Be Meaningful

This episode has Brian and Bōggie talking with Malinda Sandman , Vice President & Head of Global Marketing for Typeform . They talk about how to elevate engagement from data collection to customer experience, and how AI can create a more generative dialogue with prospects in real time. They also identify a good headline of two in the process. Reach out to us at podcast@bemeaningful.co https://...

In this episode, Brian and Bōggie connect with Meghann McNally , CMO of The Wrench Group , a company that provides home services through local contractors under an enterprise model. We get to the heart of their brand right out of the gate, making Meghann is the first guest ever to admit getting goosebumps, as the conversation ranges across the topics of work, artificial intelligence, Mike Rowe and...

In this episode, we get chatty with Ilona Aman , who was just leaving her role as CMO of Athleta. The conversation covers a lot of ground, from pioneering a product category to creating a brand to pursuing career goals and work-life balance. There are fun stories, solid insights, plenty of laughs, and even a couple podcast ideas. Be Meaningful is more like a brand consultation disguised as a podca...

In this episode, Brian and Bōggie spend time with Jeremy Soine , CEO of Face Reality, a company that offers clinically-proven treatment for acne. In addition to sharing some surprising facts about the size of the market, the conversation covers the enormous psychological impact such treatment has on adults coming of age on social media, and if perhaps the brand could stand for something as big as...

What happens when the brand you inherit helped define an entire industry? In this episode of Be Meaningful , we sit down with Brett Hannath , Chief Marketing Officer at Intel , to talk about the challenge—and opportunity—of evolving one of the world’s most iconic tech brands. We explore how Intel is shifting from a processor company to a platform company, what it means to market innovation to both...

In this episode, we sit down with Karl Van den Bergh , CMO of Gigamon , to explore the cutting-edge world of cybersecurity and deep observability. Karl shares how Gigamon is shaping a new category in tech, providing visibility into hybrid and multi-cloud environments to uncover what organizations don’t know they can’t see. We dive into Gigamon’s unique approach to branding, the power of humor in a...

In this episode of Be Meaningful , we sit down with Marcelo Kertesz , CMO of Manscaped, to explore the unique balancing act of blending humor with quality. Marcelo shares how Manscaped has redefined personal care by tackling taboo topics with authenticity and humor while maintaining top-tier product innovation. We dive into what it means to manage brand growth, maintain a unique voice, and support...

In this episode of Be Meaningful, we talk with Stephanie Glickman, Head of Audience Engagement Team at Pfizer, about building trust and authenticity in a fragmented digital world. Stephanie shares how she’s shaping Pfizer’s influencer marketing and content strategies, tackling challenges unique to healthcare, and helping a global organization stay human. It’s a conversation about innovation, colla...

In this episode, we sit down with Maggie Lower , Global CMO of ABC Fitness , the largest fitness tech company you’ve never heard of. Maggie shares her vision for redefining wellness—taking it beyond the gym to embrace sleep, nutrition, mental health, and more. We discuss the shift from fitness to holistic wellness and how to make health accessible for everyone. It’s a conversation about innovation...

What makes a restaurant more than just a place to eat? In this episode of Be Meaningful , we sit down with Bernadette Farag, President and CMO of Osmow's Shawarma, a fast-growing Canadian fast food mediterranean chain with nearly 200 locations—and counting. We explore: The origin story of a family dream turned franchise reality. How Osmo Shawarma blends health, flavor, and Middle Eastern hospitali...

A lot of companies talk about “doing well by doing good.” But Cadana is actually doing it. We spent some time with Co-founder and CEO Albert Owusu-Asare talking about his payroll infrastructure platform created for emerging markets. As he shares how the idea grew out of he and his partner’s Fintech background, and we discuss similarities and differences with BaaS like Stripe, it becomes clear Cada...

Five weeks into her role as Saucony’s Global CMO, Joy Allen-Altimare found time to sit with us to discuss her ambitions with the 126-year-old brand that straddles running, footwear and fashion. She shares her enthusiasm for the brand’s authenticity, and we share our thoughts about positioning and the cues that make an athletic lifestyle brand cool. Be Meaningful is more like a brand consultation d...

Few of us are fortunate to work on a brand like Nike. And even fewer actually had a hand in creating the product that made it famous. So we consider ourselves extremely fortunate to spend an hour or so with Wilson Smith, Design Director at Nike. In addition to sharing about his four decades at the crossroads of athletics, fashion and culture, we discuss the mysterious nature of creativity and how...

We wanted to start the new year with some good news. So we invited Peter Greer, President and CEO of Hope International to talk about the 25-year-old organization’s mission, success and future goals. At the core of their good work is a business mindset that uses economic development to break cycles of poverty. This sets them apart from a plethora of charities that, while helping the poor, unintent...

It’s not every day that two guys talk about breast feeding. But in this episode, that’s exactly what Brian and Bōggie do with Lauren Wright, founder of Natural Nipple, a data-driven bottle system that grows as your baby grows, so the flow is always right. And getting the right flow is difficult with bottle or breast, the result being babies being starved or drowned… and parents being frazzled to w...

Brian and Bōggie sit down with Sarah Bay-Cheng, Dean of Arts, Media, Performance and Design at York University in Toronto. They discuss messaging and branding as technology-driven change is changing the ROI of higher education, and how work and career mobility require more than a degree; but a way to prepare students for long-term career and personal success in a Gig Economy. 

As a professional model with sensitive skin, Carolyn Li Ming struggled to find skin care that was free of synthetics and alcohol. So she dusted off her degree in Neuroscience and developed Li Organics, a plant-based line of skin care that combines Southeast Asian ancient beauty traditions with modern science. We talked to her about a direct-to-customer business that began in her kitchen and is now...

Life has its ups and downs. The goal is to navigate it in a healthy and rewarding way. So we sat down with Lissy Alden, Founder of MYNDY, a startup focused on mental fitness. Which is not to be confused with mental health or mental acumen. According to Lissy, your brain is like a muscle, and can be trained to handle life’s twists and turns with more resilience and perseverance. And while this is c...

Is it possible to talk about flossing for 40 minutes? If it’s with Sam Coxe and Elli Hanson you can. They’re the energetic founders of Flaus, the first electric flossing device. (Hard to believe nobody’s done this, right?) We had fun picking their brain (pun intended) and throwing around ideas about personal hygiene, human behavior, and gamifying something as mundane and mandatory as flossing. Ori...

Taking advantage of the holiday chill, we got together again with Matt C., Core Developer with Nerd DAO.  Following up on our feral discussion of Bitcoin, Ethereum and the blockchain in general, we wanted to focus on NFTs. While NFTs gained notice as ridiculously-priced digital art, this platform will likely explode over the next few years by providing limited access to cyber communities and,...

Do you understand cryptocurrency? Neither do we. So we talked with someone who does: Matt C. (We quickly learned that anonymity is pretty important on the blockchain.) His first exposure to digital currency was in 2017 and he’s currently Core Developer with Nerd DAO, a group creating NFTs or non-fungible tokens. Another thing we don’t understand. So we asked him to explain the basics and share wha...

What’s the greatest need in American society? You could argue for empathy. Especially if you’re Michael Tennant, founder of Curious Labs and the creator of the card game Actually Curious. Between appearing on the Today Show and being featured in The NY Times, he agreed to spend some time with us. The conversation went far and wide… and deep. He shared his origin story, then we talked candidly abou...

It seemed poetic that we sat down (virtually) with Bruce Brady just as Covid19 was forcing the world into Zoom meetings. Bruce is one of the founders of ServerDome, a next generation data center that uses the thermal efficiency and airflow of a geodesic dome to keep servers cool without air conditioning. (We’re talking Buckminster Fuller cool.) No small thing when you consider how much of the cost...

It’s always fun to chat about a brand new product. So we really looked forward to our conversation with Blayze founder Dion von Moltke. After a random look into Brian’s experience with Michael Jordan & his first commercial, the episode examines Dion’s first career as a professional Formula One racer, and how his early experience with mentors ignited his passion for coaching. Then we discussed...

We have a little history with Dan Vaughan, Executive Director at USA Cycling, and were eager to hear about his new role at the governing body. In this episode, Dan shares the organization’s vision to evolve from certifying races to influencing culture and someday seeing cycling become as popular in our communities as little league baseball and AYSO soccer. We discuss how the sport is actually many...