IN STUDIO - RECENT GUESTS

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On Air: April 21, 2015

Dr. John Sviokla, Principal, Head of Global Thought Leadership at PWC; Co-Author of The Self-Made Billionaire Effect: How Extreme Producers Create Massive Value

Dr. Sviokla has explored extreme value creation, industry disruption, and digital transformation of industry and society. His most recent project is the book The Self Made Billionaire Effect: How Extreme Producers Create Massive Value (with Mitch Cohen) which is the first ever study of self-made billionaires and the lessons for corporate executives Dec 2014, Penguin Portfolio. (www.pwc.com/billionaire)

Dr. Sviokla created some of the very first thought leadership on the coming world of digital competition (Managing in the Marketspace, Harvard Business Review (HBR) 1994, Exploiting the Virtual Value Chain, HBR 1995) and has been extensively published in many journals including Sloan Management Review, WSJ, Financial Times and appeared on CNBC, Bloomberg , and Fox News. He serves a variety of clients and is a frequent speaker on topics of disruption, growth, and emerging customer behavior.

Main areas of expertise

  • Strategy, leadership & innovation. He has wide ranging knowledge of many industries and businesses, deep understanding of leading practice and research into industry disruption, customer behavior, economics, business design & leadership.

Relevant, recent, client experience:

  • Ongoing consulting on new business models, customer behavior and innovation in financial services, consumer products and industrial products.
  • Strategic analysis of compensation, enrollment and technology for a global insurance carrier.
  • Global strategy for leading services company.

John Sviokla is a Principal with PwC Advisory in the US. He heads up the firm’s global thought leadership efforts. He serves on the firm’s Advisory leadership council, and he runs The Exchange – an ongoing think tank for clients and world class business leaders.

  • Bachelors (1979) Harvard College.
  • Masters (1983) and Doctorate (1986) Harvard Business School.
  • Harvard Business School Faculty 1986-1998.

Vice Chairman of the Board & Chief Innovation Officer Diamond Management Consultants (NASDAQ DTPI): 1998-2010.

http://www.pwc.com/us/en/self-made-billionaire-effect/index.jhtml

On Air: April 21, 2015

Eamonn Kelly, Director with Deloitte Consulting LLP and CMO of Strategy & Operations

Eamonn is a director with Deloitte Consulting LLP and CMO of its Strategy & Operations practice. He helps senior leaders navigate an increasingly disruptive environment to succeed in a complex and uncertain future. Prior to Deloitte, ­­Eamonn was a partner at Monitor Group, and CEO of Global Business Network. A widely published writer, he is the author of Powerful Times: Rising to the Challenge of Our Uncertain World and co-author of What’s Next: Exploring the New Terrain for Business.


On Air: April 21, 2015

Gavin Kelly, Co-Founder of Artefact

Gavin Kelly is the co-founder of Artefact, an award-winning digital, technology and innovation studio based in Seattle. He is a proven design leader, strategist, and patent holder with 20 years of international experience with industry-leading organizations. Gavin began his career in advertising at Ogilvy & Mather in Sydney and later as an art director with Maxwell Publishing in London. During his ten years at Microsoft, he led design efforts for key strategic initiatives such as Microsoft Office and Microsoft’s MSN division and defined the vision for the Windows Live experience.

Artefact’s growth and success as a design consultancy are a testament to Gavin’s vision and commitment to excellence and innovation; qualities that he brings to all strategic projects he is involved in.​

http://www.artefactgroup.com/about/

On Air: April 14, 2015

Mark Randall, Chief Strategist VP of Creativity at Adobe

As a serial entrepreneur, Mark’s career conceiving, designing and marketing innovative technology spans nearly twenty years and three successful high-tech start-ups. He has fielded over a dozen products which combined have sold over a million units, generated over $100 million in sales and won a total of 15 Product of the Year, 12 Best of NAB, 7 Best of Comdex, 2 PC Magazine Technical Excellence awards, and two Emmy awards.

Products that Mark’s startups developed are used by half the Fortune 500, all branches of the U.S. government, and thousands of schools around the world. His products have been featured in Time, Newsweek, Fortune, Forbes, Wired, Rolling Stone, USA Today and NY Times. As an innovator Mark has ten U.S. patents, he’s been named to Digital Media Magazine’s “Digital Media 100″ and he is one of Streaming Magazine’s “50 Most Influential People”. As an entrepreneur he’s won a national Addy award, a DemoGod award and Advertising Age’s Corporate Video of the Year.

Mark speaks and teaches frequently on entrepreneurship, innovation and strategy and has appeared on CNN, ABC, NBC and CNBC. He sold his most recent startup, Serious Magic, to Adobe Systems where he is now Chief Strategist, VP Creativity. Mark also collects exceedingly rare but mostly worthless old computers and can do two cool magic tricks.

http://www.markrandall.com/

On Air: April 14, 2015

David Yoffie, Max and Doris Starr Professor of International Business Administration at Harvard Business School, Author of Strategy Rules: 5 Timeless Lessons from Bill Gates, Andy Grove, and Steve Jobs

Professor David B. Yoffie is the Max and Doris Starr Professor of International Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He has also written extensively for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and the Harvard Business Review.

http://www.businessinsider.my/author/david-b-yoffie-and-michael-a-cusumano-strategy-rul/

On Air: April 14, 2015

Alex Algard, Founder and CEO of Whitepages

Alex Algard is Founder and CEO of Whitepages, the leading source for personal and business contact information in North America with more than 600 million phone numbers in their database. Whitepages helps people to find, be found and connect with each other. Alex founded Whitepages in his Stanford dorm room in 1997; at present, the company has several product lines – (1) an identity directory at Whitepages.com, (2) mobile products, including the widely popular Whitepages Caller ID app which protects against scam and spam calls, and (3) Whitepages Pro a B2B offering that helps businesses identify and verify with whom they are doing business.

On the show, Alex talked about how to keep Whitepages operating in the mindset of a startup after twenty years of operations. They continue to innovate and improve the delivery of the product to the customers, despite having a relatively mature product. Alex also discussed the decision to buy out their investors. Since the 2013 buyout, Whitepages has focused improving their products and services and building the company through innovation and within 18 months, Whitepages had doubled its profits.


On Air: April 14, 2015

Mick Ebeling, CEO of Not Impossible Lab

Recently honored as one of the Top 50 Most Creative People of 2014 and the 2014 Muhammad Ali Humanitarian of the Year Award, Mick Ebeling is a film/television/commercial producer, philanthropist, technology trailblazer, author, entrepreneur and public speaker. Ebeling is CEO of Not Impossible Labs, an organization that develops creative solutions to address real-world problems.

Not Impossible Labs was founded on Mick’s firm belief that nothing is impossible. With no technical background in ocular recognition technology, Ebeling created Not Impossible’s first project: The Eyewriter. An open source, low-cost, DIY device, The Eyewriter enables individuals with paralysis to create art using only the movement of their eyes. Time Magazine named The Eyewriter one of the “Top 50 Inventions of 2010,” and the device is now part of MoMA’s permanent collection.

Not Impossible followed The EyeWriter with Project Daniel, now celebrating its one-year anniversary. The subject of Intel’s “Look Inside” campaign, Project Daniel enabled Ebeling to fly to Sudan to 3-D-print prosthetic limbs and fit them for children of the war-torn region. He then left the equipment behind with trained locals to continue his work, thus creating the world’s first 3-D printing prosthetic lab and training facility. Arms are printed within hours and cost $100. Time Magazine said, “It’s hard to imagine any other device doing more to make the world a better place.”

Project Daniel earned many awards, including the Titanium Cannes Lion, along with 3 Bronze Lions (Branded Content, Film, & Cyber), and 1 Gold (Product Design). Project Daniel has also won AICP’s Next Cause Marketing Award, the 2014 One Show Gold Pencil (Design and Intellectual Property & Products, tied for “Best in Show”), the 2014 Silver and Bronze Telly Award, and the 2014 Maker Faire Editor’s Choice Blue Ribbon (Creativity, Ingenuity and Innovation), and was among The Nominet Trust 100, and was nominated at the 2015 SXSW Interactive Innovation Awards (Innovative 3-DIY). The work has been entered into the MoMA’s permanent film archives.

On January 6, Ebeling’s first book, Not Impossible: The Art and Joy of Doing What Couldn’t Be Done, hit shelves. The book recounts his life experiences, the Eyewriter, and Project Daniel. Deepak Chopra calls it “the template for a new science of consciousness,” and Jillian Michaels refers to it as, “a road map to changing your life by changing the lives of others.”

Not Impossible’s latest endeavor, Don’s Voice, was released on February 11th, 2015. Don’s Voice is a heart-warming look at the true story of Don and Lorraine Moir. In 1995, Don was diagnosed with ALS. On May 21, 1999, Don was fitted with a ventilator. He hasn’t spoken since. With his communication limited to a letter board, a sheet of paper with the alphabet divided into quadrants, Don’s disease forced him to communicate silently through others for over a decade. The Not Impossible team utilized its know-how to develop a simple interface that replicated Don’s paper letter board. Don is now able to access a new world of technology and communication for the first time since being diagnosed. Through this simple technology, Don independently wrote a love letter to his wife and was able to audibly say, “I Love You, Lorraine” for the first time in 15 years. With over 400 thousand views, Don’s Voice has been featured in GOOD Magazine, Upworthy, and the Huffington Post.

http://notimpossible.com/

On Air: April 7, 2015

Roel de Vries, Corporate VP, Head of Marketing and Brand Strategy, Nissan Motor Co.

As Corporate Vice President, Global Head of Marketing, and BrandStrategy, Roel is focused on further strengthening Nissan’s brands value. There are two key elements to this: firstly ensuring internally Nissan is doing everything needed to develop leading brands; and secondly making sure this is then communicated effectively and consistently in today’s increasingly complex world of marketing.

Career History

Born and growing up in the Netherlands, Roel always wanted to work in the automotive industry, inspired by a belief that purchasing a car is one of the most emotive investments a person will ever make in their lives.He first joined Nissan in 1994 at the European head-office in Amsterdam, having qualified with a Bachelor Degree in Industrial Engineering from Hogeschool Eindhoven,anda Masters Degree in Business Administration from the University of Groningen. Then in 1998, Roel took a role based in South Africa responsible for marketing. During his time inSouth Africa Roel became Director of Marketing and Sales and experienced incredibly fascinating and challenging times when the country went through significant political and financial changes.

Following his time in South Africa, Roel worked in a number of global roles including General Manager Product Planning General Overseas Markets (2008 -2009), Program Director for Nissan’s all rear wheel drive vehicles (2009 –2010), before being appointed to his current role asCorporate Vice President, Global Head of Marketing and Brand Strategy in November 2010.

Achievements at Nissan

Roel has enjoyed many happy memories and achievements during his career at Nissan. ”I’m grateful of having had the opportunity to look at so many different aspects and geographies of the Nissan business during my time with the company”,he said. What makes Roel particularly proud in his current role is enjoying Nissan’s brand leadership grow, and seeing how brand and marketing management is playing an increasingly bigger and important role within the organization.

Why is Nissan Different

Roel enjoys working for an organization that is as diverse as Nissan. “The integration of cultures combined with the solid foundation of being a Japanese company is truly exciting and powerful”, he said. “At Nissan, if you are ambitious and you work hard you can really succeed and have the opportunity to work in a variety of roles and countries across the world.”

Future Predictions

Roel predicts Nissan will enjoy a strong growth path in all markets globally in the coming years. This is as a result of the solid foundations it has laid worldwide, and the brand image and leadership improving across the globe. Roel also predicts the automotive industry will remain resilient in the future –“a car will always be one of the most emotional purchases of your life.”

Education and Awards

Bachelor Industrial Engineering, Hogeschool Eindhoven, Netherlands

Master Business Administration, University of Groningen, Netherlands

In Role’s Personal Time

Roel likes to spend as much time as possible enjoying all aspects of life, from travel, to sports, to good food and wine -all enjoyed with family and friends. His favourite sports are field hockey, running, skiing and golf.

Roel’s Current Ride

In Japan Roel drives a Nissan Elgrand –MPV –to get around at the weekend and explore Japan.

http://nissannews.com/en-US/nissan/usa/releases/roel-de-vries-bio

On Air: April 7, 2015

Shiro Nakamura, Senior VP and Chief Creative Officer, Nissan Motor Company

Who is Shiro Nakamura?

Shiro Nakamura has been the Senior Vice President of Design since 2001, and assigned to the Chief Creative Officer in April 2006. In his current role, he is responsible for presiding over the design studios around the world, overseeing the brand strategies and the design of Nissan, Infiniti and Datsun products, but also motor show booth design, retail environment and graphic direction of brand communication.

He joined Nissan in 1999 and has beenresponsible for many notable vehicles, including Nissan 350/370Z, Altima, Cube, Murano, Qashqai, Juke and the GT-R, as well as Infiniti M, G, FX, and Q50. His recent concepts include Nissan Resonance, Sport Sedan Concept, Friend-ME Concept, Kicks Concept, Infiniti Essence, Emerg-e, Q30 Concept, Q80 Inspiration and Datsun Redi-Go Concept.Before joining Nissan, Shiro Nakamura spent 25 years of his career at Isuzu Motors, working all over the world in senior level positions ofthe designdepartment. He also spent time workingatGeneral Motors, and has been based in the United States, UK, Belgium, and Japan.

Career History

Shiro Nakamura was born in Japan’s second largest city, Osaka. He studied Industrial Design at Musashino Art College in Tokyo before joining Isuzu Motors. Shortly after joining Isuzu, Shiro Nakamura went to the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California to study Transportation Design.He returned to Japan for four years before moving to General Motor’s Advanced Design Studio in Detroit. From there, he travelled briefly back to Japanbefore heading to Europe to launch a design studio. He stayed in the UK for five years before returning to Japan.

He went back to California to be the head of product planning and design. When he returned to Japan in 1997 he was promoted to be the head of design for Isuzu, a position he held for two years before moving to Nissan.

Achievements at Nissan

Shiro Nakamura says that he is pleased to have elevated the importance of the Nissan design function.The Juke is one of the vehicles that he is particularly proud of –describing it as having a very unique design but one that is very successful.

Personal Memory

His memorable moment, Shiro Nakamura says, is when he joined Nissan. He said: “It was such a surprise to be called and to be asked to be the design leader. Carlos Ghosn wanted Nissan’s design to change and it really has gone in a new direction. We now have a strong voice, one that has made a large contribution to the success of the company.”

Why is Nissan Different?

Shiro Nakamura describes Nissan as a company with a strong Japanese ethos, but one that also has great free-thinking and flexibility. He believes that the Nissan-Renault Alliance has been so successful, for example, because of Nissan’s diversity and ability to accept outside influence.

Future Predictions

Shiro Nakamura says that cars will continue to evolve at pace and will become increasingly more diverse. He says: “Driving is not just about transportation, it’s an experience -the customer wants more choice and that will never stop.”

Education and Awards

Bachelor of Arts in Industrial Design, Musashino Art University, Tokyo

Bachelor of Science in Transportation Design, Art Centre College of Design, California

Eyes On Design Lifetime Achievement Award 2010; 100 Most Creative People 2010–4thPlace (Fast Company, USA); Art Center’s Lifetime Achievement Alumni Award 2014

Winner of the Grand Prix du Design2015

In Shiro Nakamura’s Personal Time

Shiro Nakamura plays the bass and the cello, and leadinga band that performs in various jazz clubs around Tokyo. He is also interestedin vintage cars and making violins.

Shiro Nakamura’s Current Ride

Shiro Nakamura has a 1965 1st generation Nissan Silvia sport coupe and a high-performance version of the original Z sports car -a 1969 Z 432.He currently drives a black Q50.


On Air: April 7, 2015

Fred Diaz, SVP, Nissan Sales & Marketing and Operations U.S., Nissan North America, Inc.

Fred M. Diaz is senior vice president, Nissan Sales & Marketing and Operations U.S., Nissan North America, Inc., a position to which he was appointed in January 2014. In this role, Diaz reports to José Muñoz, executive vice president, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and chairman, Nissan North America. Diaz is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Nissan Division including all sales, marketing communications, model line brand management, parts and service, product planning, light commercial vehicles, customer quality, dealer network development functions and all regional offices in the U.S. Diaz joined Nissan in April 2013 as divisional vice president, Nissan Sales & Marketing and Parts & Service, U.S.

Previously Diaz was CEO of Chrysler’s Ram Truck and Ram Commercial Division. He also served as CEO of Chrysler de México, responsible for all the Chrysler Group brands there. In 2011, Diaz was ranked number two among the 25 most influential Hispanic business leaders in America by the editors of Hispanic Business magazine. Diaz holds a bachelor’s degree in management with an emphasis in psychology from Texas Lutheran University and an MBA from Central Michigan University. He is based in Franklin, Tenn.

http://nissannews.com/en-US/nissan/usa/releases/fred-m-diaz