The Road to Why
by The Northern Trust Institute
Latest episode
Legacy Requires Humility with Brenda Smola-Foti and Frank Foti (The…
Legacy Requires Humility with Brenda Smola-Foti and Frank Foti (The…
About this podcast
From start-up entrepreneurs to multi-generational family business owners, most founders are driven to succeed for reasons well beyond making money. Whether it’s a passion for reshaping their industry, building a family legacy or advancing the causes they care most about — or, in many cases, all of the above — exploring the larger “why” of their life’s work offers insights into how successful leaders operate and what is really important to them.
On The Road to Why, host Eric Czepyha, Director of Business Services at Northern Trust, speaks with business owners, entrepreneurs and visionaries about business, family, wealth and legacy and shares advice and life lessons from those who have found success in ways expected and unexpected.
Episodes
The newest 20 of 28 episodes
- Legacy Requires Humility with Brenda Smola-Foti and Frank Foti (The Ground) · 27 min · Episode 25Brenda Smola-Foti and Frank Foti are co-founders of The Ground in Willamette Valley, Oregon. The Ground is a place that almost defies definition – it is a regenerative…
- Evolving from Founder’s Office to Family Office with Jill Barber (CYMI Holdings) · 32 min · Episode 24Jill Barber is President of CYMI Holdings, which serves as the family office for the Mathile Family. Jill joined CYMI in 1999 just prior to the family’s sale of Iams Pet Food…
- Business Stewardship with Nadia Rawlinson and Michael Alter (WNBA’s Chicago SKY) · 36 min · Episode 23Nadia Rawlinson and Michael Alter are co-owners of the WNBA team, the Chicago Sky. Nadia was the Chief People Officer at Slack Technologies when the company was acquired by…
- How to Play at Work with Robert Pasin (Radio Flyer) · 25 min · Episode 22“I think when a lot of business leaders hear me talk about play and fun, they think well, of course you would do that, you're a toy company. But I think it's so important that…
- The Importance of Storytelling with Katrina Markoff (Violet Flame Chocolate) · 31 min · Episode 21“And that's when this flood of clarity came in, and I was like, I'm going to use chocolate as a medium for storytelling.” Katrina Markoff is founder of the Chicago-based Violet…
- Why is Everyone Buying Ranches? with John Onderdonk (Northern Trust) · 25 min · Episode 20John Onderdonk is a fourth-generation cattle rancher and the head of Northern Trust’s Agricultural Properties Group which manages farm, ranch and timber assets as trustee and…
- A Study in Succession Planning with Jane Blain Gilbertson (Blain’s Farm & Fleet) · 32 min · Episode 19In 1955, Jane Blain Gilbertson’s parents started Blain’s Farm & Fleet in Janesville, Wisconsin. Today the business has grown to 45 stores across four states. Jane shares how…
- Taking Care of Your Employees with John Gabbert (Room & Board) · 28 min · Episode 18John Gabbert is founder and chairman of Room & Board, a home furnishings business headquartered in Minneapolis with over 1,100 staff members nationwide. As a young man, John…
- How to Thrive in Chaos with Sarah Grueneberg and Rob Mosher (Monteverde Restaurant) · 32 min · Episode 17“To be in the restaurant industry, you have to enjoy being on the precipice of great success or total disaster on an almost minute-by-minute basis.” – Rob Mosher Sarah…
- LIVE Episode: Taking the Long View with Brett VanderKamp (New Holland Brewing) · 31 min · Episode 16Today’s episode was recorded live at New Holland Brewing Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where we interviewed New Holland Brewing’s founder and CEO, Brett VanderKamp. Brett…
- Coming Soon… Secrets of Enterprising Families · 1 minThis month, we will be taking a brief hiatus as we prepare to launch a new podcast series, Secrets of Enterprising Families, airing in November. In this series, co-hosts Eric…
- Reshaping How Gen Z Spends Time and Money with Sam Obletz (Claim) · 29 min · Episode 15Our 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…
- How Purpose Trusts are Revolutionizing Business Ownership with Natalie Reitman-White (Purpose Owned) and Ari Weinzweig (Zingerman’s) · 41 min · Episode 14What 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…
- Helping Families Talk About Money with Johnson Cook (Greenlight) · 30 min · Episode 13How 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…
- Solving Big Problems with Pat Kinsel (Proof) · 32 min · Episode 12Pat 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…
- Getting Comfortable with Transparency with Michael Kiolbassa (Kiolbassa Provision Company) · 26 min · Episode 11Michael 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…
- Checking Your Ego at the Door with John Oppenheimer (Columbia Hospitality) · 31 min · Episode 10John 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…
- Unlocking the Secrets of Enterprising Families with Steve Fradkin and Pam Lucina (Northern Trust) · 34 min · Episode 9So many of our clients ask us the age-old question, “How much is enough?” • How much of my wealth should I give to my children? • At what age should I share my estate plan with…
- Coming Soon... Season 2 · 1 minThis 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…
- Creating Trends with Abdur Chowdhury (Aura Frames) · 27 min · Episode 8Abdur 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…
