In this episode Derek talks with Melissa Proctor, Executive Vice President & CMO of the Atlanta Hawks. Melissa, the author of the book “From Ball Girl to CMO”, shares her inspiring personal story and recipes for ongoing success.

Biography
Melissa Proctor began her NBA experience in highschool as the first ball girl for the Miami Heat. After highschool, she attended Wake Forest University where she got her Bachelor’s degree in communications and her masters degree in design studies/branding from Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design at The London Institute. After obtaining her degree, she went on to work for Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. serving in senior brand development and strategy leadership positions. Proctor was with Turner for 9 years before moving on to the Atlanta Hawks as VP of brand strategy. She quickly made her way up and is now the executive vice president and chief marketing officer.

Order Melissa’s new book here: https://melissamproctor.com/

Business Leadership Series Intro and Outro music provided by Just Off Turner: https://music.apple.com/za/album/the-long-walk-back/268386576

Derek Champagne sits down for a special conversation with his dear friend, Charles Kochel. Charles is a husband, father, entrepreneur, and author.

Charles is also the CEO of Infinity Blue, North America, a borderless e-commerce agency helping brands engage with new customers on multiple platforms and continents.

Charles talks with us about business, life…and cancer.

Charles new must-read book is More: A Mindful Guide To Intentional Living

In More, Charles Kochel presents a heartfelt exploration of what truly matters in life: spirituality, health, relationships, time, and freedom. This book is not about imparting absolute truths but rather about encouraging readers to embark on their own unique journeys toward fulfillment.

Through personal stories and valuable lessons, Kochel invites you to reflect on your path, recognize your potential, and embrace the richness of life. With an emphasis on mindfulness and intentionality, More serves as a guide to inspire you to live fully, love deeply, and discover the beauty in every moment. Join Kochel on this transformative journey and empower yourself to do more and be better.

Order a copy of Charle’s book at https://kochelhill.com/

Business Leadership Series Intro and Outro music provided by Just Off Turner: https://music.apple.com/za/album/the-long-walk-back/268386576

Derek Champagne interviews Quang X. Pham.

Quang is a biotech executive, war veteran, author, speaker, and community leader with a remarkable journey shaped by resilience, service, and entrepreneurship. He made history as the first Vietnamese American to earn naval aviator wings in the Marine Corps and lead an initial public offering (IPO) on Nasdaq.

His inspiring American underdog journey, told in first person, is unlike any other. Born in Saigon, South Vietnam, Quang and his family fled as refugees when he was 10, while his father, a Republic of Vietnam Air Force pilot,

remained and was imprisoned for more than a decade.

After earning a degree from UCLA, Quang served seven years on active duty, flying CH-46 helicopters in the Persian Gulf War, Somalia, and the Reserves. Following his military career, Quang transitioned into business, founding multiple pharmaceutical companies. In 2000, he launched MyDrugRep.com (which became Lathian

Systems), an innovative online platform for physician marketing engagements, which was later acquired. In 2015, he founded Espero Pharmaceuticals and Jacksonville Pharmaceuticals. His leadership and entrepreneurial success earned him the Florida EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2018. Today Quang serves as Chairman and CEO, Cadrenal Therapeutics (Nasdaq: CVKD).

Quang is also the author of the award-winning father-son memoir, A Sense of Duty: Our Journey from Vietnam (Penguin Random House), and his new book, Underdog Nation: Zero In on Effort and Results for Success (Forbes Books).Committed to giving back, Quang has served on the boards of private companies, veteran

charities and educational organizations. He lives in Florida with his family, continuing to

lead and inspire.

Order Quang's new book here: https://quangxpham.com/books/

Business Leadership Series Intro and Outro music provided by Just Off Turner: https://music.apple.com/za/album/the-long-walk-back/268386576

Derek talks with Brett Goode, former AR Razorback and Superbowl XLV champion with the Green Bay Packers. Brett shares his unique story from being in the right place at the right time, walking on to the Razorbacks without a scholarship, his over decade long career in the NFL, the experience of winning a Super Bowl, transitioning after sports, and the lessons he's learned along the way.

Derek talks with guest Verne Harnish, founder of the world-renowned Entrepreneurs'​ Organization (EO) and author of the best-selling book “Scaling Up”, about including his family in his business, building anti-fragile children and companies, and what’s new for Scaling Up.

Verne Harnish is the founder of the world-renowned Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO), with over 14,000 members worldwide, and chaired for fifteen years EO’s premiere CEO program, the “Birthing of Giants” held at MIT, a program in which he still teaches today.

Founder and CEO of Gazelles, a global executive education and coaching company with over 200 partners on six continents, Verne has spent the past three decades helping companies scaleup.

The “Growth Guy” syndicated columnist, he’s also the Venture columnist for FORTUNE magazine. He chairs the bi-annual ScaleUp Summits in collaboration with Bloomberg LIVE.

He’s the author of the bestseller Mastering the Rockefeller Habits which is translated into 9 languages; and along with the editors of Fortune, authored The Greatest Business Decisions of All Times” for which Jim Collins wrote the foreword. His latest book Scaling Up (Rockefeller Habits 2.0) has won eight major international book awards including the prestigious International Book Award for Best General Business book.

Verne serves on several boards including chairman of The Riordan Clinic and the newly launched Geoversity. A private investor in many scaleups, Verne enjoys piano, tennis, and magic as a card-carrying member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians.

Learn more at https://scalingup.com/

Sanyin Siang is Derek's amazing featured guest this week! Sanyin shares highlights from her journey, and how to accept positive affirmations and constructive criticism as data points in your life, importance of being generous, and how to be vulnerable.


Sanyin helps leaders launch and create value by focusing on mindset, behavioral change, and team and culture building. Sanyin is a CEO Coach, Advisor, Author,the Executive Director of Duke University’s Fuqua/Coach K Center on Leadership & Ethics (COLE) and a Professor with its Pratt School of Engineering.

The COLE center is a leadership laboratory that engages all of Duke’s Daytime MBA students and convenes high-level think tank gatherings to explore today’s complex leadership opportunities and challenges.

Sanyin coaches C-suite executives and is in the original cohort of Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches. She is an advisor for GV (former Google Ventures), Duke Corporate Education, and the Sports Innovation Lab. Her thought leadership has appeared in Forbes, Fortune, The Wall Street Journal, and CNN. She has more than 1 million LinkedIn followers. She is a LinkedIn Top 10 Influencer and a Thinkers50 On the Radar.

Sanyin’s board service has included those of The Emily K Center, The Museum of Life & Science, Duke Children’s Hospital & Health Center. She is a Sr. Advisor with Dan Ariely’s Center for Advanced Hindsight and a faculty with StoryLab at Duke. She has spoken to audiences from the White House to Global Sports Management and Owners Summits.

Prior to Duke, Sanyin worked at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest federation of scientific and engineering societies, and publisher of Science. Her initiatives explored the ethical, social, and legal implications of technological advances before they became reality.

Her book The Launch Book: Motivational Stories for Launching Your Idea, Business, or Next Career, uses behavioral science principles to help readers build the mindset for addressing major change.

Sanyin received a BSE in Biomedical Engineering and an MBA from Duke University.

Order "The Launch Book": https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074JC5L9V/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

Derek Champagne interviews former NFL play and entrepreneur, Marques Ogden. Marques, the best-selling author of "Sleepless Nights: The NFL: a Business and Family", talks with Derek about his childhood years, playing in the NFL, his entrepreneurial journey, and leadership lessons along the way.

Growing up in a single-parent home with a father that inspired and demonstrated perseverance and fairness, Marques Ogden learned how to define his values and set goals. Marques attended Howard University from 1998-2002, where he played Division I football. He followed his dream and his brother Jonathan's footsteps and was drafted into the NFL in 2003. At the age of 27, he founded a construction company called Kayden Premier Enterprises, a business that grew rapidly in its first few years, but he lost the business after a bad business endeavor. At his lowest point, the NFL and lessons he learned from his father and coaches, helped him restructure his life.

Learn more at https://www.marquesogden.com/

In this episode Derek Champagne, CEO of The Artist Evolution, interviews Kavit Haria.

From a young age, Kavit Haria learned to play “the world’s most dificult percussion instrument”, the Tabla. Having immersed himself in learning about artist promotion, Kavit began to raise his profile and performed across the UK at venues large and small, with many artists (including Jimmy Page at the Royal Albert Hall) and recorded albums at the famed Abbey Road studios.

Recognizing the demand for sharing what he learned gave rise to Kavit’s first company, Insider Music Business. Within five years, from 2005 to 2010, Kavit created thirty-five different educational products online, from ebooks to video courses and audio training to membership programs, which he promoted to the growing database of 120,000 musicians and hit 7 figures in revenue.
Kavit then turned to share his marketing automation strategies at business conferences in the UK and ran private workshops for small business owners in New York,
Sydney and London.

Since 2013, Kavit has been running Automated Business System, a flagship service to help experts and brands strategies, build, launch and market their businesses online. He has helped launch and grow 120+ businesses for clients, generating $100,000 or more in their first year online sales.

Now, Kavit puts the knowledge and inspiration from his 10-years of building businesses into his new book, Don’t Sleep On It! Turn Your Passion & Expertise Into A Profitable Business.

Learn more at https://www.amazon.com/Dont-Sleep-Expertise-Profitable-Business/dp/1683509854