Heikki Malinen is CEO of Outokumpu. $10B in Revenue and 10k Employees. He’s an Influencer in World Business.

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I met Heikki Malinen at a conference in Point Clear, Alabama for his company, Outokumpu. His presentation showed a grasp of world events like none I’d seen before. He travels nearly non-stop, visiting the company’s stainless steel plants across the world. The war in Ukraine has impacted his company’s ability to get the affordable electricity he needs to power his plants in Europe. Workforce issues are a challenge to his facilities across Europe and the US. His challenges are familiar to listeners of What’s Working, but the scale is much different. You’ll find in Heikki, as is so often the case, a remarkable grasp of detail, a nice and friendly demeanor, and an infinite curioustiy. 

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• Trey Langus – Transworld Business Advisors
• Roy Lewis Construction
• Allison Horner – State Farm
• Angelo DePaola – The Coastal Connection Realty
• E3 Termite & Pest Control

My book, What Works, highlights the 10 best ideas I heard in my first two hundred episoded of What’s Working. 

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Domenick D’Andrea Coaxes a Reluctant Middle Age-Man (Me!) to Dig in on Social Media to Generate Leads

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I’ve long been suspcious that social media can do anything for me. For kids today, yes. For me, a middle aged guy? Hardly. Domenick D’Andrea and I met at a conference and he assured me that if I learn how and when to post and what subject matters people want to see, it will generate profitable business leads. I commit to try it, postng primarily to LinkedIn, to see what will happen. And Domenick says it can’t exclusively be business stuff, it has to be personal, too, like me zipping my suitcase and leaving the hotel room with a very short commentary. Seems crazy. Domenick is convinced. I commit to giving it a try. 

Show Sponsors:

• Roy Lewis Construction
• Allison Horner – State Farm Agent
• E3 Termite and Pest Control
• Trey Langus – Transworld Business Advisors
• Angelo DePaola – The Coastal Connection Realy
• Persons Services Corps

Find my book, What Works, highlighting the best ideas of the first 200 episodes on Amazon.

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Matt Barber and I Discuss the Future of Orthopedics as Technology Continues its March

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Dr Matt Barber loves his work as a orthopedic surgeon. It’s a combination of of skills that hits his sweet spot, including the advances in technology which peak his intersts. In the studio with me, Dr Barber has a sample of a knee made from a 3D printer of a patient’s scan including the slight imperfections caused by the patient’s age and wear and tear. Dr Barber and I discuss how technology continues to shape the profession, how people like him stay sharp and how you and I can talk to an orthopedist to determine if they’re on top of their game or not. It’s a thought provoking conversation that I loved. 

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• Roy Lewis Construction
• E3 Termite and Pest Control
• Allison Horner – State Farm Agent
• Buddy Persons – Persons Services Corp
• Trey Langus – Transworld Business Advisors
• Angelo DePaola – The Coastal Connection Realty

Find my book What Works at Amazon.com.

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Ernesto Perez-Carrillo is the Patriarch of the Celebrated EP Carrillo Cigar Company. And a Stud.

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Cigar Aficionado magazine loves EP Carrillo cigars. And they should. The cigars are fantastic. The patriarch of the company is Ernesto Perez-Carrillo. He’s third generation in the business after his (thankfully) failed attempt to become a jazz drummer in New York City as a much younger man. Today he leads the company as they develop new product, supervise the growth of a variety of tobaccos in Central America, train rollers, and market across the world. His son and daughter – both brilliant – are also in the business and he’s grooming them to lead. This year they’re on track to make four million cigars. We talk family business, hurricanes, the youth market, and much more. And you’ll hear me geek out a bit because Mr. Carrillo is a bit of a celebrity to me – so dang cool to get to talk to him.

Check out What Works – my book highlighting the top ten business lessons I learned from the first 200 episodes of the show.

Show Sponsors:

• Allison Horner – State Farm Agent
• E3 Termite and Pest Control
• Roy Lewis Construction
• Angelo DePaola – The Coastal Connection Realty
• Trey Langus – Transworld Business Advisors
• Persons Services Corp

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Customer Service Still Matters. A Lot. Pam Denham and I Discuss.

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Customer service still matters, though we don’t hear about it today like we used to. We know customers are increasingly disappointed in the service they receive. They have no problems blowing up social media when they get treated poorly. But customer service training and eduction is woefully lacking. And cheap, online customer service training…stinks. Pam Denham has trained customer service for years. She and I talk about what’s missing today and she offers some simple tips for taking service skills into your company. 

Find my book, What Works, online.

Show Sponsors:

• Angelo DePaola – The Coastal Connection Realty
• E3 Termite and Pest Control
• Trey Langus – Transworld Business Advisors
• Persons Services Corps
• Roy Lewis Construction
• Allison Horner – State Farm Agent

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Scot Hunsaker Returns to the Show with a Message: Don’t wait too long…

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Scot Hunsaker was on the show last year talking about how to prepare employees to take over once the CEO decided to leave. He has a recipe for the process which we discussed in a very engaging conversation. Scot and his wife then boarded his boat and began a slow ride up the east coast, around Nova Scotia, and down the St Lawrence river. His boat is now in storage near Chicago. He and his wife then flew to New Zealand and then Australia for a six week trip. From Australia, Scott called. “Cam,” he said, “there’s something I need to tell your listeners that I’m learning from this trip. They need to not wait too long before starting their retirement. I’m seeing too many people who are too old and frail to enjoy it the way they dreamed.” Well worth a listen.

Show Sponsors:

E3 Termite & Pest Control

Persons Services Corps

Roy Lewis Construction

Trey Langus – Transworld Business Advisors

Allison Horner – State Farm Agent

Angelo DePaola – The Coastal Connection Realty

What Works is my book written about the best ideas from the first 200 episodes of What’s Working. Sign up at the bottom of this page to receive a free chapter.

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Sean Sullivan and I Discuss the Stroke that Nearly Took Me Out March 21st

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Bonus Episode: On 3/21/23, about 8:35am, I suffered a stroke in the right side of my brain. The quick actions of those around me plus the Stroke Code team at USA Hospital in Mobile saved me. This podcast is the recording of the radio broadcast with FMTalk 106.5 Midday Mobile show host (and friend) Sean Sullivan as I recount the story. 

Take a listen – some things to learn here that my save you or someone else some day. 

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Real Estate Update with a Focus on the Second Home Market – Angelo DePaola of The Coastal Connection Realty

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Angelo DePaola keeps up with the second home market via his real estate company in Orange Beach, Alabama. Interest rates have changed but there is still a big demand. Home owners are turning over, too. The Boomers who bought vacation homes to bring the kids while they grew up are getting weary of taking care of those homes since the kids and grandkids are visiting less and less. Angelo is a savvy business man who has been very proactive in spreading his name and serving his clients. He’s not the cheapest realtor in Orange Beach but his clients seldom go anywhere else once they’ve used his services.

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E3 Pest Control

Allison Horner – State Farm

Roy Lewis Construction

Trey Langus – Transworld Business Advisors

Persons Services Corp

The Coastal Connection Realty

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The Wild West of Check Fraud – A Conversation with Ingo Money’s Rusty Pickering

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The sophistication of check fraud is something I knew nothing about until chatting with my old friend Rusty Pickering and then, only days later, hearing from two colleagues who had it happen to them. Rusty is President and COO of payment processing company Ingo Money in Alpharetta, Georgia. He and I chat about how check fraud happens, who’s at risk, who is at fault, and how to avoid having to constantly replace your credit card or debit card. Special bonus podcast version with extra content at the end – an off-script chat with Rusty and me.

Show Sponsors:

E3 Termite and Pest Control

Allison Horner – State Farm Agent

Trey Langus – Transworld Business Advisors

Angelo DePaola – The Coastal Connection Realty

Roy Lewis Construction

Persons Services Corp

Check out this episode!