CEOs and ABCs

In this episode of CEOs & ABCs, Kevin sits down with Camille Hymes, former Chief Operating Officer of Smoothie King and former executive leader at Starbucks, Jack in the Box, and ExxonMobil, to explore what it means to lead with intention, both at work and at home.

Camille shares how a deeply personal mission statement became the compass for her career: “to live in peace and bliss and to help others succeed beyond what they ever imagined.” From navigating executive leadership roles at some of the world’s most recognizable brands to raising a family through constant relocations, career transitions, and personal tragedy, Camille reflects on the moments that reshaped her definition of success.

Now in what she calls a “power pause” between roles for the first time in her career, Camille opens up about learning to slow down, reconnect with her family, and become more intentional about the opportunities she says yes, and no, to. Kevin and Camille also discuss executive coaching, building a personal board of advisors, the importance of presence, and how leadership rooted in humanity creates stronger teams, cultures, and families.

This is a conversation about ambition, grief, service, leadership, and the courage to align your life with what matters most.

In this episode
• Camille’s journey from ExxonMobil to the C-suite at Smoothie King
• How her personal mission statement guides her decisions
• Why she chose to take a “power pause” between leadership roles
• Learning to say no to opportunities that don’t align with purpose
• The role executive coaching played in her growth as a leader
• Building a personal “board of directors” for support and guidance
• Navigating motherhood while leading at major global brands
• How the loss of her daughter transformed her understanding of presence

Key takeaways
• A clear personal mission statement creates clarity in both life and career
• Leadership is less about authority and more about service to others
• Presence is a practice and small rituals can create meaningful connection
• Executive coaching can accelerate both personal and professional growth
• Great cultures are built through humanity, not just performance metrics
• You don’t have to do everything alone, it truly takes a village
• Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is pause and reflect
• Saying no becomes easier when you know your purpose

About the guest
Camille Hymes is a transformational executive leader and former Chief Operating Officer of Smoothie King. Over her career, she has held senior leadership roles at Starbucks, Jack in the Box, and ExxonMobil, leading large-scale operations, culture transformation, and organizational growth. Known for her people-first leadership style, Camille is passionate about helping others succeed beyond what they imagined possible. She also serves on the boards of Reading Is Fundamental and Blessings in a Backpack, supporting children’s literacy and nutrition initiatives.

Charitable Organisations that Camille Supports:

In this episode of CEOs & ABCs, Kevin sits down with Karen Robinovitz, co-founder of Sloomoo Institute, to explore a journey that moves from pioneering the creator economy to rebuilding a life through something as simple and powerful as play.

Karen was early to everything, journalism, digital media, and influencer marketing, helping shape how brands and creators work together today. But behind that success was a period of profound personal loss that left her unable to function for over a year.

She shares how an unexpected moment—sitting on the floor playing with slime, became a turning point. What started as a small escape turned into a path back to joy, presence, and ultimately, purpose. That moment became the foundation for Sloomoo Institute, an immersive experience designed to reconnect people to play, creativity, and emotional wellbeing.

Kevin and Karen explore the deeper meaning behind play, why so many adults lose access to it, and what it actually costs us personally and professionally. They also connect it to leadership, parenting, and performance, showing how joy, creativity, and presence aren’t distractions, they’re advantages.

This is a conversation about grief, reinvention, and the courage to build something meaningful from the most unexpected place.

In this episode
• How Karen went from journalist to building one of the first influencer agencies
• Spotting the future of digital, creators, and commerce before it existed
• The hidden personal struggles behind outward success
• Navigating profound loss, grief, and a complete life reset
• How a moment of play sparked healing and a new business idea
• The origin and rapid growth of Sloomoo Institute
• Why play isn’t just for kids and what adults lose without it
• The science behind sensory experiences, joy, and nervous system regulation
• Building a brand rooted in purpose, inclusion, and emotional wellbeing
• Expanding Sloomoo into a full-scale universe (products, storytelling, and more)

Key takeaways
• Success doesn’t follow a straight line, but patterns make sense in hindsight
• Innovation often looks like “crazy” before it becomes obvious
• You can be thriving professionally while struggling deeply personally
• Joy and play are not indulgences, they’re essential for wellbeing and performance
• Sensory experiences can be powerful tools for healing and emotional regulation
• The best businesses don’t just sell products, they create transformation
• Reconnecting with your inner child can unlock creativity, presence, and clarity
• Sometimes the smallest, simplest moments (like play) can change everything

About the guest
Karen Robinovitz is the co-founder of Sloomoo Institute, an immersive, sensory experience designed to deliver joy through hands-on play.

Before Sloomoo, Karen was a journalist and co-founded Digital Brand Architects (DBA), one of the first influencer marketing agencies, helping shape the creator economy as we know it today.

Her work sits at the intersection of storytelling, brand building, and cultural insight, but her most meaningful work came from turning personal healing into a mission-driven business focused on joy, inclusion, and mental wellbeing.

What does it really look like to build a career from nothing, and what happens when you finally get there?

In this episode of CEOs & ABCs, Joe Cannon, SVP at Hyperice, shares the full arc of his journey, from graduating into a brutal job market with no clear path, to piecing together freelance work, sleeping in his car, and chasing any opportunity that could get him in the room.

Joe opens up about the uncertainty and pressure of those early years, applying to hundreds of jobs with little response, and the resilience it took to keep going when nothing seemed to be working. That period didn’t just shape his career, it shaped how he sees people, opportunity, and leadership today.

Now at Hyperice, Joe sits at the center of one of the fastest-growing brands in wellness, helping drive partnerships, cultural moments, and global expansion. From the Super Bowl to SXSW, he’s been part of building a brand that’s redefining how everyday people think about recovery, performance, and health.

But this conversation goes far beyond business.

Joe reflects on what it means to navigate a high-performance career while raising two young children and the constant tension between ambition and presence. He shares the realities of modern fatherhood, the guilt, the trade-offs, and the small intentional choices that matter most.

At the heart of it all is a simple but powerful truth: your kids don’t care about your job title, your deals, or your wins. They just want you.

This is a conversation about hustle, perspective, identity, and redefining success, not just by what you build, but by who you show up as along the way.

In This Episode

Key Takeaways

About the Guest
Joe Cannon is the Senior Vice President at Hyperice, a global leader in recovery and wellness technology. He has played a key role in scaling the brand through major partnerships, cultural activations, and experiences across events like the Super Bowl, The Masters, and SXSW. Before Hyperice, Joe built his career through unconventional paths, freelance work, startups, and sheer persistence. Joe brings a unique perspective to leadership, growth, and opportunity.

What happens when a high-achieving career is working on paper, but no longer feels aligned in real life?

In this episode of CEOs and ABCs, Kevin sits down with Charisse Hughes, a senior marketing and growth executive who has led at some of the world’s most iconic consumer brands, including Estée Lauder, Pandora, Kellogg, and Kellanova. But this conversation goes far beyond titles and career highlights.

Charisse opens up about being raised by a single mother and grandmother who instilled in her the values of education, independence, faith, and community. She reflects on the years she spent on the fast track, getting promoted, traveling the world, and building an impressive career, while realizing that work had quietly become her entire identity.

She shares the pivotal decision to step away from a successful role without another one lined up, the fear that came with it, and the clarity she found on the other side. Kevin and Charisse also talk about leadership, ambition, bonus motherhood, and why presence is not something anyone gives you. It is something you have to choose.

This is a conversation about success, identity, reinvention, and building a life that reflects what truly matters.

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

• How Charisse’s mother and grandmother shaped her values around education, independence, faith, and service

• Why starting in finance gave her an edge as a marketer and business leader

• What she learned from moving into beauty, luxury, and global brand leadership

• The hidden cost of life on the fast track and how achievement became her whole story

• Why she left a successful role without another job lined up and what that season taught her

• How Pandora and Kellogg helped shape her leadership and confidence at the highest levels

• What becoming a bonus mom taught her about love, values, and showing up for family

• Why clarity, balance, and presence are not given to us, they must be chosen

Key Takeaways

• Success on paper is not always the same thing as success in alignment with your values

• Career momentum can become addictive if you do not stop to ask what it is costing you

• Taking a step back is not always career suicide. Sometimes it is the clearest move forward

• A background in finance can make marketers stronger, more commercial, and more influential leaders

• Leadership is not just about functional excellence. It is about adaptability, conviction, calm, and the ability to influence others

• Children reflect back what matters most and can keep us grounded in what is real

• You do not need to stay locked into a path just because it once made sense

• Nobody is going to hand you the clarity or balance you want. You have to choose it

Guest Links/Show Notes

About Charisse Hughes:

Charisse Hughes is a senior marketing and growth executive who has held leadership roles at some of the world’s most recognized consumer brands, including Estée Lauder, Pandora, Kellogg, and Kellanova. She has served as Chief Marketing Officer, led major brand and business transformations, sat on the board of Crocs, and was named CMO of the Year by Consumer Goods Technology in 2022. Known for combining commercial rigor with bold leadership, Charisse brings a powerful perspective on career growth, reinvention, and leading with purpose.

In this episode of CEOs & ABCs, Kevin sits down with Tariq Hassan, former Chief Marketing Officer of McDonald’s, to unpack a belief that shaped his entire leadership philosophy: you cannot get to incredible outcomes when fear of failure is baked into the system.

Tariq shares how growing up dyslexic quietly wired him for fear and overcompensation, and how that same “paralysis” shows up inside companies as the ideas people never share, the risks teams never take, and the opportunities no one even knows they missed. From Petco turnarounds to leading at one of the most iconic brands in the world, he explains why psychological safety is not a soft concept. It is a performance advantage.

You will hear the simple cultural shift Tariq used to make risk-taking real: celebrating “Amazing Almosts”, the best failures of the quarter, so teams could learn, pivot, and build confidence without losing accountability. Kevin and Tariq also bring this conversation home, exploring parenting, long-distance seasons, two high-performing careers under one roof, and the daily practices that help a child keep talking, especially when the stakes get higher.

This is a conversation about fear, trust, standards, and the environments we create, at work and at home, so people feel safe enough to grow.

In this episode, you'll learn:

Why fear of failure becomes invisible, but still drives behavior in high-performing cultures

What psychological safety looks like in real meetings, not in theory

How to build “risk with guardrails” instead of chaos or blame

The “Amazing Almosts” practice, and why celebrating the right failures changes everything

Repairing after you miss it as a leader, and why it only feels awkward the first time

The parenting parallel: when to catch, when to let them fall, and how trust is built

Long-distance parenting, presence vs quantity, and choosing the moments that matter

Why this mindset matters even more in an AI-driven world of continuous learning

Top Takeaways:

You can’t talk a team into psychological safety. You have to prove it through actions and rituals.

Fear shows up most in what doesn’t get said: the risks avoided, the debates not had, the ideas withheld.

The goal is not celebrating constant failure. The goal is learning fast, staying accountable, and building confidence to take smart swings.

Cultural change feels unnatural at first. Keep going until it becomes normal, and the language becomes part of how the team operates.

At home, psychological safety is often measured by one thing: they keep talking.

Presence is less about quantity and more about intentional moments your family remembers.

The best leaders repair quickly, build truth-tellers around them, and stay open to feedback even when it stings.

About Tariq Hassan:
Tariq Hassan is a senior marketing leader who most recently served as Chief Marketing Officer at McDonald’s. Prior to McDonald’s, he held executive leadership roles at Petco, Bank of America, and Hewlett-Packard, building a career across some of the world’s most recognizable brands. Known for blending performance with humanity, Tariq focuses on the cultural conditions that unlock high-performing teams, especially psychological safety, trust, and the ability to take smart risks without fear.

In this powerful and deeply emotional conversation, Kevin Rice sits down with Tracy Ryan, co-founder and Chief Communications Officer of nkore Biotherapeutics, to explore what happens when a mother refuses to accept “incurable” as the final answer.

Tracy shares the moment her 8-month-old daughter, Sophie, was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor. In a single phone call, her perfect life as a successful agency founder, new mom, and entrepreneur shattered. What followed was seven years of chemotherapy, 13 surgeries, blindness, seizures, and relentless uncertainty.

But Tracy did not collapse under the weight of it. She built.

From launching a medical cannabis company to support her daughter’s immune system, to producing a Netflix documentary, to raising millions for cancer research, Tracy transformed unimaginable trauma into purpose. When she discovered her daughter had zero natural killer cells in her brain, it sparked a scientific breakthrough that led to the founding of Encore Biotherapeutics, a company now developing next-generation immunotherapy for cancer patients.

This is a story about resilience, betrayal, faith, science, marriage under pressure, and what it really means to choose purpose over despair. Tracy’s journey is tragic, beautiful, and wildly inspiring all at once.

If you have ever faced something that felt impossible, this episode will change how you see suffering, strength, and what is possible.

In This Episode, You’ll Learn:

• What happens psychologically when a parent hears “brain tumor”
• Why pediatric cancer research is drastically underfunded
• How cannabis research led to breakthroughs in immune system science
• What natural killer cells are and why they matter in cancer treatment
• The difference between surviving trauma and transforming through it
• How entrepreneurship can become a vehicle for purpose
• Why 85 percent of marriages fail after a child’s serious illness
• The mindset required to build companies while living inside crisis
• How to find meaning inside overwhelming suffering
• Why resilience is often built, not born

Key Takeaways:

• Tragedy can either break you or become your calling
• Meaning is assigned, not discovered
• Trauma can sharpen purpose when processed intentionally
• Scientific breakthroughs often begin with personal desperation
• Resilience grows when you zoom out from the moment
• You cannot control the storm, but you can control your response
• Marriage under pressure requires active fighting for each other
• Sometimes the worst moments create the most powerful missions

About Tracy Ryan

Tracy Ryan is the co-founder and Chief Communications Officer of NKore Biotherapeutics, a company focused on developing innovative, plant-based therapies. She has become a leading voice in the health and biotech space, driven by her personal journey as a parent navigating complex medical challenges of her daughter, Sophie. Blending entrepreneurial leadership with lived experience, Tracy brings a deeply human perspective to her work, advocating for new approaches to treatment, resilience in the face of uncertainty, and the power of persistence when traditional systems fall short.

Show Notes:

Weed The People Documentary:

In this episode of CEOs & ABCs, Kevin Rice sits down with Seth Goldman, the founder of Honest Tea, which he built from a home kitchen concept into a category-defining brand and sold to The Coca-Cola Company in 2011. Today, Seth is the CEO and co-founder of Just Ice Tea, co-founder of PLNT Burger, Chair of the Board at Beyond Meat, and Chair of Tony’s Mission Lock at Tony’s Chocolonely.

Seth shares what it really takes to build and rebuild an iconic company, including why Honest Tea was ahead of its time, what it felt like to watch it eventually be discontinued, and how that unexpected ending created the opportunity to launch Just Ice Tea into a market with a massive vacuum. He also breaks down the difference experience makes in entrepreneurship, from having no relationships early on to now being able to scale faster because trust and credibility are already established.

The conversation goes behind the scenes of leadership and parenting. Seth opens up about launching Honest Tea while raising three young sons, including a major family health scare that happened the same day as his first Whole Foods presentation, and the reality that balance is not always possible. He shares how parenting shaped his leadership philosophy, why you cannot manage people the same way, and how focusing on outcomes over process can unlock performance in teams.

If you are building something big while trying to show up fully at home, this episode is both grounding and practical.

How Seth went from a mission-driven mutual fund career to founding Honest Tea with a breakthrough brand idea

What it was like building a startup while navigating a major family medical crisis

Why Seth believes balance is not always real, and how he stayed grounded anyway

The story behind launching Just Ice Tea after Honest Tea was discontinued, and how to spot opportunity inside loss

How parenting shaped Seth’s leadership style, including managing people based on how they learn and operate

Why purpose-driven businesses must scale to create meaningful impact

Startups and family life rarely move in neat seasons, life and business happen at the same time

Your relationships and reputation become your unfair advantage the second time you build

Great leaders focus on the outcome, then adapt the path based on how people work best

Purpose is not just values, it is a strategy that strengthens teams, trust, and resilience

The real legacy is not the exit, it is the impact you build and the family culture you leave behind

Seth Goldman is the co-founder and CEO of Just Ice Tea and the founder of Honest Tea, which he grew into a leading organic beverage brand and sold to The Coca-Cola Company in 2011. He is Chair of the Board at Beyond Meat, co-founder of PLNT Burger, Chair of Tony’s Mission Lock at Tony’s Chocolonely, and serves on multiple mission-driven boards focused on ethical sourcing and sustainable food systems. Seth is widely known for building purpose-led consumer brands that scale without compromising values, with a leadership philosophy grounded in transparency, long-term stewardship, and real-world impact.

In this episode of CEOs & ABCs, Kevin Rice sits down with Barry Westrum, a veteran restaurant marketer and former CMO who has helped shape some of the most iconic QSR brands including Dairy Queen, KFC, Del Taco, Long John Silver’s, and Taco John’s.

Barry shares what actually makes marketing work at the highest level. Building brands that win through emotion, cultural relevance, and disciplined execution, not just promotions and transactions. Drawing on his 18 years inside Yum! Brands, he breaks down the mentorship, training, and leadership frameworks that accelerated his career and consistently produced C suite talent.

If you aspire to the CMO seat, Barry gets specific about the skills that matter most. Leadership, creative judgment, and persuasion. Because marketing is ultimately the business of selling ideas. The conversation also goes behind the title. Barry opens up about building a meaningful family life while navigating senior leadership roles, including an 18 month commute during his time at Dairy Queen. He shares how setting clear boundaries at work allowed him to stay present for the moments that mattered most at home, and how modeling those boundaries helped shape healthier team cultures.

From raising two daughters to building a multi generational household rooted in creativity and connection, Barry offers a grounded look at what sustainable leadership really requires.

If you are navigating ambition, leadership, and family at the same time, this episode delivers both perspective and practical guidance.

In this episode:

Key takeaways:

About Barry Westrum:

Barry Westrum is a seasoned marketing executive and strategic advisor with more than 30 years of experience leading iconic restaurant brands. He has served as Chief Marketing Officer at Taco John’s International, Del Taco, KFC US, and Long John Silver’s, and as EVP of Marketing at International Dairy Queen, with nearly two decades at Yum! Brands earlier in his career. Today, Barry advises emerging AI and technology platforms across the restaurant and consumer space, bringing a clarity and focus leadership philosophy rooted in insight led marketing, strong culture, and emotional brand connection.

In this deeply personal and powerful conversation, Kevin Rice sits down with Michael Chachula, CTO of Propelled Brands and longtime technology and transformation leader across the restaurant and franchise industry, to explore how adversity, resilience, and empathy shape truly great leadership.

Michael opens up about losing his father as a teenager and how that early loss forced him to grow up fast. Without a single role model to follow, he describes how he began “auditing” the adults around him, learning in real time what kind of man, father, and leader he wanted to become. That mindset followed him into his career, where he learned early on that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to leadership, especially at the C-suite level, and that pausing, observing, and adapting can be a powerful advantage.

The conversation takes a deeply human turn as Michael shares what it was like to face prostate cancer while going through a divorce, navigating nearly a year of treatment largely alone. He reflects on confronting his own mortality, the spiritual moments that gave him strength to keep fighting, and how those experiences reshaped the way he shows up for his teams, his family, and himself. T

hroughout the episode, Michael connects leadership to compassion, self-awareness, and balance. From lessons learned working dozens of jobs at a young age to building a career across IT and business functions, he offers grounded insight into ambition, sacrifice, and what success really means. His message is simple but profound: care about people, and everything else follows.

This episode is for leaders, parents, and anyone navigating hard seasons while trying to build a meaningful life and career.

In This Episode You’ll Learn

- How early loss shaped Michael’s leadership style and work ethic
- Why there’s “no one-size-fits-all” approach to being a CIO or C-level leader
- The “art of the pause” and why “I don’t know” can be the strongest answer
- How moving between business and IT builds rare executive range
- The hidden costs of career acceleration on family time
- What cancer and severe hardship taught Michael about identity, spirit, and perspective
- Why caring deeply about people makes careers skyrocket

Key Takeaways
- Michael's early loss shaped his resilience and leadership style.
- Self-love is crucial for personal growth and overcoming adversity.
- Education amplifies hard work but cannot replace it.
- Experience is more valuable than formal education in career advancement.
- Elicitation skills are essential for effective leadership and negotiation.
- Facing mortality can lead to profound self-discovery and clarity.
- Balancing work and family requires conscious effort and prioritization.
- The journey of personal growth often involves navigating through challenges.
- Success is defined by the memories and relationships we build, not just career achievements.
- Being kind to oneself is vital in the face of life's challenges.

About Michael Chachula
Michael Chachula is the CTO of Propelled Brands, supporting multiple franchise brands including FASTSIGNS, Camp Bow Wow, and My Salon Suite. He’s held executive technology leadership roles across the restaurant and consumer industries, including FAT Brands and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, and has extensive experience navigating business transformation, operations, and technology at scale.

Book Recommendation:
- Confidential by John Nolan
- The Chachula Method: A Compass for IT Leadership in the Real World 
- Artificial Efficiency: A CEO's Practical Guide to Winning with AI: The Chachula Method – Part II

Anncy Rowe has spent decades building iconic beauty brands, but this conversation goes far beyond titles and milestones. In this episode of CEOs & ABCs, Kevin Rice sits down with the Chief Commercial Officer of Rodan + Fields to explore what it really looks like to grow into leadership over time while navigating identity, motherhood, ambition, and legacy.

Anncy reflects on rising through the ranks at L’Oréal without ever chasing a specific end goal, driven instead by passion for the work itself. She opens up about navigating imposter syndrome at every new level, being the only one in the room who looked like her, and learning to trust that she belonged. From loving the craft of brand building to leading a major omni-channel transformation at Rodan + Fields, Anncy shares how purpose and confidence are built through experience, not certainty.

The conversation also moves deeply into parenthood and seasons of life. Anncy shares the emotional reality of red-eye flights for birthdays her son would never remember, the wake-up call of burnout, and the moment of dropping her daughter off at college that felt like an “extraction.” She reflects on what it means to redefine yourself as your children grow more independent, asking the powerful question, “Who are you when you’re no longer caring for someone?”

This is an honest, thoughtful episode about ambition without a blueprint, leading with care, modeling behavior for teams and children, and preparing for the next chapter with intention. It’s a conversation for anyone navigating growth, change, and the evolving definition of success.

In This Episode You'll Learn

Why Anncy never chased titles but still rose to the C-suite

How passion builds confidence faster than career planning

What imposter syndrome really looks like at senior levels

Why over-sacrificing can lead to burnout

How to rethink presence in parenting and leadership

What changes emotionally when your child leaves for college

How to model boundaries and behavior for teams and family

Why legacy is about how you make people feel

Top Takeaways

Confidence is built through doing, not knowing

Imposter syndrome often signals growth, not failure

You don’t need a 10-year plan to build a meaningful career

Over-functioning eventually comes at a cost

Children learn more from what we model than what we say

Leadership and parenting require the same self-awareness

Preparing for the next life chapter is an act of leadership

Legacy is rooted in care, kindness, and impact

About Anncy Rowe

Anncy Rowe is a seasoned beauty industry executive and currently serves as Chief Commercial Officer at Rodan + Fields, where she is helping lead the brand through a major omni-channel transformation. She previously held senior leadership roles at L’Oréal, including on the Maybelline brand, and served as CMO of StriVectin. A passionate advocate for helping women feel confident at every stage of life, Anncy is also a mother of two and a leader deeply committed to purpose-driven growth, culture, and legacy.

Chapters

00:00 Loving the work without chasing the title
02:31 Rising through the ranks at L’Oréal
06:02 Confidence, tenacity, and imposter syndrome
10:07 Passion, purpose, and finding your industry
13:53 Leading Rodan + Fields through omni-channel change
18:56 Immigration, upbringing, and resilience
25:17 Over-sacrificing, burnout, and red-eye wake-up calls
27:35 Self-care, faith, and filling your cup
32:51 Modeling boundaries for teams
36:29 Dropping a child off at college
39:43 Redefining identity and the next chapter
42:49 Legacy, kindness, and being remembered