CEO Coaching International Podcast

Guest: Jennifer Gressman, the CEO of Site Impact, a company that specializes in multichannel direct marketing services. Their clients range from Fortune 500 corporations to locally owned and operated small businesses. Overview: No CEO is ever just handed the top job at a BIG business. Founders put all of their time, effort, and resources on the line. Successful hired guns spend years earning their reputations as fixers. And ambitious leaders who pursue a path to promotion have to set clear targets that build win-by-win towards that dream job.  On today's show, Jennifer Gressman talks about how she purposefully navigated her transition from Vice President of Operations to become Site Impact's first female CEO.

Guest: Hillel L. Presser, Esq., Managing Partner of The Presser Law Firm, P.A. Overview: CEOs who lead a company to BIG aren't just growing a business. Your success is also creating a better life for yourself and your family. Without proper asset protection planning, a single slip up or frivolous lawsuit could jeopardize everything you've earned, everything you've built, and everything you're hoping to preserve as part of your legacy. On today's show, attorney Hillel Presser explains what a comprehensive asset protection plan is and why all CEOs need one. 

Guest: Bill Betts, President of Betts Company, which has been owned and operated by Bill's family since 1868. Overview: Think COVID was rough? When your company is strong enough to survive for 150 years, a pandemic (or two) is just one blip on a timeline that includes Reconstruction, the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, two World Wars, the Great Depression, and everything since. That kind of longevity is only possible when a company knows how to use its values as both an anchor to its heritage and a catalyst for keeping pace with BIG changes.  On today's show, Bill Betts talks about the values that have guided his family business for six generations. He also shares some practical advice on maintaining ownership and succession planning that have helped the family business stay in the family's hands. 

Guest: Andy Harris, Managing Director of STS Capital Partners. STS guides companies through the journey to achieving an extraordinary exit by selling to a strategic buyer. STS Capital Partners is a Strategic Partner of CEO Coaching International. Learn more.  Overview: When it's time to sell your company, what are your options? What can you do to ensure you get the best possible exit? Step one: put the best possible team together. A deal this BIG and this important requires a CFO who's been down this road before, an investment banker who knows how to get the best possible valuation for your company, and a CEO who is crystal clear on what his/her goals are for the exit.  On today's show, Andy Harris explains how owners can prepare their company for a sale, present it in the best possible light, and sell it to a strategic buyer who might pay a significant premium over a financial buyer.

Guest: Chris Mellon, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Chris has over three decades of leadership experience as CEO, CFO, and COO in various industries, including wholesale distribution, banking, consulting and advisory services, formation and sale of SaaS entities, and public accounting.  Quick Background: BIG growth isn't an accident or a stroke of good luck -- it's a process. And committing to that process through intentional planning and continuous review is the only way to sustain growth while staying true to your company's culture and values.  On today's show, Chris Mellon explains the 4 things he focused on as a hired gun CEO leading a family-run business from $300 million in revenue to almost $4 billion.

 Guest: Frank Buonanotte, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Frank has been a founder, chairman, and/or CEO at several highly successful companies within the commercial real estate, retail, and franchise industries, including Party City.  Quick Background: Working with a CEO coach gives you access to decades of top-level knowledge from business leaders who have been there and done that. And while no two companies are exactly alike, combining tried-and-true best practices with discipline and accountability is a formula that leads to winning, exponential growth, and Making BIG Happen. On today's show, Frank Buonanotte shares the 7 Smarts to CEO Success that he used to lead companies in multiple industries to BIG.

Guest: Ken Eissing, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Ken has served as President, COO, General Manager, or Advisor in the Technology, Media, Telecom, and BPO Financial Services industries in public and private entities ranging from Fortune 100 to less than $20 million businesses. Quick Background: Did you wake up this morning wanting to lead a single-digit growth company? Didn’t think so. Exponential growth is the product of an empowering sales culture that stokes competitive flames and rewards top performers who aren’t content to clear the low bar. On today’s show, Ken Eissing discusses six ways CEOs can assemble, manage, and motivate a top sales team that will drive fast growth and Make BIG Happen.

Guest: Juergen Rochert, a coach at CEO Coaching International. As an innovative and driven leader, Juergen has been highly successful in various executive roles for the Mercedes-Benz and Daimler Truck Financial Services Companies around the globe, including Mexico, Canada, the United States, Germany, Australia, and New Zealand.  Quick Background: According to a study by McKinsey & Company, the top 10% of the largest companies in the world earn nearly 90% of the economic profit created. Meanwhile, the bottom 20% are coping with steep losses. That translates into a BIG opportunity for small-to-medium-sized companies that can leverage speed and creativity to compete with larger incumbents. On today's show, Juergen Rochert identifies five areas where smaller firms can compete and win market share if they follow an effective plan.

Guest: Mateo Romano, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Matteo has more than 25 years of experience at top brands including Mattel and Tyco Toys. He is an exceptional driver of business growth, revenues, and profitability at companies across the U.S., Europe, and Latin America. Quick Background: Every new remote worker you hire, every smaller company you acquire, and every international office you open thinks the same thing: "We're different. We have a unique way of doing things, and it works." Maybe. But when it comes to setting targets and measuring progress, a growing company needs to establish a baseline of consistency to ensure that every level of the organization is working towards the same goals. On today's show, Mateo Romano explains the four elements of alignment that will keep a BIG decentralized team progressing towards your BIG vision.

Guest: Andres Molano, a coach at CEO Coaching International. Andres has led diverse, high-performing teams and grown international sales and operations throughout North America, Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.  Quick Background: No company gets BIG by staying the same. At those moments when momentum is stalling and growth is plateauing, struggling CEOs often start chasing shiny objects or throwing money at the wall to see what sticks. Effective leaders face those same challenges by going back to square one and reassessing what's essential to the company's culture. On today's show, Andres Molano shares a five-part framework CEOs can use to drive a BIG culture transformation that will kick off a promising new chapter for their companies.