The Welsh Wire

The Welsh Wire features moderator Mike Rogers and professional recruiting expert Sheri Welsh in this podcast. Listen in as leaders from a wide array of small to mid-size west Michigan companies weigh in and share their experiences and insights on a variety of business topics, including employee retention challenges and recruitment success stories. On this week’s show, sponsored by the Family Busin...

This month's The Welsh Wire podcast features an engaging conversation between Welsh CEO Sheri Welsh and HR consultant Kerry Garman about the importance of using pre-employment assessments alongside interviews to make better hiring decisions. Garman shares insights on reducing bias, identifying true job fit, and why investing in the right assessment tools can save organizations significant time and...

This month's The Welsh Wire podcast, sponsored by the Family Business Alliance, features an engaging conversation between Welsh CEO Sheri Welsh and Nelson Sanchez, CEO of RoMan Manufacturing. In 2023, he was named the first non-family member to serve as the company’s CEO. He discusses how the company planned a process for future generations to enter the business or ascend to leadership roles. The...

This month's The Welsh Wire podcast, sponsored by the Family Business Alliance, features an engaging conversation between Welsh CEO Sheri Welsh and Dave Russell, President of Hastings Hot Line Tools & Equipment. Russell offers a unique perspective on what it means to be an outsider—a non-family member—leading a family-owned company. His story is one of opportunity, patience, and deep respect for t...

This month’s The Welsh Wire podcast, sponsored by the Family Business Alliance, features Sheri Welsh talking with Paul Hendricks, the President and CEO of Grand Rapids-based Creston Industrial Sales. Together they discuss his company, leadership style, and the Advanced Manufacturing Expo happening Aug. 6-7, 2025, in Grand Rapids.

Today, Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh dives into the inspiring entrepreneurial journey of Chris O’Neill, the visionary behind One Well Brewing—a beloved Kalamazoo establishment celebrating 10 years of business success. O’Neill’s story began with a passion for homebrewing and a bold decision to leave the corporate world to chase his dream of entrepreneurship. The Welsh Wire features professiona...

In this episode of The Welsh Wire, Sheri Welsh speaks with Adrienne Heidema, President & CEO of Consumers Concrete and the first female to lead the family-owned business. Heidema shares her unexpected journey into leadership, insights on career transitions, and how her company fosters an inclusive environment for women. She also highlights Consumers Concrete's commitment to supporting the local ec...

Today, Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh talks with Know Honesty Founder Ken Bogard and Co-Founder and Chief of Staff Grace Gavin to discuss the launch of their book and their journey in promoting open and honest communication in workplaces. The Grand Rapids-based Know Honesty Movement, founded in 2016, is helping organizations, professionals, and individuals break down their divisions and experi...

Many family-owned businesses struggle with managing growth and family dynamics. To get some insights into how to successfully navigate that process, Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh talks with Michelle Timmerman, Vice President and General Manager of Grand Rapids-based Direct Supply Inc. This episode is sponsored by the Family Business Alliance. The Welsh Wire features professional recruiting ex...

How can your business adapt to the demographic changes rolling across Michigan and get the employees you need to be successful? Last month, in the first part of a special presentation on The Welsh Wire, Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh and her guests laid the groundwork for tackling Michigan’s pressing need for well-trained STEM graduates. Listen to part 1 on Soundcloud. Today in part two, Sheri...

As part one of a special presentation on The Welsh Wire, Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh discusses a new collaboration addressing Michigan’s urgent need for well-trained STEM graduates, joined by guests from Western Michigan University (WMU). This collaboration between Welsh & Associates and WMU’s Optional Practical Training (OPT) program will connect local businesses with international STEM st...

Today on The Welsh Wire, Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh interviews Marlee D’Arco, President and CEO of Safety Services, Inc. in Kalamazoo, about her journey into leadership of her family’s business. The Welsh Wire features professional recruiting expert Sheri Welsh and moderator Mike Rogers. Listen in as leaders from a wide array of small to mid-size west Michigan companies weigh in and share...

Today on The Welsh Wire, Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh gets insights from Carrie Yunker, Executive Vice President at Bell’s Brewery, and Shayna Schupan Barry, Director of Governmental Affairs & Strategic Partnerships at Schupan & Sons, Inc. Bell’s Brewery and Schupan & Sons, Inc. are two west Michigan companies demonstrating how economic and social sustainability play a crucial role in their...

Accessing and nurturing a talented workforce continues to be a major challenge for Michigan businesses of all sizes. How can immigration help address this problem? That’s the topic of discussion on today's The Welsh Wire podcast. Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh talks with Kelli Saunders, Vice President of Policy and Engagement for the Small Business Association of Michigan, and Andy Johnston, S...

Traeger, maker of high-end wood pellet grills and accessories, is doing innovative work linking hybrid and remote teams to improve collaboration. Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh talked with Joe Marietta, Director of Mechanical Engineering at Traeger’s Kalamazoo office. The Welsh Wire features professional recruiting expert Sheri Welsh and moderator Mike Rogers. Listen in as leaders from a wide...

Treystar, a local Kalamazoo real estate development company, is playing a role in revitalizing downtown Kalamazoo by contributing $2 million toward renovating its Main Street East building. In a discussion today on The Welsh Wire, Welsh & Associates CEO Sheri Welsh speaks with Fritz Brown, a partner at Treystar, and Rachel Krasinski, its director of operations, shedding light on their latest proje...

A West Michigan business owner has launched a new program aimed at providing education, guidance, and validation to women who are gliding onto new career paths. Mary Jo Baweja, a clinical and organizational psychologist and president of Blank Canvas Consulting, talked with Sheri Welsh on The Welsh Wire podcast about her program, Career Evolution for Women. The Welsh Wire features professional recr...

Today’s workplaces are much different than they were just a few years ago. We discuss this in detail with our friends from Wightman, which is an architecture, civil engineering, and surveying firm with offices across Michigan trickling into Indiana. The Welsh Wire features professional recruiting expert Sheri Welsh and moderator Mike Rogers. Listen in as leaders from a wide array of small to mid-s...

An interest in invigorating and energizing business conferences and networking events helped to inspire West Michigan business leader Shannon Cohen to launch the rapidly expanding Rockstar Woman Movement. Cohen, who is also an author, podcaster, and entrepreneur, talked about her mission when she was interviewed by Sheri Welsh for the Welsh Wire podcast, sponsored by the Family Business Alliance....

“Going forward, we’re never going to have enough workers.” That statement, however unpalatable it may be to small employers in West Michigan, is a realistic assessment of worker availability, according to Dr. Paul Isely, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Programs’ Seidman College of Business, Grand Valley State University. Dr. Paul Isely joined Sheri Welsh for this discussion on The Welsh Wire Podca...

Sometimes, family-owned businesses find in their succession planning that family members lack the interest or passion to carry on the business operations. In a recent interview by Sheri Welsh of The Welsh Wire podcast, Robert Stead, Michigan Managing Partner for Barnes & Thornburg of Grand Rapids, says, “We have a couple of choices, either we can sell this business and turn it over to somebody els...

A new Grand Valley State University (GVSU) survey takes a look at the post-pandemic regenerative power of American family businesses and zeros in on the valuable leadership styles most commonly found in those firms. Sheri Welsh talks about the survey results on The Welsh Wire with the study authors Chandresh Baid, Assistant Professor of Management at GVSU’s Seidman College of Business; and Ana Gon...

The Regenerative Power of American Family Businesses, featuring Chandresh Baid and Ana Gonzalez by The Welsh Wire

A West Michigan banker’s efforts to help build a home for 27 orphans in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) offer important leadership lessons pertinent to all kinds of business and social challenges. Sheri Welsh talked on The Welsh Wire with Michael Sytsma, West Michigan President at KeyBank. The Welsh Wire features professional recruiting expert Sheri Welsh and moderator Mike Rogers. List...

A leading West Michigan business is tackling the challenge of labor shortages by helping to solve one of employees’ major frustrations: accessing affordable, quality child care. Scott Nykaza, CEO of Kalsec, and Kristyn Buhl-Lepisto, Executive Director of Kalamazoo County Ready 4s (KC Ready 4s), were interviewed by Sheri Welsh for this month’s The Welsh Wire podcast. The Welsh Wire features profess...