CEO Conversations
Our CEO guests are beacons of inspiration for young women on the “Preparing for the Possibility” podcast. Enjoy!
WHERE TO FIND US: Apple iTunes, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts under ABC to CEO. Be sure to subscribe to get the latest podcast release.
Mona is the Founder and CEO of Stay In The Game, a remarkable company helping women stay in the game while also tending to other responsibilities. Mona saw that women were stepping away from their careers in order to have children or to take care of parents and then having a very difficult time getting back into the workforce. Being a serial entrepreneur, Mona saw a problem and then created a solution! Stay In The Game provides women the opportunity to work remotely and keep their resume current and up-to-date. Tune in to hear some of Mona’s best tips for entrepreneurs, leadership and for staying in the game!
DeLisa is also the Co-Founder and Developer of Storyville Gardens. In this episode, she shares her recipe for success, talks about the impact of representation, the incredible example her mother is and the importance of thinking big. DeLisa reminds us that the scale of our vision is up to us and we can choose to think small or think big, so think big! She also shares how her love for reading and writing and the need for literacy led to the vision for Storyville Gardens, a theme park based upon literacy. She is a true powerhouse and one of the few minority women in real estate development. We are thrilled that she took time to speak with us and share her story. We hope it inspires you to think big and go after your own goals!
Today, Sharon Fiehler welcomes Andra Kidd to the show. Join us as we uncover the strategies and mindset shifts that could redefine your professional journey. When this episode was recorded, Andra was the Chief Growth and Strategy Officer for Verdantas, now she is the CEO of Spheros Environmental. Learn the moves that propelled her career forward, moves that you, too, can apply to navigate your own path to success.
Shellye Archambeau is an experienced CEO and Board Director with a track record of accomplishments building brands, high performance teams, and organizations. Ms. Archambeau currently serves on the boards of Verizon, Roper Technologies, and Okta. She is also a strategic advisor to Forbes Ignite and advisor to the President of Arizona State University, and serves on the board of two national nonprofits, Catalyst and Braven. Ms. Archambeau has over 30 years of experience in technology. She is the former CEO of MetricStream, a Silicon Valley-based, governance, risk, and compliance software company. During her tenure MetricStream grew from a fledgling startup into a global market leader. She is the author of Unapologetically Ambitious: Take Risks, Break Barriers and Create Success on Your Own Terms. A book that will inspire you and provide the tools to enable you to fight the battles, make the tradeoffs and create the life you want. She is also a Forbes contributor and the protagonist of the Harvard Business School Case Study: Becoming a CEO. Ms. Archambeau enjoys the performing arts, traveling, cooking and writing a blog that provides career advice, insights and other musings.
Meet Jenny Just — one of the world’s most successful women in business. Until now, Jenny was so focused on building and leading her fintech empire that she rarely entered the spotlight. Today, she steps into the spotlight to tell the world and ABC To CEO founder, Sharon Fiehler, about her latest venture — Poker Power.
Jenny Just explains what risk looks like when you are in your twenties and offered the “opportunity” to turn around your first company. Do you say yes?
Hear about lessons learned as she co-founded PEAK6 in 1997 with $1.5M in seed capital as a proprietary options trading firm and grew it into a multibillion-dollar financial services and technology giant, housing the next generation of products & service brands including PEAK6 Capital Management, PEAK6 Strategic Capital, Apex Fintech Solutions, Apex Crypto, PEAK6 InsurTech, Evil Geniuses, and Zogo.
Jenny co-founded Poker Power with her daughter, Juliette. Poker Power is dedicated to inspiring one million fearless women through the game of poker. In this podcast, she describes the many ways the strategies utilized in poker have direct application to success in business — and in life.
Jenny is cited by Forbes as a “Little Known Woman Billionaire [who] Built a Fortune Powering Fintech Firms like SoFi and Webull.” She is about to be featured in TIME magazine and was recently invited to the New York Stock Exchange during Women’s History Month at the International Women’s Day Summit — with a 120’ version of her image on the NASDAQ Tower in Times Square. She and her daughter have a TEDx Talk titled “How The Power of Poker Is Changing The Game For Women.”
Jocelyn founded Him For Her, a social impact venture aimed at accelerating diversity on corporate boards. She has over two decades of technology experience building iconic global mobile apps and market-leading software products at some of the world’s best local, consumer, and marketplace companies, including CitySearch, Ticketmaster, OpenTable and Snagajob. Jocelyn currently serves on the boards of Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ: PZZA), ChowNow, and Wag! (NASDAQ: PET) and is an advisor to Homebase and CORE. She is a part-time moderator for the Netflix Leadership Program. Jocelyn was honored as a member of the 2016 class of Henry Crown Fellows at the Aspen Institute, was a global ambassador for the Vital Voices Global Partnership, and was one of Fast Company’s “100 Most Creative People in Business” in 2015.
Beth Chesterton welcomes Jennifer Vigne to the ABC to CEO “Preparing for the Possibility” Podcast. Jennifer Vigne is the President and CEO of the Education Foundation of Sarasota County. She has won numerous awards and is the perfect person to provide advice for young women with great aspirations!
In this episode, Jennifer shares a wealth of knowledge about reaching your potential, finding your passion and striving for excellence, not perfection. Tune in to be inspired and ready to tackle what comes next!
Our Founder Sharon Fiehler talks to three successful engineering CEOs. Bisa Grant is the CEO of ANCHOR, Lauren Evans is the Founder and CEO of Pinyon Environmental, and Susan Angyal is ERM’s Regional CEO for North America. You will learn from each of our panelists and will also enjoy listening to them build on one another’s comments and illuminate themes about the path to CEO and how to succeed once there.
Leslie Gill
Sharon Fiehler welcomes Leslie Gill to the ABC to CEO Preparing for the Possibility Podcast. Leslie Gill is the President of Rung for Women — an organization that empowers women to achieve economic success, holistic well-being, and a joyful life. In this episode, Leslie shares her career story that leads her from in-demand college recruit to DC politics and then rapidly to the C-Suite.
Stacy Taubman has a proven track record of building profitable businesses using emerging digital marketing tools and leveraging social capital. A serial entrepreneur, former medspa owner, digital marketer, and revenue generator, Stacy has been recognized by NBC News, USA Today, Good Morning America, Bloomberg, and ELLE Magazine, and received countless awards for innovation and business leadership.
Rhonda is the Executive Director of St. Louis Lambert International Airport. She is responsible for $7 billion in impact on the region with revenues of more than $183 million and serving nearly 16 million passengers annually.
Julie Lilly
As CEO of St. Louis Trust & Family Office, Julia J. Lilly (Julie) is responsible for client service and satisfaction, finance, business development and strategic planning. Julie is a member of the Management, Risk Management, Trust and Information Technology Steering Committees.
Laura D’Asaro
In this episode of ABC to CEO: Preparing for the Possibility Podcast, you will meet Laura D’Asaro — CEO, inventor, Forbes 30 Under 30, Guinness World Record holder, and a woman who not only convinced Shark Tank’s Mark Cuban to invest in her company, but also convinced millions to eat…bugs. In this episode, Laura shares lessons learned and advice about how to stay motivated to keep moving forward. Learn more about Laura’s fascinating journey and her revolutionary company, Chirps.
Pooneh Mohajer
Pooneh Mohajer is the CEO & Co-Founder of tokidoki — a sought-after global lifestyle brand. This innovative company is known not only for its eye-popping aesthetic and cult-like following but also its megawatt partnerships with evergreen brands such as Hello Kitty, Karl Lagerfeld, LeSportsac, Barbie, Sephora, Marvel and others.
Pooneh sold her first business, Hard Candy, to LVMH, Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA, an international luxury goods conglomerate. Hard Candy is a color cosmetics company that revolutionized the nail enamel and cosmetic industries worldwide. Pooneh is a recipient of many awards and a founding member of Inc. Magazine’s Board of Advisors. She is also a proud member of Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches exclusive community.
Luann Abrams
Luann is the founder of CEOX with the mission of getting more women into CEO roles. From her time in venture capital as a partner at FoundersPad, an early-stage venture fund, she was compelled to find a solution to the inequities in leadership she saw at growing startups.
Adrian Bracy
Adrian Bracy is an author, leadership coach, and motivational speaker. She is a retired NFL Executive and retired nonprofit CEO who loves traveling, helping others, and a good visit to the spa.
Maryann Bruce
Maryann is an experienced independent director and Former Fortune 100 Division President & CEO. She currently serves on the board of Amalgamated Bank (NASDAQ: AMAL), the advisory board of RealBlocks, a VC-backed FinTech, and Chairs the Board of Wrestle Like A Girl. Maryann is passionate about cultivating women leaders and helping them achieve success in their careers and life.
Jenny Johnson
Jenny Johnson is president and chief executive officer of Franklin Templeton, a global investment management organization. She is also a member of the company’s board of directors. Jenny Johnson is responsible for developing the company's overall strategic direction, executing on its strategy, and advancing Franklin Templeton’s client-centric culture.
Margo Cook
Join Sharon Fiehler as she talks with Margo Cook, one of the top women in asset management in the nation, leader among female asset managers and former President of Nuveen Advisory Services. While at Nuveen, Margo led global client organization, overseeing product, marketing, distribution and solutions for the firm, which has over $1 trillion in assets under management. She also lead Nuveen’s strategy to deliver consultative, outcome-focused advice and investment solutions to clients worldwide.
Barbara C. Archer
Cabanne Howard
Ward Klein
Lauren Herring
Lauren Herring passionately provides leadership to IMPACT Group as CEO, where she has transformed the company into a global leader in career and leadership development. Prior to her current role, Lauren was President of Global Services where she was responsible for all international business development and operations. Under Lauren's leadership, IMPACT Group now operates in more than 65 international locations in the Americas, Europe and Asia.
Kathy Mazzarella
Kathleen M. Mazzarella is Chairman, President and CEO of Graybar, an employee-owned, FORTUNE 500 distributor of electrical, communications and data networking products. With more than 8,700 employees, 289 locations across North America and $7.2 billion in annual revenue (2018), Graybar offers its customers convenient local service, backed by the strength and supply chain capabilities of a large company.
Lisa Nichols
Join Sharon Fiehler and Beth Chesterton as they talk with Lisa Nichols, CEO of Technology Partners. Technology Partners is an award-winning, certified Women Business Enterprise that provides premier IT staffing and solutions across the United States. They partner with hundreds of clients across a range of industries nationwide, with long-term client and consultant relationships.
Greg Boyce
Join Sharon Fiehler as she talks with Gregory H. Boyce, Chairman and CEO of Peabody Energy from 2007-2015. During his tenure, Peabody dramatically improved its U.S. safety performance and increased revenues and earnings. Greg is the only CEO to be named among the top chief executives for both the energy and mining sectors, garnering extensive national recognition.
Jenny Bristow
Our founder Sharon Fiehler interviews Jenny Bristow, Founder of Anvil Analytics. Jenny gives insight into managing her employees during a pandemic and tips on how to stay ahead of trends in a digital world. She has brilliant advice for women as they embark on their journey to the C-suite.
Jeane Hull
Join Sharon Fiehler as she talks with Jeane Hull — a former Executive Vice President and Chief Technical Officer at Peabody Energy (a $20 billion company at its peak). Today, Jean serves on multiple boards and provides a wealth of information about what it takes to succeed in challenging times and as a woman in business.
Tracey Brophy Warson
Sharon Fiehler talks with Tracey Brophy Warson, an advisor to startups in clean energy, food sustainability and fintech. Tracey is also a private investor and works with non-profits serving the underresourced and underrepresented.
Laura Herring
Join Sharon Fiehler in a conversation with Laura Herring, Founder and Chair Emeritus of IMPACT Group, a global leader in the human resource consulting space. A successful entrepreneur, author and internationally known speaker, Laura also plays an active role in organizations that focus on the arts and stimulate economic growth in St. Louis and beyond.
“In the future, there will be no female leaders. There will just be leaders.”