Dr. Debbie Chen has many roles in life: parent, founder, advocate, scientist…and Muay Thai fighter. It was in her role as a fighter that she faced the personal struggle of hydrating properly for her sport. The rule of thumb 8-glasses-of-water-a-day is just a guess and not one that works for all. Armed with a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from Tufts University, Dr. Chen set out to solve the problem and build a business around hydration monitoring. Her company, Hydrostasis, was granted a patent ...
Jan 28, 2021•53 min
Executive recruitment has been regarded by many as a bit of a black box. Executives looking for the next role may not know how they can properly participate while companies may not recognize how to forge an effective partnership with a recruitment firm. Mike Meyrick has spent 20 years doing international executive search. Through his firm, Meyrick Consulting , he has helped clients identify talent across industry sectors and global locations. In this episode of What I Wish I Knew with Mike Irwin...
Jan 12, 2021•54 min
Ian Muir McNally is an acoustical engineer, classically trained musician, hiker, and trail runner. While training to complete the John Muir Trail in California, Ian was trying to eat real food rather than gels and sports bars. “My jaws tired from chewing raw nuts and dehydrated fruit,” he said. That led to an ultimately fruitless search for portable, easier to eat trail food made of natural ingredients. And that led to Ian trying to make stuff for his own use. Encouraged by growing interest from...
Dec 15, 2020•58 min
Dr. Robert Harwood is a scientist, business strategist, food industry expert…and chorister. His first ‘job’ was as a 7-year old chorister at Exeter Cathedral. “It was like having a job anyway. We’d spend hours each week in rehearsals and then perform in front of a couple thousand people at the weekend.” That discipline and structure – as well as courage – formed the basis for Robert’s academic studies and led him to travel the world researching bugs, jumping out of airplanes, and exploring new p...
Dec 01, 2020•51 min
Bryan Pate was a runner who couldn't run anymore. Injuries forced him onto elliptical trainers but he grew weary of gym life. When he couldn't find an elliptical to ride outside, he and a partner invented one. His company, ElliptiGO, created a new category of elliptical and stand up bikes. Prior to founding ElliptiGO, he was a consultant at McKinsey, a military intelligence officer in the US Marine Corps, and a law clerk in the US District Court. In this episode of What I Wish I Knew with Mike I...
Nov 24, 2020•1 hr 7 min
Ann Hiatt’s first job was with a startup. At age 16. “Leaning into doing hard things,” she joined Amazon out of college and became Executive Business Partner to Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos. In the early years, Amazon’s focus on securing customers rather than profit was considered risky. Also risky: the helicopter that Ann arranged for Bezos. Listen to hear that story. While pursuing a PhD at UC Berkeley, she was recruited to Google and worked alongside Marissa Mayer on new technology. Ann then be...
Nov 17, 2020•54 min
As a child, Enrique Fiallo fled Cuba with his mother and literally only the clothes he was wearing. After high school, he worked for AT&T climbing telephone poles to connect service. He was the first in his family to graduate from college. He then launched an IT career working for companies like Ryder and eventually landing as CIO of Entergy. American dream complete, Enrique rose to become CEO of a company he took public on the New York Exchange where he rang the bell. And then he went to pr...
Nov 12, 2020•1 hr
For just about any outdoor sports or active lifestyle brand that you like, own, or want, there’s a good chance that Bob Rief has been involved. He was behind Merrell Footwear, Reef Sandals, and Sanuk, and as head of Nike Golf, he signed a college kid called Tiger Woods. Bob was also part of Callaway Golf, K2, Nordica, and Raichle-Molitor. A lifelong waterman, Bob knows the sense of authenticity and community inherent in the culture and he’s built it into every brand. He’s a held many titles: boa...
Nov 10, 2020•1 hr 5 min
Bernie Schroeder took a tiny ad agency and built it into a billion-dollar global integrated marketing firm with thousands of employees. He then embarked on a journey to share what he'd learned with entrepreneurs all over the world through Ted Talks, books, teaching at universities, and mentoring startup founders in multiple countries. He's the author of Brands & Bullsh*t , Fail Fast or Win Big , Simply Brilliant , and Startup Culture Mindset . As director of the Lavin Entrepreneurship Center...
Nov 07, 2020•1 hr 5 min
Ken Charman has built software startups that were acquired by the likes of Deloitte, IBM, Oracle, and SAP. He’s now CEO of uFlexReward , an HR platform that consolidates employee costs and is owned by Unilever. Life as a tech entrepreneur may seem an unlikely route for a person suffering from dyscalculia, a condition sometimes known as dyslexia for numbers. While dyscalculia caused him to mistake a house number and begin a remodeling project on the wrong house as a young man, it hasn’t held him ...
Nov 03, 2020•53 min
Few people become professional athletes. Few of those go on to win championships. And fewer still create $100+ million companies. What are the odds of doing all three? Bryan Finnerty odds. The Detroit sports legend rode his work ethic, vision, intensity, and humility to achieve heights on and off the sports field that most could only dream about. Bryan Finnerty is an inspiring story of personal and organizational leadership relevant to people from all walks of life. In this episode of What I Wis...
Oct 27, 2020•1 hr
At some point today, there’s a good chance you’ll interact with a brand that has fingerprints all over it. Not just anyone’s fingerprints, mind you, but Shawn Parr’s fingerprints. Adidas, Campbell’s, CMT, Heineken, Hilton, Mattel, MTV, Nike, Samsung, Starbucks, WD-40, and Westfield have been clients of this business transformation strategist and his team at Bulldog Drummond . Purpose is at the heart of everything he does, personally and professionally. Following a life-changing trip to Malawi in...
Oct 20, 2020•55 min
Prince Daniels, Jr. was told by a coach that he had a one in a million chance to play college football and a one in a billion chance to play in the NFL. He did both. As a running back at Georgia Tech, he set an NCAA record for rushing yards in a bowl game. He followed his illustrious college career to play for the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens. Understandably, “football player” became part of how Prince saw himself. And then injury took it all away. The physical aspect was only a part of the toll from ...
Oct 13, 2020•1 hr 7 min
Nick Dormon is Founding Partner and Strategy Director for Echo -a global Brand Design agency based in London. An engineer by training, a product designer by experience, and a brand strategist by choice, Nick has worked on jets, pets, and the BBC. He's designed telephones for the Danish, letter boxes for the Royal Mail, and steered successful brand innovation, identity and strategy; all delivered with a difference – useful, caring and with sustainability at the forefront. In this episode of What ...
Oct 08, 2020•50 min
Kate Nowlan is founder of premium women's athletic apparel brand GRACEDBYGRIT, member of the boards of directors of Hylete Inc, San Diego Sport Innovators, Girls on the Run, and the GRACEDBYGRIT Foundation, and author of Graced by Grit: The Entrepreneurial Woman's Guide to Starting a Business with Power, Passion, & Purpose. In this episode of What I Wish I Knew with Mike Irwin & Simon Daw, Kate talks about creating a brand, the challenges of raising money as a female entrepreneur, and th...
Oct 06, 2020•57 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Jeff Campbell rose from a career on Madison Avenue to become global CEO of Burger King. He also served as Chairman of Pillsbury Restaurant Group, Senior Vice President of Brand Development at Pepsi-Cola, and CEO of Johnny Rockets. He's co-founder of Wisdom Capture , Executive-in-Residence at San Diego State University, writer, speaker and business mentor. In this episode of What I Wish I Knew with Mike Irwin & Simon Daw , Jeff talks about leadership, mentors, culture, and what he learned fro...
Sep 27, 2020•57 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Life and career rarely go to plan. Breakthroughs happen on the ragged edge when things aren't quite going as expected. Self-aware people learn from those trials. What I Wish I Knew podcast hosts Mike Irwin and Simon Daw explore lessons learned by everyone, including athletes, creators, entrepreneurs, leaders, writers, and difference makers. They have three things in common: none are perfect, all are humble, and they've learned a few things along the way. In What I Wish I Knew , they share those ...
Sep 20, 2020•6 min•Season 1Ep. 1
