee is joined by Snehal Antani—CEO and Co-Founder of Horizon3.ai and former Chief Technology Officer at Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC)—to examine the rapidly emerging reality of AI-versus-AI cyber warfare.As AI dramatically compresses attacker dwell time and lowers the skill barrier for sophisticated intrusions, traditional defensive postures are proving insufficient. Drawing on real-world demonstrations and national-security-grade operational experience, Antani explains how offensive AI is transforming cyber risk by enabling attackers to move at machine speed, scale attacks indiscriminately, and expose systemic weaknesses in organizational defenses.Framed through Dr. Chatterjee's Commitment–Preparedness–Discipline (CPD) lens, the episode reframes cybersecurity readiness as a continuous validation discipline—one that demands organizations train like they fight, reduce blast radius, and build muscle memory for inevitable breaches. The conversation delivers a clear message: in the age of autonomous threats, resilience belongs to organizations that continuously test themselves faster than adversaries can exploit them.To access and download the entire podcast summary with discussion highlights - https://www.dchatte.com/episode-101-ai-vs-ai-in-cybersecurity-why-continuous-validation-is-now-essential/Connect with Host Dr. Dave ChatterjeeLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dchatte/ Website: https://dchatte.com/Books PublishedThe DeepFake ConspiracyCybersecurity Readiness: A Holistic and High-Performance ApproachArticles & Cases PublishedChatterjee, D. (2026). Root: Automating the Remediation Gap, Ivey Publishing, Jan 7, 2026.Ramasastry, C. and Chatterjee, D. (2025). Trusona: Recruiting For The Hacker Mindset, Ivey Publishing, Oct 3, 2025.Chatterjee, D. and Leslie, A. (2024). “Ignorance is not bliss: A human-centered whole-of-enterprise approach to cybersecurity preparedness,” Business Horizons, Accepted on Oct 29, 2024.Isik, O., Chatterjee, D., and Lourenco, D.A. (2024). “Getting Cybersecurity Right,” California Management Review — Insights, Accepted for Publication, July 8, 2024. Chatterjee, D. (2023). “Mission critical – How American Cancer Society successfully and securely migrated to the cloud amid the pandemic,” I by IMD, March 13, 2023.Chatterjee, D. (2022). “Preventing security breaches must start at the top,” I by IMD, September 28, 2022, Institute for Management Development, Lausanne, SwitzerlandChatterjee, D. (2022). “Making Cybersecurity Readiness Mainstream,” Executive Blog Post, NETSPI, March 1, 2022Benz, M. and Chatterjee, D. (2020). “Calculated Risk? A Cybersecurity Evaluation Tool for SMEs,” Business Horizons, available online from May 4, 2020Chatterjee, D. (2019). “Should Executives Go To Jail Over Cyber Attacks,” Journal of Organizational Computing and Electronic Commerce, Vol 29, Issue 1, pp. 1-3.Abraham, C., Chatterjee, D., and Sims, R. (2019). “Muddling through cybersecurity: Insights from the U.S. healthcare industry,” Business Horizons, July 2019.
According to new Amárach research carried out on behalf of the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment more than four in five businesses (85%) say sustainability is important to the day-to-day running of their business and have considered retrofitting . The findings of the second phase of SME Sustainability Research – Wave 2 were announced by the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment Peter Burke T.D. and are in line with the previous year's findings. The value of retrofitting The survey of 344 SMEs shows that two in five had taken steps such as insulating their buildings or changing their windows in the past two years to improve their energy efficiency. Speaking at the launch, Minister Burke said by doing so these businesses would also be cutting their energy costs and would become more competitive: "It's really encouraging to see businesses reducing their costs by tackling the energy usage in their buildings. There is however another sizeable cohort of businesses (44%) who cite upfront investment costs as a barrier to becoming more sustainable. "That's why I'd ask SMEs to avail of the Local Enterprise Offices' Energy Efficiency Grant (EEG) and the SEAI's Building Energy Upgrade Scheme (BEUS) to buy energy efficient equipment and to retrofit their buildings. I changed the terms and conditions of the energy efficient grant last year so that a 75% grant is now available, up to a maximum of €10,000, which can make a huge difference to energy bills. In 2025, 681 small business were approved for the EEG at estimated value of €5.7 million, while 186 BEUS grants with an estimated value of €3.36 million were approved." Minister Burke announced the research at Wholesome Kitchen, Dominick St, Mullingar which had recently used the Climate Toolkit 4 Business to understand their environmental impact. Businesses can now also use the Toolkit to measure their Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. Minister Burke said by estimating their environmental impact, SMEs can start to tackle it: "Through this research we can see that businesses are also concerned that their staff may not implement sustainability measures. The Toolkit is free so anyone can use it to understand their business's carbon footprint, and it will provide information on where to access the Government's sustainability and energy supports." This year's survey included questions on the potential of the circular economy to Irish businesses. Minister of State for Employment, Small Business & Retail and Circular Economy Alan Dillon T.D. said it's clear that businesses are seeing the enormous value of re-using, recycling and minimising waste: "Not only did more than one in three (35%) respondents say that they already participate in the circular economy, of those that don't, a quarter are interested in doing so. By supporting businesses to reuse resources, reduce waste and keep materials in circulation for longer, they will not only become more sustainable they will cut costs and become more competitive." Key Findings 85% of businesses say sustainability is important to their business on a day-to-day basis, maintaining the high levels recorded in the 2024 research. Businesses said that making a positive difference (35%) and saving money (34%) were the top motivations in becoming sustainable. Just over a quarter of business say that climate change is currently affecting their operations, rising significantly among larger firms and those operating for more than 20 years. Among affected businesses, adverse weather is now the dominant impact, reflecting the growing reality of extreme weather events. Most sustainability action is concentrated in practical, cost-effective areas: waste reduction (49%), energy efficiency (44%), and renewable energy adoption (33%) remain the most common measures adopted by businesses. The main barrier for organisations to act more sustainably remained upfront investment costs (22%), although at a lower rate compared to 2024. This research was under...
Thinking of entering into the world of entrepreneurship? Maybe you want to start up your own L&D company or explore hosting workshops or free lance opportunities? On today's episode, we'll chat with Jason Gorman, Founder and CEO of Jack Rabbit LX and Co-Founder and Strategic Advisor for Story As a Service. In this episode, you'll hear about steps to start a business, common challenges, how to feel comfortable with selling, what your first hire should be, how to find clients, how to think about pricing, and more.
IEC 60601 has been central to medical electrical equipment safety for decades. From the prescriptive approach of the 2nd edition to the risk-based philosophy introduced in the 3rd edition, the standard has continuously evolved to address technological and regulatory complexity.Now, the upcoming 4th edition represents more than an amendment — it signals a structural transformation.This article explores:The Evolution of IEC 60601• Key shifts from the 2nd to the 3rd edition• Why risk management became central• What lessons shaped today's safety philosophyWhat the 4th Edition Brings• A major rewrite rather than incremental updates• The introduction of “atomic requirements”• Structural clarity for manufacturers, test labs, and regulators• Emerging technical considerations (digitalization, AI, cybersecurity, home use)Impact on Existing Devices• Will re-testing be required?• How to assess validity of existing test reports• Transition strategies with notified bodiesIntegration into Design & Documentation• Embedding IEC 60601 into risk management from day one• Required updates in risk files, EMC documentation, labeling, and usability engineering• Practical advice for SMEs with limited resourcesThe Future of IEC 60601• Greater harmonization with ISO 14971 and IEC 62304• Alignment with digital and AI regulatory frameworks• The long-term outlook for medical electrical safetyFor manufacturers, the message is clear:IEC 60601 is not just a testing standard — it is a design and risk management framework that must be integrated early and strategically.Who is Monir El Azzouzi? Monir El Azzouzi is the founder and CEO of Easy Medical Device a Consulting firm that is supporting Medical Device manufacturers for any Quality and Regulatory affairs activities all over the world. Monir can help you to create your Quality Management System, Technical Documentation or he can also take care of your Clinical Evaluation, Clinical Investigation through his team or partners. Easy Medical Device can also become your Authorized Representative and Independent Importer Service provider for EU, UK and Switzerland. Monir has around 16 years of experience within the Medical Device industry working for small businesses and also big corporate companies. He has now supported around 100 clients to remain compliant on the market. His passion to the Medical Device filed pushed him to create educative contents like, blog, podcast, YouTube videos, LinkedIn Lives where he invites guests who are sharing educative information to his audience. Visit easymedicaldevice.com to know more. If you need help implementing QMSR or preparing your teams for FDA inspections, contact: info@easymedicaldevice.com If you are located outside the EU/UK/Switzerland and need an Authorized Representative (and possibly an Importer), we can support you as well.LinkLeo Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leoeisnersafetyconsultants/Social Media to followMonir El Azzouzi Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/melazzouziTwitter: https://twitter.com/elazzouzimPinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/easymedicaldeviceInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/easymedicaldeviceThis podcast is powered by Podcastics, the easiest platform to create and publish your podcast.
Episode Summary Phil Willcox is joined by Sara Sabin to explore the internal game of leadership and why tools and frameworks aren't enough without emotional mastery. Sara explains that mastery isn't about being emotionless, it's about noticing emotions without resisting them, regulating in the moment and spending more time in emotional neutrality (calm and clear, not suppression or “not caring”). They share a practical pathway, awareness, acknowledgement, acceptance, labelling and processing, plus two quick regulation tools: the power of the pause and a short mental rehearsal before high-pressure moments. The conversation also tackles “repellent energy” (neediness that leaks through communication), how to stay ambitious without over-attaching to outcomes and why many leaders build confidence on external validation. Sara introduces internal scaffolding, a steadier confidence that holds up when work and life shake your identity. Key Topics Discussed Emotional mastery and emotional neutrality The regulation pathway: awareness, acceptance, processing The pause (hard hack) vs mental rehearsal (easy hack) “Repellent energy” and reducing attachment to outcomes External vs internal confidence scaffolding Using challenges as “stress tests” to strengthen identity and self-worth Guest Bio Sara Sabin is a Business Profits and Leadership Strategist who works with founders and senior leaders of high-growth SMEs to strengthen performance, confidence and impact. She supports leaders who recognise that sustainable growth requires more than strategy alone, blending leadership strategy with mindset and emotional mastery to help clients lead under pressure, build resilient teams and achieve greater results without burnout. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sara-c-sabin-coach/ Email: https://www.sarasabin.com/ Website: https://www.sarasabin.com/
Stephen Grootes speaks to Daniel Hatfield, CEO of Edge Growth, about what Budget 2026 signals for South Africa’s small and medium-sized enterprises. The Budget introduced significant relief measures, including raising the mandatory VAT registration threshold to R2.3 million and the voluntary threshold to R120,000, easing compliance pressure and improving cash flow for smaller firms. Capital gains tax relief for small business disposals has also been expanded, alongside inflationary adjustments to turnover tax, aimed at supporting micro-enterprises. The Money Show is a podcast hosted by well-known journalist and radio presenter, Stephen Grootes. He explores the latest economic trends, business developments, investment opportunities, and personal finance strategies. Each episode features engaging conversations with top newsmakers, industry experts, financial advisors, entrepreneurs, and politicians, offering you thought-provoking insights to navigate the ever-changing financial landscape. Thank you for listening to a podcast from The Money Show Listen live Primedia+ weekdays from 18:00 and 20:00 (SA Time) to The Money Show with Stephen Grootes broadcast on 702 https://buff.ly/gk3y0Kj and CapeTalk https://buff.ly/NnFM3Nk For more from the show, go to https://buff.ly/7QpH0jY or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/PlhvUVe Subscribe to The Money Show Daily Newsletter and the Weekly Business Wrap here https://buff.ly/v5mfetc The Money Show is brought to you by Absa 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/CapeTalk 702 on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@radio702 CapeTalk on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CapeTalk CapeTalk on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@capetalk CapeTalk on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ CapeTalk on X: https://x.com/Radio702 CapeTalk on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CapeTalk567 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Only 15% of SMEs rate their accountant as a Key Strategic Partner. Why is that – and how do we change it? In this episode of Accountants Minute Podcast, Peter Towers (ESS BIZTOOLS) and Trevor Marchant (The Boss Factor Library) unpack what it truly means to move beyond compliance and become your client's go-to advisor for growth, strategy and innovation. From debtors management and cash flow forecasting, to R&D Tax Incentives and capital raising, this episode explores the missed opportunities sitting inside most accounting firms – and how to confidently communicate, package and deliver them. You can also access our podcast on: Amazon Music Apple Podcasts Audible Spotify YouTube
Corinna Stukan, Product Leader and Founder of Fintech marketplace Bizzy, lays out practical advice for connecting your product roadmap to business goals. She explains how a metrics one-pager aligns day-to-day product decisions with company goals, why understanding whether your business is in growth, acquisition or cost-control mode should shape every prioritisation call, and how to frame initiatives so stakeholders see commercial impact, not just better UX.Chapters4:00 — Why product people should care about business acumen6:01 — Organisational causes of weak commercial context for PMs8:10 — What business acumen means in practice9:10 — Wake-up story: prioritisation shifted after asking the CEO about revenue drivers11:05 — Misalignment: company goals vs team OKRs12:13 — How to run the metrics one-pager and link product to business goals14:37 — Strategy: where we are, where we're going, how we'll get there15:03 — Encouraging ideas while setting business context17:01 — Running collaborative bets before creating the roadmap19:20 — Communicating value: turn “better onboarding” into business impact22:08 — Avoiding over-attribution and internal attribution fights23:05 — Example: marketing's 12 touchpoints and joint contribution to acquisition24:26 — Practising stakeholder storytelling; where LLMs help and don't29:17 — Presentation craft: fewer slides, start with numbers, end with actions31:03 — Using LLMs for synthesis, not hOur HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She's currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She's worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury's. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group's Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He's the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager's Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon's music stores in the US & UK.
THE Leadership Japan Series by Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo, Japan
Leaders today are drowning in meetings, email, reporting, coaching, planning, performance reviews, and constant firefighting. The real issue isn't whether you're busy—it's whether your time, talent, and treasure are being invested in the work that keeps you effective now and promotable next. Why do leaders feel more time-poor even with better tech? Because faster tools have increased expectations, not reduced workload—and they've made "always on" feel normal. The smartphone, Teams chats, dashboards, and instant messaging don't create time; they compress response windows. Post-2020, hybrid work accelerated this, and the global 24-hour cycle became the default for many multinationals, while SMEs often feel it even more because leadership bandwidth is thinner. In markets like Japan, where consensus and alignment matter, leaders can get pulled into "just one more check-in." In the US, speed can dominate; in Europe, governance and process add another layer. Different pressures—same outcome: leaders feel behind, anxious, and exposed to FOMO. Do now: Identify the 2–3 activities that create strategic leverage (not just motion), and block time for them daily—before the inbox wins. Where should a leader spend time when they're far from the frontline? Spend your time building an "insight engine" through people, not trying to personally touch everything. As organisations scale, you operate through others, and the risk is losing texture: you weren't in the client meeting, you didn't hear the objection, you only see the numbers after the fact. Executives at firms like Toyota solve this by turning frontline intelligence into a system—structured feedback loops, customer listening routines, and disciplined reporting rhythms. Contrast that with a startup: founders may still be close to customers, but chaos can make signals noisy. Either way, leaders need an intentional method to "see the battle" without being everywhere. Do now: Create a weekly cadence: one customer story, one frontline barrier, one competitor insight—delivered in a consistent format by your team. How do I stop being trapped in meetings, email, and rework? You don't win back time by working harder—you win it back by redesigning decisions, standards, and accountability. Meetings multiply when decision rights are unclear. Email explodes when priorities aren't explicit. Rework grows when "good" isn't defined and coaching happens too late. Use the same discipline you'd apply to financial controls: define what decisions sit with you vs your direct reports, set quality standards, and coach early. A multinational might formalise this with governance; a small business can do it with simple rules and a one-page "definition of done." Tools like Slack can help visibility, but they can also create another stream of noise if you don't set norms. Do now: Cut or merge recurring meetings by 20%, and replace them with one clear decision log and one weekly coaching slot. What's the "Pluto problem" in leadership, and how do I avoid it? If you stop learning, the world will reclassify you—even if you're still working hard. Pluto didn't move; the definition changed. In 2006, International Astronomical Union changed the criteria, and Pluto became a dwarf planet. Leadership works the same way: the pace of change shifts the job description under your feet. What worked pre-smartphone, pre-AI, or pre-hybrid may now be insufficient. Strategy cycles shorten. Stakeholder expectations rise. Communication channels multiply. Leaders who don't refresh their thinking risk becoming "dwarf leaders"—still present, but no longer the best fit for the next challenge. Do now: Pick one capability to rebuild this quarter (strategic thinking, coaching, executive presence, sales leadership) and measure progress monthly. How can leaders keep their talent current without going back to business school? Treat professional education like fitness: small, regular sessions beat occasional "big bursts." Executive programmes at Harvard Business School, Stanford Graduate School of Business, and INSEAD can be brilliant—but most leaders don't need another credential as much as they need consistent skill renewal. Since the mid-2000s, business changed fast: Facebook launched in 2004, Google went public the same year, Twitterarrived in 2006, and Instagram in 2010. That reshaped attention, branding, recruiting, and leadership communication. Do now: Schedule 60 minutes a week for learning, and 30 minutes a week to apply it with your team—otherwise it's entertainment, not development. How do I spend "treasure" wisely on development and avoid bad training? Buy learning the way you buy investments: verify the assumptions, not the hype. We have more free and low-cost options than ever—previews, reviews, sample modules, peer recommendations. That's a gift, but it also means more low-quality content. Example: the popular "55/38/7" presentation rule gets misquoted constantly. Albert Mehrabian found those ratios apply in narrow situations—when words and nonverbal cues conflict—yet some trainers present it as a universal rule. If a provider can't explain the limits of their own claims, don't hand them your budget. Platforms like LinkedIn Learning can be useful—if you evaluate the instructor credibility and relevance to your market and role. Do now: Set an annual learning budget, test with samples first, and prioritise training tied to measurable KPIs (team output, quality, retention, sales) Final wrap Leadership is a constant trade: you can't do everything, but you can do the highest-value things—consistently. Guard your time with systems, rebuild your talent with habits, and invest your treasure with discernment. The goal is to stay modern, stay credible, and stay promotable. Optional FAQs How many hours per week should a leader invest in learning? One focused hour weekly plus a short application session usually beats sporadic full-day training for retention and behaviour change. What's the fastest way to reduce meeting overload? Clarify decision rights, cancel low-value recurring meetings, and replace status meetings with a consistent written update. How do I know if training is credible? Look for clear scope limits, evidence quality, relevant case examples, and outcomes tied to KPIs—not just confidence and catchy stats. 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, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, he is certified to deliver globally across leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programmes, 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 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, widely followed by executives seeking success strategies in Japan.
Rising input costs. Supply chain uncertainty. Tightening environmental regulation. Increasing sustainability criteria in tenders. For many Longford SMEs, these pressures feel like added burdens. But what if the same pressures could become a competitive edge? Circular Advantage is a practical, results-focused event designed to show Longford SMEs how circular economy practices can directly improve profitability, reduce risk and unlock new growth opportunities. Taking place during Enterprise Week and hosted by award-winning broadcaster Ella McSweeney, the Circular Advantage event will take place on Tuesday, 3 March from 10am-12.30pm in Longford Golf Club. This event moves beyond theory to focus on what business owners care about most: cost control, contract wins and long-term resilience. What's in it for SMEs? Attendees will leave with clear, actionable insights on how to: — Reduce material and waste costs and improve operational efficiency — Strengthen supply chain security by reducing reliance on volatile inputs — Win more public and private sector contracts by meeting evolving sustainability and procurement requirements — Avoid compliance risks and future penalties by staying ahead of emerging Irish and EU legislation — Unlock new revenue streams through reuse, repair, service models and smarter product design — Improve access to green finance and ESG-aligned funding — Enhance brand reputation and customer trust — Build a more resilient, future-proof business model This is not about adding cost. It is about designing waste and inefficiency out of your business. Expert Guidance, Local Relevance The event features practical insights from industry leaders: — Valentina Tarasco, Assessment & Metrics Lead with the Circular Economy Team at Irish Manufacturing Research, will break down the current policy landscape and explain how circular practices deliver measurable financial and environmental returns. — John O'Shanahan of LeanBPI will demonstrate how Longford LEO's Lean for Business and Digital for Business programmes can act as immediate, low-risk entry points to improving cost efficiency and embedding circular thinking. — Tim Murphy of Circular Economy Company will share a real-world case study showing how reducing waste to landfill translated into tangible cost savings for a local business. The event concludes with a panel discussion hosted by Ella McSweeney, focused on practical implementation and the funding supports available to help SMEs take the next step. Cathaoirleach of Longford County Council, Cllr Garry Murtagh, said, "Longford businesses are as capable as any in Ireland of leading the shift to a more resource-efficient economy. Events like Circular Advantage show our SMEs that sustainability is not an added burden — it is a sharper way to run a business, win more work and reduce exposure to cost shocks. I would encourage every business owner and manager in the county to take their place at this event." Chief Executive of Longford County Council, Paddy Mahon, said, "Small businesses in Longford are already living with the effects of higher input costs and more demanding procurement requirements. Circular Advantage gives them a direct route to addressing both — not through theory, but through practical tools they can use in their businesses. Supporting our SME base to be leaner, more competitive and better placed to win contracts is a most welcome investment from the Just Transition Fund." A Strategic Opportunity for Longford The Circular Economy Project, Circular Advantage, is co-funded by the Government of Ireland and the European Union through the EU Just Transition Fund. The project aims to position Longford as a leading region in Ireland's shift toward a more resource-efficient and competitive economy. For SME owners and managers asking how to protect margins while staying ahead of regulatory and procurement demands, this event provides both the strategic clarity and practical tools to act now. Places are limited...
Ireland's National Competence Centre in Semiconductors (I-C3), a significant milestone in Ireland's commitment to semiconductor innovation and European collaboration under the European Chips Act, invites startups and SMEs to lead the future of chips innovation. I-C3 will focus on startups and SMEs by providing access to essential resources, including funding pathways, training, design tools and pilot line facilities. Its mission is to empower Ireland's startups and SMEs in the semiconductor sector with hands-on access to design, production, funding and training to accelerate innovation and growth in Ireland's semiconductor sector. National Competence Centre in Semiconductors for Startups Commenting on the launch, Peter Burke TD, Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment said: "As a hub for the semiconductor ecosystem, my Department is delighted that I-C3 will ensure that opportunities as part of the Chips for Europe Initiative are accessible for businesses of all sizes within the industry, along with bringing greater diversity of expertise and depth of innovation to the knowledge base of the semiconductor ecosystem in Europe. I-C3's launch is another significant milestone in the delivery of Silicon Island: Ireland's National Semiconductor Strategy. "With this launch, my Department is very excited about I-C3's ability to empower Irish SMEs to scale internationally, drive innovation across the semiconductor ecosystem and create high-value jobs. I-C3 will also facilitate the development of skills and talent, and build on our strengths by enhancing the relationship between infrastructure, industry, and RD&I capability to ensure Ireland leads in advanced manufacturing and chip design." Co-ordinated by Tyndall National Institute and supported by the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (DETE) through Enterprise Ireland, with co-funding secured from the European Union under the Chips Joint Undertaking (Chips JU), I-C3 is a consortium comprising Tyndall National Institute, a research flagship of University College Cork (UCC), MCCI, MIDAS Ireland, NovaUCD, and University College Dublin. The new I-C3 Competence Centre is one of 30 being established across 27 EU countries to strengthen Europe's semiconductor ecosystem. The initiative builds on Ireland's vibrant and extensive semiconductor industry comprising over 130 indigenous and foreign subsidiary companies, employing over 20,000 people, part of a 175,000-person strong broader ICT sector with overall exports of €13.5 billion worth of products annually. Multinational leaders such as Intel, Apple, Qualcomm, AMD, and Analog Devices have long invested in Irish R&D. I-C3 aims to further elevate Ireland's global standing in semiconductor innovation. Professor William Scanlon, CEO, Tyndall, said: "I?C3 plays a key role in delivering Ireland's Semiconductor Strategy, Silicon Island, and it is fantastic to see the centre operational and actively supporting Irish start?ups and SMEs to accelerate and scale their businesses. I?C3 is helping companies across all sectors that use semiconductor technologies to secure investment, access specialist training, and connect to European pilot lines." Joe Healy, Divisional Manager, Research, Innovation and Infrastructure at Enterprise Ireland said: "With the support of I-C3, Ireland is set to double the number of people employed in semi-conductor startups and SMEs by 2030. The centre will act as a catalyst for innovation, collaboration, and growth, ensuring that Irish stakeholders, from academia to industry, can fully participate in the Chips for Europe Initiative." About Tyndall National Institute Tyndall is a leading European deep-tech research centre in integrated ICT (Information and Communications Technology) materials, devices, circuits and systems and a research flagship of University College Cork. Tyndall is Ireland's largest Research and Technology Organisation (RTO) specialising in both electronics and photonics. Tyndall works...
"Imagine if you could. You need to imagine a future. You need to imagine growth. You need to imagine what success looks like." In this episode of The Inner Chief podcast, I speak to Paula Martin, Executive Director, Regional NSW and Visitor Economy at Business NSW, on learning from everyone, adapting to shorter strategy cycles, and genuinely receiving feedback.
Irish SMEs may be unknowingly breaching GDPR and failing to meet Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) record-keeping requirements due to widespread gaps in how HR documents are stored, accessed, and governed. That is, according to new findings published from the Irish SME HR Report, by Ireland's leading people management platform, HRLocker. The report, based on responses from professionals working on HR in organisations employing 20–249 people, reveals that document disorder has become one of the most significant, yet preventable, compliance risks facing Irish businesses. Two-thirds breach GDPR due to insecure HR data storage Under Articles 5 and 32 of the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), employers must ensure the integrity, confidentiality, and security of employees' personal data. Yet 66 per cent of SMEs continue to store HR documents in insecure systems, including general cloud folders (32 per cent), local hard drives (11 per cent), paper files (11 per cent) and email threads (9 per cent). The Data Protection Commission has already investigated SMEs for similar failures. In a recently published case, an employer mishandled sensitive employment information during a data breach, prompting an official complaint and regulatory intervention. The DPC found that the organisation had not implemented adequate safeguards to protect employee data, providing a clear example of the real?world consequences of poor HR document governance. Under GDPR, failures of this kind can result in administrative fines of up to €10 million or 2 per cent of global turnover, as well as compensation claims from affected employees. More than half failing to comply with data protection regulations The report highlights that 59 per cent of SMEs lack accurate, formal version control, risking breaches of GDPR Article 5(1)(d), which requires organisations to maintain accurate and up?to?date employee records. Further, 56 per cent do not have a current retention policy for HR data, despite the GDPR storage limitation principle and obligations under the Data Protection Act 2018. Mid-sized SMEs (50–99 employees) are the least compliant, with over one-third (39 per cent) lacking any retention policy at all. Without version control or retention schedules, SMEs cannot demonstrate compliance during WRC inspections or GDPR investigations, leaving them exposed to enforcement action, compensation claims, and costly remediation work. More than one in three risks undermining accountability requirements There is a clear lack of auditability in the sector, with 26 per cent of SMEs reporting that they do not maintain an audit trail for HR document access and changes. A further 27 per cent are unsure whether one exists, meaning more than one in three lack robust processes. This lack and uncertainty place organisations at risk of breaching GDPR Articles 24 and 30, which require employers to demonstrate accountability and maintain clear records of processing activities. In the event of a data-access request, breach investigation, or WRC inspection, the absence of an audit trail can lead to immediate compliance failure. Non-compliance carries real financial and operational consequences Governance gaps fuelled by document disorder also undermine compliance with core Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) record-keeping obligations, including requirements to maintain accurate, accessible, and up-to-date records on: Working hours Annual leave and public holidays Contracts and terms of employment Payroll and remuneration Disciplinary and grievance procedures Under the Workplace Relations Act 2023, missing audit trails, outdated files, or scattered storage systems can result in fixed-payment notices of up to €2,000 per offence, in addition to compensation awards to employees and orders to rectify records at the employer's expense. These costs come on top of business disruption during follow-up inspections and reputational damage that undermines employee trust. A preven...
What if most workplace well-being initiatives miss the real issue—not how people feel at work, but how the job itself is designed?In this episode of the HRchat Podcast, host Bill Banham is joined by Carol Atkinson, Professor of Human Resource Management at Manchester Metropolitan University, to rethink what “good work” actually looks like in practice. Beyond pay and benefits, Carol argues that dignity, voice, stability, and meaning must be built into roles from the ground up.Drawing on research across adult social care, SMEs, and gender equity, Carol explains why transactional basics (fair pay, predictable hours) must be paired with the relational experience of work—and why free fruit and yoga apps won't fix excessive workloads or chaotic schedules.We explore how learning labs bring academics, policymakers, and practitioners together to co-design solutions that actually get used, including conflict-management tools developed during COVID. The conversation also tackles job security in an AI-shaped labour market, zero-hours instability, the structural drivers behind the medical gender pay gap, and what practical menopause support really looks like day to day.If you care about HR strategy, job quality, employee voice, and the future of work, this episode offers a clear roadmap: design better jobs, raise the floor through smart policy, and listen to the people doing the work.In this episode, we cover: • What “good work” really means beyond perks • Transactional vs relational elements of job quality • Why job design is the foundation of well-being • AI, insecurity, and the limits of job tenure • Zero-hours contracts and the hidden costs of churn • Employability through learning, skills, and confidence • Learning labs and research-to-practice impact • COVID-era conflict-management interventions • Structural drivers of gender pay gaps in healthcare • Practical and cultural menopause support at workSupport the showFeature Your Brand on the HRchat PodcastThe HRchat show has had 100,000s of downloads and is frequently listed as one of the most popular global podcasts for HR pros, Talent execs and leaders. It is ranked in the top ten in the world based on traffic, social media followers, domain authority & freshness. The podcast is also ranked as the Best Canadian HR Podcast by FeedSpot and one of the top 10% most popular shows by Listen Score. Want to share the story of how your business is helping to shape the world of work? We offer sponsored episodes, audio adverts, email campaigns, and a host of other options. Check out packages here. Follow us on LinkedIn Subscribe to our newsletter Check out our in-person events
Are Irish SMEs Ready for AI? Insights from the Ground The conversation about AI and small business has moved on. It is no longer about whether Irish SMEs should pay attention, but about the level of AI adoption in Irish SMEs. Of course, many are already using these tools day to day. The more interesting question now is what is actually happening, and what is getting in the way. I spoke with four people who work directly with small businesses on digital adoption and AI: John O'Shanahan of Lean BPI, digital strategist and lecturer Aisling Hurley of TBF.ie, Eoin Costello of the Dargan Institute in Dun Laoghaire, and Sandra Reynolds, programme manager for digital supports at LEO Dublin City. AI Adoption, Most SMEs Are Using AI, But John O'Shanahan sees AI being used across many of the small businesses he works with. "People that are digital are generally using AI to some level. Most of them are using it to rewrite emails, rewrite documents and give me ideas." He compares it to how businesses use Excel. Most people use a fraction of what is possible, not because the tools are hard to access, but because the foundations underneath them are not ready. "To get advantage out of AI, you should really be putting your Digital in from the foundations. If you have good data in your business, you can use AI to analyse it. But if the data isn't structured, AI can't do anything with that." The Right Sequence Matters The order of things is important: understand your processes first, digitise properly, then bring AI in. Otherwise, as O'Shanahan puts it, you are digitising inefficiency. When businesses get the sequence right, the results can be significant. He points to "Profix, a Cork-based construction services firm, where careful digital improvement over a decade brought quotation turnaround from three days to ten hours, then to three hours. With their AI now integrated into the process, it takes around 1.5 hours with further reductions possible as their AI model is optimised." A quotation process that once consumed days of skilled staff time now runs in hours, freeing capacity that feeds directly back into the business. "Everyone agrees the best AI output is AI plus human. The human part needs to have domain knowledge." That point about domain knowledge is central to everything O'Shanahan says. Your expertise in your own field, he argues, will matter as much as your knowledge of the AI tool itself. The Strategic and Ethical Gaps Aisling Hurley works with rural SMEs and teaches digital strategy. She sees businesses picking up AI tools without thinking carefully about what they are taking on. "Leadership needs to set guardrails. AI is not just another productivity tool. It changes how value is created." Many firms are experimenting with Microsoft Copilot or ChatGPT without a clear approach to governance, data security or longer-term strategy. For Hurley, the ethics of AI adoption are not an afterthought. They are part of the conversation from the start. "There's a difference between attending an AI workshop and embedding AI strategically in a business." Rural SMEs Face Additional Pressures In rural areas, the challenge is compounded. Connectivity constraints, limited access to local expertise and thinner professional networks create barriers that urban businesses do not face to the same degree. Hurley also raises the question of digital sovereignty, and it is worth taking seriously. European businesses, including Irish SMEs, are increasingly dependent on AI tools and cloud platforms owned and operated in the United States. That dependency has a political dimension that is becoming harder to ignore. The current US administration has already shown it is willing to cut off digital services to individuals on political grounds. For businesses that have built workflows and operations around these platforms, the question of what happens if access is restricted or withdrawn is one that very few have thought through. Pace of Change Is Underestimated ...
Meet Lucy Morley, our latest winner from the Risky Women Write competition! As the co-founder of Tint Financial Services, Lucy is transforming the world of cross-border trade finance for SMEs—no small feat! With a background in Classical Studies, she's here to prove that understanding the Romans can give you the upper hand in risk management. Lucy's journey has taken her from leveraged finance at major banks to the exhilarating chaos of startups. Join us as she shares how lessons from Greek myths apply to modern governance and why sometimes, keeping a keen eye on those Achilles' heels can save the day! SHOW NOTES 01:54 Career Background and Lessons Learned 12:31 Power Sharing: Lessons from Zeus 14:38 Innovation Risks: Insights from Pandora's Box 16:49 Boundary Pushing: The Icarus Principle 19:27 Identifying Vulnerabilities: The Achilles' Heel and Beyond Get transcript and read her winning article: https://www.riskywomen.org/2026/02/podcast-s9e4-greeks-romans-risk-management-with-lucy-morley/
Alan Byrne, Product Leader for Mozilla's Firefox extensions ecosystem, argues that the best product work is less doctrine and more judgement. In conversation with LRandy Silver, he breaks down why prioritisation frameworks like RICE and MoSCoW often masquerade as science while quietly embedding subjectivity—and why he prefers writing clear “what and why” statements over chasing false precision.From his experience at QuickBooks and Twitter, Alan explores when PRDs are genuinely valuable (complex systems, high risk, trust and safety concerns) and how to keep them lean enough to stay useful. The discussion also digs into the tension between moving a metric and doing right by users, the dangers of gamifying growth, and how product managers can translate customer problems into narratives that align engineers, executives, and sales.Chapters03:30 Product as philosophy04:41 Studying product vs learning in the field07:25 The real job: understand users and their “why”08:21 Why prioritisation frameworks often fail in practice10:58 Decision-making without false precision13:14 Goal-led roadmaps and narrative alignment14:22 Metrics, ethics, and avoiding gamification traps18:35 When PRDs help, and how to keep them lean22:37 Prototyping, vibe coding, and where it falls apart25:14 Communication, compromise, and working documents27:36 Preventing overbuild and defining “good enough”30:39 Handling “can't you just…” from sales and marketing33:28 What Alan wishes he knew five years ago34:49 Explaining product management to non-product peopleOur HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She's currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She's worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury's. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group's Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He's the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager's Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon's music stores in the US & UK.
In the pursuit of digital transformation, businesses often spotlight their cutting-edge applications, their multicloud strategies, or their latest AI models. Yet, behind each of these advancements lies a powerful, unseen engine: the enterprise storage platform. Once regarded as a back?end system, enterprise storage has become a strategic platform that underpins innovation. As Irish organisations race to modernise services, comply with regulation and compete internationally, the way they store, protect, and govern data is turning into a fundamental differentiator. Today's IT leaders face a significant challenge. They must support an ever-expanding portfolio of workloads, from critical business databases to cloud-native applications and data-intensive AI projects. All this must be achieved within the constraints of tight budgets and limited staffing. The sheer volume of data being created and managed is staggering; global data generation is expected to reach 393.9 ZB by 2028, as per IDC. This explosion of information puts immense pressure on infrastructure that was not designed for this scale or complexity, resulting in data foundations under strain According to the latest Dell Innovation Catalyst Study, 48% of Irish organisations are prioritising data readiness for AI-related workload, while 66% say they are still in their early or mid-stage of their AI/GenAI journey. This underscores a reality that organisations want to innovate, but their data foundations and current storage systems are not fully equipped. From Data Silo to Intelligent Hub The perception of enterprise storage as a mere commodity is outdated. Modern platforms have become intelligent hubs that automate complex tasks and unlock new efficiencies. By integrating machine learning and advanced analytics, today's storage systems can proactively optimise workload placement, predict performance bottlenecks before they occur, and simplify management tasks that once consumed countless hours. This shift is relevant in Ireland, where businesses from multinationals to SMEs are accelerating digital transformation under the National AI Strategy. A study Dell undertook found that 96% of Irish organisations face challenges when it comes to identifying, preparing, and using data for AI/GenAI use cases, with 40% struggle to integrate AI systems with existing IT infrastructure. Intelligent storage platforms directly address these pain points by reducing complexity and improving data accessibility without creating new data silos For Irish businesses planning to expand their e-commerce operations and presence, a modern storage platform can intelligently prioritise these diverse workloads, ensuring that customer-facing applications remain responsive while they have high-speed access, they need to train their models that maintain the strategic initiatives that drive business growth. Bridging Private Cloud and Multicloud for Seamless Innovation In today's digital landscape, businesses are increasingly faced with the decision to operate within a private cloud, adopt a multicloud environment, or find a balance between the two. Enterprise storage serves as the reliable backbone for these evolving strategies, delivering the infrastructure needed to provide both security and agility at scale. For Irish businesses relying on private cloud infrastructure, enterprise storage provides robust data protection, predictable performance, and the confidence that sensitive information remains under their control. As organisations here in Ireland expand further into multicloud setups, seamless data mobility becomes essential not just for storing data but also for making it accessible and secure wherever it resides. According to the Dell study, 46% of local organisations plan to modernise their IT with intelligent infrastructure, and another 46% aim to optimise workload placement across edge, core, and cloud environments. The right storage platform is central to both goals: it can synchronise data ac...
Cheryl Platz, Cheryl Platz, former UX Director for Riot Games, Scopely and Author of "The Game Development Strategy Guide," returns to The Product Experience to explore how video game design principles can transform product development. From her time at Riot Games and Marvel Strike Force to teaching at Carnegie Mellon, Cheryl shares hard-won lessons about player motivation, onboarding, and building products that thrive. Discover why competition is no longer the primary driver of modern gaming, how a children's game taught her about gendered design assumptions, and how she turned a catastrophic server outage into a UX win that made Reddit happy.Chapters06:03 Game development is cloud services plus filmmaking07:08 The problem with silos in game studios08:24 “Modern” games: live service, messy business models, shifting tastes09:58 Defining a game: players decide if you got it right11:41 Motivators of play and why they matter to product people12:26 Disney Friends: the moment a playtest rewrote the design17:19 Classic vs modern motivators: what technology changed20:41 The research that challenged the “games are competition” assumption22:36 Why game lessons translate to enterprise software (and where gamification goes wrong)25:19 Pro-social design: trust, safety and communities at scale28:33 Designing for companionship and shared experiences34:43 Onboarding as growth strategy, not a “nice to have”37:38 Journey mapping 100 levels: making invisible drop-off visible39:25 On-demand learning beats one-and-done tutorials41:58 Advice for people trying to break into games during layoffs44:36 Turning a sixth anniversary outage into a UX win Our HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She's currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She's worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury's. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group's Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He's the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager's Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon's music stores in the US & UK.
International Accounting Standards Board: Developments in IFRS Standards
In this episode, technical staff member Tinyiko Denhere and SME Implementation Group member Edson Teixer discuss how the third edition of the IFRS for SMEs Accounting Standard is being applied in Brazil. They also explore how the IFRS Foundation's educational materials support the implementation of the Standard.
Who is Arup?Arup Biswas is a dynamic entrepreneur at the forefront of AI-driven marketing solutions. Recognizing that true innovation lies in customer outcomes, Arup has dedicated his career to making powerful marketing accessible for all. He identified three key audiences—marketing agencies, recruitment firms, and SME owners—who often found traditional radio advertising out of reach due to high costs and lack of expertise. With a passion for breaking down barriers, Arup's work centers on helping these businesses connect with audiences more effectively, using cutting-edge technology to solve longstanding challenges and drive real, measurable success.Key Takeaways* Arup Biswas, founder of Klaxon AI, shared how AI can make radio and podcast advertising accessible, affordable, and targeted—even for small businesses. Breaking down barriers is reshaping who gets to be heard.* Removing technical barriers in media isn't just about cost. Klaxon AI lets anyone create professional audio ads in minutes, not days, changing who gets to participate in the advertising landscape.* Culture shifts when technology puts power in new hands. DIY audio ads, as Arup describes, give small business owners a voice where only big brands used to play. That shapes narratives—and who gets to tell them.* Targeted messaging is more than a marketing tactic. Klaxon AI shows that when we speak directly to our audience, we foster deeper connections and more inclusive cultural conversations.* Audio advertising isn't just for radio. Arup encourages using your audio ad everywhere—on your site, social, emails. Culture today is cross-media, and your voice can travel further than ever before.Don't forget: If you want to connect, ask questions, or get notified about upcoming guests like Arup, subscribe to the Systemise.Me newsletter here. You only need your first name and email—easy as (coffee) pie!Thanks for sharing a cup with us this week. Here's to strong coffee, smart hiring, and believing in the dreams you're just starting to imagine.And don't forget: keep an eye out for next guest. To submit your own questions, subscribe to our newsletter and join the conversation!P.S. Loved this episode? Hit reply and let us know what resonated most_________________________________________________________________________________________________Subscribe to our newsletter and get details of when we are doing these interviews live at www.systemise.me/subscribeFind out more about being a guest at : link.thecompleteapproach.co.uk/beaguestSubscribe to the podcast at https://link.thecompleteapproach.co.uk/podcastHelp us get this podcast in front of as many people as possible. Leave a nice five-star review at apple podcasts : https://link.thecompleteapproach.co.uk/apple-podcasts and on YouTube : https://link.thecompleteapproach.co.uk/Itsnotrocketscienceatyt!Do You Need a P.A.T.H. to Scale?We help established business owners with small but growing teams:go from feeling stuck, sceptical, and tired of wasting time and money on false promises,to running a confident, purpose-driven business where their team delivers results, customers are happy, and they can finally enjoy more time with their family -with a results-based refund guarantee: if you follow the process and it doesn't work, we refund what you paid.This is THE P.A.T.H. to scale your business.————————————————————————————————————————————-TranscriptNote, this was transcribed using a transcription software and may not reflect the exact words used in the podcast)SUMMARY KEYWORDSsmall business hiring, remote work, hybrid companies, digital marketing agencies, coaches and consultants, e-commerce businesses, hiring process, HR departments, bad hire costs, hiring mistakes, onboarding, job candidate selection, concierge hiring service, affordable recruiting, job post templates, freelancer pricing guides, virtual assistants, customer service hiring, company culture fit, soft skills, work from home, moms working remotely, freelancing, home-based businesses, job boards, local business networking, HireMyMom platform, Hire Thy Neighbor, faith-based business, church directory, entrepreneurial journeySPEAKERArup Biswas, Stuart WebbStuart Webb [00:00:00]:Hi there and welcome back to It's Not Rocket Science. Five questions over coffee. I have in front of me my coffee mug. I hope Arup has his drink with him, whether or not it's coffee or something else. But I'd love to welcome Arup as well. Arup is the founder of something called Claxon AI which I'm hoping we will learn more about in the next 15, 20 minutes. But from initial introduction I'll say that Klaxon AI is one of those game changing type AI systems that really should be shaking up the podcast advertising, media advertising landscape, enabling us all to produce those really game changing ads cheaper, faster and with more specificity.Stuart Webb [00:01:14]:So Arup, welcome to It's Not Rocket Science five questions over coffee.Arup Biswas [00:01:19]:Thank you, Stuart. I'm delighted to be here.Stuart Webb [00:01:22]:Terrific. Well, you know, let's start with who the who the who. The ideal audience for Klaxon AI is what's the sort of characteristics that anybody who's listening to us at the moment might be thinking? Well, I wonder if this is for me.Arup Biswas [00:01:38]:Yeah, well, there are three key audiences for what we do. And I should say that actually, yes, we are an AI business, of course, but actually it's all about the outcome for the customer. And the outcome for the customer is reaching people effectively in a powerful way. So our core market is marketing agencies are already working with clients, but offering traditional marketing methods, recruitment agencies who may be looking to recruit volume numbers of staff and owners of SMEs. So those business owners who are struggling hard to, to make their business business a success. But I've always thought that radio advertising in particular has been out of their reach because of lack of knowledge or price cost. Those kind of traditional factors have always been the issue. So that's our traditional market, that's our marketplace that we focus on and our solution is all about helping them overcome those issues.Arup Biswas [00:02:31]:And we provided a, created a solution which we think does all that.Stuart Webb [00:02:36]:And let's just sort of understand that. I mean you talked about the fact that it's a solution. So what are the sort of problems that you noticed that you were trying to solve with this? Obviously cost is one, but there must a bunch of other things that you're looking at this solution in AI that will actually help solve.Arup Biswas [00:02:55]:Absolutely. And the biggest, one of the biggest issues other than price, price is always an issue for small business owners is knowledge and technical expertise.Stuart Webb [00:03:03]:Yeah.Arup Biswas [00:03:03]:Particularly when it comes to broadcast advertising, whether it's TV or radio, people think, and traditionally this has been the case. So this is completely justified why people think this way. You need to go to a recording studio, you need a sound engineer, you need a voiceover artist, you need to create a script. And traditionally the cost of creating an audio advert has been thousands and thousands of pounds. Typically a recording studio can be upwards of £300 an hour to just hire the recording studio. So the costs are really high. But also the technical expertise, you know, if you're a business owner running whatever your business is, you know, how much do you actually know about creating a radio advert? You think you might have to outsource that, but it's not typically something you think you can do yourself. So there were high barriers to entry to get into radio advertising and there traditionally always has been high barriers to entry.Arup Biswas [00:03:56]:So when we came up with the concept for doing this, and I should say myself and my co founder, we come from a media background, so we were very experienced in working with small business owners who were looking to promote their businesses in normal market ways, but struggled with things like broadcast advertising. So we came with it from a problem point of view of how do we make it easier for these business owners to get their message out via radio advertising and increasingly podcast advertising. So we know that we know the pain. We, you know, we see the pain every day. And historically the pain's been there, been there. So what we've done is create a system which removes every, every barrier to entry. And I'll, you know, we'll talk a little bit more about what we offer, but essentially one of the services we offer is a self serve advert creation system where anybody can go in and create a professional audio advert with no technical expertise in less than five minutes. So that's what we've tried to do, is remove barriers to entry.Stuart Webb [00:04:55]:So let's, let's just deal into that and I guess we're going to get into some of the sort of the offerings and services that you've got. And I hope that there's going to be a valuable offer, a piece of advice that you'd like to give to the audience. But let me just explore for a moment. I mean, how does this system work? What does the business owner do to, to solve the problem they've got? Having sort of looked at the cost of this and thought this is going to be too expensive for me to be able to sort of put a radio advert, a podcast advert, TV advert, whatever, out this might be a solution to it. What's the steps that they take? What are the different services you Offer.Arup Biswas [00:05:33]:Yeah, well, the first thing to say is when we talk to business owners is to forget everything they know about creating radio adverts. Because most of us, or most people come to this thinking expensive techniques, technically complex, all those kind of things. As I said, we've created a system that removes all that. So we've got two services. One is a self serve system I mentioned where anybody can go in, they can just write a few words of text. We use AI to create a script for the, for the company owner or the marketing executive. So you just need to put in a few words about your business. You know, for example, you know, ABC is a marketing company that works in Chester.Arup Biswas [00:06:11]:Our AI will automatically create a 30 second advert script using that text, or you can put in the exact text that you want to be read out. What happens is our system automatically creates the script, automatically adds an AI voice, and these are high quality AI voices. We use the best AI voices in the industry. You would never know it's an AI voice. And we add background music to it as well and we patch it up as a, as a 30 second advert. Now that process is super quick. Anybody can go into the site now, they could do it now and they'll see that they'll have an advert there to listen to literally within less than a minute, you know, no more than five minutes if they want to translate it, because we offer a translation facility as well. So that's fine, they could do that, then they could download the advert, do whatever they want with it.Arup Biswas [00:06:56]:But what we also know is quite often somebody will produce something like an audio file and they won't know what to do with it. It's great having an advert on your desktop or what the hell do you do with it. So what we do is we don't see ourselves so much as a tech company, we see ourselves as a full service tech and advertising agency. So we offer what we call a fully managed service where we'll create the advert for the client for the same cost. It's the same low cost. So we'll create the advert for the client and then we work with our media partners. So we have media partnerships with the largest radio station owners in the UK and the world's largest podcast advertising network. And, and these are companies that own every commercial radio station you've heard of, the big ones, you know, Heart Great Sits Radio, lbc, Capital Jazz fm, Classic fm, all the ones you, you've heard of, which get millions and millions of listeners every week.Arup Biswas [00:07:49]:And we partner with those guys to actually broadcast the advert for the client. So we offer a full one stop shop solution where the client can just say to us, yes, create the advert for us and we want it broadcast in Chester in, in September for two weeks. And we want to target a particular demographic now because more and more people are listening to radio adverts, not on traditional radios but on what you call connected devices, smart speakers, phones, game stations, Alexas, all those kind of things that gives you a lot of data about who's listening. And because the media owners have that data, we could target really effectively. So nowadays if a business owner says to us, oh my target audience is Eastbourne for example, but I only want to target 45 year old business owners in Eastbourne, within a 10 mile radius of Eastbourne and they have to be female business owners, we can do that. We could target exactly that audience through our media partners and deliver the advert exactly to that audience. So nobody else other than those target audience people will hear the advert which makes the advertising spend really effective of course. So what we do for the client is we create the advert, we manage the broadcast for them, we get it broadcast and we send them analytics at the end of it.Arup Biswas [00:09:02]:So, and obviously they can hear the advert when it's live on air. So we offer a full service solution.Stuart Webb [00:09:09]:And I think it's really important to, to, to, to, to sort of emphasize in this, if it's not become very obvious, that makes this really very, very cost effective, doesn't it? Because you're not paying for the normally 95% of people who don't want, you're targeting the very specific people that you know that you have a solution to their problem and therefore that advert becomes extremely relevant and very much more targeted.Arup Biswas [00:09:35]:That's right. And actually some of the campaigns we've already run for clients, they've been very targeted campaigns. So we've got one coming up actually in the next couple of weeks which is targeting business owners in Birmingham and it's just targeting Birmingham city centre. So like a mile, a couple of mile radius of Birmingham city centre. It's only targeting business owners because that's who the business the advertiser wants to target. We can even set the age range. If they only want to target business owners over 25, for example, we could do that. So yeah, it makes it very effective and it means you're not, you're not wasting your ad spend on people hearing your advert who aren't in your target audience.Arup Biswas [00:10:13]:So why why waste money doing that?Stuart Webb [00:10:15]:Terrific. So that brings me on to the sort of third question. Is there a piece of advice, an offer, something that you can give, give to the audience listening at the moment, the people watching us on YouTube, LinkedIn who might say, well, this sounds like it's interesting. So how do I get some advice from this guy and understand whether or not this is for me?Arup Biswas [00:10:34]:Yeah, well, the first thing I would do is I'd say look at one of the challenges is people often think that radio listenership in particular is declining. They know podcast listenership is increasing because podcasts are booming massively around the world, but they think radio listenership generally is declining. And that's not the case at all. Radio listenership is really, really strong in the and around the world. So in terms of free advice, free resources, I would tell people to go to a couple of the industry websites. These are completely in industry official websites. One is called radiocentre.org which is kind of the voice of the radio industry in the uk. The second one is a site called Rajar R a j a r.co.uk which is run by the BBC and the Radio center which gives the stats on how many people listen to different radio stations.Arup Biswas [00:11:24]:So if you go there and even if you look for your local radio station, so you might want to know how many people listen to heart radio in your part of the world, you can go there and you can see the actual stats of how many people are listening to heart radio in your area. So you'll know how big the audience is. The second bit of advice I'd give, and this may sound a bit self serving, is just go onto our website, go into register for our free advertising service. There's no cost to create the advert. The only, the only cost is if you want to download the advert at the end of the process. But you don't have to do that if you just want to go in, have a look, see how it works, actually create an advert yourself, see how it sounds, do that, go in there, have a play with it, see how easy it is to create a professional audio advert and that you'll, that will make you very familiar and comfortable with knowing it's really easy. Now you don't need the traditional ways of creating adverts now. What we've done is created a disruptive way to create an professional audio ad cheaply and quickly.Stuart Webb [00:12:21]:So anybody who's just tried to sort of write down all of that information, I can promise you, and I've put it on screen. Now, if you go to our vault, which is systemize S Y S T E M I s e.me forward/free hyphen stuff that's systemized me free hyphen stuff, all of those links that ARIP has just, just mentioned will be there. You don't have to try and write them down. Just remember, systemize me free hyphen stuff, dead easy. Go on that, pick up all of that links, pick all of the information that we've got and we'll be able to direct you to all of that stuff that ARUP has just mentioned. And that will save you having to try and remember a lot of information which is actually going to help you to understand exactly how you can create these adverts. Low cost, highly targeted, very relevant to the person, has a problem that you can solve for them. And if that doesn't bring in leads, then nothing else will.Stuart Webb [00:13:17]:Arab, you've mentioned a little bit about how you sort of began your journey towards this. You were, you were obviously in the media world yourself. Was there a, was there a moment, a book, a course and in a meeting, something which sort of struck you as, okay, I've got a solution to a problem. I need to, I need to start telling the world about this. What brought you to who you are at the moment, as it were?Arup Biswas [00:13:38]:Yeah, well, as I said, myself, my co founder, Monok, we come from the media sector and actually we both started off as traditional newspaper journalists back in the day when, you know, newspaper readership was huge. So we started in the media sector. We moved into different areas of media operations in terms of managing news websites and operations, those kind of things. But we worked quite closely with advertising teams in our media companies. So we were working with colleagues who were working with local businesses who were looking to promote themselves via. In those days it was all newspaper advertising. You'll remember, Stuart, back in the day, all the job listings weren't on. Indeed they were in your local paper.Stuart Webb [00:14:16]:And all the properties, I don't remember those times.Arup Biswas [00:14:18]:I'm only 21, I'm obviously older than you.Stuart Webb [00:14:24]:21 in a few months. I just haven't counted the number of months recently.Arup Biswas [00:14:29]:But trust me, in, in, I'm going to say in the old days, job listings, property listings, they're all in your local paper. That's where you would go, you know, Thursday used to be job paper day. You know, you'd get a paper on a Thursday and that's where your jobs were. Wednesday was for property. Now all that has moved online. But working with commercial teams in media organizations. Like I said, we understood how SME owners, business owners were evolving, what they wanted to do. They were Google AdWords was a new thing at the time.Arup Biswas [00:14:55]:You know, the, the power of advertising online became a new thing and more and more were shifting away from traditional print advertising into online advertising. But there was a growing band who wanted to go further and want to do things like radio advertising. But there just wasn't the capability to do it. A low cost, easy to, easy to use and understand way and it hasn't been for years. You know, we set up to solve that problem, to fix that problem. We, we knew AI could solve that problem and we built our own system to enable us to do it. So we have our own proprietary system that uses AI. Now if you're into AI, yeah, it's fine, it's exciting.Arup Biswas [00:15:31]:But if you just focus on the outcome of I want to reach potential large audiences in a really effective and powerful way. Radio advertising, podcast advertising is number one. And actually it's not me saying that numerous bodies, including the Guardian newspaper and Tapestry research, they did some analysis a few years ago about the effectiveness of podcast advertising, for example, and what they found, what they found was podcast advertising is more, it's the most effective form of advertising around, much more effective than online advertising, a lot more effective than TV advertising. And actually what they found in their in depth analysis and research was 52% of of podcast listeners who heard an advert in a podcast wanted to buy something from the brand. 38% of people who heard an advert on radio wanted to buy something from the brand. And there's a whole stack of literature about the science of audio and the fact it goes in your ear and it sticks in your brain and it, and you digest it and you, and it works its way into your brain in a different way to things you see visually, for example. So there's a lot of science about how audio is the most effective method of getting a message in, in your brain and also the most effective message method of advertising and getting the customers to recall your brand, recall your message and go onto your website and make a purchase.Stuart Webb [00:16:55]:Terrific. I'm very aware of the fact that you've given a huge amount of very detailed answers to questions that I've given you, but probably I've not yet asked you the one question that I should have asked and that's probably my fault for having not realized. There's an important question here, but there must be one important question that you keep thinking. When's he going to ask this really, really important question. So I'm going to ask you now to tell me what that question was. And obviously, as you know what the question is, you're also going to have to answer it for me because I can't answer that question.Arup Biswas [00:17:25]:That's fine. Well, I guess a really obvious question is what do I do with an advert? And I know it sounds really obvious because we've been talking about advertising on radio, we've been talking about advertising podcasts and Absolutely, you know, create the advert. That's where it'll go. That's where you're going to get your biggest audience when it's broadcast on radio or broadcast in podcast. However, an audio advert doesn't have to be just used in that way. There's lots of other things you can do with an audio advert. You can stick it on your website, you can stick it in your newsletters, you can stick it on your email, you can use on social media. So if you never want it to be on radio or you don't think you can afford the cost of it, going out on radio or podcast doesn't mean that an audio advert won't be effective.Arup Biswas [00:18:06]:It will be effective and there's lots of ways you can use it. So, you know, if you don't want it on Heart FM or Greatest Radio or in the podcast or whatever, fine. Use it on your website, Use it on your, in your blog section if you've got one. Use it in your emails. User on social media, people still digest it in the same way. It's still going through people's ears. They're still hearing the message. It's just a different medium that's going out.Arup Biswas [00:18:29]:So that's the one thing I think people should get, should really understand that using our system or using any system to create an advert doesn't necessarily mean you have to broadcast it on radio. An audio file, an audio advert can be used in lots of different ways and it's a powerful mechanism whichever way they use.Stuart Webb [00:18:48]:And now it's as cost effective as you described, Eric. There's no reason not to do five, six, seven of them and use them in different ways, different channels where, you know, there'll be different audiences. I'm always very keen on talking to business owners who are sort of unsure about whether or not they should target and get very much more niche in there trying to solve particular problems. And I keep saying to them the niche person is the one that actually it's where the money is really made. So actually creating a very niche advert might sound like a really crazy idea, but actually it's the one which is probably going to be the most effective in bringing the person that has a problem that you solve to get to know who you are and start to know and trust you. And it's a much more effective way of doing it by something as simple as creating an audio advert like you're describing than it is by blasting a message to the entire world and hoping, which is just a very ineffective strategy.Arup Biswas [00:19:41]:Yeah. And, you know, with our services, there's two ways to, to look at that. One is, as I said, with the radio advertising, it can be really targeted at who you want to reach and the demographics. But podcast advertising is a really interesting space. I mean, everyone know how big podcasts are getting? You know, they're huge globally in the UK and globally. But with podcasts, obviously there, it's a bit like websites. There's podcasts for everything and podcasts for very niche subjects. So if you want a podcast just on marketing, you'll come to your podcast Stuart.Arup Biswas [00:20:11]:But if you want a podcast on business growth that you, you know, sorry, your business growth podcast will come to you. If you want one on marketing, if you want one on cars, whatever, there'll be a podcast about it. I mean, if you. Everybody knows about the Peter Crouch podcast, you know, and he's got some really successful podcasts out there now, music podcasts that appeal to people, they're funny, that the comedy podcast, but the podcast for everything. And whatever sector you're working in, there will be a podcast that relates to that sector. So that means you can have an advert in that particular podcast, which means only people that be hearing it are people that you want to target, people who are, who are looking for those services or looking for knowledge and experience. So you can be really, really highly targeted. Which is why some podcast advertising can be a bit more expensive because it's so targeted.Arup Biswas [00:21:04]:But going back to your point, it's exactly that point, you're not wasting a single penny on people that aren't in your target audience.Stuart Webb [00:21:11]:Brilliant. Brilliant. Arab. I think you've really, really hit the nail on the head with that. And I'm just going to, once again, if you, if I would encourage you, go to Systemize me free hyphen stuff, go and find out Those email, those URLs, those websites that are mentioned, they will be in the vault. You can go there, you can pick up those, those valuable links and find out just how quickly and easily you can create an advert like Arup has just described to you. I'm going to back up what he's saying. I've been doing some sort of helping people launch their own podcast just recently.Stuart Webb [00:21:47]:When you look at the number of blogs there are in the world and yet there are so few podcasts and blogs are something that I know every web expert tells me, you must have a blog, you must have a blog. If you've got a blog but you haven't got a podcast, you've missed out on a huge section of potential audience I happen to have to attend. Not because I, because I was doing something else there, but I was attending an event recently in the middle of Derby which was around the train industry and there were no less than 12 YouTube and podcast people there, all creating podcasts about the trains that they were seeing. So there are some really huge audiences for these people. If they hadn't expected there to be a huge audience for their stuff, they wouldn't have been there. So go think about it. Go have a look at what you can do with podcasts, look at what you can do with an advert to promote your stuff on a podcast and get out there and do it. Arup, I've got to thank you for, for what you've just said.Stuart Webb [00:22:46]:I think it's brilliant stuff and really, really appreciate you coming on and spending a few minutes with us.Arup Biswas [00:22:50]:Thank you, sir, I really enjoyed it. Thank you for the opportunity.Stuart Webb [00:22:53]:No problem. If you'll excuse me, I'm just going to now encourage people to subscribe to this podcast and website. Go to once again, Systemize Me subscribe you just, it's a simple format, asks you for what two things, your first name and your email address. And every week you'll get an email with me from me telling you who's coming up on this so that you can join live on LinkedIn or YouTube and actually get the sort of valuable free advice from experts such as Eric. We don't have people on here who have got something really valuable to say. So if you want to listen to more people like Arup who've got really valuable free advice for you and really will help get your business motoring, come and subscribe at Systemize Me Forward slash subscribe. Arup, thank you very much. Thank you for indulging me for a few minutes in making my own little self promotion there.Stuart Webb [00:23:42]:It's not an advert. Maybe I need to start thinking about one of those as well, but thank you very much for being here.Arup Biswas [00:23:47]:Thank you, Stuart.. Get full access to It's Not Rocket Science! at thecompleteapproach.substack.com/subscribe
THE Leadership Japan Series by Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo, Japan
Coaching is the real work of leadership once you start managing other people. In modern workplaces—especially post-pandemic and in hybrid teams—your job isn't just delivering results; it's building capability so results keep happening even when you're not in the room. This guide breaks down a Seven Step Coaching Process leaders can use to develop team members through everyday, on-the-job coaching, not just HR training programs. It's designed for busy managers in SMEs, multinationals, and fast-moving teams where skills, tools, and customer expectations change constantly. How do leaders identify coaching opportunities in day-to-day work? Coaching opportunities show up through observation, self-awareness, external feedback, changing business needs, and sudden situations. Leaders who wait for formal training cycles miss the daily moments where performance can lift quickly with small, targeted coaching. In practice, there are five classic triggers. First, you notice a gap—someone lacks a skill, hasn't been trained, or is moved into a new task with no reps. Second, the staff member flags it themselves, either because they're stuck or ambitious and want growth. Third, customers, vendors, or outsiders complain or comment, which is often the clearest real-world signal that training hasn't landed. Fourth, the business changes—new technology replaces old ways (think "Telex to email" as the metaphor), so yesterday's competencies become irrelevant. Fifth, situations force change, like promotions, role shifts, or remote work onboarding. Do now: Create a weekly "coaching log" with 5 headings (Boss, Self, Customer, Change, Situation) and write one example under each. What's a real example of a "customer complaint" coaching trigger? Customer feedback often reveals tiny skill gaps that quietly damage trust—especially in service culture. Leaders should treat complaints as coaching gold, not just quality problems. A simple example is telephone etiquette in corporate settings. In Japan, one common frustration is when staff answer the phone by stating only the company name, without their own name—creating awkwardness for the caller if they ask for someone and discover the person answering is that individual. The fix is not expensive training or a big workshop; it's a repeatable micro-skill: answer with "Company name + your name." This is the essence of practical coaching—catch a pattern, define the desired behaviour, practise it, and reinforce it until it becomes normal. This same principle applies across markets. In the US or Australia, the equivalent might be email tone, response time, or how staff handle returns. In B2B environments, it might be meeting preparation or follow-up discipline. Do now: Pick one customer friction point from the last 30 days and turn it into a 2-minute coaching drill. What should the "desired outcome" of coaching look like? Coaching only works when both people can clearly picture success and agree it matters. If the outcome is fuzzy—or owned only by the boss—it becomes compliance, not growth. A strong coaching outcome is behavioural and observable: "They can do X task independently, to Y standard, in Z timeframe." That clarity matters even more in remote or hybrid work, where leaders can't rely on informal monitoring. The outcome should also be jointly owned: the team member needs to want it, not just tolerate it. That means the leader's role is to define what good looks like, show why it matters (customer impact, team efficiency, career growth), and confirm the person buys in. In startups, outcomes often focus on speed and adaptability. In large organisations, they may be tied to compliance, brand, or consistency. Either way, "success" must be visible, measurable, and shared. Do now: Ask: "What would 'great' look like here in two weeks?" Write the answer as one sentence you both agree on. How do you establish the right attitudes for effective coaching? Coaching accelerates when the leader understands the person's motivations and role fit. Without that, even good advice lands badly—or gets ignored. Attitude isn't about pep talks; it's about context. How well you know your team determines how quickly you can judge whether you have the right people in the right roles—"the right bus and the right seats." Some people are motivated by mastery, others by recognition, autonomy, stability, or future promotion. A leader who understands this can tailor coaching so it feels supportive rather than corrective. This is especially important across cultures. In Japan, people may avoid direct self-promotion, so ambition can be hidden. In Australia or the US, staff may be more comfortable stating career goals openly. In both cases, leaders need genuine curiosity: "What do you want to get better at, and why?" Do now: In your next 1:1, ask one question: "What part of your job gives you energy, and what drains it?" Use the answer to guide coaching. What resources do managers need to provide for coaching to work? The scarcest and most valuable resource in coaching is the leader's time. If you demand performance but deny support, you're setting people up to fail. Resources can include money, equipment, training materials, access to internal experts, or backing from senior management—but the key constraint is often attention. Coaching isn't a side hobby; it's core leadership work. Many managers confuse "time efficiency" with effectiveness, rushing tasks while leaving capability undeveloped. The result is predictable: repeated mistakes, avoidable escalations, and a team that can't operate independently. In a post-pandemic world, time investment is even more critical for onboarding. New hires who joined after early 2020 often missed informal learning because there was nobody physically nearby to ask. Do now: Block 30 minutes per week for coaching, not status updates. Treat it like a leadership KPI, not optional admin. Why is coaching "job number one" for the boss? When leaders get coaching wrong, performance problems multiply—and the team becomes dependent, fragile, and reactive. When leaders coach well, talent compounds and the organisation scales. Coaching sits upstream of almost everything that matters: customer satisfaction, productivity, retention, and succession. HR can organise training, but only the direct manager can reinforce it in daily work—correcting small behaviours before they become big issues, and building confidence through repetition. The best leaders don't just solve problems; they develop problem-solvers. This is true whether you're leading a sales team, operations team, or a professional services unit. In high-change environments—new tech, new processes, new market expectations—coaching is how teams keep up without burning out. It's also how you build a leadership bench instead of becoming the bottleneck. Do now: Identify one person you're currently "rescuing" too often. Coach them on the skill that removes the dependency. Conclusion: The Coaching Process as a leadership operating system The Seven Step Coaching Process is a practical way to lead: spot opportunities, define success, align attitudes, and provide resources—starting with your time. The goal isn't to create perfect employees; it's to build capability so people can perform confidently as work evolves. If you treat coaching as a daily discipline, you'll scale your team's competence, reduce recurring issues, and strengthen results across customers, culture, and performance. 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. Greg 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 been translated into Japanese, including ザ営業 (Za Eigyō), プレゼンの達人 (Purezen no Tatsujin), トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう, and 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, widely followed by executives pursuing success strategies in Japan.
Just like the work of sterile processing, HSPA certifications are robust, relevant, and constantly evolving. The process of keeping certification exams and requirements up to date involves years of work, the expertise of subject matter experts (SMEs), and the input of thousands of current certification holders. HSPA's rigorous test development process ensures that each certification holder is ready to meet the modern demands of their job and the increasing complexity of the healthcare field. In episode 144, host Casey Czarnowski speaks with Siri Sorensen, Director of Certification and Membership with HSPA, about updating HSPA certifications. Siri reviews each step in the process—job analysis, desk study, task force meeting, validation survey, and SME meetings—as well as the role of the Certification Council. She also explains a new eligibility requirement of the Certified Healthcare Leader (CHL) certification, which requires CHL holders to meet one of three flexible pathways, each designed to recognize the diverse backgrounds and experiences of SP professionals. Listen to learn about the collaborative nature of the HSPA certifications accredited by the ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB). Siri Sorensen Director of Certification and Membership HSPA Siri Sorensen, MA, CAE, ICE-CCP, PMP, CMP, has served HSPA for more than twelve years. In her current role, she oversees the development, maintenance and administration of the Association’s four accredited certification programs, serving more than 60,000 individuals, as well as the CCSVP certification for vendors and suppliers. Her accomplishments include being awarded the Deborah Sexton Education Scholarship (PCMA, 2019) and recognition as a Forty Under 40 honoree (Association Forum, 2018). Her career has focused on effective and meaningful work with associations and nonprofits. Earn CE Now
Luigi Mallardo joined Woffu as an early angel investor and later became CRO, helping founder Miguel Fresneda shape a practical SaaS growth path. Based in Barcelona, Spain, Woffu has built a modern cloud-based time and attendance platform for SMEs and mid-market companies, replacing legacy tools and spreadsheets with a focused, mobile-first workforce solution. Starting from just €2K MRR, Luigi led growth first through inbound, then outbound, and partner channels, increasing average revenue per account five to seven times. By 2025, the company reached nearly €500K in monthly recurring revenue, or about €6M ARR, with more than 50 employees and profitable, efficient growth across Spain. Woffu sold to Visma in 2022 following a multi-year, proactive exit strategy, with a total reported value of €20–30M including the 3-year earnout. Luigi shares how early focus, diversified revenue, and optionality shaped every decision. His biggest lesson: clarity about your endgame determines your strategy early on, including your growth model and many other important decisions. Key Takeaways Strategic Focus - Choosing one clear use case and market unlocked faster growth than chasing horizontal HR suite ambitions across Europe. Optionality First - Designing for multiple future paths gave founders leverage rather than forcing a sale based solely on valuation. Revenue - Layers Inbound, outbound, and partners created resilience while steadily raising average contract value and predictability. Exit Readiness - Warming buyers years early turned selling into a strategic process rather than a rushed financial event. Customer Success - Investing deeply in retention created low churn and made Woffu more attractive to long-term acquirers. Builder Mindset - Great CROs zoom in and out, connecting go-to-market execution with strategy, culture, and long-term outcomes. Quote from Luigi Mallardo, Chief Revenue Officer at Woffu "We chose our focus of ICP and focus of use case, to reduce the space of market optionality to get more business optionality. You see what I mean? "The advice I give most often is to focus, which doesn't mean to close off the option of having more verticals forever, but you need 75% or 80 % of your pipeline on where you are already monetizing and building traction. And then you leave that 20 % of pipeline to do experimentations in a new vertical. "It's one of the historical challenges, especially with young founders: the feeling of losing opportunities if they decide and don't do everything. But you are losing opportunities if you go too wide and you don't focus. Just be patient, postpone, and focus on what works." Links Luigi Mallardo on LinkedIn Woffu on LinkedIn Woffu website Podcast Sponsor – Lighter Capital This podcast is sponsored by Lighter Capital. In the last 15 years, Lighter Capital has helped over 600 software and SaaS founders secure simple, non-dilutive financing to grow a little faster—without giving up any precious equity or board seats to investors. Simple debt funding from Lighter Capital can range from $50K to $10 million, with straightforward terms, no personal guarantees or covenants, and up to a 4-year payback period. Go to LighterCapital.com to apply and get a quick pre-qualification. Then talk with their experienced team to create a practical funding plan to achieve your goals. The Practical Founders Podcast Tune into the Practical Founders Podcast for weekly in-depth interviews with founders who have built valuable software companies without big funding. Subscribe to the Practical Founders Podcast using your favorite podcast app or view on our YouTube channel. Get the weekly Practical Founders newsletter and podcast updates at practicalfounders.com. Practical Founders CEO Peer Groups Be part of a committed and confidential group of practical founders creating valuable software companies without big VC funding. A Practical Founders Peer Group is a committed and confidential group of founders/CEOs who want to help you succeed on your terms. Each Practical Founders Peer Group is personally curated and moderated by Greg Head.
What does alignment really mean in product teams, and why does consensus often slow everything down?In this episode of The Product Experience, Lily Smith and Randy Silver are joined by Blagoja Golubovski (VP of Product, formerly at Usercentrics) to unpack one of the most persistent myths in product leadership: that good product organisations are democracies.Chapters0:00 Product leadership is not about consensus1:21 Introduction to Blagoja2:48 From engineering to product leadership4:47 What people think product leadership is5:44 Creating clarity and explicit trade-offs6:53 Why product organisations are not democracies7:54 Input vs ownership in decision-making8:24 Who is accountable for product decisions9:50 Leadership, strategy, and prioritisation10:02 How product leadership changes as companies scale12:29 Why decision-making mechanics define product culture13:27 Separating input from decisions14:59 Committees vs accountability16:16 Why alignment does not mean agreement17:29 The three levels of product decisions21:00 Diagnosing broken decision-making22:08 Environment beats individual skill23:19 What real prioritisation looks like24:46Our HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She's currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She's worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury's. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group's Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He's the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager's Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon's music stores in the US & UK.
If you're considering gamification for engagement, retention, or loyalty, I'm happy to compare options with you: professorgame.com/chat The biggest impact of gamification often happens in the least obvious places. In this episode, Rob Alvarez talks with David Dand about using game-inspired strategies in recruitment, leadership, and employee experience to attract better-fit talent, reduce churn, and build stronger, more human organizations, even in highly traditional sectors. David is the Founder and Managing Director of Coreus, a boutique hiring services provider based in Brighton. Coreus specialises in helping professional SMEs tackle critical talent challenges and is experienced in the complexities of recruiting in skilled, competitive, and often highly regulated markets. David is a CIPD-qualified HR and recruitment expert with a career spanning global firms such as EY, AXA, and Roche, with a focus on cultural fit, leadership assessment, and career coaching. He lives in the South Downs near Brighton, UK, with his wife and their three mischievous children. His interests include music, travel, and sport. Rob Alvarez is Head of Engagement Strategy, Europe at The Octalysis Group (TOG), a leading gamification and behavioral design consultancy. A globally recognized gamification strategist and TEDx speaker, he founded and hosts Professor Game, the #1 gamification podcast, and has interviewed hundreds of global experts. He designs evidence-based engagement systems that drive motivation, loyalty, and results, and teaches LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® and gamification at top institutions including IE Business School, EFMD, and EBS University across Europe, the Americas, and Asia. Guest Links and Info Website: Gamification in Recruitment | Coreus LinkedIn: Personal: David Dand | LinkedIn Company: Coreus Instagram: @coreus_talentacquisition Links to episode mentions: Recommended book: Hiring Success by Jerome Ternynck Favorite game: Chess and Football Lets's do stuff together! Let's chat about your gamification project Start Your Community on Skool for Free YouTube LinkedIn Instagram Facebook Ask a question
In this conversation, Arnab Naskar from Stokr discusses the intersection of Bitcoin, tokenization, and capital markets. He explains how Bitcoin serves as both a store of value and a settlement layer, enabling the creation of decentralized financial systems. The discussion covers the advantages of using Liquid for tokenization, the importance of confidentiality in transactions, and the innovative financing opportunities in energy and Bitcoin mining. Arnab emphasizes the systemic shift in financial markets due to tokenization, the role of stablecoins, and the future of decentralized finance on Liquid.Takeaways:
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