Walk On

Michael welcomes Gracie Pfaff, founder of Harvest 107 and a digital marketing consultant with Influentialist Marketing to the Walk On Podcast for the final episode of 2025.    Gracie founded an international nonprofit to end hunger (Harvest 107) at 12 years-old, transitioned into a successful pageant participant, and now helps individuals and brands connect with audiences in the digital world. Gra...

Welcome to the first bonus episode of Walk On Podcast Season 5 featuring Kevyn Rustici, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Boulter Industrial Contractors, Inc and Co-Founder of the Timeout with Leaders Podcast.  Kevyn states clearly that leadership isn't a title, it's an action. He empowers leadership teams to turn challenges into opportunities by transforming their people, pr...

Michael welcomes Joanne Schell, founder of Blueberry Nutrition to the final episode of Season 5 where they discuss health and wellness, the power of small choices, latest wellness trends and more.  Joanne is a multi-certified Healthy Habit Counselor who works to help people find happiness and health through better eating, physical activity and the psychology of good habits.  Fun fact, Michael and...

Season five of the Walk On Podcast continues with Jim Anderson, CEO of Beacon Software, which is using the power of AI to transform government (especially DOTs).  We talk about his career progression from engineering to software and entrepreneurship; how we engage and lead people; and the state and role of AI in the workforce and government.an AI company  You may have seen Jim providing commentary...

Michael continues season five of the Walk On Podcast with Paul Leone, Executive Director of the New York State Brewers Association.  "Believe in your dream, it may come true. Believe in yourself and it will come true." Paul began his career as a multi-media producer for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York. He soon moved on to editing, shooting, and prod...

Michael continues season five of the Walk On Podcast with Audrey Roberson, Associate Professor of Education at Hobart and William Smith Colleges.  Audrey, who is also married to our host, is a PhD Linguist, trained at Georgia State University. She specializes in language acquisition and leverages that expertise to train a future generation of professionals to teach non-native speaking students.  M...

Michael continues season five of the Walk On Podcast with his friend and fellow Hobart College alum, New York State Senator Jeremy Cooney. In this clip Michael and Jeremy discuss poverty in the region.  Senator Cooney is Chair of the Transportation Committee, and focuses on modernizing New York's infrastructure, increasing street safety, and advancing new forms of mass transit, including high...

Michael kicks off season five of the Walk On Podcast with Erica Paolocelli, a partner at Three Brothers Wineries and War Horse Brewing, and founder of Synergy Social Wellness. Erica is a stalwart of the Finger Lakes wine industry with a remarkable record of advocacy, volunteer service and business leadership. She recently made the decision to bring about a new wellness business tied to her deeply...

Michael welcomes his first multi-guest team onto the podcast with Steve Nigri and Walter Hoffmann from NXTMOVES payments company, which concludes Season 4. Steve and Walter are payments processing and financial services experts who took the entrepreneurial leap (again) within the last two years to start a company in the ever evolving payments processing landscape.  Michael and the guys discuss ent...

Michael welcomes Rochester TV legend Ginny Ryan to the latest episode of Walk On Podcast Season 4. Ginny served as a reporter and news anchor at WHAM 13 for 35 years before signing off and transitioning to a community relations career with Canandaigua National Bank. Ginny is a member of the New York State Broadcasting Hall of Fame, and recipient of the Keeper of the Flame award from the National W...

Michael welcomes Genevieve Ledoux, Emmy award winning founder of STAR FOREST, a multimedia adventure for children and families, to the latest episode of Season 4. Genevieve’s expansive background - from classical music training to rock bands to producing award-winning children's content - gives her a unique perspective on creating engaging, innovative musical experiences that resonate across...

Michael welcomes Sarah Smith, a multi-hyphenate talent who founded the Atlanta Digital World Summit and is President of Solution Road, Inc. (a multi-media consultancy) and produces a podcast to the latest episode of Season 4 Michael and Sarah discuss career arcs, storytelling, saying yes when asked, championing Atlanta, and so much more.  Walk On is a podcast about the journey of finding passion i...

Michael welcomes Valerie Knoblauch, the long-standing leader of Visit Finger Lakes, to Season 4 of the podcast.  Visit Finger Lakes is Ontario County New York’s tourism agency. And Val has been on the cutting edge of promoting the Finger Lakes from seasonal curiosity to a leading year-round tourism destination Michael and Val discuss what makes the Finger Lakes special, career transitions - includ...

Michael welcomes Eileen Nebhut, founder and CEO of Venus Rising, an image consulting business that works with people who see their style and/or wardrobes as obstacles to their success Eileen’s interest in style began early in life, navigating the challenges of being unusually tall and learning how to incorporate scale, proportion and femininity into her style in order to feel confident. Michael an...

Michael welcomes Hope Breen, creator of ROC the City with Hope onto the final episode of Season 3.  Hope is a Producer on 92.5 WBEE Bee Morning Coffee Club, a Rochester, NY and Finger Lakes Tourism Influencer and marketing pro. ROCthecitywithHope started in 2017 when Hope was finishing up her Associate's Degree from Monroe Community College in Travel & Tourism. Her internship to graduate...

Michael welcomes Mohamed, “Mo” Massaquoi, Managing Principal at VESSOL to the latest episode of Season 3. Mo is a former NFL player, an organizational psychologist and speaker. He is passionate about helping organizations overcome resistance to change, unlock growth opportunities, and strengthen teamwork. Mo was selected in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns and played...

Michael interviews Lakeshia Poole, founder of Jack of All Trade Media to episode 15. In addition to being a former colleague of Michael, Lakeshia is a noteworthy author, public speaker and storyteller! Michael and Lakeshia discuss her life as an author and passion for storytelling - and empowering others to find their own voice! Walk On is a podcast about the journey of finding passion in a life o...

Michael welcomes Declan Duggan, Senior Vice President of Sales for BERO to Season 3. Declan is a multi-hyphenate beverage industry evangelist, podcast host, entrepreneur and more. He loves the challenges presented by launching a new brand and is a driving force behind BERO, which is a Premium Craft Non-Alcoholic/Near Beer led by co-founders, celebrity Tom Holland and John Herman, CEO.  Michael and...

Michael welcomes Laura Gibson-Lamothe, Executive Director of the Georgia Fintech Academy to the first episode of Season 3. In addition to being Michael's friend and colleague through the payments processing industry, Laura is a seasoned banking executive, retired three-sport college athlete, and now the shaper of future professionals looking to build careers in the fintech industry.   Michael...

Michael tries something different in this "recap episode," sharing personal reflections on the first two seasons of the Walkon Podcast. He reflects upon insights from several guests, while also providing a personal update on his journey to purpose. This is a chance to learn about Michael the person, not just the host, and to reflect upon your own reaction to the first two podcast seasons...

Michael welcomes Cheryl D'Cruz Young, Senior Client Partner, Sustainability Leader at Korn Ferry to the final podcast of season 2. In addition to being Michael's colleague at Brown University's ACT Executive Leadership and Performance Coaching program, Cheryl is a global citizen, born in Kenya as the youngest of five children. She relocated to London because her family had British c...

Michael welcomes friend and fellow entrepreneur EJ Stern to the 5th episode of Walk On Podcast Season 2. EJ founded the Fractional Law Firm CMO, a first to market company offering fractional marketing services to small and midsize law firms. They’ve grown rapidly, hiring their 7th full-time employee after just 18 months, and are serving more than 20 law firms across the US and Canada.  EJ and Mich...

Hope Ferdowsian (MD, MPH) is a practicing physician, professor of medicine at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, and president and co-founder of Phoenix Zones Initiative. As part of Phoenix Zones Initiative, Hope is building an Institute for Universal Rights, Health, and Justice. And She authored the book “Phoenix Zones: Where Strength is Born and Resilience Lives.” Hope's journ...

Whitney Marshall, owner of Whitney Marshall Coaching, joins the podcast to discuss career transitions, finding your passion, and overcoming negative self-perception and the wiring from family and corporate roles to live a fulfilling life.  Whitney is a Certified Professional Coach on a mission to cultivate and nurture more genuine and generous leaders. She comes to this work from a remarkable care...

Sharon Goldmacher, Founder, President & CEO of communications21 joins the podcast to discuss leadership, entrepreneurship and the confidence to try new things Listen today, if you are looking for deep insight from a successful entrepreneur on how to build a company, find your leadership style, and the importance of taking chances. Learn more about Sharon and her firm here https://www.c21pr.com...