I’m back from my vacation with the kids, which we took in Lake Placid, New York. For those of you with kids, you know that vacation with kids is never really a relaxing time. It is more of a relocation, but with more spending and trying to keep people entertained. Despite those challenges, I had a good time, even though I feel like I need a vacation to recover from my vacation. Instead of getting that, I came home to one of my dogs having developed Lyme disease and had to take him to the vet. Thankfully he is responding well to the medication (albeit $200 plus dollars later).

Also freaking me out a bit is that it is nearly August. How the year is over half over is beyond me.

The end of my vacation means that August is nearly here. When August is nearly here, it also means that the new school year is nearly here. And that eventuality means a shift in my work. I’ve had a productive summer of writing the UN-WOW book manuscript. I now need to continue that work while shifting to my other work of (hopefully) educating young minds.

It feels like I divide my life not into months, but phases of work. Probably you do too. We can think about our year in which financial quarter we are in, the tempo of our work projects, the phases of required work reports. Work dictates our sense of time, or how we think about time, which speaks to the significance that work plays in our lives beyond simply providing an income.

Dr. Michael Lowenstein has spent his career understanding the impact of work and workplaces on employees, focusing on the relationship between employee experience and customer experience. In my employee experience course, I actually use his book “Employee Ambassadorship,” which focuses on how to create cultures that turn employees into brand ambassadors. Or put more simply, “What is the likelihood that your employees would recommend your company to others?”

He is working on a new book project and course framework with Tamar Cohen that further demonstrates the links between customer experience and employee experience, emphasizing that if you want to do well by your customers, you first have to do better by your employees.

Michael and I talk about the importance of stakeholder integration in your strategic planning, that you have to create alignment before taking action. Michael shares his experience working with organizations that prioritize both employees and customers, citing examples like MBNA America, Costco, and Market Basket. He explained how companies like Virgin, Baptist Healthcare, and Ritz-Carlton have successfully transformed their cultures to align internal and external focus, moving from employee satisfaction to engagement to commitment and ultimately customer advocacy. We also compare different organizational models, including B corporations, private companies, and public companies, in terms of their effectiveness in fostering employee-customer linkages.

I’ve known Michael for a long time, having done presentations and other events together. It was great to catch up with him, as well as capture his insights and experience on the podcast.

Michael Lowenstein on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaellowenstein/

“Employee Ambassadorship”: https://www.amazon.com/dp/163157664X

I’m recording this episode a week early as I’m on vacation with my family up in Lake Placid, New York, a beautiful spot that we have been going to for close to 20 years. One of the nice things about going to a familiar place is all the constants that are there. Things like Mirror Lake, the Olympic Oval, the Ski Jump, the lovely High Peaks mountains. All of it is a nice reminder of past summers and current adventures. For some, this might all seem boring, but for me it is something that I know will be there, some kind of regulating force in a constantly changing world.

But there are changes as well. It always is interesting, and a little depressing, to see what stores have closed and what new ones have replaced them. Such is the way with entrepreneurship: there are successes and, well, not so successes. I always admire people who take the initiative to start something new, and can imagine the dreams that are bound up into these ventures. When I go back to Lake Placid, it is easy to mourn those businesses that are no longer there, and be hopeful for those who are.

Today’s episode of Experience by Design is about the long-running story of entrepreneurship, together with the new unfolding story of AI. Demetri Papazissis hails from Greece, which has a long history of entrepreneurship (especially with immigrants who have spread around the world). He continues that legacy with the company Superbo, which is an enterprise-wide AI agent company. Superbo uses what it describes as “Four capability layers that provide enterprise data semantics, AI agent governance, runtime compliance controls, and operational oversight” to provide solutions for clients.

This conversation is about more than Superbo. It also is about the spirit of entrepreneurship in Demetri’s life, especially focusing on agility and freedom in the entrepreneur’s journey. However, he describes his own experiences as an entrepreneur as 80% negative and 20% positive. This leads to a broader conversation about whether people are being encouraged to be entrepreneurs when that lifestyle may not be right for them.

We talk about the impact of AI in terms of work, the economy, and society. We discuss the challenges of strategic adoption of technology, seeing ways that companies fail to implement because they don’t have the strategy and support to succeed. He notes that successful AI implementation requires a partnership approach, involving not just technological guidance but also helping organizations address internal structural and relationship issues.

He also talks about how he is self-taught at piano, leading to admission to the Berklee College of Music here in Boston. Being there taught him the value of creativity and thinking outside of the proverbial box. Overall, it was a great chat about risk-taking, creativity, changing times, constant themes, and also Demetri’s great hair.

Demetri Papazissis on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/demetripapazissis/

Superbo Website: https://superbo.ai/

Superbo Big Idea: https://www.businessage.com/post/my-big-idea-enterprise-ai-superbo

Working from home over the summer, primarily working on the Un-WOW book but other things as well, I get to see what passes for daytime television today. It takes me back to my childhood a little when I would be at my grandparent’s home during the summer months where they would watch me. This was in the archaic before-times, when cable television didn’t exist. Although in Detroit we were living pretty large because we were able to get the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (or CBC) with our antenna. Even with this expanded option, my grandmother’s TV was always tuned to the daytime soap operas, including the long-running One Life to Live. The show ran for 21 seasons, from 1968 to 2013. Being young, I never quite captured what was going on, but it all seemed pretty dramatic.

It is an interesting concept to ponder having ‘one life to live.’ In a biological sense, that might be inarguable given that we are alive for a finite period of time. On the other hand, it is completely inaccurate. If you think about your own life, there are probably many different ‘lives’ that you have lived. We might even think of them as stages in our lives, where we end one thing only to begin another.

At some point, to quote The Talking Heads David Byrne, “And you may ask yourself, Well, how did I get here?” Beats me. Some parts of my life seem many lifetimes ago. I don’t even know who that person was. I can see glimpses of him, but that person isn’t here anymore. All that’s left is me right now, and even that is transitory.

So, many lives and many transitions in one’s life. In fact, we can say that life is about transformation and transition, changing and becoming. Much more than just one life to live.

My guest on Experience by Design today Danielle Bennett has, like all of us, undergone some transitions in her life. First was her stint in the Navy, working first on the surface fleet and in the air service, and then on submarines, where she learned valuable lessons in leadership and how small errors can lead to major consequences. Then there was the transition out of the Navy due to a medical discharge, meaning finding her place and purpose in civilian life. There also was the transition to being a franchise owner and entrepreneur, as well as consultant and coach. Additionally, there was her gender transition to becoming a woman, making the decision to become Danielle.

We talk about lessons learned from the Navy, especially in the Silent Service, such as when a lack of coffee filters required immediate action. She also talks about how coaching girls softball and coaching business leaders can be very similar in that they both require helping guide people get the most out of themselves. Danielle uses the mantra of “Chin up, chest out” to promote pride in facing transitions with resilience. Danielle also shares how she works with clients to improve organizational systems, especially in the aerospace and defense industries.

Finally, Danielle talks about her book “Leadership Voltage: Capturing Lightning with Triadic Balance,” where she emphasizes “Growth is everything” and leaders need to empower (rather than manage). She also shares her business academy DS7 Precision, offering 12-14 weeks intensive coaching programs.

LEARN MORE:

Danielle Bennett on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniellejoleighbennett/

Danielle Bennett Website: https://www.daniellejoleighbennett.com/

Radiant Legacy Collective: https://www.radiantlegacycollective.com/

DS7 Precision: https://ds7precision.com/

“Leadership Voltage”: https://www.amazon.com/Leadership-Voltage-Capturing-Lightning-Triadic/dp/B0GVNBYGHF/