The 21 Hats Podcast is a weekly conversation with entrepreneurs who share their challenges and compare notes on how they’re coping with... more
This week, in episode 189, Paul Downs, Jennifer Kerhin, and Liz Picarazzi discuss the challenges couples face when one spouse... more
Obviously, there’s no one-size-fits all answer to that question, but this week Shawn Busse offers up a slew of smart... more
This week, in episode 188, we offer you a taste of the 21 Hats Live event we held in Fort... more
This week, Gene Marks tells us it’s time to update your clunky old technology. There was a time when he... more
This week, in episode 187, Matt Hoying, president of Choice One Engineering, explains to Shawn Busse and Jay Goltz how... more
This week, the founder and CEO of Small Business Majority talks about whether he heard what he wanted to hear... more
This week, in episode 186, Shawn Busse and Laura Zander discuss what exactly Laura’s job should be. She’s CEO, of... more
This week, Gene Marks offers to boldly go where no business owner has gone before. Few of us need to... more
This week, in episode 185, Jay Goltz, Jaci Russo, and Sarah Segal talk about whether it’s finally time for Jay... more
All businesses have ups and downs. This week, Tracy Bech, CEO of Starboard Collectives and co-author of the “60 Minute... more
This week, in episode 184, Mel Gravely, Liz Picarazzi, and Jaci Russo talk about how they set prices. Jaci explains... more
This week, Gene tells Loren Feldman about a little experiment he ran recently in which he boosted a post on... more
This week, in episode 183, Paul Downs, Jay Goltz, and Sarah Segal talk about sexual harassment and where you draw... more
This week, Shawn Busse, who soon will be boarding an Alaska Airlines plane made by the Boeing Company to attend... more
This week, in episode 182, Shawn Busse, Jay Goltz, and Jennifer Kerhin respond to a somewhat depressing view of business... more
That, at least, is what Gene Marks is planning to do. Gene tells Loren Feldman that the new rules, which... more
This week, in episode 181, Mel Gravely, Jaci Russo, and William Vanderbloemen talk about the possibility that, after several years... more
This week, Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman that while he’s excited about all of the great stuff we will eventually... more
This week, in episode 180, Jay Goltz, Jennifer Kerhin, and Liz Picarazzi discuss their efforts to get a better grasp... more
Well, yes, actually, but Gene Marks and Loren Feldman discuss two questions: One, what exactly is driving the boom? And,... more
In this week’s bonus episode, Cameron Madill takes us on his succession journey, which began years ago when he started... more
This week, Shawn Busse and Loren Feldman talk about some big changes coming to the world of small business. At... more
This week, in episode 179, Shawn Busse, Paul Downs, and Laura Zander talk about why 2023 was so challenging for... more
This week, John Arensmeyer, founder and CEO of the advocacy group Small Business Majority, tells us that he senses considerable... more
This week, we take a look back at the conversations we had last year about the many rewards and responsibilities... more
So here was Muhammad Abdul-Hadi’s idea for a pizza joint: First, buy a building in one of the most troubled... more
In our last conversation of the year, Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman about the nine habits that he believes have... more
This week, in episode 177, Shawn Busse, Liz Picarazzi, and Jaci Russo discuss what they learned in 2023 and what... more
This week, Gene Marks shares his suggestions for anyone looking to save a little on taxes. Start with your retirement... more
This week, in episode 176, Paul Downs tells Jay Goltz and Jaci Russo about the latest developments in his year-long... more
This week, Gene Marks talks through the latest developments in customer relationship management software, which is both his area of... more
It used to be that best practices in sales were pretty standard across the board. But since the pandemic and... more
This week, in episode 175, Jaci Russo explains how she put an end to her eight-month drought of new clients.... more
This week, Black Friday and Small Business Saturday will represent hugely important shopping days for many retailers. But Gene Marks... more
This week, in episode 174, Dana White drops a few surprises. When we began this podcast in 2020, Dana had... more
This week, in episode 173, Shawn Busse tells Jay Goltz and Mel Gravely why he doesn’t want his firm, Kinesis,... more
This week, Gene Marks warns business owners that the National Labor Relations Board has taken an action that could make... more
If you’ve been listening to this podcast, you know we spend a lot of time talking about all of the... more
This week, Shawn Busse tells Loren Feldman why he’s long been skeptical of big data, especially the data many businesses... more
This week, in episode 172, Liz Picarazzi tells Jay Goltz and Sarah Segal that her trip to a bear sanctuary... more
For months, Gene has been telling us about all of the cool things we’ll be able to do with Microsoft’s... more
This week, in episode 171, we meet Jaci Russo, the co-founder and CEO of BrandRusso and the latest addition to... more
This week, we learn that Gene Marks and Bernie Sanders agree on something, which is that there are better ways... more
It took a series of sad losses to turn banker Channon Kennedy into an entrepreneur. If a friend hadn’t lost... more
In this week’s bonus episode, Bill Fotsch, a business consultant, explains why he thinks much of the effort that he... more
This week, in episode 170, Jay Goltz tells Shawn Busse about the latest stop on his journey to figuring out... more
When Gene Marks and I recorded this episode of Dashboard on Friday, we were pretty sure the government was going... more
This week, in episode 169, Sarah Segal tells Shawn Busse that the other shoe has dropped. A couple of months... more
This week, Tracy Bech talks about why it’s important, from time to time, to review your margins, to compare them... more
This week, in episode 168, Shawn Busse, Paul Downs, and Liz Picarazzi talk about when it makes sense to walk... more
John Arensmeyer explains what the end of pandemic-era childcare support will mean for businesses. He also talks about the Department... more
This week, in episode 167, Shawn Busse, Jennifer Kerhin, and William Vanderbloemen discuss private equity. Both William and Jennifer have... more
This week, Dr. Randy Spencer talks about the changes that have been roiling the vet business. For one thing, that... more
This week, in episode 166, Mel Gravely—the newest addition to our podcast team—tells Shawn Busse and William Vanderbloemen how he... more
This week, in episode 165, Paul Downs, Jay Goltz, and Laura Zander don’t hold back. Laura and Jay both say... more
Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman that by almost any measure the economy continues to perform quite well. And yet, business... more
This week, in episode 164, Shawn Busse and Jay Goltz discuss a recent Business Journal report that a lot of... more
This week, Gene Marks and Loren Feldman agree that artificial intelligence is becoming the biggest story in small business, with... more
This week, in episode 163, Liz Picarazzi, Jennifer Kerhin, and Sarah Segal talk about whether they ever wish they could... more
Yes, it’s August, but Tracy Bech — co-author of “60 Minute CFO” — tells Loren Feldman it’s not too late... more
This week, in episode 162, Jay Goltz tells us that, on second thought, he did learn something important watching HBO’s... more
This week, Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman that the Silicon Valley notion that startups are threatened with extinction is ridiculous.... more
This week, in episode 161, Shawn Busse tells Jay Goltz and Jennifer Kerhin that he’s realized that his business, too—like... more
This week, Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman that it’s hard enough trying to run a small business in 2023, but... more
If you’ve been listening to this podcast, you know that we’ve been taking periodic dives into the world of employee... more
This week, in episode 160, Shawn Busse, Paul Downs, and Jennifer Kerhin talk about the challenges of communicating with employees,... more
This week, Gene Marks gives Loren Feldman a preview of what Microsoft is cooking up with a product called Copilot... more
This week, in episode 159, Shawn Busse, Jay Goltz, and Jennifer Kerhin talk about that difficult transition most growing businesses... more
This week, Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman about what he calls the “TWATS,” which is shorthand for hybrid workers who... more
This week, in episode 158, Paul Downs, Jay Goltz, and Sarah Segal talk about where the dust has settled after... more
This week, in episode 157, Liz Picarazzi, Sarah Segal, and Laura Zander wind up talking about artificial intelligence. They conclude... more
This week, Lou Mosca, who runs American Management Services, a consulting firm that helps businesses improve their performance, tells Loren... more
This week, in episode 156, we meet Jennifer Kerhin, the newest addition to the 21 Hats Podcast team. Jennifer’s business,... more
This week, in episode 155, Hans Schrei and Shawn Busse talk about why they put their businesses through accelerators, and... more
Gene has a problem with it. He doesn’t think it goes far enough. That’s because he thinks it gives businesses... more
This week, for episode 154, we did something different. We recorded this session in Chicago at our very first 21... more
This week, Ami Kassar tells Loren Feldman that in running MultiFunding, which helps businesses figure out their finance needs, he... more
So, I decided to give the 21 Hats Podcast crew this week off. Between the Memorial Day holiday and our... more
This week, in episode 153, William Vanderbloemen says good public relations is absolutely worth the time and money. Paul Downs... more
This week, Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman that he thinks the ban signed by Montana's governor is a political stunt... more
This week, Shawn Busse and Loren Feldman talk to John Garrett about his contrarian approach to newspapers, marketing, and competition.... more
This week, Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman that businesses should be making contingency plans in case there’s a default, especially... more
This week, in episode 152, Jay Goltz, Liz Picarazzi, and Sarah Segal talk about the inherent conflicts between being an... more
This week, John Arensmeyer, CEO of the Small Business Majority advocacy group, and Loren Feldman talk about some of the... more
This week, two special guests who have built highly successful companies talk about what they ultimately plan to do with... more
This week, Gene Marks takes Loren Feldman through a case study of how easy it is even for profitable businesses... more
This week, in episode 151, our conversation starts with Shawn Busse and Jay Goltz trying to understand why CEOs keep... more
Yes, demand is tapering, and a recession is looming, Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman, but this is a great economy... more
This week, in episode 150, Stephanie Stuckey tells Paul Downs and Liz Picarazzi how she and her partners have taken... more
This week, in episode 149, Jay Goltz tells William Vanderbloemen that even with an inventory glut, a cash crunch, and... more
Gene Marks tells Loren Feldman he’s not seeing it yet, but there’s reason to believe it’s coming. Gene also discusses... more
This week, in episode 148, Paul Downs, Sarah Segal, and Laura Zander discuss how they think about the possibility of... more
This week, Mel Gravely, CEO of Triversity Construction in Cincinnati, tells Loren Feldman why he still sees a recession looming—even... more
This week, in episode 147, Paul Downs tells Shawn Busse and Jay Goltz that his year has not gotten off... more
This week, Gene tells Loren Feldman why he hates the new Illinois law that requires businesses of any size to... more
This week, in episode 146, Jay Goltz and Laura Zander talk about the limits of their own management. Once a... more
This week, in the aftermath of the Silicon Valley Bank collapse, Gene Marks says he banks at Wells Fargo —... more
This week, in episode 145, Hans Schrei explains why he’s pursuing a deal with Costco and why his vision is... more
This week, Gene Marks and Loren Feldman discuss what it means for small businesses that some tax deductions are going... more
This week, Shawn Busse and Loren Feldman talk to Jeff Braverman about how he walked away from a career as... more
This week, Gene Marks and Loren Feldman discuss what it means for small businesses that some tax deductions are going away, some... more