MarketScale Radio: Recent Episodes

MarketScale

MarketScale is bringing you the best B2B audio content from our studios in Dallas, TX. With relevant industry interviews and shows like Business Casual, Business Class, and the Mecca Minute, we're unpacking the most industry-shaking B2B news, tips, and trends. Whether you're looking for casual content or professional ponderings, MarketScale is your ultimate workday companion.

Flexibility means everything in education today. Dr. Karen Ingram, national education consultant for Istation, and Dr. Claudia Castillas, a bilingual virtual product development coach at Istation, joined host Hilary Kennedy to dive into ways administrators and personnel can support teachers in this era of education.

When a technological solution is comprehensive and flexible — meaning it can be used on or off campus by students — this can help establish consistent instructional routines. However, there must be a plan in place for using these types of learning technology. For example, technology tools must contain quality content.

Dr. Ingram explained, “Just because it’s technology doesn’t mean it’s great. It has to have quality content. And by quality content, when we think about teaching kids how to read, the content is built on the science of reading.”

Another necessary component is product development specialists who teach instructors how to use programs and progress monitoring tools, such as Dr. Casillas.

Administrators can support teachers during this shift through active listening, which places value on teachers’ work efforts.

Dr. Casillas said, “Without the relationship, without a meaningful connection, you’re not able to have that space to be able to go deep, to be able to be truly authentic, truly genuine.”

Teachers also need more intensive data monitoring time when they can identify which students need support to fill learning gaps resulting from instruction deficits — and administrators must be creative in providing time for this. Istation can assist with efficiency in planning time by providing detailed reports on student performances and growth trajectories.

Lastly, administrators can support teachers by providing them with choices and resources that create freedom. This can help offer them autonomy while allowing time for creativity and planning.

To hear more from the EdTech Podcast, hit “subscribe” on Apple Podcast or Spotify.

Flexibility means everything in education today. Dr. Karen Ingram, national education consultant for Istation, and Dr. Claudia Castillas, a bilingual virtual product development coach at Istation, joined host Hilary Kennedy to dive into ways administrators and personnel can support teachers in this era of education.

When a technological solution is comprehensive and flexible — meaning it can be used on or off campus by students — this can help establish consistent instructional routines. However, there must be a plan in place for using these types of learning technology. For example, technology tools must contain quality content.

Dr. Ingram explained, “Just because it’s technology doesn’t mean it’s great. It has to have quality content. And by quality content, when we think about teaching kids how to read, the content is built on the science of reading.”

Another necessary component is product development specialists who teach instructors how to use programs and progress monitoring tools, such as Dr. Casillas.

Administrators can support teachers during this shift through active listening, which places value on teachers’ work efforts.

Dr. Casillas said, “Without the relationship, without a meaningful connection, you’re not able to have that space to be able to go deep, to be able to be truly authentic, truly genuine.”

Teachers also need more intensive data monitoring time when they can identify which students need support to fill learning gaps resulting from instruction deficits — and administrators must be creative in providing time for this. Istation can assist with efficiency in planning time by providing detailed reports on student performances and growth trajectories.

Lastly, administrators can support teachers by providing them with choices and resources that create freedom. This can help offer them autonomy while allowing time for creativity and planning.

To hear more from the EdTech Podcast, hit “subscribe” on Apple Podcast or Spotify.

The pandemic put a significant hindrance on learning. With things getting back into full swing, educators are trying to make up for the lost time. One of the ways they’re doing this is by working on accelerating learning.

On this episode of the IStation Podcast, Host Courtney Echerd talked to Dr. Alicia Pruitt, Regional PD Lead/Northeast, Professional Development, IStation. They dug into how educators are trying to make up for lost time through accelerated learning and progress monitoring.

“One of the things we’ve done for a long time is to progress monitor and look for gaps in the student’s learning and meet those students where they are,” Pruitt said. “That has really been a process we’ve done in the past.”

But, educators are flipping things on the head a bit now by monitoring progress for strengths in the student’s learning, so they can build upon those and help to continue to move the needle in the right direction.

“I think it’s really finding those strengths to help those students become better,” Pruitt said. “And to become better readers, better mathematicians, better at whatever area of academic place they’re working in.”

As someone that works in professional development, Pruitt works with educators, principals, and superintendents. As a former teacher, she affected change in her classroom, and when she moved to the district level, she did the same. Her scope is a bit broader now, and she hopes to affect change throughout the state and even the country.

The pandemic put a significant hindrance on learning. With things getting back into full swing, educators are trying to make up for the lost time. One of the ways they’re doing this is by working on accelerating learning.

On this episode of the IStation Podcast, Host Courtney Echerd talked to Dr. Alicia Pruitt, Regional PD Lead/Northeast, Professional Development, IStation. They dug into how educators are trying to make up for lost time through accelerated learning and progress monitoring.

“One of the things we’ve done for a long time is to progress monitor and look for gaps in the student’s learning and meet those students where they are,” Pruitt said. “That has really been a process we’ve done in the past.”

But, educators are flipping things on the head a bit now by monitoring progress for strengths in the student’s learning, so they can build upon those and help to continue to move the needle in the right direction.

“I think it’s really finding those strengths to help those students become better,” Pruitt said. “And to become better readers, better mathematicians, better at whatever area of academic place they’re working in.”

As someone that works in professional development, Pruitt works with educators, principals, and superintendents. As a former teacher, she affected change in her classroom, and when she moved to the district level, she did the same. Her scope is a bit broader now, and she hopes to affect change throughout the state and even the country.

On this episode of an Istation podcast, Host Courtney Echerd talked with Christy Spivey, VP of Customer Success at Istation, which has become one of the nation’s leading providers of richly animated, game-like educational technology. Istation’s innovative reading, math, and Spanish programs immerse students in an engaging and interactive environment and inspire them to learn. The duo talked about creating a learning environment for teachers.

While creating a learning environment is essential for students, it’s also necessary for teachers. It is often an arduous task, with teachers being so busy and on a small budget. Over the past year, they’ve had to adapt and learn on their feet as they switched to online learning. So how do schools create time and space for teacher learning?

“It’s something I’ve been curious about for many years and throughout my career,” Spivey said. “Even as a classroom teacher, and then moving into EdTech, I wondered ‘how do we help teachers? How do we support them? How do we make sure teachers have everything they need because, in turn, students are going to have everything they need?’”

Spivey elaborated that when you dig into teacher learning, the most crucial aspect is time. One of the most challenging questions to answer is making time for teacher learning, including continuous learning. The question must be considered of how often it will take place, such as weekly, monthly, or how it will be embedded into their day.

On this episode of an Istation podcast, Host Courtney Echerd talked with Christy Spivey, VP of Customer Success at Istation, which has become one of the nation’s leading providers of richly animated, game-like educational technology. Istation’s innovative reading, math, and Spanish programs immerse students in an engaging and interactive environment and inspire them to learn. The duo talked about creating a learning environment for teachers.

While creating a learning environment is essential for students, it’s also necessary for teachers. It is often an arduous task, with teachers being so busy and on a small budget. Over the past year, they’ve had to adapt and learn on their feet as they switched to online learning. So how do schools create time and space for teacher learning?

“It’s something I’ve been curious about for many years and throughout my career,” Spivey said. “Even as a classroom teacher, and then moving into EdTech, I wondered ‘how do we help teachers? How do we support them? How do we make sure teachers have everything they need because, in turn, students are going to have everything they need?’”

Spivey elaborated that when you dig into teacher learning, the most crucial aspect is time. One of the most challenging questions to answer is making time for teacher learning, including continuous learning. The question must be considered of how often it will take place, such as weekly, monthly, or how it will be embedded into their day.

The COVID-19 pandemic was extremely disruptive to students’ ability to learn. Even for students who could adequately access online and hybrid programs, wide and varied learning gaps emerged that will take time and effort to overcome.

That means, with the fall semester quickly approaching, it’s time for educational leaders to rethink and reimagine best practices, assessments, intervention strategies and more.

To explore the actionable insights and strategies that will help them do just that, Istation Strategy Consultants Julie Kalinowski and Faith Conti joined this episode of the EdTech podcast by Istation to explore ways to position educators for success as they tackle the challenges on the horizon of the new school year.

“Everybody is wanting to ensure that we’re meeting the needs of all students as we return back this year,” Kalinowski said. “As we look at the research and everything that’s out there about opportunity gaps that existed pre-pandemic, we know that this pandemic will just have exacerbated [them]. …

Those gaps have also been widened disproportionately for some groups of students, such as students of color, students receiving special education services, students facing poverty and more, meaning educators will need to find tailored solutions for serving those groups to the best of their ability.

The COVID-19 pandemic was extremely disruptive to students’ ability to learn. Even for students who could adequately access online and hybrid programs, wide and varied learning gaps emerged that will take time and effort to overcome.

That means, with the fall semester quickly approaching, it’s time for educational leaders to rethink and reimagine best practices, assessments, intervention strategies and more.

To explore the actionable insights and strategies that will help them do just that, Istation Strategy Consultants Julie Kalinowski and Faith Conti joined this episode of the EdTech podcast by Istation to explore ways to position educators for success as they tackle the challenges on the horizon of the new school year.

“Everybody is wanting to ensure that we’re meeting the needs of all students as we return back this year,” Kalinowski said. “As we look at the research and everything that’s out there about opportunity gaps that existed pre-pandemic, we know that this pandemic will just have exacerbated [them]. …

Those gaps have also been widened disproportionately for some groups of students, such as students of color, students receiving special education services, students facing poverty and more, meaning educators will need to find tailored solutions for serving those groups to the best of their ability.

The modern education model embraces technology and data. It supports educators and students in many ways, more so now than pre-pandemic. One of the basics of education is literacy, and oral reading fluency is key to improving it. But why does this metric matter?

The pandemic brought forth many unknowns, and one of the significant areas of challenge and disruption occurred in the manufacturing supply chain.

Ryan Ervin, Vice President of Americas Region Sales and Workholding Product Management at Hardinge, Inc, discussed those challenges, which have bled over well into 2021.

The past two school years have been unprecedented in their difficulty. Students feel it. Teachers and administration feel it. But thankfully, the U.S. government is providing federal funds to help state and local education agencies meet all their students’ increased learning needs.

Companies have been using audio capture for decades, and it’s seen many evolutions. Now, organizations are using it across the enterprise to drive improvement and insights.

To get a view of the industry and what’s new, MarketScale Radio host Daniel Litwin spoke with Steve Kaiser, Co-Founder and CEO of OrecX, a developer of call recording software.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are innovative technologies that provide powerful use cases across all industries, including data management. But with these solutions come some headaches, too, as OT & IT professionals learn to process, analyze and create actionable insights around their data.

Bruno Lempernesse possesses 25 years of experience in real-world patient data analytics and corporate leadership. Still, he wasn’t job hunting when he received a call from Carevive’s Co-founder Madelyn Trupkin Herzfeld.

If there’s anyone qualified to speak to the strategies that work best for students in remote and virtual learning scenarios, it’s Micah Copeland, Elementary Principal at North Carolina Cyber Academy.

The Academy’s mission is to “empower children with knowledge, skills and character traits to be successful in their education through an engaging, personalized learning experience in a full-time virtual school.”

The global supply chain is in complete disruption because of the pandemic. Localized incidents often happen that cause shifts, but this was on a worldwide scale. Supply chain expert David Beaird of Beaird Solutions spoke with Tyler Kern about the impact and aftermath.

“As a global economy, COVID was a once in a lifetime event. There was supply shock for companies that produce and demand shock from those that consume, with boats and trucks trying to balance it,” Beaird said.

Beaird noted that the shocks aren’t over. “We’re about to see a global reopening where demand is going to explode, but there’s still limited capacity.”

The port in LA is backed up due to many factors, including local regulations that drive labor and processes. These are all mini storms reverberating from the pandemic. Additionally, consumers were already changing how they get goods and services via digital channels. They had even greater adoption in the last year.

Beaird foresees probable scarcity, which the country hasn’t seen since World War II. “It’s about to be not there,” he said regarding goods.

Beaird offered some remedies that he’s providing to his clients. “Get freight to other ports besides LA because it’s going to take longer than a month to clear stuff out. Also, add more to your lead times.”

He finished with two other points. “You can expect to pay a premium from carriers, but they shouldn’t gouge up because you’re going to have the advantage in the second part of the year.”

His strongest takeaway related to decoupling from the global supply chain and bringing more manufacturing back to the U.S. “We can no longer rely on host nations across the world because they can see that not shipping to us can stifle the American economy.”

A growing challenge for businesses across industries is the convergence of IT and OT. How is the merging of these two traditionally separate areas impacting the IT workforce now also managing OT networks?

For insights on the common challenges and the opportunities that this transition poses for IT professionals to shine, Making a Connection spoke with someone in OT with a long history in the IT space. Henry Martel, Field Application Engineer with Antaira Technologies, brought his 20-plus years of experience in providing IT and networking solutions to the discussion.

Industrial networks are under threat from cyberattacks. On Feb. 8, Oldsmar, Florida, announced a cyber intrusion into its water treatment system. They detected the attack, but only after network infiltration.

David Zaveski, Product Manager at Antaira, spoke about the threats to industrial networks, what makes it easy to infiltrate them, and what IT departments can do to prevent such attacks.

Zaveski’s previous roles included working with enterprise networks, and this background gave him a lot of experience in understanding the importance of keeping networks secure. This experience is something he wants to bring to industrial networks, too.

“Industrial networks are quite different from enterprise networks,” Zaveski said. “They are required to have quicker responses across networks, but many are unprotected.”

Many industrial networks are protected from outside cyber interference through “air gapping” their networks by restricting connectivity from the outside. This provides a sense of protection from cyberthreats. And Zaveski said that does protect them. So, why are there breaches?

“What happens is, at some point, another somebody gets the idea that they want to be able to monitor the system remotely, and I want to connect that data and publish it for later planning,” he said. “As soon as they do that and attach that network to the public network, or internet, [risk is there].”

Now, a pathway to infiltrating that once-protected industrial network is created, and the cybersecurity risks begin.

Protocols and devices deployed across a network can keep them more secure. Still, any organization's most important step is to restrict network access to just what individuals and devices need it, not carte blanche accessibility.

“Look at your network, and say, ‘I know I have A, B, C devices, and I know that A needs to communicate with B and C, but B and C never need to communicate with each other. So, I should block all traffic going from B to C.’ That’s great,” Zaveski said. “Because, now, if somebody hacks in at B, at least they can’t get to C.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a direct impact on the retail industry in terms of consumer presence in brick-and-mortar stores, growth in eCommerce, and more, but it’s also highlighted some glaring inefficiencies and shortcomings in the industry’s supply chain.

Notably, retailers lack visibility and data regarding their supply chain and its infrastructure, leaving them largely in the dark and forcing reactive approaches to challenges as opposed to proactive ones.

Further, the industry as a whole has been slow to adopt solutions powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning that could help ease that strain and provide more actionable insights.

To explore where the retail industry needs to go from here in addressing these issues, MarketScale host Stephanie Otey invited Vikas Rajput, Vice President of Customer Success for OpsVeda, to share his expert insights.

OpsVeda is a platform solution offering AI-infused solutions that help enterprises engage in proactive agility, optimization and automation based on the discovery and analysis of key data patterns and more.

The duo dove into optimizing production tracking and downstream impact, assess raw material supply challenges, adapt to shipment delays and route changes, optimize inventory, and more, offering retailers a game plan for forging ahead in a world more connected and demanding than ever before.

Most people can only dream of turning a beloved hobby into a profession. Brain Deis, however, was able to turn that dream into reality.

After spending much of his life building model airplanes and competing on the national stage, other careers eventually forced him to put his hobby on the sidelines. But, in 2000, all of that changed when he got back into the industry.

Today, Deis is the president of Dream RC Airplanes, an aeromodelling company specializing in high-end electric RC jets. He joined host Daniel Litwin on the MarketScale podcast to talk about his success with electric models and how Schübeler Technologies has helped his team along the way.

The Minority Serving-Cyberinfrastructure Consortium, or MS-CC, recently released troubling findings regarding the state of minority-serving educational institutions in the United States.

The Consortium, along with Internet2, conducted a survey that found that Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and tribal colleges and universities were falling behind in terms of broadband infrastructure, workforce training and development investments.

It’s not an isolated trend, either – nearly half of the U.S.’s HBCUs and almost all tribal colleges and universities participated in the survey.

The findings are particularly concerning in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has thrust remote connectivity, broadband access, hybrid learning and more to the forefront across the world’s educational landscape.

To discuss the implications of this survey and how the U.S. might begin working to address these inequities, Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin invited Kevin Hogan, host of MarketScale’s EdTech Today, onto this Industry Update.

The duo tackled the state of connectivity, equipment, security and access to technology among these institutions, the role collaboration and engagement must play in addressing shortcomings, the need for accessible and responsible data infrastructure for campus operations, and more.

How can edtech companies encourage more deployments? What sort of national mobilization is needed to tackle compounding issues of access? Listen in to find out.

Educators understand the unique challenges of keeping students engaged in a classroom. However, committing to a remote learning curriculum in the middle of a pandemic is something entirely different.

With additional challenges like countless distractions, mental fatigue and more thrown into the mix, it’s no wonder that student engagement overall is beginning to wane.

The story of call centers at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic mirrored that of many industries. The understanding of the dangerous of the coronavirus sent offices scrambling as they looked to allow employees to work safely but effectively from their homes.

The call center industry also was faced with the fact that recordings are necessary to keep track of orders, make sure customer services goals are being met and utilize calls for trainings. That meant many companies either took large risks going without those vital recordings or lost time as software was being installed. That wasn’t the case for clients utilizing OrecX.

Many companies interested in drone technology still think of drones as something that works only for capturing visual imagery.

Of course, drones can do much more. While drones can capture stunning and clear video and still photography in a way unthinkable even five years ago, they also can produce data that produces actionable insights.

Steven Katz, Founder and Chief Pilot for Sky Ladder Drones, said he recently had a client who wanted drone video, a service Katz has provided many times. But after learning more about the actual business needs, Katz devised a three-day program that not only got the client video, but also photos and mapping data that actually answered provided the answers to the underlying business questions.

More industries are now beginning to understand how they can utilize unmanned aircraft systems. “These ‘ah-ha moments’ happen in little bits. With the use of drones becoming more prevalent and those within the industry working to make effective use cases more apparent, over time more people will understand drone technology can give them far more than just pretty pictures.

Listen to Drone Insights and Technology Episode 003 to hear some interesting specific use cases.

TODAY’S GUEST

Steven Katz, Founder and Chief Pilot, Sky Ladder Drones

Sky Ladder Drones is one of Southern California’s leading UAS operators managing aerial inspections, mapping, and photography for construction and solar industries. In his spare time, Steven enjoys helping train future Part 107 drone pilots at local community colleges.

On this episode we are joined by Vice President of Sales at Measure, Abigail Lacy.

We explored some nuanced topics in the ever-expanding drone industry—how can you distinguish the contenders from the pretenders? And how can drones be presented in a way that avoids overpromising and underdelivering in an industry that undergoes constant growth and innovation?

“There’s a lot of fluff in the industry that makes people believe that delivery with a drone is going to become commonplace tomorrow,” Lacy said. “That’s actually not the reality. It’s still very much in the R&D phase. That’s just one example of the kind of misinformation that’s been built up around drones.”

Lacy also shared key questions to ask a drone or software provider, along with best practices for brokering successful partnerships and making sure your business needs are met.

Learn more by listening to Drone Insights and Technology episode 002.

TODAY’S GUEST

Abigail Lacy, VP Sales, Measure

Measure is an aerial intelligence company that builds software to automate drone operations workflows. With end-to-end program management, user-friendly flight control, and in-platform data analysis, their comprehensive software solution, Ground Control, helps businesses save thousands of hazardous man-hours and create millions of dollars in operational benefits.

Food delivery boomed during the pandemic, with restaurants unable to open their doors to diners and apps like DoorDash, one of the world’s most popular food delivery services, stepping up to fill the void.

DoorDash is now looking to expand on its already lofty success, pouring significant dollars into food prep automation company Chowbotics.

This year’s Big Game, which saw Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers take home the Lombardi Trophy, also saw some oversized interest in sports gambling – so much so, in fact, that popular sports gambling sites like DraftKings and FanDuel couldn’t keep pace.

Those two sites, along with others like BetMGM in Nevada, experienced massive outages and failures in the face of overwhelming demand from users trying to put money down on the Super Bowl

Winter weather presents dangerous challenges for those towing trailers – but there are steps you can take to keep yourself and your cargo safe.

First, if you expect snow and ice, outfit your trailer with winter tires. It’s worth the investment, and you’ll have much greater confidence in your control over your load, no matter how heavy.

Often-divisive but undeniably popular sports personalist Colin Cowherd is distancing from the major networks that have helped build his career, announcing that he’s starting his on podcast company under the name The Volume to dip his toes into the on-demand sports content landscape.

Cowherd will lead the network with a signature podcast and anchor a network of content of more than half-a-dozen shows featuring hosts like former NFL star Aqib Talib.

Uber, which has already expanded its footprint from ride-hailing to food delivery with its massively popular Uber Eats, is adding more to that expanding food delivery network.

Tech Crunch has reported that Uber announced it has plans to acquire Drizly, an alcohol delivery service, for $1.1 billion, highlighting the growing value of the alcohol delivery segment in the United States and beyond.

What is good fit up? And why is it crucial to the success of a welding project? Dan Allford, President of ARC Specialties and the host of Roboticist Chronicles, meets with Dave Hebble, ARC Specialties’ Technical Services Manager, to expand on the idea of fit up and explain it to the rest of the company. The two have worked together since the late 70s, with Hebble acting as Allford’s mentor ever since.

After sanctions imposed by the United States last year, Chinese smartphone manufacturer Huawei is struggling mightily.

The company fell out of the world’s top five organizations in terms of smartphones shipped – the first time it’s ranked outside that group in six years, according to Canalys.

More data has been released regarding how the Los Angeles film market has adjusted to the pandemic, and, though, there are some signs of life and reasons for hope, the numbers are not good.

Reporting out of Hollywood Reporter said that non-profit benefit and research organization for the greater LA media economy, FilmLA, recently released its 2020 Television Report.

The Biden administration continues to lay out some of its early priorities for 2021 and has given some direction on how it plans to approach its COVID-19 response in terms of support for the educational system.

Reporting out of ABC News said that, during its first week in office, the Biden administration announced a multi-layered strategy for responding to the pandemic, focusing specifically on mitigation measures to get students back into the classroom.

To explore strategies for elevating the supply chain surrounding the COVID-19 vaccines and more, host Tyler Kern welcomed David Beaired, President of Beaird Supply Chain and Operational Solutions, who has more than a decade of experience in the space.

“I try to keep things very simple,” Beaird said. “When I look at any supply chain, be it a commercial supply chain, governmental supply chain – I look at it through three lenses: buy, make and move.”

Those three lenses cover sourcing and procurement, production, warehousing, and distribution, and these same concepts can be applied to the evaluation of the supply chain surrounding the COVID-19 vaccines.

Beaird said it’s been a mixed grade, so to speak, with gambles around sourcing and procurement prior to official approval paying off, but the movement of the vaccine, itself, falling short to this point.

“I’m very happy with what’s happened on the ‘get the vaccines to market’ side of the street,” Beaird said. “I’m very concerned about getting the shots in people’s arms.”

To overcome challenges surrounding cold storage, distribution and more, the state and federal governments will need to present a holistic effort at elevating the final stretch of the supply chain, particularly in hard-to-reach areas and for at-risk populations.

“The way this war is going to be won or lost is in how we treat what I call the final mile,” Beaird said.

Jami Herbst spent the first part of her career as a K-12 ESL, Spanish and PE teacher before joining iStation. Now a Professional Development Manager with iStation, Herbst focuses on bilingual development as both a specialist and a lead. She shared her experiences and insights on the challenges English language learners face during the pandemic.

The world of robotics is exciting, with new applications emerging. One critical factor in robotic applications is accuracy, which can be misinterpreted in the field. To dive into the topic, host Tyler Kern welcomed KUKA Robotics Senior Staff Engineer Houssaine Waled.

Fast-food giant Chick-Fil-A is known for its service – and that commitment to moving customers through its restaurants paid off outside the realm of chicken sandwiches recently.

A South Carolina Chick-Fil-A came through in a big way for the local community of Mount Pleasant, highlighting some of the ways Chick-Fila-A has commanded the drive-thru and its excellent customer experience.

Caesar’s Entertainment recently announced a significant "strategic investment" in SuperDraft Inc., a fantasy sports platform.

Though neither party has revealed how much Caesar’s paid for its investment, but it has currently bought a minority stake in SuperDraft. While the initial investment may not blow anyone away, it opens the door for some serious disruption of the sports betting landscape.

Because they deal primarily with physical products, anyone in manufacturing knows that the industry as a whole has taken a hit from the effects of the pandemic. “But COVID isn’t the only crisis that has occurred in the robotics industry,” revealed Robert Little, Founder and CEO of ATI. “What people are not familiar with is the decline in automotive since 2017 – a decline worldwide in the investment in automotive robotics.”

With a new administration comes new policy visions, and the Biden administration has already vocalized some priorities for the United States’ education system.

Reporting out of The 74 Million asserts that the new administration is pointing to the digital divide amongst students as one of the first inequities it plans to tackle, as millions of students still don’t have consistent access to reliable internet to participate in remote or hybrid learning during the pandemic.

Many industries are more optimistic about their sales going into 2021, and it looks like this is panning out for the broader sanitization and cleaning products market. In particular, one company is feeling the boost to its bottom line, as reporting out of Reuters asserts that Procter & Gamble, with a wide array of home and personal care products, has boosted its 2021 sales forecast for a second time.

IoT products and services are growing, but are the cybersecurity tools and strategies necessary to secure networks from threats posed by these technology innovations growing at the same pace?

Two IoT experts from Diversified, Avi Shah, IT Security Engineer, and Adam Bowser, Director of Information Technologies, shared their thoughts on and experiences in keeping networks safe while still taking advantage of all the innovations IoT technology can bring.

In a departure of sorts for Orange Intelligenz, the spotlight on robotics shifted from manufacturing processes to the world of entertainment. From the motion picture industry to themed attractions, KUKA Robotics now stars in a new role, helping these markets make fantasy a reality and bringing joy to the masses.
Mike Beaupre, Sales Director for Entertainment at KUKA Robotics, and ED Volcic, Engineering Manager at KUKA Robotics, spoke about this lighter robotics side.

There’s no question that the remote learning technology that popped up and evolved during the COVID-19 pandemic helped students and teachers engage from a distance under truly extraordinary circumstances.

However, now that the dust has settled, concerns have arisen – specifically around the privacy rights of students asked to take exams and complete other work under the watchful eye of online proctoring services like ProctorU.

Online exam proctoring methods have been drawing heavy criticism due to their often vague set of policies and best practices, as well extremely present and invasive forms of monitoring.

China recently added another Chinese-made-and-sold Tesla to its stable, rolling out the Model Y electric SUV.

The vehicle has now begun deliveries in the country, with Tesla’s Shanghai Gigafactory, which Tesla founder Elon Musk calls a “template for future growth,” producing the cars.

Social media has been in the political and ethical spotlight over the past few weeks, with former President Trump’s Twitter account being suspended, social media apps like Parler being pulled from the App Store after being used to organize violence at the Capitol, and more.

Now, Apple is under fire from the non-profit Coalition for a Safer Web, which has filed a lawsuit to ask the company to ban messaging app Telegram, which has been found to host extremists on its public channels.

This MarketScale industry update saw host Daniel Litwin rewelcome special guest Kevin Hogan, host of MarketScale’s Remote Possibilities and edtech industry expert.

It’s an interesting time for technology in education – with vaccines rolling out around the world and many students already back in school with precautions like masks and social distancing in place, it’s likely that the trend of moving back to in-person education will continue.

IKEA is making investments into its climate positivity commitments, and the strategy is an interesting one. FastCompany reports that Ikea’s parent company, Ingka Group, purchased 11,000 acres of forest in the state of Georgia from the non-profit group Conservation Fund.

Tech giant Apple is responding to a year full of racial unrest with a focus on racial equity, backed up by an investment of $100 million last June, as reported by The Verge.

In the quest for renewable energy growth and the lessening of our environmental impact, there’s a clear frontrunner looking to set the pace in 2021 – solar.

Even with retail struggling through a difficult 2020 in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, a monthly Global Port Tracker report, published by NRF and Hackett Associates, suggests that the United States may still set records for retail imports.

Hot on the heels of continued posturing and announcements from Hyundai about the manufacturer’s plans to enter the electric vehicle market as a more affordable option, the carmaker is apparently also in talks with tech juggernaut Apple about a potential partnership.

The COVID-19 pandemic transformed the landscape of many aspects of life. Still, one of the most noticeable paradigms is the shift in the way education must face the challenges of teaching and engaging students. For higher education, getting it right could mean the difference between staying open or closing doors forever.

A podcast panel of experts came together for some straight talk on the situation, sharing experiences solving these challenges during the pandemic and the solutions that have been instituted to get through these uncertain times and better prepare their institutions for the months to come as the pandemic subsides.

Mike Berger, IT Manager of Classroom Technology at the University of Tennessee Knoxville, and Jodon Bellofatto, Technology-Enhanced Spaces Lead Analyst at the University of California, Merced, led the discussion from the higher ed side.

Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos was among resignations this week after what she called an “inflection point" in the wake of Washington DC-based riots from supporters of President Donald Trump.

Right before resigning, DeVos announced $54 billion in relief funding for reopening K-12 schools, as well as the ongoing analysis and addressing of potential education gaps caused by the transition to remote learning during COVID. That transition will now pass to the administration of Biden, who will take office later this month.

When you think of electric vehicles, or EVs, one name likely comes to mind – Tesla. However, there’s a confident new player on the scene looking to carve out a powerful niche as a more affordable EV option.

Hyundai is entering 2021 with a lot of resources being pumped into its EV output and footprint, and the company plans to have a 10-vehicle EV lineup hit the market by 2022 that includes seven SUVs and three sedans.

Wi-Fi 6E, the biggest upgrade to the technology in decades, is on the horizon.

This new era of Wi-Fi technology is possible thanks to an expansion of wireless airwaves for consumer technology, which were made accessible by the FCC early in 2020, and smartphones, laptops, PCs and more will likely include the functionality as 6E rolls out.

However, that rollout is set to be a gradual one. In fact, IDC predicts that, by 2022, only 20% of Wi-Fi 6 products will also be compatible with Wi-Fi 6E.

On this industry update, hosts Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin tackle the implications of this step forward in Wi-Fi and consumer connectivity, focusing on how the technology might help the world adapt to a “smarter” future in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and its sweeping changes to the ways we interact with one another.

One of the world's most anticipated trade shows, CES 2021, has been kicking off to big reveals this year.

But perhaps the biggest news still surrounding the show is its decision to go 100% virtual. The move reflects both short term COVID responses, as well as confidence from the CES leadership team that the show would continue to attract large numbers of guests.

Fortnite developer Epic Games is cashing in on $1.78 billion in funding it received in 2020, acquiring an 87-acre property for $95 million on which it plans to build a new headquarters.

The company expects to occupy the property, which was home to North Carolina’s Cary Towne Center mall, by 2024.

The move not only highlights the importance and power of gaming’s biggest stars in a world that’s seen video games extend their influence to new heights, but the potential fate of commercial real estate like that of the Cary Towne Center in the face of lagging interest and revenue.

Theater chain AMC, already in debt due to luxury upgrades to its theaters prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, is still desperate for cash.

It’s projected that the chain will need $750 million to hit its 2021 cash requirements, meaning an influx of more than $100 million in December and an attempt to sell 50 million more shares, combined with funding from Mudrick Capital Management, are just drops in the bucket.

The chain is among the hardest hit by the spread of the novel coronavirus, which initially forced cinemas to shutter and continued to wreak havoc on theater chains throughout 2020. Consumers simply aren’t prepared to engage in the shared cinema experience yet, even with hope on the horizon in the form of multiple COVID-19 vaccines.

Trevor Sumner, CEO of Perch, a leader in interactive product engagement and marketing retail displays, knows the future success of retail in-store shopping requires integrating today’s digital technologies.

Those retailers who think about the holistic shopping experience will come out on top. Sumner offered up his take on the retail trends happening during the pandemic and the steps retailers need to take now to position themselves for a successful 2021.

During the pandemic, businesses need solutions that can propel them long after COVID-19. Kelly Harlin (embed contributor page), Analytics Platform Strategist at Sharp NEC Display Solutions America, and Stephen Jenkins (embed contributor page), Senior Director of Intelligent Technology Solutions at Diversified, shared their experience with data-driven analytics in IoT solutions.

Connectivity continues to be a challenge for school districts. Nonprofit Connected Nation reported that only 47% of school districts meet the FCC's 1Mbps/student standard. To put this in perspective, that leaves about two-thirds of students are without “scalable broadband.” While many students are learning virtually, many districts across the country are back in class or in a hybrid model.

Athletes push their bodies to the limits, needing the best options for recovery. Technology is now revolutionizing this. Hyperice offers percussion technology to relieve muscle pain, stiffness, and soreness. After working with the NBA and other professional leagues, the company announced its first collegiate partnership with Kentucky. The brand believes this will be a “platform to jump off in the world of the NCAA.”

With a shopping season like no other, eCommerce is booming, which means a tremendous strain on logistics and delivery. In an attempt to manage demand, UPS and FEDEX worked out plans with their biggest customers that set limits on daily pickups, according to a Wall Street Journal article. Should a shipper exceed this, the carriers must hit pause until they have the capacity to do so.

Nearly seven months after HBO Max's debut, it’s finally available on Roku, the leading OTT (over the top) screening platform with over 46 million active users. As reported in Variety, this new deal will greatly expand HBO Max’s reach, as it now has a presence on all ATT platforms.

When it comes to minimizing carbon footprints, airlines have yet to make any significant impact. The world is changing, with technology making a difference in this realm. ZeroAvia and its forward-thinking model are gaining attention from some well-known investors, including Bill Gates, Amazon, and Shell. It’s also partnering with British Airways. Other airlines are excited as well, with the company’s CEO saying that “more than 10 airlines are preparing to transition to hydrogen fuel by 2023.”

Edtech is an industry that’s seen substantial growth and demand in 2020 due to the pandemic. These needs are pushing platforms to reimagine the space. Edtech startup Aceable received a $50 million investment, which brings their total funding for the last two years to $100 million. The platform grew from being a driver’s ed test prep service to offering online training for drivers and real estate agents. This funding will help the company expand to more professional development, a hot subset of virtual learning. Employees are asking for it, and employers can benefit from upskilling their current teams.

Next year will mark a big milestone for Arbin Instruments, as the leader in the battery and energy storage testing space will turn 30.

Dr. John Zhang founded the company in 1991, and the willingness from Zhang and his team to go above and beyond for each client truly sets Arbin apart, said Katherine Price, Technical Marketing Specialist at Arbin.

“Arbin’s customers come back because they know their sales engineer and the support team and the product team, and everyone is going to give them their 100% to make sure they have the reliable testing equipment that they need and the most innovative product they need to continue with their research,” Price said.

With the calendar turning over and many consumers on a new year-inspired health kick, quickserve juggernaut Chipotle is aiming to take advantage.

The chain’s tacos, burritos and bowls will now be offered with cauliflower rice, a response to a customer survey about what consumers would like to see at the chain and to growing health food trends.

The restaurant is also adding Whole30, ketogenic, vegan and vegetarian options to its Lifestyle Bowls, further playing into the desire for healthier options. It comes at a cost – cauliflower rice will be $2 extra per entrée – but addresses a clear want among the chain’s fanbase and newcomers.

So, what can other organizations glean from Chipotle’s new venture? Hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern tackled that subject in this industry update, pondering how the QSR restaurant made supply chain magic to bring cauliflower to its franchises, if the offering can move from “for a limited time” to a permanent fixture, and how data played a role in informing the chain’s decision.

This could be a signal for a continued shift toward pleasing a new wave of consumers in foodservice in beyond – those who want convenience, variety and options that fit their unique lifestyles.

Teaching is a challenging enough profession without an unprecedented pandemic making things more difficult for faculty, staff and students alike. How do you boost teacher morale during COVID-19 — a pandemic that's gone on longer than anyone expected?

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sciences Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale

The COVID-19 pandemic made the complex world of supply chain management even more daunting, as manufacturers faced challenges unseen in recent memory. The supply chain's fragility was put on full display as climate disasters, geopolitics and a worldwide health crisis were thrown into the works.

Walmart and FedEx are teaming up this holiday season to try to take the sting out of the returns process.

Now, everyone knows that feeling of opening a gift from a well-meaning friend or relative and it's just not something you want or need. You think to yourself that "it's fine, I'll just return it". Then you remember what the returns process entails, especially in the days and weeks following the holidays: long lines, busy stores with no parking, and a lot of hassle. When you add the threat posed by COVID-19 to those pre-existing factors, returning a gift starts to sound even less appealing than getting no gift at all.

Now, Walmart and FedEx are trying to change all of that. The service is called "Carrier Pickup by FedEx," and here's how it works. Customers initiate the return process on Walmart's website or app, schedule a date for pickup and print a label. Then it's simply picked up by a FedEx employee.

For those that don't have a printer, like myself, customers can also make a return at any of the roughly 2,000 US FedEx Office locations by getting a QR code from Walmart's website and a FedEx employee will print a free return label and ship it back.

"No matter how customers buy items, we want the returns experience to be easy, safe and seamless," said Linne Fulcher, vice president for customer strategy, science and journeys at Walmart U.S. He went on to say that this service would continue on beyond the holiday season.

What's important to note here is Walmart recognizing a pain-point in the customer experience and doing their best to remedy it. The process still has its friction points, but this option feels much better to me than the alternative.

Drones can take thousands of images or hours of video of things that previously would’ve been unthinkable.

But what good is all that data if you have no way to sort, analyze, and prioritize it?

Ken Falk, CEO and Founder of Scopito, has a platform that allows users to understand what they have and quickly find what they need to detect.

“Drones allow you to capture much larger amounts of images in a much higher quality than was financially feasible before,” he said. “You need all of this data in high quality and high volume to start doing predictive maintenance work.”

One of ConnexiCore’s customers on the West Coast was set to build a complicated scaffolding setup to analyze a building that it wanted to preserve as part of restoration, but Frank Segarra, the company’s President and Founder, realized it would be much more cost effective, efficient, and FASTER to use drone technology combined with Scopito’s software to create a better workflow.

“They were going to spend well over $100,000 scaffolding both inspection and restoration phases. We came in and surveyed and mapped the entire infrastructure facade on all four sides in two days, completed it for under $20,000, and gave them more data than they could imagine,” Segarra said.

At the top of the tower, Segarra and his team discovered an ornate 40lb. section of copper on the cupola that had come completely unmoored from its base. Because this unmoored piece of copper was completely unknown from the contractor as it sat in a blind spot from the ground, the drone inspection prevented what could have become a lethal projectile if a gust of wind were to blow it off. With many commercial buildings across the country reaching the century mark of age, new regulations in many cities are looking to prevent fatal incidents caused by pieces of a facade chipping off and hitting someone below, these technologies will be crucial for building owners looking to comply with local codes.

Learn more about the impact of data on drone projects by tuning in to the Drone Insights and Technology episode 1.

TODAY’S GUEST

Ken Falk, CEO and Founder, Scopito

Scopito is the leading software platform to store, analyze and share visual inspections. Ken initially offered drone inspections as a service for power line inspections, though soon realized that the industry needed an effective way to manage data. Leveraging his computer engineering background developing mission-critical systems for the defense industry, Ken and his team developed the innovative Scopito platform. Now Scopito is available to drone operators around the world to help them effectively manage thousands or even millions of inspection images.

America is desperate for some optimism in the fight against COVID-19, and on Monday Pfizer delivered. The pharmaceutical company’s initial COVID vaccine, developed in partnership with the BioNTech, released findings that the vaccine was 90% effective in early tests. Though more testing is needed, the news is a bright spot, and the science community is celebrating the milestone. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the US’s Infectious Disease Expert, said the news was “just extraordinary,” according to AP News.

With a potential vaccine on the horizon, and still more companies with their own vaccines in late stage trials, the future seems bright. But MarkeStcale hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern pose some critical questions about what this means for business in America. Tyler considers what this will mean for the economy as businesses see the possibility of bouncing back on the horizon, and Daniel questions, with Pfizer’s vaccine being entirely self-funded, the ethics surrounding a successful vaccine from a privately-funded pharmaceutical giant.

When McDonald’s added a meat free alternative to their menu with the Beyond Meat burger, the coupling between the two companies seemed to be a win-win. But McDonald’s recent announcement of the McPlant burger, a product that does not bear the Beyond name, is a surprise for investors of both brands. The announcement leaves many unanswered questions about suppliers and partnerships moving into the future. Both companies decline to report on who will be a supplier for the new product, according to CNBC.

MarketScale hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern consider what is in store for the two food brands. As Beyond Meat looks at an uncertain future, Litwin predicts a potential buyout of the company, even if they find success in another behind-the-scenes or B2B relationship. Kern emphasizes the uncertainty on the line, and what dropping the major partnership would mean for the company.

That’s not unique in the automation community, but the Regional Head of Advanced Robotic Applications at KUKA Robotics has explored plenty of different avenues of robotics in her career. Right now, though, she’s focused in on one project: Mobile robots.

“I find it really exciting. If you look at my CV, this is the first time I’ve stayed with the same topic for now over five years,” she said. “I think it’s that there is still so much to learn: What works best? Where else can I put it into? As I told you, one of the really fun parts is to see all these different facilities and production processes and environments, be it food production or whatever, that’s really exciting but also when you explain your technology to your potential customers and see the engineers brain working … I really enjoy it.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, mobile robotics have proved especially useful in some of those settings, with Ebenhoech noting that clients who work in labs are no longer needing to be near each other and risk the spread of the virus thanks to the ability to reply on mobile robots to perform some of their lab work.

“They can do their human, highly sophisticated brainwork, but they don’t have to go to the lab all the time any more,” she said. “So, that helps a lot in the specific application. If you think about what these mobiles do, they connect workstations which are often people. Having a robot connecting these different points instead of humans helps with social distancing.”

Oh boy. Now they’ve really gone and done it. Arc Specialties President Dan Allford always enjoys getting a little spicy on The Roboticist Chronicles, but in this edition it’s a full-on spirited debate with host Tyler Kern.

You may have heard back-and-forth about lockdowns, which most nations have implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic to stem the spread of the deadly virus, but very few started with a three-pawed lion in Zambia.

“Here was an aspect of (lockdowns) I hadn’t even considered: What happens when tourist dollars get cut off to these places,” Allford said of a recent trip to Africa. “Specifically, people get laid off and some of the people being laid off are the anti-poaching squad. And, the anti-poaching squad, these are tough guys.”

“Most of the time it’s no violent conflict. What they’re doing is removing snares. These snares are truly horrible.”

A lockdown would make it more difficult for tourists from North America or Europe to take a trip to Africa and stimulate the local economy. This results in fewer resources to combat poaching in the grassy plains of Zambia bringing harm to lions.

Business has continued at Arc, with Allford able to bring his team to work thanks to being an essential business with not only the ability but the obligation to continue manufacturing. But Allford said he hopes even with COVID cases back on the rise that the government allows people to make their own decisions.

“I would say the lockdown has to be voluntary. If anybody wants to lockdown is welcome to do it, and hopefully they have the resources to do it,” he said. “Now, I don’t think we should support this to public dollars to the point where we bankrupt our grandkids either, but I think those of us that want to go to work, kids that want to go to school should have the right to.”

Kern gives his own thoughts as well. Spoiler: The resolution at the end is both men agreeing to disagree after an Arc podcast unlike any other.

It doesn’t matter how innovative your product is if your potential customers don’t know about it or understand why they should buy it.

Johnny Tyler, Marketing and Design Specialist at Arc Specialties, has seen many companies adopt an unambitious marketing strategy – or, worse, not even draw out a strategy at all - rather than invest resources in something that can make even a small company a globally known name in the internet age.

“I think a lot of people look at the marketing aspect of things as a secondary position or something they might have to do or might not have to do based on how their business is going, but I think if you get the right marketing person in there, somebody that can take all the aspects of your company, put it in a box with a nice bow and present it to these people, people get a chance to see your company that probably have never even thought about your company,” Tyler said.

That person doesn’t need to have a background in your field. Tyler’s first-ever professional graphic design gig came from Wendy’s. Later, he moved into the oil and gas world, a more natural transition to robotics, but still there was a learning curve as he started working with true automation tools.

“In my mind, what I’m thinking I’m going to see vs. what I actually saw was night and day,” he said. “It’s not the sci-fi robotics I was used to envisioning. It’s more the different types of robots, different applications, the number of axes robots have, the size, the weight and the fact that there are robots who are collaborative, working with you.”

For Tyler, the relationship with a marketing person also should be collaborative, efficient and, ultimately, something that makes your life easier and helps your company grow.

Kee Safety’s Peter Woodliffe Thomas has traveled all over the world and observed various sites in hopes of getting them to his standard, which is whole-site safety. While on different sites around the globe, he’s seen a culture’s general attitude about safety transfer over into the workplace.

“An awful lot comes from what people deem to be acceptable,” Woodliffe Thomas said. “You’ll see things in Asia that people deem to be acceptable or in India that people deem to be acceptable, such as riding a motorcycle without a crash helmet or driving a car without a seatbelt, and it’s just considered acceptable.”

Another factor is more economically developed countries spending more money on safety, creating “a self-fulfilling prophecy,” Woodliffe Thomas said. “You start to spend money on safety, things that appear to be less safe become unacceptable to people, you then begin to spend more money on safety, and it just gets better and better and better. That is a big part of it.”

Often, Woodliffe-Thomas and Dan Huntington agreed, those standards of acceptability can change with the generations. While an older person in North America may still be comfortable riding in a car without a seat belt, few young people feel the same thanks to both legislation and cultural shifts.

“In my experience, children grow up looking at their parents for guidance until a certain point in their life,” he said. “That’s generally sort of 16, 17, 18, when they look at something their parents do and they actually get enough knowledge to then stand back and look and say, ‘Really? I don’t think that’s the right thing to be doing.’”

That’s why education is so critical, both for companies working in sites but also for the general public, to make sure everyone understand the goal. It’s not to prevent people from doing things, but to enable them to do whatever they’d like safely.

Smart home technology began with the invention of clap-on-clap-off lamps in the 80’s, and has since evolved into intelligent tech that can monitor a building’s temperature, light, and security. This same tech is making its way into industrial environments and saving businesses big bucks. The Polygon Group has designed an innovative smart thermostat, ExactAire, and packed with an array of sensors to help construction companies and warehouse enterprises remotely monitor and control a building's climate. On today's episode of the Building Management Podcast, we discussed ExactAire’s capabilities and benefits with Don Schnell, sales director at Polygon Group, and Brandon Willis, creative director at EyeType Consulting LLC. So what sets ExactAire apart from most smart thermostats? As the most advanced system on the market for monitoring and controlling environmental conditions, ExactAire is leading the charge in interior climate control. Not just a thermostat, ExactAir can also monitor and sense humidity, dew point, CO2 levels, harmful vapors, and more. With real-time updates and alarms sent over a cellular network, ExactAire’s iPad friendly software can save expensive machines from rusting, or costly product from being spoiled. Clients like the US Navy have seen the value in this tech, and other industries like construction, metalworks, food processing, and machine storage have also invested in ExactAire technology to help their bottom line. The energy savings alone help clients hone in on unnecessary spending, in addition to preserving product when workers aren’t present to monitor a facility. A 24-hour battery backup saves systems from shutting down in the event of an unexpected power outage. In short: If there’s a sensor, there’s a way.
“There are all kinds of different ways to tie into the monitoring and alarming system that we’ve developed here.” Schnell said, assuring that the ExactAire framework is primed and ready to be customized to a client’s needs.

The hiring industry, like every industry the world over, has been forced to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic and find unique ways to come out of this unprecedented period stronger than ever.

“The effect of this on the employment side has been, obviously, devastating,” said Bill Kasko, Frontline Source Group President and CEO.

“This has been so much different than a recession that we can kind of see coming over the hill. As the clouds roll in, we can prepare for it, and we know what’s coming. This just hit us all out of the blue.”

For Frontline, itself, that’s meant adapting to remote work requirements, assessing the implications of returning to the office across a wide range of industries, and more.

While Kasko said the industry effectively “fell off a cliff” in the wake of the pandemic, six months later, there are signs of hope.

“I’m happy to report that, six months into this, recovery is happening,” he said. “It’s slow, and it’s in different sectors. … But I will tell you that Texas is very strong. Texas is back on the right path, and it’s happening. It’s just not happening like we want.”

In particular, the hospitality, restaurant and travel industries are still struggling to rebound, exemplifying a more widespread impact that previous economic events, which often targeted fewer sectors.

To continue working toward recovery, Kasko said the emphasis needs to be on the portion of the population still working and on the people, processes and service that have enabled some companies to weather the storm more effectively than others.

“There wasn’t a book on this, so we’re doing the best we can to get people back to work. … I told someone the other day, we’re at 11% unemployment,” he said. “That’s still 89% of the people working. We need to focus on that.”

COAST Autonomous has one mission: to keep people and businesses moving safely. Leveraging a portfolio of proprietary, best-in-class technologies and sensors, COAST offers a variety of efficient, cost-effective, ready to deploy low-speed self-driving fleets that safely move passengers and goods over both the first and last mile.

Hosting special guests to discuss unique topics surrounding autonomous vehicles and self-driving technologies, on this second segment in a two-part episode of the Connected with COAST Autonomous podcast series, COAST President Adrian Sussmann and CTO Pierre LeFevre sit down with two accomplished British racing car afficionados—three-time 24 Hours of LeMans champion Allan McNish and three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti—to focus on the topics of perception and prediction in driving on the racetrack versus city-center roads.

In professional racing, drivers rely on perception—a 360˚ view of what’s all around them—in order to predict well in advance what moves they must make during a race.

With average speeds in the Indianapolis 500 that run between 220 to 230 miles per hour, this is easier said than done.

“You have to focus a long way in the distance to give your brain the time to process what you’re focused on,” Franchitti said. “If you look to closely in front, you simply cannot process it, no matter how much you practice. So, you focus further ahead. But then you’ve got to be doing scanning, as well. You’re constantly doing all these different scans as far as almost half a mile away. You’re looking as far as you can and then bringing that focus back up a bit more, maybe looking down a bit, up again, side to side. You’re having to process all these visual cues that you’re getting, as well as driving the car, as well as making the calculations in your head about risk assessment. I think driving on the track is a much different thing than driving on the road.”

“What we (regular drivers) do, we narrow down our view. But as a racing driver, you clearly have to have more of a 360˚ view of what’s going on. Therefore, your peripheral vision is extremely important. The wider you can see, the more information you can take in,” McNish said. “All in all, it is a completely different picture to what you would naturally see on the road purely because of that excessive speed, but the skillset is still the same.”

McNish also pointed out that in racing, drivers are focused on the track and other drivers, but they don’t necessarily have all of the distractions that normal drivers are confronted with—radios, phone calls, pedestrians, parked cars, etc.

And because the typical driver—even race car drivers—are fallible, not fully concentrating on the potential hazards as they travel from point A to B, Franchitti and McNish both feel that it may actually be more dangerous driving in urban settings than it is on the racetrack at high speeds.

That’s where AV solutions can really make a difference. Enabling passenger mobility in low speed environments (campuses, cities, airports and more) minus the distractions that increase the risk of automobile accidents, autonomous vehicles also help reduce pollution and traffic congestion while opening up more city-center space for development.

Bringing thought leadership to your day, MarketScale hosts industry experts so that you stay informed of the newest trends, events and beyond in B2B. Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

With a purpose to keep the public moving smoothly while giving cities back to the people (and not to cars), COAST Autonomous is a self-driving mobility company with best-in-class software focused on providing Autonomous Vehicle (AV) solutions in low-speed environments, i.e., campuses, cities, airports and more.

Through their proven manufacturer and other partnerships, COAST’s AV product development is concentrated solely on three critical areas:

Safety First
Passenger Experience
Low Speed

On this segment of the Connected with COAST Autonomous podcast series (the first of a two-part episode), COAST President Adrian Sussmann and CTO Pierre LeFevre chat with two Scots-born racing legends—three-time Indianapolis 500 champion, Dario Franchitti, and three-time 24 Hours of LeMans winner, Allan McNish.

Offering unique insights into the world of autonomous vehicles and self-driving technology, Sussman and LeFevre delve into McNish and Franchitti’s love of driving, the risks of driving race cars and pedestrian vehicles, the impact autonomous vehicles will have on driving, racing and personal vehicles in the future, as well as the overall value that AVs can bring to cities.

For McNish, cars have always represented two things: a love—because it was something so ingrained into his childhood—and also, a means—a way to put food on the table. Around cars all his life, prior to launching his career in racing, McNish grew up in his father’s dealership, gaining a great understanding of how vehicles work from the ground up.

“We are in such a changing time, and it’s such an opportunity, but we’ve got to be on to it, because, to be honest, we’re going to be seeing some movement in technology and the way we do things—the way we use cars and the way we just use mobility—changing quicker than ever before,” McNish said. “And it’s now! It’s not in five or 10 years’ time. It is now, and that excites me. I like that.”

With a grandmother who used to bring him model racing cars from Italy when he was a young child—which he still displays proudly on shelves—Franchitti has also been around cars all his life, triggering a passion that literally “drove” him into his racing career years ago and a love for different cars and driving that still continues to propel him today.

For someone who lives about 20 miles from London’s city center but takes anywhere from two to three hours in traffic to get there, Franchitti sees a true need for an alternative to the personal vehicle, particularly in low speed environments—one that fits with COAST Autonomous’ purpose of giving the cities back to the people.

“We have to come up with a better solution,” Franchitti said. “It’s just not sustainable. It’s not tenable.”

However, Franchitti worries somewhat about the fusion of people-driven cars and AVs in the same areas, and society’s preparedness—be it the readiness of today’s AV technology, road infrastructure or the individual driver’s mindset.

What’s your favorite beverage?

If you didn’t answer “water,” Susan Witz is hoping to change that.

The Lifestyle Health Coach with Advocate Aurora Health is a huge fan of hydration, not only for some of its immediate benefits but also for the overall boost staying hydrated gives to health.

“Our level of hydration affects everything, and it’s related to our mental focus. Also, when we exercise, it’s crucial we’re well-hydrated,” Witz said. “It’s important to manage blood pressure, to prevent kidney stones – many, many areas of our health are affected by our hydration level.”

To keep hydrated, Witz recommends people fall in love with drinking water but also has practical tips, such as bringing your own container to your workspace or having a glass or two of water upon waking up, even before a morning coffee.

“I encourage people that it’s really important to look into (hydration) and leave yourself little notes like sticky notes, notes on the computer,” she said. “And, for those who don’t like water, you can make your own flavored water, or a really nice, clean-tasting filtered water is good. Some people like to sip through a straw.

“Having water easily available in safe containers at your desk or in your car (makes it) very easy to have water when you need it and not wait until you get somewhere and then forget about it.”

It’s all about finding ways to enjoy water and make sure the liquids being consumed aren’t bringing unhealthy ingredients or even working as a diuretic to further dehydrate the body.

Tania Sanchez wasn’t sure what she wanted to do after high school.

Then, she started working at Antunes and realized she was exactly where she wanted to be.

“I liked the work. I wanted to be part of something. At that time, there was a Wendy’s project that was a huge rollout, and I was able to learn a lot of things and able to be part of a team and help a team,” she said.

Later, thanks to Antunes programs that provide reimbursement for college, Sanchez secured her associate’s degree, worked in various parts of the company and rose to the position of Service Parts Supervisor.

It’s a special story, but one that isn’t entirely unique at Antunes, because the company seeks to keep the family atmosphere it had when Vice President Jane Bullock’s father founded it more than 60 years ago.

That manifests itself in programs like those Sanchez benefited from, but also in a commitment to health and wellness that goes beyond simply a ping pong table (which Antunes does have) and extends to a full gym, plus a clinic with a doctor and nurse on site and a flexible time-off policy.

“We need to grow. We need to be profitable. And we need to keep our eye on expanding. But, with all of that, there’s a great amount of responsibility to give back and be part of the community and touch as many lives as we can,” said Glenn Bullock, Antunes CEO. “We can’t do that unless we’re profitable, but, as a company, we really do talk a lot about our corporate social responsibility and how we can generate those benefits for all the people we touch.”

COVID-19 all but stopped amateur and professional sports at all levels of competition. Slowly, sports are returning, and with that time off comes the added risk of injury. How can athletes, no matter their sport or level of training and workouts, reduce injury risk, especially on overused or recovering joints?

Lauren Rao is an experienced athletic trainer, weightlifting coach, and certified strength and conditioning specialist. She’s seen the injuries athletes go through and knows the importance of injury prevention.

In business development with SmartCells USA, Rao offered some advice as the sports world begins its adventure into the new normal.

In terms of injury prevention, “the obvious benefit to the athlete is they don’t get hurt [and] they continue to play their sport pain-free and continue to keep their focus on improving performance,” Rao said. “Ultimately, we want the body to be healthy, and we want to improve performance in such a way that adds stressors to the body gradually so the body can adjust and adapt to it. When the body can’t adapt, injuries happen.”

One critical element in training Rao mentioned is the surfaces on which athletes train. Using the same principle of gradual stress buildup, when an athlete who hasn’t trained for months steps out onto a hard surface, they are putting a lot of stress on their body without that adjustment period.

“Some athletes work out on concrete floors. Those are awful for you,” Rao said. “Anybody that’s stood in a warehouse for multiple hours in a row knows that when you are on that surface, even just standing, you start getting lower back pain. It’s not a very comfortable position. So, imagine playing a sport on top of those surfaces. By the end of the day, your joints hurt.”

With athletes returning to sports and active training, what can they do, and how can SmartCells help with that process?

“SmartCells has a lineup of products that can help everyone from the weekend warrior to the college athlete,” Rao said.

SmartCells can help reduce up to 70-90% of impact forces on the body, and solutions range from mats to flooring solutions and even custom insoles.

Chris Pollock gets technology, and he understands people.

With education and experience in both computer engineering and pastoral care, Pollock understands man and machine and their idiosyncrasies.

For Pollock, people and technology often aren’t as far apart as one might think. The key is using both for what they’re best at.

“When you do decide to use technology, I like to use the phrase, ‘Let people do what people do, and computers do what computers can do,’” said Pollock, Group Digital Marketing Director at Kee Safety. “People are really good at talking to people, intuitively understanding problems, empathizing with people. Computers are terrible about that. I don’t get much emotional validation when talking to my phone, but computers are really great at remembering things, storing things, and managing data.”

That includes data like the information stored in the dynamic risk assessment app Kee Safety designed for companies, but Pollock stressed that if people aren’t trained and on board with utilizing features in an app, website or other forms of technology, it won’t pay off in the long run.

“Don’t have the wrong expectations going into it. Don’t expect that technology is a silver bullet. If you think that just by giving somebody an app or setting up a website that automatically all those things are going to happen, this ‘If you build it they will come mentality,’ you’re going to waste your investment,” he said.

Instead, Pollock urged bringing the people who will be utilizing the technology into the process to make sure the right questions are being asked as the app is being designed.

That way, both people and technology are working together, and enterprises are getting the best out of both.

Joseph Harrison managed the Safe Drinking Water Branch of the EPA from 1974 to 1990. When it comes to the importance of safe drinking water, and the best ways to achieve it, Harrison is the expert. The purification of drinking water supplies is of great importance to public health, and modern advancements in this endeavor began in the 1890s. In the past twenty years, Harrison pointed out there are thousands of synthetic organic chemicals used in products that can get into the water supply. Today's drinking water technologies are focused on removing these chemicals.

Due to the expense of some high-technology water purification systems, it is cost-prohibitive for many municipalities to employ such solutions to treat city water supplies. However, the same technology can be used in home water treatment products to purify drinking water at an affordable price point. Harrison used water distillation as an example. “Cities and towns aren’t going to distill all of their water supply, and then supply that distilled water out of their distribution pipes. But these techniques can be used at home when you’re just treating your drinking water, and you can make it safer than what the cities and towns can do.”

With today’s water purification technologies, there is a multitude of solutions for home drinking water safety. “With things like a carbon block, or reverse osmosis membranes, different kinds of ion exchange resins with specialty features added into them can be used to take practically everything out of the water except the h2o part of it,” Harrison said.

It’s no secret that in the battle against COVID-19, today’s heroes are those essential workers who have gone through the storm and keep working to help others and provide much-needed services.

SmartCells wanted to show their appreciation for these essential workers and contribute to their efforts. Chad Lindstrom, the VP of marketing at SmartCells, elaborated.

“We wanted to find a way to give back,” Lindstrom said. “We knew these workers’ jobs were stressful. We knew their days were jam-packed, running around on their feet all day, and that’s where our products shine. When you’re always on your feet, we help you feel better. If we could take some element of stress and pain out of their day, that would be great.”

The solution? SmartCells put together a campaign to help local healthcare facilities.

“We started right in our backyard and opened up a free mat program. It was to help healthcare facilities to reduce fatigue,” Lindstrom said.

The program proved so successful that, eventually, it was rolled out across the nation.

“We gave away more than 600 mats, and the feedback we’ve received from these hospitals and urgent care clinics made the whole experience so rewarding,” Lindstrom said.

And, as businesses begin to open up, Lindstrom sees opportunities for SmartCells to play a role in social distancing safety measures.

“We can create multiple color mats. Let’s say you have a runner that’s three feet wide, and it goes for 20 feet along a pick line in a facility. There’s a lot of employees standing along that runner utilizing our anti-fatigue technology," Lindstrom said. "We created a technique where, every six feet, you can insert a different color. We call it our safe space solution.”

It’s another small but helpful way companies can provide safety to their employees during this unprecedented time.

Be sure to subscribe to our industry publication for the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building Management Industry.

Oxidation buildup is one of the challenges faced when trying to spot weld aluminum. Even when creating a good weld, oxidation can build up on the weld tips.

“Buildup of oxidation causes inconsistencies in the welds,” Andre Young said. Young is a Business Development Manager for Automotive OEM and Tier 1 at KUKA Robotics.

According to Young, each OEM and Tier 1 manufacturer of sheet metal has its techniques to combat oxidation issues. Sometimes, they will abrade the surface to remove the oxidation layer, and other people will perform a chemical cleaning on the aluminum. No matter the method, over time, oxidation buildup will require tip dressing to clean up the spot-welding tip.

Another tool in the tool belt for spot welders is KUKA Robotics’ RoboSpin, application software that executes rotational motion about the TCP (tool center point) during the welding process.

It prevents adherence of the tips to the metal, which improves weld quality and extends tip life.

“The rotation performs the abrading as it creates the weld and wipes the tips clean as it's rotating,” Young said. “You’re getting good contact with the aluminum, reducing that resistance at the surface, directing energy to where you want it and creating a good weld.”

The coronavirus pandemic hasn’t been easy for anyone, but leaders and executives charged with charting the path forward for their companies have had plenty on their mind.

Luckily, there are ways to get through these difficult moments and begin to rebound mentally and economically, said Jackie Werblo, Founder and Head Coach of CONVEX Leadership.

Werblo has five steps that show leadership during a crisis. The first is take action and eliminate reaction.

“I think it’s no different than in any life situation. If you sit back too long, the opportunity is missed. The window of opportunity closes,” Werblo said. “Yes, another door may open, another window may open, but that first person through gets to set the standard of what’s expected.”

The second is to be prepared to act when you have 60-70% of the facts you need.

The third step is to be willing to pivot or correct course when more information becomes available. Werblo pointed out that expert pilots are comfortable course-correcting on long-haul flights, and executives should be just as nimble.

The fourth step is to over-communicate.

“There is no such thing as too much communication during a period of crisis, because people want to hear, or they will make stuff up,” Werblo said. “If people make stuff up, what you have is a problem with miscommunication or misinformation or false information at its worst.”

The fifth and final step is to be courageous.

If leaders are able to put all five steps into action, Werblo said, they’ll be dealing with a workplace that is much more prepared to face the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic and much more likely to have success in achieving the company’s goals.

Technology has caused disruptions in many industries, allowing for innovation and new efficiencies. The restaurant industry is no different. Technology has been a part of this industry for decades, going back to the first cash registers, which then evolved into sophisticated POS systems.
So, what are restaurants doing right now to embrace technology? TableSafe’s director of product management Ryerson Schlitt table shared his perspective on today’s episode of Table for Two.
Restaurants have a variety of ways to integrate technology that can positively impact the customer experience. Consumers can go online and make reservations or take orders in a snap, but what about when it comes to the interactions inside the restaurants?
“Payment processing is a big part of the customer experience. It needs to be simple, fast, and secure. And there are outside factors driving this. For example, the need to read chip cards,” Schlitt said.
The challenge often comes with ensuring that the chip card reader is actually efficient. “If the technology isn’t effective, there are more steps to pay, reducing the number of diners that can be served, which isn’t good for either the restaurant of the consumer,” he added.
When looking at its impact on service, it’s important to note the shift in consumer expectations. “They are driving this transformation, and restaurants have to respond,” Schlitt said.
When it comes to payment processing, it’s not really a one-size-fits-all. The design of such a system has to be universal and meet the needs across all demographics. Schlitt calls this one of the biggest challenges to payment processing design.

This podcast originally aired on MarketScale's Food & Beverage Podcast. Owning a restaurant is a tough, multi-faceted business. It can be challenging enough getting diners in the door, but when it comes to processing their payment, it’s more complex than restaurateurs may realize. Not only are market trends transitioning toward new technologies, but the liability for credit card transactions has shifted as well. TableSafe is a part of revolutionizing the Restaurant and Hospitality industries, by offering businesses Pay-at-the-Table technologies that have recently emerged in the U.S. TableSafe’s Payment Product Manager, Nydelis Ortiz Rivera discussed the growth these devices have experienced, and how innovations will continue to provide an availability of solutions to merchants on this episode of our podcast. “It’s not only about what solution is best for the restaurant, but what solution will allow restaurants the best experience for their customers,” Ortiz-Rivera said. With any restaurant, the goal is always to enhance the customer experience, and with emerging technologies, it’s important for owners to find best-fit, simple solutions to serve that purpose.

Statistics show that data breach and stolen personally identifiable information (PII) are increasing at alarming rates. According to a recent article in Payments Journal – Know Thy Fraudster, the amount of compromised PII increased 72% between the first half of 2017 to the same period of 2018. Compromised PII often results in the criminal obtaining access to additional financial records including bank accounts, PINs and credit card accounts. This type of fraud is known as account takeover (ATO).
Fraudsters specializing in ATOs gain access to their victims’ accounts, then make non-monetary changes that include modifying personal information, requesting a new card or PIN or adding an authorized user. Once this routine account modification is complete, the thief is then empowered to carry out undetected illegal transactions. ATO fraud doesn’t discriminate - everything from government and employee benefits, wireless phone contracts, checking, savings, credit card, and e-commerce accounts are at risk.
Although the bulk of fraudulent purchases are made online, the supply of stolen credit card numbers and PII often originates from data breaches involving card-present POS systems. Compromised access to payment transactions and loyalty program data can pave the path for obtaining credit card or other financial details used to steal PII and purchase goods online.
Investing in basic network fraud protection is not enough to combat the devious fraudster who makes his living on ATO scams. As detailed in the Know Thy Fraudster article, you need to know the thief you are trying to thwart and then build security measures throughout your establishment. In actuality, you are not dealing with a single thief; you’re attempting to battle a ring of sophisticated ATO specialists. They are an efficient team of experts working together so they can maximize the number of attempts, share vulnerabilities and utilize individual team specialties. One section of the fraud ring may focus on acquiring data, another in selling the data and another in automation. Collectively they share the profits. To counter this den of thieves, you need to build a secure system throughout your establishment to minimize access to data, including at the point of payment.
At TableSafe we believe that minimizing the threat of data breach begins with a secure payment process that follows the strictest security standards including PCI and EMV. We protect individuals’ PII through point-to-point encryption and eliminating the need for PII to reside on the POS system. Hackers can’t steal what was never there, to begin with.
In the end, you need to realize that fraud is literally a full-time occupation for some people. If your venue doesn’t take fraud seriously, your defenses are down against people who are ready and willing to take advantage of you. Sadly, the fraudster community will always find the path of least resistance. Don’t let that be your ATO exposure to the fraudster community.

Statistics show that data breach and stolen personally identifiable information, or PII, are increasing at alarming rates. According to a recent article in Payments Journal – Know Thy Fraudster, the amount of compromised PII increased 72% between the first half of 2017 to the same period of 2018. Compromised PII often results in a criminal obtaining access to additional financial records including bank accounts, PINs and credit card accounts. This type of fraud is known as account takeover, or ATO.
Fraudsters specializing in ATOs gain access to their victims’ accounts, then make non-monetary changes that include modifying personal information, requesting a new card or PIN or adding an authorized user. Once this routine account modification is complete, the thief is then empowered to carry out undetected illegal transactions. ATO fraud doesn’t discriminate - everything from government and employee benefits, wireless phone contracts, checking, savings, credit card, and e-commerce accounts are at risk.
Although the bulk of fraudulent purchases are made online, the supply of stolen credit card numbers and PII often originates from data breaches involving card-present POS systems. Compromised access to payment transactions and loyalty program data can pave the path for obtaining credit card or other financial details used to steal PII and purchase goods online.
Investing in basic network fraud protection is not enough to combat the devious fraudster who makes his living on ATO scams. As detailed in the Know Thy Fraudster article, you need to know the thief you are trying to thwart and then build security measures throughout your establishment. In actuality, you're not dealing with a single thief; you’re attempting to battle a ring of sophisticated ATO specialists. They're an efficient team of experts working together so they can maximize the number of attempts, share vulnerabilities and utilize individual team specialties. One section of the fraud ring may focus on acquiring data, another in selling the data and another in automation. Collectively they share the profits. To counter this den of thieves, you need to build a secure system throughout your establishment to minimize access to data, including at the point of payment.
TableSafe believes that minimizing the threat of data breach begins with a secure payment process that follows the strictest security standards including PCI and EMV. The company's solutions protect individuals’ PII through point-to-point encryption and eliminating the need for PII to reside on the POS system. Hackers can’t steal what was never there, to begin with.
In the end, you need to realize that fraud is literally a full-time occupation for some people. If your venue doesn’t take fraud seriously, your defenses are down against people who are ready and willing to take advantage of you. Sadly, the fraudster community will always find the path of least resistance. Don’t let that be your ATO exposure to the fraudster community.

Dr. Stefan Kreuzer has seen his fellow surgeons shrug at advancements involving robots in surgery.

If they can drive home without a GPS, why involve robots in a process that already leads to a good outcome?

For Kreuzer, though, getting an assist from automation is like utilizing GPS software to check traffic patterns or suggest the best route home, even if a driver already knows one way to get the job done.

“A good surgeon can have good outcome most of the time, but that’s just not good enough. We need to have a not-so-good surgeon have excellent outcome all the time, and I think that’s where robotics can play a huge role,” Kreuzer said. “Because, currently, there’s a frightening statistic – 70% of all knee replacements are done by surgeons who do 10 or fewer a year. If we can make that surgeon a better surgeon for those 10 operations, and [add] robotics, if we train them properly, just about anybody can incorporate that into their work flow. I think we’ve done a great deal of good for society.”

Seeking the greater good is what excites ARC Specialties President Dan Allford about linking up with Dr. Kreuzer. A patient of Kreuzer’s put the pair in contact after learning of Dr. Kreuzer’s interest in robotics. The Houston residents have been able to work together to consider how to improve current methods of robotic surgery, especially in joint replacement.

That’s resulted in Allford and ARC utilizing collaborative robots and an articulated arm rather than the SCARA arms currently in use.

“This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time. In my opinion, there’s no higher calling than medicine, and, as a roboticist, I don’t get to do a lot of medicine,” Allford said. “So, I was eager to learn something more about the industry.”

With influence from Dr. Kruezer, Allford hopes he can combine the best of human minds and robotic work to produce something that truly contributes to society.

Sitting in a classroom and learning about engineering is much different from actually being on the job.

That’s why Dr. Peter Loos, Professor in the Practice of Materials Science and Nanoengineering at Rice University, has such a critical role. He works with seniors on their capstone projects, taking their ideas and training from the theoretical to the practical and exposing some of the gaps that might exist.

There are many lessons to be learned, he said, not least of which is the way materials are acquired in the real world versus the plans students may draw up on paper.

“In college, most of the courses are just an endless array of possibilities, so typically students are really not taught much at all about industry practices and industry standard procedures,” Loos said. “Every major company has vast sets of standards by which they purchase materials, so outside of academia, whenever materials are bought and sold, there’s a vast array of specifications. We really have to teach them quite a lot about that. It doesn’t happen in those other classes, so it tends to be part of those capstone projects.”

Loos is an old friend of Arc Specialties President Dan Allford, dating back to their days with Howard Hughes’ Hughes Tool Company, and they’ve enjoyed working together in their current capacity, as well.

Allford helps shepherd along some of the projects and starts training the next generation of engineers. Some projects haven’t come to fruition, but one of the latest, a knee prosthesis project done in conjunction with the Rice MSNE department to test materials used in artificial knees, shows promise.

“This whole thing is a spinoff of robotic surgery. We saw a need for something better than the cobalt chrome material, because even if you can tolerate the wear, all the wear particles that are created, you don’t want them floating in your body,” XXX said. “It’s more than just a replacement issue. We’re trying to avoid having those particles move about.”

With their experience with surface coatings, they now believe they have a solution using titanium as a bearing surface.

It’s all gotten students to take their knowledge outside of the classroom, where they can start working on solutions for the real world.

*Keeping students safe on the modern Internet

*Managing the massive increase of device time use

*Understanding the new teacher/student dynamic

Mike Mumau, President Emeritus for Kee Safety, North America, joined Dan Huntington for this episode of the Rooftop Report to discuss his experiences in the fall protection and safety industries. Mumau was thrilled to take this opportunity to address safety issues and the topics surrounding safety he felt were not talked about enough in North America today.

“In my 20 years with Kee Safety, the most eye-opening thing for me is that we can make a real difference, and we do need to make a difference because workers’ lives depend on it,” Mumau said. “I think there’s nothing more important than sending someone back home to their family after a day’s work. And I think we need to take that more seriously.”

Mumau believes the way workplace safety’s approached in the U.S. is a reactive approach, and in his mind, the wrong path. “In the U.S., OSHA tends to get involved after the accident, and not enough before something happens,” Mumau said. “I’m trying to get the industry to look at safety proactively. Because it’s not just about compliance, it’s about safety.”

While Mumau said some industries are making progress, and in the past couple of years, he’s seen concern about workplace safety increase, the reality is workplace deaths in the U.S. due to accidents is trending up in the past five years, not down. The reason, Mumau believes, is too often compliance is approached by companies as checking a box, and not taking the extra precautions to ensure workers are kept safe, not just complying with safety regulations. And while Mumau can’t speak to what increased safety compliance measures and standards OSHA might adapt in the future, he is confident that his number one goal in working with businesses will remain worker safety.

ARC Specialties President Dan Allford often refers to the “three Ds” of automation, looking into industries that are dirty, dull and dangerous and seeing if robotics can step in.

Allford is exploring another area that fits the three Ds by looking into automation in meat processing. There are challenges, but Allford is confident it won’t be long before both slaughterhouses and local butchers have tools that can improve the well-being of employees while taking them out of dangerous or repetitive environments.

With COVID outbreaks in many plants, Allford says modernizing the meatpacking industry is “long overdue.”

“You have to understand why. Every carcass is different,” he said. “That’s one really difficult thing on food processing. You need some kind of adaptive control or sensor system to deal with that, unless you just grind the whole thing up into sausage. That’s not going to work.”

Allford said cuts like going across the backbone are relatively easy to automate, but separating the meat from the bone is more difficult to teach a robot how to do. Even so, it’s a problem he’s eager to overcome.

“When it’s going to get challenging is when we’re trying to do things where we’re trying to remove the meat from the bone, yet not waste much,” he said. “That’s challenging and interesting to me. I’m looking forward to getting down to some of that work, because then we’ll have to use all sorts of sensor systems.”

That may include using technology ARC developed for human surgeries that detects where bones are before determining where to make a cut.

Whether it be the shape of a favorite pastry or the color of a foreign flower, interior designer Pietta Donovan derives inspiration from all things. A new collaboration with Walker Zanger presents her first tile collection, characterized by sun-drenched pastels and rounded shapes of the retro 70’s. This episode of “The Showroom” explores how Donovan’s tile line came to be and how a healthy work-life balance drives this interior designer’s creations. Growing up in New Zealand and Australia during the '70s and '80s directly influenced Donovan’s designs, she explained. With a deep nostalgia for place and time, the names, colors and shapes in her collection allude to Queensland flora and fauna and vivid childhood memories of bygone decades. After taking a career break to start a family,

Dennis Wendt, Technical Service Manager for Antunes, knows when a customer’s foodservice equipment goes down, every moment spent waiting for a repair is money lost.

As a service manager, Wendt's goal is to address the issue as fast as possible either through technical assistance on the phone or on that very first service visit.

Eight years ago, service companies carried an abundance of parts for all the manufacturers they represented. With a steady increase in manufacturers over the years, it became unsustainable for service companies to manage and maintain all of these parts. Now, service providers order the parts they need when they need it.

This shift led to the creation of large parts distributors—the economies of scale generated by these distributors lower purchase costs for the service providers.

Wendt said Antunes utilizes ASA’s (authorized service agents) to provide a level-1 service support for the customer to speed up repair time. If the specialist on the phone isn’t able to resolve the issue, they will have a good idea of the problem.

When they dispatch a technician for the service call, they will arrive with the potential replacement parts needed.

“The local ASAs that we utilize are CFESA-certified (Commercial Food Equipment Service) technicians,” Wendt said. “They’re sending out top-notch, trained technicians. And that goes for everyone inside the office, as well, whether it’s your warranty admin, your general manager, your service manager or your dispatchers. They all have that level expected from a CFESA-certified company.”

Be sure to subscribe to our industry publication for the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry.

Often, we work as hard as we can to make things as perfect as we can. But, as Dan Allford, President of ARC Specialties, is finding, there are times when a little imperfection can be a good thing.

ARC sponsored a senior project at Rice University studying orthopedic implants with hard-layer coatings on top of them and saw that total perfection actually may not be ideal.

“What we’ve found by creating these coatings and then finishing them is sometimes better is not better. We’re finding that a perfect finish, a mirror finish, doesn’t last as long as one that has a slight amount of roughness,” he said. “I thought that was fascinating because, if you do get that new knee, you’re going to want it to last as much as possible.”

The finding is one of a number of fascinating new developments in the world of abrasive processing and in robotics as a whole.

“More and more customers are looking for more consistent, uniform and finer finishes in general, which is interesting when we look at the orthopedic knee project Dan references,” said Scott Barnett, Application Engineering Manager for Robotic Abrasive Processing at 3M.

Other exciting progress is being made in the area of abrasive wear detection, with more and more information available about when to change out devices and tools and how to teach robots to know when the tool is getting dull.

“As we get into stiffer discs like fiber discs, belts, abrasive wheels and things like that, it adds complexity,” Barnett said.

Those complex challenges are just the types of things ARC and 3M are working on solving today, and the learning process continues to deliver a better that really is best.

Thomas Kramer didn’t grow up wanting to be in fall protection.

That may seem odd now. Kramer is not only a managing principal for LJB but also serves as the president of the International Society for Fall Protection, Director at Large for the American Society of Safety Professionals and as chair of the ANSI Z359 Fall Protection Committee.

Yet, he went to school for engineering and ended up in fall protection almost by happenstance.

“I don’t think a lot of people in grade school or who go to college want to be a fall protection engineer. Most people don’t know about the industry and what’s involved in the industry,” he said. “Where it changed for me was Memorial Day weekend 1998. It was the Friday before the weekend, and I got a call from a contractor we had done some work for designing some fall-protection systems.”

The contractor told him there had been a fall at a water treatment plant in Florida, with a worker falling headfirst from 20 feet who was caught by a horizontal line Kramer designed.

“You talk about making you realize why the Lord put you on the Earth,” he said. “From there, we found one life that day. If we continue to do things, we’ll find another life. If we continue to do things really, really well, there are more lives out there we can find.”

From there, Kramer realized fall protection was right for him.

Yet, even Kramer’s slow progression is more formal than some previous ways of managing safety, Kramer said. Like situations around the house that require working at height, such as hanging holiday lights or cleaning the gutters, most employees learn from watching those who go before them.

“That’s why workers go to the edge thinking everything is fine just as long as I’m being careful, because they learned about it so long ago that it’s just engrained in them,” he said. “We have to overcome that.”

With the right blend of education and technology, Kramer and other industry leaders will keep finding those lives and making working at height safer today than it was yesterday.

On today's episode of HealthFirst Talks, host Sean Heath got a crash course on medical crash carts from HealthFirst's marketing and product manager Lynda Goodrich.
When a medical staff encounters a patient or bystander experiencing a medical emergency, where do they turn to provide life-saving assistance? Calling 911 is critical, but in the meantime, all medical offices must
be prepared with devices and emergency medications commonly known as a crash cart.
In “Crash Cart 101” Goodrich highlights important factors medical staff should keep in mind in maintaining medical emergency readiness. She shares experiences HealthFirst customers have relayed to us about the medical emergencies they have managed in their offices.

Medical emergencies can happen anywhere, even in routine dental procedures. Allergic reactions, fainting, asthma attacks, and even heart attacks can occur, explains guest Damon Matlon, Dental Product Manager for Health First.
HealthFirst Talks explores with Matlon how dental offices prepare for these emergencies, including the addition of a new HealthFirst program that provides all medication replenishments, online CE training and other features for one annual payment.

With masking, social distancing and frequent sanitation of surfaces all necessary during the coronavirus pandemic, the way we think about and utilize offices will need to change for the foreseeable future. There are some simple modifications that offices can make to keep employees safer, but Jarrod Easterwood, Director of Marketing and Partner Relations with AVUITY, said most can’t take the time or spend the money required to do an overhaul and create a truly pandemic-proof space. So creative solutions are needed. “Most facilities and real-estate groups can’t completely gut and overhaul their entire footprint. Obviously, the health concerns are important, but that’s a huge expense,” Easterwood said. “What we’ve done at AVUITY is we’ve basically said, ‘Hey we’ve got this platform that we’ve basically been using for workplace measurement and workplace analysis and custom reporting. We’ve been doing this for a number of years, and we’d like to extend that into health and safety concerns.’” Easterwood and his teams have found that most companies have a very poor understanding of how their workspaces are being used, lacking data that is now even more critical – things like which meeting room is the most heavily used or how often a certain area of a break room is cleaned haven’t been of much concern, but now must come to the forefront. “A platform like ours at AVUITY allows you to set thresholds and rules and look at patterns of, ‘Hey what’s the right mix at our office? Do we want to say meeting rooms have this rule set for booking so people aren’t overlapping?’,” he said. “There’s lots of these rules companies can institute into the software to help the business run more smoothly.” Once we return to something like the public health environment of late 2019, those regulations can be easily changed with the software, and it can become more of analysis tool than a health one once again. For now, in the initial phase of returning to in-person work, companies can utilize the tools to understand how their spaces are being used and make sure the employees using them are kept as safe as possible.

With over 50 years of combined experience, Dale Squier, Laboratory Specialist at Antunes, and Kelli Fleischmann, Product Certification Director with The Water Quality Association, know more than a little bit about proper water purification.

With that experience comes a deep understanding of the importance of third-party certification for products used in water purification systems.

“Having third-party certifiers allows us to increase our credibility and acceptance with our consumers,” Squier said. “They know someone else has evaluated our product and compared it against others they’ve tested, so there’s a validation there.”

For Antunes, third-party certification is a differentiator from companies opting not to put their products through an independent testing and certification process.

The Water Quality Association is a critical resource for the water industry, providing education, information and laboratory, third-party product certification.

“It is important for anyone purchasing a water treatment device to ensure that the product has been tested and verified by an ANSI accredited certification program,” Fleischmann said. “The accreditation indicates the certification program has been scrutinized by a third-party organization to ensure that it is following all the rules and regulations for operating a trustworthy program.”

“We rely upon third-party certifiers to give honest answers to questions we may have, or to validate our product,” Squier said. “They are a great industry resource because of their knowledge and experience over the years and decades.”

We all can use a little help from our friends – but what if that friend is a robot?

With collaborative robots, robots with safety features that allow more human interaction or for humans to work nearby, that’s possible.

It’s not only safety where collaborative robots shine, however, with programming a task that can be taken on even by those who haven’t programmed robots before.

“In the collaborative space, I think that’s been one of the big selling points. I can pick up a pendant (and) actually grab the robot and kind of move it around and guide it through the path so you don’t have to jog it, save a point, jog it again, save another point,” said Tyler Naatz, Advanced Applications Engineer, Robotics and Automation for 3M’s Abrasives Systems Division. “You can kind of do that through follow-my-path type programming using all those sensors that are in these robots. I think that’s a big reason people are looking at them.”

With that ability to minimize the complexity of programming also comes a few drawbacks. For one, the tool force will be limited, as will the speed at which a collaborative can run. That makes it perfect for projects like orbital sanding, but perhaps not the right fit for some other endeavors.

There are other fantastic applications, as well, like a project ARC Specialties President Dan Allford was working on when he needed to polish conical pressing dies.

“To do that, we’re having to polish all the way around the circumference, around the corner, very complex shapes,” he said. “So, a robot was perfect for the application in that a robot could make all these moves. By using a collaborative robot with that sense of touch and the ability to maintain constant tool force, we’re able to, (even) as the part changed size or particularly as the abrasive changed size.”

“The collaborative robot, with that ability to translate and change trajectory on the fly based upon loads, made it a great application.”

Joseph Cahoon, Director of Folsom Institute for Real Estate at SMU’s Cox School of Business, joined us on the most recent episode of Dirt Work to discuss the cross-section of education and real estate in light of invocation and changes brought forth by the coronavirus pandemic. SMU successfully transitioned over 10,000 students to remote learning in rapid fashion. “We had been thinking about on-line education for a long time but most of the faculty was skeptical about on-line learning and while it wasn’t exactly a smooth transition, it brought about change that might have taken years in a matter of month”. A main benefit that the online education offers is the concept of “asynchronous learning”, which is the idea that students learn the same material at different times and locations, which is different than the lecture-based model. Cahoon beliefs that online learning will continue to be relevant in the education space as universities transition to a hybrid (i.e. half in-person, half-online) model. Universities were not the only groups that saw an increase in on-line learning, as LinkedIn, Coursera and Udemy saw tremendous increases in learning content consumed and enrollment since the start of COVID-19. Cahoon believes that the next opportunity in online learning lies within the ability to increase student engagement in the sessions.
In regard to changes in the real estate landscape, Cahoon thinks that similar to the education space, that COVID-19 sped up trends that were already on-going (e.g. migration from higher to lower cost areas, certain struggling sectors of retail) and eventually thinks consumer behavior will resume to levels similar to those seen pre-COVID, especially in Class A & B locations varying, of course, across product-types. Cahoon highlighted that an often-overlooked aspect of the COVID real estate value correction is decreased property tax revenue for cities in the immediate term. However, “This may an opportunity for cities to be adaptive and creative…which maybe has a positive long-term benefit…if we create better cities, more equitable cities, cities that are healthier economically, it will only positively benefit everyone’s real estate”.
For those interested in learning more on the latest real estate trends, Cahoon recommends Howard Marks’ Memos and subscribing to the Folsom Institute’s weekly newsletter by emailing real@smu.edu.

The belief that necessity drives innovation couldn't be more prevalent than it is today. As the world is catapulted into new norms and expectations, we are seeing the baseline of ease and convenience being reset and converging with a heightened expectation of meaningful experiences. We are passing through the rubicon of digitization and brands and retailers will be in a race to catch up. There will be a more heightened need for an agile and nimble approach to retail. In this episode, join a dynamic conversation with Joe Jackman and Melissa Gonzalez addressing how today's "work arounds" are driving organic innovation, what we can learn from it and how to create a muscle around listening, learning and adaption in a timely manner.
About Joe:
Joe Jackman is the CEO of Jackman Reinvents, the world’s foremost reinvention company and author of The Reinventionist Mindset: Learning to love change and the human how of doing it brilliantly. Throughout his 30+ career as strategist, creative director, marketer, and Reinventionist, he has helped companies create the most powerful and relevant versions of their brands and businesses in record time; he is widely considered to be the leading expert on rapid reinvention. www.jackmanreinvents.com
Questions Asked:
- You are often referred to as a Reinventionist, can you share you methodology in how you approach reinvention?
- What does it mean to have a human centric approach to you?
- You speak about change being a human endeavor not a commercial answer- how do brands balance that priority of putting human first and knowing positive ROI will follow?
- As you see the world transitioning today, we aren't necessarily seeing a reinvention technology but rather adoption of what's been in the marketplace. How do you see consumer adoption of technology driving reinvention of the store? What are you guiding brands and retailers prioritize when it comes to future investments?
- What kinds of companies do you think are best positioned when we evolve into our new norm, when doors are fully opened again?
- Fun Question I ask :We are living in a WFH environment and travel is limited, when life goes back to normal, what are the 3 must things to do/places to visit in your hometown?

While robotics continues to become more and more advanced, there are some processes that still seem best done manually. They’re too complex, traditional thinking goes. But, while that may still be true for some processes, KUKA Robotics and 3M have developed a way in which weld processing can now be automated.

That’s thanks to the ready2_grind, a pre-configured solution to automate weld grinding and blending processes.

“The applications are primarily grinding and blending of welds. The optimum welds would be button-corner weld, where customers want to remove the weld and achieve a certain finish prior to, perhaps, painting or any other post-process they may have,” said Scott Barnett (embed: contributor page), Application Engineering Manager - Robotic Abrasive Processing at 3M.

The ready2_grind utilizes KUKA’s KR60 robot and controller and tooling from 3M, including the Active Compliant Tool. It’s a partnership that can help customers as manual grinders become more difficult to hire and keep on.

“The KR60 has an ideal reach at about 2.5 meters to cover most grinding applications, like weld grinding and casting grinding,” said Pat Duda, Senior Application Engineer for KUKA Robotics. “The mechanics are extremely rigid, and the path and velocity performance are really stable, also. That produces really consistent results.”

With 3M tooling, like the 3M Active Compliant Tool, on the end of the KUKA robotic arm providing the abrasive section of the tool, the ready2_grind is a perfect example of two innovative companies teaming up and finding a way to integrate effectively.

On this episode of Build for Impact, host and LEED architect Daniel A. Huard was joined by Miranda Gardiner, Vice President, Sustainable and Performance Design Manager at HKS, Inc.
As usual, Huard and Gardiner focused in on Huard’s four pillars of green building -- sustainability, resiliency, transparency of materials, and wellness.
“What strikes me about your pillars is that they’re so interconnected,” Gardiner said. “While they stand alone, and you can look at any one of them … What’s unique about the work that we get to do is finding the interconnectedness of them and finding the things that make sense and cross over.”
As the conversation turned to mentors and educating the industry on how best to approach these interconnected pillars of green building, Gardiner outlined the core aspects of mentorship relationships she’s found most beneficial in her own career.
“When people ask me about who I mentor or who is in a mentor relationship with me, I tell them that the best mentoring relationships I’ve had are with people where it’s been a give and take,” she said. “I act as a mentor, and they act as my mentor, whether they’re 10 years younger than me or 20 years older than me.”
Huard and Gardiner also touched on advancing the conversation surrounding green building and finding ways to help the conversation around sustainability resonate with everyone undertaking a new project or renovation, adopting an attitude of making room for everyone under the “umbrella” of sustainability, and more.

On this segment of Scale with Sergio, host and Marketscale’s Executive VP of Operations, Sergio Reyes, visits once again with Dr. Raymundo Arróyave. Boasting a BS degree in Mechanical & Electrical Engineering from the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estuidios Superiores de Monterrey, and an MS and PhD in Materials Science from MIT, Dr. Arróyave is currently a Professor of Materials Science at Texas A&M University. This Scale installment is not only a follow up of a previous episode where Arróyave and Sergio discussed the critical role a secure supply chain can play in a company’s success, but today, the two long time friends also talk about the positive and lucrative implications 3D printing can have on that supply chain.
Crucial to any business that makes and sells products, a supply chain represents the steps it takes to get a product or service from its original state to the customer. It’s the vital link between a company and its suppliers to produce and distribute a specific product to the final buyer—covering everything from inventory to sales—and includes different activities, people, entities, information, and resources.
Organizations are always seeking ways to optimize their supply chain and gain a competitive advantage, however, in today’s world, supply chains have not only been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but trade agreements and other current world events are affecting the cohesion of global and domestic supply chains on a daily basis. 3D printing technology (or additive manufacturing), though, can provide these organizations with the edge they need to keep supply chains intact and remain competitive in an uncertain world.
For those that don’t already know, additive manufacturing is the process of making three dimensional (3D) solid objects from a digital file. By incorporating additive manufacturing, supply chains have the flexibility to scale inventory at will while decreasing a business’ reliance on warehouses. Simply put, when a part or product is required, the order is sent to the 3D printer and produced on the spot, reducing complexity, saving on production costs, enhancing lead times and improving time-to-market.
With an area of expertise that covers everything from computational materials science and simulation to machine learning-assisted materials discovery and design, Arróyave’s recent focus has been on the design of metallic alloys and processes for additive manufacturing. As such, he and Sergio discuss how the creation of an efficient and flexible supply chain is critical, how it can differentiate an organization from its competitors, and the many advantages to a supply chain that can be gleaned through 3D printing.

On this episode of the Maverick of Marketing radio show host Shannon Maverick, talks with Carlos Haddad, VP & GM of Sales, Marketing and Business Development of the Americas and Europe for Watts Water Technologies.
Watts Water has begun to take an unconventional approach in their digital strategies. As a business they use distribution channels and channel partners and don’t traditionally have a personal relationship with the end user.
But digital transformation has allowed them to not have to rely on an intermediate partner and instead reach end users with messaging faster and more efficiently and provided for more direct conversations. Ultimately, creativity and innovation is important in those touchpoints.
Our brains can only process 102 bits per second, says Haddad, which is about the same as 2 people talking at the same time. There are 500 hours of YouTube videos created every minute. We are bombarded with content, and we make decisions of what we listen to, watch and engage with. How do you personally decide what content to consume? And therefore as a brand, how do you stand out?
To stand out you must be:
Unconventional
Personal and understand what drives and motivates people
Relevant and timely
Innovative and creative
Messages should just come from not just a company as opportunities to have employees share and amplify messaging is important. Watt’s Water began a series titled In The Trenches that exemplifies this. A jeopardy style series lead by sales members and executives as part of a game show
Strategies used in the past, even those prided just a few months ago, that have been replaced by newer and more innovative marketing. While technology is a strong driver of innovation, it’s not the only component. Steve Jobs once said that technology alone is not enough. Marketers need to leverage technology, but there are many other factors that can help push audiences towards new behaviors, digitally.
Today, people want to be able to remotely access and experience products, so being able to provide that experience is incredibly. Would the adoption of new technology and experiences like this be welcomed, and needed, as quickly without COVID? Probably not.
“Companies that react faster and are more creative and continue to innovate, will lead in the long term,” says Haddad.
Listen to this full episode of the Maverick of Marketing to learn more.

Each week, Drones in America introduces listeners to guests who are leaders, influencers and experts with insight into America’s drone industry.
On this bonus episode, host Grant Guillot of the law firm Adams and Reese was joined by retired United States Air Force Academy Colonel Dawn Zoldi, who currently directs the Air Force’s Center for Character and Leadership Development and is the Founder and CEO of P3 Tech Consulting, which looks to educate people passionate about drones and beyond in policies, programs and more.
Guillot and Zoldi took aim at remote identification, which Guillot labeled one of the most significant developments in recent years for the commercial drone industry.
According to the FAA, remote identification is “the ability of (an unmanned aircraft system) in flight to provide identification information that can be received by other parties.”
While the FAA outlines several perceived benefits of remote identification, including assisting law enforcement, federal agencies and more in identifying unsafe flight practices and vehicles and more robust enablement of safe, secure drone operations, concerns still exist surrounding privacy and more.
Guillot and Zoldi dove into all aspects of remote identification, providing listeners with expert-level insight into its current state, where it could go from here, and more.

Nearly every industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, and almond growers are no exception.

While May’s numbers from the Almond Board of California, showing around 154 million pounds of almonds shipped, weren’t as good as Select Harvest USA CEO Bob Nunes hoped, he is pleased to see growers have an option to get some relief if they’re suffering during the economic downturn brought on by the pandemic.

Nunes is encouraging growers to sign up for the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture started to provide help to growers and producers of commodities who suffered because of COVID-19-related supply chain disruptions.

“Almonds have been qualified for the program. You have to have a 5% drop or more in price for the program to qualify,” Nunes said. “Almonds have already qualified, and there is a 26-cent rate per pound for almonds sold during that time period for each grower. Then, they’d receive an 80% payment of that 26 cents and, assuming there are funds available, the final 20% would be paid at a later date.”

Because of both disruptions in the supply chain because of the coronavirus and an expected oversupply, prices have significantly dropped, hurting growers, Nunes said. Things may be difficult for a while as the U.S. and countries around the world keep struggling to cope with the global pandemic and other outside factors.

“It’s going to be tough sledding for a little while. Certainly for the 2020 crop, prices look pretty depressed at this point,” he said. “Hopefully COVID gets behind us, some of our trade issues with China and other countries get resolved, and we move a lot of almonds here in the next 12-14 months.”

Click and collect, drive up, drive through, home delivery, oh my!
Data confirms that no two consumers define convenience the same way. Yet, before the corona crisis took hold, some retailers had to learn the hard way that dictating choices to consumers just won’t work. Now, as safety emerges as a top consumer concern, retailers that went all-in on convenience and choice are gaining new ground. In this episode, Carol explores the link between convenience and safety and why retail will be operating in an “all of the above” environment going forward.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
Non-price levers that you can pull right now, wherever you play in retail
Why Amazon failed at redefining convenience
How retailers’ convenience choices impact supplier success
Why exploding store counts make sense right now

Straight Outta Crumpton with host Greg Crumpton focuses on why building relationships is valuable, both in the world of business and in life.
This week, Tyler Kern and Greg Crumpton are joined by Jason Banks, CEO and Owner of Banks Electrical Contractors, to discuss how he fell into the electrical field and learned early on the value of obtaining a professional license to help begin a career.
Banks has now owned his own business for 19 years, but he likes to quip that he is still very much operating as a start-up company, because he never wants to stop learning how he can improve.
Make sure to follow along for more episodes of Straight Outta Crumpton, and click here for more episode!

Over the next few weeks I'll be interviewing a series of concierge from around the world. The goal is to shed some light on what travel recovery is looking like from an operations standpoint and from those individuals on the ground.
Don Mooney is the Head Concierge at the Fairmont Banff. More than that he is the President of Les CLefs d'Or Canada. For those who are unfamiliar, Les Clefs d'Or is the elite organization of hotel concierge. You know them when you stay at a hotel and they have golden keys on their lapels. I too am part of this organization.
Don's hotel is truly a castle. I had the chance to go last year and it was incredible. They have been closed for the last few months and have only just reopened at the beginning of June. Imagine, normally a team of 30 concierge, Don is the ONLY concierge working now.
Of course, with doors opening they are starting to see leisure travelers come back. In this interview we talk about what the experience has been like during the off time and what it is like moving forward.
A true leader, Don mentioned that this "off" time was a great time to stay connected and stay supported. The concierge community is so passionate and proactive, that it has been so exciting to see a group of individuals stay so committed to their profession, especially when there is so much uncertainty around returning.
We touch on mental health as well, as these certainly are trying times. All too often in the hotel industry we gloss over mental health, but the issue is a big one--and one that Don has taken a point to always address. From guests to service workers, mental health is real and shouldn't be overlooked. Especially now, many are struggling being home, some are devastated by not having work, and others are challenged with being alone. All are valid.
As for the experience in hotels now, Don shared what the new experience is like at the Fairmont Banff. From a near touchless check-in to no a valet, certain parts of the hotel are closed off and the restaurants are limited. Most guests seem to understand. A true spa destination, they are awaiting when they are able to offer those services again.
Of course, all of this is temporary, but it is interesting to hear from the ones on the ground. Hopefully once boarders between the US and Canada open again, you all can experience the incredible destination of the Fairmont Banff. And if you do, definitely say hi to Don Mooney.

On this episode of Water Treatment Experts by Antunes, Antunes GM of Water and Master Water Specialist Melissa Neckopulos joined host Tyler Kern to outline the benefits of ultrafiltration and the Antunes VZN Ultrafiltration System.

To begin, though, the duo outlined the benefits of clean water, particularly in homes, where it keeps families safe from environmental contaminants and more.

Ultrafiltration is key to achieving that safety.

“Ultrafiltration is a membrane technology that uses hydrostatic pressure to force water against a semi-permeable membrane and remove solids that are suspended in water,” Neckopulos said. “Suspended solids make up turbidity – you can think of that as the cloudiness of the water.”

These solids come in the form of sand and other inanimate contaminants, as well as microorganisms.

In the quest for effective ultrafiltration, more than two decades of experience at Antunes has resulted in the VZN Ultrafiltration System, which is made up of hollow-membrane fibers with billions of microscopic pores that increase filtration effectiveness.

The VZN system also uses less energy and water compared to reverse osmosis systems without sacrificing performance, as it takes out particles 33 times finer than competitors without stripping key minerals.

The world of design is not just about creativity. There is usually a method to the end product. In today's ever-changing world, it's important to push the boundaries on assumptions.

After years as a designer, guest Michael Gibson is now a professor sharing ideas and preparing the next generation of designers at the University of North Texas's College of Visual Arts and Design.

Gibson learned a lot from his years at design firm Marvin Glass. He says it was a unique environment where "nobody told us what to design." It was there he also experienced a human-centered approach to design.

"This approach to design was about not making assumptions,” he said. “We started with multiple ideas, because you don't fall in love with your first one." The best thing any designer can do, he said, is to fail.

"The design research process is a series of prototypes. It fails,” Gibson said. “You learn from the failure, whatever it may be. You have to test the thing.”

The idea of user testing was novel some years ago but now serves as a critical part of the design process. It's something referred to as co-creative design. Real users are part of the conversation and interact with the product.

This whole concept of user-focused design has now ushered in the age of the user experience. That's a highly important part of modern design in every category. In the case of user experience, the academia part of design and the commercial part come together. Academia wants to understand the interaction—businesses want to identify opportunities and market to the user.

Design will continue to evolve, but one thing that will stay true is that design is forward-thinking.

"Futurecasting and speculative design are about designing for how we will live. That future could be next month or next year,” Gibson said. “It's a purposeful design where you want to make something better.”

Hear more about the future of design, user experiences and design decision-making by listening to the conversation.

Physical therapists searching for new ways to reduce the impact on athletes’ joints during rehabilitation workouts may have a new tool in their arsenal with SmartCells Cushioning Technology.

SATECH designed SmartCells’ training and therapy solutions with high-impact activities and intense training sessions in mind, from mats and customizable flooring options to therapeutic insoles.

Chad Lindstrom, VP Marketing for SATECH, Inc, stopped by the Sports and Entertainment podcast to talk about the benefits of SmartCells. And coming directly from a training session with Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback, Russell Wilson, PT and founder of Motus Specialists Physical Therapy Drew Marcos joined Lindstrom to discuss SmartCells’ benefits for his PT practice.

The original concept for the design of SmartCells was to find a way to make professional basketball safer through a flooring design under the court that would reduce the impact on players while maintaining the same surface feel and performance.

While the technology didn’t immediately head to the basketball court, it has made its way into the PT room and work areas where standing for long hours take a toll on the body.

“We do a lot with physical therapy, and we do a lot in the volleyball space, because the athletes jump and fall so much,” Lindstrom said. “The SmartCells surface takes away 90% of the impact on athletes when they land on it.”

As for Morcos, he first encountered SmartCells during a physical therapist’s conference.

“I have my own practice, Motus, so I’m always looking for new and upcoming pieces of equipment,” Morcos said. “Walking the exhibition hall, I came across this flooring mat, and it was cool. What was interesting about it is they can put any design on it that you want in terms of layout. You can do an agility ladder; you can do a Y-balance - whatever you can think of.”

As the physical world becomes more digitally integrated, strategies around signage will become more comprehensive and sophisticated. Brands and retailers will need to uncover opportunities to interact in ways that not only feel safe but also educate, entertain and build customer loyalty. Digital signage is only the medium, experience is the crucial layer on top. From order queing via geofencing strategies to AI and personalization to voice activated messaging, learn how Raydiant CEO Bobby Marhamat and his team are helping position their clients to think outside the box and discover ways to bring their stores to life.

On this episode of Build for Impact, host and LEED architect Daniel A. Huard was joined by Verdical Group Founder and Principal Drew Shula.
Verdical Group is a Los Angeles-based green building consulting firm specializing in certification project management, net zero, commissioning, energy modeling and program management, and Shula joined Build for Impact to further the show’s mission of providing inspiring conversations around the trends in sustainable building.
In particular, the duo touched on “living buildings,” or buildings that harvest the energy they consume from renewable resources like the sun and the wind, are constructed from sustainable materials, and serve occupants by providing a healthier environment.
These buildings, and Verdical Group’s mission, support the cornerstones of green building – sustainability, resiliency, transparency of materials, and wellness.
Shula and Huard used this episode of Build for Impact to dive into:
-       September’s Net Zero Conference, which will go virtual for the first time in 2020.
-       Scaling the idea of net zero buildings, which aim for net zero energy, water, waste, transit and carbon.
-       How net zero efforts fit into the overall picture of sustainability and green building.

On this week's episode of Diving Into Data, TC explores the (unexpected) positive signs from the economy as we continue to reopen after the COVID-19 outbreak and try's to answer the question, are we back to normal?
Our main segment this week looks into the baffling recovery of the US Stock Market, along with other positive economic indicators, such as a lower than anticipated unemployment rate for May. With the unprecedented situation this year, we freely admitted that we didn't know what was next... But are these truly signals that things are getting back to normal or could there be other unexpected impacts lurking around the next corner?
Then, in this week's Industry Rapidfire segement, we look at the return of professional sports in the US. Nearly all major leagues have official 'restarting' guidance in place now and are progressing towards us seeing real sports back in August, if not before. What positive signs do we coming from the NFL and NBA? And what about the ominous signals from the MLB? Are we looking at a year without baseball?
Sit back, relax, grab a drink, practice social distancing (things aren't THAT normal again, yet) and let's dive into some data.

5 Ways The Restaurant Experience Will Change
Dining Out is such an important part of tourism and it would be remiss of me to not cover it. After all, restaurant recommendations are a concierge’s number 1 request.

Although many details are still being sorted out, ultimately, when it comes to dining, restaurants and guests are going to have to use their noodle—but maybe not figuratively as they did in this café in Germany.

Here are five ways that the restaurant experience will change… even if just in the short term.

Less Tables and More Patios
In compliance with social distancing, restaurants will have to reduce their capacity by 50% or so, much of this by removing and rearranging their dining tables. In cases where they can, restaurants will also rely on their patio spaces or even look to building out patio space to expand both capacity and offerings.

Take-Out Windows
As many diners have gotten used to eating at home, takeout and delivery will become a larger part of the dining-out experience. Eateries will need to consistently deliver high quality takeout orders by updating their menus with dishes that travel well. This will be a shift for higher end restaurants, but as we have already seen with restaurants that remained open during lockdown, there is a proven demand for this.

More Combo and Pre-fixe Options
We have seen this even in the world of food delivery, restaurants were starting to offer more combos and in the case of higher end restaurants, pre-fixe dining options on their menus. As restaurants open back up, there will be more of these offerings to target the budget conscious crowd.

Capping Large Parties
In the short term, restaurants will not be able to accommodate dinner restaurants for large parties. It seems likely that they will need to pause on accepting reservations of parties of more than 6 people—not only due to space, but just in an effort to manage social distancing.

Reservations Only
Long gone are the days of packed waiting areas for in-demand restaurants. Local hot spots will shift to being “reservations only” as a means to manage an even flow of diners throughout the evening. Restaurant goers will be encouraged to reach out to their favorite restaurants before just showing up once things reopen.

Well, those are five ways dining out will change moving forward.
So how do you see dining out changing? What will you miss most about eating in restaurants?
Share your thoughts in the comment section below and don’t forget to share this video.
Until next time, see you then!

On today's Bricks and Clicks podcast Mike Allsup teaches us a method called GEM: Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness, where slowing down, being grateful for what we DO have, and creating space allows us to see the sweetness in life.

Some things are challenging enough, but an extra element takes the degree of difficulty up several notches. That’s how it is for Josh Sooknanan, an aerospace engineer with NASA, who takes robots and puts them into space.

In addition to the already steep curve of working with robotics, Sooknanan also has to face things like delays in how long a robot takes to respond.

“Robots in general are hard. Anybody that is getting into robotics, the problem you’re getting into is always harder than you’ve scoped it to be,” he said. “That’s when the robot is in front of you on your lab bench. You put the robot 200 miles above your head orbiting the earth or, even more difficult, on the moon or on Mars or a probe doing deep-space research, and the delays are unbelievable.”

Dan Allford, president of Arc Specialties, is a friend of Sooknanan and noted there are different challenges he has to face in the industrial world.

“I think one of the biggest differences between your world and my world is gravity. I’ve got to work with this stuff called gravity and it’s 32 feet per second squared, and it’s pretty constant,” Allford said. “A lot of times when we have to design and build a robot, it’s because the loads exceed that of any available commercial robot, and that’s a gravity problem. You’re up in space and you don’t have to fool with gravity.”

Of course, while Allford has gravity, he also has more sources of power than simply the sun - and less delay between the time it takes to send a command to a robot and see it carried out.

The two friends, who race cars and mountain bikes when not talking shop about high-level robotics, come together on more things than they diverge on, with both eager mentors of high school students interested in robotics.

Both marveled at programs like the BEST Robotics team competition and U.S. First Robotics, which give kids like them who were obsessed both with science-fiction and tinkering with machines a year-round outlet to learn in a more structured environment.

Today’s consumers are making principled buying decisions and being careful to review a company’s experience, background and professionalism before purchasing a product. For Select Harvest USA, nut experts since 1982, these intentional buying habits work in the company's favor as they break into the consumer marketplace.

Alan Burwell, VP of Marketing and Innovation at Select Harvest USA, joins Nut News to discuss the company’s new direct-to-consumer products hitting the market this summer.

As consumers have gradually become more health-conscious, almonds have withstood the rise and fall of food trends thanks to their nutrient-dense profile. High in protein, fiber and healthy fats, almonds are found in some of our favorite products, from almond milk to protein bars.

In fact, consumers have long been eating Select Harvest USA almonds as ingredients in their favorite almond products, Burwell said. When consumers explore this new brand, they will discover that Select Harvest USA is a trustworthy, thought-leading, innovative company that has delivered high-quality nuts for over 30 years.

“We know almonds,” Burwell said, and that niche knowledge is exactly what consumers crave today.

Finding success in the consumer market can be a tough nut to crack, but the almond experts at Select Harvest Almond Snacks are confident they offer the value and excitement modern buyers love.

In a post-COVID world, sampling will be a new experience. The evolution will be solved by the digitization of vending led by a curated consumer journey. In this episode, host Melissa Gonzalez speaks with Marci Weisler, Chief Commerical Officer of Vengo Labs, a leading digital marketing and retail tech company connecting brands and consumers in the places they go by combining media, product sampling and retail. Learn how digital machines will go contactless and be a key tool for data collection from top of funnel to conversion for brands and retailers, as consumers are empowered to have a "remote controlled" shopping experience in the future.

Melissa will be hosting a webinar titled The New Consumer Behaviors That Will Reshape The Physical Store on June 9th. During the session, she will cover how stores will approach the reallocation of front-of-house and back-of-house employees to better serve new logistical needs and customer expectations.
For more information or to register for the seminar, you can visit Retail Innovation Week.

In the global food production world, there is no end to the available data to inform crop health, yield and environmental impact.

But deciphering that data into executable processes can be a different story.

Alex Whitley, Managing Director at Arva Intelligence, believes that AI is still in the early stages of aiding agriculture, and his company’s mission is to find new ways to make agricultural production better for small and large factory farming operations.

“Today, there are so many data points to collect, and every new piece of technology coming out introduces a new data point. It is really hard to have the expertise and computational power to make use of that in these decisions at scale,” Whitley said.

One of the biggest obstacles for using all of these agriculture data points to inform strategies on a scalable level is the sheer volume of data layers generated by the sophisticated farming technology.

“The more data layers you have, the less scalable it becomes until that same level of innovation going into the technology gets applied to the data problem," he said.

Whitley said he feels agriculture is still in the beginning stages of utilizing AI and machine learning in a scalable way. Most farmers want to be in the business of farming, not analyzing data, and, recognizing that, Arva’s mission is to figure out the efficiencies the right data and analysis can produce, then provide the resulting information and action items back to the farmers.

“In what we do, we do not require any cultural or practice change from the farmer,” Whitley said. “We are just supplying the people who provide the farmers the raw goods with the information and what to supply them. The farmers go through the same process, but now they can purchase the right seed for the right area.”

Retailers were rushing back to private brands before the pandemic rocked retail. Their big bets are paying off now as shoppers prioritize value. Retailers’ renewed enthusiasm for private brands has far-reaching implications for brand marketers, solution providers and retailers themselves. In this episode, Carol reveals the opportunities and challenges as the private brand bash kicks into high gear.
In this episode you’ll learn:
The new reasons why private brands are proliferating
Why brand marketers should position, not panic
How “secret brands” are diluting brand impact, and creating opportunities
How one brand party crasher is changing the game for everyone else

Events have always been a primary thread through every aspect of our lives. From concerts and games to conferences and trade shows, many of us spend a significant amount of time attending various in-person events, until recently when the pandemic forced us to move almost everything, online. But were virtual experiences and the demand for them something on track to become popular already – or did the current pandemic force them to become more common than they ever would have been?
On this episode of the Maverick of Marketing host Shannon Maverick, talks with John Capano, Senior Vice President at Impact XM.
Prior to February of this year, virtual and hybrid events were on the rise. People were using more online cloud-based strategies to tie into their live events. But the arrival of COVID-19, pushed the demand for virtual events to unprecedented levels, accelerating the trend.
With events rapidly being cancelled in 2020, at first everyone froze, with tradeshows and events not happening there were questions by everyone of what was the alternative?
There was a quick move to other digital marketing touchpoints – but many quickly realized that the idea of a tradeshow, whether live or virtual, was an important component to overall marketing strategies.
Thus there has been a dramatic shift from most events being in-person, to most being live, virtual events. And people are becoming more comfortable with virtual only events and connections.
So will there be a move back to in-person as the economy starts to reopen?
It is hard to imagine that virtual events completely go away and instead there likely will be more hybrid events, in-person events with a digital component.
But what does the timeline for large big-scale events returning look like?
“That’s the million dollar question.” says Campano. “A full-scale event with 10,000 or 20,000 people showing up at one place at one time, is going to be a very difficult proposition. And I think that’s going to continue at least through the end of this year and into the beginning of next year.”
In the meantime, how do we continue to get in front of customers and help our clients do the same?
Listen to this episode of the Maverick of Marketing.

We have seen Delta, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Royal Caribbean, Four Seasons, Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson, Hyatt, Hilton, Best Western, Salamander Hotels and others share messages during the latest nationwide Black Lives Matter protests.
However, few are speaking out publicly, as CEOs of other major brands have chosen to address their companies internally.

I've had a few people ask me, "Why isn’t the travel industry doing more?"

Let’s look at the travel industry. It's an industry trying to keep from drowning.

The U.S. travel industry is bogged down in its own business survival at the moment. With thousands of restaurants and hotels shuttered and airlines grounded, many of which may never reopen or fly commercially again, these businesses are occupied with figuring out how to keep paying bills.

We certainly can’t ask for money. Many are on the verge of bankruptcy and need that money for employees. But we could ask for them to pledge to hire more people of color moving forward and to promote more people of color from within.

Do they feel like their hands are tied? With big government bailouts, are big gestures too polarizing for an industry that needs all the customers it can get? I am not saying this is right, but I am exploring the possibilities.

So maybe it is not what the travel industry can do for the movement (though it can and will do more), but how we can USE the travel industry for the movement?

I come back to the purpose of travel. Why do we travel, and what can we learn from it? Travel is a means of breaking down walls and barriers.

A Skift article recently addressed this, and it is worthy of sharing:

“After all, the travel industry — in theory —should be built on inclusivity, because the foundation of travel is discovery, meeting and doing business with people from different cultures, races, ethnic groups, genders, and viewpoints, and breaking down barriers. Whether it is travel agents, flight attendants or hoteliers, travel staff should be almost inherently progressive if they believe in their companies’ missions, right?”

This is not to say that the travel industry is perfect.

“Even among some of the prominent companies that 'talk the talk' about diversity and inclusion, board membership tends to be majority white men, and too often, the old boys’ network is still running the show behind the scenes.

Let’s face it, too: With leisure and hospitality unemployment officially running close to 40% in the U.S., COVID-19 has wiped out diversity as a priority almost across the board. It’s often the way things go in business — last hired, first fired. Women and minorities in the travel industry find themselves disproportionately represented on socially distant or virtual unemployment lines these days.”

Supply chains are the backbone of any operation, and that’s particularly true in the fashion industry, where sourcing, manufacturing and delivery are quite literally make-or-break.
To help host Sergio Reyes dive into visibility, management and more when it comes to supply chains in the fashion industry, Smartwool Head of Operations Aloke Mishra joined this episode of Scale with Sergio to share his insights.
To begin, the duo touched on the key elements of supply chains and what makes them so critical to the operation of businesses the world over.
“You really need to understand and have visibility into your supply chain from end to end,” Mishra said.
In particular, Mishra said sheer financial impact, time to market, production efficiency and end-of-life management are the core aspects of supply chains that make them so critical to the successful operation of a business in quite literally any industry.
Reyes and Mishra dove into each of those aspects, providing insights regarding how to best manage each and maintain visibility throughout the entire supply chain, not just a portion of it.
The pair also explored how scale and growth can affect supply chain management, noting that getting larger often means navigating new supply chain challenges.
Fortunately, solutions exist if you’re willing to do the work to identify areas where efficiency can be boosted, such as in the leveraging of raw materials.
“The bigger the company, (the more) silos, and each silo is creating its own product not knowing that each silo could be sharing 60% of the raw material,” Mishra said. “This is where I think supply chains have another part to play.
“When you really start to look at your raw materials much more closely, you are actually also going to embed yourself with R&D and say, ‘Hey, by the way, this particular component of yours and that component of that other one are like 98% similar.’”

Straight Outta Crumpton with Greg Crumpton focuses on the ways that building relationships is valuable both in business and in life.
Change is hard, but today’s guest Gwen Smothers has been a trailblazer in facilitating it. As the business systems manager of Piedmont Service Group, a technical facility and energy-efficient solutions company in Raleigh, NC, Smothers maintains all business systems, trains users, and supports process improvements. She owes much of her success to defining the “why.”
“When I first started at Piedmont 20 years, the person who trained me never explained why we did things that way. I soon learned after being on the job, but the why was never addressed. Now that I’m in that position, I always lead with the why,” Smothers stated.
Smothers also discussed her involvement with Women in HVACR, a trade group dedicated to women in the industry. She joined years ago and has been able to attend several conferences where she met a young lady in need of support. “At an HVACR conference, I met a young lady whose father owns an HVAC business, and she needed some guidance about how to change and grow. Since that meeting, the President of HVACR contacted me and asked if I would be a mentor,” Smothers shared.
All the work that Smothers has done on behalf of her company and for the industry, in general, is immense, and she even calls herself a “change agent.” That’s no easy job in any industry, but Smothers attributes much of this to success. “Change is hard for everyone. I have some great support from my leadership team. They provide me with ideas to try in the real world,” she said.
Learn more about Smother’s career as a change agent by listening to the podcast.

In this week's episode of Diving Into Data, we look at the use and sharing of data in a post-COVID world and how data practices, like all other industries/businesses/people/etc., have had to adapt during these challenging times.
TC first explores the challenges around keeping full data pipelines in a COVID world. Not only have companies had to adapt to unique working situations and inconsistent reporting/capture of data, but time is of the absolute essence when this analysis could guide national policy and actions.
Next, TC dives into the opportunities for more extensive data sharing in a post-COVID world. The past few months have illuminated the need for the global economy to have open and free-flowing data, whether it be around public health, economics or anything else. But with the opportunity for more democratized and shared data, comes some inherent risks around data security and privacy.
We wrap up the show with another Industry Rapidfire segment, where we look at how the retail industry is using (or at least needs to be!) data to impact their re-opening efforts. The retail industry has been one of the most impacted by the global pandemic, but smart companies in the space are embracing this as an opportunity, rather than just trying to ride out the wave of the challenge.
Sit back, relax, grab a drink, practice social distancing, and let's dive into some data.

p style="text-align: left;">It seems healthcare professionals at care facilities are trying to do more with less time and resources: more patients, fewer nurses, less reimbursement from Medicare, and rising demands from health insurance companies.
But at a time when some patients — an estimated 650,000 annually — are coming out of hospitals sicker than they were before due to hospital-acquired infections, it's clear that solutions are needed. To discuss this on today's episode of the Healthcare Podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with Adrienne Hamilton, Director of Marketing and Sales Operations for AliMed.

The Massachusetts-based company manufactures and sells healthcare products used in patient rooms, operating rooms, long-term health care facilities, and doctors' offices. More than simply selling medical supplies, AliMed is partnering its company mission with the healthcare industry to save time, reduce costs, and substantially reduce the risk of infection for its patients.

"As a nation, we're under a lot of pressure to reduce costs and certainly improve patient outcomes by reducing infection control," Hamilton said. "Part of reducing costs is becoming more efficient."

Hamilton shared how operating room turnover kits, a prepackaged bundle of disposable table sheets, pillowcases, arm board covers, hamper liners, and straps, are emerging as a trend in medical supplies and how she discovered the eminent need for them in one hospital setting, where nurses were asked to assemble similar kits for overtime.

Speech Pathologists, once thought of as merely consultants for those with a stutter, are essential medical professionals that treat much more than a stammer. Today, speech pathologists are in high demand as conditions like dementia and brain injury are on the rise.

The world is awakening to the indispensable need for speech pathologists as America’s aging population continues to grow. On this episode of AliTalks, we welcomed Sandy Grafton, speech product manager at AliMed. The medical industry is coming out with innovative products that help speech pathologists treat a variety of ailments.

Grafton’s process in finding these products goes through a rigorous, comprehensive series of steps: field research, competition analysis, reliability testing, and careful vendor negotiation. Grafton pulls from her network of working speech pathologists to find and market products for the AliMed catalog that are relevant and useful in the field.

What's more, Grafton is keeping a pulse on the latest medical journals, university studies, and media statistics on speech and brain disorders to foreshadow where AliMed can meet the needs of its clients.

Thanks to technological innovation, digital advancements, and the online availability of products like AliMed’s, speech pathologists are empowered to focus solely on treating the patient. The holistic research done by Grafton at AliMed provides the right tools at the tips of speech pathologist’s fingertips, helping those in need and keeping step with the latest medical advancements.

When patients are undergoing surgery, nurses work to ensure their patients are in the safest, proper position whether they’re lying on their back supine, face down prone, or even inverted in Trendelenburg position. To do this, healthcare providers use foam, gel, or bean bag positioners to properly support their patients, but some hospitals are using makeshift positioners that not only don’t work as well, but can even further injure the patient.

On this episode of AliTalks by AliMed, host Daniel Litwin broke down the issue of proper positioners with Mary Grace Hensell, former director at Allegheny General Hospital, an educator and medical legal consultant, and Steve Dunn, product manager for AliMed.

“Nurses are ingenious in a lot of ways to get a position situated for surgery. About 30 years ago, it was acceptable to position patients with pillows and foam,” Hensell said. “But as we’ve moved forward, we’ve found there are a lot more positioning agents out there to keep our patients safe. We really don’t need to make our own devices as nurses anymore.”

AliMed develops and delivers positioning solutions that improve patient outcomes, offering unique and innovative gel and foam products engineered to redistribute pressure, maximize stability, reduce shear, and improve imaging visualization.

AliMed’s positioners range from adult and bariatric to pediatric and neonatal to support all range of patients.

"It’s about the safety of the patient overall,” Dunn said.

In this episode, Hensell and Dunn also discussed the legal liability that comes with DIY positioners and how they’re helping raise awareness and education of proper positioners for healthcare facilities worldwide.

The latest AliTalks podcast discussion examined the important factors that go into a quality shoe insert. Host Daniel Litwin was joined by Michelle Rocha, national retail marketing manager and product specialist at Bauerfeind. Rocha talked about the importance of the right insert to provide foot relief and alleviate knee and back pain.

Rocha then took Litwin through a deep dive of Bauerfiend’s Visco Line and ViscoSpot; their main features, how they are made, and the benefits of these inserts over many competitors.

“Obviously, comfortability is the goal here. If it is not comfortable, the consumers are not going to want to wear it," Rocha said.

She proceeded to share some results of a study analoging the pain scale taken before and after treatment, showing significantly more patients improved with their heel pain through wearing the Visco heel. 95% percent of patients found relief after 14 days.

The conversation wrapped up with Rocha sharing a success story from the owner of a running store in Southern California who reduced their plantar fasciitis pain with the help of Visco products. And lastly, Rocha shared her thoughts on wear the future of inserts may be headed.

"Medical professionals wear heavy, leaded aprons to protect their bodies from radiation from imaging machines, but there's a vital organ that could use more protection. Your eyes.

That's because the lens of the eye is one of the most radiosensitive tissues humans have.

Medical safety equipment manufacturer AliMed wants to bring more awareness to protective eyewear against radiation. "

On this week's episode of Diving Into Data, we dive into all things related to the economy of flying. In our main topic we cover the booming market of private/commercialized space travel and servicing, especially as it relates to an important launch coming up this weekend, but we wrap up with another Industry Rapidfire segment on the struggling airline industry.
For our main topic this week, TC dives into the growing space industry. We touch on why the joint NASA-SpaceX mission this weekend is such an important milestone for US space travel and dive into the data of this rapidly materializing economy. Would you believe that the space industry could be as big as the automotive industry in the next 30 years?
TC also touches on the upcoming shakeout in the small launch industry and how the COVID-19 outbreak might expedite the consolidation of the companies in that space. Simply put, supply and demand almost never fails and there just isn't enough demand (at least at the current cost) to match the abundance of supply in this area.
We wrap up our show with another installment of Industry Rapidfire, where TC touches on the current dark days for the airline industry. The post-COVID airline industry is in rough shape, and unfortunately, unlike many other industries that are starting to come back online, things could get even worse...
Sit back, relax, grab a drink, practice social distancing, and let's dive into some data.

With ShopShops viewers can watch hosts, from experienced salespeople to fashion or beauty influencers, via a QVC-style live stream as they display clothes and accessories for up to several hours. In this discussion we learn how ShopShops is democratizing access to both brands and influencers and allowing them to bring offline shopping online. Founder Liyia Wu shares what makes a live stream event successful and a few unexpected learnings such as coordinating the sale of a $14,500 Birkin bag, or how shoppers themselves have influenced each others purchases.

For nearly 130 years, General Electric has been bringing good things to light, and throughout the 20th century, the company carried on its founder’s tradition of experimentation and innovation by perfecting the fluorescent bulb, halogen bulb and LED, among other lighting innovations.

Founded in 1892 by Thomas Edison, the inventor of the incandescent bulb and other extraordinary inventions, GE has grown from its humble beginning as a lightbulb company into a modern, massive conglomerate, with business sectors that include lending, contracting for defense, and the manufacturing of appliances, jet engines, wind turbines, x-ray machines, ventilators and more. However, the company recently announced that it’s selling its lighting business to Savant Systems, a recognized leader in the field of home control and automation, so that GE can focus on more profitable areas such as renewable energy and health care technology. While financial terms of the deal were not disclosed by GE, it did include a licensing agreement that will allow Savant to use the GE brand.

In what some feel is not just a closing chapter to a business division, but a final chapter to a piece of American cultural identity, MarketScale’s Business Casual hosts Taylor Bagley, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss this historic divesting of a business that has been at the vanguard of every major lighting revolution since Edison’s incandescent bulb.

“From the standpoint of people who associate the light bulb as the symbol of modern invention and innovation, there’s a kind of sadness to the fact that G.E., which for many years was at the forefront of that industry, has moved away from it,” stated Paul Israel, director and general editor of the Thomas A. Edison Papers at Rutgers University.

Keeping you informed of the newest trends and the hottest topics in B2B, tune into the Business Casual podcast each Wednesday and Friday. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B, be sure to subscribe to our MarketScale Radio channel on either Spotify or Apple Podcasts where you can find all of our Business Casual, Ratify and other contributor shows; or go to Marketscale.com/Industries to view all of our live video and classic article content.

During the COVID-19 crisis, as creators embraced Live in new ways, Instagram viewership increased 70% from February to March. Offering new ways for creators to make money through Instagram Live and IGTV, on Wednesday, Instagram launched new tools aimed at boosting revenues for video artistes. While the features are currently in a testing phase, limited to select creators and businesses, viewers will now be able to add badges during live videos and advertisements on IGTV which will show up next to a person’s name, enabling them to show their support for specific creators. Similar to superchat features on YouTube or Twitch, Instagram’s “heart” badges allow viewers comments to stand out from the pack, and will be offered at different price points—99¢ for one heart, $1.99 for two, and $4.99 for three, with purchases limited to one badge per video—and the company plans on sharing all that revenue with their creator partners.

In addition, starting next week, Instagram watchers will also begin seeing advertisements on IGTV—ads that will likely appear when the watcher taps to watch IGTV videos from previews in their feed and will last up to 15 seconds. With 55% of the advertising revenue going to the creator, the ads will initially be tested on a small group of U.S. creators and advertisers such as Sephora and Puma, but access will be gradually expanded over time. Further, Instagram will also test the ability to skip ads throughout the year, ensuring the product will work well for viewers, creators, and advertisers alike.

Born from a commitment to support creators in turning their passion into livelihoods, particularly during these uncertain times, on today’s Business Casual segment, presented by MarketScale, Daniel Litwin, Taylor Bagley, and Tyler Kern discuss this strategic move by Instagram.

“Providing a variety of monetization tools is crucial in order to support all creators on Instagram, from emerging digital stars to established entertainers and everything in between,” said Instagram COO Justin Osofsky. “We’re excited to add these two new revenue streams to the mix of tools for creators to help them generate additional income to fuel their work.”

Tune into the Business Casual podcast each Wednesday and Friday to stay abreast of the recent trends and hottest topics impacting B2B. And, be sure to check out MarketScale’s industry pages for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B.

Selling more than 130 million copies since it started in 1989, thus, making it one of two video sports games ever to sell more than 100 million copies, the Madden franchise will continue to be a part of the gaming world for at least the next six years. Recently approving an extension of their contract that was set to expire after the 2021 season, the NFL and Electronic Arts (EA) are continuing a relationship that has existed for 30 years, making EA Sports the league's exclusive publisher of football simulation games through 2026. Worth $1 billion to the NFL and $500 million to the players, as well as $500 million in marketing commitments, this deal tightens the ‘Madden’ grip on the video game market.

NFL VP-Head of Gaming and eSports Rachel Hoagland believes that keeping the Madden franchise at the core of the league’s video gaming strategy is vital, commenting, “EA has done a nice job of ensuring the game matches the experience during a game week. The new technology will allow richer content and add more realism.”

Daniel Litwin, Taylor Bagley, and Tyler Kern take on all things pigskin on this Business Casual snippet. First, the hosts break down the various parts of the new contract, EA’s exclusive rights to NFL simulation games that have existed since 2005 versus the NFL’s recent deal with 2K to debut a non-simulation (arcade-style) NFL game, and the loosening of NCAA football videogame licensing restrictions that will now allow college players to profit off their likenesses. But the Business Casual tag-team also discuss how optimistic conversations centered around the NHL, NBA and MLB reopening their seasons soon will impact the NFL’s decision to retake the field, as well as the NFL Players Association’s stance on player safety.

Coming to you each Wednesday and Friday, MarketScale’s Business Casual brings thought leadership to your day, keeping you current with the hottest topics and newest trends shaping business, culture and sports. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B, be sure to check out our industry pages.

According to a recent report, 61% of construction companies expect to employ full prefabrication at least 10% of the time. That represents unprecedented growth in the industry.
“We’re seeing a lot more companies leaning toward going prefab[rication],” said Darren Heavner (embed contributor page), Southern Regional Sales Manager for Trachte (embed: http://www.trachteusa.com/).
There are obvious advantages to utilizing the fully prefabricated model. Heavner compared the construction of prefabricated wall panels with a completely prefabricated building.
“Once you get the panels, you still have to assemble them,” he said. “Then you still have the trades come in to do their work, and you have the possibility of weather delays. You don’t have that with a fully prefabricated building.”
Heavner told host Daniel Litwin that Trachte saw record sales in 2019 and is on track for similar growth in 2020.
One of the big shifts in the industry right now is to the fully operational units. That means that customer will select and ship the equipment they want to use to a Trachte facility. These units are essentially plug-and-play units.
“Rather than installing their equipment in the field, we will install the equipment they want in that factory setting,” Heavner said. “We will also do all of the interconnection wire work in that same setting. All the customer has to do is to connect incoming and outgoing cables and they’re done.”
This takes a multi-month project and turns it into a project that can take just weeks, if not days, depending on the scope of the project.

It is easier to set up a crane and lift a prefabricated building to its end location than it is to have hundreds of trade workers traverse stairs over a six-month period to work on the roof of a hospital.
That is true even if Trachte needs to place a prefabricated e-house that is 26 feet by 66 feet and weighs more than 80 tons on top of an eight-story building in Manhattan, according to Rob Chaffee, and that process saves time and resources.
Chaffee is Executive Director of Integrated Packaging Sales at Trachte. He spoke with Tyler Kern on an episode of Powerhouse Players.
This scenario is not one that Rob plucked from the air. In this case, the hospital, which had been there for decades, had switch gear that had aged out, and they had reliability concerns.
“We packaged their switch gear inside of a transportable e-house,” Chaffee said. “We transported that house, which was then taken to Manhattan. It was then assembled and put into service by a local electrical contractor.”
He said that, based on the location the e-house is being delivered to, Trachte needs to be able to adapt.
“Trachte has been around since 1901,” he said. “Many power utilities companies, engineering firms and end-user clients trust Trachte.”
For the project with the Manhattan hospital, the City of New York gave Trachte a little more than 10 hours of a clear street to finish the project.
“That’s when all the fun starts,” Chaffee said.
Chaffee has been having fun for more than 30 years working with e-houses and major electrical projects and has been involved in the integration of e-houses for more than two decades.
He mentioned how important that fun is to his work.
“Babies are still being born and surgeons are still operating, so our work had to go on unnoticed to the rest of the hospital,” Chaffee said.

Construction sites have a rugged reputation. They can still benefit from protection from the elements, though. On this episode of the Powerhouse Players podcast, Rob Chaffee, executive director of integrated packaging for Trachte, sat down with host Sean Heath as they discussed the common sense that accompanies the use of an “e-house” on a site.

All construction sites are exposed to the elements, to some degree, but the expensive electrical and mechanical equipment (and personnel) don’t have to be completely unprotected, according to Chaffee.
“An e-house provides practically unlimited options under that roof. It also protects personnel from the weather," he said.

The benefits of a custom solution are exponential, Chaffee explained.

“Each is an engineered solution for just what the customer’s looking for. I used to make the statement that we never build the same thing twice, and then we had a customer order 4 identical buildings and that ruined that story, forever,” Chaffee added, laughing.

“I now say we rarely make the same thing twice," he said.

Ultimately, these buildings are manufactured to be a permanent part of the construction.

“Our standard exterior is a metal skin on the outside. So, very durable, very long-lasting,” Chaffee detailed.

“We did some projects down in the lower end of Brooklyn, New York, next to some brownstone, high-rise apartment buildings and we had to put a brick exterior on the building. There’s a myriad of options to help these buildings blend in to the environment they’re going into.”

In the military, mental fortitude and neuro-fitness can mean life or death.
That’s why, at the US Air Force Training Academy, Assistant Director and Head Exercise Physiologist for the Academy’s Human Performance Lab Dyana Bullinger is paying special attention to active-duty members’ mental fitness.
Bullinger joined host and Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin on this episode of Find Your Edge, a Reflexion podcast, to discuss how neurological fitness strategies and technology typically associated with athletics are transforming the way members of the military are prepared for the rigors of their line of work.
Bullinger said there are certainly comparisons to be drawn between the world of athletics and the military, particularly in the use of Reflexion’s neuro-fitness aids.
“I think, on some fronts, they’re very similar,” she said. “When you train with the visual system, although the end goal may be different, some of the exercises are fairly the same. You may just change them to be more specific to a certain population. In terms of buy-in, it’s also sort of similar, as well. I think the military is starting to buy in a little bit harder because of that end goal of life or death.”
In the military, the vision training component has drawn the most attention, as it directly translates to members of the military being able to take in and react to visual information and cues quickly, even during high-stress operations and situations.

The practice of sports vision training has evolved due to a better understanding of how the visual system works and new technologies that allow us to access information and train in natural contexts. Dr. Greg Appelbaum, Ph.D., and his team at the Duke University School of Medicine’s Human Performance Optimization Lab, are interested in how they can optimize human performance using neuroscience-based tools. Some of these tools expand into the realm of virtual reality and augmented reality.
Appelbaum’s combination of laboratory-based research and real-world research is used to advance the science of Sports Vision training. “A lot of these new tools, especially these digital tools, allow us to collect data in context that you wouldn’t think of as a research context,” Appelbaum said.
Can Sports Vision training play a role in athlete safety? What sports most benefit from this type of training? Is it expensive? And how is technology like Reflexion’s adding an advanced layer of data to neuro-fitness? Dr. Appelbaum answered these questions and revealed a host of training methods and tools athletes use to improve areas such as depth perception and anticipatory timing.

Do athletes have a sixth sense when it comes to anticipating a penalty kick or deciphering whether to swing at an iffy strike zone pitch? Yes and no — it’s a mix of stellar hand-eye coordination, past experience that helps athletes anticipate the ball, and training. But not simply athletic training; visual-motor reaction time training.
On this episode of the MarketScale Sports and Entertainment Podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sits down with Dr. Daniel Laby, a board-certified Ophthalmologist and founder of SportsVision NYC, to discuss a very “Moneyball” approach to the role of vision in sports and performance, as well as to break down the Reflexion technology powering neuro-fitness in sports.
“Our eyes are just a camera,” Laby said. “Our brain is what takes that image and makes a decision to bring in memory and training to decide whether you’re going to make a motor action.”
Laby began measuring eye-hand visual-motor reaction time more than 20 years ago when he was completing a fellowship with the LA Dodgers. Over 18 seasons, Laby measured the reaction time of thousands of baseball players and was able to quantify that data into actionable information coaches could use.
Over time, Laby went on to measure athletes’ vision in other sports and found correlations between specific sports and its athletes’ depth perception, contrast, and perception of light.
“Every sport has a different constellation of vision skills to perform optimally,” Laby said. “In baseball, for example, it has to do with how well do you see sharpness of vision and ability to see contrast.”
For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Software & Electronics Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

At one time, the compact disc (CD) was so popular, so profitable that the music industry couldn’t imagine life without it…until it had to. A disruption nobody had foreseen, advances in technology are to blame for the death of the music industry’s biggest money-spinner. Spawned by file-sharing via Napster and Limewire and the launch of the mp3 at the turn of the millennium, CD sales nearly halved between 2000 and 2007, which is when smartphones and the first music streaming services surfaced to put the final nail in the compact disc’s round coffin. Unfortunately, with the downfall of the CD came a breakdown in the music industry, shifting the balance of power in favor of consumers and platform owners, resulting in a commensurate fall in revenues for the music sector.

However, after an 11- year slump, the music industry is on the rise once again, notching double digit annual growth since 2016, with 2018 revenues up 13% year on year. The reason: music streaming platforms—a medium that barely registered as a source of income a decade ago! Now, accounting for nearly 80% of retail sales revenues in the U.S., streaming has been a boon for the industry, resulting in $20.2 billion in revenue in 2019, up from $14 billion in 2014. With that said, Warner Music Group’s plan to go public, with an initial public offering valuing the company at $13.3 billion, reflects a revitalized industry. And on this snippet of Business Casual, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern break down Warner’s business strategy, consumer listening habits, digital streaming platforms, and the overall economics of the music industry.

Each Wednesday and Friday, MarketScale’s Business Casual brings thought leadership to your day, keeping you current with the hottest topics and newest trends shaping business in our modern world. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B, be sure to check out our industry pages.

As businesses continue to reopen across the country, children and adrenaline junkies alike have been eagerly anticipating the reopening of the gates at their favorite amusement parks. While Walt Disney World isn’t slated for reopening until mid-July, others like Universal Orlando Resort and Sea World Orlando are scheduled for early June, including Six Flags Frontier City in Oklahoma. Synonymous with family fun and thrills for all ages, the Six Flags Entertainment Corporation is the world’s largest regional theme park company and the largest operator of waterparks in North America. As the first Six Flags theme park to reopen, Frontier City will provide a preview of what coronavirus-era theme parks will look like and possibly serve as a guideline for the reopening of the company’s other parks as we ride what we all hope is the downward curve of the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, as guests excitedly await and plan for Six Flags’ reopening in Oklahoma, there is certainly cause for concern. This past Memorial Day weekend, unmasked crowds carelessly packed into a pool at Lake of the Ozarks State Park in Missouri. Considered reckless behavior that endangered countless people, following footage showing people blatantly ignoring social distancing measures as they celebrated the holiday, the St. Louis County Public Health Department released a travel advisory on Monday asking that those who engaged in the festivities self-quarantine for 14 days or until they receive a negative COVID-19 test result.

With this in mind and Six Flags Frontier City scheduled to open in just mere days—June 5th—on this episode of Business Casual, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss the restrictions Six Flags has in place to ensure the safety of visitors and employees both and avoid situations like the one in Missouri. Some of the restrictions Six Flags has announced to minimize proximity exposure include reservations that must be made on line (no tickets sold at the gate), guests over the age of 2 must either bring a mask or buy one as they enter and wear it throughout their visit, thermal imaging screening for temperature checks, and capacity limitations to keep crowds at a minimum and social distancing at a maximum while standing in lines and riding rides. Kern and Litwin break down how the measures will be enforced, the technology involved (online reservation system that manages attendance, line queuing, ride pre-booking, VIP passes, etc.), and how the restrictions will play out long term.

Bringing thought leadership to your day and coming to you each Wednesday and Friday, MarketScale’s Business Casual keeps you current with the hottest topics and newest trends shaping business today. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across the attraction industry and other sectors, be sure to check out our industry pages.

Dan Huntington still laughs as he remembers a lesson he learned in his college days.

For years, his alma mater tried to keep students off the grass in a main area with signs and regulations. Finally, the administration realized it simply needed to work with the students’ established behaviors and pave the paths regularly being trod across the lawn.

It can be the same with roof safety, said Bill Parsons, Group Technical Director for Kee Safety.

“We want to control the way people behave on these rooftops, and one of the simplest ways we can do that is provide a collective protection. That’s guardrails, and it’s access-ways that are controlled,” Parsons said. “We might have a pipe people climb over, and we all know that happens every single day. What we can do by having an access point, building a step over module or something like that, is we can actually control where along the pipeline that is and make sure it keeps them away from other hazards, as well.”

Too many employers think they can check a box, complying with OSHA regulations and calling that good enough to protect their crew. But an approach that also takes workers’ day-to-day feelings into account or involves them in the process can be the difference between success and failure in creating a safe environment.

“I think the really big deal here is for us as safety professionals to put ourselves in the shoes of the people we’re trying to protect, to really be as empathetic as we can to what their situation is, especially in a highly active environment,” Parsons said. “A lot of the industrial places folks go to work in are very active. There’s lots going on around them, and we have to be mindful about that.”

For chronic pain sufferers, an increase in pain levels is typically associated with higher stress and anxiety levels. But in a time when a terrible pandemic has wreaked havoc across the globe, everyone’s anxiety levels are escalating, particularly for those with chronic pain, intensifying pain beyond usual levels. And because there is no acute illness, pain management in a primary care or outpatient setting may not be considered a priority for physicians during a global health crisis. Thus, patient anxiety and pain levels rise further as they worry about not being able to see their doctor for medication refills, treatments, or basic follow-ups. Making matters worse, the closing of businesses providing massage, acupuncture, exercise and counseling services that aid in pain relief has essentially demolished the alternate pathways these sufferers can traverse to control their pain. Further, depression and anxiety are the top symptoms of chronic pain, and social distancing measures have undoubtedly resulted in an overwhelming sense of social isolation, deepening feelings of unhappiness and hopelessness for these patients.
Sadly, one in three Americans suffers from chronic pain—that’s 100 million people in this country alone. Because pain measurement is subjective, often taking three to six months to diagnose, the condition is often overlooked by the healthcare community; and even when diagnosed, the treatment most strongly encouraged over the past 25 years has been opioids. But as the opioid crisis swept the U.S., a search for alternatives to pain management became a national crusade.
On this episode of MarketScale Live, Celine Tien, the Founder of Flowly, joins MarketScale’s Daniel Litwin, the Voice of B2B, to discuss the launch of Flowly and the role of telehealth and telemedicine during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond. Flowly is a data-focused bio-feedback mobile app for chronic pain and anxiety sufferers, enabling users to explore interactive VR- and phone-enabled experiences in order to teach them how to regulate their nervous systems through relaxation training. Flowly also keeps track of a user’s progress while allowing them to share it all with a supportive community.
“We saw a survey with the U.S. Pain Foundation where people with chronic pain and chronic illnesses who are also immunosuppressed are particularly vulnerable to viruses like COVID-19. They’re getting even less access to health care than they did before.” Tien explained. “Initially we had wanted to launch Flowly later this year, but when COVID hit—I would say at the peak in March—we had such an inundation of messages and people reaching out to us asking if they could access our data immediately because people were so in need of something that they could remotely access at home to help them manage their pain.”
Bringing thought leadership to your day, MarketScale hosts industry experts so that you stay informed of the newest trends, events and beyond in B2B. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across Healthcare and other industry sectors, be sure to check out our Industry pages.

Steve Kaiser, CEO of OrecX, believes the best innovations come from collaboration, and that’s why his organization’s audio capture platform is open source.

With some of the most sophisticated and highest-rated peer-reviewed recording software in the industry, Kaiser makes it his mission to increase business value by unlocking the data derived from spoken communication.

He stopped by the Software & Technology podcast to provide insights on an industry amid exciting changes and opportunities.

Kaiser believes now is a perfect opportunity for businesses to take advantage of the latest data-gathering analytics technology in the telephony space.

“If businesses have recording infrastructure in place and they are committed to it, they may keep it,” Kaiser said. “That’s a safe, conservative way to look at it. However, if these businesses want to participate in the world of AI-fueled speech analytics, their proprietary systems need to support the type of modeled, access, and quality control required to interact with third-party analytic vendors.”

Sometimes, these proprietary systems block companies from using any third-party solution and require them to purchase expensive add-ons. OrecX’s approach is an audio-capture system that runs parallel to a businesses’ existing recording system.

By doing this method, a company can capture the data for analyzing without purchasing expensive proprietary solutions and without replacing their existing setup.

But do businesses recognize the value in the data they are capturing with recorded customer interactions? Kaiser said there’s a lot of opportunities to gain valuable insights into customer experience, satisfaction, and internal operations procedures.

“If that information is not in a repurposable format, then the opportunities for using it may be lost," he said.

Once a business creates the ability to gather accurate recording data from its platform, many analytics providers can help make sense and value from that data, Kaiser said.

The following are a few of my tips for travel NOW as well as Post-Pandemic. When sharing these tips, it became really obvious, that the tips that apply to travel now are really best practices that you can apply moving forward.
1. Stay Informed.
Do not panic. Stay informed and be smart. Listen to the suggested precautions: wash hands frequently, avoid touching your face, reduce going to places with large crowds and practice social distancing. Assess your health honestly. Also, stay on top of new developments as this situation is VERY fluid.
And with this, consider the whole travel ecosystem. Travel is more than just planes and hotels, it is about the destination as well.
2. Best Way to Increase Your Chances of a Refund
Be specific with WHY you are cancelling. Everything is on a case by case basis right now. If you are cancelling because you are sick or you have a pre-existing health condition that puts you at high risk, let the company know. You will likely have to prove it with a doctor’s note, but companies are making exceptions for these cases. If you are just cancelling because an event got cancelled, you might be out of luck. Regardless, most companies are trying their best to work with everyone, given the circumstances.
3. Consider postponing instead of cancelling.
Especially if you are having a hard time getting a refund--get credit where you can and plan something later. There is no point in trying to push through and travel now. With so many attractions and activities closed, it is likely your destination will not be fully operational. Do you really want to go to a destination where everything is closed?
And don't know when? Err on the side of safety and push it to early 2021.

What if you could build out a referral partner network that brought your PERFECT customer or client to you?
No more wining and dining and woo’ing and pleading to get customers to pay for your services or items.
No more efforting. Yes, I just made that word up.
Today I’d like to talk about how struggling in the early days of my business, then pivoting to create a big referral network, has helped ensure I have a constant stream of potential clients knocking at my door.
I'll also share how to attract your ideal referral partner and client through showing up AS who you want to attract!
Resources:
1. Jennifer’s Referral Program
20% of my net payout
For the length of the client relationship
*I send out fun thank-you gifts too every once in a while too
2. My personal branding experience: https://jenniferkayloruscin.com/how-right-branding-effortlessly-attracts-ideal-client/

In this week’s episode, Grant Guillot is joined by Rhett Ross and Philip Burton with Deuce Drone, a UAS delivery service provider based out of Mobile and initially operating in cities within Alabama. Guillot’s firm, Adams and Reese, has been engaged by Deuce Drone to assist with regulatory and government relations matters.
“The ability to engage with the public and with federal, but, even more so, state and local leaders at the introductory stage of the development of a drone company is so critical to helping the operation become scalable,” Guillot states, noting that assisting Deuce Drone with its UAS operations falls within Adams and Reese’s “comfort zone in working with state and local officials to help embrace technology and advocate on behalf of our clients.”
Guillot is also joined on the episode by his law partner, Britton Bonner, who leads Adams and Reese’s Economic Development Practice Team and represents commercial enterprises in various sectors, including manufacturing, shipbuilding, logistics and distribution, aviation and aerospace.
“[The drone industry] combines new technology with federal regulation that is going to necessitate local support and state support,” Bonner says. “Most of the projections…have estimated that the drone industry as a whole would have an economic impact that would support over 100,000 jobs potentially by 2025. Where those jobs go is going to be determined by the regulatory environment and the local acceptance of the industry. I think you’ll see states that are opening up sooner to the drone industry and embracing it. They will siphon jobs and opportunities away from state and localities that aren’t in support.”

Dan Allford, President, Arc Specialties, and Brett Hubbard, OEM Sales Manager, Hypertherm joined the Roboticist chronicles to detail the long-standing partnership between Arc Specialties and Hypertherm.

Hypertherm is an industry leader in utilizing plasma for cutting alloys. Arc Specialties uses Hypertherm’s power supply and technology to cut parts with Arc’s robots.

“What we do is take plasma cutting and apply it to a three-dimensional world,” Allford said.

Hypertherm’s technology provides the cut, and Arc’s technology provides motion control.

In a collaborative partnership with Hypertherm, RobotMaster, and KUKA, Arc Specialties co-developed FlexFabTM, a flexible fabrication 3D Robotic Cutting Cell that converts CAD models into a 3D plasma cut steel part. This process saves time and labor hours due to its precision control and the ability to program offline while cutting work continues.

“The FlexFab can be just that - flexible to whatever your application may be in the 3D world,” Hubbard said.

What does the future hold in plasma cutting technology? Hubbard said Hypertherm is continuing to expand its plasma capabilities in the 3D space, as well as looking to its past in developing new non-ferrous metal cutting technologies.

On the “Secure the Bag” segment of Business Casual, host Daniel Litwin was joined by MarketScale’s Taylor Bagley to ponder a big question – is Spotify the platform to beat when it comes to podcasts?

The company recently acquired “The Joe Rogan Experience,” a wildly popular podcast that will now live exclusively on Spotify. The company has also acquired the likes of Gimlet Media, Paracast and The Ringer.

With Spotify throwing its weight – and money, as Rogan’s podcast is expected to cost upward of $100 million – around, is it primed to continue lording over the likes of Google and Apple in delivering these audio-centric pillars of the modern consumer’s experience?

As a response to the spread of the novel coronavirus and the ensuing COVID-19 pandemic, many operations have turned to elevated temperature scanning solutions to provide a screening method for their physical gathering spaces.

While the technology seems like a no-brainer on the surface, is it as beneficial as it sounds?

In some cases, handheld scanning still puts employees at risk. Further, the process is tremendously inefficient.

However, there could be a way forward.

Companies have turned their focus toward integrated solutions that combine with contactless kiosks and robust security systems and strategies, providing a path toward more meaningful and lasting solutions.

On this episode of Business Casual, hosts Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin, Tyler Kern and Taylor Bagley explore whether temperature scanning will actually become a brick-and-mortar mainstay, how these systems might have multiple functions, and more.

The City of Tulsa is pulling out all the stops in its attempt to woo electric vehicle juggernaut Tesla. The city transformed its “Golden Driller” statue, a 75-foot behemoth, into Tesla founder Elon Musk, trying to convince the company to bring its next manufacturing plant to Oklahoma.

The plant will produce Tesla Model Y and Cybertruck vehicles and will be the company’s second in the United States. Currently, the race seems to be between Tulsa and Austin.

If Tulsa’s gimmicks pay off, it could bring big-time jobs to the city to the tune of 10,000 new openings. But will it happen? Would it really be the boon Tulsa residents are hoping for?

On this episode of Business Casual, Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin dives in, drawing comparisons to past pushes for big companies in other locations, highlighting potential barriers and drawbacks, and examining whether a 75-foot Musk can really seal the deal.

The difficulty students experience completing homework without sufficient access to the internet is not a new issue, but one that many people understand at a whole new level due to the current pandemic. Jason Claybrook, Head of Sales and Marketing at Aura Wireless, Jeff Wolfe, Solutions Architect, at SonicWall, Loren Wiege, Director, Competitive Global Programs, at SonicWall, and Holly Davis, Founder & CEO of Komplément believe the problem can be solved.

Areas where the community is economically underserved or remote, rural populations where there isn’t sufficient fiber laid to cover the needs are most susceptible to the lack of internet access for students after school. “The challenge these communities have had for many years has been they’ve had to do after school programs, or other forums, to provide the students the access they need to the internet to get their homework done,” Davis said.

And while the recent Cares Act may provide funding to help close the homework gap, how is that accomplished when there is still the issue of a lack of internet access in many areas, especially in rural communities? Aura Wireless and SonicWall have teamed up to provide solutions. Claybrook explained his company’s antenna product attaches to wifi access points and provides up to 10 acres of coverage, which significantly reduces the number of AP locations. SonicWall provides secure outdoor AP’s which, when combined with Aura’s Wireless solution, now give schools more wireless access to their network for students in the community.

Corey Ryan, Director of Medical Robotics for KUKA Robotics, joined Orange Intelligenz to discuss the evolution and current advancements of robotics in the medical industry.

KUKA’s LBR Med, for example, is a collaborative robot for medical applications ideally suited for a wide range of assistance systems in medical technology.

“A growing acceptance of robots in the medical space is what has allowed for the growth of these collaborative robots,” Ryan said.

Today’s medical professionals utilize robots to enhance procedures and do things they could not do without robotic assistance. Force controls integrated into the robots prevent intentional and unintentional contact with people.

“We have a flexible and configurable safety concept so that safety requirements can be set based on the application and the current activities versus a singular safety system found in an industrial setting,” Ryan said.

With KUKA’s intuitive robot system, used for minimally invasive surgeries, doctors can prolong their careers because the system reduces body fatigue and minimizes hand tremors by filtering them out.

“You want to keep your best and most experienced surgeons working as long as you can,” Ryan said.

In this podcast, Melissa Gonzalez discusses the evolution of store design through data collection and statistical analytics with George Shaw, founder of Pathr. Via computer vision and AI, George discusses how Pathr is able to capture actionable insights to inform operations teams, LP and marketing teams alike to illuminate shopper groups, customers and staff interactions and throughput opportunities at check-out. Social distancing will guide new store layouts, but science will help inform optimization and ways to increase flow without sacrificing safety.

On this episode of Scale with Sergio, host Sergio Reyes was joined by Dr. Tyson Browning, TCU professors of operations management.
The duo dove into a topic that’s been thrust into the spotlight in light of the spread of the novel coronavirus and the ensuing COVID-19 pandemic – how to best manage operational risk and uncertainty.
How well organizations were prepared for the unknown – or not prepared at all – has been revealed by the current period of uncertainty. But how, even if an organization came up short in this instance, can they prepare for the unknown that lies ahead?
First, the pair said, it’s key to outline some key distinctions.
“It’s important to distinguish uncertainty, which is all the stuff out there in the future that we don’t know exactly how it’s going to turn out … (from) risk and opportunity. There are a lot of uncertainties, but only some of them could have a negative impact, potentially, on our operation, supply chain, or project,” Browning said.
“We call these threatening, negative potential outcomes risks.”
While uncertainty and risk are certainly words that come with highly negative connotations, there are ways to navigate them.
“Overall, I like to use the kind of classical, standard five-step process for managing risk and opportunity,” Browning said. “It’s very general, and people use it more or less in many cases. It’s a good starting point.”
Those five steps are identifying risks and opportunities, assessing them, prioritizing them, responding to them, and continuing to monitor them.
To get a more in-depth idea of what goes into each step, listen to the entire episode.

EXFO’s new approach to fiber testing with its revolutionary Optical Explorer Optical Fiber Multimeter (OFM) allows veterans of the testing industry to experience that satisfaction.
“It’s quite fun and quite remarkable to see the technicians hook it up and, within minutes, start getting results of, ‘Gosh, OK, got the first continuity established,’ then moving on to the next fiber and the next fiber and the next fiber and, within a few minutes, they’ve gotten through their task list,” said Maury Wood, Business Development Manager at EXFO.
“Along the way, if they see there’s a problem, they can start using some of the other features just to understand what’s going on between here and there and what they can do to try and mitigate those issues.”
Those features include being able to shine an infrared light down a fiber and test its strength with a second device, getting a link map view of the fiber to understand what events are happening and exploring impairments on the fiber with the Fault Explorer. With an intuitive device with a display not unlike a smartphone’s, even rookie technicians are able to get up and running with the multimeter.
With 5G demand set to skyrocket, fiber deployments are set to shoot up in volume, as well, and with them the need to make sure towers and networks actually are functioning properly.
“The bandwidth and latency goals of 5G are such that, whether it’s in a metro area or a more rural area, it’s requiring something like 10 to 100 times more fiber infrastructure to support those performance goals,” Wood said. “So, you can imagine that, in a competitive business environment our customers are operating in, to get 5G services to the market as soon as possible, they’re having to correspondingly hire a lot of technicians to get that work done.”
Those technicians will work faster and get more done if they have the functionality of the Optical Explorer in their hands.

On this episode of Test Your Network, an EXFO podcast, host Tyler Kern was joined by EXFO Director, Transport and Datacom Business Unit Sophie Legault and Xilinx Director of Wired Communications Gilles Garcia for a discussion about how the two companies are working to provide boosted connectivity during a time when remote-work requirements and more have thrust a need for that connectivity into the forefront.
EXFO develops test, monitoring and analytics solutions for network operators, helping them ensure they’re performing to the best of their ability at all times through robust testing, real-time data and more, while Xilinx delivers adaptable communications platforms for wired and wireless networks that help ensure reliable performance.
The two companies have partnered together to provide fully formed solutions that have been tested and demonstrated, giving end users confidence in their ability to solve the myriad challenges presented by 5G.
“We have been working for years with EXFO, and EXFO is using a lot of the Xilinx technology in their products, as well. … It’s almost a ripple effect,” Garcia said. “When we are bringing the new chips to the market, we need to work very closely with EXFO in order to have (interoperability) between our platforms and their testing equipment, so we can prove to the world that, in fact, the test equipment is ready.”
With the COVID-19 pandemic still causing ripple effects throughout the world’s industries, the need for flexibility and performance in 5G solutions is more apparent than ever before.
Fortunately, new innovations are helping 4G and 5G coexist and pushing the 5G rollout forward.
“If we look more specifically at the 5G transport, to bring all the new applications that are promised by 5G, there are quite a number of new technologies that are planned to be deployed in the transport network, or what we call the crosshaul transport network. … There are very strict requirements on that network for things like latency, throughput, network slicing and others,” Legault said.

Today's topic sounds like a mouthful -- Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing in 5G networks -- but the conversation boils down to making 5G more accessible and affordable for everyone.
On this episode of the MarketScale Software and Technology podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with Maury Wood, Business Development Manager of North American Key Accounts for EXFO, to discuss how they help customers deploy and test Wave Division Multiplexing in their respective networks.
Before joining EXFO, Wood worked for years in the semiconductor industry, which gave him an understanding of how component-level innovations impact system-level cost and benefits.
It turns out, though, that his dual degrees in computer engineering and music gave him the perfect analogy to help us understand how data travels.
"The beautiful thing about sound is that our ears are able to hear simultaneously low sounds and high-frequency sounds, which explains why music is so beautiful to us," Wood said. "The same thing applies with light going through the atmosphere to our eyes, or laser light going through glass fiber.
"It turns out different frequencies of light don't mix or interfere with each other. So, if you're carrying information on a lower frequency of light, you can pass that with a higher frequency lightwave and be able to recover those at the far end without any interference."

After Tuesday’s Greenpeace report highlighting how Google, Microsoft, and Amazon use AI and warehouse servers to support the location and retrieval of oil and gas deposits from the earth for the likes of Shell, BP, and ExxonMobil—helping big oil profit from climate destruction—a Google spokesperson unloaded a bombshell pledge, confirming that the company “will not build custom AI or machine learning algorithms to facilitate upstream extraction in the oil and gas industry” going forward. Separating itself from other large tech giants, Google is reputed for being one of the greenest large tech firms in the world, employing strategies like buying renewable energy to match its use of non-renewable energy. It is Greenpeace’s hope that Google’s pledge will inspire other big tech companies to end their AI partnerships with oil and gas firms as well. On this snippet of Business Casual, host Daniel Litwin considers the implications of Google’s pledge, setting two monolithic pillars of industry—big tech versus big oil—against each other in a struggle to preserve and/or exploit earth’s resources.

How will Google’s pledge affect long-standing relationships between big oil and big tech and contracts already in motion?
Will this move drive a permanent wedge between the two industries?
What will happen to whole divisions of big tech companies that are devoted solely to capturing new oil business?
Is this just talk—more or less a PR push by Google to ward off retaliation and flack as a result of the Greenpeace report—or will they actually walk the climate-change walk?
Will distancing themselves from big oil negatively impact Google’s core business?
Will increased scrutiny on big oil companies eventually result in a complete restructuring of their business model and their place in our economy?

Bringing thought leadership to your day, MarketScale’s Business Casual keeps you current with the hottest topics and newest trends shaping business today. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B, be sure to check out our industry pages.

In this week's episode of Diving Into Data, we explore the convoluted world of content analytics to understand how you really gauge the effectiveness of those investments. We also touch on some leadership 'lessons learned' from the COVID-19 outbreak and are back with another installment of Industry Rapidfire around sports and entertainment.

Straight Outta Crumpton focuses on the ways that building relationships is valuable both in business and in life. The guest on this episode is a perfect example of this.
Lt. Col. Waldo Waldman, Air Force Academy graduate, combat decorated Air Force F-16 fighter pilot turned sales guru, performance consultant, executive coach and motivational keynote speaker, joined Greg Crumpton to discuss what it means to be a "Wingman" and how it can benefit yourself and those around you.
"The more I grow in life...you start realizing who those people are that you can build those 'Wingman' relationships with. The way that you gauge that in business or life is somebody that you feel comfortable with going to for help," said Waldman.
For more leadership and relationship insights from Lt. Col. Waldo Waldman, head to his website where he is offering a free download of his audiobook 'Never Fly Solo' to listeners of this podcast.

As retailers attempt to pull the trigger on reopening brick and mortar in a big way, they know they have to get it right the first time. Yet so much confusion surrounds what is even possible as the corona crisis plays out. Restoring consumer confidence will require clear answers, actionable best practices, and herculean effort. As CEO of facilities management leader, Service Channel, Tom Buiocchi is in the business of making that happen for over 500 name brands across 350,000-plus locations. In this Voices of Retail Next interview episode, Carol and Tom discuss what it will really take to get brick and mortar retail rolling once again.

I personally love studying numbers and trends. And right now with the travel industry being so bleak, it is a hard time. Which is why I've chosen to dive in deep into studying trends and looking at stats and facts. It's in these figures that I really think we can have a better understanding of the future.
That being said, the two key components to travel recovery will be heavily reliant on "young" travelers (aka millennials and Gen Z) as well as domestic travel. Interestingly enough, the two do overlap, but they are significant enough that they need to be examined on their own.
So let’s go ahead and break down some interesting numbers shared this past week.
The Travel Rebound will be lead by younger people
According to Trip.com, travelers born after 1990 accounted for more than half of the total bookings during the recent May Day break in China. Indicating that the industry as a whole should look towards millennials and Gen Z travelers to be the first to travel after the pandemic.
Air Travel will take 2 to 4 years to recover.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) forecasts that domestic air travel will return to 2019 levels by 2022. International long-haul travel on the other hand is not expected to match 2019 traffic until 2024.

On this episode of the MarketScale ProAV podcast, host Tyler Kern was joined by Diversified Director of Electronic Security Solutions Bill Aheimer.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many things across the globe’s industries and organizations have been thrust into uncertainty. However, there’s one thing businesses can always control – security.

There are several key components of any business’s security strategy, Aheimer said.

“Most security professionals and executives that have oversight over security are well aware of the fact that effective security is accomplished in layers,” he said. “The typical layers that organizations look at are entries and exits, high-value, high-asset areas where we have IT resources, such as network closets, or HR areas and the finance area.”

To accomplish a strategy that effectively works outward to inward and protects each of these layers, Aheimer said, it’s important to not fall into the trap of focusing only on the perimeter.

After all, he said, 85% of breaches – whether they be physical or cyber-related – are internal.

The duo also examined the potential for more remote offices and workforces moving forward after the world returns to “normal,” how that could impact security plans and offer a prime opportunity to rethink their strategy, the role of thorough processes in security, and more.

Technology evolves and changes, but, too often, there is a rush to change everything completely rather than improving on what you have.

As many organizations begin to phase out past technology, many don’t think about simply improving the technology they have, a project that can come at a lower cost and often fits all their evolving needs.

Solaris, the SPARC operating system, is going to be supported into 2034 and, since SPARC is an open-source technology and Oracle and Fujitsu continue to innovate on it, it’s worth considering if a different solution truly is needed.

“The marketplace has really generated a false sense of urgency and a lot of misinformation on the topic. SPARC is definitely not end of life,” said Richard Qualls, Master Principal Systems Engineer at Oracle. “Solaris has got a lot of legs on it, and Solaris with the SPARC operating system continues its legacy of innovation.”

There are enormous benefits that come alongside modernization, said Ray McCay, VP of Solution Sales for ViON, with adjustments to be made that can increase value.

“You’re getting a new platform, so you’re getting higher availability, reduced componentry, which means reduced failures, fewer system issues, fewer outages. That’s all part of the story,” he said.

Other parts of the story include improved efficiency, decreased risk and a better security posture, automation and manageability.

That’s more than enough to call for a rethink of an “out with the old, in with the new” approach.

As businesses grow into enterprise in scope, the level of sophistication of their payment system grows, too, and the challenge of handling these expanding needs is apparent.

Ori Hay, CEO of Amaryllis, and Viko Bargig, Vice President, Solutions Architect for Amaryllis, take these unique payment challenges and needs of the enterprise customer head on. They spoke with host Daniel Litwin on how they provide payment solutions on such a large and sophisticated level and why enterprise customers need specialized payment solutions.

Bargig said today’s global enterprise-level businesses offer a multitude of options for their customers, with varying platforms and payment options. To meet these needs, they require a payment management system that differs from what a localized business might need. And Bargig sees more and more companies shifting from localized to globalized.

“Today’s enterprise customers are using payments to generate more revenues and more profit,” Hay said. “Small businesses use payments as a commodity. They don’t recognize, in the beginning, how important for them to control the payment chain. This factor is why they outsource it to other companies.”

What do enterprise customers need to do to ensure they build the right payment solution for their needs?

“Each enterprise business should look at as many use cases as they can research to understand their needs,” Bargig said. “Then you have to decide which use cases you’d like to support in the near future and the far future.”

Robots always have seemed like something far off in the future, but advances in automation technology have put automation and robotics within reach of nearly any business.

The pace at which that technology is changing has made automation at scale a much more affordable proposition and much for a user to get under their fingertips as well.

“Five years ago, you had to be a master programmer to get a robot to run or just to configure it, where nowadays we have pop-ups and easy to use software that allows you to configure it in minutes instead of hours,” Michael Breen (embed contributor page), KUKA’s Technical Sales Support Manager, said during a roundtable with four other experts from the company. “When you do that it allows you to target an audience that’s much smaller, your mom-and-pop shops and smaller-scale businesses.”

Even if the learning curve with a particular product is a bit steep, KUKA backs its solutions with many education options. Perhaps most critical is the on-site KUKA College, an adult education program designed to help users learn exactly what they can do with their machine.

“It’s very important they not only spend time in the classroom absorbing the information, but having time on the robot is so important. They need to get on that robot and implement what they’ve just learned to really solidify it,” said Alexis Trumper (embed contributor page), who is the Training Manager. “This is a model of adult learning that’s been proven and taught in many other aspects in the world. We like to make sure people know we’re using the model and then have the confidence they’re getting a really great product when they come over and take classes with us.”

Robots may seem futuristic, but with KUKA’s tools and resources, it’s clear the future is now.

With rents rising and the economy cratering just over decade ago, many chefs and restaurants owners took to the streets.

They weren’t protesting, but rather doing the best they could with what they had, making food in trucks, pulling up to street corners or events and selling directly to hungry customers eager to post the latest culinary delight on fledgling social networks.

Now, with the restaurant industry being rocked by the coronavirus pandemic and the public safety regulations that must come with it, there may be another food truck boom.

If so, Ren Budde, Director of Business Development for On The Move, and his crew are ready to support it and work with chefs to make sure their project is viable long-term.

“From 2008 to 2013, there was a huge explosion, and a lot of that was fueled by the inability to find capital to build your brick and mortar. … (It) gave entrepreneurs the opportunity to do their own thing and really come up with some creative menus,” Budde said.

Often, chefs know how to put together those food options, but aren’t sure where to start with their rig. That’s where On The Move, which started as a turnkey truck lease program and has blossomed into a company handling a number of truck and transportation related projects, can come in.

While it may seem easiest to buy something on the used market, Budde cited a study that said more than three-fourths of trucks that started there were out of the market within two years. Too many food truck start-ups don’t realize the regulations required to get in compliance with state and city regulations or buy something not tailored to their own brand of cuisine.

“Anybody that thought they were a welder thought they could build a food truck. There wasn’t a great emphasis on health and safety regulations across the board,” Budde said. “That has changed so much over 10 years. What happened in the middle part of the 2010s is you had the ‘wheat from the chaff’ type of situation where quality food-truck manufacturers like On The Move came up with some designs and really helped the public understand their needs, refine what they were looking for and put them in a truck that suited them and the food they were going to serve.”

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Welcome to this week’s episode of “Drones in America,” a MarketScale podcast hosted by Grant Guillot.
Guillot leads the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Practice Team for Adams and Reese, a law firm that practices across the Southern U.S. and in Washington, D.C.
On “Drones in America,” Guillot and industry leaders, influencers and experts explore the rapidly growing commercial drone industry in the U.S., guiding you through the complex web of technology, policy and more.
In this week’s episode, Guillot is joined by Jeremiah Karpowicz, Editorial Director at Diversified Communications, a well-known and widely-respected journalist who regularly reports on the commercial drone industry.
The two discuss the importance of leadership in the industry, especially at a time when companies in various end-user sectors are striving to economically recover while implementing social distancing. Karpowicz sets forth his belief that company leaders who embrace drones in the near term, rather than delaying implementation of drone technology until after “things return to normal”, are more likely to rise above the economic devastation caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Karpowicz and Guillot also discuss the Commercial UAV Expo Americas, the world’s largest commercial UAS event, and the import role industry leaders and organizations, such as the Commercial Drone Alliance, play in facilitating the collaboration of government and industry to safely integrate drones into the National Airspace.
The two conclude their conversation by reflecting on how, despite the fears and uncertainties that have arisen due to Covid-19, the commercial drone industry can look forward to once again congregating in-person once it is safe to do so.
Join host Grant Guillot of the law firm, Adams and Reese for Drones in America with new episodes available where ever podcasts are found.

With roughly 4.2 billion people around the world subject to some form of lockdown in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the International Energy Agency said it expects global energy demand to plunge this year in what the Paris-based agency called the biggest drop since World War II. Further, according to the latest short-term energy outlook from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), amid stay-at-home policies, social distancing orders and factory closures put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic, renewables generation is set to outpace coal generation in 2020 as a result of shrinking electricity demand and lower natural gas prices. Is the pandemic an impetus for permanent change within the energy industry with the potential to accelerate the transition to renewables in our country and across the globe?

On this Business Casual segment, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern look at the current state of the energy consumables arena, and discuss whether the pandemic—which has been an unprecedented catalyst for changes within many industries—will be responsible for a large scale pivot toward more climate-friendly renewable energy sources. The hosts ask questions that dig deeper into whether the pandemic will be a true impetus for change:

Is it likely that fossil fuels will return to pre-pandemic levels even if demand goes back up as expected?
If this is a permanent shift, what will it look like and how will traditional fossil fuel providers adjust to and adopt more sustainable resources for energy?
Will younger generations more prone to eco-conscious choices help to accelerate the transition to renewable energy?
Is renewable infrastructure ready for a spike in deployment?

Coming to you on Wednesdays and Fridays each week, tune into the Business Casual podcast to stay abreast of the most recent trends and hottest topics impacting B2B. And, be sure to check out our industry pages for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B.

In this episode, Melissa is joined by Trevor Sumner, CEO and founder of Perch, a leader in interactive product engagement marketing retail displays. From beauty to CPG to grocery, learn how how in-store digital experiences can illuminate insights such as identifying top sellers, product merchandising opportunities and increasing ROI through story animation and education. Here first hand case study data around recent learnings on how to capture first party product feedback data real time, increase email capture and enhance personalization possibilities.
Bio:
Trevor Sumner is the CEO of Perch, the leader in interactive product engagement marketing retail displays that can detect when a shopper touches or picks up a product and then respond with product-specific digital experiences that consistently drive 30-130% sales lift. Perch has won numerous Clio, Digi Edison and retail design awards and was named one of the 15 tech companies to watch in 2018 by Forbes. Trevor has been a founder, investor, advisor and operator for cutting-edge technology companies with multiple successful exits and is a regular contributor to business and technology publications such as Inc, Forbes, TechCrunch and Mashable. Trevor is a native New Yorker, an avid fisherman (he caught a 600 lb Black Marlin), an amateur chef and an adventure scuba diver who has dived on every continent including Antarctica.
Questions:
1. Who are some of your customers/can focus on what verticles you serve (ie: Beauty, etc)
2. How does Perch empower brands to "bring media" to the in-store experience?
3. What does it take for a brand to on-board with Perch?
4. What are some learnings over the past 12 months? (ie: Perch customers spend 83% more, return products less... and why?).
5. How do you see brands and retailers evolving how they "show up" in the new norm, how does experiential evolve?
6. What is Perch doing to evolve in the future, especially with touch and making interactions feel safer?
7. How do you see the state of things accelerating technology implementations (we know consumer adoption is up)? How can the ecosystem (tech providers like Perch, brands, IT teams) better work together to make implementations more attainable?
8. I always end with a fun question- focused on where you are from or where you live- While we aren't traveling right now, we will again, what are the 3 must visit/must to-do things you would recommend to those visiting?

On this episode of Dirt Work, we were joined by Austin Clinkscales, Principal at Ladera Properties, a real estate developer, investment firm and operator focused on the retail sector in Texas and Oklahoma, to discuss how COVID-19 has impacted that already ever-changing retail real estate market. Retail is a tough business because of inherent limitations to control consumer behavior and has been impacted by many market shifts in the last several decades including the dot-com boom, the 08/09 recession and the emergence of retail alternatives such as e-commerce.
Clinkscales believes that the silver lining of the coronavirus disruption is opportunities created by reduced competition going after new development opportunities as others in the market are working to control pandemic-related damage to their existing portfolios.
COVID-19 has continued to change the retail landscape across malls, power-centers (e.g. shopping centers anchored by a Walmart, Target, etc.), neighborhood retail and restaurants. While the nuances impacting each vertical differ Clinkscales believes that liquidity, technology, health, and general ability to increase consumer confidence will separate the winners and losers following the pandemic. For listeners interested in learning more about changes in the retail section, Austin recommends CBRE’s Global Retail Research channel.

For years now, third-party food delivery apps like UberEats, Caviar, GrubHub, and Postmates, as well as the shop and delivery apps owned by eCommerce giants such as Amazon or AliBaba, have gained a foothold in communities around the world, transforming traditional shop-in and dine-in business models by offering an innovative approach to capturing additional revenues through services that bank on modern consumer convenience. However, in a post-pandemic world, many consumers are rethinking the convenience of these apps in favor of their community’s small businesses and workforce, many of which are straining to survive during shelter-in-place. Instead, these individuals are choosing to cut out the middleman and go out of their way to not only place orders with these local establishments themselves, but also, either driving to the location in their own vehicles or contracting a gig worker to do it for them rather than using fee-charging delivery apps that siphon profits from their struggling local favorites while helping to keep their workers on the payroll.

On this snippet of Business Casual, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern ask the tough questions:

While third-party delivery apps promote their capabilities in scaling the reach of a business, are the businesses themselves actually doing more work for less money?
As delivery apps create consumer dependence on their platforms, are they effectively hindering the sense of community a local business depends on to survive?
Are third-party delivery apps a predatory practice, holding restaurants and other businesses hostage by monopolizing search results?
Should these businesses eschew third-party platforms that can take up to three-quarters of their profits, and instead, provide delivery or takeout services themselves?
Will people continue to stay local-business-community-minded in a post-pandemic world, or will they revert back to creatures of convenience that enable the both popularity and profitability of third-party delivery apps?

Bringing thought leadership to your day, MarketScale’s Business Casual keeps you current with the hottest topics and newest trends shaping business today. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B, be sure to check out our industry pages.

When compared to other countries, Germany was surprisingly swift in rolling out widespread coronavirus testing, and today, the nation is admired for its success in containing one of the modern world’s worst pandemics. As the country gradually withdraws from its self-imposed isolation, one monumental move forward is being eagerly anticipated by soccer fans across the planet, including Business Casual host Tyler Kern. The Bundesliga, Germany’s professional association football league, has finally been cleared to return, making it the first of soccer’s major leagues to try and mount a comeback from the COVID-19-induced global sporting stoppage. While the Bundesliga boasts the highest average stadium attendance worldwide, in the post-pandemic world, however, the teams scheduled to play tomorrow, Saturday, May 16th, will be playing in empty stadiums—meaning fans must hunker down in front of the telly to cheer on their favorite teams.

A significant event with impacts that will affect the sporting industry around the globe, on this Business Casual segment, Kern discusses with co-host Daniel Litwin how the Bundesliga’s return will offer a glimpse of what top-level sports will look like not only in these unusual times, but also as we move forward into the new normal. Kern and Litwin break down:

The league’s creative method of promoting fan enthusiasm while generating revenues
An empty stadium’s bearing on the player psyche
German economics and how it relates to team ownership

Keeping you informed of the newest trends and the hottest topics in B2B, tune into the Business Casual podcast each Wednesday and Friday. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B, be sure to subscribe to our MarketScale Radio channel on either Spotify or Apple Podcasts where you can find all of our Business Casual, Ratify and other contributor shows; or go to Marketscale.com/Industries to view all of our live video and classic article content.

Subscribe now to The Rooftop Report by Kee Safety and hear conversations with the leading experts in the fall protection industry. New episodes coming soon!

On this week's episode of Diving Into Data, our primary focus is around the often-referenced, rarely-understood field of Artificial Intelligence. We are also back with our second week of Industry Rapidfire, with a focus on transportation, logistics and retail.
Though everyone knows the term Artificial Intelligence, what does it actually mean? And do we truly have those capabilities with today's technology? TC dives into the differences between Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Deep Neural Learning, explaining how the concepts relate to each other and what each of them truly refers to. He also covers the progression to higher levels of Artificial Intelligence, as well as some critical steps to follow if you're going to implement AI within your business.
In the Industry Rapidfire segment, TC dives into how airline operations, smart shipping and Sentient Marketing are all using data in creative ways to shift from reactive models to proactive ones. By deploying connected technology, machine learning and advanced analytics, see how these industries are embracing the potential of data.
Sit back, grab a drink, practice social distancing, and let's dive into some data.

Test

Welcome back to another Bricks and Clicks podcast! Today I'm interviewing Erin Phillips of Pinckney Palm, a social media agency out of North Carolina.
When I have questions about social media marketing, advertising, and content creation she's my go-to-gal.
Today we're talking about Instagram's dominating viewing presence, Facebook relevance, and what the heck TikTok is.
I learned so many new things just during our recording, like how I can take my content calendar, and use 1 new piece of content I create and slice it into IGTV, and IG / FB Stories, then add a carousel of pictures to my feed, then hop on over to LinkedIn and show the behind the scenes for other business owners on how I did it!
Resources:
TikTok Mini Course $15 https://www.pinckneypalm.com/shop/tiktokcourse
Weekly Social Media Planning Notepad $20 https://www.pinckneypalm.com/shop/weekly-social-media-planning-notepad
Social Media Help https://www.pinckneypalm.com/services
Email Erin: erin@pinckneypalm.com
Pinckney Palm Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pinckneypalm/
Subscribe to our newsletter: http://eepurl.com/dnRo0H
Pinckney Palm website: https://www.pinckneypalm.com/
Here is the link on how to request access to Instagram Shopping: https://www.facebook.com/business/instagram/shopping/guide

Taking into account that 80% of a company’s future revenue will come from 20% of their existing customers, it is extremely important to keep a healthy relationship with clients. John Nichols, vice president of account management at Personiv, joins host Lukas Cox to discuss business relationships.

Personiv’s growth has risen substantially based on customer needs. Nichols said that one of Personiv’s specialties is being “focused on knowing specific client needs.” He has worked with Personiv for many years and has been able to see its evolution over time.

Clients have an “expectation of continuous improvement," Nichols said.

That flexibility and being able to customize the program is the main ingredient in retaining client relationships. There is no set mold for retention for every client, he said, which makes flexibility even more important.

Businesses that boosted customer retention rates by as little as 5% saw increases in their profits ranging from 5% to a whopping 95%. The importance of retaining current customers is huge.

"The key to the positive feedback is being heard by the client," Nichols said.

He explained that his team will schedule weekly calls in order to make sure they are delivering on their promises, and that companies who use flexibility in their models bring confidence to their clients.

As businesses across the globe try to remain afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic, many are rethinking their business models, implementing contingency plans and adjusting operations to adapt to an uncertain economy in order to mitigate risk during this black swan event. However, some companies, such as Uber, have had to take more drastic measures, including jumping ship on specific segments of their business.

In addition to cutting about 14% of their workforce, battered by the coronavirus storm and losing $2.9 billion in the first quarter, Uber announced last week that it was offloading Jump, its bike and scooter business, to Lime (another micromobility giant). This maneuver will help to ease some of the company’s financial woes while allowing them to focus future efforts on their rideshare and food delivery business.

On this Business Casual segment, hosts Tyler Kern, Taylor Bagley and Daniel Litwin discuss whether this step has secured the bag for Uber. Bagley, the star host of MarketScale’s “Securing the Bag” doesn’t seem to think so. Listen to the podcast and see if you agree. Our hosts consider not only how this move will affect the company going forward, but also, how big a wake Uber abandoning ship in the scooter and bike space will make on the micromobility industry as a whole.

Keeping you informed of the newest trends and the hottest topics in B2B, tune into the Business Casual podcast each Wednesday and Friday. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B, be sure to check out our industry pages.

Amid stay at home orders due to the COVID-19 crisis, the daily work lives of people around the world were upended by social distancing, resulting in a large-scale transition to remote workplaces for employees not considered essential. The biggest challenge employers faced was implementing the technology to ensure seamless connectivity and business as usual, but many companies worried that the new remote work model would hinder productivity and their ability to effectively manage their employees working from home. However, once the remote technology investments were made, studies have indicated that during the pandemic, there was only a 1% reduction in work productivity, with more than 40% of workers preferring to continue working remotely full time in the future. Even so, as shelter-in-place orders gradually lift and businesses reopen, what will the future of the corporate office look like?

On this Business Casual snippet, hosts Daniel Litwin, Taylor Bagley and Tyler Kern assess the impact the pandemic has made on what just a few months ago was considered the modern workplace (open, shared, cubicle-less collaboration spaces), and as health concerns linger, how companies who’ve now experienced the benefits of the telecommuting work model are planning to go forward. Litwin, Kern, and Bagley discuss the following possibilities in the post-pandemic workplace:

Will other companies follow Twitter’s example in extending the remote workplace through the end of the year or even indefinitely?
Which positions and/or departments necessitate an in-office setting?
Are staggered shifts and alternate in-office workdays, as well as digital sensors and a return of the cubicle the answer for those companies that require their employees to return to the office?
Is a remote work environment more attractive in hiring real talent, even in high-rent, more expensive regions?

Keeping you informed of the newest trends and the hottest topics in B2B, tune into the Business Casual podcast each Wednesday and Friday. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B, be sure to check out our industry pages.

Brands undoubtedly experience ebbs and flows influenced by a variety of factors, many outside of the control of anyone. And right now, more than any other time in recent memory, many businesses are experiencing unexpected changes. So how does a brand adapt? While branding doesn’t have a singular strategy, and there is no set formula for new challenges - it’s important for brands and marketers to continually adapt and understand their audience.
On this episode of the Maverick of Marketing radio show host Shannon Maverick, talks with Michael Lynam, Director of Marketing for McGrath RentCorp. Lynam oversees marketing not just for McGrath, but also it’s five subsidiaries.
So how do you market and grow not just a parent brand, but five more within it? First it’s vital to understand what each brands value proposition is, and then understand who the customers are and who the audience is.
It’s important as marketers to remember, that audiences go beyond clients – to employees and prospective employees. A brand exists not just outwardly to clients, but also inwardly, to those working for an organization.
Lynam refers to a book by the Founder of Walmart, Sam Walton: Made In America. “Ignoring the conventional wisdom, if everybody else is going one way, there is a good chance you can find a niche and go in exactly the opposite direction. As marketer’s that is something we all need to continue to keep in the back of our minds. If we’re doing it like everybody else there’s no ability to actually stand out and differentiate yourself,” says Lynam.
In commoditized markets, it’s important for marketers to differentiate their brand and truly bring the customer experience to life. “What can you bring to the table to solve customer’s issues,” says Lynam.
Listen to the full episode of the Maverick of Marketing to learn more.

During the coronavirus crisis, the divide between online and brick and mortar businesses widened rampantly, amplifying gains for companies that catered to their customers online. And as online purchases continued to gain exponential momentum during these uncertain times, countless companies that relied on in-person browsing were compelled to make a digital shift just to survive. Today, many are wondering if this transformation to digital commerce is a precursor to a long-term trend that could last long after the health crisis is over. Well, snack-and-beverage-giant PepsiCo is banking on it.

On this Business Casual segment, hosts Taylor Bagley, Tyler Kern, and Daniel Litwin discuss Pepsi’s recent purchase of both the Snacks.com and PantryShop.com domains, adding direct-to-consumer services to their product offering which not only ensures customers are connected promptly with the Pepsi snacks and beverages they love—minus the middleman (Amazon, curbside and pickup grocery service, etc.)—but allows the company to boost cashflow and control advertising via their own platform.

Kern, Bagley, and Litwin weigh the pros and cons of Pepsi’s unprecedented move to eCommerce channels:

Is the 10% boost in Pepsi’s earnings last month just in response to a pandemic snack-boom, or will the new platforms be worth the upkeep involved?
Will this approach offer a truly more convenient way to eat snacks, or will the company’s promised 2-day delivery to hinder the consumer’s desire for the immediate gratification snacking usually entails?
Is the launch just a power-grab, or is this a long-term strategy for more market gain?
How does this move impact logistics and the foodservice industry as a whole?

Keeping you informed of the newest trends and the hottest topics in B2B, tune into the Business Casual podcast each Wednesday and Friday. And for the latest thought leadership, news and event coverage across B2B, be sure to check out our industry pages.

As CVS has seen rapid growth within the last quarter, and It announced in late March that planned to hire 50,000 people in part-time, full-time, and temporary roles to keep up with demand.
The drugstore chain CVS has kept store locations open as an essential retailer during the coronavirus pandemic due to being a leading provider of consumer cleaning supplies, over-the-counter medications, and prescriptions.

CVS said the pandemic caused more customers to order things such as 90-day prescriptions, opting for early refills of medications, and buying a larger volume of household goods and health items.

In an earnings call earlier this month CVS Stated that The company’s same-store sales in pharmacy were up 9.3% and same-store sales in the front store were up 8% in the quarter. Prescription volume was up sharply, by nearly 10%.

Recently, Jeffrey Lackey, VP of talent acquisition at CVS Health, told HR Dive, (https://www.hrdive.com/news/we-went-virtual-almost-overnight-how-cvs-hired-nearly-50k-amid-covid-19/577659/) "All of us were facing an unprecedented reality, "We realized that we needed to create an accelerated hiring process that allowed us to be able to get support to our front lines quickly and with compassion."
It's estimated that CVS has roughly 200,000 front line employees and including store associates, pharmacists, nurses, and other workers, and this group needed extended ability for expanded leave, which prompted CVS to increase their employment by roughly 50,000 employees.
To meet the ambitious recruiting goals amid the COVID-19 pandemic, CVS has implemented a virtual talent acquisition process and focused on streamlining hiring of furloughed employees from corporate business partners. Both of these initiatives came to fruition in just days thanks to overtime work of about 40 individuals, according to Lackey.
As of now, since launching their "accelerated hiring initiative," CVS has had over 1.3 million inbound applications and has over 60,000 candidates hired or in the hiring process.
According to a CVS Health spokesperson,
"In a pre-pandemic month, that latter number would be closer to 10,000.

Additionally, CVS is one of five major U.S. retailers that plan to add more drive-thru COVID-19 testing sites.
The drive-thrus are staffed by CVS employees. It plans to open the new sites in store parking lots and plans to have nearly 1,000 across the country by the end of May.

Welcome to this week’s episode of “Drones in America,” a MarketScale podcast hosted by Grant Guillot.
Guillot leads the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Practice Team for Adams and Reese, a law firm that practices across the Southern U.S. and in Washington, D.C.
On “Drones in America,” Guillot and industry leaders, influencers and experts explore the rapidly growing commercial drone industry in the U.S., guiding you through the complex web of technology, policy and more.
In this week’s episode, Guillot is joined by Anthony E. Zuiker, the creator of the CSI franchise – the most successful television series of all time, as well by Tom Walker, Founder and CEO of DroneUp.
Guillot, Zuiker, and Walker discuss Zuiker’s interest in crime scene evidence and how he came to develop the original CSI and its three spinoffs.
Zuiker explains his decision to back in 2005 to have an unmanned small-helicopter device serve as the murder weapon in “The Dove Commission”, an episode in Season 1 of CSI: New York.
Guillot, Walker, and Zuiker discuss Zuiker’s decision to use drones to film the final scene of the original series in which Jorga Fox’s Sara Sidle and William Petersen’s Gil Grissom sail off into the sunset.
Zuiker also discusses how drones are currently used in crime scene investigations, pointing to the tragic October 1, 2017 Mandalay Bay Hotel shooting in Las Vegas and the recent helicopter crash that claimed the life of Kobe Bryant. Guillot notes the rise of drone use in law enforcement and emergency operations, pointing to the great work being undertaken by the DRONERESPONDERS Public Safety Alliance.
Walker recalls how DroneUp has conducted hydro spectral analyses of crime scenes using drones to determine the types of bodily fluids present on the ground so as to provide CSI investigators in advance with a “map” of where certain fluids were located.
On the subject of drone pilots, Zuiker says, “You are the future of Hollywood. You are the future of civil service.” He adds, “I can’t tell you how valuable a drone pilot is. You are seeing it already from Covid-19, through amazing the work Tom and DroneUp have been doing as a civil service to provide materials and medication.” He also states, “In the future I predict that drones will be necessary and it will be a booming industry…Out of this virus will come many, many opportunities.”
The three conclude their discussion by discussing public perception of drones. Walker says, “The majority of the drones that are out there…[are being flown] by operators who are making a living by flying those drones who have certifications and licenses to fly those drones who are trying to build their career and feed their families by operating those drones…Nobody wants us to operate responsibly and safely more than me and us and our industry and the people who are building companies around that.” He adds, “I think we have to do a better job of articulating how important our industry is.”
Zuiker concludes by reminding his fans “The world is not a crime scene. It’s a great place. Stay healthy.”
Join host Grant Guillot of the law firm, Adams and Reese for Drones in America with new episodes available where ever podcasts are found.

In this episode, we speak with Haniff Brown, Founder of Fit:Match to discuss how AI is helping consumers get exactly what they want. Much like netflix powers a recommendation engine for content, Fit:Match can scan a person in 3 minutes and use that data to find and suggest the brands and retailers that carry items that have the ideal fit for a person's body type.

Though the pandemic has been a hard hit on retailers, Kohl's is showing surprising confidence in their post-pandemic outlook.
Kohl's announced Thursday morning that it plans to have 25% of its stores reopened by the week of May 11, including in states such as Texas, Alaska, Arkansas, South Carolina, Utah and Oklahoma. According to chief executive Michelle Glass in a CNBC interview, she claims Kohl's biggest asset has been its "real estate portfolio."
On this week's Secure the Bag, a Business Casual segment, host Taylor Bagley gives insights on the logistical challenges Kohl's has overcome to stay afloat during the pandemic, and why its real estate decisions are separating it from other big box retailers filing for bankruptcy like Neiman Marcus.

After the New York City school district banned Zoom as a web conferencing platform due to privacy and security concerns, the ban is now being lifted, putting the pandemic's leading conferencing solution back into educators and students' hands.
The New York City Department of Education was initially concerned about the safety of virtual classrooms and how many controls (or lack of controls) there were for meeting hosts and moderators. This included the infamous trend of "Zoombombing" concerns, which even drew the attention of the FBI and demands for privacy from New York's Attorney General.
On this Business Casual snippet, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern look to MarketScale contributing writer Kevin Hogan for insights, who breaks down his thoughts on the initial ban and response, as well as how the relationship between web conferencing platforms and the education system might continue to evolve and address each others’ concerns. Kevin Hogan brings 25 years of experience as an acclaimed writer, editor, and commentator covering the intersection of society and technology, especially education technology. His experience includes Senior Editor at MIT Technology Review, Editor-In-Chief at The Manufacturer Magazine, Executive Editor at Scholastic Administrator, and most recently, over 12 years as the Managing Director of Content at Tech & Learning.

MarketScale is always growing its network of contributors across industries. On this Business Casual snippet, Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin welcomes Kevin Hogan, MarketScale newest education technology contributor and writer, to shed light on his partnership with MarketScale and the EdTech content to come.
A forward thinking media executive with more than 25 years experience building brands and audiences online, in print, and face to face, Hogan is an acclaimed writer, editor, and commentator covering the intersection of society and technology, especially education technology. His experience includes Senior Editor at MIT Technology Review, Editor-In-Chief at The Manufacturer Magazine, Executive Editor at Scholastic Administrator, and most recently, over 12 years as the Managing Director of Content at Tech & Learning.

Sinclair Broadcast Group, the second-largest television station operator, is going to be paying a hefty $48 million for an FCC fine, wrapping up the commission’s probe into the company’s now-abandoned deal to buy Tribune Media. Twice the amount of the prior record for a broadcast, this is now Sinclair's largest civil penalty ever. The initial probe began in June 2019 when the FCC claimed Sinclair was misrepresenting or lacking in candor during negotiations for the $3.9 billion Tribune Media deal.

On this Business Casual segment, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern pull from their experience in broadcast media and give thoughts on the business decisions fueling legacy media growth today, and why it's leading to botched deals.

A new podcast

On this episode of MarketScale’s Online Learning Minute with host Brian Runo, Runo takes a look at how, with the COVID-19 pandemic forcing universities across the country into a sudden remote and online learning strategy, many didn’t quite live up to expectations.

Namely, Runo highlighted a shortcoming in planning and building robust online materials specifically tailored for remote learning, many universities simply posted existing content and called it a day.

In addition, universities have simply held meetings and classes through traditional channels, such as Zoom, which don’t deliver true engagement.

Instead, as remote learning continues to be the standard even as the world returns to normal, Runo said universities needs to double down on planning initiatives, online best practices and tailored materials, making online courses a more integral part of learning moving forward, and more.

This week on Diving Into Data TC Riley dives into how companies can take advantage of the global situation around COVID-19 and hits on ways that industries are using data in ways you might not expect.
Our first topic dives into how you can take advantage of the challenges presented by operating in a COVID world and make the best of a non-ideal situation. Many people have shared how they've used this time for personal self-improvement, but why aren't more businesses doing the same? TC explores what opportunities you have from a Marketing, Sales and Operations perspective during the current 'downtime' and how data can help you make the most of your current circumstances.
Our second topic is a new segment called Industry Rapidfire. TC hits on how three industries are using data in ways you might not initially consider and how we can all use these as an opportunity to explore new and different ways that we can use data to improve your performance, regardless of industry.
Grab a drink, take a seat, practice social distancing, and lets dive into some data.

Robots are perfect for abrasive finishing, because they work well in situations that possess all three of the “Big Ds” – dull, dirty and dangerous.

Even so, while more companies are embracing robotics, there are some areas, like abrasive processing, that are yet to see full integration even though they are “three-D situations.”

“I think it’s kind of interesting that, here we are in the 21st century, and we’re just now starting to robotically automate finishing. Because, if you rewind 60 years ago, one of the first areas we started automating was in machine tools,” said Dan Allford, the president of ARC Specialties. “The difference is, way back then, we were imposing our will on the part. That means we take a big block of metal or whatever and then we machine a part from it.

“Fast forward to now, and you’re trying to do finishing on parts, but we’re having to adapt to the shape of the part. That’s the big difference, and that’s why it’s taken robotics so many years to catch up to machining.”

There’s still work to do, with organizations like ARC and 3M collaborating more and more frequently beyond this special podcast, with 3M co-sponsoring the Robotics Industry Association’s Grinding and Finishing Conference.

“At the end of the day, the knowledge in the industry about robotic abrasive processing is really in its infancy, frankly,” said Scott Barnett, Application Engineering Manager for Robotic Abrasive Processing at 3M. “It is a fairly complex thing to get right, and we want and need industry members to develop more expertise in the space so we can help our customers with their processing challenge.”

Now, after years of slow progress, things are moving quickly in the right direction.

Even with the pandemic, drugstore chain CVS had an sales-heavy Q1. Its same-store pharmacy sales went up 9.3%, and same-story front-of-store sales rose 8%. Prescription volume wasn't immune to growth either, up by nearly 10%. Why, where as other drugstores are struggling, is CVS succeeding?

On this episode of Business Casual's Secure The Bag, host Taylor Bagley lays out how CVS has reshaped its business during the pandemic to stay afloat and record successful Q1 sales. Bagley breaks down...

How an increase in customer's 90-day prescription refills and shopping sprees gave the company an early boost
Why Walgreens isn't feeling the same success
CVS' role in drive-thru testing sites for COVID-19
Chief Executive Larry Merlo's thoughts on what set CVS up for continued success

The major PC operating systems are constantly fighting for market dominance. Though Microsoft's Windows rarely has its No. 1 position challenged, and continues to see growth and expansion of its OS solutions, the COVID-19 pandemic may have thrown a slight wrench in their continued success.

Microsoft, overall, has seen growth in Windows 10 over the last several years; it was reported in a blog post by the Chief Product Officer for Windows & Devices that Windows 10 saw a 75% year-over-year increase in time spent by users. However, even with that growth, April 2020 saw an overall loss in market share for Windows, while Ubuntu & macOS saw their user numbers increase.

On this Business Casual segment, hosts Daniel Litwin and Taylor Bagley break down the numbers and give insights on...

Microsoft's shift in Windows 10X hardware compatibility
Why Windows 10 is seeing a drop in dominance, and how the pandemic might be to blame
Whether this shift in market dominance, albeit slight, will have an impact for future PC usage
What happens if Microsoft's market dominance is never challenged

Absen is hiring a Warehouse Administrator based in their beautiful Orlando Florida office.
The Warehouse Administrator provides warehouse support with a variety of clerical and administrative tasks. This position will also be a liaison with Absen HQ and must speak Mandarin.
The minimum requirements include at least 5 years of administrative experience as well as a Highschool diploma or GED, however a bachelors degree is preferred.
To see the full job description, visit MarketScale.com/careers.
With hundreds of installations across the USA, Absen America has quickly become the LED manufacturer of choice for a variety of prestigious projects. Highlights include sporting venues for the NBA, MLS, and NBC; casino installations for MGM Grand and Caesars Palace; premier events including the Ultra Music Festival, Comic-con, and the Emmys; and digital signage in the heart of NYC’s Times Square.
If this job sounds like a fit for you or someone you know, visit USABSEN.com or marketscale.com/careers to apply.

This interview originally aired on MarketScale's Pro AV Podcast. There’s so much new technology coming down the digital display pike in the next decade that our guest today on the Pro AV Podcast is almost giddy. For this new episode, host Sean Heath sat down with Mitch Rosenberg, senior director of sales for enterprise distribution partnerships at Absen, to break down the kind of long-felt impact mini LED technology will have on the industry. “What you’ll see in information [content] that comes to you, through you… It’s amazing,” Rosenberg said. “I’m so excited about what I see in the next 5-10 years that it’s the reason I’ll stay in this game probably until my 70s.” Rosenberg has spent three decades working with display technology, tracking its first iterations of Light Emitting Diodes to where LED is headed today. “Mini LED is the latest technology in my opinion,” he said. “Not micro LED but mini. It’s taking LED the next generation up.” As exciting as LED displays can be, Rosenberg admits even he has become blind to landmark displays in Las Vegas, Times Square, and Tokoyo. “I walk down Las Vegas Blvd. or Flamingo Blvd., and I don’t even look at the signs anymore. They don’t grab my attention unless there is something spectacular,” Rosenberg said. “Something special has to occur, and that’s a combination of content, design, what the display is, and what the manufacturer is — whether it’s LED, 3D, or holographic.”

This interview originally aired on MarketScale's Pro AV Podcast. The late 90’s marked a revolutionary new advancement in display technology—LED (Light Emitting Diodes). Since the 90’s, LED tech has come a long way. In fact today’s guest, Mitch Rosenberg, Senior Director of Sales at Absen LED with 30 years of experience in LED tech, explains how “LED is still very much a growing product.” On this AV podcast we dive into LED’s: where it all began, and where Mitchell sees LED tech headed in the future. When LED’s first entered the scene the panels and displays were expensive, available only to those with deep pockets. Mitchell explains how as LED tech evolved, the price dropped and the technology became more accessible to the public: “Pixels got tighter, prices started plummeting, resolution increased, longevity got better, light output got better, weight went down…” Today, LED’s are found in our at-home TV’s, and the industry industry itself has grown into a 3.7 billion dollar business. Although LED tech can be visually astonishing, Mitchell says the technology is wasted if there is not incredible content to match. “If you don’t have a budget for content, you’re buying a giant TV,” Mitchell tells his clients. “LED is merely a display product,” says Mitchell. It’s what you do with this display product that wows customers and bolsters a company’s brand. LED is not done evolving. The technology is becoming stronger and more resilient to human handling, moving away from the fragile piece of tech it once was. On this podcast, Mitchell divulges his insight on what dramatic changes he foresees shaking up the market, and what that looks like for business and consumers.

This interview originally aired on MarketScale's Pro AV Podcast. 2018 marks the 30th anniversary of the Live Design International conference in Las Vegas, the premiere Pro AV show for the best in innovations in the live audience experience, from concerts, to theme parks to houses of worship. Live venue manufacturers have always been a key group for innovation in Pro AV; by always looking to bring the best experience for the audience, an experience that consistently feels unique, those professionals have to search for changes in design, technology or implementation. This year, two main issues are going to be the buzz at LDI: rigging weight and labor time. As LED tiles get bigger, crisper and in effect heavier, how can manufacturers cut down on the bulkiness? How can they maximize set-up and tear-down time? How do you maintain safety and attention to detail with these pushes for efficiency? Here to give their thoughts on these important industry questions and what they’re most excited about at LDI are Chris Prosio, Director of Sales for Rental & Staging, and Alison Maxson, Senior Manager of Marketing & Communications at Absen. “One of the big factors from an ROI is how quickly the teams, the riggers, the AV technicians out there unloading and loading, how quickly can they get them up, how quickly can they can get them down,” Maxson said. “The faster they can move, the faster they can turn through from one show to another, is going to ultimately lead to being able to book more shows which is more money in their pocket.” This year, Absen is showcasing a new product that looks to bring solutions to these industry growing pains: ALTAIR, an LED display designed for touring. A lighter framework, fast installation, safe-guards for load in and load out, and brighter more efficient performance make it an exciting contender at LDI. Absen hopes to show off not only its aesthetics but practical capabilities by putting it to work for their entire booth setup; more than 60% of the booth will be ALTAIR LED tiles. At the end of the day, Absen represents a perfect example of how manufacturers are looking to stay ahead of their user’s needs. “You’re dealing with numbers of tiles, right? So each tile is built up of a structures. In the past, that structure has been aluminum or maybe steel,” Prosio said. “One of the ways we’re addressing this is changing how that structure is built. We’ve been using magnesium, which is a lighter metal.”

This interview originally aired on MarketScale's Pro AV Podcast. The animal kingdom has countless examples of when it’s good to stand out… and when it’s better to blend in with the surroundings. Flexibility is one of the keys to survival. The same can be said of the digital signage industry. On today’s podcast, our host spoke with Paul Johnston, the Vice-President of Technical Service and Operations for Absen America. They discussed the balance between standing out and blending in, how education is a critical part of a successful deployment, and the sense of satisfaction that comes with being unnoticed in some situations.

This interview originally aired on MarketScale's Pro AV Podcast. With the audio-visual field evolving at the fastest rate we’ve ever seen, it’s become increasingly difficult to not only showcase iteration and evolution, but also remain reliable and consistent as quality increases. Chris Prosio, Director of Sales, Rental and Staging at Absen, joined us to talk about the future of LED displays and some of the obstacles that come with trying to relate these products to different kinds of consumers.

This interview originally aired on MarketScale's Pro AV Podcast. On today’s podcast, we chat with Mitch Rosenberg, Director of Sales Fixed Install for Absen. We discuss the life of the LED, where we stand today on its evolutionary timeline, and the future of the industry. (Also, he divulges his Halloween candy distribution standards.)

Whether you are an LED expert or just learning what LED stands for, a Central Florida LED company is lighting up the hiring scene because of their employee focused approach and welcoming workplace environment. Absen, an Orlando based LED company offers new career opportunities, impressive benefits, and a workplace culture that embraces diversity and inclusivity. On this episode of Tech Talk with Absen, Michaela Axsom, HR & Admin Supervisor at Absen, explains why Absen is an incredible place to work.
Absen's company culture in one word? “Dynamic,” Axsom said.
Departments intermingle and assist each other, while feeling like a holistic team working together. More than just teamwork, Absen values diversity.
“The cool thing about diversity is that it gets to bring everyone together," Axsom said. With work picnics, parties, and friendly competitions, Absen unites a diverse team of employees from different backgrounds and departments, to deliver an exceptional product and service.
“The job market right now is in favor of the employee," Axsom said, which facilitates Absen’s hiring process.
Using skill and character tests, Absen is sure to onboard employees where their strengths and personalities will shine.
“We really try to, you know, make sure that it’s good for the employee and the employer," said.
Absen’s personal touch emanates throughout the company, from personalized birthday gifts to flexible work schedules. The companies dynamic approach to the workplace is what attracted Axsom as a recent grad, and what keeps her there today.

Google Podcasts is working to make its platform as competitive for the future of podcast streaming as Apple Podcasts and Spotify. To give creators more tools and insights on their content, Google has launched its Google Podcasts Manager, a new service for robust podcast data in dashboard form.

On this Business Casual snippet, hosts Daniel Litwin and Taylor Bagley connect the dots on how Google's newest podcast feature will stack up against the competition, and what the long-term impacts are of Google's gathering of podcast data. Litwin and Bagley rundown...

The metrics included in Google's new dashboard tool
How these metrics compare to ones provided by Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and podcast hosting platforms
Why listener metrics are so useful for podcast content creators
How Google and its competitors launch new services and what it reflects about their market dominance

Scale with Sergio, a new MarketScale podcast, will offer MarketScale Executive Vice President, Operations and host Sergio Reyes a chance to engage with experts to deliver critical insights, discuss trends and lead the conversation on what’s happening on the cutting-edge of their industries.
On this premiere episode, Reyes gave listeners an in-depth look at his journey to MarketScale and the idea that spawned Scale with Sergio – a desire for a true open forum where the best and brightest any given industry has to offer can educate and engage listeners.
Reyes was also joined by Highmark Health Senior Vice President of Operations Mike Tracy, who helped Reyes dive into the tenets of optimizing operations, which are particularly relevant during the current period of uncertainty and the push toward what’s likely to be a new normal in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It should always be the goal of any organization to proactively look at optimizing the operation, always challenging the status quo and continuously evolving,” Reyes said.
Though Reyes and Tracy admitted that operational efficiency can devolve into a bit of a rabbit hole due to the extensive nature of the topic and ongoing search for innovative solutions and best practices, the duo distilled their decades of combined knowledge into a handful of key insights.
“We could talk about the 950 different things that make up optimizing operations, and it would probably be the last ‘Scale with Sergio’ that exists,” Tracy said.
“(There are) three critical things that, really, everything else falls under. I like to look at optimizing operations from a people, process and technology perspective.”
Reyes and Tracy outlined each of those umbrellas at length, providing a thorough look at how this threefold mindset can boost any business’s operations.

That's the questions Greg Crumpton and Tyler Kern posed on this episode of Straight Outta Crumpton to Todd Boucher, founder of Leading Edge Design Group.
Todd spoke on the podcast about the lessons that he has learned over the years from watching the way his father conducted his electrical contracting business. "He really believes in the importance of relationships. Of the great gifts he has give me that was certainly, from a business perspective, one of the most important ones that I saw and wanted to embody," Boucher said.
He went on to explain that it's important for him to forge authentic relationships that speak to the values he personally holds. And while some might only associate relationships with clients, he said that everything starts with the way you interact with your own team.
"Your relationship with your team is what enables you to have really meaningful relationships with your customers, and if you don't have that unity inside your organization you can't project that outward. It doesn't manifest into relationships with your customers if it's not authentic within your company," he said.

Retail’s future belongs to those who can skillfully juggle potent purchases, original invention, and outrageous alliances. Insularity and indecisiveness just won’t cut it. The good news is that a spirit of cooperation is flourishing in retail and creating opportunities for everyone. In this episode, Carol highlights retailers that are firing on all cylinders even during crisis, and she explains how three-pronged planning transforms strategy for retailers, solution providers and brand marketers.

In this episode you’ll learn:
· How retailers’ changeability creates opportunity
· Why “acqui-hiring” is a thing
· How new-school research perfects your retail pitch
· Why selling solutions without competitive concern is possible

Sitting down with 15-year cancer survivor and author, Sara Quiriconi, share shares with us the importance of health. An avid traveler as well, Sara has mastered the art of keeping health and wellness a priority while traveling. Now more than ever her advice is resonating with those look to make the shift to a healthier lifestyle as the pandemic has many questioning their own health.
Of course, we all love to travel, but now is simply not the time for it. Yet, it is a really great time to "child's pose" and reset. This is a time where we are shifting schedules, priorities, and rediscovering the gift of time. And in this time, hopefully we can explore making better health decisions.
People take their health for granted when they are traveling, sacrificing quick and easy over healthy--and that is not always the best choice.
So often we tend to think about what we can't have. But with a mental shift, she encourages people to think about what they can gain. Of course, this is not to say that times are tough and difficult, but a mindset shift is so important. And the silver lining, we are in this together.
As an industry, it will take a solid year or more to get back to where it was. And of course, we are all panicking. The underlining sentiment is: When you focus on what you CAN control, you feel empowered.
Travel is not going to go back to being the same. This is a wake-up call that we need to start implementing healthier travel habits and for businesses to take ownership and duty of care for their employees. Companies will have to be more mindful of sending their employees on business trips after the pandemic. The change will be slow coming out of it, but ultimately, it will change for the better.
She also shares that this might even inspire airlines to look at their offerings in a different way. Of course, there will be a high focus on cleaning standards, but what about snacks and in-flight offerings. With a whole shift towards health, she hopes that airlines will make better decisions on behalf of their passengers.
Healthy Travel is so much more than free yoga classes. From to snacks offered in the lobby, room services menus, dining options, there is so much opportunity for hotels to make change. And we think travelers will be there to embrace it.
All in all, she believes that travelers will be expecting healthier options. Only time will tell if the industry step up to the plate.
This pandemic has only proven how connected the world is. Each of our decisions can and does have an impact on others--even if it is halfway around the world.
More about Sara
Everyone loves the story of a survivor but the road to becoming one requires the curiosity, strength and courage of a warrior.
"Living Cancer Free" is an auto-biographical story by 15-year cancer survivor, Sara Quiriconi, Live Free Warrior. Self-proclaimed the modern day Holden Caulfield with a cancer twist, Quiriconi cites her history and real-life "cancerous" struggles with anorexia, bulimia, alcohol addiction, lymphoma cancer, divorce, PTSD, unfulfilling jobs, and more. This true story is not just for someone experiencing an actual diagnosis, but rather anyone seeking the light within their own darkness, or "cancers".
Be sure to find her online:
https://www.instagram.com/livefreewarrior/
https://saraquiriconi.com/

On this episode of MarketScale’s EdTech podcast, host JW Marshall met Jo Webber, Chairman of the Board of Edlio, a provider of digital communications for K12 schools. The company works with public, private, and charters schools, counting over 15,000 customers.
The discussion, which occurred during the TCEA Convention in Austin in January, about using digital communications to connect teachers, students, and parents, is even more relevant now. Websites are a standard part of a school’s digital presence, but they have evolved immensely.
Jo said, “When we were just starting out, having a website was like a door sign. It was nothing more than one-way communication. Now, we’ve progressed to a two-way conversation.”
Students are now always connected to their technology. They are digital natives that respond better to digital forms of communication, and their parents may as well. While Edlio delivers easy to create and manage websites, they’ve taken their platform further with Edlio Engage, which was designed for educators and families to be engaged and communicate. It even includes shared calendars, volunteer management, and event signups.
It’s also helping overcome communication barriers, specifically parents that aren’t native English speakers. “The platform accounts for over 100 different languages that can be translated. A teacher writes an email in English, and it translates to the preferred language. Then the response from the parent is translated back to English,” Jo shared.
Having this clear communication and education can drive better outcomes for all parties, ensuring everyone is on the same page and involved.

In this week’s episode, which focuses on unmanned aircraft systems (“UAS”) traffic management (“UTM”), Guillot is joined by Amit Ganjoo, Founder and CEO of ANRA Technologies, and Ken Stewart, CEO of AiRXOS, part of GE Aviation.
ANRA is an official NASA collaborator for their UTM solution and is closely working with NASA and the FAA-approved UAV test sites. ANRA’s platform has been used for multiple UTM national campaigns as well as FAA Research Transition Team (“RTT”) demonstrations.
AiRXOS, part of GE Aviation, provides reliable, safe UTM platforms, a wide-range of regulatory services, and powerful hardware, thereby expanding advanced operations and safely integrating unmanned traffic into the National Air Space (“NAS”).

From Microsoft Word’s infamous “Clippy” to how-to tutorials, support articles and more, microlearning is everywhere.

Essentially, microlearning is “the small, incremental, or ‘micro’ part of an online learning experience,” said host Brian Runo.

On this episode of MarketScale’s Online Learning Minute, Runo highlighted the role of microlearning in building, deploying and utilizing online education. Microlearning, he said, is most useful for small skillsets, meaning digestible, small bits of information that are best transferred in quick-hit bites, not lengthy lessons.

Microlearning can help convey key information quickly to employees and users, solve common problems without significant investment, and more.

On the inaugural episode of Poppin’ Bottles with Bottlecapps, host Daniel Litwin and guests explore the direction of the exciting and shifting spirits industry.

On this episode of the Business Development Podcast on MarketScale, Brandon Pfluger former collegiate athlete at Southern Methodist University relates his athletic background with the world of B2B companies leveraging analytics. This analysis explains that the two have more in common than most would think.

The tools and technologies now necessary for businesses making a digital transformation as they work from home, are many of the same tools used daily by marketers. From video communication and podcasts to conversational marketing – these are the tools and technologies that power marketing and media. But still, there is an adjustment across all business units. Communication has changed as in-person, face-to-face conversations, have been virtually eliminated.
So what is the new normal? On this episode of the Maverick of Marketing radio show host Shannon Maverick, talks with MarketScale Senior Director of Marketing, Lauren Farrell.
The new normal is an expedited version of digital transformation – especially when it comes to communication. It’s not just the “what” or “why” we are communicating, it’s how. So, how are you communicating and what are the best ways to connect with our audiences?
Traditionally, how you communicate has always been the same. A significant amount was in person. But now that how is changing. There is a higher level of adoption of podcasts, video and live mediums, as they replace that human interaction – from trainings and tradeshows to product launches and everyday meetings.
Digital transformation is an immediate necessity, and while this can be difficult, it is actually incredibly beneficial as business leaders look to the future.
Adapting to an expedited timeline for digital transformation that prioritizes video as the primary medium to communicate is simpler than it might sound. There is a sense of community being built around what we’re watching and engaging with, both personally and professionally.
“We have to be comfortable with video being embedded in everything we’re doing,” says Farrell. From how you talk to customers, prospects, and colleagues, to how you hold events. It’s an opportunity to still connect and interact. So how can you be creative in using video?
Video isn’t just one-way communication anymore, it’s two-way, and interactive. From webinars and live broadcasts to virtual events and product launches. “It’s not as much talking at your audience, but talking with your audience,” says Farrell.
A big priority for businesses today needs to be owning and building media channels that provide edutainment, from podcasts, to video and live.
How can you educate but also entertain as a brand, thought leader and industry? Right now most content is digital, so how do you stand out?”
Listen to this full episode of the Maverick of Marketing to learn more.

Summary:
In this episode we discuss how FutureProof is helping propel the industry forward when it comes to the acceleration of contactless and mobile payments in grocery, fashion and beyond. No longer and generational conversation, we are seeing an emergence of the DIY consumer and we speak about how that is shaping adoption. And the automated checkout experience is not only powering efficiency and convenience but it's enabling deeper levels of personalization as they are able to layer in product recommendations, track location navigation. The star is still the store, and technology is powering the hybridization of offline and online convergence.
Bio:
Di Di Chan is the President and Co-Founder of FutureProof Retail, a New York-based company with the mission of bringing frictionless shopping technologies into physical retail stores. FutureProof leads in providing simple, quality, and customizable Mobile Checkout and Mobile Order Ahead solutions for retailers. Di Di is a global entrepreneur who is passionate about technology, education, and sustainability. Her experience and network in over 15 different countries directly shape FutureProof Retail’s global vision, bringing their solutions to three continents and five different types of retail to date. She holds an M.A. in Economics from New York University and a B.A. in Global Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Questions asked:
- What are is FutureProof doing to help propel the industry forward when it comes to contactless payments? Recently your company has offered your services at NO cost to retailers: https://www.newswire.com/news/hygienic-solution-for-retail-checkout-now-available-at-no-cost-21114338
- Who are some of your customers today? (ie: Fairway and some stats you can share)
- You started with a focus on grocery, why?
- What sector do you see following in terms of adoption? (Fashion...)
- Pre-COVID 19, we saw brick and mortar conviction with retailers like Amazon and Alibaba entering physical retail, how do you see that evolving?
- Based on your data, what do you see as far as generational adoption of tech/ you have stated that "age isn't the differentiator"?
- When we are able to leave our homes again, what are the 3 top things you see yourself doing first in NYC?

Nintendo's Animal Crossing franchise is having major success during the COVID-19 pandemic. In March alone, upon the release of its new title New Horizons on Nintendo Switch, the game sold 5 million digital copies, the most digital copies of a console title in a single month, according to Nielsen's SuperData. Even with the potential for more video game users amid a global pandemic, what is setting Animal Crossing apart?

On this segment of Business Casual's Secure the Bag, host Taylor Bagley gives a rundown of why so many people gravitating to this game, especially those who do not normally play video games, and what consumers and business owners can take away from its success.

The cruise industry is one of the business sectors and workforces most negatively impacted by COVID-19. With many ships and their crews stranded at sea with little to no timeline on when they can dock, cruise lines are under scrutiny for their response.

On this Business Casual segment, hosts Daniel Litwin, Tyler Kern and Taylor Bagley lay out the situation for hundreds of thousands of crew workers and their employers, breaking down...

How much the virus itself has spread on cruise ships
Some of the public responses from cruise lines
Why crew members are still stranded on these cruise ships
How the process for repatriating crew members might unfold and why cruise lines and countries aren't on the same page
Whether or not cruise companies will see a permanent hit on business due to their response

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, energy demand across the globe is hitting new lows. According to a new International Energy Agency report, energy demand is projected to drop by 6 percent in 2020, which is the most significant dip in recorded human history.

On this Business Casual segment, hosts Daniel Litwin, Tyler Kern and Taylor Bagley break down...

The charts that highlight the most drastic effects of COVID-19 on energy demand
The unintended ways the globe is hitting climate benchmarks to curb global warming
Which fuel sources are most heavily impacted
Whether this will have long-term impacts on energy consumption, passively or structurally

On this episode of MarketScale’s EdTech podcast, host JW Marshall was joined by Lenovo Global eSports Solutions Manager Jeff Palumbo for a discussion about the rapidly expanding world of eSports – and how it’s set to reshape education, engagement and more.
Currently, Lenovo is differentiating itself by that integration, offering a new look at eSports through the lens of education that many in the industry aren’t.
“One of the things that we’re trying to do is really be school-focused,” Palumbo said. “We’re finding that (in) K-12, and even higher education, every school is different in the needs that they’re trying to accomplish.
“Instead of just saying, ‘Hey, there are the computers that you need to do gaming,’ we come in and have a discovery meeting.”
This initial planning phase helps Lenovo find a unique solution that meets a particular school’s set of needs in the realms of space, students, budget, and more as opposed to falling back on a one-size-fits-all approach.
This approach is aimed at future-proof solutions ready to expand alongside the continued growth of eSports and addressing the challenges of implementing eSports and gaming on campuses, such as space constraints, funding, and more.

Collaborative robotics and the use cases for these kinds of robotic solutions have exploded over the past five years, with those at the cutting edge of the robotics industry innovating ways to leverage the technology in day-to-day operations across a variety of industries.

To examine this industry trend, KUKA Robotics Director of Medical Robotics Corey Ryan joined host Tyler Kern on this episode of Orange Intelligenz, a KUKA Robotics podcast.

In particular, Ryan said that, while the idea of collaborative robotics has been around for a long time – decades, even – societal and standards-related acceptance have begun to accelerate in recent years.

“It’s become this tangible thing,” he said. “People really are accepting the idea of putting a robot in the workspace without the safety fencing and without the traditional, industrial mindset. We’ve seen an explosion in the market space.”

A lot of this acceptance has resulted from a movement to design robots with rounded edges, fewer pinch points, and more safety features tailored to operation in the same space as human employees.

It all boils down to a desire to not have to separate the person from the robot, allowing the best of both to shine.

Collaborative robotics have applications across every industry as automation steps up to play a greater role in the way the world conducts business, though the medical industry has taken large steps toward widespread adoption.

“I handle the medical business, so virtually every robot I sell is collaborative,” Ryan said. “There’s going to be somebody in that workspace. … The acceptance of robotics, plus the fact that – in medical, especially – there’s already enough accepted applications and FDA-approved applications that not having a robot on your system in some market spaces, like orthopedics, it’s a hindrance.”

New technology changes the way people learn and options for experiential learning.

Host Brian Runo discussed the difference between augmented reality and virtual reality as learning tools in this episode of Marketscale’s Online Learning Minute.

Defining the difference, Runo explained that augmented reality allows learners to interact with objects in real life using smart devices to learn more. On the other hand, Runo said “virtual reality is (highly immersive).”

To illustrate the difference, Runo explained that augmented reality would allow a learner to point a device like a smartphone at a building in NYC to learn more about its architecture, history and more.

Learning about the same NYC building through virtual reality, learners could take an immersive virtual tour from the comfort of their own home. Runo said both these technologies “have their merits and their places, and both can be useful in education.”

After a brief hiatus, host TC Riley is back this week with a new episode of Diving Into Data. The world has significantly changed since we last spoke and our show today dives into the economic fallout and impact of the COVID-19 Outbreak.

In the episodes leading up to our COVID-19 hiatus, TC discussed how this outbreak was going to throw a wrench in the global economy due to the lock-down of Wuhan, or the 'Chicago of China', at the beginning of the pandemic. But Wuhan is the least of the world's problem's now as the virus has touched every corner of the globe and every aspect of the global economy.

In this week's episode, "Unemployment and Inflation and Bear Markets, Oh My!" TC dives into how the US economy has been turned upside down in the last two months. We'll discuss how unemployment, inflation and stock markets have all been impacted by the pandemic and we let the data show us what we should expect moving forward. Spoiler alert: It's not good.

Sit back, grab a drink, ensure you're practicing social distancing, and let's dive into some data.

You know this COVID-19 scourge has quite obviously changed us forever. To still get things done everyone using Zoom and Teams to continue their work, school, church, scout meetings, family meetings…I call it Life Continuity. But something has emerged I'm not so sure everyone has noticed. I know I have, and so have a number of my colleagues and friends.
My email has all but stopped.
I have begun to realize the only email I am getting anymore is spam and or solicitations. Just like snail mail at home. Most people with whom I interact have figured out if they want to reach me they could send me a Zoom invitation via text and I'm quick to respond with a yes. Or if I want or a ignore I just do.
I guess one of the benefits of learning how to work from home and how we might interact with our teams, or our family, or what have you is there's far more efficiency in doing it face to face. Heck we all know that we enjoy face to face or we wouldn't do it when we have the opportunity.
Just something to ponder. Is COVID-19, if you'll excuse the phrase, killed email? Its been predicted for years but maybe its time has come. Email has finally met its match and it’s not a computer virus…it’s the coronavirus.
This has been the Mecca Minute

Pepsi surprised investors last week with their Q1 earnings, which showed impressive sales gains across most of its product portfolio as consumers stocked up to eat at home during the coronavirus pandemic. What has led Pepsi, who owns Frito Lay and Quaker Foods, to do so well where Coke has fallen behind?

On this segment of Secure the Bag on Business Casual, hosts Taylor Bagley and Tyler Kern a full breakdown of Pepsi's business model and how it's setting them up for success, and whether or not they're "securing the bag." The give their input on...

The way consumers are shopping during COVID-19
How Coke and Pepsi's business models compare, and how COVID-19 is disproportionately affecting one over the other
What this means for Pepsi in the long term

North Texas is no Silicon Valley, but it’s still one of the fastest growing tech hubs in the US. A new Cyberstates report by CompTIA placed Dallas 7th for technology sector employment in 2019, in front of its Texas rival Austin. On this Business Casual segment, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern, and producer Taylor Bagley, discuss what this means for Dallas' economy. The hosts break down...

How Dallas compares to other major tech hubs
The companies leading the DFW tech sector
Why the DFW suburb Plano attracts tech business
The economic lessons we do and don't want to take away from Silicon Valley as Dallas' tech footprint grows

A Florida retirement community is getting a taste of drone delivery as tests continue for several major companies looking to launch scaled drone delivery services. Starting in early May, Florida-based The Villages will be eligible for prescription medication delivery from participating CVS pharmacies to their door via a UPS drone. As COVID-19 rages on, CVS and UPS looked to support health care workers and vulnerable patients, while continuing their path to creating a revenue-generating drone delivery service at scale.

On this Business Casual segment, hosts Daniel Litwin, Tyler Kern and Taylor Bagley give their thoughts on how fleshed out this program is, could be, and should be. They break down...

How recent regulation shifts for commercial drone use have
Whether or not specific regulations apply for transporting prescription medication and why
How CVS and UPS are working to scale their drone deliveries

Today we’re going to talk about the positives and negatives of the Coronavirus on retail.
In episode 1 I talked about 6 Ways to Protect Your Product-Based Business During the Coronavirus Outbreak (https://marketscale.com/industries/retail/coronavirus-retail-survival-tips-bricks-clicks/).
One of the things I suggested was to create delivery options because traditional transportation might not be available. It’s been both interesting and sad to see many of the restaurant I loved to visit shut their doors, paralyzed by the idea of remaining open and the necessary move onto the internet, delivery apps, and a totally different way of operating.
I wonder how many of you listening have given up.
The fact that you’re here at all tells me you haven’t and that you’re still fighting, still selling, and doing everything possible to get your business through this recession.
So what’s changed in the last 8 weeks?
1. We’re watching low priced retailers win
2. Online learning is high
3. It’s never been easier to make money
4. Mastering online has never been more important
5. Grace matters more than ever before
6. Disruptions in the food chain
So what now?
With the future still so uncertain, some states beginning to open back up again, and other remaining on lockdown, our next steps seem shaky.
It’s important that we be kind, honoring each individual’s response to staying home longer, or jumping back into things.
It’s important that we meet the shopper where they are.
It’s important that we stay in business. Your shoppers need you. Your staff needs you. Your family needs you.
Profitability is more important than ever before.
Do more with less.
Grow slower, safer, and smarter.
Diversify your risk by adding online selling options and home delivery to your buying options.
And hang in there!
See you on the next Bricks and Clicks show, where I’ll be interviewing Erin Philips from Pinckney Palm about what’s working these days to actually get our messaging to our ideal shopper. We’ll touch on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and lives on all 3 channels and TicTok.
Resources:
My FREE Amazon "A" Game Masterclass: http://theagame.online/
Master Your Social: https://www.pinckneypalm.com/services

Alex Bittner is a certified Physician's Assistant and the President & Assistant Medical Director of AM~PM DOC. He has worked with clients from all over the world in numerous hotels as an on-call house doctor. They have been offering five star medical service for years, working with the top hotels as well as high-profile patients.
As the pandemic started and travel restrictions started falling into place, it was pretty clear that the United States was going to be hit pretty hard. Hindsight is always 20/20. Could we have locked down earlier? Sure? But we have never been in this situation before. Instead of focusing on what we could have done better or faster, it is important to focus what we can do now.
Businesses being closed and travel restrictions are not an over-reaction. It is appropriate. Again, this is a situation that we have never been in before, so it is paramount that we are cautious and following the guidelines of the WHO, CDC, and the government. How long it will take to "flatten the curve" depends on so many factors, but it is important to follow Stay At Home orders to help alleviate the medical system, minimize exposure, and ultimately passing on the virus.
Interestingly enough, when we think about the medical industry, many of us assume it is insanely busy everywhere. But that is not the case. ER volume is down in smaller markets, like in Cleveland. People are scared to seek medical attention for things that are not coronavirus-related. So the medical system is in an interesting place right now. It is operating at max capacity in hotspots like New York City, but in other cities, not as much.
Ultimately, there is no vaccine yet, and that is where we stand. Or course, there has been talk about different medications, such as the famed Malaria drug. But it is always important to remember that with every medication, there are side effects. Prescribing any sort of medication must be carefully weighed. Currently this Malaria drug is not a sure thing, as testing is still underway.
There have been so many misconceptions regarding the virus. From age to chronic health conditions, there hasn't been one factor that guarantees you will be sick. As our understanding of this disease has changed, and continues to change, we have to remember that no one is immune to it. On the other side of things, we have to remember that is not an automatic death sentence if you get it. We have to keep things in perspective.
Alex left us with some great advice:
Remember, the best thing is to avoid contact with other people. Be aware of what you are touching, from items to your face. Wash your hands often. And use common sense. It is OK (even encouraged) to be outside to get fresh air and to work out, just be mindful of being around others.
For more info on Alex and his company, check out:
888 AM~PM DOC ~ Toll Free Emergency Hotline
www.ampmdoc.com
https://www.instagram.com/dabittnah/

With the emergence and pervasiveness of video content being key to AV industry, it's no surprise Businesses know that in order to meet this demand, they need to find the right distribution system to meet their needs.

Brian Runo shares a quick comparison of the differences in creating online learning courses for universities versus corporations in this episode of MarketScale’s Online Learning Minute. There are a few main differences that make online learning much simpler to execute for corporations.

First, university online learning courses can take months or even years to complete. For corporate courses, the turnaround time can be as little as one month. Second, university courses have various types of learners to appeal to, while corporate training is typically geared toward employees. Third, university online courses last several weeks to an entire semester and cover a broad topic. Corporate training is much shorter and more specific to processes and workflows.

For companies that thought online course creation was too complicated, it’s easy to see that it’s much easier and more conducive in corporate environments. He said, “Just go out and produce it!”

Welcome to this week’s episode of “Drones in America,” a MarketScale podcast hosted by Grant Guillot.
Guillot leads the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Practice Team for Adams and Reese, a law firm that practices across the Southern U.S. and in Washington, D.C.
On “Drones in America,” Guillot and industry leaders, influencers and experts explore the rapidly growing commercial drone industry in the U.S., guiding you through the complex web of technology, policy and more.
In this week’s episode, Guillot is joined by Matt Coleman, Senior Director of Business Development at Volansi; Michael Currie, Founder and CEO of Fling; and Will Stavanja, Chief Technical Officer of AirBox Technologies. These three service providers are utilizing drone technology to assist with the social distancing mandates and economic hardships brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Volansi, which focuses on drone-based cargo delivery and pickup for industrial, medical, and other medical supply chains across the world, builds and operates long-range, high-payload unmanned aerial systems for time critical parts and supplies. The company, which is based out of Concord, California but operates globally, helps its customers save millions of dollars on down-time costs, receive life-saving supplies when needed most, and conduct demanding industrial jobs.
As explained by Coleman, “Besides being a drone company, Volansi is really an all-inclusive delivery drone solution utilizing user-friendly mobile platforms, automation, and the UAVs themselves to revolutionize the way that materials are delivered to increase equipment uptime, shorten critical delivery times, and save on unnecessary warehouse inventory downtime.”

Fling is a leading drone consulting company that designs custom solutions for clients in Southeast Asia. The company, which is based out of Thailand, works across industries, using its in-depth expertise of drone technology and regulations to solve business challenges and build better cities for tomorrow.
“We specialize in AI cloud software as well as unmanned aerial system solutions for commercial applications in three industries – electric power line, warehousing, and last-mile logistics,” Currie says. “We’re also a service provider for these services as well as being a technology provider.”
AirBox Technologies, based out of Richmond, Virginia, revolutionizes last-mile postal package delivery through it virtual GPS solar smart IOT mailbox, AirBox Home. The mailbox allows anyone in the world to receive endpoint secure package delivery by motorcycle, truck or drone.
“The box itself gives you all sorts of information, such as who, what, when, and where,” Stavanja says. “It physically secures a package, so, for those of you fighting against porch pirates, this is a perfect solution.”
The guests discuss with Guillot the ways their companies are assisting businesses across the globe with enforcing social distancing and isolating supply chains in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. They also address the lessons drone operators in the U.S. can learn from their respective international operations.
In addition, the guests discuss the significance of global regulatory environments and how their businesses have experienced increased interest in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Join host Grant Guillot of the law firm, Adams and Reese for Drones in America with new episodes available where ever podcasts are found.

On our new pro audio podcast, Noise Reduction, we chatted with MarketScale contributor and pro audio specialist Collyer Spreen. He’s just been at the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Show 2020 in Anaheim, CA, which he talked about recently. Today, we asked Spreen about Dolby Atmos.

Ratified is a radio show hosted by Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin, exploring the intersection of business and policy in longform fashion.

On this episode of Ratified, we’re getting our feet wet with election season content. At the time of release, the Democratic presidential primary is all but settled. Barring some massive shake-up, Joe Biden, former Vice President, will be the nominee for the Democratic Party, ending a long and tumultuous primary race. Many contenders made their case, but we’re spending today’s episode doing a postmortem on one specific campaign, its message, and its marketing strategy: Mike Bloomberg 2020.

A late entrance to the 2020 race, billionaire Michael Bloomberg, former Mayor of New York city and the 12th richest person in the world, created waves when he entered the primary. Progressives loathed his presence, citing his past as a Republican, and his mayoral and interpersonal workplace records as disqualifying. Moderates were hopeful that his experience and his money would make him, potentially, a better and more resilient choice to go against President Trump than Biden.

At the end of the day, Mike Bloomberg would peak at about 16.5% polling nationally, edging him into second place for a small period of time, before seeing his campaign collapse after a poor debate performance in February and a lackluster delegate count coming out of Super Tuesday, winning only American Samoa. He’d walk away from the Democratic 2020 presidential primary spending over $1 billion on the campaign.

For a while, though, Bloomberg and his campaign seemed like a force to be reckoned with, especially his online presence. So what went wrong? Our two guests provide two different perspectives on Bloomberg’s run, analyzing his strategic steps and missteps, the campaign's digital marketing strategy, and some of the broader implications of his self-funded run.

First, we hear from Dr. Lara Brown, Director of the Graduate School of Political Management at George Washington University. Before her time in academia, Dr. Brown served as a political appointee to President Clinton's administration in the US Department of Education, and worked as an educational policy and public affairs consultant in LA and Silicon Valley. Dr. Brown helps us better understand some of the history around self-funded candidates, how Bloomberg’s strategy appealed to certain demographics of the Democratic base, and more critically, why the idea of Bloomberg didn’t live up to the reality for voters.

Our second guest is Benjamin Dixon, host of the Benjamin Dixon Podcast and a prominent voice in independent progressive journalism and political commentary. He's the founder of Progressive Army, an independent digital publication, and co-founder of the second incarnation of The North Star. Benjamin Dixon was a critical part of shining more skeptical lights on Mike Bloomberg’s campaign; he was the journalist who resurfaced the infamous Mike Bloomberg Stop & Frisk audio from his 2015 Aspen Institute speech, the audio that went viral and become a center-piece talking point on news media channels and in the presidential debates. Dixon joined the program to give some context on the audio and its impact on Bloomberg’s chances, how it was received by television stations like CNN and MSNBC, and a broader debate and discussion on how much policy and record impacts a candidate in today’s political environment.

With new norms emerging such as a new equilibrium in supply and demand and emerging family priorities, we are seeing an increased adoption of technologies that reposition how consumers receive products and services. Last mile is focusing on hyper convenience with speed, ease and utility as the guiding light. Experiential tech won't go away, but we will see brands and retailers lean more heavily into order management, distribution fulfillment and mobile payments.
On this episode of Retail Refined, host Melissa Gonzalez sits down with Mariya Zorotovich, Director of Strategy and Incubation in the Internet of Things Group at Intel and part of the Emerging Technology organization of the Retail, Banking, Hospitality, and Education verticals. In this discussion, Mariya and Melissa discuss not only the trends we are seeing but a 4-step playbook to approaching how to rethink consumer needs and expectations.
Some of the main topics from the conversation include...
The new consumer and new habits forming
Increased adoption of tech across generations
The new challenge/opportunity this poses for brands and retailers (contactless payments, curbside, etc.)
Who is currently well positioned for this (i.e. Target)
High level tips/steps for retailers and brands as they approach rethinking customer needs and expectations post-COVID-19

Change. We can’t stop it, but we can decide how much, when, where, and why. The opportunity that change brings to us isn’t always obvious, but it’s always around. The risks and rewards that accompany change are both sides of the magnet - they pull is in and push us away.

On this episode of Noise Reduction, host Collyer Spreen brings the issues of change, adaptation and strategy to the AV industry. Choosing wisely when presented with change is the key, as well as choosing at all. Now, especially in this great time of global change with a pandemic sweeping across the globe, is the perfect time to assess the opportunities of change we have available to us. Weigh the risk and the reward, is it worth it?

On this snippet of Business Casual, producer Taylor Bagley leads another installment of Secure the Bag, laying out companies' strategic decisions and asking: Was it a good move for the growth of the business? Did they "secure the bag?" Bagley gave analysis on Zoom's unanticipated growth during this pandemic, and how with great power comes great responsibility.

There have been multiple reports in the last few weeks of breaches to Zoom meetings as more and more people, companies, and organizations are relying on Zoom for internal and external company communication. The issue of Zoombombing, or people essentially hacking into Zoom meetings by guessing or generating URL codes, has gotten so rampant that it has caused the FBI to release a statement on the dangers of using the platform.

This has led to a slew of company responses and updates to improve security on the platform. Bagley and the Business Casual hosts break down...

How Zoom is responding to this issue and what its updates change about the system
Why Zoom is succeeding amid the COVID-19 outbreak despite these concerns
What Zoom's web conferencing presence may look like post-pandemic

On this snippet of Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Daniel litwin, and producer Taylor Bagley, walk through the recent FCC vote to allow unlicensed use of 6GHz wifi spectrum. The biggest spectrum addition since the FCC's initial expansion of wifi in 1989, the FCC's vote is being met with both praise and disdain. The Business Casual hosts break down...

The FCC's reasoning for opening up new spectrum
How 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands will coexist with the addition of 6GHz
Who is expressing skepticism and/or optimism to the move and why
How this expansion of spectrum will affect consumers and ISPs

On this Business Casual snippet, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern and producer Taylor Bagley give analysis on the dozens of beef, pork and chicken processing plants that have closed due to the pandemic. High-speed, close-quarters, and grueling work have made meat processing facilities hubs for the spread of COVID-19, escalating to the point where one Smithfield pork plan in South Dakota become the largest cluster for COVID-19 in the whole nation. The Business Casual hosts break down...

How shutting down slaughterhouses affects the whole supply chain
What protections were given to workers
Why slaughterhouses have become perfect incubators for the novel coronavirus
How companies like Smithfield are responding
How the global food supply chain can improve and adapt during the pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has pulled the curtain back on the stark reality of our economy; the most essential workers, needed to keep the country afloat, are often paid the least and given the least protections to stay safe as the virus spreads.

On this quick podcast, Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin sat down with professor of law at Berkeley Law, Catherine Fisk, an experienced advocate for workers rights, focusing on labor law reform. Catherine shared her insights on...

Which companies have rolled out appropriate protections for their workforce
What the legal structures in place are to force employers to provide these protections
What the cultural & economic ramifications are of the socioeconomic class divide for essential workers
What the short and long term projects are to protect and more properly value essential workers

A culture of intellectual inquiry can help companies and their employees adapt to changes in the industry. Host Brian Runo defined corporate learning culture and discussed its benefits on this episode of MarketScale’s Online Learning Minute.

Differentiating between HR courses administered when an employee starts a job and an overall culture of learning, Runo said “corporate learning culture (is) encouraging all of the employees to seek continuous improvement in themselves in order to help out the company and advance their own careers.”

By developing a culture driven by continuous improvement, Runo said companies and their employees benefit.

Employees who are welcome to take courses to advance themselves are more likely to be satisfied in their jobs, move forward in their careers and share their knowledge for the good of the company.

On this episode of the MarketScale Retail podcast, host Tyler Kern was joined by DeAnn Campbell, Vice President, Retail Strategy and Insights for Harbor Retail.

Harbor Retail is committed to the idea of Harmonic Retail, which it defines as an ecosystem where online and offline experiences “interact, enrich and react” to one another in a more symbiotic fashion that meets the growing expectations surrounding modern customer experiences.

To that end, Kern and Campbell spent this episode of the podcast diving into that philosophy, as well as exploring where retail’s been and where it’s headed, the fundamental shifts in who is shopping and how, and how retailers can adapt to that changing landscape.

“The traditional path to purchase has changed almost overnight in retail years,” Campbell said. “Energy and convenience are some of the most important shopping currencies out there. Time is now the luxury, and retailers, today, who help shoppers access a wider range of products and services with fewer steps are really going to come out the winners of this.”

A rise is multi-generational households has also led to a greater emphasis on family needs and full family involvement in today’s retail landscape.

Campbell said, among many strategies, creating beneficial partnerships and ecosystems and focusing on developing a responsive framework that helps retailers stay in tune with shifting customer demands can help retailers keep pace.

Back from a brief hiatus, hosts Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern return to Business Casual with producer Taylor Bagley for a discussion on reopening the economy post-pandemic.

Governors from state to state are responding to President Trump's plan to reopen American, some moving to reopen certain brick and mortar establishments by next week. The Business Casual hosts give a recap on some of the most recent COVID-19 infection data out of Los Angeles County and talk...

Which companies are looking to reopen and how
How workers who've still been working through the pandemic have fared
What the economic effect could be on an economy that reopens too soon

It’s Time to Mitigate Online Marketplace Mayhem.
Online marketplaces are on fire in retail, and they’ve reignited as retailers, brands and consumers maneuver through the corona crisis. But mayhem is brewing that can extinguish the opportunity for retailers, brand marketers and solution providers now, and on the other side of the corona crisis. In this episode, Carol breaks down opportunities, challenges and tactics for mitigating the mayhem.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
· Why brands should be selective with partnerships, even as sales seem scarce
· How choice, convenience and safety are synonymous and non-negotiable to consumers
· Why lack of diversification spells retail doom, but the opposite can be worse
· How international marketplaces are evolving and creating opportunities

On this Business Casual segment, hosts Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin are joined by producer Taylor Bagley to highlight a shift in Australian media dynamics between legacy corporate media platforms, independent journalism, and Big Tech aggregators. Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg released plans to force major tech companies, like Google and Facebook, to pay media groups for placing their news on their monolithic web platforms. The Business Casual hosts give their takes on...

Why local, independent journalism is so necessary and important
The dynamics that keep media organizations from seeing money from Google and Facebook aggregation

On this Business Casual segment, host of Secure the Bag, Taylor Bagley, follows up on a previous break down he did on the departure of Bob Iger from Disney earlier this year. Roughly six weeks after leaving the post to become Executive Chairman, Iger is now back as acting CEO of Disney in response to the major hits the company has taken during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Iger recently told The New York Times that “he stepped up, after handing the CEO reins to Bob Chapek, the former head of the parks and resorts business, because Disney is being crushed by the impact of the coronavirus.”

“A crisis of this magnitude, and its impact on Disney, would necessarily result in my actively helping Bob [Chapek] and the company contend with it, particularly since I ran the company for 15 years!”

So what exactly has happened to Disney since the outbreak has started? Bagley breaks it down and lets us know if Disney will secure the bag coming out of this pandemic.

It's no question that the airline industry has been hit hard due to the corona virus pandemic. With the industry coming to a near standstill, what is it like for those still working? I got to chat with Captain Ryan Hunter, a pilot with United Airlines. Having been a pilot with the airlines for over 15 years, he knows all the ins and outs of the industry. He shared with us some insight on what it is like to work as a pilot right now.
"I've never seen anything like this. But we are going to get through it. I am just trying to remain positive and supportive of everyone in the travel industry right now."
Airlines within the US are averaging passenger loads operating at 97% down. "On planes 1that can carry 150-190 seats, I'm seeing them only carry 1-30 people." These numbers are staggering. Without a vaccine or an end in sight, it is really tough planning for the future.
"Being a Captain and being a leader, I have to promote positivity. We will bounce back stronger... This is a tough reality. There are so many people losing jobs. It's about everybody. It's hard for me to see."
The biggest changes that he has seen are airports that are just empty. What used to be an exciting, bustling hub connecting people, airports are now ghost towns.
He hopes that by the summer, people will want to get back to "normal." "I believe humans want to travel, they want to see, they want to make money.
As far as getting back to the numbers we were operating at before the pandemic, realistically it might take 18 to 24 months.
Naturally, there will be more regulations moving forward. What those actual changes will be has yet to be determined, but it is fair to hope that most people will be a little more mindful of their behaviors on plane.
This current periods feels more like a pause. It almost doesn't seem real. But Captain Hunter remains a positive outlook. Hopefully with this time away from our normal routines, experiences will be a priority for travelers. "We will travel again."

Natural Products Expo West is a premier annual event for the food and beverage industry. Expo West 2020 canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sharing their disappointment of this news were Alan Burwell, VP of Marketing and Innovation, and Bryn Garcia, VP of Retail Sales and Business Development, both from Select Harvest USA. For Garcia, the opportunities Expo West provides are the ability to get in front of 3,000 + retailers and share with them all of the exciting new products Select Harvest is launching. For Burwell, he looked forward to seeing what innovative products and solutions retailers were unveiling at the show. “That natural foods’ focus is what makes Expo West special, and why so many people come to it,” Burwell said.

Even though people will have to wait until 2021 for the next Expo West, Burwell and Garcia offered their insights on how Select Harvest is continuing to maintain relationships with the retailers they looked forward to interacting with at the show. Garcia said Select Harvest reached out to its entire retail network to lend assurance that Almond production operations continue unhampered by the pandemic. “For new retailers, we’ve been able to utilize platforms such as RangeMe as well as other social selling platforms to showcase the array of products that we have,” Garcia said.

Burwell said what makes Expo West so exciting is one never knew what the year’s hot new trends were until they arrived at the show. But Burwell did say Select Harvest was excited about revealing a new almond-based product that is indulgent and delicious but isn’t going to have all those extra calories, and carbs, and things like that. Perhaps there will be product unveiling on a future installment of nut news. For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Straight Outta Crumpton is a podcast that is all about building and fostering relationships in business and life. But as the coronavirus pandemic has altered our normal patterns and habits, how can we ensure that relationships are still a key part of our lives?
Greg Crumpton was joined for this episode by Howie Barber, Operations Manager for Atom Power, Inc. They discussed their longtime friendship, team-building during COVID-19, and the impact that Howie has had as a youth coach for multiple sports.

In the age of technology, convenience reigns king. In the quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry, where convenience and speed are part of the product, technology is a natural business partner. “Around the Table,” explores how automation has made its way into franchises all over the country, with the full extent of its capabilities still untapped. Antunes guests Steve Gauger, Senior Vice President of Advanced Development & Automation, and Dan Hartlein, President, speak decisively about automation’s potential to improve quick-service system, customer satisfaction, and profits.

The term “automation,” often brings to mind visions of intricate machines roving around autonomously. But Hartlein and Gauger assure that automation doesn’t have to be that complicated, or wildly futuristic. In fact, Antunes designs automated programs that integrate into a QSR’s already established kitchen space, resulting in little disruption to established processes.

Whatsmore, automating need not be a giant change. In fact, small, granular changes can have major ripple effects in efficiency and profits. From cutting slices of cheese, to fishing out pickle spears, automating these small tasks in the assembly line can produce drastic changes in QSR performance.

As the COVID-19 sits heavy in everyone’s thoughts, Hartlein and Gauger point out the hygienic benefits of automated processes, emphasizing the consumer’s growing habits of ordering-in or delivery. But will automation steal jobs from people? Gauger and Hartlein assure that’s not the case.

With automation still breaking ground in the quick-service industry, the possibilities are endless and processes are ripe for improvement.

Welcome to this week’s episode of “Drones in America,” a MarketScale podcast hosted by Grant Guillot.
Guillot leads the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Practice Team for Adams and Reese, a law firm that practices across the Southern U.S. and in Washington, D.C.
On “Drones in America,” Guillot and industry leaders, influencers and experts explore the rapidly growing commercial drone industry in the U.S., guiding you through the complex web of technology, policy and more.
In this week’s episode, Guillot is joined by Ian Annase, CEO of Zing; Cameron Chell, CEO of Draganfly; and Ryan Walsh, CEO of Valqari. Each of these three service providers are utilizing drone technology to assist with the Covid-19 relief efforts.
Zing, which is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida, offers an autonomous drone delivery platform that provides last mile delivery solutions. Noting that the platform is compatible with the most common drones on the market, Annase explains, “We turn the most common DJI Drones, such as the Mavic, Phantom, and Inspire, into fully autonomous, last-mile delivery robots within the current FAA regulatory framework.”
Canada-based Draganfly is the oldest operating commercial drone manufacturer in North America, and its services are especially relevant with the Covid-19 pandemic necessitating social distancing.
“We can actually identify not just temperature, but fever, heart rate, respiratory rates,” explains Chell, noting that the company is “known for specialized sensors and [its] capability to deliver a drone package to…customers that gives them a strategic advantage because of the data they can collect.”
Valqari, based out of Chicago, offers a drone delivery solution that solves the last inch logistic problems with its patented Smart Drone Delivery Mailbox ALIS, which provides a secure and convenient delivery receptacle for both drone and traditional deliveries.

On this episode of the MarketScale podcast, host Tyler Kern was joined by ModTruss Vice President, Worldwide Sales David Ostmann.

ModTruss typically centers its operations on providing strong, durable metal building kits that see use in a variety of industries and applications.

However, as is the case for many companies, the COVID-19 pandemic has shifted that focus, and ModTruss is doing what it can to support the frontline effort in the fight against the novel coronavirus.

“We’re in this together,” Ostmann said. “It’s going to take all of us working together to beat this and get our ‘normal’ back.”

To that end, CEO Patrick Santini, an Army field medic with an extensive engineering background, leapt into action.

Working with his wife, an ER physician, Santini developed a negative pressure containment unit.

“Really, within about four days, we went from an idea to a working prototype for our negative pressure (containment unit), or what they call an airborne infectious isolation room,” Ostmann said. “Furthermore, we repurposed our entertainment plastic panels … to introduce those as hard-barrier, bedside applications.”

These barriers are particularly useful for replacing inadequate pipe-and-drape separation methods and allowing for increased safety for patients and healthcare professionals, alike.

Looking ahead, Ostmann said added efficiencies and innovations could help develop the “new normal” the world will enter in the wake of COVID-19.

One such solution is already available in the form of LED screens that could be adapted to meet new needs highlighted by the pandemic.

“One of our partners in the entertainment world is Absen (America). They make beautiful LED panels,” Ostmann said. “Well, maybe they can repurpose their solutions into our COVID solution centers, where we’re not using our valuable resources – our people – to direct traffic. Maybe there’s signage that way that can direct traffic. … It’s looking at your solution from a different aspect.”

On this episode of Dirt Work, we were joined by Bob Campana of Campana Capital, a real estate development and investment firm based in Cleveland, OH. Born into a family of entrepreneurs, Bob told the story of his family’s manufacturing business, which he later joined, in the steel, foundry and pipe and tubing industries and shared lessons applicable to people and professions, including the importance of who you surround yourself with and finding good mentors.
Bob highlighted how real estate owners can work with struggling tenants by being proactive, listening to the tenants, asking what they need to get through this and prioritizing empathy.
Bob discussed how the current COVID pandemic is different than the previous downtowns of 08’/09’ and the market scale in 1980s. Considering the reality that “with change comes opportunity”, we took a closer look at how this pandemic may impact real estate and development in various sectors including office, industrial, residential and retail:
Industrial: “The reality is that people have to go back to work…so not sure how much impact that this pandemic will have on the industrial market.”
Office: “The office segment is going to have some changes…there may be an opportunity for more office as tenants decrease density…however, remote is here and could likely impact the office market but the cards are still yet to be played.”
Residential: “Haven’t seen too much impact yet. There are a lot people that may be looking at their house saying, ‘this house is too big’, this house is too small, these stairs are too many, etc.’ and wondering if they need a change. To date there hasn’t been a slowdown in absorption”.
Retail: “Home delivery and drive-throughs are become more prevalent”.

First Insights approaches retail with a forward looking view to consumers via predictive analytics. Through their extensive longitudinal data they are formulating insights around how consumers are being reconditioned. They are seeing a convergence of demographics and a shift to online happening as people shift to staples and stockpiling, but what does the future look like? As companies will no longer to be able to build models and historical data alone, hear how Greg and his team are collecting data to access the future.

Welcome to Around the Table by Antunes. This podcast, designed for the foodservice industry, takes an inside look at the products and solutions that benefit providers and customers around the world.

On this premiere episode, Melissa Neckopulos, GM of Water for Antunes, discussed the importance and benefits of a water ultrafiltration system for food services.

“Most foodservice providers would all agree that reliable, filtered water is critical to their operations,” Neckopulos said. “Water is an ingredient to food, beverages and appliances. Any improperly filtered water would affect the taste, have wear and tear on the equipment, and would affect the overall customer experience.”

One issue with many foodservice water filtration systems is the continual maintenance and replacement of cartridges.

Neckopulos spoke to Antunes’ VZN ultrafiltration system and its self-cleaning technology, which reduces the need for frequent cartridge replacement.

“It’s a base filtration system that cleans the water and takes out the particulate matter before it goes to the carbon filter,” she said.

Periodically, it cleans itself, which extends the overall life of the cartridge anywhere from five to 10 years.

Can an ultrafiltration water system make an impact on foodservice sales? Neckopulos cited a couple of examples where owners saw an increase in beverage sales after switching their filtration system over to VZN.

One restaurant owner was changing out their filtration cartridges every three months due to clogging, and the pressure loss resulted in lost beverage sales.

Once the owner got the VZN ultrafiltration system, it made a tremendous impact on his business through less cartridge expense, maintenance and an increase the taste quality of the beverages served.

Welcome to the first episode of Say Yes to Travel, hosted by award-winning concierge and travel expert, Sarah Dandashy. Sarah will be exploring all things travel, including trends and what makes the industry tick. Today’s show focuses on tips to ensure you keep your 2020 travel resolutions.
Sarah shares that travel is on the uptick as people have begun to focus on experiences over things.

In this episode of Say Yes to Travel, Sarah Dandashy, Hospitality Concierge extraordinaire, discusses the rise of the ‘micro-cation’. A micro-cation is a term coined by Allianz Travel Insurance, and is defined as a leisure trip lasting fewer than 5 nights.
For over a decade, Allianz has compiled their Vacation Confidence Index, surveying travelers on their vacation plans and spending while monitoring consumer perspectives on emerging travel trends. The trends and statistics that surfaced for 2019 were quite surprising:
57% of Americans did not take a leisure trip longer than four nights in 2019.
In fact, 72% of the Millennial, 69% of the Gen-Xer and 60% of the Baby Boomer generations took advantage of at least one micro-cation instead.
Further, mini-vacations are rapidly replacing the traditional week-long vacations of the past, with almost 2 in 10 Americans (18%) stating that their longest trip in the last year was 3 to 4 nights, while 1 in 10 (11%) took trips that lasted no longer than 1 or 2 nights.
With 25% of the general population and 29% of Millennials (1 in 3) saying that they took at least three micro-cations in the last year, micro-cations seem to be allowing Americans to travel more frequently.

This week, on “Say Yes to Travel,” host Sarah Dandashy shares about a recent Forbes article outlining 8 travel trends to expect in 2020. Working in the travel and hospitality industry, Dandashy shares her views as a professional as well as a traveler. Which travel trends will excite you most?
Among the trends discussed, a few are not surprising because they’ve been developing for the past couple of years. For example, “microcations,” which are now dubbed “tiny trips,” have been growing in popularity. They are expected to continue to rise as people squeeze travel in long weekends instead of taking a whole week off for vacation.

In this week’s episode of “Say Yes to Travel,” host Sarah Dandashy talks about the coronavirus and its staggering impact on travel. Viruses and infectious are nothing new, and we’ve seen before other illnesses impact tourism, including SARS.
However, coronavirus is somewhat unique. While it’s not been as deadly as SARS, it’s much more contagious and has spread rapidly in a short period of time from first recorded cases in Wuhan, China. Its quick expansion has put a damper on what was shaping up to be a huge travel year.
So, what should travelers know? First, there are some best practices you should always consider when traveling like proper handwashing, sanitizing common areas on airplanes, and covering your mouth and nose if coughing or sneezing. This behavior can keep you safe from all kinds of germs or from spreading them yourself.
If you have plans to travel to China or other parts of Asia, you will likely have to reschedule, as many airlines have grounded flights, and hotels are allowing customers to cancel without penalty. Having travel insurance for such this kind of emergency is never a bad idea.
With travel halted to and from China, the global travel economy is taking a huge hit. Chinese travelers represent the fourth largest market for outbound travel, spending $275 billion in 2019. That means that destinations across the world will see a hit to their bottom line.
The best-case scenario is that things are contained, and travel bans are lifted. Be sure to keep an eye on the news from the World Health Organization. Become part of the discussion by listening to the podcast and sharing feedback or stories about the virus’ impact on travel.

John Dekker is the one of the best Travel Agents I know. He's been in the game for over 20 years with his company, but has worked for airlines, created model airplanes, and grew up with a father in the travel biz. He knows everything about travel!
With over 30 years of experience in the travel industry, he knows everything about the industry. John Dekker dives into the interview sharing tips that all travers can immediate use.
TRAVEL TIP: If you have a flight and need to cancel, wait. If you cancel now, you will get a credit for a future flight, but if you wait, the flight might get canceled. If an airline cancels a flight, you are due a 100 percent refund.
Another great way to get in touch with airlines when the phone lines have long waits is via social media. Twitter is a great way to get in touch with someone from an airline.
Travel Agents are the way to go when it comes to booking travel. OTAs (Online Travel Agents) are much trickier to get refunds and can often times charge additional change fees.
Dekker sees airline travel becoming more expensive in the future. There are great deals now, so if you can, take advantage. But as travel comes back, he sees airlines not coming back as quickly as the demand--thereby making airfare more expensive.
Dekker believes that domestic travel will come to a full stop. The hope is that we come out of this at the end of May, but this is still a big question. Domestically, travel will prove to be tricky as different parts of the country will be on different timelines in regards to the pandemic.
OTAs will suffer greatly from this pandemic, but he foresees more companies selling direct-to-consumers on discounted platforms.
Cruising is expected to bounce back as there are die-hard cruising fans that will not be deterred by the pandemic and the bad press the cruise industry has had.
Airbnb/VRBOs should do well coming out of the pandemic. There is a different mindset when it comes to staying at a home versus a hotel.
Ultimately, this pandemic will shake out the low hanging fruit of the travel industry. The businesses that were doing well before will continue to do well afterwards.
Find him online to book a fab trip at www.surfcitytravel.com
Or on instagram at @johndekkertravel

Want to attract your ideal customers and clients to your brand? First you must STOP asking people to buy your product.
Sound counterintuitive? It's actually not. Storytelling is as old as the first humans on this planet, and it's our preferred method of digesting information. Storytelling bonds us to the storyteller, and makes us long for more content.
Join me and my first Bricks and Clicks guest, Amy Aitman, as we discuss the importance of storytelling for your company.
Amy is a leader in digital content, growth and management. As cofounder at Change Creator, she oversees the digital assets and revenue-driving growth plans for the over 400K people we reach every month.
As COO for Center Keel Media, she built and distributed editorial teams to more than 90 people and grew the portfolio of sites from 4 to 35 + and growing.
Part scrappy entrepreneur, part storyteller, Amy continues to help brands tell their stories to scale their honest, authentic marketing efforts.

On this episode of Element Sessions, Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin was joined by cabinet industry veteran Stacy Garcia, the owner of Garcia Cabinetmakers and founder of KBtribechat™️, which facilitates weekly social media discussions on Twitter for thought-leaders in the kitchen and bath industry.

Litwin and Garcia, who brings four decades of experience in the industry to the table, dove into how social media has not only provided inspiration through sites like Instagram and Pinterest, but has completely reshaped the way professionals in the kitchen and bath industry network, build relationships and share ideas.

“We were early adapters of computers – we’ve done shop drawings since the early days of them being available on the computer,” Garcia said. “But that has evolved way beyond what it was in the early days. … I see everything online now. Things stay the same, but (there are) different platforms, and you really need to be represented online.”

Garcia said she’s noticed a shift in networking away from phone and in-person avenues and another in data collection, which has moved online and away from slogs down to City Hall for records, etc. KBtribechat™️, designed to make Twitter more effective for members of the kitchen and bath industry, has allowed Garcia to craft a critical space for achieving the industry’s modern goals and expanding the boundaries to unexplored, fascinating topics.

“The main thing is that I don’t consider it mine. It’s a community,” she said. “I’m overseeing it, but if I see that somebody has a special area of expertise that I find fascinating, I will ask them to host. … It’s a whole community thing.

“It’s our industry’s platform. It’s not about me, it’s about the industry.”

Video game popularity has soared in the last decade, as billions around the globe gravitate toward the captivating activity.
But video games aren’t just for entertainment.

They can also be educational. On today’s Online Learning Minute with host Brian Runo, we learn what game-based learning is and how it differs from gamification.

The math-based computer games of our youth are just one example of game-based learning, or a course built inside of a game. Gamification, however, uses gaming principles like rewards, badges or peer competition as elements to an online course.

Game-based learning helps students stay engaged and makes learning fun. This alternative form of education is effective in some subjects, but not practical in all use cases.

Welcome to this week’s episode of “Drones in America,” a MarketScale podcast hosted by Grant Guillot.
Guillot leads the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Practice Team for Adams and Reese, a law firm that practices across the Southern U.S. and in Washington, D.C.
On “Drones in America,” Guillot and industry leaders, influencers and experts explore the rapidly growing commercial drone industry in the U.S., guiding you through the complex web of technology, policy and more.
In this week’s episode, Guillot is joined by Michael Blades, Vice President of Aerospace, Defense and Security in the Americas at Frost & Sullivan. Blades’ main areas of research and analysis are unmanned systems and training and simulation markets, and he is widely-regarded by the commercial drone industry as an expert and visionary.
Guillot and Blades discuss the types of drone service providers who are poised to continue succeeding in the evolving industry, such as Tom Walker’s company, DroneUp. Blades believes 2020 will see the accelerated consolidation of various service providers and that the companies who establish themselves in niche end-user industries, such as energy/oil & gas, construction, and precision agriculture, will survive the economic effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Blades also discusses his recently-released report, Global Commercial UAS Market Outlook, 2020, wherein he concludes that the commercial drone market is set to transition from a “nascent” to a “growth” stage. Blades echoes Walker’s suggestion that the drone companies who wish to continue growing should focus less on perceived regulatory lags and more on the opportunities available to drone operators under Part 107.
In regards to the Covid-19 pandemic, Blades acknowledges that some companies operating in the commercial drone industry are experiencing economic difficulties. However, Blades also notes that “the smart people who operate drones are going to figure out ways…to help with the Covid response.” For example, Draganfly has been selected to develop a “pandemic drone” that could be used to detect infectious and respiratory conditions while flying over people.
“Expect forward-thinking drone service providers to seek those partnerships that allow them to present prospective clients with comprehensive demonstrations or case studies that prove how their services can help mitigate future black swan events,” Blades explains, agreeing with Guillot that the Covid-19 pandemic will result in a net positive for the commercial drone industry “At the end of this there might be a renewed interest in drones because many existing [uses], and even some uses that we didn’t think of before this, will arise out of this pandemic and…that may drive some different definition on what urgent needs are with respect to the FAA approving or fast-tracking waivers to do things during times like this.”
In addition, Blades and Guillot discuss the importance of shaping public perception of drones and calling attention the great work undertaken by various companies operating in the industry, including AiRXOS and DRONERESPONDERS, as well as by individuals such as DJI’s Romeo Durscher and Adam Lisberg. They also acknowledge the important role played by drone journalists like the Drone Business Center’s Christopher Korody, DroneLife’s Miriam McNabb, Unmanned Airspace’s Philip Butterworth-Hayes, and Commercial UAV News’ Jeremiah Karpowicz.
Join host Grant Guillot of the law firm, Adams and Reese for Drones in America with new episodes available where ever podcasts are found.

The future of payments will be more fluid than ever in tomorrow's "new norm." Customers are engaging with brands across channel with less pause and will expect that fluidity to continue in a seamless and frictionless way from in-store to online. In this discussion, learn how Klarna is helping brands and retailer re-think strategies around the Point-of-Sales.
David Sykes is the Head of US for Klarna, one of Europe’s largest banks offering direct payments, pay after delivery options and installment plans in a one-click purchase experience for customers. Previously, David was the Chief Operating Officer of QuadPay, another payment platform, as well as the International General Manager for Crown Resorts.

Mike Nuget has always been ready to work from home.

As a freelance colorist, Nuget often goes to post-production houses to work, but he’s also had a home setup for years with the software he needs to do his job and work with producers and directors all over the globe.

With the COVID-19 pandemic creating the need to shelter-in-place, most people have become remote workers, putting Nuget in a unique situation as one of the few people in the industry who was prepared for that change.

He was working on a five-episode series that suddenly needed to get wrapped up quickly with people contributing from a number of places.

“When the pandemic kind of really struck and they were kind of shutting everything down, literally, at that moment, all five episodes were being worked on at the same time,” Nuget said. “It was literally the worst time that this could’ve happened, because we had so much going on.”

Nuget took on a bigger role, adding responsibilities beyond the colorist position.

He’s leaned heavily on tools like Cinedeck’s cineXtools and its file delivery system, which can shrink the time it takes to make changes a producer wants by hours.

“That insertion ability, it’s just – it’s priceless,” Nuget said.

Nuget isn’t sure if work will ever look the same after the COVID-19 crisis, but he was happy he’d prepared himself to work from anywhere now that working from home is a requirement.

On this episode of Say Yes To Travel, host Sarah Dandashy sat down with Chris Faver, an operations manager at a major airline based out of San Diego, to break down what they are seeing in the airline industry amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Numbers are down over 70%. This is a very eerie time, as the whole travel industry is coming to a complete stop. But what can we expect in the future? Higher cleaning standards, that's for sure. In the meantime, if you have extra money, take advantage of cheap prices and flexible cancellation policies.

Faver predicts that it will take some time getting out of this and about 18 to 24 months to see numbers where they were before. People will either come out of this needing to travel or come out of this with a more cautious attitude. Ultimately, there is so much uncertainty, it is hard to pinpoint.

There could also be a shift in mindset when it comes to business travel, with more businesses potentially opting for virtual meetings.

Another big question is how the industry will return to normal on a global level, since all countries will come out of the pandemic on a different timeline.

With everything being cancelled, from big concerts to sporting events, there are few reasons to travel right now other than to visit family or if you are a medical professional looking to go to other markets to help.

Generally, airlines average $10-12 billion per month. So, with percentages dipping by as much as 80-90%, we can get a picture of the immense numbers we are dealing with.

Companies that hold off on laying off people will be in a better position when they come out of this, as they will still have employees to go back into work.

Look for record deals as we come out of this, but ultimately keep personal finances in mind, and expect business travel to come back first, then leisure travel.

Welcome to this week’s episode of “Drones in America,” a MarketScale podcast hosted by Grant Guillot.
Guillot leads the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Practice Team for Adams and Reese, a law firm that practices across the Southern U.S. and in Washington, D.C.
On “Drones in America,” Guillot and industry leaders, influencers and experts explore the rapidly growing commercial drone industry in the U.S., guiding you through the complex web of technology, policy and more.
In this week’s episode, Guillot is joined by Frank Segarra, President and CEO of ConnexiCore.
ConnexiCore is a nationwide commercial UAS Drone Solutions Provider with a deep network of expert (FAA) pilots, solution architects, and business process consultants across the United States. It specializes in drone aerial data collection, image & video analytics, drone telepresence, and aerial mapping services.
ConnexiCore is a full-service provider, explains Segarra, providing “everything from the drone services to the data analytics to the full-blown training and consulting to be able to bring organizations up to speed and get their own drone operations up and running …”
Guillot and Segarra discuss Segarra’s beginnings as a CB radio hobbyist. Segarra, at a young age, caught the attention of the FCC when he was able to reach listeners in Australia, South America and the Caribbean. The FCC gave the young Segarra, who did not possess an FCC license, a pass, but his early experiences led to a lifelong interest in technology.

Segarra recalls an earlier drone mission his company, ConnexiCore, undertook at the request of an insurance adjuster, who sought information regarding the extent of crop damage caused on a farm by a cattle stampede. ConnexiCore flew a drone over 1,000 acres of farmland and utilized thermographic imaging, 3D imaging, and orthromosaic photography to provide a report of the crop damage.
“A lot of drones will do real-time monitoring of job sites, and a site supervisor may not have to go out and inspect the job,” Segarra says, noting that the construction and engineering industries are among the sectors most frequently served by ConnexiCore.
Segarra adds that drones can also help mitigate the risks associated with dangerous jobs, identify hazards and enhance safety before a the commencement of a construction project, allow information to be provided to project managers and stakeholders in a quicker fashion, and track assets in a manner that improves the efficiency of workflow.
Segarra also explains how drones are uniquely capable of assisting with construction management during the Covid-19 pandemic. “You can [conduct construction management and inspections] with the drone and stream that video either in real-time time or send that video to [project team members and/or stakeholders] on a link, which…with everything that is going on today with the coronavirus and SARS and terrorism, a lot of people are being strongly advised not to travel,” Segarra says. “So if you could get inspections done and you can use a drone that’s onsite to take care of some of these problems that are solved by drones, you’re actually helping the situation out right now.”
Join host Grant Guillot of the law firm, Adams and Reese for Drones in America with new episodes available where ever podcasts are found.

With a faster adoption of e-commerce across verticals, Niall and his team are closely tracking the impact of sustainability and the need for transparency. Food and CPG will be particularly impacted, as one of the industries seeing the largest shift of adoption from offline to online shopping.
Hear how Niall sees companies looking to regionalize their supply chains and invest further in last mile logistics.
Niall Murphy is Co-Founder and CEO of EVRYTHNG, an Internet-of-Things pioneer that manages billions of digital identities for consumer products, making each item smart, interactive and trackable from the factory floor to the consumer’s home to the end of the product lifecycle. EVRYTHNG is a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer and it originated the technology adopted by GS1 to upgrade the global barcode standard to connect every consumer product to the web. A computer scientist by training, Niall is a technologist, serial entrepreneur and angel investor with 25 years of experience in innovation and future thinking. He has built pioneering businesses in Internet infrastructure, the mobile Internet and web services in Europe, the US and Africa.

On this episode of MarketScale’s Business Services podcast, host Tyler Kern was joined by On The Move Insurance Agency Director Merle Harris to discuss the best way to protect your self-storage facility.

Protecting these facilities is critical, particularly in cases where the facility is a significant portion or the entirety of an owner/operator’s portfolio.

“It is a significant investment,” Harris said. “Oftentimes, in the case of mom-and-pops, it may be their entire life savings investment. So, with any investment, clearly you want to protect it, and you want to grow it.”

Challenges commonly faced by self-storage facilities include local competition and oversaturation, the generation of additional revenue streams, and more. There are many avenues toward achieving an owner’s primary goal of protecting the facility, including traditional insurance, but tenant protection may provide an additional layer of protection.

These programs, such as On The Move’s SecureLease, help keep tenants protected and provides a differentiator from competitors that neglect to take this additional step.

Harris outlined the difference between traditional insurance solutions and a tenant protection program like SecureLease, which include the avoidance of the complexities introduced by mandated insurance licensing and regulatory entities.

“Tenant insurance is a regulated product. As such, the owner/operator of a self-storage facility, when he sells tenant insurance, he is being dictated as far as the price point he has to sell that product at and the amount he has to pay. It is a very structured situation,” Harris said.

“With respect to tenant protection plans, that gives the owner/operator maximum flexibility from the standpoint that he now determines what price point he wants to sell that tenant protection product at.”

Kern and Harris also touched on when tenant protection might the ideal choice for unique facilities, additional benefits associated with SecureLease, and more.

On this episode of MarketScale’s EdTech podcast, host JW Marshall was joined by MakerBot Vice President of Education Dottie Stewart.

Shoppers are homebound in what is currently a voluntary isolation. Within the past week toilet paper, paper towels, pain relievers, masks and more are completely out of stock. Online is sold out too. We are weeks out, best case scenario, at being able to replenish our pantries.

I know that every morning I personally wake up believing that this must just be bad dream. But it’s not. The entire nation is dumfounded that this is our new reality. Some are saddened. Some are scared. Others angry, worried, lost, or anxious.
On this episode of Bricks & Clicks, I want to talk about why NOT to put all of your eggs in one basket, and 5 ways to protect your brand through creating a multi- platform selling strategy.
References in Podcast:
http://theagame.online/

Sarah sat down with Calvin Tilokee, the Director of Revenue Management at a 5 star boutique hotel in New York City to discuss the current state of the hotel industry. Numbers are down everywhere, but major cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago have been hit particularly hard. With a good number of hotels opting to close, the few that remain open are seeing anywhere from 5-11% occupancies. These numbers are unprecedented! Some hotels have laid off their employees, others have been furloughed, and there are a few that are able to make sure with a bare minimum.
With no end of the Stay at Home mandate in sight, this is a scary time for hoteliers. What does the future hold? How will things change? What can we expect? Though there is some speculation on how this all will play out, with a long 18 month recovery, there is still much that is up in the air. Calvin shares his insights on what lessons we can learn from Covid-19.
The travel and tourism sector makes up 1/10th of the global job market. The hit is taking will inevitably have a huge economic impact that will take years to fully recover.
Regardless of when we are able to go back to work, this will be a slow climb back to the bustling travel world we once knew--anywhere from 18-24 months.
New protocols will likely develop from this, especially new cleaning requirements and possible hybrid roles to cut costs until occupancy comes back.
Business travelers will be the first to get back on the road and travel. Leisure travelers, influenced by financial struggles and COVID-19 wariness, will trickle back into the market.
It is safe to assume that domestic travel and roadtrips will be popular in the months after resolving the Pandemic.
For more on Calvin, find him online here:
https://www.instagram.com/revparblems/
https://www.instagram.com/revpartravels/
https://www.instagram.com/revpargrowth
https://www.revparblems.com/

On this episode of Orange Intelligenz, a KUKA Robotics podcast, KUKA Robotics Senior VP of Sales and Marketing, North America Simon Whitton joined host Tyler Kern to deliver the State of the Robotics Union.

Whitton, who boasts over 35 years of experience in the robotics industry, is uniquely positioned to talk about the industry on a global scale thanks to extensive work experience in China and Japan, which lent him a different perspective on the acceptance and adoption of robotics and how the Asian region compares to North America and the United States.

Perhaps the biggest trend in the robotics industry at the moment, at least in the U.S., is that, while the country is exhibiting growth in robot adoption and sales, it still lags behind the levels of adoption and the heights the industry has reached in the Asian market despite its lengthy history with industrial robots.

“In general, I’d say that North America has been slower to adopt in terms of the growth pattern... by contrast, though, in countries in Asia is, whilst they may have been a bit later to come to robotics, the adoption rate is much higher in that region,” Whitton said.

While the recent COVID-19 pandemic has thrown things slightly off kilter, research prior to the outbreak suggested that U.S. unemployment rates remained low while robotic adoption rates rose.

In particular, that growth and predicted climb is a result of specific drivers in the region, such as an aging population and increasing revenue demands.

“Generally, it’s pretty good. As we look forward, the socioeconomic drivers, plus the technological drivers that power the growth in robotics, all are good,” Whitton said. “… We need machines to go to work and create business for us, so the drivers are all in place.”

To keep those adoption rates rising, particularly after the Coronavirus pandemic fades and business returns to relatively normal levels, Whitton said that the technology and misconceptions surrounding robotics need additional clearing up to ensure the growth trends exhibited in North America continue.

Welcome to this week’s episode of “Drones in America,” a MarketScale podcast hosted by Grant Guillot.
Guillot leads the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Practice Team for Adams and Reese, a law firm that practices across the Southern U.S. and in Washington, D.C.
On “Drones in America,” Guillot and industry leaders, influencers and experts explore the rapidly growing commercial drone industry in the U.S., guiding you through the complex web of technology, policy and more.
In this week’s episode, Guillot is joined by Michael Healander, President and CEO of Airspace Link.
The Airspace Link platform is an all-in-one FAA-certified, cloud-based platform simultaneously connecting all constituents involved in legally flying a drone. In addition to airspace safety, Airspace Link focuses on ground-based risks and provides a municipal-planning platform that is already finding success with various communities, including the cities of Taylor, Michigan, and Ontario, California.
State & local governments use the Airspace Link portal to define areas of risk, special ordinance and event restrictions within the community. Drone pilots plan and submit operations to the FAA through Airspace Link, enabling faster approvals and a stronger mitigation plans for complex flights (BVLOS, inspection, package delivery). With the combined data, Airspace Link is building new drone airspace infrastructure (similar to toll roads).
Guillot and Healander discuss Healander’s history providing geospatial technology services to the defense, logistics, precision agriculture, retail, and transportation industries. They also chat about Healnder’s experience working with state and local governments to develop permitting systems and asset management systems.
With Airspace Link, Healander now utilizes spatial technology to assist government agencies with the integration of drone into the national airspace and local communities. Airspace Link’s cloud-based platform, AirHub, focuses exclusively on merging the needs of state and local government with the operational planning tools pilots already use.
Healander explains that despite public perception concerns regarding the privacy and safety aspects of drones, many government agencies are ready and willing to incorporate advanced operations into their respective communities. Agencies are envisioning a “connected smart-city infrastructure that they can offer businesses,” Healander says.
Airspace Link is also an FAA-certified LAANC provider, and drone pilots can now use Airspace Link to apply for instantaneous approval to fly in restricted airspace. Healander notes that “this combined authorization and integration with FAA, state, and local data makes for the safest possible mission.”
Join host Grant Guillot of the law firm, Adams and Reese for Drones in America with new episodes available where ever podcasts are found.

As COVID-19 rapidly changes the way we live and provide care, it becomes increasingly important for healthcare institutions to stay compliant with rules, regulations and safety protocols.

For Megan Nelson, Senior Compliance and Privacy Officer, Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging, her job helps keep healthcare institutions performing to the highest standards.

Nelson joined the podcast to talk about how she does her job, oversee her team and keeps everyone working toward keeping agencies in business providing healthcare.

“The only constant is change,” said Nelson, quoting Ben Franklin. The healthcare industry’s ever-changing rules, laws and regulations are no different, especially in the wake of a pandemic. As a registered nurse, Nelson stays abreast of policy through the Health Care Compliance Association.

But compliance is about more than just following the rules, Nelson said, arguing that compliance officers are not to be feared. Compliance officers share a desire with healthcare institutions to keep the agency providing help to as many people as possible.

“I derive no joy in giving someone a negative audit,” Nelson said. But by knowing her rules and regulations and working together with the healthcare providers in a trusted exchange, Nelson helps keep institutions providing their indispensable services.

On this week's episode of Quicksilver: The eLearning Alchemist, Daniel Litwin, the Voice of B2B, fills in for Clint Clarkson to do a quick analysis of how schools around the globe are implementing elearning solutions during the coronavirus pandemic. It's clearly a time of crisis for the world, and as more large buildings and businesses close their doors, the demand for online learning and retaining structure in our education system has become a top priority.
Before we get into the response from educators, how set-up were institutions for a large scale transition to online learning?
A survey of chief online officers, released by Quality Matters & Eduventures this week, sheds some light on that. Conducted in spring of 2019, the survey showed 70% of respondents didn't have any training for students on how to study online. Though some regional private schools fared better when breaking down the data, closer to 50% do have that online studying training, regional public schools were the ones least supported.
Educators were slightly better prepared, the survey found. Six in 10 online learning administrators say their campuses require professors to train before teaching online.
The survey also showed that most college professors produce their own online courses without additional instructional design infrastructure. One of the authors, Ronald Legon, executive director emeritus of Quality Matters, said it best. Quote, "I don’t think there’s a pipeline that could respond," Legon said. "That's a real problem if you're trying to do this at scale."

This week on I Don't Care, Kevin Stevenson takes a look at the impact the COVID-19 crisis is having on long term care facilities. Many patients in these facilities are the most susceptible to the most severe effects of the virus as they are older or have weakened immune systems. The healthcare professionals running these facilities have had to quickly adapt to this threat to keep their community safe which means restricting family access, restricting social activities, and additional monitoring of at risk patients. Today's guest gives his personal perspective of how this has affected his immediate family and the changes he has seen.

Nelson Wills, Partner & Vice President of Business Development at Element Designs in Charlotte, North Carolina, spoke with host James Kent on what it means to be a manufacturer based in the United States.

“We are the No. 1 economy in the world, and we’ve done that with a lot of hard work. There’s a lot of pride that goes into the term, ‘made in the USA,’" Wills said.

Wills pointed out the significant number of goods Americans rely on are manufactured in America, from food to construction.

“The supply chain is the driver of the quality equation,” Wills said, and that is why Element Designs works hard to source their materials in the U.S., as well.

With worldwide disruptions occurring due to the coronavirus outbreak, Wills said his company is well-prepared to handle the crisis. Customers have reached out to Element Designs to help them with products they can no longer get on time from overseas. To stay a leader in manufacturing, Wills said Americans have to stay focused on production and innovation.

“We have the resources, and we are the innovator. We have a good thing going," he said. "Let’s stay productive and use the resources we have right here at home.”

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the AEC Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

On this episode of Say Yes To Travel, host Sarah Dandashy doesn’t want to just discuss the effects of COVID-19 on the hospitality industry; she wants to help give voices to other people in the industry.
The hospitality industry has become ravaged, coming to a complete standstill until the spread of the virus is contained. Airlines are operating at 30% of their capacity and many of the largest travel destinations in America such as New York, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas have closed their hotels and furloughed their employees.
How are we going to recover? What is the timeline? What can we expect? The big thing with all of this is the unknown. With unknown variables about the virus still in the air, when can we expect to go back to work and what will the long term ramifications of coronavirus be on every industry? Dandashy gives her perspective on how the industry should react and make it out the other side intact.

On this snippet from Business Casual, host Daniel Litwin decompresses with the success of Nintendo's newest release for the Switch video game console: Animal Cross New Horizons. The quirky video game is the best performing game in both the UK and Japan, breaking record sales for stiff competition like Pokémon. Daniel argues one of the biggest reasons it's selling so well is because the concept of the game is all about online community, and he breaks down...

Why the game is performing so well
Pain-points in Nintendo's supply chain
How Nintendo built a brand to win during a socially isolating crisis
What can companies learn from Nintendo's marketing and the success of Animal
rossing during this isolated period

Make sure to subscribe and listen along for more episodes of Business Casual.

On this snippet from Business Casual, host Daniel Litwin paints a picture of the potentially massive spike in unemployment around the corner due to coronavirus. As more workers at small businesses or in service industries lose their jobs, large entities in our economy look to hire en masse: grocers, gig economy platforms, and ecommerce giants. Daniel breaks down...

Which industries are most at risk
Which major companies are hiring and for what sorts of jobs
Amazon's response to the coronavirus pandemic
How a stark loss of small business consumers and labor could leave lasting effects on our economy
What sort of dependence does our economy have on retail giants like Amazon

Make sure to subscribe and listen along for more episodes of Business Casual.

On this snippet from Business Casual, host Daniel Litwin takes a look at the positives and the negatives of the new work-from-home reality that many American workers are adjusting to. While many corporate, managerial and administrative jobs are transitioning to remote work, many essential employees have no choice but to come into work. Daniel breaks down...

How remote tools are enabling better workforce communication
Why this is a good time to reassess and reinforce critical processes for your company
Why a flexible work schedule is important during a global health crisis
Which workers don't have the luxury of working from home
What infrastructure is in place to support essential workers

Make sure to subscribe and listen along for more episodes of Business Casual.

There is so much information at our finger tips that people think they are experts in everything which can cause confusion for interior designers.
“I know that before I go to the doctor, I’ve already Googled all of my symptoms” Paige Adair told Tyler Kern and Greg Crumpton on an episode of Straight Out of Crumpton
“I think there’s a lot of beauty to both clients who are very engaged and clients who are more hands off,” Adair said. “It’s nice to have clients who understand the process, but I also like being able to educate a client.”
She admits that she’d been drawn to the arts since she could write letters to Santa Clause when she asked for art kits nearly every year.
Paige didn’t decide to buy-in on an artistic career until she received a piece of advice from Greg Crumpton years ago.
Greg told her that anyone can learn business, but if you are creative and have passion, you ought to pursue it.
As unlikely as it sounds, Greg is a great person to give that advice. He and Paige go way back – back to before Paige was even born. And, he was right. Today, Paige does indeed know business as well.
“Trust is key to any relationship,” she told Tyler Kern. “Whether it’s with a client or with anyone in your life.”
Paige commented on trust and remote work. She pointed our that as society develops and advances, remote work is something that will continue to rear its head in workflows. In those situations trust is essential.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has required politically divergent factions to work together, this election year continues to be a time of great division in our country. Americans are experiencing heightened anxiety and economic uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and they are looking to sources of strength, inspiration, and, above all, unity during this trying time.
Lisa Ellman, Executive Director of the Commercial Drone Alliance and Partner and Unmanned Aircraft Systems Practice Chair at Hogan Lovells, is one such source.
In this episode of Drones in America with Grant Guillot, Ellman, widely considered a trailblazer and visionary in the commercial drone industry, reflects on her career in the industry that began with a series of jobs working for President Barack Obama’s administration (prior that that, President Obama was Ellman’s constitutional law professor at the University of Chicago!).
While President Obama’s administration commenced the initiative to integrate drones into the national airspace, President Trump’s administration has continued those efforts without regard to the political differences between the administrations.
Ellman says, “It’s absolutely a bipartisan issue – this isn’t something where political differences are stark in any way and, in, fact, I think we can all unite behind seeking to enable commercial drones and public use of drones in a way that benefits society for all of us.”
Foreseeing how important the commercial drone industry would become for the country, Ellman realized she could have even more of an impact by moving to the private sector, which led her to establish the UAS Practice at Hogan Lovells, as well as the Commercial Drone Alliance with Gretchen West, now President and CEO at Schiebel Aircraft.
In this episode, Ellman also discusses the importance of educating young girls and woman as to the increasingly import role they will play in the industry. She also addresses the importance of gaining the public trust and the significant role remote identification will play in the integration of drones into the national airspace. Tune in to learn more.

Gamification can increase student engagement in online learning. On this episode of Marketscale’s Online Learning Minute, host Brian Runo discussed how to gamify courses effectively.

Drawing a distinction between creating a game and fitting a course into it versus creating a course and implementing gamification theories, Runo suggested the latter.

For example, Runo described the use of a ranking system or badges for online courses. When students complete a module, they earn some sort of recognition as they would for completing a level in a game.

In another example, Runo suggested pitting students against one another to compete for who engages most. He recommended searching the topic “Northwestern discussion hero,” for further examples and insights.

Wow! What a month! Or should I say four. Since early December when the first COVID-19 outbreak started in China, we’ve made a lot of strides towards making our workforce able to work from home. For me it's been a big challenge. I have a household full of humans that all want to fight for the same bandwidth. And, so the first thing I had to do was crank up the bandwidth to the maximum my provider would give. The second thing of course was to extend the network throughout the house. There are a lot of different tools for doing this but I'd strongly recommend it so that the signal strength can work regardless of where you are.
And now, with social distancing each of us: my son, my daughter, my wife, and I all have our own little office cubicle. I won't prognosticate further on how far this virus will affect us but I do think this is going to become much more the new norm, or at least a super option for making things happen and keeping us productive despite not sitting in the office [fighting over the noise in the cubicle next to you]
The tools I've used, of course, Zoom. It has been the one that has found the most common use among all of my compadres in IT. But more recently, and because of our somewhat Microsoft-centricity in my workplace, Microsoft Teams has been the go-to product.
This has been the Mecca Minute, thanks for listening.

On this episode of Noise Reduction, a MarketScale pro audio podcast, host Collyer Spreen shared some insights regarding turning the recent remote-work and stay-at-home requirements brought on by the spread of COVID-19 into a positive for both yourself and your career.
In particular, Spreen said this extended period of working from home could provide key opportunities to tackle personal projects you’ve been putting off for a while, as you’ll likely have increased time for those projects.
“We find ourselves with lots of time on our hands,” he said. “And if you’ve got your workstation at home or you have access to it, now’s a great time to do a lot of things that we’ve all been putting off.”
This could mean starting on that long-shoved-aside personal project, yes, but Spreen also said it’s a great time for some more mundane tasks, like “housekeeping.” If you’ve gotten in the habit of simply throwing things wherever on your computer is convenient and allows you to work the fastest, slowdowns like this provide a key opportunity to get everything in order and work toward better organization.
“If you clean it up, you’ll know where everything is, right? It makes sense,” he said.
Other tasks to tackle during this period include critical updates to software and more, exploring features and capabilities of the software you’re already familiar with, and experimenting with your workflow to see if you can become more efficient for when work picks up down the road.
In a similar vein, Spreen also said to keep your skills sharp and to stay prepared for the eventual spike in demand that’s likely to follow this period of uncertainty.

Gone are the days where you work at a company for thirty years and get a gold watch, Katie DeSimone echoed. Today’s employees want something different out of their workplace, and companies like Vari are taking note. Not only does the company put an emphasis on recruiting and retaining their employees, they also set themselves apart as a workplace that invests in the health and happiness of its people. So what can other companies do to set themselves apart, attract and retain top talent?

Only 33% of today’s employees are engaged with their workplace, DiSimone said. This means that nearly ⅔ of today’s workforce lacks intentional interest in their work. If employees don’t see opportunities for growth and learning they look elsewhere, resulting in high turnover, DiSimone said.

At Vari, DiSimone spearheaded Vari University, an internal program designed to offer employees opportunities to try new things and foster a growth mindset. By championing an environment that encourages failure, mistakes, and learning, employees are motivated to expand within the company and think long term about their future there.

Company culture and purpose-driven benefits also appeal to modern staff. By publicizing and standing by company values, employees feel part of a greater community that makes a difference and has an impact in the world. Company culture is more than just a cool break room, or free coffee. It’s offering benefits that help employees make the most of their off-time, and lead a healthy, balanced life.

Designed for retail leaders and retail lovers alike, The RETAIL Legends Podcast is designed to provoke thoughts, challenge ideas, encourage growth and, most importantly, offer leadership and insight to help retailers be both prepared and proactive to retail's always evolving and constantly demanding needs.
For a good chunk of Americans, the slow trudge out of Winter into Spring doesn't officially start until the first pitch of baseball on Opening Day. In that moment, whether we're watching from our TV, from a sports bar, or from the ballpark, we are out of the blue, blustery cold and are ready to enjoy the feeling of culture of an afternoon out at the ball park.
That reality isn't materializing this time around. 2020 is a very different year, with much of North America completely shut down as a result of COVID-19. With coronavirus spreading at an exponential rate, large gatherings are cancelled or postponed, meaning there is no baseball to commence the spring season.
This week on Retail Legends, we wanted to get our fix of opening day baseball while at the same time recognize a true Legend of Retail: the one and only Baseballism.
Baseballism isn't just a retailer; the company is a lifestyle brand from Portland, Oregon that began as 4 friends designing goofy shirts for their youth baseball camp. That idea has sprouted into a multimillion dollar retail force to be reckoned with.
Outside of coronavirus crushing retail across the nation, right now we are living in an era many retailers call the retail-apocalypse. Thousands of stores shutter their doors every year to refocus their brick and mortar footprint and better leverage e-commerce. But Baseballism worked backwards, to their advantage; they went from an e-commerce retailer to a chain of successful brick and mortar stores.
In this episode we are going to hear how 4 lifelong friends threw retail a curveball.

On this episode of Dirt Work, we were joined by Christopher Hernandez of Kimley-Horn. We broke down Civil Engineering to one of its core purposes, which is to navigate the relationship between land and the people that inhabit it. From roots in ancient Mesopotamia and the Far East, to help people protect themselves from the elements and the first irrigations, civil engineering has changed alongside civilizations and cities to address new problems related to sustainability and innovation.
Hernandez stated that “what becomes difficult for cities through changing times, is upholding the commitments that we have already made to the inhabitants enabling them to continue to live and work in an area while also enabling the community to thrive through growth and change”. Traffic congestion currently costs the U.S. economy an estimated $160 billion in lost productivity and cause 3.1 billion gallons of wasted fuel - new technology in machine learning and data science have helped streamline many civil engineering processes, including the automation for traffic counting, allowing for new insights in urban planning to reduce transit downtime and waste, while freeing up capacity for engineers to focus the next wave of problems.
Christopher also highlighted on an often-overlooked aspect of the real estate and development industry which is the community outreach programs such as Urban Land Institute’s Building Industry Leaders Program, a cooperative program between the Urban Land Institute and the Boys & Girls Clubs (BCG) to educate and mentor BGC high school students on the diverse career opportunities in commercial real estate and give them the professional skills to become industry leaders and contributing members of the community. Hernandez was clear to mention that this is not the only program to help lift up the next generation of professionals from historically underdeveloped areas, but that the ACE (Architecture, Construction, Engineering) Mentor Program has been serving the community in a similar capacity since 1994.

As people stay home during the spread of COVID-19, it’s important to react swiftly to shopper buying behaviors and still meet purchasing demands.

On the first episode of Bricks and Clicks, a new podcast show with host Jennifer Kaylo Ruscin, we'll break down...

Utilizing Amazon for immediate distribution.
Mastering selling on your own website.
Creating a subscription model.
Delivery options when traditional transportation isn't available.
How to ensure you have enough inventory for high online sales demand.
Sourcing raw ingredients.

Quick Suggestion & Solutions Utilizing Amazon for Distribution Solution: Learn how to get your listings and ads optimized! Check out Jennifer's Masterclass to learn more!

Master Selling on Your Own Website Solution: Check out Maggie at mcv-consultants.com!

Create a Subscription Model Online Solution: Justin comes highly recommended at thevervesolution.com.

Figure Out Your Own Delivery Method Solution: Contact Mike at retailintegritygroup.com!

Ensure You Have Enough Inventory Solution: Contact your manufacturer once you’ve pulled your forecast, on hands in your warehouse, and determined how much inventory you’ll need to ride out this pandemic. Ask your priority level in the production food chain. Get enough produced if another run is far off in the future.

Do You Have Enough Raw Ingredients? Solution: Get on LinkedIn and search “food procurement” and the category you’re in to find possible companies to purchase from.

Account-based marketing is a simple concept – when companies decide to leverage the strategy, they treat individual prospects and customers as their own markets, providing individualized content, campaigns and more.
In the midst of uncertainty surrounding the spread of COVID-19, this way of thinking could help B2B companies ensure their prospects and current customers feel attended to despite restrictions placed on travel, cancelled trade shows and more.
But is account-based marketing the hot new trend, or is it here to stay?
On this episode of the Maverick of Marketing radio show, host Shannon Maverick and guest Marcus LaRobardiere, Director of Marketing at NewStore, Inc., which delivers Omnichannel-as-a-Service capabilities to retailers, explore that question.
When B2B brands consider a total or partial shift to account-based marketing, LaRobardiere said there are plenty of factors to take into account.
In particular, though, he labeled account-based marketing as a terrific was for B2B companies to accomplish the primary goals they’re already aiming for.
“One of the reasons why it works and is effective for B2B organizations is that it’s a customer-centric approach to marketing and sales,” LaRobardiere said. “So, for any B2B organization, you’re looking at (defining your) ideal customer base, really getting to know them, then understanding what your ambitions as a company (are).”
This customer-centric approach, LaRobardiere said, has become a cornerstone of B2B marketing that’s drawn a clear line between companies that get it and those being left behind.
“If you’re doing anything other than that, you really need to reconsider,” he said.
Maverick and LaRobardiere defined clear drivers of this shift, including:
- The advent of inbound marketing tools like HubSpot
- The rise of conversational marketing
- The application of B2C concepts to B2B marketing in the wake of these changes
Moving forward, Maverick and LaRobardiere agreed that there are proactive measures to be taken as the impact of COVID-19 continues to be felt, such as focusing on alignment with sales teams, examining how to transform traditional offerings for a more remote world, even if only temporary, and more.
Listen to the full episode of Maverick of Marketing on Apple and Spotify.

As the spread of coronavirus continues to spike here in the U.S., both impacting our economy and leaving people sick and/or quarantined for prolonged amounts of time, it’s disconcerting to say the least, that our country has no federal paid sick-leave mandate that ensures affected employees are paid while recovering rather than having to work through their illness and possibly pass the virus on to others--or worse, leaving them jobless or even homeless once they’re back to 100%.

On this episode of MarketScale’s Business Casual podcast, hosts Tyler Kern and Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin discuss how major U.S. employers such as Walmart are rolling out new paid sick-leave policies for workers who get COVID-19 or have to quarantine themselves—either on order from their local government or the company they work for. These new policies are helping to provide a safety net, so to speak, for hourly and gig workers in service industries that typically don’t offer paid time off or enough days to cover employees in the event they are infected.

As the largest private employer in the U.S., with 1.5 million employees on their roster, Litwin called Walmart’s new sick-leave payout one of the best currently being rolled out by major employers. Walmart employees who contract the virus or who are subject to mandatory quarantines will receive up to two weeks of pay, and absences in that time will not count against attendance. In addition, compensation of up to 26 weeks will be provided for those workers who need more time to recover, and no penalties will be levied against workers who are uncomfortable going to work during the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

While not as comprehensive as Walmart’s new COVID-19-inspired sick leave policy, companies such as Uber and Lyft are also making allowances for their afflicted drivers and delivery personnel, while Darden Restaurants (the parent company of Olive Garden and Longhorn Steakhouse) has promised sick leave for their hourly employees, and Instacart has expanded their accrued-sick-time policy to all part-time employees in North America with up to 14 days of pay for illnesses resulting from the current pandemic.

“I think one of the things that stands out is that with each of these companies—maybe Walmart is the largest exception,” Kern remarked, “but with each of these companies, you know that they’re operating on slim margins as it is, right? So any change and any disruption to what they’re doing and to their operations, you know is a big deal financially.”

While a step in the right direction, certainly, you still have to wonder if whether these new sick leave policies will be enough to ensure the stability of the U.S. economy and the ongoing health and wealth of the American citizen as we muddle through both the current COVID-19 outbreak and other catastrophes that are sure to occur in the future.

Listen to the podcast to hear Kern and Litwin ponder the possibilities as they ask the tough questions relating to our country’s ability to deal with breaks in the norm and policies that should be put into effect to protect the American worker going forward.

Coming to you on Wednesdays and Fridays each week, tune into Business Casual to stay on top of the most recent trends and hottest topics impacting B2B.

With social distancing in effect to counteract the COVID-19 pandemic, many companies and groups are seeking ways to respond to needs without making human contact. Drones may be an answer. Ken Stewart, CEO of AiRXOS, GE Aviation, as well as Chris Todd, Executive Director, Airborne International Response Team, and Charles Warner, Director, Drone Responders Public Safety Alliance, joined in this episode of Drones in America with Grant Guillot to discuss the prospect.
Stewart referenced the recent mission of a Blackhawk to bring supplies and virus testing kits to a cruise ship in California. “A crew of at least 3 could potentially get exposed,” he said. With drones, he added “you could control exposure to the contaminant.” On top of this, there could be significant cost savings in deploying drones instead. Drones fit into public health and relief efforts because they are effective for “limiting human to human interactions, which is really important,” explained Todd.
Despite these benefits of using drones in response to issues like COVID-19, there are also many challenges. Warner pointed out that one challenge is finding ways for companies and organizations to “limit their exposure while maintaining their service.” As drones are new technologies, and emergencies are not the time for testing, exploratory missions and reviews are what is current in this field.
Experts in the drone industry are launching task forces and exploring “the realistic possibilities without interfering with operations happening today,” Warner said. For example, delivery of medications or the use of drones to see what’s happening in areas that dispatch has been called to are viable applications being considered.
Overall, the goal of drone organizations at this time is not to explore and deploy solutions to advance the industry, but to find ways to meet very real and pressing needs. Tune in to learn more.

Quarantines are considered a measure of last resort when no preferable means is available to halt the spread of a deadly communicable disease. However, as the number of confirmed coronavirus cases continue to rise in the U.S., many citizens are flocking to stores to buy products that can last them for the long haul in the event they are isolated within their homes for a prolonged period of time.

One of these products is toilet paper. Inventory in warehouses and on shelves in Walmart’s, Target’s and other stores across the country are shrinking rapidly. But brick and mortars aren’t the only one feeling the crunch. Most of the name-brand toilet paper typically available on Amazon is currently listed as ‘temporarily unavailable’, and in some cases, sadly enough, sellers are using the coronavirus as an opportunity to upsell these products at unheard of prices. But out of the ashes rises the phoenix…or in this case, a burst of water.

On this episode of Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin look at an interesting trend that only seems to be growing during the COVID-19 scare, bursting forth, so to speak, to save the restroom’s day—the bidet. While already widely used in bathrooms in countries around the world, the bidet’s advent in America has only recently been on the rise. In fact, a 2019 NKAB study surveying interior designers showed that a bidet-enabled toilet was actually one of the most important features to include in new and remodeled bathrooms.

Further, with more than 27,000 trees destroyed each day in the manufacture of toilet paper, it’s a greener option, using less wastewater than the water needed to grow trees or used in the actual production of toilet paper.

“[The bidet] is something that exists in other places in the world that has just never really made its way to mainstream America,” Kern remarked. “I have some friends that traveled around to Japan and Thailand and places like that over the summer. They came back and immediately bought one. They were like, ‘After experiencing this, can’t go back! Can’t not have it now!’”

Because sometimes desperate times call for people to make a switch in lifestyle or in product choices, in the wake of COVID-19 and a possible toilet paper shortage, the bidet is making a new, bigger splash here in America, becoming a viable, useful, necessary alternative to a product we all use and need on a daily basis. But will the trend last when the virus has run its course? Listen to the podcast now to hear Kern and Litwin further discuss the advantages, the stats, and the waves that bidets are making both today and as we head into the future.

Coming to you on Wednesdays and Fridays each week, tune into Business Casual to stay on top of the most recent trends and hottest topics impacting B2B.

On this episode of MarketScale’s Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin discuss U.S. Chief Technology Officer Michael Kratsios’ remote conference call to some of the biggest players in tech, requesting their help in mapping out a response plan to the COVID-19 pandemic.

So, what exactly is the White House asking of these Big Tech companies, including Google, Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft, Apple, IBM, Cisco and Twitter?

According to Litwin and Kern, a variety of things, including helping to coordinate against misinformation around the virus, helping aid in medical research analysis, and also helping support the broader digital infrastructure that can enable the U.S. to track travelers as they fly, ensuring that we aren’t inadvertently increasing the spread of the coronavirus in our country.

With Big Tech often thought of as being the “bad guy”, the Trump administration’s request makes for an interesting dynamic, more or less placing these companies in the saddle of the white horse that will come in to slay the coronavirus dragon, thereby saving the day.

But this shift in dynamic raises many privacy concerns, especially when you consider we've seen a similar dynamic emerge in the wake of tragedy: the Patriot Act passed in response to the 9/11 tragedy. Highly-criticized and considered excessive and possibly unconstitutional by many, the Act expanded the government’s ability to gather surveillance as well as the collection and storage of U.S. citizens’ phone and internet metadata—data that communications companies were then required to hand over.

With Twitter already stating they may start flagging tweets that are "fake news," Litwin asked, “Who ends up being the determinant of ‘is this fake, is this not’? Who is the truthbearer up in the ivory tower? That kind of stuff is incredibly important to think about.” He further questioned, “And do we want to hand over the reins of what is appropriate and what isn’t appropriate in the public’s fear to Big Tech—companies that already face a lack of scrutiny in their privacy handlings and mishandlings?”

Listen to the podcast now as Litwin and Kern discuss and question other possible scenarios that may stem from the government’s request of Big Tech for their aid in curbing the spread of the coronavirus.

Coming to you on Wednesdays and Fridays each week, tune into Business Casual to stay on top of the most recent trends and hottest topics impacting B2B.

Welcome to the premiere episode of The Retail Legends podcast. This program’s mission is to provoke thoughts, challenge ideas, encourage growth, and offer leadership and insight to promote prepared and proactive retail. Host Nicole Leinback Reyhle kicked things off at the National Retail Federation’s 2020 Vision Big Show in NYC with interviews with Brian McGlynn, Vice President of Commerce at Coveo, and Max Rhodes, Co-Founder, and CEO of Faire.
Coveo is an AI-driven experience commerce platform. As McGlynn puts it, Coveo’s mission provides a million different customers with a million different experiences. But what does that mean? “We make sense of information and digest it to make it personalized,” McGlynn said. Coveo deploys AI and machine learning to transform datainto the type of valued personalized information, and shopping behavior retailers can use for promotions and all kinds of smart marketing to consumers.
The personalization theme carried over to Reyhle’s interview with Max Rhodes. Faire is an online wholesale marketplace that brings small business owners and independent makers together where they can buy and sell wholesale online. This approach allows independent retailers to grow and take advantage of big-box terms while offering simplicity to their wholesale business.
One of the barriers for smaller retailers in using online wholesalers was dealing with inventory management. Faire mitigates those risks with free returns on items that don’t sell and net 60 terms for buying products. “A maker is anyone who manufacturer’s something or makes something themselves to take to market. I like that term maker because it gets to the heart of Faire’s mission to power entrepreneurs and the people behind these smaller businesses,” Rhodes said.
To catch all upcoming episodes of The Retail Legends podcast, please be sure to subscribe to our publication.

Position Summary
The Mechanical Engineer position is responsible for designing products from beginning-concept into the final market place. They begin by analyzing early industrial design concepts (or competitive literature/products) and assess possible manufacturing challenges and costs. They work closely with other company team members such as Electronic Engineers, Process Engineers, CNC Programmers, Purchasing and Planning to get the product and product timeline defined. From there, they create 3D CAD models as well as further written specifications and drawings. The Mechanical Engineer has a hands-on approach in building and testing early prototypes as well as guiding final production through manufacturing facilities (local or abroad). Also, they provide written final specifications for sales and marketing distribution as well as initial instructions and diagrams for final customer use. They perform a wide variety of tasks to support the research and development department including regular product trouble-shooting and investigation.

Essential Functions
Relies on Mechanical Engineering experience and judgment to help plan and accomplish product goals.
Applies CAD and CNC concepts, practices, and procedures as it pertains to design, execution and delivery of products.
Works closely and effectively communicates (written and verbal) with other team members in determining product needs. Discusses design, method of manufacture, method of test, possible suppliers, CAD requirements and other procedures with team members to coordinate best product delivery. Once needs are defined, works independently in support team goals and maintains tight project schedule.
Reviews project instructions, specifications, and blueprints to ascertain test specifications, procedures, objectives. Devises test for mechanical strength, life expectancy and/or fit expectations to meet product needs or for product trouble-shooting. Analyzes test results in relationship to design specifications or possible changes to products.
Confer with technicians and submit reports of test results to Engineering Department and recommend design or material changes.
Calculate required capacities for equipment of proposed systems in order to obtain specified performance.
Effectively communicates product, components and/or tooling requirements with foreign and domestic suppliers through written instruction, test procedures and CAD drawings.
Essential Tasks
Provide CAD drawings and product specifications for product manufacturing.
Fabricate and assemble new or modified products for the commercial industry. Includes using 3D printers to fabricate prototype parts.
Design, document and fabricate fixtures and jigs to aid product manufacture.
Provide written proposals and justifications for improving product performance.
Provide or suggest sources for new products/components.
Set-up and conduct tests of units (or components) under operational conditions. Observe and record test results. Generates formal test reporting for engineering approval.
Must be able to accurately utilize measurement devices such as vernier calipers, vernier micrometers, scales, and electronic multimeters during tests.
Provide formal evaluations of 1st off-tool samples or 1st product/component receivables for company approval.
Provide written ECO packages to drive products and product changes for company approval.
Provide written and resource data into the company’s ISO-driven PLM system.

The Mechanical Engineer position is responsible for designing products from beginning-concept into the final market place. They begin by analyzing early industrial design concepts (or competitive literature/products) and assess possible manufacturing challenges and costs. They work closely with other company team members such as Electronic Engineers, Process Engineers, CNC Programmers, Purchasing and Planning to get the product and product timeline defined. From there, they create 3D CAD models as well as further written specifications and drawings. The Mechanical Engineer has a hands-on approach in building and testing early prototypes as well as guiding final production through manufacturing facilities (local or abroad). Also, they provide written final specifications for sales and marketing distribution as well as initial instructions and diagrams for final customer use. They perform a wide variety of tasks to support the research and development department including regular product trouble-shooting and investigation.

Welcome back to the MarketScale Online Learning Minute with host Brian Runo.

Gathering analytics is fundamental to building out an effective online learning course, as a course without analytics is like driving without a map. On this episode, you'll learn how analytics can improve your online course and provide immediate results.

Analytics refers to vital data culled from a course’s students. This data gives the course developer crucial feedback on the efficacy of the lesson.

A quiz question, for example, could be poorly worded, confusing, too easy or too hard. But analytics can help identify the issue, allowing the developer to rework the quiz and get responses that expand upon lessons at a deeper level.

Analytics can also provide enrollment data, such as how long students are watching lesson videos. This crucial knowledge helps course developers fine-tune their lessons to be more compelling, effective and educational.

The year 2062 maybe 42 years away, but Felixia Colón, Regional Vice President of SCP Health, said some of the technology the Jetsons cartoon predicted are already in practice. Telemedicine may have made its debut in an episode of the Jetsons when Jane Jetson contacts a doctor on a video screen to diagnose her son Elroy, but its no longer an idea of the future, it’s here for real.

Today’s technological advances allow for the utilization of telemedicine in ways the Jetsons only dreamed. Communication between a doctor and an attending nurse can over an iPad? This type of communication now happens and is handy for night admissions. And while Colón said telemedicine is an excellent asset in rural hospital communities, the practice is gaining momentum in larger networks as well. “In one metropolitan hospital, I’ve seen the telemedicine machine used for patient admissions, which saves a lot of time from doctors going back and forth throughout the hospital,” Colón said.

The telemedicine cart can be as simple as the iPad, but Colón mentioned robotic carts that move the cart around the hospital. And in terms of practicality, telemedicine could play a vital role in the initial screening of patients who may be suffering from symptoms of an infectious disease such as COVID-19. “With the Coronavirus, telemedicine can help do the initial screenings without exposing anyone unnecessarily to patients who may test positive for the virus,” Colón said.

Want more ‘I Don’t Care’? Catch up on all the episodes here!

As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads, its impact is increasing. T.C. Riley, host of Diving into Data, looked at the numbers to share data about the current and projected economic impact of the pandemic. Some of the main economic hits so far include the stock market and the sports industry.

Within the past week, a massive 10-12% drop in the stock market resulted from concern over COVID-19. The U.S. stock market also lost about $4 Trillion in a week, tanking value and creating panic. “When consumer spending drops…just about everything downstream is going to have issues,” Riley pointed about the businesses and the rest of the economy.

In the same time frame, OPEC held a meeting about the status of the oil industry that suggested there may be trouble in the market. Two key players in the oil industry, Saudi Arabia and Russia, are at odds. Saudi Arabia is threatening to produce more oil and sell it for less, which may immediately benefit consumers but create rampant instability in the global economy. As an indicator of this shift, Riley highlighted that the price of crude oil dropped about 40% in a month.

The key term of this week’s podcast, in light of the instability in the stock market due to COVID-19 and issues in the oil industry, is “rolling recession.” Riley defined this as a recession in which “Different areas of different countries will be hit at different times”. This is not the same as a global recession, which is the worst case scenario.

On a related but unique note, Riley also discussed the impact of COVID-19 on sports. The Tokyo 2020 Olympics, for example, is in about 4 months. Although decisions about the event have been made yet, Japan has a lot at stake as the host. The estimate of what Japan will spend on the Olympics is $12.6 Billion dollars. Other events, like the NHL and NBA playoffs, the Masters Tournament, March Madness, and more are likely to be affected by the pandemic.

Learn more about the data of COVID-19 by tuning into T.C. Riley’s discussion. For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Make sure to follow along for more weekly episodes of Diving Into Data!

On this special episode of MarketScale’s Online Learning Minute, host Brian Runo tackled the online learning implications of the recent global spread of COVID-19, or coronavirus.

With many universities, companies and other bodies shutting their doors in an effort to aid containment of the potential pandemic, online learning could provide a critical pathway to maintaining operations at as close to a normal level as is possible through remote solutions.

Already, the University of Washington, MIT, Harvard and more of the nation’s most prolific universities, as well as outposts of Google, Microsoft, Apple and other tech giants in the Pacific Northwest, have committed to moving completely online for a period of time, upping the stakes surrounding the effective use of online collaboration.

However, Runo said, success is still more than possible.
“Working remotely doesn’t mean that you have to lose productivity,” he said.

Most people look at LinkedIn as their professional social media space, best used when looking for a new role. There are currently over 675 million users on the platform, which means that it’s much more than a job board; it’s where relationships can be started and built. On this episode of Straight Outta Crumpton with Greg Crumpton, Teddy Burriss of Burriss Consulting, a LinkedIn coach and expert and best-selling author, explains why the new type of networking doesn’t have to occur over the phone or in-person; LinkedIn offers new opportunities.

Teddy didn’t become an expert in social media networking until he left the technology industry and started his first sales job in 2005.

“I asked a salesperson at my new place of business what it took to be successful, and he said cold call like a wild man. I knew this was something I wasn’t excited about doing. Then I started to take an interest in LinkedIn," he said.

Teddy knew the people he wanted to engage were on LinkedIn; they just weren’t doing anything on the platform. He became more invested in finding ways to network on LinkedIn and leveraging it as a relationship builder. After a few years doing this in his sales role, he was ready to start his own business.

“At first, I called myself a networking strategist, but no one knew what that meant. Then I thought changing it to social media strategist would be more impactful, but that didn’t translate to corporate America. Then I reframed it as using social media as a business tool and that began to resonate with companies,” Teddy said.

On this episode of Retail Legends, host Nicole Leinbach Reyhle was joined by Brett Patrontasch, co-founder of mobile-based workforce management app Shyft, and Astound Chief Experience Officer Andrew Leibowitz.

Patrontasch and Reyhle spoke at length about how Shyft is working to engage hourly staff members and drive frontline efficiency for retailers.

Specifically, Patrontasch highlighted how Shyft aims to help retail associates cover shifts when challenges present themselves, consolidating a solution that helps these workers solve work-related problems in one convenient, easy-to-use location.

“When we started the company, there was a real need for hourly workers to have tools that were built for them. … We said, ‘Hey, we have to provide and build a solution that can help them solve (traditional challenges associated with shift coverage),’” Patrontasch said.

“People need to have an intuitive experience where they can just take their phone out of their pocket, fill a shift and show up and hour or two later or the next day,” he said.

This ease also optimizes time and resource management for employers, helping them optimize labor management and reduce absenteeism and other barriers to success.

While Shyft aims to bring a frictionless experience to the retail workforce’s experience, Astound and Leibowitz want to provide the same on a larger scale.

Leibowitz draws from a career in architecture, leveraging that experience to help Astound provide innovative, exciting customer experiences.

“It’s so interesting, because what I’m seeing (at NRF 2020) is a completely divided retail universe. … On one half are retailers of all stripes and brands that totally get it, that are dialed in, and where innovation is their groundwater that they drink every day,” he said. “It’s not something that’s on a list that they have to do. They are seeing a new world of commerce. And on the other side are the ones who are fighting it.”

It was only five years ago that CNN first used a drone to collect footage of an event. Since then, drones have become integral and imperative to CNN's gathering of imagery, collection of data, and production of breaking stories. Perhaps no one knows the development of drones in journalism better than guest Greg Agvent, speaking on this episode of “Drones in America.” Agvent recounts the storied history of technology in journalism, explaining how he was first introduced to drones in the field of reporting, and why drones have forever changed how news stories are told.
In Agvent’s long career in editorial operations, he developed a fascination with how technology can make jobs in the field easier. This fascination lead Agvent to drone work with CNN, where today drones are used to report on everything from breaking stories to sports events. The benefits to drone footage go beyond just high, cinematic media quality. “Drones save lives,” said Agvent. In adverse weather or violent events, drones can survey the affair without putting live journalists in danger. Whatsmore, drones aren’t just fancy flying cameras, they’re data collectors. During the California wildfires, Agvent recounts, CNN’s drones helped create a 3D map of the fire zones.
It’s clear that drones are imperative to making dangerous reporting situations safer, particularly by offering the bird’s eye view that humans lack. So will drones make helicopters irrelevant? Agvent explains why not fire your helicopter pilot just yet. Drones are still new to sharing the sky with helicopters, planes and the like, and there is still much to learn about regulatory, lawful, and safe practices for public space drone use.

With topics ranging from the “underwear Olympics” to the impact of the Coronavirus on economics, this week’s episode of Diving Into Data with T.C. Reilly is dynamic.

The NFL Combine, which is nicknamed the “underwear Olympics,” is an event where athletes likely to be drafted by the NFL are assessed in-person. Reilly called this the “data version of scouting.” At this event, athletes’ physical features are measured, soft skills are tested, and there are opportunities for networking.

Reilly pointed out that by televising this event for the past decade, “the NFL has taken over our calendars year-round.” Viewers get a peek behind the scenes at the push to make drafting an exact science. By the end of the event, athletes have scores on their physicality, skills, experience, and more. This allows teams to determine their topic picks based on the data that matters most to them. For instance, Reilly highlighted that the Seattle Seahawks have often favored tall quarterbacks and the Oakland Raiders tend to prefer fast athletes.

Beyond the impact of data on the NFL, Reilly also discussed data related to the spread of the Coronavirus.

During a previous episode of Diving Into Data, Reilly discussed how the Coronavirus might have a global impact. Since that time, the virus has crossed borders, affecting many in Italy, Iran, and South Korea. The United States also has a few cases. As a result, there are quarantines and other challenges occurring in several countries.

The global influence of the virus still remains to be seen, but there are indications of significant economic impact. For instance, just a few weeks ago experts through the global growth forecast could go down slightly. Now, some experts are saying it could reach 1.5%, which would be half its current standing.

Reilly also discussed stock market fluctuations, changes in the pollution rate in China as an indication of decreased production in factories, and more. Tune in for the details, and listen to Diving Into Data next week for discussions about Google updates affecting SEO, Super Tuesday data, and more.

This is the inaugural episode of MarketScale's New Fashioned podcast, hosted by Elise Hansen, where Elise and her guests will take long-form looks at trends in every industry through a young professional's lens.

Our first guest, Debbie Scanlon, partner at BKD, LLP, joined the podcast to talk about International Women’s Day and the importance of having successful women in a male-dominated industry. Scanlon is an influential person in Elise’s life, as the two have been in each others' professional circles for four years now. Scanlon went to Northwest Missouri University and graduated with a degree in accounting. After graduating, she went into public accounting, and noticed there was something like a 50-50 split for women and men among people who were getting into accounting.

What Scanlon found out is that the split became skewed in favor of men when looking at higher positions and leadership. Scanlon thought, “how can we see more women at the top?”

"If you’re in a male dominated industry, you’re going to start emulating the men at the top,” she said.

Scanlon also gave her insights and advice for women while telling her story of becoming a successful employee in her company, what steps she took to find leadership that she would and wouldn't recommend, and what a woman's perspective adds to the accounting industry in small and big ways.

On this “Secure the Bag” segment of Business Casual with Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern, contributor Taylor Bagley took on the recent Twitter performance of Tito’s Vodka, and Austin, Texas-based distiller.

Specifically, Tito’s took to the social media platform last week to call out Twitter users jumping on a joke trend leveraging the spirit, with many claiming (with tongues firmly in cheek) that they would use Tito’s to craft hand sanitizer to fight the spread of coronavirus.

However, Tito’s showed that the brand thinks it’s no laughing matter – the brand’s social media accounts replied to such tweets with factual information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, highlighting the body’s recommendation for sanitizer of 60% alcohol or more.

“I think what this really does is kind of shows the true colors of how a brand can utilize social media to the best of its ability,” Bagley said.

Click here to catch up on all the most consequential B2B news and takes on Business Casual!

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has come under fire from a new stakeholder in recent weeks, as Paul Singer of Elliott Management who now owns between 4% and 5% of the social media site, have been vocal in his opposition to the longtime Twitter king.

Singer is a major GOP political contributor and venture capitalist, and his track record of influencing change at companies he’s invested in is no list of unknowns – the likes of eBay and AT&T have seen shifts as a result of Singer’s heavy hand.

To date, Elliott Management’s complaints regarding Dorsey center around a 6.2% fall since mid-2015 and a lack of innovation compared to other platforms. While Dorsey has tried to address some of these complaints with counterarguments centered around Twitter’s role in elections, the rebuilding of its core ad server, a total refocusing of Twitter’s leadership, and more, will it be enough?

Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin and host Tyler Kern discussed on this snippet from Business Casual.

“I think people’s minds are in the wrong place, and it’s a mentality that’s hard to escape when your sole mentality is, ‘How are we going to recoup investments from our shareholders?’ That’s not going to really foster … an egalitarian platform for discussion,” Litwin said.

Click here to catch up on all the most consequential B2B news and takes on Business Casual!

On this episode of Business Casual, Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin and host Tyler Kern discuss the continued fallout of the spread of coronavirus and the concerns that come alongside it.

As of late, major tech giants in the Pacific Northwest, in particular in Seattle, have had to send employees home to work remotely. The industry’s true juggernauts – Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Facebook – have all been affected. The state now has 70 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 10 deaths as of last week, a number that will likely continue to rise in the coming days and weeks.

According to The Verge’s breakdown of the impacts on these industry giants, Amazon has instituted a full work-from-home policy until the end of March, Facebook has closed a Seattle office and is encouraging the same work-from-home timeline, Google has asked employees to work from home if at all possible, and Microsoft has sent employees home until March 25th.

However, the issues surrounding a seemingly simple effort are numerous. How effective are current remote-work tools? If you feel ill and your allotted time off runs out, is it unethical to return to work? Do work-from-home policies even work?

“It’s really interesting,” Kern said. “Any time something like this happens, it causes you to, on some level, reevaluate the physical being in a place when you can virtually be there and accomplish similar things.”

Click here to catch up on all the most consequential B2B news and takes on Business Casual!

Host Giovanna Hnath and SMU Professor of Journalism Jake Batsell discuss how companies can tell compelling stories that go beyond the numbers.

The cleanliness and crispness of white cabinetry may never go out of style, but Pierce assures that white is evolving. Warmer whites, pops of color and metal accents are all changing the look of white cabinetry. The blank canvas that is white cabinetry is getting a reset from designers with the use of metals like steel or brass. The mainstream is latching onto the trend because of its easy mass application as a tasteful but subtle accent.

Though the U.S. is typically a few years behind European trends, Pierce says influences from across the pond are popping up in designs thanks to a more globalized design world. Carefully curated color palettes are revolutionizing meaningful design with color choices that reflect the state of society, economy or personal mood. With customer personalization, environmental impact, and cost-friendly kitchens at the forefront of consumer concerns, designer creations reflect creativity in fresh but classic textures, design and mixed materials.

A new decade ushers in new interior design trends, and, for cabinetry, this means fresh takes on color, textures, materials and fixtures. Element Designs explores how cabinetry is evolving, changing and pushing the design envelope on this episode of “Element Sessions.”

Joined by Stephanie Pierce, Director of Design and Trends at MasterBrand Cabinets, Element Sessions uncovers what is on the horizon for in-home cabinetry, who is influencing trends and what design features are on the rise.

Territory Account Manager - Red Lion Jobcast

SIOP Analyst - Red Lion Job Cast

Senior Software Engineer - Red Lion Jobcast

Over the years, B2B websites have changed from the internet brochure format of the 1990s to a modern-day design with elevated functionality that allows customers to easily and seamlessly get to know a company online. However, many websites have not aligned with today’s experience culture, and a number of sites still present a traditional, stagnant feel, with little to no personalization that would enable them to engage better with their online audiences.
This week on Maverick of Marketing, Shannon Maverick and Taylor Bagley speak with Andrew Palacios—both the Founder, Owner & Lead Web Designer of Andrew Palacios Web Design, as well as the Marketing Director for Carlson Engineering & Manufacturing. These two positions place Palacios in two different areas of the B2B sector—the technical products side, and also, helping marketers enhance their websites to not only be the ultimate sales tool, but the ultimate lead-generating machine as well.
“B2B’ers are kind of understanding that the same people purchasing Netflix and Spotify are the exact same people who are buying software and B2B services, and they expect that same level of design, branding and synchrony when they’re purchasing on [for example] the Mailchimp website, as they would expect from Netflix.” Palacios continued, “That’s kind of the trend that I’ve at least started to witness in B2B web design.”
Bagley and Maverick also talk about marketing to Gen Z. In recent years, marketers have been catering to the influences of the Millennial generation, often forgetting about Gen Z - a generation with differing experience and beliefs, that will soon be decision-makers. As such, marketers must now shift gears to ensure they are in line with the expectations of this next generation.
“They’re [Gen-Z’ers] interacting with content and content creators at a much higher volume than Millennials were when we were at their age,” said Bagley. “You have to sell to a Gen-Z person a little more subtly—they’ve been x-ing out of popup ads since they were 3-years old.”
To hear Palacios’ tips and tricks for both optimizing and transforming B2B websites into lead generating machines, and what marketers should know to create strong relationships and deliver great experiences for the up and coming Gen-Z generation, listen to the Maverick of Marketing now.

There are few experiences more alarming than being a victim of theft or burglary. Whether it’s your home, your car or your business, the violation of your valuables leaves behind an anxious feeling that is hard to shake.

For this reason, investing in security is a top priority for many Americans. But how effective are modern security systems?

Scott Hightower, President of Verified Security, said security systems are more powerful than ever before thanks to the fast, interconnected nature of IoT (Internet of Things). High-speed internet has allowed security systems to evolve in a revolutionary way, making lives easier, safer and more secure. Thing Tech explores just how security is changing in this episode, diving deep into use cases that help save businesses time and money.

Security systems used to be the analog stuff of the electronics industry, Hightower said, but with broadband-enabled services and interconnected networks, security systems have evolved to include real-time motion sensors, remote operated keypads and mobile cam viewing. Whether in a church, school or facility warehouse, security managers are feeling the difference in how IoT has made their job more efficient, more effective and more accurate.

With 4G, and 5G on the rise, Hightower said security systems are only becoming more valuable. With faster real-time tracking, businesses can monitor not only the goings-on of their facility, but also the location of valuable assets like tools and company cars.

Hightower said one thing remains the same about security—time is money. With IoT at the root of advanced security systems, monitoring has become faster, more accurate and easier for the end-user, raising the bar for everyone. The security systems of today monitor incidents before they happen and stopping theft in its tracks.

Spring break season is here. Say Yes to Travel’s expert host Sarah Dandashy shared what trends to expect for spring break 2020 as well as a few tips for enjoying spring break as a working adult.
Despite a climate of political and health-related fear globally, air travel rates are currently up for 2020. Dandashy said “people still want to escape winter into warm getaways.” Listing popular warm-weather destinations, Dandashy noted international locations like Mexico, The Bahamas, and Jamaica are favored this year.
“How much we see whether it’s in film or TV, it actually affects where we want to travel to,” Dandashy pointed out, especially referring to Jamaica as it is featured in an upcoming James Bond movie. Another “interesting choice people are making,” Dandashy said, is London and the United Kingdom.
As for domestic destinations for spring break travel, Orlando is the number one trend. People are “looking for theme park capital of the world,” Dandashy highlighted. Other popular domestic destinations include Phoenix, Los Angeles, New York City, Ft. Lauderdale, and more. Dandashy talked about her own great experiences traveling to Florida for spring break as a child.
“Take advantage of your spring break,” advised Dandashy, even offering the advice to “take a staycation,” to those who can’t travel far or for a lengthy time this year. The “notion of spring break shouldn’t die with getting out of school,” she also advised working professionals without children. Even if it’s just a long weekend, Dandashy said, there are “so many ways to travel and explore…it’s quite refreshing.”
Get more tips and great information from Sarah Dandashy by subscribing to the podcast and catch all of the episodes of Say Yes to Travel.

On “Drones in America,” Guillot and industry leaders, influencers and experts will explore the rapidly growing commercial drone industry in the U.S., guiding you through the complex web of technology, policy and more.
In this inaugural episode, Guillot was joined by Darshan Divakaran, Founder and President of AIRAVAT, LLC. AIRAVAT works with commercial and government clients to provide UAS program integration, flight training and safety operations.
Guillot and Divakaran discussed Divakaran’s history in both the commercial drone industry and aerospace (Divakaran is a commercial pilot), the struggle to provide widespread, base-level knowledge about drones and overcome a lack of education, demystifying regulations, and more.
In 2014, when Divakaran first became involved with drones, the industry was taking its first steps.
“That was the time when people were unsure about this technology,” Divakaran said. “They were not sure if it was a toy or really a technology.”
After being absorbed into the rapidly growing world of unmanned flight, Divakaran has now committed to helping agencies learn about and leverage a technology that’s clearly here to stay.
“Education is what is lacking,” Divakaran said. “We can see this in many states with how slow the progress is. … The technology is not being used to its max capacity.”

Ramesh Balan, CEO and Founder of Knomadix, got the bug for education at an early age. The son of a high school math teacher, Balan helped his mother grade papers as a child, and he sought out an engineering degree in college.

Balan’s career took him to early work in computer animation, and he became the head of innovation at Bell Labs in the early 90s. After that, Balan began entrepreneurship, a passion he’s held for the past 25 years. But Balan never forgot his education roots. He founded Knomadix, an active learning solution for the education industry.

Some of the most under-digitized verticals in today’s world are education and learning curriculums. With less than 2.5% of the global education economy spend going to technology, Balan sees tremendous opportunity and growth because digitization of learning is still in its infancy.

“It takes a long time to take any process and put it through the entire digital transformation,” Balan said.

With the arrival of tablets and smartphones, the devices are in place to make digital interactive learning easier.

The digital education economy is growing, and Balan believes it will be a healthy growth over the next five to six years. Part of this trend is a move toward active learning over passive learning. Active learning is about doing, practicing, experimenting and experiencing.

It is critical, then, that learning data be digitized to capitalize on the interactive capabilities that will drive the active learning movement in the coming decade.

Leveraging everything from virtual teaching assistants in the classroom, which can provide one-on-one customized feedback to a specific learner, to interactive learning tools that engage students at a deeper level, the possibilities for educational growth are endless.

Designed for retail leaders and retail lovers alike, The Retail Legends podcast is designed to provoke thoughts, challenge ideas, encourage growth and, most importantly, offer leadership and insight to help retailers be both prepared and proactive to retail’s always evolving and constantly demanding needs.
From consumer expectations to store marketing strategies, operational tactics and the various technologies influencing retail right now, The Retail Legends podcast will not only discuss what is going on within the at-large retail landscape, but also offer more specific, action-oriented insight for retailers to apply to their unique businesses right away.
To help do this, listeners of The Retail Legends Podcast can look forward to a new guest host every episode to explore their most burning questions related to retail, technology and the in-store experience. From big-box decision-makers to small business disruptors expect to step outside your comfort zone and into all the touchpoints that influence retail.

The NBA made big changes to the All Star Game format for 2020, introducing a new ending to the game called the "Elam Ending".

How does this change the game and could it be instituted across the league one day? Find out what TC Riley and Tyler Kern think about it on this episode of Diving Into Data.

On this episode of Diving Into Data, TC Riley and Tyler Kern discuss the new rules introduced by the XFL and how they change the decision-making process for coaches.

Will coaches make data-driven decisions or will the employ the "go with the gut" mentality? Find out what TC thinks and much more on this episode of the show.

Welcome back to the Online Learning Minute at Marketscale. Today we're going to explore what makes a BAD online education video.

Have you ever sat through someone reading a PowerPoint and only providing voice? I’m sure at one point or another, you have, and you only remember how boring that content was. You likely don’t remember the knowledge that was being transferred, you probably don’t watch that webinar or presentation ever again, and you probably dread knowing that a lot of your trainings are being conducted in that fashion.

Why are so many of the presentations we need to attend done like this? Well, it’s really easy to do and requires minimum effort to accomplish. But this is an example of a bad online education video because it’s not engaging, it’s not memorable, and the majority of that information was likely lost. Take the time to plan out an engaging, informative, and inspirational video for your learners. At the end of the day, content that’s memorable in a positive way will create learning impacts that last much longer.

That was your Online Learning Minute at Marketscale. Tune in next episode where we talk about Online Learning Analytics.

Communication is critical in every environment, and that’s especially true of the classroom. The days of chalkboards and paging systems are now in the rearview, as technology elevates the art of communication. Mark Jones, VP of Sales for FrontRow, a leading provider of delivering effortless communication and AV solutions to the classroom, shares his perspective on the unification of communications and technology at TCEA 2020.
Mark said, “I’ve been in the business for 18 years, and great things happen when teachers wear microphones.” Of course, AV in schools has gone way beyond this and taken on an entirely new frontier, safety.
The conversations that many IT folks and superintendents have about communication platforms revolve around its features that offer more control over spaces to ensure security and safety. “We’re talking a lot about emergency preparedness plans and how FrontRow’s solutions can improve them,” Mark shared.
Many school districts worry they can’t afford to upgrade. To make such a change would seem like a huge infrastructure cost, but Mark offered why that’s a misconception. What’s really unique about FrontRow’s system is that it uses the existing infrastructure of old paging systems.
The speakers that line the halls and are in classrooms, they stay as well. “Schools have already wired their buildings, so it’s retrofitting. Except now, you have more advanced technology that can send out announcements, push them to phones, and even lock the doors.”
One additional advantage for the FrontRow products is that the school districts completely own them. Technology is often known to be obsolete once it’s installed. That’s not the case with FrontRow products. They can be updated and maintained by network administrators, and there are no licensing or maintenance fees.
Catch up on more about the future of learning, communications, and technology by listening to the podcast.

On this episode of MarketScale’s EdTech podcast, host JW Marshall was joined by Crux Solutions President Gale Moericke at TCEA 2020.

Crux Solutions focuses on providing clients with seamless technology systems designed to improve every aspect of their work and collaboration.

In the education industry, this translates to provider and equipment-agnostic design services for the technology that helps drive school buildings and consultancy for school districts that helps them find an ideal solution for their unique needs.

Marshall and Moericke also touched on the common shortcomings that often pop up when districts are planning large-scale installations, particularly in the realm of safety and security.

“What we’ve seen is way too much of, ‘Oh, we’re going to go buy this technology because the guys down the road bought it, and it seems like a good idea.’ Most people have picked something – ‘Video cameras, I guess we should have video cameras,’” Moericke said. “Well, of course you should … (but) how does that fit into a larger plan?”

This big-picture approach helps Crux find total solutions that fit the desired scope, budget and functionality of specific districts and schools.

In what can be considered a blow to employee rights but a win for parent companies such as McDonald’s, a recent National Relations Labor Board (NLRB) ruling has significantly narrowed the right of franchise workers to force big companies to take responsibility for their working conditions while effectively blocking the employee’s path to unionization.

In essence, the ruling makes it harder to classify corporations as "joint employers" with other companies they have relationships with; this definition can be extended to a fast food parent company and its franchisees, or even between franchise locations.

In this Business Casual segment, Daniel Litwin and Taylor Bagley discuss the ramifications to fast food employees, franchisees, and their parent companies alike, and how the new NLRB ruling is in direct opposition of the Labor Board’s Obama-era goals which placed the onus of responsibility for an individual franchise’s violations, legal issues, lawsuits, wage disputes, etc. on to the umbrella corporation.

“Labor groups are likely going to be upset with this change—it makes it harder for fast food workers to push for $15 minimum wage, things like that,” Litwin said.

A ruling that is emblematic of a broader fissured workplace, the ruling blurs the lines for employees, making it unclear who their boss truly is, who they should organize with or against and/or collectively bargain with to improve working conditions or increase their pay.

“I do think that, obviously, anything that kind of takes away from your customer—what builds the company—is probably, you know, not the best move, but it kind of remains to be seen here,” Bagley replied.

For more Business Casual, listen live on MarketScale Radio on Wednesdays and Fridays at 9 AM CT, and follow us on Twitter at @BizCasualRadio.

On Tuesday, March 3, Walmart will be launching their new fulfillment services, enabling third-party vendors to showcase their items on Walmart.com’s marketplace and use the company’s logistics to store, pack and ship their products. While sellers will pay a fee, Walmart’s new fulfillment services should drive profitability for these smaller third-party vendors while offloading the stress of logistics.

Hosts Daniel Litwin and Taylor Bagley gave their thoughts on Business Casual, MarketScale's B2B morning radio show.

Litwin remarked, “So, they’re basically building a third-party network so that they can take in some money from these third-party vendors, but then also, basically create a competing network to go up against Amazon.”

“I think it’s really interesting to see them figure out how to redesign what they’ve established over the past few decades,” replied Bagley. “They’re not new to the space of eCommerce. What they’re really trying to do is figure out, one, how to make this a model that’s going to be profitable, and make this a model that’s going to be able to compete with somebody like Amazon who was built this way from the ground up.”

With a possible investment in fleets to provide shipping and delivery, additional space to store these non-Walmart products, as well as third-party branding and packaging issues, Walmart’s fulfillment services will create a new level of responsibility for the company.

In addition, Walmart is also stepping up their eCommerce game. By combining their big-box buying team with their eCommerce buying team under co-leadership, customers should see a leveling out of pricing which has been somewhat sporadic between their brick and mortar locations and their digital marketplace.

“They are basically doing some internal consolidation to create more consistency between their in-store and their online presence," Litwin said.

In fact, per a memo from Marc Lore and John Furner, co-execs for this team, this move will better integrate the company while benefitting the customers.

For more Business Casual, listen live on MarketScale Radio on Wednesdays and Fridays at 9 AM CT, and follow us on Twitter at @BizCasualRadio.

With the number of coronavirus cases worldwide approaching 80,000 (most of them in China) with 35 cases already reported in the U.S., and a death toll that now tops 2,600, both American and international companies are apprehensive over the likely economic impacts, warning that reduced flows into and out of the world's second-largest economy will have a tangible effect on business and product availability throughout the world.

Today, there remains huge uncertainty about how widely the virus will spread and how much damage it will do. But in America, where the S&P 500 hit a new high last Wednesday, this week, after reports of people infected with the virus in the major economies of South Korea and Italy, the S&P dropped more than 7 percent. Further, on Tuesday, yields on 10-year United States Treasury bonds fell to their lowest levels on record, suggesting investors expect significant economic damage and accompanying Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts.

Taking a growing toll on the U.S. economy, Mark Zandi, Chief Economist of Moody’s Analytics, estimates the outbreak will reduce growth during the first three months of 2020 by six-tenths of a percentage point to 1.3%, chiefly through reduced travel and tourism and manufacturers who will likely export less to Asia and Europe as demand there slackens.

In this Business Casual segment, Daniel Litwin and Taylor Bagley take on the coronavirus issue, and examine the current economic impacts as well as the potential consequences should the virus spread further and make significant landfall here on our country’s shores.

“What we really need to work on now is getting accurate information, the right information about how many people have been affected by this, how we can actually contain this,” Bagley stated.

“We need to prepare for the reality that if it does hit the United States in a more aggressive way, that we’re really going to be testing our mobile workforce honestly. People are going to be working from home, schools are going to be canceled—what does that look like," Litwin said. “So, day-to-day could change a lot and that would impact our economy substantially.”

For more Business Casual, listen live on MarketScale Radio on Wednesdays and Fridays at 9 AM CT, and follow us on Twitter at @BizCasualRadio.

Set to close in the second half of 2020—if it clears the regulatory process—Intuit’s acquisition of Credit Karma for $7.1 billion in cash and stock will basically limit taxpayers to essentially one key player in the tax filing space. As the parent company of TurboTax, Intuit’s purchase will corner the market to some degree, deepening its push into consumer finance further while making its product suite even more robust, as it's gaining access to free credit scoring services.

“One of the converse things to look at is that I think is actually maybe a pro out of this is the fact that by consolidating financial information—by consolidating financial services—we garner a breadth of security that kind of comes with localizing into a central place where now we don’t have half of our credit information in one area and half of our personal finances here in another area, and then trying to figure out how to merge those two together,” remarked Bagley.

While Credit Karma will reportedly continue to operate as a standalone entity, with both companies able to leverage data from one another, unethical accusations leveraged against TurboTax in the past may bring unease to some of the 90 million Credit Karma users who are now under the Intuit umbrella.

“You often see with mergers or with companies kind of eating each other up, that there is no guarantee that the consumer is going to trust the new brand—the new consolidated brand,” said Litwin. “You gotta keep the consumer in mind because people can be kind of fickle, and just because you say things are going to be the same, they may not perceive it that way.”

For Michael Gorton, summing Mt. Kilimanjaro was his second largest accomplishment while on his journey to Africa. That week-long trek to the top resulted in the formation of Teladoc, a telemedicine company that connects patients with remote physicians.

Gorton joined Tyler Kern, Bill Kasko, and April Melton on this episode of People, Process, Service, a Frontline Source Group podcast.

“In the beginning,[the idea] was that every downtown should have a room where people can walk in and see a remote doctor,” Gorton said. “We spent two years building and testing the model, because we knew it was going to be controversial.”

Gorton noted how he and his collaborators tested the model for years, nailing down their processes. He admitted that they took the controversial perception very seriously.

“We knew we were going to change the world. The board of medical examiners knew we were going to prison,” Gorton said.

The Teladoc team decided to approach the various state boards of medical examiners by taking every concern as seriously as possible and consulting with the most talented and respected clinical physicians and doctors in public service.

“We got some of the best doctors in the country,” Gorton said.

Now, Gorton is focusing on much larger goals, literally. His current operation, Back To Space, is aiming to motivate young people to return to space the way they did in the heyday of the Apollo missions to the moon.

He motioned that, to be an entrepreneur, one needs to be willing to clean the toilets in the morning, negotiate the million-dollar deal in the afternoon and, perhaps one day, even walk on the moon.

On New Year’s Eve 2019, the Federal Aviation Administration released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Remote Identification of drone users.

“It was 88,000 words of seemingly good intention, and 87 pages of common sense,” Tom Walker said. “There wasn’t any thing in there [the NPRM] that should have surprised anyone.”

Drones continue to disrupt various corners of the private sector that very few people predicted. Presenting Drones in America an all-new podcast by MarketScale centered around drones.

Every week, Drones in America will introduce listeners to guests who are leaders, influencers, and experts from various areas to talk about America’s drone industry.
Topics discussed will include the history of drones, new technology, policy, and the rapidly-growing commercial market.

Tom Walker is Founder and CEO of droneUp, a company that provided “end-to-end aerial data collection services for large, autonomous missions.” He appeared on the inaugural episode of Drones in America to talk about the FAA’s NPRM, how he got into the drone industry, and the relationship between policymakers and drone users.
“When I was first exposed to the consumer drone market… I felt like there were two key issues,” Walker said. “First, there would be a person in the unnamed space. Second, most organizations would be unable to manage the fleet of equipment and pilots.”

In short, Walker saw a need for a scalable drone platform, so he founded droneUp in 2016.

droneUp worked with local emergency response services for wildfires in the West and Hurricane response in the Southeast.

Join host Grant Guillot of the law firm, Adams and Reese for Drones in America with new episodes available where ever podcasts are found.

On this episode of MarketScale’s EdTech podcast, host JW Marshall was joined by Edthena Founder and CEO Adam Gellar.
Edthena provides educators with a way to share video recordings of themselves in the classroom with coaches or groups to get instant feedback, timestamped comments, and more.
Marshall and Gellar dove further into the topic of video and how it can best be utilized in the educational space.
“When you turn (the traditional observation model) around and you give teachers the opportunity and agency to record themselves, then, suddenly, they can participate with you in the process of the observation,” Gellar said. “The observation stops being a process and stops being about me trying to convince you of what I saw when I was in your classroom.
“Instead, we can spend our time talking about what we see together.”
This new way of observing teachers eliminates the feeling of being judged during traditional observation methods and provides a way to undergo evaluation and observation more often than with in-person methods.
Edthena’s solution is also aimed at groups of teachers, peer-to-peer collaboration and evaluation, and more.

At the end of 2018, nearly 2.4 million STEM jobs went unfilled. While STEM careers are the job market’s fastest growing sector, according to the U.S. Department of Education, only 16% of American high school students say that they’re interested in STEM and test proficient in math. With a global economy and the general well-being of society depending on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, it’s vitally important that educators are inculcating STEM instruction into their curriculums. That’s why companies like Flinn Scientific are committed to bringing the most advanced technology to the STEM classroom while strengthening the impact on career and technology education (CTE).
Mary Ann Hartel of Flinn Scientific, the #1 source for science supplies and equipment both in and outside the classroom, joins J.W. Marshall, Online Learning Consultant for MarketScale, live from the 2020 TCEA Convention and Exposition floor at the Austin Convention Center, to discuss educational solutions, blended learning, the evolution of science labs and more.
“A lot of people know Flinn from all the science and lab supplies and lab safety through the years that Flinn is known for. But over the last few years, Flinn has really branched out to STEM learning solutions,” said Hartel, “bringing in programs that have a digital component so there’s that online learning component, and really making it a real-world experience.
Today, more than 20 states, as well as the District of Columbia, have adopted the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), standards which were created to stimulate greater interest in science among students so that more of them choose to major in science and technology in college and pursue STEM careers. To help educators achieve this goal, many education supply companies offer NGSS-aligned products and resources to help teachers implement these new principles, including Flinn Scientific’s WhiteBox Learning—a complete Standards-Based STEM Learning System for Engineering, Science, and Technology Education classrooms, providing grades 6-12 with a web-based platform where students can design, analyze, and simulate their designs, hundreds of times, and compete with other students throughout their district, state, nation and the world.
“WhiteBox Learning is probably one of the most real-world educational engineering programs out there and the reason for this is kids get unlimited design iterations,” said Hartel. “Kids, especially in some of the schools we work in—where there’s a lot of kids that struggle—they’re amazed that they can actually do it, and actually understand the math.”
Really touching on careers, a real-world connection, gamification, community building in a really powerful way, Flinn’s WhiteBox Learning provides students with the virtual tools they need to build tangible things, building confidence while building their portfolio and resumes that will impress colleges and future employers.

For those looking for a luxury travel experience, what has changed over the past 5-to10 years? Say Yes to Travel’s host and expert, Sarah Dandashy weighed in on what’s changed with luxury travel, and why the changes excite her.

“When thinking about luxury, especially luxury hospitality, a lot has changed,” said Dandashy. “It has changed immensely. And I think for the better. People are now looking for different things out of luxury travel.”

As to what specific things people are looking for, Dandashy mentioned the experiences people seek out are now geared towards meaning and uniqueness over luxury at any cost. Even the way people receive their experience is different, with technology playing a role in everything from how dinner reservations are made, to matching up a travel client’s preferences with new experiences. “There is always going to be an element of someone looking for that ‘Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous’ travel experience,” Dandashy said, “But today, for most luxury travelers, it’s so much more than that. It’s about finding meaning in those experiences.”

Get more tips and great information from Sarah Dandashy by subscribing to the podcast and catch all of the episodes of Say Yes to Travel.

The majority of our nation’s 70s-era airport infrastructure is lagging behind others in the world, where airports that have essentially evolved into tourist destinations of their own. Changi Airport in Singapore, for instance, offers gardens, children’s play areas, shopping centers, a free all-day movie theater, and a recently opened “living lab” that allows Changi to create and pursue innovative ideas.

Another is the customer-centric Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai that’s developing 12 independent, self-contained, medium-sized airports located in one site (rather than a giant hub spread across 54 square miles) that will be able to handle as many as 20 million passengers a year. With only 14 of our country’s airports making the top 100 list in the 2017 Skytrax awards, it’s vital that the U.S. looks toward upgrading our airports and airlines while creating innovative solutions like new smart terminals and plane models. And it’s more than just automated checkins, biometric scanners, bag drop kiosks and public spaces—the use of VTOLs, drones and hovercrafts, railways and other forms of interesting technology will help to ensure the viability of U.S. airports as we move into the future.

On the second episode of Dirt Work, brought to you by MarketScale and Trumont Construction, host Adam Morrisey is joined by Mark Duebner, the Director of Aviation for the City of Dallas, to discuss the role that cities play in aviation space development, the commercial impact of airports, airline relationships, and the future of aviation technologies.

“Airports have moved from the 70s where the bulk of their revenues—their operating income—came from the airlines themselves. And that’s changed over time to where now probably less than half of the revenue that goes to airports across the country comes from the airline. The rest of it’s coming from non-airline revenue—what we call your concessions revenue where you buy food and drink, parking,” said Duebner.

“It wasn’t that long ago, your only option to buy something to eat at an airport used to be a slice of old pizza or maybe a hot dog, and now you see celebrity chefs. We have a Stephan Pyles restaurant in our airport which was, 10 years ago, unthinkable. So, as that experience inside the airport has changed, also how airports connect with the surrounding community has changed dramatically," he said.

When asked about the commercial advantages that airports bring to a city, Duebner replied, “Well, I think from a revenue standpoint, that’s pretty clear. What we bring in the way of additional sales taxes…things like that. But from an economic development standpoint, airports are really your gateway to all the other markets in the U.S. That’s why airports and cities fight so hard to get airline service. So smaller cities, a lot of time, will even incentivize airlines to provide service between the major markets because that creates a pipeline for the business, for the commerce.”

As more and more airport travelers increasingly demanding additional mobility options such as app-based rides, rental cars, taxis, rail service, etc. to transport them to city centers and other locales, space constraints are presenting real difficulties for the development of these onsite alternatives.

The Coronavirus is impacting industries across the globe. Tune in to hear what insider Gerry Mecca had to say about its impact in the tech world.

On this episode of Ratified, MarketScale’s podcast on the intersection of policy and business, Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin takes a trip back in time – and to the modern-day legal battleground emerging under President Trump's DOJ – to examine the 1948 Paramount Decision.

To get you up to speed, that 1948 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court came about in a time when block-cooking, blind-buying and circuit dealing were rampant in the film industry. Litwin goes into exactly what those terms mean, but the gist is this – vertical integration in the film industry was dominant, and major companies created monopolies and stifled competition.

An initial suit in 1938 bloomed into the 1948 decision, which saw the Supreme Court rule that film studios could no longer legally own their own theaters. This led to a boom for independent theaters and creators.

Now, the Department of Justice is looking to reverse course on the decades-old ruling.

Essentially, the argument boils down to this – the Antitrust Division of the DOJ believes these restrictions are no longer relevant in a media landscape that has so drastically shifted away from the theater experience of even a decade or two ago.

To examine the implications of a potential rollback, Litwin welcomed the University of Southern California’s Dr. John Connor to get some historical perspective, highlight economic structures in modern filmmaking and distribution, where independent media would go in the wake of a reversal, and more.

UCLA's Tom Nunan, former president of NBC Universal, among a laundry list of high-profile roles in the film industry, also joined the program to bring insights from the perspective of the country’s largest studios.

Hosts Greg Crumpton and Tyler Kern are back for another episode of “Straight Outta Crumpton,” your source for insights on the relationships and people that drive the HVAC and mechanical industry and beyond.

On this episode, the duo is joined by gardin, LLC. founder and CEO Adi Avin. Avin’s gardin is an interior plant design studio in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Crumpton and Avin said their relationship is founded on a share love for simply talking business. The foundation of many a good relationship is having something in common, and business relationships are no different – it doesn’t take a specific interest or hobby to find common ground, either.

“If we’d see each other out (during the pair’s time in the ballroom dance industry), we’d both just kind of move to the side and talk business,” Avin said. “It’s much more interesting and fun, and I’ve always just loved bouncing ideas off Greg. He’s got so much to contribute. I would say he’s really been like a mentor to me.”

“Scar tissue’s hard to beat,” Crumpton said.

Throughout this episode, Crumpton and Avin offer insights from each of their perspectives on business relationships, give and take, spreading awareness of others’ journeys and businesses, and the value of paying it forward.

“The amazing thing is that Greg has put the word out on my business, and he’s completely selfless,” Avin said. “He wanted nothing in return.”

Welcome to the Maverick of Marketing Radio Show! On this week’s episode, host Shannon Maverick was joined by Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin for a discussion the latest news stories, including NASA’s recent call for astronaut applications and its implications around the globe, Wells Fargo’s recent fine for a fake-account scandal, and more.

Maverick was also joined by BenQ Senior Director of Business Development Bob Wudeck and Digital Marketing Manager Carly Burton Sallay to get their thoughts on innovations and technology in classrooms.

Specifically, the trio touched on how in-classroom technology has evolved, highlighting the overall path forward for the EdTech industry as a new decade begins.

Wudeck said the primary purpose of educational technology is to bridge gaps in learning for students.

The technology-native nature of younger students, Burton Sallay said, is also a key factor.

“They’re introduced to technology basically the moment they’re out of the womb,” she said. “They are learning at a different pace and in a different way than we ever did when we were younger.”

That comfort, Burton Sallay said, has allowed for a greater role for technology in students’ lives than ever before.

Listen to the full episode of the Maverick of Marketing Radio Show and be sure to tune in at 9 A.M. on Monday mornings to get your weekly dose of the Maverick of Marketing.

On this episode of I Don't Care, host Kevin Stevenson is joined by Eastland Memorial Hospital’s Ron Hunt, who brings to the table a lengthy career of experience in rehab and post-acute care, to discuss the ins and outs of rural healthcare.
Rural facilities can differ from those in larger metropolitan areas in a variety of ways, including the very nature of their staffs of medical professionals – rural facilities sometimes have to rely on episodic doctors willing to travel and work on location.
“We’re pretty fortunate here (at Eastland),” Hunt said. “We’ve got, I believe, five physicians that are still in town. … We’ve got a general surgeon, which you don’t see happen very much, anymore.”
Still, Hunt and Eastland also contract with an outside company through a hospitalist program, which allows for outside physicians to come into the hospital and stay with patients from the time their admitted until discharge. Eastland’s ER operates in a similar manner.
Hunt and Stevenson also discussed the challenges that Eastland and rural facilities face, including aging populations, challenges in treating patients who are unemployed, and more
“There are a number of things that are going on in rural America that make it difficult for us to maintain the hospital,” Hunt said. “We have an older population. … The other thing that we see out here is we see a lot of people who are either unemployed or underemployed.”

Today, on the second episode of MarketScale’s Roads, Rails & Rides—a video series on the transit tech and trends that move us—host Jeb Morris sits down with Dustin Bullard, the Vice President of Planning and Public Space at Downtown Dallas, Inc. (DDI), to discuss the past, present and future of the city’s commuter transit infrastructure and the various modes and technologies that are getting people from Point A to Point B.

The 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) infrastructure report card gave the United States an overall D+ grade and a D- for transit, stressing that “deteriorating infrastructure is impeding our ability to compete in the thriving global economy, and improvements are necessary to ensure our country is built for the future.” Well, the team at DDI has taken these grades to heart and have been implementing plans to solve Dallas’ complex transportation issues, particularly in their Downtown.

As technology advances at an exponential rate, a common fearful sentiment among Americans is that robots are stealing human jobs. But, this long standing rumor couldn’t be farther from the truth. Robots actually create jobs, save humans from harm, and open up opportunities for new industry growth. The Roboticist Chronicles unpacks how robots are helping humans and changing industries of all kinds in this episode with guest Dan Allford, President and Founder of ARC Specialties.

“Robots aren’t bad, bad integrators are bad,” Allford said, explaining how robots have gotten a bad rap in the past having been improperly assigned to ill-fitting jobs and tasks.

But robots have also found great success when assigned to tasks where they shine, like washing dishes or clothing, or crafting contact lenses. As a result, the life of humanity has changed for the better.

“There’s still a place in the world for people," he said.

The robot is perhaps best glorified in their role of saving humans from harmful, dangerous tasks. Robots have replaced jobs where humans would have been exposed to extreme temperatures, dangerous chemicals, or harmful gases.

And robots are on the brink of another stage of evolution with the “collaborative robot,” that is, a robot that works side by side with humans.

“There are some things that people do better, and some things that robots do better,” Allford said. And when a symbiotic relationship is struck between the two parties, robotics don’t dampen human capabilities, they uplift them.

Be it medicine, oil drilling, aeronautics, plumbing, or space exploration, robotics have helped push industry forward by taking on tasks better suited for automation and precision. Robotics expert, Dan Allford, elaborates on why correctly identifying jobs where robots excel is the key to mechanization helping humanity move forward.

Kyle Noonan is the CEO of FreeRange Concepts. FreeRange owns The Rustic, Mutts and many other restaurant concepts. He is a pioneer in the hospitality industry with a large social media following. FreeRange Concepts knows how to use its following to its advantage to bring in customers to experience their unique restaurant concepts. Noonan joins Tyler Kern and Bill Kasko, CEO, Frontline Source Group to talk about the history of his business partnership and running a successful restaurant experience.

FreeRange Concepts now has restaurants open in three major cities - Dallas, San Antonio and Houston, Texas. Noonan said they are staying away from Austin, Texas at the moment because of the huge competition there. Noonan gave some advice when growing a business, saying that it is important to have good consultants and people. Early on in the business, they used their budget to pay people who know what they are doing and worried about making money, later. Noonan said that they modeled their work after the military’s structure and way of management. Another piece of advice he gave was that it helps to have top-level talent to promote the business, adding not to be afraid to pay extra for that promotion.

Noonan talked about his business partner and how to cultivate a healthy relationship. He said that two partners have to have different skill sets and respect each other’s decisions. An issue the company constantly addresses is finding the right people to hire because of high turnover. The conversation turned to the fact that, at some point, this is just part of the industry. Noonan said to take time to write and rewrite the mission statement and let employees and customers know what it is.

This week, we will cover industry career news from across the nation as well as highlight a few open jobs who are looking for that right candidate to come along.

With that being said, lets get into it!

It was recently reported that Amazon currently has staggering 37,000+ job listings, taking the list of positions to a record high.

A company spokesperson stated that it is the most jobs that have been posted to Amazon.jobs in the last 15 months and may be the most ever.

Amazon is seeking everyone from hourly warehouse workers to top-paid machine-learning experts, underscoring the breadth and scope of the company’s operations and ambition. The listings provide a rough map of Amazon’s near-term growth priorities across businesses and geographies.

Our next story comes from a list posted by Glassdoor of 8 companies who are offering up to $60,000 hiring bonuses to new employees.

There were over 200,000 jobs added in January, signaling a strong job market start for the new year.
As employers work to fill these roles, not only are they offering exciting perks and benefits, but they’re also offering hiring bonuses in hopes of attracting and retaining the best talent.

A few of these companies who are offering lavish signing bonuses include:

Caterpillar Inc.
Lockheed Martin
PepsiCo
And Raytheon

Be sure to check out that full list over on Glassdoor.com

And in lighter news, Boston Brands of Maine, who are best known as the makers of Fireball whiskey are transitioning to a 24/7 operation schedule in order to create jobs and set an example of how locally operated businesses can make an impact on their local economy and workforce. That’s all your news for this week, be sure to check back next week for more industry updates.

Until then, are you looking for a job? Absen LED is hiring a Field Application Engineer who will assist in helping territory sales or key account managers maintain and grow sales for current accounts.

This is a fulltime position requiring 5 years of experience and a bachelors degree.

Additionally, Absen Is hiring for a Field Support Engineer who will Provide technical advice regarding the technology and engineering of their products to promote, support, and service the sale of our products

This is a fulltime position requiring 5 years of experience and a bachelors degree.

AbsenLED is an integrated service provider in the LED display industry, offering turnkey solutions to customers on LED display applications.

Take a look at the full job descriptions visit marketscale.com/b2bjobs

And if either of these positions sound like a good fit for you or somone you know, visit marketscale.com/b2bjobs to apply.

Why is creativity so vital for B2B companies today, when traditionally it has been ignored - leading to many companies being labeled as mundane or boring?
On this weeks episode of Maverick of Marketing we talk with Michael Ruby, a veteran B2B marketer of over 15 years, to discuss the value of creativity in an organization.
The world doesn't turn without B2B companies, but often the stories of those companies aren't properly told. B2B is more complex and abstract, sales cycles are longer and more stakeholders involved in purchasing decisions and on top of all of that there are more channels than ever before.
"When you think about that landscape and the complexity of the challenges that are there," said Ruby, "you need creative solutions in order to be able to break out, when you add to the fact that everyone is beginning is to play with the same marketing technologies it all becomes a bit commoditized in terms of the tools that we have ahead of us.
And the tools are only as good as the content put into them. Investing in ideas, content, and experiences help build relationships and authenticity with audiences. At the end of the day - storytelling is paramount.
Listen to the full episode of the Maverick of Marketing.

What could be worse than finding a small issue with your edit with a fast-approaching deadline?

Luckily, we now offer an hourly license so that these major headaches become minor speed bumps.

Curious to see how an hourly license can improve your workflow? Check out cinedeck.com to find out more.

We're quickly approaching the warmer months, which means more time spent on boats.

With a Water-Resistant IP67 rating, the Aurora Sport was constructed for coastal environmental conditions, providing true night vision to enhance navigation and fleet management capabilities at any hour. With mounting, wearable, and remote capabilities, the Aurora Sport allows users to keep track of fleets, water traffic, and film your big catch into the night.

Developed for coastal environments. Enhance your nighttime awareness on the water with true color night vision. Be on the water when others aren't; and you don't have to miss a moment. The AUR Spo has our patented Ultra Low-Light IR sensor technology that not only captures images under low-light conditions but gives you true night vision capability in monochrome or in color. Your newest nighttime companion at the helm, Aurora Sport.

Check out sionyx.com for more.

One of the biggest Pro AV Shows of the year is this week in Amsterdam. ISE Europe hosts over 1,300 exhibitors and showcases an array of keynotes, training sessions, and more. Our Manager of Partnerships, Terry O'Connell, is on site for the show. On this weeks episode of Maverick of Marketing he joins Shannon Maverick to talk show expectations, Amsterdam, Pro AV, and tradeshows in B2B.

On the second episode of Straight Outta Crumpton, Greg Crumpton, people promoter, dot connector, technology enthusiast, Kaizen Practitioner and VP of Critical Facilities and Technology at Service Logic, is joined by David Jones, Co-Founder of Flexential—a hybrid IT solutions provider built on a people-first approach. In this podcast, these two titans of industry discuss the cornerstone of their business mentality—relationship-building—and how the bonds forged throughout their careers have aided in their success.

A friend and business associate of Crumpton’s for more than 20 years, Jones explains that after a tour in Vietnam, his career in technology—which he amiably mentions has been strewn with both successes and failures along the way—began in the telephone industry some 40 years ago. After the breakup of the Bell system, he helped to grow a long distance entrepreneurial company which was later sold to MCI. From there, Jones helped startup and run several local telephone companies, built a fiber network from Atlanta to Columbus, GA, and eventually began working as a consultant, primarily in the southeast, “helping companies get into this thing called the internet” during the late 1990s.

“I began to get the idea—because I was helping little ISPs collocate,” Jones says, “that you could have a facility and they would have to provide entrance facilities for you to connect into the network. And I began looking, thinking, ‘Hmm, this could work. This thing called data centers that I’m beginning to see come, that’s nothing but a central office basically.’ And a friend of mine—who’s still a very close friend named Nick Kottyan—showed up one day at my office and he said I’ve got an idea, and it turned out I had the same idea. So, we wrote a business plan and that business plan is ultimately what birthed Peak 10.”

The two took their plan to an attorney who advised them that the business was going to be capital-intensive and that they should come back to him when they had between $1 and $2 million in financing. Within six weeks, the pair returned to the attorney with $1.5 million in hand. Astounded, the attorney asked how they had accomplished it.

“Well, I haven’t burned a lot of bridges and I’ve made a lot of friends along the way, and those friends believed in me. And they know that the money they’re willing to put up—they have to be able to put a check in the trashcan if it doesn’t work.” Jones said. “That’s how we got started.”

Backed by an additional $18 million from some private equity firms, and with Jones and Kottyan eventually at the helm, Peak 10 truly came into its own, selling two different times—once in 2010 for $400 million, and again in 2014 for $730 million.

When people ask what the key was to Peak 10’s success, Jones replies, “Look, I’m not the smartest guy in the world. I have a BA in Economics from the University of Virginia—I’m not an engineer. But what I figured out was how to have about twelve really smart people play well in the sandbox together, and how to make that team have the same beliefs and have the same trust in themselves and the people we work with.”

“Trust is my gold standard,” Crumpton agrees. “It was just really cool to hear that journey and how many of those moments involved people—from that initial $1.5 million raised with the friends and family around, and then being able to go out and raise $18 million locally—that’s just…that speaks to you and it speaks to the relationships.”

Tune in to the podcast to hear more about the importance of relationships, the responsibility that goes with a title, the value of talented, decisive team players, the art of listening intently, and more. And stay tuned for more episodes of Straight Outta Crumpton coming soon.

TJ Mehta started MStone Stone and Tile Company when he was only 22 years old, and now the company owns some of the largest quarries in India and sources from China and Europe, as well. Mehta joins host Tyler Kern and guests Bill Kasko and April Milton of Frontline Source Group to talk about the history of MStone Stone and Tile and how he started a successful business in his 20s.

Mehta was only 22 years old and going to medical school before he decided to go another route, but this was not without scrutiny. Mehta said, “when I declared to my family that I was not going to get into medicine, they just went into scramble mode.”

His father was a doctor, and he had planned to follow in his father’s footsteps until he realized he didn't want to go through school and residency.

After starting his business, Mehta quickly learned as he went. His first shipment of materials had him in a scramble and, when he asked advice from his family, they said, “We have no clue what you are doing. You started a business, figure it out.” He did not even have a place to put his materials or an office at the time.

Eventually, Mehta hit his stride. His company now is very successful, and he has figured out where he fits in the industry.

"The reason why someone like me has an opportunity in this industry is because people like to avoid dealing with people directly overseas," he said.

Listen to the full interview for the rest of the story.

Today I'm on the line with John Boyd Jr., Principal for The Boyd Company Inc. The Boyd Company is an independent location and development counsel company for clients like Boeing, Chevron, UPS, JP Morgan Chase, Pepsi Co, and HP. John, welcome, great to have you on.
Today we're chatting a little bit about the future of Dallas' public transit infrastructure. On Friday, there was a symposium on Dallas' transit system, preparing for a phase of planned revitalization including new rail lines, expanded bus services, and more. Boyd has had a presence here in Dallas for at least five decades; John, give us some brief perspective on the state of transit in Dallas, and its ripple effects on the business interests of the city.
Something that stood out to me from the symposium was an expert analysis from Jarrett Walker, president of a contracted consulting firm planning out the city's new bus system, saying that basically, as Dallas expands its public transit, it can either have high coverage or high ridership, but not both. From your perspective, what's the relationship between those two and how do they play logistically when accounting for fresh transit infrastructure?
The general consensus at the symposium was that getting bus frequency down from 45-50 minutes to 15 minutes would be when public transit can finally take off in a robust way for the city. If the city can reach that goal, what would that sort of increased frequency and usage mean for tangential aspects of development in the city?

How can you create an environment for employee's that makes magic happen? One in which they are engaged in their work and feel connected to the rest of the world?
On this episode of Maverick of Marketing, we talk with Rachel Camarillo, the founder and chair of the Women in Manufacturing Washington (WiM0) Chapter. Rachel moved into a manufacturing role in 2014 and has become a strong voice for women who work in manufacturing. “I wanted to find support for myself and other women in a manufacturing career. And when I found about WiM, I loved their mission of promoting and inspiring women in the field and wanted to start a chapter here in Seattle,” said Rachel.
When talking about women working, in order to make an impact they have to work together. While women make up half of the workforce in the United States, only 1/3 of them are in manufacturing.
The Washington WiM chapter will soon celebrate its first anniversary and is focused on making an impact in their area and giving women the help and guidance, they need to navigate a career in manufacturing. Rachel added, “Women make up about half of the workforce but only one-third of manufacturing jobs. We want to be a place where women can lift each other up and succeed together.”
Listen to the full episode of the Maverick of Marketing to hear Rachel’s story and the growth of women in manufacturing.

How does an independent retail store survive in the time of Amazon.com?

"Be true to your roots and know your strengths," said Andrew Northrop [contributor page], President of Spokane Hardware Supply.

Host Scott Sidway sat down with the Washington-based hardware supply retailer, who has ventured into housing their own retail e-commerce as a way to serve their customers better in this episode of Element Sessions, an Element Designs podcast.

"We realize an online presence can help drive local traffic in the area and bring people into the store," Northrop said. "People still want to touch and feel hardware."

Spokane Hardware considered putting their products on Amazon so that customers could take advantage of the behemoth's reach and shipping speed capabilities.

"But I see Amazon Basics products being launched every day. Cabinet hardware and functional door locks for insanely low price points," Northrop said. "At the end of the day, that doesn't do anybody in the distribution channel any good. There's still room to invest in quality products."

Northrop admits it's difficult to represent a product well online.

"We do everything we can to properly represent the products and our vendors' visions, but it's a tough deal," he said. "So we shoot video, have content, and product descriptions. And it's not just putting a picture on our website and expecting people to buy it. It's trying to give them more content, more understanding of the product before they're ready to make a purchase."

Hey everyone, I’m Giovanna Hnath and today I’m bringing you a B2B news update brought to you by MarketScale.

Although it may seem like brick-and-mortar stores are becoming a thing of the past, Sephora is challenging that trend by opening 100 new stores that will run on 100% renewable energy across North America in 2020. More than 9,000 retail stores across the U.S. closed in 2019 while Sephora opened 35 new stores and is continuing to expand.

Generate Capital, a sustainable infrastructure platform, has raised more than $1 billion for new
clean-energy projects. The projects will be for more than 400 companies, universities, school districts and non-profits across North America.

Over the past decade, solar energy has grown an average of 50% annually and recently the U.S. Department of Energy announced $125.5 million in new funding to advance solar technology research.

These funding opportunities for renewable power, transportation, energy efficiency and manufacturing will help advance clean, affordable and reliable energy for businesses across the U.S.

Thank you for listening to this podcast. If you like this content and want to hear more, visit MarketScale.com.

Now Hiring is a show that will highlight open positions in B2B companies all over the world as well as cover industry news and updates, to help you along the path to that next big career move.

Now Hiring is the podcast where we focus on B2B JOB CREATION.

Alan Burwell, VP of Marketing and Innovation, Select Harvest USA, stopped by this episode of Nut News to provide his thoughts on the changes happening in consumer behavior regarding almonds and the innovations driving the industry as a whole.

Almond production has risen over the past 10 to 15 years, and Burwell sees a direct correlation to what is happening in the consumer segment.

“Almonds are showing up all across the consumer food landscape,” Burwell said. “A particular trend we’ve seen grow in normalization and adoption is the Keto diet. Keto speaks very specifically to the qualities of almonds.”

Burwell said Select Harvest USA experienced growth in both exports and the domestic markets, and he believes Select Harvest USA can provide innovation to many of the products utilizing almonds as an ingredient, especially in the snacking category.

While he wasn’t ready to get into specifics, Burwell teased some product innovations Select Harvest will announce in the future.

“If you’re someone who limits their intake of almond snacks due to too much salt or calories, I think you’re going to be excited about what we have in the pipeline for you,” he said.

Your B2B content is reaching its audience. You make sure of that – after all, you spent valuable time and resources creating it.

But can that audience relate to it? Does it affect change, inspire, empathize or move? Or is it just content?

On this podcast, host Tyler Kern and MarketScale Video Production Specialist Dylan Tidmore tackle the overarching question behind those concerns – how can empathy be introduced into B2B content?

Tidmore said most B2B content lacks that fundamental component of empathy, leaving a sizable gap between the finished product and its ability to leverage empathy to connect to an audience on a real, genuine and human level.

“I came into B2B marketing pretty green to the whole environment. … One of the fundamental aspects of filmmaking, regardless of what market you’re in or the industry, is the emotion, the human aspect and the empathy,” Tidmore said. “Coming into B2B marketing, obviously, there are some very specific goals a lot of companies have – selling a product or service, but what I’ve found that is missing a lot of the time is the human connection.”

Still, though an injection of empathy may seem intangible and difficult to nail down at first blush, not all is lost.

By changing the way you perceive B2B content and working to approach subjects and interviewees with an empathetic and open mindset, you can inject emotion into something inherently emotionless.

Welcome to the premier episode of Salary Capped by MarketScale. This podcast takes a look at the business side of sports. At the tip-off, host Tyler Kern paid his respects to Kobe Bryant, the basketball star who lost his life in a tragic accident on January 26, 2020. The legendary Los Angeles Laker’s death isn’t just a loss for the world of basketball but to the entire universe of sports. Kern noted that after Kobe’s basketball career was over, he entered the world of business, and formed multiple business partnerships. Kobe even won an Academy Award in 2018 for the Animated Short Film, Dear Basketball.

In the First Half segment of Salary Capped, Kern spoke with Rodney Barreto, Chairman of the Super Bowl Host committee in Miami, Fl to find out how a city like Miami prepares to host the Super Bowl for the 11th time. “This is my third time on the committee as chairman. It’s an exciting time, we know how to do it, and it is a record-breaking Super Bowl for Miami,” said Barreto. The game may only be four hours, but it is a week-long celebration, and Barreto looked forward to fans experiencing all of Miami’s changes in the past ten years.

For the final segment of the program, Kern checked in with John Allgood, Assistant Professor & Academic Director of the Executive Master of Science in Sport Business Program at Temple University, to get his take on the latest scandal to rock Major League Baseball. Allgood conceded that stealing signs has always been a part of the game of baseball, so why is it a problem now? Allgood believes it’s the pervasiveness and the technology of it that’s changed. “The baseball commissioner warned teams over the last 18 months to stop sign stealing, and they continued to do it. That’s why I think three managers, and one general manager, lost their jobs.”

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to Salary Capped, and look forward to more episodes coming soon.

The Online Learning Minute: What Makes A Bad Online Education Video?

We’re kicking off a new podcast, Noise Reduction, that takes on everything pro audio. MarketScale contributor and pro audio specialist Collyer Spreen provided his take on this year’s National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Show 2020 held recently in Anaheim, CA. The show covers anything and everything related to making music.

Collyer shared that music was, of course, his first love. “Drums were my passion from an early age, and music led me to my current career as a ‘gear enabler’ and trusted advisor in the industry.”

In his role as a pro audio specialist, he’s been a regular at the NAMM show for years. So in a world where information is available instantaneously, why are shows like this still important?

Collyer said, “It comes down to relationships. I’m always excited to see the new gear and test it out, but I go to keep building my relationships.”

At a show where you can find everything from instruments to software to sheet music, it’s certainly a sensory experience. “Understanding how new gear works and listening to vendors project their excitement. That’s really special.”

In a digital world, relationships still matter, in any industry. Collyer attends to keep learning about his craft and getting the intel on what’s out there and what it can do.

Check out all of Collyer’s insights along with some new gear that will make an impact in 2020.

Greg Crumpton, people promoter, dot connector, technology enthusiast, Kaizen Practitioner and VP of Critical Facilities and Technology at Service Logic, joins Tyler Kern of MarketScale for a preview episode outlining what’s to come in a new podcast show entitled “Straight Outta Crumpton”.

In the first episode of Dirt Work, brought to you by Trumont Construction and MarketScale, Adam Morrisey, Director at Trumont, visits with Tomas Jenneborg, CEO of wec360˚. wec360˚ is an up and coming Swedish 3D visualization firm that helps developers and property owners of both new construction projects and existing buildings rent out or sell spaces faster. How? Starting with a blueprint, wec360˚ combines in-depth sales information with stunning graphics, photos, VR, AR and more to present properties to potential buyers and renters in both a compelling and easy way.

The Online Learning Minute: Backwards Design Expanded

“Data” is the word on the tip of everyone’s tongue. Arguably more valuable than oil, data has the prodigious power to change business, manufacturing and shipping in incredible ways. No one knows this more than Jim Lester, CEO of ThingTech. Lester joined MarketScale to discuss the state of the Internet of Things (IoT) and how businesses can benefit from data collection and sharing.

ThingTech’s fleet management system offers a holistic view of a fleet thanks to widespread data collection. When pulling usage data from different car manufacturers, for example, ThingTech can normalize the differences and offer real, usable data to clients. Lester said that ThingTech "[does] the heavy lifting for them."

But IoT data collection isn’t used solely for fleet management. As technology prices go down, specialty logistics become more feasible. When shipping climate-controlled products, for example, ThingTech can monitor the product throughout shipment, ensuring its safe arrival. Lower IoT costs mean being able to monitor custom shipments both big and small.

It is hard to talk about IoT without talking about 5G. Lester said the reality of 5G is that it will first reach urban areas and, until 5G is more widespread, 4G is perfectly fine for monitoring trucking as it travels through rural areas.

So, what is the future of IoT? Jim outlined the three pillars of IoT adoption - connectivity, costs, and device durability. As these three trends materialize, moving from static asset management to dynamic asset management will become the norm.

Dr. Cortney Baker is an award-winning entrepreneur, the host of the podcast "Women in Business: Inspirational Stories of Women Entrepreneurs with Dr. Cortney," a TEDx speaker and a nationally recognized authority on women’s leadership. Baker is also the CEO of KidsCare Home Health, a multi-million-dollar healthcare organization with 12 locations across Texas, Colorado and Idaho. She stopped by Frontline Source Group's, People, Process, Service, podcast to talk about her journey and her passion for entrepreneurship and mentoring future women leaders.

Asked about the No. 1 thing she’s learned when it comes to working with people, Baker said, “Hire smarter than you. The people you surround yourself with in your organization are so important, and they need to be intelligent, driven, and determined.”

Baker wants to hire people who could work for any healthcare organization, but choose to work for KidsCare Home Health.

In the past several years, Baker’s company has grown to multiple locations and more than 650 employees across several states. What was the secret sauce that made her company so successful, while similar, more established companies did not experience the same growth?

Baker attributed success to several factors, including the company’s process of hiring the best people and providing the best service.

Baker’s passion is entrepreneurship, and she takes pride in mentoring women to become the leaders of today and tomorrow.

“What are the challenges we face as women in the workforce?,” Baker said. “When I looked at the research and the four most common factors contributing to these challenges, the common denominator was confidence, (and) 80% of the women I talk to say they lack confidence.”

That's what drives Baker to help other women start and scale service-based businesses. Entrepreneurship is Baker’s jam, and she may have the perfect recipe for success.

By early February, we should know whether or not the carrier industry will be left with three key players: AT&T, Verizon, and on the horizon, a merged Sprint and T-Mobile.

The merger, though it’s been approved by the DOJ and the FCC, has been tied up in a lawsuit issued by state attorneys general from over a dozen states, who claim the merger would be anti-competitive for the carrier market.

Why are the two companies, Sprint and T-Mobile, trying to merge, what’s the context behind the lawsuit, and what are the potential long-lasting effects for the industry?

On this episode of Ratified, a MarketScale show on the intersection of business and policy, Voice of B2B Daniel Litwin dives into the proposed merger of the mobile giants and the implications such a merger would have on the wider world of communication.

Litwin was joined by Lawrence J. White, a Robert Kavesh Professor of Economics at the NYU Stern School of Business, and by Hugh Odom, who serves as the president of cell-tower consulting firm Vertical Consultants. Odom also served as an attorney for AT&T’s Western U.S. Region for a decade.

White, with his extensive expertise in anti-trust economics, offered his perspective on the specifics of the U.S. Department of Justice’s proposed remedy, the reversal of initial pushback from the DOJ via the addition of Dish as a fourth carrier, and why White views the proposed solution as insufficient.

Odom then joined Litwin to offer the industry’s perspective – as an expert knee-deep in the telecom industry, Odom spoke to the potential positive and negative impacts of such a high-profile merger, how carriers, infrastructure and consumers will feel the effects of the partnership, and more.

For more on Ratified, follow Daniel Litwin on Twitter at @VoiceOfB2B and subscribe to MarketScale Radio on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Welcome back to the Online Learning Minute with Brian Runo at Marketscale. Today we're going to explore the Backwards Design.

Personally, I use backwards design in the majority of my developments because I want to be absolutely sure that the learning objectives are assessed correctly and content is more oriented toward the big picture. Instead of building out a course in a linear fashion, you’ll want to first start with identifying the desired results, or setting up your learning objectives.

Next, you’ll begin working on the assessments and determining what evidence would demonstrate that the learner has acquired the necessary knowledge.

Last, you’ll build out the content to support those assessments. Any videos, written pieces, graphics would begin production after the assessments to ensure that the learning activities will make the desired results happen. I personally prefer this over a typical development where we have broad concepts of content to be taught and then design a test around those content pieces.

In businesses, we have a specific set of goals that we want to accomplish through online learning, and backwards design can help to achieve those goals and remain within budget.

That was your Online Learning Minute with Brian Runo!

This week’s episode of People, Process, Service found hosts Bill Kasko, President and CEO of Frontline Source Group, and Tyler Kern, Publisher at MarketScale sitting down with economics professor, Bob Lawson, Director of the O’Neil Center for Global Markets and Freedom at Southern Methodist University. Lawson’s book, Socialism Sucks, was the topic of conversation.

Lawson and his fellow economist, Benjamin Powell, set out on a world tour of socialist countries to find out what works and what doesn’t about them. The results? Lawson appreciates the economic opportunities of America, and he won’t be teaching in Venezuela anytime soon. But the most important discovery for Lawson was, the beers in these socialist countries are terrible—and such few options.

To spice up the pot for this lively conversation, Kern, Kasko, and Lawson drank their way through the episode, sampling a dozen beers, while they each guessed what country from which each beer came. Kern’s strategy: guess Heineken®️ every time, and eventually, he’d be right.

So, what exactly makes a country Socialist? Lawson dispelled some myths for Kasko and Kern. Sweden and Canada may have socialized medicine, but they still have a free market economy. Even China enjoys the benefits of the free market, albeit with government control. Lawson described the process of writing Socialism Sucks, and he shared his stories of visits to socialist countries such as Cuba and Venezuela, where government economic control results in limited choice and freedoms. And one constant remained above all—the beer in the socialist countries Lawson visited, sucked.

Socialism Sucks: Two Economists Drink Their Way Through the Unfree World

With cyberattacks occurring at an increasingly rapid rate there's a genuine concern the public is growing apathetic to the news of massive data breaches.

Director of Data & Analytics for MarketScale, TC Riley, says that's a dangerous place to be. As IoT and 5G continue to grow more prevalent, there is more potential for a significant data breach.

Listen to this excerpt from Diving into Data for the full story!

LSU defeated Clemson by a score of 42-25 to capture the 2020 College Football Playoff National Championship. The performance touched off a number of debates about this LSU team's place in college football history.

MarketScale's resident data whiz, TC Riley, breaks down the numbers on LSU's historically good offense, focusing in particularly on their record-breaking QB Joe Burrow.

"He [Joe Burrow] averaged exactly one touchdown per quarter, which is mind-boggling," said Riley.

Listen to this excerpt from Diving into Data with TC Riley to get the full breakdown on LSU vs Clemson.

Change management is a term used to describe a systematic approach to changing an organization's processes, leadership or approach, but, for employees, it means absolutely nothing. It does nothing to address the pain points they experience until an organization gets buy-in from everyone affecting the change.

Today on the Food and Beverage podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with Coleman Consulting Group's Jim Mertz and Frank Pereira to discuss the change management obstacles that companies face in all layers of the organization.

Executive leaders bring in Coleman Consulting when they realize they don't have the bandwidth to handle the change and need help.

"(It could also be that) change is something they're not accustomed to doing," Mertz said. "If we work with a plant that manufactures chickens, yes, they're awesome with chickens, but that's not a skill set that necessarily translates to change management."

In their consulting work, Mertz and Pereira often see top leadership recognize the need for change, but middle managers have more trepidation about how the change will affect their teams. Among the many reasons plant managers fear change are insecurity, turf issues and the fact that they're often the front line for complaints from their team.

"We never go in without buy-in from someone in the C-Level, but there are many people in that office, the plant and others that can have issues with change," Pereira said.

Daniel Litwin is back from CES in Las Vegas! We recapped his busy week by playing audio from two separate interviews he conducted while he was there and discussed some of the major themes of the show.

Our first interview was with Gary Mittman, CEO and Executive Chairman of Kerv Interactive. He discussed how technology is allowing video content to become interactive in a whole new way. This opens up a world of possibilities for brands to create new levels of engagement.

The second interview was with John Rogers, Professor of Materials Science & Engineering at Northwestern University. He discussed the advancement of wearable technologies and what we might see coming down the pipeline in the future.

Tune in every Wednesday and Friday at 9AM CST for the latest B2B news and information on www.MarketScale.com.

Tune in to hear Tyler Kern break down what it takes to host a Super Bowl with the Chairman of the Miami Super Bowl Host Committee, Rodney Barreto.

The Online Learning Minute: The Three I's in Learning

The Online Learning Minute: What Makes a Good Online Learning Video (Continued)

Macy's announced that holiday sales fell less than feared, dropping 0.6% compared to last holiday season. The company's share price fell 30% last year, making it one of the worst performing stocks of 2019.

As a result, the company is looking to close over two dozen of its stores in the coming months. Can Macy's adjust to ecommerce and what are they doing to change their image away from just brick and mortar stores?

Hear what Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short had to say in this excerpt from Business Casual.

Joe Oblas, Co-CEO of Stryve Biltong, joined People. Process. Service.™️ to discuss his company’s mission to bring people healthier snacks. The product is Biltong, a high protein, low sugar snack made from a centuries-old process of drying and preserving meat that originated in South Africa. The product may seem similar, but it is anything but beef jerky. One instant convert was co-host, Bill Kasko, President and CEO of Frontline Source Group. Kasko had a bag of Biltong with him in the studio, and after a few bites of Biltong, he wasn’t sharing with anyone.

Oblas’ excitement about Biltong stems from the fact it is a snack that is healthy. Biltong doesn’t contain all of the processed sugar and additives similar meat-based snacks have. It’s high protein, with minimal processing, air-dried, and not cooked. “You rarely find a product that is truly good for you,” said Oblas. “Name another snack that is actually healthy for you. It’s really a challenge.”

How did Oblas begin his entrepreneurial journey? Oblas and his friends, at 12 years of age, bought and sold baseball cards at card conventions. Shortly after graduating college, Oblas and friends started a successful fruit smoothie chain. As he grew his business and needed capital to expand, Oblas learned a harsh lesson in moving away from doing the things that made his company successful in the first place. A re-branding effort, with no research, testing, led to plummeting sales and the end of the venture. But Oblas took this lesson to heart and used it as a reminder to be true to the mission of the future company’s he went on to start. “A combination for success is a competent entrepreneur teamed up with very experienced complementary pieces,” said Oblas.

RevTech Ventures Managing Partner David Matthews explains the state of innovation in retail and gives us a glimpse into what to expect at NRF 2020

Start 2020 off by catching up on the latest news in B2B

Welcome back to the Online Learning Minute at Marketscale, I’m your host, Brian Runo, and today I’m going to talk about what makes an excellent online learning video. Some people think that recording a lecture and then putting it up online is a good way to present knowledge in online learning. But because we have so much time to create content before the course goes live, we can and need to take that time to create high quality videos that are engaging and transfer the knowledge in a manner better suited to learners.

The first aspect we use is called “chunking”, simply put, chunking is dividing up the videos in a course to be highly topic specific and ensuring that the content is in short, digestible pieces. We do this by scripting out and storyboarding all videos that will be placed within the course and ensuring that the vides remain between 2-8 minutes in length. Any longer than 8 minutes, the attention of the learner diminishes rapidly, and anything that would be shorter than 2-minutes could be a simpler piece of content like a Podcast, graphic, or a written piece.

Next, making the video engaging requires the presenter to be learner-facing, meaning that we shouldn’t see the presenters back like in a lecture hall. There’s a lot of different ways to make a video engaging. You could have some extreme product testing if you’re in manufacturing, you could have a documentary-style video that people would watch like they would a TV program for higher impact processes, even something as simple as having the instructor as a talking head while drawing on the screen lightboard style can create an engaging video.You don’t need to have a super-expensive cinematic production to create an engaging and informative online learning video. The possibilities are truly endless.

That was your Online Learning Minute at Marketscale. Tune in next episode where we talk more about what makes a good Online Learning Video.

Welcome back to the Online Learning Minute at Marketscale, I’m your host, Brian Runo, and today I’m going to talk about the final step in the ADDIE process, the Evaluation phase. Once the course has run, we can begin evaluating how the course has performed and provide feedback on how the course can be improved in future iterations.

There are two parts of evaluation that happen throughout the ADDIE process, being summative and formative. While we evaluate the design of the course at each stage, we perform formative evaluations. At this stage, we’re using summative evaluation to examine assessment performance and user-feedback to determine if we’ve met all our goals we set in the analysis phase. We also use this stage to identify other opportunities for learning and for recommending changes for a continuous improvement.

As we conclude this series on the ADDIE process, I want to emphasize that this process is cyclical via continuous improvement and any opportunities we identify in the evaluation phase, we can bring back to the analysis phase. That was your Online Learning Minute at Marketscale. Tune in next episode where we talk about what makes a good Online Learning Video.

The biggest tech show of the year, CES 2020, kicks off on January 7th, with the newest in everything from hobby toys to transformative AI. Daniel Aitken, Vice President of Global Marketing and Communications at LeddarTech, will be at the conference showcasing the latest technological advancements in LiDAR solutions for autonomous transportation. Aitken sat down with us on MarketScale's Transportation Podcast to give a sneak preview of LeddarTech’s vision for CES 2020.

“This year, we’re partnering with several different organizations, and we’ll be directly on their booth,” Aitkin said. “This will now allow people to be much more accessible to LeddarTech’s technology and be able to see it in some real-life situations, for example, in an automobile.”

The strategy this year is for LeddarTech to be able to blanket all of CES instead of one area.

The exciting product people will get to see at this year’s show is LeddarTech’s Leddar Pixell Cocoon LiDAR. The product provides up to 360° coverage of an autonomous vehicle, which eliminates blindspots, virtually, the surroundings of the vehicle. LeddarTech has more than 50 customers already engaged with the product, and they received an honorary CES 2020 award for it.

LeddarTech partnered with the government of Canada for this year’s CES 2020, and people can catch demonstrations of Leddar Pixel technology in their area in the Tech East part of the convention center.

“We’re also working with Karma Automotive, and they’ve designed a concept vehicle with our technology in it, and that will be at our booth as well,” Aitken said.

For more information about the upcoming CES2020 conference, go to ces.tech, and for more details about LeddarTech’s participation, go to leddartech.com/events.

The Fourth Step in the 'ADDIE' Process - Implementation

The Third Step in the 'ADDIE' Process - Development

It was story time on this week’s episode of People, Process, Service, as a true professional in the field of broadcast journalism came into the MarketScale studio to chat with hosts Bill Kasko, President and CEO of Frontline Source Group, and Tyler Kern, MarketScale publisher. Mike Snyder is head of communications at the Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney’s Office. Still, residents of Dallas, TX, might know him better from his three decades as a News Anchor and Correspondent at NBC-5 (KXAS).

Snyder shared his career filled with stories of people and the changing process of delivering news to the community. Snyder viewed his role as a reporter as providing a service to the community, and he realized early on that storytelling was the key to success in reaching people and delivering relevant information. And in that effort, Kasko and Kern were not to be left disappointed.

From his early start as a disc jockey to his eventual role as a news reporter, Snyder spent the podcast telling stories of his career in news, which took him to Russia during the collapse of the Soviet Union, and his long-term friendship with Jerry Lewis.

“It’s the people I’ve met in life along the way who have helped me make the transition from amateur news reporter to a professional storyteller,” Snyder said.

What about the state of news today? Snyder provided a lot of thoughts and insight.

“What passes for news today is a convenience in between commercials,” Snyder said. “We need to get back to real reporting (and) dig into things that are important and matter to people.”

It is a best practice to take something from one industry or department and use in another. The success of Lean is an exemplary examples.
Lean began in Japan at Toyota, and while its origins began in manufacturing and eventually moved on to construction - it is a principle that can be applied to any process or industry as the core of Lean is to simplify and streamline.

On this episode of Maverick of Marketing we talk with Tim Garbutt, Director of Corporate Marketing and Communications, and Hillary Chase, Digital Marketing Manager, at Flintco.
Lean is about continuous improvement and respect for others. It is important to look at processes to make them more efficient and increase communication - and ultimately pulling information from partners instead of pushing it.

Lean principles, its philosophy and mindset can be applied to everything done on a daily basis in any department.
"For marketing it was about looking for ways to eliminate repetitive tasks, and make them more efficient through a series of technology integrations. And looking for ways to leverage different applications," said Garbutt.

The biggest key benefit seen by Garbutt and Chase by implementing Lean principles across the organization is work life balance for their employees. By simplifying processes they are able to get tasks done more quickly and efficiently. And because they have offices in multiple locations, it allows for unified processes and unified messaging.

Welcome back to the Online Learning Minute at Marketscale. Today we're going to explore the second step in the ADDIE process: the Design phase.

During this stage, we delve further into the learning objectives and begin working on the assessment instruments. We also start talking about the exercises that are going to be in the course, from learning activities, presentations, storyboards for content, and begin prototyping or outlining the course as a whole.

As instructional designers, we’ll make sure the outline can accomplish everything you need to with the course and aligns with your overall curriculum strategy.

That was your Online Learning Minute at Marketscale. Tune in next episode where we talk about the Development phase on the ADDIE process.

The “A” in ADDIE stands for Analysis. During this stage, the instructional problem is clarified, goals and objectives are established, and the end goals of the course are identified.

You should be looking at what types of learning constraints exist whether it be LMS limitations, regulatory limitations, language barriers, etc. You’ll also need to identify the target audience of the learning material whether that be a certain age group, skill level, a customer, an employee being onboarded, etc.

During this phase, you’ll also be establishing a timeline for the project completion and setting milestones along the way for approvals. That was your Online Learning Minute at Marketscale. Tune in next episode where we talk about the Design phase on the ADDIE process.

On this extended holiday episode of The Mecca Minute with Gerry Mecca we explore how to protect your personal information online this holiday season.

As shoppers increasingly look to make their purchases online, it becomes even more important to make sure you have the correct protocols and protections in place. As an IT expert, Gerry has the tips and tricks to make sure your credit card information doesn't fall into the wrong hands.

"Online shopping makes it more imperative that we do the extra level of security," Mecca says.

For more on the latest trends in IT be sure to check out the Mecca Minute on www.MarketScale.com.

Ever since the founder of the guitar company that bears his name moved from Europe to the Lehigh Valley in 1839, C.F. Martin and the town of Nazareth, Pennsylvania have been connected.

Generations later, the company is still crafting guitars in eastern Pennsylvania, not far from its original factory.
In the company’s museum, Made in America host Tyler Kern walked with current company CEO Chris Martin IV through Martin Guitar’s history to learn about where it’s been and where it’s going.

“The advantage we’ve always had, is if you’re a musician and you’re making a living playing music, playing the guitar, the Martin guitar was a reliable tool,” Martin IV said. “It was the Craftsman wrench of guitars.”

While Martin products are held in high regard in music circles, it has not been a 180-year honeymoon for the company. Each generation of owner has had to overcome new competition and musical trends, which required the company to adjust its offerings.

For example, the needs of country musicians were specific from the material of the strings to the makeup of the neck, forcing the company to cater to the needs of the most popular music of a generation.

“The instrument and the music evolved simultaneously,” Martin IV said.

The ebbs and flows of this longtime family business are closely tied to the leadership of each generation.

Martin IV’s father, and predecessor as CEO, experienced the highs and lows firsthand. He made acquisitions of several companies, one a successful string provider named Darco String Company, but another that did not result in much gain for Martin. The latter was a Swedish guitar maker that was purchased at an unfortunate time in the arc of musical taste.

“About the same time the demand for acoustic guitars dropped off precipitously,” Martin IV recollected.

While Martin was able to innovate around previous shifts in musical style and preferences, the 1980s posed an especially daunting challenge.

“Once again the market moved away from us. And not just us. If you were making guitars, particularly acoustic guitars, the ‘80s were a very difficult time. Very difficult,” Martin IV said.

Where there were once six strings and a fretboard, spandex had taken its place. While dancing with a guitar was a trademark of Elvis, Michael Jackson’s moonwalk wasn’t done with a guitar slung over his shoulder.

Shortly after this nadir, Martin IV was named as company CEO and pledged to recommit the business to its high standards. However, he was aided by some fortuitous timing.
“We picked up our game, and then MTV Unplugged happens. Thank God,” he said.

The show emphasized the intricacies and skills needed to play acoustic guitar, piquing interest en masse across the United States as well as cementing the place of Nirvana into the greater pop culture consciousness.

Martin IV also invested in new technology that received some skepticism from the company’s employees, but has led to growth without sacrificing quality.

Today, Martin continues to blend technology and the human touch to craft its signature products, and remains a major contributor to the music scene across the globe.
Even after each peak and valley, every Martin guitar’s journey still begins in Nazareth.

Here's what you need to know in B2B before you start your weekend!

Christopher Blomquist, Director of Marketing at Parlevel Systems, and Dustin Seetoo, Director of Product Marketing at Premio, Inc., spoke on this episode of MarketScale's Food and Beverage Podcast about the emergence of micro markets in the self-service vending machine industry. Technology and the increased desire for healthier choices are two drivers of micro markets.

“Micro markets came from being able to offer more diverse and healthier options,” Blomquist said. "Micro markets are different in vending in that it’s an open-product concept, including self-checkout with flexible storage to store items such as salads and sandwiches."

Seetoo highlighted what's at the heart of these micro markets.

“The back-end business analytics tied to the hardware are driving the whole micro-market industry,” he said.

The collected data helps determine customer purchasing behavior and which food and snacks make the most sense to stock. This information is essential when stocking quick-spoil items, as it is critical to know which of these items will sell quickly and which will not.

Blomquist saw the growth in micro markets leading to a movement toward self-service as a whole.

“Our company goal is to connect multiple areas, where one may purchase individual food and beverage items at one self-service kiosk," he said.

Beyond food and beverage, Blomquist believes other services could be ordered through micro markets, as well.

Here are the top headlines in B2B for Wed. December 18

In the next several days more than 100 million Americans will travel throughout the country. Whether they drive, fly or go by train, the sheer total of passengers will set a record this year.

While these statistics are related to transportation, these many millions of people will have a major impact on hotels, restaurants, retail stores and much more. However, with access to better data than ever before, businesses can equip themselves to handle this surge of travelers. Everything from price of hotels to the amount of excess materials and food needed in customer-facing businesses will be taken into account.

Business Casual hosts Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short look at the numbers and see how they stack up to the historical data. What does the last decade of economic growth correlate to travel? Kern and Short will also go over some of their personal holiday travel experiences!

Sporting arenas may be a long way away from equipping each seat with an augmented reality (AR) headset, but the technology has become part of the gameday experience for many organizations.

Every sport is different, as is every fan base, but every league in America is examining how Augmented and virtual reality (VR) could enhance their fan experience and also drive profit.

According to a new report from Front Office Sports, the sports market remains underpenetrated by AR/VR technology.

While much of the emphasis so far has been put on increasing fan engagement, at least one team is using AR to directly drive sales.

On Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short look at how the Los Angeles Kings work with sponsors to provide unique experiences for fans, all through AR. Kern and Short also speak on their experiences working in sports and what the future might hold for AR technology in the industry.

In recent years people have become accustomed to subscribing to everything from their favorite television shows to their weekly grocery list.

Now an iconic American brand is getting in the game as well.

Coca-Cola announced recently it is offering a limited number of consumers a taste of what’s to come in 2020. The soft-drink maker’s new Coca-Cola Insiders Club went live on Monday, offering 1,000 ‘insiders’ a six-month trial. Subscribers will receive monthly shipments of Coca-Cola products, some of which are yet to hit the open market.

“The pilot program was inspired by the growth of the e-commerce subscription market, which has more than doubled annually over the last five years based on the popularity of meal kits and curated collections of everything from razors to pet supplies to make up,” the company wrote in a statement.

On Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short discuss what Coca-Cola sees in this venture and the evolution of the subscription model across different industries.

Listen in as MarketScale's Taylor Bagley discusses hiring and job searching in the Digital Transformation era with Digital Solutions Expert Tim Ehrhardt.

As always, be sure to check out MarketScale.com/industries/careers for all of your B2B career needs!

This episode of Ratified is trying something new; a considerably more niche topic. Whereas the last two went a little larger in scale, hitting on gig economy legislation in California and the state of net neutrality, this episode of Ratified is a look at the nitty gritty legislative back and forth of lobbying in the telecom and AV industry.

Joining Daniel to provide context and perspective is Chuck Wilson, Executive Director of the National Systems Contractors Association, and Keith Kempenich of the North Dakota House of Representatives, representing District 39.

In 2019, legislative sessions introduced new language that would’ve either subtly or drastically changed the dynamics of licensing requirements for electricians and tangential industries, like AV and telecom. Lawmakers looked around at technology they thought was new, or at least now more relevant in these industries, and decided it was time to rework licensing around low-voltage lighting, IoT devices, and power over ethernet. This language was meant to keep everyone safe and adjust legal language for the times.

If only it were that simple. The different state bills immediately turned the heads of AV industry professionals, and not out of excitement. Listen to the full episode to hear how this battle turned out and get the different perspectives from individuals on both sides of the issue.

What does it take to run the 32nd tallest building in the United States? On this week’s episode of People, Process, Service, Adam Bernhardt, VP, and Senior General Manager at JLL discussed the process of servicing people working in a 1.85 million-square-foot office tower, noted for its iconic green lights outlining the building. Naturally, this doesn’t happen alone. Bernhardt said he relies on the efforts of a team of many people to keep day-to-day operations running smooth.

Because of the changing nature in the way businesses work today, Bernhardt said the building has more business tenants then they used to have. “As technology comes in, one employee can do more and be more productive with fewer resources, so we have more tenants, but they are taking up the same amount of space as when we had fewer.” The advantage of having more tenants, Bernhardt said, is more diversity in the types of businesses sharing the building space. This diversity creates a sustainable environment that not only benefits the community of businesses but the building as well.

As for the type of people Bernhardt looks to help manage a building of this scale, “they have to be service-oriented,” Bernhardt said. “What we’re trying to do for our tenants is make it a great environment. It’s having the right people trained to provide the right service and teaching them to see how that’s important to create that environment.”

Listen in to hear MarketScale's Taylor Bagley discuss some hiring tips for the new decade. Be sure to stay tuned in to MarketScale for all of your B2B news, jobs, tips and trends!

Tune in to hear MarketScale Host Taylor Bagley shares his top 5 tips for writing an effective resume!

MarketScale is your one stop shop for all B2B News, Jobs, Tips and Trends.

Introducing a new feature from MarketScale coming to you every Tuesday and Thursday. It's the Online Learning Minute from MarketScale's Senior Instructional Designer Brian Runo. Stay up to date on the latest methodology and trends in the world of online learning. Stay tuned for more!

Here are the top stories as we head towards the end of the year!

We've come a long way from pencil and paper when it comes to design mockups and the virtual representation of the design process. Design software like 2020 Design has revolutionized the architecture and design industry, making what once was a picture in someone's mind into a fully-fleshed out concept and rendering. Today on Element Sessions, the Element Designs podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with Vanessa DeKoekkoek, Global Training Manager at 2020, to discuss how DesignTech is accessible for everyone.

When DeKoekkoek first got into the design industry, it was at an unlikely place: the kitchen design center for a big-box retailer. That was her first experience using an early incarnation of 2020 Design software 20 years ago.

"The very first kitchen space I designed and sold, I didn't really even know how to use the software to its fullest, so I was looking at everything in a plan view," DeKoekkoek said. "Any designer that's listening will appreciate this, I didn't know how to pull up an elevation so I wasn't able to see it in a front view. Luckily the next week I had a designer check my work and she told me I had two different heights of cabinets in the space."

A mistake like that would have cost thousands, but today's software "checks your work" so to speak, so you can't select incompatible components.

"Back then we really had to leverage plan views and that sketch if you will, where today it's literally a click of a button and you can see the entire space in 3D."

On this episode of Business Casual:

Wingstop wades into the esports market via a partnership with Twitch.
Lyft gets into the rental car business
Brian Runo joins the show to talk about the growth of online education in business.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Stock prices for Hertz and Avis fell in the wake of the news that rideshare company Lyft would be getting into the rental car game.

What ways will Lyft look to innovate in an industry that hasn't changed in a long time? Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern take a look at the story and whether or not this will be a successful venture in this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

The growing market for esports has led many brands to wonder how they can capitalize on its popularity.

Wingstop made the decision to partner with streaming platform Twitch for a limited time to offer food orders and delivery without having to leave the app. Wingstop's chief marketing officer, Christina Clarke, said the partnership has already surpassed the benchmarks set for it.

Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss why this has been so successful and how others could follow suit in this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Here's everything you need to know for the weekend!

Online learning has been growing rapidly in the business world. On this excerpt from Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern were joined by MarketScale's Senior Instructional Designer Brian Runo.

Brian explained why online education is more popular than ever and how businesses can effectively employ it to train employees, grow brand awareness, and much more.

"A lot of businesses are starting to realize that they could increase their productivity and shorten the time period for on-boarding people," said Bruno. Businesses are heavily investing in improving these materials and instructional design in the world of online education is a huge piece to that puzzle.

For more insights from Brian Runo listen to this excerpt from Business Casual and be sure to check out his B2B Education Updates on Tuesdays and Thursdays on www.MarketScale.com.

There are several situations that require the ability to capture an image. Few of them are more important than those pertaining to private investigations. On this episode of A Look Through the Lens podcast, Scott Stover, Domestic Case Manager for Whitesell investigative Services, sat down with Sean Heath and they discussed the importance of resolution and visibility in modern day investigations.

The investigative industry has gone through quite a dramatic evolution, explained Stover.

“Whereas in the past it was just kind of a gumshoe approach to where people would just go out there and start beating the bushes to try to find out information. In today’s world, we have to compete with all types of technology," he said.

In a recent case, the functionality provided by the latest equipment was crucial, Stover added.

“We would not have gotten that the information we needed, or the evidence that we needed to solve this case. It just simply couldn’t have been done without this type of technology," he said.

Private investigators also maintain a healthy focus on the “private” part of their work and a discreet form factor helps accomplish just that, he said.

“We’re not like the Magnum P.I.s who drive a red Ferrari and wear Hawaiian shirts. We want to blend in with the environment," he said.

Stover also suggested a way in which this gear could be utilized to aid in the prevention of crime.

“This type of technology, in a fixed position, such as having the sensors or cameras in a fixed position to where they could monitor things at night, would be very beneficial in crime prevention through environmental design," Stover said.

With this edition of the Mecca Minute I’d like to talk a little robotic process automation or RPA. RPA is hyperautomation that takes automating processes to the next level. Like many other subjects I’ve shared in the past, this concept is not new. But the big reason that it has evolved from a dream to reality is the power of the cloud, or more specifically virtualization.

We are all familiar with Internet BOTS. They are both beneficial and malicious in that they can automate PC fixes or replace service desk calls but they can also make you susceptible to unwanted ads or unintentionally sharing personal info. Then there’s Super Bots like Alexa, Cortana, Google Assistant and Siri. All are programmed by humans to point at some source and simplify searches or to enable home automation. But this is not the same thing as RPA. Enterprises can deploy intelligent robots to automate repetitive processes in accounting, production, HR, plant maintenance and much more.

But be careful, enterprises should fix their bad processes before they automate them. If you automate a “crap” process you’ll just end up with a “crap” result, only faster. Also, from a change management perspective, people resist enterprise RPA as risky, and workers revolt as they fear bots will take away their jobs. But I happen to be one of those who disagrees. In fact RPA will maximize their workloads, stave off increased costs and skyrocket productivity which is job security. And this only gets better in time as this space is evolving utilizing artificial intelligence and whatever the future holds. Fix the process, invest in RPA and remain a player. This has been Marketscale’s Mecca Minute.

The traditional image of a production job is one of repetitive monotony. On this episode of MarketScale’s Transportation Podcast, Tim Bynum, Production Manager for Mid Continent Controls, sat down with Sean Heath to discuss the way he approaches building the long-term skill set for their employees.

The first step in establishing a rewarding career is establishing a few basic skills, Bynum said.

“That skill set is like a stepping stone for them to start from the basics and move up to a broader experience level where they can use that in those roles as a supervisor or as a planner or something where their expertise is required," he said.

The opportunity to perform several different tasks throughout the production process has helped many of their current employees expand their roles with the company.

“We’ve had a couple of employees that have started out in a production area and, based on the experience and based on the knowledge they’ve gained while being a part of the production team, they’ve moved on to other positions in the company," Bynum said.

He also shared a few of the trends that are gaining traction in the aviation industry.

“The latest thing that’s coming out is the USB-C type product,” Bynum said. “The main thing that seems to be really steady for us are Bluetooth-type products.”

Although there is not one specific personality type that is singularly suited for a skill set that includes soldering, curiosity in childhood seems to be a good trait to have, according to Bynum.

“There are probably many times that I got in trouble for taking stuff apart and not being able to put it back together,” he said.

Now that we know the four teams in the College Football Playoff what is the data telling us about the matchups? On this episode of Diving into Data, MarketScale's resident numbers guru TC Riley runs down who's most likely to win and what the data is telling us.

Can Clemson shut down Ohio State's high-powered offense? Will Joe Burrow lead LSU to college football glory? Get the breakdown from TC and Tyler Kern in this excerpt from Diving into Data.

Tune in every Wednesday at 9:30 for your weekly dive into data with MarketScale's resident numbers man, TC Riley.

Californians are dissatisfied with their energy provider PG&E for a number of reasons. Lack of investment in repairs, maintenance and inspections led to faulty infrastructure prone to spark, trees hanging over power lines, and more. As the company now faces bankruptcy, the state of California is at an energy crossroads.

A recent study by the University of California at Berkeley found that the majority of people do not want to see PG&E return to its classic state post-bankruptcy. What alternatives do they have?

Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern broke down their options and gave their opinions on what they believe would be best.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

A new round of tariffs are set to go into effect on Sunday, December 15th on $160 billion worth of Chinese consumer goods Many of these products are popular holiday items, such as computers, cell phones, clothing and toys.

Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss the impact this could have on the retail industry over the holiday season in the excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

This week's episode of Diving into Data with TC Riley takes a nice look at the current odds for the College Football Playoff. Now that we know the matchups for the final four teams, who is the most likely to come out on top? TC dives into the underlying numbers and provides some interesting conclusions.

The data term of the week for this episode is real-time analytics. TC explains what that means and how it's applied in a football and business sense.

Finally, we'll take a look at the data and analytics for holiday travel. What is driving the decision-making process for people around this time of year? Find out what the numbers are telling us.

Tune in every Wednesday at 9:30 for your weekly dive into data with MarketScale's resident numbers man, TC Riley.

On this episode of Business Casual:

Will tariffs be the Grinch that ruins Christmas? Maybe...or maybe not.
Old Navy and Postmates have teamed up over the holiday season to expedite deliveries. Will this be an effective strategy?
Californians are dissatisfied with their energy provider PG&E. What alternatives do they have?

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Jan Murfield, President, Junior Achievement of Dallas joined host Tyler Kern, and Bill Kasko, President and CEO, Frontline Source Group, Inc, to discuss her passion for Junior Achievement. The Junior Achievement organization is the world’s largest non-profit dedicated to educating students in grades K-12 about entrepreneurship, work readiness, and financial literacy through hands-on training. Kasko’s excitement about this topic stems from his journey as a kid in the Junior Achievement company program. Murfield noted, “kids who go through the Junior Achievement company program are two and a half times more likely to start their own business than the general population.”

Murfield’s passion for non-profit work and teaching financial literacy led her to her current role with Junior Achievement of Dallas. “What a great thing,” said Murfield, “to go to kids who are from underserved communities and show them about budgeting. Think of the difference this could make in the lives of these kids.”

Volunteers are essential for the success of Junior Achievement. Murfield said they need 5,000 volunteers this year to service 55,000 students in the greater Dallas area. The types of volunteers Murfield looks for to support Junior Achievement’s mission are people who want to give back to the community, but also love kids. All kinds of entrepreneurs from the Dallas area are needed to help teach children, even for just a single one-hour class. This program makes a huge difference in children’s lives, and Lopez said, students who enroll in the Junior Achievement program increase their odds of attending college after high-school graduation.

Noah Chamow and Conor Burke share the twists and turns of their post-production careers in this final episode in a three-part series on careers in post-production for CineCast, powered by Cinedeck. Host Shelby Skrhak sat down with the two founders of Assistant Editors' Bootcamp, an informal education program that teaches the ins and outs of post-production skills and duties for newbies, to dig into their specific paths to arriving at post-production.

Chamow worked in several different aspects of the film industry -- pre-production and production as an extra -- before landing on post-production as the right fit for him.

"Pre-production was such a heavily relationship-based part of the industry and I'm just not that person," he said. "I realized then I wanted to get into assistant editing."

Burke had no problem with the relationship aspect of the industry, but found it challenging to learn on the job until he met Chamow.

"Just having someone I could ask questions and call if I didn't know how to do something," Burke said.

Since then, Burke has gone on to help other editors learn on the job, just as Chamow did for him. The two discuss the specific and unlikely ways they found work in the film industry and share tips along the journey.

Assistant Editors' Bootcamp, a post-production training and education program for industry novices, was born as a way to combat the incredible Catch 22 that green candidates face in getting their first job. For the two founders Noah Chamow and Conor Burke, the struggle was all too real.

In this second in a three-part series on careers in post-production for CineCast, powered by Cinedeck, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with Chamow and Burke to discuss their how they arrived at the idea for Assistant Editors' Bootcamp

To land a gig, newbies need something on their resume that proves they're smart and talented enough to perform editing duties. But no studio wants to take the time to train unproven talent, or take the chance on being someone's first post-production job.

"Nobody wants to take a chance on anybody," Chamow said. "So for my first job, basically I had to stretch the truth to say I was qualified."

Chamow was lucky in finding a senior editor who taught him along the way, and he reciprocated the favor when he met Burke years later as a newbie.

"Noah taught me everything I know," Burke said. "I wouldn't be here if it weren't for Noah."

Assistant Editors' Bootcamp, which is taught by working industry professionals in small workshop environments, trains students on the talent skills they'll need for their first post-production job and the soft skills they need to work with a team effectively.

"We're training them for what we're looking to hire in an assistant editor," Chamow said.

These are the top stories in B2B for Wednesday, Dec. 11

On this episode of the Maverick of Marketing, the Maverick spoke with Cat Allen, the Digital Advertising Manager for Linux Academy. She spoke to the importance of continuous learning and the importance of education in marketing.
Cat detailed her path from working in the equine industry to learning how to code. "I'm a big believer that learning is growing," said Allen. "If you aren't learning you're going to get left behind."
Listen to the full interview and tune in every Monday at 9AM to hear the Maverick of Marketing Radio Show live!

Here are the top stories for Monday, December 9, 2019.

Noah Chamow and Conor Burke, founders of Assistant Editor's Bootcamp, attended some of the best film schools in California, and yet their best learning experience was creating their own. On this first in a three part series on careers in post production for CineCast, powered by Cinedeck, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with Chamow and Burke to discuss their paths to becoming an Assistant Editor.

Chamow studied film at UC Santa Cruz, but his best training came at the grace of a co-worker.

"Fortunately one of the editors working on the show took me under his wing," he said.

The young editor learned more from this senior editor on set than he did from years of college and set a precedent Chamow would realize later as he moved up the ranks in post production roles.

Soon Chamow was in a position to pay it forward when he met Burke, a newbie, on set.

"Noah basically taught me everything I know," Burke said.

On this episode, Chamow and Burke share what they learned by learning on the job and how one person's hand up put an informal mentor/mentee relationship into motion.

DeAnn Campbell, director of retail strategy and development at Harbor Retail, spoke about the evolution of omnichannel on this episode of MarketScale's Retail Podcast. Harmonic Retail™️ is a concept developed by Harbor Retail to address the changes retailers face in today’s marketplace.

“Harmonic Retail is all about flexibility and staying in tune with the customer,” Campbell said. “It’s responsive to the customer. It asks all those channels to adapt and flex to stay in tune with the customer as they move along that path to purchase.”

Creating unexpected shopping experiences are a way companies are using Harmonic Retail. Campbell cited a recent IKEA example where they set up a popup store inside a subway station in Asia to introduce their brand to a new set of potential customers.

“Our country’s annual growth rate is at an all-time low,” she said.

This low birth-rate means a dearth in tomorrow’s shoppers. Retailers need to extend their brand to all generations, including nontraditional markets. One of the essential tools for retailers is stores.

“E-Commerce needs stores,” Campbell said.

But the role of the traditional brick & mortar store has evolved. Campbell said stores should be used in conjunction with online ordering, and that process must be fluid. People may order online and pick up at the store. People may browse the store and then shop that same store online.

“The truth is, in harmonic retail, you may never sell an item in the store,” she said. “However, that store is integral to that eventual online store purchase.”

One example of Harmonic Retail changing a traditional shopping experience was Nordstrom’s, which Campbell said recently rolled out a new fitting room in a newly opened New York store. These modular, portable, fitting rooms include smart mirror technology, with adjustable lighting, call buttons to engage with a sales clerk, and iPads to check out different colors and sizes.

It's the time of year when fans of college football are glued to their TVs, desperately hoping for their teams to play well and reach the College Football Playoff. On this excerpt from Diving Into Data, TC Riley explained who the data is projecting will make the four-team playoff and why.

Will it be Oklahoma or Utah? Who has the best chance of winning the title? TC has the answers in this podcast.

Tune in every Wednesday at 9:30 for your weekly dive into data with MarketScale's resident numbers man, TC Riley.

Hi everybody this is MarketScale Digital Editor Geoffrey Short with today’s top headlines in the world of B2B.
We’re quickly approaching the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, but preparations are already underway for the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.
The city has partnered with the private sector on a plan to have 30 percent of cars on the road be electric by the times the games begin.
According to Smart Cities Dive.com, LA’s plan will have an increase in ride sharing options, and a goal to convert 20 percent of all trips in single-occupancy vehicles to zero-emission public transit options like bicycles.
Meanwhile in the here and now, the numbers are already in for Cyber Monday’s shopping bonanza.
According to Adobe research, more than 9.2 million dollars were spent on Cyber Monday, good for a year-over-year increase of 17 percent.
Something else notable was that Adobe reported online sales through smartphone hit a record 3 billion dollars. That is an increase of 46 percent over last year, signaling a shift in the way brands are reaching their customers today.
And taking a look at the trade show calendar, a huge event in the medical world is taking place this week.
That would be Pri-Med East in Boston, Massachusetts.
Keynote speakers include Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker and former NBA player and motivational speaker Chris Herren.
Topics on the agenda include everything from Telehealth to primary care best practices.
The event runs through Saturday afternoon.
Those are the biggest things going on in B2B today, once again I'm MarketScale Digital Editor Geoffrey Short.

The "casual" in "casual dining" should not refer to the restaurant's attitude towards the cleanliness of the experience. In this episode of MarketScale's Healthcare podcast, John Shanahan, president and CEO of Ionogen, sat down with host Sean Heath to discuss the recent chemical events in a popular fast-casual restaurant, how those chemicals got there in the first place, and how to protect ourselves when dining out.

The process of protecting ourselves when dining begins the moment we step through the door, Shanahan said.

"If you walk into a restaurant and it doesn't smell clean? It isn't clean, and you shouldn't eat there," he said.

The generally accepted authority on whether or not a dining environment is clean is the local health department, explained Shanahan.

"The standards are actually the same, uniformly, across all of them, because, in every state, the health department is the guardian that watches over these restaurants to make sure that the standards for sanitation are uniformly observed," Shanahan said.

He also clarified that a shiny table is not necessarily a safely clean table.

"The leading national blue glass cleaner has 11 chemicals in it that you can't ingest," he said.

This is not a problem that is limited to "quick-serve" restaurants. "White linen" dining experiences can come with their own dangers, as well, explained Shanahan.

"The linen is typically replaced at one of those, after every single guest," he said. "Especially during flu season, someone will go out and have dinner at a 4-star restaurant. They'll have the early stages of the flu and grab the salt and pepper shaker. If you're the next person at the table, you've just been introduced to that virus, because it's been left on the salt and pepper shaker."

Telemedicine is helping hospitals revolutionize their operations and help more people. In this excerpt from Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss the numbers for one hospital in Charlotte, NC and evaluate the effect of telemedicine.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Retailers saw another jump in the amount of business does on Cyber Monday in 2019. How much did holiday shoppers spend? Find out in this excerpt from Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Could a french fry shortage be on the horizon? In this excerpt from Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss why experts are warning that it might be hard to find your favorite salty side in the near future.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Here are the top stories in B2B for Wednesday, December 4, 2019.

The latest episode of I Don't Care with Kevin Stevenson tackled the topic of building and creating healing environments in healthcare. Special guest Dr. Susan Mazer, President, CEO & Co-Founder of Healing Healthcare Systems, joined the show to share her expertise on the topic.

"If the environment is not positive, supportive, comforting, stress reducing, welcoming...then what is it doing?" she asked. "If you don't design the environment, the environment will design you."

She advocated for carefully considering every aspect of the environment to create a place that puts patients and guests at ease. Listen to the full episode to hear all of Dr. Mazer's insights on creating healing environments.

Listen to I Don't Care LIVE every Friday morning at 9:30AM CST to stay up to date with everything going on in the healthcare industry.

Sports are, generally speaking, the first experience people have with teamwork and competition. On this episode of A Look Through the Lens podcast, Captain James Marko, charter captain and TV host of Goliathfishing.com, sat down with host Sean Heath to discuss the transformation of fishing from a leisure activity to a research-heavy career.

Athletic competition provides numerous valuable lessons and life skills through a person’s formative years. Marko is one of the few individuals who managed to continue their sports career as an actual job after adolescence.

“Work is fun,” he said. “Each day is, just, totally different and that’s what I’m loving about my career right now, with doing a TV show and chartering and the research. Every day has just been something new.”

There have been some significant changes in how he approaches a day of fishing, according to Marko.

“The big difference between me and you is; you get to fish. I have to put the client on the fish," he said.

That change in perspective isn’t a negative development, he said.

“When clients are getting a catch of a lifetime, like they do with me, it makes it all worth it," Marko said.

The amount of preparation that goes into each day’s trip starts very early and recent technological advances, specifically the newest night vision cameras from SiOnyx, help greatly with that.

“It’s been one of those products, that, since I’ve had it in my hand, I’ve used it every single day,” Marko said. “If there’s anything I can say about this device, it’s; peace of mind.”

In Marko’s career, he has transformed from a sportsman to a leading researcher on goliath fish and his clients get to be part of that, as well.

“That’s the one thing about my charters. A lot of my clients get to do the research with me. It’s a new fish. We get to name it," he said.

Black Friday is still the king when it comes to shopping days in the United States. Recently, however, Cyber Monday has begun to gain ground on the largest retail day of the year thanks to the success of online retailers like Amazon.

In this excerpt from Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss what brick and mortar stores need to do to insure that Black Friday doesn't get overtaken by Cyber Monday.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

It takes multiple companies to make robot automation come to life in metal forming, fabricating, welding or finishing. At Fabtech 2019, Dan Allford of Arc Specialties provided a picture of why collaboration and cooperation between companies in different segments of the industry is so important.

"People that come to this show typically come with a problem to solve," Allford said. He went on to explain the role of a robot integrator in the process of creating a robot for a specific purpose.

"A robot integrator takes that robot arm and then adds the tooling, adds the software, and also adds the tooling to hold the part," he said. "As you can see on this Fanuc robot, Fanuc built the robot, we added the seventh axis, we wrote the software. So we work very closely with our partners."

Shows like Fabtech allow companies to stay up to date with what their partners have developed and find new ways to collaborate on putting these creations into practice.

Here are the top events to see as we head into December

Here are the most notable numbers related to Thanksgiving this year

The fight for net neutrality is over at the federal level, at least for now. The Obama-era Open Internet Order of 2015 was repealed by Ajit Pai's FCC and solidified after a DC circuit court of appeals' final ruling, leaving prospects looking slim for legislation proactively regulating broadband internet.

However, even with the federal repeal, individual states still have the ability to pass their own legislation, which could carry on the spirit of net neutrality by tackling the most frequented issues of blocking lawful content, throttling and paid prioritization.

With the future of net neutrality in the hands of the states, how will this play out for end-users and ISPs? On this episode of Ratified, a MarketScale show on the intersection of business and policy, host Daniel Litwin brings two important perspectives to the table to understand the main arguments for and against net neutrality regulations, why small ISPs fought hard for repeal, and what future legislation could look like encourages both broadband expansion and an open internet.

Commentary includes perspectives from Matt Polka, CEO of ACA Connects, and Chad Marlow, senior advocacy & policy council at the ACLU.

ACA Connects, which represents almost ACA Connects represents almost 800 small and medium-sized independent telecom operators across the nation, and works with Washington to ensure fair treatment of these small players so they can provide “affordable video broadband and phone services to Main Street America.” Polka and his members have felt a weight lifted with the repeal of Net Neutrality, and he joined Ratified to give his perspective on Title II regulations, how they affect small ISPs, and whether lawmakers can put partisanship aside to roll out new federal legislation.

At the ACLU, Marlow advises specifically on privacy, surveillance, and technology issues. An advocate for a free and open internet, Marlow explained how a state-by-state Net Neutrality framework could play out, who’s necessary to advise on quality legislation, and his take on some of the prevailing arguments from the net neutrality discussion.

For more on Ratified, follow Daniel Litwin on Twitter and subscribe to MarketScale Radio on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Empowering employees to be champions of your brand is more important than ever before. 92% of people trust recommendations from their family and friends over any other form of advertising. Thus, employees who are advocates for their employers help to lead recruitment, increase brand awareness and even drive leads.

Is there a shift in the building of trust?

Advocacy isn’t a new concept, but many companies are just waking up now to the fact that it’s not something that can be ignored any longer.

Traditional advertising mediums are not going anywhere. But today, there is an element of cynicism in that people don’t automatically trust what they read or see. 73% of people worry about false information in news sources.

Therefore valuing the opinion of an employee over traditional advertising is simple – it’s about trust.

In this episode of Maverick of Marketing, Shannon Maverick talks with Steve Plowman, Customer Success Manager at Smarp – an employee communication platform that helps organizations to drive alignment, productivity and engagement, company-wide.

“When you see an employee post content on LinkedIn using their own messaging, their own voice, you read that and believe that person is genuine,” says Plowman. “They don’t have a vested interest in presenting a fake image. They believe in what they are doing so as I read that, so do I. Fundamentally, it’s about trust.”

Only 33% of buyers trust messages from a brand, while some 90% of individuals trust product or service recommendations from people they know.

Building advocates for your brand

When internal information is personalized, relevant and digestible – engagement increases. It’s incredibly important today that messaging isn’t blanketed across an organization, but developed differently for different departments and individuals.

That’s because advocates don’t just appear. It’s a journey that begins with employee engagement - aligning those employees with the company vision and goals and customizing communication across different business units. most importantly, educating, informing and inspiring them.

In a recent study, 21% of employees are already highly engaged advocates and can act as role models for colleagues to emulate. The study further estimates that another 33% are open to becoming stronger brand advocates.

“If you as an employee understand clearly where your company is going, you’re going to feel a part of the journey to get there and you’re going to be bought in,” says Plowman. “And this is where you can create these true employee advocates, brand advocates, the people that are going to want to tell the world about the great things you and your company are doing.”

Where do we go from here?
The benefits of advocacy by employees runs deep, helping business units across an entire organization.

The holiday season is a joyous and happy time for many people, but for some it can be an emotionally trying time. Interacting with family, missing family members who have passed away, and the general hustle and bustle of the season can be difficult to deal with.

On this episode of I Don't Care with Kevin Stevenson he welcomes Lexie Miller to the show. Lexie is a Licensed Professional Counselor at Lifeologie Counseling Dallas. They discuss the challenges of the season and how people can find healthy ways to deal with the stress.

Listen to I Don't Care LIVE every Friday morning at 9:30AM CST to stay up to date with everything going on in the healthcare industry.

High humidity levels can increase the dry times for dry wall, paint, plaster, fireproofing compounds, adhesives, masonry, cement, and other key building materials. Cost overruns are a builder’s nightmare. Is there a better, more efficient way of increasing dry times without using traditional heaters, fans, or outdoor air?

In this episode of the Building Management Podcast, Ryan Creagan, Business Development Specialist at Polygon U.S. offered a solution to speed up these dry times: desiccant dehumidifiers. Creagan resides in San Diego, where the area has been subject to rising humidity levels in the past few years. The rising humidity slows down the building process, especially for the dry wall crews.

Unlike traditional methods which may warm up an area, but not mitigate the moisture in the air, desiccant dehumidifiers suck up the moisture and exhaust it out of the building. When determining the right setup of desiccant dehumidifiers for a particular building project, Creagan and his team look at several factors: the size of the area that needs to be dehumidified, the internal/external conditions involved, and the particular building process that needs to be dried.

Why use desiccant dehumidifiers instead of heaters and outside air? Traditional construction heaters use a fuel source such as propane or natural gas which cause combustion and return moisture back into the area one is trying to dry. And outside air is unpredictable. Moisture levels can fluctuate throughout the day with an outside air source.

A recent example of desiccant dehumidifiers saving the day was at a downtown San Diego building project. The humidity levels were causing drywall compound delays. Creagan's team brought in desiccant dehumidifiers and turned a 3-day dry-time project into an overnight one.

TC Riley and Ben Thomas discuss today's data trends and topics like employee tracking, blackouts across California and MLB players selling themselves to teams using data. Tune in for more!

"Alexa, order Chipotle" may soon be coming out of hungry customer mouths. Chipotle announced their plans to further integrate Amazon's Alexa platform into their ordering process. Join Geoff Short and Taylor Bagley as the take a bite out of Chipotle's plan.

On this segment of Business Casual, Geoff and Taylor break down the new UPS plan to more efficiently deliver healthcare products.

Geoff Short and Taylor Bagley discuss Las Vegas' new use of AI to streamline the flow of traffic. Is it a great idea or just plain weird?

Geoff Short and Taylor Bagley break down the new Tesla Cybertruck and it's potential applications beyond the consumer facing market.

Geoff Short and Taylor Bagley fill in for Daniel and Tyler this week and discuss the new Tesla Cybertruck, Las Vegas putting AI into their stoplights and Chipotle leveraging Alexa to help streamline your ordering process. Tune in!

Lauren Farrell joins Business Casual to discuss MarketScale's recent recognition for Conversational Marketing

Hosts Daniel Litwin and Geoffrey Short break down the latest headlines in the world of B2B

Hosts Geoffrey Short and Daniel Litwin break down the top headlines of the day.

Doug Ressler breaks down the latest apartment building trends across the United States.

Forbes Contributor and Amazon Insider Kiri Masters joins Business Casual to discuss the retailer's latest venture

Tune in to hear Gerry Mecca discuss Digital Transformation and how the disruption caused by companies like Uber may actually be a good thing.

Hosted by Geoffrey Short, Ben Thomas and Lauren Farrell

Technological advancements in the healthcare industry can be shockingly effective. They also can exert a significant impact on a hospital’s budget. On this episode of MarketScale’s Healthcare Podcast, David Macfarlane Marketing Communications Manager for Medsphere Systems, sat down with host Sean Heath to discuss the challenges of adopting the latest and greatest technologies.

The initial cost of a new healthcare technology can vary widely, based on the size/scope of the product, Macfarlane said.

“If you’re looking at the entire range of IT products, specific to healthcare, so, we’re talking about an entire healthcare platform. An electronic health record that runs a whole hospital, or a healthcare system, and then you could scale all the way down to a single software product that does something very specific, or a single device that does something very specific," he said.

The cost and budgetary impact of technological advances is apparent across the entire industry, explained Macfarlane.

“There’s a linear relationship between increases in healthcare costs and the introduction of technology into the healthcare environment. When you introduce new technology, costs go up. We haven’t managed to bend that curve, at all," he said.

Macfarlane also explained that the rapid adoption of healthcare IT systems can decrease the usage by the physicians it was designed to assist.

“They found that they sort of made their lives more complicated, not less complicated,” Macfarlane said. “They found that they spend more time now than they used to, entering data and a lot of hospitals have actually hired people to do that for physicians. So, there’s still a lot of maturity (for these systems) to achieve.”

I don't care, episode 4

Oftentimes in business we complain about too much data. But for marketers in newer companies, often there is no data to inform decisions. So how do marketing strategies change between established brands and startups?
Building a marketing strategy from the ground up with a start-up is different, no matter what way you slice it. There is no baseline, no knowledge of what works and no knowledge of what doesn't.
Everything has to be done faster than ever before, and without data. Thus, creativity in gathering information is key. This week we on Maverick of Marketing we talk with Nick Stagg, Chief Marketing Office at Wooly, a cloud-based advocacy platform.
"When faced with obstacles you get creative and you rely on things you didn't have to rely on before, says Wooley. You have to prioritize what needs to be done versus what you want to get done." With what needs to get done winning out.
Owned and Earned Media
There is often a debate across owned, earned and paid media. But when budgets are minimal the decision is a no-brainer - creating content and distributing on owned channels. For big brands with big budgets, owned media can sometimes be a lost art. They throw money, and lots of it, at paid channels so they can move faster at scale, and get more data to optimize quickly.
But authenticity is more important to buyers than ever before, and in the long run the payoff of owned media is greater. With owned media there is a greater opportunity for employee advocacy. And today, everybody in the company is in someway, an extension of sales. Each individual just has a different role to support it. Listen in to this weeks episode of Maverick of Marketing for the full episode

Protecting new ideas, processes, and products is as important as developing them in the first place. On this episode of MarketScale’s Building Management podcast, Seckin Ozol, vice president of engineering research and development for Transhield [https://transhield-usa.com/], sat down with host Sean Heath to discuss their approach to protecting ideas and developing responsible products.

Any company that develops new iterations of its products in-house, needs to protect them.

“At this point, we either patent the material itself, where the technology is bringing some new idea to the application, or we patent the process to manufacture this fabric,” Ozol said. “By protecting this, we are adding value to our company.”

The fact that Transhield relies so heavily on “chemically impactful” materials has strengthened their resolve to be environmentally responsible, as well, according to Ozol.

“As a company in plastics and packaging, we are always a part of the equation that get criticized, in regard to the environmental footprint. As a company, about ten years ago, we patented a material and process that is 100% recyclable," he said.

Ozol also shared the excitement that accompanies being an innovative industry leader.

“One of the best things about these productions, in R&D, is that you know that no one in the world created what you are making right now. That it’s being manufactured for the very first time and that’s a very good feeling.”

Every second counts in professional auto racing. While the drivers must be skilled to shave off fractions of a second at every turn, their pit crews work against the clock as well. It is critical for racing teams to be organized, communicative and prepared for whatever condition they find the vehicle when it comes in for repairs during a grand prix.

Technology has helped the most innovative teams beat both the clock and competitors. Analyzing thousands of data points each lap has allowed teams to gain new insights into their efforts, making the sport faster than ever before.

Renault Sport Racing Head of Partnerships Antoine Magnan has called F1 the most technological sport in the world. He gave MarketScale an exclusive look at what the Renault Racing team’s pit crew area looks like just hours before the drivers head to the starting line.

On November 3, F1 raced through Austin, Texas for the United States Grand Prix. Magnan’s Renault team competed against six-time champion Lewis Hamilton and the rest of the talented field.

Marketing has often been seen as advertising, which is fleeting. But marketing today is changing. Stories and customer experience are imperative for businesses. It's no longer brand driven marketing strategy, but brand driven business strategy.

Traditional advertising is declining and experiences is driving forward as most important. Anything that touches the customer is marketing and part of the experience.
How is storytelling important in talking with prospective clients?

When brands are truly separating themselves from competitors they are adding an authentic and emotional element to their strategy. They explain why they are uniquely qualified to meet the buyers need. And to do that, personalization is key.

This week on Maverick of Marketing we talk with Lauri Waidner, Marketing Manager for Champion Manufacturing, discussing the power of storytelling to build authenticity.
Empathy, and storytelling help build trust.

"Trust is like oxygen, you have to have it in order to establish a relationship," Waidner said.

Today's marketplace is saturated and thus trust is of essence to a foundation. Purchases today are more trust based. And thus, people need to see themselves within a brand through experience and relationships.

For more, listen to this weeks episode of Maverick of Marketing.

On this episode of Element Sessions, an Element Designs podcast, Nelson Wills, vice president of business development, and Sahaj Patel, president of Triton Glass, LLC, joined host Geoffrey Short to discuss the rising popularity of glass use in building projects. Wills noted office spaces are becoming more open with less emphasis on private offices. Glass provides the structure of walls, but the openness of space.

Wills and Patel elaborated on the differences between tempered and laminated glass, and which building applications typically use each type and why. Patel also mentioned insulated glass, a product used for exteriors.

To talk about glass’ present, Wills started with glass’ past to demonstrate its long history in the building process.

“We see glass across industries. We see it in appliances, we see it in solar panels, we see it in exteriors; there’s a strong trend towards using glass in electronics," Patel said.

Wills talked about the fast-moving technology around glass and he mentioned several examples of new innovations.

Patel walked Short through the process his company goes through when working with clients on their glass projects. His goal is to educate the client on the types of products available to them so they can make the right decision based on their needs.

Wills and Patel wrapped up the conversation by reminding listeners of the improvements and technology advances happening with glass products, from increased energy efficiency to the flexibility in use.

Taking Cinedeck from the hardware world to the software world impacted leaders' outlook on the company business model and shaped the company in an unexpected way, COO Jane Sung [contributor page] said in this third of a three-part conversation on CineCast, a Cinedeck podcast.

"When we first launched the software, we launched with our same hardware mentality," Sung said. "As a matter of fact, we launched because it was an easy thing to do, almost like an addendum to our hardware product."

Six months later, clients were choosing cineXtools software instead of Cinedeck's legacy hardware tools.

"As a business owner that's scary because our software was 1/20th of the price of our hardware," Sung said.

The success of cineXtools taught Sung and the company the importance of process and structure to manage scalable growth, and that's advice she shares with other young software companies.

Cinedeck COO Jane Sung says there were huge barriers when it came to entering the software technology market with cineXtools.

"Especially when you're bootstrapping that new product," Sung said in this second of three-part discussion on CineCast, a Cinedeck podcast. "Basically it felt like we were starting as a brand new startup."

Like a startup, Cinedeck was reaching for a new audience that was unfamiliar with the company and its prior product offerings. Though they were a well-established company, they had to break through like a brand new player in an increasingly "noise-filled" marketplace. They teamed with marketing and other experts for outsourced operations and kept a large in-house development team in-house.

From its inception, Cinedeck has worked tirelessly to bring innovative video recording and editing tools to the market, but that was no easy feat persuading the industry their solution was feasible. On this first of three-part conversation on CineCast, a Cinedeck podcast, COO Jane Sung takes us behind the curtain to reveal the challenges they faced and how they solved them.

"With any startup, sales is the number one thing you're focused on," Sung said. "But it's a big challenge. It was certainly our biggest investment of time, creating that strong sales pipeline." But creating that pipeline meant more than selling a solution; it was opening up two-way communication with their customers.

"Offering a space for our customers to opine about the state of the industry was important for Cinedeck," Sung said.

Staleness can be a killer for a business in any industry. This is especially true for hospitality and entertainment companies. However, continually investing in new technology and experiences can be financially unsustainable.

Camron Ware, Founder of Lightware Labs provides projection mapping content for his clients, something that has become more popular. However, according to Ware, this rise is not just because of a drop in price for the technology.

“For a long time, the phrase projection mapping and that kind of video magic was reserved for those really high-end, high-budget, high scale projects,” he said. “Like most things with technology it has become more accessible to everyone.”

Ware says a mindset of saying ‘why not’ has been embraced by companies looking to reinvigorate their entertainment options.

“The idea with projection mapping is you can be as creative as you can ever think of, your content can change per event and it’s still a memorable experience,” he said.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Geoffrey Short:

The first FAA-approved long-distance drone flight using no ground-based radar or visual observer took place recently in Kansas.
Apple is aiming to release a combined VR and AR headset with an emphasis on gaming applications in the next couple years.
Kiri Masters, Founder and CEO of Bobsled Marketing, joined the show to discuss Amazon's decision to open a traditional grocery store in California. What's the motivation behind this move and what does this mean for Whole Foods?
The site for Disney+ was overwhelmed upon its rollout this week. How should customers view this new world of streaming services?

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Safety is important in any workplace, and in the energy storage industry this is becoming an increasingly critical element.

At the Energy Storage North America (ESNA) conference in San Diego this month, the topic was top of mind for attendees.
“It seemed like the overarching theme to this year’s ESNA was safety,” Hanan Fishman, President, Alencon Systems LLC said.

After a series of fires at electrical storage systems (ESS) worldwide, potential solutions to this issue were addressed.

“That seemed to be a topic that was weighing heavily on many people’s minds throughout the conference,” Fishman said. “I must admit I was taken aback as to just how focused people were on that.”

As solar energy becomes cheaper and more widely available, it will be up to the industry to find out how to safely store energy, something that is not easy but seems to be squarely on the radar of those in the space.

Audio engineer Collyer Spreen sat down with MarketScale to talk about his career in the industry and share some of the interesting stories he has collected over the years.

From starting as an apprentice in a recording studio to playing basketball in a parking lot with Prince, Collyer has some incredible stories from his time in the industry. As technology evolved he was able to evolve along with it, moving from the days of reel to reel tape to the current world of Pro Tools.

Hear the famous drummer who caught him playing drums in the studio and learn the tips for making it in the industry. It's all included in this interview with Collyer Spreen.

Have you ever wondered what the differences are between Medicare and Medicare Advantage? Wonder no more!

This episode of I Don't Care with Kevin Stevenson dives into those differences and gets some expert analysis from Johnny Y'Barbo with the Copeland Group. Johnny and Kevin get into the nitty gritty of Medicare to explain these differences and explore the history of how it has changed over the years.

Listen to I Don't Care LIVE every Friday morning at 9:30AM CST to stay up to date with everything going on in the healthcare industry.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:

T-Mobile has announced the details for their rollout of a prepaid 5G plan coming next month. The plan will be inexpensive but has a limited amount of data and requires the purchase of an expensive phone. Will this prevent the plan from being widely adopted? Or is this proof that 5G is making headway and will be here sooner rather than later?
Volkswagen announced plans to convert their Zwickau plant from producing only internal combustion engines to exclusively making electric vehicles. This signals a shift for VW as they plan to launch the ID.3 with a price point they believe is much more accessible for a great portion of the population. Will this begin to launch the full electric vehicle revolution that many have been expecting?
Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick has launched a new start up called CloudKitchens that helps create kitchens for delivery only restaurants. Does this new company have the potential to revolutionize the restaurant industry the way Uber transformed transportation?

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Hawaii Gas faces an uncertain future as the state looks to move to renewable sources of energy. However, some of the roadblocks that stand in the way of that change provide a glimpse of what the future could hold in other states and areas of the world.

Get the full story from Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern in this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Sports organizations have gotten increasingly smart about their use of data to build an ecosystem within their stadiums. This data allows for personalization and simplifies the customer experience.

On this excerpt from Diving into Data, T.C. Riley explains how teams are accomplishing this and where this trend could be moving in the future.

Tune in every Wednesday at 9:30 for your weekly dive in data with MarketScale's resident numbers man, TC Riley.

American students scored slightly above average when it came to tech scores. How can that be when young people are thoroughly inundated with tech on a regular basis?

Is there a disconnect somewhere in the education students are receiving? Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss on this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this episode of Diving into Data with T.C. Riley:

Data is helping sports organizations create an ecosystem for their stadiums, using data to personalize the experience for fans.
The data collected in the transportation industry has skyrocketed in recent years and it's only expected to continue growing. Will this data lead to the creation of smart cities with autonomous transportation systems? We'll just have to see.
What does it mean to make data driven decisions? T.C. breaks this down and cautions against confirmation bias when it comes to data analysis.

Tune in every Wednesday at 9:30 for your weekly dive in data with MarketScale's resident numbers man, TC Riley.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:

Hawaii Gas faces an uncertain future as the state looks to move to renewable sources of energy. However, some of the roadblocks that stand in the way of that change provide a glimpse of what the future could hold in other states and areas of the world.
American students scored slightly above average when it came to tech scores. How can that be when young people are thoroughly inundated with tech on a regular basis?
Microsoft's division in Japan experimented with moving to a four day work week for an entire month and the results were surprising. Employee productivity went up while costs went down. Will this cause more companies to reconsider the way they schedule their work week?

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

California Assembly Bill 5 is a piece of legislation that holds massive ramifications for the gig economy, specifically rideshare companies like Uber and Lyft. It was signed into law on September 18, 2019 in an attempt to limit the ability to classify workers as independent contractors rather than employees of a company.

Govern Gavin Newsom said of the bill, "Assembly bill 5 is landmark legislation for workers and our economy. It will help reduce worker misclassification—workers being wrongly classified as “independent contractors” rather than employees—which erodes basic worker protections like the minimum wage, PTO, and health insurance benefits.”

Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash have all expressed their displeasure with the bill, signaling they will not be in compliance. What are their claims and why are they so vehemently opposed?

To answer those questions our host Daniel Litwin spoke to Nicole Moore with Rideshare Drivers United, who provided the perspective of the driver, and Professor William Gould, who provided necessary context on the dynamics of labor law in the United States.

Tune into Ratified every Tuesday morning at 9AM CST to get the latest on the intersection of policy and business.

Every company has resources to allocate, but not every company allocates them efficiently. On this episode of the MarketScale Retail Podcast, Mike Murphy, Chief Financial Officer for Personiv, sat down with host Sean Heath to break down a few ins and outs of intelligent resource allocation.

There are three primary areas in which a company generally spends its resources: customer acquisition, product/service delivery, and G&A (General and Administrative). They are not of equal importance, explained Murphy.

“When you’re looking at the G&A function of the business, that’s generally where I want to spend the least amount of my money. If I can spend more money acquiring customers and more money delighting my customers, the better off overall I’m going to be, in terms of the value I’m returning to my shareholders," he said.

The size and development stage of a company is, generally speaking, a contributing factor to the functional efficiency of its allocation practices, said Murphy.

“It’s the companies that are smaller or kind of earlier stage, where they’re starting to win customers, they’re starting to get growth. That’s an area where you can just imagine, they’re throwing money at different initiatives to try to grow the business. They continue to put money in areas that may not be producing the ROI," he said.

Murphy also described that the way to leverage the most valuable resource any company has, good employees, is by using resources to free them for other tasks.

“What you’re basically doing is kind of flipping the switch a little bit. You’re trying to empower that person by providing some less expensive resources, that can do the transactional work so that he or she can be spending their time focusing more from a strategic perspective,” Murphy said. “That’s what a good CEO, and that’s what a good board is going to be looking for: somebody who is able to deliver that.”

It's a question that has been asked quite a bit in recent years: How do you fix Major League Baseball? It's an even trickier answer for people in the marketing and sales departments for Major League Baseball teams.

On this episode of Revenue Radio, host Tim Maitland talked to Lauren Farrell, Senior Director of Marketing and former employee of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They discussed the challenge of marketing baseball in today's landscape and how that applies to marketing at large.

Tune in to Revenue Radio with Tim Maitland every Tuesday at 9AM on MarketScale Radio!

Today in the digital age we are inundated with information and therefore the way people are persuaded has evolved. It's imperative that marketers authentically answer what problem your business solving for, and what its value is.

Do the way humans digest information dictate how companies market to them? Or is it the way companies market that dictate how we consume information and engage with the marketplace?

It's not a question that can be easily answered. But no matter what we know that business is continuously changing, and companies that can communicate their value proposition clearly and concisely will win their industry.

Marketing is shifting from answering what, to explaining why. And thus marketing is becoming an art, with a business application. This week we speak with Carl Rossini, of the Art Institute of Dallas, discussing education, the shift of marketing from fantasy to real, and elevating the next generation of marketers.

Tune into the Maverick of Marketing every Monday at 10 am et/9 am ct. Listen to this weeks full episode above!

On this episode of Revenue Radio, host Tim Maitland was joined by John Price. John is the CEO and Founder of Cascade Point Solutions, an Amazon re-seller business, and is a Co-Owner of a growing "luxurious" camping company, Happy Yak.

With years of experience driving revenue in multiple industries, we learn more about John's background and dive into how his sales experience helps in running two online businesses. Does sales translate to online business? What tips does a season sales vet give someone new to the role?

It's all ahead on this episode of Revenue Radio!

On this episode of the MarketScale Building Management Podcast, host Daniel Litwin, the Voice of B2B, was joined by Todd Jenkins, President of Jenkins Roofing, Jennifer Long, National Manager for Commercial Contractor Programs at GAF, and Jo Ann Moreno, Senior Commercial Territory Manager at GAF for a roundtable podcast discussion on the current state of commercial roofing.

The discussion began with thoughts on what’s hot, and what’s not in today’s commercial roofing industry. Jenkins said a lot of building owners are looking for certified inspections from certified roofers. And what wasn’t hot? Roofs that are not being looked after or maintained for months and years at a time.

Long and Moreno agreed, with Moreno adding, the building managers are becoming more educated on roofing maintenance and what they want out of a maintenance contract. Jenkins noted, managers were becoming more specific in the roofing materials they were looking for.

“Everyone wants a No Dollar Limit (NDL) Warranty, right now,” Moreno said.

An NDL is the protection from the manufacturer to the owner. Long told the panel that often times roofs are replaced too frequently, when maintenance and repairs were all that was needed. Long mentioned there was an opportunity for contractors to differentiate themselves from those who are quick to replace than to repair.

The podcast roundtable went on to discuss common roofing misconceptions, like having an NDL warranty means the roof is maintenance free for the next 20 years; the discussion further stressed the need to proactive maintain one’s roof to ensure longevity.

Listen to this roofing roundtable for insights into how different regions should prepare their roofs uniquely for weather, how solar adds new layers of inspection education to the industry, and where data from AI might take roofing inspections in the future.

Each year the Chain Reaction Antibiotics Scorecard is released to give fast and fast casual restaurants a grade for their antibiotics policies regarding meat.

Which brands scored highly and which ones didn't? Find out as Tyler quizzes Daniel on some of the most popular chains in the world.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Molson Coors announced a massive restructure that will effectively kill the MillerCoors brand. As a result, the company will be terminating between 400 and 500 salaried positions.

One article stated that the reasoning behind this was that millennials are consuming less beer. One our hosts, Tyler Kern, took exception to this explanation and let his feelings be known in this snippet from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this episode of I Don't Care with Kevin Stevenson, he discussed the growing issue of wasteful spending in the healthcare industry.

The Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reported that U.S. healthcare spending hit $3.5 trillion in 2017, a 3.9% increase from 2016. While it would be easy to assume that the more more that is spent on healthcare means that Americans are getting healthier, but the data tells a different story.

A study by Dr. Natasha Perekh from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and representatives of Humana Health Care estimates that the annual costs of waste in the health care system ranges from $760 billion to $935 billion.

Kevin broke down the causes of this wasteful spending and discussed ways to fix it.

Listen to I Don't Care LIVE every Friday morning at 9:30AM CST to stay up to date with everything going on in the healthcare industry.

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey announced that the social media outlet had decided to ban all political and issue advertisements as of November 22. Is this a wise move in light of the scrutiny Facebook is receiving, or is this a cop out to avoid dealing with the difficult issues of our time?

Hear what Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern have to say about it on this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

It's Business Casual Friday! Here's what Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discussed on this episode of the show:

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey announced that the social media outlet had decided to ban all political and issue advertisements as of November 22. Is this a wise move in light of the scrutiny Facebook is receiving, or is this a cop out to avoid dealing with the difficult issues of our time?
Molson Coors announced a massive restructure that will effectively kill the MillerCoors brand. The stated reasoning behind this was that millennials are consuming less beer. This got under Tyler's skin and he went on a bit of a rant.
Each year the Chain Reaction Antibiotics Scorecard is released to give fast and fast casual restaurants a grade for their antibiotics policies regarding meat. Which brands scored highly and which ones didn't? Find out as Tyler quizzes Daniel on some of the most popular chains in the world.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Gerry Mecca, IT expert and host of the Mecca Minute, joined Business Casual to discuss the 50th birthday of the internet.

From the early days of dial up modems and chat rooms to IoT and the cloud, no one could have predicted how the internet was going to develop in its first 50 years. Gerry and the guys relive some of that history and take a look at the issues facing the future of the internet as it currently exists today.

Will security issues continue to grow as more of our lives exist online? And how will regulations play a part moving forward? It's all included in this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

The NCAA voted unanimously to allow its players to financially benefit from the use of their image, likeness, and name. This vote comes after the governing body of college sports fought against a similar law being passed in California.

Why the change and what are the greater implications for college athletics? Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin were joined by Gerry Mecca to breakdown these questions from the perspective of the schools and the athletes.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg appeared before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on Tuesday to discuss concerns over the 737 Max aircraft and the future of aviation safety.

Muilenburg began his testimony with an apology to the families of those who lost their lives in two separate crashes involving the 737 Max. The most notable revelation, however, was the admission that he was notified between the two crashes of a test pilot's claim of "egregious" problems with the Max's flight control system.

What will the fallout be from this testimony? Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss in this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:

Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg appeared before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation on Tuesday to discuss concerns over the 737 Max aircraft. What came out of the testimony and what ramifications does it have for other businesses?
The NCAA voted unanimously to allow its players to financially benefit from the use of their image, likeness, and name. This vote comes after the governing body of college sports fought against a similar law being passed in California. Why the change and what are the implications for college athletics?
Gerry Mecca, IT expert and host of the Mecca Minute, joined the show to discuss the 50th birthday of the internet. How far has the internet come over the years and where might it be going in the future?

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:

Lyft and their drivers have a disagreement over the information displayed on the app
Fossil fuels are being challenged from different angles around the world
Phil Levy explains why he's not overly optimistic about the U.S./China trade dispute
And so much more!

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

It's a question that is asked on a regular basis: What is the cloud and how do I use it?

On this episode of The Mecca Minute, Gerry Mecca provides an explanation of what the cloud is and how to best utilize it. He also explains the risk involved for companies when they make the decision to adopt a cloud-based service.

Gerry Mecca is currently with The EKG Group and is the former VP of IT at Keurig Dr. Pepper.

A change to the drivers' app for Lyft has some wondering if the rideshare company is intentionally keeping their drivers in the dark about the way the company is splitting fares.

Where there was once a "Ride Pays" section available for drivers to see on the app, there's now only a link that directs users to a weekly aggregate of fares. Lyft officials said they wanted to make it easier for drivers to determine how much they were making, but drivers more skeptical.

This move also calls into question the employment status of rideshare drivers, which once again highlights the ongoing dispute between Uber/Lyft and their drivers.

Hear what Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern had to say about this story and more on this excerpt from Business Casual!

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Could the trade war between the United States and China be inching towards a resolution? Some indicators are pointing to that answer being yes.

But the primary question is: What has this trade war actually achieved?

To answer that question, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern talked to Phil Levy, Chief Economist for Flexport. Hear the full interview in this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

As the United Auto Workers and General Motors Co. work to strike a new deal the focus has turned to how this agreement will be set up to accommodate changes that are coming for the auto industry.

On this excerpt from Business Casual, Daniel Litwin broke down the proposed changes and what they would mean for the industry. Specifically, automakers are expecting technology and electric vehicles to drastically change the manufacturing process and the need for labor.

The new contract between the two sides would add a tech committee to oversee these changes to the industry in the coming years.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this episode of I Don't Care, MarketScale healthcare industry contributor Kevin Stevenson discussed the importance of educating healthcare consumers.

"People are becoming a lot more involved in their care and they're able to access a wide variety of healthcare information," Stevenson said.

The problem can be finding the right information and knowing who you can trust with your health. Stevenson gave his thoughts on the mass amount of information available to patients nowadays and how healthcare providers need to adapt.

Hear I Don't Care LIVE every Friday morning at 9:30AM CST to stay up to date with everything going on in the healthcare industry.

What topics did TC Riley dive into on this week's episode of Diving into Data? We're glad you asked.

The 2019-2020 NBA season tipped off this week. TC took a look at what the offseason player movement data can tell us about who could come out of the gate quickly to start the season and which teams could be improved over last year.
Construction projects are notorious for being late and over budget. What are some of the root causes of this and how can data help remedy this situation? TC presents some solutions and discusses the challenges of getting everyone on a project on the same page.
We hear the term "big data" quite often. But what about "small data"? TC makes the case that there's value in setting small goals and achieving them rather than trying to climb an insurmountable mountain of data.

Tune in every Wednesday at 9:30 for your weekly dive in data with MarketScale's resident numbers man, TC Riley.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:

Netflix is gearing up to take on entertainment giant Disney when it comes to content creation. Can they keep up with the juggernaut behind Star Wars, Marvel, and more?
On the heels of Supply Side West, President of Culinary Tides Suzy Badaracco joined the show to talk about the latest trends in the food industry. Hint: you won't want to miss what she had to say about the plant-based hamburger fad!
Is the energy sector undergoing a major shift when it comes to fossil fuels? Two stories suggest this might be case. Daniel and Tyler discussed them and what they could mean going forward.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to esports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

The practice of sports vision training has evolved due to a better understanding of how the visual system works and new technologies that allow us to access information and train in natural contexts. Dr. Greg Appelbaum, Ph.D., and his team at the Duke University School of Medicine’s Human Performance Optimization Lab, are interested in how they can optimize human performance using neuroscience-based tools. Some of these tools expand into the realm of virtual reality and augmented reality.

Appelbaum’s combination of laboratory-based research and real-world research is used to advance the science of Sports Vision training. “A lot of these new tools, especially these digital tools, allow us to collect data in context that you wouldn’t think of as a research context,” Appelbaum said.

Can Sports Vision training play a role in athlete safety? What sports most benefit from this type of training? Is it expensive? And how is technology like Reflexion's adding an advanced layer of data to neuro-fitness? Dr. Appelbaum answered these questions and revealed a host of training methods and tools athletes use to improve areas such as depth perception and anticipatory timing.

Do athletes have a sixth sense when it comes to anticipating a penalty kick or deciphering whether to swing at an iffy strike zone pitch? Yes and no -- it's a mix of stellar hand-eye coordination, past experience that helps athletes anticipate the ball, and training. But not simply athletic training; visual-motor reaction time training.

On this episode of the MarketScale Sports and Entertainment Podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sits down with Dr. Daniel Laby, a board-certified Ophthalmologist and founder of SportsVision NYC, to discuss a very "Moneyball" approach to the role of vision in sports and performance, as well as to break down the Reflexion technology powering neuro-fitness in sports.

"Our eyes are just a camera," Laby said. "Our brain is what takes that image and makes a decision to bring in memory and training to decide whether you're going to make a motor action."

Laby began measuring eye-hand visual-motor reaction time more than 20 years ago when he was completing a fellowship with the LA Dodgers. Over 18 seasons, Laby measured the reaction time of thousands of baseball players and was able to quantify that data into actionable information coaches could use.

Over time, Laby went on to measure athletes' vision in other sports and found correlations between specific sports and its athletes' depth perception, contrast, and perception of light.

"Every sport has a different constellation of vision skills to perform optimally," Laby said. "In baseball, for example, it has to do with how well do you see sharpness of vision and ability to see contrast."

Here are the biggest B2B stories of the last week!

Tariffs and subsidies are a hot topic at the moment, with global trade affecting the market each day. But who exactly are tariffs hurting and helping? Dan Allford, president and founder of ARC Specialties, delivers his perspective on this episode of The Roboticist Chronicles.

Allford, a proponent of a global free market, described how his boyhood job of selling papers ignited a deep appreciation for free market capitalism.

“Very early on I saw the connection between effort and reward,” Allford said, describing the beauty of America’s self-made-man economy. But when tariffs and subsidies make their way into the free-market Dan explained, “creative destruction,” occurs, upending the natural homeostasis of who survives in a free and fair marketplace.

“If you have an unlevel playing field, and that’s either subsidies or tariffs, either one distorts this field. And so what you’re doing is rewarding people that truly should have failed," Allford said.

He elaborates with historical examples of trade between Brazil, France, Germany, and of course, China, giving examples of how tariffs and subsidies have handicapped industries that are now unable to survive without aid.

“We don’t need protection, we need opportunities to innovate,” Allford said, pointing to America’s naturally scrappy, competitive nature. At the heart of a growing economy is innovation, the natural push that keeps humanity at the forefront of technology, robotics, and mechanization.

Get to know Dan’s Darwinian economic point of view in this timely episode of The Roboticist Chronicles.

This episode of Business Class boards a plane for Las Vegas!

There are plenty of reasons why people travel to Vegas, both for business or leisure. Our travel experts, Cameron Cooper and Tim Maitland, are here to help you navigate the wild west of sin city and make the most of your time in one of the most interesting cities in the world.

"The first time I visited I really enjoyed this large-scale place that didn't even really feel real," Tim says. Cameron brings her tips for booking flights and hotels on the busiest weekends.

All of that and more in this episode of Business Class!

One of the largest sources of financial inefficiency for any construction company are expenditures that can be prevented by consistent asset tracking. On this episode of ThingTech’s Enterprise Asset Intelligence podcast, the CEO of yardz, Jason Perez, sat down with Sean Heath and they discussed the simple way to solve this complex issue.

The most common mistake happens for both owned assets and rented equipment according to Perez.

“People are renting a lot of stuff that they don’t even need to rent, because they don’t even know where their own stuff is,” he said. “That was kind of an interesting segue way of rentals to owned and, really, it’s all about getting the tools regardless of whether you own them or not.”

It may seem that a highly complex solution would be required, but that’s not necessarily the case.

“Our industry is simple. Really simple. The more complex you make it, the less people connect to your solution,” Perez said.

The range of heavy construction project benefits are obvious, but other job sites can leverage the new technology, as well.

“It’s been a big deal for these roofing contractors to be able to go in and go: ‘Hey. Every project we go out, I’m a click of a button away from renting a reach lift, a port-a-potty, and a dumpster. And it takes me about 15 seconds of effort,“ Perez explained.

Misplaced or forgotten equipment is lost revenue that Perez sees on a consistent basis.

“I would say we walk in regularly, 8 months, 6 months, 3 months, you know, it’s months that people are leaving pieces of equipment and we’re talking tens of thousands of dollars that they’re leaving on the table that they could be putting back to the bottom line," he said.

Every day, new products are transported around the world on flatbed trucks, railways, and ships. They pass through a constantly-changing environment of both environmental and scenic materials. But according to Matt Peat, U.S. Director for Transhield, the majority of manufacturers don’t protect their cargo from those factors, and that can be costly.

“Most manufacturing companies, most items that ship down the road, they just choose to do nothing and that nothing leads to a dissatisfied customer,” Peat said. “It can also lead to the need to clean it up when it arrives at the customer.”

The extra time and resources needed to clean an item after shipping, but before delivery, creates an extra cost for the distributor, which is not simply financial.

“If the user is ready to receive that boat, and the dealer receives that boat, but has to do extra cleanup or repair, now you’ve got fatigue in that relationship,” Peat said. “There’s an issue that’s started, especially if you’re talking around, let’s say, Memorial Day or the Fourth of July, when it’s time to start boating.”

The old saying: an ounce of protection is better than a pound of cure, definitely applies here, with Transhield’s custom-designed coverings and protective products. With a scalable range from cars to HVAC units to locomotives to windmill blades, Peat sees a constantly flexible list of items that can (and should) be covered in transit.

“We can do, virtually, anything. We’re customizing the ‘garment’ for this machine. We’re customizing the cover that can accept anything that can be sewn onto it,” he said. “The thing is, you don’t notice what it is, because it’s big and white and covered. We do. We notice that, and we want other people to know more about it.”

On this week's episode of Maverick of Marketing, Shannon Maverick was joined by Mary George, Owner at CMO onDemand Marketing Strategy and Execution.

They discussed the opportunities and challenges presented by being a consultant in the marketing world rather than just focusing on one brand. They also talked about Mary's experience and how having a broad background has helped in her career.

Make sure you tune in every Monday at 9 A.M. to hear the Maverick of Marketing Radio Show live on MarketScale.com!

Marc Benioff, founder, chairman and co-CEO of Salesforce, told CNN's Poppy Harlow that he believes Facebook should be broken up. But why does he feel this way?

On this excerpt from Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern explore the reasons for breaking Facebook up and imagine what the ramifications of such an event would be.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:

After travel and airline provider Thomas Cook folded, leaving passengers stranded across the globe, the conversation about what to do in these circumstances has increased. What has gone wrong for these airlines and how can they prevent this from happening in the future?
One of the hottest topics on the campaign trail has been the suggestion of breaking up big tech companies like Facebook. Marc Benioff from SalesForce has weighed in, as well, agreeing with suggestions that the social media giant should be broken apart. What is his argument and what would the ramifications be?
With large events like the FIFA World Cup heading to Qatar in 2022, the wealthy nation has been exploring ways to keep visitors cool in the summer time. The impact has made for a better experience for guests, but what could the longterm ramifications be for the environment?

All of these stories and more on this episode of Business Casual!

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Find out where the biggest brands, thought leaders, and industry experts are headed this week!

The number of female truck drivers has increased 68% since 2010. John Esparza, the CEO of the Texas Trucking Association, joined Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern to explain what is making this industry so attractive to women.

"Wages have gone up and I think that's a big piece of it. We're frankly more attractive to anyone should they pay attention, and women are paying attention," Esparza said.

Check out this excerpt from Business Casual for the full interview!

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this episode of Diving Into Data with TC Riley:

Scoring has dropped in the MLB playoffs and there's one primary culprit: the baseball. After home runs were flying out of baseball parks at a record rate throughout the regular season, things have slowed significantly in the postseason. TC examined the data and provided his analysis about what's going on.
Can data and analytics help us better manage our building facilities? As machine learning and artificial intelligence are improved they're able to more accurately assist in the management of facilities, saving building owners time and money.
What are the advantages and shortcomings of artificial intelligence when it comes to the financial sector? TC discussed the positives and negatives of letting the machines take over the economy on the last section of this week's episode.

It is one thing to finally clinch that dream job, but if an organization’s workplace culture is unsatisfactory, a dream job can quickly turn into a reluctant daily obligation. On this podcast we learn from workplace culture expert Mary Lipovan of Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging about how health and human services organizations can cultivate better work environments that retain employees and foster growth, innovation, and communication.

“People aren't in this for the money,” Lipovan said of health and human services workers, “they’re in this because they genuinely want to help people.”

In order to sustain this altruistic motivation to work, an organization must establish strong company values and a clear vision. But, when these defining elements are lacking, employees lose interest and ultimately leave in search of stronger leadership.

Lipovan emphasizes the importance of defining values: “If those aren’t clear and your employees don’t know what they are, there’s always going to be that misalignment and friction.”

But defining values is more than just putting a poster up in the breakroom.

“The shortcuts seem inauthentic and that resonates just as flat as not addressing values at all," Lipovan said.

Organizations can bring their employees together by providing opportunities that authentically foster community and build relationships. Strong values are key, but Lipovan said organizations need to take it one step further.

Lipovan argues that people should ask “...not only what the values are but how to measure them.”

Lipovan explained how there needs to be a way to determine whether the company messaging is working, and leadership needs to be open to change if it is not working. At the core of this workplace infrastructure is values, vision, and commitment, but an effective means of communication is perhaps paramount to all.

After all, Lipovan says, “Communication is key. Communication keeps the organization healthy.”

Did Major League Baseball switch out the baseballs being used between the regular season and postseason? A number of baseball fans, stats enthusiasts, and even the St. Louis Cardinals believe the answer to that question is yes.

Data guru TC Riley examined the evidence and found a compelling case to be made that a different ball is being used. Hear his findings and more on this excerpt from Diving Into Data.

This podcast originally aired on MarketScale's Software & Technology podcast. It has been reposted to ARC's podcast for your listening!

Automation has become the core of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, and this emphasis on efficiency is no where more apparent than in the world of energy, specifically the oil industry. Automation is evolving the industry, offering new opportunities and structurally changing how professionals approach their day-to-day work. Dan Allford, President of ARC Specialties, joined the podcast today to explain why he thinks this is one of the most positive evolutions the industry has seen in a long time.

“It’s an exciting time in the oil industry. What once was impossible or too hazardous is now feasible through automation and robotics. For example, automation is facilitating fracking, creating profitable wells that would have never been before,” Allford said.

ARC has been busy devising new products to empower the oil and gas industry, mostly around the equipment needed out in the field. “Robotics is becoming essential in the industry. First, they improve safety, often removing workers from danger. Collaborative robots can actually work together with professionals to do more,” Allford said.

He also recounts his and the company’s experience at the recently concluded OTC (Offshore Technology Conference), where they introduced a new AI-powered product.

“Welding is one of the most challenging parts of developing equipment, it’s dependent on highly skilled welders. Lots of variations can occur, which the welder must account for and use their experience to configure correctly. Well, we’ve taken the knowledge that welders have along with data collected from a 2D laser to create a program that can compensate for these variations. Data and AI combine for a new technological solution,” Allford said.

OTC also gave a perfect representation of automation at work, focusing conversation on the impact that these efficiency-driven solutions will have on oil rigging for years to come. Listen to Allford give his insights on the industry, the future of technology, and on additional takeaways from the show.

Hosts Erin Patton and Tyler Kern were joined on this episode of Coffee with Creatives by Kedreon Cole and Dom Bookman of XR Sports Group to discuss the growth of esports.

"[Esports] is this really unique mix of sports culture and pop culture," Cole said. "The difference in 2020 versus 1980 is that now it's cool...I really think we're at an exciting time where going forward you'll see more unique activations."

They also discussed the value for brands in finding ways to integrate themselves into the gaming landscape. Bookman explained how XR Sports Group is making it easier for companies of all sizes to create communities within the esports ecosystem.

Listen to the full episode of Coffee with Creatives and stay tuned for more insightful episodes coming soon in this series.

E-commerce giants have changed the way consumers have received products, and over the last five years they have made a significant impact on the real estate market as well. According to research from commercial real estate firm CBRE Group, rents for warehouses between 70,000 and 120,000 square feet rose by 33.7 percent in the past five years. The average price is now $6.67 per square foot, CBRE says.

Availability for these smaller warehouses also shrunk from 11.3 percent to 7.4 percent in the same time frame. E-commerce companies are putting a larger focus on smaller distribution centers to increase speed of delivery to customers. Also adding to the rise in price is competition from other interested renters in these locations like apartment complexes and other commercial developers. These players are not typically a factor in areas where large warehouses are typically built.

On Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short looked into the logistics landscape and broke down what this development means for consumers.

California electricity provider PG&E has cut power to millions of state residents in an unprecedented maneuver to avoid another wildfire disaster. The company’s preventative power outage may save lives, but it will take a toll on the state’s economy.

Some estimates claim the blackout could have an economic impact of more than $2 billion. Cuts planned for Monday could leave approximately 800,000 PG&E clients, which totals 2.7 million people, in the dark.

Small businesses are particularly affected by this blackout because they do not typically have the infrastructure or budget to accommodate such a stark fall in business over what could be more than one full business week.

On Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short discussed the impact of this power outage on the California economy, and what industries will have the hardest time working through it.

This episode of the Mecca Minute takes a look at the future promise of IoT.

While he may not be a fan of the acronym, Gerry Mecca acknowledges that IoT holds the potential to radically alter our lives. He hones in on the ways that this vast network would be able to improve the living conditions in our homes.

Could we have smarter doorknobs that prevent break ins and homes that are even more adaptable when it comes to the weather and temperature? It's all coming in the future thanks to IoT.

Gerry Mecca is currently with The EKG Group and as the former VP of IT at Keurig Dr. Pepper.

Employee turnover affects every business and industry, large and small, but turnover is highest in the retail, customer service, hospitality, and service industries, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. How do you combat turnover when the robust job market gives employees their pick of positions? Today on the MarketScale Food and Beverage Podcast, host Shelby Skrhak answers that question with Frank Pereira, Managing Partner at Coleman Consulting Group.

"If you've ever been in that manager position where someone comes to you and says 'I'm leaving,' that's usually your best employee because those are the ones in the job market that can find a new job," Pereira said. "That terrible feeling you have... How do you think their peers feel?"

When a team member leaves, they take not only their labor but knowledge and a piece of the company culture away with them. Those are the intangibles, but there is a very tangible cost of replacing an employee, which can range from $8,000 upwards to $15,000 in candidate searching, training, and other on-the-job costs.

How do you prevent turnover? Focus on retention.

"The best way to retain employees is the schedule. A good schedule can go a long way," Pereira said.

"You have to remember people build their lives around their work schedules," he said. "We spend over half of our waking hours at work. And after serving hundreds of thousands of people, we know the number one thing people want is more days off."

Well-rested employees make for less turnout, fewer incidents of mistakes, and lower absenteeism, Pereira said. "It's the difference-maker."

Brandon Pfluger, director of strategic partnerships at MarketScale, joined Revenue Radio this week to discuss the importance of Q4 for marketing decision makers.

"A lot of people are getting 2020 budgets approved right now...so we're already solidifying plans for next year," Pfluger said. Q4 is an important time to evaluate ROI on previous investments and make decisions going forward.

Hear more of Brandon's insights on business development on this week's episode.

Revenue Radio airs live on MarketScale.com every Tuesday at 9 A.M. CST.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:

We put a bow on our coverage of Cable-Tec Expo 2019 with a montage detailing the thoughts from a number of industry leaders on the impact of 5G and 10G.
Disney and Amazon are at odds over Disney's new streaming platform. Find out what the two giants are warring over and the potential consequences for consumers.
Uber is making their helicopter service from Manhattan to JFK International Airport open to anyone. Is it a good deal? Hear the numbers involved and decide for yourself!

Social determinants of health have become a large topic of conversation in the healthcare industry. Kevin Stevenson, executive vice president of IntegraNet Health, joined MarketScale to explain this trend and why it means physicians are taking a more proactive approach to medicine rather than being reactive.

"[Social determinants of health] is defined by the World Health Organization as the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work, and age," Stevenson said.

These factors are obviously numerous, but physicians can now use data to more accurately gauge the health concerns of a community. Kevin discussed how the industry as a whole is adjusting its thinking and changing moving forward.

For more insight from Kevin Stevenson, check out his appearance on MarketScale Mornings discussing telemedicine and his previous podcast on mentorship in healthcare.

This week's episode of Business Class takes us to the Catalonia region, in northeastern Spain, to the city of Barcelona.

Our travel gurus Tim Maitland and Cameron Cooper hit us with all of the travel tips you need to make the most of your time in the Catalan capitol, including the best way to enjoy tapas and where to see some amazing architecture. It's all ahead in this episode of Business class!

Welcome to the Maverick of Marketing Radio Show! On this week's episode, our host Shannon Maverick took a look at the State Fair of Texas, highlighted a big decision by Unilever to cut their use of plastics in half by 2025, and welcomed a very special guest to the show.

John Maverick, Director of National Accounts for Teleflex Medical and Shannon's father, joined the show to discuss the importance of taking risks in marketing. "I think the thing I've seen as I've moved into larger organizations through the years is the inability of marketing managers to take risks," he said.

He went on to explain why being first to market can make a huge difference for businesses, highlighting the need to be agile in the marketplace.

Listen to the full episode of the Maverick of Marketing Radio Show and be sure to tune in at 9 A.M. on Monday mornings to get your weekly dose of the Maverick of Marketing.

A new study says that the slowest drive-thru in America belongs to one of its favorite chains: Chick-fil-A.

On this excerpt from Business Casual, Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin express disbelief at this conclusion and discuss the emergence of new technology in the drive-thru space.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Leaders in telecom and broadband convened in New Orleans for Cable-Tec Expo 2019 this week, looking to learn from their colleagues how the industry is preparing itself to adapt to 5G, 10G, and beyond.
Host Daniel Litwin attended the conference and spoke to several thought leaders, each carving their own important niche in the market. On Business Casual, we listened to some of their thoughts on 5G wireless and 10G broadband, from infrastructure concerns to video distribution expectations. Listen along for input from the following thought leaders, as well as commentary from Litwin and Tyler Kern.

(01:44) Satya Parimi, Group Vice President of Enterprise Data at Spectrum Enterprise
(03:22) Teresa McGaughey, Director of Solutions Marketing at Calix
(03:57) Saj Jamal, Vice President of Marketing at SSIMWAVE
(04:49) Kurt Raaflaub, Head of Strategic Solutions Marketing at ADTRAN
(05:29) David Kozischek, Market Development Group Engineer at Corning

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

After years of back and forth in court, a federal appeals court upheld the FCC's repeal of the Obama-era incarnation of net neutrality rules, effectively removing rules that prohibited ISPs from throttling internet access. The decision came in 3-2 fashion along party lines, and is already getting mixed reception.

On this on-demand bonus segment from Business Casual, hosts Daniel Litwin & Tyler Kern looked at the key changes that come with this court decision, as well as breaking down the pessimistic and optimistic viewpoints of a world with no net neutrality laws. They discuss--

The key provisions that were upheld vs. overturned in the decision.
What a future with ISPs gatekeeping internet services could look like for general media consumption, businesses, and smart cities.
How small and independent telecom operators suffer disproportionately under strict regulation.
Why it's difficult to prepare for an internet 10 years out.

Close to 200 Forever 21 locations may be coming to an abrupt end after the discount retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this week. The company was undone by declining mall traffic, expensive leases and ecommerce competition over the years.

Forever 21 has close to 800 brick-and-mortar locations worldwide, including 534 in the United States. Approximately one-third of its United States footprint is expected to close through the bankruptcy filing.

On Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short examined the company’s missteps and debated whether the retail apocalypse is playing out as many in the industry feared.

College sports fans are notoriously competitive about their programs, but the current debate capturing the NCAA has nothing to do with rankings or recruiting.

The state of California recently passed legislation that would allow collegiate amateur athletes in the state to be compensated for their name and likeness, which previously would have disqualified students from participating in NCAA events. Schools, and the NCAA, would not be allowed to punish athletes for accepting such payments, and students would also be able to hire agents.

This law is controversial in many respects, but it could provide a boon to companies near universities. On Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short broke down what the bill means for businesses and athletes alike.

This week's episode of Business Class takes across the pond for the first time as we explore the city of London.

Our experts, Tim Maitland and Cameron Cooper, bring you their unique insights on what to do, sights to see, and missteps to avoid! Cameron has some strong opinions on the food and Harry Potter, while Tim has a word of warning for anyone wanting to visit a pub to watch a soccer match.

It's all ahead on this episode of Business Class!

Sight, scent, sound, taste, and touch: Of the five senses, we often overlook the powerful effects of touch. But at California Closets, the design team is putting texture at the forefront of their creations, using it to alter a space’s look, feel, and mood. By attending European design shows, experimenting with new materials, and designing with the homeowner in mind, California Closets crafts unique, customized spaces.

On this podcast we are joined by Erin Hardy, National Manager of Design at California Closets. Hardy discussed the different ways California Closets uses texture in their designs to great effect.

“Texture really creates a lot of visual interest in design," Hardy said.

By mixing and matching textures, like matte and gloss or fabric and wood, a design can take on a whole new look and feel. At California Closets, “we create places where people start and end their day," Hardy said.

With that in mind, the design team crafts closets that reflect the life, habits, and comforts of the homeowner by asking: “How do you want to feel when you walk into your space?”

With designs in homes all over the world, California Closets aims to ensure a quality product every time. The key to consistency is in a good quality materials and a reliable set of textures that work well together. Hardy explains how artificial wood grain gives designs that consistency.

“At the end of the day we get a beautiful palette of materials that works well together every time,” she said.

On today's episode of the "Diving Into Data" podcast, we dive into a number of current issues and examine how they can be analyzed through the use of analytics.

Our primary topic today will be the ongoing economic impact of the tariff trade war with China and how a handful of critical data points show that it has impacted both nations. Many people know that this topic has been a hot-button issue for months, but few understand the economic indicators that are being impacted by those activities.

Additionally, it's September, so that can only mean one thing... Football is back! We dive into some initial impressions from the 2019 season, as well as recap how each of us feels about our fantasy football teams this fall.

Additionally, we are touch on an interesting topic of conversation in the Pro-AV world. Digital signage is all the rage but how can you gauge the effectiveness of those investments? And what emerging technologies could impact the amount of data that companies are able to capture around that signage?

It's all inside the first episode of Diving Into Data!

On this episode of Business Casual with Tyler Kern & Geoff Short:

McDonalds is testing Beyond Meat in several of their stores. Is this a good idea?
5G has made its way into German soccer stadiums, giving fans access to real time statistics and information. Will this change the live sports experience?
Facebook has acquired CTRL-labs, a New York startup that specializes in allowing humans to control computers using their brains. What could the future look like with mind-controlled computers?

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this episode of Business Casual:

For the third consecutive year, a Wisconsin-based company held a ceremony as they embedded microchips into a handful of willing employees. Why did they do this and is it a good idea? Hear what Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern had to say.
Michael Poulin, VP of Product Management at LeddarTech, joined the show to preview Automotive LIDAR Conference 2019 in Detroit.
Walmart has expanded the options for employees in their educational program. Find out what they added and how it matters for their employees.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Soccer is among the most timeless and traditional of sports but at least one league is on the cutting edge of a new technology.

VfL Wolfsburg, a club in Germany’s Bundesliga, debuted a 5G technology to improve the fan experience at its home stadium. The league partnered with Vodafone to develop an app that allows spectators to track players and view stats in real-time on their smart devices.

On Business Casual, Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short analyzed what the implementation of technology means for the sports world and how other teams can better use available data to attract more fans.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

The world’s most famous burger chain is teaming up with the product responsible this year’s most famous IPO.

McDonald’s announced it will begin testing Beyond Meat burgers at 28 Canadian locations over the next 12 weeks. The chain joins competitors Burger King and White Castle as fast food chains offering alternative meat menu items. Burger King and Whites Castle have partnerships with Impossible Foods.

The three-month testing period will give McDonald’s and its franchisees an opportunity to see how the new menu item affects efficiency and sales.

On Business Casual, Tyler Kern and Geoffrey Short reacted to the news and offered their opinions on the rise of plant-based food.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern, Daniel Litwin, and Geoff Short. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

This is a look at the week ahead at the trade show circuit in the world of B2B

On today's episode of the Healthcare Podcast, host Sean Heath got a crash course on medical crash carts from HealthFirst's marketing and product manager Lynda Goodrich.

Since 1971, Washington-based HealthFirst has been providing dental and medical offices cost-effective solutions for medical emergency preparedness, infection control, medical waste, and regulatory compliance. HealthFirst offers an automated medication replenishment system for crash carts, a wheeled set of drawers or trays that contain emergency medication and equipment for life support protocols in a patient medical emergency.

While crash carts are always found in hospitals and acute care facilities, Goodrich pointed out that medical emergencies happen everywhere.

"Crashes don't only happen to patients in hospitals," Goodrich said. "They can happen anywhere at any time. Parking lot, shopping mall, aircraft ... crash carts are a necessity in hospitals but I would argue they're a necessity everywhere."

While a hospital may have a full crash cart routinely restocked and checked by an on-site pharmacist, a smaller acute care facility may have a smaller, less-used crash kit containing medications prone to expiration or recalls. Manually checking those crash kits takes a lot of manual time and labor, something that can be solved with technology.

"You can log onto OnTraq, for example, and see all of your expiration dates and your lot numbers in case of a national recall, but it also helps eliminate human error," Goodrich said. "Plus, OnTraq's proprietary automatic replenishment system will monitor those expiration dates and prompt a replacement shipment."

Michael Poulin, VP of Product Management at LeddarTech joined Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern on Business Casual to discuss the big trends and themes from Automotive LIDAR Conference 2019.

"There's a wide range of presentations covering different topics," Poulin said. "Of course, the interest is which one provides the best performance at the best cost and can meet automotive requirements."

Poulin also gave MarketScale a preview of his talk called Implementing 3D Solid-State LiDAR Cocoon Technology in Autonomous Shuttle Applications.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Here's how to get your foot in the metaphorical door at Boon Edam, the North Carolina-based manufacturer of revolving doors and security barriers. On this new episode of the JobCast, host Sean Heath sat down with Brian Worrell, field technician manager at Boon Edam to discuss the open role of Field Service and Installation Technician.

This position provides necessary technical support for installation, service, and maintenance of equipment to regional managers, distributors technicians, and end-user customers.

"This position is the core of our finished product out in the field," Brian said, explaining the ideal candidate has strong communication skills and a strong mechanical background. "Our installation service department is the front line. We're out there in front of the customer, making our product work properly and beautiful."

Brian answered one of our signature questions -- If this position was a celebrity, who would it be -- with a salute to Tim "the Toolman" Taylor.

Job basics: Location: Throughout the United States Hours: 40-60 hours weekly, Monday through Friday with occasional weekends Travel involved: 75% travel Experience: A few years with doors helpful, but not required *Educational requirement: 2-year degree in low voltage electronics or equivalent

If you'd like to apply for this position of Sales Account Manager, head to boonedam.us/about-us

Interviews from LinkedIn Talent Connect

John Briggs, author of "Simply American" joins the podcast to speak about the state of American Manufacturing.

These days there are a number of avenues for individuals to dive into the healthcare industry. Gone are the days where proficiency in medicine was the only requirement for a career in healthcare.

That has certainly been the case for Kevin Stevenson, who has worked with various healthcare organizations for over 30 years with expertise in operations, strategy, network development, marketing and crisis communications. On this podcast Kevin discusses his journey into healthcare and shares some practical career advice for anyone interested in joining the industry.

From his entrance into healthcare to his current role as Executive Vice President for the North Texas region of IntegraNet Health, Kevin has seen the positive effects of industry professionals who are willing to provide guidance to newcomers.

"It speaks to the type of people that enter our industry," he said. "We are, for the most part, servant leaders. We're looking for ways to serve not only our patients, our constituents, our doctors or whatever, but really the community and humanity as a whole."

Listen to the full interview for more on professional healthcare organizations and how they can be beneficial for industry professionals.

Hear from the Director of the Guildhall at Southern Methodist University Gary Brubaker on what is next for the competitive gaming industry.

Trade Show Look Ahead 9.23-9.27

This week Gerry Mecca is highlighting an initiative with the North Texas Food Bank. Hunger can be a hidden issue in any community. The NTFB help to raise awareness surrounding the issue of food insecurity for children, families and seniors in hopes others will get involved in the fight against hunger.

Welcome to Business Class, a brand new travel podcast from MarketScale! We're excited to bring you tips and tricks from our travel experts to make sure your trips, whether for business or leisure, go smoothly.
For our first episode we're taking off for New York City. Cameron Cooper and Tim Maitland give you their insights on the Big Apple, like what to see, where to go, and what to pack.
Check back every Tuesday for a new episode of Business Class and get more insight from cities around the country and around the world!

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Geoff Short:

Is Amazon's manipulating their search algorithm to give themselves an unfair advantage?
Impossible Burgers are beginning to be sold in grocery stores. Will this bring some competition for Beyond Meat? Will this trend of plant-based meats continue to grow? For answers we turned to HG Parsa, Professor of Lodging Management at the University of Denver.
Walgreens announced they'll be rolling out a drone delivery partnership soon. Will prescriptions be delivered via drone in the near future?
All of these stories, plus conversations about the future of esports coverage and how one town is mixing ridesharing with public transportation.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Ridesharing has changed the way people move around cities, and at least one metro area is taking notice. Jersey City, New Jersey has announced a partnership with ridesharing app Via to use the platform to improve transit in the region.

For $2, users will be able to hail a six-person bus that will take them to a designated drop-off area near their final location. The service also fits into the city’s plan to lower the number of cars on the road, and better serve residents.

Business Casual hosts Daniel Litwin and Geoffrey Short discussed what this will mean to the city and what it signals to other urban areas.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Delivery has become a significant differentiator for restaurants and retailers alike in 2019, but it seems to be on the verge of truly taking flight.

That’s because Walgreens has announced a partnership with Alphabet Inc.-owned Wing Aviation, LLC, to begin tests for product delivery to customers. Wing is a drone company that specializes in the delivery of products.

On Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Geoffrey Short examined what challenges the companies will have to overcome and what a successful launch would mean for retailers and consumers across the U.S.

Testing of the technology will begin in Christianburg, Virginia next month.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Like a product on a shelf at eye level in a store, placement on a webpage can make or break a business.

On a platform the size of Amazon, where companies not only compete with hundreds of other vendors but also Amazon’s private label brands, this competition for top spots is intense.

According to a recent Wall Street Journal report, the e-commerce giant manipulated its product-search algorithm to better position the most profitable items for Amazon over the best match for the customer.

On Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Geoffrey Short commented on what this means for consumers, retailers and the digital marketplace.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Video game fanatics are accustomed to using their televisions to play, but soon they will be able to put down the controller and simply watch.

On Business casual, Daniel Litwin and Geoffrey Short discussed what the 2020 launch of VENN, a dedicated esports broadcast network might mean for the continued ascent of competitive gaming.

Founders Ariel Horn and Ben Kusin have raised $17 million to fund the business, which will stream on a number of different platforms from studios in New York in Los Angeles.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Trade Show Look Ahead September 23-27, 2019

Disrupting something as large and enduring as the beef industry may seem like an impossible task. Alternative meat provider Impossible Foods is planning on doing just that.

Today the company’s burgers will be sold in grocery stores for the first time. They can be found at 27 Gelson’s locations in California, and plans are in place to expand to the East Coast soon. Fast food chains including Burger King and White Castle currently host the Impossible Burger on their menus, and alternative meat competitor Beyond Meat is already sold in grocery stores. Overall, Impossible Burgers are sold at more than 17,000 restaurant locations.

University of Denver Professor of Lodging Management H.G. Parsa has spent more than a decade in the food industry. He joined Business Casual to discuss what challenges and opportunities await Impossible Foods as it hits grocery store shelves across the country.

Hear Daniel Litwin and Geoff Short discuss this story on this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune into MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this episode of Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin:

Prof. Bud Weinstein, Associate Director of the Maguire Energy Institute at Southern Methodist University, joined in the show to discuss the potential impact that the attack on Saudi Arabia's oil supply could have on the global market.
As the rent in San Francisco continues to rise for businesses owners, companies have begun to survey their options for rent relief. The result? More and more businesses are turning to the option of buying their own office space rather than renting.
Have you heard the story of Blockbuster turning down the opportunity to buy Netflix for $50 million in 2000?

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this new JobCast brought to you by Marketscale, we sit down with Nate McCray, director of talent acquisition at LHP Engineering Solutions to discuss the open role of Embedded Software Engineer. Nate says the ideal candidate is an experienced software engineer with experience in the automotive industry or has a problem-solving, intellectually-curious mind for software that's critical to the overall function of an automobile.

"This position will help support the all-digital instrument clusters of an actual car," Nate said. "When you look at vehicle infotainment systems and controlling the multimedia functions of that vehicle, you want to have at your fingertips the capability to look up the speed, fuel, trip distance. Or, your phone's phonebook, active voice controls, or navigational systems... When you want to make a call, or do things at your fingertips while staying safe, that is what this position is all about. You're providing an easy to consume manner for the driver of the vehicle."

Since 2001, LHP Engineering Solutions has been providing engineering services and technology integration for embedded controls, telematics, data analytics, and model-based design. The Embedded Software Engineer will execute the design and develop new, advanced engineering products for vehicle access, helping put intuitive technology at the driver's fingertips.

Nate shared insight into the company's culture with a nod to Star Wars and answered one of our signature questions -- If LHP was a band, what band would it be.

Job basics:

Location: Pontiac, Michigan
Travel involved: Some travel
Experience: 5-10 years
Educational requirement: Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering or similar discipline

If you'd like to apply for this position, head to https://lhpes.com/careers.

The Internet of Things can seem as nebulous as the individual pieces of data that embody it, but Atlanta-based ThingTech is looking to highlight interconnected technologies of the modern business world as it kicks off this inaugural episode of the Enterprise Asset Intelligence Podcast. Host Daniel Litwin sat down with Tim Quinn, CEO and co-founder of ThingTech to discuss ways that business owners can roll out practical, pragmatic IoT solutions for business big and small.

What's helpful to remember about introducing IoT within a business is that it's often a journey, not a destination, like many other emerging technology rollouts.

"This is about how to start that digital transformation journey," Quinn said.

In his 25 years in the industry, Quinn has seen IoT vastly impact the efficiency of companies, regardless of the industry.

"Whether it's IT or IoT, it still puts out ROI," he said, pointing to a 46 percent improvement in asset utilization and reliability.

But the challenge comes with analyzing data from multiple systems, he said. "Data is only data until it's analyzed or processed," Quinn said. "So capturing the data is one thing, transforming that into action is another."

In future episodes of the podcast, Quinn will discuss ways that actionable data solves real-world operational problems, including deep vertical business application around asset management, maintenance, inspection, and capital planning.

"I think we'll show that IoT doesn't have to be overly complex and engineered," he said. "It can be streamlined to be less scary."

It's hard to imagine now, but there was a time when Blockbuster Video was the big kid on the block and Netflix was the fledgling startup. An excerpt from Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph's new book posted by Vanity Fair details the fateful meeting the led to the streaming giant's ultimate victory over the former brick and mortar juggernaut.

Hear Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss this story on this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

As rents continue to rise across the Bay Area businesses have started to alter their approach to obtaining office space. Rather than submit themselves to higher rent costs, companies are now far more likely to buy their own properties. Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss this approach on this excerpt from Business Casual, presented by MarketScale.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 8 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

Here's what we talked about on the August 28th edition of Business Casual:
Dave Schupmann, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Fortis Warranty, joined Daniel and Tyler to talk about the world's largest rooftop farm that is scheduled to be completed in Paris in 2020.
AI is making a splash in retail with Walmart and Target looking to get it on the action.
Uber is opening an office and hiring 3000 employees in Dallas, Tx. What does this mean for the company and the city of Dallas? Sergio Avedian, Senior Contributor for The Rideshare Guy, joined the show to give his thoughts.
You know we had to discuss the Popeyes vs Chick-fil-A battle that's playing out on social media right now.

U.S. farmers were hit again in the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China as the Chinese Commerce Ministry announced that China will no longer be buying American agricultural products. What impact will this have on the American agricultural sector?

Disney's new Star Wars Galaxy's Edge opened to smaller crowds than expected. Does this mean it was a flop? Mike Wallace, creative director at Falcon’s Creative Group, doesn't necessarily think so. Find out why in his interview with Daniel and Tyler.

We've heard a lot in recent year about the promise of tabletop technology that will radically alter the restaurant experience. Has it delivered on that potential?

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Professor Bud Weinstein, Associate Director of the Maguire Energy Institute at Southern Methodist University, joined Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern on Business Casual to discuss the global market impact of the drone attack on Saudi Arabia's oil supply.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 9 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

You may have noticed the surge of CBD products on shelves near you. Whether it’s at your local pharmacy, drug store, or even coffee shop, CBD is popping up everywhere in lotions, lattes, gummies, and oils. But how healthy is it, and what sort of quality and production standards are being set?

Here to answer our burning questions about this burgeoning industry on today’s Food & Beverage podcast is Kate Kinnison, vice president of sales and owner of RAD Extracts, a Colorado based B2B CBD supplier.

CBD (short for cannabidiol), is most commonly derived from the hemp plant. Hemp has gotten a bad rap because of its cousin, the marijuana plant, known to contain the psychoactive compound THC. But marijuana and hemp share another compound—CBD, which is completely legal and has shown positive health benefits in initial studies.

Kinnison explained how there’s more to CBD than just the compound itself. RAD Extracts looks at the hemp plant’s benefits holistically, utilizing all of hemp’s cannabinoids to create a product with the utmost benefit.

It comes down to, “All of those compounds in that plant working together in a synergistic feature, to really have the maximum benefits for individuals who are using it,” Kinnison said.

CBD is still rather unregulated, with no guarantee of the quality, purity, or efficacy of what’s hitting shelves. RAD Extracts aims to be ahead of the game, exercising the highest quality practices in their production to produce full-spectrum CBD, not a less-potent distillate.

“By creating a premium full spectrum product we really feel like we’re doing the plant justice,” Kinnison said.

So who could benefit from CBD?

"The amount of different applications it has is amazing,” Kinnison said, with some patients reporting it helping with conditions as varied as acute pain, chronic pain, epilepsy, anxiety, Alzheimers, and even acne.

The future of CBD is still unsure, but Kinnison projected that hemp’s popularity will increase as studies continue to come out touting the benefits of CBD.

Have you ever had your identity stolen? If so, you aren't alone. Over 15 million residents in the US have their identities stolen each year. Clearly identity theft in America is an epidemic, but what can be done? On this edition of The Mecca Minute, host Gerry Mecca breaks down some tips, like multi-factor authentication, on how to reduce the risk of becoming a victim.

Walmart is rolling out its unlimited grocery delivery option nationwide, with the company hoping to reach 50% of the country by the end of 2019. For $98 a year users can receive unlimited grocery deliveries to their homes.

In this excerpt from Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discuss the merits of the plan and whether this is enough for Walmart to cut into Amazon's share of the grocery delivery game.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 8 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

This excerpt from Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin discusses A.B. 1208 in California, which the the California Solar & Storage Association (CALSSA) says extends a ban on cities and counties from taxing the energy generated by rooftop solar panels for use by homeowners and businesses.

The bill was signed into law by California governor Gavin Newsome in early September. California leads the country in solar energy and has enough solar installed to power 6.5 million homes.

Tune in to MarketScale Radio LIVE every Wednesday and Friday morning at 8 a.m. CT for Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin. From interest rates to eSports – we’ll be talking all things B2B.

On this excerpt from Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern were joined by MarketScale's Nick Bruce live from CEDIA Expo 2019 in Denver, CO. Nick broke down the most interesting new technology in the smart home sector, including a program that utilizes virtual reality during the design phase of home theater rooms.

Hear the full interview and get all of Nick's insights from the event that’s making smart homes genius.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Join MarketScale's resident software & technology insider Gerry Mecca as he provides relevant industry tips, tricks and trends in under a minute!

Geoffrey Short breaks down this week in B2B. This episode includes updates from:

Gastech 2019 in Houston, TX

- Autonomous Mobile Robot Conference in Louisville, KY

Chicago Build 2019

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:
MarketScale's Nick Bruce checked in with the show from CEDIA Expo 2019 in Denver, CO to fill us in on the latest in smart home technology.
Walmart has debuted a new flat fee for unlimited grocery deliveries for a full year. Will this idea catch on and help them take a bite out of Amazon's pie?
Solar energy received some protection in the state of California. Found out what it is and how it helps.

It seems like every year, at least one foodborne outbreak terrorizes the nation, prompting Americans to throw away millions of tons of food. On this week’s podcast, food safety advocate and Ionogen president and CEO John Shanahan shared his insight into a new approach food providers are taking in order to prevent another outbreak from gripping the country.

According to Shanahan, last year growers threw away $2 million worth of romaine lettuce following an E. coli outbreak. People fall ill and die from foodborne diseases all the time, which can have a negative impact on farms, restaurants, and grocery stores.

“This issue of produce safety, and even meat and cheese safety, is a huge problem," Shanahan said.

When outbreaks occur, the first thought is to look to the farmer and their practices to trace the pathogen; farmers are naturally inclined to point elsewhere for the outbreak origin. It's difficult to locate where the pathogen originates, and the responsibility could fall on packing houses, process plants, restaurants or grocery stores.

But a change is underway. Operators in the food supply chain are working together to identify and prevent problems before they occur. What is bringing this unity? New technology. Now there are metering devices that farmers use to detect bacteria at their sites, keeping that infected head of lettuce from ever spreading its disease.

Still, Shanahan advised that people at home should clean and sanitize their food before consumption. Contrary to popular belief, a lot of produce isn’t grown within the United States; often it's from a different country.

“Better than 40% of the produce that you eat in this country comes from overseas," Shanahan said.

He also advised to shop at the local farmer's market where smaller growers have more control over the cleanliness of their product.

It’s a great big world out there, but when you can, buy local and eat local," Shanahan said.

McDonalds made their third substantial investment in new technology for 2019 earlier this week, acquiring artificial intelligence company Apprente to help automate the drive-thru process.

The renewed focus on technology represents a new direction for McDonalds, who appears set on charting the restaurant's path forward into the future.

The company has said that the hope for the new technology will be that it creates “faster, simpler and more accurate order taking." The financial terms of the deal haven't been released.

Hear what Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin had to say about the purchase in this snippet from Business Casual.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

It's official. California's senate passed AB 5 on Tuesday, a bill that requires business to hire workers as employees rather than independent contractors. The controversial bill is setting new precedents for the gig economy after heated back-and-forths from lawmakers, union representatives, and gig companies like Uber and Lyft. Though the bill is still contingent on its amendments being passed and Gov. Gavin Newsom's signature, the impact and precedent it's setting could change the fabric of the gig economy, from giving gig workers benefits and unionization protections, to restructuring how gig companies achieve profitability.

On this segment from Business Casual, we spoke with Sergio Avedian, senior contributor for The Rideshare Guy, to get a look from the ground on how this bill is being received by the industry, and what it could mean for California's gig economy.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:
Sergio Avedian, senior contributor for The Rideshare Guy, joined the program to discuss some legislation in the state of California that could have huge ramifications for Uber & Lyft.
McDonalds has made some heavy investments in emerging technology in 2019. What does this mean for fast food giant?
Apple announced their line of iPhone 11s. Get some of the details and hear about some of the features.

Every business approaches how they work in a unique way. Each has a philosophy and culture, and each unique approach has its wins; some successful than others. But why? On this episode of The Roboticist Chronicles, we spoke business philosophy with Dan Allford, president of ARC Specialties. ARC Specialties has sound technology, but they still need a corporate structure to execute it. Allford, who had years of technical training but only business class, wanted to create something that worked at ARC Specialties. Instead of reading books on the latest fads, he followed people. And one that inspired him the most was Lockheed Martin’s founder Kelly Johnson and his Skunk Works philosophy.

What is Skunk Works? It was the name of Lockheed’s Advanced Development Program and has become a business philosophy applied to many, many industries. It’s based around creating groups within an organization and allowing them a high degree of autonomy.

“What I appreciate about Johnson and Skunk Works is that it’s about empowering project managers and giving them the ability to control their destiny," Allford said.

While working in automation and robotics, you might assume that it isn’t people centered. The human portion, or the "team," is the most significant part according to Allford.

“We reward people based on what they create, not who they manage,” he said. “A good manager hires the right people, gives them a task, and lets them do what they do.”

That’s how ARC Specialties runs, stripping out layers of bureaucracy and focusing on the task. It also allows the company to remain nimble in the marketplace and exchange ideas. It even allows Allford's employees to tell him when he’s wrong!

A construction project is one of the most meticulously planned efforts you'll ever see in business, but despite the best-laid plans, something you can't plan for is variable weather conditions. Hot, cold, or damp -- those conditions make construction challenging for workers on-site, can cause delays, and create problematic condensation and high humidity in construction areas.

In this episode of the Building Management podcast brought to you by MarketScale, host Sean Heath sat down with Tim Young, business development specialist at Polygon to discuss how important a controlled environment is on construction sites.

"Not only does temperature affect workers health and safety, moisture on a job site can slow down the progress of the construction," Tim said.

But the challenge comes when deciding to use a temporary climate solution or use the building's permanent HVAC unit.

"A permanent HVAC is not designed to be used during construction when there's a lot of dust and fine particles that can get into the system," Tim said. "For example, the motors on a HVAC system -- when they're not filtered properly and fine dust gets into the motor, it actually decreases their life."

Andover, Mass.-based Polygon delivers Temporary Humidity Control environments and solve moisture issues for construction projects to prevent delays, prevent corrosion during tank coatings, eliminate condensation and high humidity in areas.

"[Temporary systems] are much more hardy and built to handle extremes that a permanent system is not," Tim said.

Gone are the days of waiting long hours for media files to render thanks to insert-editing software, like cineX. On this three-part CineCast podcast, we have discussed the evolution of cineX with Cinedeck CEO himself, Charles D'Autremont. On our last and final episode with him, D'Autremont wrapped up the conversation with real stories from the industry and cineX users.

“It can’t be done. It can’t be done,” was the repeating affirmation D'Autremont heard from the media editing industry. But as it turns out “data can be manipulated."

This notion, at its core, is how cineX came to be and how the software eliminates hours of costly and cumbersome exporting.

“Even though you’re not changing the way the frames are compressed, you’re changing the way they’re stored in the file,” D'Autremont said.

As a result, editors are eliminating hours, even days, from their workflow. This is no more evident than in the case of cineX freelancers, who work with residential internet on at-home hardware. cineX freelancers can now make changes that would have taken days—in seconds.

“People are very averse to things that are new, and aren’t the way they’re used to,” D'Autremont said.

But in the case of cineX, the proof is in the software and the adopters of the time-saving software.

The culture around sports gambling has changed significantly in recent years, driven by the legalization of the activity across several states.

Professional sports leagues have embraced the new business opportunity and now a sports restaurant is digging into the wagering scene.

Buffalo Wild Wings on Thursday announced a partnership with casino operator MGM to allow sports betting in certain restaurant locations in states where the activity is legal. The companies will launch a wagering app called “Picks and Props,” which can be played anywhere on any smart device. There will not be gambling kiosks in the restaurants. Winners will have to pick up prizes at their local Buffalo Wild Wings location.

The companies will begin testing the offering in New Jersey, which legalized sports gambling in 2018 and takes in a similar amount of money to Las Vegas through sports wagers each month. If the venture is successful, it will expand to other states.

As of today, 19 states have made sports wagering legal, and several more will vote on legislation in coming months and years.

In a competitive marketplace, it’s hard for companies to maintain an edge over rivals, but one way to stand out is through exceptional people. On today’s podcast, Heather DeNamur, Talent Manager at Bauer Built Tire & Service, talks to us about the hardworking but friendly Midwestern people behind one of America’s largest commercial tire and retread manufacturers.

“The thing that differentiates us is our people,” Heather says, and goes on to explain that they’re the ones who day after day go out and fulfill the company’s business philosophy, which includes providing excellent customer service and pushing the status quo. In her view, Bauer Built employs a lot of hard workers who never back down from a challenge. Additionally, “What makes Bauer Built really strong is having a large, diverse population of employees.”

Heather gives a little company history, saying the first center was founded in 1944 in Durand, Wisconsin, and that’s where corporate headquarters remain to this day. Support services like IT, HR operations, finance, and marketing teams are also located in Durand, but Bauer Built has brick and mortar stores in ten states throughout the mid-west.

When asked about current job openings, Heather answers, “We’re looking for a lot of technicians out in our market,” including tire technicians and manufacturing technicians. The company is also hiring administrative support staff who she refers to as the heartbeat of Bauer Built.

What Heather likes most about the company is that she doesn’t feel like a number. Bauer Built is a family-owned establishment and that runs deep through the culture, along with a high degree of integrity and trust. Plus, the people make the environment a lot of fun. “I always say I’m not coming into work, I’m coming to hang out and get things accomplished with my friends.”

On this episode of Business Casual with Tyler Kern and Geoff Short (filling in for Daniel Litwin):
Daniel Litwin checked in from InterDrone with an interview with Romeo Durscher, Director of Public Safety Integration for DJI. Durscher discussed what he’s excited to see at the show, advancement in interpreting data from drones and public safety standardization.
Buffalo Wild Wings is beginning to lay the ground work to potentially allow sports gambling in the near future. Would you place a bet while you down some wings?
WeWork has some troubling financial numbers. What's going on with the co-working space? We'll dive into the story.

With the 2019 National Football Season kicking off this weekend, fans will be lined up around the country to catch their local team in action for the first time in months.

For now though, they may be in line a little longer than they are accustomed to.

Organizations like the Chicago Bears have mandated that fans use mobile tickets to enter their venue this season. Attendees will need to access their tickets through a smartphone in order to enter the stadium.

The move is an effort to combat fraudulent ticket sales and ultimately speed up gate lines, but the shift has come with some growing pains.

CBS Chicago reports that the Bears will offer three WiFi hotspot tents outside Soldier Field in order to aid ticketholders who have questions or issues with the new format.

With digital tickets comes new insights as well. Teams should be able to better track the flow of people over time, and which gates are busier at specific times. This should help the gameday experience in the long run.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

The typical eight hour workday is one of the most popular and widely practiced labor schedules in the country. But the truth is, these hours aren't suited for everyone. Many industries and companies are finding that adjusting employee hours leads to happier workers and more productivity.

Today on the Food & Beverage Podcast, we were joined by Marco Juarez, senior partner at Coleman Consulting Group, who broke down alternatives to this outdated labor schedule.

The issue of employee scheduling is particularly pertinent in California. In 2000 California passed an act to limit employees to a strict 8 hour day. This act, commonly referred to as the "Overtime After 8" act, disgruntled employees who needed flexibility in their schedule. The state had good intentions, but according to Juarez, the act resulted in poor results.

This is where Coleman Consulting comes in. Coleman designs employee schedules with a holistic eye, Juarez said.

"We look at it from business needs, employee desires, and health and safety," he said, adamant that each schedule should be on a "case by case basis," keeping in mind the desires of the employee.

"Nobody ever thinks about giving the employer choice," Juarez said.

With a traditional eight hour workday, employees typically get 13 days off per year. But Coleman Consulting has overhauled schedules to such a degree that employees are getting up to 26 weekends off, the equivalent to 3 months a year, with no sacrifice to pay or company productivity.

"Our job is to help companies save money and make their employees happier," Juarez said. His real examples of Coleman's emotional, empathetic approach show a solid bridging of the communication gap between employee and manager.

On this episode of CineCast by Cinedeck, we are joined once again by Charles D'Autremont, CEO of Cinedeck, to discuss the innovation of insert-editing software in the world of digital media. If you haven’t listened to part one, start there to learn about D'Autremont’s early career and how the idea of insert-editing came to be. On part two today, we explored how cineX evolved into a working program, and the challenges of introducing this revolutionary software into production media workflows.

“Because we were editing files, there was initially pushback about... ‘How do we know you haven’t screwed up the file?'," D'Autremont said of early naysayers.

Even now, he said, there are reluctant adopters still clinging to the idea that “a file is this inviolable object.” But as the cineX demonstrated its capabilities, editors began to change their minds.

“As soon as they saw it worked, they were totally psyched about it, and became great advocates," D'Autremont said.

Today, D'Autremont said cineX is “...used for hundreds of thousands of hours worth of television...” But the journey to where cineX is today was not easy, and continues to overcome challenges as it must simultaneously remain cutting edge, as well as compatible with the past.

Hurricane Dorian has caused widespread evacuations across the southeast coast of the U.S., and the second-stronger Atlantic storm on record may come with a hefty price tag for insurance providers.

Analysts at UBS say the storm could cause as much as 25 billion dollars in insurance industry losses. Overall, the investment bank estimates that 2019 will be responsible for approximately 70 billion dollars in natural catastrophe losses for insurers.

On a lighter note, the price tag for sports franchises has also been heavy in recent years, and Big Tech companies bidding on broadcast rights could pump more money into professional leagues.

Current National Football League Commissioner Roger Goodell admitted in a recent press conference that big tech companies are already players in current broadcast negotiations.

Law enforcement agencies have begun to partner with Amazon's Ring video doorbell. The partnership allows for these agencies to request video footage from the doorbells through an app in an effort to solve crimes in the area.

From a business perspective these partnerships make a lot of sense for Amazon. As law enforcement agencies look for options to reduce crime, partnerships such as these offer a cost-effective solution for obtaining more information.

On the other hand, questions of privacy naturally come to mind in cases like this. Will the knowledge that Ring has partnered with local police cause consumers to look elsewhere for their security needs? Hear what Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern had to say in this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

On this episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern:
Tim Snyder of Matador Economics joined the program to discuss the impact that natural disasters like Hurricane Dorian can have on oil production in the United States.
Amazon-owned Ring Doorbells have been entering into agreements with law enforcement agencies that allow them to access security footage from the doorbells to help investigate crimes. Will this make the public nervous?
The bright spot in the industrial economy right now is focused in one spot: robots. Find out how they're carrying the industry.

Nut News: At 2018 Crop Year-End, Prices Are on the Rise

With global demand for almonds strong, prices are on the rise as 2018's crop year, which just ended July 31, saw record high numbers shipped out and record low numbers of carryout inventory. On today’s episode of Nut News, Bob Nunes, CEO for Select Harvest USA, one of the world’s largest almond distributors, lays out the market perspective for almonds at this crop year-end.

The 2018 crop year which ended July 31, 2019, set new records for shipping at 2.6 billion pounds, narrowly exceeding last year's record of 2.25 billion pounds. The final year-to-date shipment record resulted in a carryout inventory of approximately 319 million pounds, which is the smallest since the 2012 crop, and as a percentage of shipment, one of the smallest on record, Nunes says.

"With a small carryout, a later harvest than last year by about 10 days, and a comfortly sold industry, the market has responded with higher prices," Nunes says. "To complicate the situation, the industry is absorbing a lower than expected objective estimate. Both buyers and sellers are taking a very cautious approach to the forward sales for the 2019 crop."

The Objective Estimate came in at 2 billion pounds, down considerably from the expected 2.4 or 2.5 billion pound crop.

Nunes says SelectHarvest has invested "significant dollars" into plant equipment with continued emphasis on improving quality and service, while at the same time increasing productivity.

"I just want the growers, who are very busy this time of year, to know how much we thank them for putting their trust into SelectHarvest," Nunes says. "And we wish everyone a happy and dry harvest."

Global waste and recycling initiatives are a hot topic and pressing issue for a country as large and influential as the USA. Though your average consumer is more aware of buying and participating in earth-conscious commerce, larger habits remain for retailers that can leave a significant carbon footprint. Many retail companies use PVC-based signage for one-time-use seasonal displays and fail to recycle their temporary furnishings properly.

Today's guests said this waste is harmful to the environment and the economy; On this episode of the Retail podcast, we sat down to talk how retail companies can make better signage choices with Bob O'Neill, owner of Competitive EDGE, and Tim Bennett, Chairman & Co-founder of Image Options Companies.

Since Image Options Companies' formation in 1999, its approach to sustainability has been holistic. Though many companies opt for recyclable signage, it often fails to finish the full recycling process.

"People will say that their product is recyclable and it probably is, but it doesn't get to the waste stream," O'Neill said.

Most malls and the communities they reside in have ineffective recycling methods. In this regard, Bennett said, "this is a bigger problem that needs to be in Washington."

But even without federal intervention, O'Neill and Bennett explained how there are choices companies can make that will help the environment and their bottom line. With Millennials becoming the biggest buyers in the country, this generation is making ethically inspired choices and shopping at companies that make sustainable choices.

"The ROI...the return on any sustainable investment you do usually comes back in multiple folds," Bennett said to businesses and manufacturers.

Bennett and O'Neill divulged a treasure trove of resources for the sustainably-minded in this retail podcast, while reinforcing the importance of sustainability knowledge and awareness.

"If someone can listen to this, and if we create one person...in the retail design display side of the business to just think about their overall impact, then we've done our job," O'Neill said.

On a very special episode of Business Casual, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern sit down with Kirk Williams and Jeff Maguire of Cypress Equities to discuss the current state of commercial real estate. They discussed the importance of knowing the culture and customs of the location where you're building and why incorporating art into their projects transforms them.

You'll also hear a little about 13th century architects in Spain, what they're learning from millennials, and how they strive to maintain the collective soul of a community.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Amateur and professional video editors alike know the slow and excruciating process of rendering a file; perhaps setting the file to export before bed only to find their hardware still churning next morning. This slow and painful process has been the norm in the film and broadcast industry since the beginning, that is until “insert-editing,” came along.

Insert-editing is revolutionary in the digital media production industry, saving editors valuable time and money. Here to talk about it on this three-part CineCast podcast is the insert-editor creator himself, Charles D’Autremont, CEO of Cinedeck.

“People have been told by other software developers that it couldn’t be done,” D’Autremont said of insert-editing.

But in the early 2000’s, Charles’ experience in the field proved otherwise. Starting out drafting 3D architectural presentations for upscale real-estate, Charles soon began dabbling in tape-simulators and film editing. It was here, in the field, where insert-editing was conceived.

”The way most editor software is designed, you have to start from scratch every time you want to export that file,” D’Autremont said. But cineX turns this theory on its head. “It was really a mentality thing of what a file is."

D’Autremont explained how he used off-the-shelf supplies to create the first ideation of insert-editing in the real world.

Join us for parts two of three on our next episodes of CineCast by Cinedeck.

Uber recently announced plans to open a new office in Dallas, Tx that will create 3,000 jobs in the area. Sergio Avedian, Sr., contributor for The Rideshare Guy, retired Wall Street professional with 18 years of experience under his belt, and an expert on the business backends of the rideshare industry, joined Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern on Business Casual to discuss this move.

Does this set Uber on the road to profitability or are there other issues with the company's business model? Listen to this excerpt from Business Casual and hear what Avedian has to say about this and more.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

The city of light may become the city of fruits and vegetables soon.

French company Agripolis is slated to open a 150,000-square-foot rooftop farm in 2020, hosting 2,000 pounds of crop each day.

Urban farming and aeroponics have spread to America but this project is the most ambitious yet.

“In Europe they’ve really gone to another level with it,” Dave Schupmann, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Fortis Warranty, a roofing warranty provider, said.
Concerns about weeds and heaviness from rain and snow have traditionally been problems for rooftop farms, but advancements have made projects like this one more viable.

“Sustainability is great. The products that we’re using today, much more than ever are lasting longer. So, you’re able to put these giant farms on top of these systems without them breaking down every 10-15 years,” Schupmann said.

While green roofs are still relatively uncommon in the United States, the ability to turn a profit from them may spur more investment in the model, according to Schupmann.

“I think it’s fantastic what they’re able to do with the vegetative roofing, really making it more than just something nice to look at but making effective use of the land for the tenants around it,” he noted.

According to Curbed.com, the farm will host more than 30 different plant species. Parisians will also be able to occupy their own plots of land on the roof, creating a communal space for residents.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

E-commerce has rippled through the retail industry from the legacy brands to family-owned businesses. Delivery times have never been quicker, and orders have never been easier to complete.

Efficiency is the name of the game in retail as it is across industries, and advancements in artificial intelligence is at the core of this boom.

While data and customizable shopping experiences began to take form with online giants like Amazon, brick-and-mortar legacy stores like Target have increased AI usage to succeed recently as well.

In its recent quarterly earnings report, Target smashed analyst expectations off the back of its ability to deliver products to customers within 24 hours.

Rival Walmart also saw a 2.8% bump in same-store sales in the second quarter using a similar AI-based approach to physical retail. The company automated shipment unloading, used robots to clean and restock shelves and increased self-checkout stations. All the while, Walmart collects data from these processes to further refine their shopping experience.

It is clear that the industry is taking note. According to a study conducted by Juniper Research, global spending on AI is set to reach $7.3 billion by 2022.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Target beat its target in its earnings report this week and that could signal good news for retailers nationwide. Largely driving this success is Shipt, the same-day-delivery company that Target acquired in late 2017.

Here’s what Target COO John Mulligan said in the company’s Q2 earnings conference call this week:

“Our same-day options are growing much faster than our digital sales. Specifically, combined sales for in-store pickup, drive-up and Shipt have more than doubled over the last year, accounting for nearly three quarters of Target's 34% digital comp in the second quarter.”

Target rolled out a dedicated section of its website for same-day delivery orders this summer, making it more accessible for customers.

Tech is also coming to the financial sector, but it isn’t bringing you a Target gift card. Automation stands to move workers into different roles in the near future.

Bloomberg reporter Shelly Hagan broke down which roles might be more in-demand for humans going forward:

"There are optimists that are saying there will be many finance jobs added due to automation and this technology. LinkedIn says that job postings in the finance industry that list skillsets with data science have jumped 60% in the last 12 months. So, there's a lot of demand for people that can do both finance and tech."

In a report last year, PriceWaterhouseCoopers said as many as one-third of financial services jobs could be automated in the next fifteen years.

On a rainy day, it's common for storm drains to to fill up with trash and chemicals. But does that trash actually end up in the water supply? Not always. It depends on how your city maintains its storm water and if they use a prevention system.

Joining us today to talk about poor trash management, the consequences, and solutions is John Deming, EVP and CEO of Safe Drain Stormwater Holdings, a storm water pollution prevention systems manufacturer.

Poor trash management can lead to polluted waters, and luckily most parts of the country are taking it seriously.

"With the implementation of trash control procedures at the city, state, and federal level, it’s clear it’s a priority. Lots of cities [in California] are being proactive to meet the goals required by 2026; however, more education and awareness is still needed," Deming said.

By 2026, California cities must meet new guidelines about what tolerances their storm drains should have. They’ll have to filter out trash down to 5 millimeters. This should keep the majority of trash out, but the public has to be more responsible as well.

"There needs to be more public awareness about the consequences to littering and how it impacts the planet, people, and animals. Cities can help as well with more trash and recycling receptacles available, which there seem to be less and less of," Deming said.

Many cities, airports, and construction sites have been ahead of the game when it comes to reducing trash and spillage from making it to the water supply. They use the Safe Drain system. It fits any size storm drain and offers a scalable filtration system.

“Our first product was designed to stop chemicals from entering into storm drains. But we kept seeing trash in the systems, so now we have a new product specifically for trash. And when a city has one of these in place, they can learn about that particular area by the trash collected. Then they can determine if they need more signage or trash cans in that area to counter the littering," Deming said.

JC Penney and Macy's have entered the world of used clothing by way of their new partnership with ThredUP. Hoping to latch onto a trend that is expected to swell to $51 billion by 2023, the retailers will allow customers to sell clothes back in the hopes that the process encourages more customers to visit brick and mortar locations.

Hear what Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern have to say about this trend on this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

What is seasonality in marketing and why does it matter? To help answer that question MarketScale's senior director of marketing Lauren Farrell joined Business Casual to discuss the concept with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern.

Hear the full interview and learn why seasonal offerings can often be a very effective tool.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Cyber security is vitally important across every industry, but the privacy concerns for healthcare adds another layer of complexity and raises the stakes. Unfortunately, cyber security training for employees in the healthcare industry has lagged behind where it needs to be.

According to a new study conducted by Kaspersky, 32% of healthcare employees never receive cybersecurity training. Why is this so important? Hear what Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern had to say in this excerpt from Business Casual.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Here's the rundown for the August 23rd episode of Business Casual with Daniel Litwin & Tyler Kern:
Lauren Farrell, MarketScale's senior director of marketing, joined the show to discuss seasonality in marketing
Healthcare professionals are lacking necessary cybersecurity training
Stephanie M. Jones, professor of education at Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, joined the show to explain why social-emotional learning is the correct program to teach children
JCPenney and Macy's are getting in the used clothing game to help boost in-store traffic.
Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

On this jobcast, host Daniel Litwin dug into the open role of Customer Support Manager for Greenstone, a Cultura Company, with Client Success Director Tracy Curtis.

"We're looking to grow our support team," Curtis said. "We have tenured folks that we need to have a training program and career paths for new people, as well as improving our metrics for our customers."

Greenstone, located in Alpharetta, Georgia, is a leader in agricultural accounting & management tools, powering the backend agribusiness across the nation. The 8 to 5, Monday through Friday position of Customer Support Manager takes on the responsibility of managing a team of customer service representatives to deliver quality and consistent levels of service.

They'll establish efficient and balanced workflows for them and their team, maximizing efficiency and measuring service metrics to develop standards, improvements, or changes to the process.

Curtis said she's looking for a candidate with a bachelor's degree and 3-5 years experience managing people. For this Customer Support Manager position, up to 10 percent travel may be required, and career path potential exists.

"Ideally I'd like them to move up into my role as Client Success Director or a general manager of one of our companies," Curtis said.

Give this jobcast a listen to hear why Curtis thinks Donkey's (yes, from Shrek) brand of optimism perfectly captures this role. Click here to apply for the position.

On this episode of the MarketScale Healthcare podcast, Dr. Jeff Chabot, co-founder, director and inventor at Endocellutions, offered some knowledge on regenerative medicine using bone marrow therapies and reveals why the Marrow Cellution aspiration device is superior to traditional harvesting systems.

According to Dr. Chabot, when it comes to harvesting bone marrow, having more of the healing cells in the product is better. In fact, every study that has looked at the long term effects of procedures reveals that more colony forming units (CFU) per ml is associated with better outcomes.

“CFUs are derived uniquely from the bone marrow,” he informed, and went on to say that a higher count generates a richer product of the real architects of repair," he said.

Traditionally, the way bone marrow is collected often yields contamination with peripheral blood. In fact, the bone marrow aspirates collected using common needles and a centrifuge system isn’t really rich enough to achieve a therapeutic benefit. Enter the Marrow Cellulation device.

“The Marrow Cellution system represents a superior solution to the centrifuge for four reasons," Dr. Chabot said.

Less volume is required to be drawn from the patient and the volume that is drawn is of higher quality marrow with little contamination of peripheral blood. Eliminating the necessity of a centrifuge results in a fuller complement of cells since most would be thrown away with the plasma layer using the centrifuge system.

“You get more cells per unit volume from the Marrow Cellution system," Dr. Chabot said.

And finally, Dr. Chabot is of the opinion that the way marrow is collected using the Marrow Cellution system is more reflective of the way the body naturally arranges healing. He went on to express his enthusiasm for groundbreaking medical technologies, saying, “We’re very excited to see such new devices coming along that are really going to advance the potential and opportunities in regenerative medicine.”

References
Single whole blood injections in canine knee are not associated with damage, but repeated injections are: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24286243

Use of marrow concentrates with microfracture in equine knee: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20720135

Hernigou-- greater CFU-f counts associated with better outcomes https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9587614

Megakaryocyte-bone marrow stromal cell aggregates retain higher potential: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15265298

Active shooter incidents in the US are a tragic reality and a brewing concern for almost everyone, whether you’re a teacher at a school or an employee at a large corporation. In 2018 alone, America grieved over 27 incidents in 16 different states. As a result of growing concerns, businesses, schools, and universities are looking for additional protection against these unpredictable and unfortunate events. On this episode of the Building Management podcast, we discussed the benefits of “layered security,” with guest Greg Schreiber, senior vice president of sales for Boon Edam Inc.

“When you have a bullet go off, seconds are important," Schreiber said, encouraging the fact that multiple layers of security around and within a building are vital to stalling an active incident. Perhaps most important in preventing these events from accelerating is the first line of defense--the building itself.

This is where Boon Edam Inc. comes in, specializing in ballistic glass and restricted-access door entry. Most shooters enter through unmanned doors, or by “piggy-backing,” onto employees with secure entry cards. Schreiber discussed the Boon Edam technology that allows only one employee in the door at a time.

“You’ll know exactly who’s in the building. Because you’ll have that through your access control system," Schreiber said. This sort of information is crucial to preventing shooters from entering a building, as well as giving insight to law enforcement when identifying who is on property.

“Most active shooters rely on the confusion that occurs in the event," Schreiber said. But safety need not be confusing. With awareness and an action plan, workplaces and institutions of learning can be prepared and preventative against these devastating events.

Fifty-nine percent of customers believe their data is vulnerable to a security breach, according to a recent report by Salesforce. Consumers don’t trust global businesses to carefully handle their data, and when breaches happen the results can be fatal for companies big and small. For this reason, data protection is a high priority for the hotel industry, reliant on returning business and customer loyalty to survive.

On this podcast, we explored how the hospitality industry can protect customer data with Daniel Johnson, partner and co-founder of VENZA, a company specifically designed to guide hotels through the maze of data protection laws around the world.

Hotels collect consumer data with every booking. Be it paying for a room, signing up for loyalty programs, customizing dining requests, or reserving special services, data is collected in order to make the stay better. Johnson says to hoteliers—“Information about their guests is where the value lies.” Digital data is a hotel's greatest asset, which makes investing in data security all the more important.

Johnson co-chairs Hospitality Technology Next Generation, a conglomeration of representatives throughout the hospitality industry brought together to provide a working solution for global hoteliers to comply with data laws. By using a 12 step framework HTNG provides expert, practical guidance to the hospitality industry as they comply with data protection regulations, like the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) in Europe. Johnson described the framework as full of resources, like “FAQ’s for staff or for leadership, templates for agreements, and ...a prioritized approach.”

Consumer transactions will only become increasingly more digital and more international. In order to survive in the digital market, hotels must learn to keep up with data laws around the world and safely protect the user data that keeps their business alive.

This week, Business Roundtable, a coalition of hundreds of the U.S.' major CEOs, issued a statement redefining the “Purpose of a Corporation." 181 CEOs, including Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, Jamie Dimon, signed on to the statement, which updates language to make shareholder value no longer the prime target for a corporation's existence. In summation, the 2019 version says that corporations need to commit to "...delivering value to our customers… investing in our employees… dealing fairly and ethically with our suppliers… supporting the communities in which we work… [and] generating long-term value for shareholders.”

On this snippet from Business Casual, MarketScale's B2B morning radio show, hosts Daniel Litwin and Ben Thomas offer differing perspectives on the impact of this language change, how effective it will really be, and whether or not it was a wise move.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Hard seltzers have hit the alcoholic beverage market...hard. White Claw alone, one of the leading hard seltzer brands, surpassed the sales of all but one craft beer in June of 2019. This sect of the market is worth around $550 million, and is projected to reach $2 billion by 2021. With 200% growth in the last year alone, other brands are hopping on the seltzer train, from Corona, to Anheuser-Busch to Smirnoff.

Is this a fad or a phenomenon? On this snippet from Business Casual, MarketScale's B2B radio show, hosts Daniel Litwin & Ben Thomas discuss the impact of such a surging market and whether the R&D behind a new beverage is worth the risk.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.Hard seltzers have hit the alcoholic beverage market...hard. White Claw alone, one of the leading hard seltzer brands, surpassed the sales of all but one craft beer in June of 2019. This sect of the market is worth around $550 million, and is projected to reach $2 billion by 2021. With 200% growth in the last year alone, other brands are hopping on the seltzer train, from Corona, to Anheuser-Busch to Smirnoff.

Is this a fad or a phenomenon? On this snippet from Business Casual, MarketScale's B2B radio show, hosts Daniel Litwin & Ben Thomas discuss the impact of such a surging market and whether the R&D behind a new beverage is worth the risk.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

This is the B2B Shortlist for Wednesday, August 21st, with Geoffrey Short.

UPS confirmed that it has been actively hauling cargo autonomously since May of this year on a 115 mile stretch in Arizona.

This news comes as UPS also announced a minority investment in the self-driving truck startup TuSimple. The United States Postal Service has also been testing the trucks to deliver mail between Dallas and Phoenix.

"Implementation tends to be a little bit easier because we're primarily doing highway driving. We're offering a hub-to-hub solution so that's delivering goods from a customer's distribution center to another distribution center and we think that we'll be able to have factory production-ready trucks by 2023, 2024 range," said TuSimple CFO Cheng Lu in an interview with CNBC this Summer.

For now these UPS trucks will still have an engineer and a driver on board in case of an emergency.

Tesla is also looking ahead with a new product offering. Elon Musk announced this weekend the re-launch of Tesla Solar. Homeowners in six states will soon be able to rent the company’s solar panels for just $50 per month.

"On Tesla's end, I think it kind of makes sense when you consider that Tesla is a company that's been trying to create an ecosystem of product use. It's not just the Tesla vehicle itself, they have the gigapacks that you can use in your garage to charge up your car, they want to try to integrate these other types of technology," said Brian Cheung, reporter for Yahoo Finance.

The eligible states include Arizona, California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New Mexico.

That’s what’s happening in the world of B2B today.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

On today’s episode of the Food & Beverage Podcast, host Daniel Litwin got his hand caught in the cookie jar...or more accurately a bag of Dot’s Pretzels. Litwin sat down with Dorothy Henke, better known to the world as "Dot" and founder of Dot’s Homestyle Pretzels, to discuss her journey to founding the North Dakota-based snack food company.

“To be accepted like we’ve been accepted in the Midwest and now further out now is unbelievable,” Dot said with a distinctive North Dakota accent. Her pretzel company, like many mom and pop success stories, wasn’t purposely launched to be a national brand.

“It was nothing that we were going to intentionally do at all,” Dot said. “I just made up a logo, put the logo on the bag, and put a little red bow on these packages.”

First beloved by her family, Dot sent a batch of her pretzels to her family member in Arizona as a hometown, homemade creation for her and her clients. When she sent the homemade pretzels to her clients, her phone rang off the hook with people wanting to know where to purchase them.

Soon, word got around as more people tried Dot’s distinctive pretzels around town at Arizona flag football games and back home at the Pride of Dakota show. Word of mouth and product sampling became her first and primary methods of marketing, as retail stores slowly took on orders as consumers asked for the product.

On the podcast, Dot broke down the branding and business decisions behind her company, her experience entering the e-commerce world of selling her pretzels online and how failures along the way helped her become the success she is today.

Constant improvement and the desire to better oneself are hallmarks of many successful people. Those values are also at the heart of everything the Dallas Junior Chamber of Commerce does.

With a focus on personal and professional growth through professional development, networking and philanthropy, this business-minded group has been connecting 21-41 year old professionals in Dallas since 1918.

"I think the goal of the Chamber is empowering the community, giving back and creating a better environment for young professionals," said Rachel Bonilla, vice president of networking and philanthropy for the DJCC. She was joined by Olivia Wilmsen, vice president of communications, to discuss why joining organizations like the Dallas Junior Chamber of Commerce is so valuable for young professionals.

"We have these wonderful opportunities for you to grow yourself as a professional," Wilmsen said. "Maybe it's something where you're trying to find friends, or network your business, or see what else is out there in terms of career choices, but you also get to give back to the community."

Starting a restaurant has long been many peoples’ dream. However, the industry is under constant pressure from changing consumer demands and banks and lenders that are becoming more risk averse.

It has always been a financial risk to open a restaurant, but the current landscape does offer hope for entrepreneurs. Specialty private equity shops are one way of raising funds to start a restaurant, as is utilizing personal contacts. Christa Jaganath, a senior audit manager at Briggs & Veselka Co in Houston, TX says there is also another emerging method of securing capital.

“The benefit of crowdfunding is that you now have people like me and you who can essentially provide $100 or $1,000, almost like you’re fundraising. So, anybody in the community can contribute money,” Jaganath said. “It provides this community involvement where they now feel like they’re involved in your restaurant, which means they are now going to bring their friends, their family, to the restaurant. It’s good marketing, and they want to get their money back as well.”

Jaganath recently spoke at the Texas Restaurant Association Marketplace about best financial practices in this everchanging environment. As delivery becomes more prevalent and taste buds change, restauranteurs must be even smarter and more efficient than ever before.

Every dollar counts in an industry known for slim margins. How restaurants approach items like delivery services and consumer demands will determine which ones have a successful future.

On this segment of American Made, a conversational corner on policy affecting American Business, Business Casual host Daniel Litwin broke down the explosion of the American hemp market. According to the US Department of Agriculture, land used for hemp growth expanded by nearly 400% from 2017 to 2018; compare that to 2014, when land use for hemp was practically nonexistent.

Why the unprecedented growth? A lot can be attributed to the prevalence of CBD oil; retail sales in 2018 were anywhere from half a billion to $2 billion...not a small number by any means. Listen as Daniel and Tyler analyze why this growth is important for farmers, who are being hit from all angles with a difficult 2019 growing season, as well as why business around hemp is so profitable.

Pumpkin spice lattes have become one of flavors of fall. Hoards of coffee drinkers look forward to the release of the tasty beverage every year.

Starbucks has announced that the 2019 release date for their pumpkin spice lattes will be August 27th, the earlier it has been since 2014. The big question is: Do these limited time offer products drive revenue for their companies?

Get the stats and info from Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern on this snippet from Business Casual.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Arkansas-based healthcare provider Northwest Health just announced that it's partnering with Apple to give patients access to their health records via iPhone. This move provides an interesting opportunity to discuss ways that companies can make healthcare records more accessible to their patients.

Kevin Stevenson, executive vice president of Integranet Health, joined Business Class with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern to discuss this decision and the larger ramifications.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Tumblr was once one of the biggest names in social media, trailing only the likes of Facebook and Twitter. They were purchased in 2013 by Yahoo for $1.1 billion, but times have changed for the blog platform. The former giant was sold to Automattic, the parent company of WordPress, for a mere $3 million. What happened to cause such a precipitous decline?

Find out what Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern has to say on this snippet from Business Casual.

For more, tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Alec Baldwin immortalized the salesman’s mantra in the film Glengarry Glen Ross when he said: "Always Be Closing." That task is made simple when you’re selling a cool product like a night vision camera. On today’s Jobcast, Dan Cui, vice president of sales & marketing at SiOnyx, revealed the type of person he’s looking for to fill the company’s open role of sales representative & account manager.

Cui revealed that he’s currently recruiting a sales rep to cover the Florida, Michigan, and Massachusetts areas. The position requires a 40-hours, five days per week commitment, with 50%-75% travel time involved. The ideal candidate has a bachelor’s degree, three years of sales experience, and an entrepreneurial personality.

Located in Beverly, MA, SiOnyx is revolutionizing videography with the world’s first action camera with color night vision. Home to many startups, Massachusetts has long been a hotspot of pioneering technology and disruptions.

“Think of us as a Silicon Valley of the East,” Cui said.

For the current open role, he’s looking for someone who wants to start their own business.

“Our product generates that 'wow’ factor!” Cui exclaimed. “We want someone whose personality can take that ‘wow’ factor and turn it into revenue growth for the company.”

While the camera practically sells itself, Dan is still hunting for someone with determination; he mentioned a story about a salesman friend of his who had trouble getting past the secretary at a front desk. After getting grandstanded, what did he do? Purchased a dozen Dunkin’ donuts and waited for the manager one morning, then offered him breakfast in exchange for a few minutes of his time. It worked!

“He started doing millions of dollars a year with that company," Cui said.

If you think you’ve got what it takes to be SiOnyx’s next sales representative & account manager, you can shoot Cui an email at cooljobs@sionyx.com.

There is always a new interior design trend around the corner. Some designs last through the ages, while others fade away as fads; today we explore the ones that we think are going to have a lasting impact on the industry.

On this episode of Element Sessions, we welcomed Chris Dwyer, western regional sales manager at Element Designs, to break down the latest trends in kitchen and bath design. Coming off a whirlwind trip to Cologne, Germany having attended the leading international trade show for furniture design, interzum, Dwyer dished on what he saw there.

Bright pops of color, etched patterns in glass, and gold and brass embellishments on aluminum fixtures were just a few standout design trends that could be here to stay. Interzum, a sprawling trade show taking up eleven different convention halls, was a “buffet of design trends,” as host Sean Heath put it. So what design elements stood out among the throng of booths?

“It’s definitely about space...how to get more out of the space," Dwyer said.

Design elements that open up spaces without the clutter of extra fixtures are top performers. Open shelving stood out among the crowd, as well as clean cabinetry.

“How to conceal everything was a big point at the show," Dwyer said, referencing how hardware, like hinges, are becoming less visible to the user’s eye. In short, “clean, contemporary, straight modern lines” are in.

Consumers are seeking minimalism as their living spaces shrink, and the design world is reflecting this global shift. Dwyer's take on European furniture and design gave us a glimpse into what will take footing in the US next year when trends make their way across the pond.

Tariffs and trade talks continue to be the biggest topic of conversation for those in the agricultural sector. According to the latest Almond Board of California’s Global Update, India imposed retaliatory tariffs on a list of 28 U.S. goods in response to the U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs which were implemented last year. This also came after the U.S. removed India’s trade privileges under the Generalized System of Preferences.

This is of particular interest for Almond farmers in California, who make up 80% of the world’s global supply. India is California’s number one almond market and almonds are the top U.S. agricultural export to India with a value of $657 million in 2017, according to Dan Wheat of the Capital Press.

Almond Board vice president Julie Adams says tariffs in China are responsible for the increased business in India. But the question now becomes, what happens to those gains in the wake of these tariffs put in place by India?

Michelle Connelly, executive director of the California Walnut Board, says quote, “The additional 20% tariff puts California at a disadvantage to other producers entering the market. We are extremely disappointed we could not reach a resolution on the ongoing tariff issues.”

Our three-part podcast concludes with Alex Parnell, president of Splitting Lanes Entertainment. Parnell's work as a freelance colorist and online editor is ever-changing. No two workdays look alike. On this final episode, we explored his workflow, what software he relies on to keep his work running smoothly, and what changes he forecasts seeing in the future of coloring media.

“It’s really hard to keep up on everything and every change," Parnell said about staying current on software updates and new editing programs on the block.

But by scheduling personal time to familiarize himself with software, Parnell has set himself apart from the competition. His familiarity with a variety of programs keeps his projects running smoothly.

For a multi-user environment, Parnell attested that Avid is “by far the best editing software.” But he cautions Avid for being slow to update, postulating that they may soon be irrelevant in the fast-changing market.

With computers becoming faster, clients demand a speedy turnaround. Parnell elaborated on how this change is affecting his work, and how he suggests other media professionals deal with the high demand. Efficiency is key in this career, and he divulged the tricks to keeping his workflows running smoothly.

We welcomed back Alex Parnell, president of Splitting Lanes Entertainment, for episode two of our three-part series of CineCast: A Cinedeck Podcast. On episode one, we got to know Parnell as a creative in the industry of media, film, and television, how he got into the field and what gets him excited for work each morning. On this episode, we explored what a day on the job looks like for Parnell, and listened to personal stories of tricky clients and challenging workflows.

“People are definitely more educated on color science," Parnell said, explaining how a more informed client can make his job easier. But it is a double-edged sword.

With colorist software like DaVinci Resolve being free and relatively user-friendly, higher-ups think they can do the job of colorist. The reality couldn’t be further from the truth. With different clips and quality, particularly in reality television, a keen eye is needed to blend media.

Colorists and editors work with a variety of programs like Premiere, Resolve, Avid, Cinedeck and more. As files get passed between programs, dozens of different files are created, often forcing colorists to manually transcode, creating hours of extra work. But Alex revealed a trade secret.

“The file-based delivery...is very efficient if you used something like a Cinedeck or cineX insert," he said.

Imagine a sweltering Summer day in the Arizona desert. The kind where the heat rises off the black asphalt like a hologram. With the outside temperature reading 120 degrees Fahrenheit you get into your car, desperate to find relief, only to turn over the ignition to a dead battery.

These sort of extreme weather conditions, be they boiling hot or despairingly cold, wreak havoc on the chemical-based batteries in cars and trucks. When these batteries fail, they leave many people in dire, often dangerous, situations. But thankfully, inventor Bryce Gregory decided to remedy this problem.

Joining us on this Smart Power podcast by Ioxus, we welcomed Bryce Gregory, director of field application engineering and product management for Ioxus.

uSTART isn’t a battery, it is a technology, an idea—an ultra-capacitor. This technology stores energy independent of the battery store. Capable of starting a vehicle whilst supporting its full electrical load, the uSTART can perform in extreme temperatures. With sturdy construction, the uSTART is designed to perform for a lifetime. =

“We wanted to make this thing last as long as the trucks it goes in,” Gregory said.

No fancy installation necessary, the uSTART is simple to integrate with any vehicle battery. uSTART longevity and ease of install make it an environmentally-friendly and service-friendly invention.

“There are many places [where] batteries are used in the world that aren’t starting vehicles,” Gregory said.

With that knowledge in mind, he foresees uSTART technology making its way beyond just vehicles and trucks, and into heavyweight equipment and boats...anywhere “where reliability is very important.“

Google Maps has received an update that is sure to make life easier for travelers.

The latest edition of the popular app now includes a tab that contains flight and hotel reservation information. This feature is sure to make Google Maps an indispensable part of any trip, especially one to a new destination.

Google is also beta testing an augmented reality function within maps that lays arrows and way-finding information over the physical world being captured on your cell phone.

Which update has you more excited?

For more, start your morning with the biggest news stories every Wednesday and Friday with Business Casual LIVE! Follow us on Twitter @MarketScale for updates throughout the day as well. You can also join the conversation through our Market Leaders LinkedIn groups.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Food trucks have exploded in popularity in recent years, with the number of businesses in the food truck industry growing an average of 12.8% a year between 2014 and 2019.

Miley Holmes, co-owner of Easy Slider food truck, joined Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern to discuss the ins and outs of owning and operating a food truck. "It's a grueling business with so many moving parts and so many variables," Holmes said. "But I admire those people that are committed and have some skin in the game from day one."

She went on to say that she believes food trucks are portrayed as easy to get into it, but it's more difficult than that and requires commitment.

Hear her thoughts on renting vs. owning a truck and whether or not cities are making it easier for food trucks to operate in this excerpt from Business Casual with Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Wednesday and Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

This week's edition of The Short List highlights Nike's latest play in the shoe subscription service, and the impact of Hong Kong's airport cancelling all of its flights due to protests.
67% of retailers report higher revenue after launching subscription services, and Retail giant Nike looks to follow that trend. Nike announced its first jump into the shoe subscription service with a program called the Nike Adventure Club. The program is geared specifically for parents with kids ages 2-10, to accommodate the constant need for purchasing new shoes in different sizes. The company hopes this move will capture a larger share of the $10 billion dollar kids shoe market. As delivery woes with Amazon continue to grow, look for shipping providers like FedEx capitalize on this program.

Authorities in Hong Kong cancelled hundreds of flights in response to large scale protests inside the city’s international airport this week. This is the latest blow to the region’s travel and hospitality industries. The airport alone currently contributes approximately 5% to Hong Kong’s GDP.

Television is going through a(nother) Golden Age. With the influx of streaming companies to the entertainment sphere, there have never been more TV programs to watch than today. For colorists and online editors like Alex Parnell, this means ample work and incoming clients.

Today marks the first episode of a three-part series in this edition of CineCast: A Cinedeck Podcast. Designed to elevate the voices of creative professionals in the field of media, film, and television, CineCast dove into Parnell's freelance journey as a colorist to unpack the vision and software the guides his work.

On the first part of this series, we got to know Alex Parnell, president of Splitting Lanes Entertainment. He elaborated on what drew him to the creative field of media and why the freelance lifestyle worked best for him.

“I love taking footage ...and figuring out what’s wrong with it,” he said.

The field is full of challenges and hiccups, but the daily life of a freelancer never looks the same, a quirk of the job that Parnell thrives on. With an ever-changing office, he must remain flexible to the tools and apparatus he has to work with. Different monitors, panels, and button configuration add extra challenges to the job, but the joy, freedom, and financial benefits of being a freelancer outweigh the extra effort.

With the world of entertainment demanding fast turnaround, Parnell explained how long days can work against colorists trying to set themselves apart. Despite the struggles, the reward of the final deliverable is worth the industry uncertainty.

“I love it when someone comes to me and something isn’t working and we’re able to make it work," he said.

The public has grown accustom to Amazon’s private label products over the last several years. The company’s Alexa line of smart devices and other Amazon-branded items have become ubiquitous across American homes. Now, businesses are getting in on the action as well.

Amazon recently announced its first private label brand for businesses, under its B2B arm AmazonCommercial. However, this does not necessarily mean the retailer plans on taking over the office supply space entirely.

“My personal hypothesis is that Amazon doesn’t want to become a house of brands or a manufacturer. My viewpoint is that they are across all of these private labels that they’ve created, they are simply filling in their assortment,” Kiri Masters, Founder of Bobsled Marketing and Forbes contributor said.

Masters’ company helps retailers bring products to Amazon to reach more consumers.

The business-to-business marketplace is significantly larger than the business-to-consumer market, and Amazon is keen on increasing its presence there. Its first product roll out is an assortment of paper items like tissues and paper towels.

“Amazon is always scanning their environment, looking at their assortment and figuring out, ‘we don’t really have a middle of the road option in this category’. That’s why they looked at this specific paper products category and recognized that people are interested in value of course, but they also want to be buying from a brand they trust,” Masters noted.

Amazon recently announced a split with Fed Ex’s Ground services. Instead, it will rely more on its own fleet of delivery vehicles moving forward. Deliveries to offices offer higher margins per stop, something that may be yet another growth opportunity for the company.

For the latest retail news, head to our industry page! You can also follow us on Twitter @RetailMKSL for up-to-the-minute updates! Continue the conversation in our Market Leaders LinkedIn group!

From its inception in 1983 to now, ARC Specialties has become a case study in the growth of an American entrepreneurial endeavor. Company President Dan Allford took the business out of a garage and has since turned the automated manufacturing systems provider into an international enterprise.

On the first episode of The Roboticist Chronicles, host Tyler Kern sat down with Allford to explore the history of ARC Specialties and analyze how its trials and tribulations reflect growth and challenges within the industry.

Continuity and steady growth kept ARC on an upward trajectory over the decades, and Allford said that sometimes it is not about what a company does, but what it does not do.

“As long as you keep your mistakes commensurate with the size of your business, you’ll survive. So, while we were small, we made small mistakes, and we survived,” Allford said.

ARC has endured the globalization of manufacturing which has seen jobs leave the United States, but Allford said the industry is entering a renaissance in America today. Certainly, that is a welcome sight to Allford, who after almost forty years still has an unwavering passion for welding and manufacturing.

“I still like building things,” he said. “The only thing better than building something is building something that builds something.”

After creating jobs in more than 20 countries, Allford’s greatest build may not be a product but an exemplary company.

We've heard a lot in recent year about the promise of new technology that will radically alter the restaurant experience. Tabletop technology like tablets for ordering and payment have been touted as game-changers for restaurants, allowing for increased ordering and a more efficient waitstaff.

But, not everyone is sold on the revolutionary potential of this technology. On this week's episode of Business Casual, Daniel Litwin & Tyler Kern introduced a new segment called The Comments Section where they comment on business related op-ed pieces.

What do they have to say about tabletop technology? Find out in this installment of The Comments Section.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale’s live radio broadcast, every Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Disney's new Star Wars Galaxy's Edge opened to smaller crowds than expected. Does this mean it was a flop?

Mike Wallace, creative director at Falcon’s Creative Group, doesn't necessarily think so. "When we see these new attractions opening up we expect there to be lines out the gate," he told Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern on Business Casual. "I think Disney strategically, in my opinion, avoided that by saying we're going to make sure our guests have the best experience possible."

Hear the full interview and get more insights on this topic from Mike Wallace in this clip from Business Casual.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale's live radio broadcast, every Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Farmers in the United States got some bad news this week as the Chinese Commerce Ministry announced that China will no longer be buying American agricultural products. As the trade war between the U.S. and China continues to drag on, the growing question is whether or not American farmers can continue to endure it.

According to CNBC, U.S. farm exports to China totaled $5.9 billion in 2018. Losing that entire market could do longterm damage the agriculture industry in the United States. Hear Daniel Litwin & Tyler Kern discuss on the August 9th episode of Business Casual.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale's live radio broadcast, every Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Disney unveiled a new streaming service to better position itself against cord cutting. Fed Ex and Amazon announced a split that might heat up a shipping war.

Starting in a new business venture as a novice can be a daunting expedition, but expert consultation and advice can help navigate challenges and make for smoother sailing. On this week’s episode of the Building Management podcast, James Bridges, development analyst for Iron Fox, shares his expertise in getting new car washes up and running.

Bridges has helped entrepreneurs open car washes from Maryland to South Carolina. His talent is in real estate site selection, volume estimation to determine site viability, equipment selection, and maintenance training. He and the Iron Fox team will even consult with partners on best practices and policies to implement long after the grand opening.

“We try to be a complete partner," Bridges said.

He revealed that there’s more to running a car wash than meets the eye. Different municipalities have different water chemistries. Sometimes the water is too hard and other times too soft, so getting it just right requires a bit of art and science. And since the red clay of the South differs from the dirt in the East, the part of the country will inform the best equipment for soil removal.

When it comes to the solvents used inside the car wash, Bridges explained that there have been tremendous improvements in car waxes, detergents, and cleaning solutions to produce a better-looking car. “Cleaner, Drier, Shinier,” is his refrain.

Asked about handwashing his own vehicles, Bridges said: “I always take my cars to the different car washes.” He trusts his automobiles to the same wash tunnels he’s helped kickstart since, in his words, you need to sample what you’re selling.

Half a billion people in the world face severe water scarcity throughout the year. With climate change altering our environments this water scarcity is bound to enhance, making it all the more important to preserve and protect our water sources for years to come. On this episode of the Building Management Podcast, we were joined by Jon Deming, founder of Safe Drain Storm Water Holdings Inc. to discuss the dangers of catastrophic spills in the workplace, and how these costly and dangerous spills can be avoided.

Deming's Safe Drain innovation was born from a simple question: “What can we do for the environment?” When a single spill of one gallon of oil can contaminate up to a million gallons of water, the room for negligence and accident spills are slim.

So what causes these spills and who is making them? From a lack of preparedness, complacency, or simply just human error, spills can happen in any workplace no matter how safe. Deming encourages companies to be proactive, to not wait until an accident is at their doorstep.

“It only takes a little bit of prevention," he said, recommending companies to audit themselves and identify risks before they become accidents.

But when these policies and procedures fail, Safe Drain is the last line of defense before harmful chemicals or pollutants come in contact with the water supply.

“You can open and close a SafeDrain in seconds," Deming said, which can mean the difference between paying $500,000 in fines and clean up fees, or having a contained and controlled spill.

Some companies balk at the idea of investing in preventative measures like Safe Drain, but it only takes one harmful spill to eat a hole in profits, and harm millions of gallons of water. Deming encourages companies to not just comply with regulations, but do what’s right for the environment.

It has been a tumultuous week in the stock markets with the announcement of a new 10% tariff on $300 million of Chinese goods slated to go into effect on September 1st.
This is the first round of tariffs to target consumer goods, and retailers reeled accordingly.

China responded to the tariffs by devaluing its currency to its lowest level since 2008. This sent American markets into their worst day of 2019.

Better Burgers Faster?While America and China continue to take bites out each other’s economies, fast food chain Shake Shack announced a move to get more mouths on its burgers.

In the company’s Q2 earnings call on Monday, it announced a new partnership with delivery service GrubHub. Shake Shack CEO & Director Randy Garutti had this to say about the deal:

"With continued growth and importance of our digital evolution, I'm pleased to share that we've chosen to formalize and launch a partnership today with Grubhub, to deliver Shake Sack to hungry fans nationwide. During the deep learning of the pilot phase, we've benefited from taking our time to understand the needs of our guests, the important and necessary operational aspects of executing delivery well and the relative strengths of potential partners. We've learned a lot with each of the delivery providers with whom we've piloted, and we're excited to move forward on this important part of our overall digital ecosystem and guest offering."

The companies are currently piloting the service in four Shake Shack locations across the Northeast and Chicago.

What July Meant for JobsOn Friday the Bureau of Labor Statistics released the July jobs report, which revealed an addition of 164-thousand non-farm jobs. Overall, the report was in line with analyst expectations. Here’s what Merrill Lynch/Bank of America CIO Marci McGregor took away from the report in an interview with Yahoo Finance.

Unemployment stayed steady at 3.7 percent as well.

For the latest B2B headlines, check out our industry pages! You can also follow us on Twitter at @MarketScale! Join the conversation on our Market Leaders LinkedIn Groups!

On a brand new segment of Business Casual that we're calling Kern Down for What, Tyler Kern explains to Daniel why he believes youth sports participation is dropping in the U.S.

Tune in to Business Casual at 8 AM CST on MarketScale.com/industries or the Simple Radio app for the latest in B2B industry news.

Anytime tragedies the nature of this weekend’s mass shootings at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas and at bars in Dayton, Ohio occur, a reassessment of safety needs to take place. But where is the logical starting point?

Each shooting tragedy has its own unique set of circumstances that lead to its origin and its end, but can businesses play a larger role in ensuring customer safety, and if so, to what extent?

Dr. Alex del Carmen, Executive Director and Professor at the School of Criminology, Criminal Justice and Strategic Studies at Tarleton State University has spent his career examining public safety protocol.

“There has to be a line between the extreme and what is expected by the community,” del Carmen said.

While it can be difficult to stop something as daunting as a mass shooter, del Carmen says there are actionable items retailers and restaurants can do to increase customer safety. These include increasing lighting, limiting points of entry and adding security detail.

Crime prevention strategy is not always top of mind for retailers, and cost-effectiveness certainly plays a role in this, but del Carmen says stores have the tools to be more proactive than reactive.

“Technology has been used, but it’s mostly reactive. For instance, people say ‘I’ve got cameras’. Well that’s great but you’re going to have a video or still shot of the guy who killed a whole bunch of people. But what use is that except to tell the story the day after,” del Carmen explained. “There needs to be a monitory component to those cameras.”

Time will tell if the lessons from these incidents are learned, and if those teachings are put into action.

Anytime tragedies the nature of this weekend’s mass shootings at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas and at bars in Dayton, Ohio occur, a reassessment of safety needs to take place. But where is the logical starting point?

Each shooting tragedy has its own unique set of circumstances that lead to its origin and its end, but can businesses play a larger role in ensuring customer safety, and if so, to what extent?

Dr. Alex del Carmen, Executive Director and Professor at the School of Criminology, Criminal Justice and Strategic Studies at Tarleton State University has spent his career examining public safety protocol.

“There has to be a line between the extreme and what is expected by the community,” del Carmen said.

While it can be difficult to stop something as daunting as a mass shooter, del Carmen says there are actionable items retailers and restaurants can do to increase customer safety. These include increasing lighting, limiting points of entry and adding security detail.

Crime prevention strategy is not always top of mind for retailers, and cost-effectiveness certainly plays a role in this, but del Carmen says stores have the tools to be more proactive than reactive.

“Technology has been used, but it’s mostly reactive. For instance, people say ‘I’ve got cameras’. Well that’s great but you’re going to have a video or still shot of the guy who killed a whole bunch of people. But what use is that except to tell the story the day after,” del Carmen explained. “There needs to be a monitory component to those cameras.”

Time will tell if the lessons from these incidents are learned, and if those teachings are put into action.

The latest Avengers blockbuster movie and the hugely popular Fortnite video game series both use powerful software to create spectacular graphics and CGI so lifelike your eyes think it's real. But deploying similar technology to create protective coverings might be even more unexpected. On today’s podcast, Bob Coulter, director of data acquisitions & technology at Transhield, revealed how his company utilizes CGI software to safeguard America’s critical military assets.

The road that led Coulter to Transhield goes through Hollywood. Over two decades ago, he spent his time directing and producing commercials and music videos before transitioning into a career in game development. Later, he left media creation altogether and joined some old friends at Transhield where he said it was cool to see how different skillsets could be used in creative ways, in this case, to build protective coverings.

Leveraging his past experiences, he began working with the same software developed for media creation to model perfect fitted coverings.

“We’re probably one of the few people who utilize the software in this manner," Coulter said.

The technology digitizes the process of modeling, so when the military sends over laser scans of a naval boat, Coulter's team will use the software to design custom covers that can shield the vessel from mildew, moisture, and microbials that lead to corrosion.

“There’s a huge percentage of our GDP that rots away in fields so protecting those assets is valuable," Coulter said.

While his own background is unique, he mentioned that the company also employs fashion designers and expert package engineers who harness their special training to help in creating superior protective solutions.

From day one, Coulter said, he was "blown away by just how much talent was within Transhield.”

If you’ve ever used a Fitbit, Apple watch, or step counter, you’ve harnessed the power of artificial intelligence to track athletic performance and health. But these consumer devices are just the tip of the iceberg. Professional athletes are making gains in practice by using innovative new technology applied to ball-throwing machines, commonly known as jugs. Here today to talk about “The Seeker,” the world’s first robotic quarterback, is Sawyer Theison, Director of Sales for Monarc Sports.

“The Seeker,” is not your average jug. By combining IoT tracking technology with a smart wearable device, the machine becomes an intelligent robot, throwing balls within 10cm of precision. In fact, Sawyer asserts that the Seeker is “100x more accurate than GPS.” So why is this smart technology important to athletes? Sawyer explains that players can become accustomed to the throws of regular jugs, sitting in plateaus and taking away value from a practice session.

With random mode, The Seeker can pitch a variety of throws, or customize a ball’s arc and speed. What's more, The Seeker collects valuable data on the player such as peak speed, average speed, and rate of acceleration. These stats help players push and train, increasing practice efficiency during offseason.

Playing catch is no longer a two-person sport with the help of The Seeker. This smart robot helps players, be they collegiate or professional, train when they want--how they want. With remote software updates, The Seeker is not unlike other smart devices--user-friendly. Though the Seeker is designed for American Football, Sawyer explains it is only a matter of time before Monarc Sports presents the smart Pitcher, Striker, and Server.

The House of Representatives recently passed a bill to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025, phase out low wages for tipped workers, and make further minimum wage hikes indexed to median wage growth. Though the general public has a plurality (in some polls an overwhelming majority) opinion in favor of a raise to $15, economists are split on the issue. Some see it as an opportunity to boost worker productivity, others believe it'd only increase poverty.

What about businesses, though? What do they think of the potential raise, and how might it affect their bottom line? On this segment of American Made, a conversational corner on American policy affecting American business, we break down the differing perspectives and try to draw some conclusions on how the current fair wage movement will change the world of business.

American Made is a segment on Business Casual with Daniel Litwin & Tyler Kern, MarketScale's B2B live radio show. Business Casual airs every Friday at 8 AM CST on the Simple Radio app and on our website. You can also find episodes after the fact on Apple Podcasts & Spotify.

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter-percentage point on Wednesday, its first reduction in 11 years. However, this is no indictment on the state of the U.S. economy. Here’s how Whittier Trust CIO Sandip Bhagat broke down the news in an interview with Yahoo Finance.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank did not see the move as the beginning of a long series of rate cuts, but did not rule it out.

There is plenty of interest in the meat alternative market recently and Burger King is set to capitalize on it. BK’s parent company, Restaurant Brands International, said Thursday it has reached a agreement with Impossible Foods to begin selling plant-based Impossible Whoppers starting August 8th.

Burger King is the largest restaurant chain to roll out a meat alternative on its menu in the US, and here’s what McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook told CNBC in May about the complications behind such an addition.

Burger King is still undecided whether this move will be permanent or not. While the impossible burger may only cost a few bucks, SnapAV just spent approximately $680 million to acquire Control 4.

The latter is a provider of automation and network systems for homes and businesses that allow users to control lighting, sound, security, communications and more. Snap AV CEO John Heyman had this to say about the thinking behind the merger.

The announcement signals a further push of AV applications into the smart home space. That’s the B2B Shortlist for this week, I’m MarketScale Digital Editor Geoffrey Short.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale's live radio broadcast, every Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

With each passing week, eSports is getting harder and harder to ignore as a massive player in the world of sports and entertainment. If you look past the constant questions that go something like, "You mean to tell me people just watch other people playing video games?", you begin to see that big brands are buying into what eSports is selling.

In the past week alone, 16-year old Kyle Giersdorf collected $3 million of prize money for winning the first Fortnite World Cup and one of the world's most popular gamers, Ninja, announced an exclusive deal with Microsoft's streaming platform called Mixer. The viewership numbers for these big events aren't lost on brands who are looking to grab the attention of gamers for advertising purposes.

On this excerpt from MarketScale's weekly radio show, Business Casual, Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin discuss the rapid growth of eSports and the attempts by brands to cash in on sponsorship opportunities.

Tune in to Business Casual, MarketScale's live radio broadcast, every Friday at 8 a.m. CST.

Hear from Chief Learning Officer at CUE Jon Corippo, who joined us to break down the newest study from Bournemouth University that claims media studies should be mandatory in schools if the world wants a more digitally literate population. Corippo explained how to implement curriculum that tackles fake news, and how technology will play a supporting role.

Daniel takes a stab at the $15 minimum wage on a segment of American Made. The House of Representatives recently passed a bill to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025. Though the general public is in favor of a raise to $15, economists are split on the issue. What about businesses, though? What do they think of the potential raise, and how might it affect their bottom line? We showcase differing perspectives and try to draw some conclusions on how the current fair wage movement will change the world of business.

Tyler explores the growing opportunities for not only individuals but business in eSports. WIth 16-year old Kyle Giersdorf's big eSports win, where he collected $3 million of prize money for winning the first Fortnite World Cup, as well as Ninja's, one of the world’s most popular gamers', exclusive deal announcement with Microsoft’s streaming platform called Mixer, the case for eSports has never been stronger. Viewership numbers for these big events aren’t lost on brands who are looking to grab the attention of gamers for advertising purposes, and we look at attempts by brands to cash in on sponsorship opportunities.

Tune in to Business Casual every Friday at 8 a.m. CST for the latest in B2B news and thought leadership. Join the conversation on our Market Leaders LinkedIn groups and make sure to follow us on Twitter!

The typical two-hour movie that audiences enjoy across the world daily is the culmination of a year or multi-year process. Projects fit for the big screen or the flat screen take months to put together once filming starts, but by the time it hits the desk of freelance colorist and finishing editor Mike Nuget, it is expected to be finished within days.

Nuget gets films fit for viewing by perfecting audio, color, and other fine edits. This can be an extremely pressure-packed job, and with ever-changing technology, Nuget has continually had to adapt to the tools at his disposal.

“If I’m not thinking about my job then I’m falling behind in a way,” he said. “I’m constantly learning something, whether it’s just watching a tutorial online about software that I already know and it’s just tips and tricks from somebody else, or it’s a completely different software that I’ve never heard of that I want to learn about.”

An editor’s toolkit is essential for not only quality work, but an efficient workflow. Though there are many, Nuget cited Cinedeck’s cineXtools specifically as one of his favorites and calls it an indispensable program for saving time and increasing efficiency. CineXtools allows editors to make small changes to an exported file without having to completely rerender the final piece. He estimated that the ability to insert an edit into a file using Cinedeck’s software once saved him at least 21 hours on a project, which carried the added benefit of reducing costs for his client as well.

The ability to stay sharp and in tune with new pieces of equipment keeps Nuget in demand by some of the largest names in television and film. With a portfolio that includes work for HBO, Netflix, ABC, NBC, ESPN, and Hulu among other major networks, he said his flexibility on multiple editing platforms, coupled with 20 years of experience, keep him busy.

While there is pressure to learn quickly and turnaround projects sometimes within the same week, Nuget takes time to enjoy learning the nuances of different editing software services while doing his job. He advised young editors to make YouTube their ‘best friend’ and puts together tutorials on basic editing tips to continue preparing the future of the workforce.

Considering that our oceans cover more than 70 percent of our planet’s surface and contain more than 97 percent of the Earth’s water, it’s surprising to realize that only about 5 percent of the world’s seafloor has been mapped in detail, leaving approximately 65 percent of the Earth (excluding dry land) unexplored. With so much of our planet yet to discover, governments, organizations, and private funding are furthering mankind’s ventures into sea, helping us to unravel the mysteries of the deep.

Yet, there is a high degree of difficulty and cost in exploring undersea. Vessels are one of the most critical elements in any ocean-going venture, carrying food, water, fuel, and the equipment necessary to the crew’s survival while on mission. These vessels must also house specialized tools and technologies that allow scientists and researchers to explore underwater environments, including cutting-edge computers and navigational and communications systems. For video production staffs responsible for capturing potentially once-in-a-lifetime discoveries in these extreme environments, their equipment must be rugged, dependable, and of superior quality in order to provide quality image streaming to shoreside teams and online viewers.

On today’s episode of the podcast, we sat down with Ed McNichol, video operation manager on contract for Ocean Exploration Trust. OET was founded in 2008 to engage in pure ocean exploration, seeking out new discoveries in the fields of geology, biology, maritime history, archaeology, and chemistry. With all scientific research conducted at the highest international academic standards, OET pushes the boundaries of ocean engineering, technology, education, and communications, sharing their expeditions with explorers around the world via live telepresence.

“The most fascinating thing I’ve ever seen at the bottom of the ocean is what we’re just about to see next. It’s just such a mystery. And whatever’s just outside the reach of our lights, no matter how tired I am at sea, that’s what keeps me energized and engaged, because it’s such an unknown. So, I can’t fall back and say there’s any one particular thing I’ve seen that stands out because it’s all such a magical, mysterious area of our planet,” McNichol said.

As OET’s contracted video operations manager, McNichol shoulders a lot of responsibility. He must ensure that each expedition is optimally captured and recorded on film. While new technology such as satellite equipped vessels have made a great impact on ocean video exploration, evolving technologies and companies like Cinedeck’s are helping to refine and optimize undersea video production.

Each innovation to the ways that we consume television and film creates new problems for the people in that industry to creatively solve. For freelance colorist and finishing editor Mike Nuget and director of technology for PostWorks Matt Schneider, that means the workflow for every project looks slightly different.

Nuget and Schneider joined this episode of the podcast to explain how 4K and other new technologies have changed the way they do their jobs and talked about some of the new software that’s making their lives easier.

“People think that files are easier because you can just drag and drop them,” Nuget said. “If the camera guy two years ago who shot something didn’t label the files right, then two years later when it gets into my room it’s chaos.”

Nuget and Schneider talked about the challenges presented with each project and the increasingly blurred lines between the creatives and the post-production experts.

Trends have a tendency to be cyclical. That helps explain the recent interest in everything “retro.” In the Pro AV world, “legacy procedures” don’t typically have the same romantic image. Cinedeck is bringing a classic, common-sense workflow approach back to the forefront.

On today’s podcast, our host spoke with the director of business development for Cinedeck, John Harris. They discussed the reason some procedures were so functional in the first iteration, how scalability is critical for new clients (of all sizes), and how Cinedeck is constantly trying to improve their approaches and products to challenge the “that’s just the way it’s done” mindset.

“We can’t avoid the first render, we have to create that file, there’s no doubt,” Harris said. “But, what we have to consider in all our workflows: when are we ever repeating the same task again?”

Tyler Kern is joined by industry expert Ken Jenkins to discuss United Airlines' recent investment into the security company CLEAR. They also focus on some the benefits and risks of the use of biometrics in the security industry.

Smart home technology began with the invention of clap-on-clap-off lamps in the 80’s, and has since evolved into intelligent tech that can monitor a building’s temperature, light, and security. This same tech is making its way into industrial environments and saving businesses big bucks.

The Polygon Group has designed an innovative smart thermostat, ExactAire, and packed with an array of sensors to help construction companies and warehouse enterprises remotely monitor and control a building's climate. On today's episode of the Building Management Podcast, we discussed ExactAire’s capabilities and benefits with Don Schnell [contributor page], sales director at Polygon Group, and Brandon Willis, creative director at EyeType Consulting LLC.

So what sets ExactAire apart from most smart thermostats? As the most advanced system on the market for monitoring and controlling environmental conditions, ExactAire is leading the charge in interior climate control. Not just a thermostat, ExactAir can also monitor and sense humidity, dew point, CO2 levels, harmful vapors, and more.

With real-time updates and alarms sent over a cellular network, ExactAire’s iPad friendly software can save expensive machines from rusting, or costly product from being spoiled. Clients like the US Navy have seen the value in this tech, and other industries like construction, metalworks, food processing, and machine storage have also invested in ExactAire technology to help their bottom line.

The energy savings alone help clients hone in on unnecessary spending, in addition to preserving product when workers aren’t present to monitor a facility. A 24-hour battery backup saves systems from shutting down in the event of an unexpected power outage. In short: If there’s a sensor, there’s a way.

“There are all kinds of different ways to tie into the monitoring and alarming system that we’ve developed here.” Schnell said, assuring that the ExactAire framework is primed and ready to be customized to a client’s needs.

Home renters and businesses of all sizes are feeling the squeeze of soaring rents across the United States’ largest metropolitan areas.

Ecommerce has long been ascribed as the killer of brick-and-mortar retail, but the price of staying in business is also contributing to closures across the country. Menswear retailer Barneys recently had annual rent raised by more than $11 million on its Manhattan flagship location and has been forced to consider several options to cut back costs.

Steven Kalifowitz, President of Localize.City, a software technology startup that uses AI to give prospective home renters and buyers a wealth of high-level data insights, has followed the volatile New York City real estate scene.

“A place like Barneys can get really squeezed because a landlord wants high rent and because so many of these landlords have been here for so long, they don’t mind keeping a store empty for a certain time until they can get the right price.” Kalifowitz said. “The landlords in New York City are less concerned about month-to-month income when they can get such a big jump from someone else. And they have the cashflow to wait.”

Also contributing to the increase in rent prices is an imbalance of access to information on properties between landlords and renters.

“Until now, there’s been a large asymmetry of information. The people who own properties know a lot more than those who don’t. With that asymmetry going away, it’s changing how people are able to find properties and negotiate them,” Kalifowitz said.

Technology may be giving power back to buyers, but retailers are still at the moment fighting a two-front war against ecommerce competitors and leverage-holding landlords.

Athletic trainers are for more than athletes; even employees can benefit from the multidisciplined training that these healthcare professionals can provide for the workplace. To discuss this emerging trend on the Healthcare Podcast, host Daniel Litwin sat down with Bryan Reich, director of the industrial athlete program for WorkCare, an Anaheim-based occupational health company that helps businesses efficiently manage all aspects of work-related health.

Reich heads up WorkCare’s occupational health program for "industrial athletes," or what you and I might more commonly call employees. Just as athletes experience injury from trauma and repetitive motion in sports, employees are susceptible to injury as well, Reich said.

“The sprains and strains that are seen in the sports world cross over into the occupation space, especially in manufacturing, utility, or high industry where the workers have a repetitive job doing the same motion over and over,” Reich said. “It’s very similar to what we see in a sports setting.”

That’s why athletic trainers are highly qualified, accredited, and licensed healthcare professionals, he said. They’re recognized by the American Medical Association, the Health Resource Service Administration, and the Department of Health and Human Services as allied health care professionals.

Helping treat and prevent workplace injuries help companies keep down the cost of worker’s comp insurance and other injury-related expenses. Reich explained how trainers can bring proactive medicine to the workplace and how that can translate to the bottom line.

Airplane passengers usually board their flights with at least a cell phone, and many take tablets, e-readers, and laptops with them into the cabin. Some airlines are even removing seatback displays altogether and encouraging passengers to access in-flight entertainment on their mobile devices. On today’s podcast, Tom Hemphill, director of engineering at Mid Continent Controls, reveals the challenges of keeping these electronics charged while cruising.

A decade ago, the company primarily catered to airplane controls, switch panels, and outlets – then came the standardization of the mobile phone, and the business shifted focus to smart devices.

“Everybody needs at least one charger at every single seat; most airplanes now have two or even three," Hemphill said.

And it’s not just the cabin where access to power is needed. As a pilot himself, Hemphill revealed that crew members in the cockpit also need to be able to charge their devices. But the real difficulty for the company is the pace of technological evolution.

“Apple, Samsung, and Motorola all come out with new technology every 18 months, and a lot of times it’s a challenge to keep up.”

Electronics manufacturers, especially Apple, may have different charging specs that can make power solutions development a hassle. According to Hemphill, consumers are gravitating toward USB-C and wireless charging, but engineering for the latest technologies and having the solution fit within a small design isn’t always easy.

Then there’s the final hurdle to development – FAA certification. The agency has strict requirements that must be met before the technology can be approved for flights. Getting the certification can add a year to deploying the solution inside an aircraft.

“In the world of consumer electronics, that year means they’ve already come out with something new," Hemphill said.

To reduce the deployment timeframe, he said the company maintains consistent interaction with the OEMs, helping Mid Continent Controls stay one step ahead in the ever-changing world of technology.

Is Google trying to encroach on Amazon's territory with their new shopping page? That was the question on Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern's mind during Business Casual, MarketScale's live radio show airing on Fridays at 8am CT. Helping them sort through the details of the story was Bryan Eisenberg of Retail Legends.

Hear why he says Google can compete with Amazon when it comes to selection but will struggle in other major areas, specifically availability.

Bullish or Bearish is a regular segment appearing on Business Casual, MarketScale's weekly live radio show airing Friday mornings at 8 a.m. CT. This week, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern gave their thoughts on three new initiatives at established chain restaurants. Will a digital facelift to Krispy Kreme stores be what propels the brand into modern brick and mortar retail? Will Starbucks see popularity on Uber Eats? Should Pizza Hut remove the human touch point from the pick-up process? Give this snippet a listen for hot takes.

Doctors and patients connecting remotely for diagnosis and treatment is a growing trend in healthcare known as telemedicine. Opinions amongst physicians on the benefits of this method of treatment are split.

On a recurring segment of Business Casual, MarketScale's weekly live radio show airing at 8am on Friday mornings, Daniel Litwin and Tyler Kern discussed two different perspectives on this issue.

Hear what Dr. Mac McCormick of Eagle Telemedicine and Dr. Marc Siegel on Fox Business had to say about the advantages and disadvantages of using telemedicine moving forward.

How do you nail down the definition of contemporary? Ask an expert like Suzanne DeRusha, president of Suzanne Kimberly Design. In this episode of Element Sessions, an Element Designs podcast, host Sean Heath explored the fundamental principles of creating successful contemporary designs with the noted designer.

So, does contemporary design have a firm or fixed definition? Yes and no.

“Modern and contemporary are often transposed or used together, and that’s because typically consumers don’t know the differences,” DeRusha said. “But the style itself is always changing. Trying to keep your finger on that pulse is like knowing what each manufacturer is thinking and who their innovative brains are.”

That’s because ever-changing technology and functional engineering constitute a big part of contemporary style and design, DeRusha explained. Cabinet hardware function has come a long way with soft-close hinges and lift-up doors, for example. These are functional upgrades but represent a new sleek aesthetic that is prominent in contemporary design.

In this episode, DeRusha and Heath discussed the old debate of form versus function in design and the newer question of whether advances in materials drive design, or do design requirements cause material evolutions.

“We are living and designing in a time that all the elements are merging in perfect harmony,” DeRusha said.

On the premiere of Business Casual, hosts Tyler Kern and Daniel Litwin recap the week that was in the business-to-business world.

Hear from New York Times bestselling author Bryan Eisenberg who joins the show to discuss whether Google can compete with Amazon in the retail space. Eisenberg explains why price is not the only differentiator between the marketplaces.

Kern and Litwin also tell listeners whether they are bullish or bearish on three of the latest business partnerships and developments in the food and beverage industry. Some of the biggest brands in the space are taking bold actions, but will they pay off?

In the American Made segment, find out how Capitol Hill is making an impact on businesses across industries with a new piece of legislation. Kern and Litwin break down how the FCC and Congress are taking robocallers to task, and what that means for companies all over the United States. A proposed bill will be voted on at an FCC meeting on Aug. 1, according to Yahoo.

Tune in to Business Casual every Friday at 8 a.m. CST for the latest in B2B news and thought leadership.

Join the conversation on our Market Leaders LinkedIn groups and make sure to follow us on twitter!

Technology has changed the way products work and look, but what is often overlooked is the technology that puts these products in front of a buying audience.

For the woodworking, cabinet, furniture, and store fixture industries, the most powerful technologies have been the ones making each aspect of the design process more efficient, straight-forward, and comprehensive. From CAD software to social media, to virtual reality, technology has simplified the communication process between designer and customer. What sort of impact does this have at each stage of a project?

Beata Klecha, founding partner and vice president of marketing for Element Designs, and Colin Reyenga, owner of Alma Sales, Inc., join us on this episode of the Element Sessions podcast to break down the technology powering every niche and process in AEC, and how specialization has created software for specific markets in construction and design.

Customers and designers go through several stages from beginning to end to deliver a final product. Technology has impacted every single one, including the...

-Inspiration stage: Social media sites like Pinterest and Instagram are making it so much easier for clients to not only flex their creative muscles but follow influencers and leading companies to see how the greats do it and draw from that to really personalize their ideas.

-Product research stage: Professionals and customers alike have a plethora of comprehensive online catalogs to help filter, specify, and eventually choose the materials and products that will make their design a reality.

-Design stage: CAD software is a no-brainer, but the recent specializations of CAD software, creating design platforms for very specific end-products, has made the design stage less cumbersome. Add virtual and augmented reality to that, and you have customers and designers visualizing their designs clearly before ever touching a real piece of hardware.

-Purchasing stage: Companies like Element Designs have created online accounts so customers can receive quotes 24/7. Online ordering tools also allow buyers to specify customizations as well.

The digital landscape has changed the way people shop, and this does not stop once the purchase has been made.

Automated shipping updates in people’s email inboxes keep customers informed and engaged with the brand, making the buying experience a better and more personalized one. Once the delivery is completed, oftentimes happy buyers will share their new product on social media, adding to the wealth of organic awareness about the brand for new prospective customers and beginning the cycle anew.

Picture this: You’ve been going to the gym consistently for a few months and seeing great results. You’re shedding pounds and loving your look. But what if we told you your daily gym habit, a resolution for health, was permanently harming your body in irreversible ways?

Unfortunately, this may be the ugly truth due to the harmful chemicals gyms use to disinfect machines. On this episode of MarketScale Building Management Podcast, President and CEO of Ionogen John Shanahan gives his take on the risks associated with these common gym chemicals.

Shanahan explained how these toxic chemicals, known as “quaternary disinfectants,” are “endocrine disruptors.” This means hormones, be they testosterone or estrogen, are thrown out of whack, and livers and kidneys are thrown into overdrive.

The saddest part of the equation? Quaternary disinfectants don’t even kill anything. To work, they must remain on the machine, in a damp state, for three to five minutes. So how do facility managers safely sanitize gym machines? Shanahan explained the straightforward solution - hypochlorous acid.

A sister to bleach, hypochlorous acid is 80 times more effective than bleach, non-toxic, non-poisonous, and collapses into the water. Hypochlorous acid is already found naturally inside our bodies, produced by our white blood cells. Shanahan endorsed it completely, saying it is “..colorless, tasteless and odorless...When sprayed on machines, it is an instant kill to pathogens on the machine.” Sadly, it’s not widely adopted among gymnasiums, but gym-goers can be the change, asking staff to use this method of disinfectant.

On what seems like monthly basis, Amazon.com Inc. seems to be investing in a new industry, company or product. Its most recent investment, however, may prove to be its best one yet, even if it does not result in a monumental profit.

The company announced this month that it will retrain more than 100,000 of it’s U.S.-based workers in an effort to better prepare them and the company for the future. The upskilling program is a $700 million investment over a six-year span. This amounts to an approximate investment of $1,200 per year on each of the 100,000 employees, a number that is about one-third of its total American workforce.

A tightening labor market, an increase in automation and high profitability allows companies of this size to invest more in their workforce, even if it comes at the expense of profits. The Amazon program does not require employees to stay at the company, and the retailer is training some of its workforce in roles that the company currently does not offer employment in.

“What Amazon looks like it’s betting on is that they will be able to provide enough of a desirable workforce that these workers will by and large stay with Amazon, and put these new skills to use,” University of Washington Associate Professor of Economics Rachel Heath said.

The roles Amazon is training its employees for are based on data gathered by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the most rapidly-hiring fields in the U.S. These include data science, data mapping and security engineering roles among others.

The move coincides with similar initiatives started by industry leaders like Walmart, JP Morgan, Accenture and AT&T.

It is no secret that the retail world has been changed forever by the digital age. The internet connected retailers to a global market, and those that have adopted to the new landscape have come out ahead of the competition.

The rise of digital retail is often associated with the demise of brick-and-mortar shopping. However, that does not have to be the case.

While it is true that the likes of Amazon and Alibaba have put pressure on traditional retailers to adjust to new consumer expectations, clever brands are staying ahead by blending digital experiences and metrics into their traditional stores. This omnichannel approach is the subject of a new book by authors Tim Mason and Miya Knights.

“If you neglect the store side of your business, not even online is going to save you,” Knights, Head of Industry Insight at Eagle Eye Solutions said.

Omnichannel Retail: How to Build Winning Stores in a Digital World provides a roadmap for retailers looking to create a modern and digital solution to the ever-changing world of retail.

“It’s not about being everywhere for the customer, it’s about being where the customer wants you to be,” Knights noted.

The book can be purchased here. MarketScale listeners will receive a 20% discount with the promo code Omnichannel 20.

Historically, plumbing has been the butt of many jokes, or as Adam Bartman of reed said, “plumbing has always been the forgotten little brother.” Over time, as buildings have modernized and homes have become “smart,” plumbing technology has stayed the same for decades. But Bartman and his company, reed, are here to change the face of plumbing, bringing it into modernity by combining hardware and software solutions to water management on an industrial scale.

Before Bartman started tinkering with off-the-shelf controllers, he was running into plumbing issues on commercial buildings on the regular, like hidden leaks and spontaneous flooding. As a result, he saw a need for virtual facility management on a large scale.

“Fast forward four years...we created our hardware/software suite so that things run perfectly, in unison," Bartman said. What does this installation look like in the real world? Just ask one of reed’s first beta clients, a metal plating company that, after replacing a 70-year-old water meter with a new, smart meter, managed to reduce their water bill by $25,000.

Reed has successfully designed a slew of hardware and software that can tackle any property type, not just single-family homes. As a result, reed is at the forefront of water conservation and smart plumbing. Reed is utilizing the supercomputers in our pocket and applying their powers to virtual water management, saving companies thousands of dollars, and reducing excessive water usage.

We may live in the age of plastic, but 50% of transactions under $10 are still done in cash. There is more cash in circulation than ever before. In short, cash isn’t going anywhere. But, retailers know all too well that cash is fluid and hard to keep track of throughout the day as it flows in and out of the till.

So how do retailers keep track of legal tender, specifically coins, coming in and out of their store? We explore this question on this episode of MarketScale’s Retail Podcast with David Barclay, vice president of marketing for Tidel, as we discuss paper cash and how automated solutions can help stores manage their flow of cash.

Retail stores, particularly grocery and big box stores, are perhaps suffering the most from the difficulties of handling liquid cash. On a day-to-day basis, a store is losing profit as a result of the human element needed to handle coins and bills. But Barclay was adamant that stores need not eat into their profits by handling physical money.

Automated solutions, like that provided by Tidel, Barclay said, can help increase store efficiency and lead to “optimal use of store labor.” The biggest hurdle facing stores is that they “...don’t know at any one time how much cash you have on hand," he said.

As a result, cash is susceptible to theft, mishandling, and miscounting. Automated systems create better cash visibility, and the “ability to develop predictive models," Barclay said, which empowers stores with useful data for greater profit. Automated cash monitoring systems are not just for retail. Tidel’s software has made its way into the healthcare, education, and entertainment sectors.

More than just a network to monitor cash flow, Tidel helps businesses run more efficiently, which trickles into every part of the operation. The Tidel advantage is best summed up in the situation we’ve all been in--standing in line, waiting for an employe to count a handful of coins. Automated systems like Tidel’s, Barclay said, “...takes the manual counting of cash off the table.”

The promise of a future filled with self-driving cars now seems within sight. Technology companies and car manufacturers continue to collaborate and perform successful tests, regularly ginning up excitement from those keeping tabs on the progress.

But what does a society filled with autonomous vehicles look like? Will it be the utopian roadways so many envision? Or will it result in an overcrowded infrastructural mess that only slows the world down.

Keller Easterling, an architect, writer, and Director of the Master of Environmental Design program at Yale University has considered what the future of transportation might look like, beyond just the technology that will drive it.

“I think that everyone recognizes now if those vehicles are sold as individual vehicles, or even in fleets, if they’re used in lieu of [public] transit, they will create unprecedented congestion,” Easterling said. “So, a very smart vehicle and a very dumb traffic jam.”

Before self-driving cars fills the world’s streets, careful consideration must be given to the structure they exist within. The social, digital and spatial relationships must also be considered, something that may not be top of mind for the global manufacturers of vehicles.

“It’s clear to me that mobility companies are not thinking about it as much as they should. Or, to advantage,” Easterling said. “Where mobility companies might be killing the golden goose or missing a huge opportunity is in the sustaining real estate revenues and other things that come from thinking about an interplay between digital and spatial organizations.”

At some point these critical questions must be faced, but as it stands right now, there is no way to know how the rollout of these might go.

Americans are expected to spend $6.8 billion on food this Fourth of July, according to Wallet Hub. Outside of celebrating American independence, the holiday is perhaps most associated with grilling meat.

However, this year Americans will also be eating something different, yet very similar.

Plant-based meat alternatives have become an evermore frequent menu item at restaurants nationwide, including giants like White Castle and Burger King, making a dent in the traditional meat market.

H.G. Parsa, the Barron Hilton Distinguished Professor of Lodging Management at the University of Denver has worked in the food industry for decades and believes this new alternative is here to stay.

“When Burger King introduced the special burger, sales went up 11 percent,” Parsa said. “That’s huge!”

The success of companies like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods is an encouraging sign for companies in the space but still has several logistical challenges to get meet market demand.

“Supply chain is the issue here, not consumer demand,” Parsa pointed out.

Time will tell if plant-based solutions are a fad or not, but on this Fourth of July weekend, plenty of people will be giving it a chance.

As consumers, we’re used to shopping around for the best price. But there’s one marketplace where a frustrating lack of transparency in pricing still exists — healthcare. In this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with Ryan Coplon, CEO of HealthWallet to discuss how disruption in the healthcare industry is driving a new wave of consumerism in the marketplace.

Often insurance companies treat their provider-negotiated pricing as proprietary information, which makes it difficult for patients to be responsible, cost-conscious consumers. Austin-based HealthWallet is a health concierge app that helps consumers take a more active role in healthcare decision making with costs and options.

Telehealth and virtual healthcare have played a big part in healthcare consumerism, making care more accessible and convenient for many, Coplon explained. It’s popping up in national pharmacy chain websites, insurance companies’ member websites, and patient portals.

But as with any disruptive technology, telehealth has faced obstacles with widespread adoption. “As compared to most technological disruption capabilities, telehealth has lagged in terms of global utilization,” Coplon said. A lot of that stems from unfamiliarity with how a virtual doctor visit works.

That’s why some companies are covering 100 percent the cost of these telehealth visits so that patients can experience it without a co-pay, Coplon explained. It’s just one-way companies are affecting the healthcare supply chain.

“Instead of buying from an insurance company that says, ‘Here’s where you buy drugs and what they cost,’” Coplon said. “Companies are skipping that and contracting directly with local pharmacies. Now, if you cut the [middle man] out and contract directly between the local pharmacies and employer groups, they both come out net better by a mile.”

Healthcare prices have continued to rise in the United States in recent years, and no solution has been agreed upon. Making a complicated situation even hard to solve is the fact that the supply chain is much more complex in healthcare than in the exchange of other goods and services.

One of the major qualms about healthcare pricing is its lack of transparency. The negotiated rates between pharmaceutical companies and hospitals, insurers and pharmacies are private. This seemingly makes it difficult for consumers to shop around for lower prices.

A new executive order signed in June calls on the Department of Health and Human Services to force these negotiated rates to be publicized. This is designed to increase transparency of price and create market competition. Ideally, this will lower prices for consumers, but consensus has is hard to come by on the topic.

“Some states have already passed price transparency laws, like New Hampshire and some others, and again the story isn’t that great, at least the evaluation suggests they haven’t made an enormous impact or any impact at all on prices,” Mark Pauly, a professor of healthcare management at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania said.

Industry insiders are unsure of the impacts this transparency will have. Due to the nature of insurance and the way drug prices are established, transparency may not yield true competition, according to Pauly.

“You can’t look up in the Wall Street Journal, ‘what’s the going price today for a hospital day or a doctor visit’,” Pauly said. “These things are negotiated and typically the market structure for hospitals is one of oligopoly, with just a few hospitals in a typical town.”

The executive order did not spell out specifics but asked HHS to develop a policy that increases transparency.

American cities were transformed by the advent of reliable public transportation decades ago. But as those cities have radically evolved, most public transit systems remain largely the same as they did generations ago.

Recently, the blend of tech and data has begun to change things though. The adoption of private sector Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) options like Uber and Lyft have already enhanced how people move around urban areas.

“There’s some concern about the private sector taking over what is a public function but in fact, if we can get everyone to work together, we will create a far better public transportation system,” Daniel Sperling, Founding Director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California at Davis said.

Google announced last month that it would be implementing crowd-sourced data to alert users when public transportation systems are more crowded or delayed. This implementation of tech and data may be a sign of things to come, but there is still a long way to go before the ails of modern public transportation are put in the past and replaced with a better system.

“We’ve got to pull together the data and management systems and the technology to make it all seamless,” Sperling added.

Tech may not fundamentally change the look of vehicles, but it is already changing the way people get from point A to point B.

Skyrocketing healthcare expenses in America are the cause of financial pain for many, and rural communities are suffering from these rising prices and the cost is forcing many small hospitals, some the only one for miles, to shut their doors forever. In today's podcast, Kevin Campbell, CFO and founding partner of DTA Associates, shared his perspective on how the decline of these hospitals is affecting local communities.

"There's no one problem we can point to that is causing all this," Campbell said, explaining that prescription prices, labor costs, cost of treatments and end of life care are all factors in the financial challenges facing small healthcare organizations.

A hospital that serves a tiny population doesn't have the patient volume, which would allow them to purchase more efficient machines and services. This lack of scale leads to declining reimbursements, trapping the organizations in a Catch-22 situation.

Campbell mentioned that when a community hospital shutters, it's not just a problem for those who need help during an emergency. "These hospitals are a source of pride for these communities." They're also usually a significant employer, so when one shuts down, it can devastate a town.

So what can help these small hospitals survive? Data. While not a silver bullet, business intelligence like the affordable kind DTA provides, allows these organizations to improve their performance.

"If you don't know how you're performing because you can't get the data together, how are these executives and administrators supposed to make good decisions?" Campbell explained that by leveraging data, hospitals he works with make real progress month by month, allowing them to keep the doors open to the community.

Change is part of every industry. The grocery industry is no different. Evolution has become necessary, mostly driven by customer preferences. The grocery shopping experience is evolving with the support of technology. To chat about this new segment of the market is Joe McMenamin, business development for grocery fulfillment at KPS Global, a leading manufacturer of insulated panel systems.

The grocery business is competitive, so retailers have to evolve, and part of that is automation. According to McMenamin, “Automation is essential to grocery store’s future. Automation isn’t a bad thing. Tasks that don’t require a human mind and can be processed more efficiently this way.”

The grocery shopping experience involves automation and technology like it never has before. While younger generations and digital natives have been quick to adopt the convenience of ordering groceries online and picking them up or having them delivered; it’s also helped older generations. “Baby boomers are embracing it as well, and they benefit greatly from it since they may not be able to shop themselves,” McMenamin said.

Ultimately, grocery fulfillment is mostly about saving time, which is a precious commodity. Most households are very busy with working parents and active kids. Who has time to shop? “The amount of time a family can save through grocery fulfillment is a real game-changer, and just shows how the customer is driving this revolution,” McMenamin commented.

In addition to retailers adapting, there are also new industries infiltrating the market that are helping deliver a better solution with technology such as robotics. “Grocery stores have to adapt when it comes to grocery fulfillment, and they need partners. Walmart and Amazon are leading the way. This change is good. It’s good for the end-user and the retailers,” McMenamin shared.

For any type of social work, community engagement and widespread support help promote the interests of all patients involved. In today’s healthcare, community outreach is especially essential given the plethora of caregiving sources in any given locality.

Thus, one might wonder just how healthcare professionals go about exploiting the assets at their disposal to maximize the caregiving potential of their respective communities. Haven J. Ohly of the Cleveland-based Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging (WRAAA) has the answer.

Ohly, the WRAAA’s Aging & Disability Resource Center Supervisor, oversees care for the elderly in a five-county area in Ohio. He helps promote effective elderly care through various programs and advocacy initiatives.

“We fund a lot of transportation, home-delivered meals, and senior centers,” Ohly said. “We’re very happy to go out and give presentations.”

Ohly said the WRAAA often partners with other local organizations to further its projects.

“We already have a natural partnership that we have to enhance and pay attention to,” Ohly said. “You have to know who your champions and who your supporters are in any community.”

Ohly added that the nuances of Medicaid and other waiver programs sometimes slip under the radar. He said the WRAAA continually seeks out “new sources of referrals and information” to help everyday residents understand the impact of government policy on their daily lives.

“Success of the client is really all about locating what they need,” he said. “Success of the organization is having the latest information and being able to deploy it in a way that’s user-friendly.”

In a rivalry that dates back more than a century it is hard to find something unprecedented between two teams.

However, that will be the case this weekend when the Boston Red Sox host the New York Yankees, not in historic Fenway Park, but in London, England.

For the first time, regular season Major League Baseball games will be played in Europe, setting the stage for an exciting but nerving showcase for the league and two of its most storied franchises. The logistics of traveling abroad in the middle of the season are difficult enough, but this is much more than a set of baseball games.

Running the two-game series on June 29 and 30 has been months in the making and on many different organizational levels. “You have all those different components and you have to break them down into each group’s area of expertise,” Dr. Pam Wojnar, Assistant Teaching Professor at Northeastern University’s Master of Sports Leadership Program said. “Don’t have your player people worry so much about the field, trust your field people, tell them what you need and they’re going to get it done.”

The league and organizations are hoping to leave a lasting impact on an untapped European market. For the series to be a success, marketing, hospitality, retail opportunities and more must be executed even better than they would be in the United States. This will require perfect harmony from the two rivals, and foreign labor, but the potential grand slam is worth the pursuit in the eyes of MLB.

“You have to keep your open lines of communication throughout, have your check-ins and all of that until the first pitch. And then you might breathe a sigh of relief,” Dr. Wojnar said. “The big sigh of relief is going to come when the game is over.”

On Marketscale’s Healthcare Podcast, we often discuss how innovative technology is shaping the future of healthcare. On today’s episode, host Daniel Litwin turned the spotlight onto the hardware and software of orthopedics and how the convergence of the two is transforming care in this field of medicine.

Giving their unique insights were Allan Baird, senior account executive for ChartLogic, and Vinti Singh, marketing manager for CurveBeam. ChartLogic, a software under the parent company MedSphere, is a health IT solution for every aspect of care, providing an EHR, patient portal, revenue cycle management, and managed IT, with orthopedics as one of their specialty care areas. CurveBeam is an extremity 3D imaging company that designs and manufactures CT imaging equipment for orthopedic and podiatric specialties.

The challenge for many orthopedic care providers is interfacing specific pieces of orthopedic equipment and hardware into the software, Baird said.

“We get requests from our providers all the time that are looking for new innovation in hardware,” he said. “Our response is that we have to be able to adjust our software to match or meet those hardware needs.”

Baird and Singh both pointed to X-ray diagnosis as a prime opportunity for technology convergence.

But X-ray is a 2D look at a 3D problem, Singh said. CT and MRI technology help pick up where X-ray leaves off, but comes at a much higher cost.

“Technology is evolving at such a rapid pace, orthopedic practices feel the pressure to stay caught up, making capital investments to keep a practice cutting edge while budgets seem to get smaller,” Vinti said.

Scooters are having a moment; more and more dockless scooter companies have become a prominent sight in cities across the U.S., each staking their claim of the market. Offering a new way to see the city or get somewhere fast, dockless scooters are a trend that doesn't seem to be slowing down.

Though each of the main players offer something slightly different on the surface, their back-ends are extremely similar, all approaching their asset management and charging in almost the same way. Our guests today argue that the current method is severely flawed, and the best method for maintaining a fleet of dockless scooters isn't the one that's the most popular. Chatting with us today about themselves and their company are the founders of Joy Scooter, Ray Billings and Aryan Davani.

So, why are scooters so in demand? “Many cities are using them, and several areas have passed bills to allow them on the streets. As public perception continues to grow in a positive way, many are finding it a great solution for traversing the city," Billings said.

And why wouldn’t they? First, riders can pick one up and simply unlock with their phone, then deposit it at their destination. It’s often quicker to take a scooter than to use a car because of traffic, and it’s much cheaper than an Uber.

The use of scooters certainly ties into how cities are changing due to gridlock. According to Davani, “Infrastructure is changing, and the future is less cars on the road and alternative transportation options.”

But dockless scooters have certainly had their challenges. Many providers offer subpar equipment and have issues managing their fleets, leaving abandoned scooters throughout neighborhoods.

Joy Scooter is doing things differently. Their scooters are unique. “They are much more durable and made from the robotics lab at MIT. They can go three to five days without a charge, have a lifetime of 18 months, and are safer,” Billings said.

Plus, their software allows them to diagnose scooter problems from the cloud, addressing maintenance issues. The most interesting change, though, comes from their business model. Instead of the parent company having complete control over the maintenance of the scooters, incentivizing people to join the gig economy by charging scooters in fleets, they allow their partners to own and manage their own suite of scooters, giving them equity.

Not only does this create more focused maintenance and care for a smaller number of scooters, but it empowers riders to become their own business owners, creating a more consistent and revenue stream for the company.

Can data really improve the fan experience at stadiums? Data is a powerful thing and being able to have access to it can actually help stadiums run smoother and more seamlessly. How do they do it? With help from technology like Live Earth, an open source visualization platform that integrates data or information feeds in one dashboard. Talking with us today about how it works is Craig Johnston, VP of Business Development.

Because Live Earth has been able to be such a key in stadium operations, they recently became certified by the National Center for Spectator Sports Safety and Security. Craig said, “The experts look at technology to see how it enhances safety, security, and the fan experience. They did a thorough analysis of our platform and gave us that amazing designation. In fact, they told us they had never seen anything like it.”

So how does Life Earth actually enhance safety, security, and the fan experience? We dive into this by looking at some scenarios.

Fans converge on stadiums at about the same time but come from many different areas. If you’re talking about Citi Field in NY, there are people coming from the train, buses, and private vehicles. Because Live Earth can integrate with different systems and data sources, they can provide an overall map including the train arriving, buses, and traffic. Craig stated, “We built a geo fence so know when transportation is arriving via GPS. When it arrives, we send a notification to the system. This opens up perimeter cameras and notifies event staff and security that people are ready to arrive. They can then adjust to meet the incoming fans.”

When fans get into the stadium, the tracking and management continues. As people are scanned in, they are being counted and this is being fed into the platform. Craig shared, “We know the section you’re going to. We’re tracking cell phone signals, synchronizing with security cameras, and creating a heat map. Operational staff can use that to adjust security and staffing and have the right people in the team store and concessions.”

Learn more about how Life Earth uses data to improve the stadium experience by listening to the podcast.

Office spaces have long been attached to the stigma of being cold, grey rooms filled with an endless sea of cubicles. The design of office spaces today, though, is turning the idea that workspaces must be bland and sterile on its head.

On this first episode of Element Sessions, we were joined by Element Designs guests Beata Klecha, vice president of marketing, and Nelson Wills, partner for sales & operations design, two professionals freshly off attending NeoCon 2019, a conference that serves as the launchpad for commercial design and innovation.

We dove into how commercial design trends and changes are being implemented in real time, and what ideas we can anticipate upsetting the industry in big ways. The prevalent movement in commercial design today can be boiled down into one hybrid word: ”resimmercial.” The warmth and comfort of residential design merged with the open concept, collaborative nature of commercial design–resimmercial.

Klecha noted the warm colors and cozy fabrics found in homes inching their way into workspaces. Wills, a NeoCon veteran, gave his insider advice on which trends are here to stay and which are passing fads. We noted how modern tech is weaving its way into furniture that includes charging docs or storage areas for devices, and how the commercial design industry is pushing open-concept, collaborative workspaces while nurturing the notion of privacy by cultivating cozy nooks for employees to find solace during a buzzing workday.

The overarching sentiment pushing commercial design, however, is a need to make employees happy. After all, a happy employee is a productive employee. We unpack the question “What makes employees happy in their workspace?” today on this Element Sessions podcast.

In the last decade, the retail industry has had to be limber, adaptable, and resilient as online retail has grown to an epic level. Brick-and-mortar stores have shifted their focus to providing customers with a delightful, efficient experience-- one that cannot be replicated online.

The room for error or issue in this shopping experience is slim, putting pressure on associates and even more pressure on higher-ups to develop a seamless workflow from top to bottom. Giving his perspective on today's podcast episode, breaking down the importance of managing workflow in the retail space, is Doug Spiron, senior vice president of ThinkTime, LLC, a workflow management software.

Spiron emphasized that technology has become more critical in the workplace than ever before, particularly in task management. With the convenience of e-commerce making brick-and-mortar less of a necessity to sell product, customers are now coming to the store for a second-to-none experience.

Disorganization, lack of product and overall passivity from associates no longer flies, because it leads to a poor experience for the end-user. The associates in store, fewer than in previous years, are looking for a personalized management experience, too, meaning they seek authentic, individualized answers to their issues rather than a scripted response from corporate headquarters.

With only 33% of associates in retail believing they have the tools they need to do their job, it is increasingly crucial to empower employees with a solution to their needs in real-time on the floor.

Spiron points to ThinkTime as an example of a solution that meets all the task management needs of today's retailer. It connects associates, in actual time, with a party that’s been designated to solve that task, providing support in a personalized way.

At the root of ThinkTime management software is the desire to help the associate work productively. Using technology, connection, and personalization, ThinkTime gives retail workers the tools they need to get work done and keep the focus on creating an excellent shopping experience for the customer.

Another month, another update on the world’s favorite nut: Almonds. On this episode of Nut News, brought to you by Select Harvest USA, we get the skinny on the international almond market after the release of the May Almond Position Report. Giving his perspective again on almonds in the global economy is Bob Nunes, CEO of Select Harvest USA. Nunes summarized May’s shipments, coming in at a staggering 178 million pounds, up 13% from last year.

In addition to May’s numbers, Nunes compared fiscal years and commented on how almond prices may fluctuate as we move between harvests. Mild spring weather affects harvest time and provides insight on when the fall crop will likely be ready for shipment. A July crop estimate leaves us hanging on the definitive calculations for future crops. Almonds remain high in demand with India and China as leading buyers.

Nunes gave his insider insight on how fluctuating international relations and the threat of tariffs may affect the almond industry, and what sort of back-up plan Select Harvest USA has in store during these tumultuous political times.

Certified medical interpretation services are perhaps a little known specialty in the healthcare industry, but no less a critical need when it comes to someone’s health. On today’s episode of the Healthcare Podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with David Fetterolf, president of Stratus Video, the largest and fastest growing video remote interpreting company in the world, one that provides video remote interpretation and over-the-phone interpretation services.

In the past, medical translation or interpretation provided native language services to non-English-speaking patients in-person or by phone, but video communication has made video remote interpretation a key solution for hospitals and care facilities that must ensure non-English speaking patients fully understand what a health care team is communicating to them.

These translators are not simply bilingual individuals, but certified interpreters who understand the medical terminology a doctor or healthcare team is using.

“This is an important point because being a bilingual person does not qualify you to be a medical interpreter,” Fetterolf said, explaining that laws under the Affordable Care Act state healthcare providers must use competent or qualified medical interpreters, rather than simply a bilingual doctor, staff member, or family member. “A person who speaks maybe Arabic and English may not know the medical terms that are critical for clear communication.”

Fetterolf said studies point to the use of certified medical interpreters as improving patient care in a facility and after a patient is discharged, which ultimately may help prevent future medical issues.

Crops are always at the mercy of the weather, but 2019 has brought a once-in-a-generation challenge to American farmers. Coupled with the ongoing trade war with China, this year poses unique and daunting problems for the industry, and uncertainty about what the growing season will yield. For some farmers, turning a profit this year seems to already be out of the question.

“We’ve seen an immediate price reaction due to the delayed plantings and the concern about how much is being lost right now. So, there is an immediate hit, but at the same time too, most of the loss of production won’t be realized until late this summer or this fall,” Dr. Chad Hart, Associate Professor in the Department of Economics at Iowa State University said.

Hart said farmers can try to mitigate the damage by bringing some production indoors but are largely exposed to the flooding and consistent rain experienced in the Midwest this spring.

The planting season is nearing an end for two major crops, soybean and corn, which are planted in a larger total area than any other in the United States. These are also used for livestock feed, which could have a domino effect across the agriculture industry, and shutter investment in new farming products. This will be felt by equipment manufacturers and eventually grocers and consumers.

“We do have a significant amount of land that can’t get planted this year. That basically blocks those farmers out of at least making income off crops this year. So, you’re looking at lowered income across a wide swath of U.S. agriculture here, and that means less money to spend on improving that equipment,” Hart said.

As humans, we are in the middle of a historic transition into an increasingly digital and technologically advanced world. For the industry of healthcare, this means sweeping changes for the way we treat, diagnose, and care for sick and injured patients. On the podcast today, we welcome Dr. Brittany Busse, Associate Medical Director for WorkCare Inc., to unpack how telemedicine is slowly but surely transforming the way doctors care for patients.

Historically, going to the doctor or hospital has been an exhausting affair. Often patients have had to travel great distances to seek care, only to sit for hours in waiting rooms–making ailing patients even more irritable. With telemedicine, the mental and physical toll that a doctor’s visit can bring is eliminated. Patients can talk intimately with doctors at length in the comfort of their own home. For patients in remote locations, this kind of personalized care can bring on significant change and incredible results, saving the patient from the mental and physical fatigue of going to a doctor’s office.

As a doctor-owned company, WorkCare Inc. takes a holistic approach to care for its patients. Doctors listen to the story of the patient, not the story of their ailment, and guide their patients along a safe pathway of self-care. For patients injured at work, telemedicine can be an interactive way to keep the mental state of the patient positive and looking forward to getting back to their community and workplace. Dr. Busse sums up perhaps the greatest benefit of telemedicine in these wise words: “If our mind starts to suffer, our health starts to suffer. Telehealth adds in a more personal approach that helps prevent more physical and emotional pain.“

Retail shopping before the age of the Internet was a grand event. It meant heading out to socialize and relax with friends while catching up on life happenings. Today, as we have taken to doing these pastimes on the Internet, brick-and-mortar retail stores are having to adjust.

What will bring modern customers into stores, and how can they secure their loyalty to come back? The answer–a curated, personalized shopping experience. To better understand this wired-in audience and their desires, retail stores are getting help from companies like Pocketstop. CEO of Pocketstop, Daniel Wagstaff dives deep into how collecting relevant data from shoppers can create a seamless VIP shopping experience.

This customized experience is precisely what contemporary customers crave. Pocketstop helps distill safely collected public data into relevant information, and then apply actionable marketing strategies that get customers in the store and keep them there.

Wagstaff describes the VIP customer experience, a data-personalized experience, as a “win-win.” The consumer wants to buy products catered for them while the store seeks to fulfill the customer’s exact needs. Data helps both parties achieve their goals. Wagstaff points out, “America isn’t slowing down on shopping.” Indeed, brick and mortar stores are not dying–They’re just undergoing a revolution.

"Trucking industry agents are easing the back office demands for smaller carriers and helping them thrive in a challenging transportation climate", says Alfredo Esparza, Director of Agent Development for MERX Global. He sits down with host Daniel Litwin to discuss this topic on a new episode of the Transportation podcast brought to you by MarketScale.

“Four or five years ago, the market was good for small carriers,” Esparza says. “But lately the driver shortage is causing a real strain on small carriers.”

Truck driver shortages have impacted the entire transportation industry, but small carriers, in particular, are strained most as they try meeting a growing demand for over-the-road shipments without the sophisticated infrastructure support that larger transportation companies enjoy. That means smaller companies are navigating the confusing waters of insurance, new driver recruiting, accounting, legal, safety, and back office operations on their own expensive learning curve or outsource to different third-party individuals.

“With real tough demands, it makes sense for a smaller carrier to be an agent,” Esparza says. “A small carrier can partner with MERX Global that’ll offer insurance, recruiting, and back office and that will cut their overhead in half. In order to be successful in this climate, they’re either going to have to wait out the storm or partner with a carrier like MERX Global. We’re going to help them thrive and grow in this tough industry we’re in.”

Every customer wants a unique and tailored experience no matter what they are buying or where they are going. This is especially true in the hospitality and restaurant industries; beyond great cuisine and excellent service, there is certainly a desire for more. And that more comes in the form of personalization. To dissect this topic, we were joined by Alice Wilson , reservations and membership director of Inception Group, an operator of a number of unique bars, restaurants, and clubs in London.

Having a personal connection with diners traditionally has been something that would begin with the maître d', who knew frequent diners’ names and was able to carry on a conversation like old friends. Unfortunately, that strategy, especially in a tourist-heavy city, is not scalable or practical in the modern world.

“Knowing the face and name is great and makes the guest feel special. But it’s not something you can do on a large scale without the help of technology," Wilson said.

More and more, venues are embracing technology that allows them to track visitors and interact with them. But is there a clear ROI on the tech? Wilson says yes.

“With the software we use, you can see return visits, spend, and other information. Then you can easily reach out to those people. You can almost immediately see ROI. We create campaigns on the platform and can see how they respond to it," Wilson said.

Inception Group also understands that its customers like accessibility to reservations, as 70% of bookings are made online. They were, at first, hesitant to take this on because they felt it may impact their ability to personalize. Software like SevenRooms', however, is gathering the necessary data to make the guest experience individualized.

"You're already telling a venue a little bit about yourself. Something a little bit personal. And we need to make sure to use that information to enhance the experience when they arrive," Wilson said.

Today's healthcare professionals are dealing with a plague of their own: burnout. It’s a stressful industry with lots of ups and downs. There are many methodologies and strategies to help combat this and build resiliency, but often they don’t hit the mark; the reality is that professionals are leaving the field. On today's epispode, we explore a new type of healthcare training, Care Team Coaching, that uses positive reinforcement and strength-based development to support care professionals, and is a methodology that can have immediate results.

Today's guest, Janiece Gray, CEO & Founding Partner of DTA Associates, has a long history of healthcare expertise, beginning her career as a social worker then pursuing a master’s degree in healthcare administration, which led her to be involved in the patient experience.

“About 10 years ago, I was working for a healthcare organization, and they had all this data related to the patient experience but weren’t sure what to do with it, so I dug in," Gray said.

Her desire to help people came full circle in realizing how significant the patient experience is and how it can be improved, which brought her to Care Team Coaching and the desire to look for a better way to enhance the patient experience by supporting healthcare professionals.

“What I found was that training in a classroom setting, although necessary, isn’t sufficient. Real-time observations shared with the healthcare provider and one-on-one feedback take this to the next level. We’re with these clinicians for a few hours observing interactions and then able to deliver specific recommendations so they can improve,” Gray said.

This type of coaching is unlike any other kind of professional coaching in that it’s usually a one-and-done type of event. Clinicians receive verbal feedback and a written report based on the observation, with a coaching approach that emphasizes honesty, constructive criticism, and empowering patients through the physicians.

“Another difference is that the patients really set the agenda of what’s to be discussed, whereas, with something like executive coaching, the person being coached gets to do that," Gray said.

Give the podcast a listen to learn more about the implementation process of Care Team Coaching, how it really works, how coaches are trained and formed, and why Gray says it’s making a tangible difference in healthcare.

Hospitals are living, breathing and fluid environments that see hundreds if not thousands of visitors each day. Today, the devices that keep these buildings running are more connected than ever, which allows for an exceptional level of care but brings tremendous risks at the same time.

Cybersecurity in hospitals is a complex issue that has left the medical world particularly vulnerable to hackers and digital adversaries who seek personal health records, bank accounts and more.

Associate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at New York University’s Tandon School of Engineering, Justin Cappos, has spent years analyzing cybersecurity and notes that hospitals are particularly susceptible to cyber-attacks. He points out that a lack of uniformity among devices in hospitals contributes to the difficulty of securing the entire building and its data, among other issues.

“It’s not the case that you can just go and get a completely integrated, whole hospital-wide solution that has a unified security posture and has everything set up in a very easy way,” Cappos said.

The information that can be extracted from hospitals by hackers is extremely sensitive and valuable, but accountability on the security of this content is something still being addressed by hospitals, technology manufacturers and the federal government, but to date no sweeping changes have been made.

To see how cybersecurity is changing industries across the world, visit our healthcare and software & technology industry pages.

Professional development plays a vital role in the journey of your career. While professional development is often offered by employers, each individual has to take his or her own initiative to improve their course. To breakdown the topic of professional development, we’re joined by two experts from Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging (WRAAA), Training and Development Specialist Molly Vollmer, MSSA, LSW, and Manager of Training and Development, Danielle Clay, LSW.

WRAAA is a unique organization when it comes to empowering their employees through professional development. Danielle shared, “While each person is responsible for his or her own learning, professional development, and career path, they’ll stay longer when they have an employer who invests in their ability to keep learning. Every year, we provide each employee a stipend to do this. It’s certainly a differentiator for the company and a big reason why people want to work here and stay here.”

Molly added, “Professional development is part of our culture. From day one, employees know that we expect them to continue to grow and learn because ultimately, that impacts the success of the entire company.”

The opportunities that WRAAA offers vary from certificate programs to speakers from organizations coming to the facility, to employees furthering their education with a master’s degree. In addition to these options, mentorship always plays a significant role in the company’s professional development philosophy.

Molly said, “Mentors are important in the beginning to your career. It’s good to have someone to look up to and have a resource to ask questions and provide guidance. New employees are assigned to a team lead or someone who can stay with them through the orientation process—a go-to person for them as they acclimate to a new environment.”

Discover more about WRAA’s culture of professional development and how you can choose the best continuing education program to help you meet your goals by listening to the podcast.

There’s a commercial that says something to the effect, ‘When you think of clean, you think of bleach.” That’s certainly true for its use as an effective disinfectant. But for a product that’s been around such a long time, its best applications are still misunderstood. To discuss today on the podcast, host Tyler Kern sits down with John Shanahan, president and CEO of Knoxville-based Ionogen.

Bleach dates back to Europe in the late 18th century when it was used for cleaning, disinfecting, and laundering white and light-colored clothing.

“Bleach is a great disinfectant, but there are trade-offs: Our health, the surfaces we put it on, the buildings we used it on all became highly damaged,” Shanahan says.

There are nuances to the different types of bleach, specifically when mixed with water, which becomes chlorine, also known as free available chlorine or neutral pH chlorine, he explains.

“Bleach and chlorine have this sister element to it, but chlorine has been around as long as bleach, but it’s not put up in a bottle where you can keep it for a long period of time,” Shanahan says.

“Now, you can generate neutral pH chlorine on-site with small devices the size of a coffee pot you can put in your building,” he continues. “This chlorine is so gentle if you were wearing a dark blue wool sports jacket, I could splash this all over you, and it would never take the color out of your coat.”

Shanahan also discusses other uses for this gentle yet effective form of chlorine in this episode and shares insight on hypochlorous.

It seems healthcare professionals at care facilities are trying to do more with less time and resources: more patients, fewer nurses, less reimbursement from Medicare, and rising demands from health insurance companies.

But at a time when some patients — an estimated 650,000 annually — are coming out of hospitals sicker than they were before due to hospital-acquired infections, it's clear that solutions are needed. To discuss this on today's episode of the Healthcare Podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with Adrienne Hamilton, Director of Marketing and Sales Operations for AliMed.

The Massachusetts-based company manufactures and sells healthcare products used in patient rooms, operating rooms, long-term health care facilities, and doctors' offices. More than simply selling medical supplies, AliMed is partnering its company mission with the healthcare industry to save time, reduce costs, and substantially reduce the risk of infection for its patients.

"As a nation, we're under a lot of pressure to reduce costs and certainly improve patient outcomes by reducing infection control," Hamilton said. "Part of reducing costs is becoming more efficient."

Hamilton shared how operating room turnover kits, a prepackaged bundle of disposable table sheets, pillowcases, arm board covers, hamper liners, and straps, are emerging as a trend in medical supplies and how she discovered the eminent need for them in one hospital setting, where nurses were asked to assemble similar kits for overtime.

NCAA President Mark Emmert has indicated that big changes could be on the horizon for college athletics.

In a move that surprised many, Emmert along with the board of governors announced the formation of a working group to explore the possibility of allowing college athletes to receive compensation for use of their names, images and likenesses. Heading the group will be Big East commissioner Val Ackerman and Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith.

Emmert has made it abundantly clear that the group is not considering any option that would involve paying student athletes as employees.

Tim Maitland, former University of Texas Longhorn baseball player and current VP of Business Development at MarketScale, joined Tyler Kern in the studio to give his thoughts on the story and what this could potentially mean for college athletics.

St. Louis-based MTM, Inc. is innovating the medical transportation industry, but the company’s own wellness program is getting employees moving in a way they never imagined. On this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, host Daniel Litwin sat down with Alaina Macia and Chris Mileski, President & CEO and Director of Wellness & Benefits at MTM. They discussed how their employees are engaging in health and fitness programs that are bringing cost savings to their health premiums and making for happier and healthier employees.

“A lot of people put themselves last when it comes to health and wellness,” Macia said. “Someone once told me: 'You have to be in good physical and mental health first in order to be a good parent, good spouse, or good employee.' So, personally, that’s been such an important part of my life that I wanted to make sure we were helping our employees do the same thing.”

Because MTM is a self-insured company, Mileski said that gives them an opportunity to have a real-time look at the overall health and wellness of their employees. “We can react and implement programs to help improve our employees’ health that helps them improve on a daily basis,” Mileski said.

One program that’s particularly had good results is a smoking cessation program, Macia said. What started as a home-grown program to a professional cessation program has had a substantial impact on their employees’ lives. Now MTM is a smoke-free campus, and the health benefits continue to compound.

The ongoing trade negotiations between the United States and China have the business world in a state of flux. Uncertainty is a condition in which no business wants to be in and in some cases, this uneasiness can shutter companies.

Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management Adjunct Professor Phil Levy specializes in trade strategy. He served from 2003-2006 as senior economist for trade for the Council of Economic Advisers under President George W. Bush and later as a member of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s Policy Planning Staff.

With a recent increase in tariffs on Chinese imports, and a retaliatory action by the Chinese on certain U.S. goods, it is unclear whether a new trade deal will be reached anytime soon. Levy points out the industries that are being hardest hit, and areas where consumers are seeing tangible impacts of these actions.

Still, Levy did offer solutions to the current situation, and where businesses might be able to turn for economic prosperity, at least in the near term. Unfortunately for some, Levy notes, even if a trade deal is struck, international business partnerships may be hard to repair.

On this episode of Nut News with host Tyler Kern, Bob Nunes, CEO of Select Harvest USA, revealed good news for April 2019 almond shipments after the release of the month's Almond Position Report. Almonds set a new record high this month with 177 million pounds shipped, a 0.3 percent increase over the prior record of 176.4 million pounds.

Nunes said domestic shipments were off a little this month, but the numbers are still the second largest April on record. Also “very strong” commitment numbers for almonds sold but not yet shipped show a 16 percent increase over last year, Nunes said.

“We’re going to have a very tight transition into the new crop,” he said. “We’re going into the lowest carryout inventory ever.”

Nunes highlighed the National Agricultural Statistics Service’s subjective farmer-reported survey of monthly crop production, released on May 10. The report showed a moderate increase in seasonal almond production.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service’s Objective Yield forecast for almonds is coming in late June or early July, which is a more scientific report based on actual data of crop samples.

Nunes discussed the continued trade tariffs conflict with China and its effect on the U.S.

“It looks like for next few seasons we should continue seeing growing almond crop...with new products, and new markets,” Nunes said. “In the short term, it looks positive for almonds.”

Much of our nation’s most important history is documented on what many would assume is the most fragile medium: paper. In this episode of the MarketScale Building Management podcast, host Tyler Kern spoke to experts in document recovery solutions to understand the process and technology of document recovery. Here to explain how valuable documents can be preserved and restored from a variety of kinds of damage is Summer Street, Director of Marketing at Massachusetts-based Polygon.

Restoring climate-damaged documents can be challenging as water, humidity, heat, and insects all pose potential dangers for paper materials. “But water is the most pervasive,” Street said.

Since 1955, Polygon has been a pioneer in drying technology and engineered temporary climate solutions. As such, Polygon uses state-of-the-art vacuum freeze drying chambers that use negative pressure to create the most effective drying solution for specific materials and projects.

But contrary to what many think, paper isn’t as fragile or incapable of restoration as you’d think.

“You’d be shocked that traditional paper is incredibly hardy,” Street said. “It’s milled in a particular way that can stand up to just about anything. In the vast majority of cases — for example, a book that is completely saturated — as long as it doesn’t block together, the vacuum freeze dry process can draw out the moisture."

Healthcare and technology have fully merged in the 21st century. With technology also comes the ability to collect and analyze data, which can then impact patient care. On today’s podcast, we’re talking to Brett Stuebinger, Director of Sourcing for TPC, an organization that helps community-based health systems achieve large-system value.

When asked about the current state of IT in healthcare, Brett defined it in one word—complex. “Technology has been integrated into healthcare in many applications. This has driven the need for hospitals to improve their IT infrastructure while also balancing costs. Data is what is driving the investment. It enables cost-effective healthcare,” Stuebinger said.

The influx of AI-enabled technology in healthcare is becoming more prevalent. There have been some bumps in the road with products not delivering what was expected. However, that’s changing, and investment is booming. “Data in healthcare is about having the right information in a timely manner so that clinicians can make the best decisions for patient care. AI is enabling this, and we are seeing our community hospitals respond to this, so it’s not just the large hospitals using this technology,” Stuebinger said.

So how can AI and the data surrounding it be leveraged to help patients? Brett spoke about one example, reducing the length of stay. Brett said, “One big challenge that providers need to solve is reducing the length of stay. Hospitals are investing in technology to impact this. With lots of data coming from many sources, AI can read unstructured data and look for correlations. This can offer clinicians the ability to intervene early because early warning indicators can be sourced.”

Learn more about AI, data, cybersecurity, and healthcare IT needs by listening to the podcast.

The typical two-hour movie that audiences enjoy across the world daily is the culmination of a year or multi-year process. Projects fit for the big screen or the flat screen take months to put together once filming starts, but by the time it hits the desk of freelance colorist and finishing editor Mike Nuget, it is expected to be finished within days.

Nuget gets films fit for viewing by perfecting audio, color, and other fine edits. This can be an extremely pressure-packed job, and with ever-changing technology, Nuget has continually had to adapt to the tools at his disposal.

“If I’m not thinking about my job then I’m falling behind in a way,” he said. “I’m constantly learning something, whether it’s just watching a tutorial online about software that I already know and it’s just tips and tricks from somebody else, or it’s a completely different software that I’ve never heard of that I want to learn about.”

An editor's toolkit is essential for not only quality work, but an efficient workflow. Though there are many, Nuget cited Cinedeck's cineXtools specifically as one of his favorites and calls it an indispensable program for saving time and increasing efficiency. CineXtools allows editors to make small changes to an exported file without having to completely rerender the final piece. He estimated that the ability to insert an edit into a file using Cinedeck's software once saved him at least 21 hours on a project, which carried the added benefit of reducing costs for his client as well.

The ability to stay sharp and in tune with new pieces of equipment keeps Nuget in demand by some of the largest names in television and film. With a portfolio that includes work for HBO, Netflix, ABC, NBC, ESPN, and Hulu among other major networks, he said his flexibility on multiple editing platforms, coupled with 20 years of experience, keep him busy.

While there is pressure to learn quickly and turnaround projects sometimes within the same week, Nuget takes time to enjoy learning the nuances of different editing software services while doing his job. He advises young editors to make YouTube their ‘best friend’ and puts together tutorials on basic editing tips to continue preparing the future of the workforce.

Craft beer is having its moment, one that shows no signs of stopping. While beer volume sales were down (albeit only one percent) in 2018, craft beer sales hiked up almost four percent, with a craft beer market of $27 billion.

This is giving room for taprooms to reach their customers in more unique ways; creating a new experience for drinkers to try these brews was the catalyst behind the development of Navigator Taproom, a self-pour beer and wine taproom in Chicago. On today’s Food & Bevarage Podcast, we sat down with Tim Enarson, co-founder of Navigator, to dissect his story and find the best practices for opening a self-pour taproom.

“It took about three years to launch, and we actually started with the idea to open a brewery. However, the market was saturated in Chicago, which is home to about 170 breweries, so we decided to do something different," Enarson said.

What makes their taproom so unique is the self-pour concept, which wouldn't have been possible with the technology behind it: PourMyBeer software. The software and setup allow visitors to use an RFID card to track the beverages they try, then they are free to explore and pour. “The technology offered by PourMyBeer really helped us envision a way to showcase all the amazing beers in Chicago and from around the world in a different way. It’s not the typical American bar experience; it’s a bit more European,” Enarson said.

The demand for craft beer has accelerated in the last decade, but Enarson pointed out that its roots go back much further. “Craft beer was actually very big pre-prohibition. Then when alcohol became illegal, only the biggest beer companies could survive. It very much set the U.S. back in terms of quality craft beer. Now it’s like the second coming with craft beer being highly sought-after,” he said.

Discover more about Tim’s story and their unique business model, supported by software like PourMyBeer's, by giving this podcast a listen.

Checking in at the doctor’s office or hospital could be as easy as applying a thumbprint, selecting your symptoms, and being seen by the doctor. Today on the Healthcare Podcast, host Shelby Skrhak sat down with Healey Cypher, CEO of Scottsdale-based ZIVELO to discuss how self-service kiosks being used in retail and quick service restaurants could revolutionize healthcare.

Already used in a growing number of quick-service restaurant chains, such as McDonald’s, self-service kiosks are introducing a new efficiency and accuracy into the QSR industry. “It puts employees back to helping prepare the food instead of simply taking orders,” Cypher said.

Cypher sees similar benefits possible in the healthcare industry: Self-service kiosks at doctor’s offices and hospitals can create better, more accurate and seamless experiences while ensuring security and fraud protection for healthcare providers.

“With kiosks, you can create these longitudinal experiences in healthcare,” Cypher said.

ZIVELO's new healthcare kiosks, now in an early stage of production, address some of the common customer concerns such as their own patient security and ease of use. Biometric identification, for example, helps ensure the kiosk user’s identification and insurance information is accurately verified. Cypher said ZIVELO has used lessons learned from the quick service restaurant industry and applied those user interface lessons to healthcare.

“We’ve always felt there is a huge opportunity in healthcare, but within the past year we’ve seen a huge interest from healthcare pulling us into this vertical, saying there are all these challenges we’re trying to solve and now is the right time with this technology.”

When you think of digital signage in a retail store, the standard has become static imagery or looping media, providing color and branding but not much else. Trevor Sumner, CEO of Perch Interactive, says it’s time to think bigger and bigger.

On today’s episode of the Retail Podcast, brought to you by MarketScale, host Daniel Litwin sat down with Sumner to discuss how digital signage is evolving and becoming much more interactive and personalized. Sumner, who was recently recognized in the Corporate Excellence Awards 2019 as the Most Influential CEO of the Year 2019 for his work in Visual Merchandising, knows how powerful positive digital marketing can have on the shopping experience.

“With digital signage, I think of boring static media. Aren’t these just the banner ads on the internet that we hate?” Sumner said. “It’s an interruptive media.”

To avoid being interruptive and leaning toward being industry-disruptive instead, digital signage in-store is adding value to the shoppers chain of events. As a result, it’s serving customers better and giving retailers a wealth of information. Digital marketers are entering a new phase of in-store signage that’s focused on interactivity and personalization, where this media is helpful and informational, as well as fun.

“On the internet, you can click on products to get more information, so why can’t we do that in the store?” Sumner said.

Marketers are using the next generation of digital signage — computer vision, for example — for innovative ways to help customers. Cameras are being used in stores to see which products a person gazes at versus picks up, which data has shown it has a direct effect on the likelihood a customer will purchase that product. This kind of data feeds the retailer’s arsenal of ways to engage customers during the shopping experience.

“It’s about providing customers an experience that’s flawless, surprising, and even delightful,” Sumner said.

On today’s Transportation Podcast, we’re joined by Chad Hall, co-founder and senior vice president of marketing at Ioxus. Ioxus is a leading manufacturer of iCAP ultracapacitor, iMOD modules, and THiNCAP products that optimize battery life and improve reliability. Their products are used in hybrid automobiles and buses, wind turbines, and other applications.

Chad shared, “Our capacitors are in use in multiple industries. They are popular in hybrid buses and allow these vehicles to reduce the amount of fuel needed and emissions. They can also be used for voltage stabilization in power grids.”

Ioxus recently released a new product, uSTART®, which is a patented ultracapacitor battery support module. It works to improve battery life by reducing the cycling of the battery, maintaining a higher vehicle voltage during the start. “Typically, the uSTART will replace at least one battery in a vehicle or more. It provides the energy needed to start the vehicle, which puts a strain on the battery. The uSTART actually enables a quicker start,” Chad said.

The uSTART has a much smaller amount of stored energy than a battery but is more efficient at cranking. The ultimate goal of the product is to increase the reliability of starting, prevent stranded assets, and extend the life of the battery. By extending the battery’s life, the product offers sustainability as well.

“When fleets don’t have to install new batteries as often, they obviously save money, but it also means that the materials like lead are not being mined and manufactured. In fact, by using the uSTART, a fleet could prevent about one million pounds of lead from being processed. That’s a big step for sustainability,” Chad relayed.

The car wash industry involves far more than cleaning customer vehicles. Every community has a need for a car wash, making car wash professionals focus on real estate, architecture, and management. Unsurprisingly, this makes a career in this field not only lucrative but also a tremendous place to grow.

Iron Fox, a leader in carwash sales, installation, and services is currently hiring two business development analysts to help grow its customer base. The new additions will join an intimate team that delivers a great product on time at a great price.

Time in this role will be spent with clients both on the phone and on-site, closing deals, tracking leads, conducting meetings, and growing the business. But the best part of the car wash industry is the characters who live and breath the industry every day; business development analysts would get the freedom to be creative with how they engage with clients and get them to buy in to the Iron Fox mission.

To elaborate on the opportunity, Iron Fox President Dominic Lewinsohn joined us on the podcast and gave us not only the nitty-gritty details of the position, but also why a career at Iron Fox feels like a spy movie.

“The tone and the feel and the pace would be very, very quick,” Lewinsohn said. “It is high-powered. If it were a movie, it would start with a high-speed car chase because we are zooming and we are growing at such a fast pace.”

Lewinsohn described the role as very mission-oriented, and since many carwash owners want to own a business but do not want to be heavily involved in day-to-day operations, these business development analysts would be engaging a market eager for Iron Fox's services.

The role would be offered an extensive set of responsibilities and room for growth, and qualified candidates are expected to have confidence in their abilities to manage, skilled problem-solving abilities on short notice, and strong sociability so the employee can effectively communicate with clients and teams. If interested, give the podcast a listen and click here to apply.

Technology continues to change the way that Americans are doing business. More consumers than ever are shopping online, helped by outdated laws about sales tax collection for remote sellers. Congress was asked to act and change the laws, but when they moved too slowly, the states took their own action. Enter South Dakota v. Wayfair, a lawsuit that made a lot of headlines in 2018. Now, retailers like Wayfair, Amazon, and others are forced to start meeting “economic nexus” laws, which state that the threshold for whether or not you must charge sales tax in a state no longer depends on whether you have a brick-and-mortar location there, but on your volume of sales or transactions with its residents. An estimated $34 to $35 billion are on the line here, so states are becoming increasingly aggressive about getting their money.

On this episode of “Weaver: Beyond the Numbers,” we interviewed George Rendziperis and Shane Stewart of Weaver’s State and Local Tax Services practice about how the landscape is changing with these new economic nexus laws.

Is your company complying with the new laws in every state where you have customers? What could happen if you don’t get into compliance within the next 24 months? How can you comply across state lines, and how will each state know if you owe sales tax? Listen here, or on Apple Podcasts & Spotify.

In the modern world, most companies are looking to evolve and optimize the world of work, and there are many drivers motivating significant changes. Cost savings, capacity, employee retention, and efficiency are all things that companies are striving to achieve.

On today's Food & Beverage Podcast, we were joined by Frank Pereira, managing partner at Coleman Consulting Group. Coleman delivers workforce management solutions with shift schedule design and other tactics to benefit companies and their employees.

Pereira, a Naval Academy grad, Gulf War vet, and UC-Berkley MBA alum, shares how he became part of the company. "After getting my MBA, I did all the 'right' things to land a job. I had been a nuclear engineer in the Navy and had a business background with my MBA, so I wanted to find a consulting role. I had a lot of rejection, but I answered an ad in the newspaper, got the interview, and have now been with the company 25 years," he said.

In those 25 years, he has had the opportunity to work with clients in a variety of industries from dining to manufacturing. No matter the industry, these businesses want to improve their workforce management. "For us, it's all about the data. It tells the story, and we follow it. Most internal managers have a hard time understanding the mechanics behind managing resources. So that's where we step in," Pereira said.

On the podcast, Pereira talked about working with restaurants and how a change in perspective can help them realize opportunities. "In a traditional restaurant setting, we start out looking at the data and business drivers.

Then we talk to the people about what they want and need. Then we implement solutions," Pereira said. "For example, with shift schedules, many times it makes more sense to have employees work longer shifts and fewer days. We help them figure out how to do this."

Pereira offers his thoughts on the future of work, specifically in the Food & Beverage industry, and why the "status quo" is really just another phrase for "stagnation."

While companies succeed and fail with their product, today a healthy company can be sustained on a positive internal culture. This mindset and attitude can permeate a corporation, even one with multiple locations, and drive it to commercial success.

Kristen Sudela spends her days developing and fostering a healthy company culture and knows that there is a big difference between having a corporate culture and actually acting on one.

Sudela, Employee Engagement Program Manager at Active Network, knows that authenticity is an important aspect of building an effective employee engagement program.

“You have to be authentic,” she contended. “You can’t just say ‘here’s what we’re about,’ and not live that mission.”

This authenticity does not transfer from one company to another, and Sudela says quality leadership is key to finding each individual company’s unique culture.

“Culture really does come down to the people and from the top-down type of aspect,” she said. “Having people on the same page culturally, having people really understand what culture is.”

Evangelizing an employee base to advocate on the company’s behalf is among the most powerful ways to grow a company in today’s landscape, and culture is at the core of this. However, imposing a culture for culture’s sake can have detrimental effects. Sudela pointed out that a ‘fake’ corporate culture can actually hinder a company’s ability to recruit.

Dallas-based Active is a software company that enables employee activity and overall strives to make the world a more active place. The company bases its programming on the Transtheoretical Model for Behavioral Change, which allows Active to connect with employees of all levels and offer approachable, yet challenging growth options for clients.

Elder care can be a confusing topic for family caregivers and senior citizens who don’t understand all the resources that are available. This issue is getting more and more relevant as the Baby Boomer generation continues to age, shaping the future of senior care for the United States. It's become clear that for our aging population, they need mental, emotional and physical engagement to age well.

Groups like the Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging are trying to make elder care topics a continuous lifelong learning experience so everyone has the chance to age well. In this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, brought to you by MarketScale, host Daniel Litwin sat down with Fatima Perkins, Director of Community Outreach and Advocacy for WRAAA to discuss a three-prong approach to elder education.

In the elder care industry, there's a responsibility to create positive environments for seniors to thrive and engage their bodies and minds. That’s why Perkins emphasizes education and information for seniors and their caregivers. Oftentimes, seniors are unaware of the programs and resources available to them, and it can be overwhelming to know where to start. “We want to make sure they know the resources in the community that are helpful for them,” said Perkins.

Next, the WRAAA pairs education with engagement in the community. At nearly 200 community events a year, Perkins works to actively get the word out and engage in one-on-one conversations with people about the health and wellness opportunities available to them. She said there are numerous non-profit programs available such as diabetes self-management, chronic disease management, fitness programs, nutritious cooking lessons, and more.

The goal is ultimate empowerment for seniors and their caregivers, said Perkins. Specifically, WRAAA works to encourage civic engagement among the elder care community. “It’s making sure your voice is heard,” she said.

Women make up only 36 percent of the transportation industry’s workforce. But at St. Louis, Missouri-based Medical Transportation Management, they are bucking the trend with innovative ways of attracting a largely female workforce. In fact, a whopping 76 percent of the upper management and workforce at MTM is female. On this episode of the Marketscale Transportation Podcast, we sat down with Chief Marketing Officer Michele Lucas and Vice President of People & Culture and Chief HR Officer Kerri Schewe-Mileski to discuss how MTM has built such a talented and diverse stafaf.

Changing societal norms have led more women to what has historically been considered a predominantly male profession, but what keeps the workforce engaged is a critical shift in leadership and culture, said Lucas. The first step is education about the medical transportation industry and the impact it has on people’s lives.

“We really promote our job postings, so as people look at a role that looks interesting to them, they look at our website, where we really tell the story of our culture,” said Schewe-Mileski. “Then they learn what our company does … helping break down barriers for healthcare and that’s very attractive because they want to be a part of something meaningful.”

Though the collective consciousness around "going to work" brings up images of sitting at a desk in front of a computer, it's not representative of reality. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2016, the majority of workers have to stand "61 percent of the workday...and 39 percent of the workday sitting."

But even in careers where being at a desk is the reality, physical fitness initiatives are having workers look for ways to continue to better their bodies, despite their 40-hour workweek of sitting.

In the office space, there has been an increase in items like standing desks to help with posture and neck strain. But what about the stress on feet and backs from standing? How do the standing desk employee, the manufacturing floor worker and the pharmacist all find a way to alleviate the pain and fatigue of being on their feet?

In this episode of the Building Management Podcast, Daniel Litwin, the Voice of B2B, interviews Bryce Betteridge, CEO of SATECH Inc., to find the answer.

The company provides SmartCells technology, a “just right,” Goldilocks-type of anti-fatigue floor that aims to provide the maximum amount of foot and body comfort day in and day out.

“If people are going to be on their feet for any length of time, anti-fatigue mats or flooring can make it a lot easier for them,” Betteridge said.

Unfortunately for some, there is a misconception that a hard floor is bad for the body and that a softer floor is better. Research shows that's not the case.

“Too soft flooring acts like a hard surface to some degree. It tends to bottom out, there’s no resistance to the weight that you’re putting on it, and once you stand in one place on an overly soft mat, you begin to feel like you’re resting on concrete under a thin layer of compressed foam."

He goes on to point out that the perfect flooring combines shock absorption and cushion movements with a little resilience or rebound to give back energy as you move, and squishy surfaces just do not have that. Betteridge explains the effects that quality flooring can have on reducing workplace accidents and injuries, as well as promote general productivity and positivity in the workplace.

Restaurants could be missing valuable connection opportunities with customers by outsourcing their reservations to third-party software. Marybeth Sheppard, Senior Vice President of Marketing for SevenRooms explains why, and offers tips for how to use this customer information on today’s MarketScale Food & Beverage Podcast.

To understand why is a lesson in restaurant marketing from over the years, Sheppard said. Twenty years ago, calling the restaurant (often an upscale one, at that) was the norm for taking customer reservations.

As restaurants were just beginning to build their online presence, third-party reservation apps became aggregators for reservations at more restaurants. “Third parties popped up and really helped facilitate this evolution,” Sheppard said.

Now that restaurants have a fully evolved Google presence and profiles on social media, thought, Sheppard said now is the time for restaurant operators to take advantage of technology that can be installed on their own website to take reservations.

“Today a restaurant has more opportunity than ever to connect with those diners directly online,” she said. “A direct reservation allows the restaurant to collect the full scope of data about the reservation including guest information, guest contact info, preference, and dietary restrictions. That’s the start of a relationship with the restaurant for the customer life cycle.”

That personalization and engagement is often the key differentiator in a customer’s journey and what will help restaurants succeed, Sheppard said.

While almond shipments in March 2019 did not top the record shipping month seen at the same time last year, Select Harvest USA CEO Bob Nunes says shipping and sales for almonds are healthy this month. He attributes this to strong demand from an Indian holiday and steadying European prices. On Nut News, Nunes highlighted March 2019 as the third largest shipping March on record and shared record new sales generated in the month.

According to the Almond Industry Position Report for March 2019:

India's particularly early Diwali season helped drive demand. The country derived most of the almonds demanded for the high religious holiday from 2018's crop because the holiday fell earlier on the calendar this year and 2019 crops would arrive too late.
Europe's almond market was very active this month and shows signs of stability. Nunes says he sees that consumers are purchasing almonds throughout the summer months, showing steady demand and leading to price stability on a month-to-month basis.
Demand for the Middle East was "spotty" as Ramadan approaches and the region makes use of its existing inventory, Nunes says.
China's demand continues to be weak as the unresolved trade agreement between the country and the United States continues. "We're hoping that to rebound for the 2019 crop," Nunes says.

Also in this episode, Nunes highlighted the Terranova Trading annual crop estimate-- one of the first to come out this year-- and when to expect the National Agriculture Statistic Service's subjective estimate, which helps determine current and new crop price.

The Select Harvest CEO also discussed supply and demand scenarios, and whether there will be price-spiking demand that exceeds the supply until the new crop arrives in September 2019.

To learn more about Select Harvest, visit selectharvestusa.com.

Technology has transformed the retail space. With the popularity of online shopping, retail stores are forced to consistently keep up with the shopping habits of their customers. Retailer, however, are not tech experts, and can struggle to integrate data collection into their business model while still creating an enjoyable shopping experience for their customers. This is where Octopus Management Solutions Inc. comes in.

ShouYi Poon, Vice President of Business Development at Octopus, joined the MarketScale Retail Podcast to discuss how the company consults with retail businesses to create a holistic, flexible technology solution for a brick-and-mortar space.

Technology in retail is not one-size-fits-all. Each business has its own unique customers and requires a custom blend of technology to fit its current infrastructure. However, retailers do not want to be bogged down by tech. As a result, the technology that retail companies bring in often does not communicate with the business as a whole.

For example, consumers want an online dashboard to check their purchase history, track orders, and watch loyalty points. Between buying online and buying in-store though, data gets lost and is not always communicated between brick-and-mortar shops and online platforms. In order to keep customers coming back, technology solutions must seamlessly communicate data between digital and physical stores.

Octopus Management Solutions Inc. helps implement tech that is designed, built, tested, and implemented specifically for the needs and consumer desires of each unique business.

Contrary to popular belief, retail shopping is not dead. Rather, it is adapting to the desires of its customers. Shopping is no longer about ticking off a list—it is about creating an enjoyable shopping experience for the consumer. Technology is essential to creating this harmonious experience that keeps shoppers coming back for more.

Today's consumer is making buying decisions with convenience in mind. As a result, the food & beverage industry has responded by integrating technology into its business model, expanding its client base to anyone with a smartphone or computer and an internet connection.

Delivery plays on this trend. It's not a new concept at all, but the number of restaurants taking on delivery as part of their offering is increasing. Delivery has rushed headfirst into the dining space, and some companies are struggling to strike the right balance between convenience and quality experiences.

On today’s MarketScale Food & Beverage Podcast episode, we take a deep dive into how take-out has taken over the food space and how previously existing restaurants can adapt to the changing times with Ryan Blackman and Eddie LeBon from Granbury Solutions.

Restaurants have a plethora of options when it comes to hiring third-party delivery drivers to deliver their food: Grubhub, Uber Eats, Postmates and others. But which one to use? Or perhaps use all of them? Or maybe just hire your own delivery drivers? The answers to these questions are not simple. A restaurant's location and client loyalty all factor into figuring out how to integrate the convenience of delivery into your business model and brand.

As the person-to-person interaction of dining out disappears, is the hospitality of the restaurant itself lost? How do restaurants maintain a sense of community and camaraderie with their loyal customers, when the touch point between customer and business is replaced with that of a third-party deliverer?

Blackman and LeBon think that nothing has to be lost. In fact, they think that certain software systems can help transcend hospitality through the delivery process with the help of technology, collecting valuable data that can ultimately help deliver exactly what the customer wants.

Mining oil and gas is essential to human civilization currently. However, the public does not often think of the massive machinery and equipment that are responsible for energy infrastructure, and thus make the modern lifestyle viable.

This equipment, most often large, is also fragile and must be cared for. Today, we dive into how vital it is to keep this equipment in lasting condition and how these machines are cared for.

Kevin Piel, Director of Business Development for KPS Global, joins the podcast to expand upon equipment enclosures and how the company stays on top of keeping oil, gas, wastewater, and renewables accessible today and for years to come.

Energy knows no time zone. Sometimes mining happens in the world’s most remote corners and its harshest environments. From Alaska to Northern Canada and beyond, KPS Global must go where the equipment goes.

Piel points out that KPS Global’s enclosures must protect against these harsh conditions. Enclosures are crucial to protecting these machines and equipment from the wear and tear of Mother Nature. If left out in the environment, the equipment is prone to fail. Because of these specific needs, KPS Global has created panels that are compact for travel to even the most remote areas. The panels are modular and insulated and can fit the unique contours of specific equipment. With pre-fabricated panels, it becomes easier to assemble them onsite.

Panels, in and of themselves, are energy efficient, Piel said. The very act of preserving equipment to have a longer life reduces waste. With a network of educated professionals around the country, KPS Global can deploy installation experts in the area to help with safe setup and installation of the protective panels. No matter the environment, be it desert, forest, or in an urban city, KPS Global has the enclosure to blend into its surroundings, making it the invisible heroes of energy infrastructure.

The state of the healthcare landscape has changed dramatically in just the last decade. Information technologies have transformed the relationships people have with each other, including ones with healthcare providers. People once resorted to the wisdom of our primary care physician for all personal health queries. However, with the sharing and dissemination of information through the internet, patients are becoming more of their own caretakers.

In response, the healthcare industry is leaning in. Healthcare providers are looking for ways to improve patient experience and better patient-doctor communication.

Today we dove deeper into this rapidly morphing landscape of patient care with Lyndsey Lord, Vice President of Clinical Services at CipherHealth. She honed in on why value-based care and quality communication between providers and their patients is vital to setting patients on the path of recovery.

With the kickoff of “Patient Experience Week,” Lord explained why this promotional week is so important for doctors today. With patients having healthcare at their fingertips, it becomes increasingly important for doctors to focus on their customer service, lest the patient seeks service elsewhere. Content collaborators and guest speakers at the event promote the dissemination of positive content that trickles into the mainstream. Positive hospital experiences for the patient go hand-in-hand with delivering the best possible health care.

As technology continues to change the way we communicate and share information, it does the same to healthcare. Lord explained how changes like moving from paper to digital have changed how fast a hospital works and services its patients. Filing, filtering, and sorting through large amounts of information have become easier with the help of recent algorithms and technologies. Leveraging tech has allowed doctors to focus less on menial tasks and more on their patients, elevating the human element of care.

This episode dives deeper into how standardizing information and streamlining the sharing of information can help everyone from primary care physicians to specialists, to surgeons, to patients.

McKenzie Baine, truck driver recruiter at Merx Global, sums up how indispensable drivers are to the global economy with this simple adage:

“If you bought it, a truck driver has brought it.”

Over-the-road shipping is the backbone of the American economy. Nevertheless, the U.S. is facing a severe shortage of drivers, threatening several industries and consequently the world. That’s why today we are highlighting the career of a Class A Company Driver at Merx Global, a shipping company for industrial, commercial, and retail goods. Baine dives into the exciting features of this job, and the amazing benefits of being a part of the Merx Global family.

For those who are feeling the pull of wanderlust, truck driving is an enticing opportunity. Baine talks passionately about the places the open road can take you. From gazing at the sparkling night sky of Wyoming on I-80 to enjoying beignets and crawfish boils while rolling through New Orleans’ I-10, truck driving takes you places.

More than just an exciting travel job, truck driving is a lucrative and rewarding career as a part of the Merx team. With paid vacation and quarterly bonuses, driving for Merx has its benefits.

The Merx Global Company started with two brothers, a truck, and a trailer. Though the company has grown, the intimacy of a family business remains. Truck drivers are treasured assets to the company and cared-for family members. Always at the forefront of technology and service, Merx continues to look for ways to innovate and make their drivers more comfortable.

The Great American Road Trip is often just a day-dream for those who spend their workdays confined in a cubicle. But for truck drivers this is their full-time job -- to feel the freedom and power that comes from cruising behind the wheel on America’s open roads.

To apply for the position of Class A Company Driver at Merx Global, you can click here, or head to the careers tab on Merx Global's website.

To quote the late great journalist, chef, and traveler Anthony Bourdain:

“Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable...But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.”

Bourdain’s words reflect a reverence for the power of travel and exploring the unfamiliar. It is this feeling that inspired Adam Harris to use technology to revolutionize the way we travel today by creating the Cloudbeds software for boutique hotels.

In 2012, Harris’ business partner traveled to Brazil. He struggled to book unique, under-the-radar hotels and realized there was a demand for making small hotel operations more accessible to the public.

As the FIFA World Cup and the Rio Olympic Games loomed on the horizon, the duo saw an opportunity to make Brazil’s independent hotels available to incoming travelers with easy-to-use online software. Hotels that were once invisible to consumers became bookable with a click of a button.

Inspired by the “open table” online reservation service for restaurants, Harris created Cloudbeds for boutique hotels.

Millennials are changing the landscape of travel. Today’s young adults have changed their priorities from accumulating goods to accumulating rich experiences. The boutique hotel stay is part of these “experiences” that Millennials crave, which makes Cloudbeds particularly relevant to young travelers wanting a culturally rich vacation. From staying in upcycled tequila barrels in Mexico to glamping in Yellowstone National Park, unconventional stay experiences can make traveling exponentially richer.

With a passion for exploring and a background traveling to over 50 countries, Harris spoke with MarketScale about using tech to encourage new interactions and inspire cultural bridges, both today and well into the future.

In the past, if you went to a brick-and-mortar store, you did so to shop, and the store responded as such. You walked in, asked questions, made a purchase, and went about your business. The market has really changed, as has the competition, and this has created a huge change in the way that brands are interacting with their consumers. It’s now not as much about the products as it is about the experience.

We’re here today with Eric Thompson, Senior Sales Executive with Bluewater, and we’re talking about how retailers and brands are threading technology throughout their in-store experience.
Thompson has worked with 8 of the 10 top retailers in his 25+ year career, so he’s filling us in on what stores are doing to compete in a “retail apocalypse” where stores are closing left and right, and 30 have filed bankruptcy.

Thompson says retail isn’t dead, but it’s certainly changing, and it’s become a hot-button issue over the last 2 years. “Obviously the online experience is something that’s big and is not going away and it’s close to about what ten percent of retail sales are, and there are still people that want to go to the store and want to shop in the stores but they want more of a frictionless experience.” He points out that people don’t want to be waiting in a checkout line, so Amazon Go was created to let people walk in and out. Sam’s Club recently unveiled a store where you can create a shopping list and it will provide a digital roadmap telling you exactly where to go to get your items. “It’s really just about being efficient and having a good experience.”

And while more digital items are being woven into the retail experience now, Thompson warns that it’s still important to know who your customer base is. “If you’re catering more toward the Gen Z or millennials, they’re digitally native so they want to have those digital attributes in the store. Maybe if it’s a store that caters to the Baby Boom generation, there are ways to weave technology into the stores without being too tech-heavy. You have to use technology kind of towards who your customers are.”

For more information on creating a digital shopping experience, including notes on self-pay, geofencing, online research, AI, and interactive touch screens, and what all of this means to the consumer, you’ll want to immerse yourself into the rest of this podcast.

With the boom of e-commerce over the last decade, there is always a need for well-stocked fleets of trucks on the road. But when produce and crops are ready for harvest, the demand for the armada expands even more. It may not be noticeable to the average consumer, but these busy seasons put a tremendous strain on an already thin shipping workforce.

Alex Azeredo of The Logistix Company joined today’s MarketScale Transportation podcast to explain freight pricing and industry profitability during high-demand seasons.

Currently, there is a huge demand for trucks but a small supply of drivers. This means that there is a growing demand for shipping that shipping companies simply cannot keep pace with. On top of that, the supply may soon get even more limited because, according to Azeredo, “The average age of a truck driver is 67 years old, so it really does affect us with the younger generation not stepping up and fulfilling those driver jobs.”

Inspiring the next generation of truck drivers is critical to the retail and produce ecosystems unless another innovation can find a way to get people’s products to their doors and stores in the near future. Azeredo explains how rising rates during these high demand seasons, coupled with a waning workforce, is stretching the industry thin, and what a more flexible future could look like.

People can buy anything they want with a click of a button these days. Why should alcohol be any exception?

Millennials have grown up their entire lives using technology, and they want to buy liquor the same way they have purchased everything else: through apps and online. This is how the generation has learned to interact with all industries and retailers, but this convenience and experience is what liquor stores have been slow to adapt to.

On this episode of “Popping Bottles with Bottlecapps,” Tyler Kern speaks with Chief Executive Officer Dr. Prashant, Senior Director of Marketing Corey Gerstner, and Chief Sales Officer Bish Mubarek, developers of an app called Bottlecapps (link: http://bottlecapps.com/), the largest branded app for liquor stores in the United States.

"All these kids that grew up making purchases on apps are 21 and they're looking to buy liquor the way they know how," says Mubarak.

The ability to reach out digitally helps liquor stores bridge the gap between brick-and-mortar locations and the growing world of e-commerce.

"Around 85% of shoppers go onto the web before they shop in brick and mortar spaces. You have to have those two dynamics," Gerstner says.

With Bottlecapps, not only do customers have the ability to buy but the ability to look at recipes and things that enhance their drinking experience. For liquor store or bar and restaurant owners, this is great because they can continue to engage the customer when they are out of the store.

Across the country, workers are sustaining injuries due to physical exertion. These injuries come from a combination of overuse and an aging workforce. In fact, the National Safety Council found overuse to be the number one cause of workplace injuries. Annualized costs to businesses and medical communities are in the billions, which has a large impact on a company’s productivity and its workers.

Dr. Anthony Harris, Vice President of Onsite Clinical Services and Associate Medical Director for WorkCare, Inc., came on the podcast and discussed how preventing and managing injuries in the workplace is vital to worker safety and mental health, and a big factor in a company’s overall productivity. He also elaborated on the impact wearable technology has on gathering important vitals on workers’ well-being and physical status.

Dr. Harris breaks down ergonomics, or the study of human-machine interface, and how it has developed over the past 30 years. Workplace environments have done well to handle injuries and safety hazards, but there have not been a lot of ways to help prevent overuse injuries. Data regarding ergonomics needs to be continually gathered so that developments can continue.

This is where wearable technology comes into the picture.

Dr. Harris is also the founder of BioErgo, a solution service that uses wearable technology to collect and deliver pertinent data to employers. This information can be used to help prevent overexertion injuries in the workforce.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” said Harris.

It is important that workers are being considered from a health and safety standpoint, and not just the environment itself. Using wearable technology, companies can gather the individual data they need to prevent injuries.

In the digital age, advertising and marketing has pulled away from TV and embraced more experiential and cross-platform content. As consumer media habits change, advertising and marketing methods must adapt, and with today’s 24/7 content expectations, the end result has to reach the consumer authentically and at all times.

Cedric Lourie, Director of Digital Development for FreedomPay, follows how digital media continues to develop creative methods of advertising and, on the podcast, he unpacks what is worrying marketers in today's content-driven climate.

Lourie calls digital media “the norm,” and said that in today’s world if a business does not go digital through outlets like social media, then that business will be left behind. The potential obstacles faced by businesses include privacy concerns and advertising fraud, among others, but the hardest to avoid is changing consumer habits. That piece of the puzzle directly impacts where marketers aim their content to. All of these, Lourie has seen, have kept companies' messages from getting to their intended targets.

“Dollars lost due to fraud were near $16 billion in the U.S. alone, which is just second to the drug trade,” Lourie stated.

Consumer expectations are also high. They want personal experiences, and since everyone is different, this means advertising needs to become more customized. Lourie points out how brands that can ingrain a feeling of personalization have become most successful.

One tool alleviating the pain point of trying to reach customers everywhere in an authentic way is FreedomPay’s Decision Point Network, a point-of-sale software that can help businesses reach multiple consumers effectively and up-sell in a way that doesn't turn the customer off to their retail experience. Lourie dives deep on the podcast to explain how the software is opening new doors to the customer, and what effect these subtle content pushes have on the brick and mortar experience.

America relies on its trucking industry to get goods from coast to coast and everywhere in between. In fact, 75 percent of the American freight industry is reliant on trucks. But what if it did not have to be that way? What if there was an alternative to transporting goods; a greener mode of transit that makes the transportation of goods more reliable, despite weather conditions?

This transit exists and it is called intermodal transportation--the use of a diverse network of transit like rail, sea, and over-the-road trucking to move goods throughout the country efficiently.

Today we are joined by the team at Radiant Clipper, a branch of Radiant Global Logistics, to talk about its intermodal transit solutions and how it can upset the shipping industry in all the right ways.

Jim Boyer, Vice President of Sales, and Christopher Brach, Vice President of Operations, dive deep into how intermodal transit competes with trucking in terms of efficiency, environmental benefits, and innovation.

Shipping is an industry that has lacked innovation and change for decades. Boyer explains that with the help of Precision Scheduled Railroading (PSR), the industry can adapt and improve its efficiency. PSR is an operating method for rail which harnesses three major elements to maximize efficiency: run longer trains, run them faster with fewer crews, and run them within a simpler network.

Boyer and Brach also explain how train velocities have increased, and that rail companies are pumping up to $4 billion dollars into improving rail routes--making rail a huge contender to upset the trucking industry.

The trucking industry, with an aging workforce and lack of incoming talent, will find itself in jeopardy in the coming years as it scrambles to meet demands. This, Boyer and Brach emphasize, is where intermodal shipping will truly change the industry.

Boyer and Brach encourage companies to invest in alternative modes of transit before trucking is struck by weather and workforce shortages. Radiant Clipper works one-on-one with clients to access what cocktail of shipping methods is best to meet their needs. With inside partnerships with CSX, Radiant Clipper is the leading source for to work with America’s rail network.

People, wherever they are in the world, can connect with each other through sports; it's the world's universal language that transcends all. People who love competition are passionate about it, and it provides an escape from reality unlike almost anything else. So, how is the sports industry finding ways to play on that global passion and bring people together to share in new yet familiar experiences?

On today’s podcast, we speak with Darren Walls, CEO of SportsHosts, about creating human connections and powerful experiences through the love of sports.

SportsHosts is a new company that wants to make sporting events more fun for out-of-country or even out-of-state visitors; they pair people new to a specific city or sport with local hosts who are passionate about the home team and bring them together to experience the game together. Before the game, the host takes the visitors to his or her favorite spots for food or fun, and then sits and cheers along with them in the seats, live in the stadium, to give the guest an authentic fan experience.

Walls points out that in today's world, we're connected more than anyone could've possibly imagined with smart devices and social media, and yet he feels like we're a lonelier world than ever. For Walls, his company and the industry as a whole has an opportunity to encourage connection, understanding and positivity more so than any other.

Give this podcast a listen to hear Walls' methodology behind connecting people through a personal sense instead of a digital one, and how SportsHosts is changing the dynamic of sports fans today.

Did you know that the leading blue glass cleaner can kill you? Were you aware that the single-use wipes that many of us have in our kitchens and bathrooms are also putting our health at risk? At least, that's what our guest today claims after years of research and industry experience.

John Shanahan, President & CEO of Ionogen, was recently at a social function and was questioned by another guest who heard his latest podcast appearance and begged to differ that the products were harmful. After Shanahan read the ingredient list and then asked again if she would use the product around her four-year-old granddaughter, she had a very different take on the safety of the products.

Why aren’t more Americans reading labels and what does a more practical sanitation solution look like? Shanahan's research has pointed to single-use wipes potentially causing cancer, and yet most people aren’t aware of this because there aren’t many options to choose from. There isn’t a lot of new chemistry from product to product. Looking at the legacy brands (with 100+ years of retailing), they all use quaternary ammonium as a major ingredient, which can be extremely harmful to humans.

The second problem is that these wipes are often misused. Wiping the toilet seat or bathroom counter is “like a snow plow in Chicago in January,” Shanahan said. “It just starts pushing the germs.”

On this podcast, Shanahan explains how Americans are misusing both consumer-grade and commercial-level single-use wipes, why this is especially problematic for hospitals, and what the alternatives are.

Starting a retail business can feel like walking through fog. There are the essentials, like aesthetics, products and location, but even then retailers often don't realize the extensive testing that goes into maximizing branding, marketing, and even pricing.

On the first episode of Dialed In, we sit down with the CEO of MarketDial, Morgan Davis, a self-described “reformed country boy," who explains how to identify the most crucial points for brick and mortar stores to achieve better results.

According to Davis, “Most good retailers tend to be alike,” and the top businesses tend to always be innovation-driven and customer-focused. But even those businesses struggle, and when they do, the right actionable decision isn't always so clear. Where does MarketDial come in? Retailers have more transactional data than they’ve ever had before, and not only do they have information about what customers are purchasing, but they have info about customers themselves, their income, likes and dislikes, and shopping behavior. Davis is able to take that information and figure out ways to create A/B testing experiments that test X, Y, and Z products and marketing strategies.

Businesses may have ideas about competing priorities, innovative ideas, or a marketing team whose job is to come up with new ways to communicate value to their customers, but they may not know which of these ideas is going to be the most successful. Often, they may end up investing in the wrong path, or splitting their funds between several ideas when they could have gone with one full throttle.

"We’re able to test new products, different displays, a different pricing structure, etc., and that testing culture allows us to drive business through rigorous testing by knowing which ideas will be more impactful," Davis said.

Sometimes we do testing and “15 percent of the changes recommended were a disaster”, and to Davis, that’s a win because “success to us is not every test working perfectly, it’s finding out what does work and doesn’t and learning from those to improve your business model.”

The idea that something still widely used in the medical world is outdated is an unnerving thought. However, such is the case with the Body Mass Index (BMI), although this appears to be coming to an end.

After more than a decade of research, Richard Barnes, CEO of Malvern, England-based Select Research and partners at the Mayo Clinic in the U.S. have unveiled an antidote to the 1830s measurement tool that is BMI.

Mayo Clinic Research Associate Dr. Jose Medina-Inojosa, M.D. and Barnes believe Body Volume Index (BVI) is a much better determinant of whether someone is at risk for cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.

“[BMI] is not the complete picture and it’s designed for population statistics. So, for it to be used for an individual assessment of risk is, I believe, inappropriate,” Barnes said. “Yet, to be fair, there hasn’t been anything else available until now.”

What Barnes is calling Body Volume Indicator takes an individual person’s body and measures weight in seven segments as opposed to simply height and weight. This should better determine how at-risk an individual is, giving doctors a clearer course of action and potentially saving clients money on premiums.

The progression of personal technology has been critical to this innovation. Users have photos taken of themselves on a smart device and the software analyzes the images. People have become much more comfortable with this as technology has become a larger part of daily life in the past 10 years, according to Barnes.

“I can’t stress strongly enough the smartphone has allowed us to deliver that in a way we weren’t able to before,” Barnes said. “BMI is just height and weight and that simplicity always meant people had an excuse not to migrate to something else.”

Dr. Medina said the development will help hospitals integrate data on specific patients to the electronic health record system and support the growing field of telemedicine.
“I’m very hopeful this will ease the workload and help the actual face-to-face interactions between the practitioner and the patient,” he said.

The BVI app is currently available in the app store on Android and iOS to provide a demonstration. In the coming months the goal is that a number can be associated with pictures to appropriately assess risk.

Aging is difficult enough. With old age and declining health, even the most routine tasks become major chores. This is why so many enlist the help of loved ones or assisted living communities as they enter old age. When elder abuse or exploitation occurs, which is more frequent than many might imagine, the repercussions are damning.

Sheila Dessau, Senior Director of Clinical Services for the Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging (WRAAA) is familiar with the pain associated with elder abuse and is seeking to end it in her region.

Dessau reports that 17,579 accounts of abuse, exploitation, and neglect have been reported since July of 2017 to WRAAA’s county department of Jobs and Family Services in the greater Cleveland area.

The dissolution of trust in the family leaves many seniors with nowhere to turn. That is why agencies like WRAAA are so critical.

The WRAAA empowers the community and intensifies its reach through education. It educates its staff and members of the community like lawyers, social workers, judges, attorneys, and family members about how to notice and report signs of abuse in an elder’s life and home with annual consortiums and handy bookmark reminders.

“Nothing beats the personal touch of someone in the home,” Dessau said.

WRAAA works closely with the county protective services department to enhance the reach of their service. They also integrate technology like emergency buttons to give elders an extra step of safety. With education, technology, community outreach, and a dedicated staff, the WRAAA has been working tirelessly to empower Ohio-area elders with the tools to take care of themselves and resist situations of abuse.

Technology is moving forward in the world of transportation, and the advances are not limited to self-driving vehicles; the shipping and freighting side of the industry is seeing its own improvements, with the future of weight measurements being integrated into telematics.

On this episode of the Transportation Podcast, we're joined by Martin Ambros, CEO for Air-Weigh On-Board Scales, a company that provides electronic on-board weighing technology for both trucks and trailers with air or mechanical suspensions. Although onboard scales have been around for a significant period of time, Ambros finds that there’s a real change in the way they’ve been viewed and valued over the past three years. For example, five years ago 70 percent of his customers or higher were drivers looking to cut back on overweight fines and fees. Now, it’s all about optimization.

A load that’s underweight can really affect that optimization. According to Ambros, “equipment is more expensive, operation costs are higher, and drivers are becoming fewer and harder to find and keep,” so those minutes a company wastes trying to get the load exactly correct “really cuts into the operating ratio.”

Besides time and sheer efficiency, there are a lot of other benefits, including safety, fewer loads and trips on fleets, and preventing overloading, which may lead to breakdowns and maintenance costs in the future. Companies like Pepsi are already having real-world results from employing these types of solutions, and on the podcast, Ambros explains how Air-Weigh will continue to help become a critical part of the driver retention solution as well.

Every single day we add to our human race. The influx of new doctors cannot match human growth, now seven billion people and growing, and there is a huge lack of capacity in healthcare. The average United States doctor looking at a patient for approximately 11 minutes, which is far too little. Companies like KenSci are looking to change that with a new version of medical AI, previously thought of as “artificial intelligence,” but has since been dubbed “assistive intelligence.”

Sunny Neogi, Chief Growth Officer for KenSci focuses on the real-world applications of assistive intelligence in health care. Neogi points out that AI can help determine future conditions so that steps can be taken now, for example, a pre-diabetic seeking treatment options before they’re fully diabetic or facing kidney failure could free up over 300 hours a year for physicians to treat other patients.

In addition to being preemptive, the assistive intelligence in place is not meant to replace physicians, but to help them in taking over repetitive and mundane tasks like note taking, translations, and data entry.

AI can also help with the discovery of vast medical knowledge, that is doubling quicker than anyone can keep track.

“The quantity and body of medical knowledge used to double every 150 years, today it doubles up every 70 days. It’s humanly impossible for one human to have all of that at their fingertips, but the computer software can assist in telling the doctors that the evidence is there. There’s a supply of knowledge that’s driving a stronger embrace of data AI in healthcare,” says Neogi.

While we often think about machine learning and artificial intelligence as a way to replace humans, it might not be so simple in the healthcare space. We need those humans who have spent decades mastering this craft, as their intuition and empathy cannot be matched by machines. At the same time, we have to recognize that there are some machine learning and data analyzation functions that could save doctors and healthcare staff a lot of valuable time.

Enter assistive intelligence.

Today KenSci CEO Samir Manjure joins the MarketScale podcast to speak about assistive intelligence in the healthcare space. Manjure started his career at Microsoft and was working his way up through the machine learning and data sciences ladders, but wanted to do something that would have a meaningful impact on society at large. His top choices were education and healthcare, then he found his future KenSci co-founder with whom he realized that the healthcare market was underserved. So, they decided to start KenSci and “use data science in a way that can benefit the society at large.”

Although, Manjure is quick to point out that the company is not using data science for large scale applications, like finding the cure for cancer. KenSci is very applied and is using machine learning to “solve today’s problems.”

The question has changed from why we should use AI to how, and in the healthcare industry that is in a variety of ways, including pharmaceutical variation, determining the length of a patient’s stay, predicting emergency room overflow, determining whether a patient is pre-diabetic, and even predicting congestive heart failure or which patients are likely to leave without being seen by a doctor.

At the end of the day, says Manjure, “It’s not about the sexy machine learning, it’s about saving lives and making an impact in the patient’s care and procedures.”

Five billion. That is how many almonds were estimated by the National Agriculture Service to be in last year’s harvest, but the number was actually more like 2.7 billion. This year, with 1.3 million acres of almonds planted, it’s a waiting game to see what the yield will be.

On today’s episode of Nut News, we discuss all things almonds with Bob Nunes, CEO for Select Harvest USA, one of the world’s largest almond distributors.

The monthly almond report has just come out, the industry has come through the bloom period, and now it is an anxious waiting game as the industry finds out what this year’s almond crop is going to look like. The crop typically blooms in March, when the bees will be distributed through the orchard for pollination to happen, so it is a critical time for forming next year’s crop.

Nunes says that they “experienced very challenging weather for the bloom period this year with excessive rain and cool and windy periods, so the outcome of this year’s crop has not been determined yet.”

There is still time to see how many of these flowers will be converted into almonds, just one of the factors that go into the success of this particular industry.

Modern medicine is always looking for the latest and greatest new minds, new clinicians, and more input for what to do for patients in particular cases. What if one of those minds around the proverbial table was artificial intelligence?

Rohan D’Souza, the Head of Product for KenSci told MarketScale how AI can help save lives in healthcare. D’Souza says, the world has an “amazing opportunity to apply these modern tech breakthroughs around machine learning and artificial intelligence to solve some really complex problems.”

These technological breakthroughs do not come without some resistance, however. Although it is a wonderful time to be in artificial intelligence, the word “artificial” is really what throws people off. It does not always sit well with a highly educated workforce and KenSci is on a mission to get that definition converted to “assistive intelligence.”

The idea is that the intelligence is not replacing humans, but giving humans assistance, using data to help the clinician make the right decision at the table.

KenSci uses all types of data to accomplish this task, and is very connected with Microsoft Azure, leveraging the Azure cloud for most of its applications, and it can run a fully trained machine learning network in about 60 minutes with scoring on a basis of every 5 to 10 seconds.

A lot of the challenge, says D’Souza, is not necessarily in the innovative technology or the science of solving the problem, but in the art of delivering that solution.

“A great thing about it is that test scenarios and repeatable assets are stored from us all over the world which helps in decision making, even though we cannot guarantee that the results that worked in Indiana will work in Singapore,” says D’Souza.

Still as long as people understand that this is not an overnight magical fix and something that people are committed to for the long run, they’ll really be able to see results.

On today’s podcast we speak with Judy Smith, Vice President of Higher Education at Government Sourcing Solutions. GSS is a non-traditional consulting firm that works with supplier partners to “bring collaborative contracting agreements to higher education and state and local government.” The company looks to leverage existing contract agreements so that universities and colleges no longer have to “recreate the wheel themselves,”, allowing them to save money more quickly.

By using existing contracts, it instantly shortens the timeline by not having someone else jump on the cooperative agreements. It saves the supplier and the organization time and money and streamlines everything by eliminating unnecessary prep work, you can just analyze the contract and turn it on for your campus or your organization. Higher education organizations are aware of cooperative contracts, but they aren’t aware most times of how good these contracts really are.

There has been a huge increase over the past 5-7 years in the quality of these agreements and what they can do, and that is often overlooked.

“I would encourage large institutions to look at agreements that exist before they go out and try to do something on their own” says Smith.

If there is a gap, she’d focus on streamlining that process, and get something up and running now rather than have even more time and money lost by not acting now.

“What would be the downside of doing this agreement, especially if you’re not using this supplier presently? Let’s get your feet wet,” and they’re usually pretty happy with it once they try it.

Retailers big and small are trying to determine how to best reach younger generations. Unfathomable amounts of ink have been spilt trying to define all of the ways that millennials are different from their predecessors. Heather Watson, behavioral designer for the Center for Generational Kinetics, LLC, joins this episode of the podcast to explain the factors that she considers when evaluating why generations behave the way that they do.

We're also joined by Kathy Thomas, Chief Strategy Officer for Half Price Books, who explains why their business continues to thrive while other traditional brick and mortar retailers have struggled.

Ricardo Regalado joins today’s MarketScale podcast for a conversation about Route, a data-driven platform for the building services industry. The product allows for property walkthroughs to be digitized and for everyone to be able to access pictures, client notes, measurements, and sketches within a matter of seconds.

Walking through a new potential site is always the best way to get a feel of the true nature of the site because every office is different. It is important to know where the conference room is; what types of materials the flooring, walls, and windows are made out of; the location of the lobby; and which areas are the hot-spots for a particular client. In the past, this was done with a laser pointer, cell phone, pen and paper, clipboard, or a variety of different tools, but everybody’s opinion on “clean” is different, for example, so it is necessary to have everyone’s data points in the same space to easily compare.

Additionally, keeping these all together prevents them from getting lost, and allows those back in the office to have the same instantaneous access to the information as the field representatives.

Not only does Route help with organization, but it also allows you to provide speedier service. You can give a quote within minutes, and not have to worry about misestimating a figure. By being so accurate, recording every, single thing the customer says, and compiling texts and emails, users can keep track of what is important to each, individual customer “so that the customer knows you listened.”

The digital walk-through is the biggest piece of the puzzle, but you’ll still need to know how to create this portrait of the client’s facility, as well as some helpful tips for conducting a successful walkthrough.

Keep Austin Weird. That phrase is plastered all around the state capital of Texas and its people take it to hear. The word ‘weird’ is subjective, but people in the city certainly pride themselves on individuality. On the third installment of the MarketScale SXSW Podcast Series, hear from a trio of people who have ascended in their fields of work by doing things their own way.

Michael Lewis' book "Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game" brought into focus a trend that was taking place across sports. Organizations were realizing they could make smarter decisions with their resources by utilizing data that was readily available to them.

This trend has recently made its way from the field of play into the world of fan engagement. Joining MarketScale's Sports & Entertainment Podcast is Max Metral, Insight Manager for Formula One. He discusses the data F1 collects and how it's used to drive fan connections and brand recognition.

On today’s MarketScale Retail podcast, we welcome Juan Perez, CEO of ADUSA Inc., to analyze what effective ADA compliance looks like and why businesses should take steps to make their hardware and software compliant sooner than later. Part of what keeps businesses from becoming compliant immediately, Perez explains, is due to confusing or vague laws that only apply to government agencies, contractors, or people doing businesses with those agencies.

Perez said that the "wait and see" approach won’t work; he believes "that’s not a proactive enough approach and that could have some consequences down the line.”

Consequences are already starting to pop up, as restaurants that provide self-service kiosks are already beginning to face litigation, like a case recently where a visually impaired person was unable to order due to an audio port being blocked; an unfortunate result when you consider how easy of a fix it is.

“Effective ADA compliance or accessibility is only achieved through both a marriage of both hardware and software,” Perez said. “There are certain standards already out in place that can be used so you can modify hardware with certain peripherals, and you can modify software to adhere to certain standards that would make the self-service kiosk accessible to a wide range of disabilities.”

He recommends that all existing restaurants with self-service kiosks add a tactile navigation bar with linear navigation for those who may have prosthetics, bright colored bounded box around the item that’s selected, say a hamburger, so that the person knows where they’ve landed on the screen if they’re visually impaired, as well as audio jacks so that a visually impaired person can plug in a headset. He points out that some kiosks have added a blue wheelchair button, which moves the text and graphics lower to the ground for easier reach.

The US Access Board is looking at new litigation, and these laws may soon change again. Until then, Perez said these fixes are relatively cost-effective, especially when working with companies and products like EZ Access, developed at the University of Wisconsin. These technology solutions are giving restaurants and retailers less and less of an excuse to not comply with these laws.

With more than 3.7 billion prescriptions issued in 2018 and 4.9 billion to be issued in 2019, of which 13.9 percent are Schedule II prescriptions or narcotics, mainly opioids, it's easy to see why the opioid problem in the United States is labeled as a "crisis," and why it was so easy for it to happen in the first place. Not only are companies looking for cost-effective and efficient methods to handle all of that prescription printing, but they are looking for a way to tackle the opioid crisis in this country, which is often assisted by prescription pad misuse.

Joseph Howe business development manager for CognitiveTPG, a company that is changing the game when it comes to secure thermal printing, joined the podcast to break down this pain point for medical professionals and how these printers are bringing solutions. As Howe put it, it is printing with customization “to the nth degree,' adjusting for shape, size, color, and even speed.

This printing process is intelligent, and not only more cost-effective (printing on demand) but time efficient as well. On top of that, these printers enable printing on a copy-protected background, with watermarks, and all the other security features are added as the job is printing. This solves problems in a number of ways. For one, handwriting by a doctor cannot be misread or altered. Secondly, no one can steal a prescription pad and write (or sell) their own prescriptions. Finally, no criminal can steal the printer because it does not work anywhere other than in the home office.

Listen to Howe explain why easing the time consuming, expensive, and fraud susceptible process of prescription printing could change the medical industry for the better.

Over the last 20 years, the TCU athletic department has used a model of stability and constant progress to work its way into the national consciousness. Relegated to the Western Athletic Conference following the collapse of its home for 72 years, the Southwest Conference, the Horned Frogs worked their way back up the ladder, moving from the WAC (1996-2000) to Conference USA (2001-2004) to the Mountain West before finally reaching the Big XII in 2012.

Having accomplished so much over the past 25 years, it would be easy for the athletic department to sit back and admire its achievements, but that's not the approach that TCU's Athletic Director Jeremiah Donati is taking.

Learning about and experimenting with new products is what makes attending an event like SXSW an enjoyable and worthwhile endeavor. Hearing specific stories of how these developments have already saved lives and changed the world elevates the SXSW experience from one of intrigue to captivation.

MarketScale conversed with 10 SXSW speakers about their new products and experiences from the past year. From marketing to lifesaving surgery, this year’s conference has truly brought together some of the world’s foremost innovators in a wide gamut of industries.

Tim Brown and Nigel McAlpine

Augmented reality and 3D printing are often viewed as innovations that can enhance fun. Dr. Tim Brown Consultant Transplant Surgeon at Belfast City Hospital in Northern Ireland and Nigel McAlpine, Immersive Technology lead at Digital Catapult proved these developments can be much more impactful. Lifesaving, in fact.

Hear the story of how these two were involved in saving a young woman’s life by using 3D printing and augmented reality to rid a kidney of a tumor so that it could be transplanted into her body before it was too late.

“She didn’t have long to go, and it was very unlikely that she was going to get a transplant to save her life,” Dr. Brown said of the initial prognosis.

The pair brought to SXSW 2019 an exact replica of the donor’s kidney, which was 3D-printed by Axial3D.

“They’ve done it specially to our specifications, we’ve asked for a clear kidney and they’ve marked the tumor for us very clearly and helpfully to show us what we need chop out to make this kidney transplantable,” Dr. Brown continued.

Dr. Brown and McAlpine will be part of a panel discussing the procedure on Tuesday, March 12 at 12:30 p.m. CST.

Tatyana Kanzaveli

Tatyana Kazaveli, CEO of Open Health Network is also involved in cutting edge technology in the healthcare industry.

She helped explain how blockchain has made tangible impacts in the field and how the public can learn more about its results and move away from unsubstantiated hype.

“In healthcare I see baby steps. Mostly I see initiatives by pharma companies but there are career use cases for providers, insurance companies and pharma and researchers. But they’re still baby steps and I’m glad we’ve developed something that has actually deployed, and it does give a value as is,” she said of Open Healthcare and the state of blockchain in the medical world.

She will be elaborating on this topic on Tuesday, March 12 at 11 a.m. but gave MarketScale the lay of the land for blockchain today.

Heather Watson

Businesses must know their customer to be successful, but in this digital age, knowing how to find these customers might be more important. With Gen Z beginning to research products and order through social media and ordering products on cell phones and tablets, brands must react.

Heather Watson, behavioral designer for the Center for Generational Kinetics, LLC, has been researching how Gen Z will change the global economy, and what the next wave of workers expects from the job market, working environment and more.

“Their life digitally is as important as their physical life,” Watson said of Gen Z.

She explained how parenting, global trends and technology have transformed business and retail, and how the evolution of social media from a platform to a legitimate retail market will continue.

“One third of teenagers, or Gen Z, are on their phones after midnight every night. That is a powerful habit. They are on their phones 6-7 hours a day,” Watson said.

These habits are not going away soon, according to Watson, and marketing and advertising must learn to reach their customers in new ways.

Fess Parker was a movie star in the 50's and 60's, famous for his portrayal of Davey Crockett and others. So how did a vineyard and winery in the midst of California wine country come to bear his name? For the answer, we turn to his son Eli Parker. He shares his philosophy for building the wine business and creating an aesthetic that communicates a sense of place and comfort.

This week's episode also features a conversation with David Benzaquen, the CEO of PlantBased Solutions. As the trend of plant-based diets continues to grow, restaurants and food distributors have begun to take notice. What changes should restaurants make to their menus and how can businesses capitalize?

Finding Terroir Where You Are

Staying connected to your roots gives many people a sense of place and belonging in the world. Eli Parker has worked hard to ensure that no matter how big the Fess Parker Winery empire grows, it never becomes disconnected with its roots and origin. Parker utilizes the design and decor of the winery and restaurant to tell the story of its location and create a comfortable environment for guests.

"People are always looking for comfort and a sense of place," says Parker. "New materials. Comfort. And an eye that brings locale to wherever you are." These are the things he says are important to consider when establishing the aesthetic

The Rapid Growth of Plant-based Diets

Plant-based diets are all the rage, but this isn't just a passing fad, according to David Benzaquen of PlantBased Solutions. As this becomes the preferred method for meals for many people around the world, restaurants and food providers have begun to take notice.

"The real change is in the number of people realizing they can make a huge difference in their health and in the environment," says Benzaquen. Specialty restaurants have been catering to this growing group of people, but now the more established and traditional eateries and food providers are hopping on board.

Benzaquen cites the changing attitudes of companies like Tyson and chefs like David Chang as evidence that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Stay tuned for what comes next in the space!

On today’s Transportation Podcast, we speak with frequent guest Andy Martin, FAA Repair Manager for DuraCoatings, to learn about landing gear and component work on airplanes, a side of the industry that leaves no room for mistakes. We break down the ins and outs of working with manufacturer MRO groups (maintenance, repair, and operations) for major recognized brands such as Boeing and Goodrich, as well as the critical operations and testing that are applied to make sure that there are not any temperature issues or fatigue during processing.The major goal, said Martin, is to produce work instructions that have exactly the correct directions and specs, and to make sure that your people on the shop floor follow those directions, which requires internal training and proper procedures that not only stand up to FAA and customer audits but to Martin’s high standards as well.We also discuss the relevant certifications that can be obtained, including the AS9100 Rev D, the ISO 9001 2015, and the EASA. Getting a dual release certification is required for an increasing amount of customers in the United States. Martin highlights HVOF (High Velocity Oxygen Fuel) coating and how it is changing the thermal spray repair and chrome plating processes to help reduce hydrogen embrittlement, which can reduce the chances of failure due to fatigue.

One thing that's true no matter who you are is that we’ll all get old one day. The choice should be yours as a senior citizen what your care is; and fortunately, there are people in the medical community advocating for and assisting members of our older generations to be able to stay in their community and age within the comfort of their own homes. But what happens when the funding for programs under the Older Americans Act dwindles or goes away entirely, and how does it impact not only our communities but the medical industry as a whole?

On today's podcast we sat down with Karen Webb, director of program development and planning at the Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging, to discuss the rewards and challenges of helping seniors stay within a community and age in their homes, and what it takes to allow them to receive those services.

Obviously, it’s wonderfully rewarding to be able to give back to generations who led the way for us, but it’s not easy, especially with a trend of flat funding over the last several years. As the Baby Boomer generation continues to get older in droves, there are more and more Americans crossing the age of 60; unfortunately, the funding is not increasing along with the dramatic increase of new seniors.

Tune in to this podcast to find out more about the Older Americans Act and the people it protects--those with low income, minorities, and residents in rural areas. We discuss the ways that Webb and her team are trying to raise funding, not only to find and send service providers to small towns, but to keep their professionals happy and passionate about their work; when work is stretched too thin, the creeping issue of caretaker burnout joins the equation.

A study published by Gallup found that only 9% of Americans list baseball as their favorite sport to watch. That's the lowest total since Gallup first started conducting this study back in 1937.

However, a recent article in the Wall Street Journal suggests that overall participation in America's pastime is surging, indicating a rekindled interest in the game. The question facing owners and executives now is how to capitalize on this trend, turning a casual game of catch into a lifelong love of the game.

Today's podcast looks at three areas where baseball can improve. First, we talk to Jesse Cole, Owner of the Savannah Bananas. He focuses in on the entertainment aspect of the game, insisting that teams need to focus on making the game an experience for fans. In the second feature, Alec Weber from Blinkfire Analytics joins the show to talk about merging sports and social media. How are other leagues utilizing these tools and what could Major League Baseball be doing better?

On the final segment of the show, MarketScale Correspondent Sean Heath takes a look at the improvements that Major League teams are making to their stadiums to improve the experience for fans.

Play ball.

Fan Experience is the Key

Are fans enjoying the experience when they attend baseball games? That's the main question for Jesse Cole, Founder of Fans First Entertainment and the Owner of the Savannah Bananas. As reports indicate that more people are picking up bats and gloves these days, the question remains: How do you transform a simple game of catch into a life of fandom?

"The key is that kids playing baseball need to see heroes. They need to see players that they want to be like," says Cole. He also emphasizes the importance of the experience of a attending a baseball game. Ensuring that fans are entertained and have a good time is what keeps them coming back game in and game out.

How Baseball Can Win With Social Media

The NBA has experienced massive success with their sponsored jersey patch experiment. The league is bringing in added revenue and evolving their social media strategy to add value to their advertising partners. They've been on the cutting edge of this trend, but it isn't difficult to imagine Major League Baseball soon going this way, as well, according to Alec Weber, Business Development Manager for Blinkfire Analytics.

"I just think the money is too great for baseball and these other leagues to not follow suit on sponsored jersey patches," he says. As Alec explains, social media content can be tailored to provide maximum value to advertising parters, raising revenue and keeping fans connected with their favorite players and teams.

Upgrading MLB Stadiums

Each year MLB teams make upgrades to their stadiums to try to entice new fans to come through their turnstiles or encourage the pre-existing fans to come back. MarketScale Correspondent Sean Heath took a deep dive look at improvements are taking place around the league as we build up to the 2019 season. Will these trends catch on league-wide or are they going to fall flat?

The average workplace injury lasts for eight days, but a lot of people who would self-manage and continue their activities at home will take the maximum time off from work, which may be more detrimental to them. If out for longer than 12 weeks, 25 percent of workers will not return. Not only are they burdened, but the business can be as well with interim costs of a new hire, lost work, etc.

On today’s podcast, MarketScale host Daniel Litwin speaks with Dr. Peter Greaney, executive chairman and chief medical officer of WorkCare, a company that builds constructive partnerships with the medical community, business clients, and their employees. Their goal is to educate the workforce about preventable conditions and safety challenges as well as overall employee health and quality of life.

Greaney had always been interested in prevention and had always been the kind of doctor to go the extra mile, reminding people to take their medicine or stop smoking. To his confusion, though, people kept coming back to him with the same problems, and eventually decided he wanted to have a more direct hand in bringing innovation to preventative rather than reactive medicine. Now he works with WorkCare in occupational medicine to keep people healthier at work, to prevent injury for the employed population, and more importantly, to get people back to work after an injury, which he says is often the overlooked and yet most important piece of the puzzle.

A lot of companies might overreact to injury, paying for an employee's medication and giving them extensive time off. To Greaney, this is one of the worst things that can be done to encourage recovery. Not only does it cost the company a pretty penny, he says when people are out of work, bad things follow suit. Work and health are linked, and keeping people at work is fundamental to their income, their self-esteem, and depression levels.

For more information about the effects of workplace injuries and how they can be better managed, give this podcast with Dr. Greaney a listen.

It's that time of the year when we begin to trade in those winter coats and mittens for t-shirts and baseball gloves. As Spring Training gets rolling for teams across Major League Baseball, we take a look at the impact that Spring Training has on the hospitality industry in communities that host these teams. Kendra Pettis, Sports & Tourism Director for the city of Surprise, Arizona, joins the podcast to give us an in-depth look.

What is the future of the retail industry? Two things we can say with confidence is that Amazon figures to be around for a while and pro AV will continue to play a big role in the industry. This week's episode takes a look at these two items with guests Bryan Eisenberg from Buyer Legends and Brad Grimes from Avixa.

Over the past several years, commercial audio codec products have improved and expanded their reach, especially within the radio broadcasting industry. As many radio broadcasting stations continue their transition from T1 links to IP networking, taking advantage of connections that are more reliable and lower cost, the consensus has been positive on IP networks' power to transmit high quality voice, audio, or video data.

What will it look like to attend sporting events in the future? One thing is for sure, our world is becoming increasingly connected thanks to the availability of internet access. On this episode of the podcast, Marybeth Hall from Brown Pelican returns to explain the process of providing WiFi at Daytona International Speedway and how a future of 5G and WiFi working together could revolutionize how we experience live sports.

Also on this week's show, we take a look at how Spring Training impacts cities like Surprise, AZ, where every year 200,000 people visit to enjoy the first signs of a new baseball season. Kendra Pettis, Sports & Tourism Director for the city of Surprise, AZ, joins the show to discuss the impact to the city.

Technology is evolving and opening the world to places we couldn't previously experience. On this front, Dallas Love Field in employing a new app to help visually impaired travelers experience their facilities in a new way. On today's podcast, we talk to Chris Perry, Communications Manager for the Department of Aviation at Dallas Love Field, to get his thoughts on what this means for the facility. We also talk to Jay Basen, home automation expert, to learn more about the air inside homes and how we can make sure it's as clean as possible.

Even though texting has become a staple of how we communicate, businesses are still scared to use it to interact with customers. They shouldn’t be, though; it’s way more powerful than any other medium out there. 95 percent of all text messages arrive within three minutes and are opened soon thereafter, but less than 20 percent of emails are even opened. Imagine that communicative power blasting customers' cell phones.

Are you aware that the leading blue glass cleaner can kill you? Did you know that the leading disinfectant wipe on the market does not do anything?

“You are what you eat” is an old adage that’s really true; educated consumers know it and are extremely conscious of it these days. This awareness is thanks to social media, other consumers, and a rise of those afflicted with a variety of food intolerances to things such as gluten, lactose, sugars, legumes, and other foods, which cause gas and bloating, among other things.

Good digestion is so important, and there are a lot of products on the marketplace to benefit gut health: probiotics and enzymes. How is this marketplace responding to an increased interest from consumers?

On today’s podcast, host Sean Heath sits down with Dan Cui, Chief Marketing Officer of SiOnyx. SiOnyx is a leader in Night Vision, commercializing a patented semiconductor process that dramatically enhances the infrared sensitivity of silicon-based photonics. They discuss the advancements in the concept of wearables, the benefits of being able to have superhuman vision at night, and the future of cellphones.

With today’s opioid crisis, caregivers everywhere are concerned that their prescription pads will disappear and perpetrators will help themselves to oxycodone, hydrocodone, Xanax, and a variety of other often abused prescriptions. Even if a prescription pad isn’t stolen, it’s possible for people to alter a prescription that was given legally, changing the strength of dosage and number of refills to get what they really want.

Food brings people together, connecting cultures and people groups around the world. Sharing a meal with someone from a new country is an excellent window into what life is like for them. On this episode of the show, chef Federico Tischler shares how he creates that barrier between cultures with his Venezuelan restaurant in Baltimore, MD.

Brands are jumping on the trend of adopting recyclable plastic, but are they too late? On this week's episode of the MarketScale Retail Podcast, we spoke to Michigan State University professor Ramani Narayan about the impact that plastic waste has had on the environment up to this point and the effect that this change will have.

Reconnecting. That’s the motivation behind the history, the product and the team at Solo Stove. Starting off as a single, simple and unique cooking stove that brought the company’s founders living worlds apart back together to enjoy the childhood wonders they experienced outdoors growing up together, their mission of reconnection fuels the company’s product innovation of building simple, high quality products that reconnect their customers to what matters most in their lives. From families camping in the woods together, to backyard enthusiasts that bring warm and a place to gather ‘round on their patio, Solo Stove helps people reconnect with each other and nature while making memories that will last forever.

What goes on behind the scenes of the biggest sporting events in the world? For every successful event there are a myriad of logistics that have to be worked out for the event to work. One of the companies doing that work behind the scenes is Brown Pelican Wifi and they join us on this week's episode of the podcast to talk about providing wifi for a race team at Daytona International Speedway.

In the Food & Beverage industry, as we move into a future where self-service kiosks are the primary method of interaction between restaurant and customer, the need for the best software is obviously critical. As such, there are a variety of ways that the correct software can help improve the guest experience. On this Food & Beverage Podcast, MarketScale chats with Juan Perez, CEO of Allied Decisions USA, and together they examine the future of self-service kiosks in the grocery store and beyond.

According to Perez, a key consideration in the self-service kiosk is the choice of software, since the self-order technology is quickly spreading and will soon be a primary form of communication at fast casual restaurants. The decision about software is a highly strategic one. Applied Decision USA has choices that Juan describes as Best in Class, that focus on 7 differentials that create the best possible options with optimal functionality and accessibility for each establishment’s target customers.

As thought leaders in this space for over 20 years now, Perez argues that they are in a great position to have a strong impact on the current trends and future innovations. New requirements and regulations are constantly coming into play. They are also in a great spot to understand what restaurants truly want to put in front of their customers and help those make those decisions. The right software will display products and options well and interact easily and within compliance and regulatory guidelines.

There's no magic bullet for success in the hospitality industry. The challenge is finding the correct combination of the right ingredients. This is true whether you're running a restaurant, hotel, or airline. On today's episode of the MarketScale Hospitality Podcast, we take a look at the recipe for success in both restaurants and reward programs.

On today's podcast, we spoke with David Rose, Director of Sales for Bennett Marine, about how their technology is shaping the future of the boating industry; commercially, recreationally, and competitively. Bennet Marine is a major manufacturer of Trim Tab Systems: hydraulic, electric, and spring-loaded versions. According to Rose, the trim tab has become a standardized accessory in the marine industry and is critical to helping a boat run more efficiently. Electric trim tabs route an electrical signal directly to actuators, while the hydraulic uses a pump and two actuators.

Rose explained how proud Bennett Marine is to offer both. The company attempts to remain forward thinking, and as a result they push the electric trim tabs to let people know they have more than one style in their lineup. In their efforts to get an audience with OEMs and dealers, they rely on an exceptional distribution network both nationwide and globally.

"Marketing materials is an attack 'em at all angles approach here at Bennett," Rose said.

In addition, they have a great team of manufacturer sales reps who understand that cold calling still works as well. The brand itself also helps tremendously, and Rose discussed the Yamaha acquisition and how it has given the company a clearer picture of where they are going.

The opportunity to work with some of the most brilliant minds in the business has impacted their strategic planning. And of course, the open houses with dealers remain a favorite way to network in an intimate setting with real conversations with those who are hands-on installing and using the products every day. Ultimately, according to Rose, a focus on aggressive product development keeps them moving forward and will remain a focus for the Bennett team and their efforts to use valuable feedback and stay on top of industry trends.

MarketScale traveled to the Chicago Auto Show to scope out the latest trends in the automotive industry. This week's episode of the MarketScale Transportation Podcast features conversations with representatives from three different automakers who give their thoughts on emerging technology for automobiles.

This week's show also features a conversation with an expert on railroads who explains how harsh weather, both cold and hot, can affect the railways in a big way.

The lifespan of buildings is often cyclical; a building is built, it serves a distinct purpose for a period of time, and when it is no longer necessary it is destroyed. But does it have to be that way? On today's episode of the MarketScale Building Management Podcast, we take a look at smarter ways to approach building restoration and preservation.

David Salisbury from Star Micronics discusses important factors retailers should be focusing on during this technological shift in the shopping experience. He points out that retailers must consider ways technology can help provide more knowledge about their business and ultimately guide them to more profits.

Salisbury believes multi-channel shopping keeps retailers from missing out on opportunities to sell, as an ecommerce store starts where the physical doors close. By bringing physical stores and ecommerce business together, it is not about how customers are shopping, but that they are shopping with your business. Salisbury discusses the three major factors he believes make a business––location, inventory, and staff.

He shares how technology can provide a better staff and customer experience by utilizing Star Micronics printers. These printers allow businesses to “promo print” for free, and you are able to control what prints at your store from any remote location. This allows businesses to share promotional content without training staff, ensuring each customer is receiving the message they want.

The struggles of once giant retailers like JCPenney and Sears have been well documented, but what's behind these massive dips for these companies? This week's episode of the MarketScale Retail Show takes a look at what's fueling JC Penney's identity crisis. We also take a look at Saks Fifth Avenue and ask if they're immune to market shifts or consequences for bucking the latest trends.

Owning a restaurant is a tough, multi-faceted business. It can be challenging enough getting diners in the door, but when it comes to processing their payment, it’s more complex than restaurateurs may realize. Not only are market trends transitioning toward new technologies, but the liability for credit card transactions has shifted as well.

TableSafe is a part of revolutionizing the Restaurant and Hospitality industries, by offering businesses Pay-at-the-Table technologies that have recently emerged in the U.S. TableSafe’s Payment Product Manager, Nydelis Ortiz Rivera [embed contributor page] discusses the growth these devices have experienced, and how innovations will continue to provide an availability of solutions to merchants.

"It's not only about what solution is best for the restaurant, but what solution will allow restaurant's the best experience for their customers," Ortiz-Rivera said. With any restaurant, the goal is always to enhance the customer experience, and with emerging technologies, it’s important for owners to find best-fit, simple solutions to serve that purpose.

When a fireplace performs well, it is easy to set-up and enjoy, with no problems. But often, fireplaces don’t work the way they should. And the explanation as to why comes down to physics.

"When we talk about a well drawing fireplace...that's actually a fireplace that has a vacuum created inside of it," Jason Hamachek, district manager at FireRock Professional Building Materials, said on the podcast.

Airflow is paramount, but not just in the fireplace; airflow through a home greatly affects how a chimney functions. As highly skilled laborers are becoming scarce, and energy efficient technology remains a part of homes, architects and builders have had to change how they install fireplaces. Now they look to pre-engineered fireplaces to combat poor airflow problems. Hamachek explains and identifies the factors, both inside and outside the home, that can make smoke hard to escape properly, and what today's efficient fireplace looks like.

Coming off of Super Bowl 53, it's safe to say that even with a slow game and mixed reviews on the halftime performance, the impact of the Super Bowl remains for months, even years after the stadium lights shut off. We wanted to look into that aftermath from three different angles. We'll explore the costs versus the benefits for a city to host a Super Bowl, the impact of low Super Bowl ratings on networks, and we'll dissect the Spongebob Squarepants petitions, its snub at the half-time show and how it prompted the Dallas Stars to cash in on the hype authentically.

Over the years, e-commerce has become a large entity in the Retail industry. It’s availability and ease-of-use have made it top competition for traditional brick-and-mortar stores, forcing retailers to lean into experience versus convenience. It’s evolved so much so that large retail stores are struggling to remain relevant (i.e. Toys R Us, Sears).

In the medical industry, sometimes an overlooked area is Elderly Care. Since long-term care has a long history of caregivers consisting primarily of family members, there aren’t always enough resources available in this particular field. The Center for Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging is a non-profit group that has dedicated itself to provide those resources, serving aging and disabled patients, their caregivers, and their needs.

The group’s Director of the Aging and Disability Resource Center, Terri Foster [embed contributor page], explained on the podcast that 70 percent of Americans who are currently 65 or over will need some form of long-term care; but their caregivers, who are sometimes full-time medical professionals, need attention as well. Full-time caregivers can suffer from caregiver burnout and compassion fatigue, which can have serious negative effects for themselves and the people for which they care.

"When you give up some of those caregiving responsibilities and go back to just being spouse again, you're going to enjoy each other's time more."

Terri greatly details the many services WRAAA offers to these communities of caregivers and patients, and explains that through prevention, future elderly people will have a lesser need for long-term care.

There are a lot of moving parts in any building, but the most noticeable is usually the interior environment. Maintaining a comfortable atmosphere makes a tremendous difference in the day-to-day for any company, but the actual maintenance can be a challenge for on-site personnel.

Amidst a record crop for California Almonds, the almond industry is preparing for the new tariffs imposed by China, one of their biggest buyers. We sat down with the director of sales and marketing at Select Harvest USA, Dinesh Bajaj, to learn about the impact these tariffs have had on business, what Select Harvest USA is doing to adapt and prepare, and how he sees this changing the future of the almond industry.

Today's episode of the MarketScale Hospitality Podcast Show looks at two international and impactful trends in Hospitality today; a decrease in Chinese tourism to the United States and Australia, and how restaurant owners should prepare for food recalls. Both are particularly timely, on the cusp of the Chinese New Year and a 2018 riddled with E. coli lettuce outbreaks. We'll hear from a Harvard professor and a MarketScale Hospitality contributor to give more insight on two topics that are shaping how professionals in the industry stay proactive amid shifting interests and technology.

Today's Building Management podcast explores an interesting cause and effect within the industry. In the last several years, the push for more green water conservation initiatives has created an unexpected issue in home and building water supplies. With conservative toilet flushes, low-flow shower heads, and automatic sinks, water is left sitting in piping for longer periods of time, creating perfect environments for waterborne pathogens to thrive.

One potential frustration when dining out is being served something that is different that what you actually ordered. It happens, occasionally. Often the reason can be traced to human error. Fast/casual dining is not only putting the power of ordering into the diners' hands, it's speeding up the process considerably.

On today's podcast, we chat with Juan Perez, CEO of ADUSA, a company that "brings its experience with Omni-Channel, Self-Service and Digital Engagement technologies to the restaurant industry." We discuss the rise of self-service kiosks in the food and grocery industry, and the outlook for the complete integration of kiosk solutions.

"I really don't think they're looking at it from a cost standpoint, more from an efficiency standpoint. And just a better way to engage customers that's more consistent, in terms of cross-selling, up-selling, being able to order from order history, etcetera," said Perez.

He details the driving force behind this movement, and why it’s all about the costumer experience. Throughout this episode, we highlight the realities of kiosk ordering, how McDonald's has been the de-facto "beta tester" for several of these innovations, and the major differences between kiosk and mobile ordering.

Experience is everything. This rings most true in Healthcare, and industry where positive experience can sometimes mean life or death. Though hospitals and professionals in healthcare pride themselves in second-to-none experience for their patients, the same isn't seen on the financial side. As patients are taking on a larger portion of their medical bills, it is important for healthcare providers to recognize this and better manage the financial relationships with their patients.

Each patient has a choice in who they seek for medical attention––they are a customer to the facility. Patients have unique financial obligations and it is crucial for healthcare providers to understand each patients’ background, work experience, and income, which allows providers to tailor a payment plan to each patient. Implementing better registration processes and educating and engaging the registration team is key to achieving patient satisfaction.

For this episode of the Retail podcast we’re joined by Aaron Kilgore, Regional Southeast Sales Manager for Resource Label Group, a company that works to fulfill complex and custom label solutions for various brands across different industries. In today's competitive marketing and branding world, a label has to be more than just a label; Aaron explains the power of Extended Content Labels as he goes into the nuances of the creation process, and help us understand the complexity and variation available in this niche.

MarketScale Host Elmer Guardado sits down with Aaron to distinguish between the two main applications of ECLs and discuss how the rise of more small startups has changed how companies brand themselves. The shift to local and personalized advertising has caused marketplace demands for more appropriate labeling.

"With the digital printing revolution that is happening right now in printing, we can now change things up and add variable data and different information so that [the client is] seeing very unique messages specific to that brand or maybe even individual to that region," Kilgore said.

Today’s guests on the MarketScale Retail Podcast Show, Roland Memisevic and MarketScale's own Geoff Short, discuss two "super" aspects of retail: the use of intelligent avatars in brick-and-mortar stores, and the annual impact of the Super Bowl on the industry. Quite uniquely, retail is being affected by future trends even as it continues to feel an impact from half-century old traditions.

On this week's episode of the MarketScale Sports & Entertainment podcast, we take a look at the longterm viability of the sport of football and some of the people who are most affected by it with author Rob Ruck. Our second feature of the show takes a look at how blockchain can make a difference in the world of entertainment, cutting out middlemen and ensuring money makes it into the right hands. We wrap up the show by examining the Super Bowl from multiple different angles, discussing the logistics, security, and economic impact of the big game.

As technology progresses, so does the tech-savviness of modern customers. This has led to an upsurge in expectations, with consumers choosing to shop in locations which provide that same level of technological urbanity. As the world becomes more and more fast-paced, consumers are looking for quick-shopping alternatives that gets them in and out quickly, leading to rapid growth within the interactive kiosk market. This is particularly true for the food service industry.

No matter how impressive the technological advancements are, things still need to get from point A to point B; traditional physical transportation of products isn't going anywhere. The way those shipping procedures are managed, however, is changing immensely.

2019 will feel the effect of a lot of these procedural changes; a driver shortage and increased economy have created a capacity crunch which in turn is increasing prices. Add on to that that e-commerce is forcing shippers to understand how they ship, and you get an industry searching for how to effectively deliver to customers and meet the new delivery expectations, in part thanks to Amazon, all while keeping costs down.

Right now, business in the aerospace industry is soaring at an all time high. Boeing is projecting the need for about 40,000 new aircrafts in the next 20 years, and with this increase in aerospace travel, comes an even bigger increase in aerospace maintenance, repair, and overhaul, as brand new parts can cost an immense amount of money.

Content, content, content. Today it's the driving factor in the great game of marketing. But with so much content out there, it's got to be quick, engaging and intentional to be effective and drive conversions. This is especially important in the sports world, where a quality brand can influence everything from fan participation, to sponsorship opportunities, to team culture.

Our guest on this episode of a Digital Marketing Professor Series, Benjamin Wright, has dedicated his research to this intersection of marketing in the sports world. He's spent his career seeing how social media is powering marketing and how companies are cultivating their brand. When Wright was in college athletics and sports agencies, personal brand was already very important, and that was back in 2008 before the true explosion of social media.

In this episode, Wright talks about the tools that are available to marketing professionals and how he prepares his students to use creativity and big data to create quality content. "Strategy has to be at the forefront of every decision that we're making," Wright said. "It's not necessarily building a digital strategy, it's looking at strategy in a digital world."

What matters most to guests when they're traveling? That has been an important question for those in the hospitality industry for a long time. The answer has changed over the years but the idea has remained the same. Hotels and restaurants aim to provide the best experience for their guests. On today's episode of the MarketScale Hospitality Podcast, we take a look at two of the most important factors for industry: affordability and sustainability.

On this episode of the MarketScale Building Management Podcast, we take a look at two areas of the industry that are constantly evolving: the workplace and regulations. Our first conversation is the final installment of a three-part series with Mike LaRosa of Agora RDM. He discusses the three primary styles of coworking spaces and where he sees the industry going in 2019. Our second feature of the show takes a look at how accidents drive regulatory changes and how building managers can keep up with the evolutions.

On this episode of the MarketScale Transportation Podcast, we wanted to pose the question: what will be the biggest disruptor of the transportation industry in 2019? Before we can get a feel for that main question, we have to take a look at where companies are investing their time and effort. Uber's JUMP program is another indication that big transportation disruptors are looking to disrupt a little more. In this feature, we’re joined by Dr. Susan Shaheen from the UC Berkeley Transportation Sustainability Research Center to explain what Uber's further immersion to the micromobility space means for the industry.

Also on this week's show, Dr. Dave Tuttle, Research Fellow in the Energy Institute at University of Texas at Austin, joins to give his insight on the main disrupters for the transportation industry in 2019. With technology and tariffs both threatening to play a big part moving forward, Tuttle discusses the real challenge that tariffs pose to automakers, the other factors causing uncertainty in the industry, and what he would fix if he were the boss of everybody in the industry for a day.

NRF 2019 was an eye-opening way to start the year, and laid out a vision for what trends and tech to look out for. We got a good sense for what Retail was looking for in 2019 during out Walking NRF video with Melissa Gonzalez and Nichole Leinbach Reyhle: "Everything is an experience, and experience is everything." This idea is our theme for today's podcast as we break down a tech tool and a trendy theme for brick-and-mortar stores; we not only get more insight into the mix that is Retail and Pro AV, but we get even more thought leadership from our frequent collaborator Melissa Gonzalez, who looks to Lululemon as a staple for creative, in-store experiences.

Today's episode of the MarketScale Food & Beverage Podcast Show looks at the next generation of success within the industry, both how's leading that success and how to get find success from a marketing perspective. We're getting insight from a powerful marketing thought leader, a self proclaimed leading French Fry historian, who'll break down his 6 recipes for restaurant marketing success. We'll also be previewing the Young Chef Olympiad happening this week in India, one of the industry's most well-renowned and path-carving events for aspiring industry professionals, and why it's so crucial in today's climate of labor shortage among chefs.

Today's Sports & Entertainment Podcast Show explores where people in and outside of the industry are putting their hard-earned dollars. As culture around certain sports and how they're played continues to fluctuate, it opens doors for new forms of success. With this episode, we aim to answer: how are professional sports teams finding creative ways to empower their leadership, in turn bringing the best tech to their players? We'll also ask: why are investors looking to minor league baseball players as their next opportunity? The founder of TechFoundry and a sports marketing professor give their expert insight.

With the digital world melding more with our daily activities, Jeff McMahon, owner of Total Body Construction, joins us today to talk about how to get into virtual fitness, both from the trainee and the trainer side.

This episode of the MarketScale Hospitality Podcast takes a moment to remember Herb Kelleher, the Co-Founder & former CEO of Southwest Airlines, who passed away on January 3, 2019. Ginger Hardage, former Senior Vice President of Culture & Communications at Southwest Airlines, joins the podcast this week to share stories and memories of Herb.

The winter months can wreak havoc on roofs and other structures. Unpredictable weather that brings ice, snow, and high winds can cause headaches for those in the building management industry. Today's episode of the MarketScale Building Management Podcast features a conversation with two experts in the roofing industry, Kent Schwickert of the National Roofing Contractors Associationand Jeff Broderick of Roof Options.

Ready to catch up on what was trending at NRF 2019? This year's big Retail show was full of innovation, offering retailers lots of choices when it comes to optimizing customer experiences, whether online or in store. There are lots of tech solutions—including robots— out there for retailers, and finding the ones that best fit their goals and business model can be tricky. We talked to the experts on the show floor to gather some intel on what next move retailers will make, and we also had the chance to speak to retail expert Bryan Eisenberg about his thoughts post-show. All of this and more in this NRF-themed episode of the Retail Podcast.

Today we chat with Andrew Rittler, the Executive Director of the Greater Dallas Restaurant Association. Andrew fills us in on the best restaurant models to follow, how to properly implement a customer experience and the importance of being agile and adapting your game within the space. Andrew also touches on attracting and keeping solid employees, education within the restaurant, and then the importance of maintaining the brand. Want to learn how to keep the doors open and tables turning? Listen in now!

What does it take to build a consistent winning program? That's the question being asked on a daily basis by everyone from athletic directors, to coaches, to business owners. Everyone wants to win, but few possess the ability to draw up the blueprint to make it happen.

Since his arrival in Denton, Texas in July 2016, Wren Baker, Vice President and Director of Athletics at the University of North Texas, has built a program that has ascended out of the doldrums of the NCAA and onto the map. Establishing a long-term presence in the national consciousness is his next challenge, and it might prove to be more difficult than getting them there in the first place.

Imagine a future where people still eat meat but it no longer comes from meat. What would be the ramifications of that throughout the food and beverage industry? It's one of the questions posed in this week's episode of MarketScale's Food & Beverage podcast. Zak Weston, Corporate Engagement Specialist for the Good Food Institute, joins the show this week to explain how this hypothetical is closer to reality than you might think.

NRF 2019 is in full swing and MarketScale's Chief Digital Editor Geoff Short is in the middle of it. He joined the podcast to recap what he saw and experienced at the retail industry's big show for 2019.

The MarketScale team received a hands-on explanation of frictionless payment and how the industry is tackling potential security concerns. "The industry is wide awake to [security] threats, it's just a question of how to implement these kinds of things," Short said.

Geoff and the MarketScale team have a big day ahead of them as they wrap up the show. Make sure to keep up with the latest from NRF 2019 by following our live blog.

This episode of the MarketScale Sports & Entertainment podcast focuses on building. We talk to Jeff O'Connell, Editor in Chief of BodyBuilding.com, about the growth of sport and how social media has really changed the game. Then, we have a teaser for a full length interview coming later this week with the Vice President and Director of Athletics at the University of North Texas, Wren Baker. He talks about the challenge of building a consistent winner at a school that hasn't had that experience before.

With the first day of NRF under his belt, MarketScale's Chief Digital Editor Geoff Short joined the podcast to provide an update of what he has seen so far. He marveled at the advancements in in facial recognition technology, talked about his favorite booth so far, and provided an update on whether or not he has eaten one of those famous New York hot dogs.

He also talked about the various ways that retailers are approaching the challenge of creating a memorable customer experience inside brick and mortar stores. "There's a lack of consensus about experience," Short said. "I know that's something that everyone who has read a single article on retail in the last couple years knows is sort of the overhanging cloud."

It will be interesting to see how this continues to play out over the course of the show. Keep following along with MarketScale's coverage for all of the latest coming out of NRF in New York City.

MarketScale's Chief Digital Editor Geoff Short joined Tyler Kern in the podcast studio to preview NRF, the biggest retail trade show of the year. The show takes place January 13th through the 15th in New York City. Geoff is heading up to "The Big Apple" as part of MarketScale's comprehensive coverage of the show.

Can traditional brick and mortar retail locations keep up with the world of e-commerce? Will the trend of frictionless payments continue to take off in 2019? Follow along with all of Geoff Short's coverage on the MarketScale Retail industry page.

Customization and personalization are growing trends in the hospitality industry as advancing technology allows for a more tailored experience. Today's episode of the MarketScale Hospitality podcast takes a look at two examples of customization that is allowing brands to more effectively reach their customer base.

Stories have been used throughout the course of human civilization for many different purposes. They've been used to pass down traditions, entertain the masses, and teach lessons, to name a few.

As technology has advanced through the years, the way we communicate narratives has changed, as well. Homer's tradition of oral storytelling has given way to earbuds and podcasts. These new methods still hold the power to powerful messages to the masses.

Underutilized space is all around us. Rather than sitting on their hands, creative building managers are rolling up their sleeves and finding ways to put this space to work for them. Whether it's opening a co-working space in a restaurant during the day when business is slow, or repurposing an old department store or mall to be used as a school, these spaces are changing the way we think of how facilities can be used

When you need to ship materials across the country or around the world, who do you call? Companies must consider a variety of different factors when they answer this question. What if something goes wrong? Are there enough truck drivers to accommodate our needs?

The future of retail is bright, according to industry analysts Stephanie Sullivan and Tony D’Onofrio. Both agree that the economy is driving the retail boom, especially the fantastic holiday sales. However, innovation is also acting as a major disruptor. What this means for the retail industry as a whole, as well as specific sectors within the industry, are investigated in these two fascinating interviews.

This week's episode of the MarketScale Sports & Entertainment podcast opens with some evidence that NFL hasn't slipped as much in terms of popularity has many have tried to claim. We have the numbers to illustrate why the NFL is still king when it comes to viewership in the United States.

As we enter a new year, what does the future hold for the hospitality industry? Today's episode of the MarketScale Hospitality Podcast takes a look at how hotels will continue to drive forward in 2019. From a new way to look at the lobby to the lessons that independent hotels can teach the big chains, there a multitude of ways that hotels can continue to grow in the new year.

Turning the calendar over to a new year is an excellent opportunity to look forward and consider what the future holds. The transportation industry is evolving rapidly and big changes could be on the horizon in 2019. On this episode of the Transportation podcast, correspondent Elmer Guardado joins the show to preview some of the trends we can expect to see in the coming year.

This week's show also features a conversation our correspondent Scott Sidway had with Patrick Kennedy, an urban designer and member of the Dallas Rea Rapid Transit board. At a time when cities are building bigger highways and creating more infrastructure for cars, Kennedy has a radical idea: tear a highway in Dallas, TX down. He argues that the removal of this section of highway would help Dallas reduce traffic, thrive economically, and more. Maybe this idea isn't so radical after all?

What is trending in the market for fixed but flexible screens, for both the consumer and commercial customer? In both cases, screens are catching on as the aesthetic and functional solution for improved business and lowered energy costs. Take the restaurant industry for example; they enjoy the retractable, motorized version replacing a previous manual process. The restaurant industry has seen a huge return on the investment of enclosing their patio areas; in the summer, guests are protected from bugs, and in the colder months, vinyl shades create an area that remains warm, allowing restaurants to keep patios open year-round.

Technology and healthcare are intersecting in ways never before seen. This technology is changing the way we think about how healthcare is being administered and what the future of the industry will look like. On this episode of the MarketScale Healthcare Podcast, we take a look at how education needs to change to include technological advancements and learn about a better way to check symptoms online.

Have you ever had one of those conversations that you were enjoying so much that you didn't realize how much time had passed? That's what it was like to talk to Erin Patton about his days working with Michael Jordan and what he's doing now with AMPlifi Sports. The conversation went longer than we initially anticipated so we decided to release it as a bonus episode for people to enjoy it its entirety.

It's that time of the year when the retail industry gets put under the microscope. Shopping malls are bustling and online marketplaces are full of shoppers. Technology is pushing the customer experience forward like never before. On this week's episode of the MarketScale Retail podcast, we took a look at some of the big trends of 2018 and what might be coming down the road in 2019.

Today’s pair of podcasts are all about using technology to empower restaurants to waste less and serve more. In our first feature, we talk to Nancy Luna, Senior Editor for Nation’s Restaurant News about a new app designed to really get people through the door—and keep them as loyal restaurant patrons. We also spoke with Michael Crocker, CEO of VeriSolutions, who takes us to the restaurant back freezer to discuss the Temp Tracker app and how this IoT tech will help restaurants automatically curb food waste.

In most industries there is a domino that can be pointed to as the first innovation that started a chain reaction, forever changing the way people in that industry think. Skylar Richards, Head Athletic Trainer and Director of Sports Science for FC Dallas, joined the podcast to explain the recent history of sports science and to talk about the innovation that launched his industry forward.

Also included in this week's episode is a roundtable discussion about the number of college football bowl games that are played each year. Have we reached a saturation point where there are simply too many bowl games? Are advertisers and broadcasters getting their money's worth out of these games or are we seeing people get bored with the entire process? MarketScale's VP of Business Development Tim Maitland and Director of Analytics Thomas Riley hopped in the studio for the discussion.

Last week on Glass is in Session, we took a look at Clarus' two flagship products: Depth and Float. Though those set the stage for Clarus' success, their diversified portfolio of offerings is what keeps them in the game. On today's episode of Glass is in Session by Clarus, we're exploring another one of their products, and this one put collaboration on wheels. The go! Mobile glassboard is giving even more flexibility for collaboration in the modern, wall-less workplace, but even more exciting is how go! Mobile is letting people create "pop-up" workplaces of their own.

Today's episode of the Building Management show makes you put your thinking caps on, as well as your safety ones. We dive into facility challenges at Amazon's newest headquarters, the American future of green roofs, and best practices for renewable energy management.

If you haven't looked at the technology being used on cruise ships recently, it's probably time for you to look again. MarketScale correspondent Sam Mosher takes a deep dive on this week's episode into the world of cruise ship technology in his conversation with longtime travel writer Mark Orwoll. Also on this week's episode of the podcast is a conversation with David "Rev" Ciancio about the importance of managing your online reputation. What do people see when they search for your hotel or restaurant online? If you haven't thought about it, it's time to give it some serious consideration.

The way that people search for and buy food has been evolving rapidly over the last several years. Online searches and delivery services have replaced longstanding traditional methods of obtaining food and restaurant information. Managing these aspects of the business can be just as important to its longterm success as the food or beverage itself.

This episode of the Food & Beverage Podcast takes a look at the way millennials and generation X have changed how winemakers distribute their products and the importance for restaurants to manage their online reputation.

The travel industry is on a steady up-and-up, and it's due in part to more technologically-savvy travelers finding ways to travel on the cheap. Today's vacationer is using Airbnb, OTAs, coupon hunters and more to personalize their travel experience, so naturally, the conversation around how to evolve the hospitality industry often falls on what new technology will power that change. Healey Cypher, CEO of ZIVELO, joined us on the podcast to inform the world that AR, VR and especially apps aren't the answer.

"When people prioritize that over much more impactful investments, they typically have limited success," said Cypher. He's found the most powerful technologies are the ones that radically solve glaring issues in the guests' experiences. One of the biggest issues is check-in time, which according to a Cornell Hospitality Study, can drop customer satisfaction by 47 percent. First impressions are important. Cypher details how the next era of self-service kiosks are what will propel hotels forward; by giving customers privacy, control and choice, they're not only going to make for happier travelers but ones more willing to spend.

It's the time of year when retail gets brought into the forefront of the national consciousness. Today's episode of the MarketScale Retail Podcast tackles some of the big issues facing the industry: returns, diversification, and employee management.

Three thought leaders from the industry join this week's episode to share their expertise on these topics.

The right environment is essential if you want something to grow. Plants need fertile soil, sun, and water to grow and maintain health. Today's episode of the MarketScale Sports & Entertainment podcast is going to focus on growth, both in a horticultural and business sense. Allen Reed, Director of Stadium Grounds for Toyota Stadium joins the podcast to talk about the art of growing grass and keeping a consistent playing surface, come hell or high water.

We also caught up with Johnathon Angers of Ngage eSports to talk about the massive growth of eSports and how the music industry is getting involved.

On this episode of the Business Development Podcast on MarketScale, Brandon Pfluger former collegiate athlete at Southern Methodist University relates his athletic background with the world of B2B companies leveraging analytics. This analysis explains that the two have more in common than most would think.

We’ve heard time and time again about different industries digitizing and embracing digital technologies, but how come we haven’t heard much of this from the agricultural industry? To help us understand why and how Agriculture can catch up to the digital wave that's hit everyone else, we’re joined by Jeff Bisberg [contributor page], CEO of Illumitex [http://illumitex.com/]. Illumitex is an American lighting manufacturer largely specializing in the production and development of LED lights for indoor farming and vertical farming. On this episode Jeff dives deep into why Agriculture needs to embrace digital technologies and data collection, why the field ranked dead last in digitization, how LED lighting in horticulture has evolved, and how we can best predict trends in the agriculture world.

“The reality is that there hasn’t been hardware to gather that data that has been available, and really we’re at unique moment in time where hardware that’s being driven by exponential change is just now available that allows us to capture that data at scale to start to produce tools that create this beautiful, virtuous feedback mechanism that is going to enable the digitization of a farm,” Bisberg said.

There is a tendency to only remember the negative side of our struggles in both business and life. The fact is, there are just as many positives we can learn from during those same struggles. Today, MarketScale Host Sean Heath had an opportunity to speak with Jackie Werblo, Head Coach at CONVEX Leadership. Jackie shared the dramatic story of someone who had a career disappointment that almost destroyed her. They discussed the benefits of struggle, choosing to grow from the challenges, and how you can give yourself permission to bounce forward to success. (Also, Sean found another excuse to eat an entire box of donuts.)

"We all know people who are a bit of 'woe is me.' And then we know people who, every time you ask them how they are, they will say they are "fantastic,'" Werblo said. "That person who says 'fantastic' may have an inner voice saying 'ehhh, maybe not today,' but they are going to say they're 'fantastic,' because they know if they believe it, good things will happen to them."

Today's episode of the MarketScale Building Management Podcast takes a look at the various ways that facilities can make the most of their available space. From music venues utilizing their space for multiple events, to automated parking garages, and coworking spaces, one of the objectives for each of these projects is to make the most of the limited amount of space at each particular facility.

This week's episode of the MarketScale Hospitality Podcast takes a look at two different aspects of the hospitality industry: catering for large events and hotel security. On the surface, it feels like these topics couldn't be more different. Surprisingly, they have more in common than it initially appears.

A certain level of expertise and precision is required for each of these jobs. One mistake can damage the reputation of a brand that has worked to establish a standard of excellence.

This week's episode of the Food & Beverage podcast features deep look at solving some of the big problems in the industry. As the number of people with food allergies continues to rise, it forces those in food and beverage to put new safeguards in place. New products have also begun to emerge to replace what Americans are removing from their diets. This episode dives into both of those topics and also takes a look at the massive issue of food waste around the world.

Greg Crumpton was born in 1964, the last year classified as the “Baby Boomer” generation. Not only was he born into this generation, but his vertical is defined by it; working in the skilled trade industry, Crumpton is seeing a massive wave of retirement from the Baby Boomers. In the next 13 years, 47 million Baby Boomers will retire, and more than 2 million will be skilled trade workers. The skilled trade workforce is already experiencing a labor shortage, and now, the industry must look to replace an entire generation of people.

Crumpton has felt this impending retirement wave first hand; he's the vice president of critical facilities at Service Logic, the largest privately owned HVAC and mechanical services company in the United States. Service Logic has experienced the industry’s labor shortage, but its hiring team works to recruit high school graduates, military veterans and displaced workers from other industries.

They also find innovative and authentic ways retain their current staff and train them for other skilled trades. “We’re actually able to give workers something that’s applicable to their daily life and that can really help them with a whole career," Crumpton said. Listen to Crumpton discuss the skilled trade labor shortage and how those in the industry can work to fill it.

Social media marketing has come a long way from simple Facebook posts and static content. Nowadays, marketers are exploring two distinct forms of social communication: archived and ephemeral communication, and how to vary their marketing message accordingly.

What is ephemeral content, you ask? Today on the Digital Marketing Professor Series brought to you by Marketscale, we sat down with Lane Wakefield, Ph.D, Assistant Professor of Sports Marketing & Analytics at Mercer University, to define ephemeral content and explore the five distinct goals of this form of social media marketing.

“In ephemeral content, brands and marketers can be more relational and think about how to make a friend and not how to look good for the other thousands of people that are going to read this,” Wakefield said.

These five goals — basically the social post’s purpose — help us understand and focus our marketing efforts toward creating content that feels germane to the social platform; that makes for better digital content all around.

Finding your place in the retail industry is an important part of carving out an identity and charting a path for success. That can mean finding the correct location for a physical building, or carving out a piece of the market alongside heavy hitters like Amazon. On this week's episode of the MarketScale Retail Podcast, we're going to talk to two people who are experts in helping retailers find their space, both in a physical and technological sense.

The world of sports and entertainment has been undergoing a major paradigm shift in how we consume content. Consumers are more frequently looking to their mobile devices and to social media to keep them informed and entertained. Platforms like Netflix and YouTube have a massive impact on the viewing habits of public. On this episode of the MarketScale Sports & Entertainment podcast, we discuss some of the ways content is changing to accommodate the shift in how people are consuming media.

The Healthcare world has only scratched the surface of its digital transformation. AI, IoT technology and innovative medical devices are starting to become an integral part of a healthcare professionals day-to-day operations, and that includes in perioperative medicine. The virtualization of the operation room is giving patient care providers more detailed data to work with, helping them better coordinate procedures, communicate real-time information on patient status, and promote efficient team collaboration, which in turn is leading to reduced costs and improved focus on patient experience. With such an exciting future for perioperative medicine, what is getting in the way of this technology reaching ubiquity? The answer lies in interoperability.

"These phenomenal companies create these solutions, quite frankly they’ve designed them to ensure interoperability with their own portfolio, their own other products," said Steve Plaugher, Senior Vice President of Diversified’s Medical Innovation Group. "And so by design, they don’t necessarily incorporate the ability to be able to integrate with other competitive products because it’s sort of against the grain."

Plaugher joined us on the podcast to break down why the medical device market is struggling with interoperability, and how that struggle is making the newfound commodity status of medtech devices harder to enjoy. Medical device companies are encouraging health facilities to invest only in their portfolio of products, which leads to more money spent investing in separate products and operating platforms, and less focus on patient care. Plaugher gives insight on what products are the most exciting in the space, and where medical device engineers and healthcare professionals should keep the surrounding conversation. "At the end of the day, the hospital wants to best invest in the best of brain technology at the least possible cost so they can drive the absolute best patient outcome as possible," Plaugher said.

The job of a building manager has evolved as technology has advanced and systems have become more complex. In previous generations, individuals could fall into this field of work from other places in the industry, but that's not the case anymore. As industry leaders look to younger generations to carry the mantle forward, numerous questions have arisen. Are young people interested in building management? How can we educate them about the jobs that are available in the industry?

On this episode of the MarketScale Building Management Podcast we talked to three individuals who are uniquely qualified to speak on the present and the future of the building management industry.

Patrons don't often stop to think about the moving parts that work in concert to produce the delicious meal or tasty beverage that they're about to enjoy. They shouldn't have to. The experience is designed for them to enjoy their time without worrying about the details.

For those in the food and beverage industry, however, they know there's far more to serving a meal than what meets the eye. This episode of the MarketScale Food & Beverage Podcast zooms in on a few of those details and highlights the processes that goes into serving a meal or brewing a beer.

Each innovation to the ways that we consume television and film creates new problems for the people in that industry to creatively solve. For freelance colorist and finishing editor Mike Nuget and Director of Technology for PostWorks Matt Schneider, that means the workflow for every project looks slightly different.

Mike and Matt joined the MarketScale Sports & Entertainment podcast to explain how 4K and other new technologies have changed the way they do their jobs and talked about some of the new software that's making their lives easier.

"People think that files are easier because you can just drag and drop them," Mike says. "If the camera guy two years ago who shot something didn't label the files right, then two years later when it gets into my room it's chaos."

Matt and Mike talk about the challenges presented with each project and the increasingly blurred lines between the creatives and the post-production experts.

Much of what is done in the hospitality industry centers around one very important question: what does the guest want? It's an important and difficult question because the answer will differ slightly for every consumer. Some like it hot, some like it cold. Some want a steak dinner, others not so much.

On this episode of the MarketScale Hospitality podcast, we talk to three individuals who specialize in different spaces of the hospitality industry but are all working towards the same goal of meeting the needs of guests.

Sports teams have thousands and in some cases millions of followers across their social media channels. The question that many of these teams face is, what do we do now? How do they leverage these followers in a way that benefits the organization while still providing engaging content for their fans?

Change begins inside. That is the motto that drives The Source, an independent gym founded by Dallas and Christy Neil in Missoula, Montana. While that motto applies to personal fitness, it also describes how the couple is changing their gym’s footprint on the environment. With help from SportsArt, a “green fitness company,” the Neils are making their gym sustainable.

When they founded The Source in 2014, they wanted to do their part in helping Missoula reach its no-waste goal by 2050. The Neils used “best practices” like LED lighting and efficient hot water heaters. But this year, they wanted to further invest in sustainability. “Fitness can be about how I can do better for future generations,” Christy Neil said.

To get closer to this goal, the Neils purchased energy-producing cardio equipment from SportsArt that generates about 175 watts per hour. Not only have they found this equipment is durable, but it’s also “cost-saving,” turning their gym into a practically renewable power plant. On today’s episode, the Neils describe their sustainability mission, how it has connected them with other industries and how other gyms can follow their lead.

Transportation is something that affects our lives on a daily basis. At one point or another, we've all fumed about getting stuck in traffic or experienced the frustration of a train running behind schedule. It can often feel like we're fighting with our methods of transportation rather than harnessing them to work in our favor. Sure, we're able to get from place to place, but does it have to always been such a frustrating process?

This episode of the MarketScale Transportation Podcast features interviews with two people who are using their expertise to make various methods of transportation work better for the people who use them.

In an industry as dynamic as digital marketing, it's important to stay up-to-date with industry tools and trends. As an educator, Dr. Yuping Liu-Thompkins must find ways to prepare students to enter the workforce with skills that will be valuable in 15 to 20 years.

"Technology adoption has been so saturated...a lot of people are using multiple devices," Liu-Thompkins, a professor of marketing and Director of the Customer Analytics and Strategy Collaboratory at Old Dominion University, said. "There's an increase in need for marketers to understand that behavior. Adaptability is a really important skillset for students these days."

In this episode of the Digital Marketing Professor Series, Liu-Thompkins discussed how her research on customer loyalty and branding informs her teaching.

Liu-Thompkins recently co-authored an article on loyalty programs and how changing expiration policies affect consumer behavior. Companies are starting to see a financial liability in unlimited rewards programs where points never expire and are now introducing expiration dates in dramatic fashion. Some companies are even going to a 36-month period or a monthly expiration rate.

Her results of her research were unexpected; consumers were incentivized to focus their purchases at certain brands and stores, and in turn they became more loyal.

"They eventually become the single loyal instead of what we call polygamous loyal customer. They turn it into a single loyal customer to the store in order to make their points work in their favor," Liu-Thompkins said.

On the podcast, Liu-Thompkins also broke down the power that the influencer is having on marketing. As audiences seek more authenticity in the way brands connect with them, micro-influencers have become an attractive vehicle for advertisers.

"If you can rightly engage your customers in the social media space, you’re doing something good, you’ll make your customer wanting to talk about it, that already creates a level of sharing and re-sharing through their social networks and creating the influencer you are needing," Liu-Thompkins said.

Change begins inside. That is the motto that drives The Source, an independent gym founded by Dallas and Christy Neil in Missoula, Montana. While that motto applies to personal fitness, it also describes how the couple is changing their gym’s footprint on the environment. With help from SportsArt, a “green fitness company,” the Neils are making their gym sustainable.

When they founded The Source in 2014, they wanted to do their part in helping Missoula reach its no-waste goal by 2050. The Neils used “best practices” like LED lighting and efficient hot water heaters. But this year, they wanted to further invest in sustainability. “Fitness can be about how I can do better for future generations," Christy Neil said.

To get closer to this goal. the Neils purchased energy-producing cardio equipment from SportsArt that produces about 175 watts per hour. Not only have they found this equipment is durable, but it's also “cost-saving,” turning their gym into a renewable power plant. On today’s episode, the Neils describe their sustainability mission, how it has connected them with other industries and how other gyms can follow their lead.

On today's episode of the MarketScale Retail Show, we're looking at Black Friday 2018. Things have changed over the last few years in Retail, and Black Friday hasn't been left out. With industry giants like Amazon overtaking e-commerce, consumers have found year-round ways to save money. With Black Friday losing it's intrigue, what is a shopper looking for, and how should brick-and-mortar stores attract customers into their stores? We have all that in more, with two features from branding experts in Retail; Jennifer Ruscin, CEO and Owner of Jennifer Kaylo Ruscin Enterprises, explains best practices for staying profitable in a season that demands deals, and Stephenie Sullivan, Owner of Sully Consult, helps us define the Black Friday shopper of today, and what it will take to get them engaged.

Could data analysis replace intuition and creativity as the next best skill for tomorrow’s digital marketers? All signs are pointing in that direction, or at least towards a fusion of data and content. Especially within the Retail industry, with consumer trends flowing from in-store, in-app, or online, retailers have an abundance of data to make sense of and capitalize on, data that can influence powerful marketing strategies. Dr. Axel Stock, Associate Professor of Marketing at the University of Central Florida, joins us on this episode of our Digital Marketing Professor Series, to add his decades of experience to the conversation.

Dr. Stock has found that, as company structures evolve, so do their marketing strategies. Information is more available to everybody on the commercial level; the entry-point for understanding the statistical growth and trends of your company. Data and analysis are becoming a prerequisite for marketing students looking to enter a changing landscape, who now take courses on programming language. The consumer is evolving too; they're more savvy and aware of the best deals, and are looking for marketing that is less distracting and disruptive, according to Stock. All in all, traditional marketing is seeing a statistical and content-focused swing.

“Decisions at the higher levels of the organization will be driven more by scientists, increasingly,” Dr. Stock said. “Currently in those more academic areas within organizations, where you would have positions that were traditionally marketing people, now you have physicists and engineers because they have more background in programming. Since these large sets of data need a particular skill first to collect them and analyze them, the traditional marketing graduate would not be able to do that.”

With 2018's hurricane season coming to a close, it's safe to say the last two years of extreme weather events have been more than catastrophic. The effect that these storms can have on schools and universities is particularly potent. Running on tight budgets, severe weather can damage aging infrastructure and put teachers and students at risk of drowning, contamination, disease, and stress. Not only that, but schools often act as evacuation centers during hurricanes, introducing new issues of comfort and safety for large crowds of people. These extreme weather events create reactive and proactive challenges for facility managers in education; how can they better prepare, and where should they look first?

To give us insight on how schools are looking to get ahead and stay ahead of severe weather, we sat down with Jack Bullock, Chief Engineer for Cenergistic, a company which provides cost saving benefits on utilities for K-12 districts, universities and municipalities. Bullock himself holds patents in interval data analytics, whole building simulations analytics, and even has a patent pending for active fault diagnostics for commercial buildings. With varied experience in the field, Bullock said the answer is in the data. "We feel like interval data is the key for really optimizing buildings and understanding how they're operating during a major storm event or hurricane," Bullock said.

Recent challenges like varying dew points and hurricanes accelerating at a faster rate have put a strain on facility managers, but with a varied approach to data analysis, facility manager can find some reprieve. Monthly data for reducing utility bill costs, interval data for prescriptive daily measures, and EMS information all bundled together can better prepare facility managers for severe weather. Bullock gives examples of this data at play, and how it's saved schools thousands in the wake of devastating hurricanes. He also gives insight on which is the most powerful kind of data for school facility managers to harness.

Thanksgiving is a special time the year where we gather around the table with friends and family to share meals together. Food and drink are so inextricably linked with this holiday season that it’s nearly impossible to talk about one without the other. Coming up on this episode of the Food & Beverage podcast, we’ll talk about the food side of thanksgiving with Chef Andre Natera from Fairmont Austin, the largest luxury hotel in Texas, he’ll give us some insight into what it’s like to prepare a thanksgiving menu for a restaurant full of guests. After that, we’ll swing over to the beverage side to hear from Sam Gooch, brewery sales representative for Left Hand Brewing Company. He’s going to talk about the exploding craft beer market and the importance for breweries like Left Hand to have seasonal offerings for their customers.

On today's episode of the MarketScale Sports & Entertainment Podcast, we're gong to focus on predicting and preventing potential injuries. As organizations have gotten smarter about building winning teams, we've seen injuries remain as one of the biggest and most frustrating challenges. The two individuals we talked to for our feature pieces this week, Dr. Phil Wagner and Matt Schmit, are focused on helping teams and athletes more accurately predict and prevent future injuries.

The AEC world doesn't live an isolated life; it never has. But more than ever, with advancements in collaborative technology and innovative design, AEC professionals are seeing a revitalized convergence with other industries. This includes Healthcare, and between November 10-13 in Phoenix, more than 3200 industry professionals came together for the Healthcare Design Expo & Conference, the leading event for the latest and greatest in the worlds of design and well-being.

Dark, warm and undisturbed - that’s the perfect environment for mold to proliferate in a building. Any building is vulnerable, but in some parts of the country, building managers are facing the growing issue of mold outbreaks in school buildings left vacant over the summer months. On this episode of the Building Management Podcast, we sit down with Polygon's Director of Marketing Summer Street, a leader in disaster restoration services, to discuss what makes buildings vulnerable and how best to protect your assets from this health-threatening condition.

"Educational facilities, like any facilities that tend to be seasonal, [must] consider the condition of the indoor air quality, making sure there's dehumidication and cooling during what we call the layup time," Street says.

Often times, the best way to deal with potential mold in a building is getting ahead of it with an indoor air condition analysis, Street says. Staying cognizant of the building conditions that cause mold to proliferate and maintaining your building during down times is the key to effective building management.

The concepts of absenteeism and presenteeism are some of the most difficult to traverse as a business owner. How much do they really cost a company, and how can you, as a business owner, remain understanding but realistic? Usually these conversations revolve around personal sickness or diseases, but a more hidden cause of consistent employee attendance issues comes from senior care.

In 2015, almost 35 million Americans had to care for an elderly family member alone, and though working caregivers are resilient in their dual roles, employees are losing days of work time to care for seniors. This is encouraging not only more elder care services in employee benefit programs, but pushing the senior care industry to slow down the inevitable aging process for their patients. In this podcast, we're joined by Dr. Doug Beach, CEO of Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging, who gives insight on how to solve the issues of absenteeism and presenteeism, as well as details the importance of social, intellectual, and physical activities for seniors.

As hospital budgets are getting tighter, administrators are looking for practical and cost effective ways to benefit both their patients and their professionals. Hospital design is a big player in budget talks, being some of the priciest pay points but some of the most necessary. A refurbished, welcoming and functional hospital design makes for not only more productive physicians and nurses, but safer patients. A Modern Healthcare article even goes as far as to point out that inefficient design leads to wasted time looking for supplies or staff, which means less time at a patient's bedside. All in all, healthcare design is crucial. What are the latest trends in aesthetics and functionality that are helping patients feel more comfortable and professionals feel more productive?

Jason Pierret, Healthcare Market Manager for Clarus, has dedicated most of his career to the healthcare industry, and has seen how crucial the feel of a hospital can be on overall care. "If they have medicine that kind of walks the walk, their facility really needs to talk the talk," Pierret said.

Pierret joined us on the podcast to discuss the latest trends in healthcare design and why efficient communication is inspiring the biggest changes. He also tackles the crippling issue of patient mistrust and how it's directly correlated to healthcare design. But beyond that, he explains how innovative technology like VR or glassboards can inspire creativity among healthcare professionals, keep stressed patients at ease while waiting on difficult news, or just inspire a happier aura for a hospital.

"When they walk into a healthcare facility, what types of environments - what elements in that environment impact and influence the way that they feel," Pierret said. "There are studies that are being conducted now that are saying that if the environment is positive and it's bright and you feel good when you walk into the hospital, then that has a direct influence on patient outcomes."

The economics of offshoring have looked and remained appealing for the last 50+ years. This is especially true for manufacturing; cost-savings and a trickling labor force in the states haven't encouraged much in-house production. That's beginning to change, though. Tariffs encouraging more US manufacturing, increased speed to market in industries like Retail, and innovations in automation are all swinging the manufacturing pendulum back around, making a recent push for a trend isn reshoring.

Here to explain how reshoring is affecting the medical device industry is Tom Allen, Vice President of Sales for TRICOR Systems. As the conversation turns to home, Allen has found new challenges in convincing manufacturers that reshoring could be a blessing in disguise.

"It's a lot easier to jump on a plane and fly from even California to New York than it is across the country to discuss or solve a problem if that's needed," Allen said. "As the labor goes up, we're going to either people moving to other countries where the labor's cheap again, or back to the U.S. Our goal is to get them back to the U.S."

Allen explains the pros and cons of moving manufacturing to the US, how infrastructure is preparing for the influx, and why reshoring is creating stronger relationships between OEMs and contract manufacturers. "There's more of a handshake between the OEM and the contract manufacturer, where the CM is offering suggestions for improvements that can save money and save time," Allen said. "And I believe the OEM's are listening and open to that."

Have you noticed the slow but sure trend of self-service kiosks in your life? Think about it for a moment. They’ve existed at the self-checkout line in the grocery store or at the gas pump, but now they’re becoming an industry standard for checking in at hotels, ordering food at restaurants, and more. What prompted this kiosk take over, what technology on the back end is empowering them to ease not only the customer experience but the business’ too, and what does it mean for the future of Retail, Hospitality and Food & Beverage?

Today we’re joined by Healey Cypher, CEO of ZIVELO, a company which provides high-end self-service solutions, from the aesthetics of the outer shell to the software powering the whole operation. Cypher says a kiosk is more than a novelty; it can reframe how a restaurant, per se, markets its items and utilizes man-power, especially when the digital push everyone thought consumers wanted is falling flat. “Guess how many new apps the average consumer is downloading a month. Zero,” Cypher said.

Industry giants like McDonalds are catching on to the trend; according to Business Insider, most of the company’s 14,000 locations in the US will have kiosks in place by 2020. Cypher breaks down all the ways the self-service kiosk is changing the Food & Beverage industry, from a more engaged customer experience to increased revenue. But with potential come challenges as well, like outdated POS systems and fear of labor loss. If done right, self-service kiosks don’t have to replace anyone; instead, it can make jobs more rewarding. “It’s an uplifted human experience. Instead of saying ‘what’s your order please, hurry up sir,’ they’re saying ‘hey, how are you,'” Cypher said.

On today’s podcast, we get to hear from Mike Mendoza, Vice President of Business Development for the Life Sciences division of Controlled Contamination Services, a company that was recently awarded its ISO 9001 certification. Mendoza breaks down how the certification can affects a business for the better, explaining how the certification is crucial for CCS’ industry. CCS provides facility services and cleaning of controlled environments, and under strict scrutiny by the FDA and other US regulatory agencies, uses ISO 9001 to ensure good documentation and manufacturing practices with their clients in IT, Aerospace and Defense. Mendoza also explains the ISO certification can actually contain cost and streamline efficiency by placing more trust between client and business communications. “Because it’s a worldwide standard, everyone recognizes it, and most likely they’re already ISO 9001 certified,” Mendoza said.

A survey of 500 millennial physicians found that 74% had significant debt upon graduation, with 44% owing more than $200,000. Those numbers are huge, but not that surprising, as the national outstanding student debt surpassed $1.5 trillion this year. On today's Healthcare podcast, we’re going to look at how young physicians can move from debt reduction to asset accumulation and protection.

To help soothe all our financial nightmares, we spoke with Dustin Eldridge, a Certified Financial Planner Practitioner at Carter Financial Management. Eldridge believes the main reason young physicians are struggling with debt is due to lack of information. “I think one thing that’s lacking in almost all institutions, from a college stand point, is an education upon graduation [of] the options that you have to pay this debt back," Eldridge said. He discussed some thing you probably didn’t know about your debt, how to efficiently and responsibly plan for it, and about some of the systemic issues that fail in provide students with the necessary tools for facing that debt.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HealthMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Many businesses, such as oil and gas, have challenges documenting and validating fluids during shipping and transport to the final destination. Because of this, there are opportunities and applications abound for nondestructive fluids testing that can offer quality checks, validation and a digital footprint of results at any step of the supply chain. Jim Paladino, COO & CFO at the Tucson, AZ-based start up Perceptive Sensor Technologies shares his experience with fluids testing and talks about the plethora of applications for such testing. “Knowing what fuel you have going into certain places or just knowing what came off a truck in a logistics viewpoint, that’s very important to people," Paladino said.

Paladino also discusses regulations such as IMO2020 and the impact it may have on the maritime industry. By Jan. 1, 2020, all ships will need to use low-sulfur diesel; right now they're allowed to run 3.5 percent sulfur fuel, but moving forward that number dips to .5 percent sulfur fuel. Either that, or ships will have to overhaul their entire exhaust systems with scrubbers. With these industry changes, fluid testing sees a potential for a more ubiquitous role in the transportation industry.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @TransportMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

As more North Americans use online travel agencies like Expedia and Booking.com (an estimated 40 percent), hoteliers have to get smart about competing for those travel dollars. That means competing on price as one approach, Sean Fitzpatrick, CEO of OTA Insight, tells us in this episode of the Hospitality Podcast. "The hotel industry is going through a significant period of disruption with the rise of Online Travel Agents," Fitzpatrick said. "Hotel operators are wrestling with a huge amount of information that has a significant impact on their business."

It’s a great time to be a hotelier, with the industry seeing a record period of growth. Not only is supply growing, but so are levels of demand and the number of channels to market to. But with a wide range of fluctuating room rates, it's still difficult to offer guests consistency and value. Enter data. Fitzpatrick discusses how that data is being used to help solve the recurring issue of rate parity across the hotel industry. "OTA pulls all that info, rationalizes it and presents it in a simple way that empowers the hoteliers to make smarter revenue decisions," Fitzpatrick said.

For years, it seemed the only two solutions for improving your sleep were spending the night at a clinical sleep lab for expert analysis or relying on doctor-prescribed medication to induce sleep. Now, the French neurotechnology startup Dreem is bringing cutting edge sleep research technology home for consumers. On this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, we spoke with Dreem CEO Hugo Mercier about his revolutionary Dreem headband that's aiming to solve the global crisis of sleep deprivation and discuss how the advanced technology in the Dreem headband works.

"We observed that by triggering specific audio stimulations to the brain at specific times in the night, we're able to enhance the quality of deep sleep," Mercier says. "When you sleep, you go through different sleep stages, light sleep, REM sleep and deep sleep. Deep sleep is one of the most critical stages at night for the recovery of the body and the brain."

Affecting more than one third of the population, sleep deprivation is a crisis. Luckily, over the past year, consumers have taken technology more seriously as a solution to sleep issues rather than pharmaceuticals. Mercier explains that technology has often been a scapegoat for chronic sleep problems, when in fact it can be the saving grace that pulls people away from a reliance on sleeping pills.

A metaphor is an interesting thing. One especially accurate metaphorical phrase is "supply chain." There is, sometimes, a misconception as to the length of that chain. It actually extends further than conventional wisdom would have you believe. On today's podcast, our host had a conversation with Adam Robinson, Marketing Manager for Cerasis.

They discussed the true length of the supply chain, how technology requires you to upgrade all links equally to maintain progress, and how the choice moving forward is really very simple: Evolution vs Extinction. Robinson gives insight on how blockchain in shipping is being brought up as the "silver bullet" to solve all the industries problems. But more generally, he explains how technology like deep learning algorithms that keep shippers focused on data analytics for actionable insight rather than booking schedules will help root unnecessary costs out of the supply chain.

"Supply chain improvements can no longer happen in a silo. You can't look at your supply as individual functions," Robinson said. "It's not just warehousing. It's not just a focus on transportation. It's not just a focus on carrier relations or vendor management. It's a focus on all of those things."

Have you noticed the slow but sure trend of self-service kiosks in your life? Think about it for a moment. They've existed at the self-checkout line in the grocery store or at the gas pump, but now they're becoming an industry standard for checking in at hotels, ordering food at restaurants, and more. What prompted this kiosk take over, what technology on the back end is empowering them to ease not only the customer experience but the business' too, and what does it mean for the future of Retail, Hospitality and Food & Beverage?

Today we're joined by Healey Cypher, CEO of ZIVELO, a company which provides high-end self-service solutions, from the aesthetics of the outer shell to the software powering the whole operation. Cypher says a kiosk is more than a novelty; it can reframe how a restaurant, per se, markets its items and utilizes man-power, especially when the digital push everyone thought consumers wanted is falling flat. "Guess how many new apps the average consumer is downloading a month. Zero," Cypher said.

Industry giants like McDonalds are catching on to the trend; according to Business Insider, most of the company's 14,000 locations in the US will have kiosks in place by 2020. Cypher breaks down all the ways the self-service kiosk is changing the Food & Beverage industry, from a more engaged customer experience to increased revenue. But with potential come challenges as well, like outdated POS systems and fear of labor loss. If done right, self-service kiosks don't have to replace anyone; instead, it can make jobs more rewarding. "It's an uplifted human experience. Instead of saying 'what's your order please, hurry up sir,' they're saying 'hey, how are you,'" Cypher said.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @FoodMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The process of communicating the benefits of new technology can be as challenging as developing the technology itself. On today's Healthcare podcast, our host spoke with the Marketing Manager for CurveBeam, Vinti Singh, to break down the science and business aspects of CT imaging. As hospital budgets shrink, less funds are finding their way to capital investments. Hospital administrators increasingly want to find ways to lower costs and increase value.

Singh discussed the one major change coming to CT imaging procedures that's going to automatically and more accurately make replace manual measurements. We hear about the simple logic behind the new techniques, and how innovation is helping physicians rethink their offices and workflows. "To see that technological benefit, you really have to look at your entire practice. You can't just sort of pop this in and expect everything else to adjust automatically," Singh said. "You have to be ready to really be a manager of change and execute that properly."

The ISO 9001 standard is the international set of requirements for a quality management system, and it's become a staple in a variety of industries. Not only does it verify high quality from a company, but it creates another building block for sustained and fruitful client relationships. The standard updates every several years, with the last revision going into effect in 2015. The most recent revision reemphasizes leadership requirements, risk-based thinking, and updated terminology.

On today's podcast, we get to hear from Mike Mendoza, Vice President of Business Development for the Life Sciences division of Controlled Contamination Services, a company that was recently awarded its ISO 9001 certification. Mendoza breaks down how the certification can affects a business for the better, explaining how the certification is crucial for CCS' industry. CCS provides facility services and cleaning of controlled environments, and under strict scrutiny by the FDA and other US regulatory agencies, uses ISO 9001 to ensure good documentation and manufacturing practices with their clients in IT, Aerospace and Defense. Mendoza also explains the ISO certification can actually contain cost and streamline efficiency by placing more trust between client and business communications. "Because it's a worldwide standard, everyone recognizes it, and most likely they're already ISO 9001 certified," Mendoza said.

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

The chemical industry is expanding. 72 percent of chemical company CEOs said they saw more growth potential for the industry in 2016 than in the previous three years, according to PwC's 2016 Global CEO Survey. Two years out, and emerging technology like AI and blockchain has cemented itself as more than just emerging. Digitization has expanded the relationship between the provider and the consumer, in turn opening doors to new markets with untouched potential sales. All of this combines with a good economy, several catastrophes that have called for city-wide rebuilds, and seasonal shipments are paving the way for an increase in products sold... and products shipped in the chemical industry.

Though this feels like a positive for the manufacturors and the providers, the logistics back-end of the industry is struggling. Over-the-road and rail congestion has hit an all time high, truck drivers are aging out, and the current infrastructure is not equipped for such massive growth. Where does the chemical production industry go from here? To help make sense of the cross-industry issue are two members of The Logistix Company team: Alex Azeredo, VP of Sales & Marketing, and Josh Savory, Operations Manager. "We used to see spot quotes for intermodal dry moves that would be at least a thousand, maybe two thousand less. And now just because of capacity, you've got those companies offering those lanes at much higher rates; sometimes where the rate is, it doesn't even make sense to use intermodal anymore," Savory said. "It used to be you could save a thousand dollars by having a longer transit time, now it's you just have a longer transit time and it's almost the same cost."

They break down how the increase in demand, not the shortage of supply, has caused this issue. Along with how to deal with increasing rates, tips for staying flexible on delivery dates, and how government regulations and tariffs may ease the problem in a roundabout way, Azeredo and Savory stress heavily the importance of collaboration in this time of growth and strain. "You have ELD mandates, you have driver hours, you know they can only drive so many hours a week. That's putting a damper on a lot of these guys pay," Azeredo said. "You're seeing a lot of these long-haul drivers becoming more terminal to terminal, kind of like a spiderweb effect. It's getting wild out there."

As we get further and further into the digital age, online shopping has become the norm for many people all over the world. People can purchase their electronics, basic household supplies, and even their groceries all through the power of the internet. But as we continue to focus more on online shopping, many forget that it's currently a vocal minority, and that most people still do there shopping in stores. "In Australia, 80% of people are still buying things physically in store, so that's a really important component to get right," said our guest today, Amy Roche, founder of Retail Rockstars.

Roche said that, because of the rising relevance of detached online shopping, many brick and mortar businesses have lost there human touch when dealing with customers. "There's so much choice out there today, isn't there? We can shop wherever we want and I think the hardest thing today is that we've really dehumanized retail," Roche said. She joins us on today's Retail Podcast to discuss the in-store experience. diving into the performative aspect of brick and mortar shopping that Retail Rockstars is bringing their creative spin to. We touch on what makes in-store shopping valuable, and how businesses can bring back their humanity whether they have customers in person or online.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @RetailMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking is a 1950’s classic self-help book based on positive psychology, but Dr. Lindsey Mitchell, founder of Houston-based The Pave Group says a different take on the classic is a better fit for today’s top athletes and performers.

“This is a small twist on the concept,” Mitchell said on this episode of the Healthcare Podcast. “Positive thinking is a ‘Fake it until you make it’ approach, which is not necessarily a bad way to think. But our brains are getting smart enough to know we’re lying to ourselves.”

Mitchell explains that neutral thinking is fact-based thinking, and is helping propel athletes' mental performance which in turn ups their physical performance; it's all an inter-connected loop. “Instead of pushing yourself to be overly positive and not as genuine, you’re sticking to the facts," she said. "It stays away from negative thinking, but you’re not swinging so far the other way that you’re not taking in the authenticity of the situation.”

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HealthMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

When you pause and look at our capabilities for air travel, they're quite astounding. Humans found a way to launch other humans through the sky in a metal tube that flies. And yet, everyone dreads the airport and the process of catching a flight. Is it a futile side effect of our air travel? Can we change this? To find out, we sat down with Peter Schmidt, COO and Co-founder of Transcend Air, who says he's found a way to make business travel feel "awesome" instead of "awful."

“We have designed an aircraft that takes off and lands like a helicopter, but flies fast in between like a jet," Schmidt said. "That allows us to unlock the heart of cities and offer city center to city center business travel without having to use airports.” Schmidt breaks down and explains how he and his company found a way to get you from NYC to Boston in 36 minutes, and how he's looking to transform our concept of air travel for good. We hear about why air travel has remained relatively stagnant, the obstacles with entering the aerospace landscape, and about Schmidt's lifelong love of aerospace.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @TransportMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

There’s no question: When broadscale breaches like Facebook and Equifax happen, consumers become wary of all the personal data that’s available and ultimately vulnerable to the attacks of hackers. But that leaves digital marketers in a precarious position to find a happy medium between personalized marketing techniques and obvious use of personally-identifying information that’s unique to consumers.

On today’s episode of the Retail Podcast, CEO of New York-based Perch Interactive Trevor Sumner returns to the show to share his insight into the benefits and challenges of personalized digital marketing.

“It’s the value-creepy line,” Sumner said. “If you provide more value than it is creepy, then you’re doing okay.”

The fundamental question that comes with designing new MedTech devices is this one: What are the user needs and requirements? The questions feels simple enough, but it's far from simple. With that question comes others: Who is the user? What makes a good requirement? How do you actually test these requirements? For a MedTech designer like Nick Lesniewski-Laas, Director of Electrical Engineering for Sunrise Labs, these questions can often inhibit his ability to deliver on quality products if the communication between all parties isn't consistent and straight-forward. "I'm in the business of designing medical devices because I want to help people and I want to make sure that the devices I design are best able to do that," Lesniewski-Laas said. "So, a lot of guidelines around requirements writing are aimed toward that but don't really hit the mark in my opinion."

On today's Healthcare podcast, Lesniewski-Laas digs into this multi-layered question of delivering on user needs and defining needs versus requirements versus actual mandated FDA requirements. "By far the most important things to me are 'unambiguous' and 'testable,' or 'verifiable,'" Lesniewski-Laas said. He breaks down the importance of atomicity, the way user needs affect everyone from the manufacturers to the patients, and his process for getting everyone involved on the same page so the potentially life-saving product can make its way efficiently to market.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HealthMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

For more than four decades, JGA has been leveraging the talents of storytellers and craft-persons to create branded environments in Retail. How can retailers design not just their marketing campaigns, but their physical spaces, to tell the story of their product?

To better understand how this convergence comes together, we sat down with JGA Chairman, Ken Nisch to talk about how this industry has ebbed and flowed over time, becoming more experience-focused for the customer. For Nisch, an important aspect in keeping spaces authentic is not forcing technology, like AR experiences or digital signage, into the space just because it's new and flashy. "I call it digital litter because its become so easy and so inexpensive, particularly on the hardware side," Nisch said. "Content is really the most important, central factor and the hardest, most expensive to produce, but because the hardware has gotten so cheap, I think a lot of people in leadership positions are afraid to miss the boat because they feel like they'll be criticized if their environment isn't full of screens..."

Ken also opens up about how a snowstorm led to him serendipitously joining this industry, what emerging trends he finds most fascinating, and he goes into great detail about one of his most recent projects: the James Allen showroom in Georgetown, DC.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @RetailMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Foodtech is an exciting and evolving branch of the Food & Beverage industry; innovations in foodtech are changing not only the way people eat (Uber Eats), but the what people eat, like environmentally-friendly meat replacements (i.e., Impossible Foods). Jane Leung, CIO and managing director at investment bank Scenic Advisement, sees the vast potential in foodtech. "You've got this component of really trying to do something very ecologically friendly and environmentally important, and so it adds this dimension of a social responsibility to it that doesn't necessarily touch the other technology industries out there," Leung said.

On today’s episode, listen to Leung discuss why foodtech is so attractive for investors, how a company can stand out as worthy of investment, and what the major trends in foodtech are today. For Leung, what makes a foodtech company most innovative and therefore worthy of investment is when it address "how the consumer consumes the product."

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HospitalityMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

It’s no secret that ride sharing app Uber needed an image makeover. The company itself conducted internal research and found that consumers didn't correlate the classic Uber "U" symbol with the ride-sharing app, forcing Uber drivers to flip around their decals so the word "Uber" was visible to users. Their new logo is simple; a black background and the word "Uber," with the U slightly over-sized and emphasized. But what does this re-brand mean for the larger gig economy and Uber’s future markets?

We dive in on this episode of the Retail Podcast; we spoke with Ryan MacInnis, director of marketing of Boston-based Notarize, for his take on the global brand's re-brand. "Rebranding as a topic can be a bit scary because people look at the impact of rebranding as potentially company shattering," MacInnis said. "But if you do it really well it has the power to fundamentally shift the trajectory of your company in a good way."

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @RetailMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

This is a MarketScale Podcast Panel, where we bring on key thought leaders from some of the fastest growing markets to participate in a Socratic seminar-style discussion, breaking down a timely topic for tangible insight.

How are digital & online communities shaping the way businesses not only thrive, but enter their industry? How can social media platforms drive branding initiatives, cultivate consumer insights, and spur important financial decisions? What do consumers look for in their online communities? On our first MarketScale Podcast Panel, we set our sights on answering these hard-hitting questions for two specific industries-- Hospitality and Food & Beverage. With these industries specifically, the sense of urgency and itching for convenience on the consumer side is at a high point; consumers are looking to their Twitter feeds, Instagram influencers and blog-like sites to be entertained, heard and inspired.

We're joined by three panelists, each providing a unique take on the impact of online communities on their business and industry: Sarah Dusek (Co-founder of Under Canvas), Sarah Dandashy (Founder of Ask A Concierge), and Megan Sprague (Communications Associate for Wingstop). "When we've had guests who've shared what an incredible experience they've had with staying with us, they've often said to us 'when are you going to here or when are you going to be here,'" Dusek said. "Communication from our guests has helped us think of where we want to take our business next."

They break down the blessing and "curse" that is maintaining authentic relationships with consumers online, examples of interactions where their online platform created tangible change, and how they each approach integrating online communities to their business platform. "When you have an exciting tweet or you're happy about something and tweet Wingstop and they respond back, it's kind of like 'oh my gosh I wasn't expecting this,'" Sprague said. "When you have something negative to say or you have a complaint and you say something at Wingstop, you're definitely expecting a response, and time is of the essence there."

And of course, Sarah, Sarah and Megan give their advice on how and why businesses, small and large, should look to social platforms as the future and the now of branding, marketing and conveying your company's vision. "I think it's also allowing, certainly in regards to smaller businesses, a lot more people are allowed to be entrepreneurial because they're able to get out there," Dandashy said. "Again with that immediate feedback, if they're doing it well, they're able to bounce ideas off of their little community and as their community grows they're able to just feed the machine."

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HospitalityMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

This is a MarketScale Podcast Panel, where we bring on key thought leaders from some of the fastest growing markets to participate in a Socratic seminar-style discussion, breaking down a timely topic for tangible insight.

How are digital & online communities shaping the way businesses not only thrive, but enter their industry? How can social media platforms drive branding initiatives, cultivate consumer insights, and spur important financial decisions? What do consumers look for in their online communities? On our first MarketScale Podcast Panel, we set our sights on answering these hard-hitting questions for two specific industries-- Hospitality and Food & Beverage. With these industries specifically, the sense of urgency and itching for convenience on the consumer side is at a high point; consumers are looking to their Twitter feeds, Instagram influencers and blog-like sites to be entertained, heard and inspired.

We're joined by three panelists, each providing a unique take on the impact of online communities on their business and industry: Sarah Dusek (Co-founder of Under Canvas), Sarah Dandashy (Founder of Ask A Concierge), and Megan Sprague (Communications Associate for Wingstop). "When we've had guests who've shared what an incredible experience they've had with staying with us, they've often said to us 'when are you going to here or when are you going to be here,'" Dusek said. "Communication from our guests has helped us think of where we want to take our business next."

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HospitalityMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale’s Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows the Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment.

On this episode, we chat with Jared Orton, President of the Savannah Bananas. We get to hear from one of the head-honchos at the Banana's about their thoughts on Welcome to the Show and the reception it got locally. More importantly, we check up on what the Banana's are up to during the off-season, and how they play the challenging game of keeping fans engaged when there's no baseball on the field.

Orton explains the fan-first social media strategies and event planning the team pulls off during the off-season, including their renowned Field of Food Trucks, and how it all ties into their overall message of community. Playing on that food & beverage note, we also get insight on the financial stability of their all-you-can-eat concessions, and how important the food & beverage experience is to maintaining the Banana's brand and fan-first repertoire.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Nothing changes faster than training in any industry, said our guest Heather Kelley today, Chief Information Officer for the Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging. In senior care, training medical professionals for a new wave of connectivity is a labor-intensive task; not only does increased connectivity with patients bring compliance and information safety issues, but the entire role of a care manager evolves from just providing care to more extensive emotional support as well. Where will this evolution of MedTech leave professionals today, or 10 years down the line?

Kelley joined on the Healthcare podcast to dig in to this changing landscape of senior care, especially on the professionals who run it every day. "You have to make sure that follow those rules and the compliance rules and the safety behind it. You want to make sure that you’re keeping yourself safe in an environment as well," Kelley said. "You may feel like walking into a consumer’s home is safe and you feel safe there, but the environment outside of that is not safe." She explores the effects of MedTech on aging patients, providers and care managers, and why this is only the tip of the iceberg.

For more information on WRAAA and their support for the aging community, you can visit their website here.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HealthMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale’s Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows the Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment. On this episode, we chat with Corey Brandt, General Manager for Food & Beverage operations for the Sacramento River Cats, the AAA Affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.

He gives us a rundown of his thoughts on all three episodes, diving into favorite moments, scenes and personalities, but also gives us a unique perspective we haven't explored on Extra Innings. Brandt dives into the moments from Welcome to the Show that exemplify fan-first entertainment on the food and beverage side of the team, drawing from personal moments as GM to explain the critical nature of food to the overall fan experience. We get to hear about how the River Cats are bringing unique store front aesthetics to their concessions, some examples of unique food that keeps fans excited, and Brandt can't help but pitch the idea of a meet-up with Jesse, Tyler and the rest of the Savannah Banana's team.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale’s Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows the Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment. On this episode, we chat with Chip Maxson, General Manager for the Sacramento River Cats, the AAA Affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.

He gives us a rundown of his thoughts on all three episodes, diving into favorite moments, scenes and personalities. Maxson also explains his take on a cultural shift in collegiate summer league and MiLB baseball, the ways he crafts his own team culture, and what makes the task so difficult but so essential. Maxson can't help but point out some of the craziest and riskiest "fan-first" moments the Banana's pulled off, and how he's looking to implement that same creativity into the Sacramento River Cats.

Make sure to watch all three episodes of Welcome to the Show, only on MarketScale. You don't want to miss this.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Have you noticed more and more pop-up shops in your neighborhood? Have you wondered how they work or what kind of value they might provide a brand, especially with the ubiquity of e-commerce winning on convenience? We knew it was time to look beyond the shop and dig into the inner-workings; we sat down with Melissa Gonzalez, CEO of The Lionesque Group to break down the science behind seasonal retail offerings.

"There are so many opportunities to learn now with technology integration, so everything from door counters to heat mapping and digital touch screens that monitor, just like online, what you are clicking, but then also sales people and brand ambassadors are an opportunity for qualitative data collection and understanding," Gonzalez said. She also speaks on why pop-up shops are now more viable than ever, how they can provide crucial quantifiable data, and she shares the story of her most recent client who opened up a shop in the middle of New York City. "It’s a really great opportunity to then make those learnings and make smarter merchandising and marketing decisions going forward," Gonzalez said.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @RetailMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The hospitality industry isn't known for being bleeding edge in adopting new technology. In fact, restaurants and hotels often run on first-generation point of sale software, but that's beginning to change as technology becomes more palatable for everyone.

"It’s a very tough industry in regards to technology," says Barbara Castiglia, executive editor of Modern Restaurant Management magazine. "There are very small margins in terms of how much money you’re going to make, so you want to make a conscious decision using technology that’s an investment, and it has to work."

On this episode of the Hospitality Podcast, we discuss the ways tech is transforming the industry with new software, and even surprising hardware, that aids hiring, training and inventory.

Castiglia says the interest in tech news is substantial. "Technology news drives a lot of traffic for us because it’s what people want to know," she says. "They want to how they can run their businesses in a better manner."

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HospitalityMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Recent extreme weather events like the California wildfires, Colorado hail storms, and Hurricane Florence have put homeowners in a more proactive mindset. How can their home design help prepare for unexpected natural disasters? Today’s episode explores the importance of roofing for the consumer; not just aesthetically, but safety-wise as well. How can sit down with Scott McDonald, President & CEO at F-Wave, to break down how something as simple as roofing shingles can help offer protection for heavy weather disasters. We take a deep dive through recent roofing trends, and pin point the advances in roofing that could ultimately help protect homes in the long run. We also discuss the balance between a roof’s aesthetic vs. protection, and look specifically at what a homeowner should consider when thinking about protective roofing. "We think when a homeowner is selecting their roofing material, they're living inside of a triangle, where they’re balancing price, aesthetics, and the projected performance," McDonald said.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building Management Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @BuildingMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale’s Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows the Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment. On this episode, we chat with Anastasia Hamilton, Social Media Coordinator for the Gwinnet Stripers, the AAA Affiliate of the Atlanta Braves. She gives us her thoughts on the complete series and how her desires for a front office MiLB reality show finally came ture. Hamilton gives us a unique perspective, looking into how social media, community engagement and digital presence is affecting MiLB and how the Stripers capture that message. She also explains some of her favorite on-the-field experiences from the Savannah Bananas, why social media is so effective as a "trial run" for a team's community image, and why the best social media content happens in the park.

The convergence of online and physical retail has shaken up the industry’s landscape, but no where has this been more apparent than in the evolution of the customer. As brands learn to thrive in a digital medium, customers take up a more active role as brand ambassadors; how will brands capitalize on more connected consumers? To help us make sense of this shake up, we spoke to 30-year industry veteran Tony D’Onofrio from TD insights. "The key to retail has always been the brand. It starts with the brand," D'Onofrio said.

He talked about how his “early retirement” lead him to TD insights, how the digital wave is permanently transforming the industry, and how consumer patterns have shifted overtime. Tony also goes into detail about how a focus on user experience and brand awareness can help keep a brand alive and competitive. "What does the retailer stand for and is that brand delivering the value [in a way] that the consumer really becomes what I call a brand ambassador? Where they actually buy the product and then tell other people about how great the product is. As you can see already, retailers that focus on building strong brands and increasingly take that brand and digitally enhance it, and making it more visible across multiple sales channels; those are the retailers that are doing well."

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale’s Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows the Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment. On this episode, we chat with Josh D'PenhaD'Souza, who works in Sports Sales for Corporate Memberships and Events for the Frisco Rough Riders, the AA Affiliate of the Texas Rangers.

He gives us his thoughts on the complete series, the impact of building a team culture from the inside out, and why it's so meaningful to create unforgettable moments for fans. He also explains some of the amazing ways a fan-first mentality directly correlates to corporate promotions and sponsorships (meaning financial and cultural success for a team), and some leadership tips he could learn and implement from Jesse and the rest of the Savannah Bananas team.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

When travelling internationally, a tourists guidebook is the Bureau of Consular Affairs' Travel Advisories. Though informative, it is keeping some people from traveling or, at the very least, making certainly more tentative and aware. How is this, coupled with changing trends in travel experiences, going to affect national and international tourism? We sat down with Gregory George, editor in chief of the global travel and lifestyle blog followsummer, to get his insight into how tourists are evolving, and how the hotels, resorts, Airbnb's, hostels and everything in between should adapt. The industry is responding with more resources and more physical security, George said, and he expects even more drastic changes to come. “I think that the way people have traveled in the past is not the way people will travel in the future," George said.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HospitalityMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The greatest power one can extract from social media is its ability to connect us all. When used right, this power allows us to learn what’s going on with the world around us in real time. Businesses can especially capitalize on this, and today we take a look at one occupation that has especially benefited from this new age of connectivity: the barber industry. We sat down with Joel Huerta, owner & instructor at Dallas Blends Barber Academy, to get insight into how he uses social media to stay connected within the world of barbers, and how he instructs his students to do the same. We look at the benefits of digital communities for a barber, like using Twitter or Facebook for staying up to date on hair trends and international styles, to showcasing artistic cuts on Instagram. Huerta paints a picture of the barber community as a growing group that continually learns and develops through one another using the power of technology and social media. “[Cutting hair] is an art in itself, you got to learn with the basics and start with the simple stuff," Huerta said.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HospitalityMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

There's an old saying about closing a barn door after the horses are already out (or something like that). Healthcare has recently taken on that image. On today's podcast, Sean Heath spoke with Dr. Arlen Meyers from the Society of Physician Entrepreneurs. They discussed the push to preventative care, how IoMT is helping revolutionize that process, and how the industry needs to do a better job of utilizing the data they have. "I would make the argument (and have made the argument) that no industry, including sick-care, can be fixed from inside," Meyers said. "There are very, very few examples of industries that have transformed themselves from inside, without, instead they've responded to external stimuli or external technologies that have been imposed on that industry. And the examples are just endless."

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HealthMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

A healthcare app called HealthWallet is helping put patients in the driver’s seat when it comes to navigating their healthcare journey, and is representing a larger, growing capability for IoT use in healthcare. On this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, we spoke to Ryan Coplon, co-founder of the app HealthWallet. Users get the ability to shop around for common health procedures and use telemedicine to virtually see their doctor. “HealthWallet and our familiarity with the healthcare system came out of our original profession, which was employee benefits consulting," Coplon said. “So we saw the opportunity based on how antiquated the healthcare system was, to bring services and technology forward.”

The wheels of that antiquated system are slowly starting to turn, and that’s good news for every single person who uses healthcare, Coplon said, especially as IoT capabilities make their way to the consumers hands. “Fortunately or unfortunately, everybody is ultimately a consumer of the healthcare system so it’s got a significant impact when these things start to change.”

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HealthMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The license plate hasn’t seen any change in over a hundred years, but Neville Boston, CEO and Founder of Reviver, is taking matters into his own hands. "What I'm getting when I'm talking to states is excitement about a change that they really have been wanting, but didn't really know how to do it on their own," Boston said. Boston has found a way to work with state DMVs and authorities to enhance and update the license plate for the 21st century; in essence, turning the license plate into a digital screen.

Neville also goes into detail about his company’s flagship product: the R-Plate Pro, talks about the inception of Reviver, and opens up about how creating allies in other industries has helped him better serve his customers. "The thing that is interesting is that people are used to going in with a negative attitude, that [government workers] are going to be horrible to work with and they’re going to be abrasive, and we’re not going to get anything done, so you’re defeated before you even go in. But it’s amazing what you can get if you just ask some questions and listen," Boston said.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @TransportMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

We live in a golden age of technological innovation, and the Food & Beverage industry is no stranger to seeing the benefits of everything from IoT devices to automation. Technology is not only shaping the way customers think about the food they eat, but also how chefs and restaurants are adapting to it. With the rise of socially driven food trends across social media from diets to eco-conscious movements, customers are letting their voices be heard, and the industry can't ignore it.

We sat down with John Wood, Co-Founder and Brand Ambassador of Kitchen CUT, to get his take on the rising wave of new age tech in the restaurant industry. We discuss how businesses are beginning to adapt to the new available technology, and ultimately pinpoint the ways in which it makes operations easier for both customers and chefs. We also take a look at the future of the restaurant industry, and how this push towards reform will ultimately change how we look at dining experiences.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @FoodMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

For the past several years, the main strategy for smart building companies was to provide proprietary, closed systems for their sensors and smart tech. The choice was profit-oriented; businesses wanted to make sure customers wouldn't buy additional sensors outside their product line. The conversation is starting to shift, thanks to innovations in consumer IoT devices. Hubs like Amazon Alexa and Google's Home are flooding through people's homes, and now they want to see that open system technology at work.

On today's Building Management podcast, we're joined by Joe Hill and Kendall Anderson, VP of Solutions and PR Manager, respectively, for FSG. "It's providing data in areas and in places and in ways that we didn't think about before, and all of that data has to go somewhere," Hill said. They break down the transition to open systems in smart buildings, how it's not only cutting costs but increasing companies profitability, and how these innovations are flowing in conjunction with social conversations around greener, more eco-conscious businesses and buildings.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building Management Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @BuildingMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

We all know the old adage, "you can't reinvent the wheel." In the automotive industry, innovation in electric and autonomous vehicle technology is changing that narrative pretty quickly. 3D printing, connected machinery, airless tires, you name it; the wheel is being reinvented, and the manufacturing tools that ensure quality and safe new technology have to adapt alongside it. On today's Transportation podcast, we were joined by Paul Gatley, VP of Engineering for Bartell Machinery Systems.

"If the tire's actually rolling more in a shorter period of time, that tire pressure means a big deal," Gatley said. Gatley breaks down the exciting technology that's reshaping the wheel and its function for the future of transportation, and how Bartell is staying ahead of the curve with their machinery to ensure efficiency and reliability.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @TransportMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Curbing food waste in the Food & Beverage industry isn't an issue exclusive to restaurants and grocery stores. The conversation starts all the way at the farm, though that conversation isn't reaching enough of the community according to Chef Peter Smith, Executive Chef at the JW Marriott Desert Springs in Greater Palm Springs, California. Smith grew up on a cattle station in Australia, living and breathing authentic farm life. There, he got to see first hand how much food is wasted because of a public perception that it's "ugly." "A third of what is harvested, billions of tons globally, doesn't make it to a supermarket," Smith said. Smith joined us on this episode of the Food & Beverage podcast to break down how each point along a piece of food's journey is riddled with unnecessary waste, the legal and community-sourced ways the industry can make a real change, as well as his thoughts on the recent social movement around reducing plastic straw use.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @FoodMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Working in the heat has often been framed as a side-effect of manual labor or professional sports that people just have to work through or "get over." This mentality is leaving people injured, and sometimes dead, from heat exhaustion, and a lack of education and regulation around heat safety isn't helping. Roy White, VP of Products for Breezer Mobile Cooling, was an Eagle Scout himself, trained early on that outdoor safety is paramount to healthy, happy and productive work. As the conversation begins to change around heat safety from suggestions to regulations, White joined us on the podcast to break down exactly what's shifting the narrative. "It's really been downplayed a lot. I think that's been unfortunate in the area of athletics," White said. "68 different football players have died from heatstroke between 1995 and 2012." He breaks down the regulations coming through the sports and outdoor labor industries, why casual outdoor work versus high-exhaustion labor need to be treated differently, why regulation is a must, and the products and education Breezer Mobile Cooling is bringing to solve this on-going issue.

Confidence in one's self is a difficult thing to attain, but it's actually much easier to strengthen. Like your body, you simply need to work it out in increasing increments. On today's podcast, our host spoke with CEO & Head Coach of CONVEX Leadership, Jackie Werblo. For their third conversation, they discussed the simple ways to stretch and strengthen personal confidence. They also confirmed that a "helicopter parent" is not the same as a "mentor". "Increasing one's own self-efficacy is really hard work," Werblo said. "Losing belief in yourself doesn't come in one day; And really, you cannot regain confidence in yourself in a single coaching conversation or a single day, or a single interaction with someone giving you feedback. It's a process."

"Everybody’s going through something," said University of Texas professor and Student Athlete Wellness and Personal Development Director Emmett Gill. "That’s the rubber band that ties everything together in terms of mentoring for our student athletes." On today's Sports and Entertainment Podcast, Gill joins us to break down the often forgotten but critically important role of social work in the sports world.

We discuss with Gill the revolutionary program that's improving student athletes' mental health and wellness on the UT campus, and why it should spread to more campuses nationwide.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

As of recently, pharmaceutical manufacturers are seeing increased pricing pressure due to the consolidation of customers in the marketplace. While there is plenty of demand, the supply is more excessive. With that as a challenge, another challenge becomes achieving business while maintaining quality, meeting regulations and staying nimble in a marketplace that's ever-changing.

What can pharmaceutical manufacturers do about this? Focusing on quality, manufacturing efficiencies, and sustainability in terms of R&D is a start, according to Priyanka Chigurupati, executive director at Granules Pharmaceuticals. "In an ideal scenario, if there is a direct link between manufacturers and end customer, the goal of actually getting product at a certain price to the end customer will be attained," Chigurupati said.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @HealthMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale’s Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows the Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment. On this episode, we chat with Zach Brockman, general manager of the Modesto Nuts, the California League Affiliate of the Seattle Mariners.

He gives us his thoughts on the first two episodes of show, the importance of staying consistently unpredictable, and how team-building and team culture are both the hardest and most important part of a successful minor league baseball team. He also gives some insight on what the Modesto Nuts are doing to further fan-first entertainment, and what he'd like to implement to his team from the Savannah Bananas.

Be sure to watch Welcome to the Show episodes one and two, and stay tuned for the grand finale in episode three, coming this week only on MarketScale.

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

Everyone and everything has a holiday. Donuts, Star Wars, potted house plants, and middle siblings, all have a holiday; in B2B, engineers, chemists, pilots and retail employees have a holiday. This got our guest today thinking...why isn't there a holiday for industrial water treatment professionals? And why stop at a day when you could go for a whole week? On today's episode of the Building Management podcast, we sat down with James McDonald, Technology Marketing Manager for Chem-Aqua, who's now the founder of Industrial Water Week. The week celebrates professionals within the industry, but more than that, it provides three key points-- education, community and careers. "Our community as a profession is aging. We have a lot of folks retiring, and we need fresh people who have an interest in this industry," McDonald said. We spoke about the inception of Industrial Water Week, the tangible changes McDonald hopes to bring with the holiday, and why it's reflective of challenges needing to be solved for industrial water treatment professionals.

Most "billboard-style" advertising is exactly that: a static billboard. The downside to that is that only people within visual distance of the billboard can possibly see its message. Incidental advertising, via a moving display, i.e., a moving truck, has the potential to reach a previously untapped segment of the public. On the Move focuses on helping prepare and provide that message with its truck services. On today's podcast, Sean Heath spoke with Brian Rashid, Sales Leader with On The Move. They discussed the founding principles behind the company's existence, how simple it is to employ trucks across a wide range of businesses, and how important a food truck can be to higher education. "The owner of our company was a self storage operator himself... he went out and bought a few of his own trucks. 25, 26 years later, here we are and we're about to go to our 10,000th account," Rashid said.

The people have spoken: electric scooters are in, and though there's been backlash on sharing programs from major cities, other municipalities are realizing there's potential value in adjusting to this growing trend: increased commerce, happier citizens, transformative technology. Cities like Austin, TX, aren't sweeping these scooters off the streets, they're passing ordinances and working with sharing companies to integrate at a municipal level. What does this mean for the future of electric scooters and ride-sharing programs?

On today's podcast, we sat down with Kevin Christy, Director of Customer Service for Consumer Products for Segway, to break down all things electric scooters, from user safety, to financial forecasts in the transportation industry, to changing city design, to environmental impact. "I think the demand is there, and the acceptance is there, and kind of what's missing is the social piece of it," Christy said.

There’s no denying that with the staying power of an e-commerce presence bringing a plethora of accessible analytics on consumer and global trends, retail businesses must adapt and tap into this data to survive and thrive. We chatted with Brian Walker, founder and CEO of Retail Doctor, to unpack this idea of insight, and how businesses can harness the power to their advantage.

We touch on three different insight groups; consumer, global, and competitor, and discuss why each is important, and how they can be converted into usable data to help retailers thrive. We also discuss ways small retailers can stand out in this market, and how important a digital presence really is.

If you’re a restaurant owner, it’s safe to say you have several televisions broadcasting the day’s sports games at all times without exception. Instead of showing the usual programming, let’s have a conversation about how to use those screens as a medium to engage with your customers. Today, Matt Gibbs, co-founder & CMO of UPshow, joined us to chat about how to bring social and mobile-driven engagement into your business through harnessing the power of your televisions, and how that can impact everything from financial success to company culture. “People crave modern media. Everyone is addicted to looking down at their phone and scrolling through Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. We’re essentially bringing the best of that content to the big screens inside of a venue," Gibbs said.

The premise is simple enough: try to have more money coming in than you have going out. That is a major challenge for professional athletes, even with the massive amounts of wealth at their disposal. Carter Financial Management brings the focus back to "regular living" when helping clients plan for the future. On today's podcast, our host spoke with Dustin Eldridge, a Certified Financial Planner for Carter Financial. They discussed why wealth is a challenge for so many athletes, how the way they grew up can have a serious impact on their approach to planning, some shocking statistics regarding NFL players and retirement, and some interesting instances where athletes planned their retirements before they had even really begun their sports careers. "More athletes are starting to talk about taking care of themselves for the future by just taking care of the basics. Just living within their means or on a set salary or stipend, whatever they give themselves, and not doing these outlandish things, investing in restaurants in South Florida or in California, and instead, just doing the boring stuff. Let me take care of me and my family. Let me make sure I have insurance policies to cover my body, for one," Eldridge said.

Generally speaking, the best way to address an emergency is to prevent it. Realistically speaking, that's much easier said than done. Walton-Professionals LLC takes a logical approach to emergency preparedness on both sides of the event. On today's podcast, Sean Heath spoke with the Founder and Owner of Walton-Professionals LLC, Michael Walton. They discussed the relative nature of an "emergency", how changes in the weather are impacting facilities management, the current challenge companies face with regard to training for emergencies, and planning for the relatively new danger of violence. "The more work you put in up front, the easier it is on the back end," Walton said.

According to an article on ABCOMRENTS' blog, 80% of brands experienced a significant increase of up to 33% in additional sales after introducing digital signage solutions to a store. Pro AV's impact on the retail world is undeniable. We thought it'd a perfect time to sit down with Shannon McNealy, Marketing Manager at ABCOMRENTS, to talk about how this tech is changing the retail landscape. She also spoke on the nuances that come with trying to market in niche environments, some of the most dynamic use cases for digital signage, and finally what the adoption of these strategies might look like in the future.

The term "healthy" can be particularly confusing with our access to seemingly never-ending information available on the Internet. What does it really mean to live a healthy lifestyle, what's trendy nonsense, and what's effective?

Dr. Jose Medina Inojosa, preventive cardiology senior research fellow at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, sat down with us to dissect what being healthy means and how to make long-term lifestyle changes toward that goal. We also discuss his recent research on central obesity, or fat around the waist, and its association with cardiovascular risk, as well as what healthcare professionals can do to educate their patients.

"We need to push education and try to explain why there are actual recommendations for the whole population so we understand why it's important to eat fruits, why it's important to not eat so much bread and why it's important to move," Inojosa said. It's a matter of educating about what we know and trying to research what we don't know so we can improve...and little by little try to change people around us."

For the United States and the rest of the world at large, electric self-driving cars mean much more than just being able to watch a movie on your commute to work. It can fundamentally change city design, national trade, and much more. Joining us today is Dr. Kara Kockelman, professor of transportation engineering at the University of Texas, to discuss the mass implementation of Shared Autonomous Electric Vehicles (SAEV), the future of car ownership and gas stations, as well as how professional transportation will change over time. “The algorithms are actually much more reliable than you as a human," Kockelman said.

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale’s Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows the Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment. On this episode, we chat with Josh Olerud, President of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, the Triple-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. He gives us his thoughts on the show, from both a management and video production angle, sharing experiences where he pushed the limit of fan-first entertainment himself, and what he'd like to implement from the Savannah Bananas.

As a creative, we all know the dreaded struggle of having to “play the game.” Creating art is only part of it; turning it into a profitable business, and having to run social media, branding, networking efforts…that’s the game. It can drive a lot of creatives away from their craft, or turn them into dishonest representations of what they wish they could be. For Callie Newman, self-published author, she deals with this struggle every time she logs on to social media or flips open her ideas Word doc.

That doesn’t mean she’s not staying honest with her craft though. On this Entertainment episode of Wildfire, Callie dives into her new book, Her Heart’s List, how she’s “playing the game,” and what she’s learned about creating an artist image and turning it into a business. She gives us insight on challenges within the publishing world, how she crafts honest characters that still speak to audiences, how she’s learned to read the industry to gauge what readers are craving, and overall, how to stay sane and whole in the unforgiving world of an author and a creative. Her Heart’s List comes out October 19th.

Wildfire Theme by Green Point Empathy Featured Songs: Vagabond and Stay With Me by Afro Deezy Axe

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

A new online symptom checker is going beyond the WebMDs of past and using real doctors who read and translate real medical white papers to create an innovative statistical map of medicine. On this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, we sat down with Andrew Le, founder and CEO, and Tony Dale, chief revenue officer of Boston-based Buoy Health, a machine-learning healthcare assistant. "At the end of the day, there's not enough emergency rooms and doctors to see every patient," Le says. "So, the solution is not to build more ERs or get as many doctors as we can on the phone. The solution is to empower the patient with something that can bring the information to them in a digestible format to make better decisions."

Some of the most closely guarded secrets in the world are food recipes. (Take a certain "military" man's zeal at protecting that combination of 11 herbs and spices for over 85 years. That's dedication.) There are, however, other types of professional recipes that are common knowledge, but they're challenging to execute properly. That's where David Scott Peters, the founder of TheRestaurantExpert.com, lives. "If you don't have passion, you're out. If you do, you're gonna learn some expensive lessons, but you're ultimately there to take care of the guests and that's going to bring you success," Peters said. On today's podcast, our host spoke and Peters discussed finding just the right balance of social and professional energy in a restaurant, how low unemployment affects the industry, and how a relatively recent social behavior complicates staffing.

On this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, we spoke to Adrienne Bridges, founder and CEO of Excel Consultant Pharmacist Services, a Houston-based healthcare consulting group that aims to reduce medication error for patients. Bridges launched her company after a medication mismanagement incident hit too close to home. "After my loved one's death, I knew it was time to start my own company to help better serve senior patients in these transitions of care," Bridges says. Now she's educating others about pharmacist consultant services as a little-known benefit of Medicare.

Focus is a mysterious thing. Most times we either have too much of it or not enough. Being able to balance and adjust focus is becoming mission-critical in most industries, and Facility Solutions Group prides itself on focusing on each client's "story." On today's podcast, our host spoke with the Director of Marketing for FSG, Brannon Bourland. They discussed the way FSG focuses on a client's story in order to understand their true challenge. "Every single one of us has a story of our life... What businesses, I think, fail to do in a lot of ways, is they fail to come into the story for the customer," Bourland said. "Show the customer how we, the business, can fit into YOUR story." Bourland also gives insight on how technology is increasing the ease with which solutions are processed and how sometimes the best answer just requires a wider vision.

This podcast originally aired on MarketScale's Software & Technology podcast. It has been reposted to ARC's podcast for your listening!

As integrated solutions like automation, robotics, and process development become more and more integrated in the manufacturing industry, we decided to sit down with Dan Allford, President of ARC Specialties, to get some insight on his industry and break down just why “manufacturing became cool again.”

“One thing that I see that proves my point is all the high school robotics programs. We’re very active with U.S. First for example, where the kids design and build robots. I’ve been working with them since 2001, and it’s a great program. It’s just like when I was a kid except we didn’t have a formal outlet for it,” Allford said.

The ARC Specialties President also talked on how he built ARC right out of his garage, what to look for in building the right team, his development on the first collaborative welding robot, and how innovation in manufacturing technology is affecting global trade.

When trying to predict the future, it can be helpful to acknowledge the past. It can also be a good idea to not try to predict the future. Carol Spieckerman, CEO of Spieckerman Retail, spends a lot of intellectual energy helping her clients focus on what they are doing (and how they are doing it) in order to determine what they should do next. "These days, as fast as Retail's moving, once something becomes a trend, it's often too late. If you're just trend-watching, you're kind of chasing after what everybody else is chasing, even if it doesn't make sense for your business," Spieckerman said. On today's podcast, our host had a conversation with Spieckerman on the 3 "Rs" of retail, the perils of focusing too much on trends, the true danger of negativity in the industry, and how retailers are no longer just places that sell "stuff."

The food & beverage industry has changed drastically since the rise of reality restaurant television and digital media. Shows like Kitchen Nightmares and viral Tasty videos aren't just for entertainment; they're impacting expectation for the industry for both chefs and consumers alike. We chatted with André Natera, Executive Chef at the Fairmont Austin, to unpack some of these food media trends, and where he ultimately sees his industry going. We discuss the pros and cons of cooking shows, managing newfound expectations of customers, and ultimately how to manage being a chef in this new landscape. “The only way to become a really great cook is through repetition, through experience, through doing it hundreds and hundreds of times," Natera said. Chef André also dishes out some of his favorite chefs, restaurants, and guilty food pleasures.

Of all of the bridges we encounter on a daily basis, both figurative and literal, the one between our brain and the rest of our body seems fairly important. Protecting that structure is enjoying a renewed focus and Iron Neck is at the forefront of that movement. On today's podcast, our host spoke with the CEO of Iron Neck, Matthew Schmit. "The way that neck training used to be done was not necessarily functional, it was more a matter of gaining strength and size without, really, a purpose," Schmit said. We discussed the drive behind the innovation, the focus on pricing, why it took so long to bring awareness to the challenge, and how the design of Iron Neck can be applied to other parts of the body.

It seems like data and analytics-based decisions usually flow top down, but when it comes to retail location scouting, smart retailers are listening to a new voice to make informed decisions: municipalities. "Decades ago, the mantra was location, location, location. You still hear that, but the real answer is customer customer customer," said Eric Brown, Director of Account Management for Buxton, a Fort Worth-based market research firm. On today’s episode of the Retail Podcast, we spoke about new ways consumer data is being disseminated at the ground level, where cities are getting smart about using their residents' consumer data to help drive economic growth.

By using AI and community sourcing, one company has found a way to make choosing real estate for small businesses that much simpler. We sat down with Bobby Goodman, co-founder of Truss, and talk about his experiences in working with small to medium businesses to find the right real estate, and why making that decision can make or a break a company. Goodman discussed how Truss utilizes AI to optimize their customer experience, and where he believes the future of real estate is headed. We also dove in to some of the best and worst work spaces a company can buy, and though those signs aren't consistent across industries, there are still some tried and true aspects to a perfect work environment. ‘’The most productive types of spaces we see out there really have a healthy mix of open work spaces that are collaborative in nature," Goodman said.

With the heightening of the online delivery arms race and the further collapse of the middle-market, the retail landscape has never looked more different. To help us make sense of it all we were joined by Doug Stephens, founder of Retail Prophet. Stephens breaks down the story of Retail Prophet, the emerging trends in the retail industry, and lastly, explain why retail must die to be saved. "Brands now are awakening to the idea that they can have direct relationships with consumers and in doing so they can learn a tremendous amount more than they have been able to learn about their markets, about their consumer preferences and needs, and about their own products," Stephens said. "I think they can certainly better control the pricing of their products, and the margins that they enjoy, and ultimately they can much better control the way the story around their product is being told."

Imagine a building undergoing renovations, needing to shut off some water pipes and therefore leading to a dead leg of piping. Now imagine, once the renovations are completed, that water is flushed right back into the system. You may have just put a pathogen in your entire building's water supply. When it comes to water treatment, whether on a domestic or processing side, simple choices can have drastic effects, for better or for worse, and no one knows this better than our guest today, Tony Self. "As water flows past that dead-leg, it will pick up whatever pathogens may be growing there. It just needs an opportunity for somebody to become exposed," Self said. Self, Director of Engineering for Chem-Aqua Incorporated, came on this episode of the Building Management Podcast to discuss the challenges that come with keeping both consumers and workers safe around potential water pathogens, the effect of increases in government regulation on small businesses, and how users and facility operators can make small decisions to have big, positive impacts.

There have been numerous times in history where an invention's initial application turned out to not be the optimal use of the idea (Post-it Notes and Play-Doh come to mind). Blockchain technology is mostly known to the general public as something to do with cryptocurrency, but business owners know there's more to it. On today's podcast, our host spoke with the CEO of Emperitas and a MarketScale regular, Luciano Pesci. They discussed how a number of startups in the healthcare field are developing applications for the technology, the benefits blockchain can bring to the industry, and how patients will see increased benefits and safety. "A 2017 IBM survey found that about 16% of healthcare leaders planned to start experimenting with blockchain by the end of the year and 56% are expected to by 2020," Pesci said.

The invention of the electric light was an important moment for the Retail industry. It allowed for longer store hours, consistent store atmosphere, and the opportunity for dramatic highlighting of specific goods. The advent of digital rewards programs has the potential to be just as impactful. On today's podcast, Sean Heath spoke with Miya Knights, the Head of Industry Insight for Eagle Eye Solutions. They discussed some of the ways that digital wallets are changing the retail experience for customers, the challenge of dealing with the fear of managing all of that data in a coherent way, and the way that blockchain could change the balance of power in the retail/customer relationship. (Also, they agreed that Sean can not be left alone on Alibaba with a credit card.)

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale’s Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows the Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment.

On this episode we’re joined by the front office crew of the Savannah Bananas!

Tyler Gray: The Director of Fun

Jared Orton: President

Keke Coles: Director of First Impressions

Jesse Cole: Owner, Man In The Yellow Tuxedo

This time, we’re talking with them live on August 4th, 1:30 PM ET. We’re going to break down highlights from the first two episodes of Welcome to the Show, discuss how the season has progressed for the team, and what challenges lay ahead of the play off game in Grayson Stadium on Sunday, August 5th.

We will be fielding questions from viewers so make sure to tweet at @SportsEntMKSL, @MarketScale, hop in the broadcast chat.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Vinyl records are back in style. In 2017, vinyl sales reached the highest they’ve been since 1991. It’s been an interesting trend in the age of streaming; as accessing music reaches its most convenient, people revert back to the most inconvenient way to listen to music. Why? Because the appeal lies in something else. On today’s Sports & Entertainment episode of Wildfire, we’re joined by Kyle Matthiesen, founder of Black Box Record Club, who shares how a passion for good tunes led him to the perfect niche market for starting a small business.

“Don’t shoot for the middle. Shoot for a smaller sect of the population that is obsessed,” Matthiesen said. We gain some insight on how data is helping Matthiesen stand apart from his record club peers, what makes vinyl persist, and the two big factors to keep in mind when choosing an industry to enter as a side-hustle.

Wildfire Theme by Green Point Empathy Featured Songs: Circles by Blue Apollo and She Was Good Like the Sun by JP Labastida

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Tomorrow's physicians need to think entrepreneurially about digital health care, but it starts with opening up fixed mindsets within higher education that have often discouraged out-of-the-box thinking, says Dr. Arlen Meyers, President & CEO of the Society of Physician Entrpreneurs and our guest today on the Healthcare Podcast. "The reason we created the Society for Physician Entrepreneurs is because every physician, engineer, scientist has a good idea, unfortunately the vast majority have no idea what to do with that good idea. They won't be taught what to do with that idea in their formal training," Meyers said.

Breakthroughs will come when entrepreneur-minded physicians work together with health technology companies to create inter-operable solutions. "I don't believe sick care can be fixed from the inside. It has to be an outside-in collaboration," Meyers said. "We simply can't rely on doctors to solve a problem that they contributed to creating. We have to collaborate and innovate our way out of the sick care mess."

In an era of e-commerce takeovers, Amazon's retail reign and the death of legacy brands, Half Price Books isn't going anywhere; not only is the chain bookstore surviving while other like Barnes & Noble are floundering, it's actually thriving. Our guest today can't pinpoint just one reason for the store's success; instead, she can rattle off a handful. Today we're joined by Kathy Thomas, Chief Strategy Officer for Half Price Books, who sums up the power of a physical book store in one short phrase: "You can't get inspired if you're putting an ISBN number in." Thomas walks us through everything from guest experience, community involvement and smart stocking, and how they're all helping Half-Price stand out among its competitors.

It's all about the points...or is it? In this episode of the Hospitality Podcast, we spoke with Loren Gray, author, speaker and host of the Hospitality Digital Marketing podcast about the ins and outs of the Starwood/Marriott acquisition, their customer loyalty programs and one particularly amusing hotel points hack. "It's amazing how road warriors are gamifying the system to know how to move themselves up. I feel foolish that I didn't know those things," Gray says laughing. Plus we discuss what brand chains and independent hotels can learn from each other.

As more and more cities, most recently Houston, urge its citizens to carpool to help with congestion, accidents and pollution, we decided to sit down with a MarketScale Transportation Podcast frequenter, Gareth Dennis of Permanent Rail Engineering, to get his take on this worldwide trend. Gareth, an engineer and writer, joined us to talk about the growth of active travel (and what that means), how public transit is evolving, and how the UK compares to the US in terms of transit and carpooling.

Who’s the most important player on a football team? The quarterback? The running back? Maybe the whole defensive line. But what about…the departments graphic designer? They’re often the MVP behind the scenes that helps set a teams brand, image and style. For fans, the perfect logo and merch design can create exposure, loyalty, buzz, atmosphere, and everyone’s favorite, attendance. But graphic design can even be a deciding factor, whether consciously or subconsciously, for convincing recruits to join the team.

On today’s Sports & Entertainment episode of Wildfire, we’re joined by Brett Gemas, Director of Creative Content for UNT’s Athletic Department. His journey into the industry was a combination of a love for sports and a passion for art, and he’s turned that passion into insight on the power of graphic design for a team, trends in sports design, how he’s standing out among his peers, and he even gives some hot takes on UNT’s football season.

Wildfire Theme by Green Point Empathy Featured Songs: 95 & Two for the Show by Space Cadet

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Failed hires, especially at an executive level, are time consuming, expensive, and an overall pain. To learn more about what it takes to find the right executives for the right companies, we sat down with Julie Allen, Managing Director at Allen Partners Ltd. She gave insight on common blind spots during the hiring process, the evolution of her firm, some valuable examples from the Healthcare industry, and what makes her approach in the industry unique. “True, honest, straight-forward conversations are often left for another time, and in our opinion so much of a good recruiting process is really meant to tease out all the intangibles and either work around the obstacles or kill a process if it wasn’t meant to be,” said Allen.

Stepping into high school, Jordan Mack wanted a way to feel confident. It was the perfect time to reinvent himself, and what better place to do that than at the mall. Years of school uniforms made him look to a solid outfit as being the thing to make him stand out in a new environment, and as soon as he put together some of his favorite pieces at American Eagle that day, he found that long sought-after confidence.

Now he’s bringing that passion for fashion to the industry, and on today’s Retail episode of Wildfire, Jordan dives into the social and data-driven trends that push fashion through it’s ever-cyclical loop, how a younger generation is changing the definition of menswear, and the ecological responsibility retail brands have as they look to expand at unprecedented rates.

Wildfire Theme by Green Point Emapthy Featured Song: Smooth Life by Space Cadet

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @RetailMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

To paraphrase Ralph Waldo Emerson: "If you build a better play area, the world will beat a path to your Denver doors." That is exactly what Playtime started doing in 1998. Now their path extends to 6 continents. On today's podcast, Sean Heath spoke with the founder of Playtime, Mike Evans. They discussed the marvelous journey of the past 20 years, how they achieved the difficult by keeping it simple, who the REAL customer is for their installations, and the social importance of maintaining these safe, free-form opportunities for play.

Well my friends, the robots are coming. In this episode of the Building Management Podcast, we’re talking about unmanned security solutions with Stacy Dean Stephens of Knightscope, the Silicon Valley-based creator of fully autonomous security robots, and how they're impacting several different kinds of industries. But these aren't the robots from Hollywood, Stephens says. "These are friendly robots, meaning you can interact with them. They are an autonomous platform to give security providers a much better situational awareness of their surroundings."

Amidst a record crop for California Almonds, the almond industry is preparing for the new tariffs imposed by China, one of their biggest buyers. We sat down with the director of sales and marketing at Select Harvest USA, Dinesh Bajaj, to learn about the impact these tariffs have had on business, what Select Harvest USA is doing to adapt and prepare, and how he sees this changing the future of the almond industry. Dinesh also spoke on our trade history with China, and how it has changed over the years. These new tariffs, according to Dinesh, are giving the States' largest almond competitors an advantage, and he gives insight on how ultimately, these changes in international trade will help businesses learn and grow moving forward.

Everybody knows that Southwest Airlines as a company knows how to have fun. On today's podcast, we spoke to the woman largely responsible for many of the unique things about the company's brand and image. "Culture is everybody's job," said Ginger Hardage, former Senior Vice President of Culture and Communications for Southwest Airlines, and now founder of Unstoppable Cultures, a Dallas-based consultancy aimed at helping leaders improve corporate culture for their employees. Hardage shared some examples of great company environment, its effect on employee morale and productivity, and how even small businesses can have world-class culture like Southwest Airlines.

Mathematical physicist William Thomson (aka Lord Kelvin) was widely quoted as saying: "To measure is to know." The real challenge is knowing what, exactly, to measure when formulating a plan. On today's podcast, our host spoke with Matthew Tate, Senior Account Executive at Buxton. They discussed how analytics can dramatically change the perspective on "standard" protocols, the way in which current shopping malls might be re-purposed in the future, and how faith in numbers is only as good as the numbers themselves.

If you’ve lived in an apartment in the past 20 years, you’ve faced this problem: Wrestling with a leasing management office to get your delivered packages. Entrepreneur Michael Patton of Fetch, a Dallas-based startup, is fixing what’s wrong with apartment package delivery. "When I moved to Dallas, I moved into a big apartment complex whose leasing office was getting 250-300 packages every day," Patton says. "I witnessed how big a problem it was for leasing agents and residents. That got the wheels turning." On this episode of the Building Management Podcast, we discuss how Fetch outsources package management to their local warehouse and frees up leasing agents to do what they do best--take care of residents and sign up new ones.

A basic tenant of sales is to know the product you're selling. Imagine being a salesman that had hands-on experience creating the product, too. It'd be a deadly and powerful combination. On this Transportation episode of Wildfire, we're joined by Tait Priser, NPI and Sales Account Manager for PCC Structurals, who has this exact skill set. Tait made his way through the industry from an engineer to customer relations in no time at all, and this varied background gave him invaluable experience and invaluable insight, from juggling proactivity and reactivity during a pitch, the right balance of going solo and asking for help and the real secret behind succeeding in sales no matter your industry.

Wildfire Theme by Green Point Empathy Featured Song: Trapped by You by The RLN)

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @TransportMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

23andMe, the genetic testing company, just announced that it will be entering a 4-year partnership with pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to develop new drugs and therapies. As part of the partnership, 23andMe will share voluntarily-shared genetic data with the big pharma company. Maria Liu from First Health Advisory Solutions joined us to talk about the security concerns and potential worries that come with companies sharing medical data.

Generally speaking, once something is 5,500 years old it has probably reached peak development. Glass is not adhering to that rule of thumb. On today's podcast, our host spoke with Alan McLenaghan, the CEO of SageGlass. They discussed the new definition of "smart" glass, the ways in which our buildings can become significantly more intelligent, and how progress can accelerate (even after five and a half centuries).

Lost in the mists of time, before the unchecked proliferation of digital personal assistants (approximately 7 years ago), there was this strange custom of speaking directly with a human when you wanted to get recommendations while traveling in a new city. Those wise individuals were known as "concierges," and our guest wanted to put a modern spin on that hospitality classic. On today's podcast, our host had a chance to chat with Sarah Dandashy, the founder of "AskAConcierge.tv." They discussed the social network that exists to share knowledge within the industry, the challenges that maintaining a current "local database" presents, and the inevitable apology you will receive if you ever find yourself on vacation with Sarah.

Do you remember the first time you saw a Segway? If so, that memory probably also involves listening to your first iPod while waiting in line to see the first Harry Potter movie. For transportation technology, the interesting thing isn't the firsts, though, but the continuous advances ever since. On today's podcast, our host spoke with Randy Ayala, the Director of North and South American sales for Segway by Ninebot. They discussed the drive to keep fun in functionality, the freedom that comes with being the one to set the curve, and how natural intuitive response helps the adoption of new forms of travel.

Many say that technology is the ultimate disruptor in the retail space as e-commerce more and more becomes the norm. But it's not, said Andrew Busby of Retail Reflections, a UK-based retail consultancy. "Actually, it's us. Retailers need to get start getting a lot smarter about using technology to improve the customer experience. Consumers are the biggest disruptors." In this episode of the Retail Podcast, we talk about the evolution of retail consumers and what to expect from the next wave of customers: Generation Z.

The healthcare industry is one of the hardest to crack into as an emerging company, but at the same time, is the space with the most opportunity. While regulations are strict and change is slow, the customer base for healthcare is...well, everyone. Ryan Coplon, co-founder of HealthWallet, saw this gap, and decided to fill it with a company that addresses one of the biggest issues within the industry: lack on information when shopping for care. Ryan joins us on this Healthcare episode of the Wildfire podcast to detail what drew him to being a catalyst for this kind of change, how he turned "epic L's" into "epic W's" and what effect a younger generation has had on accessing and providing treatment.

Wildfire Theme by Green Point Empathy Featured Song: Casio by Animals for Hands

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @HealthMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

There is a scientific principle that states that natural systems seek balance. That tendency, in Retail, leads to a sense of comfort and continuity. In today's environment, that can be detrimental to a company's long-term survival. On today's podcast, our host had a chat with Bryan Gildenberg, Chief Knowledge Officer for Kantar Consulting. They discussed the benefits and power of being uncomfortable in the Retail industry, the things to be learned from "Primerica", and how critical it is to focus on verbs instead of nouns. (Also: They decide to start an umbrella company at Niagara Falls.)

Speech-enabled devices like Amazon’s Alexa or Google Home have slowly become more and more ubiquitous in our homes, but now many are looking for speech technology solutions in other avenues of their life. Jesse Montgomery, Senior Speech Technologist at Theatro, joined us to talk about the rise of the “ubiquitous voice,” the common challenges facing those in the retail space, and how Theatro’s software and hardware are streamlining powerful & effective communication in the work place.

The advance of technology often adds so much innovation to the retail space that it becomes seemingly impossible to navigate. Paul Greenberg, co-founder of Australia’s first online retailer, Deals Direct Group, and founder of NORA, joins us to make sense of the modern-day retail sphere by guiding us through the past, and making light of what the future might have in store. In this episode we focus on how you can better communicate with your customers, the importance of connectivity in the industry, and how exactly you can better develop your brick and mortar retail stores into an amazing brand.

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale’s Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows Jesse Cole and his Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment.

On today’s episode we’re joined by our very own Lauren Farrell who has an extensive sports background including being apart of the Pittsburgh Pirates front office, to break down highlights from Episode One and get some insight on what Jesse’s doing with his fan experience that’s resonating across the baseball world. For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Millennials aren't the only ones who are adopting the use of Alexa AI en mass. Nursing call technology is coming into focus as baby boomers approaching elderly age are turning to Alexa to help them age-in-place with telemedicine, prescription management and more. "The Gray Wave is coming," said Kourtney Govro, founder and CEO of Sphere 3 Consulting, a Kansas City-based technology company that provides data solutions and software for nursing call stations in hospitals. In this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, Govro discusses the impact nursing call technology has on real lives and why improving its use will help nurses provide better care, reduce medication errors and possibly save lives.

There's plenty of creative branding from big brand names. Moon Pie, Wendy's, Converse, to name a few. Each have found their voice and a way to stand out. Oscar Mayer has been doing things a little differently. Meet Cady Lowery, a hotdogger for Oscar Mayer. Position description: driving a giant wiener-mobile from state to state, interacting with customers and promoting the Oscar Mayer brand, message and vision. Though this wasn't the position she imagined for herself upon graduating, it couldn't have been a more perfect fit. Cady's joining us on the podcast to unwrap not only what drew her to this one-of-a-kind position, but how Oscar Mayer is and has been for a long time, changing the way brands interact with their community and stay interested rather than interesting.

Wildfire Theme by Green Point Empathy Featured Song: Ghost Above by Honey Pug

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @FoodMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

As Amazon pushes into profitability after dramatically altering the shipping and retail worlds, many are wondering about the future of other retailers and the technology they use. Paula Rosenblum, Managing Partner at Retail Systems Research, joined us to help make sense of the current market place, and talk about putting technology in a business context, working on a benchmark for retail innovation, and finally some of the biggest challenges facing the industry.

Innovations in workplace and building design can do more than improve productivity. They can also increase a person’s overall health and wellness. Brandon Tinianov, Vice President of Industry Strategy at View, knows this can be difficult to get across to building operators. "Seeing real estate as a medical device is challenging to the typical wisdom of the workplace environment," said Brandon. Brandon explains the benefits of dynamic, self-tinting window glass, from energy savings to happier employees.

Jessie Garcia is a self-professed hard-headed entrepreneur, as founder and CEO of Philadelphia-based Tozuda. (The Spanish word for hard-headed and what her grandmother called her.) The 28-year-old former college athlete turned engineer is democratizing concussion protocol with her invention, the Tozuda head impact sensor. In this episode of the Sports and Entertainment Podcast, we talk to Garcia about the small mechanical device, which is half the size of a AAA battery and costs only $30, that measures how much G force an athlete sustains in a hit. "The most exciting part is that [this device] keeps people playing sports," Garcia says. "I hope this helps lead to a proper diagnosis from a doctor and helps an athlete recover fully without sustaining further head injury."

AI is an unstoppable force, and the hype around it is keeping people excited. What new ways can this be applied? How can we make things more efficient? How can AI change the world? All important questions, but just as important, is "how can we make sure AI is socially responsible?" Tom Lawry, Director of Worldwide Health for Microsoft, came on the podcast to discuss the guardrails that need to be on AI in Healthcare, why AI shouldn't be thought of as a replacer but an enhancer, and the power it can have when it's being used for good.

The founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics was fond of saying: "Nothing happens until somebody sells something". The true power of retail has always been found in the "how" part of the process, not in the "what" part. The way in which a customer experiences the transaction can be even more impactful than the thing they actually purchase. Technology is playing an ever-increasing role in the way that experience is curated. On today's podcast, Sean Heath had a chat with Tony D'Onofrio from TD Insights. They discussed the ways that technology is advancing the retail industry, how Amazon has cracked the retail code for both the online and physical space, and how powerful product knowledge is on both sides of the transaction.

The great American poet (and Pulitzer Prize recipient) Robert Frost commented on the difficult choice all travelers must face: which road do I take? The fact that you can't truly know a road until you travel it is inescapable. Hoteliers, however, are capable of directly influencing the memories you form on whichever road you select. Technology is helping them in that task. On today's podcast, our host had a few moments with Glenn Haussman of Rouse Media to discuss a few hallmarks of good hospitality, how technology could be properly leveraged for success, and the one inviolable rule all hoteliers must honor.

Who isn't mystified, inspired and even a little scared by the cosmos? Bea Doheney felt all of the above when looking up at the stars, and when graduating high school, she decided bringing the solar system down to Earth was the perfect way to connect her and her friends as they parted ways for college. She created the solar system bracelet, a wrap-around piece of jewelry with beads for each planet that represented the size of our solar system. With each bracelet came a note: "Whenever you look at your solar system bracelet, remember that you're out of this world." Fast forward to today, and Bea's crafty bracelet idea has evolved into Astronobeads, a company with international reach that hosts numerous styles of space-themed jewelry, runs a college rep program and has gotten in the hands of influencers from Bill Nye to ISS astronaut Scott Kelly. Bea sat down with us on today's Wildfire Retail episode to share her journey from bedroom to business, the importance of having a mentor on your side, marketing tips on building a brand based around wonder and fun, and how creating a community around your product is the simplest but most effective choice of all.

Wildfire Theme by Green Point Empathy Featured Song: Hella Good (Remix) by Pottsi

The historic Kemper Arena in the West Bottoms of Kansas City that once hosted professional basketball and hockey has been renamed HyVee Arena. The 10-year naming rights deal comes months ahead of the arena’s reopening and renovation, and it's getting more than just a name change. Here to talk about how she’s reinvented the sheer concept of a sports arena is Julie Rischer, General Manager of HyVee Arena. We talked about how this arena will differ from others like it and about some of the building management obstacles that come with such a diverse facility.

On today's podcast, Sean Heath had a chat with Gregory George, the Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief for Follow Summer. They discussed the irony of missing a large part of an experience by trying to record that experience to share on social media, the crucial part that true storytelling plays in the industry, how a travel writer actually needs to TRAVEL before they can communicate an experience with any credibility, and just how memorable a personalized interaction with a smaller chain's staff can be. (Keep Austin Friendly!) "It's not just about just checking your bags and getting off the plane," said George. "It's about really sharing that daily experience of the joy of travel, the good and the bad."

Every retailer knows that branding. is. everything. You’ve got to find new and unique ways to spread the message of your company and its products without breaking the bank. Melissa Gonzalez, founder and CEO of The Lionesque Group, has found a solution through the pop-up store, a temporary retail space that can create a customer-brand community. “A lot of the time, people decide to do a pop-up and they think because its short in nature - the duration of it - that the planning can also be short," Gonzalez said. "And that’s incorrect.”

Adrenaline. Exhilaration. Focus. For a professional racer, life behind the wheel is a wild ride...literally. Especially in Forumla Drift, the level of attention is raised to new heights. This translates right back to the car, too, where racers take great pride in the contents under the hood that help make the unstoppable forces on the track. Justin Pawlak, Formula Drift Racer, came on the podcast to tell us about becoming his car's own pit stop. We get to hear what about Formula Drift makes his blood race (pun intended), the level of personal responsibility he takes for upgrading his car, and how C&R Racing, an after-market racing manufacturer, empowers Justin by matching his enthusiasm and expertise in making a master-class racing vehicle.

On today's podcast, Sean Heath had a conversation with Ricardo Dos Santos, the CEO and Founder of ...And Dos Santos. They discussed the downside of thinking "big", the increasing value of big data and AI in implementing a business plan, and the danger of thinking that newer generations are "just about the digital." "It's not so much a fear, it's much more the operations that are not ready to really embrace this new way of creating, of innovating solutions," said Dos Santos. Plus, they chatted on the one thing that most consultants know but don't point out to their clients. (Hint: There are highly valuable minds ALREADY working at most companies that never get asked for their input.)

It’s no secret that the food and beverage industry is already full of regulations and rules that can sometimes be overwhelming. However, breweries in Texas have it particularly rough due to left-over prohibition era laws that somehow never went away. Texas is the only state left in the US that separates brewpubs from breweries, which keeps brewers beholden to massive distributors.

Lane Joseph, Co-Founder and Head of Marketing for Hop and Sting Brewing Co. in Grapevine, Texas, joined our host Elmer to discuss these antiquated laws, the nuances of marketing an alcoholic beverage, and the overall state of craft beer in the United States.

Extra Innings gives you exclusive behind-the-scenes looks and commentary on MarketScale's Welcome to the Show, a reality television series that follows Jesse Cole and his Savannah Bananas, the collegiate summer league baseball team that is changing the sport with their brand of Fan-First Entertainment. On today's episode we're joined by Hunter Horenstein, Director of Fan Engagement for the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, to break down highlights from Episode One and get some insight on what Jesse's doing with his fan experience that's resonating across the baseball world.

With Chick-Fil-A becoming the first fast-food company to start testing out their meal kit program and Blue Apron stock dropping over 20% in same month, the quick meal market has never been more difficult read. To help us make sense of the pre-prepped food landscape, Mitchell Roth, President and COO of Roth Industries, joined us to talk about the industry's current trends and hurdles. He also opened up about redefining quick meals, changing the narrative around pre-prepped foods, and about how to market to/foster the right audience.

Having a "Eureka!" moment and coming up with a new idea is only the first step in a lengthy and sometimes tedious process known as medical device development. David Hibbard of Sunrise Labs has worked in medical technology development for over 25 years, so David knows a thing or two about navigating this process. In today's episode he explains what a successful commercial launch looks like.

While museums are always looking for ways to keep their exhibits new and interesting, the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas is using technology, social media and creativity to stay ahead. In this episode of the Building Management Podcast, we speak to Vice President of Exhibitions, Mike Spiewak about how his unique background in film set design makes him well-suited for this innovative museum. "As I need inspiration though the day, I can go down to the exhibit halls and watch what's getting our guests most engaged," Spiewak says. "That's inspiring for me."

Here to talk about the changes and trends coming to the Sports Entertainment industry is Jeff Angus, Marketing Director from PlaySight. We talked about sport specialization, the commoditization of technology and hardware, and the democratization of sports tech from the pros to the youth.

When considering the benefits of smart buildings, you typically think of efficiency and cost-savings for facilities management, but UK-based Asset Mapping is focusing on occupant wellness--whether those occupants are employees in an office, cows in a shed or chickens in a coop. "This data is really helping improve the wellness of livestock, which makes for healthier and happier cows," says Michael Grant, Asset Mapping COO. In this episode of the Building Management Podcast, we discuss the surprising effect of building conditions on its occupants. And this little fun fact: high CO2 levels in an office have the same effect as two pints of beer on its occupants.

In the UK, Designer Brands are all the rage. From identity to social status, these clothing lines can say a lot about you. Joining us today is Frances Bishop, owner of The Pud Store, who has seen this impact first hand. "Our key market demographic, they feel that the nicer designer brands you dress your children in is a reflection of how well you’re doing. So in the UK, designer brands have a massive pull," said Bishop. On the podcast, she discussed making designer clothing more accessible, how she interacts with her customers, competition on the high street, and how her store manages to thrive in a growing online shopping world.

In the B2B animation world, the newest wave of creatives is bringing two unique things to the table. They grew up watching some of the most innovative cartoons that relaunched the animation world from its slump, watching Disney's Renaissance and consuming Saturday morning cartoons that featured thoughtful and eccentric animation like The Simpsons, a variety of anime and Beavis and Butthead. They also grew up with the meteoric rise in online and social connectivity, living through middle and high school during the release of the first iPhone and tuning in to the birth of Twitter, Instagram and even Facebook. Justin Lee, WestCoast Rep IdeaMACHINE Studio, is utilizing these two generational staples to stand out in an animation world that's struggling with effective communication. On Wildfire, Justin walks us through the unique set of luxuries and challenges that a younger creative workforce deals with, how niche content and transparency makes or breaks a production studio, and how stepping away from just "production" will set you apart.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMS Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

It's time to separate the hype from the reality of the use of AI in healthcare, say Christine Spraker and Aki Al-Zubaidi, co-CEOs of Eon Health, a Denver-based healthcare technology firm. "AI companies are solving problems that aren't problems," Al-Zubaidi says. In this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, we talk to Spraker and Al-Zubaidi about the proliferation of AI, how it's being misrepresented at times, and where the real solutions lie.

As populations continue to increase, public transportation solutions have become more and more difficult to apply. Rick Spear, President of Leitner-Poma of America, Inc., joined us to talk about new methods of transportation in urban settings, how rail cars can improve public transit, and the current state of ski-lift business.

On today's podcast, Sean had a chat with Alisha Prakash from Oyster.com. They discussed the importance of tourism dollars for islands in the Caribbean after hurricanes, the true value of honest reviews, how properties can use social media to increase customer satisfaction exponentially, a new technology that can literally make the visitor feel like they are on a site BEFORE they even pack a suitcase, and Sean and Alisha agree: sharks do not make good selfie partners.

Former Harlem Legend Woody Carter is ready to try out the courts at Kansas City’s repurposed HyVee Arena. “I can’t wait till that gloss and stain goes down on the maple wood floor,” said Carter, who is arena sales manager for the $39 million youth sports complex. In this episode of the Sports and Entertainment Podcast, we talked to Carter about the coming HyVee Arena grand opening in a few months and discuss how this one-of-a-kind adaptive reuse project can transform both commercial real estate and the community. HyVee was once the aging one-floor Kemper Arena built in 1974, but with the adaptive addition of a second floor, it's now a sprawling 84,000-square-foot sports and event space that'll host basketball, soccer, fusbol, pickleball and training facilities.

On today's podcast, Sean had a chat with Dr. Carl P. Borchgrevink, Interim Director for The School of Hospitality Business at Michigan State University. They discussed the growing movement towards local sourcing for all parts of the industry, how social media can be an incredibly powerful source of feedback (provided the business is actively engaged with it), the ways that the internet can help both customers and prospective employees in the hospitality space, and "Dr. B" gives a secret recommendation to those looking for spectacular hospitality while dining in the U.S.

On today's podcast, Sean had a conversation with Nicole Leinbach Reyhle, founder from Retail Minded. They discussed the importance of the "personal" aspect of retail, how retailers can benefit from thinking globally while also focusing locally, and Nicole shared her secret plan for her own pop-up space. (spoiler: World Cup. That's all I'm going to say.) For Nicole, "the path to purchase is so distinctly different for everyone."

Most music-listeners aren't heading to music publications to discover new music; they're going to social media and curated streaming playlists, looking for the freshest finds among the #content they love. Alli Lindsey, a Music Publicist for DK Projects, finds herself in the middle of that tough situation. Writing for her comes easy; thoughts flow through her mind like a sentence. But being in music PR is more than writing a quality press release or shooting a blog an email. To make her clients succeed, she's having to find new ways to make their music visible, push them to be honest artists and put the pressure on herself to stay ahead of the curve. Listen to Alli describe her journey into the music writing world and how she's spearheading a wildfire in creative PR.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @SportsEntMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Technology that can give shoppers a shot of dopamine-- that’s the shopping experience that’s now possible with today’s technology, said Trevor Sumner on today's podcast, CEO of New York-based Perch Interactive. In this episode of the Retail Podcast, Trevor shares how Perch’s technology is bringing digital concepts into physical stores and creating unique customer experiences where shoppers are free to touch and pickup products that evoke a feeling.

If you're anything like our host Landon, the recent scandal involving Facebook and Cambridge Analytica left a bad taste in your mouth...but Preteckt Co-founder Peter Bassa will change your mind when it comes to big data. On today's podcast, Peter explained how ethical data collection could transform the transportation industry for the better. "We have all of this collection happening...Big data is a sort of buzzword," said Peter. "But I don't think we really understand the full impact of what we can do with that data."

In the United States, water is a complicated utility. Many cities in states are separated by "water gaps", whether that be how much water cost, the quality of water, or the awareness surrounding clean water. Premnath Sundharam, member of the DLRGroup, discusses his four dimensions of water management, and what it would take to fix this growing problem.

On today's podcast, Sean talked with Tony Ho from Segway. They discussed the "ask forgiveness, instead of asking for permission" tactic that has been deployed by scooter share companies, the significant carbon footprint reduction that could be achieved by the e-scooter evolution in urban environments, and the surprising increase in interest that these programs are having on personal scooter purchases. (Also, Sean continues to remind people that he has a birthday. It's apparently some unnamed point in the future.)

If you’re a business attempting to get the attention of today’s consumers, a billboard simply isn’t going to cut it. And a television commercial might not do the trick either. The modern customer sits at the intersection of digital and physical storefronts, and in today's podcast, Jeremy Bergstein, CEO of The Science Project, shares how brands can take advantage of this new retail space.

On today's podcast, Sean Heath talked with Sasha Kucharczyk from Preteckt. They discussed the future of AI in automotive repair, the way that autonomous vehicles will change our approach to architecture and urban design, and the struggle between freedom and control that is inherent in the usage of autonomous vehicles. Also, Sean's dream of "magic roller skates" might have made a brief appearance.

On this Throwback Thursday podcast we’re rejoined by Chandana Fitzgerald who opened up about her transition from working in a hospital to now working in the digital realm at HealthXL as their Chief Medical Officer.

Corey Brandt, General Manager of Food and Beverage at the Sacramento River Cats’ Stadium, joined us to talk about how the craft food and “farm to fork” trends are affecting ballparks across the country. He also talks about embracing local eateries and brewers, fan engagement, and about how locally-sourced foods effect pricing.

Brian Verne, CEO of WAVE, joined up to talk about how sports entertainment is shifting from traditional media to mobile and social platforms. He shares his thoughts on the concept of a “decentralized newsroom,” talks about some of the challenges that come with penetrating the market, and how the industry is adapting to a younger audience’s needs.

On today's podcast, our host Sean had his second chat with Jackie Werblo, CEO and Head Coach of CONVEX Leadership. Jackie discussed the true definition of leadership, the components that comprise it, the capability of anyone to be a leader, and Jackie shared some interesting examples of just how impactful good leadership can be. For Jackie, "part of being a good leader is also knowing when to step back and be a good teammate."

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @RetailMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

In visual media, often times we focus on just that: the visual. But we can forget one of the most, if not the most important piece of visual media, and that's sound. The power music and sound design has over the tone, feeling and effect of a video can't be understated, and nowhere is this more important than the sports world. On today's podcast, Karina Anglada (Video Editor and Producer for the Golden State Warriors) and Matthew Gutknecht (Senior Account Director of Sports Entertainment for APM Music) discussed the intersection of sports and music, how teams use varying genres and styles to not only sell their videos but for their branding, and how the emergence of digital media platforms is changing the way music and sports collaborate. We also get to hear each of their favorite videos with APM songs, and how customized and authentic sound helped create a perfect immersive experience.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports and Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – https://twitter.com/sportsentms Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Maria Liu, Vice President of Business Development for Health Advisory Solutions joined us to talk about the correlations between electronic health record solutions (EHRs) and physician burnout. Maria also dissected various interoperability issues, talked about potential solutions for streamlining EHR solutions, and explained what the AMA is doing to try and address physician burnout.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Brick and mortar stores that start borrowing technology, agility and A/B testing from the digital space are the ones who'll emerge winners in retail. "Stores can borrow from the digital space," said Theatro Senior Vice President of Marketing Adam Silverman on today's podcast episode. He shared the state of retail from Seattle's recent Future Stores Conference, plus, Silverman shared his experience at the Amazon Go store in Seattle, a new checkout-less grocery store from the online retail giant.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – @BuildingsMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Pat O’Conner, President & CEO of Minor League Baseball, joined us to talk about how he has embraced and pushed for diversity and inclusivity within the league in hopes of having the organization better reflect the communities it serves. He also opens up about how tech and social media has changed the marketing strategies within the league, and explains how programs like F.I.E.L.D. and Copa de Diversion are reshaping the league from the inside out.

CoFounder & CEO of Under Canvas, Sarah Dusek, joined us to uncover just what it is that’s making glamping a growing pillar in the hospitality industry. She also talked about some of the common misconceptions associated with glamping and opened up about establishing the American Glamping Association, which she hopes will set the bar for the industry.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Hospitality Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter –@AECMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Medical doctors have been talking about healthy living as preventative medicine for a while now and the world is finally catching up. Ed Buckley, CEO of Peerfit, came on the podcast to tell us how he's transforming the way people think about being healthy by bridging the gap between the fitness and healthcare industries, all with the power of a digital connection.

For more information you can visit Element Designs.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter –@AECMKSL Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Today we were joined by Nidal Barake, founder and director of Gluttonomy, to talk about the social responsibilities of chefs, restaurants, and brands in the food industry. At Gluttonomy, Nidal consults in areas such as Business Development, Strategy, Branding, and Marketing, and is known as a connector and influencer in the global food industry.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food and Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chatted with David Trask from ARC Technology Solutions. We discussed the best time to deal with an emergency, the wide spectrum of situations that emergency management deals with, and the single technological decision that can revolutionize the way we deal with emergencies and save lives.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building Management Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Addison Kaboom Town has been thriving for 33 years, being recognized as one of the top Fourth of July shows in the country. But how did it grow from fireworks in a field to a partnership with hotels, transportation, security and restaurants across the city? Mary Rosenbleeth, Director of Public Communications for the town of Addison, TX, came on the podcast to pull the curtain back on the Kaboom Town process and how the festival is helping the city prosper both financially and culturally.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Robert Mikalonis, Director of Food Trucks for On The Move. We discuss the dramatic increase in food truck viability, how the old "roach coach" stereotype no longer applies, how brick-and-mortar restaurant franchises are utilizing them, and how technology is moving the food truck into the future.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's Healthcare Podcast, Matt Shafer, Director of Telemedicine and Virtual Care at Erlanger Health System, joined us to discuss some of the social and financial hurdles of implementing telemedicine. Matt also talked about the technological advancements that have made telemedicine more viable and also what he sees for the industry’s future.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Commercializing the space industry isn't as far away as it seems. The push for better bandwidth and GPS systems on a global scale means thousands of satellites needed in the air. For that to happen, space electronics companies have to find innovative ways to deliver not only quality, but quantity. Dan Sable and John Hodock, CEO and President of VPT Inc., came on today's episode to tell us about the changes (or general stagnation) of the space electronics industry, and how automotive parts may be the future for efficient and high quantity space endeavors.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

It's not uncommon to see a chef behind the counter wearing a t-shirt and a baseball cap nowadays. It's not particularly wrong, but it does reflect a change within the culinary industry, a change that's shying away from some of the more traditional disciplines. And rather quickly, too. On today's podcast, we were joined by André Natera, Executive Chef at the Fairmont Austin. He discusses what he calls the erosion of culinary discipline and culture, some of its causes and effects, and why it's so important to stress collaboration and positivity within the kitchen, especially in light of Anthony Bourdain's untimely death.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

It's evident that social media has changed our world. We use it on a day-to-day basis; it's ubiquitous at this point. But what about internal social media for business? Is it important, and is it changing the workplace? Megan Sprague, Communications Associate for Wingstop, came on our Throwback Thursday podcast to tell us what the workforce was like for her without apps like Slack or Yammer, and how the intranet has made external branding simpler and more creative.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Bev Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

An impending physician shortage and closing of rural hospitals, particularly in the south, is a big concern for the healthcare industry. In this episode of the Healthcare Podcast, Dr. Mac McCormick of Eagle Telemedicine shares how in-patient telemedicine is bringing specialists to patients and helping stem what experts call the "rural out-migration" from the nation's rural providers.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Luciano Pesci from Emperitas, back for his third episode with MarketScale. (He's a professor of Economics, so this conversation is: 1. Super intelligent and 2. A little longer, but WORTH the listen.)

We discuss a few misconceptions that our host Sean had regarding the nature of currency, the growing strength and logic of both blockchain technology and cryptocurrency, the democratic (small d) nature of a decentralized structure, and the benefits this creates for the retail space.

How Christopher David's Arcade City Is Turning Uber and Other On Their Head Christopher David, founder and CEO of Arcade City, speaks like an activist when it comes to empowering entrepreneurs in the ride sharing economy. His self-governing peer to peer ride sharing network is turning the sharing economy's model on its head with its use of emerging blockchain 2.0 technology. We speak to David on the Transportation Podcast about the race to market for the right blockchain and how his Austin-based company could replace the phrase "being the Uber of..."

Voice AI Technology Isn't Just for Amazon and Apple, Says Ryan MacInnis of Voysis

Alexa and Siri aren't the only artificial intelligence personas in town as Ireland-based Voysis looks to democratize voice AI technology for B2B markets. Ryan MacInnis, director of marketing, sat down with us at the Retail Podcast to discuss how voice AI is being used for smart mirrors in dressing rooms, online banking and even helping you pick a paint color for your wall.

Restaurants trying to increase their efficiency, can now improve their security at the same time.

Toast, the leading smart restaurant ecosystem, has announced a partnership with smart video platform, Solink.

The synergy of the two technologies appears to be a natural fit.

Solink’s smart hub and intuitive mobile app both integrate well with the transaction process handled by Toast’s Restaurant POS.

Solink provides a means of synchronizing a customer’s real-time security video with Toast transactions, which can then be accessed via a Discovery dashboard. Native event notifications, motion alerts, and the ability of sending clips and data to authorities and insurance companies, should improve security significantly.

The features not only increase the safety of employees and guests, but they will help in loss prevention and tracking metrics, such as wait times, order amounts, and customer service interactions.

On this episode of the Sports Entertainment Podcast, we talk to Sam Doerr, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Phoenix Rising FC. He’ll share how the club is using analytics not only to boost ticket sales, but also deliver smart campaigns that specifically target their fan’s interests. Plus Doerr talks about the extensive role former English Premier League powerhouse Didier Drogba plays in the club.

On today's podcast, I have a chat with Megan Berry from byReveal. We discuss the fundamental ways which the new generation of consumer is driving the retail experience, how static thinking can be extremely detrimental to a company's survival, and I finally use a good metaphor involving ships.

One of the major drawbacks to shopping for clothes online is the uncertainty of whether or not what you buy will fit once it arrives at your home. Amazon Prime Wardrobe is an attempt at lowering that stress for Prime Members.

Amazon has created a service that allows members to pack a box with up to 8 items of clothing. They then have a week to try them on before being charged for any items they choose to keep. This is Amazon’s offering to compete with popular personalized shopping services like Trunk and Stitch Fix.

One main difference in the Amazon process is that the customer is tasked with selecting from a curated ecosystem of clothing which is presented in Prime Wardrobe. Companies that are available to choose from include: Nine West, Disney, Stuart Weitzman, Gymboree and many more. Amazon’s private label lines are also available in the program.

The service which has been in beta over the past year is now available to all Prime members in the U.S.

On today's podcast, we hear from Adam Silverman Senior Vice President of Marketing for Theatro. We discussed the ways Theatro brings the e-commerce environment to the brick-and-mortar arena, the ease of training employees to do what they naturally already know, the future of voice-activated communication systems, and how the shopping experience can matter as much as the thing you're shopping for.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we sat down with Adam Miller, CMO of Tersa. We discussed the way that expectations are set and met in the hospitality industry, the way the customer base is driving those innovations, and exactly how important, psychologically, it can be to be wrinkle-free and pleasant-smelling.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Hospitality Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chatted with Maia Bittner, Co-Founder of Pinch. We discuss the seismic change in the world of credit score calculation, how the gig economy is driving new mathematical responsibility metrics, and some potential use cases for the Pinch process.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we sat down with Nikki Kashner, President of Elite2 Consulting. We discussed the science of Orthobiologics, the recent quantum advances that have been made in regenerative medicine and the drive behind Elite2's approach to new techniques. Plus, she gently explains that our host Sean will probably not dunk a basketball anytime soon.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Accessibility to a professional leadership & personal coaching is better than ever before. Today on the podcast, CONVEX Head Coach Jackie Werblo introduced us to the varied uses and applications of coaching from personal life to work-space culture, and how simply asking yourself, "what would I like to change in my life," can make all the difference.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we sat down with Stewart Ratzker, President of AeroTherm. We discuss the science of Aerogel applications, the absurdly diverse use cases for AeroTherm across a multitude of industries, the benefits that it can provide on a socioeconomic level, and Stewart explains what it feels like to have NASA treat you like a rock star.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building and Management Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

One of the consistent challenges for grocery stores is the perishable nature of fruits and vegetables. Costco has partnered with Del Ray Avocado Company to provide avocados with an innovative self-defense ability.

The primary factor in produce waste is the natural deterioration caused by water loss. Apeel Sciences has developed a solution to help slow down that process.

While all plants have a skin or peel that protects them, Apeel has engineered an additional, plant-based covering that adds to the produce’s natural defense. The application is derived from the same materials that naturally comprise the original peel. This slows the rate of water loss, and results in produce remaining fresh up to 3 times longer.

The Apeel process fosters improved quality, transportability, and shelf-life, without requiring additional refrigeration or preservatives.

This process can increase the optimal freshness of avocados for up to twice as long, and that should make your love of guacamole much easier to maintain.

The traditional hotel room aesthetic is not necessarily one that shouts “home”, but hotel television leader LG wants to change that image. Literally.

LG has expanded upon its award-winning Pro:Centric smart TV platform, to increase access to external partners, such as Amazon’s Alexa and the Google Assistant.

The newly announced hotel smart ecosystem will create a connected in-room experience that was not previously possible. Guests will be able to control several aspects of their environment, including controlling lights, locks, or even the drapes.

This new platform will allow hoteliers to offer a significant expansion of in-room entertainment, as well. The Pro:Centric system will simplify users’ access to popular media providers, from broadcast to streaming and premium content.

The seamless experience will also allow easy access to personal devices, in order to allow the display of photos, music or even movies.

The advent of ride sharing not only gave riders a quick and customizeable alternative to what was on the market, but it gave drivers a flexible way to make an income. With any service, though, there are bound to be roadblocks (pun intended) Kyle Staude, CEO and Co-Founder of EZ-RYDR came on the podcast to tell us the main problems with the current state of ride sharing and what ways it's being shaken-up by new tech and new systems.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

You don’t have to live in a mansion to enjoy the services of your own personal butler. Now all you have to do is simply stay at a Marriott.

Amazon.com has announced a new partnership with Marriott International to increase guest access to the Alexa ecosystem through the voice-controlled Echo.

This vocal interface will be implemented to help provide numerous amenities, such as ordering room service, requesting housekeeping, or even speaking with the concierge to request dinner recommendations.

The rollout will begin this summer at select Marriott properties. Amazon will also offer the service to other hotel chains via invitation in the near future.

This is another effort by Amazon to increase its user base for its Echo devices. While Amazon Prime members spend, on average, $1300/year, Echo owners spend an average of $1,700 per year.

There’s definitely value to be gained by having a personal assistant, even when you’re not at home.

It’s not often that a restaurant can address a customer’s desire before they even step into a location, but Dallas-based TGI Friday’s has started doing just that with its new AI-powered customer engagement system.

By leveraging several social media platforms, as well as its own smartphone app, Friday’s is able to better gather and consider customer behavior. Ordering patterns and meal preferences can be integrated into future dish rollouts to improve customer engagement.

Friday’s is also changing the fundamental way that customers re-order while sitting inside any of the 450 domestic locations. The traditional dine-in transaction is still started with a server, who then provides the diners with a code that loads their order into their phone app. From that point, guests can reorder anything from the menu, including alcoholic beverages.

Chief Experience Officer Sherif Mityas says, “We needed to put a different innovative stake in the ground. We’re a 50-year-old brand. But we need to act like a 50-year-old startup. We can’t be a sea of sameness.”

Reports of the demise of brick-and-mortar retail may be a bit premature if Japanese retail giant Rakuten has anything to say about it.

Rakuten, a rival to Amazon’s e-commerce domination, has just acquired Curbside in an “all cash” deal. The mobile commerce company, founded by former Apple engineers,Jaron Waldman and Denis Laprise, had been valued at more than $100M during its last venture round in 2015.

One of the most popular features in Curbside’s e-commerce suite is named ARRIVE, which can track a customer’s journey and ETA in order to have their products ready in an instant.

CEO and co-founder Jaron Waldman said in a press release: "For our customers and partners the headline is that nothing will change. Curbside will operate independently as a Rakuten-owned company with our team, services, partners and product offerings all remaining intact."

In an additional move to strengthen customer loyalty, Rakuten is also developing an in-house blockchain currency, Rakuten Coin.

With the conversation surrounding mental health being as dynamic and nuanced as it is, Sports Performance Psychologist Dr. Lindsey Mitchell from The Pave Group joined us to talk about some of the obstacles that come with trying to make mental health and self-care more approachable to the general public.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Health Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Professionals in the healthcare industry have a lot to manage, from sensitive data to patient's well-being. Staying organized with so many stressful responsibilities requires a little help now and again. Melissa DaSilva, co-creator and owner of Assistant to the Therapist, came on the podcast to tell us how a virtual assistant changed her therapy practice and not only grew her business, but gave her more time to focus on patient care. She discussed the technology that makes this possible, as well as the possibilities and roadblocks to virtual assistants entering other fields within healthcare.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Health Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Time for today’s Hospitality Minute, brought to you by MarketScale.

One major downside of traveling is that feeling you get when you just need one thing, but you’d have to travel all the way down to the lobby to get it. Let’s be honest: most of us just don’t have the desire to make that trip.

Bartech is presenting an update to the things that can be offered to hospitality guests without them having to even leave the comfort of their room. Say hello to the new minibar, the Bartech DD46.

Not only can it be stocked with a huge variety of chilled items, it can automatically post purchases and notify the hotel when items need restocking. There is also sufficient space inside for a guest’s personal items.

This new design can also be offered with a top dry selection space that can now include Bartech’s eTray. It uses the same advanced sensor technology to allow the offering of non-perishable items, such as snacks, toiletries, and even electronics, like that replacement for that phone charger you left on the plane.

When purchasing athletic gear, most of us focus on the benefits that we can get while wearing our new clothing, but Under Armour is embracing a way to use your receipt to help enrich the experience even more.

Under Armor has announced its selection of ereceipt innovator, flexReceipts, to power its digital receipts across all North American locations.

FlexReceipts will integrate their dynamic digital receipts with Under Armour’s Aptos point-of-sale system to go beyond the traditional paper receipt that we toss away as soon as we get home.

Brent Ott, Senior Manager of Athlete and Teammate Retail Experience for Under Armour explains, "Under Armour athletes [its customers] deserve the best connected experience, and with flexReceipts, we can now engage with brand-right digital receipts that deliver content and product suggestions tailored specifically to each customer.”

The receipt company is backed by Y Combinator and strategic investor Synchrony Financial, among others. FlexReceipts is currently implemented in over 12,000 retail locations across the U.S.

Collaboration and personalization are changing the hospitality industry for the better. Mattie Lonborg, Sales Manager for Marriott International, knows this first-hand, and sat down to tell us how hotels are using technological connectivity to bring human experiences to their customers, but also how a social connectivity is giving hotel owners and operators the mindset to prosper.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Hospitality Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

While IoT devices may be an integral part of most of our lives, many areas in rural America are still either unconnected or under connected. Pete DeNagy, President and Co-Founder of Internet of Things, America, joined us to talk about why this is an issue worth targeting and how he and the industry are approaching the daunting task.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Industrial IoT Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Finding a job you're passionate about is key to being successful, and nowhere is this more important than the sports industry, where passion and skill meet. Beyond being a professional athlete, there are so many ways to start a career in the sports world; it's just about finding the right opportunities. Brian Clapp, Director of Content for Work In Sports, came on the podcast to tell us how emerging smart technologies are connecting employers to potential employees, and how major shifts in sports as a whole are creating new career avenues.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

As the Building Management Industry has a slow but steady shift toward sustainability, energy usage has moved to the forefront of the conversation. Kevin Williams, CEO of Wise Power, sat down with us to discuss how energy storage products, specifically ones with IoT capabilities, can revolutionize the way consumers in the home and at the office will expend energy.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building and Management Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The technology that goes into keeping racing cars operational and up-to-speed (pun intended) continues to improve, and now those improvements are making their way down to the "street car." Kees Weel, CEO of PWR, sat down on the podcast to talk the acquisition of C&R Racing, the exciting innovations in cooling technology and how C&R's U.S.-based facilities will help propel this tech into the consumer market.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The evolution of Baseball has been an interesting one to see, but the fundamental core and traditions around the sport have remained unchanged for the past 100 years. Jesse Cole, Owner of Fan First Entertainment and the Savannah Bananas, came on the podcast to tell us the secrets behind how he turned a city that showed little to no interest in minor league baseball, to selling out games for a college summer team. The key ingredients are revolutionizing the entertainment level of baseball, and putting the fan first.

For more information on the Savannah Bananas, log on to https://thesavannahbananas.com/.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports and Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

With the number of American households making donations going up to 60% in 2017, Miraj Patel, Founder of Harness, joins us to talk about empower donors, streamlining the donation process, and encouraging transparency and communication when it comes to the whole process.

For more information on Harness, log on to https://harnessapp.com/home/.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Hospitality publication, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

With the digital world melding more with our daily activities, Jeff McMahon, owner of Total Body Construction, joins us today to talk about how to get into virtual fitness, both from the trainee and the trainer side.

Log on to http://www.totalbodyconstruction.com/, for more information about Total Body Construction.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports and Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The world's been imagining an automated home experience for decades, but it's no longer science fiction. The explosion of IoT devices and voice-controlled hubs like Google Home and Amazon Alexa has made people excited for integrated home systems...but are we at the point where they're truly automated? Jay Basen, a retired software developer with 15 years in delivering professional automation systems, sat down with us to tell us the true state of home automation, and how reaching the next level will help businesses deliver more personalized products.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Pro AV Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Artificial intelligence has found a way to affect every aspect of the healthcare industry, from improving patient care & prevention to reducing administrative costs. Tom Lawry, Director of Worldwide Health for Microsoft, comes on the podcast to tell us how AI is applied in new ways every day in the industry, even with the typical social responsibility concerns of the technology. Ever wondered why and how Microsoft is in the healthcare space? Tom gives us a little history lesson on that too.

For more information on Microsoft Healthcare solutions, log on to https://enterprise.microsoft.com/en-us/industries/health/.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The Hyperloop transit system has been turning everyone's heads since 2013, and as test runs continue, the world is waiting to see where the company will build its first route. However, the transportation technology is far from complete. Gareth Dennis, Senior Engineer for Permanent Rail Engineering, comes on the podcast to explain some of the major gaps Hyperloop still needs to fill before it's viable, and what he thinks transportation investors and innovators could be investing their time and money into instead.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

For more information on Gareth Dennis, log on to http://garethdennis.co.uk/.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Mark Decoux has been in the mascot industry for years, but his entrepreneurial solo venture with THE Mascot Company has been his most successful yet. Mark sits down to walk us through the process of getting a mascot costume commissioned, designed, and constructed and also shares what has and hasn’t changed within the industry.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports and Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

For more information on THE Mascot Company, log on to https://www.themascotcompany.com/.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

With everything in the industry transitioning to digital only, the healthcare industry must adapt to not only provide good service, but also proper cyber security. Maria Liu, Vice President of Business Development of First Health Advisory Solutions, joins us to discuss global payment method and advancements in cyber security within healthcare.

For more information on First Health Advisory Solutions, log on to https://fcp.com/.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Businesses in every industry are going green, finding that it can save money in the short and long term. Nowhere is this more true than the Hospitality Industry, which is also seeing a shift in mentality, a cultural change toward protecting the planet and sustainable branding. Jeanne Varney of Cornell University tells us how hotels are finding innovative ways to reduce energy, waste and food usage, taking inspiration from the top down.

For more information about Cornell log on to https://www.cornell.edu/.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Hospitality Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The Hyperloop transit system has been turning everyone's heads since 2013, and as test runs continue, the world is waiting to see where the company will build its first route. However, the transportation technology is far from complete. Gareth Dennis, Senior Engineer for Permanent Rail Engineering, comes on the podcast to explain some of the major gaps Hyperloop still needs to fill before it's viable, and what he thinks transportation investors and innovators could be investing their time and money into instead.

For more information about Gareth Dennis log on to http://scholarshipinformer.com/.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, Nicholas Longworth of Sports Innovation Network discusses how performance analysis can not only improve and protect an athlete's prime, but also how it can improve our everyday lives.

For more information on Sports Innovation Network, log on to http://www.sports-innovation-network.com/.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports and Entertainment Industry Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

As player analysis software gets more complex, scouting for new talent becomes a breeze; deeper statistics, more focused results and personalized search functions. Alex Tuccio, CEO of Scout Day, sits down with us to talk innovations in sports scouting, and how it not only makes it easier for coaches to connect with players, but lets players see their value more clearly.

For more information on ScoutDay, log on to https://www.scoutday.co/.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports and Entertainment Industry Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

An organized, central gathering location is probably not the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of the ride-sharing service, Lyft. The pink-mustachioed company has announced a $100M investment in changing that image.

In a move meant to retain, and attract, more drivers, Lyft will be expanding both the number of hub locations, and the amenities provided at each brick-and-mortar outpost.

Operational hours will double at all locations and will include a help desk that will enable drivers to get assistance with such varied issues as career support, filing taxes, and even discounted oil changes and maintenance.

The company will be launching this initiative this summer at all 15 current hubs, as well as constructing additional locations throughout the year.

Lyft is projecting that, even with their eye on autonomous vehicles in the future, there will still be a need for approximately 1.4 million Lyft contractors by 2023.

On today's podcast, we chat with Roee Peleed from PointGrab. We discuss the growth of sensor technology and the wealth of data that it provides, how that information can dramatically alter the efficiency of building usage, and how the design of intelligent buildings is just in the beginning stages.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building Management Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Though the healthcare industry was slower in adopting digital innovations, their affect is already being felt. Chandana Fitzgerald, Chief Medical Officer for HealthXL, thinks digital health is here to stay, and on today's podcast, walks us through the holistic change it's brought to the industry and why healthcare has struggled in adopting new technology.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Getting sustainable products integrated into the Building Management Industry is an uphill battle. Finding the right balance between saving energy and saving money is a challenge in itself. George Keefe, President & CEO of GLOBAL Encasement, Inc., comes on the podcast to share his experience creating products that emphasize the long run, and how that motivates industry leaders to go green.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building Management Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with James Yoder from ChatSports. We discuss how the move to digital platforms opens up a new frontier for smaller, independent outlets, how fear is a crippling but understandable flaw in big conglomerations and how exactly James would create content for someone like himself.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Today we sit down with Judd Garrett, Director of Advance Scouting with the Dallas Cowboys. He tells us how in-depth analytics tools are changing the ways sports teams prepare for opponents, making sure every play is keeping players' strengths and weaknesses in mind. He also reflects a bit on how his late father Jim Garrett might've reacted to innovations in scouting.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, I chat with Drs. Muhammad Shaalan Beg and Arjun Gupta. We discuss the integration of wearable technology in cancer clinical trials, how these devices can help physicians monitor their patients' status and how this data can help develop a more personalized treatment protocol for each patient.

On today's podcast, we chat with Rachel Aronson from Counterfind. We discuss the challenge of not playing "whack-a-mole" when addressing the counterfeit issue, the importance of brand relationships with fans and our host shares a heartbreaking scenario regarding a comic book tree creature.

Today we sit down with Gareth Dennis, Senior Engineer with Permanent Way. He gives us a look at the innovations in transforming railway information from analog to digital, and how that’s helping make infrastructure more adaptive and dependable.

Log on to http://garethdennis.co.uk/ to learn more about Gareth.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Education Technology Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Today we hear from Cyrus Claffey, CEO and Co-Founder of. He tells us how, as smart technology is being adopted into the real estate industry, integrating these systems is becoming more important. He also explains how the transition from the baby boomer generation to millennials in the workforce is changing the industry and the technology.

Log on to https://butterflymx.com/ for more information about Butterfly Fly MX.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building Management Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Penny, a robotic server created by Bear Robotics, is looking to change the future of the restaurant industry. After being programmed to understand the layout of the restaurant, Penny is able to help the serving staff to carry plates back to the kitchen for cleaning and even bring out orders to your table.

Juan Higueros of Bear Robotics said, “They are meant to help servers do a lot of the routine monotonous tasks they have to do.”

By allowing robot servers to help with these simple tasks, store managers and wait staff can focus on giving their customers the best experience possible.

Marriott International and the retail real estate company Simon are partnering to open 5 new hotels near shopping and restaurant locations. Patrick Peterman, VP of development and asset intensification at Simon said, “There is a great synergy when you combine Marriott’s innovative hotels and Simon’s exciting shopping, dining, entertainment and mixed-use properties… The uses are very complementary.” With trends showing consumers wanting places that they can eat and shop at while staying at their hotel, this plan will enable both Marriott and Simon to provide their customers the best of both experiences.

The competition for online payment dominance has just seen an important change for one of the challengers.

PayPal, traditionally known as a purely digital online payment processor, has made a clear statement regarding its plans with the acquisition of Swedish payment company, iZettle. While the company already reaches over 225 million active users, this purchase will provide PayPal with exposure to markets where it does not currently have a strong presence.

The price for this move, which will be around $2.2B dollars, is a solid investment in PayPal’s quest to be an end-to-end payment solution. As the retail industry continues to move towards an ever-stabilizing online ecosystem, the ability to accept and process payments for goods and services via a point-of-sale device will serve PayPal well.

This purchase should also put an end to the speculations that PayPal will buy Square. The addition of a physical component to PayPal’s arsenal will, instead, establish it as a serious competitor in the space.

Kroger, apparently, has no plans on just standing still in its position as one of the largest brick-and-mortar grocery chains in the world.

The supermarket giant recently announced a new partnership with U.K.-based e-commerce expert Ocado.

With both Amazon and Walmart striving to increase their respective online footprints, this strategic alliance between Kroger and Ocado will definitely intensify the battle for U.S. e-grocery dominance.

Ocado’s industry-leading automated fulfillment system and customer-friendly interfaces, are part of the reason that it is one of the few e-commerce grocery businesses in the world that is actually profitable. They generated an EBITDA of around $116M in 2017.

Kroger is no stranger to U.K. companies, having previously worked with both Tesco and Dunnhumby on developing customer loyalty programs.

This partnership will see Kroger take about a %5 stake in the European company, valued at approximately $247M.

The three-compartment sink is a challenge for any restaurant owner; maintaining sanitation levels and temperatures is a constant stressor. Chicago Bar Shop is introducing an automated way to regulate the process with its new Sink Tech.

After a trial run of more than a year, with more than 100 locations involved, Walmart is shelving their Mobile Express Scan and Go app. The app gave customers the option to scan as they shopped, paying from their phones and skipping the checkout line.

On today's podcast, we speak with Isaiah Kacyvenski from Athlete's Technology Capital and Sports Innovation Lab. We discuss the way elite athletes are the perfect people to stress test new technologies, and how sports technology discoveries can influence and benefit several other industries.

For more information about Sports Innovation Lab log on to https://www.sportsilab.com.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports and Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

The hospitality industry has a strong track record of providing just the right personal touch when accommodating guests. A recent technological advance just might force a new definition of that concept.

Over 60 upscale hotels across the country are now using robots to help give that extra personal attention that keeps guests coming back.

The robots are manufactured by a company called Savioke.

At the Luma Hotel Times Square, General Manager, Kate Martin says “We felt it was a novelty and we felt it would be something different to bring to our guests.”

The hotel utilizes a robot named Alina to tend to its 7,463 guest rooms. Alina can provide extra products, such as towels or additional bath products, to guests, and can even call the elevator for itself through a Wi-Fi connection. The guest receives a phone call once the robot has arrived at their door.

This technological trend can free up human employees to devote more time to to providing the human touch that is so critical to the industry’s success.

Here is your Retail Minute, brought to you by MarketScale.

Toys R Us is looking to sell off its intellectual properties, creating what experts say to be one of the best brands to ever be sold by a company going out of business.

Domains such as lodges-r-us.com, burgers-r-us.com and even cigars-r-us.com are going to be up for sale as Toys R Us is in the aftermath of declaring bankruptcy in late 2017.

Bob Phibbs, a brand specialist and chief executive of the Retail Doctor consulting firm said, “It shows the power of the brand… The ‘R’ Us is the key to the brand, not the Toys.”

Though the company has fallen on hard times, it's nice to know that the brand has left a lasting legacy for us.

I’m Bret Brown, and this has been your Retail Minute, brought to you by MarketScale.

With retail stores, restaurants and museums showing pop-ups to be a viable and profitable move, hotels are now doing the same, hosting pop-up shops in their spaces and creating luxury temporary rooms.

Here is your Hospitality Minute, brought to you by MarketScale. The popular Tex-Mex restaurant chain Chili’s is another retailer struck by data breaches within the last year.

Brinker International restaurant group announced on Saturday, May 12th, that credit card information from their customers had been compromised at Chili’s locations.

According to their statement, “While the investigation is still ongoing, we believe that malware was used to gather payment card information, including credit or debit card numbers and cardholder names, from our payment-related systems for in-restaurant purchases at certain Chili's restaurants.”

Thankfully, it has been confirmed that no social security numbers or date of birth records were released during the incident.

I’m Bret Brown, and this has been your Hospitality Minute, brought to you by MarketScale.

Target is testing the old adage that “Sometimes less is more”, with a new distribution model. The retailer is examining a project called a “flow center”. This small-format, quick-response pilot program is being cultivated in the Perth Amboy, N.J. warehouse.

The Spanish-owned brand TRS Hotels introduced a new portal software at their hotels that connects guests directly with housekeeping, butlers and hotel restaurants. With the middle-man out of the equation, guests can now order anything from a drink at the bar to fresh pillows for their room right from their phone or laptop.

US-based startup SuperMoney revealed it's new point of sale system which will help small businesses better manage their finances. It not only links businesses with banks for the most effective financing offers, but makes them more transparent for customers, too.

On today's podcast, I talk with Rick Trunkett, from Big 3 Racing. We discuss the thrill of bringing the original engineer's vision to life when modding a factory muscle car, the luck in learning what you want to do for a living before you get out of high school, and the primary challenge that car makers face during the design process.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transportation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Time for today’s Food and Beverage minute, brought to you by MarketScale.

Tube Tech International, based in Essex in the United Kingdom, has expanded its patented Rotaflex system into the industrial food preparation industry. Originally designed as an industrial cleaning system for the milling industry, the Rotaflex system is now being applied to food processing, beverage brewing, and even distillery industries.

The system doesn’t use chemicals or fumigants, which will merge seamlessly with food production processes.

According to Tube Tech International CEO, Mike Watson, “We are excited to take Rotaflex into further markets in which hygiene and performance is paramount. Rotaflex has already proven itself to be the most cost effective cleaning product available in the milling industry, and its ability to provide an unrivalled level of industrial cleaning without chemicals and fumigants makes the food and beverage production industries the perfect next step.”

Rotaflex is able to be utilized as a one-man, in-house solution, as well.

I’m Sean Heath and this has been your Food and Beverage minute.

Time for today’s Healthcare minute brought to you by MarketScale.

A new application can help ease clinical pain points for patients and care teams, alike.

Arches Technology has partnered with Kettering Health Network, to develop and implement My Care Compass, a new digital patient navigation tool.

The application helps patients before and after their treatments, by helping prepare them for their procedure through animated videos, text messages and emails, timed to coincide with the specific step they are going through.

Post procedure communication also is timed to provide information that is appropriate and useful for the cancer milestones as they reach them. The software architecture is HIPAA compliant, so patient information is secure, and the communications provide a seamless experience for patients.

This approach of removing stress for the patients, and the clinical staff, as well, leads to a more holistic experience for the patients, which, can also, ultimately aid in their recovery.

I’m Sean Heath and this has been your Healthcare minute.

Autonomous vehicles not ready for rush hour

Welcome to today’s Transportation minute, brought to you by MarketScale.

Uber technologies has hired the former Chairman of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, Christopher Hart, as part of the company’s efforts to correct its safety processes, after the fatal pedestrian accident involving one of their self-driving vehicles in March.

The accident that led to the death of Arizona pedestrian, Elaine Herzberg, was caused by a software fault that instructed the vehicle to ignore the pedestrian. The avoidance protocol normally applied in that instance was not active at the time of the accident.

The system processes data gathered by its LIDAR, radar, and cameras to determine if an object in the road is a threat to the vehicle and is supposed to respond accordingly. This should lead to avoidance of pedestrians and other vehicles, but, not, for instance, a plastic bag on the roadway.

Christopher Hart will act as an advisor to assist Uber in its complete self-driving vehicles safety program review, as well as its overall safety culture.

I’m Sean Heath and this has been your Transportation minute.

Time for today’s Sports and Entertainment minute, brought to you by MarketScale.

Chicago Cubs fans are getting something new to cheer in 2020.

The Ricketts family is in the process of acquiring controlling rights to the Chicago USL expansion franchise, scheduled to debut in 2020.

The new entity, which will be known as North Side Entertainment Holdings, will receive all game-day revenue from the new stadium, scheduled to be constructed as part of a 70-acre riverfront mixed-use development in the Lincoln Park and Bucktown neighborhoods.

There are additional cross-promotional opportunities with the Cubs, as well, including the potential for a yearly USL match at Wrigley Field. The potential Cubs TV network could also be a possible point of broadcast, once the current broadcast agreements expire in 2019.

This new USL franchise could also be an opportunity for the over 100,000 fans on the Cubs’ season ticket waiting list, to have another team to cheer for on the North Side.

I’m Sean Heath and this has been your Sports and Entertainment minute.

Small Graf: Starship Technologies is taking their self-driving food-delivery robots out of San Francisco after several complaints from community members and strict regulations from the city government. They company is looking to implement the robots in areas that are more open to the idea.

Small Graf: Amazon and Sears made a new deal allowing Sears to perform tire services for any brand tires purchased on Amazon's website. The hope is that this partnership will bring more traffic to Sears stores.

Square is introducing a new point-of-sale system for restaurants that cohesively brings together all aspects of restaurant service, from menu updates to waiter performance to tip splitting. It's also staying up to date with the restaurant industries evolving channels, integrating delivery and pick-up to its software.

Walmart is helping curb the nation's opioid crisis by limiting the size of opioid prescriptions in the next 60 days. It also plans to transition to solely e-prescriptions by January of 2020, a more reliable form of getting prescription information.

On today's podcast, we chat with Dylan Rubino of the New York Mets we discussed sports media and the sports industry as a whole.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the sports and entertainment industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we speak with Professor Susan Fleming of Cornell University. We discuss women advancements' and harassment in the hospitality industry.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Hospitality Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we spoke with Scott McDonald, Pres, CEO of F-Wave. F-Wave builds and markets roofing products for residential and commercial structures.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Building MGMT Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Jeff Evans from Playtime. We discuss how the task of designing for children infuses the company with perspective, the challenges of integrating new technology with active play concepts.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's Food & Science podcast, we sit down with Megan Sprague, Communications Associate for Wingstop. We get to hear how Wingstop stays culturally relevant to build its brand, both internally and externally (the Migos may or may not get a shout-out). Plus, Megan tells us how digital ordering is pushing the company to innovate in exciting ways.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Brendan Candon from Sideline Swap. We discuss the formation of the company, how security drives the confidence in the industry, the recent industry changes that they are focusing on, and how they approach inevitable growth. We also cure Brendan's fear of dancing.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, I get a chance to chat with Steve Dennis from SageBerry. We discuss a recent post to his blog regarding the "Death of Retail", how boring is a bad choice for a retailer, and how members of the industry will have to evolve if they want to survive.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we hear from Arlen Meyers, president and CEO of the Society of Physician Entrepreneurs. We discuss Meyers' first-hand experience with creating new products in a structured field, the responsibilities of an entrepreneurial mind (à la Marvel), and what Meyers sees for the future of physician-led innovation.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Health Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Ben Weiss from Zcruit. We discuss the new approach to recruiting, how data can play a massive role in "knowing where you stand" with any recruit.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's Medical podcast, we talk to Nic Roberts-Huntley of CancerAid about how their application is saving lives.

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we have a conversation with Eric Crabb from QSI Facilities. We discuss the "invisible, but critical" nature of facility services, the improved efficiency of on-demand services vs on-site personnel, and the expanded, multi-discipline skillset that will be common in technicians, moving forward.

On this episode of our Health Podcast, we sit down with Dema Poppa, CEO of Invio, to talk through the ways his company is helping to make managing clinical trial documents easier.

For more information on Invio, Inc. be sure to check out - invioinc.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Health Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, I have a chat with Will Byrne from Razoyo. We discuss the evolution of their company from primarily B2C to now over 80% B2B, the true spirit of the SMB, and how e-commerce is helping to bring added value to enterprise companies of all shapes and sizes.

For more information on Razoyo, be sure to check out - Razoyo.com

Follow them on social media here! twitter.com/razoyo linkedin.com/company/razoyo

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, I have a chat with Cullen Gallagher, Co-Founder and CEO of Reely. We discuss the new way that fans are sharing sports with friends, how technology is changing the way we observe sporting events, and how to use AI and Machine Learning to recognize, rank and distribute sports highlights.

For more information on Reely, be sure to check out - Reely.ai

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, I chat with Tessa Lau from Savioke. We discuss her thoughts about the true purpose of robots, the approach Savioke is taking to introduce this functionality in our everyday lives, and how automation and robotics can simplify a lot of the processes within the hotel industry.

On today's podcast, we chat with Sharlene Sternberg from Sensoria. We discuss the expansion of wearables in the healthcare space, some of the future advancements that are going to be here quite soon, and how the market as a whole is changing.

For more information on Sensoria, check out - sensoriafitness.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Cale Miller from Cushman & Wakefield. We discuss the challenges that a company can face when they grow faster than expected (personnel-wise), a healthy location mindset that all companies should have, the future of having multiple centers of excellence within a corporate plan, and he issues the 1st official Super Mario Brothers Marathon Tournament challenge. (At least it felt like a challenge.)

For more information on Cushman & Wakefield check out - cushmanwakefield.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the AEC Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Angelica Whaley from AMSA/AMCI. We discuss her passion for the healthcare professionals that tend to be unnoticed (nurses), the challenge in providing what they need to be successful and happy in their careers, and how she tackles the need for staffing in healthcare.

On today's podcast, we chat with Derrick Oien from ScoreStream. We discuss the way they are focused on developing the social aspect of sports events, the challenge in coordinating the massive amount of data that they generate on any given day, and I get an update on that exciting Dunham vs Derby British American Football Universities championship.

For more information on ScoreStream, check out - scorestream.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Nick Brackenbury from Near St. We discuss a literal "lightbulb moment" that led to the founding of the company, the logical approach that they take towards local businesses, some challenges with managing data for an area, and Nick recounts his personal stress-test for the app.

For more information on Near St. and how they're helping retailers reconnect with their customers check out their website here - https://near.st

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we have a conversation with Kevin Klammer from the Jacksonville Jaguars. We discuss the constantly-changing guest experience in sports, the redefinition of the concept of a "seat" in a stadium, the partnership goals of a sports franchise with its business partners, and we start formulating their next bid to host the Super Bowl.

Be sure to check out the Jacksonville Jaguars on jaguars.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, I chat with Monica Ricci from Catalyst Organizing. We talk about the commonalities between consumer and corporate organizational approaches, the role that inertia can play in maintaining some semblance of order, and the redefinition of the concept of "work-life" balance.

For more information on Catalyst Organizing, be sure to check out - catalystorganizing.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transporation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Thomas Schmedding from Freshbox. We briefly discuss the importance of cold-chain storage being introduced worldwide, the drastic improvements the technology can bring, and how a community-based system can quickly benefit a region.

For more information on how Freshbox is revolutionizing the way we waste food, be sure to check out their website - freshbox.co.ke

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Alex Nossovskoi from Brizi. We discuss the changing landscape with regard to social media adoption, the evolution of the fan experience in-stadium, the generational misconceptions about social media, and the inclusion of landmarks in the industry.

For more information on Brizi, be sure to check out - brizicam.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, I have a conversation with Chris David, CEO and Founder of Arcade City. We discuss the evolution of the sharing economy, the benefits of decentralization, and the future of ride-sharing.

For more information on Arcade City, be sure to check out - https://arcade.city/

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transporation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we talk with Rob Brull from Corepoint Health. We discuss the recent move towards open APIs in the healthcare technical approach, the development of cloud-based availability, and he presents a very solid case for continuing to hold conferences in the crazy chaos of Las Vegas.

For more information on Corepoint Health, check out - corepointhealth.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Kit Franklin from the Hands Free Hectare. We discuss the project's success, the inherent logic in building autonomous systems for agriculture, the efficient usage of both data and manpower in the industry, and how automated machines can grow crops remotely, without operators even having to be on-site.

For more information on Hands Free Hectare, check out - handsfreehectare.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, I talk with Alex Azeredo from The Logistix Company. We discuss the changing realities of the industry, how technology will play a significant role in the future demographics of the labor pool(and if there will even need to be a labor pool in the not too distant future), and how automation may actually create more jobs than it's predicted to eliminate.

For more information on The Logistix Company, check out - thelogistixco.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Transporation Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we have a chat with Malcolm Lemmons from Players Point Agency. We discuss the thought process that athletes go through when preparing for the work they want to do after their playing career, the focus they should put on their brand during their playing days, and the perfect time to start planning for the end of one's playing career.

For more information on Players Point Agency, check out - playerspointagency.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we get to chat with Mike Piha from HitCheck. We discuss the growing attention being paid to concussion testing applications, the ability to get coaches to buy into the need for comprehensive immediate evaluation, and the possible introduction of this technology to help military members, as well.

HitCheck is a free app that's available on iOS and Android for download!

For more information on HitCheck, check out - hitcheck.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Sports & Entertainment Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we chat with Healey Cypher from Oak Labs. We discuss their focus on reinvigorating the human-to-human retail experience, how technology can help them redefine that relationship, and how technology needs to be usable in order to be worthwhile. We also find out where he goes to "escape the grid".

For more information on Oak Labs, be sure to check out - oaklabs.is

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we get to chat with Ed King from Highstreet Collective and James Yancey from Cloudtags. We discuss the radical redefinition of the retailer/customer relationship, the way that this changes the design aspect, and how customer input can now inform the retail experience for both sides of the cash register.

For more information on Highstreet Collective, check out - highstreetx.com

And be sure to check out Cloudtags here - connectedstore.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we have a chat with Nicole Leinbach Reyhle from Retail Minded. We discuss the role technology is playing in the revolution in the retail space, the true definition of "omnichannel", the future of shopping as an experience, and she reveals her perfect retro shopping adventure. (Hint: It's not Paris.)

For more information on Retail Minded, be sure to check out - retailminded.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Retail Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we have a chat with Themis Anthrakopoulos from HotelMate. We discuss the overlooked segment of the hospitality industry that HotelMate helps, the advances in technology and how they change the guest expectations and we find out if he could survive an entire week in Bora Bora WITHOUT cell service.

For more information on HotelMate, be sure to follow them on twitter - @hotel_mate

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Hospitality Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast I chat with Jeff Richards, the CEO, and founder of Mooala. We discuss the growth of the plant-based dairy-free industry, the move in the industry to address the surge in sensitivity to allergens, and the impact these alternatives to dairy are having on the industry as a whole.

For more information on Mooala be sure to check out - mooala.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Food & Beverage Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we have a chat with Dr. Chris Leslie from Consensus Orthopedics. We discuss a new technological approach to helping patients recover from surgery, how increasing communication actually increases efficiency and lowers costs for everyone, and how the landscape of care is changing as a whole.

For more information on Consensus Orthopedics, check out - consensusortho.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, we have a conversation with Geoff Brenner, the CEO of TPC. We discuss how the constant changes in healthcare make for a challenging environment for hospitals, the benefits of a hospital choosing to remain independent, and the advantages of embracing a community-based approach to healthcare.

For more information on TPC, be sure to check out their website - tpc1.com

For the latest news, videos, and podcasts in the Healthcare Industry, be sure to subscribe to our industry publication.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates! Twitter – twitter.com/marketscale Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

On today's podcast, I get to chat with Jamie Ritchie from Sotheby's. We discuss the process of acquiring wine for auction, the challenge of determining a starting price, the changing tastes of consumers worldwide, and we hear how it felt to drink one of the most expensive bottles of wine in the world.

For more information on Sotheby's Wine check out - sothebyswine.com

Welcome to the Transportation podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Transportation Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in everything from ground, sea, air and space travel.

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

On today's podcast, I have a chance to talk to Alistair Banham (CEO) and Harald Buchman (CCO) from PureLiFi. We discuss the completely logical reason to develop a way to use light as a communication protocol, some of the stunning advantages of LiFi over WiFi (security, control, efficiency), and we almost get them to spill a big secret that they are going to reveal at the WMC next week.

For more information on PureLiFi be sure to check out - purelifi.com

On today's podcast, we have a conversation with Jonathan Weizman, the CEO of Roomchecking. We discuss the challenges faced when introducing technology to the hospitality industry, how access to PMS data has changed the industry, and we confirm that the usage of new technologies can allow hoteliers to focus on the original function of hotels: helping a guest feel welcome.

For more information on Roomchecking, be sure to check out their website roomchecking.com

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

Welcome to the Transportation podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Transportation Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in everything from ground, sea, air and space travel.

On today's podcast, I speak with Roberto Balestrini, the Founder of the American FootGolf League. We discuss the rapid growth of footgolf in the U.S., the family-centric possibilities, how it integrates seamlessly with existing properties, and the reason Roberto won't play footgolf with Lionel Messi. (It's not why you think.)

For more information on the American FootGolf League, check out footgolf.us

On today's podcast, we get to chat with Kyle Robertson, the CEO of NarrativeDX. We discuss the rapid growth of Artificial Intelligence as a tool in the industry, the power that it gives back to personalization in healthcare, and how Kyle is helping to improve the patient experience from every angle.

For more information on NarrativeDX, be sure to check out - narrativedx.com

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

On today's podcast, I have a chat with Taylor Baird from Legends. We discuss the phenomenal changes that technology is bringing to the sporting experience, how the evolving social aspect of sports entertainment is changing the actual architecture of stadiums, and how organizations like Legends are transforming the stadium experience for fans.

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

On today's podcast, we have a chat with Joy Fan, from Storefront. We discuss the philosophical change that technology is bringing to the retail space, how pop-ups are redefining the way designers enter the marketplace and the best ways to ease the struggle that the unknown real estate industry brings to new retailers today.

For more information on Storefront, be sure to check out their website - thestorefront.com

Technology majors are in high demand for the retail field as recruiters or talent seeks are going crazy trying to find qualified individuals for Nordstrom, Best Buy, Kroger, and even Home Depot. With so many of these chains moving to a completely autonomous check out process, the demand for technology talent is skyrocketing as retail expert Craig Rowley told the Chicago Tribune that “over the next decade, up to 60% of retail jobs will involve new roles or duties.” In fact, at this year’s NRF Trade Show in New York, the New York Times described the experience as, “a conference about shopping that looked more like an expo for tech.”

Read more at: https://marketscale.com/industries/retail/listen-sky-rocketing-demand-retail-tech/

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

Welcome to the Food & Beverage podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Food and Beverage Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in restaurant technology, management, and all things F&B.

On today's podcast, I have a chat with Christine Spraker and Aki Alzubaidi from Matrix Analytics. We discuss the rapid development in the industry of using AI and Deep Learning to help caregivers, the importance of listening before you think, and how getting angry about something can work for doctors, sometimes..

For more information on Matrix Analytics, be sure to check out matrix-analytics.com

And for the best articles, interviews, videos, and podcasts from the Health industry be sure to subscribe to our publication.

We're joined by an exciting guest today as Logan Dickinson is on the show from the Boston Celtics! We discuss the rise in popularity of streaming services and how it is both an advantage and disadvantage to the Sports industry. Also, we talk about the insurgence of e-gaming and how it's led the NBA into creating their own online gaming league. Lastly, we talk about the importance of sports venues being a step ahead of their consumer as they look to accommodate future technology like increased WIFI capability and expansive charging stations.

For the best articles, interviews, videos, and podcasts from the Sports & Entertainment industry be sure to subscribe to our publication.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

On today's podcast, I get to talk with John Alper, the Chief Sales Officer with the Frisco RoughRiders. We discuss some of the challenges in developing brand partnerships, the different entertainment expectations between the "Big 5" sports leagues and minor league franchises, and the changes that legalized sports gambling could bring to professional sports franchises.

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

On today's podcast, we have a sit-down with Browning Stubbs of ESPN. We discuss how the emergence of streaming is changing the approach to content delivery, the ever-increasing demand for technical advancement, and a possible new synergy between sports franchises and broadcasters.

To keep up to date with Browning, be sure to follow him on twitter.com/BrowningStubbs

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

Today on the Podcast, we talk to the inventor, founder, and president of The Iron Neck, Mike Jolly. From athlete to entrepreneur, we delve into the foundations of his company, and the science behind functional sports training.

In 2012, after losing teammates at UCLA to CPE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy), a progressive degenerative disease which afflicts the brain of people who have suffered repeated concussions and traumatic brain injuries, Mike wanted to focus on finding preventive measures for CPE, which led to his work on the research of concussions.

After a research study surfaced that studied 7500 High School student-athletes and found that 1 pound of neck strength increase decreased the risk of concussions by 5%, Mike invented the Iron Neck. In just a month and a half of targeted training, the device can increase strength up to 25%.

But not everyone was on board with the device in the beginning. Mike goes on to tell us about the skepticism he faced while introducing his device at the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association Strength Show in 2012, and the rise of its use in programs across the country.

Mike also shares his thoughts and ideas on the future of innovative thinking in Sports strength training, and where the emphasis of playing smarter, not stronger will impact the health of athletes in the years to come.

Some states have already made neck strength training mandatory in athletic programs, and Mike Jolly has been pivotal in shaping these training programs across the country.

For more information on Iron Neck after listening to the podcast, visit Mike’s website at http://www.iron-neck.com/

Welcome to the Transportation podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Transportation Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in everything from ground, sea, air and space travel.

Welcome to the Food & Beverage podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Food and Beverage Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in restaurant technology, management, and all things F&B.

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

Welcome to the Transportation podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Transportation Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in everything from ground, sea, air and space travel.

On today's podcast, I have the pleasure of chatting with Natasha Morgan from Umbel. We discuss the technological advancements from a sports marketer's point of view, the challenges in using data effectively, and how to improve the fan experience through engagement!

For more information on Umbel, be sure to check out their website - umbel.com

On today's podcast, we have a conversation with Keith Johnson from Brilliant Ecom! We discuss the realities that large companies have not been prepared for the rapid growth of e-commerce, how smaller companies just might be better equipped to adjust to changes in the marketplace, and how this evolution will affect the future of product development.

For more information on Brilliant Ecom! be sure to check out their website - brilliantecom.com

Brannon Bourland from FSG joins the show today as we talk all things Building Management! Our conversation begins as we discuss the evolution of LED lighting within the space and how this addition ultimately brings more value to your building, as well as financial evaluation. We also discuss the importance of energy efficiency and how the future is looking more and more for low voltage options within electric construction and design circuit.

For more information on FSG, be sure to check out their website fsgi.com

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

We're excited to feature Rod Collins, President of Bulldog Mobile Billboards, on our Transporation Podcast this week. We discuss the aggressive adoption of LED Advertising trucks in the industry as it continues to capture a massive amount of market share. Even though LED is quite an investment initially, Rod makes the point that it's the future you need to look at and that you can't ultimately expect these mobile advertisements to sell themselves!

For more information on Bulldog Mobile Billboards, check out their website bulldogbillboards.com

On today's podcast, we get to speak with Ryan Coplon, the co-founder, and partner with Echelon Risk. We discuss how the current healthcare insurance system functions, the inevitable changes on the way, and how Echelon (and HealthWallet) are trying to help change the way we handle personal healthcare costs.

For more information on Echelon Risk, be sure to check out their website echelonrisk.com

On today's podcast, I get to have a chat with Ray Hartjen from RetailNext. We discuss the revolutionary changes in the approach to retail, some interesting thoughts on the best shopping experts, and just how difficult it is to "out-Amazon Amazon".

For more information on RetailNext, be sure to check out retailnext.net

Welcome to the Transportation podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Transportation Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in everything from ground, sea, air and space travel.

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

On today's podcast, we get to chat with Jennifer Ruscin, the owner of Growth Spurt Sales and Marketing. We discuss the tectonic shift in marketing strategy. the new paradigm that has retailers actually listening to customers, how technology helps work smarter not harder, and the future delivery of Oreos and "grape-based" beverages.

As an entrepreneur who has worked for the largest retailer in the world, Jennifer brings a wealth of knowledge, wisdom, experience, and expertise to the brick-and-mortar and online business worlds.

In just three short years, she took her own business from zero to half a million dollars. Her portfolio includes several, multimillion dollar clients who are now earning as much as six figures a month. She is also working less; working smarter; and getting out of her own way in her business so that she can recover lost time and do the things that she loves: taking care of herself, taking care of her family, and giving back.

Jennifer is now combining her love of teaching and life hacking to help business owners, as business owners and as human beings, live the life they’ve always dreamed of by scaling their business the right way; by working smarter, not harder; and by creating their own reality.

Welcome to the Food & Beverage podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Food and Beverage Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in restaurant technology, management, and all things F&B.

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

On this episode of our Retail Podcast, we sit down with Andrew Straitman, Director, Strategy & eCommerce, and the President of CPC, Steven Maisel. We talk about CPC's growth, notable mentions in Reuters and the Huffington Post, as well as their move to Madison Avenue. Other topics of discussion include how eCommerce is consistently innovating the industry but we also mention how it can be a double-edged sword from a competitive standpoint. Despite the rise of online shopping, packaging still remains crucial to the industry as consumer experience and brand consistency are still major differentiators between your brand and others.

For more information on CPC, be sure to check out their website - commonwealthpackaging.com

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

On this episode of our Sports & Entertainment podcast, we get the chance to chat with Matt Pauli, the Marketing Director for Standard Golf. We discuss the evolution of golf gear and groundskeeping, the challenge of introducing the next generation to the game, the accessibility appeal of golf, and where the industry as a whole is headed in the future.

For more information on Standard Golf, be sure to check out https://www.standardgolf.com/

Tesla might be the most prominent name that comes up when discussing the electric vehicle industry, but that is rapidly changing. According to John Gartner, an analyst at Navigant Research, “The story is not just about Tesla anymore. There’s an ecosystem.”

Recent struggles with internal delays, and issues with an outside supplier falling behind, have caused Tesla to scramble to maintain its position at the forefront of the electric vehicle industry.

The largest competitor seems to be a large group of Chinese automakers that are producing hundreds of thousands of vehicles a year.

Less than 1% all passenger vehicles currently on the road are EV, but that number could increase to approximately 1/3 of all vehicles by 2040.

While Elon Musk has assembled top design, engineering, and marketing talent, China has invested in policies and subsidies to strengthen its EV industry. Chinese automakers could produce more than 4.5 million electric vehicles annually in 2020 and one company - GAC Motors is even planning to sell cars in the US as soon as next year.

One of the growing dietary trends in both the United States and abroad, is a focus on decreasing salt intake on a daily basis. This presents a delicate situation of balancing an essential mineral with real health concerns. Cargill is accepting that challenge by opening its first food grade potassium chloride facility at the salt plant in Watkins Glen, New York.

On today's podcast, I get to chat with Alisha Prakash, the Editor for Oyster. We discuss how honesty in reviews can actually lead to improving a vacation (even if the vacation isn't perfect), how imposing traveler caps can help destinations maintain quality, and how to tell if the hotel you're getting is the real deal.

On today's episode of our Sports & Entertainment Podcast, we're excited to have Jeff Isler join the show! We get to talk about how innovative technology continues to speed up the player development process in the industry and also how "big data" is now reaching into the golf world. We also discuss how the learning process have been enhanced by these tools and how from a business standpoint, this technology has really allowed golf coaches to finally scale their business!

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

Welcome to the Transportation podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Transportation Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in everything from ground, sea, air and space travel.

On today's podcast, we get to talk with Alex Carroll from Toss Up Events. We discuss their approach to branding and fan engagement, bringing back the social element to social media, and how to customize the fan experience to make it unique for everyone in 2018.

On this episode, we get to sit down with Kevin Martin, Sous Chef at the criticially acclaimed Lucia in Dallas, TX. We discuss old school cooking techniques making a comeback and new school trends in the food industry. And although Lucia is famous for its authentic Italian eats and limited seating, Martin has tips on how to get a spot at the table.

Welcome to the Food & Beverage podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Food and Beverage Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in restaurant technology, management, and all things F&B.

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

On this edition of the podcast, I get to catch up with Ryan Moats, the Director of Marketing for Playtime. We discuss just how the relationship between retailers and customers has changed over the past 20 years, how technology can properly applied to encourage social interaction instead of locking eyes on a small screen, and the emergence of the "retailtainment" approach to marketing.

On this episode of our Food & Beverage Podcast, we get a chance to speak with Carrie Luxem, the CEO of Restaurant HR Group. We discuss the delicate balance between establishing a culture in a new restaurant venture and allowing that culture to grow as time goes by. We also talk about getting the qualified and right "players" for a restaurant's "team" and having them become leaders.

On this episode of our Transportation Podcast we get to sit down with Jordan O'Connor, from Zonar Systems, to share his industry expertise on the logistics side of the industry space! Topics of discussion include his perspective from the brokerage logistics side of things and what's to come in the software creation aspect of the industry. Also, we discuss innovations in GPS tracking, smart fleet maintenance, and even get to hear about what the shortage of drivers in the industry means in regards to autonomous vehicle funding and software optimization within the future of driver-less freight.

On this episode of our Building Management Podcast, we get the chance to chat with Christof Babinsky, Managing Director of ASB Glassfloors. We discuss the amazing advancements that they have made with regard to flooring, meeting spaces, and arenas. We also talk about revolutionizing flat surfaces, in general.

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

On this episode of our Health podcast, we sit down with Paul Stubenbordt, Owner of Denali Creative, and discuss the latest trends in medical marketing, and the current relationship between practices and how to effectively manage those relationships.

On this episode of our healthcare podcast, we get the chance to talk with Jake Sigler, Development Manager of MedCore. We take a deep dive into the booming world of retirement communities, from building them, to filling them! With more and more people retiring every day, the need for these communities has sky-rocketed in the last 5 years, and we get down to the nuts and bolts of what goes into building and outfitting these large-scale projects.

Welcome to the Transportation podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Transportation Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in everything from ground, sea, air and space travel.

On this episode of our Sports & Entertainment Podcast, we have a conversation with Mike Sage, the General Manager for Corporate Sponsorships for Mustang Sports Properties. We discuss the challenges in building on the prestige of an already respected university, the focus on creating the community feel when surrounded by a largely transplanted civic population, and the process that goes into determining if a venture between a business and the university will be a good partnership for both sides.

Welcome to the Retail podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Retail Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in technology, management, brick & mortar, digital innovations and all things Retail.

Olga Yurovski returns to the podcast, this time with fellow CPG consultant, Tammy Brumfield. We hit on some of the problems shopper marketing is facing, and how to fix it in 2018. We discuss CPG brands facing unprecedented technology disruption in the retail space, the path to purchase evolving at light speed, shopper marketing being stuck in neutral with the wheels spinning, what CPG leaders can do to throw their shopper marketing in gear, and stories of when shopper marketing hits the mark.

Listen in now and check out Olga and Tammy's soon to be released book on ways to build modern Shopper Marketing capabilities here (http://info.shopperations.com/how-to-build-a-modern-shopper-marketing-capability)

Visit www.shopperations.com for more information!

On this episode of our Retail podcast, we have the chance to talk with retail analytics expert Ray Hartjen. We talk about the work he's been doing with RetailNext, we discuss analytics from the standpoint of brick & mortar retailers, how mobile devices are being utilized by the shopper and retailer, as well as what role machine learning plays in the future ahead. Not to mention, we get a sneak peak about what to expect at this year’s NRF event! Take a listen.

For more information on RetailNext check out https://retailnext.net/

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

On this episode of our Food & Beverage podcast, we get to speak of speaking with Stephanie Petty, a General Manager with McDonald's. We discuss the company's role as an industry leader on both the food and dining experience sides, the role technology is playing in the redefinition of "fast food", and the community-focused attitude of the company as a whole.

Welcome to the Sports & Entertainment podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Sports & Entertainment Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in innovative technology, management, cultural shifts, and everything in-between.

Today I chat with Andrew Rittler, the Executive Director of the Greater Dallas Restaurant Association. We discuss the recent changes in the dining industry, the importance of adaptation within the space, the imperative of changing the reputation of the service industry, as a whole, for potential employees, and the crucial role that education will play moving forward.

The free market pricing model for the airline industry in North America may allow for fluctuations in consumer costs, but recent changes in Chinese regulations could start affecting domestic travel in that country, for the first time.

In a recent joint statement by the Civil Aviation Administration of China and the National Development and Reform Commission, the state-regulated airfare price caps on domestic travel have been removed.

This resulted in an immediate increase in stock price for the largest carrier in Asia, by passenger volume, China Southern Airlines Company. Both state-owned airlines, Air China Limited and China Eastern Airlines Company saw their stock prices increase by as much as 10 percent, as well.

China has been moving towards more liberal business measures in recent years by removing price caps on certain routes, especially those competing directly with high-speed train service.

The CAAC’s announcement comes almost a full 2 years ahead of their previously announced pricing pledge.

Today we have the chance to chat with Will Beecher from Lockheed Martin. We discuss the technological advances driving the trucking industry forward, the balance between building roads for towns vs. building towns for roads, and the absolute need for a dependable watch.

Welcome to the Food & Beverage podcast, by MarketScale: Your home for everything B2B in the Food and Beverage Industry! Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders as we explore trends in restaurant technology, management, and all things F&B.

This is the Building Management podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest trends and news that revolutionizes the way Facility Managers and Building Operation Managers adapt to accommodate to the needs of those they serve! Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of Building Management.

Welcome to the Health podcast, by MarketScale: Your source for all things Health - tech, care, devices, security, startups, benefits, facilities, software, pharma, IT, med ed and more. Join us for new episodes every week featuring conversations with industry leaders discussing the latest innovations, advances and news in the industry.

This is the Hospitality podcast, by MarketScale. Here, we dive into the latest B2B trends and news from hotels, to tourism, to event planning, and so much more. Tune in for interviews with trend-setting thought leaders who provide compelling insights into the future of the Hospitality industry!

Building Management is going through a revolution. On this episode of the Building Management podcast, we catch up with Ken Burkhalter formerly of RAND Building Management as we discover how technology is evolving to inspire a younger generation of building managers with focused ideas. Their insight into this fledgling profession is evolving the industry with fresh takes on old issues. Discover the advantages of working with smaller, agile teams, and how leadership is emerging within the community.

Ken takes us step by step through the importance of rehearsed disaster preparedness plans, and which prepared teams are more adept at dealing with stressful situations in meaningful ways. We’ll unpack which organizations are best equipped to handle disaster situations through the use of effective space design, and why defying industry trends in favor of thoughtful design is important to remember when designing a space.

On this episode of the Health Podcast, we get the 4-1-1 on a new device that takes the sting out of injections. Portal Instruments is debuting some of its newest technology for the healthcare industry-- needle-free injectors. Portal will be partnering with biotech and pharmaceutical companies to launch the device along with drugs on the market.

The biotech industry is blossoming with new treatments for patients with chronic conditions like Multiple Sclerosis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Crohn's disease to name a few, and this new device aims to ease the trauma for patients that need daily injections. Along with a health app, this device is connected so patients are able to track symptoms, connect themselves to physicians and care teams, and open up the lines of communication with their providers.

Follow along with us as we learn the history of needle-free injectors and how this new technology from Portal Instruments aims to administer less painful injections, and how the device streamlines the administration process by deploying higher doses of medications that older needle-free injectors were unable to do before.

Listen on to find out what this partnership means for the future of medicine, and how Portal Instruments is at the forefront of biologic drug administration. For more information, head over to their website at www.portalinstruments.com.

On this episode of the Building Management podcast, we sit down with Adam Bernhardt, Vice President and General Manager of Peloton Commercial Real Estate at the famous Bank of America Plaza in Dallas, Texas. This episode of the podcast stands out from the rest as our main subject is a 72 story building, the 3rd tallest in Texas, and one that most think of first when asked about the city of Dallas. We talk with Adam about the iconic LED lights that that line the building and reflect the mood and events of the city, being part of something bigger downtown, understanding what tenants want and how to keep tenants and downtown thriving when the suburbs come calling, and a few fun facts about what it take to keep the lights on and business booming inside.

On this weeks episode, we get to chat with Ian Esplin, Founder & CEO of Esplin Organics. We got into the thick of it talking about finding organic solutions to agricultural diseases. He and his team are working on many exciting projects, including an alternative treatment for American Foulbrood, a destructive disease that targets honeybees. We also discuss major developments in biotech and the future of organic treatments.

On the latest episode of the MarketScale Retail podcast, we were joined by Olga Yurovski, Champion of the shopper marketer, and 15 year veteran of the Consumer Packaged Goods industry with some of the industries biggest names. In addition to her work in the CPG marketing world, Olga is the creator of the innovative marketing software, Shopperations. Olga talks with us about the frustrations of not having the same access to data as the other teams in the company…. And then doing something about that. We also learn about automation meeting personalization, balancing old school creative with new school data creation, and glorifying the marketer who finds a way to get as much ROI from a campaign as possible, not just through emotional response, but through the numbers.

On this episode of the healthcare podcast, we sit down with Dr. Jose Medina Inojosa of the Mayo Clinic to discuss cardiovascular health, obesity, and the new ways physicians are starting to think in these areas. Also: How can you stay cardiovascular healthy while at work? Is 10,000 steps enough? What's the magic number? What steps can executives take to fight off obesity and heart disease while still putting in the long hours? Or what hours should you be working? thinking about thinking that talking about cardiovascular disease and it's relation to obesity.

For more updates on the world of health be sure to follow Jose on Twitter @MedinaInojosaMD! and to learn more about the exciting research being conducted by Dr. Medina and his colleagues at the Mayo Clinic click the link! http://www.mayo.edu/research/centers-programs/cardiovascular-research-center

Also, for the most recent news, podcasts, and videos in Healthcare be sure to follow our Twitter account @HEALTHmksl!

Today on the podcast, we have a conversation with John Yovanovitch from the Arlington City Fire Department. We discuss how far technology has come in his 20-year career (Goodbye, paper maps!), ways in which technology has helped efficiency, trends that will affect the immediate future, and what it takes to be a firefighter in 2017.

Today on the podcast we get to speak with Sam Doerr, VP of Sales and Marketing for Phoenix Rising FC. We discuss the power of analytics from a consumer-centric perspective, the brilliance of triangle partnerships, and the importance of hydration.

Did you know that your rental car could be one of the easiest ways for you personal information to be stolen? Privacy International is bringing to light the nuanced issue of smart phone data that is left in rental cars. Rental car infotainment systems can hold information such as your contacts, calendar data, driving history and more. However, neither the Car Manufacturers nor the Rental Car Companies will take responsibility for insuring this information is safe. Privacy International's Graham Wood said, A lot of thinking needs to go on by both rental firms and car manufacturers about how they manage data and the duty of care they have to their customers.” Privacy International has approached a number of Rental Car companies and even the UK Information Commissioner's Office in hopes to find a resolution to this issue.

The topic of autonomous car is not a new one for the transportation industry as these talks have been occurring for years. However, in recent news, Nissan has recently come out stating that they will be taking their focus into introducing their take of the fully autonomous vehicle into the market by as soon as 2022.

On today's Healthcare podcast, we get a chance to talk with Spencer Jones, CEO, and Founder of Lineus Medical. We discuss a brilliant idea that started him on this path, the heart of healthcare and the difference more efficient medical devices can make.

Today I have the opportunity to chat with Ryan Moats from Playtime. We discuss the concept of art in the retail space, the benefits of "retailtainment", and the importance of the customer experience.

On this episode, we take a look into the race to stay ahead of the pack in the highly competitive world of college sports. In this world facilities matter and can contribute directly to recruits, academics, and championships. Clemson University's Associate AD, Facilities, Joseph J. Simon, walks us through Clemson's amazing, new $55 Football Complex as well as prior work constructing University of Central Florida's football stadium and basketball arena with deadlines of opening within one month of each other.

On today's Health podcast, we get to chat with Beth Griffin, Chief Marketing and Product Officer with Health Payment Systems. We talk about their solution for the anxiety that comes with trying to understand and manage medical bills, as well as Beth's career-long dedication to consumer advocacy.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter @ProAVMKT as well as rate, review, and subscribe on iTunes!

For more articles, videos, and news about the Pro A/V industry check out - marketscale.com/industries/pro-av

On today's episode we have Chris Langehaug, Executive Vice President of ChartLogic, on the show talking us through the differences between EHR and EMR's and how the move to electronic records in Healthcare is revolutionizing the industry as a whole.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter @ProAVMKT as well as rate, review, and subscribe on iTunes!

For more articles, videos, and news about the Pro A/V industry check out - marketscale.com/industries/pro-av

Single-payer? Universal? The fight continues but A majority of states are now buying into value-based care. A study done by Change Healthcare and reported by Healthcare IT News states The study found that more than 40 states are pursuing value-based payment programs, with 15 multi-payer initiatives across those states.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter @ProAVMKT as well as rate, review, and subscribe on iTunes!

For more articles, videos, and news about the Pro A/V industry check out - marketscale.com/industries/pro-av

Beer like any other beverage is a hard market to break into. But In local and regional areas, craft beers are experiencing a 5 to 6 percent growth amongst the overall beer market, according to CNBC.

As a business model, AirBnB sounds like a great alternative to a bed and breakfast. AirBnB gives a warm, home feeling to each guest instead of sometimes a stale environment of a chain hotel. But with the horror stories we hear from AirBnB guests and sometimes the owners of the house being rented, it's obvious that this business model would implode on itself due to the cautionary fear some people may have about it.

Bonds and lending problems are never fun and for the Louisville Arena Authority, it could mean the end of something great. Scott Cox, who is the chairman of the Arena Authority said that Bond rating are on the way to being disclosed by Moody’s Investors Service and Standard & Poor’s in the next upcoming days.

In the world of Property & Building Ownership, mobile solutions may be hard to come by varying with two problems that come to mind: either they don’t work with specific property management tactics or they just simply lack the customization necessary to be efficient. However, recently, GreenApps, the creator of such an app aims to fix these problems.

Today we have the pleasure of talking with Nidal Barake, the founder of Gluttonomy, on how technology is changing the way we interact with food. From the Internet of Food, to #foodporn, technology plays a major role in the ways people find, prepare, and study food.

This agreement between Protec and Bumat, should boost the Middle East’s ability further in terms equipment and expertise offered.

The retail industry lost more than 18,000 jobs in October, in part due to the catastrophic hurricane season in many communities.

The number excludes automobile dealers, gasoline stations and restaurants.

Overall, the economy added 261,000 jobs, according to the U.S. Labor Department. NRF economists said the storm caused consumers to defer discretionary spending.

You always want to make sure that you have the right type of truck for a food truck. Same goes for when you are trying to start a storage or moving company! Joining us today is Director of Marketing for On the Move Inc., CJ Steen, she says that they are trying to make that process as easy as possible.

Food Waste in the Hotel Industry has gotten to a point where action needs to be taken which is why the World Wildlife Fun and the American Hotel & Lodging Association have partnered together with the support of the Rockefeller Foundation to develop news strategic initiatives designed to massively reduce the amount of food waste.

Today, we had the chance to chat with the VP of Marketing for Dynamic Air Quality Systems, Rob Goodfellow. Not only did he patiently answer our questions, but he told us a fascinating story about controlling air quality in metropolitan art museums.

The Healthcare industry is always changing, and always trying to find better ways to educate patients. They are also trying to find the best ways to educate potential doctors, surgeons, nurses, and other medical professionals.

Rugby may be better known in Australia, New Zealand and the U.K., but that may not be the case for much longer. A new professional rugby league, Major League Rugby, will launch in the U.S. next year and has already signed an exclusive national television deal with CBS Sports.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter @SportsENTToday to see all the latest industry updates!

We are joined this week by Clint Bowers who is the President/Founder of Smart Business Concepts and he not only shares about what it takes to start up a successful business in the Food/Beverage industry, but also what to look for in the future when it comes to waste management, consumer trends, and innovations that are in the works for grocery chains.

Follow us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow for all the latest industry updates!

According to data in the November Flour Milling Products report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, whole wheat flour production by U.S. mills from July to September of this year totaled at 5,632,000 which is down 7% from where it was last year at 6,053,000.

Keep up with all the latest industry news by following us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow!

Chinese driving schools are currently experiencing a strong demand as the number of learning drivers continues to grow. A new type of driving simulator which based on a car modified for virtual training of student drivers is said to help meet this demand by providing automatic feedback to those in the driver’s seat.

Follow us on Twitter @TransitTechNow for all the latest industry news in the world of Transportation!

The Austin, Texas city council has an interesting item on the agenda for their meeting on November 9th. It’s a resolution to determine if underused city park lands can be re-purposed to support new team facilities for the Columbus Crew, an MLS franchise.

Follow us on Twitter for the latest Sports & Entertainment news in B2B @SportMarketNow!

The race to cure cancer is an ongoing battle. New research may be showing positive signs for it’s eradication. Researchers with Northwestern University in Illinois may have found a way to kill cancer cells.

Follow us on Twitter @HealthcareMarketNow for all the latest podcast and news updates!

As Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods proceeds, the popular healthy grocery chain is about to experience an increase in comfortability. Amazon is about to launch a select few branded pop-up shops at several Whole Food locations for the holidays in states like Illinois, Michigan, Florida, Colorado, and California. These pop up shops will allow typical customers to not just get their favorite grocery items, but also try out popular Amazon devices before they can buy them. Of course, they will be informing customers about Amazon services such as Prime Membership as well.

Make sure to keep up with all the latest Retail News by following us on Twitter @RetailNewsNow!

Researchers are always trying to find better care for those inflicted by disease. Whether it be through more effective treatments, different types of treatments altogether, or even self-care. One study has shed light on diabetes, and how maybe an online game could be helping patients.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNow for daily news updates!

Maintenance is often seen as a routine expenditure that reduces profitability, but, the cost of downtime due to malfunction can be far higher than the price of good maintenance. The food industry faces unique challenges that make equipment maintenance critical.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow and keep up with all the latest news and podcasts!

Despite the rapid expansion of grocery home delivery models, the ongoing struggle to solve the last mile continues. No reasons were given as to why H-E-B is transitioning to its hybrid fulfillment model, but a few possibilities come to mind.

Follow us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow to read the latest industry updates!

Netradyne today announced a new deep learning analytics data platform for companies within the automotive, transportation and insurance industries. The new, highly customizable offering will arm companies with rich data including dynamic mapping, distributed video search and driving analytics—helping developers better understand the countless fluctuating and ever-changing factors that impact the way commercial and personal vehicles are driven.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter @TransitTechNow for all the latest industry news and podcasts!

Researchers may have found a link between the organisms in your body, and how you react to cancer treatments.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNow for daily news updates!

First Insurance Company of Hawaii, Ltd. has launched two new products for Hawaii’s food and beverage industries in an effort to better support businesses in the event of loss or damage.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow to see all the latest industry updates and podcasts!

Google announced that it will be shutting off developer access to a feed that automates data for airfare search engines, in a move that could affect third-party travel sites. It’s also a sign that Google is becoming increasingly interested in competing with the big names in travel services like Expedia and Orbitz.

Follow us on Twitter @TransitTechNow for all the latest industry news and podcasts!

Healthcare policies are a hot-button issue right now, and many think that it is only affecting those who need healthcare. Vice President for Sales and Marketing at Ranfac Medical Devices says that it is affecting the industry all the way down to the medical device manufacturers.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNow for daily news updates.

Today we are discussing medical devices. They are devices of all kinds that are used every day, and we are joined by the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Ranfac Corp., Harlan Adler.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNow for daily updates on Health Market news.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday proposed a rule revoking the right of companies to say soy protein protects the heart, while potentially allowing a more circumspect health claim.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow and read the latest industry updates on our publication at marketscale.com!

Medical technology has advanced incredibly over the last few decades, and researchers are still developing new cures and procedures each day. One newer finding is gene therapy.

Be sure to follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNow for more Healthcare news every day! Also keep up with our latest articles at marketscale.com!

Modern diesel cars emit less pollution generally than cars that run on gasoline, says a new six-nation study published today in Scientific Reports whose groundwork was laid in part by an American chemist now working at Université de Montréal.

Keep up with the latest Transportation news by following us on Twitter @TransitTechNow! Also make sure to read our news articles at marketscale.com!

The famous red Coca-Cola truck should be banned from visiting the city of Liverpool this Christmas, according to members of a U.K. political party. The English city's Liberal Democrat party has written a letter to mall owners who host the truck, asking that the tradition should not take place because Liverpool "is in the grip of an obesity epidemic."

Catch all the latest news of the Food & Beverage industry by following us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow and read our latest articles at marketscale.com!

So you’re sitting at home and you realize that you are out of your medication. So, you simply just speak the words and your medicine is ordered. If Amazon has their way, it could just become reality.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNow and read our latest articles at marketscale.com!

In a world filled with video games, smartphones, and tablets, one research group is finding a way to use technology to solve real-world problems. Cornell College senior Nicholas Bieno is teaming up with Professor of Engineering Brian Johns to create a virtual reality surgical simulator for a procedure that repairs hip fractures.

Follow us on Twitter @HealthNewsNow and read up on all the latest industry news at marketscale.com!

A few days ago we talked about how Ohio was the world’s leader in autonomous vehicle implementation. Now San Diego is starting to get into the mix, with several other different technologies included as well.

Follow us for all the latest transportation news at @TransitTechNow on Twitter and read our Transportation publication at marketscale.com!

The dairy industry has been struggling for some time, thanks to the development of dairy-milk alternatives such as coconut milk, almond milk, soy milk and others. But now, a new company has found a way to take milk from another type of plant, and it is not something you would expect.

Hear more episodes by following us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow and make sure to read our updated publication at marketscale.com!

The Impossible Burger. It sounds like one of those food challenges at your local diner that always results in regret. This, however, is actually not a challenge, nor is it a regular beef burger. Impossible Foods, which is a company based in Silicon Valley has developed a burger that cooks and tastes like beef, but has no beef in it whatsoever.

Follow us on Twitter to hear the latest episodes and news in the Food & Beverage industry @FoodBeverageNow. Also read our publication with the latest updated news in the industry at marketscale.com!

You pull up to a stoplight, there is nobody around, it’s just you. You sit there for an entire two minute light because it is on nothing but a timer. That is something we deal with for some stoplights, but most nowadays have sensors built in allowing the light to know when someone is waiting. In London, however, most of their lights are still timer-based causing quite the backup during rush-hour.

Follow us on Twitter @TransitTechNow and make sure to stop by to read our publication at marketscale.com!

The days are long past when the only career doors that readily opened to young women were those marked teacher, secretary or nurse. Yet young adults who are part of the millennial generation are nearly twice as likely as baby boomers were to choose the nursing profession.

To follow us and find the most recent news in Healthcare, you can find us on Twitter @HealthNewsNow and read our publication at marketscale.com!

The Trucking industry is the backbone for delivery of goods across the world, and now technology is readily available for use. Kevin Rutherford, host of SiriusXM’s Trucking Business and Beyond says that the technology in the trucking industry is finally coming together.

Follow us on Twitter @TransitTechNow and read our news publication at marketscale.com!

Kevin Rutherford, Host of Sirius XM’s “Trucking Business and Beyond” comes on to talk about the state of the trucking industry, and technology’s role in both helping and hurting the industry.

Follow us on Twitter for all the latest episodes @TransitTechNow and read our Transportation publication at marketscale.com!

We’ve all heard of Sweet ‘n Low, Sugar in the Raw, Splenda, and Stevia in the Raw. They help make your coffee sweeter, and your food a bit better to. Now, researchers have learned a little bit more about stevia, and it could help make the product even better.

Like what you hear? Make sure to follow us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow and read our publication at marketscale.com!

What if I told you that you could eat food without ever having to touch it? What if I said that you could eat food without anyone having to touch it. That’s what researches at University of Sussex have figured out how to do, and intensify some flavors in the process.

If you want to follow the latest news and episodes of this podcast, follow us on Twitter @FoodBeverageNow and read our publication at marketscale.com!

You’ve probably seen them before. The pickup truck pulling behind it a trailer with a digital sign on it with rotating ads, bright colors and it’s very catching to the eye. In London, people are going to start seeing a lot more of that technology thanks to Exterion Media’s new tech.

Make sure you're following us on Twitter @TransitTechNow and read the latest industry news on our publication at marketscale.com!

Trump officials have stated that the President will order his health secretary to declare the opioid crisis a public health emergency Thursday, but will stop short of declaring a more sweeping state of national emergency. In an address from the White House, Trump will also try to rally the nation to a growing epidemic that claimed 64,000 American lives last year, and will advocate for a sustained national effort to end to the addiction crisis.

If you'd like to have the most up to date info on Healthcare News, follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNow and read our publication at marketscale.com!

It's a debate that has been going on now for a quite some time, and now a new player is getting ready to join the discussion. GMOs have been the center discussion in the food industry for the last few years. However, a new type of genetic modification is being introduced.

Make sure to follow all the latest food & beverage industry news by reading our publication at marketscale.com!

Technology that once was merely futuristic is now becoming reality. That technology: driver-less cars. Several companies over the globe are testing their version of the vehicle, and now one state is making their infrastructure ready for the change.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter for all the latest news in Transportation and Transit @TransitTechNow. Also, read our publication at marketscale.com!

A bipartisan deal to shore up ObamaCare's insurance markets would reduce the deficit by nearly $4 billion by 2027, according to a score released Wednesday by Congress's nonpartisan scorekeeper.

To keep up with the latest Healthcare news, follow our Twitter @HealthMarketNow and read our continually updated publication at marketscale.com!

Tuesday marks Rotary International's fifth annual World Polio Day, co-hosted by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and there is much cause for celebration: It is very possible that 2017 may see the end of the wild polio virus.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNow and read our publication at marketscale.com!

Getting around at night just got a lot easier for cyclists in one town in Poland. The town of Lidzbark Warminski in northern Poland unveiled a new glow-in-the-dark bicycle lane this month.

Make sure to follow our podcast and Twitter @TransitTechNow and read our publication at marketscale.com!

What kind of fiber are you consuming right now? That might be up for debate in the upcoming weeks ahead. The FDA is reviewing 26 ingredients that food manufacturers use to bulk up the fiber content of processed foods to determine if there's a health benefit.

Want to hear more Healthcare news and industry insights? Follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNow and read our publication at marketscale.com!

A new research study reveals that over time, transportation noise often increased the risk for cardiovascular diseases as well as diabetes.

Follow us on Twitter @HealthMarketNews as well as read our publication at marketscale.com!

A new research study reveals that over time, transportation noise often increased the risk for cardiovascular diseases as well as diabetes.

Follow us on Twitter @TransitTechNow as well as read our publication at marketscale.com!

State officials have confirmed that Florida has seen it's first locally transmitted case of the Zika virus in 2017. We'll explore more of this story in the latest Healthcare News Minute!

Make sure to follow us on Twitter at @mktscalehc and read our publication at marketscale.com!