Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
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Top 10 Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders 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 Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Chuck Davis, Chairman & CEO, Prodege – Data Done Differently: Building a consumer insights platform that thrives through change
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
02/05/25 • 33 min
Summary:
When it comes to running a business, data insights are invaluable, but that data has to come with meaningful action. You need to be willing to evolve alongside your customers and constantly refine your approach to meet their needs. Today’s guest has mastered this balance, building a platform that drives engagement, growth, and innovation at scale.
Today, we're sitting down with Chuck Davis, Chairman and CEO of Prodege. Chuck's business journey began by creating a sports newsletter in middle school that caught the attention of NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle. He went on to earn degrees from Brown University and then Harvard Business School. Afterward, he embarked on a career that would shape the digital landscape. Chuck started in publishing, working for Time, Inc. and TV Guide before becoming the Walt Disney Company's first President of E-Commerce in 1996, where he launched pivotal online platforms like Disneystore.com and ESPNstore.com.
Chuck's career progressed as he led Shopzilla, formerly known as Bizrate.com, through its acquisition in 2005 and transformed Fandango into a leading entertainment website. For the last 10 years, he has built Prodege into a cutting-edge marketing and consumer insights platform.
In this episode, Chuck explores how adaptability and customer focus have shaped Prodege’s success, from harnessing gamification to leveraging AI for innovation. He also shares his approach to leading through change and building a company culture that drives lasting impact.
Highlights:
- Chuck remembers the early days of the internet and the digitalization of brands (3:18)
- Prodege's background, and what makes their platform unique (6:54)
- Prodege's approach to data privacy (11:07)
- Chuck's strategy for navigating business cycles and economic fluctuation (12:17)
- Chuck describes Prodege's current platform features and how the site has evolved (14:56)
- How Prodege adapts alongside changing data regulations (16:30)
- How Prodege maintains quality in their consumer insights (19:36)
- Chuck discusses how Prodege is incorporating AI into their platform internally and externally (21:07)
- Current innovations and plans for the future of the platform (23:30)
- Growth and acquisition opportunities (25:43)
- How Prodege maintains company culture amid acquisitions and expansion (27:33)
Links:
Chuck Davis on LinkedIn
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
Tom Ryan, Founder & CEO, ICR – New Year, New Outlook: Welcome to the Arena's 2024 Year-End Wrap-Up
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
01/01/25 • 9 min
Summary:
This year, news cycles were dominated by American election coverage, groundbreaking advancements in AI, and distressing updates on global conflicts. After a year marked by uncertainty on so many fronts, will 2025 see a leveling out of the macroeconomic landscape, or persistent volatility? On this brief, end-of-year episode, Tom Ryan, founder and CEO of ICR, and host of Welcome to the Arena reflects on the key market trends of 2024 and explores the potential economic shifts that could define the year ahead.
Happy new year from everyone at ICR and Welcome to the Arena. Watch out for new episodes and more incredible stories from our guests in 2025.
Links:
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
Jeff "Trip" Tripician, CEO, Meatable – A Shared Plate: Shaping a sustainable future for the meat industry through partnership
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
02/12/25 • 31 min
Summary:
In some industries, new players try to shake things up by breaking them down. But in sectors like food, where traditions run deep and habits are hard to change, collaboration can be a far more palatable strategy and can be leveraged to create scalable, sustainable solutions. Today's guest is doing just that, using decades of industry expertise to partner with key players, tackle global challenges, and redefine what’s possible for the future of food.
Jeff "Trip" Tripician is the CEO of Meatable, a Dutch biotech company dedicated to the development of cultivated meat products. Trip is an industry veteran with more than 25 years of experience in the organic and natural meat industry in the U.S.
He most recently served as CEO of Grass Fed Foods and, prior to that, as President of Perdue Premium Meat Company. Trip also brings extensive experience across the U.S. meat market with deep expertise in the U.S. supply chain, marketing of sustainable meat products, fundraising, and M&A. In fact, at Grass Fed Foods, Trip orchestrated a successful merger between Teton Waters Ranch and SunFed Ranch, which positioned the company as the foremost regeneratively focused grass-fed beef platform in the U.S.
During his time at Perdue Premium Meat Company, he spearheaded the company's growth and premium meat brands, such as Niman Ranch and
Coleman Natural, among others. Notably, he oversaw the acquisition and integration of Panorama Organic Grass-fed Meats and Alexander & Hornung.
In this episode, Trip shares how his background in the traditional meat industry shaped his work at Meatable. We dive into the cultivated meat-making process and the nuances of producing different cuts and types of meat. Trip also discusses the challenges the industry is facing, from scaling production and licensing to food security and navigating regulatory hurdles.
Highlights:
- Trip's history in the meat industry and journey into cultivated meat (3:34)
- Trip describes what drew him to his role at Meatable (4:51)
- Population growth and the increasing global demand for meat (6:40)
- How investor mindset in cultivated meat has changed over time (7:49)
- The science behind cultivating different cuts of meat (9:53)
- Current cultivated meat projects and innovations at Meatable (12:04)
- Meatable's business model and how it has evolved (14:26)
- Public reception to cultivated meat and industry hurdles (17:57)
- Trip describes the value of spreading awareness and education about cultivated meat (22:39)
- Future scalability and current field economics (25:16)
Links:
Jeff Tripician on LinkedIn
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
Kevin McLaughlin, Co-Founder & CCO, and Mary Ellen Coyne, CEO, J. McLaughlin – Dressed for Success: Designing a brand's future with customer-centric simplicity (re-broadcast)
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
05/01/24 • 37 min
The sign of a strong apparel brand isn't always about covering every billboard. It's about longevity, steady growth, and speaking the customer's language. And today's two guests certainly know how to do that.
On this episode, we're sitting down with Kevin McLaughlin, Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of J. McLaughlin, and Mary Ellen Coyne, the company's CEO. Kevin started J.McLaughlin in 1977 with his brother, Jay. They envisioned a timeless lifestyle brand with a legacy of style and a spirit of connection. And they did just that, opening their first shop on 74th Street and Third Avenue in Manhattan. It immediately became the post-brunch destination for the Ivy league, JG Mellon crowd.
Kevin's taste and design-sense has guided the J.McLaughlin collection since the first store opened, and he prides himself on creating effortless and enduring styles with a modern twist. Each style is thoughtfully designed with impeccable craftsmanship, original colors and prints and innovative fabrics.
Mary Ellen Coyne is the CEO of J. McLaughlin, and joined the brand in 2016. She oversees all aspects of strategy and operations, including merchandising, product development, marketing, retail expansion, and e-commerce. Under her leadership, the brand has launched new product verticals, including swim and footwear, enjoyed robust retail expansion, and recently launched a brand refresh.
Prior to joining the company, Mary Ellen had two decades of leadership experience at Ralph Lauren, where she most recently served as the Chief Merchandising Officer of Polo Women and Children's Division. Her career kicked off in the Macy’s Training Program, and from there, she sharpened her industry expertise with key merchandising roles at Ann Taylor, The Gap, and Victoria’s Secret.
J.McLaughlin now has over 170 beautiful stores on the most charming streets in America and true to the McLaughlin brothers' vision, each store is entirely unique.
Highlights:
- Kevin tells how he and his brother Jay started the business in 1977, and who the core customer is (4:47)
- Mary Ellen talks about why she joined the company (7:30)
- The store locations, key markets and expansion strategy (9:08)
- The menswear category and as the early foundation of the brand, and how the company approaches their relationship with the customer (11:15)
- Kevin talks about the role that intuition plays in the company (15:53)
- J.McLaughlin's philanthropy and their "local and loyal" approach (17:58)
- Mary Ellen discusses the company's impressive financial performance (18:56)
- The company's marketing and the role that their catalogue plays in that mix (20:39)
- New categories for 2024 (23:05)
- Working with Trey Laird to update the company's branding and marketing (26:14)
- Kevin discusses the expansion and brand awareness he'd like to create (28:37)
- Who are J.McLaughlin's competitors? (30:37)
- Trends and retail projections for the coming season (31:46)
- Mary Ellen and Kevin's goals for the next 5 years (33:05)
Links:
Mary Ellen Coyne on LinkedIn
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
Chris Hall, CEO and President, Personalis Inc. – A Prescription for Prosperity: Fueling medical breakthroughs with cutting-edge tech and strategic alliances
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
03/27/24 • 29 min
Big healthcare challenges demand cutting-edge healthcare products. Today's guest is building strategic partnerships to get ahead of disease and fuel the growth of their company.
Today we're sitting down with Chris Hall, CEO and President of Personalis, which trades under the symbol PSNL. In his role, Chris drives the vision and strategy for the company, including commercializing its diagnostic product offerings. He brings over 20 years of experience in general management and product development within the diagnostics industry, most recently as CEO of Naring Health.
Previously he served as President, COO, and Chief Commercial Officer of Veracyte Inc, where he led the company's commercial entry into endocrinology and pulmonology and scaled its operational groups. Chris also served as an SVP and Chief Business Officer at Berkeley HeartLab, part of Celera Corporation, where he helped new product launches, and restructured operations to improve profitability and streamline delivery of services.
Chris holds a BA in political science from DePauw University and an MBA from Harvard.
Highlights:
- Chris describes Personalis and their work (3:45)
- Personalis' MRD test and how it works (6:25)
- Chris walks us through Personalis' tech evolution (8:23)
- Personalis' current partnerships and collaborations (10:24)
- More about the internal team at Personalis (14:31)
- Chris discusses Personalis' recent Medicare coverage announcement (16:09)
- The current macro environment's effect on business (18:09)
- 2023 highlights at Personalis (19:54)
- Near-future growth and development goals for Personalis (22:25)
- Leadership and company culture at Personalis (24:22)
- Product development and long-term objectives (26:19)
Links:
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
John Carrington, CEO at Stem – Powering Up: Transforming the energy sector with AI (re-broadcast)
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
12/27/23 • 30 min
During the holiday period, we're re-sharing this very popular episode from earlier this year. If you missed it the first time, definitely check out Tom's chat with Stem's John Carrington!
Extreme weather, aging grids, power storage and distribution; these are just some of the challenges that clean energy is stepping up to solve. And companies like Stem are at the forefront, with cutting edge AI-driven services. On this episode we get to hear from John Carrington, CEO of Stem. John leads the energy storage and analytics movement at the company and has more than 25 years of leadership experience in technology, energy, and industrial companies.
John came to Stem from MiaSolé, the world's largest CIGS-based thin film solar company, where he was CEO and Director. Prior to that, John was the Executive Vice President of Marketing and Business Development at First Solar, growing the company from 250 million to more than 2 billion dollars in open markets in the US, Asia, and Europe.
John also spent over 16 years at General Electric, most recently as the General Manager and Chief Marketing Officer of GE Plastics. He was part of a small executive team that executed on the 12 billion dollar sale of GE Plastics to SABIC in 2007. We sat down with John to talk about his fascinating career trajectory and the huge runway he has in front of him with Stem.
Highlights:
- John discusses how he got his start in the energy field (2:51)
- How John ended up at Stem, and what the company does (4:39)
- How Stem fits into the larger energy transition (7:28)
- John talks about the ground-breaking software that Stem has built and the real-life use cases (8:39)
- Stem's total addressable market (11:44)
- How the Inflation Reduction Act is benefiting energy storage (13:16)
- The ease of "going solar" today (14:40)
- Stem's partnership with In Charge, an EV charging infrastructure solution(16:17)
- John talks about Stem's truly innovative approach (18:07)
- The benefits of being a public company for Stem (18:58)
- How John is positioning Stem in this challenging economic time (19:29)
- The key drivers for margin expansion in the next few years (20:49)
- The backlog for 2022 vs. 2021 (22:01)
- John talks about his great team (24:08)
- Stem's approach to capital allocation (25:20)
- John's outlook for energy storage in the next three to five years (26:31)
- John's most important mentors (27:49)
Links:
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
Cyrus Vance, Partner, Baker McKenzie - The Prosecutor's Dilemma: Navigating tough decision-making in the legal sector
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
07/05/23 • 30 min
A great thinker once said "what is right is not always popular and what is popular is not always right." Our guest on this episode has built his legacy on difficult, but hugely influential decision-making.
We're joined by Cyrus Vance Jr., best known for serving as New York County's top law enforcement officer for 12 years. As Manhattan District Attorney, he oversaw everything from white-collar fraud to cybercrime, human-trafficking, and even cold-case homicides. He's now a partner at global law firm, Baker Mackenzie, where he wears three hats, sitting in its litigation and government enforcement and global investigations and compliance groups, all while serving as Global Chair of the Cybersecurity Practice.
After graduating from Yale University and earning his JD from Georgetown Law Center, Cy entered his first stint in public service as an Assistant District Attorney in the office that he was later elected to lead. His career has taken him everywhere from Africa to the Pacific Northwest, and we're very fortunate to have him as a guest.
Highlights:
- Cyrus describes his background and journey to the Manhattan DA Office(2:58)
- Cyrus' father's influence on his career (4:42)
- What it's like to run for office, and learning how to operate in the public eye (6:02)
- Returning to work in the office: what was the same and what was different (7:39)
- The benefits and problems of working with large amounts of money (11:10)
- Developments in anti-corruption legislation, and heightening pressure on white-collar crime (15:06)
- Cyrus on if he regrets leaving office amongst the current prosecution of President Trump (19:31)
- What Cyrus learned from a business standpoint about managing a large team at the Manhattan DA Office (20:55)
- Cyrus' current goals as head of cybersecurity at Baker McKenzie (22:21)
- Cyrus discusses potentially writing a book in the future (24:16)
- Cyrus' hobbies and passion for motorcycles (26:57)
- What Cyrus would be doing if he didn't pursue a career in law (27:57)
Links:
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
Krishna Gupta, Chairman and Interim CEO at Presto – Driving Innovation: Using AI tools to accelerate the service industry
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
05/17/23 • 28 min
Recently, the restaurant industry has been struggling to hire new workers and retain their current employees. Today's guest is using innovative AI technology to deliver speed and consistency in customer service, and in the kitchen.
On this week's episode we sit down with Krishna Gupta, Chairman and Interim CEO of Presto, one of the largest drive-through automation technology providers in the hospitality industry. Krishna is a founder and CEO of venture firm Remus Capital which he founded as a student at MIT in 2008. Remus partners with visionary founders and management teams to build technology businesses that rewire entire industries. This led him to Presto, which many years later trades on NASDAQ under the symbol PRST. Prior to Remus, Krishna spent time at McKinsey & Company, and JP Morgan, helping several Fortune 100 clients on billion dollar technology transactions.
Krishna is an incessant traveler, and has done business across five continents. Outside of investing, he has a broad set of intellectual interests. He's conducted chemistry research at the University of Chicago, and in Israel. He produced a film on English ancient history, which is used at Cambridge in Oxford, and competed as a finalist in the USA Mathematics Olympia.
Highlights:
- Krishna's start in venture capital and investing (2:57)
- Presto's products and their purpose (4:30)
- How Krishna stepped up as interim-CEO (7:14)
- What makes Presto services unique in the industry (8:05)
- The addressable market for automation (9:40)
- Automating labor and automation ROI (11:18)
- The journey to becoming a public company (13:33)
- Automation duality for customers and businesses (15:15)
- Collaboration with OpenAI and ChatGPT (17:10)
- How AI is implemented in the service industry (18:16)
- Current projects and goals for the future (20:21)
- Managing their P&L (21:21)
- Krishna's advice for beginner entrepreneurs (22:21)
- The state of human-machine convergence (24:03)
- What investors might miss about Presto (26:01)
Links:
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
Mark Walker, Founder and CEO of Direct Digital Holdings – Finding Your Audience: Digital advertising solutions that reach multicultural audiences
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
02/15/23 • 23 min
Summary:
Digital advertising has allowed companies to be laser-focused with their audiences, and that means a super-efficient, high-impact campaign. On this episode we sit down with Mark Walker, Co-Founder, CEO, and Chairman of Direct Digital Holdings, which trades under the symbol DRCT. Direct Digital Holdings (DDH) is a digital advertising solutions holding company consisting of three subsidiaries: Colossus SSP, Orange 142, and Huddled Masses.
DDH provides programmatic digital advertising solutions with a specialization in reaching highly sought-after multicultural audiences and under-served middle market companies across the US. The company is at the forefront of dynamic and inclusive approaches to advertising, and in February of 2022, DDH became the ninth ever black-owned US company to go public.
Mark is an expert in strategic planning, management, and revenue generation for Fortune 500 companies, private firms, and startups. Prior to co-founding DDH, he directed business development for N R G Energy and served as COO at Ebony Media. Mark serves on multiple advisory boards and has written multiple research articles and case studies for Jupyter Research, Search Engine Watch, and the IAB.
Highlights:
- Mark explains what DDH does (3:23)
- The challenges and opportunities he saw when he was starting the company (4:12)
- The meaning of end-to-end programmatic, and how their subsidiaries function together (6:16)
- Mark explains why some of these multicultural audiences have been more difficult to reach (8:47)
- The key industry verticals (10:25)
- How Mark defines the middle market (11:22)
- How DDH might benefit from the economic slow down (12:56)
- Mark discusses DDH's performance and market valuation in 2022 (14:30)
- DDH's strong client retention (15:56)
- Mark talks diversity and the management team (17:08)
- Where Mark sees growth coming from in 2023 (18:13)
- The economic power of the multicultural marketplace (19:51)
Links:
Direct Digital Holdings LinkedIn
Direct Digital Holdings website
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
Dale Schwartz, Founder & CEO, Pinstripes – Holistic Hospitality: Widening market appeal with curated experiences and exceptional quality
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders
11/13/24 • 26 min
Summary:
Driven by pandemic restrictions and changing lifestyles, social isolation is on the rise in America. In response, many people are searching for new ways to connect and share meaningful experiences together. Bars, restaurants, and entertainment spaces have a unique opportunity to help fill this void, but too many venues leave potential markets untapped by prioritizing some aspects of their offering at the expense of others. Today’s guest, however, has come up with a winning formula: a blend of thoughtful design, engaging entertainment, and stand-out dining that appeals to customers across generations and backgrounds.
Today we sit down with Dale Schwartz, the founder and CEO of the bowling and bocce restaurant Pinstripes, which trades under the symbol PNST. Prior to Pinstripes, Dale was co-Founder and co-CEO of natural pharmacy retailer Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy, CEO of Infigen, Inc., and CFO of Ribozyme Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Earlier in his career, he was a principal at Odyssey Partners, a private partnership specializing in leveraged buyouts, venture capital, and recapitalizations. He got is start as an analyst in Morgan Stanley's M&A group, attended Colgate University, and holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.
In this episode, Dale talks us through Pinstripes' unique approach to experience curation, their considerations when it comes to real estate, and discusses their plans for domestic growth and international expansion.
Highlights:
- Pinstripes' story and background (3:05)
- How Pinstripes got its name (4:10)
- Dan's outlook on the early days in the dining and entertainment industry (5:02)
- Pinstripes' interior design and the importance of atmosphere (6:33)
- Pinstripes' menu, and finding balance between food and entertainment (8:57)
- How Dale chooses new locations for Pinstripes (10:27)
- Pinstripes economic model for food, drink, and entertainment (12:16)
- Dale's outlook on the private event space (14:17)
- Growth and expansion goals (15:25)
- Dale discusses the influence landlord incentives have on costs and returns (18:08)
- Potential for international expansion (20:00)
- Dale's approach to the current macro environment and rising costs (21:40)
- What future success looks like for Pinstripes (23:46)
Links:
Feedback:
If you have questions about the show, or have a topic in mind you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producer, [email protected].
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FAQ
How many episodes does Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders have?
Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders currently has 172 episodes available.
What topics does Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders cover?
The podcast is about Corporate, Marketing, Management, Leadership, Podcasts, Finance and Business.
What is the most popular episode on Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders?
The episode title 'Syed “Raj” Imteaz, Partner, Head of Convertible and Equity Derivatives, ICR – Inflation Insulation: Navigating complex capital markets with advisory expertise' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders?
The average episode length on Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders is 29 minutes.
How often are episodes of Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders released?
Episodes of Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders are typically released every 7 days.
When was the first episode of Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders?
The first episode of Welcome to the Arena from ICR – Conversations with Today's Innovators & Business Leaders was released on Jul 8, 2021.
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