The Business Communicators

How can you create a culture of empowerment and build a culture for good? Houda Elyazgi , Chief Client Officer at Saxum, joins The Business Communicators to share her insights on diversity, inclusion, and the challenges facing today’s corporate landscape. Hint: being open-minded and having uncomfortable conversations can serve as a catalyst for change – both internally and externally.   Music Cred...

Over the last 18 months, Web3, NFT’s, and the Metaverse have entered our everyday vernacular. But what does it all mean for communications and marketing professionals? Shiv Malik, CEO at Pool and our first three-time guest, joins The Business Communicators to discuss decentralization and the data economy.    Shiv Malik is a technologist, award nominated broadcaster, author of two books, former Gua...

Each year, brands pay exorbitant amounts for the cost of exposure during America’s greatest sporting event – the Super Bowl. It’s the one time of year brands are almost guaranteed a captive audience. This year’s big game was no different – including an epic halftime performance.    Brands shelled out upwards of $6.5 million for a 30-second ad spot marking the most expensive Super Bowl ad price in...

A CNN Business report says that Americans are showing up sick to work even as Omicron spreads. Why? Millions of frontline employees can’t stay home without missing a paycheck and many don't have paid sick leave. The Business Communicators discusses why this is a problem and offers potential solutions to keep workers healthy and safe. Who can you trust or is trust overrated?  Let’s talk about trust...

How can communications and marketing professionals future-proof their business to survive and profit from change? On the latest episode of The Business Communicators, Jonathan Brill , hailed by Inc. Magazine as a “Silicon Valley legend” joins the podcast to share his insights on creating a sustainable business that empowers employees. Brill shares insights into what makes leaders like Elon Musk an...

How can businesses reinvent themselves to ensure long-term success while retaining top-tier talent? Deb Coviello, Founder of Illumination Partners, joins The Business Communicators for a conversation on transforming corporate communications strategies heading into 2022 and the insights needed to equip effective and build leaders.   Then, the podcast breaks down the TIME Magazine’s person of the ye...

In the digital media era, data and design are integral tools to effectively engage and captivate your audience through storytelling. On the latest episode of The Business Communicators, Ben Worthen , CEO of Message Lab, joins the podcast to share insights into crafting content and creating experiences that empower communications and marketing professionals to tell stories that people actually want...

What is fearless, inclusive leadership in the workplace? It’s about being bold, courageous, and transparent about creating a culture where people feel like they belong and can thrive. And, it starts with having an open mind.    In the past 18 months, organizations have restructured their diversity and inclusion programs in the wake of rallying cries for leaders and companies to take a stand about...

For decades, businesses have exhausted billions of dollars and spent countless hours developing strategies to increase employee engagement, decrease burnout, and improve productivity. And yet, most workplaces still—to put it bluntly—suck. The reason? The corporate world has always been driven primarily by results, so leaders are not hard-pressed to actually change their ways.    S. Chris Edmonds a...

Following the initial recording of this episode of The Business Communicators, tragedy struck in Houston hours later on Friday, Nov. 5, as eight people died at Grammy-nominated artist Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival in a mass casualty event. Austin and Thomas open the podcast by discussing what went wrong and how the crisis response was botched by event promoters.   Then, the show breaks down A...

High-stress situations. We all know them, but how do we thrive under pressure and use it to our advantage? Dane Jensen , CEO at Third Factor and an instructor at Queen’s University and the University of North Carolina, joins The Business Communicators to share how some of our highest-pressure moments and what we do in those moments have a major impact on the trajectory of the rest of our lives. Ha...

The Pandemic. The Great Resignation. Contentious societal and political issues. The challenges we face create unprecedented stress on individuals and families which can seep into the work environment. Ethan McCarty , the founder and CEO of Integral, joins The Business Communicators for a discussion on the company’s latest employee activation index ( download the report here ). McCarty shares insig...

Has your employee communications strategy effectively adapted over the past 18 months? If not, how can it improve moving forward? In the season four premiere of The Business Communicators, Houston Methodist Hospital’s Stefanie Asin and LyondellBasell’s Monica Silva join the podcast to share best practices and tips for communicating and engaging employees with compassion and transparency as we emer...

Editor’s Note: This episode marks the end of season three of the podcast. Season four will debut in fall 2021. Be sure to follow The Business Communicators on social media during the summer months and join the crew for special bonus live episodes. As CEO of Ragan Communications, Diane Schwartz leads a company that has become a trusted resource for the PR and corporate communications industry for m...

Diana Doukas is the Manager for Economic Impact for U.S. Policy Programs at Facebook where she works with the company’s policy goals and how the platform can empower small businesses. She joins Austin Staton and Hattie Horn on The Business Communicators for an in-depth conversation on her role at Facebook, how the company has created tools to facilitate small business development, lessons learned...

This week on The Business Communicators , the crew discusses Total’s corporate rebranding to reflect its netzero ambitions, Twitter’s latest premium offering, and a new study from MIT and Google that aims to fight misinformation on social media. Does A Rebrand Really Make A Difference? As public concern grows over climate change, companies have reinvented themselves to become leaders in the energy...

Amazon made headlines with its massive purchase of MGM. What does this mean for the future of how we consume content? In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation that takes on Silicon Valley. But, is this an assault on private corporations and their constitutional rights? As America heads back to the office, is video calling a thing of the past, or is it something we should embrace moving for...

After a week off, The Business Communicators are back! The trio discuss the communications efforts behind the latest guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, why comms teams should be diligent in preparing for potential cyber threats, TikTok and (surprise) privacy, and tips to effectively channel your creative ideas. Mask On, Mask Off: The Rules of Engagement The most recent g...

Ron Carucci , best-selling author, speaker and managing partner at Navalent , has spent nearly four decades working with leaders and organizations pursuing transformational change for their organizations, leaders and industries. Ron’s work has been featured in Fortune , CEO Magazine , Business Insider , MSNBC , Inc , Business Week , and more. Ron joined The Business Communicators to discuss curren...

If you have not met Jodi-Ann Burey, you’re in for a treat.  Simply put, she is a disrupter, speaker and a writer who works at the intersections of race, culture, and health equity.  Jodi’s TED talk, “ The Myth of Bringing Your Full Authentic Self to Work ,” embodies her disruption of traditional narratives about racism at work and has almost 1 million YouTube views. Jodi-Ann joins Hattie Horn for...

Amazon Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos wrote his final letter to shareholders last week offering clear insight about the customer experience, efficiency, long-term thinking, managing crisis and more. What are the key takeaways for comms pros and business leaders?  Then, should CEOs get involved in discussing hot-button political and social issues? If so, how far are they willing to go to affect change?...

Daniel Vaughn is the barbecue editor at Texas Monthly and he is the ultimate barbecue snob. In fact, @BBQSnob is his handle on both Twitter and Instagram where he actively engages with fans and readers throughout the U.S. Vaughn is a licensed architect, he is the author of the bestselling book, The Prophets of Smoked Meat and the creator of popular blog Full Custom Gospel BBQ . He joins The Busine...

The month of April blew in bringing fools, fire and vaccine passports. In this week’s episode, Austin, Thomas and Hattie talk about Volkswagen’s April Fool fail, Nike’s clap-back on rapper Lil Nas X’s "Satan Shoes," and concerns about the new vaccine passport policy. Volkswagen is the Biggest (April) Fool If we had to grade Volkswagen’s effort to promote the company’s lone electric vehicle to coin...

In the latest spirited conversation of The Business Communicators podcast, Austin, Thomas and Hattie exchange viewpoints over US businesses that are offering free stuff to people that get vaccinated, the pros and cons of a potential media merger between The Athletic and Axios, and why social influencer David Dobrik’s scope of influence should have included him not making stupid decisions. Free Mon...

The NCAA’s March Madness is well underway, one year after the annual collegiate basketball tournament was canceled due to COVID-19. What does that have to do with communications? Plenty. The Business Communicators discuss how universities have reimagined their robust strategies to keep fans engaged to overcome the lack of physical connections. The show also focuses on how employees have missed the...