CEO Coaching International Podcast

Guest: Shelley Van Etten, the president and CEO of WLT Software, a family-owned company that develops software for adjudicating and processing health and medical claims. Overview: Generational CEOs are inheriting a BIG responsibility when they take over the family business. The new CEO is often filling "big shoes" and has to maintain the best of what got the firm to where it is while also moving forward in certain areas and keeping talent aligned with the business' core values. On today's show, Shelley Van Etten discusses how she navigated the challenges of leading a second-generation family business, preserving company culture while evolving with the times, and preparing the next generation to keep Making BIG Happen.

Guest: Jon Hyman, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Jon is a four-time entrepreneur, a seven-time CEO, and an accomplished business leader with over 30 years of experience across various industries, including consumer products, construction materials, sports and entertainment, investment banking, and manufacturing. Quick Background: So you've built, grown, and sold your first company. Ready for your next entrepreneurial adventure? Many aren't. To get back to the top of the mountain, entrepreneurs have to be willing to learn from their failures as well as their successes, and stay focused on the leadership principles that helped them Make BIG Happen in the first place. On today's show, Jon Hyman explains how he was able to lead an eclectic group of companies towards the same goal: a BIG exit.

Guest: Scott Belsky, Adobe's Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Vice President of Design & Emerging Products. Scott cofounded the online creative community Behance, which was acquired by Adobe in 2012. He's also an author whose works include the Implications newsletter and the book The Messy Middle: Finding Your Way Through the Hardest and Most Crucial Part of Any Bold Venture. Overview: The difference between a BIG idea fizzling out or becoming reality is execution. The CEO has to support innovation at every level of the company while also keeping that innovation organized around driving progress towards annual goals. Following creative ambitions without vision and focus could lead your business astray, or open the door for disruption from a nimble competitor. On today's show, Scott Belsky discusses how leaders can find the right balance of talent, tech, and innovation to make ideas -- and BIG -- happen.

Guest: Wendy Mather, CEO of RDP Creative. Wendy and her team "bring creative ideas and stories to life through bespoke merchandise that people want to keep for years." Overview: When you're sitting in the CEO's chair, there's only one step up left in an organization. But opportunities to grab an ownership stake are rare. CEOs who want a BIG piece of the pie have to be personally, professionally, and financially prepared to seize that moment. On today's show, Wendy Mather explains how she purchased RDP Creative -- with a little help from some very supportive friends. She also discusses how she uses empathetic leadership and the power of positivity to shape a winning culture and Make BIG Happen.

Guest: Curt Gooden, CEO Coaching International's Chief AI Officer. Curt helps CEOs define and realize their AI vision and meaningfully integrate AI into their business strategy and operations by leading CEO AI Roadmap workshops.  Quick Background: Mastering AI is not the CEO's job. But learning about the fundamentals and identifying potential implementations is a responsibility that no CEO can afford to shrug off any longer. As Peter Diamandis said at our recent Make BIG Happen Summit, "Everyone’s moving towards AI companies. It is happening now, and it is the most important happening that has ever existed.” You simply can't let challenging ideas and an alphabet soup of acronyms prevent your company from catching this wave. On today's show, Curt Gooden explains important AI concepts and discusses how CEOs can drive innovation and gain a competitive advantage that will Make BIG Happen.

Guest: Greg Coticchia, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Greg is a six-time CEO, award-winning entrepreneur, business leader, professor, and author with over 30 years’ experience in tech products and services. Quick Background: Innovation is the lifeblood of a growing company. If you're not continuously improving your products and services and exploring new marketplaces, you're putting a cap on your business' potential, and creating an opening that younger, nimbler, and braver competitors will march right through. On today's show, we explore Greg Coticchia's process for mastering new product development and building a culture of innovation that will Make BIG Happen.

Guest: Jonathan Seliger, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Jonathan is an accomplished Chief Executive Officer, Senior Advisor, and Investor with over 30 years of experience.Having lived and worked in Asia for the last 30years,Jonathan brings a global perspective to the challenges of scaling a business to BIG. Quick Background: Even if your company is global, business is always local. Your strategies for attracting and retaining customers have to be customized for each individual market. What unites your plan of attack from town to town, state to state, and country to country is the consistency of your company’s values, the strength of its brand, and its ability to execute, no matter what. On today’s show, Jonathan Seliger shares his strategies for expanding a brand’s reach, effectively managing growth challenges, and ensuring that scaling efforts align with long-term profitability and sustainability goals that will Make BIG Happen.

Guest: Keith Corrigan, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Keith has deep expertise in implementing Lean business practices. As a coach he draws on a proven track record of driving growth, managing through crises, and achieving operational excellence in various industries. Quick Background: Lean management is a systematic approach to running an organization that focuses on continuous improvement and seeks to maximize customer value while minimizing waste. Essentially, it involves using fewer resources to create more value for customers. The primary goals of lean management are to improve efficiency, reduce waste, and increase productivity and quality by streamlining processes and eliminating any steps in a process that do not create value for the end customer.  Some companies have faced the threats of high inflation and interest rates by scaling back, well, everything: costs, office space, marketing, people, new products, and perhaps worst of all, ambition. CEOs have to understand that there's a BIG difference between a streamlined, lean company that's ready for anything and a declining company that's cutting too many corners. On today's show, Keith Corrigan breaks down the true essence of Lean management, including the management system he has implemented to minimize waste and Make BIG Happen.

Guest: Edward Hughes, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Edward is a seasoned entrepreneur and business leader with two decades of experience as a CEO and three decades in senior leadership across Technology, Consumer Products, and Sporting Goods companies. He's also an Adjunct Professor at the University of California, Irvine, teaching General Management and Entrepreneurship in MBA and Executive MBA programs.  Quick Background: There's no one way to be an effective business leader. But the CEO's unique alchemy of personality, strategy, and vision has to inspire trust from employees at every level of the organization. If your employees don't believe in you, they won't be willing to follow you through the inevitable ups and downs on the way to Making BIG Happen.  On today's show Edward Hughes discusses his comprehensive leadership philosophy, which emphasizes building trust to drive success and foster a high-growth culture.

Guest: Saari Gardner, the Chief Experience Officer at CEO Coaching International. Saari is responsible for setting the client experience strategy, managing the client journey, and championing client impact.  Quick Background: While the title "Chief Experience Officer" is relatively new, the executive-level responsibilities that will fall on the CXO's desk are not. Before considering a costly new c-suite hire, your company needs to have a holistic understanding of how touchpoints with customers and employees fulfill needs and exceed expectations. Guided by the CEO's vision, a CXO can raise those standards, maintain consistency across every department, and build a powerful culture that will Make BIG Happen. On today's show, Saari Gardner discusses the CXO's multifaceted responsibilities, from being a changemaker and a voice for the customer at the executive table to reducing internal friction that impacts customer satisfaction. Saari also highlights the link between employee experience and customer service excellence and how fostering a positive work environment translates into superior customer interactions. We also explore the strategic considerations for integrating a CXO into your company, including when to recognize the need for this role and how to measure its impact on your business's bottom line.