This episode of Culture Crush Business is a real deep dive in the space of building communities that help with growing and positive well being. Kindra deep dives into the journeys of Nathan Coury and Ryan Tomita, two entrepreneurs on a mission to build supportive communities and foster personal growth. Nathan kicks things off by sharing his insights into creating human-centered businesses that prioritize the well-being of employees, leading to remarkable retention rates and minimal staffing challenges. Then, Ryan, the brains behind Middlefinger Mantras, opens up about his struggles with mental health and how they inspired him to create safe spaces for men to find support and empowerment. As if that wasn’t enough, Nathan and Ryan also get into the nitty-gritty of balancing masculine and feminine energies in business. They stress the importance of collaboration and connection, rather than competition, in creating thriving workplace environments. They tackle the stigma head-on and wrap things up with a powerful call to prioritize mental well-being and reach out for support when needed. This episode is a must-listen for anyone looking to cultivate a culture of care and growth in their personal and professional lives.

In this episode of the Culture Crush Business Podcast, Elena Joy Thurston and Gabe Hagen discuss the critical importance of fostering inclusive workplace cultures. They highlight the necessity of inclusive leadership in today's diverse workforce, stressing the significance of small changes to enhance belonging and engagement. Overall, the episode underscores the importance of cultivating inclusive cultures in corporate settings to attract diverse talent, with a focus on communication, accountability, and continuous improvement. Brick Road Coffee, exemplifies a business seamlessly integrating quality service with a commitment to community values. Known for its exceptional coffee and inclusive atmosphere, Brick Road Coffee serves as a community hub where diversity is celebrated and individuals are welcomed. Elena Joy Thurston, a renowned Diversity & Allyship speaker, shares her personal journey as a Mormon mother of four who lost her marriage, church, and community upon coming out as a lesbian. Through transformative experiences and communication strategies, Elena Joy aims to increase safety and profit in organizations by fostering inclusion, safety, and belonging for all employees. This episode emphasizes the imperative of fostering inclusive workplace cultures through leadership, communication, and continuous improvement. By spotlighting the success of Brick Road Coffee and Elena Joy Experience, it underscores the transformative impact of prioritizing diversity and inclusion in business, both for societal progress and organizational success.

In this episode of the Culture Crush Business podcast, host Kindra Maples and guest co-host, Karen Nowicki, delve into the significance of vulnerability in personal and workplace contexts with guests Mathew Blades and Eric Brooker. Mathew Blades, a former award-winning radio host with 27 years of experience in the broadcast industry, shares his journey of transitioning to podcasting and speaking engagements. His podcast, "Learn From People Who Lived It," and speaking series aim to engage audiences on a real, grounded, and inspirational level. Mathew encourages audiences worldwide to find self-care strategies and embrace being transitional characters. His talks have been well-received in various organizations, including Banner Health and Keller Williams. Eric Brooker, a dynamic author, keynote speaker, and business leader from Minnesota, shares insights from his book, "You Are Enough: Overcoming Lifelong Doubts of Worthiness." Drawing from personal experiences, Eric empowers readers to embrace their inherent worth and conquer self-doubt. In addition to his successful career in the technology industry, Eric hosts the acclaimed podcast "Counsel Culture," exploring culture and leadership to guide listeners towards personal and professional development. Through his work, Eric continues to inspire and empower others, leaving an indelible mark on those fortunate enough to engage with his content. Together with the hosts, Mathew and Eric discuss the importance of initiating difficult conversations, prioritizing self-care in high-stakes jobs, and fostering resilience and empathy in workplace cultures. Their personal stories and insights highlight the power of vulnerability in inspiring others to embrace their worth and achieve personal growth. This episode is sponsored by Gateway Bank, a community bank in Arizona that specializes in serving small businesses across the Valley and the country. Whether you need a loan or banking services for your business, Gateway is here to help. Visit gcbaz.com/culturecrush for details and a free consultation with bank President James Christensen. All loans subject to approval. Member FDIC. For a more detailed breakdown of this podcast episode, our guests, our sponsors, and more please visit www.culturecrushbusiness.com/

In the latest episode of the Culture Crush Business Podcast, host Kindra Maples and guest co-host James Christensen discuss military culture, personal values, and high-performance leadership with esteemed guests Waldo Waldman and Dan Clark. The conversation explores resilience, identity, and the role belief plays in shaping organizational culture, offering actionable advice for fostering positive and growth-centric environments. Lt. Col. Waldo Waldman: Waldo Waldman is a Hall of Fame leadership speaker, executive coach, and bestselling author. With experience as a combat decorated F-16 fighter pilot and expertise in change management and peak performance, Waldman advocates for collaborative cultures built on trust and courage. His keynotes emphasize the importance of overcoming obstacles and embracing teamwork to achieve peak performance. Dan Clark: Dan Clark is a New York Times bestselling author, motivational speaker, and leadership coach. Overcoming a paralyzing injury, Clark's remarkable journey to success has earned him accolades as one of the top motivational speakers globally. With experience speaking to diverse audiences worldwide, including Fortune 500 companies and combat troops, Clark's insights focus on personal development, resilience, and high performance. James Christensen, President of Gateway Bank: James Christensen is the President of Gateway Bank in Mesa, Arizona, with over 35 years of experience in the banking industry. A champion of small businesses and marginalized groups, Christensen is known for his leadership in driving financial health and community advocacy. Through his work, he inspires individuals to improve their well-being and contribute positively to their communities. Thank you for our Sponsor! This episode is sponsored by Gateway Bank, a community bank in Arizona that specializes in serving small businesses across the Valley and the country. Whether you need a loan or banking services for your business, Gateway is here to help. Visit gcbaz.com/culturecrush for details and a free consultation with bank President James Christensen. All loans subject to approval. Member FDIC.

In this episode of the Culture Crush Business podcast, Kindra Maples, the host, and guests Stephen Smith and Jay Rayhons explore the multifaceted concept of culture. Defining culture as the shared rhythm and essence when people come together, they draw parallels between sports, business, and the dynamic nature of jazz music.  The conversation delves into Jay Rayhons' approach to financial work, emphasizing the importance of understanding clients' values, and Stephen Smith provides insights on maintaining strong team connections in remote settings, highlighting consistency in leadership and the significance of trust within organizations. Joshua Development is a strengths-based coaching & consulting firm. We believe that leadership is best defined as crafting the environment in which excellence happens. JW is a Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach and a LifeScript Learning Certified Facilitator. He is commonly described as authentic, growth-oriented, and values-based. Follow Joshua Development on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Reworc is a platform that helps you see and plan for the future of work, today. Reworc’s organizational MRI helps provide leaders and employees with the information they need to make work work. Stephen Smith is the VP of people analytics and insights at Reworc where he leads the research, strategy, and product development functions. Connect with Stephen on LinkedIn. Thank you for our Sponsor! This episode is sponsored by Gateway Bank, a community bank in Arizona that specializes in serving small businesses across the Valley and the country. When you work with Gateway, you don’t have to call an 800 number for support, or submit your loan application and wait weeks or months for an answer. You get fast, personal service from a team who knows you and cares about you. When Gateway was founded in 2007, the team had a vision of building a hometown bank that prioritizes people over profits. Over 15 years later, they’re proud to still be one of the highest-performing AND highest-rated community banks around. Whether you need a loan or banking services for your business, Gateway is here to help. Visit gcbaz.com/culturecrush for details and a free consultation with bank President James Christensen. All loans subject to approval. Member FDIC.

This Podcast Episode is on “from the vault.” This episode has a very personal side and connection for Kindra and her guest, Jean Brunson.    In this podcast episode, Kindra dives into a candid conversation about the evolution of the podcast and its focus on improving company culture. They reflect on how Jean was the one that pushed Kindra towards a more inclusive approach, emphasizing the significance of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, and Belonging (DEIAB).   The conversation touches on the challenge of addressing diversity and inclusion in the workplace, acknowledging the reluctance some individuals may have in expressing their feelings or concerns due to fear of repercussions. The hosts highlight the need for safe spaces to have open conversations about diversity, recognizing the unique struggles faced by different communities.   As the discussion weaves through personal experiences and the impact of diversity in various settings, it emphasizes the multifaceted nature of company culture. They share insights on how the podcast evolved to embrace a broader definition of company culture, extending beyond big corporations to encompass small businesses and diverse groups.   The episode also delves into the significance of Juneteenth, tying it to the broader conversation on diversity, inclusion, and belonging. The hosts discuss the recent federal recognition of Juneteenth as a holiday and reflect on the importance of acknowledging historical events that have shaped the experiences of black communities.   Throughout the episode, there is an emphasis on the power of conversations, the importance of listening, and the need to create spaces where diverse voices can be heard. Kindra and Jean share their personal growth through this journey, illustrating the transformative impact of intentional efforts to embrace diversity and foster inclusivity in both professional and personal spheres.   Thank you Jean Brunson for your contribution to the growth of the Culture Crush Business and Podcast.    A little about Jean Brunson:  Accomplished veteran of the United States Army with a Master of Social Work Degree and 19+ years of experience within the military community, as well as expertise in program and curriculum development, mental health, veteran’s advocacy, and case management.   She is a superior coach and mental health subject matter expert capable of collaborating with diverse populations. Dependable self-starter and valuable team-player that has proven to be an advocate for change and support to the community.    A little about the host, Kindra Maples:    Kindra Maples is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo Cookies. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio).   She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion for working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion of leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow.   Then came the opportunity to lead the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further.   About Culture Crush At Culture Crush, culture isn’t just a corporate buzzword. It’s a key factor that can either boost your company or lead to its failure.   As a growing company: Culture Crush Business is your hub for company culture resources. With deep cultural insights and years of expertise, we evaluate your company’s needs and connect you with the precise resources to cultivate a thriving culture. We work with CEOs, founders, HR Directors, or Culture Leaders of companies or teams, who value company culture and understand its impact on their business success. With Culture Crush you’ll learn how to transform your workplace into a place of unity, efficiency, and growth. Don’t just fix your company culture – transform it with Culture Crush Business.   On this podcast: We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company. We share the resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the podcast with their tips and tricks for growing culture.

In our latest podcast episode, we had the pleasure of hosting Lindsay, a seasoned leader with almost 17 years of dedicated service at Desert Financial Credit Union, and Nikki, a passionate advocate for employee engagement and the driving force behind PeopleForward Network. This conversation, as the others that we have, was open, authentic and natural. The conversation led to examples of both companies leading in a human centered and people focused direction. Lindsay highlighted the importance Desert Financial places on employee satisfaction and creating a workplace culture that empowers and values its staff. This commitment translates into exceptional service for members, where every interaction is more than a transaction. The organization focuses on connection, community, and service to others. Nikki, from PeopleForward Network, provided insights into their mission of sharing resources and insights with a global community of people-first minded leaders. From podcast production to growth consulting, PeopleForward Network collaborates with partners to make a meaningful impact on business development and marketing. These women are making waves in their industries in order to build companies with great cultures. If you are looking for examples, stories, and support for growing your company culture, then this is an episode for you to listen to. Nikki Lewallen Gregory believes that the workplace is a mission field to use our strengths and maximize our lives. Nikki’s passion is devoted to employee engagement/employee experience; to help all people experience meaningful work. Nikki lives in Indianapolis with her husband David, 4 step sons and English Bulldog, Cardi, who she is currently training to skateboard. Nikki is involved in many philanthropic organizations as contribution and service are her WHY. Lindsay Martin is a seasoned leader in the financial industry, with a dedicated history at Desert Financial Credit Union. With nearly 17 years of unwavering commitment to the credit union, Lindsay has consistently demonstrated her passion for serving both members and the community at large. In her current role as Market Manager, she oversees the North Peoria market, managing multiple branch locations. Throughout her career, Lindsay has honed her expertise in financial services and has become a respected leader known for her ability to build and lead successful teams. Her commitment to excellence is evident in the positive impact she has had on the credit union’s operations, as well as the lasting relationships she has cultivated with both colleagues and members. Lindsay’s professional journey is marked by a steadfast dedication to servant leadership and service, a passion for community engagement, and a relentless pursuit of excellence. Her leadership within Desert Financial Credit Union is a testament to her unwavering commitment to delivering exceptional financial solutions while enriching the lives of those she serves. About Culture Crush At Culture Crush, culture isn’t just a corporate buzzword. It’s a key factor that can either boost your company or lead to its failure. We’re culture consultants, with a focus on leadership, appreciation, communication, processes, accessibility, mental health, diversity, inclusion, and creating a dynamic workplace. As a growing company: Culture Crush Business is your hub for company culture resources. With deep cultural insights and years of expertise, we evaluate your company’s needs and connect you with the precise resources to cultivate a thriving culture. We work with CEOs, founders, HR Directors, or Culture Leaders of companies or teams, who value company culture and understand its impact on their business success. With Culture Crush you’ll learn how to transform your workplace into a place of unity, efficiency, and growth. Don’t just fix your company culture – transform it with Culture Crush Business. On this podcast: We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company. We share the resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the podcast with their tips and tricks for growing culture.

In the modern business landscape, a company’s culture is not just an internal matter. It has evolved into a valuable asset that can significantly impact a company’s success and reputation. We know this! However, having a fantastic company culture is not enough. It’s equally crucial to communicate this culture to the broader community and potential partners. One effective way to achieve this is by partnering with experts that specialize in marketing and telling the story of your company’s exceptional culture, such as achieving recognition as one of the best places to work. Having an outstanding company culture is a remarkable achievement in itself, but it’s not enough if it remains hidden within the walls of your organization. To truly reap the benefits of a great culture, you must share it with your community, industry peers, and potential partners. Many companies face the challenge of being the best-kept secret in terms of culture because they don’t proactively communicate their strengths. We had the chance to highlight two amazing ladies from BestCompaniesAZ to talk about the importance of company culture, the benefits of telling the story of company culture, and discussing the work that led them to this space to help shine the light on other companies. BestCompaniesAZ has the expertise to craft compelling narratives around your culture, highlighting what makes your company unique and showcasing the human side of your organization. They are the cheerleaders that you didn’t know you needed! When potential partners and clients hear stories about your great company culture, they are more likely to view your organization as a desirable partner and provider of goods or services. So let’s start telling more stories about great culture! Are you a company interested in sharing the remarkable story of your outstanding corporate culture?  Are you a business seeking to demonstrate to the community just how exceptional your company culture is? Do you specialize in conducting employee engagement surveys that reveal the excellence of your company’s culture? Are you in search of the perfect awards to highlight and elevate the narrative of your company’s culture? Well, then you should listen to this episode!!! BestCompaniesAZ is a boutique agency that specializes in employer branding. With more than 30 combined years of industry experience in marketing and human resources, BestCompaniesAZ elevates award-winning organizations through digital marketing, events, social media and award consultation services.   Follow BestCompaniesAZ on LinkedIn and Facebook. As a growing company: Culture Crush Business is your hub for company culture resources. With deep cultural insights and years of expertise, we evaluate your company’s needs and connect you with the precise resources to cultivate a thriving culture. We work with CEOs, founders, HR Directors, or Culture Leaders of companies or teams, who value company culture and understand its impact on their business success. With Culture Crush you’ll learn how to transform your workplace into a place of unity, efficiency, and growth. Don’t just fix your company culture – transform it with Culture Crush Business. On this podcast: We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company. We share the resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the podcast with their tips and tricks for growing culture. Thank you for our Sponsor! This episode is sponsored by Gateway Bank, a community bank in Arizona that specializes in serving small businesses across the Valley and the country. When you work with Gateway, you don’t have to call an 800 number for support, or submit your loan application and wait weeks or months for an answer. You get fast, personal service from a team who knows you and cares about you. When Gateway was founded in 2007, the team had a vision of building a hometown bank that prioritizes people over profits. Over 15 years later, they’re proud to still be one of the highest-performing AND highest-rated community banks around. Whether you need a loan or banking services for your business, Gateway is here to help. Visit gcbaz.com/culturecrush for details and a free consultation with bank President James Christensen. All loans subject to approval. Member FDIC.

This was a unique episode for the Culture Crush Business Podcast. We are always talking about ways to improve company culture so companies can thrive, and this episode was no different in that aspect. The topic was one that is often left out from the conversation of thriving company cultures, the focus on process improvement and the technology for improving the operations and culture of the company.   We discuss the need to focus on technology and resources that will help with the strategic side of the company in order to treat employees as humans rather than machines, which is essential for preventing burnout and maintaining a motivated team.   Effective leadership involves identifying and leveraging employees’ strengths and interests. This allows them to excel in their roles and contribute to the company’s growth. Offloading repetitive tasks to AI or outsourcing can free up employees to concentrate on their core competencies. AI can be a game-changer for businesses, especially when handling data-intensive tasks. It can optimize scheduling, automate processes, and even enhance customer experiences, as demonstrated by the example of creating a Taylor Swift-inspired AI bot.   The conversation highlights the need to adapt to rapidly evolving technology. The emergence of new career paths, such as prompt engineering, underscores the importance of staying current and embracing technological advancements.   Many companies use numerous software tools, often without realizing the extent of their tech stack. Lauri Erickson emphasizes the importance of integrating these tools to streamline operations and data management, ultimately saving time and resources.   This episode focuses on a few key takeaways for our listeners: Empower the employees to focus on the true strengthsThe power of AI in enhancing efficienciesContinuous adaptation to evolving technologyIntegration of software and tools   Overall, the episode emphasizes the value of fostering a positive company culture, empowering employees, and leveraging outsourcing, technology, and AI to enhance efficiency and employee satisfaction. It also underscores the importance of staying open to new possibilities in the ever-changing business landscape.   Thank you to James Christensen, the President of Gateway Bank, for joining in this conversation and adding his additional insight and stories as the co- host for this episode with Lauri and Ben.   Located in Tempe, Arizona, Project Pros is a family-owned business that’s dedicated to alleviating the administrative burdens faced by small business owners. Their comprehensive support services are designed to give business owners more time, spanning areas like bookkeeping, HR, social media management, phone answering, and virtual administrative assistance.   Project Pros emerged from CEO Lauri Erickson’s understanding of the need to shift small business owners from working ‘in’ their business to working ‘on’ it. The team at Project Pros fosters a synergetic environment, collaborating to find solutions for each client’s unique needs.   Their approach emphasizes collaborative problem-solving, ensuring that every team member’s skills contribute to the clients’ success. Project Pros goes beyond traditional outsourcing, streamlining processes to save their clients both time and money. They serve as an extension of their clients’ businesses, partnering at every stage to facilitate the growth and success of those businesses. Lauri Erickson’s professional journey is highlighted by her executive-level expertise gained through diverse experiences in various companies and positions. With a background in human resources, bookkeeping, customer service, and sales, she possesses invaluable insights into the unique needs of small businesses.   Lauri’s driving force lies in helping small businesses thrive and flourish. To achieve this, she surrounds herself with a team of like-minded, highly talented, forward-thinking, and energetic individuals who share her passion for making a difference. Their unwavering dedication and support leave a powerful and positive impact on their customers’ success.   Connect with Lauri on LinkedIn and follow Project Pros on Facebook and Instagram.   AI automation agency. We act as the automation department for your business removing redundant work and helping you scale with ease. Ben Johnson is a seasoned data engineer and software developer with 20 years of experience. He takes complex problems and solves them with simple and elegant solutions.   Connect with Ben on LinkedIn. About Our Guest Co-Host James Christensen is the President of Gateway Bank, the only community bank in Mesa, Arizona. Under his leadership, Gateway has thrived through multiple economic downturns and grown to consistently be one of the strongest performing financial institutions in its peer group.   James is also very active in the local community and was named Mesa Citizen of the Year in 2023. He is a fierce advocate for small businesses, marginalized groups, and people in need. From one-on-one meetings to presentations and podcasts like this, James enjoys educating and inspiring diverse audiences to improve their financial health and overall well-being.   Connect with James on LinkedIn. About Culture Crush At Culture Crush, culture isn’t just a corporate buzzword. It’s a key factor that can either boost your company or lead to its failure.    We’re culture consultants, with a focus on leadership, appreciation, communication, processes, accessibility, mental health, diversity, inclusion, and creating a dynamic workplace. As a growing company: Culture Crush Business is your hub for company culture resources. With deep cultural insights and years of expertise, we evaluate your company’s needs and connect you with the precise resources to cultivate a thriving culture.   We work with CEOs, founders, HR Directors, or Culture Leaders of companies or teams, who value company culture and understand its impact on their business success. With Culture Crush you’ll learn how to transform your workplace into a place of unity, efficiency, and growth. Don’t just fix your company culture – transform it with Culture Crush Business.   On this podcast: We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company. We share the resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the podcast with their tips and tricks for growing culture. About the Host Kindra Maples is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio).   She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion of working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion of leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow.   Then came the opportunity for leading the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further. Thank you for our Sponsor! This episode is sponsored by Gateway Bank, a community bank in Arizona that specializes in serving small businesses across the Valley and the country.   When you work with Gateway, you don’t have to call an 800 number for support, or submit your loan application and wait weeks or months for an answer. You get fast, personal service from a team who knows you and cares about you.   When Gateway was founded in 2007, the team had a vision of building a hometown bank that prioritizes people over profits. Over 15 years later, they’re proud to still be one of the highest-performing AND highest-rated community banks around.   Whether you need a loan or banking services for your business, Gateway is here to help. Visit gcbaz.com/culturecrush for details and a free consultation with bank President James Christensen.   All loans subject to approval. Member FDIC.

When it comes to improving company culture, there are a tremendous amount of resources out there to help companies. Finding which resources are the right fit for your company is the tricky part.   Lucky for you, we brought together two amazing ladies that offer support that can improve all companies! These resources help to bring creativity and clarity to your teams!   This conversation talked about the support and structure that both Sarah’s company and Anca’s company can help provide to others.   There is a fear of failure and these ladies are here to help build the teams so that the fear can be concurred and supported.   Investing in outside support and facilitation is one of the best things a company can do to help improve their teams and company culture. Facilitators use techniques that stimulate creative thinking and innovation- and these ladies are the pinnacle of creativity!   You should listen to this podcast if you…. are having trouble communicating with your team and trying to find the right resources to help.would like to find a unique way to improve your meetings and sharing top highlights with the company.need a little support defining the goals of the meetings and the communication taking place.are ready to invest in your company to improve the culture of the people and the company as a whole.if you need a little help capturing and synthesizing the details from your meetings.   Culture Crush is here to support and it starts with these two amazing women led companies! Design Convo is a female-owned Human Centered Strategy and Consulting firm dedicated to empowering organizations with transformative solutions. They specialize in helping organizations navigate complex challenges and achieve sustainable growth by placing humans at the heart of their strategies.   Their team of seasoned consultants brings together expertise in strategy, design thinking, organizational change, capacity building, leadership development, and digital innovation.   By combining these diverse perspectives, they create holistic solutions that blend human insights with cutting-edge technologies, unlocking new possibilities for teams and organizations.   With a deep understanding of human communication and behavior, they guide organizations in crafting strategies that resonate with their target audiences and foster meaningful connections. They believe that successful businesses are built upon strong relationships, and they work closely with teams to cultivate cultures that drive collaboration.   In addition to strategy and consulting services, they also focus on capacity building and leadership development. Through tailored training programs, coaching, and skill-building initiatives, they equip leaders and teams with the tools and knowledge they need to drive sustainable change from within. Anca M. Castillo, MS is a master facilitator in multiple techniques and approaches, including Strategic Storytelling, Human-Centered Design, and Visual Facilitation, to name a few.   Originally from Romania, Anca grew up in Alaska before moving to Arizona to pursue an education in business. She spent the past 6+ years in different leadership roles at ASU before taking the leap into entrepreneurship.   Anca loves to help organizations and leaders solve wicked problems using a variety of proven tools and techniques. She is passionate about helping leaders develop the skills and capabilities they need to do their best work and helping organizations to push the boundaries of the status quo. She describes herself as a “rule breaker” and “big picture thinker”.   When not working, you can find Anca performing improv with her team, doing DIY projects, and dancing around her kitchen with her family. Follow Design Convo on LinkedIn.   26 Letters Studio’s creativity is a crucial piece to the culture work organizations do in order to grow a sustainable business.   Their graphic facilitation visually guides and captures the conversations and activities that emerge during culture meetings.   This work inspires participants in the moment and the results (called artifacts) are used to further the conversation and quickly bring new hires into the fold. Sarah Spencer is a professional visual storyteller. With experience across multiple disciplines, Sarah is valued for her ability to listen, synthesize and draw what is emerging as people meet to discuss important subjects.   The outcome is a visual representation of the meeting used for future discussions and planning and acts as an artifact of what emerged from the group.   Sarah is a published illustrator, writer, award-winning designer, inventor, and culture expert.   Follow 26 Letters on LinkedIn and Instagram. About Culture Crush At Culture Crush, culture isn’t just a corporate buzzword. It’s a key factor that can either boost your company or lead to its failure.    We’re culture consultants, with a focus on leadership, appreciation, communication, processes, accessibility, mental health, diversity, inclusion, and creating a dynamic workplace. As a growing company: Culture Crush Business is your hub for company culture resources. With deep cultural insights and years of expertise, we evaluate your company’s needs and connect you with the precise resources to cultivate a thriving culture.   We work with CEOs, founders, HR Directors, or Culture Leaders of companies or teams, who value company culture and understand its impact on their business success. With Culture Crush you’ll learn how to transform your workplace into a place of unity, efficiency, and growth. Don’t just fix your company culture – transform it with Culture Crush Business.   On this podcast: We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company. We share the resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the podcast with their tips and tricks for growing culture. Thank you for our Sponsor! There has been tremendous growth of the Culture Crush Business and the Podcast. This growth is thanks to the support from the community and now the support through our current podcast sponsor.    Thank you Gateway Bank for supporting us as our Cultivator Podcast Sponsor!   If you would like to be part of the Culture Crush team or would like to support sponsoring the show- please reach out: info@culturecrushbusiness.com About the Host Kindra Maples is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio).   She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion of working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion of leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow.   Then came the opportunity for leading the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further.

When it comes to inclusion, it is all about education.   Surrounding yourself around others that are not like yourself is going to push you to learn more about others. This education then leads to the ability to be more inclusive and helping to be more accessible to other groups.   On this show, we had the chance to talk with two amazing gentlemen, both who started their lives out with vision and are now legally blind. The things that these gentlemen are doing to “change the perception of blindness” for others is instrumental!   In this discussion, they talk about the fears that set in when it comes to inclusion and accessibility. There is fear from one side when it comes to asking. Asking if a blind individual needs help. Asking how you can support them. There is fear from the blind community when it comes to applying for jobs, getting support, etc.   We all have fears when it comes to taking steps to change AND change is necessary. Asking the questions is something the simplest place to start.   This episode is a vital episode to listen to if you are wanting to support different communities in being more inclusive and accessible and you don’t know where to start. This podcast gives encouragement to just start. It can start with simply asking questions. Ask how to help, how to change, how to improve… and then let’s do it! Did you know?   7 out of 10 working age people in Arizona who are blind or visually impaired are not workingEstimated to be about 20K45% of hiring managers believe there are no jobs within their organization that a person who is blind could doChanging the perception of blindness is the biggest barrier to employment and inclusionSo, ask the questions to start to make the change.   We are in this together and can make the changes to help others in the blind community. We can help this community and others to feel included and have the tools to allow them the access to resources and jobs.   Arizona Industries for the Blind (AIB) is a solution provider… Solving today’s complex business problems by providing quality products and value-added Business Process Outsourcing services that matter to their customers. While providing a viable option for Arizonians who are blind or visually impaired to achieve their version of the “American Dream” through dignified employment.   Their mission is to inspire individuals who are blind or visually impaired to achieve their highest goals and aspirations by creating and sustaining career opportunities while providing quality products and services.   Through collaborative partnerships with Federal, State and private sector companies they are able to provide Third Party Logistics services, Document Conversion services and quality AbilityOne products. David Steinmetz is the Community and Public Relations Manager at Arizona Industries for the Blind in Phoenix. David works to “change the perception of blindness” through his advocacy and public relations efforts.   Mr. Steinmetz serves as the Public Information Committee Chair on the Governor’s Council on Blindness & Visual Impairments (GCBVI), and is a Board of Director on the Vision Rehabilitation Assistive Technology Expo and Arizona Center for the Blind & Visually Impaired. David is a graduate of Arizona State University and participated in the National Industries for the Blind Business Management Training program through the Darden School of business.   In 2008, David was the recipient of the National Industries for the Blind Milton J. Samuelson Career Achievement award. This prestigious award recognized Mr. Steinmetz for his career achievements and community service work.   Mr. Steinmetz enjoys spending time with his family, fishing and traveling across the United States. David believes that every person who is blind deserves the right to full participation in work, community and life and with the right training, right technology and right attitude it is possible. Follow AIB on LinkedIn and Facebook.   With a 70% unemployment rate in the blind community, Clusiv is helping remove barriers to employment for the blind community by revolutionizing training and services for the modern workforce.   Their eLearning platform has been built to be accessible with assistive technology that blind or visually impaired people use, and this platform holds employment skills training courses to cover technology, occupational and career skills for the modern-workforce. Clusiv works with state vocational rehabilitation agencies to provide access to its courses to people who are blind or visually impaired. They help simplify the work of vocational rehabilitation counselors through their Assessment Tool, easy enrollment process, and positive outcomes for their clients to achieve measurable skills gained.   Clusiv is here to equip the blind community for employment and impact inclusion in the modern workforce by giving graduates the skills, confidence, and insights needed to find competitive integrated employment and be an advocate for positive change in the workforce for people with disabilities. To learn more and get in touch go to https://clusiv.io/. Blake Steinecke grew up with perfect vision and at the age of 16 a condition called LHON caused him to go through severe central vision loss and become legally blind. This created many new challenges of relearning how to do school, navigating college, employment and more.   Blake has a degree in marketing from Cal State San Marcos and has worked in software sales, marketing in the mountain bike industry, accessibility testing and training, and now leads marketing for Clusiv as the Growth Manager.   Through Blake's work, he is able to connect his educational and professional background, lived experience navigating the challenges of education and employment being blind, and his passion to serve the blind community through the work he does with Clusiv.   Outside of work Blake plays blind hockey for the US Blind Hockey Team, enjoys spending time with his wife, Amanda, and making videos, some of which you can find on his YouTube channel Adapting Sight.   Connect with Blake on LinkedIn and follow Clusiv on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. About Culture Crush Culture is not just a tag word to be thrown around. It is not something you throw in job descriptions to draw people to applying for jobs within a company.   According to Marcus Buckingham and Ashely Goodall in their book Nine Lies About Work, “Culture is the tenants of how we behave. It’s like a family creed. This is how we operate and treat each other in the family.” As a growing company:    There are many resources out there for company culture but they are scattered and difficult to find. Culture is not a one size fits all, so it is important for companies to find the resources that are the right fit for growing their own company culture.    We have worked to build a hub that brings all of the resources together in one place and one community. The Culture Crush Business is the one stop shop for everything related to growing company culture.    On this podcast:   We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company. We also find the companies that offer resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the show to share their tips and tricks for growing culture. About the Host Kindra Maples is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio).   She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion of working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion of leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow.   Then came the opportunity for leading the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further.

Have you ever wanted to hear from a company that was really crushing it with their company culture? Did you ever want to just listen in on the things that they were doing to improve their company culture? Well now is your chance.   We brought James Christensen from Gateway Bank and Tierra Terry with the Better Business Bureau Serving the Pacific Southwest together to hear about the various things they are doing to try and improve their company culture.   From putting a gym in the office and providing time for employees to take a break during the work day, to bringing in a specialist to work on a resilience strategy with the company. The list goes on with the variety of things that Gateway Bank and the BBB are implementing.   The company culture does not just come from space that is built in the office and programs that are implemented. It comes from the leadership. Culture comes from the leaders that really do allow the staff the opportunity to come talk to them. It comes from the leadership that is open and raw about their own struggles and journeys. It comes from the leadership being willing and open to new ideas and change. If the leadership is not open, authentic, and raw, then the rest of the work that is implemented is pointless.   This is a great episode to listen in on if you are looking to hear how leaders open up to their employees to set the tone for the company. Listen in to hear the variety of ways to implement change in the workplace such as; flexible work schedules, maternal support, catered lunches, gym space, life guides, resilience strategy, mental health support, and more. It starts with the leadership and then continues on from there. Take a listen and learn from Gateway Bank.   Gateway Bank is the only community bank in Mesa, Arizona. Gateway represents a return to how banking used to be, where the staff knew everyone by name and treated customers like people instead of numbers in a database.   They bring this nostalgic approach into modern times and offer the best of both worlds: the fast, personal service of a local bank, plus the diverse products and services of a large bank. While Gateway’s branch is located in Mesa, they serve customers across the Valley.   With a nationwide network of fee-free ATMs, plus added conveniences like Remote Deposit for businesses, you can experience the Gateway difference no matter where you are.   James Christensen is the President of Gateway Bank, the only community bank in Mesa, Arizona. Under his leadership, Gateway has thrived through multiple economic downturns and grown to consistently be one of the strongest performing financial institutions in its peer group.   James is also very active in the local community and was named Mesa Citizen of the Year in 2023. He is a fierce advocate for small businesses, marginalized groups, and people in need. From one-on-one meetings to presentations and podcasts like this, James enjoys educating and inspiring diverse audiences to improve their financial health and overall well-being. Connect with James on LinkedIn.   BBB Pacific Southwest proactively supports an ethical community by providing resources and education by leading experts, coworking and executive meeting space, an online incubator, access to affordable capital, and an intensive accelerator in partnership with GoDaddy.   BBB remains dedicated to helping entrepreneurs develop their businesses ethically to build stronger, more trustworthy relationships with customers. Consumers turn to BBB as a reliable source to find trustworthy businesses, and those that earn BBB Accreditation display their comittment of doing things the right way. BBB is in the business of good business.   Tierra Terry serves as BBB’s Director of Diversity & Inclusion Programming and is an advocate for community, education, and connection to support the entrepreneurial ecosystem and its consumer base.   She oversees the development and implementation of programs and services that promote diversity within and outside of BBB. Her efforts cultivate a supportive and inclusive work environment while leading diversity, inclusion and equity for all.   She is a past speaker for Conscious Capitalism San Diego on the Diversity & Inclusion panel and past interviewee on AZ Family, ABC15, Fox 10, and Channel 12 News, and iHeartRadio.   Based in Phoenix, she is available for community presentations and trainings on customer service, organizational development and culture, diversity, inclusion, innovation and community impact.   Follow BBB Pacific Southwest on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram.   About Culture Crush Culture is not just a tag word to be thrown around. It is not something you throw in job descriptions to draw people to applying for jobs within a company.   According to Marcus Buckingham and Ashely Goodall in their book Nine Lies About Work, “Culture is the tenants of how we behave. It’s like a family creed. This is how we operate and treat each other in the family.”   As a growing company- Culture Crush Business Podcast is THE culture improvement resource that supports companies and leaders. Our Mission is to improve company cultures so people WANT to go to work. Employees and leaders should like where they work and we think this is possible.   Within the company: Culture Crush has Vetted Resources and Partnerships with the right people and resources that can help improve your company culture.   On this podcast: We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company. We also find the companies that offer resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the show to share their tips and tricks for growing culture.   About the Host Kindra Maples is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio).   She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion of working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion of leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow.   Then came the opportunity for leading the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further.   Shout Outs We want to thank a few people for their behind the scenes effort in helping this relaunch to come to life. James Johnson with Tailored Penguin Media Company LLC.– It is a small, but powerful video production company with a goal to deliver the very best by articulating the vision of your brand in a visually creative way. Gordon Murray with Flash PhotoVideo, LLC. -Flash Gordon has been photographing since high school and evolving since then with new products that will equip, encourage, engage, and enable. Renee Blundon with Renee Blundon Design – She is not only one of the best free divers (that’s not how she helped with the podcast) but she is great with graphics design and taking the direction for the vision that you have while also adding creative ideas to bring to your vision to life. These are just a few of the folks that supported the relaunch of the podcast. If you would like to be part of the Culture Crush team or would like to support underwriting the show- please reach out: info@culturecrushbusiness.com

The Dance Between the Employer and the Employee - That’s Culture. “This conversation of culture is brand new. Everytime you turn the corner there is a new thing that has never been tried and never been done before.” So how do leaders and employers take all of these new things and learn to implement them into their workplace- through support.  It’s a dance and it’s not easy.  There is a dance that happens between the employer and the employees. The space between that dance is where the culture is. This space between is where the growth of the company can happen. It takes support from outside of the company to grow and improve in this space though. That support could be learning how to focus on your main stakeholders, it could be providing financial education to your employees, or even coaching the leadership team.  Having Aaron and Kent on the show was so rewarding to our team and we hope it was to the listeners as well. They are both so knowledgeable and it makes sense why they work in the spaces that they do. They discussed some of these areas where the outside support to the company is what leads to the growth of the culture and the company.  Who are your stakeholders and how do you support them?  Kent gave us some insight into the work that he does focusing on the stakeholder business model and the work that he does to shift companies from a shareholder focus to a stakeholder focus. What are the needs of the employees and the employers as they keep up that dance and redefine what those relationships look like.  Aaron walked us through the responsibilities that working “in” the business is to work “on” the business. There are trends to notice, feedback to gather, and polarities in the company to deal with. In most cases, the best way to get to know what is going on inside of the business, is to ask someone outside of the business. As a leader, having someone else check in with your team is when you are going to end up finding out more.  “Who are the stakeholders that are part of your world and can they start putting the blocks together for culture so that as it grows it is there and they don’t have to correct it.”  This is a beautiful episode to listen to if you are ready to hear from two of the most knowledgeable individuals about growing a conscious business with a strong culture.  A few of our quick takeaways:  Culture is not a balanced equation.  Be intentional from the get go to grow your culture.  Define your higher purpose.  All coaches are not created equally.  Share the story of your company to show transparency.  Focus on positive reinforcement with the stakeholders.    Some resources that came up in the conversation: In addition to the resources that Aaron and Kent provide, there was a book that was mentioned in the podcast that we wanted to share as well.  The book- Bringing out the Best in People: How to Apply the Astonishing Power of Positive Reinforcement  by Aubrey Daniels   The Beyond Zero film that focused on the culture and sustainability building of the company Interface.  ------------------------------------------------------------   Stakeholder Business is a collaboration between three inspired humans who care deeply about ushering in the next paradigm of capitalism where — rather than business benefiting a select few and actively harming others — it benefits all. Our purpose is to ease the transition for business leaders from shareholder capitalism to stakeholder capitalism by providing inspirational content, educational material, and world-class training. Kent Gregoire – the Co-Founder of Stakeholder Business – is on a mission to help entrepreneurs transform their companies for maximum impact. In his consultancy work, he is known as the ‘CEO to CEOs’ who focuses on a win-win approach that delivers exponential value to all stakeholders. Kent is a serial entrepreneur, having launched his first manufacturing company at age 14. Since then, he has founded or led more than a dozen organizations, guiding several through successful exits and raising tens of millions of dollars in private capital for business acquisitions, start-ups and expansions. Kent has more than 35 years of experience providing advisory services to executive-level management, is one of the first certified conscious capitalism consultants in the world and is the President of the EO U.S. East Bridge Chapter. In addition to his work with Stakeholder Business, he is also the Co-Founder and CEO of Symphony Advantage in which he is focused on helping companies do well by doing good. Connect with Kent on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. At Get Out of Your Own Way, we believe that on the way to a fulfilling, successful life the puzzle piece we are all searching for is within us, and through our inner transformation we become the person that leads our community, family, and business. Our innovative coaching methods and tools provide a reliable roadmap for inner transformation, shedding your limitations and empowering you to align with your values, grow your enterprise, and build your ideal lifestyle within 6 months. We offer six-figure earners individual coaching programs and personal development retreats, while supporting organizations with leadership training and team building workshops. Aaron Velky is a keynote speaker, CEO and coach. His career has been dedicated to building movements, companies and leaders. Get Out of Your Own Way, his leading coaching company guides successful entrepreneurs to a clear direction in their lives and business – more income, more freedom and more purpose. He leads retreats and leadership training for hundreds across the US, creating change for other emerging leaders and companies. He’s the CEO of Money Club, an economic empowerment and financial wellness organization that blends personal finance with professional development. And he’s the author of Let Her Play, a guide for sports coaches and parents that coach female athletes. Outside of the professional sphere, Aaron is a dad, a comic book nerd and adrenaline junky. Connect with Aaron on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. ------------------------------------------------------------- About Culture Crush Culture is not just a tag word to be thrown around. It is not something you throw in job descriptions to draw people to applying for jobs within a company. According to Marcus Buckingham and Ashely Goodall in their book Nine Lies About Work, “Culture is the tenants of how we behave. It’s like a family creed. This is how we operate and treat each other in the family.” As a growing company- Culture Crush Business Podcast is THE culture improvement resource that supports companies and leaders.  Our Mission is to improve company cultures so people WANT to go to work. Employees and leaders should like where they work and we think this is possible. Within the company: Culture Crush has Vetted Resources and Partnerships with the right people and resources that can help improve your company culture. On this podcast:  We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company.  We also find the companies that offer resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the show to share their tips and tricks for growing culture. About the Host Kindra Maples  is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio). She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion for working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion for leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow. Then came the opportunity for leading the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further. Shout Outs We want to thank a few people for their behind the scenes effort in helping this relaunch to come to life. James Johnson with Tailored Penguin Media Company LLC.– It is a small, but powerful video production company with a goal to deliver the very best by articulating the vision of your brand in a visually creative way. Gordon Murray with Flash PhotoVideo, LLC. -Flash Gordon has been photographing since high school and evolving since then with new products that will equip, encourage, engage, and enable. Renee Blundon with Renee Blundon Design – She is not only one of the best free divers (that’s not how she helped with the podcast) but she is great with graphics design and taking the direction for the vision that you have while also adding creative ideas to bring to your vision to life. These are just a few of the folks that supported the relaunch of the podcast. If you would like to be part of the Culture Crush team or would like to support underwriting the show- please reach out: info@culturecrushbusiness.com

Building Culture Through Human Connection  Do you ever feel like you are moving through the motions at work and not really connecting with the people there? You want to know them more and truly connect but you aren’t. Do you ever feel this same way when you are at a networking event? As if it is a competition for how many names and business cards you can share?  This is because you are not finding the real connection with people.    True human connection and communication is what really builds culture and relationships.  True connection with others helps good leaders to become the best leaders. We discussed this with Craig Forman with CultureAmp and Bobi Seredich with Southwest Institute for Emotional Intelligence on this episode of the Culture Crush Business Podcast.  When we reflect on this podcast, we have so many topics that were discussed.  Self awarenessMilitary culture and influenceEmotional intelligence for the workplace Ways to inspire people through culture Having the courage to be vulnerableThe fitbit affect with culture Leveraging data to grow culture Stop, Breath, Ask If you are curious about these topics then you will have to listen to the podcast to hear more from Bobi and Craig about them.  In the meantime, we do have a few other quick takeaways from the podcast about shifting your attitude and actions.  Intent versus impact: We all have good intentions but others judge us by our actions. When you are forming a relationship or bond with someone, be curious instead of judgemental. Love human beings, not human doings. Let’s try to be more intentional.  Transformational versus transactional: Let’s try to be less transactional and more transformational. When it comes to connections and relationships, it does not need to be a tit for tat game. If we come at relationships with the want and need to help support and transform, then the relationship has the opportunity to build in a more unique way.    About Craig  Craig is on the mission to help the world work better by improving the places we work. He is obsessed with how humans work, both individually and together in groups. He is striving to improve the workplace through his work with Culture Amp and beyond.  Craig Forman is a Lead People Scientist at Culture Amp, an employee experience platform used by over 6000 organizations worldwide. He both supports organizations in building effective people and culture strategies along with building the world's largest community of people focused on building a better world of work. Behind all of his work is a mission to help the world work better by improving the places we work. He holds a Masters degree in Industrial / Organizational Psychology, and is a proud veteran of the US Air Force. CultureAmp  Culture Amp is a culture-first software company that is building a survey and analytics platform for people and culture. The Culture Amp team combines deep knowledge in psychology, statistics, user experience and engineering into a platform that is transforming organizations worldwide. You can connect with Craig on LinkedIn    About Bobi  Bobi is the Co-Founder & President of The Southwest Institute for Emotional Intelligence. She is a certified coach and trainer in Emotional Intelligence from the Institute for Health and Human Potential. She is a recognized speaker, author, trainer, and successful entrepreneur specializing in leadership development. Her passion is to guide individuals and organizations to a higher performance level through her own business knowledge, inspirational stories and leadership emotional intelligence training. She has spent over 25 years of her career dedicated to creating, directing, writing and presenting leadership programs for top companies in the U.S. and around the world.  In 2001 she founded Equanimity, Inc. also known as EQ Speakers, a speakers bureau, and leadership training company. It fast became a top speaker bureau that booked hundreds of speakers with large Fortune 500 clients. EQ Speakers was sold in 2012 and continues to be a leader in the industry.  Her book, Courage Does Not Always Roar Ordinary Women with Extraordinary Courage, was published by Simple Truths in the spring of 2010. The book is a collection of her experiences and stories of women who have had the courage to overcome very difficult life events. She is a mother of twins, Alex and Gia. The Southwest Institute for Emotional Intelligence The vision at the Southwest Institute for Emotional Intelligence is to enhance life and leadership through Emotional Intelligence (EI) mastery. They have a proven approach to teaching EI skills that are immediately applied to business growth. They teach influencers and leaders to connect confidently with each other in more meaningful and productive ways – to better collaborate, communicate, express empathy, perform under stress, adapt to change, and drive results. The Southwest Institute for Emotional Intelligence offers keynotes, workshops, online courses, coaching, and consulting. You can connect with Bobi and SWIEI through  LinkedIn  Facebook Twitter  Instagram   About Culture Crush Business  Culture is not just a tag word to be thrown around. It is not something you throw in job descriptions to draw people to applying for jobs within a company. According to Marcus Buckingham and Ashley Goodall in their book Nine Lies About Work, “Culture is the tenants of how we behave. It’s like a family creed. This is how we operate and treat each other in the family.” As a growing company: Culture Crush Business is THE culture improvement resource that supports companies and leaders. Our Mission is to improve company cultures so people WANT to go to work. Employees and leaders should like where they work and we think this is possible. Within the company: Culture Crush has Vetted Resources and Partnerships with the right people and companies that can help improve your company culture. On this Podcast: We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company.  We also find the companies that offer resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the show to share their tips and tricks for growing culture. About the Host: Kindra Maples  is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio). She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion for working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion for leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow. Then came the opportunity to lead the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further. Author: info@culturecrushbusiness.com

From first glance and the start to the podcast, you may not see the amazing alignment and similarities between Jonathan and April. We see them though! Jonathan and April are both very aligned with growing conscious businesses and supporting people in a very selfless manner. What they do helps people and companies grow; Whether it is Jonathan giving advice to other business leaders about how to grow a business and not being ruthless, or April going into the company to guide and coach them to growing their business through the principles of Generosity Culture. They are both supporting the growth of great conscious and caring leaders. It was great to hear about their backgrounds getting them to this point where they are now. Jonathan grew up and went into the Real Estate business thinking that he had to be ruthless to make money. April gained experience and knowledge from her time in the military that she is now able to put into place with the work that she does helping companies and leaders. When asked about the favorite part of her own company’s culture, April said, “My favorite part of my company’s culture is it’s all about helping and empowering others. Everything we do is in service to others’ success.” When Jonathan was asked about his company culture he told us, “Keyser was built off of 15 core operating principles. We are very clear about that during the hiring process, and because of that, I am confident that each of my team members buys into those beliefs. In fact, many of the current members have joined Keyser because they believed in the principles. This bleeds into how we interact with one another and how we serve our clients.” If you are looking for a podcast with a few passionate individuals that have a strong stance on improving company culture, being selfless, supporting others- then this is it. The two of them discuss the passion to lead selflessly, the importance of being forthcoming and honest, and building a workplace that is safe and provides courage to disagree. There are stories and examples to listen to in this podcast that are great for all levels of leaders to learn from. Driven Outcomes is a consulting firm that helps accelerate the revenue growth and culture creation of businesses across industries using the principles of The Generosity Culture. Working with company CEO’s, Leaders and Entrepreneurs, Driven Outcomes drives unprecedented success by modeling the power of pouring into people, clients and the community. April Shprintz is a Business Accelerator, Speaker, host of the Winning Mindset Mastery Podcast and the Author of Magic Blue Rocks, the Secret to Doing Anything, a book about the life changing impact of a winning mindset. After spending 20 great years in a variety of industries solving problems, driving growth, and accelerating companies, April realized helping people is who she is, not just what she does. Generating over $1 Billion dollars in combined revenue, April left corporate America after her highest earning 7-figure year to form her own company and expand her impact. The creator of The Generosity Culture®, April lives her dream helping innovators and leaders grow their businesses through a combination of pouring into their people, their clients, and their community. A proud veteran, April served for nearly 7 years in the Air Force as a Television News Anchor and Executive Producer. She’s a graduate of the University of Maryland and holds an MBA from the University of Texas. Connect with April on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Keyser is one of the country’s most innovative and trustworthy technology-enabled occupier services commercial real estate firms. Keyser’s advisors assist occupiers of space with their commercial real estate needs, including leasing, purchasing, constructing, or disposing of facilities. Keyser specializes in helping tenants leverage A.I. and market expertise to secure commercial real estate incentives and attract today’s workforce while reducing cost & risk. Whether it’s managing, negotiating, or assisting with commercial real estate strategy, our advisors take pride in serving our clients. Jonathan Keyser is the founder of Keyser (http://www.keyser.com/), one of the most innovative and trustworthy technology-enabled occupier services commercial real estate firms in the country. Along with their international partners, they have over 560 people worldwide. Jonathan is a #1 Wall Street Journal Best Selling Author for his book, “You Don’t Have to be Ruthless to Win”, and he was named “The Commercial Real Estate Disruptor” by USA Today. He has also been named a “Top Social Capital CEO” by the International Business Times, is a highly sought after keynote speaker, a thought leader featured in over 150 articles, publications, and podcasts, and during the pandemic was recognized as one of the “Top 20 Virtual Keynote Speakers” in the country. As an entrepreneur himself, Jonathan has built Keyser into an eight-figure firm named recently as one of the Top 50 Most Trustworthy Companies in America by The Silicon Review. Today through his 6,7,8 Selfless Leadership workshop series, he helps other business leaders activate the three levels of reinvention to boost profits while increasing client and employee retention. Jonathan’s efforts to change the business world through selfless service manifest in his content, thought leadership, and the level of excellence he holds his team to within Keyser. Connect with Jonathan on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. About Culture Crush Business Culture is not just a tag word to be thrown around. It is not something you throw in job descriptions to draw people to applying for jobs within a company. According to Marcus Buckingham and Ashely Goodall in their book Nine Lies About Work, “Culture is the tenants of how we behave. It’s like a family creed. This is how we operate and treat each other in the family.” As a growing company- Culture Crush Business Podcast is THE culture improvement resource that supports companies and leaders.  Our Mission is to improve company cultures so people WANT to go to work. Employees and leaders should like where they work and we think this is possible. Within the company: Culture Crush has Vetted Resources and Partnerships with the right people and resources that can help improve your company culture. On this podcast:  We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company.  We also find the companies that offer resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the show to share their tips and tricks for growing culture. About the Host Kindra Maples  is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio). She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion of working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion of leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow. Then came the opportunity for leading  the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further. Shout Outs We want to thank a few people for their behind the scenes effort in helping this relaunch to come to life. James Johnson with Tailored Penguin Media Company LLC.– It is a small, but powerful video production company with a goal to deliver the very best by articulating the vision of your brand in a visually creative way. Gordon Murray with Flash PhotoVideo, LLC. -Flash Gordon has been photographing since high school and evolving since then with new products that will equip, encourage, engage, and enable. These are just a few of the folks that supported the relaunch of the podcast. If you would like to be part of the Culture Crush team or would like to support underwriting the show- please reach out: info@culturecrushbusiness.com

Culture is a hard thing to measure but that doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be an area that companies continue to focus priority on. It might be hard to track culture with metrics (and things like self care for employees) but it is possible and your company will see the long term shifts in the revenue, retention, and overall company improvements when focusing on company culture.  Kathleen and Neville have such amazing backgrounds and experiences in the space of self care, meditation, and human centered leadership support that it led the conversation to a deeper level. Self care and mental health directly relates and connects to the culture of the company and the employees that work there.  Culture is the web that connects and fuels everything that is part of the company; feelings, values, mission, people, and more. We discussed the need to create a visual map or web that might show this, but even then we might be able to add in everything that matters in culture.  RetentionSuccessCustomer support Balance  There are companies out there that are successfully starting to incorporate self care and mental health into the workplace (such as Banner Health and EvolvedMD), but we are hoping that others can start to find these ways as well. If you are searching for a conversation about bringing self care into the workplace and hearing about the importance behind it- this is your podcast. Kathleen’s company focuses on growing culture through supporting the employees with the self care journey (we talk about the science behind this too). Neville is an executive with his company but very focused on the deeper levels of people and shows this through the conversation. By the end of the show, they discussed that there was a need for another episode. It wouldn’t be a part two that would extend the conversation, it would be a part two that would give folks tangible steps on dealing with stressful situations, breathing techniques, and meditation practices. We will keep everyone updated, but this follow up show will be in the works soon! Mission Federal Credit Union is a $5.5B not-for-profit, and the largest financial services organization exclusively serving San Diego. Mission Fed received Consumer Reports highest rating for all national banks or credit unions in 2015 and 2018, the BBB Torch Awards for Ethics in 2015 and 2017, Forbes rating as one of the best State Credit Unions and highest ranked local credit union in 2018 and best in the state in 2019, the Union Tribune’s Top Workplace Award for 2020 and the highest ranked local credit union on the Forbes America’s Best Credit Unions for 2022. Neville Billimoria is an effective communications and values leader, growing organizations through external marketing, media, and sales effectiveness, as well as internal organizational alignment, corporate communications, and leadership development. He brings experience, energy, and empowerment to his leadership role as SVP Membership/Marketing and Chief Advocacy Officer at Mission Federal Credit Union. After graduating from UC San Diego, Neville has remained involved on the UCSD Alumni Board since 2008, as well as teaching martial arts, yoga, and meditation on campus for the last 40 years. Other current Board service includes the North County Philanthropic Council Executive Committee, Real World Scholars Board, and was recently appointment to the Girl Scouts San Diego Board. Prior board and volunteer service includes serving on the Ackerman Foundation Board, the Alliance 4 Empowerment Board, AFP- National Philanthropy Day Honorary Committee, Mission Fed Community Foundation Secretary, San Diego Nonprofit Association Board, Cause Conference Co-Chair 3 times, Advisor to the Conscious Capitalism SD Board & Founder of the Chamber of Purpose SD. He is a frequent speaker on topics including brand as culture, purpose-driven leadership, social capital optimization and civic engagement for maximum impact. Connect with Neville on LinkedIn. Kinessage LLC supports performance, culture, and wellness-conscious organizations, empowering leaders, managers, and teams to live more productively, confidently, and collaboratively. Self-empowered health is taught through interactive self-activated body/mind programs that neutralize stress, release chronic tension and pain, and increase mental resiliency and long-term health for greater overall well-being. Kathleen Gramzay is the Founder and CEO of Kinessage LLC. She is a Body/Mind Resilience & Self-Care Expert, Speaker, Developer of Kinessage® Mindful Resilience, and the Kinessage® Release Your Pain Virtual Self-Care System. Kathleen applies assessment skills to business helping companies solve people issues at their root cause – chronic stress, pain, and tension. She is passionate about providing leaders and teams with self-activated body/mind skill sets that restore and build mental and physical resilience to be and do their best. Connect with Kathleen on LinkedIn. About Culture Crush Culture is not just a tag word to be thrown around. It is not something you throw in job descriptions to draw people to applying for jobs within a company. According to Marcus Buckingham and Ashely Goodall in their book Nine Lies About Work, “Culture is the tenants of how we behave. It’s like a family creed. This is how we operate and treat each other in the family.” As a growing company- Culture Crush Business is THE culture improvement resource that supports companies and leaders.  Our Mission is to improve company cultures so people WANT to go to work. Employees and leaders should like where they work and we think this is possible. Within the company: Culture Crush has Vetted Resources and Partnerships with the right people and resources that can help improve your company culture. On this podcast:  We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company.  We also find the companies that offer resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the show to share their tips and tricks for growing culture.

Authenticity, humanity, and integrity are just a few of the words to describe the two gentlemen on this show and the direction that the conversation went in. When it comes to pairing guests for the Culture Crush Business Podcast, we pair strategically. We tend to pair a company that has a great culture with a company that offers resources to improve culture. For this show, each of the two companies that were on the show fit into both of these categories. BOTH companies are growing a great culture while ALSO supporting companies with improving their company culture. This conversation started strongly in the direction and importance of DEI in the workplace and supporting individuals in being their authentic selves in a psychologically safe work environment. Psychological safety is a shared belief held by members of a team that the team is safe for interpersonal risk taking. It gives the employees the opportunity to disagree and still be supported in the workplace. This was part of the bigger conversation of things that leaders and companies can do to support the mental health of their employees. Companies can’t just talk about supporting mental health- they actually need to take action on it. We walked away with tons of examples on how to do this!! Ask the right questionsWhat am I doing and what is the company doing that can be improved on?How are you doing professionally?How are you doing personally?Have open visibility to what goes on the calendarTherapy sessionsDentist AppointmentsDoctor appointmentsA block on the calendar for self careSupport from leadership to the staff in being their own authentic selfProvide a stipend that allows them additional mental health supportAllowing them the time for self care during the work dayLetter from the CEO articulating the importance of mental healthPutting in boundaries for when emails can be sent to the staff When trying to find out more info about Hummingbird Humany, head to their website www.hummingbirdhumanity.com and go to the resources tab where they offer free resources to the Hummingbird community. From the website, visitors can also sign-up for their weekly newsletter or follow their social media accounts. evolvedMD has a variety of resources listed at their website as well. Head to their main page, https://www.evolvedmd.com/ and then head over to their resources and news tab. Both Sentari and Brian are on podcasts out there as well! Make sure to find them and follow them! Let’s just say this conversation will definitely have to have a Part B to it! Hummingbird Humanity is committed to amplifying the voices of the unheard. Hummingbird’s offerings include a consulting practice which partners with companies to build human-centered workplace cultures through assessment, strategy, and implementation; a speakers bureau featuring diverse voices who share about their lived experiences and offer suggestions for tangible action in their message; a growing collection of children’s books and resources for grown-ups to have age-appropriate diversity conversations with kids; and a soon to be launched practice for coaching and facilitation helping leaders develop their skills to be inclusive and people-centered. Brian McComak is a consultant, speaker, author, and facilitator with over 20 years of experience in Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, HR, company culture, change management, internal communications, and employee experience. He is the founder and CEO of Hummingbird Humanity, a consulting firm that cultivates and champions inclusive workplace cultures and human-centered leadership. Connect with Brian on LinkedIn and Instagram. evolvedMD is leading the integration of behavioral health services in modern primary care. Uniquely upfront and ongoing, our distinctive model not only places but embeds behavioral health specialists onsite at your practice. We offer an economically viable and better way to integrate behavioral health that ultimately drives improved patient outcomes. Sentari Minor is most passionate about bringing the best out of individuals and entities. His love languages are strategy, storytelling, and social impact. As Head of Strategy for evolvedMD, Mr. Minor is at the forefront of healthcare innovation with a scope of work that includes strategy, corporate development, growth, branding, culture, and coaching. Prior to evolvedMD, he worked with some of the Nation’s most prominent and curious CEOs and entrepreneurs advising on philanthropy, policy, and everything social good as Regional Director of Alder (formerly Gen Next) [PHX + DAL + SFO] and strengthened social enterprises as Director at venture philanthropy firm, Social Venture Partners. A Phoenix native, Mr. Minor continued his education in the Midwest and is an alumnus of DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana where he studied English with an emphasis in Creative Writing. He is also a member of Class IV of the American Express Leadership Academy through the Arizona State University Lodestar Center. If you want to profile him: he’s an ENTJ (Myers Briggs), a Maverick (Predictive Index), and trimodal Blue/Green/Red (Emergenetics). Where does he shine? In high-touch stakeholder engagement, capital raising, public relations, and strategic planning. With his background, Mr. Minor serves on the board of directors for a diverse set of social impact organizations, as a venture mentor for socially conscious companies nationwide, and as a facilitator for businesses who want organizational clarity. Committed to strengthening brands doing good in the world, Mr. Minor speaks nationally and publishes often on strategy, marketing, leadership, capacity building, social entrepreneurship, and engaging high-profile leaders in the dialogue of today. For his impact on business and community, he was honored among the Phoenix Business Journal’s “40 Under 40” class of 2022. When he’s not busy changing the world, self-care to him looks like working out, stirring the pot on social media, being an amateur author, and spending time with the people who make him smile. Connect with Sentari on LinkedIn and Instagram. About Culture Crush Culture is not just a tag word to be thrown around. It is not something you throw in job descriptions to draw people to applying for jobs within a company. According to Marcus Buckingham and Ashley Goodall in their book Nine Lies About Work, “Culture is the tenants of how we behave. It’s like a family creed. This is how we operate and treat each other in the family.” As a growing company- Culture Crush Business Podcast is THE culture improvement resource that supports companies and leaders.  Our Mission is to improve company cultures so people WANT to go to work. Employees and leaders should like where they work and we think this is possible. Within the company: Culture Crush has Vetted Resources and Partnerships with the right people and resources that can help improve your company culture. On this podcast:  We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company.  We also find the companies that offer resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the show to share their tips and tricks for growing culture. About the Host Kindra Maples  is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio). She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion of working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion of leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow. Then came the opportunity for leading  the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further. Shout Outs We want to thank a few people for their behind the scenes effort in helping this relaunch to come to life. James Johnson with Tailored Penguin Media Company LLC.– It is a small, but powerful video production company with a goal to deliver the very best by articulating the vision of your brand in a visually creative way. Gordon Murray with Flash PhotoVideo, LLC. -Flash Gordon has been photographing since high school and evolving since then with new products that will equip, encourage, engage, and enable. Renee Blundon with Renee Blundon Design – She is not only one of the best free divers (that’s not how she helped with the podcast) but she is great with graphics design and taking the direction for the vision that you have while also adding creative ideas to bring to your vision to life. These are just a few of the folks that supported the relaunch of the podcast. If you would like to be part of the Culture Crush team or would like to support underwriting the show- please reach out: info@culturecrushbusiness.com

Another great LIVE show in the books! It was great to have Randy and Lloyd on the show together. Not only was there alignment in the conversation around conscious business, community focus, and education improvement, there is also a new relationship built between the two of them in the Phoenix Business Community. This is another beautiful example of how we can make change in the community- one relationship at a time. These two are making amazing change in the Phoenix community and showcasing the importance of building strong communities. Along with the discussions of culture and community, there were some great tidbits and takeaways from the conversation that can be acted on immediately. What were some of the takeaway tidbits? Never discount anyoneArticulate who you areEveryone wants to make a difference. Just find what is meaningful to you Just because the recording is over, doesn’t mean the involvement stops there. There were some great discussions that include some actions that you can take to get involved. Time to Take Action! September 12th Event at Grand Canyon University- Beyond Zero Movie Screening Event After a life changing epiphany, the CEO of a global public company embarks on a high stakes quest to eliminate all negative environmental impacts by 2020. To succeed they must overcome deep skepticism, abandon the status quo and ignite a new industrial revolution. The full event will include snacks and drinks, networking, movie screening, and an on stage conversation with the film’s producer. You can find more details by emailing Randy.gibb@gcu.edu and let him know that you heard about it on the Culture Crush Business Podcast. Classroom Supply Drive and Annual Fundraiser for the Million Dollar Teacher Project The Million Dollar Teacher Project could use your support. They are doing their best to support students by supporting teachers and can use a little more help in doing so. There is an annual fundraiser and a classroom drive going on right now.  Email lloyd@mdtproject.org to learn more and let him know that you heard about it through the Culture Crush Business Podcast. Million Dollar Teacher Project is a nonprofit organization that partners with Title I Schools, in marginalized communities, on creating community-centered strategies to help them increase how their teachers are recognized, drive more support directly into their classrooms and create innovative ways to impact how their teachers are compensated. Lloyd Hopkins is the Executive Director/Founder of Million Dollar Teacher Project. Lloyd is an organizational leader with extensive experience in community and nonprofit work. He has worked in and around education for 18 years. He graduated from Arizona State University with his degree in Nonprofit Management and Leadership and took his passion for ensuring quality education for all to launch the teacher recruitment and retention program, Million Dollar Teacher Project. In addition to being a Founder and Executive Director he is also an entrepreneur and philanthropist. As a philanthropist he is the Chair of Real Engagement through Active Philanthropy (R.E.A.P) which is a fund under the Arizona Community Foundation the supports programs making positive impacts on African-American Youth and is currently working with an Achieve60AZ Taskforce on improving attainment for the African American community in Arizona. For his efforts he was recently a finalist for the Phoenix Center of the Arts Mayor’s Arts Awards for his Million Dollar Teacher Tree program and was honored by the East Valley NAACP with the Malala Yousafzai Equity in Education Award. He is also an alum of Valley Leadership’s Class 40. Connect with Lloyd on LinkedIn and follow Million Dollar Teach Project on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Randy Gibb, PhD, joined GCU in July 2014 and served as the dean of the Colangelo College of Business until 2022. His team grew the college based the pillars of servant leadership, ethics, and entrepreneurism and promoted the ideals/concepts of free market capitalism and business as a form of ministry. In July 2022, he stepped into the role as Provost. Dr. Gibb served 26 years in the U.S. Air Force and commanded two Air Force flying units and retired as a Colonel and Command Pilot. He also has academic leadership experience and taught as Department Chair of the U.S. Air Force Academy’s Behavioral Science and Leadership Department, helped lead the human systems integration program at the Air Force Institute of Technology in Dayton, OH, as a Senior Military Professor at the Graduate School of Engineering and Management Department, and served at Arizona State University as an Associate Professor and Chair of the Human and Environmental Systems Department. Dr. Gibb has extensive experience in aviation safety, human factors, visual perception and spatial disorientation, as well as leadership development. Dr. Gibb, originally from Wisconsin, earned his PhD and MS in Industrial Engineering from Arizona State University. He also has an MA from the U.S. Naval Command and Staff College in Newport, RI, and was a distinguished graduate from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1986. Dr. Gibb served on the Governor’s Workforce Arizona Council, Canyon Angels founding board, WESTMARC board of directors, and Arizona’s board of Conscious Capitalism. Connect with Randy on LinkedIn, and follow Grand Canyon University on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. About Culture Crush Culture is not just a tag word to be thrown around. It is not something you throw in job descriptions to draw people to applying for jobs within a company. According to Marcus Buckingham and Ashely Goodall in their book Nine Lies About Work, “Culture is the tenants of how we behave. It’s like a family creed. This is how we operate and treat each other in the family.” As a growing company- Culture Crush Business Podcast is THE culture improvement resource that supports companies and leaders.  Our Mission is to improve company cultures so people WANT to go to work. Employees and leaders should like where they work and we think this is possible. Within the company: Culture Crush has Vetted Resources and Partnerships with the right people and resources that can help improve your company culture. On this podcast:  We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company.  We also find the companies that offer resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the show to share their tips and tricks for growing culture. About the Host Kindra Maples  is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio). She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion of working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion of leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow. Then came the opportunity for leading  the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further. Shout Outs We want to thank a few people for their behind the scenes effort in helping this relaunch to come to life. James Johnson with Tailored Penguin Media Company LLC.– It is a small, but powerful video production company with a goal to deliver the very best by articulating the vision of your brand in a visually creative way. Gordon Murray with Flash PhotoVideo, LLC. -Flash Gordon has been photographing since high school and evolving since then with new products that will equip, encourage, engage, and enable. Renee Blundon with Renee Blundon Design – She is not only one of the best free divers (that’s not how she helped with the podcast) but she is great with graphics design and taking the direction for the vision that you have while also adding creative ideas to bring to your vision to life. These are just a few of the folks that supported the relaunch of the podcast. If you would like to be part of the Culture Crush team or would like to support underwriting the show- please reach out: info@culturecrushbusiness.com

This conversion of culture and conscious business was so fluid that you would have thought that Kindra and her two guests, Adam and Thomas, had known each other and talked for years. This was the first time we have done a live stream where the guests could listen and post questions on the Culture Crush Business Podcast- and it was awesome! Thank you to all of the listeners that chimed in and posted questions in the chat. Thank you to Phoenix Business RadioX and Conscious Capitalism Arizona Chapter for sharing it out. They were great questions that we went over toward the end of the show. This conversation dove into many stories and examples of the actions and importance for growing a conscious business- even if it seems a little backwards sometimes. For example, Adam discussed how Goodmans Interior Structures no longer requires their office staff to come into the office to work. This might seem a little backwards for a company that builds and sells office furniture. Instead, they are assessing and redesigning the office into a place where employees want to come into the office. They took into consideration what the employees said and wanted and are putting it into action. This conscious business move will help grow and support the needs of the employees, and therefore the overall culture of the company. This conversation is a great one to listen to if you are a leader trying to improve your company culture and wanting to learn more about conscious capitalism and how it can help influence and support the change you are trying to make in your company. According to Thomas, “Consciousness has no finish line” which means we can always learn and add to our growth and our tool box. When it comes to helping companies grow in conscious ways, Thomas is the man for the job. He has supported the growth of various Conscious Capitalism chapters as well as helped over 800 leaders in his program on developing their conscious journey. He gives away a few of these tips in the podcast conversation with Adam as well. Thank you to our sponsor, the Conscious Capitalism Arizona Chapter, for seeing the value in this conversation of conscious capitalism, culture, and these two amazing gentlemen. Conscious Capitalism Arizona Chapter (CCAZ) is a nonprofit organization whose purpose, in partnership with Conscious Capitalism Inc (CCI), is to build a movement of business leaders improving the practice and perception of capitalism to elevate humanity so that billions of people flourish, leading lives infused with passion, purpose, love and creativity; a world of freedom, harmony, prosperity, and compassion. All in all that means CCAZ is elevating humanity through business. CBJourney is a movement with the purpose to accelerate the upgrade or ofganizations towards a more conscious business ecosystem. We have over 800 certified Conscious Capitalist Consultants in 21 countries, we celebrate our accomplishements though the podcast Capitalista Consciente and the books published, and we grouw our community with our programs for Consultants, leaders and Board of Directors. Thomas Eckschmidt is the father of Gabriela, husband of Ana Maria and an enthusiast of conscious capitalism. This is the journey forward, but we can share from the “obituary” too: Thomas is former farmer, engineer University of Sao Paulo who holds an Executive MBA in finance from Business School São Paulo / University of Toronto, Brazil. His corporate journey included work in twenty different countries before he launched a successful entrepreneurial career that includes 12 business awards, 4 patents filed, and 21 books published, Amazon best Seller and also one published by Harvard: Conscious Capitalism Field Guide – coauthored with Raj Sisodia. A strong believer that business leaders and organizations can do well by doing good, Thomas has been promoting Conscious Capitalism since 2010. He launched a Conscious Capitalism chapter in Brazil and Peru and supported the launch of chapters in other countries. Thomas teaches Conscious Capitalism classes in major business schools and in Corporate Governance programs. He also runs workshops that teaches the fundamentals of Conscious Capitalism and certifies consultants and Bard of Directors. TEDx Speaker with 400k views. Thomas is the cofounder and CEO of CBJ Conscious Business Journey a global network with the purpose to accelerate the upgrade of organizations towards a more conscious business ecosystem. CBJ has certified 800+ Conscious Capitalist Consultants in 21 countries and is an international program based on the Conscious Capitalism Field Guide and Fundamentals of Conscious Capitalism. He also cofounded the first conscious capitalism consultant network (Conscious Business Network) to support organizations interested in upgrading themselves. Thomas also works as a trusted adviser to help organizations implement conscious practices. He cofounded a few conscious businesses along the way, was a B-Corp certified entrepreneur and he also serves on the boards of several different companies. Connect with Thomas on LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Goodmans is a third-generation office furniture distributor in Arizona and New Mexico. Goodmans was the first benefit corporation in Arizona. Adam Goodman, president and CEO of Goodmans Interior Structures, is the third generation to lead the family business. Under Adam’s leadership, Goodmans has developed many innovative programs to give back to the community. These programs include Office Chair Hockey, Goodmans Eye for the Good Guy, AIM to Make a Difference, Rooted in Good, GoodInc, GoodART, GoodTHREADS and more. In 2009, Goodmans won the first-ever ACE Award for Community Impact and in 2011 Goodmans became the third certified B Corp in Arizona. In 2012, Goodmans won the overall Impact Company of the Year Award from the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce. In 2013, Goodmans was the Better Business Bureau’s Ethics Award winner for Arizona and then Goodmans was honored with the BBB’s International Torch Award for Ethics. In 2014 Goodmans was named to the Game Changers 500 list as one of the top 500 companies in the world using business as a force for social change. In 2015 Goodmans became the first Benefit Corporation (B Corp) registered in the State of Arizona and in 2018 Goodmans was recognized as the Top Social Responsibility Company among the Arizona Republic’s Top Companies awardees. That same year, Adam was honored with the Greater Phoenix Economic Council’s Community Impact Award. Adam has held leadership positions with the Jewish Community Center of Greater Phoenix, Phoenix Country Day School, Young Presidents Organization, Conscious Capitalism, Independent Newsmedia, Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting, the Jewish Federation, the Jewish Community Relations Council, Greater Phoenix Leadership, the Phoenix Symphony, CEO’s Against Cancer, Banner Health Foundation, University of Arizona Cancer Center, the State of Arizona Secretary of State’s Commerce Council, First Place AZ, Greater Phoenix Economic Council, ASU Herberger Institute Dean’s Creativity Council, WP Carey School of Business Economic Club of Phoenix, the National Dealer Alliance and the Herman Miller Certified Dealer Network. Adam has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from University of Texas at Austin. He resides in Paradise Valley with his wife Stephanie and their three children. Follow Goodmans on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. About Culture Crush Culture is not just a tag word to be thrown around. It is not something you throw in job descriptions to draw people to applying for jobs within a company. According to Marcus Buckingham and Ashley Goodall in their book Nine Lies About Work, “Culture is the tenants of how we behave. It’s like a family creed. This is how we operate and treat each other in the family.” As a growing company- Culture Crush Business Podcast is THE culture improvement resource that supports companies and leaders.  Our Mission is to improve company cultures so people WANT to go to work. Employees and leaders should like where they work and we think this is possible. Within the company: Culture Crush has Vetted Resources and Partnerships with the right people and resources that can help improve your company culture. On this podcast:  We focus on everything surrounding businesses with good company culture. We will talk with company leaders to learn about real-life experiences, tips, and best practices for creating a healthy work environment where employees are finding joy and satisfaction in their work while also striving and growing within the company.  We also find the companies that offer resources to help improve company culture and showcase them on the show to share their tips and tricks for growing culture. About the Host Kindra Maples  is spartan racer, past animal trainer, previous magician’s assistant, and has a weakness for Oreo cookie shakes. Her journey working with people actually started working with animals as a teenager (don’t worry we won’t go that far back for her bio). She worked for over 15 years in the zoo industry working with animals and the public. Her passion of working with animals shifted into working with people in education, operations and leadership roles. From there her passion of leadership and helping people develop has continued to grow. Then came the opportunity for leading  the Culture Crush Business Podcast and she jumped on it. Leadership, growth, and strong company cultures are all areas that Kindra is interested in diving into further.

Andy and Kristy were another perfect pairing for the Culture Crush Business Podcast. Kristy discussed what her team does to help leaders to enhance culture and optimize performance, while Andy gave us insight into the heart of his company and ways other leaders can support their internal teams. According to Kristy and her team, the four main areas that individuals in the workplace are searching for is to be known, grown, included and inspired. These four pieces are areas that Kristy and her team focus on improving but these are four main areas that your team and company can start to focus on as well! When improving company culture and focusing on your people, the ROI is there in the end. There are a handful of tips that came from the conversation that can help improve the company culture, increase retention, and attract the right new candidates. So where do you start? Take the time to know your people and who they are. Support and grow your people. Provide them professional development support and stop being afraid that they “might” leave the company. Guess what? They might stay too! Reach out to your staff and ask for their thoughts and input. Allow your staff the opportunity to feel inspired with the work that your company is doing. Both Know Your Talents and ESI are perfect examples of companies that are doing great things and allowing their staff to feel inspired with what they are doing. The next step is honesty. This means that leadership is honest to the staff and they provide a space for the staff to be honest as well. This opens the opportunity for staff to be open with their bosses and management about their goals and future growth. Maybe the employee wants to grow in the company or maybe they want to have a food truck someday. You’ll never know unless you give them the space to open up. This podcast is for any level leader that understands culture is going to happen whether you work on it or not. So why not work on it and make it better? You don’t have to be sick to work on your health and your culture doesn’t have to be bad to want to work and improve it. All in all- when you start to focus on improving the company culture at your company, once you start you have to keep going. You can’t talk to employees about their feelings, thoughts, and ideas and then not consider them as you grow and improve. Andy put it simply, “You can’t put the genie back in the bottle.” In the end- as a leader- be bold, courageous, purposeful, and mindful. Know Your Talents (KYT) is a management consulting firm that enhances culture and optimizes performance at every level. Our expertise is centered around four key principles: helping businesses know, include, inspire and grow their employees. Kristy Bach serves as the President at Know Your Talents, a premier management consulting partner working with leaders to enhance culture and optimize performance at every level. Know Your Talents is the corporate division of LearnKey, a workforce education solutions provider. Kristy leads the corporate division enabling the company to offer a complete “enterprise development solution” that aligns people strategy to business strategy. Kristy brings her success to immediately connect with, consult, and inspire individuals across every level and discipline, building trust and authentic relationships with clients, team members and peers. Prior to joining KYT, Kristy was with BestCompaniesAZ a leading Arizona Marketing Company. Additionally, she served in a COO capacity for over ten years at The Finders, a local staffing and recruiting firm, specializing in Technology, Human Resources, and Finance/Accounting. Kristy currently serves on the Board of Directors for a local non-profit organization, Career Connectors and serves on the GCU Technology Advisory Board. Kristy is a graduate of the University of Arizona and she enjoys spending time with her husband and family, friends, community involvement, running, biking and hiking in her free time. Follow Know Your Talents on LinkedIn and Facebook. Educational Services (ESI) is the leading provider of employee staffing solutions for Arizona school districts, as well as assisting governments and colleges. Founded in 1999 by three educators, ESI has a passion for helping people by making a positive impact in education and public service. ESI’s featured services include a return-to-work program known as RetireRehire, and SubSource, the largest substitute staffing program in the state. ESI has proudly served over 10,000 of Arizona’s public retirees and actively employs over 6,000 substitute educators. Andy Shirk is the President & CEO of ESI, delighted to lead a company where heart and integrity are cherished in a people-centered culture. Prior to joining ESI, Andy lead TrueRoots Development for 7 years advising business owners throughout the Valley. Kindness, curiosity and wisdom are his core values. His greatest joy is serving people with warmth and compassion which is the bedrock of his career. Whether as a business leader or playing upright bass in the local music scene, Andy genuinely loves to create the setting for others to shine. Follow ESI on LinkedIn and Facebook. You can follow the Culture Crush Business Podcast on all of our platforms! Check us out here!