Radeo

In this episode of RadEO, Ross talks to Dean Carlson, Founder and MD of BrainFarm. They talk about building a global company from a South African network and building networks and keeping connections. Dean shares how his team creates an extremely positive environment at their events by having the mindset of commitment to excellence. They also talk about BrainFarm’s exciting upcoming event, Sound Idea Sessions and breaking world records in partnership with a local artist, Percy Maimela. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) More about BrainFarm’s MD, Dean Carlson - Dean Carlson is the Founder and CEO of BrainFarm, a South African event agency and speaker bureau, who has the privilege of working with a long list of blue chip clients in identifying and securing speakers for their events, as well as creating world class branded events. He previously conceptualized, co-created and led the Discovery Invest Leadership Summit to become the largest multi-speaker business conference in the Southern Hemisphere with past speakers including Richard Branson, Al Gore, Malcolm Gladwell, Chris Anderson, Ricardo Semler, Dan Ariely, Johann Rupert, Rudy Giuliani, Stephen Dubner, Graça Machel and Nouriel Roubini. Dean first gained exposure to similar large-scale events over a decade ago during his involvement in organizing trips for South Africans to attend international seminars hosted by motivational speaker, personal finance instructor, and self-help author Anthony Robbins. Dean’s LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/dean-carlson-9951751/?originalSubdomain=za BrainFarm - https://brainfarm.co.za/ Sound Idea Sessions - https://www.soundideasessions.com/ Guinness World Record - https://www.enca.com/life/sa-artist-breaks-guinness-world-record-largest-coffee-sketch Show notes - 00.54 - Dean’s elevator pitch 01.30 - How was it like setting BrainFarm up? 08.50 - How do you get a corporate company to agree to do a disruptive event? 14.30 - Launching the BCX Disrupt Summit 17.05 - Pulling talent into South Africa and going international 21.56 - Building networks and keeping connections 27.50 - Community building through introductions 29.45 - The mindset of commitment to excellence 35.40 - Dean’s latest exciting project - https://www.soundideasessions.com/ 41.10 - Breaking world records - https://www.enca.com/life/sa-artist-breaks-guinness-world-record-largest-coffee-sketch 50.47 - Growth Hacker Marketing – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org

In this episode of RadEO, Ross talks to Ryan Bacher, MD of NetFlorist. They talk e-commerce in 1999 versus 2019 and the hiccups in learning a new industry. Ryan shares how he has kept partnerships alive for 12 years and his tips in making crucial brand decisions when expanding your company. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) More about NetFlorist’s MD, Ryan Bacher - Ryan studied and completed a Bachelor of Arts and Law Degree at Wits in 1994. He then went to work for the Club Med Group in the Caribbean. Following Club Med, he returned to SA where he worked in the Internet industry for 2 years and thereafter, co-founded NetFlorist. As Managing Director, Ryan is responsible for all day-to-day operations and strategy of the company. He sits on the board of the South African chapter of the Entrepreneurs Organization. NetFlorist started life in 1999 as one of SA’s 1st and has become the largest floral and gifting service in South Africa (on and offline). It has 5 warehouses and 200 franchises and delivers same day, country-wide. NetFlorist is recognized as one of SA’s leading ecommerce companies and has won many awards over the last 10 years in the ecommerce and floral space. NetFlorist - www.netflorist.co.za Show notes - 00.54 - Ryan’s back story 04.05 - How was it like setting NetFlorist up? 08.15 - The hiccups in learning a whole new industry 16.00 - Personalisation in the products 20.20 - Pulling the plug on side-line projects 24.56 - Is NetFlorist an internet company or a retailer? 27.38 - Understanding the customers 29.45 - Producing flowers 33.15 - Keeping a partnership alive for 12 years 37.05 - Coming up with NetFlorist brand 41.47 - Cross-selling and expanding the brand 45.30 - Ryan Gibs Course – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org

In this episode of RadEO, Ross talks to Antony Wannell, president elect elect of EO Johannesburg and entrepreneur and conservationist. They talk about taking back control of your calendar and planning your year ahead. Antony shares his experiences with selling his business and setting it up for the next generation of entrepreneurs to succeed. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) More about Antony Wannell - He started a new entrepreneurial journey only two years ago. A big part of what he does at the moment is to share his experiences through conversations, consulting, investment and mentorship. His vision is to create a real entrepreneurial thirst for driven Africans. Before this time, Antony spent 27 years building entrepreneurial trading businesses. He has worked in the supply chain to the Tourism and Building Materials Sector and spent much of my time travelling for work into some of the most beautiful African Wilderness areas, including: Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, DRC, Zambia, Namibia and Malawi. Connect with Antony here - https://www.linkedin.com/in/antony-wannell-a2778217/?originalSubdomain=za# Show notes - 00:50 - Antony’s elevator pitch 01:55 - Antony’s entrepreneurial journey 08:08 - Working across borders 09:22 - Maintaining relationship in a big business 11:26 - Honesty and discipline 12:55 - Going through an acquisitions, what to do and what not to 16:00 - What comes after your entrepreneurial journey? 20:40 - Recovery time in between meetings 22:40 - Taking control of your calendar 24:25 - How do you choose how to spend your time after you’ve made your money? 26:25 - Aligning purpose and business building 30:22 - Stepping away from your keyroll and searching for a replacement 32:10 - Setting the business up for success after you’ve left 33:55 - Sharing the wealth in communities 35:37 - Addressing the skill gap 36:10 - Antony’s view on the future of South Africa – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org

In this episode of RadEO, Richard and Ross talk to Jonathan Slain from Recession.com. They talk about everything you need to know about having a business and getting through a recession. Jonathan takes us through what you would need to know about planning for a recession and still keeping afloat. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) More about Jonathan - Jonathan is the “Governor” with Recession.com and principal of Autobahn Consultants. His purpose is to spur others to realize their dream outcomes by helping entrepreneurs and their teams get results, make tough decisions, improve team health and develop the right strategies. He has been a member of EO (Cleveland, Ohio Chapter) for almost a decade. He has served in multiple board roles, most recently on the US Central Region Board as Member Products Director. He has also been the emcee of the US/Canada President’s Meeting. Jonathan is a highly sought-after keynote speaker and the expert on Recessions and the Entrepreneurial Operating Systems® you want guiding your team. He coaches high growth leadership teams across the United States to implement EOS™, also known as Traction. As an EOS Implementer™, he focuses on helping entrepreneurs get what they want from their businesses. Jonathan spends 100+ days a year implementing Traction® with teams just like yours. Jonathan’s clients are all over the country and range from start-ups to over $200 million in size. He focuses on companies that are looking to double their top and/or bottom line within the next three to five years. Jonathan owned and operated fitness franchises for 10 years, holding the place of honour as the top unit out of more than 500. It was his experience there that gave him the real-world, hard knock life experience that allows him to claim his title as an expert on recessions. Jonathan spent two years in investment banking. He worked on mergers and acquisitions totalling over $500 million dollars in enterprise value. Jonathan graduated with highest honours and highest distinctions from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a Morehead Scholar. A former “whiz kid,” Jonathan was valedictorian of his high school graduating class with the highest GPA ever in the history of Shaker Heights (Ohio) High School. Jonathan’s business - https://recession.com/ – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org

In this episode of RadEO Ross talks to David Jacobson, the managing director of SYNAQ. David shares his thoughts on different levels of delegation and they talk autonomy and putting the right people in the job versus micro managing. David talks about his experience and learnings of building a business with love and commitment. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) About David - In 2004, he co-founded SYNAQ with a dream of bringing cloud computing communication services to the world using Linux and Open Source technology. In 2010, SYNAQ was ranked by Forbes Mag as one of the top 20 Tech companies in Africa and one year later Dimension Data acquired a majority stake in SYNAQ. David is a thought-leader in his industry, from Hacker to Biohacker, Tech Ninja to Entrepreneur and dynamic leader. Additionally, he is a member of Entrepreneurs Organization (EO), an exclusive global network of high-impact entrepreneurs and mentors aspiring founders at organizations like the Branson Centre, Startup Bootcamp and EO Accelerator. David’s business- SYNAQ - https://www.synaq.com/ Other links- Tony Robbins - https://www.tonyrobbins.com/ Show notes - 00:38 - David’s elevator pitch 01:20 - Why would we use SYNAQ instead on Gmail? 02:24 - The David and SYNAQ back story 16:45 - How did your clients react to end of lining everything? 21:36 - Your experience in transitioning from CTO to CEO 26:40 - How did you change your tech team 28:47 - Being a fully remote company 30:50 - Different levels of delegation 33:15 - David’s date with destiny 38:48 - Real love and commitment – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org

In this episode of RadEO Ross talks to Dillon Jearey from Kilowatt Audio Visual. Dillon shares his experience with starting a company on a credit card and setting yourself up with a roadmap to where you want to go. Dillon explains why he thinks strategy is needed to kickstart culture and how he works on his culture journey. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) About Dillon Jearey - Dillon Jearey is the CEO and Founder of Kilowatt Audio Visual, a premium technical event partner, delivering technical support and production services to more than 700 events a year in the African live events industry. With a credit card limit of just R50k and no tertiary education, Dillon started Kilowatt AV in June 2007. It was his first serious attempt at entrepreneurship, and although making many mistakes, Dillon has grown Kilowatt to be a significant player in its space with total sales revenue combined at over R270mil for the past five years. He is passionate about personal development, culture, strategy, mindfulness, and hyper-awareness, believing that these traits along with a servant leadership mindset, are essential for the modern day CEO. In 2012, Dillon became a member of the Global Entrepreneurs’ Organization, which now forms the fundamental foundation of his growth and personal development. Most successful of which has been his ability to completely step out of his business operationally and free up time to focus on new business opportunities, adventures, public speaking and mentoring young entrepreneurs. He is married with three daughters and loves adventure. Whether it is motor-racing or mountain biking, anything that gets the adrenaline going. Dillon has competed against a formula one racing legend in a reality TV series, cycled from London to Paris, rafted the mighty Zambezi river, completed a full Ironman triathlon and ran the London marathon, to name a few. Dillon’s business- http://kilowatt.co.za/ Show notes - 00:38 - Dillon’s elevator pitch 01:45 - Why Dillon is no longer a wedding DJ 04:51 - How Dillon got clients and finances to start his company 10:30 - Adding value with your tools 13:25 - How big is Kilowatt and what are you working on at the moment? 16:58 - Not being a key operator in the business any more 21:15 - What do you believe is strategy and culture? 24:09 - A day in the life of Dillon Jearey 26:30 - How do you work on your culture journey? 29:56 - Are you measuring people on their behaviours? 38:48 - Test a good idea and see where it takes you – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org

In this episode of RadEO, Ross chats to Lesley Waterkeyn, founder of Colourworks and now Group CEO of CDWi. They talk merging businesses and staying relevant after two decades in the industry. Lesley shares her experience in integrating two companies and how they got even more clients with the merge. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) About Lesley - Lesley built Colourworks from the ground-up and now heads up the CWDi Group. She is driven by her curiosity and her entrepreneurial mind spearheads the agency’s innovation and relevance. As Group CEO, she is responsible for the continuous growth of the business. She does this by setting the company’s vision and seeing it come to fruition in the company culture, procuring the right resources, monitoring performance and leading CSI initiatives. She won the IWEC award (International Women Entrepreneurs Challenge) in 2017 in recognition of her impact as a female business leader. Lesley’s business - CWDi Group - http://cwdi.co.za/ Show notes - 00:35 - Lesley’s elevator pitch 00:58 - What does a business challenge mean in your world? 01:45 - What path does one take to end up where you ended up? 03:05 - What are your favourite parts of your business, and which part do you wish you don’t have to deal with? 05:00 - Do you still support digital systems? 05:40 - How do you keep yourself engage after two decades? 06:35 - Have you kept the same staff as the business changes? 07:20 - How have you kept your skills relevant as things change? 08:33 - The Stay in Your Lane Document 09:20 - How does accountability look like your team? 10:00 - The Big Merge 12:22 - How do you navigate the minefield of a big merge? 13:55 - Negotiating the merge 14:57 - Lesley’s tips on a merge 16:28 - Matching culture and values by finding the right partner 17:00 - How did your clients respond to the merge? 19:10 - What role did BEE play in the merge? 20:05 - The 67 Logos Project 25:00 - Making the loudest noise 27:00 - How do you manage EO, merging companies and designing 67 logos? 29:40 - How do you connect back the EO experiences to your business? 31:30 - 2IC Forum 32:32 - What’s next for Lesley Waterkeyn? 33:30 - A strategy for growth through acquisition 36:26 - Are you the one running around sharing the values? Ross listen to this podcast (implementation strategies) - John Hagel | Moving From Pressure To Opportunity | SingularityU Greece Summit 2018 - https://youtu.be/AvfrnhQZ0SM – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org

In this episode of RadEO, Richard and Ross talk strategies and all the extra time you have to spend in strategy meetings building the strategy. They share their thoughts and experiences on victory conditions and fictitious end terms. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org

In this episode of RadEO, Ross talks to Lauren Gamsu the founder of Black Sheep Design. They talk all about sabbaticals and how to prepare your team and your clients before the sabbatical. Lauren shares her experience with committing to a 3 month sabbatical from work. She gives her tips and tricks on doing it well so that you come back with a new excitement for your next venture. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) More about Lauren - Lauren Gamsu is the founder of Black Sheep Design, a turnkey office fit-out and building refurbishment company. After completing her architectural degree at UCT, and working in London and Dublin, she returned to her hometown Johannesburg, to combine her creative flair and entrepreneurial spirit. She founded Black Sheep in 2011, with negligible finances and a passion to build a business. She steadily gained a client base, helping SME’s with their office renovations. Over time, Black Sheep’s scope extended to include providing design solutions to underperforming buildings within the listed property sector. The company currently has a staff complement of 16 people, and clients that include Redefine, Arrowhead, Hertz, Growthpoint, Steinhoff and Media 24. Lauren is a past board member of Entrepreneurs Organization and a recipient of the EY Winning Women Award. In 2018, Lauren took the plunge and committed to a 3 month sabbatical from work. She handed over the reins and went travelling around Europe, and Australia. The business flourished, and she returned with more clarity, a renewed appreciation for Johannesburg weather and excitement for the next entrepreneurial adventure. Black Sheep - (https://www.blacksheepsa.com/) Show notes - 00:38 - Lauren’s elevator pitch 01:30 - KTV Market day 03:30 - Why Lauren took a sabbatical 07:18 - Delegating responsibility 10:15 - How did your clients react? 15:00 - Handing over the bank, monitoring and reporting 16:50 - How would you monitor client service while on a sabbatical? 17:45 - How do you tell the whole team you’re leaving for 3 months? 25:07 - How did Lauren do her sabbatical? 30:08 - How is it being back? 32:00 - Did you find new opportunities with your new open mindset? 34:40 - Would you go on another sabbatical? – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org

In this episode of RadEO, Ross talks to Earl Smith, the founder of Volunteer SA. They talk “Voluntourism” and getting people to volunteer in Africa and have the experience of a lifetime. Earl chats about the inspiring and frustrating side of social media and he shares his thoughts and experiences with leadership challenges. Subscribe on iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radeo/id1250841955) or Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FhWL8wjR13nuU1gI7dUkY) More about Earl - Having started Volunteer Southern Africa in 2008, they have had much success in growing their passion into what is one of the largest and most certainly well known and trusted volunteering business in South Africa. Responsible for management, strategy, improvements, marketing, business development. Brand development, web site traffic growth, web site UI and advertising revenue. Developed brand strategy and statistics systems. Forming partnerships and co-operations with regional conservation facilities as well as volunteer/travel agencies across the globe. He has a degree in electrical engineering, school at Carmel School in Pretoria, and matriculated in 1995. He has managed the Lion Park from 2008 until 2012. He saw a gap in the market and started marketing the Lion Park as a wildlife volunteer destination. From there, the business grew and it came time to put on his “big girl panties” and go with it alone. https://www.volunteersa.com/ Show Notes - 00:42 - Earl’s elevator pitch 01:44 - How did you find your passion and end up in this industry? 02:32 - The business model of Volunteer SA 06:30 - “Voluntourism” 08:10 - What does purpose mean to Earl? 10:30 - Applying your vision to your staff 12:58 - The inspiring and frustrating side of Social Media 17:32 - How do you catch your crowd? 20:50 - When did you start Volunteer SA? 22:24 - Howard Mann’s ‘Your Business Brickyard’ 25:30 - Earl’s tips for taking on a business partner 28:20 - Marketing your business 31:15 - Leadership Challenges 33:20 - What does Earl’s 2019 look like? – RadEO is a podcast for Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneurs. It is hosted by Ross Drakes and Rich Mulholland and produced by the Entrepreneurs Organisation in South Africa. Tune in every 2 weeks to hear conversations with business owners who will share their experiences and stories of what they have learnt building their business and what drives them to keep going. If you have a business and want more information on EO, get in touch or visit our website eonetwork.org