ExecuTalks
87 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 2 years ago - ★★★★★ - 36 ratingsFeeling like your career isn’t advancing the way it should? It’ll be okay. Everyone we’ve interviewed has felt what you’re feeling. Even Fortune 500 CEOs. Don’t believe me? Only one way to find out: Tune in! This podcast is for the go-getters, the ambitious, the confident. (This podcast is for you especially if you’re in sales or marketing).
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Episodes
Siemens CEO (USA): Barbara Humpton
March 28, 2022 06:00 - 35 minutes - 24.3 MBIn this episode, we sit down with Barbara Humpton. Barbara grew up to parents who were both math professors so initially set her eyes on being a math professor “when she grew up.” After taking a job at IBM and working on a globally impactful project, she was hooked into the world of working on impactful technology to make our world a better place. I won’t give too much away before you listen, but if you decide to listen to the entire episode you will get to hear: Some of Barbara’s forma...
(Special): Bellevue Mayor Dr. Lynne Robinson
March 14, 2022 11:00 - 30 minutes - 20.7 MBLynne grew up in the bay area and accidentally learned what she loved to do when she was helping a friend become more physically independent by helping her up stairs, and taking her to the gym. So after getting her undergraduate degree, she dove right back into school and used her savings along with student loans to pay for training to become a Physical Therapist. After getting her certification, she worked for a terrible boss that made her want to start her own business. If you stick aro...
Logitech CEO: Bracken Darrell
February 28, 2022 12:00 - 26 minutes - 18.1 MBBracken began his career in accounting after college. After working in accounting roles for an accounting firm and then PepsiCo he transitioned into brand management early in his career. He first worked at Procter & Gamble, then moved into a General Manager position at General Electric. There are other career moves we talk about in this episode, so make sure you tune in! Stick around until the end to hear about: - The key positions that Bracken targeted early in his career that empowered...
Hint CEO & Founder: Kara Goldin
February 14, 2022 11:00 - 39 minutes - 27.3 MBKara grew up in the suburbs of Phoenix, Arizona and naturally developed the skill of persistence growing up. In her early years she worked many different jobs including working at a toy store, interning for a local senator, and waiting tables at a local Mexican restaurant. After college she used unique approaches to reach people and get hired at a media company in New York. Listen to the full episode to get the full scoop on - How Kara used unique communication approaches to reach senior...
Woods Coffee Founder & CEO: Wes Herman
January 31, 2022 11:00 - 28 minutes - 19.6 MBWes was born in Canada, grew up in Columbia, and lived in Southern California . He admits his dyslexia and ADHD growing up caused him to hate school and didn’t attend college after high school. After high school, Wes took the first job he was offered, which was a job making high-end cabinets in Los Angeles; a business that his neighbor owned. Listen in to this episode to learn about how a kid that grew up with a learning disorder and didn’t even go to college, started a highly successful c...
Premera Blue Cross CEO: Jeff Roe
January 17, 2022 20:00 - 26 minutes - 18.4 MBIn this episode, we sit down with Jeff Roe, CEO of Premera Blue Cross. Employing over 3,200 people, Premera Blue Cross is the largest health plan insurance provider in the Pacific Northwest, serving more than 2 million people. Jeff grew up in Bellevue, WA and had an early interest in politics growing up. His curiosity and enjoyment of politics led him down a route of working in politics after graduating from the University of Washington. He worked for a U.S. Senator based in Washington...
Seattle's Ex-Police Chief: Carmen Best
January 03, 2022 09:00 - 37 minutes - 25.6 MBSeattle's Former Police Chief Carmen Best published her book “Black in Blue” in October of 2021, and it was the #1 book in new releases when it came out. Carmen grew up in the Puget Sound area to a loving mother and a father who was in the military. She had a close relationship with her siblings and seemed to always be driven from a young age. Carmen served in the military for some time before working for an insurance company in their finance department. She was looking for something n...
Starbucks Former President: Howard Behar
August 30, 2021 13:00 - 41 minutes - 28.9 MBHoward Behar grew up in North Seattle, attended Roosevelt High School, and struggled to find his way early on in his life. He took some courses at Everett community college but didn’t finish school because he was directing his energy towards his work. At the time he was helping run his brother’s furniture store in Edmonds, WA. He would spend the next couple of decades in the furniture business – eventually becoming president of one of the companies he’d worked for. Then, when he was in ...
Stripe CRO: Mike Clayville
August 16, 2021 13:00 - 38 minutes - 26.3 MBMike Clayville is the Chief Revenue Officer of Stripe, a payment processing company that is building the economic infrastructure of the internet. Their mission is increasing the GDP of the internet -- and Stripe is valued at almost $100 billion. In our conversation, we talk about Mike’s career journey leading up to Stripe. He was born and raised in Idaho, got a degree in geotechnical engineering and then went on to get his MBA after he had a hard time finding a job. After graduating, he ...
(Special): Business in the Digital Age with Howard Tiersky
August 09, 2021 13:00 - 40 minutes - 27.9 MBIn this episode, you’ll get to hear from Howard Tiersky. Howard began his career in theater and performing arts before starting his consulting career at Ernst & Young. There, he would build E&Y’s first website and get exposed to a whole new world. After 15 years of being in the consulting space, Howard started his own business; From Digital, a digital transformation agency that helps companies develop new digital products for all kinds of industries. Howard is the author of the Wall Stre...
Beecher's Cheese Founder: Kurt Dammeier
July 26, 2021 13:00 - 40 minutes - 28.1 MBA fourth generation Puget Sound native and nascent New Yorker, Kurt has always felt passionately about authentic, full-flavored foods, free of artificial additives. Kurt is the owner and head chef of Sugar Mountain, a creative food company that is home to extraordinary food brands and restaurants, from the award-winning Beecher’s Handmade Cheese to The Butcher’s Table, a swanky steakhouse that features Mishima Reserve, Sugar Mountain’s American Wagyu beef brand. With each operation, Kurt’s g...
(Special): Entrepreneurship with serial entrepreneur Chris George
July 19, 2021 13:00 - 33 minutes - 23 MBIn this special episode, we chat with Chris George, a serial entrepreneur who has successfully started and managed 7 businesses in his career (most recently Founder of Certified). His first business that he started in college, was a debt collection agency that he worked in for almost a decade. His most recent venture was a subscription-based men’s fashion company: Gentleman’s Box. Today, he’s chairman of the subscription trade association, a for-profit association that he co-founded. You’...
Sana Biotechnology CEO & Co-Founder: Steve Harr
July 12, 2021 13:00 - 43 minutes - 29.7 MBIn this episode, we cover the man behind the largest biotechnology IPO in history, Steve Harr. Steve co-founded Sana biotechnology, a company that went public earlier this year (2021) and raised almost $600 million dollars in its IPO. Sana is changing the way diseases are cured. Their approach is based on repairing and controlling genes within cells, essentially engineering cells so that they are better equipped to fight off diseases. Prior to co-founding Sana, Steve served as an execut...
Finimize CEO & Co-Founder: Maximilian Rofagha
June 21, 2021 13:00 - 37 minutes - 25.5 MBIn this episode, we hear from Finimize CEO & Co-Founder, Maximillian Rofagha. He grew up in Berlin, Germany, attended a very diverse, international high school, and went on to study economics and international relations in Scotland. He did a year abroad in the U.S., and interned at eBay, Goldman Sachs, McKinsey and Company, and a German Stock Exchange. After college, he worked in management consulting for a year and half before starting his first business. 3 and half years later, he star...
Puget Sound Energy CEO: Mary Kipp
June 07, 2021 13:00 - 43 minutes - 29.9 MBMary grew up on a very rural, cattle ranch in New Mexico just above the US-Mexico border, where she learned to drive when she was just seven years old and had no television in her home. She attended Williams college, in Massachusetts town near the New York-New Hampshire border. She first intended in going into politics, then fell in love with drama and theater, so she shifted her major. After college, she decided to study law. After law school, Mary went to work for a natural gas utilit...
PayScale CEO: Scott Torrey
May 10, 2021 12:00 - 40 minutes - 27.7 MBToday’s guest is Scott Torrey, PayScale CEO. Scott always knew he wanted to be in business, so he attended a commerce-focused college and worked in consulting after college. After an 8-year career in consulting, Scott pivoted and joined Concur which was later acquired by SAP, and would remain there for 20 years of his career. He took a very short break before a recruiter presented an opportunity to lead PayScale in 2019. PayScale serves 100 million monthly website visitors, powers compe...
PayScale CEO: Scott Torey
May 10, 2021 12:00 - 40 minutes - 27.7 MBToday’s guest is Scott Torey, PayScale CEO. Scott always knew he wanted to be in business, so he attended a commerce-focused college and worked in consulting after college. After an 8-year career in consulting, Scott pivoted and joined Concur which was later acquired by SAP, and would remain there for 20 years of his career. He took a very short break before a recruiter presented an opportunity to lead PayScale in 2019. PayScale serves 100 million monthly website visitors, powers compen...
Robinhood's VP of Engineering: Surabhi Gupta
May 03, 2021 11:00 - 35 minutes - 24.6 MBToday’s guest is Surabhi Gupta, Robinhood’s VP of Engineering. Surabhi grew up in India and pursued an education in computer science. She participated in an internship with Microsoft, and her research focused on artificial intelligence and natural language processing. She worked on creating a system for producing scalable summaries of conversations extracted from video content. Surabhi then took a job with Google as a software engineer and worked on improving the relevance of search res...
Seattle City Light CEO: Debra Smith
April 26, 2021 11:00 - 51 minutes - 35.1 MBToday, we make history. It’s the first time we’ve had an executive from the city on our show. All of our guests before this show have been business executives. Today’s guest is Debra Smith, Seattle City Light’s CEO. She graduated with a finance degree from Arizona State University, and kickstarted her career in the oil industry working for ConocoPhillips. Shortly after, transitioned into commercial banking in Portland, then moved into utilities at the Eugene Water and Electric Board, the...
Divvy Homes CEO & Co-Founder: Adena Hefets
April 12, 2021 18:00 - 34 minutes - 23.5 MBToday’s guest is Adena Hefets, CEO & Co-Founder of Divvy Homes. She grew up in Long Island, New York to immigrant parents who lived paycheck to paycheck, and were not financially stable, and this drove her ambition to be financially independent at a very young age. She would go on to work in lots of finance roles like investment banking, private equity, venture capital, and also worked in product management, before starting Divvy Homes with her cofounders. In 2016, Adena started Divvy H...
Hunt A Killer CEO & Co-Founder: Ryan Hogan
April 05, 2021 08:00 - 29 minutes - 20.1 MBToday, you will hear from Ryan Hogan, CEO & Co-Founder of Hunt A Killer. He joined the Navy out of high school, got admitted into a very competitive military program after 6 years of hard work, started multiple businesses that needed multiple pivots, until they ended up failing. In 2016, a few years after Ryan’s last business had failed, he got together with his childhood friend Derrick and together, they began thinking of how they could create experiences for people that felt real. Hunt ...
BuzzFeed's First Chief Content Officer: Melinda Lee
March 29, 2021 08:00 - 34 minutes - 23.7 MBMelinda Lee began her professional life as an attorney out of college, but transitioned into the media business. She admits that she’s always had a passion for pop culture and being in the media business in some form, but didn’t think it was possible because she didn’t' see many people that looked like her in media. Also, her parents’ journey of immigrating to the U.S. from Taiwan and the pressure of being a "doctor or lawyer" influenced her heavily to pursue a career in law. If you have ...
NotCo CEO & Co-Founder: Matias Muchnick
March 15, 2021 14:00 - 31 minutes - 21.8 MBOur guest today is Matias Muchnick, co-founder & CEO of NotCo – A Chile-based AI-driven food technology company that is redefining food. They’ve raised over $110 million dollars, including a big investment from Jeff Bezos! So, you’ll want to be sure to stick around until the end to hear all about what how NotCo is using AI to make vegan meat, milk, cheese and other products that are vegan but look, smell, taste, and feel like they are not vegan. Matias first realized that he wanted to pu...
Connecting YOU: Abi Viswanathan & Bridget Frey
March 10, 2021 23:00 - 11 minutes - 7.74 MBWelcome to the first episode of of Connecting YOU! It's the segment that makes us unique! We connect YOU, the audience, to one of today's top executives. This week we connect Abinav Viswanathan, a relatively new software engineer, working at Amazon on the Alexa team, to Bridget Frey, Redfin's Chief Technology Officer.
Episode Recap of Naveen Jain
March 09, 2021 15:00 - 14 minutes - 10.1 MBIn this episode, Ash & Aleksey (our podcast producer) do a quick recap of Naveen's story, the podcast episode that was released yesterday. What does going to the moon mean for the future of humanity? How does Naveen's story line up with the traditional immigrant story? What does the American dream even mean? Listen in to this short segment!
Billionaire Entrepreneur: Naveen Jain (Re-produced)
March 08, 2021 15:00 - 28 minutes - 19.8 MBIt's been about 9 months since we first conducted this interview with Naveen Jain. If you haven't listened to Naveen's story yet, it has been one of our most downloaded podcasts of all-time, so it's worth a listen. If you have listened, we've reproduced it, adding in some segments that were not in the first episode, so it's worth a second listen! Naveen grew up in India where he and his family had to relocate every 6 months due to dealing with poverty. Resources were so scarce that Navee...
Quick Message from Ash
March 02, 2021 14:00 - 2 minutes - 1.71 MBSet a target today, a goal! Build your "hit list"!
Announcement!
March 01, 2021 16:00 - 2 minutes - 1.76 MBThis week, we have a quick announcement to make!
Zillow Former CEO & Co-Founder: Spencer Rascoff
February 22, 2021 17:00 - 40 minutes - 27.7 MBToday's guest is Spencer Rascoff. If you're reading this you probably know who Spencer is, but in case you don't, he most known for co-founding Zillow Group and was the CEO for a long time before stepping down in 2019 to focus on his new ventures dot.LA and Pacaso. In his first startup experience, Spencer co-founded an online travel company called Hotwire which later sold to Expedia in 2003. After working at Expedia for some time he felt the need for a change and started Zillow with other ex...
Zillow Co-Founder & Former CEO: Spencer Rascoff
February 22, 2021 17:00 - 40 minutes - 27.7 MBToday's guest is Spencer Rascoff. If you're reading this you probably know who Spencer is, but in case you don't, he most known for co-founding Zillow Group and was the CEO for a long time before stepping down in 2019 to focus on his new ventures dot.LA and Pacaso. In his first startup experience, Spencer co-founded an online travel company called Hotwire which later sold to Expedia in 2003. After working at Expedia for some time he felt the need for a change and started Zillow with other ex...
Bulletproof Founder & CEO: Dave Asprey
February 15, 2021 15:00 - 37 minutes - 25.7 MBToday’s guest is the famous Dave Asprey: As seen on Bloomberg, The New York Times, Business Insider, Fast Company, CNN, Men’s Health, Rolling Stone, Vogue, Forbes and many more! He sold the first product EVER over the internet, was a top 100 influencer in cloud computing for 20-years, and is the father of what is called, biohacking. You’ll want to be sure to stick around until the end to hear what Dave’s secret to success was at such a young age was. Throughout most of Dave’s early life,...
Bulletproof CEO & Founder: Dave Asprey
February 15, 2021 15:00 - 37 minutes - 25.7 MBToday’s guest is the famous Dave Asprey: As seen on Bloomberg, The New York Times, Business Insider, Fast Company, CNN, Men’s Health, Rolling Stone, Vogue, Forbes and many more! He sold the first product EVER over the internet, was a top 100 influencer in cloud computing for 20-years, and is the father of what is called, biohacking. You’ll want to be sure to stick around until the end to hear what Dave’s secret to success was at such a young age was. Throughout most of Dave’s early life,...
Former SeaWorld CEO: Joel Manby
February 08, 2021 14:00 - 36 minutes - 25.1 MBJoel is the Former CEO of SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, one of the largest public entertainment companies in the world, Former CEO of Herschend Family Entertainment, one of the largest private entertainment companies in the world, the Former CEO of Saab Automobile, AND most importantly, the Author of one of the best books I have ever read called “Love Works: Seven Timeless Principles for Effective Leaders”, endorsed by Bill Haslam, Governor of Tenessee, Dan Cathy, President of Chick-fil-...
SeaWorld Former CEO: Joel Manby
February 08, 2021 14:00 - 36 minutes - 25.1 MBJoel is the Former CEO of SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, one of the largest public entertainment companies in the world, Former CEO of Herschend Family Entertainment, one of the largest private entertainment companies in the world, the Former CEO of Saab Automobile, AND most importantly, the Author of one of the best books I have ever read called “Love Works: Seven Timeless Principles for Effective Leaders”, endorsed by Bill Haslam, Governor of Tenessee, Dan Cathy, President of Chick-fil-...
Former Tableau Software CMO: Elissa Fink
February 01, 2021 14:00 - 36 minutes - 25 MBYou'll want to listen in to this to hear how a girl who grew up in a household with 5 older brothers in Southern California went from not knowing what she was going to be when she grew up, to volunteering to work at a company that had a terribly negative culture, to writing a very convincing letter to the CEO of then a small company called Tableau Software, to scaling Tableau from being a $5 million company to a $1 billion company as the Chief Marketing Officer.
Tableau Software Former CMO: Elissa Fink
February 01, 2021 14:00 - 36 minutes - 24.9 MBYou'll want to listen in to this to hear how a girl who grew up in a household with 5 older brothers in Southern California went from not knowing what she was going to be when she grew up, to volunteering to work at a company that had a terribly negative culture, to writing a very convincing letter to the CEO of then a small company called Tableau Software, to scaling Tableau from being a $5 million company to a $1 billion company as the Chief Marketing Officer.
Fortive Corp CEO: Jim Ash Lico
January 25, 2021 15:00 - 38 minutes - 26.2 MBToday’s guest is Jim Lico, the CEO of Fortive Corporation, it’s the Fortune 500 company based in Washington that you probably haven’t heard of before, well, until now of course! Fortive has 18 subsidiaries including notable brands like Fluke and Tektronix. You’ll want to stick around for the entire episode to get a peek into what Jim’s childhood was like growing up in Detroit when General Motors was the biggest company in the world, you will hear Jim share some valuable experiences early in...
Fortive CEO: Jim Lico
January 25, 2021 15:00 - 38 minutes - 26.2 MBToday’s guest is Jim Lico, the CEO of Fortive Corporation, it’s the Fortune 500 company based in Washington that you probably haven’t heard of before, well, until now of course! Fortive has 18 subsidiaries including notable brands like Fluke and Tektronix. You’ll want to stick around for the entire episode to get a peek into what Jim’s childhood was like growing up in Detroit when General Motors was the biggest company in the world, you will hear Jim share some valuable experiences early in...
Moz CEO: Sarah Bird
January 18, 2021 16:00 - 31 minutes - 21.6 MBYou’ll want to listen to the entire episode to hear how Sarah went from being a pregnant 16-year-old, to graduating law school and becoming an unintentionally great negotiator, to quitting her job at a law firm based on, literally, a dream, to successfully scaling the number one SEO marketing software on the planet.
Naturebox Founder & M13 Company Partner: Gautam Gupta
January 11, 2021 15:00 - 31 minutes - 21.4 MBToday’s guest is Gautam Gupta, Founder and former CEO of Naturebox, and current Partner at M13, a venture capital firm based in Santa Monica. You’ll want to be sure to stick around, because Gautam shares a story about how he landed his first internship – and it has nothing to do with resumes or cover letters, he shares the story behind a company taking a chance on him to start a branch, and he shares the struggles of starting a business if you’re thinking about making a leap and taking the ...
Pantheon Platform CMO: Christy Marble
January 04, 2021 16:00 - 23 minutes - 16.2 MBChristy grew up on the San Juan Island, a very small community of people in a town that actually had no street lights! After college, Christy got her first job at the wall street journal in advertising. She knew she eventually wanted to go to graduate school, so she chose a company that would support that in the future. During her time at the wall street journal, one male executive at the company discouraged her from attending graduate school. Feeling unsure, Christy turned to her mentor...
Former SAP Concur CMO & Pantheon Platform CMO: Christy Marble
January 04, 2021 16:00 - 23 minutes - 16.2 MBChristy grew up on the San Juan Island, a very small community of people in a town that actually had no street lights! After college, Christy got her first job at the wall street journal in advertising. She knew she eventually wanted to go to graduate school, so she chose a company that would support that in the future. During her time at the wall street journal, one male executive at the company discouraged her from attending graduate school. Feeling unsure, Christy turned to her mentor...
(Christmas Special): Wharton School of Business Director of Career Management Dr. Dawn Graham
December 24, 2020 23:00 - 24 minutes - 16.6 MBDr. Dawn Graham holds a PhD in counseling psychology and is currently the Director of Career Management at the Wharton School of Business, the world's #1 business school in the world. She authored the book "Switchers" - How smart professionals change careers and seize success. If you are currently frustrated with the current methods of job-searching and looking for a new approach, visit our website at www.executalks.com and get in touch with us!
*Christmas Special - Wharton School of Business Director of Career Management: Dr. Dawn Graham
December 24, 2020 23:00 - 24 minutes - 16.7 MBDr. Dawn Graham holds a PhD in counseling psychology and is currently the Director of Career Management at the Wharton School of Business, the world's #1 business school in the world. She authored the book "Switchers" - How smart professionals change careers and seize success. If you are currently frustrated with the current methods of job-searching and looking for a new approach, visit our website at www.executalks.com and get in touch with us!
(Christmas Special) - Wharton School of Business Director of Career Management: Dr. Dawn Graham
December 24, 2020 23:00 - 24 minutes - 16.6 MBDr. Dawn Graham holds a PhD in counseling psychology and is currently the Director of Career Management at the Wharton School of Business, the world's #1 business school in the world. She authored the book "Switchers" - How smart professionals change careers and seize success. If you are currently frustrated with the current methods of job-searching and looking for a new approach, visit our website at www.executalks.com and get in touch with us!
Former Tableau Software EVP: Kelly Breslin Wright
December 14, 2020 16:00 - 29 minutes - 20.5 MBYou’ll want to be sure to stick around for the entire episode, because Kelly dives deep into important career skills like storytelling, listening to other people’s stories, and how to strategically think about your next career move. Kelly Wright is the former Tableau Executive Vice President of Sales, and was actually the first sales person at Tableau.
Tableau Software Former EVP: Kelly Breslin Wright
December 14, 2020 16:00 - 29 minutes - 20.5 MBYou’ll want to be sure to stick around for the entire episode, because Kelly dives deep into important career skills like storytelling, listening to other people’s stories, and how to strategically think about your next career move. Kelly Wright is the former Tableau Executive Vice President of Sales, and was actually the first sales person at Tableau.
Snapbar CEO & Co-Founder: Sam Eitzen
December 07, 2020 14:00 - 35 minutes - 24.3 MBYou’ll want to be sure to stick around for the entire episode to hear how a kid that grew up in Morocco ended up in Gig Harbor selling coffee out of a van, then going broke and foreclosing on his home while he had a family, to accidentally starting a photo booth company that generates over $3 million in annual revenue and got placed on the Inc. 500 list, and how they were able to survive through the pandemic, being an events-based business. Almost a year ago, our country and our world compl...
Elevat IOT CCO & Co-Founder: Adam Livesay
November 30, 2020 14:00 - 30 minutes - 20.7 MBAdam was born & raised in Marysville, WA, a town one hour north of Seattle. His father was an entrepreneur and football coach, and his mother was a principal at a local high school. Adam always had an interest for math & science, so he pursued a degree in computer science from Portland State University, and after college, he landed a job working for a company that helped manufacturing facilities upgrade their electronics & software to help them be more effective. He started to make obser...
TrustRadius Founder & CEO: Vinay Bhagat
November 23, 2020 14:00 - 29 minutes - 20.4 MBToday’s guest is Vinay Bhagat, Founder & CEO of Trust Radius. You’ll want to be sure to listen to this episode to hear how Vinay’s experience with racism growing up shaped him to be more empathetic, how Vinay addressed racial bias issues in the workplace, and ultimately, how being fired from a job was the best thing that ever happened to him. Vinay was born & raised in London and was the child of immigrants. His mother was a teacher and his father was a car designer, and his parents loved...