The Corporate Escapee
Brett Trainor
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Top 10 The Corporate Escapee Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The Corporate Escapee episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The Corporate Escapee for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The Corporate Escapee episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
89. This Startup Just May Be the Blueprint on How to Build & Scale a B2B Business in 2021 with Johnathan Grzybowski
The Corporate Escapee
02/09/21 • 45 min
The future of B2B startups is going to be fascinating. I’ve seen how companies have risen and transformed the traditional strategies already set in place in the industry.
One such example is Penji. This on-demand graphic design service as a service company catering to businesses has shown what is possible when you instigate change.
In today’s episode, I get to pick the brain of Penji’s Co-founder, Johnathan Grzybowski. We talk about the need to trust the process, growing without using sales reps, how they built customer success into their culture, the importance of putting processes in place to expand, and so much more.
Listen to this very special episode as we dissect the blueprint to the future of B2B!
We’ll talk about:
- The mistake that led to Penji [02:05]
- There’s no overnight success: Be resilient and trust the process [05:38]
- The 4 stages to growing beyond your network [11:23]
- Growing without using sales reps [16:50]
- Building customer success early on in their culture [23:26]
- Penji’s way of treating employees the way they want customers to be treated [27:23]
- The hardest thing is being able to translate the process [32:32]
- Employee role specialization allows the company to expand [34:26]
- If you can’t do it yourself, why expect others to do it for you? [35:44]
- Content is critical to being able to scale [36:51]
- Penji as the blueprint of future B2B companies [39:48]
- The one thing that Johnathan recommends [40:48]
- What’s next for Penji [43:06]
Resource Links:
- Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
- Download The Growth Readiness Checklist (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
- Penji Website (https://penji.co/)
- Get 15% off on your first month with Penji. Just input the coupon code: B2BFounder15
- Content Fuel Website (https://contentfuel.co/)
About Our Guest:
Johnathan Grzybowski is the Chief Marketing Officer of Penji. The on-demand graphic design service company was started by Johnathan with his co-founder Khai in 2017 after they experienced the difficulty of finding talented designers. Penji is now touted as a simple, fast, and affordable solution for business owners, entrepreneurs, and leaders.
Johnathan also hosts the podcast Blind Entrepreneurship, which has been downloaded over 100,000 times and is considered a top business podcast on Apple Podcasts. He uses his podcast and business to help entrepreneurs execute their vision and be profitable.
If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to tune in, subscribe, and share this podcast.
Connect with B2B Founder:
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/
79. Why Buyer Enablement is Critical to Grow Your B2B Startup with Joey Knecht
The Corporate Escapee
12/01/20 • 49 min
The end-user may not be the buyer making the decisions in the company. While customer enablement has empowered the product or service users, forgetting to transform value for the buyer could result in failing to maintain important relationships.
Today, we’re all about buyer enablement. Startup mentor, Joey Knecht, advocates for engaging with the buyers within an organization. With the shift in the B2B buying environment, maybe you’ve dropped the ball in maintaining those connections. If so, how do you pivot to create a process that not only drives growth but leads to new business for your company?
Say goodbye to customer enablement and hello to buyer enablement by tuning in to this episode!
Resource Links:
- Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
- Download The Growth Readiness Checklist (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
- Proteus Website (https://www.proteus.co/)
We’ll be talking about:
A brief introduction on Joey and Proteus [01:45]
The journey towards becoming an advocate for buyer enablement [03:33]
The product is always pivoting and morphing [07:50]
Maintain long-term relationships by justifying your value to the buyer [11:34]
Invest in client success early on [15:21]
Stay in your lane and own what you do well [19:14]
The big secret sauce of expanding beyond your network [27:41]
Non-traditional tactics for growing the business [32:33]
Your role is to help the buyer solve their problem [37:34]
What’s next for Joey [43:12]
The one thing Joey recommends [45:06]
About Our Guest:
An advocate of buyer enablement, Joey Knecht learned from a young age how to navigate through challenges by helping engage diverse groups of people to find solutions. Now, as CEO and Managing Director of Proteus, he is leveraging technology to empower and engage buyers in complex B2B sales cycles. By taking the guesswork out of the so-called “dark periods” that often slowdown or kill the sale, he is helping sales leaders illuminate a crystal clear path of personalized buyer enablement with multiple decision makers.
To find out more about Joseph and his work, reach out to him through Proteus.
If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast.
Connect with B2B Founder:
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/
70. Differentiate Then Dominate Using the Apollo Method with Best-selling Author Theresa Lina
The Corporate Escapee
09/29/20 • 55 min
Can your business stand out in an ultra competitive and rapidly evolving business space?
In a market filled with businesses that offer the same things, the same service, and the same value, making sure your customers notice you is a tremendous task to achieve.
Market dominance is our goal today as the author of a #1 Amazon bestseller, Theresa Lina, goes over the four pillars for owning the market. We discuss the need for differentiation and the constantly changing environment that means this process has to be continuous.
Find out how your startup can become the go-to and even charge more. So tune in now!
Resource Links:
- Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
- Download The Growth Readiness Checklist (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
- Apollo Method Website (https://apollomethod.com/)
- Get the book Be the Go-To: How to Own Your Competitive Market, Charge More, and Have Customers Love You For It by Theresa Lina (https://amzn.to/3kzvaMi)
We’ll be talking about:
Theresa’s backstory that led to her writing her book [01:28]
Focusing on complex business solutions [04:32]
The need to transition to a modern business model in the B2B space [06:51]
The inspiration for the Apollo method of achieving market dominance [11:56]
Do you have to be the category king? [18:45]
Companies need to shift their mentality to a value-driven model [23:01]
Steps to differentiating yourself in the market - Launch and Ignite [26:33]
Conversations are key to identifying customer frustrations [32:51]
Have an overarching brand vision then put in different dimensions to the story [37:32]
The lead up to becoming the go-to - Navigate and Accelerate [43:11]
Don’t make the mistake of failing to evolve [46:53]
What’s next for Theresa and the book [50:03]
The one thing that Theresa recommends [51:12]
About Our Guest:
As the author of the #1 bestselling Amazon book, "Be the Go-To: How to Own Your Competitive Market, Charge More and Have Customers Love You For It", Theresa Lina is a well-known strategy and marketing thought leader who has helped companies achieve sustainable differentiation and evolve in a rapidly changing environment.
On the education side, Theresa also works as part of the teaching team at Stanford University.
If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast.
Connect with B2B Founder:
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/
63. How Founders Build Startups that Can Run Without Them with Dave Jenyns (Part 2)
The Corporate Escapee
08/11/20 • 33 min
One of the biggest myths in business is that you, the business owner, have to be the one to manage it day in, day out.
However, by setting the wheels of systemization in motion, you’ll see how your business can run without it being too dependent on you.
Today is Part 2 with Dave Jenyns as he shares about the six stages of SYSTEMology that will allow you to remove yourself from your business from time to time.
Enhance your business process by tuning in to this episode!
Resource Links:
- Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
- “3 Stages of Startup Growth and How To Breakthrough” (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
- SYSTEMology by David Jenyns (https://www.systemology.com/book/)
- Business Processes Simplified Podcast (https://www.systemhub.com/podcast/)
We’ll be talking about:
The six steps of the SYSTEMology process [01:00]
Define stage: Mapping out the Critical Client Flow [02:20]
By systemizing your process, you can remove yourself from the business [05:26]
Assign stage: Identifying the key team members [08:02]
Extract stage: Picking the brains of your team [09:49]
Integrate stage: Getting the buy-in from the staff [16:00]
People resist systemization and eventually stop [18:36]
Scale stage: Systemizing the business as a whole [20:51]
Optimization stage: Monitoring your metrics [24:59]
The next step for Dave [27:47]
The one thing Dave recommends [31:39]
About Our Guest:
Dave Jenyns is the author of the upcoming book SYSTEMology and the host of the podcast Business Processes Simplified. As the Founder and CEO of systemHUB, he is keen on building systems that free small business owners from the day-to-day operations of their companies.
Having systemized himself out of this business and hired a CEO to run it, Dave was able to pursue opportunities that he would have missed out on had he needed to be present running his company.
You can reach Dave through any of his social media pages: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, tune in, and share this podcast.
Connect with B2B Founder:
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/
1. What You Can Expect From Hardwired For Growth w/ Brett Trainor
The Corporate Escapee
06/20/19 • 2 min
Brett Trainor gets you ready for his new podcast, “Hardwired for Growth” by letting you know what to expect when the podcast debuts on June 25.
96. How to Optimize Your Revenue Engine: Strategies & Tactics with Chris Walker
The Corporate Escapee
03/30/21 • 45 min
Marketing is no longer what it used to be.
Forget coaxing customers to attend a demo. Using education to raise buyer awareness is now key.
Chris Walker from Refine Labs joins me today as we go over their own way of helping B2B companies grow through marketing. Chris comes from a very unique background (engineering) and this gives him an advantage of looking at the entire ecosystem of revenue and not broken down into silos.
So if you’re looking into transitioning your revenue acquisition model to drive demand from digital, Chris is just the right man to help you make those crucial changes.
Tune in to this episode to grab insights from this highly disruptive demand marketer!
We’ll talk about:
- How an engineering background gave Chris the advantage in marketing [01:51]
- Losing his own money as a vital point in his experience [04:33]
- The gap in the marketplace that Chris saw [06:13]
- Removing assumptions that are no longer true [08:06]
- The benefit of working with a blank slate [09:07]
- Barriers preventing companies from driving demand from digital [10:26]
- Attribution is not marketing against sales [12:38]
- Why you shouldn’t measure social channels the same way with Google [13:27]
- The first step for founders is to know what they’re good at [20:25]
- Adspend is a cost of doing business [22:41]
- Why buyer intent is a critical factor to sales [24:45]
- The major shifts in the buying process [25:35]
- Customer success should be part of your product [29:48]
- Through education, you create awareness [31:51]
- You don’t really need salespeople [33:46]
- Companies need a recurring revenue model driven by customer acquisition [35:50]
- How COVID impacted sales and marketing [38:59]
- The one thing Chris recommends [41:36]
Resource Links:
- Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
- Download The Growth Readiness Checklist (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
- Refine Labs Website (https://www.refinelabs.com/)
- State of Demand Gen Podcast (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/state-of-demand-gen/id1511588213)
About Our Guest:
Chris Walker is the CEO at Refine Labs, a marketing consulting firm focused on growing B2B SaaS companies. Their Revenue Engine Optimization Formula combines revenue operations, growth marketing, and buyer enablement.
If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to tune in, subscribe, and share this podcast.
Connect with B2B Founder:
Subscribe on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg/
“Lee London” on Designing a Brand that People Love and their Zero to Ten Journey
The Corporate Escapee
09/21/21 • 34 min
People don’t spend their money on a product or a service. What they buy are the life-changing solutions that they will get from whatever you are offering.
So how do you get your clients into trusting you with providing answers to their lives’ biggest problems?
That’s what User Experience Specialist Valerie Kent and I address in this episode where she shares the philosophy she had behind her iconic webcam covers and when she built her women tech-focused company, Lee London.
We also touch on the business pivots that Valerie had to take and how he managed her way through them.
This episode is full of insights on how you can come up with a brand that your customers will love on your way to your $10-million revenue goal so tune in now!
We’ll talk about:
- Introduction [00:00]
- The start of Valerie’s entrepreneurial journey [03:30]
- The first business lessons that Valerie learned [10:53]
- Why Valerie went through retailers instead of individual consumers [12:36]
- Valerie’s next journey after she parted ways with Nordstrom [16:38]
- The birth of Valerie’s company Lee London [19:01]
- Steps Valerie took in putting up Lee London [22:37]
- Building a community beyond selling a product [27:10]
- How Valerie deals with the front and back sides of a business [30:43]
- A recommendation from Valerie [32:23]
Resource Links:
- Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
- Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
About Our Guest:
Valerie Trent is the founder of Lee London, a women-tech oriented company that develops products aimed at empowering people to use technology in the way they want. Ever since starting in the business world, Valerie has always advocated for making women’s lives better.
Connect with Valerie Trent:
Website: https://leelondon.com/
Email: [email protected]
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valerie-trent-a560139
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/leelondondesign/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeeLondonDesign/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/leelondonco
Baking Made Easier: BāKIT Box’s Recipe for Rapid Growth
The Corporate Escapee
11/02/21 • 32 min
With the simple goal of making the process of baking easier and more fun for everyone, our guest for today was able to build a fast-growing brand.
So if you’ve always known that you’re going to end up in the entrepreneur world but just don't have the idea as to how yet, this episode is for you.
Today, I welcome Shelley Gupta, co-founder of BāKIT Box, a new company that is modernizing the way of baking and is currently gaining a lot of traction.
Shelley and I break down the origin of BāKIT Box and how she went from being a singer-songwriter to working as a management consultant to ultimately co-founding BāKIT Box.
There's a lot of interesting learning and you can hear the tactics and the approach Shelley and her partner took in their early days so tune in now!
We’ll talk about:
- Introduction [00:00]
- How Shelley got started with BāKIT Box [03:01]
- The inseparability of owners from their brand [5:18]
- Shelley’s journey from working for Accenture to founding BāKIT Box [8:51]
- How BāKIT Box makes baking simpler and more fun [11:32]
- The first steps that Shelley took in building BāKIT Box [14:27]
- Shelley’s framework for growing BāKIT Box [16:17]
- Who Shelley envisioned as their ideal customers [19:18]
- Shelley’s small pivots and goals for BāKIT [20:53]
- What Shelley would have done differently with BāKIT Box [24:59]
- Funding and outsourcing for BāKIT Box [26:07]
- What’s next for Shelley and BāKIT Box [28:55]
- Shelley’s personal recommendation [30:40]
Resource Links:
- Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
- Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
- BāKIT Box website (https://www.bakitbox.com/)
About Our Guest:
Shelley Gupta is the Co-Founder of BāKIT Box, a new and fast-growing company that is modernizing the way of baking. Before co-founding BāKIT Box, Shelley worked as a singer-songwriter for years then transitioned to a career in management consulting.
Connect with Shelley Gupta:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelley-gupta/
Email Address: info...
118. What Now? How M&A Can Impact Your Zero to Ten Journey
The Corporate Escapee
08/31/21 • 39 min
Closing a merger and acquisition deal is just the beginning. Majority of M&A deals fall short of pre-deal expectations, and the key difficulty is ensuring that the deal delivers the value that prompted the decision to get into the agreement in the first place.
In today’s episode, I am joined by none other than the M&A Whisperer herself Jennifer J. Fondrevay who has been a part of three separate multibillion-dollar merger and acquisition deals.
Jennifer and I chat about ways of pulling through mergers and acquisitions, a subject that she also covers in her book “NOW WHAT? A Survivor's Guide for Thriving through Mergers & Acquisitions.”
Most companies that undergo mergers and acquisitions do not get the valuation that they originally intended. Majority of these deals also fail because of the workforce being unable to pivot and adapt as rapidly as the leadership expected.
If you’re worried that yours could end up the same, then this episode will help you find a way to change that.
We’ll talk about:
- Introduction [00:00]
- Going through an M&A is a matter of when [04:10]
- What CEOs need to prepare for during M&A [06:00]
- Power and influence of culture in an M&A [09:59]
- Dealing with the new reality of the workforce [11:47]
- How to avoid becoming a “former rock star” [15:37]
- Being crystal clear when approaching the deal [18:07]
- Premortem Exercises - Scenario Planning [20:19]
- The challenge of giving up old ways [25:32]
- Overcommunication as a key to a successful M&A transition [28:44]
- Trends in the new normal set-up of businesses [31:18]
- Jennifer’s piece of advice to fellow workaholics [36:33]
Resource Links:
- Brett Trainor Website (https://bretttrainor.com/)
- Download Startup to Scaleup: A 4-Part Framework to Grow Your B2B Business to $10 Million (https://bretttrainor.com/resources/)
- Get a copy of Jennifer’s book “NOW WHAT? A Survivor's Guide for Thriving through Mergers & Acquisitions” (https://jenniferjfondrevay.com/now-what-by-jennifer-fondrevay/)
About Our Guest:
Jennifer J. Fondrevay is the founder of Day1 Ready, an M&A consultancy agency that works with forward-thinking business executives to redefine what day one looks like in the M&A deal experience.
Jennifer has been on both sides of the deal equation as a Fortune 500 C-Suite "survivor" of three multibillion-dollar acquisitions. She witnessed countless growth strategies fail due to a workforce that couldn’t pivot and adapt as quickly as leadership anticipated.
Her satirical business book, “NOW WHAT? A Survivor's Guide for Thriving through Mergers & Acquisitions,” helps middle managers navigate business transformation to find the opportunities in change.
Connect with Jennifer J. Fondrevay:
Website: https://jenniferjfondrevay.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-fondrevay
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jjfondrevay
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenniferjfondrevay
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGusxCB8gysRPpB8B4RQBJA
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jfondrevay
Connect with me and learn more about growing your business:
Email: [email protected]
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bretttrainor/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySoKsETeKxu-Fnf2VfE7Gg
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TrainorBrett
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Brett_Trainor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bretttrainor/
If you liked this episode, please don’t forget to tune in, subscribe, and share this podcast.
<UPDATED>Breaking the Golden Handcuffs: A Journey to True Happiness with Nic Jones
The Corporate Escapee
12/19/24 • 52 min
In this episode of The Corporate Escapee Podcast, Brett Trainor speaks with Nic Jones, a former corporate executive turned bus driver who shares his journey of redefining success and happiness. Nic reflects on his 40-year career in media and music, during which he held leadership roles at major companies like Yahoo, Murdoch’s digital businesses, and Vevo. After a failed entrepreneurial venture and personal loss, Nic reevaluated his priorities, choosing to pursue a fulfilling yet unconventional path as a bus driver.
The discussion explores themes like:
- Breaking free from societal and corporate expectations.
- The evolving definition of success as happiness and fulfillment rather than money or titles.
- The challenges of overcoming financial fears and golden handcuffs.
- The importance of taking small, intentional steps toward a new life.
- The value of rediscovering purpose and the mental process of transitioning to a new identity.
Nic’s insights highlight the importance of designing life around personal values and happiness rather than fitting life around work. His story serves as an inspiring example of how even high-achieving corporate professionals can make dramatic changes to reclaim their well-being and joy.
LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nic99jones/
The Post That Started It All: https://bit.ly/3BmHKwA
Sound Bites
- "I'm a thoroughly fulfilled and happy bus driver."
- "Success is the happiest person, not the richest."
- "I wanted to be a bus driver as a five-year-old."
- "The world was changing, and I was unaware of it."
- "You have to start writing things down about what are our outgoings."
- "There's nothing richer than feeling happy."
- "You need to realign your values if money is your only focus."
- "Life's too damn short to be unhappy."
- "I never told anyone for the first two years after I left corporate."
• • "If we can help one or two people find happiness, we're doing our job."
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FAQ
How many episodes does The Corporate Escapee have?
The Corporate Escapee currently has 286 episodes available.
What topics does The Corporate Escapee cover?
The podcast is about Entrepreneurship, Podcasts, Business and Careers.
What is the most popular episode on The Corporate Escapee?
The episode title '79. Why Buyer Enablement is Critical to Grow Your B2B Startup with Joey Knecht' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on The Corporate Escapee?
The average episode length on The Corporate Escapee is 39 minutes.
How often are episodes of The Corporate Escapee released?
Episodes of The Corporate Escapee are typically released every 7 days.
When was the first episode of The Corporate Escapee?
The first episode of The Corporate Escapee was released on Jun 20, 2019.
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