angishields, Author at Business RadioX ® Page

BRX Pro Tip: Set Fees Based on Value

September 23, 2025 by angishields

BRX Pro Tips

BRX Pro Tip: Set Fees Based on Value

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BRX Pro Tip: Set Fees Based on Value

Stone Payton: And we are back with Business RadioX Pro Tip. Stone Payton Lee Kantor here with you. Lee, let’s talk a little bit about establishing fee structure. How do you go about setting pricing, fee structure?

Lee Kantor: Yeah, it’s funny, especially in professional services. To me, the only way to do it is to determine the value you’re providing, not the activities you’re doing. The tasks or the time you’re spending on something shouldn’t really be part of the equation when it comes to setting fees. I think the clearer you can make your case regarding your service in terms of the value you’re producing rather than the time it takes you to do something or what your service is the way to go here.

Lee Kantor: Remember that fees are determined by value, and if your prospect believes you can deliver that value, then the price really isn’t relevant. If it makes sense, if they know that you’re going to deliver $5 of value for every dollar, then it doesn’t matter what you charge because they believe that you’re going to outperform your fees. They’re going to be making money on your effort. So, you know, Seth Godin says “Price is a story,” and I’m a big believer in that, that as long as you have a good story, and you have evidence that you can deliver, then you set your price to what you want to sell your price to, and then just kind of explain the value, and then your prospect believes you are not.

Risk AIQ: The Game-Changer in Predictive Risk Intelligence

September 22, 2025 by angishields

Greater Perimeter Business Radio

Risk AIQ: The Game-Changer in Predictive Risk Intelligence

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In this episode of Greater Perimeter Business Radio, Erik Boemanns interviews Ron Johnson, founder of Tacilent.ai. Drawing on his national security background, Ron discusses Tacilent.ai’s Risk AIQ platform—an AI-native solution that transforms risk management from reactive to proactive. Risk AIQ delivers real-time, financially quantified risk intelligence, helping organizations anticipate threats and make informed decisions. The conversation covers the evolving risk landscape, the importance of resilience, and practical advice for entrepreneurs.

Ron Johnson is the CEO/Founder of Tacilent.ai, an award-winning startup pioneering AI risk and decisioning platforms, with over 20 years of experience in risk, data analysis, and intelligence across public and private sectors. Prior to founding Tacilent.ai, Ron served as a Senior Global Technology and Cybersecurity Executive at Ernst & Young LLP (EY), where he built a $125M book of business over two years and created the intelligence and data analytics team.

At EY, Ron’s work was transformative, helping to evolve Fortune 50 companies and leadership teams. His achievements earned him multiple leadership awards, making him a go-to executive partner for many EY clients. Before his tenure at EY, Ron was a Global Intelligence Chief for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), focusing on intelligence, large-scale data analysis, technology, and risk prevention. During his time at the FBI, he received the FBI’s Medal of Excellence, among other awards.

Ron also served as a Senior Special Operations Intelligence Officer in the U.S. Army, completing combat tours in Iraq and the Horn of Africa. He holds a master’s degree in Cyber Threat Intelligence from American Military University and is a Harvard Kennedy School Senior Executive Fellow.

Ron was recognized with the Young Alumnus Award from Tennessee Technological University, where he currently teaches courses, he developed in cyber and AI. He also serves on the Technology Association of Georgia’s Data Science and AI board.

A former University of Tennessee football athlete, Ron grew up in the Southeastern United States and is passionate about helping others, his family, motorsports, riding his tractor, and sporting clays.

Connect with Ron on LinkedIn.

Episode Highlights

Introduction to Tacilent.ai and its mission to enhance risk management through actionable intelligence.
Overview of the Risk AIQ platform as an AI-native risk intelligence solution.
Shift from reactive to proactive risk management strategies.
Importance of quantifying risk in financial terms for better decision-making.
Evolution of risk management to include a broader spectrum of threats beyond physical risks.
Discussion on the significance of predictive intelligence and warning analysis capabilities.
The role of AI in continuously improving risk assessment and management processes.
Emphasis on responsible AI practices and data privacy in risk intelligence solutions.
Insights on the challenges faced by organizations in articulating the value of security investments.
Advice for entrepreneurs on resilience and leveraging available tools for business success.

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Greater Perimeter. It’s time for Greater Perimeter Chamber Spotlight. Now here’s your host.

Lee Kantor: This episode of Greater Perimeter Business Radio is brought to you by Mirability with their new compliance Exo service taking you from it risk to it reward. Now here’s your host, Erik Boemanns welcome.

Erik Boemanns: Thanks, everybody. I am have a great guest today very much aligned with the the compliance exo that you just heard about. But from a from a different perspective a different angle. He is Ron Johnson from Tacilent.ai. And if I said that wrong please correct me but want to maybe just start. Tell us a bit about yourself and then kind of from there, what led you to found the company?

Ron Johnson: Yeah. No. Thanks. Erik. So, uh, the main reason behind the company is that we want to be able to provide clarity and chaos. And so, in the 21st century and 2025, there’s so much going on around the world, both internally to organizations and externally. And we want to be able to have basically that source of truth for organizations to be able to understand the what, the so what and what to do about it. And so just from my national security background, whether it’s been from my time in the FBI or in the military, deployed in Iraq or in Africa, or spending time at E! I’ve always turned data into actionable intelligence. And that’s really what we want to be able to bring to our commercial clients, is basically bringing that national security grade level of decision ready intelligence to be able to make informed decisions as quickly as possible and disrupt the status quo when it comes to how you manage risk and moving away from just managing it to a point of resilience. So instead of reacting to getting to a point of predicting.

Erik Boemanns: Got it. Yeah. And I think your background is has so much focus on risk management through the different careers that you had. Right. So it makes total sense why you would bring that approach here. So you have a new platform risk IQ. And so what is that doing to meet some unmet needs in the market. What what makes it different.

Ron Johnson: Yeah. So the biggest thing is so typically enterprise risk management solutions or risk intelligence. If you put it in that category those tools require 25 plus clicks. And you’re looking at multiple different modules and you’re really just managing a workflow and dashboards. And then organizations are still losing millions of dollars because of uncovered or unidentified risk across internally and externally to the organization. And so that’s where we come in in the market. So we’re helping get to action as quickly as possible. And so we don’t believe in workflows. We think they’re completely obsolete because we’re an AI native solution. We allow the agent to handle basically the workflow. And we basically give you the decision ready information so you can act as quickly as possible. And so the typical approach is really just it’s really what it’s called. It’s risk management. And we don’t like you don’t manage risk. You need to predict them and get ahead of it. And you need to identify what matters to you most to your specific organization in the chaos of the world today.

Erik Boemanns: And so not everybody listening has risk management in house. So what does that mean? What does risk management actually mean to a business owner?

Ron Johnson: Yeah. So one of the things we jokingly say is like one of the things we’re moving towards is don’t talk about Fight Club if you’re in Fight Club. So don’t say risk management. Focus on basically dollars. So what’s preventing what’s stopping your organization from what’s impacting your bottom line? What’s stopping you from making money? What’s stopping you from growth? What are those roadblocks. And that’s really what we look at how we define risk. And so we look across that from the entire organization. So whether it’s from cyber to technology, people, operations, finance, reputation then what are those blockers that are preventing you or things that are coming up that you need to be aware of, that you need to predict and that you don’t need to always react to. And so risk is really the things that are stopping you from making money.

Erik Boemanns: Makes sense. And you mentioned cyber. You mentioned some other things like I think risk might have been traditionally something like a fire in a warehouse. Right. But in the cyber we all know about phishing and ransomware. Maybe what’s a risk that people aren’t thinking about that is more common than they realize?

Ron Johnson: Yeah. So I would say one of the more common ones that you might not just be thinking of is really tied to, uh, reputational risk or even, um, right now, reputation. I would say also regulatory like regulatory risk or geopolitical risk is our top, um, area of concern that we hear from all of our clients. So being able to not only react to all the changes in the world, but then being able to see some of those indicators of activity or before it actually becomes a problem to them. And so one of the best stories we have is like, there’s always new privacy laws that are coming out from each state. And so being able to track that if you’re in multiple different states, or even if you’re in your current state, you might not have awareness of all the things being proposed at that local and state level. And so we monitor those things and then tell you exactly how it’s going to impact your business. And so that’s considered a risk, right. Because the fines could equate. So there’s a privacy law example out in the Midwest to where it was basically a $7,500 fine per individual violation. So if you have a thousand people that continues to add up. And so those are the type of intelligence that we provide to our clients, where typically you would have a third party consultant or a lobbyist or really what people are doing right now is looking at RSS feeds, and RSS feeds might not be able to capture that, because there’s so much information going on in the world right now, and everybody wants to know what matters to them.

Erik Boemanns: Makes complete sense. And so you just said, we don’t want to talk about risk management. So we’re not going to use that phrase anymore, right. Yeah. Except that your product is called risk IQ. Yeah. But I think you have a different phrase that you prefer to use. What was that again?

Ron Johnson: Yeah. So, um, for us, like we’re discussing specifically, clarity and chaos is one. Yeah. Um, and so that that clarity is what we’re focused on. Uh, we have a couple of catchphrases. That’s one. The other one is basically never take another risk assessment again. And, um, really going back to that whole phrase, don’t talk about Fight Club if you’re in Fight Club. So the one of the biggest challenges that we, we hear from our clients is like, why am I reacting to risk three months, six months or a year after the fact? And actually, that’s absolutely obsolete. Um, I jokingly was putting out some some content here recently where it’s like, um, Ricky Bobby says if you’re not first or last. And that’s the same thing when you’re looking at what are the things that are stopping you from making money in your business? Yeah. Um, if you have that mentality of reacting all the time, then you’re never actually doing anything proactive. And if you want your business to be able to sustain growth or just sustain the market share that you have, you have to be able to look over the horizon and understand what’s going to start impacting you and plan for it now, or just have awareness of what’s going on that’s stopping your organization, whether it’s a reputational risk. When we think about reputation, um, we, we have clients to where sometimes they might be trending in a negative standpoint, but they might not have any awareness of it until it after it’s already starting. There’s a news article in the, in the, in the times or in the post. And at that point you’re, you’re in basic crisis response mode.

Erik Boemanns: Yep. And so that idea of finding about finding out about the risks through that newsfeed, right. The the real time intelligence risks are real. They’re always going to happen. They happen to every business. So rather than manage it, which sounds kind of boring almost. Right. And probably not that effective, I think you talked about risk resilience as an alternative. And so how does risk IQ through that real time intelligence produce risk resilience as opposed.

Ron Johnson: Yeah. And so like moving away from the reactive piece and into the resilience perspective is really focused on our output of what the platform provides you. So we’re going to quantify all risk in dollars. So what does that dollar amount of that risk to the business. And then what does it cost for you to do remediation. And that’s really the part of the value there. The other piece is we go a level above most tools. Most tools are really focused on that tactical, what I call tactical intelligence, tactical transactional approach. We’re building out a strategy and a roadmap to help you drive maturity and resilience. And so that’s typically what I would do back in my previous life as a consultant or a recovering consultant. As I say, now that we focus on helping you drive maturity and resilience long term. And so how do you build the foundational program? Because one of the biggest gaps I saw, um, when I was back at EY, was that organizations should be focusing on more foundational things instead of spending so much money on all the flashy tools when they’re not doing core things like training or awareness, or just making sure that they have the licenses that they have in place through M365 are turned on, that they don’t have to go buy another tool that does the exact same thing.

Ron Johnson: So being able to help with that level of building out the program and being that source of truth. We had a client the other day that said like, oh, this is basically like my little wrist buddy. And I was like, that’s exactly what it’s meant to be. It’s meant to be like, hey, we typically we’re going to go to GPT, we’re going to go phone a friend, we’re going to go to Google, we’re going to go to some other tool to figure out a source of truth. And really we still have to interpret that information. We don’t know if we can trust and validate that. But our our platform is that source of truth when it comes to that certainty and that clarity or quote unquote, the risk resilience piece of like, where can I understand risk from my organization? And how do I know that the information that it’s built on is of quality and is reputable?

Erik Boemanns: Yeah. And so when I think of risk resiliency, it’s the bad stuff’s going to happen, but how quickly do you bounce back? Or how even better, do you just keep being able to make the money and absorb that bad thing?

Ron Johnson: Yeah, yeah. I had a, um, back when I was advising at one point, one of the things I was telling an executive before is like, you should be able to have processes in place and build the program to where certain things become white noise. So you remember how, like, the TV channel would disappear back in the day, it was like, oh, it’s just it’s just white noise to where it doesn’t really impact you or your bottom line, because you’ve built out the program to be resilient or built the business to be resilient to those shocks.

Erik Boemanns: Yeah. And so obviously AI is in the name of the product, the platform, the company. How is AI enabling that possibility.

Ron Johnson: So we’re completely AI native platform. So everything from the model that’s driving it to how we collect the data to fuel the model, um, the, the output, uh, there’s an agent that’s driving basically what you would call the traditional risk workflow. Um, and then the way that we monitored multiple different sources externally to an organization and then how we’re connecting to existing tools. And so we’re the, the, the foundational piece for a cognitive type of AI solution. So being able to contextually be aware of what’s going on around you, but then also learning from that to continue to evolve. So the longer you use the platform the better it becomes. So it’s beyond just traditional automation of point and click and then it’s going to generate something. But the platform is actually starting to learn is learning who you are as an organization. But then it’s also adapting to the environment. So you get real time intelligence, but then also it’s tailored specifically to who you are as within your risk or business profile.

Erik Boemanns: Got it. And and I think what naturally follows for me from that perspective is you can’t not read a headline recently about how by using AI, some of your company data got leaked out, right? Like, like, oh, it turns out your chats with ChatGPT weren’t private all those sort of. So we’re bringing AI into the business, but we’re bringing new risks to our data, to our practice and practice. So how do you guys approach that to that responsible use of AI?

Ron Johnson: Yeah. So, uh, so that’s the part of the responsible AI. Privacy is a core function of who we are as a company. So I’m a professor in responsible AI and cyber at Tennessee Tech University. Um, and so everything that we’ve done, we have seven core principles that are tied to responsible AI. And really that transparency is one of the most critical ones. And so within our platform and specifically digressing a minute, uh, to the security piece. So all the data is encrypted in rest and in transit. Um, nothing is being the model is not being retrained on any company or any client data. Um, none of the data is visible from for us as a company, it’s all within, uh, within that box for the organization. The other piece is really tied to one of the things we’re working on right now is although we connect to other systems, uh, we’re working with the partner to integrate the ability to only send specific requirements to the systems to get to an output for our platform. And so that approach is really tied to how you collect information when you’re looking at it from a national security perspective. And when you’re looking at intelligence specifically is focused on requirements. So you don’t go collect everything in the world, because then at that point you’re just like, you’ll get stuck in the sand.

Ron Johnson: For us, we’re looking at specific requirements from the tools that exist and then externally, and then we’re collecting against those requirements to be able to build out that data set. And so that’s that’s one of our first stop gaps. There is basically what I would call not over collecting. The other piece is like we are soc2 qualified or um, attested uh, with the product. So we adhere to GDPR and all the different requirements as far as like how you should store and keep data. But when it comes to the transparency piece that’s built into the platform as well. And so how the decisions are being made. So every decision that comes out in the platform, you can go and check that source. So the documents of the. So the platform provides you the the quantitative piece but also provides you qualitative recommendations. And so the way we look at that we provide you the what. So what is the risk and what is the cost of that risk. And how much does it cost to remediate. Then we provide you the so what that so what is um citations back to the documents and the systems that we have access to that you can go back and verify that information.

Ron Johnson: And then the same thing for externally, if it’s an external news source you can go and check that news source and do you can recreate that um evidence based decisioning so you can get to a decision um, quicker. And so we’re really every step in our process is built on those responsible AI principles, because that is something that every single client demands. Now as as you mentioned, there’s always I was just talking to my students last week about how, um, there’s been prompt injecting basically to where, um, there’s been that what we would call spillage in the cyber world of, of, uh, sensitive data. But the actual, uh, problem with a lot of that is there’s been no data governance or security before. And so when you look upstream, which is what our platform is meant to be to help you do, it’s like, well, what’s the root cause of that? Right? Because companies haven’t done any data governance or security before. And that becomes a problem. So we’re instituting that as like how we build a program and what information we’re, uh, we’re pulling in from our clients.

Erik Boemanns: Got it. So protection from the AI. Basically, you’ve got the box built around it to to let it do its job, but also not start sneaking data out.

Ron Johnson: Yep. And as we continue to evolve, like our goal is, um, for us, we’ve built a proprietary data set on risk that has, um, basically global standards and best practices. And then we developed a methodology that is patent pending that looks at futures and foresight, risk, predictive risk intelligence. Um, but the core thing for all of that is really for us to build an additional context layer. So basically a micro link small language model that is able to be very, very efficient in risk. And so the traditional large language models are somewhat a little bit of overkill for us. And then when we look at long term efficiency play for us and the tokens that are required, our goal is to be able to run our platform on edge devices for small businesses and in some national security applications.

Erik Boemanns: Okay. So basically a private walled garden for their own, their own product. Um, I think one of the other kind of secret hidden risks to businesses, especially in today’s world of cyber security and all the platforms is actually like too many platforms. So they keep buying new platforms, they keep spending more money on platforms and products, but aren’t actually benefiting from it. And so of course, risk IQ, another platform. How do you approach that, that conversation where this platform actually can save you money? It’s not going to just be yet another platform.

Ron Johnson: Yeah. So uh, so our hypothesis when we first launched this. This current phase of our product is for us to replace 3 to 5 legacy type of tools. So what that includes is that traditional governance risk and compliance or the enterprise risk management tool, um, whether it’s a risk intelligence type of platform and then the, uh, the initial data aggregator of like, well, what do I need to focus on? And then the other piece is what we’re doing is a first Swag is providing that level of expertise that typically is done by, um, from my previous life, a junior consultant. Um, but they want experts like us coming to the table, and it actually allows our platform, allows experts like you to come in and actually provide immediate value, because you can bring in the knowledge base of the information and where the problems are and provide additional context that our platform is not there yet. But then also the nuances of the human is still required. And so, um, the, the pieces that that we try to focus on specifically are tied to the fact that all these different tools in place.

Ron Johnson: The one thing we’ve learned that we’ve learned over the last month is we were, uh, there’s a competitor that we, uh, in the space from an enterprise risk management firm is able to augment is really it’s going to give you the decision. You can decide, you can go and validate that information. And so you don’t have to spend cycles of like, oh, I need to do additional research. I got to pull this presentation together. It’s really meant to get the action. So you don’t need a lot of the tools that we are traditionally, um, in organizations would use. They have a, a user of the tool. To your point, Erik, earlier, and you don’t need that user anymore because we can have the agent do that. What you want to be able to do for us, and I teach about this as a professor as well, is we want to push individuals up the thought chain and the critical thinking piece. And so some of that initial research and information gathering. We can now do that and then validate that information on the on the back end.

Erik Boemanns: Interesting. And so you mentioned no dashboards. And so now I’m thinking the executives, they got to go present to the board. The board of course board members get bored very quickly with technical details that aren’t relevant to their decision making. So how is the AI side of that helping even that board level communication?

Ron Johnson: Yep. So basically you can ask. So our platform, when you log in it feels just like you’re using perplexity or GPT but for risk. And so like you have the you can interact with your data interact with your risk data. You can ask for um specific board reports. Or if you have a template that you would like to use, um, that’s what we can help you tailor that to. Uh, and so really what we’re trying to do and what we’re actually doing is instead of, uh, and I would see this when I was at EY, you would get this long board report that has all of the criticals that you cleared for the last quarter, and that really doesn’t tell a story. And so one of the things I would always notice is specifically we’re speaking about the cyber or the information security or the the CIOs type of shop, the chief information officer shop. Is that how do you tell a story of how is what you’re doing helping the organization make money? And so I would always hear individuals tell me, well, I don’t know how the business makes money. I was like, well, if you can’t articulate that, then you can’t articulate your existence, because in reality, the business sees security as a cost center, because you can’t draw that line between the value proposition and the ROI. And that’s what we help tell that story across the entire organization. What is the cost benefit analysis of everything that we’re doing? Because as you and I are entrepreneurs, that’s something that we have to everything has a dollar sign attached to it. And so that’s the story we help help tell. So not just the dashboard and the pretty graphs or like the what story. What what story do you need to be able to tell to articulate the so what behind the decisioning behind the tool? Just rationalization or like what um, personnel decisions or things that are impacting the supply chain.

Erik Boemanns: Yeah, that makes sense. And so that kind of looks at decisions you’re making today. Now for those business leaders gazing into the crystal ball over the next five years. And not only do they want to be more resilient, but they want to even be more competitive, and they want to grow the business. How does risk IQ help with that?

Ron Johnson: Yeah. So, um, that is one of the the methodology I mentioned before, as far as the predictive intelligence and the warning analysis is what the platform is built on, is built on to predict the future. Um, I know it sounds kind of corny and, and I have investors like, oh, that that sounds aspirational, but it’s not. There’s a science to it, right? And that’s where I spent the last 20 years of my career, building out those chops to be able to come up with that methodology and then prove it out in some of the most high stakes environments where how do we prevent the next disruption or the next cyber attack or the next geopolitical risk? And we were able to do that in some of the most high stakes environments. And then that actually drives how you develop operations today. So you can mitigate those risks before they become a catastrophic problem. And that’s what we’re bringing into the platform. And so the platform has the ability for you to be able to run simulations. So if you see an intelligence notification coming in you say, hey, what does this look like from an organization 6 to 18 months down the road? And then you can track those things, and then the intelligence is going to be able to come in and tell you it’s like, hey, and this is why we considered this never taking a risk assessment again.

Ron Johnson: It’s because the platform is living. So the roadmap and the strategy is alive with the organization. So as the environment changes, the roadmap might change because the traditional method that we look at is a snapshot in time of a PowerPoint deck, or it’s a dashboard that we basically just work projects off and it’s not connected to our internal systems or externally, and then it’s not interpreting the so what? Because the business model today for most of the tools is built on integrations and how long it takes you to go through and click and then adding more modules. We’re saying none of that needs to matter now because we’re going to give you the decision, you’re going to track your progress. We’re going to track and measure whether or not you’ve implemented that change. And if you haven’t, here’s the decisions of that risk, right. So it’s the fork in the road. If I do nothing or if I do something, what does that look like for me today? What does it look like six months down the road? And then if that if that analysis is no longer relevant, then we’re going to tell you why it’s no longer relevant. Because there’s these new factors that are coming in.

Erik Boemanns: Interesting. And so without revealing too much of the secret sauce, these predictive models that you’re talking about are those based on real world outcomes, that historical data or how does that how do you feed that? How do you train that?

Ron Johnson: We have a lot of content that we post there. Um, as well as we push out daily intelligence briefs, which shows from an industry perspective. Focus on that medium, small sized organization. So think of the information that we push out really is focused on the what to do right. So being able to give you a sneak peek of what the platform is able to do and the things that we’re tracking as an organization.

Erik Boemanns: Awesome. And so that’s t a c I l e ai, right? Correct. Yeah. So, um, it’s pronounced just like it’s spelled. Yep. Perfect. Uh, so a lot of my guests here are also founders. You’re a founder. Uh, so I always want to find out kind of from the founders perspective, is there some sort of advice that you would give to people who are just starting their journey, or kind of at the crossroads, whether they should start that founder’s journey?

Ron Johnson: Yeah. So I’d say take the leap. I mean, it’s probably the the hardest thing, but also the most rewarding thing that I’ve done. Um, and then been able to, uh, be extremely resilient. You have to have a level of, um, what? You have to be a little crazy to do it because the the failures and successes happen all within the same day. And so I definitely think it’s worth the journey. Taking advantage of the opportunities now is better. There’s no better time now to start a business, especially with the tools that are out there. I mean, in the US, economy is built on small businesses. And so, um, but resilience is the number one thing I would say that you have to be able to do is to be able to take those punches and continue to move through them.

Erik Boemanns: Yeah, resilience is a good theme for today’s call for conversation. But and I want to I had a founder who also said, like, if you ever have a bad day, just try to go sell something because to your point, the successes and the failures come in the same day. So if you can take a shell of that hit and make it a win somewhere else, then yeah.

Ron Johnson: Yeah, yeah. I heard, uh, Mr. Wonderful from Shark Tank was saying just like, hey, like you will have a failure, catastrophic failure. But if you just wait, like something good is going to happen. And so and that is actually true. Like, you never know, it might be get a free ice cream cone or something.

Erik Boemanns: Yeah, exactly. So other than perhaps, you know, check out RiskIQ. What’s a one thing that companies could do like right now, today to reduce their risk or to become more risk resilient?

Ron Johnson: Yeah. So I would say one using our platform would be the first one. The second one would be, um, is think about the number one thing stopping your organization from making money. Like what does that do. Organizations actually know what that is. And then start to plan for how to remove that roadblock. And so I would say that would be the the number one thing.

Erik Boemanns: That’s great advice. And so I thank you for coming on today. I appreciate the conversation and look forward to future conversations.

Ron Johnson: Awesome. Thank you for the opportunity.

BRX Pro Tip: Trust the Process

September 22, 2025 by angishields

BRX Pro Tips

BRX Pro Tip: Trust the Process

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BRX Pro Tip: Trust the Process

Stone Payton: And we are back with Business RadioX Pro Tips. Stone Payton and Lee Kantor here with you. Lee, this is your mantra, I’ve said at a time or two over the last 18 years of doing this work, trust the process.

Lee Kantor: Yeah. I think that a lot of times people get this kind of shiny object kind of syndrome where they’re just anything new is the best thing in the world and I should do that. You have to understand that everything starts as chaos in some form or fashion, but you have to have a true north and you have to understand what it is you’re trying to achieve and what outcome you desire.

Lee Kantor: And, once you do that and you put a process in place, then you have to kind of trust that process until you have a reason to stop trusting it. And you have to do the work every day. You have to grind. You have to put one foot in front of the other over and over and over. You have to improve a little bit each day over and over and over and compound all of that knowledge and wisdom and effort over time. Then, hopefully, at the end of the day, you will get to where you’re trying to go. And, I’m not saying to never be open to these serendipitous miracles that occur along the way. You should kind of consider them. And to steal from a previous pro tip, if it’s not a hell yeah, then it should be a no, but you should be open to it.

Lee Kantor: And then, at the end of the day, remember that the journey really is the prize. You know, you have in your head a picture of where you’d like to go, and that’s fantastic and I hope you get there. But remember that the journey is really what you’re going to remember, and that is the impact you’re going to be making every single day that you’re doing the work. So trust the process. It’ll pay off one way or another in the long run.

Derrick Thompson with Microsoft

September 19, 2025 by angishields

Houston Business Radio

Derrick Thompson with Microsoft

00:00 /

Derrick Thompson is a seasoned technology leader with nearly 20 years of experience driving innovation and growth in the IT and cloud industries.

Having held influential roles at IBM, Citrix, and Google Cloud, Derrick brings a proven track record of shaping partner ecosystems, advancing technical enablement, and scaling business development strategies across diverse sectors.

Currently serving as the Director of Partner Technology Strategy at Microsoft, Derrick plays a pivotal role in helping partners across the Microsoft ecosystem build differentiated offerings and drive successful business outcomes.

He collaborates with organizations to develop integrated business and IT strategies that harness the power of AI and emerging technologies, enabling them to deliver exceptional customer value while maintaining a strong competitive advantage.

Known for his deep expertise in partner program strategy and technical alignment, Derrick continues to champion forward-thinking technology adoption and transformation, empowering businesses to grow and evolve in an ever-changing digital landscape.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derrickrthompson/
Website: https://partner.microsoft.com/en-US/

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix.

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Houston, Texas. It’s time for Houston Business Radio. Now, here’s your host.

Trisha Stetzel: Hello, Houston. Trisha Stetzel here bringing you another episode of Houston Business Radio. Today’s guest is Derrik Thompson, director of enterprise partner Solutions at Microsoft. With nearly 20 years of industry and channel experience, including leadership roles at IBM, Citrix, and Google Cloud. Derrick has built a career at the intersection of technology, strategy and partnership. At Microsoft, he helps organizations harness AI and emerging technologies to differentiate their businesses and drive measurable outcomes. I’m not done yet, Derrick. I’m almost there. Beyond his corporate work, Derrick is passionate about mentorship and community service. You guys know that that is near and dear to my heart, and he’s currently serving on the board of directors at Goodwill in Charlotte. He’s here to share insights from his career journey, the importance of mentorship, and what makes Microsoft a platform for innovation and impact. Derrick, welcome to the show.

Derrick Thompson : Oh man. Trisha, thank you so much. What a great intro. A lot more than I imagined. So I really, really appreciate that. And certainly thank you. And to those listeners that are live and also those that will listen to the recording. Appreciate you having me.

Trisha Stetzel: Thank you so much, Derrick, for being here with me today. And I love to take the opportunity to create these amazing introductions for my guests, because we don’t often do that for ourselves. So that is my gift to you this morning.

Derrick Thompson : Thank you.

Trisha Stetzel: Okay, so Derrick, first off, let’s take a little deeper dive into Derrick Thompson. Tell us a little bit more about yourself, whatever you’d like to share. And then let’s dive into your current role at Microsoft.

Derrick Thompson : Yeah, no. For sure. And I you know, I like to start these really on a personal level, to be honest. Trisha. Right. So Derrick Thompson, I’m a husband, a father, a son, a hopefully a good friend to a lot of people. And I just so happen to be, you know, a director over at Microsoft. And, um, what’s funny is I think a lot of that fuels the way that I operate each and every day. I grew up in a very small town. Um, many people may not recognize this name, but Lumberton, North Carolina. It’s a very rural town, um, typically known for textiles and manufacturing and farmland. Um, but I had an opportunity to do some really cool things and be surrounded by people that really cared about what happened to my future, and so took full advantage of that. Um, did some some time with the not just my high school, but spent time with some of the colleges as well, and ended up going to Wake Forest University for undergrad. Had an incredible time there, graduated um, took a job with IBM and the rest is kind of kind of history. And so when I think about those, um, humble beginnings, I think it’s just kind of gave me a drive and a passion to do, really two main things. One, to just explore passions because I think that’s really, really important. But then two, just the value of connections, personal relationships and then obviously giving back. So that’s a little bit about me for sure.

Speaker4: I love that. And Derrick.

Trisha Stetzel: You and I connected well. Linkedin suggested that we connect because we have IBM in common. Right. It’s very, uh, small big world. Right. That’s right. For sure. And, uh, thank you for being vulnerable and sharing your background. I really appreciate that. Let’s dive into your role at Microsoft. Uh, what what is it that you’re bringing to your clients or customers, uh, in your current.

Derrick Thompson : Yeah. Uh, you know, Microsoft obviously is a great company, and we’re on the precipice of what we believe to be a transformational era. Around this idea of of AI. And so I work in a group that’s called enterprise Partner Solutions that you mentioned a little earlier. And our job, quite frankly, is to work directly with our business partners and help them build both capability and capacity to meet that opportunity in terms of AI head on. And so we work very closely with ISVs, which we call software development companies. That’s a much broader statement, but I think it talks to the breadth and the depth of the companies that come on board. And really it says enterprise. And we work with obviously some of the larger companies. Um, but there’s also obviously a segment within Microsoft that really focuses in on the small and medium businesses because we realize, obviously, the closer you are to the customer, the more you really understand the challenges. And Microsoft is, we believe, the best infrastructure to build and the best partner to build, not just for today, but also for for the future. And so I have a great time working with the team. Um, visiting partners, talking to clients about their technology roadmap and how we can actually be helpful as we serve our joint customers together.

Trisha Stetzel: Yeah, I love that. So the thing that bubbles up for me around SMEs and these owners of, um, the smaller to medium sized businesses is some of them run away from AI. Some of them are running towards AI. So what would you just give me a like an overview of kind of where your head is at when we talk about AI and how we can get more SMEs to really embrace this idea of AI moving forward?

Derrick Thompson : Yeah, I’ll give a concept. I mean, when I walk into a room and I talk to really any partner or any customer about the idea of AI, you know, you could have any number of definitions, but I think the best way to really understand it, I’ll ask the question. I’ll say it like this. Hey, how many of you have actually used some of the tools that enable you to take advantage of this new technology? And inevitably, you know, you’ll get maybe 30% of the people to raise their hand. And I believe that’s a critical component that we’re missing. Like, it’s very difficult for you to appreciate some of the advancements and technology that’s occurred, quite frankly, over the past 6 to 9 months without really diving in deep and putting hands on and learning firsthand experience. So that’s my number one question. And so when I talk about AI, you know, the company believes that advancement in technology doesn’t happen without the idea of human ambition or an inclusion of human ambition. And so we talk about agents, we talk about copilot, Microsoft copilot, and then we talk about plus human ambition. And we look at the technology as really a process that really takes away the mundane task that one might do, which unlocks the human ambition that allows for creativity and innovation. So it’s not as scary as many people may think. Oh my goodness, you know the robots are coming to take over. No, no. What’s scary is that we haven’t taken the time to really understand how can we unlock the creativity that we have as humans and leverage the technology for what it has the capability to do today? Because it can tenex the type of activity that you’re doing and help you to meet the customer’s need head on. So yeah, it’s exciting. Trisha, there’s a lot going on.

Trisha Stetzel: I love that. Well, and you said 6 to 9 months. I mean, it’s amazing how quickly this technology is moving. It’s moving so swiftly. None of us can even keep up with it. Especially those of us who are SMEs. Right? Owners, leaders in those spaces. So what advice then, would you give to those who haven’t touched it? They actually probably have used AI and they just don’t know it yet, right? Because they’re using calendaring tools and these other things that are really AI. It’s not just the chat bot guys.

Derrick Thompson : Uh, it’s not.

Trisha Stetzel: Actually so much more. So what advice would you give to those SMB owners listening today that are really super afraid of taking the dive into that?

Derrick Thompson : Yeah, I think there’s a number of ways that you can get really quickly involved in the technology in itself. Um, Microsoft offers a lot of, um, learning frameworks and also classes, quite frankly, for free. And so you can go to the website and take some of the one on one courses around AI, understanding the data, how important data is. Um, underneath that, because it’s almost a garbage in, garbage out type of approach. Um, we leverage the data to then help make sense of the next steps that we should take from a strategy standpoint. So I would recommend learning, take advantage of all the free resources that you’ll see out there on the web. And then the other piece is that if you’re a small company, get every employee right in your organization. Access to Copilot, access to Microsoft 365 and really dive in and start to start to use it. One of the things I think that has made Microsoft so special is that fundamentally, over the past 12 to 18 months, every employee within the partner organization has has access to copilot. So we’ve kind of, I would say back in the day, kind of drink our own Kool-Aid, right. So we we’ve done that internally because the more we use it, the more we’re able to articulate the value to those that are just exploring. So those are two things that I would do. Go tackle the learning. A lot of it is free. And secondarily, make sure that your employees have access to that technology to play around with it and get more comfortable with how it can best be used.

Trisha Stetzel: I love that, thank you. What great advice. So I got excited when you said Microsoft 365 because many of us, many of us SMB owners and leaders have Microsoft 365, and we are not using its full capabilities. Can you talk about that for just a minute?

Derrick Thompson : Yeah. I mean, you and I like to use, you know, some examples. Um, many of us have, you know, iPhones or you may be a Samsung person, but let’s be honest, outside of the actual web, um, text messaging and maybe a few other apps, like there’s still 85% of the capability that that smartphone can do for you. And I think about that with Microsoft 365 as well. Right. There’s so many different components even that’s embedded within Excel. You know obviously within word document as well as PowerPoint. Um, and Microsoft, we’ve been able to unlock the use of agents even across some of the CRM systems and CRM systems that we’re leveraging. The same can be true for small businesses that are leveraging 365. And so really what happens is copilot becomes kind of the the interface into your own information. So now you can use all the great information that you’ve gained over the past years about your customers, right. And be able to data mine that in the appropriate way, be able to surface it in the right way at the right time as you’re having conversations, as you’re, you know, putting projects out there and doing bids, etc.. And so really starting to look at, well, what more can I do with what I already have, leveraging the technology that’s embedded in there will really start to unlock even more for you in the future.

Trisha Stetzel: I love that and free training. You guys. Free training. It’s out there. So, Derrick, uh, I know the listeners are already interested in connecting with you. Maybe they have some questions or you could direct them, uh, in a particular way. What is the best way for them to connect with you?

Derrick Thompson : Yeah, I think the best one. I’m always open to conversation, for sure. Um, you can find me on LinkedIn. My handle is Derrick d e r r I c k r Thompson t h o m p s o n. So feel free to reach out connect, follow. I’d love to hear from from any of you for sure.

Trisha Stetzel: I love that, and by the way, that’s how I found Derrick, right on LinkedIn. Um.

Derrick Thompson : Okay, I’ll tell you one thing too. Just along with that, you know, uh, we’ve ascribed to the idea of being learn it alls. And I think one of the things behind learning it all is versus know it alls is this idea that you can learn from anyone. And so I’d love to hear, obviously, from your listeners and understand well what are some of the things that they’re facing, because it can probably unlock a lot more and we can pour into that right where you are. So really appreciate the opportunity.

Trisha Stetzel: Absolutely, I love that. So you guys heard what Derrick said. Answer the question. You guys can comment in the YouTube comments area. Or if you’re watching on social media, you can certainly comment there. And then I’m going to tag Derrick so that he gets your questions, or you guys can just reach directly out to him at his LinkedIn profile. Derrick R Thompson. Okay, Derrick, I want to move shift a little bit away from the technical side of things and tackle this idea of leadership or how you lead today. So you’ve held leadership roles with IBM, with Citrix, Google Cloud, and now with Microsoft. So what are the key lessons that you’ve learned along this leadership journey that you’d like to share with the audience?

Derrick Thompson : There’s been a number of them. Trisha. I would say, um, one thing important is when you step into a leadership role, um, you’re really stepping into a role where you become more of a servant, if you will. So this idea of servant leadership. And what do I mean by that? It means being able to connect with people, um, a little deeper than the surface level. Right? Now, I’m not saying that, you know, I’ve got to know everything about you from your personal standpoint, or you need to know everything about me. But I do need to understand what’s going to help motivate you on a daily basis. Right? I need to be able to empathize with you when you’re saying, Derrick, today I just may not be able to bring my best self. Well guess what? Well, I want you to make sure that you’re in a space where you can bring your best self and that we can collaborate in the in the best way. So I think that establishing a connection and a, um, reciprocal trust is very, very important. So that’s, that’s really number number one. Um, I think the other thing, and I alluded to it a little bit earlier around this idea of know it all versus learn it all. Um, I think you have to realize and accept the fact that you don’t know everything. You’re not an expert in everything. And in fact, that’s why I hired you, right? Like, I, I would hire someone else that’s smarter.

Derrick Thompson : Smarter than I am, um, in a particular area because I know that it’s the combination of those things that really make up a great team. And there’s no there’s really no substitute for that. And then been able to give credit where credit is due. Right. And people love making sure that that they get, um, the amount due to them. And I’m not talking financially all the time or tangibly, but just a simple thank you. Right. Um, I learned from one of my mentors that, um, in the moment, feedback is some of the best feedback that you can give someone. Now, whether that’s feedback directly on something that just took place or even just accolades for something that just took place in the moment. Right. Because those things are critically important. Look, we all have busy lives outside of work, right? And I realize that. But and so when you step in, you give your best self. People need to be acknowledged for that. And I never want to lose sight for that. So those are some of the things that I’ve learned kind of over my leadership journey. And I think the last piece that I’ll say, I could talk about this stuff all day long, but the last piece is, um, really understanding and learning how to prioritize your time Effectively right? No one is an expert at that, right? I’m still working on it, for sure.

Trisha Stetzel: Me too.

Derrick Thompson : If you if you do not carve out the right time to at least recharge yourself, how are you going to pour into someone else? Right. And I, I think about that even from a parenting standpoint. And obviously with my spouse, I have to have the time to pour into me so that I can pour in to others. So never lose sight of that. Um, because I think it’s extremely, extremely valuable in terms of of leadership.

Trisha Stetzel: I’m so glad that you brought that up. You know, I was I was going to tout that. I’m I want to be a learn at all. I think I’m going to be a learn at some and just get better.

Derrick Thompson : I love it, absolutely.

Trisha Stetzel: And remember to put my mask on first. That was the thing that came up for me when you were talking about time management and recharging your batteries. It’s, you know, it’s not always about, um, or it’s never about being selfish, right? And it’s not always about just resting or unplugging, but recharging your batteries. So what is your favorite thing to do? Right? Um, for the listeners, what is your favorite thing to do to recharge your batteries? Um, I’ve been thinking about.

Derrick Thompson : Yeah, I love to read. Uh, that’s still, uh, a pretty big hobby of mine. And, you know, I’ll read, you know, business books and that type of stuff. I’ll read the Bible. Right. It’s one of my favorite hobbies as well. Um, but the other thing that I’ll do is just sit and be still, Trisha. Like. Like, just be still. I’ll go, you know, on a patio, or I’ll just go take a walk. Um, outside, in between conference calls, maybe do a lap or two. Um, just to just to refocus and kind of steady, steady your, your mind and so that you can then focus on some of the things that, that, that matter. Um, I tell people this all the time, I, you know, my order for a long time has always been God, my wife, my kids. And then everything else falls after that, I. I love my job, I absolutely do. Um, but that’s been my order. And I’ve been blessed enough to work for managers that have never asked me to compromise on that at all. And so I believe that’s extremely, extremely important.

Trisha Stetzel: Absolutely. It sounds like you’ve had some great leaders in your past and you continue to be a great leader. Um, you mentioned mentorship, and I know that that’s very clear, uh, that that’s something that’s important to you. So how is mentorship impacted your own career as you’re moving through your leadership journey? And how do you pay that forward with the next generation of leaders?

Derrick Thompson : That’s a really good thought. Um, you know, I can go all the way back to, you know, even my time in undergrad at Wake Forest University, I had a, had a mentor who and I’ll, I’ll describe the story. I’ll try to make it short, but, um, I’m in a, uh. I’m part of a group, um, a group that founded what we call knowledge network. And it was a a technology company that was incubated by the university. And so myself and four other people helped to found that company. We did all types of kind of pro bono web design work and database work, that type of stuff for the community. And the cool part about that was that the funds that we used or that we made rather, not only did give us, you know, a bit of a stipend, um, but it also provided a bucket of funds, if you will, for, um, underprivileged college students that would come after us. And so, you know, very successful, um, had a great time, but I had a mentor associated with that program who, um, introduced me to, um, someone an executive at IBM. And, you know, I was at we were in a room and she was sitting at a at a table, and I just kind of walked to the door. I was going to be a part of the meeting, but I just kind of stood at the door, not really thinking that I should go all the way in. Maybe I grab a seat over in the corner.

Derrick Thompson : Well, she stood up and she said, you know, Derrick, come on in and you can have my seat. And, you know, reluctantly, for any number of reasons. One, maybe I didn’t feel like I was quite ready, you know, for, you know, to be in that room at that table. Um, but then the other piece was, you know, well, why not? Why not take advantage someone, you know, someone did this for me. So I took a seat. And it just so happens that the person that sat beside was a general manager of IBM at the time. And he gave me my first internship. Um, he was the same guy that hired me on full time, um, before my senior year. He was the same guy that was at my wedding. So there’s a there’s just a consistent thread around mentors that open up opportunities and quite frankly, see things in you before you’re ever even able to see them in yourself. And so that stuck with me for so long. And a lot of my mentors have played a similar role in various stages in my life. And I found that to be important and, um, just obviously a reason to give back and always searching for kind of the next individual that I can do something similar for. And that’s been really, really important to me. Um, and I’ve been able to do that. And so I’ve been excited about it. And certainly I’m blessed to be able to have the opportunity to do it for sure.

Trisha Stetzel: That’s amazing. So like a for real seat at the table. What a great story. I love that because we talk about that, you know, virtually or just as an idea. All of us want a seat at the table that we feel like we belong at. And um, you got yours. And that’s what started this, and I think it’s fantastic. Yeah. Okay. So beyond mentoring and you’re an amazing leader, you are also serving the community and currently sit at on the board for goodwill. Let’s talk about that number one. How long have you been sitting on the board? What is the role and why did you get involved in the first place?

Derrick Thompson : Yeah for sure. So I’ve been on the board of Goodwill now for three and a half years. And so I’m the chair for the missions committee. And goodwill exists. I mean, you’ve I mean, everyone kind of have heard at least of goodwill. Um, and when you think of goodwill, you think of what, Trisha? You think of donations and.

Trisha Stetzel: Yeah, the donation line. Right?

Derrick Thompson : Yeah. Yeah. You think of those things, right? Which is all. Which is all true. But what’s amazing is there’s a whole infrastructure that really drives everything that you see. So that donation, that that small sweater or, um, used, Use slightly used purse or shoes that you may not have need for. Um eventually goes through the infrastructure and can turn itself into a job or an opportunity for someone else that’s just starting out. And so to be able to be involved in helping to kind of make that work has just been incredible, right? I mean, I grew up in I mentioned a small town in Robertson County, um, where people with 30% of most people were living below the poverty line at one time. And having an opportunity to just have a job, an honest work that’s associated with an entity like goodwill can change. Change a life and change a family forever. And so part of my job on the missions committee is to really, as a chair, is to really ensure that the things that we put put together in terms of social enterprise and obviously backed by philanthropy, allows us to continue those types of activities and also community outreach that gives people the opportunity to, you know, seize opportunities, see about possibilities if you will, and just grow uniquely right where they are and give people hope. Right? I mean, that’s that’s literally what it does. And it’s been an amazing, an amazing journey. And I’m really proud of the work that we’ve been able to do here in the Charlotte area.

Trisha Stetzel: That’s beautiful. Thank you for that. I’m a big proponent of community service. I think that any of us who are out working or have our own businesses, or are leaders in the community, expecting those people out there to give back to us, we should be giving in return, uh, and giving first right back communities that we’re a part of. Okay. So as we get to the back end of our conversation today, I know it went by so fast.

Derrick Thompson : Really quickly.

Trisha Stetzel: Yes, exactly. What advice or just your own experience, what would you give back or tell the audience around? Community service. Getting involved. Sitting on a board. Any of any of the above. What would you tell those listeners today who want to get involved and don’t know where to start?

Derrick Thompson : You know, I think there’s opportunity around us everywhere. Trisha. Um, I’ll give you another quick story. Uh, myself and one of my best friends in undergrad, we, um, participated in Big Brothers Big Sisters, and we had jointly we had a ten year old guy, um, who, um, had some family challenges, um, and growing up in a different environment. And we poured into him, we would bring him on campus because I think it’s impossible for people to understand what they can do if they can’t see it taking place. So we used to bring him to campus. He used to participate in some of the the leadership activities that we actually did. We would obviously have fun, take them to the mall and those types of things. But I think it created a passion in him to want to replicate some of those things and allow his future to look different. Um, if you fast forward that, I mean, we were there when he graduated from high school, which is already a stat beater, if you will. Um, we were right there when he graduated from college, um, in Georgia. Uh, and we were there when he got his first job, and I had moved my entire family, um, to the West Coast for the job with Google. And he was there because he had his first job at a small tech company in Silicon Valley, and he was a part of my wedding. So I say all that to say there’s opportunity right in front of you, right? And I think there’s something to being, um, persistent and to finding someone that you can really, really pour into and show them just how much you care about what happens to them next. And if you do that, I mean, I believe it’ll just work wonders, not just for that individual, but also for you. And it helps you to understand, honestly what we’re really here, what we’re really here for. Trisha, I said earlier that I you know, I love this stuff. I’ve got my, um, priorities. But I just believe that unless we’re able to do something for someone else. Um, none of it. None of it matters.

Trisha Stetzel: Mhm. Oh my goodness. Your words today are so powerful Derrick thank you for sharing. I appreciate you um coming on the show today being vulnerable, sharing stories. I would love for people to connect with you guys if you haven’t already. Some of you already have. If you haven’t already gone to LinkedIn and connected with Derrick, I want you to do that right now. Derrick d e r r I c k r Thompson t h o m p o n on LinkedIn. And if you can’t find him, you guys are already connected to me. Go. Go find my connection with Derrick. It’s not hard. It’s not hard at all. Derrick, thank you so much for being with me today. It’s been my pleasure.

Derrick Thompson : Thank you. Trisha. Thank you.

Trisha Stetzel: That’s all the time we have for today. If you found this conversation with Derrick today, um, insightful, please share it with a fellow entrepreneur, a veteran or a Houston leader ready to grow. Be sure to follow, rate, and review the show. Of course, it helps us reach more bold business minds just like yours and your business. Your leadership and your legacy are built one intentional step at a time. So stay inspired, stay focused, and keep building the business and the life you deserve.

Chris Carter with Approyo

September 19, 2025 by angishields

Houston Business Radio

Chris Carter with Approyo

00:00 /

Chris Carter is a dynamic entrepreneur, four-time best-selling author, and global thought leader in SAP and artificial intelligence. As the founder of multiple companies—Approyo, MugatuAI, and Charging Bunny—Chris is known for helping businesses leverage cutting-edge technology to operate faster, smarter, and more efficiently. His companies specialize in SAP migrations, S/4HANA upgrades, AI implementation, and sustainable EV infrastructure, delivering transformative solutions to companies worldwide.

In his conversation with Trisha Stetzel, Chris shared his multifaceted journey from the tech world to managing multiple successful ventures, including the cozy neighborhood bar he co-owns with his wife, Carter’s Pub. He discussed the mission behind his businesses, especially Approyo, which helps organizations optimize and modernize SAP systems while reducing complexity and cost. Chris also highlighted the game-changing role of AI through MugatuAI, helping businesses boost productivity without sacrificing the human element.

The discussion explored Chris’s insights on balancing innovation with human connection in an increasingly automated world. He shared personal stories, business lessons, and his passion for sustainability—especially through Charging Bunny, a startup focused on eco-friendly EV charging solutions.

Whether he’s advising Fortune 500 companies on digital transformation or pouring drinks at his pub, Chris Carter remains committed to creating impact through leadership, authenticity, and forward-thinking technology.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christopher-carter-885159/
Website: http://www.approyo.com

This transcript is machine transcribed by Sonix.

TRANSCRIPT

Intro: Broadcasting live from the Business RadioX studios in Houston, Texas. It’s time for Houston Business Radio. Now, here’s your host.

Trisha Stetzel: Hello, Houston. Trisha Stetzel here bringing you another episode of Houston Business Radio. Today’s guest is Chris Carter, a four time best selling author, founder of Approyo, MugatuAI and Charging Bunny, and a global leader in AI and technology innovation. Chris is the go to for companies looking to scale and strengthen their SAP landscapes, save time and money during migration, and leverage AI to create faster, stronger, more stable organizations. His teams help clients reduce complexity, boost productivity, and prepare for the future where AI and people work side by side. He’s here to share his insights on AI security and how businesses can harness both technology and human talent to stay ahead. Chris, welcome to the show.

Chris Carter: Hi. Thank you for having me. And please, can you walk with me in every elevator I walk into and pitch? You are. Wow. I feel like I’m pretty darn good.

Trisha Stetzel: I love this. You know what’s so much fun about creating these introductions for people is we don’t ourselves often go out and say these things. So I like to give that gift to you’re welcome and I’m happy to share.

Chris Carter: I’m going to I’m going to take that snippet. This is gone and I’m going to use that. I’m just going to go in my earpiece.

Trisha Stetzel: I love that, Chris. Thank you so much for being here with me today. Tell us a little bit more about Chris Carter and all of these businesses that you have.

Chris Carter: Well, I tend to stay very busy. I’m very been very blessed. I’ve been married 26 years to an incredible woman who has raised our two daughters. I am a girl, dad. And she’s given me the fortitude to take the things I love and to try to do things. Um, I learned very quickly when I was young, um, to try, uh, I had the one of the first computer, a Commodore Vic 20. I had an old Atari system, not the video game system, even though I had that and all these systems. And I went off and became a technologist. And I love to try new things. I love to tinker. I love to play, I love to learn. And so I’ve created a number of companies throughout my career and been very blessed and started writing books and speaking. And I still maintain three companies, plus a bar restaurant that my wife runs at, uh, thank God I have a whiskey. Well, shout out to Garrison Brothers Whiskey of Texas. Love you guys. You’re my favorite. But, uh, it’s fantastic.

Trisha Stetzel: That’s awesome. One. Congratulations on having a beautiful relationship with your wife and being a girl dad, because that’s important to you, I love that.

Chris Carter: Oh, I love it. If I could talk for hours just about my daughters, I am. I am the literally the proudest dad there could be. I I’ve got two phenomenal girls who are both in the medical field. One is a nurse and one is on for the oncology wing of Children’s Hospital. And the other one is an EMT. And they both care about people so much. And I give that all to my wife because I don’t care about anybody. No I’m kidding.

Trisha Stetzel: I doubt that just based on what I know about you, you are definitely hanging in there with all the people. And I can tell that it’s really important to both of our daughters for giving back in a way that they do. That’s those are both very hard jobs. And thank you to them.

Chris Carter: So enough about my girls. Now it’s all about me.

Trisha Stetzel: Okay. Now let’s talk about Chris. Okay. So, Chris, instead of starting with the beginning because we’re definitely going to talk about Sep. I want to talk about where we’re at right now. And I know I heard through the grapevine, you just got back from a conference and it happened to be about AI. So can we start there? Let’s just dive into that and then we’ll back into the rest.

Chris Carter: 12,000 people attended this conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. Thank God there was air conditioning because it was 115 degrees the whole time I was there. And I’m a pasty white guy from Wisconsin. That doesn’t go well. But 12,000 people wanted to know more about AI and how it’s helping their businesses and what they can do and where you can go. And so I spoke twice. I’m very fortunate that they asked me to speak twice. And I was talking about some of the activities that we have in my new books and what we can do from businesses on a day to day basis. Why you should start looking to integrate it, how you can integrate it, no matter if you’re a business of one, or if you’re a business of hundreds of thousands of people. There are some little things that you can literally do day to day if you’re in marketing, if you’re in sales, if you’re in the technology team, even in the executive offices, the things you can learn about your company alone with AI helping you bind that together. It’s I get it. We’re in the not even the first inning of AI right now. And I and people tell me this all the time and I say, I haven’t even walked in the stadium as a former baseball player. I would sleep in as late as I could, then go to the baseball stadium to get work done and activities two, three hours in advance. We’re not even to that point in this, this new growth that we’re going to see with AI.

Trisha Stetzel: Yeah. That’s crazy. So first question.

Chris Carter: Yes.

Trisha Stetzel: What would you say to those who are listening today, who have still not embraced the idea that this is reality, that AI is here for us?

Chris Carter: I’m going to take off the glasses of this, and I’m going to point at them right now. You need to start looking at things, even basic things. Grammarly. Let that clean up your emails. Let that clean up the documents that you’re writing. Go to open AI, go to ChatGPT. Use Gronk, use the tools that are free for you to become a better you. Because that’s really what AI in my mind is all about. Will it take jobs? Um, still to be determined. I think there will be some jobs that will take. And I’ve actually given a speech, um, I do a presentation at a lot of universities where the junior developer will no longer be needed. Okay. Because of AI. Yeah. But what they do need is if you take that junior developer who’s about to get out of college and give them the business sense they need, because technologists need to understand the business and they need to communicate with each other. So that’s why I say it’s going to make you a better person. It’s going to make you a better writer. It’s going to make you a better salesperson, a better technologist, because now you have that helping you to gather that information from your company or from the World Wide Web, and how you’re going to market, how you’re going to promote. And it’s going to help you as that individual or you as that group and that company. And that’s where I see the such a benefit with it. And that’s why I take off the glasses and I point at those individuals watching do that now just by adding the Grammarly app to your MacBook or to your whatever computer you’re using, and watch it clean up and help you just little changes that how you speak and how you promote. It’s incredible. And how those tools they get you.

Trisha Stetzel: Yeah, and it’s moving so fast. We need to embrace some piece of it so that we can stay relevant in our businesses. Right? You mentioned the human component. Yes. I get that some of these tools are going to replace things, but that human connection or that human to human conversation, communication is so important. So can you talk about how still having that human to human connection is important?

Chris Carter: Oh, it’s it’s greatly important in the AI world because we cannot do this. We cannot have a conversation and have the video and activities going on between us as humans. If you are AI, you’re going to have an avatar that’s going to be manipulated, let’s say, and everybody’s going to know. Everybody’s going to know that the passion that comes out of me and whenever I speak is not there in an AI, I have a passion for helping people. I have a passion for education when it comes to technologies and AI and SAP and cloud, and even with our EV charging business, I have a passion to try to make people and things better. An AI avatar or bot only wants to do what it has to do to make things go forward. It’s not going to show you the passion that we feel for it, and you have a passion for the show. That’s why we’re smiling with each other, and we can interact with those smiles and those head nods. And we know what we’re doing because we have a passion. Ai doesn’t have a passion for those.

Trisha Stetzel: No. And it’s so for those of you who are listening, don’t go in your room and name your chat bot and never talk to a human because that that’s the wrong direction to go.

Speaker4: That was a movie each other. Do you remember that movie by Phoenix? Oh my gosh, that was such.

Trisha Stetzel: A long time ago, right?

Speaker4: Like 5 or 6 years ago?

Chris Carter: Yes.

Speaker4: What a.

Chris Carter: Foreshadow.

Speaker4: Yeah.

Trisha Stetzel: It’s crazy. Okay, tell us about your books, because I know that you’ve got a handful of those as well. So tell us the titles and how we can find them.

Chris Carter: Oh geez, I’ve got 17 of them. Um, they’re all my little babies. They’re not my daughters. They’re my babies. Um, none of them are more than 150 pages long, because what I wanted to do with them, and I actually have some literally right here. So they’re there. These are 120, 130, 150 pages. It’s basic AI understanding. They’re all on Amazon. If you look me up on Christopher M Carter or Chris Carter on Amazon, and I literally want to give you some information, I talked to you about chatbots. I talked to you about what the basics of AI and Grammarly and how to use some of these. And then there’s other ones that talk about large language models and small language models and what those are, and why companies need to start looking at their data and they need to start cleaning up their data. Don’t go out if you’re a company and say, oh, just we’re going to put this in and forget about your data, because if you get everything from the World Wide Web, you’re going to not get all of your information. You’re going to get every information. And so I talk through why and what and how and just I, I act as if everybody is a kindergartner. I don’t have grandchildren yet, but I remember those days of taking my daughters to school and having to dummy down everything I said, because I’m a very intellectual person with a 160 plus IQ. I tend to get a little out there, but at the end of the day I’m like, okay, let’s talk to each other as if we’ve got 40 IQs and we’re just starting in this world together, and we’re walking to school together. And that’s what I really wanted to do because people are scared. I know my mom and dad didn’t want to be anywhere near this, and it’s people that are trying. Or maybe they’re afraid of trying. Well, this helps them to not be afraid. This takes the clown from underneath your bed and gets rid of them right away.

Trisha Stetzel: Oh, I love that. So you guys go to Amazon, look up Christopher M Carter or Chris Carter and you can find all of his books there. I hope you guys will take the opportunity to do that. So Chris, how can people connect with you if they’re already curious about learning more or want to know more about you and your businesses?

Chris Carter: Oh, I love connecting. So find me on LinkedIn. Give me a little message that says, hey, I heard you on the radio, come on in Houston Business Radio. And I was with Trisha. I want to I want to follow you. I want to talk with you. I want to have a conversation. I’m good with coffee, and I’m good with whiskey. So if you ever want to do one of those with me as well, please. I’m in Texas.

Trisha Stetzel: Maybe both. I’m just saying. Whiskey and coffee. There’s such a thing there.

Chris Carter: I refuse to answer that question on the fact that I have a speaking engagement in Ireland later this year.

Speaker4: I love.

Trisha Stetzel: That. So you started already? Um, like prefacing the next part of our conversation, I believe, which is rolling into SAP and data is so important and using AI. So let’s start somewhere. We can start at the beginning. Maybe let’s define SAP just in case people are not familiar, and then take a deeper dive.

Chris Carter: You got it. So SAP is actually, um, a German based company. It is an ERP solution. So an enterprise resource planning solution. And what they did is they moved everything together into one central database your HR, your finance, your warehouse management, everything that you possibly could do to run a company in one nice, neat, clean package. It’s called SAP and it’s the S4. Now we’re going to the cloud. That org or that information is in your central repository, your central database. This and you need to keep it as your clean. One record of truth. Because if you have one record of truth, it makes everything within your organization all on the same page. And when you have that, that’s a beautiful thing, because now everybody knows what they’re doing with the same data. And you can make decisions as a CEO, as a CFO, you can now make and leverage decisions based on that one record of truth, because it’s been kept and cleaned and the AI tools of SAP, Jul, and of course, the Microsoft tools that are built in help do that. And it makes it makes it wonderful and easy for people running those systems at companies to be able to do that.

Trisha Stetzel: Mhm. Okay. So those of you listening who have multiple spreadsheets and multiple departments, you need to talk to Chris. I’m just saying.

Speaker4: You’ve got.

Chris Carter: The largest um you’ve got the largest industry sector in Texas. And that’s the oil and gas patch. No matter if it’s upstream or downstream, whatever the activities are with oil and gas, literally everybody from Diamondback to Chevron to Shell, everybody has SAP running in their organizations. They just may not have migrated them yet like they need to. But those are the tools, and those are the companies and all the partners that are wrapped around it use it. We’re we work with contango and it used to be White Star Petroleum. Love that organization. I come down there and I meet with folks and they all are trying to still figure it out, and that’s why they work with us. But it’s a tool that makes it simpler for them to be able to do their jobs. So yes, they do need to have conversation with us.

Trisha Stetzel: Yes. Yes they do. Um, so tell me more about who SAP is for the types of businesses, the size of Of businesses. Who needs SAP?

Chris Carter: Well, ten years ago, I probably would have said it would have been for companies that are the largest in the world, down to maybe, uh, half $1 million or $1 billion. But now what SAP has done is they’ve brought it down to organizations. I just made reference to contango, White Star Petroleum. They’re a $20 million a year petroleum organization. And that’s a $20 million company. They’ve got smaller companies as well that are leveraging it. Um, smaller user counts. But at the end of the day, SAP allows you to bundle your finance, your HR, your warehouse, your oil and gas upstream, downstream activities. It gives you the ability to put it all in one central repository and one record of truth. So you can be the multibillion dollar diamond backs and shells and so on that are in the patch. Or you can be a smaller $20 million a year partner that is around the patch and any you can be in retail, you can be in oil and gas. You can be in manufacturing, discrete retail. It’s we’ve got industry solutions in the SAP ecosystem that fit everybody’s needs. You just need a great partner like us at Aprio to be able to support you, to implement and support in those activities along the way.

Trisha Stetzel: Yeah, absolutely. So if folks are interested in talking specifically to you and the business at brio and SAP, what’s the best way to find you?

Chris Carter: So the best way to find the company is app. Com app r y o com or find me on LinkedIn. Uh, you can also hit us up at the info at. And if somebody would really like to have a conversation, we’ve got an eight 800 number on the website as well as my Twitter feeds and text feeds and X feeds and all those feeds. If it’s not me, it’s the company. So it’s, uh. Or find me at a convention or trade show. I’m literally, um, all over the place. And that that brings me to the point that we’re going to celebrate today, Trisha, today is my 50th podcast of the year with any group, and I am so honored that I get to do it with you. So we were.

Speaker4: Oh my gosh, back a little.

Chris Carter: Bit. So I was so happy that your number 5050.

Trisha Stetzel: Wow, Chris, that is amazing. I’m so excited to be a part of your 50th podcast.

Speaker4: You’re a sweetheart.

Chris Carter: Thank you. I’m I’m just honored to be here because I think what you do and how you help the Houston Houston business groups is fantastic. The knowledge you provide. And that’s strictly what we want to do and what I try to do every day. I’ve been very blessed to do this since 1989. I, I know you weren’t born yet, but they’re back in the day. They were the 1980s with a lot of hairspray for women. It’s kind of.

Trisha Stetzel: Well, you might be surprised that that was the year I graduated from high school, Chris.

Speaker4: But really? Oh my gosh.

Chris Carter: You’ve got perfect skin, girl.

Trisha Stetzel: Oh. Thank you.

Chris Carter: Look at me. I now have perfect skin.

Trisha Stetzel: Perfect skin as well. For those of you who are not watching, you guys need to get on YouTube and come watch the video of our podcast today and not just listen to it. I know most of you are in your car if you’re just listening. Alright, so uh, anybody who’s wanting to connect with Chris, you guys know I’m going to have all of the links in the show notes. You can point and click if you’re sitting at the front of your computer, please don’t do that while you’re driving. You can always just take a note and come back to it later. So you talked about, um, the data and the data being important and having a data repository that is the end all be all the place that you go so that it is the truth and it is the best data that’s available for you and your business, your company. How does that or how does SAP actually increase productivity and reduce costs and reduce the complexity of running a business? Can we talk about that?

Chris Carter: That’s a great question because what it really does, and I’m going to take off the glasses again for this to get in a little technical. It puts everything together in one place. You don’t have to have 25 different applications running. You don’t have to have a finance system. You don’t have to have a warehouse management. You don’t have to have an HR system. They’re all under the guise of SAP, and they’re all the modules. And all those modules come together. And so when they all come together, that’s how you get that one database of truth. A lot of times, and it’s still going on today. Companies have ten, 15, 20. I know companies with even more different disparate systems with all these separate databases, and they can’t get the data together to be able to make business decisions that help them guide their company for the future. Trying to do predictive analytics on anything in their company is literally asinine. It’s impossible. So now you get rid of all those systems you put together one and it easier to use, faster to use, more cost effective for them. And it gives you what you need from a knowledge base for you to be able to have those dashboards to see what’s going on in your company.

Trisha Stetzel: Mhm. So I hear brains rattling out there in my audience. Oh my gosh. I’ve been using these same 25 systems for years and the migration scares the heck out of me. So tell me a little bit about the migration process.

Chris Carter: So it can be scary and it will be scary. There are there are templates that we use. Um, SAP has been fantastic over the years in building these templates to match competitor systems or smaller systems. You can use everything from a QuickBooks to Sage to dynamics, and there’s a template to help merge that into SAP. Now, SAP is more expensive. There’s more to do, but now that it’s a cloud based environment, it gives these companies the ability to say, look, I don’t have to hand up my hands on the infrastructure and the networking and the security and all those ands are now gone. And you put it into that S4 environment on an Azure environment, and it’s pretty much hands off, except you have an organization like us that manages and monitors it, so you don’t have to do that activity. It helps you sleep easy at night. I’m I’m literally like the 1980s when we had pagers back then, instead of you getting that call, our team gets the call and we’re your pager to help you sleep easy at night.

Trisha Stetzel: And you need somebody like Chris to get and his team to get you through that migration. That’s what makes it better, right? And this human connection and having somebody on your side and a team of people who can help you with those things that go bump in the middle of the night, right?

Speaker4: Actually, let me.

Chris Carter: Pull out my hair. You don’t want to pull out your hair for that.

Trisha Stetzel: Okay. Uh, would it be okay with you if we spend a little bit of time talking about your other businesses? Would that be.

Speaker4: Okay? You want to talk about.

Chris Carter: The whiskey or.

Trisha Stetzel: So, uh, we tackled it, right? We know. We know what that business is. And you have mugatu AI, which, by the way, we might have to, like, talk a little bit about where the name came from. But does that is it part of it or is it a separate business? What is that business focused on?

Chris Carter: Great question. Because it is a separate, separately wholly owned organization of mine that’s not part of apparel, but we built a tool called Overwatch that we resell to partners and to apparel as well as others that maintains and monitors landscapes across the ecosystem. So no matter if you’ve got SAP or Oracle or Dynamics or Sage, plus all the security predictive analytics tools, we built that tool. So it would literally monitor entire landscapes without having a higher 50 people to do it or 20 people to do it. It does it with one human being with multiple dashboards, so people can actually get the benefits of their systems without having to do all the day to day and the updates and the upgrades. Everything. That tool does it for them.

Speaker4: Wow.

Trisha Stetzel: That’s amazing. All right, so, um, some people may find the name Mugatu familiar. You just have to tell us where it came from.

Speaker4: So I hope they do.

Chris Carter: Well, if they’re if they’re my age, they might remember a Ben Stiller movie called Zoolander. And in Zoolander was an actor by the name of Will Ferrell in one of his first movies, and he played a character called Mugatu, and he was a bad guy. He was the mean guy. Well, I I’ve loved that name of all these years. And as a matter of fact, I goof around with one of the videos on. I’ll send you the link, um, that we’re doing with him in the early part of the movie. And it is to me, I just it rolls off your tongue. It’s mugatu and it’s it it was just the name I’ve always wanted to figure out how to use. And so I named my AI startup after that. And lo and behold, people love it.

Trisha Stetzel: Oh my gosh, it’s so much fun. And thank you for sharing that. Okay charging bunny.

Chris Carter: Oh EV charging based upon solar. Rather than taking from the grid we give back to the grid, we actually sell all of our excess power to the grid. We never pull it. We’re always pushing it to the grid. Um. I love my Tesla. My daughter’s got it. Um. I’m love EV. I think some of the things that we need to do. By no means am I green. I’ve got my Corvette and I’ve got a suburban. I’ve got my trucks. But I also think that we should give back. And one of the things I thought about, I was literally driving that car around with my daughter one day, and there were weren’t many Tesla stations, and I was looking at the Tesla charger and I thought, it’s constantly on. Why is that? And I thought, well, what if you had a larger battery backup system? You had the ability to be able to pull from the solar. Look at all the sunshine and beautifulness in Houston. That’s there all the time. And I tell my friend Cliff Saunders down there, it’s a beautiful state. It’s very hot. There’s a lot of sun and it’s sunny, usually all 365 days of the year. Someway, somehow. What if we could harness that a little bit more, put that into systems that actually store it, and when it’s done being stored for the day at 2:00 in the morning, you can sell that back to the grid to help the grid better the rest of the world. And so it’s a, it’s a, it’s a passion project. A little side thing that I’ve been working with, and we’ve got a couple of them built up and it’s it’s working. And I love the fact that it’s working.

Trisha Stetzel: I love that and thank you. What an amazing idea. And I hope there are others out there who embrace that and follow.

Speaker4: I hope there are others that let.

Chris Carter: Us put them in their facility, because they don’t have to pay for anything.

Speaker4: And everything in.

Chris Carter: And we just work with the the governments to set them back up as a push instead of a pull.

Trisha Stetzel: Okay. One more. Carter’s pub I know you made reference to it earlier. Tell us where it is.

Speaker4: Oh, so.

Chris Carter: It’s in New Lisbon, Wisconsin. It’s about 15 minutes from the Wisconsin Dells, which is the world’s largest city of water parks in the United States. And what we do is I was fortunate enough to have a wife that said, ah, you go pick out all the whiskeys. So the first set of whiskeys came from Texas, which is Garrison Brothers Whiskeys. Nancy and Dan are great people, and so we’ve got, um, all of their whiskey. And then I picked out the next 90 bottles of whiskey that I wanted from wherever in the world, um, my buffalo Trace’s and Pappy’s and, uh, you name it, it’s in there. Driftless Glen. And it’s great food. It’s great fun. We have bands every weekend. My wife runs that day to day, and it was another passion project for us. We, um, unfortunately, the owner passed away and it sat empty. And there weren’t enough restaurants in this area, especially with quality good products like ahi tuna tacos and rolls that actually had real hummus, real homemade hummus. So we’re very much an organically we take them from our local growers, we figure out where we’re going to make, and we have that as our menu. But we wanted to be healthier. Um, she saw her husband ballooning up in weight and said, let’s be healthy about this. And so we picked healthy foods. And again, it’s so much fun to see our neighbors come in and eat with us and generally are typically always there. And it’s fun.

Speaker4: I love that. Back to.

Chris Carter: Our community.

Trisha Stetzel: Yes, absolutely. You’re such a giver. Chris, I’m so blessed to have you on and to be your 50th podcast this year. It’s a blessing, uh, that you and I met. And by the way, you guys, I did connect with him on LinkedIn. It was just a thing, right? It’s how we got connected. Um, as we finish up today, is there one piece of knowledge that you would like to share with the audience?

Chris Carter: Oh, especially since we’re all business people here. Never be afraid to try. You’re going to fail. Look at baseball players. As former baseball player, I failed seven of ten times, but I still hit 300. Try try try. Never stop trying. And if you see success, keep trying. More on that success. If you failed, take the knowledge you learned. That is success. Every failure is a 100% learning curve and keep using that. And I so I tell businesses I love telling young people when I go to colleges and talk to them, you are going to fail miserably at a lot of things, but you’re going to learn from it and you’re going to take that knowledge and do something else, and you might fail that time. Look at Edison thousand plus times. He failed at the light bulb. And now I’ve got a light over my computer. I’ve got a light over my head. But just keep trying. It may not be a thousand times. It may be one time you fail and the next time five times. Just keep trying. And remember, at the end of the day, there’s a little sign right there that my cousin’s daughter made for me. Love each other. You know, at the end of the day, be a good human being. Um, you know, there’s a lot of things going on in this world, good, bad or otherwise. But remember, be a nice person. Be a good person, try to help others out. And if you’re getting up that ladder of success, grab your hand back behind you and pull somebody up with you. That’s good business.

Trisha Stetzel: Oh my goodness. Yeah, we are cut from the same cloth, Chris. Golly, I’m so glad that you were on the show today. You have made my day and I know that you’ve made others days. Thank you for all you do in your community. Thank you for providing such an amazing service to our business owners and leaders who are out there listening. If you guys want to connect with Chris, remember you can find his books on Amazon at Christopher M Carter or Chris Carter on Amazon. You can find his books or at a p e r y.com so you can find his business there. Did I get it right, Chris?

Chris Carter: You did? Absolutely. You’re good. Next up next, I’m going to tell you how I named AB Royal.

Trisha Stetzel: Okay. Yeah, I’m going to have to invite you back. I see this already. Okay. My friend.

Chris Carter: Thank you. Oh. Thanks, kiddo. I love that. Oh. Happy 50th. Happy 50th.

Speaker5: Oh! Happy 50th, happy 50th. This is amazing.

Trisha Stetzel: We’re celebrating. Oh, wait, I think I can do some confetti.

Chris Carter: Yes, we should be able to do this.

Trisha Stetzel: And balloons. You’re only confetti and balloons.

Speaker5: Woo! There they are. Happy 50th.

Trisha Stetzel: All right, my friends. That’s all the time we have for today. If you found value in this conversation that I had with Chris today, please share it with a fellow entrepreneur, veteran or Houston leader ready to grow. Be sure to follow, rate, and review the show. It helps us reach more bold business minds just like yours. Your business, your leadership and your legacy are built one intentional step at a time. So stay inspired, stay focused, and keep building the business and the life you deserve.

BRX Pro Tip: Enthusiastic Referrals the BRX Way

September 19, 2025 by angishields

BRX Pro Tips

BRX Pro Tip: Enthusiastic Referrals the BRX Way

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BRX Pro Tip: Enthusiastic Referrals the BRX Way

Stone Payton: Welcome back to Business RadioX Pro Tips. Lee Kantor, Stone Payton here with you. Lee, if you would, please share kind of a BRX, Business RadioX primer perspective methodology approach to this whole business of leveraging referrals as a key part of business growth.

Lee Kantor: Yeah, this is something where we’ve listened to our customers. Our customers are hungry for referrals. They’re hungry for that word-of-mouth growth that they need in order to grow their business coaching practice, their professional service practice. They live off of referrals. So we had to develop kind of a flywheel that keeps our clients’ pipelines filled with enthusiastic referrals from the people that matter most to them.

Lee Kantor: So some of the ways that we do this are by just leveraging the fact that we are earned media. Business RadioX features you and your guests as industry thought leaders on the air. That spotlight transforms casual connections into genuine supporters. That’s by design, and it’s very difficult for other people to become earned media overnight. It’s something we’ve been spending decades on.

Lee Kantor: Number two, we’re doing networking that’s not cringey. Instead of collecting business cards at awkward mixers, when our people go into a networking situation, we’re putting them in actual conversations with the movers and shakers whom they want to know. This kind of natural dialogue kickstarts relationships, and referrals start flowing simply because we are the ones that are top of mind at these types of events.

Lee Kantor: Instead of – our people, when they go to a networking event, they’re not saying, “Look at me, look at me.” They’re saying, “Do you know anybody interesting I should interview on my show?” People are coming up to us and they say, “Well, you can interview me.” People want to talk to people when they’re networking. It flips the whole script when it comes to networking. You’re no longer kind of please, baby, please, buy my stuff. You’re out there serving people. You’re out there supporting people and celebrating their work, and they’re coming to you like a magnet.

Lee Kantor: And number three, every piece of content that we create is shareable. It’s brag-worthy. Every time one of the people gets interviewed on one of our shows, this is probably the funnest thing they did that day, and they’re proud of it. They want to tell people. It’s the thing that they’re going to tell their spouse about. So every episode becomes a piece of social proof that guests love to share. And then we go out of our way to teach them how to share it more and more, and how to repurpose that content. When your guests post their interview, suddenly their network knows about you, and you become that go-to connector. You’re the mega connector.

Lee Kantor: So I highly recommend, if you are a business coach or you are in professional services, you want to grab the mic. Business RadioX isn’t just a show; it’s your referral engine running on authenticity and a little show business charm.

Lee Kantor: So you can learn more at businessradiox.com.

BRX Pro Tip: Flywheel or Funnel

September 18, 2025 by angishields

BRX Pro Tips

BRX Pro Tip: Flywheel or Funnel

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BRX Pro Tip: Flywheel or Funnel

Stone Payton: And we’re back with Business RadioX Pro Tips. Stone Payton, Lee Kantor here with you. Lee, for years, as long back as I can remember in a sales career, the mental image for moving a prospective client all the way through to someone who does decide to team up with you has been a funnel. And then I envisioned it for quite so many years as more of an incubator. But you’ve got a new take on this, the flywheel. Talk about that a little bit.

Lee Kantor: Yeah, I think a flywheel is better suited for today’s world. And people are just the funnels of the past, I don’t think are as relevant as what a flywheel could be. And just kind of basic terms, as a funnel is, some people start at the top and they kind of work their way down to the bottom like a pachinko machine, where the ball just kind of goes down into one of the slots at the very bottom.

Lee Kantor: A flywheel is something that the more you put into it, the more it spins, the more it creates its own kind of momentum, and it builds upon itself. And if you do a flywheel right, you fill it up and it can be kind of almost a perpetual pipeline. And that’s what we’re shooting for at Business RadioX.

Lee Kantor: So the old school funnel is all about driving prospects down, squeezing out conversions, and then starting all over again with a new prospect. With a flywheel, every interaction in our case, guess features, follow-ups, shout-outs, everything is momentum – keeping the momentum spinning. You don’t lose kind of energy at the bottom. You don’t have to kind of start again fresh at the top. The energy you have at the bottom should multiply if you’re doing this right, and that’s the way it works in our business.

Lee Kantor: So with us, every happy guest or even listener can push our business back up the hill by recommending another guest or listener. So everything kind of builds upon itself. Every guest can refer another guest, and those guests can refer other guests. So it does create a true flywheel. So that kind of repeat business and referrals just happen kind of on autopilot once you get a certain level of momentum.

Lee Kantor: The problem with funnels, funnels tend to treat people more transactionally. Like I got to walk you through this, and once you don’t buy, then you kind of exit the funnel, where flywheels turn every relationship, every guest, every customer, every supporter, every listener into a repeat and opportunity kind of to do this again. So when a guest shares their episode or talks us up or sends a warm intro, they’re cranking the flywheel for us. It doesn’t require a cold restart again from scratch.

Lee Kantor: So if you want to change – if you want to choose momentum over burnout, start thinking like a flywheel instead of a funnel. Consider partnering with Business RadioX, where every guest, every episode, and every follow-up isn’t just a step in a funnel. It’s a push to keep the business flywheel spinning stronger and stronger.

BRX Pro Tip: Networking for Introverts

September 17, 2025 by angishields

BRX Pro Tips

BRX Pro Tip: Networking for Introverts

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BRX Pro Tip: Networking for Introverts

Stone Payton : Welcome back to Business RadioX Pro Tips. Stone Payton, Lee Kantor here with you. Lee, today’s topic is for people like you, introverts, and people like me, people who just hate traditional networking.

Lee Kantor: Yeah, the Business RadioX model was built for me, an introvert, and for you as someone who hates networking. So a survival guide for the networking averse, here you go.

Lee Kantor: If you’re an introvert, you want to be leveraging the superpowers that you have: your research ability, you’re listening ability, and your follow-up ability. And networking allows you to do that if you’re doing it in a manner that’s elegant, and it fits into the way you like to kind of interact with people.

Lee Kantor: So when you’re going to a networking event as an introvert, what I recommend is you want to focus in on quality over quantity. So you don’t want to look at this as kind of I’m going to go in there and get everybody’s business card. That’s the last thing you want to do. You don’t want to interact with 50 people.

Lee Kantor: What I would recommend is you kind of do some research ahead of time, understand who’s going to be there, and focus in on just connecting with one to two people who really matter. That’s it. Your goal is no longer to kind of interact with everybody. It’s to interact with the one or two people that are going to move the needle in your business, because you know that one meaningful conversation is going to be the dozen awkward hellos every single time.

Lee Kantor: So you want to research the crowd ahead of time. You want to choose who you talk to strategically. And then when you are talking with them, leverage the fact that you’re probably a great listener if you’re an introvert. Being a great listener is your secret weapon. People love feeling heard and understood.

Lee Kantor: Ask thoughtful questions. Watch how naturally the conversation flows. This takes all the pressure off of you. And at Business RadioX, since most of our introvert leaders are hosts of shows, they have a lot of experience asking a lot of questions, and this kind of leans into their superpower of being a good, active listener.

Lee Kantor: Number three, networking for an introvert can feel exhausting because there’s a lot of people there, there’s a lot of stimulus, and it’s easy to feel uncomfortable in that environment. So you don’t want to be a person that goes to this event. You’ve targeted your couple of people you want to interact with. You don’t want to just kind of leave then. You want to kind of follow up immediately after the event, and you want to kind of reference that conversation that you had with the person to keep you top of mind and keep you memorable.

Lee Kantor: So you want to make sure that you are following up because most people aren’t, especially the people who are professional networkers. They just go there, collect 50 cards, and then a lot of times they just put that into some sort of an automated system, and they never interact with these people again. You want to be able to create kind of something memorable and something that’s going to keep the relationship going because you targeted fewer people, so you have to kind of wring out the most value from those people.

Lee Kantor: So you have to follow up elegantly and effectively after the event, and you want to always keep it authentic. You want to keep it easy, and you want to let your introvert instincts guide you through this.