Prosper Podcast

Magatte Wade is on a mission to liberate African economies from the overregulation that holds them back. Hear her inspiring personal story and why she insists that jobs and energy are the true keys to a thriving Africa.

• Magatte Wade recommends our colleague Luke Burgis' forthcoming The One & the 99.
• Her book The Heart of a Cheetah is a blueprint for human flourishing in Africa.
• Tiossan Academy educates African children in virtue, character, entrepreneurship and business skills.
• Join us for The Busch School of Business' Spring Family Business Consortium meeting.
• Find out more about entrepreneurship at Catholic University of America at our website: CioccaCenter.com

Meet the co-owner of Right Proper Brewing Company, Thor Cheston. He engages in deep conversation about his journey from a liberal arts graduate to a successful entrepreneur in the craft beer industry. As well as discussing the challenges faced in the competitive market, the importance of adapting business strategies, and the implementation of radical transparency through open book management. The conversation highlights the significance of understanding customer needs, financial literacy, and effective leadership in achieving business success.

• Thor Cheston is currently reading Andreas Widmer's book The Art of Principled Entrepreneurship: Creating Enduring Value.
• He's also reading Good Profit: How Creating Value for Others Built One of the World's Most Successful Companies. And Saved in Hope: Spe Salvi: Pope Benedict XVI.
• He is a big fan of the book The Great Game of Business, Expanded and Updated: The Only Sensible Way to Run a Company.
• You can learn more about Thor Cheston and his wonderful brewery at Right Proper Brewing Company.
• Visit the Brew Pub at Shaw — Right Proper Brewing Company.
• Thor mentions "EBITDA" earnings: Earnings Before Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization.
• Register for the Family Business Consortium at familybusinessconsortium.org.
• Find out more about entrepreneurship at The Busch School of Business by visiting cioccacenter

​​Meet the Fintech pioneer Brian Hamilton. He shares his journey from growing up in modest circumstances to co-founding Sageworks, one of the first financial technology firms in the U.S. He reflects on the challenges of a startup, building success through perseverance, and the lessons learned along the way. Today, Hamilton leads the nonprofit Inmates to Entrepreneurs, helping people with criminal records start their own businesses and rebuild their lives. Through stories of faith, failure, and second chances, he reminds listeners that real success is measured not just by profit, but by purpose.

• Brian Hamilton is reading A Season on the Brink: A Year with Bob Knight and the Indiana Hoosiers (A Gift for Basketball Fans): Feinstein, John: 9781451650259.
• Learn more about Brian Hamilton and his wonderful work at Brian Hamilton Foundation.
• Learn more about some of Brian Hamilton's work with Inmates to Entrepreneurs.
• Find out what the Ciocca Center can offer you at The Ciocca Center.

Meet Robert L. Woodson Sr., the founder of the Woodson Center, veteran of the American Civil Rights Movement, and advocate of poverty alleviation and disadvantaged communities. From growing up in segregated Philadelphia to building a national movement for change, Woodson invites us to see people not as problems, but as untapped potential ready to prosper. We explore how business, virtue, and redemption can transform lives and communities.

• Mr. Woodson is currently reading The Future Once Happened Here: New York, D.C., L.A., and the Fate of America's Big Cities: Siegel, Fred.
• He is an acomplished writer of many good books, including The Triumphs of Joseph: How Todays Community Healers Are Reviving Our Streets and Neighborhoods
  Lessons From the Least of These: The Woodson Principles
  Red, White, and Black: Rescuing American History from Revisionists and Race Hustlers
• His number one bestseller is called A Pathway to American Renewal: Red, White, and Black Volume II.
• You can learn more about the wonderful work done by the Woodson Center, as well as view informational cartoons, at Woodson Center, as well as view informational videos produced by The Woodson Center at https://www.youtube.com/@WoodsonCenter/shorts
• Check out this article, recomended by Mr. Woodson, about Piney Woods by Jason Riley, The Enduring Success of Piney Woods School - WSJ
• Find out what the Ciocca Center can offer you at The Ciocca Center.

Frederic Sautet joins us for this Christmas episode of Prosper. He is a scholar of economics and entrepreneurship who brings a thoughtful conversation on vocation, virtue, and the deeper meaning of business. He discusses his path from France to the Ciocca Center, his academic influences, and the spiritual dimension of work. As well as a rich economic and moral discussion of the movie, It's a Wonderful Life. Examining entrepreneurship, community, sacrifice, and the tension between false and authentic individualism in one of America’s most beloved films.

Frederic Sautet is currently reading:

• Fire Within: St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross and the Gospel-On Prayer
• Vindicating the Founders: Race, Sex, Class, and Justice in the Origins of America

Meet strategic marketing genius and professor John Egan. He teaches Marketing and Sales here at the Busch School of Business of The Catholic University of America. John Egan discusses his journey from Ireland to the United States, and the professional journey that led him to marketing and sales. He gives a shorter version of his fascinating course in marketing. Our conversation offers both practical insights and moral clarity for anyone who wants to start or grow a business.

• You can get in touch with John Egan through his LinkedIn @johnegan99 and through email @[email protected].
• John Egan is currently reading Excellent Sheep: The Miseducation of the American Elite and the Way to a Meaningful Life
• Find out what the Ciocca Center can offer you at The Ciocca Center

In this episode of Prosper, host Andreas Widmer and co-host Rebecca Teti welcome Elise Crawford Gallagher, COO of J.C. Law and founder of Catholic Women in Business. Elise discusses her journey from marketing to law, her passion for empowering women in business, and the challenges she faced in building her marketing agency. The conversation also delves into her book, Holy Ambition, which addresses the integration of faith and ambition for women in the workforce. The episode emphasizes the importance of community, work-life balance, and the unique contributions of women in various fields.

• Learn more about the enlightening work of Catholic Women in Business.
• Elise Crawford Gallagher is curently reading Your Eucharistic Identity: A Sacramental Guide to the Fullness of Life.
• You can purchase Elise Crawford Gallagher's book Holy Ambition: Thriving as a Catholic Woman at Work and at Home.
• Join the Facebook community for Catholic Women in Business @catholicwomeninbusiness.
• Connect with Elise on LinkedIn.
• Visit us at CioccaCenter.com or @cioccacenter on your favorite social sites.

We're proudly part of The Busch School of Business at Catholic University of America.

In this episode, we welcome Iqbal Quadir, founder of Grameenphone, to discuss the transformative power of connectivity in alleviating poverty. Iqbal shares his journey from Bangladesh to Wall Street, highlighting the importance of viewing people and what they can do as the source of economic growth. The conversation delves into the challenges faced in disrupting an industry's typical way of thinking, the power of a sudden flash of entrepreneurial insight, and what happens when you include new people in circles of productivity. Iqbal emphasizes that empowering individuals to utilize their resources effectively is key to powering development in under-developed countries, and innovation anywhere.

Iqbal Quadir is reading: The Silk Roads: A New History of the World

A book was written about Iqbal Quadir called You Can Hear Me Now: How Microloans and Cell Phones are Connecting the World's Poor to the Global Economy

Find out what the Ciocca Center can offer you at The Ciocca Center

Iqbal Quadir's email address: [email protected]

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Meet the team from Hope Western Prison Education Program, who are bringing an entrepreneurial approach to prison education. It's not the typical job skills training, but an innovative liberal arts program that helps people find meaning and purpose, even within the walls of a prison. This is a hopeful example of how entrepreneurial alertness can solve serious social problems.

• Find out what the Ciocca Center offers at The Ciocca Center
• Join us for Fall Meeting: Family Business Consortium - The Busch School of Business - The Catholic University of America | CUA
• Find out more about the prison education program at The Hope-Western Prison Education Program
• Follow along with the program through their Facebook The Hope-Western Prison Education Program
• Check out some touching highlights from the first Hope WPEP graduation at 2025 HWPEP Commencement Highlights

In this episode of Prosper, host Andreas Widmer and Rebecca Teti welcome Matt Hangen, CEO of Water4, to discuss his journey from a troubled youth in Alabama to leading a project that provides sustainable piped water solutions in Africa. The conversation explores the innovative business model of Water4, which combines philanthropy with entrepreneurship and the power of the free market to overcome the limitations of conventional NGO approaches while uplifting women and families. You won't want to miss this powerful episode.

Learn more about the innovative work of Water4.org.

Matt Hangen is reading The Courage to Be.

Join us for the Fall Meeting of the Family Business Consortium.

Find out what the Ciocca Center can offer you at cioccacenter.com