INspired INsider Podcast

Paul Martino is a Venture Capitalist and a Managing General Partner and Co-founder of Bullpen Capital. Before forming Bullpen in 2010, Paul was an active angel investor and personally invested in the first rounds of Zynga (NASDAQ: ZNGA), TubeMogul (NASDAQ: TUBE), and uDemy. He sold a company to Millennial Media before its public offering (Condaptive) and to Marketo before its public offering (Crowd Factory). He's an eight-time company founder, movie producer, and now sports entertainment venue operator. Paul's production company gave rise to the film Inside Game, a movie about the 2007 NBA betting scandal. Paul's early online gaming innovations in multi-player user experience from over 30 years ago are the inspiration for several modern social gaming offerings. He holds over a dozen patents on core social networking concepts, content targeting, and recommendation systems. In this episode… If you walked into a meeting with the legendary CEO coach Bill Campell, would he take you on as a protégé? Imagine going into that meeting with Bill and convincing him to come out of retirement to become your coach. What type of entrepreneur would that make you? You become a darn good one with loads of lessons for repeat success. Paul Martino had to become that type of entrepreneur after working with Bill Campbell. Paul has since built eight companies and is now a venture capitalist. What are some of the lessons he learned from greats like Bill Campbell and Randy Komisar on becoming a serially successful entrepreneur? Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz, featuring Paul Martino, Managing General Partner and Co-founder of Bullpen Capital. Paul walks through his journey as an eight-time founder, how he met and convinced Bill Campbell to come out of retirement — and become his coach, the type of companies Paul invests in now, and lots more.

Matt DeCoursey is a Kansas City-based Co-founder and CEO at Full Scale. Full Scale is a business that helps software companies recruit, assess, retain, and employ experts. They have a staff of over 225 people — and growing. Matt is also the CEO and Founder of GigaBook, a provider of cloud-based business tools for small and medium-sized companies. He's a Co-host of the Startup Hustle Podcast and the author of Million Dollar Bedroom, Balance Me, and a co-author of The Realist's Guide to a Successful Music Career. In this episode… Hiring tech talent is a hustle most founders would want to wish away. That is because many businesses struggle to find a good mix of talent, skills, experience, and culture fit. Filtering for these — and more — requires best practices. But that's only one part of the problem. When your demand for tech talent increases and you have to hire outside the US, how do you scale your hiring process to maintain a high standard of team members? At what point do you outsource your tech work or hire in-house? When is it better to buy than try to build software? Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Matt DeCoursey, CEO and Co-founder of Full Scale. They discuss the high shortage of tech talent in the US, the best practices of hiring tech talent across borders, how to plan for growth, hiring at scale, and much more.

Keith Bank is the Founder and CEO of KB Partners, a leading early-stage sports and technology venture capital firm. KB Partners have recorded successes, with many of the companies they back either having been acquired or gone public. Before founding KB Partners, Keith served as a Principal at Hiffman Shaffer Associates, Inc., a Chicago-based national real estate development, investment, management, and brokerage firm. He's been a highly successful entrepreneur, real estate developer, and angel investor. Keith is one of the Founders of the Illinois Venture Capital Association and was the recipient of their highly coveted fellows medal for leadership. In this episode… The venture capital space is as risky as it gets. Yes, they do a bunch of research to decide which companies to back, but they still have to rely on their guts and experience to choose one or more of the qualifying companies to fund. That alone does not increase the chances of success — getting hands-on does. What does getting hands-on mean for a venture capitalist, and how do limited partners potentially influence a startup's success? And if you're a startup owner who's looking to sell, what are the mistakes to avoid? Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Keith Bank, Founder and CEO of KB Partners. They discuss the goings-on in the sports tech fund space, how Keith became a VC founder, what he looks for in an early-stage startup, how they get hands-on to help their companies succeed, and lots more.

Scott Becker is the Founder and Publisher of Becker's Hospital Review and Becker's Healthcare. Becker's Healthcare is a platform that offers forward-looking business news, analysis, and guidance relating to the healthcare industry. Scott has been running Becker's Healthcare for over 30 years. Scott is also a lawyer and Partner in the healthcare department at McGuireWoods, where he represents hospitals and health systems, healthcare companies, surgery center chains, large practices, and private equity funds. He previously served on the Board of Partners of the firm and chaired the healthcare department for nearly 13 years. Scott is a Harvard law graduate and certified public accountant. In this episode… How do you know if you're winning digitally? It comes down to one thing: is your website the most visited in your niche? Becker's Healthcare has built a solid readership and following over the past 15 years in the healthcare information space. Their secret sauce? Excellent content and great distribution. However, the digital landscape has changed. It's much harder to win digitally today, but the core leadership principles and practices haven't changed. That's why we had the brain behind a popular niched website share their experience and knowledge in winning digitally. Want to learn more? Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz as he features Scott Becker, the Founder and Publisher of Becker's Hospital Review and Becker's Healthcare, to talk about top tips for winning digitally. They discuss Scott's journey as a lawyer and why winning online has been critical to his career and business. Plus, Scott shares the exciting opportunities, information, and events Becker's Healthcare is bringing to you! Stay tuned.

Grant Johnson is the Founder and CEO of Responsory, a full-service marketing communications agency focused on providing measurable marketing solutions to B2B, B2C, and not-for-profit organizations. Their process combines data, AI, and testing to deliver multi-channel marketing campaigns to make their clients heroes — and ultimately get them ROI. Grant started Responsory in 1999 but has been in the agency world since 1988. When people ask Grant what he does, he says, "I'm a drug dealer." That's because Grant has marketed products in the Pharma, Vitamins, and Nutraceuticals industry. His expertise also cuts across the insurance and B2B products marketing space. Grant is a sought-after public speaker, direct marketing trainer, copywriter, award-winning author, and the creator of Direct BrandingSM, Responsory's method for producing sure-fire measurable results. He's helped companies like Humana, Northwestern Mutual, Microsoft, and many more. In this episode… What does a "drug dealer" have to do with B2B marketing strategies, and what can you learn from them? Well, we're talking about "drug dealers" in the sense of Pharma, Vitamins, and Nutraceuticals. And we're going to take you on a journey of how Grant Johnson, Founder and CEO of Responsory, creates effective marketing campaigns. He breaks everything down — from research to data gathering, testing, creatives, landing pages, and result tracking. If you've ever been intrigued by the magic of direct response marketing, you'll love every bit of this episode! On this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Grant Johnson, Founder and CEO of Responsory, you'll go behind the scenes of dimensional direct mail marketing that works, the role of imagery and landing pages, and why data, testing, and measurability makes all the difference.

Brent Novoselsky is a Vice President at the wealth management company, GCG Financial. GCG has been serving clients since 1989 with a particular focus on the accumulation and preservation of assets and risk management. Brent played seven seasons in the NFL, and he played with the Chicago Bears in '88 and Minnesota Vikings from '89 to '94. He retired after a severe neck injury. Brent is also a member of the Chicago Jewish Sports Hall of Fame and is active in many charities; he serves as the Vice President of the Retired Professional Football Players of Chicago (RPFPC). Wendell Davis is the Co-founder of Trywen Medical, a Chicago-based healthcare products and services company. In college, Wendell was two times All American of Louisiana State. He is a former NFL wide receiver who played six seasons for the Chicago Bears and was selected in the first round in '88. After his career in the NFL, Wendell became the Assistant Coach for the 49ers. Wendell is currently also the President of the Retired Professional Football Players of Chicago (RPFPC) and the Manager of Minority Development at National Material L.P. Gemara Williams is the Client Engagement Manager for RL Canning, a global provider of information technology consulting and managed services headquartered in Chicago. He is a former football player who saw action in the NFL and the CFL. The New England Patriots signed him in 2006, and he was part of the team that executed the only undefeated 16-game regular season in 2007. After his time with the New England Patriots, Gemara signed on with Canadian teams, the Montreal Alouettes and what is now known as the Edmonton Elks. In this episode… The top-level NFL career lasts an average of three years, and many athletes suddenly realize they still have their whole life ahead of them. Unfortunately, there's not much on the field that prepares you for the entire new world outside of the NFL. You could go from signing autographs to begging for business appointments, not to mention the unquenchable thirst for NFL-esque thrill — and nothing can seem to fill that void. How do you cope with that pressure of transitioning from NFL into business, knowing that you might not understand the first thing about business and could leave the NFL unceremoniously? And if you're already a business owner, what does the life story of an NFL player teach you about business? Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz, featuring former NFL players Brent Novoselsky, Wendell Davis, and Gemara Williams. They discuss the high and low points of their NFL careers, the tough job of transitioning to the business world, facing the demons of still playing in your sleep, and what they wished they knew when they were younger. Stay tuned.

Steven Hoffman, also known as Captain Hoff, is the CEO of Founders Space, which is a global startup accelerator with over 50,000 entrepreneurs and members in 22 countries. Founders Space was ranked the number one incubator for overseas startups by Forbes and Entrepreneur Magazine. Every year, Steven mentors hundreds of startups, helping them overcome their biggest challenges. Steven is also a venture investor, serial entrepreneur, and best-selling author of several books, including Make Elephants Fly, Surviving a Startup, and The Five Forces That Change Everything. In this episode… What do you do when you run out of money, no investor is showing interest in your business, and your team has taken so many pay cuts they're now working for free? Even worse, how do you come out of a meeting with an investor who promised to invest, but seeing that you're desperate, they want to cut your valuation by half? While you're thinking about how to come out of those situations, you get a chance with an investor who's willing to give you more money than you asked, but there's one problem: you need the money in two weeks. How do you pull that off? Steven Hoffman's startup went through those same situations — and survived. So how did he do it? Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz, featuring the CEO of Founders Space, Steven Hoffman. They discuss Steven's entrepreneurial journey, his foray into the game development space, lessons learned, tips for raising capital, and what he wishes every entrepreneur would know.

Dr. Jeremy Weisz is the Co-founder of Rise25. He has been involved in podcasting for 11 years and was a Senior Producer for one of the early business podcasts; he assisted in putting all of their systems in place and helped them add volume, feature, and edify various business leaders. Dr. Weisz has also been running his podcast, Inspired Insider, since 2011. He has featured top entrepreneurs, founders, and CEOs of P90X, Atari, Einstein Bagels, Mattel, the Orlando Magic, and many more. In addition to running Rise25, Dr. Weisz owns a nutritional supplement business and runs his chiropractic and massage facility, Chiropractic Solutions & Massage. John Corcoran is a recovering attorney, an author, and was a former White House writer and speechwriter to the Governor of California. Throughout his career, John has worked in Hollywood, the heart of Silicon Valley, and has run his boutique law firm in the San Francisco Bay Area catering to small business owners and entrepreneurs. John has been the host of the Smart Business Revolution Podcast since 2012. He has interviewed hundreds of CEOs, founders, authors, and entrepreneurs, from Peter Diamandis and Adam Grant to Gary Vaynerchuk and Marie Forleo. John is also the Co-founder of Rise25 Media, a company that connects B2B businesses with their ideal clients, referral partners, and strategic partners and generates ROI through their done-for-you podcast service. In this episode… When talking about the types of podcast content you should be creating, the duo of Dr. Jeremy Weisz and John Corcoran mentioned thought leadership as a pivotal content type. However, many people tend to overlook this type of content and risk missing out on the great value it offers. What is a thought leadership podcast episode? It's a podcast content style where you share your wisdom instead of interviewing others to share theirs. Unfortunately, many people struggle to do it because they do not know the form it should take, what they should talk about, and how it benefits them. You don't have to worry about that anymore, as John and Dr. Weisz bring you all the answers. Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring John Corcoran, Co-founder of Rise25. They discuss the 10 types of thought leadership podcast episodes you should be creating, break down the steps for creating successful thought leadership content, and share why this style could be a great lead generator.

Katie Wagner is the President and CEO of KWSM, a full-service digital marketing agency made up of journalists. They specialize in website development and SEO, social media strategy and management, content creation, PR and influencer marketing, and digital advertising. Katie spent more than 15 years as a journalist and spent a decade as a television radio news anchor. She worked at CBS, ABC, Fox, CNN, and National Public Radio. In 2010, Katie realized that she could use those skills she learned in the newsroom to help business owners connect with their clients online — so she opened KWSM. Katie is also an active member of various organizations, including the Young Entrepreneurs Council, ProVisors, and Vistage. In this episode… Agency life is hard. There are many moving processes with different people and brands involved, and we don't share enough about what that life truly is. From client inquiry to results, Katie Wagner of KWSM unbundles the agency lifestyle and shares how she and her team stay on top of their work while being present in their personal lives. If you've been looking for a better way to train your team, make them more productive, and achieve healthy work-life integration, Katie shares a few hacks that truly makes agency life easier. There's so much to unpack, from the no-emails after work structure to the 9-80 policies and best-self management tips — Katie explains it all! In this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast, Dr. Jeremy Weisz chats with Katie Wagner, President and CEO of KWSM, about navigating the digital agency life. She shares how she got into the agency business, the caliber of clients they serve, how she gets the best from her team, manages processes, and gets work done efficiently. Stay tuned.

Kevin Miller is the Co-founder and CEO of GR0, an agency that helps scale DTC (Direct-to-Consumer) brands. They've helped companies like Legends Boxing, Adquick, MuteSix, and many more. He is adept at SEO and has helped companies like Ritual build their SEO engine to reach the #1 Google ranking for the chosen keyword. Before founding GR0, Kevin was a Digital Marketing Account Executive at Google, where he learned growth marketing frameworks to help DTC companies scale using organic search. He later returned to the startup world and became the Director of Growth and Digital Marketing at Spire and Director of Growth at Open Listings, before it sold to Opendoor. In this episode… What does agency success look like? An SEO agency, for example, finds success in taking your client's traffic from 15,000 a month to 400,000 and ranking them for buyer intent keywords. The key point to remember is that it's not the size of your company, but the results you deliver to clients that will keep you in business for a long time. But how do you ensure your agency continues to deliver outstanding results? Kevin Miller of the SEO agency GR0 says that it's about your people and the culture that backs them. You want to become the expert for your clients. But the problem is how do you hire and keep a team of experts? Listen to this episode of the Inspired Insider Podcast with Dr. Jeremy Weisz featuring Kevin Miller, CEO of GR0. They discuss Kevin's journey into the agency world and the lessons he's learned, how he hires and keeps experts on his team, the results he's helped clients achieve, and more inspiring stories. Stay tuned.