The Digital Transformist

Construction opportunities have nearly doubled in 2025—and it's not just about buildings. Regional President Damian Eallonardo of W.E. O'Neill Construction reveals that optimism is driving unprecedented demand across the Midwest and beyond, fueling growth in everything from tech campuses to healthcare facilities. In this episode, you'll discover what's really behind the constru...

The water shuts off mid-morning in Houston, and it's a stark reminder: we don't have the infrastructure to power AI at the scale everyone's betting on. Tamika Tyson, a veteran risk advisor with 25+ years managing infrastructure and energy investments, explains why she's not panicking about AI—and why you shouldn't either. In this episode, Tamika […]

Think cold calling is the only way to generate leads? John Morris, CEO of 444 Media, went from making 150+ cold calls a day to building a top 5% globally ranked podcast that generates revenue on autopilot. In this episode, he reveals the exact strategy that transformed his business development approach. You'll discover why your […]

What separates companies that successfully adopt AI from those that get stuck in endless planning cycles? In this episode, Chris Sullivan shares the exact moment he decided to move forward with AI implementation at Painters USA, despite uncertainties and risks. You'll learn how Chris identified a critical business problem costing hundreds of thousands in labor […]

Companies like Klarna made headlines for replacing 700 customer service workers with AI agents, only to quietly hire them all back 18 months later. IBM laid off 8,000 employees to implement AI systems, then had to bring people back when they realized the 15% of problems AI couldn't handle contained all the real risk. This […]

Is your business outgrowing basic online banking? If you're hitting 7-8 figure revenues with 10+ employees, you might need more than just digital convenience from your bank. In this episode of The Digital Transformist, host Michael LaVista sits down with Mike Goelitz, VP of Commercial Banking at FNBO, to reveal when and why growing businesses […]

What if total salary transparency was the key to solving construction's labor crisis? Paul Liles shocked his own team in 2021 when he revealed every employee's compensation and mapped the exact path from entry-level laborer to the C-suite. The results transformed retention at Liles Construction. In this episode, Paul walks through the infrastructure boom happening […]

In this episode of The Digital Transformist, host Michael LaVista sits down with Brian Floriani, Founder & Steward of BUKU Branded and founder of Bernie's Book Bank. Brian shares his innovative approach to social entrepreneurship, combining branded products with literacy advocacy to create sustainable impact. Brian discusses how he founded Bernie's Book Bank in 2009 […]

Are you a CPG brand struggling to scale without breaking the bank on senior talent? In this episode of The Digital Transformist, host Michael LaVista sits down with Les Hamilton, founder and CEO of CPG Integrated, to reveal the strategic moves CPG brands should make today to break through growth barriers. You'll discover why most […]

Beth Trejo, founder and CEO of ChatterKick, joins Mike LaVista on The Digital Transformist to talk about why trust is the word of the year — and what that means for your brand's digital presence. From the dangers of AI-generated content flooding social media to why picking up your phone and recording a 30-second video […]