Action and Ambition

Welcome to another episode of The Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Karen Grinzaid, a Genetic Counselor at Emory University, a private university of international reach where courageous ideas achieve positive transformation in the world. She is also the Executive Director of JScreen, a genetic screening and education program offering comprehensive, at-home testing on saliva, based on Emory University School of Medicine. Karen has extensive experience in genetic counseling and testing, clinical care, and clinical research. Tune in to learn more on this!

Welcome to another episode of The Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Tessa White, an HR professional with 20+ years of experience in the field. Leading HR in Fortune 50 companies as well as small start-ups to mid-sized organizations. She has a passion for filling in puzzle pieces of talent to create cohesive teams and likes working for companies with a penchant for experimentation. Tessa is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Job Doctor, a company dedicated to moving employee performance from average to extraordinary and building strong company leaders with highly engaged employees. She is recognized nationwide as a media expert on people strategy and career navigation and has been published in Forbes. Don’t miss this out!

Welcome to another episode of The Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Mickey Fain, Founder, and President at Stoneside Blinds and Shades, the nation’s fastest-growing custom window coverings company. They have achieved this rapid growth by offering high-end custom style to our customers, personally delivered by industry-leading Design Consultants and Installation Technicians. They manufacture everything in America and operate in 13 markets across the States. Stoneside’s team members provide a fiver-star window covering experience by embodying core values: honesty, passion, innovation, positivity, and generosity. Mickey was also the Founder and CEO of the Colorado CEO Forum, guiding the organization's long-term development. Tune in to learn more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Jeff Lavelle, the Founder, and CEO of Strictly Restaurants, a full-service accounting operational, day-to-day cash flow management, and hospitality consulting company created to maximize profitability and growth for your restaurant. They specialize in operations, consulting services and, accounting solutions for businesses within the hospitality sector. Before this, Jeff spent more than 24 years in the hospitality industry as a Restaurant Controller. Don’t miss out on this episode!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Our guest today is Zach Harris, Founder, and CEO of benefitbay™. A first-of-its-kind tool that gives employees the power to buy the best benefits for their families while reducing effort and expense from employers and their brokers. With a perfect marriage of specific aspects of new legislation called ICHRA (Individual Health Reimbursement Arrangement) and an easy to deploy end to end platform that includes; plan design, compliance and, banking, benefitbay™ delivers the very best individual benefit offering for today's workforce available in the market. Zach was also the Managing Director of the Milliman technical consultants and actuarial team to launch an ICHRA administration platform. Tune in to find more!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Bryon Kroger, an Intelligence Officer who turned Product Owner. He serves as COO for Project Kessel Run at the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center. Having been on the receiving end of poor software from the Defence Acquisitions Cycle for seven years, Bryon has a deep appreciation for just how steep the cost of delay can be measured not just in dollars but sometimes in lives. His passion for reducing that cost led him to the acquisition community, where he embarked on a cloud-native journey for intelligence systems using PCF. Bryon has made a career of presenting to the highest levels of military leadership on topics ranging from national security to DevOps. Tune in to learn more!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Our guest today is Anthony Chan, a Silicon-Valley based international finance executive with 30+ years of experience dealing with investment in China and the U.S. He is the Chief Financial Officer, BORQS Technologies, a global leader in embedded software and products for the Internet of Things (IoT) providing customizable, differentiated and scalable Android-based smart-connected mobile devices and E2E cloud-service solutions. Anthony was also the Chief Financial Officer of Tianjin Tongguang Group Digital Communication, an electrical/electronic company. Tune in to learn more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today are Pam Miniati and Rakefet Phillips, the Co-Executive Directors of FIBA. The Florida-Israel Business Accelerator is a Florida-based business development and community engagement project designed to establish and grow successful Israeli tech ventures in the Tampa Bay area. FIBA identifies Israeli Technologies that can solve business problems and fill challenge gaps for Florida corporations and provide a soft landing for companies ready to enter the US market. FIBA offers a variety of unique programs for Israeli companies. Don’t miss a thing! Tune in to learn more!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Today we are joined with Victoria Kennedy, a TEDx speaker and well-respected authority in Public Relations. She was named a “Cultural Leader” by Rolling Stone Magazine. Victoria is the Chief Executive Officer of Victorious PR, an award-winning firm that helps entrepreneurs and businesses get featured in industry-specific media, local press, podcasts, and top publications to be seen as industry leaders in their field. They have worked with major brokerages such as JPAR and multi-millionaire entrepreneurs like Dan Henry and Krista Mashore to build their press credibility. Victoria originally scaled Victorious PR to over a million dollars in revenue within their first year in business. Tune in to learn more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Jordan Michelle, a pop-rock singer, songwriter, and model. Music has been one of her biggest passion and means for communicating her heart. Jordan was born and raised in New York City but currently resides in Los Angeles. She is the Founder of her own skincare and beauty line called By Jordan Michelle. Tune in to learn more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Guesting on the show is Jason Kutasi. He is the CEO and Founder of the San Diego-based  independent children’s publishing company Puppy Dogs & Ice Cream (PDIC) which is focused on direct-to-consumer marketing. Previously, he was the CEO of Del Mar Capital and Chief Marketing Officer of PushPoint. PDIC has grown repadily since its launched in 2017 They offer a publishing alternative to the traditional publishing model which benefits authors and customers alike.  They have a strong belief in supporting American businesses, and all of their books are printed in the US. Tune in to learn more about this!

Welcome to another episode of The Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Chakri Toleti, the Founder of care.ai, an AI company that focuses on delivering self-aware rooms, smart facilities, and remote patient monitoring to autonomously optimize quality and patient experience. Also, they automate repetitive tasks, predict problems before they occur, and allow providers to focus on the emotional support and personalized care that only they can provide. Chakri was also the President and Founder of HealthGrid, a mobile enterprise patient engagement platform for providers, hospitals, and health systems who want to empower healthy patients populations and manage quality. Tune in to learn more!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Our guest today is Najeeb Ghuri, the Founder, Chairman of the Board of Directors, and CEO of NETSOL Technologies, Inc. Initially, Mr. Ghauri was instrumental in the completion of the NETSOL Technologies IPO in 1998 in the USA, which was then the first IT company with operations in Pakistan to be listed on NASDAQ. He subsequently got NETSOL’s Pakistani subsidiary listed on the Karachi Stock Exchange (KSE) in 2005. He has been nominated twice in the United States for the Ernst and Young ‘Entrepreneur of the year’, once in 2001 and again in 2005. Tune in to learn more! You will love it!

Today’s guest is the fashion designer and entrepreneur Philip Karto, founder of the Philip Karto label. Philip is a daring and gifted French artist, originally from Cannes, who now lives in Miami where he has opened his atelier. Having spent many years at the heart of the fashion industry and after a brief departure he is charting new ground in the space with his approach to design and sustainability. He talks us about his success with Louis Vuitton vintage bags that he has disassembled and then reassembled, transformed and personalized. All his pieces are handmade in his Miami atelier. Tune in for more of his backstory, vision and future plans.

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Thomas Messier. Messier has been involved in the commercial real estate and capital market industry since 1980. He has experience in commercial real estate acquisition, financing, asset management, and investor relations. In 2003 he joined Medalist Properties as an equal partner. Medalist Properties is an asset management company that invests in commercial real estate. Before joining Medalist, Thomas was in the capital market business focused on structure fixed income products, including commercial real estate and commercial mortgage-backed securities. Thomas was also the Director of Global Capital Markets Wachovia Bank. He was a Senior Vice President at Capital Markets at Bank of America. Tune in to find more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Andrea d’Agostini, a serial entrepreneur, renowned public speaker and mentor. He started as an actor and host on television. However, he developed an interest in communication and went into marketing. In 2014 he became the Vice President of American Power and Gas, which he helped to scale from 23 to 380 million dollars in a period of three years and a half. Andrea is a master in assisting people to scale their businesses fast. He is the Co-Founder of SalesJet, which is more like a marketing platform. Through his company Andrea d’Agostini, he helps companies improve their fit-to-market analysis, marketing structure, and sales processing. Tune in to find more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Rahman Mohammed, an emergency medicine physician with more than ten years of experience in the healthcare field. He is the CEO and Co-founder of a healthcare technology company called VivoDoc. VivoDoc connects patients with doctors. It is a comprehensive healthcare platform that empowers patients to find and book doctor appointments online right from their phones and helps doctors increase their patient load. Tune in to learn more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Evan Sohn, a senior executive with 25+ years of experience in eCommerce at Fortune 500 and start-up environments with a history of rapidly growing businesses and capturing market share. He has expertise in a diverse set of industries, including WIFI, data security, customer relationship management, platform handheld development, and mobile computing. Evan is the Chief Executive Officer of Recruiter.com, a hiring platform for the world’s largest network of recruiters. He has experience in sales Executive and Management roles at companies such as Veea, VeriFone, Brightwire, MessageLabs (acquired by Symantec), Omnipod (acquired by MessageLabs), ReefEdge, and others. He was involved in the first wireless email system and invented the pharmaceutical sales force animation. Tune in to find more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Daniel Vogler, a serial entrepreneur, mentor and speaker who has dedicated his life to selling on Amazon. He has trained thousands of German-speaking entrepreneurs to start and take their FBA businesses to a higher level. Daniel is the CoFounder and CEO of Amzscale, a team of exclusively qualified eCommerce specialists who have built their own successful Amazon brands. Amzscale builds and scales profitable Amazon Brands for investors. Amzscale has built more than 300 brands and 600 products. Tune in to find more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Dr Robert Bishop, the Dean of Engineering at the University of Florida. He was also the Department Chairman, Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics at the University of Texas at Austin and Dean of Engineering at Marquette University. After a successful career, Robert noted the urban beauty and potential of the growing USF campus. He welcomed the challenge to create something new and transformative in the region for the academic institution. He is the Founder, President and CEO of the USF Institute of Applied Engineering. Tune in to learn more on this!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Ruben Figueredo, an experienced entrepreneur with a demonstrated history of working in the cycling and sports industry. He is skilled in retail management, brand partnership, event management, race timing, community relations and sports marketing. Ruben is the Co-founder and COO at Vene Rides, the Micro-EV store. Vene Rides helps riders choose the right Micro-EV and offer post-sale maintenance services. They offer a wide range of electric bikes, electric scooters and electric mopeds. Vene’s expert technicians accommodate repairs to all brands of electric bikes and scooters. Tune in to find more on this!

Andreas Fischer is a Founding Partner at First Momentum Ventures, a fund that is pioneering pre-seed investments in frontier technology companies in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, collectively known as the DACH region. There are no fewer than 160 Nobel Prize winners in the region (second only to the US) and ranks fourth in the world on the number of patent applications its innovators file each year. All the ingredients are in place for founders to build game-changing companies and as a "first money in" investor, they provide the first momentum by backing them with the first cheque as well as a broad industry network, world-class mentoring, a strong community and access to further financing.

Content writing is a $400b market but is it being done right? Our guest today Sharmin Ali, founder of Instoried is on a mission to make content the king once more. Instoried provides instant feedback on the written content created by businesses and individuals, as well as tips for improvements to drive greater engagement from the audience. With just a few words to go on, the tool will even create content automatically on your behalf. Instoried has quickly attracted over 120,000 users and revenues have increased 50x in 12 months as it expands into the US.  

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast. Today, our guest is Chris O’Dowd. He is the Founder and CEO of WIN Reality, the world’s most advanced Virtual Reality baseball and softball training tool. WIN Reality offers a wide range of velocity and overall skill levels for hitters to prepare. The WIN Reality Software is used by professional, collegiate, and high school organizations worldwide to quantify performance potential and transfer training improvements into the competition. Everything inside the training tool is taken directly from the real world and placed in the virtual one. The available pitchers are all real and pulled directly from game situations at every level. And with pitcher velocities ranging from youth speeds to the upper echelon of what the majors can offer, WIN Reality is a tool that every level of player can benefit from. This makes WIN Reality perfect for players who are just getting started in the sport to become winners in the majors. Want to know more about this VR/AR sports training tool? Listen to this episode! You are going to love it!

Welcome to another episode of The Action and Ambition Podcast. We have Yaniv Spielberg, Bragg Gaming Group Inc.'s Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer. Bragg Gaming Group is a rapidly expanding worldwide gaming technology and content company that owns several prominent B2B companies in the iGaming market. Bragg has developed into a multinational force in the global online gaming business since its establishment in 2018, with operations in Europe, North America, and Latin America. Bragg distributes exclusive and aggregated casino content through its wholly-owned subsidiary ORYX Gaming via its in-house remote gaming server (RGS) and ORYX Hub distribution network. ORYX provides a complete turnkey iGaming solution, including its Player Account Management (PAM) platform and managed operational and marketing services. Nevada-based Bragg's entirely owned premium US game content studio is Wild Streak Gaming. Wild Streak features an overall portfolio of casino games available through land-based, online, and social casino operators in worldwide regions such as the United States and the United Kingdom. Tune in to this episode! You are going to love it.

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast. We have invited Joe Pulizzi, an entrepreneur, speaker, author, and podcaster. Joe hailed as the best-selling author of seven books, including Content Inc. and Epic Content Marketing, which Fortune magazine rated a must-read business book. He is also the founder of multiple startups, including the content creator education site, The tilt. He began using the term “content marketing” in 2001, now the fastest-growing internet marketing industry. Content Marketing Institute was sold in June 2016 to UBM, a multi-billion dollar events, and media company out of London. Joe is now volunteering with the Orange Effect Foundation (OEF), which provides funds to children and families for speech therapy and technology. Hundreds of children in 25 states have received funding from the OEF. Tune in to this episode. You’ll love it!

Welcome to another episode of The Action and Ambition Podcast. Joining is a Leader with a track record of success in the digital advertising and food and beverage industries. He is a Strong digital strategist with experience in web design, e-commerce, search engine marketing (SEM), email marketing, and the Founder of Where to Buy at Hacklab, Brian Hack. With exact, on-shelf product locations, add-to-cart functionality, and shoppable advertisements, Where to Buy is the modern store locator solution that empowers companies to push customers to purchase. After years of searching for a store finder solution that provided accurate data without a hefty price tag, Brian, inspired to establish Where to Buy after a chance meeting with CPG pricing analytics business Datasembly. Soon after, he reconnected with an old colleague, Brit, to assist him in realizing his idea - the store locator they'd always hoped for when working with CPG businesses. Where to Buy is designed, providing essential features of a successful store locator at a fraction of the cost of competing alternatives. In an age where customer experience is king, giving your customers an experience like this is a winning brand approach. A Where To Buy solution reduces the number of steps in the consumer journey and provides a smooth transition from the brand's website to the retailer's website. Do you love to shop? Then tune in and learn about this modern way of shopping! Don't miss out!

Welcome to another episode of The Action and Ambition Podcast. Guesting on the show is the CEO at Aridis Pharmaceutical, Vu Truong. Aridis is a privately held infectious diseases startup based in San Jose, California, USA. Aridis' sophisticated formulation and delivery technologies are paired with its proprietary product range to produce effective therapeutic candidates packaged in easy-to-administer "ready-to-use" formats. The company's pipeline of novel mechanism antibacterial and antivirals derived from its patented technology platforms, intended to fight the growing public health danger posed by viral pandemics and antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) bacteria. In almost every infectious condition, a group of disease-free individuals may be developing rare, robust, protective immune responses to even fatal infections. Human monoclonal antibodies are frequently the essential defensive components. Aridis' discovery technology platform seeks to identify and translate these components into novel medicines for the benefit of the general public. Tune in, and don't miss out on learning more about this medical breakthrough!

Welcome to another episode of the Action and Ambition Podcast! We have invited the founder and CEO of Amesite Inc, Ann Marie Sastry. Amesite creates artificial intelligence software applications to help students learn better. As a technology partner, they assist educational institutions and enterprises in improving learning by delivering a disruptive technology powered by AI. Amesite provides a wide range of services that assist partners in launching new initiatives and improving existing ones. Their company has won the 2020 BIG Innovation Award for technology, 2019 Best and Brightest, Detroit, 2019 Best and Brightest, Detroit – Wellness. In 2015, Dr. Sastry served as president, and CEO of Sakti3 named one of MIT's 50 smartest companies. Sastry was also invited to the White House to be acknowledged for her technological and entrepreneurial achievements while also meeting President Barack Obama. Her technological and business work has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Forbes, The Economist, USA Today, and the NY Times. She has co-authored more than 100 articles, 100 patents, and applications and has given more than 100 invited speeches and seminars worldwide. Want to know more about Ann Marie Sastry? Tune in! You’re going to love this episode!

In this episode, we meet Uzair Gadit, co-founder and CEO of PureVPN. As the name suggests, the company provides a cybersecurity product (namely a VPN) that offers people privacy and security when using the internet. The company has served over 3 million customers in over 150 countries, having rapidly scaled over the past few years. It has grown to become one of the most popular VPN services in the world and is synonymous with internet security, anonymity, and internet freedom. Uzair shares the growth and impact story of the company, the latest developments in the VPN industry and what the future demands and needs of users are.

Welcome to another episode of The Action and Ambition Podcast! Joining us today is Karen Grinzaid, a Genetic Counselor at Emory University, a private university of international reach where courageous ideas achieve positive transformation in the world. She is also the Executive Director of JScreen, a genetic screening and education program offering comprehensive, at-home testing on saliva, based on Emory University School of Medicine. Karen has extensive experience in genetic counseling and testing, clinical care, and clinical research. Tune in to learn more on this!