Innovators on Tap

Chuck Swoboda sits down with Mark Swoboda, former LED industry leader, innovator, and brother (of Chuck). They discuss family dynamics, developing a competitive spirit, and even litigation between companies run by family members. This episode was hosted by Kate Trevey, Director of the E-Lead Program at Marquette University.

Chuck Swoboda sits down with Sharon Resch, former professional dancer, mathematician, and current philanthropist whose spent her whole life pursuing incredible opportunities and now devotes her time to supporting the arts and women focused initiatives.

Chuck Swoboda sits down with Bill Kraus, Co-Founder of Mission BBQ, to discuss Bill's early career at Under Armour, the importance of starting with your why, the commitment to community and country throughout Mission BBQ, and how to create a brand that matters.

We sit down with Rana Altenburg, President, and Keith Stanley, Executive Director, of the Near West Side Partners to discuss the origin story of this group driving change in the Near West Side of Milwaukee, the successes and learnings from the endeavor so far, and the tension that exists while guiding change.

We sit down with Peter Gunder, Chief Business Development Officer, and Ryan Rist, Director of Innovation, of American Family Insurance to discuss innovation inside a legacy company, anchoring yourself to the transformational side of things, and competing with startups.

We sit down with Nimit Sawhney, Founder & CEO of Voatz, and Hilary Braseth, Director of Product, to discuss innovation within the election industry, the SxSW hackathon origin story of Voatz, mindsets learned from previous jobs, and advice to young entrepreneurs.

We sit down with Rajesh Vashist, CEO of SiTime, to discuss various philosophies of innovation: the importance of leading with integrity, why revolutions begin at the margins, disruption as a large baseball bat, and the importance of suffering to create a great business.

We sit down with Glenn Reid, creator of iMovie and iPhoto and CEO of Marathon Laundry, to discuss creating great products, creating value during innovation, and why small teams are more successful.

We discuss all things innovation, brand building, and sub sandwiches with Christine Specht, CEO of Cousins Subs. Christine has had an interesting career path on her way to becoming CEO and she shares her insights on building team culture, creating a brand for the future, and how to be a visionary leader.

We discuss all things innovation, energy, and leadership with Tom Werner, CEO of SunPower. Tom has had a interesting career on his path towards becoming CEO and he shares his insights on flying high and low, the butterfly test, always being in a growth environment, and much more.