Episodios

  • 1525: Celanese Odyssey: Lessons from a Lifetime in Engineering, Leadership, and Global Adventure with Author Edward H. Munoz

    1525: Celanese Odyssey: Lessons from a Lifetime in Engineering, Leadership, and Global Adventure with Author Edward H. Munoz
    Jan 5 2026
    Edward H. Muñoz rose from humble beginnings as a first-generation Mexican American in a South Texas border town to build a 33-year career at Celanese, where he played a key role in transforming the company into a global leader in engineering materials. After earning a chemistry degree from the University of Texas at Austin, he joined Celanese during its pivot from fibers to high-value engineering resins and helped establish its polyacetal product as a serious competitor to industry giants like DuPont and GE. His journey included navigating corporate takeovers, leading multinational teams, confronting cultural bias, and accepting personal sacrifices, particularly the strain his ambition placed on family life. A near-fatal car accident that killed a close friend became a defining turning point, propelling him into international leadership roles and reshaping both his career trajectory and personal life. In this episode of Marketer of the Day, Edward Muñoz reflects on his legacy through his memoir Challenges, Triumphs, and Heroes: Memoirs of My Celanese Odyssey, which honors the people behind corporate success while capturing the human cost of leadership. He discusses his work in Germany and Mexico, his commitment to inclusive leadership, and the lessons learned from balancing ambition, culture, and responsibility. Now living with Parkinson’s disease, he remains active through photography, travel, and leadership within the arts community, helping an organization not only survive the pandemic but grow significantly. Key takeaways include the importance of resilience, values-driven leadership, preserving personal history, and leaving something meaningful behind for future generations. Quotes: “The hardest challenge was balancing ambition with family. You gain a career, but you pay a price, and you have to decide what you are willing to give up.” “I am an American. That moment taught me how perception works and how easily people define others before they listen.” “You are not going to be around forever, so you have to leave something behind that others can learn from.” “When I think I might get fired, I remember this: I was looking for a job when I got here.” Resources: Connect with Edward H. Muñoz on LinkedIn Discover Edward H. Muñoz’s journey from first-generation roots to global leadership. Get Challenges, Triumphs, and Heroes: Memoirs of My Celanese Odyssey on Amazon.
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    30 m
  • 1524: From War-Torn Vietnam to America Finding Freedom, Purpose, and Healing After Conflict with Author & Activist Thuy Reed

    1524: From War-Torn Vietnam to America Finding Freedom, Purpose, and Healing After Conflict with Author & Activist Thuy Reed
    Jan 4 2026
    Thuy Reed is a Vietnamese American author whose life was shaped by war, loss, displacement, and resilience. Born in a small village in Vietnam during the war, she witnessed firsthand the devastation inflicted on families and communities, including the death of her brother, who was killed by a sniper at the age of 21. She left Vietnam as a young woman, believing she would return, only to have South Vietnam fall months later, permanently altering the course of her life. After immigrating to the United States, she navigated profound cultural shifts, built a new life, raised a family, and transformed her painful experiences into a lifelong commitment to peace, civic responsibility, and honoring the true cost of freedom. In this episode of Marketer of the Day, Thuy Reed shares how her experiences motivated her to write Dear America: From Vietnam with Love, a memoir written as both a personal reflection and a message to her adopted country. She discusses her 12-year effort to help lift the U.S. trade embargo on Vietnam, her deep concerns about political violence and civic disengagement, and her belief that democracy requires education, participation, and accountability. Through her story, she emphasizes that war leaves generational wounds, violence does not win hearts or minds, and freedom must be protected through informed action rather than fear. The key takeaways center on valuing democracy, rejecting violence, staying engaged, and remembering the human cost behind political decisions. Quotes: “I do not like war, because the bullet that killed a boy on the battlefield went straight into his mother’s heart.” “You cannot win hearts and minds with guns and bullets. You cannot.” “This is America. If you want change, you work hard, you vote, and you stay engaged. You do not tear it down.” “I love America with all my heart, because this is where everything that is me and mine is found.” Resources: Follow Thuy Reed on Facebook Grab Dear America: From Vietnam with Love on Amazon. Learn more about Thuy Reed and her story.
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    29 m
  • 1523: Publicity Over Ads: Get More Sales and Influence Without the High Cost with Public Relations Expert Jill Lublin

    1523: Publicity Over Ads: Get More Sales and Influence Without the High Cost with Public Relations Expert Jill Lublin
    Jan 3 2026
    Jill Lublin is a longtime publicity strategist and media expert with more than 25 years of experience helping entrepreneurs, authors, and professionals gain visibility without paying for advertising. Throughout her career, she has focused on demystifying publicity and removing financial and emotional barriers that keep people from sharing their message. Her work addresses common challenges, such as fear of visibility, unclear messaging, and the misconception that publicity requires expensive PR agencies. By reframing publicity as a skill that anyone can learn, she has helped clients turn personal stories, setbacks, and unique perspectives into compelling media features that drive credibility, trust, and business growth. In this episode of Marketer of the Day, Jill Lublin explains how she helps people become their own publicity machine by focusing on clear messaging, consistency, and practical weekly actions. She emphasizes spending as little as 30 minutes a week on real visibility-building activities such as Google Alerts, responding to media requests, and booking podcast interviews, rather than relying solely on social media. She shares examples of clients who transformed their stories into primary media coverage, book sales, and consulting revenue, reinforcing that publicity multiplies reach and monetizes expertise over time. Key takeaways include saying yes to opportunities, using all parts of your story, starting local, and viewing publicity as a long-term asset that builds authority, trust, and lasting influence. Quotes: “Publicity does not have to be expensive or complicated. When you make it accessible, it becomes a powerful tool for every entrepreneur.” “Consistency and persistence create publicity. When you stay focused and keep showing up, visibility follows.” “Spend 30 minutes a week on real visibility-building activities, and you will see momentum. Publicity rewards action, not perfection.” “Publicity is a gift that keeps on giving because it multiplies you, monetizes you, and maximizes your message.” Resources: Connect with Jill Lublin on LinkedIn Get Guerrilla Publicity: Hundreds of Sure-Fire Tactics to Get Maximum Sales for Minimum Dollars on Amazon. Explore Jill Lublin’s strategies for gaining visibility and credibility.
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    21 m
  • 1522: Master Your Playbook: Unlock Personal Potential and Build High-Performing Teams with Larry Dodd

    1522: Master Your Playbook: Unlock Personal Potential and Build High-Performing Teams with Larry Dodd
    Jan 2 2026
    Larry Dodd is an executive coach and founder of Open Playbook with more than 35 years of experience helping leaders and teams reconnect to what drives real performance. His journey includes navigating career choices that were initially misaligned with his natural strengths, an experience that forced him to work harder than necessary and ultimately sparked deeper self-examination. Through setbacks, reflection, and disciplined personal growth, he developed a strengths-based methodology rooted in understanding innate talents, building confidence, and turning self-awareness into effective leadership. His career includes high-impact roles such as working with the San Francisco Giants, where a pivotal opportunity reinforced the importance of confidence, preparation, and offering value without fear of failure. In this episode of Marketer of the Day, Larry Dodd explains how Open Playbook helps individuals and organizations rebuild connection in a disconnected, post-pandemic world. His work centers on three core concepts: the playbook you are given, the playbook you develop, and the playbook you give away. By using tools such as CliftonStrengths alongside deep, human-centered coaching, he helps people align roles with strengths, build engaged teams, and create cultures where leaders invest in others rather than operate in isolation. Key takeaways include the importance of connection over convenience, confidence built through repetition and guided reflection, and viewing setbacks as catalysts for growth. His current work focuses on developing strengths-based leaders who create lasting impact by sharing their experiences, mentoring others, and building teams that thrive rather than merely perform. Quotes: “Everybody has inherent talents, but if we never stop to understand what we actually have, we end up working twice as hard just to play even.” “Nothing replaces connection. You can get information faster than ever, but developing people still requires time, trust, and human presence.” “As you do the work, you build confidence. As you build confidence, you take risks. And when you repeat that cycle enough times, people start asking how you got there.” “Success is not a straight line. It is a series of setbacks and breakthroughs, and those setbacks are often where the real strength is built.” Resources: Connect with Larry Dodd on LinkedIn Discover Larry Dodd’s strengths-based approach to leadership and performance.
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    28 m
  • 1521: Pivot on Purpose: Reinvent Your Calling with EOS for Greater Clarity, Freedom, and Team Momentum with Joshua Adams

    1521: Pivot on Purpose: Reinvent Your Calling with EOS for Greater Clarity, Freedom, and Team Momentum with Joshua Adams
    Dec 31 2025
    Joshua Adams is a serial entrepreneur, EOS Implementer, and former branding agency founder dedicated to helping visionary leaders gain clarity, traction, and freedom in their organizations. After transforming his own business using the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) and selling it after twenty-four years. Joshua now coaches executive teams to break through chaos, foster alignment, and build healthy, sustainable companies. He draws on rich experience in agency leadership, fractional CMO work, and his passion for empowering people to operate in their unique strengths. In this episode of Marketer of the Day, Joshua Adams returns to join Robert Plank, sharing the personal and professional pivots that set him on his current path. Joshua exposes the pitfalls of goal procrastination, the energizing power of “artificial urgency,” and why so many businesses need, not just more software but an operating framework like EOS to truly thrive. Listeners will learn about the importance of shared language, how consistency in leadership systems prevents organizational drift, and why, ultimately, professional success is built atop lessons learned from failure. Joshua also highlights the fulfillment he discovers daily by coaching leadership teams and empowering them to do their best work. Quotes: “Success is a big pile of failure that you’re standing on. Without our failures, we are not, we cannot be successful.” “When you set that artificial sense of urgency, you spark the energy and momentum that gets things done. It’s healthier, and it pushes us forward.” “Language matters. Calling things by different names creates confusion, but common language builds clarity and alignment across the team.” Resources: Connect with Joshua Adams on LinkedIn Learn more about how Joshua helps leaders build healthy, sustainable companies on their website.
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    26 m
  • 1519: Scale With Precision: A Clear Path for Visionary Entrepreneurs to Align Purpose, Genius, and Desires with Kelly O’Neil

    1519: Scale With Precision: A Clear Path for Visionary Entrepreneurs to Align Purpose, Genius, and Desires with Kelly O’Neil
    Dec 29 2025
    Kelly O’Neil is a futurist, award-winning entrepreneur, market maverick, and the strategic architect behind the Fusion Paradigm. As the world’s leading authority on marketing to millionaires and a master brand strategist, Kelly partners with visionary CEOs to redefine, scale, and lead category-defining businesses in the new economy. She is renowned for helping elite entrepreneurs align their business models with core purpose, genius, and evolving desires, enabling high-profit, high-freedom enterprise without the grind. Kelly’s expertise lies in crafting harmonized, strategy-first frameworks to help leaders achieve unprecedented impact and growth while living on their own terms. In this episode of Marketer of the Day, Kelly O’Neil returns to join Robert Plank and share her vision for entrepreneurial transformation in today’s ever-changing economic landscape. Kelly details the limitations of outdated business models and the urgent need for a new, harmonized approach that goes beyond tactics to focus on purpose, intuition, and strategic clarity. She reveals the importance of recognizing misalignment, architecting a business around personal genius and evolving desires, and why strategy must precede tools and tactics. Listeners will learn how Kelly guides clients through deeply personalized business realignment, helping high-performing leaders redesign their companies for lasting profit, freedom, and fulfillment. Packed with actionable wisdom, the conversation covers overcoming self-sabotage, the true meaning of growth, and the merging of masculine and feminine business practices for sustainable, category-defining results. Quotes: “Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory, but tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” “If you did nothing else but the things that you are meant to do and thrive at, all day long every day, how would that change the trajectory of your business?” “We need a harmonized business approach where we are actually pulling from both the masculine—strategy and structure—and the feminine—intuition and flow.” Resources: Connect with Kelly O'Neil on LinkedIn Five Strategic Moves. One Intelligent Evolution.
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    31 m
  • 1518: Unlock Explosive Growth: Align Your Leadership Team to Scale Smarter & Reach $100M+ with Todd Westra

    1518: Unlock Explosive Growth: Align Your Leadership Team to Scale Smarter & Reach $100M+ with Todd Westra
    Dec 28 2025
    Todd Westra is a leadership alignment expert, founder of the Growth and Scaling Podcast, and creator of the Growth Readiness Framework. Renowned for guiding CEOs, COOs, and CFOs to align strategy and execution, Todd helps mid-sized organizations unlock smarter, sustainable growth. With a deep understanding of leadership dynamics and operational challenges, Todd partners with firms at inflection points, unraveling misalignment and cultivating clarity. His process-driven approach empowers teams, clarifies decision-making, and transforms companies from stagnation to forward momentum enabling leaders and their organizations to reach ambitious new milestones. In this episode of Marketer of the Day, Todd Westra joins Robert Plank to uncover the crucial role of leadership alignment in business growth and scaling. Todd shares actionable insights from his journey as a founder, consultant, and podcast host, illustrating how divergent leadership visions can quietly stall progress even in successful, well-funded teams. He describes his signature alignment exercises and deep-dive assessments, revealing how honest conversations, data-driven strategies, and a willingness to detach from old patterns can create breakthrough results. Through lively discussion and memorable stories, Todd demonstrates how to move a company from launch mode through realignment, toward true operational excellence. Listeners will learn why self-awareness, role clarity, and robust feedback loops are essential for building sustainable growth, strong exits, and lasting team harmony. Quotes: "Most growth is stifled not because they have a bad idea, not because they don't have market fit, but because the leadership is not aligned on which path they're going down." "If you want to be market leaders, if you want a strong exit, you've got to align, and then it works out better for everybody." "No success can compensate for failure in the home." Resources: Connect with Todd Westra on LinkedIn Is YOUR Company Growth Ready?
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    30 m
  • 1517: Escape the Tool Trap: Achieve Compliance and Drive Growth Through Better Processes — with Operations Innovator Santiago Cortez

    1517: Escape the Tool Trap: Achieve Compliance and Drive Growth Through Better Processes — with Operations Innovator Santiago Cortez
    Dec 27 2025
    Santiago Cortez is a process-driven transformation specialist, founder of labcortex, and a trusted advisor for compliance-focused, mission-driven organizations. Renowned for his ability to turn tangled, manual workflows into organized, auditable systems, Santiago partners with firms in highly-regulated industries to drive sustainable growth. He champions a process-first mindset, helping businesses clarify their goals, align teams, and eliminate inefficiency empowering both organizations and individuals to reclaim time, reduce stress, and achieve lasting improvement. In this episode of Marketer of the Day, Santiago Cortez joins Robert Plank to demystify the world of compliance, workflows, and operational excellence. Santiago shares his unique approach to consulting, emphasizing that tools should serve existing processes not the other way around. Listeners will hear how Santiago and his team dive deep into their clients’ day-to-day realities, uncovering the misalignments between written policies and practical actions. He reveals the communication pitfalls that stall progress, the importance of small wins, and why embedding continuous improvement into company culture is critical. Through practical examples and actionable insights, Santiago explains how focusing on people, clarity, and collaboration drives transformation making even the "boring" aspects of business work both effective and rewarding. Quotes: “Tools amplify a process. They don’t replace it.” “You just want to ensure these little things don’t get caught in your way of the big things. They all lead to that.” “Communication and feedback loops are essential to aligning teams and catching issues before they compound.” Resources: Connect with Santiago Cortez on LinkedIn Helping organizations work smarter, safer, and more efficiently
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    29 m
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