Have you ever been taken advantage of by ticket scalpers or purchased fraudulent tickets to an event?  If so, that can leave you very embarrassed and angry.  Today with cell phones, block chain, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, it is now possible to mitigate these risks as well as assure the safety of people attending venues, concerts, sporting events, etc.  In this episode Eric Rozenberg of SecuTix talks about how they address these issues and help organizations and venues regain their independence.Eric Rozenberg is the US CEO of SecuTix SA.  He has over 20 years of experience with event and meeting management and is also the best-selling author of Meeting at C-Level.My favorite Quotes from Eric Rozenberg:“Quality is crucial”“It is difficult to change, change is always stressful” “When you are faced with something new, you need the pioneers that understand what is coming next”“Whatever happens to you in life, you move forward to find a solution” “Processes and procedures are essential to sales and marketing”“Yoda: Do or do not, there is no try”“Lead, follow, or get out of the way”How to reach Eric Rozenberg:LinkedIn: Eric RozenbergTwitter: @Yoda18Web Site:  SecuTix.comAbout PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show

Business Performance Podcast

044: Addressing Ticket Fraud, Security, & Data Collection – A Conversation with Eric Rozenberg / SecuTix

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted business to a great degree.  Conferences, speaking engagements, and symposia have been cancelled right and left, causing professional speakers to innovate and pivot in order to survive, much like start up entrepreneurs.  In this episode Scott Carley, the Change Energizer, talks about the actions he has taken to continue energizing his clients, overcoming his fears of speaking to a camera and a virtual audience, and finding success.Scott is a former pastor with a passion for public speaking and energizing stalled leaders to focus and take action on their goals and priorities.  Scott is also the Austin Chapter President of the National Speakers Association.My favorite quotes from Scott:“The brain thinks in categories”“It is important to have a courageous conversation”“Almost any action is better than no action”“When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill, When the funds are low and the debts are high, And you want to smile, but you have to sigh, When care is pressing you down a bit, Rest, if you must, but don’t you quit.” – John Greenleaf Whittier How to reach and stay connected with Scott:LinkedIn:  Scott Carley Web Site:  http://changeenergizer.com/Email:  scott@ScottCarley.comAbout PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

Professional Speaking in a Virtual World

How many different loyalty programs do you belong to?  Have you ever wished that you could easily combine your rewards to purchase an item?  Well, startup company Bakkt is launching an app this fall that will help you do just that by unlocking the value of your digital assets.  In this episode Ravi Venkatesan, Head of Innovation at Bakkt talks about digital innovation, the business impacts and challenges from COVID-19, and how Bakkt is moving forward.Ravi is a product and technology leader specializing in driving business and technology alignment.  He has 20 years of experience in consulting, technology and telecommunications, including 6+ years with Accenture deploying large-scale Enterprise systems for Fortune 100 clients, 4 years with Cbeyond deploying technology to power Cloud and Communications products for SMBs, and 5 years with Bridge2 Solutions developing industry leading Loyalty SaaS products. My favorite quotes from Ravi:“Disruption is always a threat”“With COVID-19 we have started holding virtual hackathons using three groups:  hipsters, hackers, and hustlers”“COVID-19 is forcing us to invent and innovate”“I am a big fan of simplifying as much as possible, articulating, and educating” How to reach and stay connected with Carrie:LinkedIn:  Ravi Venkatesan Web Site:  https://www.bakkt.com/Email:  ravi.venkatesan@gmail.com About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

Cashing in on Loyalty Programs

With all the shutdowns and unknowns surrounding COVID-19 swirling around us, it can easily feel overwhelming, frustrating, and stressful.  Or in Carrie Vanston’s vocabulary, a proverbial alligator pit just waiting for us to fall into.  In this episode Carrie talks about her eight tips to help you stay out of the alligator pit of fear and stress, and move on to an energized, growth mindset.Carrie is a motivational business coach with a long career helping organizations and people deal with  too many demands and frustrations. Her popular “Energize Your MIndset Programs” help individuals and teams move on from the “pit” of fixed mindset to one of an energized growth mindset increasing engagement, productivity, and sustainability.My favorite quotes from Carrie:“We get stuck in compromise and if we can get by the compromise, we can achieve a win-win situation.”“People want three things.  They want to be cared about.  They want to know that what they are doing is important.  They want to have some way of measuring it.”“There is always a win-win solution.”How to reach and stay connected with Carrie:LinkedIn:  Carrie Vanston Web Site:  https://www.carrievanston.com/Email:  carrie@carrievanston.comFacebook;  https://www.facebook.com/carrie.vanston Twitter:  https://twitter.com/CarrieVanston Telephone;  (512) 740-9089About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

Carrie Vanston the Alligator Wrangler

Necessity is the mother of invention has never been more true than for Kindred Bravely’s founder and CEO Deanne Akerson.  Five years ago when her children were very young, Deanne was searching for some comfortable nursing pajamas that she just could not find.  After fruitlessly searching she decided that I can go into the maternity apparel business and make comfortable clothes that mothers really want.  So Deanne and her husband formed Kindred Bravely and they have been so successful that made it to position #20 on the 2019 Inc. 5000 list.  In this episode Deanne Akerson talks about the challenges of starting and growing a new business, especially in today’s world of COVID-19.A former high school math teacher, Deanne is now a successful entrepreneur with a customer focus.  They knew that they were not in control of their supply and pivot to start making PPE for front line workers.  But they did realize that they had inventory that front line moms could use.  So Kindred Bravely gave away thousands of free nursing and pumping bras to front line doctors and nurses to help ease the stress of working during these difficult days.My favorite quotes from Deanne:“If you have a successful product, other people are going to be watching and copying it”“If your business is about a product, then you are going to be sadly disappointed.”“Business is about falling in love with your customer over and over again, and meeting their needs.”“Quality means the garment exceeds the customer’s needs for the price point they purchased at.” How to reach and stay connected with Deanne:LinkedIn:  Kindred Bravely Web Site:  https://www.kindredbravely.com/Email:  hello@kindredbravely.com and ask for Deanne Facebook;  https://www.facebook.com/kindredbravely Twitter:  https://twitter.com/KindredBravely  About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

Building a Kindred Connection - Moms Helping Moms

Have you ever wondered how on-line advertisers target specific ads for you?  Have you ever wondered how a web site can drive an audience to a specific product or service?  If so, then take a few minutes and listen to Kurt Donnell, CEO of Freestar as he talks about how Freestar has disrupted the on-line advertising business and become the fastest growing company in the US in 2019, according to Inc.Kurt Donnell is passionate about building things, solving problems and closing deals with smart people who appreciate a good laugh.  He has had the opportunity to lead teams for both private and public companies in a number of different areas, including business/corporate development, legal and digital audience growth.  Kurt is an attorney by training who now spends most of his time on the business side focused on driving growth and operational excellence.My favorite quotes from Kurt:“We only win when our customers win.”“Aways make sure you have the right people in the right place.”“One of my COVID-19 takeaways is the crazy way you can now connect with people.”“If you take care of your customers and you take care of your employees, everything else falls into place.”“Once you’ve had a beer with someone, it is hard to be mad at them."How to reach and stay connected with Brad:Email:  kurt.donnell@freestar.comLinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtdonnell/ LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/company/freestar/Web Site:  https://freestar.com  About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

Changing the Advertising Landscape – A Conversation with Kurt Donnell

COVID-19 has disrupted life and business in so many different and terrible ways.  A critical element is the impacts on the supply chain.  Raw materials and finished goods are now stuck in limbo, waiting to complete their journey.  And an interesting aspect of the supply chain is that companies will sell out of their raw materials before the supply chain will be able to restart.  In this episode SwanLeap CEO Brad Hollister talks about transforming the supply chain, especially in the “new normal.” Brad Hoillister is the CEO of #1 fastest growing company in 2018 according to Inc.  SwanLeap delivered an unprecedented 75,660.8% revenue growth over three years catapulting SwanLeap to the number one spot for 2018.  SwanLeap has entered the ring with what Deloitte has identified as NextGen technology.  Through SwanLeap’s rapidly deployed, custom implementation of NextGen TMS and auditing services, SwanLeap is using AI and machine learning to automate many of the manual roles in a company’s supply chain.  These efforts are eliminating errors, increasing efficiencies, and improving customer relationships for businesses across the country.My favorite quotes from Brad:“We transform the way people ship and make decisions”“We provide better visibility, speed, and control and nothing else matters in our space at all”“eCommerce is exploding because of COVID-19”“You have to be able to plan for things you didn’t plan for, and that is not how supply chain works”“A lot of companies won’t be able to keep up with the changing needs of the customer” How to reach and stay connected with Brad:Email:  bhollister@swanleap.comLinkedIn:  Brad HollisterWeb Site:  swanleap.comTwitter:  https://twitter.com/theswanleap/ About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

Transforming the Supply Chain – A Conversation with Brad Hollister

Restarting businesses post-COVID-19 is going to take a lot of thought and patience.  Business leaders will have to make very difficult and intentional decisions, and not scramble to come back on line.  Leaders are not necessarily managers and managers are not necessarily leaders.  In this episode executive leadership coach Monte Wyatt discusses his approach to helping business owners and leaders adjust to the new normal.Monte Wyatt is the best-selling author of Pulling Profits Out of a Hat, a Hall of Fame Executive Coach, and business growth expert.My favorite quotes from Monte:“We have to be very intentional on where we want to go.”“Quality is what you want the customer to understand about you.”“Everything we do, say, and drive sends a message.”“It is a never-ending process to develop culture.”“True communication is the response you get.”“Lead people and manage process.” How to reach and stay connected with Monte:Email:  monte@addzerosnow.com LinkedIn:  Monte WyattWeb Site:  addzerosnow.com About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

Episode 061: Pulling Profits Out of a Hat – A Conversation with Monte Wyatt

COVID-19 is the biggest disruption to life as we know it for entire world.  With nearly every school system shut down, an area with major disruption is education.  Teachers who are used to teaching their students in a classroom are now faced with coming up with new ways of teaching young children remotely.  And parents will have to step up and take a more active role in their children’s education.  In this episode Yocheved Belsky discusses the pros and cons of remote teaching, especially for special needs children.Yocheved is an executive planning and management consultant who works with schools, non-profits, entrepreneurs, and businesses that support education.My favorite quotes from Yocheved:“Another side effect of the coronavirus is that parents will hopefully be more involved with their children’s education.”“It is important to know how to read and interpret the data.”“Teaching to the test is a mindset.”“In education, we can’t control the outputs.  We can only control the inputs/environment.”How to reach and stay connected with Yocheved:Email:  y@clearsquaregroup.com LinkedIn:  Yocheved BelskyWeb Site:  Clear Square Group  About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

060: The Coronavirus and Disrupting Education– A Conversation with Yocheved Belsky of ClearSquare Group

From its humble beginnings in 1994, Amazon grew to disrupt and dominate online shopping.  Much of its success has come from its ability to rapidly deliver consumer products through it’s automated distribution centers.  However, small retailers can only access Amazon’s services by selling through Amazon.  Enter Project Verte who provides state of the art supply chain and distribution services to the small retailer via a proprietary blockchain supporting a brand-centric marketplace, fulfillment services, and operations software to grow businesses and build a community based on "Satisfillment".  In this episode, Chief Product Officer and Founding Member Padmanabhan (Padhu) Raman talks about full circle eCommerce, inventory process quality, and supply chain automation.Padhu is a supply chain product specialist, technologist, and logistics professional with years of experience in strategy and expertise in enhancing revenue, optimizing cost, and increasing profitability.My favorite quotes from Padhu:“For us, quality is primarily customer satisfaction.”“Automation and robotics help with doing the job, but they don’t complete the job.”“Not every process can be automated.”“Hard work and teamwork will always help you succeed.”“We are like a 4th or 5th generation Amazon.” How to reach and stay connected with Padhu:Email:  praman@projectverte.com LinkedIn:  Padhu RamanTwitter:  https://twitter.com/PadhuRamanGAWeb Site:  ProjectVerte.com Blog:  https://medium.com/dad-supply-chain Recent LinkedIn Posts:https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/arm-flexible-fulfillment-robotics-padmanabhan-raman https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/blockchain-transforms-supply-chain-padmanabhan-raman https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/embrace-full-circle-ecommerce-padmanabhan-raman https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/supply-chain-automation-robotics-paradigm-shift-padmanabhan-raman https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/embrace-trust-metrics-secret-ecommerce-success-disruption-raman About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.net Support the show (https://ppqc.net)

059: Providing “Satisfillment” to Small Retailers – A Conversation with Padhu Raman of Project Verte

One of the fastest growing artificial intelligence industry segments is Robotic Process Automation (RPA).  RPAs are little applications or bots that automate mundane tasks and activities, freeing people up to address more interesting tasks.  One company that is graduating from being a startup is UiPath, who makes robots so people don’t have to be robots.  In this episode we meet Axel Schneider of UiPath who talks about automation, RPAs, and helping companies overcome the fears of automation.Axel is a private pilot, option trader, automator, gadget lover, and the Customer Success Director at UiPath.  His love of automation and computers comes from his first encounter with a Commodore 64.My favorite quotes from Axel:“The majority of RPA tasks are drag and drop.”“Citizen development is a big thing with RPAs.”“You need to look very carefully for the use cases you automate.”How to reach and stay connected with Axel:LinkedIn:  Axel SchneiderTwitter:  https://twitter.com/axelinmelbourneWeb Site:  https://www.uipath.com  About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

058: Citizen Development and RPAs – A Conversation with Axel Schneider

Delivering software QA and testing services requires a lot of process discipline, as well as being an entrepreneur starting a new consultancy company.  The quality of the delivered services is directly related to the quality of the processes used for delivering the services.  In this episode, Fritz Frtizius talks about software testing automation, misconceptions, and pitfalls and what is he has done to overcome these challenges.Fritz has a long career as a tester/software QA with various companies.  Five years ago he formed Arch DevOps and has been creating automation solutions for software companies, including anything within the DevOps spectrum (continuous testing, test automation, continuous integration, delivery, etc.) for any size company, any sector ever since.My favorite quotes from Fritz:“Everyone has a maker’s mindset.”“The Happiness Chain is the chief quality metric.”“People know what good software is.”“Success is quiet and failure is loud.”“Building trust comes with communication.”How to reach and stay connected with Fritz:LinkedIn: Michael "Frtiz" FritziusEmail:  fritz@archdevops.com About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.net Support the show (https://ppqc.net)

057: Conversation with Michael “Fritz” Fritzius – A Late Blooming Process Advocate

Disruption and automation affects every business today.  Cultural resistance is the biggest obstacle to overcome as many people fear losing their jobs to automation as companies try to become better, faster, and cheaper while pursuing improved customer satisfaction.  In this episode, Bälaji Ramanujam talks about overcoming these challenges and building customer satisfaction based on data.Bälaji Ramanujam has a proven track record of positively impacting EBITDA and customer growth by rapidly building high performing, results oriented teams and solutions with an emphasis on engineering, product delivery, and governance for real world, large scale solutions. My favorite quotes from Bälaji Ramanujam:“Some times you have to do negative testing and shut the system down.”“Quality is the right place, the right price, the right time.”“There is not a single business that is not being disrupted by technology.”“Being complacent is the worst thing that can happen today.”How to reach and stay connected with Bälaji Ramanujam:LinkedIn: Balaji RamanujamAbout PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.net Support the show (https://ppqc.net)

056: Maximizing Customer Lifetime Value– A Conversation with Bälaji Ramanujam

The traditional marketing funnel uses A/B testing and can be quite time consuming to zero in on the best marketing strategy.  Today the landscape of traditional marketing techniques is rapidly changing with the use of AI and autonomous cross channel marketing.  In this episode, Jim Calhoun/CEO of Nectar9 talks about how they are building a world in which marketing automation is truly left to the machines.Jim Calhoun is a seasoned Silicon Valley executive with a track record of success developing software, teams, and businesses.  His early work included the development of enterprise content management software at NetObjects, Inc.  Then as the chief executive of PopularMedia, Inc., Calhoun and his team developed enterprise marketing software that analyzed social connections to make predictions about consumer behavior.  Backed by Sequoia Capital and Steamboat VC (Disney), the company was later acquired StrongView Systems in 2009 to extend that company's product portfolio into the then-emerging social media sector.My favorite quotes from Jim Calhoun:“The comfort level of customers taking on AI is interesting to watch.”“It takes a while for advanced customers to say OK, we are going to turn all of this stuff over to AI.”“AI takes the drudgery out of working with spreadsheets.”“You can’t step in the same river twice.?”“The cost of experimentation with AI and ML is very low.”How to reach and stay connected with Jim Calhoun:LinkedIn: Jim CalhounWeb Site: nectar9.comEmail:  jim@nectar9.comAbout PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

055: Autonomous Cross Channel Marketing– A Conversation with Jim Calhoun / CEO Nectar9

Lean.  Agile.  DevOps.  These terms and concepts are quite the vogue with software development today, and were meant to address the shortcomings of waterfall development and ill-defined requirements.  Yet people implement these concepts to varying degrees, claiming they are agile, and the quality problems of yesterday still exist.  In this episode Michael Nir of Sapir Consulting talks about agile, retrospectives, and quality in software development teams.Michael Nir is an executive agile Lean DevOps expert known for his passion, creativity and innovation.  His Masters in Engineering and training in Gestalt balance his technical know-how with emotional intelligence.  Michael is the author of ten books on influence, consumer experience, and Lean Agile project management.My favorite quotes from Michael Nir:Michael loves this quote from Seth Godin:  “All software is held together with patches, shortcuts and cruft.  (Many old houses are as well).  Don’t be surprised.  Expect it.  At some point, you’ll need to take a deep breath and pay a bunch of money to start fresh.  And then, the very next day, there will be paper clips and string accumulating again.  That’s how it works.  And it’s a miracle that it works at all.”“Scrum and KanBan are the starting points for a conversation.  They make things more visible.  Then the question is, what do you do with this visibility?”“Tickets are what you get from a cop.  You don’t manage tickets.”“Process changes fail because there is no team buy-in.”“Entropy wins”How to reach and stay connected with Michael Nir:LinkedIn: Michael NirWeb Site: michaelnir.comEmail:  michael@michaelnir.comAbout PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

054: On a Quest for Business Agility– A Conversation with Michael Nir / President Sapir Consulting

Entrepreneur Eric Ries co-founded and served as CTO of IMVU.  The lessons he learned at IMVU became the basis for The Lean Startup.  Eight years later IMVU continues to grow and move up the hockey stick, today using AI and experiments to grow their customer base through the efforts of their VP Growth, Lomit Patel.  Lomit's first book, Lean AI part of Eric Ries' The Lean Startup series, will be published in March 2020.  In this episode Lomit talks about quality, vanity metrics, growing market share, etc. through the use of Lean AI.Lomit Patel is the Vice President of Growth at IMVU, responsible for user acquisition, retention and monetization.  Prior to IMVU, Lomit managed growth at early stage startups including Roku (IPO), TrustedID (acquired by Equifax), Texture (acquired by Apple) and EarthLink.  Lomit is a public speaker, author, advisor, and recognized as a Mobile Hero by Liftoff.My favorite quotes from Lomit Patel:“The best way to build trust with your users is to always give them value.”“Trust is a currency to keep that user around.”“The more experiments that you run, the smarter you get.”“Advocates can become your biggest evangelists.”How to reach and stay connected with Lomit Patel:LinkedIn: Lomit PatelBlog: LomitPatel.comWeb Site: Lean AI About PPQC:Process and Product Quality Consulting (PPQC) helps global executives tackle complex corporate challenges.To learn more about PPQC, visit www.ppqc.netSupport the show (https://ppqc.net)

053: Driving Customer Growth via Lean AI – A Conversation with Lomit Patel / VP Growth at IMVU

The Business Performance Podcast is a monthly podcast dedicated to helping companies spread the word on their lessons learned from improving product quality, processes, and performance.

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044: Addressing Ticket Fraud, Security, & Data Collection – ...

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