By The Northern Trust Institute
5
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The podcast currently has 17 episodes available.
Our guest today is on a mission to revolutionize the advertising industry and the way Gen Z spends money and spends time with one another.
Sam Obletz is the co-founder of Claim, which he launched with his classmate Tap Stephenson while at Harvard Business School.
The Claim app seeks to build a new way for friends to connect and for brands to reward their customers. This is done not with more screen time, likes and reposts, but through fostering authentic, in-person connections and experiences among peers around a brand.
And investors have taken notice, including the venture capital firm Sequoia Capital which announced its partnership with Claim last year.
In today’s episode, Sam will dive into Claim and share his insights on entrepreneurship, raising capital, and generational attitudes towards spending, among other topics.
In the episode we will learn:
What if your business could be owned by its own purpose?
In today’s episode, our guests discuss the emerging trend of business owners transferring ownership of their business to a purpose trust. Many business owners have begun to explore this alternative ownership structure as a means of preserving the values of their business, and ensuring that their business is not sold, long after the business owner is no longer around.
Natalie Reitman-White is the principal at Purpose Owned, a consultancy for ownership succession planning. In 2018, Natalie pioneered one of the first purpose trust ownership transitions in the U.S. with Organically Grown Company.
Ari Weinzweig is co-founder of Zingerman's Community of Businesses, which consists of various food-related companies including Zingerman’s Deli in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In 2022, with the help of Natalie, Ari and his business partner transitioned ownership of the Zingerman’s brand to a purpose trust.
In the episode we will learn:
(4:21) – What was the road to Zingerman’s like for Ari?
(7:08) – How did Natalie find her way to Organically Grown?
(10:02) – What interested Natalie and Ari in Perpetual Purpose Trusts?
(17:73) – Why was preserving the legacy of Zingerman’s important to Ari?
(21:32) – How can a business owner generate liquidity when they transfer their business to a Perpetual Purpose Trust?
(26:50) – Can Perpetual Purpose Trusts adapt to changing circumstances?
(29:24) – Who can sit on a trust committee?
(31:49) – What is the process and cost of transferring to a Perpetual Purpose Trust structure like?
(34:20) – Where can business owners start if they want to adopt a Perpetual Purpose Trust structure?
(36:51) – What is the ‘why’ that drives Natalie and Ari?
How do families talk about money together? They usually don’t.
But talking about financial matters with family does not have to be awkward or taboo. In fact, finding small opportunities to discuss money with your kids can build a foundation for having bigger conversations about the family’s wealth and estate plan.
As co-founder of Greenlight, Johnson Cook is helping to build this foundation for millions of Americans. Greenlight is a financial education app and debit card for kids and teens that allows parents to instantly send their kids money, set up chores and allowance, create savings goals, and more.
In today’s episode, Johnson shares his own entrepreneurial journey, as well as insights on how we can empower parents and kids with the tools to learn about, and talk about, money together.
In the episode we will learn:
Pat Kinsel likes to solve big problems. As founder and CEO of Proof, formerly known as Notarize, Pat created the first company that made it possible to legally notarize documents online.
Before Proof, Pat co-founded the technology start-up Spindle, which was acquired by Twitter in 2013. He was also a partner in the venture capital firm Polaris Partners where he helped build companies such as Drizly which was acquired by Uber.
In this episode, Pat shares insights for entrepreneurs young and old on building a company that “stands the test of time”.
In the episode we will learn:
Michael Kiolbassa is CEO of San Antonio-based Kiolbassa Provision Company which was started by his grandfather 75 years ago.
The company makes hand-crafted smoked sausages and bacon and has become the #2 beef sausage brand in the U.S. But the road has not been easy. In fact, each generation has had to reinvent the business in their own way to keep it moving forward.
Michael shares some of the principles and strategies that he and his family have adopted over the years which, in our experience, are common among successful enterprising families.
In the episode we will learn:
John Oppenheimer is the founder and chairman of Seattle-based Columbia Hospitality, which manages over 100 properties across the U.S., including hotels, resorts, golf courses, residential communities and event venues.
In addition to launching Columbia Hospitality in 1995, John has also founded five other successful, hospitality-related businesses.
In this episode, John discusses a broad range of topics from his book, Keys to the Room, including business insights, advice for young entrepreneurs, and how to “let your children be the teachers,” as John puts it.
In the episode we will learn:
So many of our clients ask us the age-old question, “How much is enough?”
Our guests on today’s podcast have spent the better part of their careers answering these questions. Steve Fradkin is President of Wealth Management at Northern Trust.
Pam Lucina lead’s Northern Trust’s Trust & Advisory Practice and is President of The Northern Trust Institute.
Steve and Pam discuss a new book that the Northern Trust Institute recently published titled “Secrets of Enterprising Families” which answers these questions of intergenerational wealth transfer along with many others which we will cover during our discussion.
In this episode you will learn:
This month, we'll be taking a brief hiatus to prepare for Season 2 of The Road to Why.
But we'll be back next month with more stories from business owners and entrepreneurs as they discuss their perspectives on business, family, wealth, and legacy.
So stay tuned for new episodes of The Road to Why, coming March 2024.
We'll see you then.
Abdur Chowdhury is a life-long entrepreneur. Early in his career, he rose through the ranks to become AOL’s Chief Architect. Abdur then went on to co-found Summize, a start-up where he pioneered a way to organize real-time opinions on the internet (and for which the BBC has dubbed him “the father of trending”). In 2008 Abdur merged Summize with another start-up by the name of Twitter and became Twitter’s first Chief Scientist.
Abdur holds over 50 patents and has launched more than 25 commercial products. Currently, he is CEO and co-founder of Aura Frames which specializes in digital photo frames that allow families to share pictures from anywhere.
In this episode, Abdur discusses his journey as an entrepreneur and provides tips for entrepreneurs starting out on their own journey.
In the episode we will learn:
At the age of three, Ed Hajim was kidnapped by his father, driven cross-country, and told his mother had died. As his father tried to find work overseas during the Great Depression, Ed spent his childhood in a string of foster homes and orphanages.
Despite these dire circumstances, Ed earned a scholarship to attend the University of Rochester, served in the U.S. Navy, graduated from Harvard Business School and went on to build an extraordinary career on Wall Street. As a philanthropist, Ed has supported numerous charitable organizations through his family foundation.
In today’s episode, Ed shares his story and life lessons, which you can read much more about in two books he recently published: On the Road Less Traveled and The Island of the Four P’s – a Modern Fable about Preparing for Your Future.
In the episode we will learn:
The podcast currently has 17 episodes available.
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