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PODCAST

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast Powered by Blue16 Media & CBNation.co

CEO Podcasts consists of CEO Chat (CC), I AM CEO (IAM) & CBNation.TV (TV) podcast episodes. Value-packed episode including interviews & resources for CEOs, entrepreneurs, startups founders & business owners. The CEO Chat episodes are our long-form episodes w/ interviews and digital marketing resources. The I AM CEO episodes are laser focused (about 16 min.) w/ interviews & a discussion about what it means to be a CEO. Powered by Blue16 Media & CBNation.co. Hosted by Gresham W. Harkless Jr.

business

All Episodes

17:00

IAM2654 - Founder Provides The Tools to Live a More...

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/18

In this throwback episode, we have Katherine Liola, founder and CEO of Concentric Private Wealth, where they differentiate from traditional firms by centering every client interaction around the question “why?” and aligning financial strategy with each person’s intrinsic drivers—core values, unique abilities, and passions that define who they truly are.Rather than merely managing assets, Catherine’s team helps clients pause, reflect deeply, and make decisions that serve their broader life

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7:15

IAM2653 - Unlocking Success Through Warm Referrals

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/17

In this episode, Gresham candidly shares the hurdles he’s faced in his first year: no closed deals yet, restructuring his marketing company, personal setbacks and juggling family responsibilities.Despite generating a sizable pool of leads, his outreach—via Google Ads, LinkedIn DMs, Facebook groups, and newsletters—has produced little traction. He notes that franchise sales cycles can stretch up to a year, and he’s still searching for low‑hanging‑fruit opportunities that haven’t materialized through

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4:57

IAM2652 - Unlocking Success: A Broker's Journey on...

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/16

In this episode, Gresh discusses the importance of execution over merely having a playbook, noting that while the franchising model supplies a detailed roadmap, success hinges on the founder’s ability to actually implement it. He also mentions challenges such as client layoffs, under‑delivering strategy sessions, and weighing the ROI of a mentorship program he feels isn’t paying off. Despite the hurdles, Gresh emphasizes the power of networking. He recounts gaining referrals through a BNI group,

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5:55

IAM2651 - The Art of Rebooting: Day 294

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/15

In this special episode, Gresh reflects on recent setbacks that have forced him to “reboot” his business. He admits that operational weaknesses, inconsistent momentum, and a lack of traction from a recent program have contributed to the slowdown. Recognizing that the responsibility for fixing these issues lies entirely with him, he outlines a plan to tighten operations, improve digital‑marketing efforts, and rebuild the culture he envisions for his company. Gresh also highlights the value of the

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6:37

IAM2650 - What A Simple Nibble Can Teach You

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/14

In this special episode, Gresh details the personal and professional hurdles he’s confronting: a newborn son disrupting sleep, a demanding late‑night schedule, and a digital‑marketing strategy that fell short of expectations. Faced with the need to rebuild his marketing funnel while simultaneously overhauling the brokerage operation, he acknowledges feeling overwhelmed but sees the situation as an opportunity to refocus. He’s scaling back to a part‑time model for now, leaning on his strengths in

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16:55

IAM2649 - CEO Helps Sellers Eliminate Administrative...

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/13

Yoni Tserruya, co‑founder and CEO of Lusha, positions itself as a sales‑intelligence platform that uses AI to eliminate the administrative burden on sellers, delivering real‑time, signal‑based lead recommendations much like a personalized music playlist. The platform continuously learns both user and customer behavior, generating accurate, on‑demand prospect suggestions so salespeople can focus solely on human interaction and trust‑building. Over time, the simplicity has shifted from a clean UI to a

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17:01

IAM2648 - Business Partners Help Businesses Scale by...

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/12

In this throwback episode, we have Anne and Mark Lackey. Entrepreneurs that has a series of ventures that each emerged from a real‑world problem they faced themselves. When a valued employee abruptly quit, they recognized the hidden cost of staff churn and the difficulty of finding reliable “drudgery” workers—people willing to handle repetitive, phone‑based tasks. Their answer was to create HireSmart Virtual Assistants. HireSmart’s model combines two core services: rigorous recruiting that matches

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16:57

IAM2647 - Serial Entrepreneur Works With Clients to...

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/11

In this throwback episode, we have Monique “Moni” Jefferson, an active‑duty Air Force spouse and serial entrepreneur, founded Dog Tags & Heels, a virtual PR and social‑media agency that works with national and celebrity clients to build brand evangelism and social impact. Her agency focuses on deep, high‑impact connections rather than paid ad space, turning satisfied customers into brand advocates. The platform offers peer‑to‑peer mentorship, masterclasses, and a membership space for

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5:46

IAM2646 - The Transformative Power of Change

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/10

In this special episode, Gresham discusses how change is inherently messy: altering one part of a business triggers a domino effect that ripples throughout the whole operation. As his original marketing company, Blue 16 Media, morphed into an umbrella brand with multiple niche services, he recognized gaps and inefficiencies that needed new solutions. Scaling back in one area led to staff turnover, prompting him to emphasize accountability—whether you’re a solo practitioner, franchisee, or business

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7:13

IAM2645 - Day 291: The Return to Networking

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/09

In this special episode, Gresham outlines several parallel initiatives he’s pursuing: launching a sub‑site called “Franchise CEO” within the CB Nation community, publishing video snippets on YouTube, and re‑joining a flexible BNI networking chapter that allows up to 12 missed meetings per quarter. He’s also rebooting his digital‑marketing arm, experimenting with affiliate programs, high‑ticket sales, and the “CEO Hacks” series to scale relationships and revenue streams. Throughout, he emphasizes

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4:37

IAM2644 - Reboot Your Life: Day 290

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/08

In this special episode, Gresham shares that he’s already 290 days into his franchise‑broker venture, highlighting the everyday challenges of entrepreneurship—early mornings, fatigue, and the need for continual self‑rebooting. He describes an experiment with ChatGPT to identify ways to overhaul his business processes, acknowledging that minor tweaks aren’t enough when foundational issues exist. He likens the situation to trying to replace drapes on a shaky house; the real work must start at the

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6:55

IAM2643 - Nibble Your Way Through the Week!

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/07

In this special episode, Gresham shares what he’s been doing to generate leads: cold direct messages on LinkedIn using Sales Navigator, a few automation tools (Closely), and follow‑up emails to keep contacts warm. While he’s begun to see “nibbles” — small bits of traction — he admits to frustration over the limited results. Through reflection he realizes he may have been targeting the wrong audience (B2B instead of the more receptive B2C segment of people facing layoffs or career dissatisfaction)

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16:59

IAM2642 - CEO Helps Large‑Scale Business Problems in...

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/06

In this episode, we have Rohit Garewal, CEO of Object Edge and a veteran of 30 years solving large‑scale business problems in finance, insurance and retail. Rohit explains that every for‑profit enterprise is fundamentally trying to maximize either revenue or margin, and that the key to doing so lies in aligning people, processes and technology. His firm helps customers turn fragmented, legacy data into AI‑ready assets, then builds custom applications that embed AI into core workflows, allowing

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14:20

IAM2641 - Founder Works with Retail Leaders to...

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/05

In this episode, we have Carlo Castelan, founder and managing director of the Navio Group, a consulting firm that helps retail leaders transform their businesses.Carlo's work centers on partnering with brick‑and‑mortar retailers—often Fortune 1000 brands—looking to shift toward direct‑to‑consumer models or expand into new services, such as health‑care offerings. Their model emphasizes collaboration: rather than acting as a distant “black box,” They work side‑by‑side with existing teams, lifting

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15:34

IAM2640 - Founder Helps Small Teams and Entrepreneurs...

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/04

In this throwback episode, we have John Hill, founder of Adaptive Growth, helps small teams and entrepreneurs use technology and processes to make sales repeatable. John helps capture the “instinctual” parts of their sales conversations, document them, and embed them into customized CRM workflows. By doing so, he shortens ramp‑up time, eliminates gaps between reps, and creates data‑driven pipelines that can be refined just like digital‑marketing campaigns. He reinforces these ideas on his “Sales

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6:05

IAM2639 - Unlocking the Mystery of Day 289

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/03

In this special episode, Gresham uses a vivid analogy involving his newborn son learning to crawl. He describes a recent moment at a restaurant where the baby’s frustration and determination mirrored the challenges he faces as an entrepreneur juggling a newborn, a digital‑marketing business, and the launch of his franchise. He reflects on the inevitable setbacks—crying, yelling, feeling stretched thin—and emphasizes the importance of patience, honesty, and realistic expectations. By acknowledging

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7:13

IAM2638 - The Struggle and Strength in Change

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/02

In this episode, Gresh shifts to the challenges he’s faced in his existing digital‑marketing and franchise‑brokerage businesses. After years of relying heavily on his own involvement, he realized the models had hit a ceiling and required major pivots.He discusses how his original target market for the brokerage didn’t generate enough traction, prompting him to rethink prospecting strategies—using LinkedIn to focus on people with clear pain points, such as those affected by layoffs, and reshaping

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7:11

IAM2637 - Step into Success: What's Your Day 286?

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/11/01

In this episode, Gresham reflects on the past year of planning, the emotional hurdle of acknowledging the time that has passed, and the excitement of welcoming a potential candidate—identified through LinkedIn—who may become his first deal. He emphasizes transparency with prospects, encouraging them to voice disinterest openly to avoid ghosting and to keep the pipeline moving efficiently. The episode highlights several practical insights: the need to target the right audience (shifting from

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5:43

IAM2636 - A Day in the Life of a Franchise Broker

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/10/31

In this episode, Gresham opens up about the internal doubts that have slowed his progress over the past two months. He wrestles with the classic “where’s the payoff?” question, balancing paid lead packs against the organic social media tactics that have yielded better results for him. He also questions the “broad‑stroke” philosophy advocated by some brokers, noting that casting a wide net brings unqualified leads and dilutes focus. Finally, Gresham commits to a step‑by‑step approach, experimenting

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16:57

IAM2635 - CEO and Inventor Shares About Joyful...

CEO Podcasts: CEO Chat Podcast + I AM CEO Podcast... ·

2025/10/30

In this episode, we have Kevin Surace, a prolific Silicon‑Valley innovator, inventor of the first cellular‑data phone, early AI virtual assistants, and author of The Joy Success Cycle. Kevin shares hard‑earned lessons about the true nature of the CEO role: setting tone, culture, and direction while spending most of the day handling the “crap” – unhappy customers, product glitches, personnel issues, cash flow, and missed sales targets. His broader advice for entrepreneurs is to focus on solving real

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1,618 results

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