The MBI EDGE

Jeff Espenship, or “Odie”, as his call-sign declares is an international airline pilot, retired USAF fighter pilot, husband, father and professional speaker. Odie is joining us this year for the Winter Conference and has an inspiring message about cutting corners. As he says, “ Pay attention to the size of the shadow you cast in the eyes of others. Fresh eyes and ears are always watching and liste...

Jake Thompson will be joining us as a keynote speaker this year at the Annual Winter Conference. Jake joins us for a preview of that keynote and how you can Compete Every Day.

In this episode, hear from Darell Butcher of SE Polk High School. SE Polk has been a leader in work-based learning programs available for high school students and has personally been fundraising for a new building on school grounds that will create a local talent pipeline for those entering the trades.

In this episode, MBI’s CMaR Consultant Larry Cormicle talks about the public bidding landscape in Iowa. He talks with the audience about what he’s seeing in RFQ’s and RFP’s, how respondents are treating the process and what he’s been doing to educate owners, contractors and design professionals.

Joani Wolfe is the Iowa Area Director for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and is focused on eliminating the loss of life from suicide – something plaguing our industry.

Sonya Bohmann is the Executive Director of the Construction Industry Alliance for Suicide Prevention. Sonya gives the audience an in-depth understanding of how much words matter when talking about the loss of life from suicide and how we can all bring a better awareness.

Lars Peterson is a licensed therapist, family business consultant and trainer. He works through the Employee and Family Resources non-profit with clients to help manage challenges at work, home, community and in school.

In this episode, we spoke to John Greenwood from Goldfinch Health. John has been a keynote speaker at our past Winter Conference speaking to our industry about the dangers of opioid use. John and his team has put together the Billion Pill Pledge, essentially eliminating the use of opioids after surgery and how doctors and medical professionals are changing the way we treat patients. Hear about how...

Jennifer Bryant is a human resources expert and creator of the Human Pivot – a firm she created after spending a working lifetime in the H/R corporate world. This was a very informative conversation we had about unique differentiators that employers are using to recruit and retain leaders.

In 2023, MBI is supporting and partnering with Construction Angels – a charity dedicated to provide immediate assistance and grief counseling to the families of construction workers who have unfortunately lost their lives while working on the jobsite. Here more about the mission from CEO Kristi Gibbs and how our members can support the cause!

Bill Schmarzo has many titles. Dean of Big Data. CDO Whisperer. Global Innovator. Professor. Currently, he’s the Customer Advocate of Data Management Incubation for Dell Technologies. In this episode, we explore the AI transformation and how it impacts data collection to fuel business growth in the future.

On this episode, we sat with Elisa Brewer-Pratt, who recently led a group of young professionals in this industry through an extensive exercise regarding the future of workforce. Hear what she had to say!

Cal Beyer is many things. Communicator. Catalyst. Change Agent. Coach. Certified Wellness Practitioner. All of these titles fit. But at his heart and core, Cal is changing lives by sharing stories of struggle and survival through his role as Vice President of Workforce Risk and Worker Mental Wellbeing dedicated to construction risk management.

Renee Schulte, Mental Health Professional and Former Iowa Legislator, joins the podcast this month to talk about some staggering statistics in our industry. She's been in the trenches - navigating Iowa's mental health system for years - and is uniquely qualified to provide strategic advice for employers in implementing new healthy work strategies.

Since 1949, Mental Health Awareness Month has been observed in May across the United States. We feel it is not only important, it is our duty to talk openly about the mental health crisis in our industry. Brad Churchill joins the podcast this month and we are especially appreciative of the work Brad is doing to help #stopthestigma.

MBI has long supported the UNI Construction Management program and the Construction Engineering program at Iowa State University through the annual awarding of scholarships to students enrolled in these programs. We talked with one recipient of such scholarships, and how that helped propel him to become the business owner he is today.

At his core, Alan Stein Jr. is a performance coach with a passion for helping business leaders change behaviors. Alan joined us at the MBI Winter Conference to talk about how business leaders can apply the principles he’s used in coaching some of the best basketball players on the planet (including NBA superstars Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Kobe Bryant).

Candace Carnahan's path as a safety advocate resulted from a devastating workplace incident in which she lost her leg at the age of 21. That day could have taken her life, and it was completely preventable. One step changed her life. Since that day 20 years ago, more than half a million people have heard her message of workplace safety. Her advocacy reaches into every layer of an organization - fr...

Since 1993, David Rabiner has helped audiences become better leaders, perform at a higher level, and create stronger teams and organizations. His programs are fun, substantive, and have practical application which fits perfectly while instructing The Leadership Experience for MBI for the past 15+ years.

Join us and get to know the CSSI team members. We're talking with Kim Hodne who has been coined "The Professor"

Mark Stanley, of The WHY! Company, has been an Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) implementer for many years. Mark describes in this podcast the EOS system, and how MBI has taken advantage of it’s practices to run a better business model.

Baton Global’s mission is to provide strategy, innovation, leadership and research services for solving our clients’ most complex challenges, transforming organizations and communities worldwide. They have recently embarked on a research project with MBI to provide economic insights for our members’ c-suite as they forecast and plan for the future.

Join us for this episode with Michaela Moore, a Senior Travel Advisor with Creative Vacations. Michaela has been a travel agent for 27+ years and has assisted MBI and it’s members on the past 3 out of country excursions. She previews what members have to look forward to this time around and discusses current travel habits.

Hosts of the MBI Edge Podcast Ben Hammes, Director of Public Affairs and Chad Kleppe, President and CEO of MBI lay out the 2023 MBI Legislative Priorities and discuss what led the association to embark on podcasting.