Thinkset Podcast

Picking up where we left off in our previous episode, host Eddie Newland continues his conversation with BRG Director Ben Fouracre, and Archana Kotecha, Head of Legal at Liberty Shared. They discuss where where human trafficking occurs, the global supply chain and where businesses should take caution, and ethical sourcing for everyday consumers.

In this episode, host Eddie Newland speaks with BRG Director Ben Fouracre and Archana Kotecha, Asia Region Director and Head of Legal at Liberty Shared. They discuss the state of human trafficking around the world and how it may affect businesses and supply chain economics. They also review analysis regarding where human trafficking occurs, the global supply chain and where businesses should take caution, and ethical sourcing for consumers.

BRG Principal Abhijit Yadav joins the podcast to talk about the Indian economy and BRG’s work in the region. Discussion includes his background as a signal intelligence officer for the Indian Navy, the evolving nature of India's economy, changes in regulation leading to economic growth, and the potential future for the Indian economy as a whole.

BRG Director David Kalat talks about his path to becoming a forensic expert. Discussion includes his background as a digital historian, the ways in which he conducts digital forensic investigations, and a preview for his upcoming article in ThinkSet magazine on how laws protecting IP have struggled to keep pace with technology. 

BRG Managing Director Stuart Witchell talks about his work in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. Discussion includes how investments in Asia have changed over the years, the markets where foreign investment is having the largest impact, and the potential ways corruption may affect how companies do business in the region.

BRG Managing Director Mark Renzi joins host Eddie Newland to discuss the state of the mergers and acquisitions market and his outlook for 2019 and beyond. Discussion includes the spate of M&A around the world, Mr. Renzi’s experience in bankruptcy engagements, and the potential mistakes companies make when going through restructuring activities.

BRG Managing Director Rick Fultineer and Director Bob Lewis join host Eddie Newland to discuss trends in the global construction industry. Topics include current hot spots for infrastructure construction, shortages in qualified labor, and litigation hurdles to avoid during boom times.

Managing Director Peggy Daley discusses the California Consumer Privacy Act, the lasting impact of the General Data Protection Regulation, California leading the way on regulations, and how companies can prepare for the growing regulatory requirements around data protection and privacy.

Managing Director Keith Jelinek joins to discuss the state of the retail industry. Topics include omni-channel retailing, success in the pet store sector, implementing sustainable strategies, trends being adopted in today's market, and what the future looks like for the industry as a whole. 

Managing Director Brian Hoyt joins host Eddie Newland to discuss the role provider directories play in today’s healthcare landscape. Topics include regulatory requirements at the state and national level for healthcare plans, the financial repercussions for not meeting legal standards and how plans can be proactive in handling provider directories to avoid harmful legal ramifications.

BRG Managing Director Rob Hichens and BRG Senior Associate Amy Lewis discuss the importance of security and privacy culture. Topics include why culture matters to cyber security, the biggest mistakes companies make implementing security protocols, measuring the effectiveness of a corporate privacy culture and reflection upon the meteoric rise of cyber security.

On this episode of the Thinkset Podcast, host Eddie Newland talks with BRG Director Elizabeth Arnold about recent legal developments in employee classifications and what companies are doing to address the evolving challenges in employer regulations. Other topics include the gig economy employees, different methods for analyzing employee classifications, proactive steps companies are taking around employee classification and Elizabeth’s work on a new textbook.

On this episode of the Thinkset podcast, host Eddie Newland speaks with Managing Director Dr. Allen Jacobs about rise of cryptocurrency and his take away was from the year that brought Bitcoin into the pop culture zeitgeist. Dr. Jacobs also discusses the continuing evolution of cryptocurrency, the difficulty in valuing different coins, the possibility of future regulation and what potential businesses based on the asymmetric cryptography may look like.

On this episode of the Thinkset Podcast, host Eddie Newland talks with BRG Managing Director Ben Nolan about the evolution of Public Private Partnerships (P3) and what they mean for future infrastructure projects.  Ben talks about how different state operations handle P3, Puerto Rico’s history of P3 development and how to manage a project’s risk profile.

On this episode of the Thinkset Podcast, host Eddie Newland talks with BRG Associate Director Kelly Lynch about the highly regulated world of pharmaceuticals and the role pharmacy benefits managers and specialty pharmacies play in today’s healthcare landscape. Kelly speaks about these topics as well as her inspiration for becoming a consultant and the route she took to arrive at BRG in 2012. Topics include: new types of healthcare disputes and investigations (1:15), pharmacy benefits managers role in the healthcare market (2:15), specialty pharmacies and drug pricing (4:00), cost factors in drug pricing (6:30), how data can help combat the opioid crisis (8:37), tools in data analytics (10:30), Kelly’s career path to BRG (13:20), advice for joining the consulting industry (16:46).    

On this episode of the Thinkset Podcast, host Eddie Newland talks with BRG Managing Director Ed Buthusiem about the growing trend of multi-national corporations joining highly regulated industries in search of margin growth. Ed describes this growing trend as the ‘materiality trap’, as many companies struggle to adapt their risk assessment procedures in these lucrative new industries. Topics include: motivation for this growing trend (1:15), how to avoid problems on the front end (3:40), structure of risk assessment programs (5:45), the materiality trap (7:20), calculating risk vs materiality (10:20), the regulatory viewpoint (16:00), venture capital savvy in dealing with materiality trap (19:00).

On this episode of the Thinkset Podcast, host Eddie Newland talks with BRG Managing Director Joe Bohling about the different experiences he has had in the world of performance improvement and leadership coaching. Topics include: The C-suite talent gap (1:45), Succession strategies in public companies vs closely held (4:36), Cultural differences in business environments (8:50), Characteristics of high potential performers (10:15), Pillars of sustained peak performance (12:40), The future of executive strategies addressing the V.U.C.A. environment (16:45).

Host Eddie Newland presents an interview conducted by Thinkset Magazine writer Joe Quinto. Joe was able to speak with Southwest Airlines President Tom Nealon about his continuing efforts to improve Southwest’s digital infrastructure. Topics include: Southwest’s $800M technological upgrades (1:17), implementing new system upgrades (3:54), future opportunities presented by technology upgrades (8:19), decision process leading into upgrade decisions (10:40), the next set of projects in the horizon for Southwest (12:40), how his current projects compare to his past experiences (15:15), and how Southwest handled the fallout from a technical glitch that canceled over 700 flights in July(16:35).

Host Eddie Newland talks with Mark Williams, an economist and Managing Director at BRG with over 20 years’ experience in regulation and strategy of the telecoms, media and technology (TMT) sector. Topics of the episodes include the relationship between innovation and regulation, unexpected political results effect on the TMT sector and what the future may look like for consumers. Other topics: Comparisons to past inflection points in the TMT market (1:39), multiple-choice companies (2:56), the causality between industry and regulation (5:52), Brexit and the election of President Donald Trump possible effects on Net Neutrality (10:20), EU General Data Protection Rules (GDPR) impact on rules (14:22) and evolution of a ‘digital single market’ in the EU (17:20).  

On this episode of the Thinkset Podcast we are joined by BRG Managing Director Larry Fallin. Larry joins us from his office in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia where he has worked for the past 30 years. In that time Larry has amassed operational management and consulting expertise with organizations across the US, Europe and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. He is a specialist in creating strategies, transformations, turnarounds, and increasing organizational value through innovation programs. On the podcast Larry talks about life in the Kingdom, how the things have evolved since he arrived in 1979 and what advice he has for others looking to do business in Saudi Arabia.