Category Archives: Interviews
Thanks for coming back! In case you missed my first five memories at Iasta, check them out here. Below are five other memories that top the charts in my Iasta career to date: 6. Habitat for Humanity – Iasta employees formed an amazing Outreach Committee, which is dedicated to finding charitable events and donation opportunities in which employees can participate. Habitat for Humanity was one of our first large community service activities organized for the company. It was a memorable … More
I have been retired from blogging for a very long time now. The last time I was writing on a regular basis was 2008-09 when traffic was growing to over 3000 unique visitors per day. It was never that I wanted to stop, but Iasta had grown too much and there was too much too do inside the business. Now, I have the honor to write again. This time, it is because something very momentous has occurred to the company. … More
On June 1, 2014, I celebrated 10 years working for Iasta and in the sourcing industry. I can still remember driving from Indiana University Bloomington up to Iasta’s headquarters in Carmel, Indiana, and sitting down with Dave Bush, CEO, for an interview. Soon after, I was offered my first “real” job answering support phone calls and emails for Iasta. Coming straight from college, I did not know much about the sourcing industry and did not realize my support position at … More
Who is Dan? Dan Fahrner is the director of marketing services for SmallBox, a full service digital agency in Indianapolis that is passionate about using the web to start a culture-powered marketing revolution. He is a certified Google AdWords and Analytics whiz who has a passion for all things search. Dan’s expertise in marketing runs the gamut – from providing strategic and organizational health consulting for enterprise level organizations to managing advertising and marketing for national musicians. Outside of work … More
What was your favorite conference session at ISM 2014? Theresa says… “Sourcing and Spend Analytics – Maximizing Impact, Influence, and Effectiveness” by Francisco Montecinos, Chief Information Officer of GE Energy Management. Francisco was very knowledgeable of the space and had loads of experience; he was realistic in his expectations, had grown up through the ranks, and understood the value of data for procurement. He also discussed Colin Powell’s “40-70 rule” regarding tough decision-making, and shared several relevant quotes with us, … More
Who is Josh Miles? Josh Miles is a self-proclaimed caffeine and Twitter addict. Professionally, he is the principal and founder of Miles Design, LLC where his role consists of driving brand strategy, business development, and firm-wide marketing. Earlier this year, Josh authored the new Content Marketing Institute book, Bold Brand: The New Rules for Differentiating, Branding, and Marketing Your Professional Services Firm. Let’s learn more about Josh… On Following Your Dream “I’ve been drawing and doing art since I was … More
What is your job? It seems like a simple question, but how would you respond if your boss asked you that question? Joe Chernov, VP of Content Marketing for Eloqua, shared an exchange with his boss that he never forgot. An important lesson for everyone to learn… “I was working at a PR firm and my boss, Amy Kavanaugh Mason (who now runs communications for Taco Bell) asked me, ‘What’s your job?’” Chernov said. “I said something about getting press … More
“Having graduated with a degree in Art and Physics, I do not come from a traditional business education,” said Adam Becker, Sales Director of Tinderbox. “However, I have pulled advice from my personal experiences and interactions that have proven to be invaluable as I have grown in my career. The first and most important lesson I natively inherited from my mom, who is also an artist, is to ALWAYS have a critical eye when viewing your work. I remember doing … More
In Part 1, I introduced the notion of the fit between ‘person, role and environment’ as being key to career advancement. Click here to read Part 1. Considering the ‘person’ aspect, you need to have a reasonably clear sense of what success looks like for you (or the destination/direction). Then, you need to look to identifying what gaps there are in how to realise your aspirations. Next, you should understand your capability, motivation and current reputation. To develop a clear … More
High do I become a high performing executive? How do Olympic Athletes become the best in the world? In Procurement, we are so often stuck between senior management and being perceived as potential board material. How can we bridge that Gap? Keith Goddard, Managing Director of Kameleon Solutions, is an expert in coaching High Performing individuals including some GB Athletes and their coaches. He offers the following advice: So, you want to get more senior in your organisation or advance … More
“When I attended a conference early in my career, I had a mentor who told me not to worry about the competition,” said Sherry Gordon, President of Value Chain Group, LLC. “Instead, he inspired me to focus on what I am doing and how I can make my business successful.” You should always focus on new getting customers and keeping them happy. It’s not always about the other software companies and investors out there. Pursue your own customers. Allow them … More
Mendy Werne, President of BLASTmedia, learned from an early age that if you work hard, respect others and can find a good work-life balance, you will be successful in life. Mendy’s parents always taught her to be the first one in and the last one out; people will notice you when you go the extra mile. She believes that the work-life balance gets easier with age, but if you are happy at work you’ll be happy in life and vice … More
Not everyone can afford a Park Avenue address, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t treat your current property like anything less than prime real estate. Mukund Krishna, CEO of the global technology consulting firm, Suyati, says “You aren’t maximizing your website’s potential if you aren’t managing it like a good real estate property. Like real estate, good websites are attractive and can be reached in many ways, from many different places.” He continued his real estate metaphor by comparing a … More
Ron Bedwell from KMS Systems spoke with me last week about his opinion on the key drivers for achieving success. KMS Systems is a leading provider of industrial material handling equipment solutions and Ron has been there for more than 15 years. “There’s a lot of things you have to do to be successful in any given situation, “ Ron said. “But there are a couple of things that you should always do no matter what you’re working on. One … More
