The Cost Management Center Podcast

Is continuous improvement an art, a science, or something else entirely? In this episode, I sit down with Keith Norris, CEO of KPI Fire, host of the KPI Fireside podcast, and author of Fire Starter: How to Ignite Improvement , to explore what separates organizations that talk about progress from those that actually deliver it. Keith makes a compelling case that continuous improvement requires both...

What if the cloud applications your company depends on today become obsolete? In this episode, I sit down with David Habib, a Chief Information Officer and author of a book on artificial intelligence, who has spent considerable time thinking about where AI is taking us — and the answer has major implications for your technology budget. David's central thesis is as provocative as it is compell...

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Abhay V. Trivedi, a Master Black Belt in Six Sigma, trained engineer, author, and former college dean. Not surprisingly, he has a rare depth and breadth of knowledge. He also has the skill of being able to communicate that knowledge in a way that is clear and memorable. The information just pours out of him. You should get your Six Sigma yellow belt just for li...

In this episode, I explore how cost-reduction projects are typically conducted with Jim Shand, formerly of AlixPartners. AlixPartners is the premier service provider for companies facing financial difficulties and seeking to better manage costs. Jim worked with the firm for 10 years and provided services to many companies during that time, particularly those owned by private equity. Jim more recen...

In this episode, I discuss how to control cloud costs with Brian Kathman, CEO at OpsCanvas. OpsCanvas uses a proprietary platform and AI to deliver actionable insights to its customers, which, on average, have generated savings of 22%.  Two decades ago, no one was discussing the need to control cloud costs. It was in its infancy and considered the cost-saving solution over traditional on-premises...

In this episode, I discuss strategies for managing commercial real estate costs with Adam Schindler, Vice Chair at Colliers International. Adam is a top leasing agent for Colliers, exclusively representing tenants. It is an interesting time to discuss commercial real estate as the industry is still emerging from the devastating impact of the pandemic. It’s also unclear to what extent employers wil...

In this episode, I discuss the challenging cost area of employer-provided health insurance with Keith Burgess, Partner/Agent at NFP, an Aon company. Keith has been in the industry for almost 30 years, and I can think of no one better to help my listeners navigate this difficult space. Employer-provided health insurance is nothing new, but its costs have consistently outpaced inflation for decades,...

In this episode, I sit down with my first podcast guest, Sanjeev Garg, Senior Vice President and CIO of Global Technology Services at ORBCOMM, to explore how technology leaders can manage costs more effectively in today’s rapidly changing landscape. We talk about how tech purchasing and management has evolved, the new challenges introduced by AI, and the common pitfalls CIOs face when trying to ba...

Find more from Duane: Email: ddeason@efficacygroup.com Website: https://efficacygroup.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/duanedeason/ Buy the Operationally Svelte book: https://efficacygroup.com/company-efficiency-book/