Innovation and the Digital Enterprise

Edward Wagoner, CIO of JLL, acknowledges what many C-suite executives do not: leaders are human. In his 26 years at JLL, Edward has seen tremendous company growth—investment in data and proptech, the purchase of two AI companies, and a serious effort to recruit the highest-level data scientists—and he’s had to grow as well.

In this episode, Edward talks about innovating the ways that we work together (in digital and physical space) and building environments that suit meaningful collaboration. He shares insight into JLL’s expansion and investments, including their focus on sustainability. Reflecting on his own journey, Edward discusses the essential role vulnerability holds in personal and professional growth and the obstacles he’s overcome to lead with authenticity.

AeroPay founder Dan Muller embraced Chicago’s supportive entrepreneurial ecosystem to build his innovative payment processing business in 2017, and he is looking to return the favor. This week’s episode offers an insightful conversation about finding the resources and community needed to materialize an idea, the often-fraught scaling period of a company, and the importance of advocating for fellow entrepreneurs.

Dan Muller is a product-first founder dedicated to rethinking the collection and distribution of payments, but he is equally committed to building community within his company and beyond. With Pat and Shelli, Dan discusses hiring philosophies at different points of company growth and getting real about how people are going to use your product and integrate it into their systems. A proponent of connecting with other founders, Dan speaks on how to embrace others’ insights and feedback while you create your own path.

How do we learn from our failures? Kayne Grau, CEO of Uptake, reflects on the highs and lows of his career in this week’s episode dealing with authenticity, leadership, and staying open-minded in your career path. He shares advice to his younger self about finding balance and embracing the lessons that emerge in difficult moments.

Before joining Uptake, Kayne had a long career building brands and growing companies. He’s a self-described “product guy”, who relishes opportunities to engage with the people side of business, whether that is by getting face time with customers or picking up the phone each day to connect with team members. Listen in as Kayne joins Pat and Shelli to explore cultivating employee culture in a remote world and the idea that there is no set approach to being visionary.

Many believe that to succeed in business, you must be a pessimist, always anticipating and preparing for the worst. But according to Kristi Zuhlke, the CEO of Knowledgehound, grit and optimism are not mutually exclusive concepts.

Kristi joins Shelli and Pat and gives listeners a window into the life of a serial entrepreneur. She explains why entrepreneurs are passionate about solving problems, why optimism is underrated in business, and how she thoughtfully adds new members to her team.

After being the only woman in the room for years at her corporate job, a string of tragedies made Alison Vorsatz reconsider her purpose. This led her on a transformational journey to Africa and ended with her finding a job at Fairygodboss where she gets to realize her dream of empowering women.

Alison joins Pat and Shelli to talk about her journey and shares insights on what it means to work on your personal brand and how that brand can open career connections.