Supply chain management has become both an art and a science, with executives tasked with building more resiliency, while also increasing flexibility, reducing lead times, and jumping through hoops to comply with increasingly complex regulations - which, adding to the confusion, are different in different markets. No wonder one most people talk about improving supply chains - but very few actually do. Realistically, it’s difficult enough to simply manage existing systems, without having to try a...
Dec 17, 2023•46 min•Season 13Ep. 13
The years of companies staffing up as they sprinted towards what they believed was going to be the next unicorn - or at the very least years of strong growth - have suddenly reversed course. One by one, banks, consulting firms, retailers - even the tech sector - started announcing cutbacks. With tens of thousands of jobs being axed. That’s led to massive layoffs during the past two years with a sharp focus on downsizing headquarters and R&D departments - in other words mid career workers in ...
Dec 10, 2023•37 min•Season 13Ep. 12
Sometimes just when everything seems to be stable, we get blindsided. It happens to everyone sooner or later. We can’t control some of the challenges that life throws at us, but we can control how we react to them. That was certainly the case for many businesses when the pandemic hit. Not all were easily parlayed into remote work. And one of the hardest hit was the travel industry. Welcome to Launch to Legendary, where we meet people who have turned the ordinary into the extraordinary. Who have ...
Dec 03, 2023•35 min•Season 13Ep. 11
Customer service is often talked about but not often delivered. In fact, it is one of the biggest complaints that both businesses and consumers have. Most say that the companies they do business with offer poor service - or even no service at all. Companies are looking to cut costs and customer service is typically the first department to get hit. Yet customer service might be the key to growing your business - particularly in highly competitive markets. In this episode we’re joined by Greg Rich...
Nov 26, 2023•30 min•Season 13Ep. 10
For nearly two decades most investors’ attention was focused on the stock market. Then suddenly central banks began raising interest rates and investors began to rethink their strategies. That’s given rise to growing interest in a range of alternative investment vehicles, including CEFs, internal funds, ETFs, UITs, and commodity pools. However, until now most of these investment vehicles have only been available to institutional investors. I’m Jane Singer and welcome back to A Seat at The Table ...
Nov 19, 2023•24 min•Season 13Ep. 9
In the competitive world of mobile commerce success is now being driven by push notifications powered by new mobile apps. The idea is to grab consumers’ attention and get them to take immediate action. That means not only having e-commerce apps on people’s phones, but making them extremely user-friendly. Today we’re joined by Campbell Paton, Co-Founder and CEO of StoreLab, which helps e-commerce companies maximize mobile commerce. In this episode Campbell with be sharing: - Why push notification...
Nov 12, 2023•22 min•Season 13Ep. 8
One of the biggest marketing tactics these days is to create a brand story. But how do you do that when you are selling basics, commodities - or something you can’t even touch or feel, like services? This week I’m joined by Chauncy Zalkin, an expert in building brand stories for companies ranging from fashion to SaaS software and real estate. Even when it seems like there isn’t a story to be found, Chauncy is able ask to the right questions and uncover that perfect brand story you did know exist...
Nov 04, 2023•37 min•Season 13Ep. 7
SEO or search engine optimization isn’t getting the amount of attention it used. The early days of e-commerce was all about key words and being top ranked in Google searches. As dynamic new marketing options were rolled out, SEO found itself out of sight, out of mind. However online marketing experts are now saying that by overlooking this core part of the digital ecosystem, companies could be leaving money on the table. In this episode we’re joined by Jules White, founder of Success Hub, which ...
Nov 01, 2023•26 min•Season 13Ep. 7
Everyone wants to do things faster - to get results right away - but that race to the finish line can often end in disaster - or at the very least, disappointing outcomes. That’s increasingly the case as organizations hurry to introduce new technology, without having explored all the possible impacts it will have on the business - both good and bad. And without any planning for how to address each potential issue. In this podcast we are joined by Pia Wendelbo, founder of Scandinavian Change Agen...
Oct 29, 2023•24 min•Season 13Ep. 6
Most companies spend a lot of time and money creating a sales page on their website but few are rewarded with a steady stream of sales. Creating sales pages (or funnels as they are often called) is less about a clever headline or massive numbers of testimonials or grandiose promises of life changing results if you buy the product. Turns out, if you implement about 8 key elements and then regularly measure the data around each step in your funnel you can 10x or even 100x your sales. Meet John Ain...
Oct 21, 2023•40 min•Season 13Ep. 5
There’s a simple and effective marketing tool that most businesses are under utilizing - or sometimes not even using at all. I’m talking about email marketing. We send and receive hundreds of emails each week, but how often do we really spend time thinking about how we can use email to sell our products or build customer relationships? Today’s guest is going tell us how we can change that. Meet Scott Cohen, an email marketing and automation veteran who has worked with Fortune 500 companies as we...
Oct 14, 2023•32 min•Season 13Ep. 4
Rising interest rates have changed the game. After a near 20 year run, VC funds and Angel investors have left the market. However there are still opportunities for investing in startups. It’s just that now they are a bit different. Today we’re joined by Charles Sidman, Founder and Managing Partner of ECS Capital Partners, a firm specializing in early stage investment. Charles' achievements include investing in over 50 startup or growth companies, chairing multiple ventures, and serving on presti...
Oct 08, 2023•31 min
Technology has become so ubiquitous that we take its existence for granted. That is until something goes wrong. Then suddenly we are aware of how dependent every aspect of lives is on the smooth functioning of our IT systems. Just like so many industries, IT is facing its own Industrial Revolution of sorts. The industry is moving from a backroom operation to becoming a diverse supply chain comprised specialist service provides that are working together to provide the intense data-driven support ...
Oct 01, 2023•31 min•Season 13Ep. 3
Data analytics has become a key topic, especially when it comes to leveraging the internet to grow your business. Today we can capture a huge amount of data across a growing range of platforms. That’s both a blessing and a curse! Marketers can easily get lost analyzing everything that they can analyze - but not necessarily what they should analyze. Success comes from first creating a question - and then analyzing that data which potentially could provide some insights. Meet Sam Torres, Co-Founde...
Sep 24, 2023•31 min•Season 13Ep. 3
Marketing and B2B businesses are not typically seen as companions. However in a challenging market, companies selling products and services to other businesses need to a lot more to stand out in the market if they hope to survive let alone growth their business. The question facing many brands is how exactly can they promote a brand in a way that resonates with potential customers and helps to grow sales. Meet Matt Bell, a specialist in B2B marketing. He co-founded MessageUp to assist B2B compan...
Sep 17, 2023•31 min•Season 13Ep. 2
There’s almost nothing that we can’t measure - and so we tend to measure everything. However, too often we end up measuring what we can, and not necessarily what’s important or meaningful. We see this in the fascination we all have with the number of likes or views a social media post gets. But do ‘likes’ really mean that people actually like your product or want to buy your products? Usually not. So if views alone are not that meaningful, what does matter? What should we be measuring - and how ...
Sep 10, 2023•37 min•Season 13Ep. 1
The pressure to be more sustainable saw companies announcing ambitious goals with target dates that are now frighteningly near! That’s left more than a few scrambling to revise their strategies and find ways to green up that will make an impact, but are more achievable. The question is how do we do this? Today we’re joined by Christopher Caldwell, a former investment banker and corporate lawyer, and founder of United Renewables, a renewable energy developer and clean tech investor. He’s leverage...
Sep 02, 2023•28 min•Season 12Ep. 13
One of the biggest topics surrounding supply chains - if not the biggest topic - is the need to digitise. We all love our Excel sheets (me too!) but they can only take us so far. In an increasingly complex environment, we need to be able to gather better data - and analyze it faster. That means getting our business onto a a more advanced platform. While most organisations acknowledge this - they also feel a bit overwhelmed at the prospect of adding a new massive undertaking. Equally as daunting ...
Aug 26, 2023•30 min•Season 12Ep. 12
Every company today is at least thinking of digitising their operations - or at least part of their operations. However, most companies see this as a task so daunting that ultimately the gain doesn’t seem to outweigh the pain. From 8 figure quotations for implementation to statistics that point to high failure rates, it can be difficult to make a compelling case to make the change. And yet, the pressure to be a fully integrated part of industry 4.0 persists. That might be beginning to change … n...
Aug 20, 2023•43 min•Season 12Ep. 11
Most marketers understand the importance of A/B testing for optimizing marketing campaigns. However, surprisingly many are not up to speed on best practices for doing this successfully. Sometimes even a simple tweak or modification can have game changing impacts on the success of your marketing, your sales - and on your company’s bottomline. While there is a lot of conversations around A/B testing, there’s surprisingly very little clarity. This leaves marketers knowing that they could be doing b...
Aug 12, 2023•31 min•Season 12Ep. 10
We talk a lot about leadership here on A Seat at The Table, however we don’t often discuss how to turn good intentions into an action plan. Yet this is foundational to actually getting things done. And make our business more successful - not just this year or this quarter - but for the long term. Meet Antonio Garrido, author of My Daily Leadership: A Powerful Roadmap for Leadership Success, and Founder & President of My Daily Leadership, a leadership development organization with a mission t...
Aug 06, 2023•34 min•Season 12Ep. 9
Running a business is quite as easy as it used to be. Most organizations are facing major challenges - and changes. This is raising the bar for senior executives to find new ways to tackle an uncertain business environment, while also becoming stronger and more effective team leaders. Today we are joined by Jeffrey Deckman, a serial entrepreneur who has bootstrapped two multi-million dollar companies; several non-profits and multiple political organizations. He’s a recognized thought leader on c...
Jul 30, 2023•24 min•Season 12Ep. 8
Retailers are facing an uncertain market that has left even the most confident a bit unsure as to what might be coming next. Supply chains are back to normal, but now it’s the consumer that has changed. Somehow, the behavior we expected to see is being replaced by a new attitude. This has left many brands and retailers scrambling to figure out whether this is a short term aberration - or a longer term market shift. To answer this question I reached out to Carol Spieckerman, a top retail influenc...
Jul 23, 2023•38 min•Season 12Ep. 7
If you have a mental health issue should you let your boss know? What about your team mates? Millions of people struggle with mental health and yet most are reluctant to let anyone know about it. From being considered taboo to fearing of being labeled as unstable or being seen as a complainer, many people just try to power through. But what if it was OK be upfront about your struggles? And what if by doing so you could find ways to work with them - and thus not let them get in the way of your pe...
Jul 19, 2023•32 min•Season 12Ep. 6
When brands look for new markets an obvious choice for many is Western Europe, where consumers have strong buying power, there’s grade A retail property, and market entry can be less baffling compared with tackling emerging markets. Yet while many brands have successfully entered the European market, just as many - even well established brands - have failed. That has left companies wondering whether they should try to build a retail presence in Europe - and if so - how to do it. I’m Jane Singer ...
Jul 16, 2023•39 min•Season 12Ep. 6
Anyone who has ever tried to raise money for a charitable cause or secure corporate sponsorships knows that it’s a lot easier said than done. Most fund raisers aren’t aware of the volume of requests for funding even smaller companies get - never mind larger corporations. To successfully raise money, you need to know how to stand out from a vast field of competitors. This comes down to pitching the right companies - with the right pitch. The question most fund raisers have is “how exactly do I do...
Jul 09, 2023•23 min•Season 12Ep. 5
You have a good job. You like the other people on your team. Even your boss is pretty good - or maybe you are the boss. But some how at the end of day you always feel drained. It’s not that you’ve been working particularly hard, either. Sometimes even in the middle of the day you feel like you have no energy. That’s how Chloe Thomas felt when she was running her successful marketing agency. And so she took bold action and to figure out what she could do to change that. Welcome to Launch to Legen...
Jul 06, 2023•28 min•Season 12Ep. 5
Host Jane Singer sits down with the inspirational Kenz Soliman, a successful business owner and mentor who has achieved legendary status through her remarkable journey. In this captivating conversation, Kenz shares valuable insights on being mentally strong, embracing personal growth, and overcoming self-doubt in the pursuit of success. Kenz emphasizes the importance of being open to criticism, acknowledging that not everyone will appreciate our work. However, she encourages listeners to focus o...
Jul 03, 2023•42 min•Season 12Ep. 5
In this episode of "A Seat at The Table," host Jane Singer welcomes guest Jonathan Porter, the founder and CEO of PorterLogic, a low code application platform specializing in supply chain technology. The episode focuses on achieving end-to-end visibility in the supply chain and utilizing data integration, scenario analysis, and customized solutions. Jonathan discusses the digitization of supply chains over the past decade and the recognition of the value of data generated from these digital syst...
Jul 02, 2023•27 min•Season 12Ep. 5
Bruce Lee built his legend around his expertise in martial arts and his massive success in motion pictures. However few see him as a mindset or business thought leader. Turns out, there’s a lot of we can learn from Bruce Lee. This episode of A Seat at The Table features host Jane Singer and guest Thomas Lee discussing what every business can learn from Bruce Lee. Thomas Lee's new book titled "The Bruce Lee Code", which explores Bruce Lee's mindset and business strategies. Mr. Lee discusses how B...
Jun 25, 2023•26 min•Season 12Ep. 4
