Central Illinois Business Leaders Podcast

Work comp is every business owners FAVORITE topic...     Workers' compensation insurance can be a huge frustration for businesses.  It's often one of the largest expense items as well.  Many business leaders are misinformed when it comes to the work comp system and how it works.  Our goal with this BIZ TIPS series is to educate our listeners on how work comp really wo...

We've eclipsed the 50 episode mark!   In honor of making it to #50, we're sharing a throwback to our first CIBL Podcast interview with Josh Rohrscheib.    Josh is an Injury Lawyer with BRE Law.  This was a fun first interview with a great Central IL leader.   Tune in to see how far we've come in 50 episodes.  Thanks to all our listeners for the incredible support...

Work comp is every business owners FAVORITE topic...     Workers' compensation insurance can be a huge frustration for businesses.  It's often one of the largest expense items as well.  Many business leaders are misinformed when it comes to the work comp system and how it works.  Our goal with this BIZ TIPS series is to educate our listeners on how work comp really wo...

Work comp is every business owners FAVORITE topic...     Workers' compensation insurance can be a huge frustration for businesses.  It's often one of the largest expense items as well.  Many business leaders are misinformed when it comes to the work comp system and how it works.  Our goal with this BIZ TIPS series is to educate our listeners on how work comp really wo...

As an entrepreneur, I'm sure you've heard the term "persistence pays off."  But just how persistent do you need to be to make your dreams a reality?   Jeremy Yost, CEO of Yost Enterprises and Yost Management Services, joins the CIBL Podcast to talk about how persistence helped him and Yost Enterprises build a hotel conference center in the middle of a pandemic.     As most...

If you're a business leader, you know that problems occur on a regular basis.  Having an understanding of how to handle them can make or break your business' success.     Join us on this CIBL BIZ TIPS series with special guest Chris Harrison.  Chris is a Managing Broker at Main Place Real Estate in Decatur, IL.  Chris has taken on the "Problem Solver" role at Main Pla...

Do you put culture at the top of your list in your business?  As a business leader, do you prioritize your team's wellbeing to help drive growth?   Join us as we interview the President & CEO of Zeller Electric, Co-Owner of Halo Solar, and College Basketball National Champion, Seth Zeller.    In this episode, Seth talks about his personal and professional background. &...

If you're a business leader, you know that problems occur on a regular basis.  Having an understanding of how to handle them can make or break your business' success.     Join us on this CIBL BIZ TIPS series with special guest Chris Harrison.  Chris is a Managing Broker at Main Place Real Estate in Decatur, IL.  Chris has taken on the "Problem Solver" role at Main Pla...

As a business owner, have you ever had questions about how commercial lending works?  Are you nervous about the loan process?   In this CIBL episode we interview John DeFreitas and Nick Gentile of Town & Country Bank in Springfield, IL.  John and Nick are both commercial lenders who work with business owners in Central Illinois.     In this interview we learn abou...

If you're a business leader, you know that problems occur on a regular basis.  Having an understanding of how to handle them can make or break your business' success.   Join us on this CIBL BIZ TIPS series with special guest Chris Harrison.  Chris is a Managing Broker at Main Place Real Estate in Decatur, IL.  Chris has taken on the "Problem Solver" role at Main Place.  In...

Focus on what you're good at and the success will come.   The Founder and CEO of RoomReady, Aaron McArdle, joins the CIBL Podcast to talk about his entrepreneurial background and experience.  RoomReady is headquartered in Normal, IL.    It's easy as an entrepreneur and business leader to get sidetracked and lose focus on what you're good at.  Aaron talks about how focusing...

Tune in to catch the third and final BIZ TIPS session with Francie Hinrichsen!     In part 3, Francie discusses the results she's seen after the release of her book.  She also talks about what it has done for her business.  Dream, Build, Grow: a Female's Step-by-Step Guide for How To Start A Business is now Francie's "business card" and is proof that she is a trusted advis...

Tune in as former NFL and Fighting Illini All-American Linebacker, J Leman, joins the CIBL Podcast.  J is a realtor, real estate investor, and expert analyst for the Big 10 Network.     J starts the interview by explaining his entrepreneurial background as a kid mowing lawns.  He also shares that he was not a highly recruited football player but was able to get noticed at...

Welcome back to our BIZ TIPS session with Francie Hinrichsen!  In part 2 of this session, Francie explains the options for self-publishing your book.   Francie talks about the two options you have with self-publishing.  She talks about the "narrow" version where you utilize KDP (Kindle Direct Publishing).  Francie also explains the "wide" version and why she elected to go this...

Tune in as Kara Demirjian Huss joins the CIBL Podcast to share her awesome story!  Kara is the Founder and President of DCC Marketing, Vice President and Global Marketing Director at T/CCI Manufacturing, and President of Demirco Properties, all located in Decatur, IL.    At the beginning of the interview, Kara explains how her personal journey changed from fashion design to marketin...

Francie Hinrichsen joins our BIZ TIPS session to explain how she self-published her book, Dream, Build, Grow: A Female's Step-by-Step Guide for How To Start A Business.   In part 1, Francie discusses her purpose for the book and talks about how she got started.  She explains that writing a book is not a quick process and it may take some time to get going.     If you've be...

Tune in as Colt McLeod joins the CIBL Podcast to share his experience and background as the President of McLeod Express in Decatur, IL.     Colt starts off the podcast by explaining how McLeod Express started.  His father initiated the business in 1986 as a "side gig" with a few idle farm trucks during slow months.  What started as a side hustle turned into a booming truck...

In the final CIBL BIZ TIPS session with John DeFreitas and Nick Gentile of Town & Country Bank, we discuss some of the goals and results of the podcast.   Garrett & Derek talk about some of the reasons they started the podcast.  They also discuss some of the unexpected outcomes of the show.  This is a cool wrap-up session of the "How to start a podcast" series.   &...

Tune in as McLain Schaefer joins the CIBL Podcast.  McLain is the Director of LIFT (Leaders Innovating For Tomorrow) in Mattoon, IL.   Everyone's been wondering what is happening with the old Consolidated building in downtown Mattoon.  McLain answers that question for us in this episode.  He also explains all of the new LIFT programs that are offered to high school juniors and...

Welcome back to part 3 of How To Start a Podcast with guests Nick Gentile and John DeFreitas with Town & Country Bank in Springfield, IL.   In this BIZ TIPS episode, Garrett and Derek explain how to upload the recorded podcast to YouTube and Podcast Stations.  They utilize a program called anchor.fm to blast their recordings to most common podcast channels.     This ep...

Listen in as Jason Barickman joins the CIBL Podcast.  Jason is an Illinois State Senator representing the 53rd Legislative Distric t.  He is also a partner at Fairlawn Capital , a real estate investment company. In this episode, Jason talks about his experience as a State Senator.  He explains what motivated him to get into politics and what his day looks like as a Senator.  He...

In Session 2 with Nick Gentile and John DeFreitas, we explore what programs and software we use to record and edit the CIBL Podcast.   We also share how we use Calendly to make scheduling guests easier.   Make sure you check out this episode of CIBL BIZ TIPS to take another step toward starting your podcast!

The Founder and Owner of Billy Bob Products , Jonah White, joins the CIBL Podcast to share his incredible story.  This one is a must-listen!   Here's a quick summary of Jonah's resume:   ✔Grew up in a log cabin with no running water  ✔Led the nation in rushing his Senior year of HS football  ✔Leading rusher and Player of the Year at Missouri State University  ✔Lived i...

In this episode of CIBL BIZ TIPS, Garrett & Derek help John DeFreitas and Nick Gentile of Town & Country Bank get their podcast started.   The crew talks about basic equipment needed to start, podcast structure, and podcast planning (or lack of planning).     After listening to this show you will have a great start to your podcasting career!  Stop by next week to l...

Tune in as the Founder and Managing Partner of Triptych Brewing, Anthony Benjamin, joins the CIBL Podcast.  Triptych Brewing is headquartered in Savoy, IL.   In this episode, Anthony shares how his homebrewing hobby expanded in to an actual business.  He discusses the many expansions and changes that Triptych has experienced over the last decade.  Anthony also emphasizes how he...