The Business Power Hour with Deb Krier

Martie McNabb sold her apartment in Brooklyn over six years ago and hit the road in her 21-foot campervan (named Brooklyn) to host story-sharing gatherings and interactive art/history exhibitions for individuals, families and organizations all over the country. She’s a legacy artist on a mission to build deeper connections, community and legacy through the stories of the Things that Matter. She’s been written about in the Wall Street Journal and featured in three books. She splits her time between her wife and mom-in-law in Albuquerque and her Mom in Vermont. And when she can she meets her wife, a marriage over 30 years in the making, on the dance floor where they met a lifetime ago. She’s launching a series of multi-author books all about the Things that Matter in 2024.

Audrey Joy Kwan coaches and consults with agency owners to free them from client delivery, empower them to lead more effectively, and grow seven-figure agencies. She's been in the agency space for over 20 years, has a master’s degree in communication focused on organizational development, and has supported agency owners to sell and exit by helping them build a business that gives them more time back.

Audrey hosts the “Small But Mighty Agency Podcast” and a community called Agency Together. Agency Together is a referral network to help agency owners get consistent referrals and grow the business through more collaboration and less competition.

She is on a mission to end the “dog-eat-dog” agency world, in other words, eliminate the belief that one agency’s gain is another’s loss, by helping grow niche agencies and bringing them together to get more referrals and strategic collaborations.

Aidan Mehigan is the Founder and CEO of Natterjack, a popular Irish whiskey brand he grew from zero to an internationally recognized liquor brand in less than five years. Natterjack, currently sold in 16 U.S. states and 13 global markets, was recognized as the Best Irish Whiskey 2024 in The Whiskey Bible and has 7+ figure annual revenues. The journey getting there wasn’t easy!

To fund the growth of his company in 2018, Aidan obtained a $940K+ convertible loan note. Then COVID-19 struck, and by the end of 2021, Natterjack had low cash reserves, international market sales were almost non-existent, and the Irish market was simply too small to sustain the business.

To make matters worse, the convertible loan note holder also wanted their money, and Aidan couldn't pay it back. This resulted in a legal battle that ended with the court ruling in Aidan’s favor, ending an attempted hostile acquisition and possible closure of Natterjack.

Maria Doughty became president and CEO of The Chicago Network in 2020. She served as a director at Allstate for nearly 25 years, most recently as director of public policy and corporate counsel, before taking the helm of Chicagoland's most influential executive leadership organization, which is home to more than 500 women at the forefront of the city’s business, professional services, cultural, non-profit and educational institutions.

Caroline Crawford is a seasoned marketing and communications expert with a 13-year successful track record of blending the visionary with the integrator. After seeing first-hand how the marketing industry fuels shiny object syndrome, Caroline founded Cultiveight Communications to address challenges faced by businesses such as limited resources and market pressures. Cultiveight Communications provides the tools, resources, and support business leaders need to align marketing initiatives effectively to achieve overarching business goals, amplify their brand, and connect with their audience. Caroline is on a mission of supporting more business leaders to secure an integrated marketing approach that goes beyond typical marketing gimmicks.

Dr. Jeff D. Standridge helps organizations and their leaders generate sustained results in the areas of innovation, strategy, profit growth, organizational transformation, and leadership. He works extensively with health care organizations, technology companies, and tech-enabled companies across all industries.

Formerly a Vice President for Acxiom Corporation, Jeff has led established and startup business units in North and South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Jeff serves as Managing Director for the Conductor, as well as for Innovation Junkie. He is a Co-founder and Managing Partner of Cadron Capital Partners, and teaches in the College of Business at the University of Central Arkansas. He is also retired from the U.S. Army, Arkansas Army National Guard.

Jeff and his wife Lori make their home in Conway, Arkansas.

Kimberly Spencer is an award-winning high-performance, trauma-informed coach and trainer, Amazon best-selling author, TEDx speaker, and the founder of CrownYourself.com and Communication Queens, helping visionary leaders transform their self-limiting stories, build their empire, stand out fearlessly, and make the income and the impact they deserve. Her book, Make Every Podcast Want You: How to be so Radically Interesting You'll Barely Keep from Interviewing Yourself, just launched in September of 2024 and is already a best-seller!

Click here to purchase Make Every Podcast Want You.

Amanda Kenderes is a professor of interdisciplinary studies at Humphreys University. She holds a Ph.D. in Social Science and Comparative Education from the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies at UCLA. She grew up in North and South America, Asia, Africa, and Europe. She is the author of Talk Types: How what we say reveals who we are.

Click here to purchase Talk Types.

The Fresh Princess of Email Marketing, Liz Wilcox is an email strategist and keynote speaker showing small businesses how to build online relationships and make real money with emails. She’s best known for selling a blog, turning a $9 offer into multiple six-figures (without ads), and helping you untangle the email “knot” with her simple framework, the Email Staircase. She loves the 90s, headbands, and the beach.

KC Cohn is a Visionary Coach, empowering highly-motivated women entrepreneurs, compassionate coaches, and creatives who feel stuck and unfulfilled in their businesses. KC helps them break through mental blocks, align with their true selves, and magnetically attract clients, money, and opportunities. What sets KC apart is her unique method that combines deep emotional work with creative branding, giving her clients the confidence and clarity needed to succeed in life and business.