The Grow Wire Podcast

Zero Carbon World is the U.K.-based nonprofit with the mission to affordably decarbonize society by reducing the use of fossil fuel and donating free electric car charging stations to big businesses (6:05). Director Cara Naden dives into the organization’s genesis (9:45) and how its grown over the last eight years (12:19). Most importantly, she dives into the devastating facts around carbon emissions (18:25), and why each of us is responsible to help reverse the footprint (20:19). Naden explains some of the barriers to producing and buying electric vehicles (25:21), before envisioning a world that balances the carbon cycle (33:22). Finally, she provides some success stories from her time with Zero Carbon World (35:47) and gives advice to any other nonprofit leader (36:22).

Former Head Coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes and Fox Sports Analyst Urban Meyer discusses leadership, culture and building long-lasting success. We start off by discussing his life beyond coaching (4:49) and the struggle in striking a balance between his passion for his career and his personal life (8:44). Meyer then dives into building successful programs across all of the colleges for which he’s coached (11:52) and the role culture played in that (16:21). He also reveals his secret to recruiting both players and staff (18:34), and his strategy in uniting people from diverse backgrounds under one goal (22:22). Finally, Meyer touches on leadership among players (22:34), safety around concussions (28:48), and what he’s learned in competing with Nick Saban (33:05).

This is the story of Creativity Explored, a San Francisco-based nonprofit that provides space, supplies, professional instruction and exhibition opportunities to artists with developmental disabilities. Hear firsthand from one of the organization’s artists, Rory, who reveals the impact Creativity Explored has on his life (1:25). Then, Development Director, Megan Hover, will take us back to the genesis of the organization (9:08) before diving into the philosophy behind the importance of art for people with disabilities (15:43). She also discusses some of the challenges Creativity Explored faces every day (21:50), and why those challenges are worth the result of seeing its artists featured in a gallery (26:35) and the community’s reaction to those artists (33:17). Finally, with a history working in the nonprofit sector, Hover reveals her biggest piece of advice for nonprofit leaders (39:08). Tune in for all of this and more!

For More, Follow Us Here:Creativity ExploredWebsite: https://www.creativityexplored.org/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/creativityexplored/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/creativityexploredTwitter: https://twitter.com/creativityxplrd (https://twitter.com/creativityxplrd)

(https://twitter.com/creativityxplrd)Megan HoverLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meganhover/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/meganhover/)

(https://www.linkedin.com/in/meganhover/)Fritz NelsonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/) Twitter:  https://twitter.com/fnelson (https://twitter.com/fnelson)

Grow WireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/) Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrowWire (https://twitter.com/GrowWire) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growwire/ (https://www.instagram.com/growwire/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/ (https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/)

Elyse Klaidman and Tony DeRose join us to discuss the intersection of art, technology and science as they experienced it throughout 22 years working for Pixar (3:47). Tony was a Senior Scientist at Pixar (8:29), Elyse was an art instructor and director of archives and exhibitions (12:25), and their two worlds collided when they created Pixar in a Box, an online resource exploring the academic concepts that go into creating Pixar films, including art, math, science and engineering (16:39). They dive into why Pixar in a Box is an important educational tool for younger generations (22:25), discussing how art and science came together for creative problem solving at Pixar (29:03). Of course, this was all part of the positive culture within the company, in general (32:43), which they believe other businesses can and should emulate (38:48). Finally, they reveal their hopes for the future of art, technology and storytelling, and how they’ll continue working toward that vision (43:05).

For More, Follow Us Here:

Pixar in a Box: https://www.pixar.com/pixar-in-a-box (https://www.pixar.com/pixar-in-a-box)

(https://www.pixar.com/pixar-in-a-box)Elyse KlaidmanLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elyseklaidman/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/elyseklaidman/)

(https://www.linkedin.com/in/elyseklaidman/)Tony DeRoseLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tony-derose-7538b32/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/tony-derose-7538b32/)

(https://www.linkedin.com/in/tony-derose-7538b32/)Fritz NelsonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/) Twitter:  https://twitter.com/fnelson (https://twitter.com/fnelson)

Grow WireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/) Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrowWire (https://twitter.com/GrowWire) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growwire/ (https://www.instagram.com/growwire/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/ (https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/)

On this episode of the “Grow Wire Podcast,” we’re joined by Lauren Woodman, the CEO of NetHope. She begins by explaining the purpose of NetHope, a consortium of 57 of the world’s largest humanitarian, development, and conservation organizations that work together with top technology companies to overcome some of the world’s largest problems (4:06). Woodman dives into the genesis of the organization (5:00) and its focus on overcoming the core challenges nonprofits faced 20 years ago (7:40) and are still facing today (13:27). After explaining how NetHope connects nonprofits to the technology sector (17:23), she shares inspiring stories of competitor companies coming together to do good (19:05). She also discusses the need for better technology and more data to measure outcomes (28:46), and why nonprofits should not be held to a set of criteria that hinders their ability to make a difference (37:53). Finally, she discusses the Center for the Digital Nonprofit and its focus on the transformative opportunities technology can create for nonprofits (42:32).

For More, Follow Us Here:

Lauren WoodmanLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lwoodman/Twitter: https://twitter.com/llwoodman (https://twitter.com/llwoodman)

(https://twitter.com/llwoodman)NetHope Website: https://nethope.org/ (https://nethope.org/)

(https://nethope.org/)Fritz NelsonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/) Twitter:  https://twitter.com/fnelson (https://twitter.com/fnelson)

Grow WireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/) Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrowWire (https://twitter.com/GrowWire) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growwire/ (https://www.instagram.com/growwire/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/ (https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/)

Former professional pitcher and current MLB pitching coach, Jim Brower, dives into the impact of analytics in baseball. First, he takes us back to his early years playing the game (4:01) and through the evol...

Angel investor and founder of the popular podcast, “This Week in Startups,” Jason Calacanis walks us through the evolution of the internet. He starts off with his own evolution, growing up in Brooklyn (5:07) and attending college at Fordham University where he originally intended to become an FBI agent but where he’d actually kickoff a lifelong obsession with the internet (9:15).  He opens up about starting a Zine in the ‘90s (13:45), helping Sony realize the power of web pages for musicians (17:02) and landing major deals (like Uber) with Sequoia Capital (19:39). Calacanis also discusses the early years of blogging (21:30), its massive impact on journalism (29:21) and his thoughts on the future of media (32:10). He goes on to explain his philosophy on angel investing (40:27), including training his brain to better understand odds (49:36) and dealing with controversy amid the companies in which he’s invested (1:02:30). Finally, Calacanis notes that the next generation of great founders are going to look much different than ever before, warning investors that if they don’t represent that shift in their own firms, they’re inevitably going to miss out. Tune in for more!

For More, Follow Us Here:

Fritz NelsonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/) Twitter:  https://twitter.com/fnelson (https://twitter.com/fnelson)

Jason CalacanisWebsite: https://thisweekinstartups.com/Twitter: https://twitter.com/Jason (https://twitter.com/Jason)

(https://twitter.com/Jason)Grow WireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/) Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrowWire (https://twitter.com/GrowWire) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growwire/ (https://www.instagram.com/growwire/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/ (https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/)

We’re getting intergalactic on this episode with NASA’s Director and System Capability Leader of the Advanced Communication and Navigations Division, Donald Cornwell, who takes us on his journey developing better space communication technology (5:37). But first, he brings us back to his childhood dreams of becoming an astronaut (10:00) and into his NASA internship during his days at the University of Maryland (15:53). Of course, that led to a lifelong career at NASA (minus a few detours that we’ll get into) in which Cornwell focused on laser technology for navigation and communication (21:03). He explains the benefits of lunar laser communication (30:04) as well as what we’re doing to pull better data from Mars (37:12) and the moon (45:41). Finally, he concludes by revealing some of the most exciting projects NASA is conducting throughout the next five to ten years (56:20).

For More, Follow Us Here:

Fritz NelsonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/) Twitter:  https://twitter.com/fnelson (https://twitter.com/fnelson)

Donald CornwellLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donald-cornwell-b711a72/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/donald-cornwell-b711a72/)

(https://www.linkedin.com/in/donald-cornwell-b711a72/)Grow WireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/) Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrowWire (https://twitter.com/GrowWire) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growwire/ (https://www.instagram.com/growwire/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/ (https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/)

Ocient co-founder Chris Gladwin joins this episode to take us down his entrepreneurial journey, starting as a child born and raised in Ohio (7:07) to his days at MIT (14:02), including the internship that kicked off his entire career. He dives into his first few jobs: Evaluating information technology products for Martin Marietta (now Locheed Martin) (21:34) and then building ethernet into portable PCs at Zenith Data Systems (24:07). His first startup, Cruise Technologies, stemmed from his time at Zenith, developing Wireless Thin Clients (29:00) from which he shares lessons learned in building respectful relationships with investors (32:19). He then goes on to explain how those lessons enabled him to raise money for his next startup, a music subscription service called MusicNow, which he founded in 1999 (38:47). Yes, he founded this company just a few years before iTunes, and yes, that’s a frustrating subject Gladwin discusses as well (44:15). However, his experience with MusicNow created a natural bridge into his next company, Cleversafe, the largest data storage system in the world (45:50), which he sold to IBM for $1.3 billion in 2015 (55:00). Finally, he explains the purpose for starting his current venture, Ocient, where he’s building new technology to analyze the world’s largest sets of data, faster than ever before (56:12).

For More, Follow Us Here:

Fritz NelsonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/) Twitter:  https://twitter.com/fnelson (https://twitter.com/fnelson)

Chris GladwinLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-gladwin-7ba42b/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-gladwin-7ba42b/)

Grow WireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/ (https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/) Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrowWire (https://twitter.com/GrowWire) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growwire/ (https://www.instagram.com/growwire/) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/ (https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/)

Former Bears Coach Mike Ditka joins this episode of the “Grow Wire Podcast,” which was recorded during a live event in Chicago—just in time for football season! Hear about the people who helped mold him into a great athlete and subsequent coach (4:43) as well as his thoughts on football today, how the game has changed and how players have transformed (9:08). He reveals some of the players he greatly admires in the league right now and explains why he believes the Bears are headed for the Super Bowl this year (13:41). Ditka also addresses the experiences that encouraged his transition from a great player into an even better coach (17:47) and dives into some of his other passions beyond the field (24:39). He concludes by fielding some questions from the audience, including what it takes to manage a successful team and the paramount moments from his career, both on and off the field (31:40). You won’t want to miss this one!

For More, Follow Us Here:

Fritz NelsonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson (https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritznelson/)Twitter:  https://twitter.com/fnelson (https://twitter.com/fnelson)

Mike DitkaWebsite: http://mikeditka.com (http://mikeditka.com/)

(http://mikeditka.com/)Grow WireLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire (https://www.linkedin.com/company/grow-wire/)Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrowWire (https://twitter.com/GrowWire) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growwire (https://www.instagram.com/growwire/)Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire (https://www.facebook.com/GrowWire/)