Midway Business Podcast

Are you making REAL business progress, or just getting better at managing the same problems? In this episode of the Midway Business Podcast, host Butch Zemar, Founder and CEO of Elite Benefits of America, challenges how leaders approach everyday business problems and the decisions that follow. From sales and productivity to rising expenses, are you asking the RIGHT questions, or simply accepting t...

In this episode of the Midway Business Podcast, host Butch Zemar shares the fascinating story of how the U.S. Navy's search for two missing submarines eventually led to one of history's most famous discoveries, the Titanic. The story raises an important question for business leaders: Are you actually solving the problem, or just dealing with what you can see? For leaders, this conversation raises...

Business leaders are dealing with plenty of change right now, from AI and technology to rising costs and the constant pressure to make better decisions with limited time. In this episode, co host Jimmy DiMambro turns the microphone around on Butch Zemar, Founder and CEO of Elite Benefits of America and host of the Midway Business Podcast, for a conversation about how leaders can approach change, a...

As a company grows, it’s easy for the leader to become the person everyone depends on. In this episode, guest Eric Dingler, Team Leadership Coach and author of "Hire to Grow: Make Your Next Hire Pay for Themself in 30 Days," talks about how owners can build a team that thinks for itself, makes decisions, and keeps things moving without everything landing back on the leader’s desk. For leaders, thi...

Healthcare may be one of a company’s largest expenses, but Robert Slayton, healthcare strategist, bestselling author, and Vice President of Elite Benefits of America, believes leaders should view it as more than another annual bill. The conversation looks at how better visibility into costs, performance, and employee needs can support smarter business decisions. The bigger question is how much unc...

Growing a business has a way of exposing the systems, leadership decisions, and people problems that were easy to ignore when the company was smaller. Deanne Palin, Founder and CEO of OnPoint Business Solutions, is an expert in helping companies grow and transform by improving leadership, HR, and operational systems that impact performance and profitability. The conversation challenges leaders to...

This episode challenges C-Suite leaders to consider whether one of the company’s largest expenses, employee benefits, is actually being managed. Healthcare often receives far less financial oversight, accountability, and strategic attention than payroll and taxes. The conversation looks at what is changing as employers begin questioning traditional insurance relationships, claims costs, pharmacy s...

Per Sjofors, bestselling author of “The Price Whisperer: A Holistic Approach to Pricing Power” and founder of Sjofors & Partners, challenges leaders to reconsider one of the most powerful numbers on the financial statement: PRICE. While executives routinely scrutinize costs and sales volume, pricing can receive surprisingly little strategic attention, even though a small change can produce a m...

Leadership is not always about taking MORE control. Sometimes the harder move is giving some of it away. This episode explores ownership, accountability, trust, and what can happen when leaders give people the authority to think, act, and contribute instead of waiting for instructions. . . because AUTONOMY can be powerful. For C-Suite leaders, the bigger question may be whether the company has out...

Dr. Lola Adeyemo, Founder and CEO of EQI Mindset, explores why leadership, culture, and employee engagement are more connected to business performance than many executives realize. Culture does not become strategy simply because it made the leadership PPT slide deck. What employees actually experience every day can influence trust, innovation, retention, and ultimately how effectively the organiza...

Every leader eventually reaches a day when quitting sounds less like failure and more like a very reasonable agenda item. In this episode, Butch Zemar shares lessons from more than 20 years in business, major industry disruption, acquisitions, and the difficult seasons that test whether a leader will keep moving or call it quits. The discussion examines what happens when pressure, uncertainty, and...

Businesses rarely stop growing because opportunity disappears. More often, leaders reach the edge of what feels comfortable and discover that the square peg simply will not fit into the round hole. In this episode, Butch Zemar examines how leaders respond when old methods, rising costs, and changing markets collide. From business growth to employee benefits, the discussion challenges executives to...

Business leaders are surrounded by data, meetings, and enough KPIs to make almost any dashboard look important. Jon Morris, Founder and CEO of Fiscal Advocate, explains why greater clarity often begins by narrowing the focus to the financial measures that reveal whether a company is truly moving forward. The conversation explores disciplined execution, trustworthy leadership, difficult decisions,...

Leadership gets complicated when pressure rises, answers are unclear, and everyone is watching the person in charge. Jim Carlough, leadership coach, healthcare technology sales leader, and author of "The Six Pillars of Effective Leadership," explores what separates a trusted leader from someone who simply holds the title. This conversation challenges C-Suite leaders to examine how they develop peo...

This episode explores a question every executive eventually faces. Do you build a business on shortcuts or on standards? Drawing from military leadership, business ownership, and real client experiences, Butch Zemar reveals why the decisions nobody sees often shape a company's future. Every company wants better results, but few leaders are willing to change the habits that created today's results....

Employee benefits continue to rank among the largest business expenses, yet many employers still find themselves asking the same questions every renewal season. In this episode, Butch Zemar, Founder of Elite Benefits of America, shares how more than two decades in the industry have shaped his perspective on rising healthcare costs, employer challenges, and the evolving landscape of employee benefi...

Every business owner wants better results, but few stop long enough to ask whether the real advantage comes from smarter decisions instead of working harder. In this conversation, Jack Oujo, Financial Advisor, Author of “Too Smart to Be an Umpire”, and Founder of Oujo Wealth Strategies, shares how lessons learned under pressure on the baseball field shaped a career leading nearly a billion dollars...

This episode challenges one of the biggest myths in business that there is a faster, easier path to success. Through stories from running a 50 mile ultramarathon and building a growing company, the conversation explores why so many leaders spend years chasing shortcuts that quietly cost them more time, money, and opportunity. Sometimes the biggest obstacle to growth is not the market. It is the pe...

Tori DaCosta, Founder of Journey Stone LLC and author of  “No Name Bastard: How Our Lives Teach Us What We Can Control, Manage, and Influence”, joins Midway Business Podcast for a conversation that every business leader eventually needs to have. Growth is not always limited by strategy or market conditions. Sometimes the biggest obstacle is sitting in the corner office. The good news is your tough...

Every leader says they need more time, yet somehow the calendar keeps winning. This episode explores why growth often stalls long before revenue does, and why the real bottleneck may not be your workload at all. If your desk has become the company headquarters for every decision, this conversation might feel surprisingly familiar. Guest Rachel Davila, Founder of Extra Hands Virtual Assistance, sha...

Every business runs into obstacles. The difference is that some leaders see resistance as a stop sign while others treat it like another item on Monday's agenda. From sales and entrepreneurship to leadership and even dealing with insurance claims, this conversation explores why so many people settle for just enough while others keep pushing until they find a way through. If your company has ever l...

This episode of the Midway Business Podcast features Keith Lewis, Founder of VeraSpark and author of, “Sparking Your Inner Leader.” Drawing from an unusual journey that includes time as both Willie the Wildcat and Benny the Bull, Keith shares leadership insights shaped by decades of coaching executives, teams, and organizations. The conversation explores how leaders influence culture, navigate cha...

Most leaders spend years chasing growth, hitting targets, and building successful companies, only to realize they are winning the game but not necessarily enjoying it. In this episode, Thomas Edwards Jr., Business and Life Coach and author of The One Up Effect: Gamify Your Life to Win and Have Fun Playing, explores what business leaders can learn from gaming, performance psychology, and human beha...

When things are going well, leadership is easy to talk about. The real lessons show up when pressure rises and decisions carry lasting consequences. Guest Jay Jacobson shares lessons from decades of leadership, mentorship, and helping people navigate difficult situations. Drawing from the principles in his book, Lead by Legendary Example, he explores why so many organizations struggle with communi...

This episode of the Midway Business Podcast features Josh Lifrak, author of Win Today: Six Steps to Mental Resilience, Peak Performance, and a Thriving Life, sharing front line insights from working with elite athletes and business leaders. He also takes listeners inside the mindset shifts that helped transform the Chicago Cubs during their championship run. The conversation digs into leadership,...