Clarity Generates Confidence

Itay Parness joins Gary this week to discuss business innovations and the affect Covid-19 has had on his company. Building Gama Sonic and bringing it to the US, Itay has used his passion for innovation to provide high-quality, energy-efficient products to consumers and DIY enthusiasts. With more and more people not only working from home, but spending more living time in their homes, home improvement projects have sky-rocketed – not a bad thing for a solar lighting company! With core values including ‘innovation without end’ and ‘quality is everything’, find out how Itay and Gama Sonic have managed to push through the pandemic and come out the other side stronger than ever.

This week’s conversation takes a new look at the effects of Covid-19 on businesses. Russell Bawks, a Solution Architect, works with companies to help them reach their goals, specifically with regards to supply chain processes. Russell discusses the effects of the pandemic on global trade, supply chain, and trends in companies responses to change. With a background in manufacturing and distribution, Russell sheds light on the reason for current changes in business strategy, as well as a look into what’s to come with physical vs online business trends.

Kristy Mottershead speaks about her experiences pre- and post-Covid. At 9 to Thrive, Kristy took health and wellness at a corporate level from onsite to online seamlessly. Through the evolution of the company during Covid, the benefits of running a company virtually have become apparent. By not being tied to a physical office, we remove geographical boundaries for both clients and staff. 9 to Thrive’s services have morphed into a connection point for their clients who no longer see each other on a daily basis. Listen to Kristy’s thoughts on a post-Covid world and what the workplace will look like in the future.

This week, we’re sitting down with Jay Reid from The Making Box in Guelph, ON. As an improv company, the transition from in person to online was a strange one, and yet surprisingly positive. We are able to make meaningful connections without meeting face to face and can address clients needs in a more immediate way with the transition to digital interactions. Listen to how Jay has taken this change with stride, and not only has adopted this outlook in his own business, but provides insight as to how it can be implemented industry-wide.  

Listen to this week’s Clarity Generates Confidence for a human resources perspective on the Covid crisis.  Christine Waters speaks to the changing landscape of the workforce, and the collision of HR and IT as we become more dependent on technology.  With insights on how the workplace is no longer a work place, discover the changes GCP has made in their hiring practices and employee interactions, and how these can be adapted to any organization.

As we enter season 2 of our podcast series, we are switching gears. While season 1 focused on preparing for a post-covid world, now that we can see a glimmer of light at the end of a very long tunnel, we are looking at going forward into 2021. We will have some new guests as well as familiar voices, starting with GCP’s VP of Marketing, Craig Mottershead. With Craig, we will discuss how 2021 will look, and what changed behaviours developed throughout the pandemic will remain in place. This is a new world we’re entering into, and we should not expect things to go back to the way they were a year ago. As stated in this podcast episode, you can’t bring the past into the future or you’ll never get there.

In this episode of Clarity Generates Confidence, Gary chats with Chef Rob Gentile.  As the chef/founder of Buca Restaurant Hospitality Group in Toronto, Chef Rob may just be the perfect person to ask what to do when life hands you lemons.  When Covid first reached Canada, Chef Rob was in a growth phase that screeched to a halt.  Faced with the hard question of what to do next, Chef Rob asked himself a powerful question: What do I love?  Listen to this inspiring podcast to discover the value of self-reflection and growth in the face of adversity.

In this latest installment of the Clarity Generates Confidence series, Gary speaks with long-time friend Jeff MacInnis about his experiences in the world of live and virtual events.  Through varied and unique experiences such as sailing the Northwest Passage, partaking in the Eco Challenge, and being a professional ski racer, Jeff has crafted a list of rules to live by.  He has been able to successfully translate the skills needed for these adventures into live and virtual events.  Together, Jeff and Gary discuss the importance of problem solving in the moment, treating life as an adventure, and being able to rely on those around you.

Bob Gorrie spoke with Gary as part of his Preparing for the Post Covid-19 World podcast series. Bob, who is the CEO of Gorrie Marketing which is a retail activation company, focuses on creating exceptional brand environments through point-of-sale, pop-ups and store-in-a-box displays. Together, Gary and Bob discuss the initial challenges of the pandemic and how it impacted Bob's business. Also, they examine what it means to have 5 generations of consumers all interacting in one market place and the difficulty of creating meaningful consumer experiences for each path to purchase.

As one of the founders of Strategic Coach, a worldwide leader in entrepreneurial coaching, Dan Sullivan and his team were running upwards of 500 workshops a year out of their various offices in North America and Europe. But as COVID-19 hit, Dan and his team had to pivot. He looked no further than to one of the biggest shifts taking place in the world. A new form of virtual transportation called video conferencing. Following a COVID-era surge in new clients from around the globe, Dan shares his thoughts on why he sees video conferencing as more of a transportation device rather than a communication one.