The Athletics of Business

Our Guest Drew Storen is a former Major League Baseball veteran of 8 seasons. Storen was drafted out of Stanford University by the Washington Nationals in the 1st round of the 2009 MLB Draft. He made his MLB debut with the Nationals in 2010 and quickly became a key figure in their bullpen, serving as their closer for several seasons.  Storen played for several teams during his career, including th...

In this engaging episode, Brian Grawer shares his inspiring journey from being a standout basketball player at the University of Missouri to leading successful sales teams in the highly competitive pharmaceutical industry. With a unique perspective shaped by his athletic background, Brian discusses the parallels between sports and business, offering practical insights into leadership, team buildin...

Ed Molitor dives into a recent podcast episode with Matt Painter, Men's Basketball Coach at Purdue University. About Matt Painter One of America's top basketball coaches, Matt Painter enters his 17th year at Purdue. He owns a 355-164 record at Purdue. He has led the Boilermakers to 12 NCAA Tournaments, five Sweet 16s, three Big Ten regular-season championships, a Big Ten Tournament title, an Elite...

In this episode, Larry Levine, author of Selling in a Post-Trust World, dives into the critical role of trust, authenticity, and soft skills in sales. He shares the powerful strategies behind transitioning from transactional to transformational sales, emphasizing the importance of building genuine relationships and truly understanding clients' needs. We explore the "trust formula," a framework for...

One of America's top basketball coaches, Matt Painter enters his 17th year at Purdue. He owns a 355-164 record at Purdue. He has led the Boilermakers to 12 NCAA Tournaments, five Sweet 16s, three Big Ten regular-season championships, a Big Ten Tournament title, an Elite Eight, and an international gold medal. His peers voted him as the NABC National Coach of the Year after leading a team that star...

Youth sports are more than just games—they foster personal growth and shape future success. They teach values like teamwork and resilience that impact both personal and professional development. For parents, it's a balancing act between supporting their child and trusting the coach's role in building character. These shared experiences strengthen family bonds, while also preparing young athletes t...

As a former University of Tennessee Assistant Coach and now a Founding Partner of Axiom Wealth Management, Mark Pancratz knows the value of developing and connecting leaders. During his seven years with Coach Bruce Pearl at UT, Mark worked specifically in player development and scouting. His ability to coach talent and enhance skills while thinking strategically set him up to shift his focus to gr...

Mike Buddie is in his fifth year as the Director of Athletics at the United States Military Academy at West Point. Buddie leads the athletic department's mission to develop leaders of character committed to the values of Duty, Honor, Country, supporting Cadet-Athletes' 47-month experience at West Point. Under his leadership, Cadet-Athletes have achieved four Rhodes Scholars, 10 conference champion...

Erin "Big" Diehl is a Business Improv Edutainer, Failfluencer, Author and Keynote Speaker. Through a series of unrelated dares, Erin created improve it! : a unique professional development company that uses improvisational comedy and experiential learning to sharpen leaders and teams so they can thrive in ever-changing environments, and do it with a whole lot of laughs along the way. Erin Diehl is...

Guest Bio:  Pat Carroll is a devoted husband and father of four but also a storied athlete and a respected leader in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. His journey began on the basketball courts of St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia, where he played as a Division 1 athlete.  Pat was a key player on the legendary SJU team that achieved a perfect 27-0 record during the regular seaso...

Sarah Wirth is the President of Ecsell Institute and the Amazon best-selling author of "The Coaching Effect." With over 20 years of experience in employee assessment, leadership development, executive coaching, and customer service, Sarah has a proven track record of driving growth and excellence.   She began her career as a talent analyst, coaching leaders in diverse organizations, and later led...

Mike Sarraille is the founder and CEO of Talent War Group, Legacy Expeditions, ATTA, and head of the Men's Journal Everyday Warrior Nation. Mike is a two-time best-selling author, globally ranked leadership speaker, documentary filmmaker, entrepreneur, and extreme adventurer.    He is a former Recon Marine and Scout-Sniper, and retired US Navy SEAL officer with 20 years of experience in Special Op...

William A. Lumpkin (Will) is a devoted husband to Layla, a proud father to Ailey, Sage, and Liam, and a purpose-driven leader with a passion for delivering significant impact through high-performing teams. Will serves as Vice President of Sales at Agios Pharmaceuticals in Cambridge, MA, where he leads a team dedicated to providing disease education and access to first and best-in-class solutions f...

Anthony Bonifazio is Vice President of Market Development and Reimbursement at Iveric Bio , part of  Astellas Pharma Inc. , a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing innovative treatment options for retinal diseases. With a rich background in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, he has extensive expertise in launch execution, leadership, and team building. Bef...

Matt Monahan joined Genesys Health as Chief Strategy Officer in 2020 after leading the way as the National Practice Leader of an Insurtech benefits consulting firm. He was responsible for sales, service, and insurance operations for over 500 employers across the United States.  To know Matt is to be in the presence of an infectious energy. Matt sees the world differently; where others see a dead e...

Ed is a coach down to the very smallest molecule of his DNA. Whether he's a husband and father at home or working with a client in the business world, he is an energized, passionate, and near-obsessive coach who is fully invested in showing up with all he's got to help you show up with all you've got. His approach insists on presence. He knows no other way to catalyze change except by getting on t...

Jon Denny has been a National Executive Sales and Marketing Recruiter for over 24 years in the Pharmaceutical, Biotech, Medical Devices, and Medical Diagnostics Industries with leading national recruitment firm, Buckman Enochs Coss & Associates (BEC Search). Established in 1979, BEC Search specializes in helping the best Healthcare and Life Science companies find the best people for every level of...

Kate's foundation and passion for coaching have been the catalyst for her successful career in biotech leadership.  Kate has had the incredible privilege of being coached by and coaching some very special people over the past two decades.   For the last 17 years, Kate worked at Genentech and Dompe in various sales capacities. She has spent the last 10 years in leadership positions including front...

Maureen brings a "Moneyball" meets "Ted Lasso" approach to high-performing teams, including 2,000 athletes and coaches. She uses the Clifton StrengthsFinder to measure talent that helps leaders and teams reach their full potential.  Her latest book, "Win Like a Girl: Coaching Female Athletes to Become Confident at the Game of Life" provides sorely needed bravery training that takes women from the...

Jake Thompson is a leadership consultant and the Chief Encouragement Officer at Compete Every Day, a brand he started in 2011 by first selling t-shirts out of the trunk of his car. Jake has spent more than a decade working with leaders and organizations all over the world on how they can get better results for themselves and their teams. He has been featured in Forbes, hosts a podcast in the top 1...

Matt and Suzanne Monahan have an incredible partnership. They are a remarkable couple, parents to two wonderful children, and forefront leaders in challenging industries such as pharmaceutical and healthcare consulting.  Suzanne is a former collegiate athlete and two-time cancer survivor. She is passionate about the power of mindset, teamwork, and performance. Currently, she holds a commercial lea...

Jerry first learned about extraordinary performance and excellence as a nationally ranked competitive athlete sponsored by Nike, running world-class times from 5,000 meters to the marathon, setting an American record in the half-marathon, winning a National Championship, and many other races against athletes half his age. He took what he learned about himself and life from his competitive days and...

Mike Campbell has 30 years of pharmaceutical and biotech commercialization leadership experience with P&L responsibilities across Marketing, Sales, Market Access, Business Development, and Operations with 20 years within Ophthalmology and Ophthalmics.  Prior to Joining Oyster Point Pharma – VIATRIS , he served as Vice President, Biologic Commercialization for Novartis, Vice President of Ophthalmic...

Ed is a coach down to the very smallest molecule of his DNA. Whether he's a husband and father at home or working with a client in the business world, he is an energized, passionate, and near-obsessive coach who is fully invested in showing up with all he's got to help you show up with all you've got. His approach insists on presence. He knows no other way to catalyze change except by getting on t...

John O' Sullivan John O'Sullivan is an internationally known TEDx Speaker and the founder of Changing the Game Project , which he started in 2012. He is the author of two #1 Bestselling books Changing the Game and Every Moment Matters and a leading youth sports blogger, while being a host of the Way of Champions Podcast, one of the top-rated podcasts in the world for coaches. Former collegiate and...