Today we got the chance to speak with Bob Hagen of Hagen Ford, which was established in 1961 by Bob’s father. Bob and his brother are the current owners of Hagen Ford and are very active within the community and the Ford industry. He talks about the future and evolution of the car industry and how soon enough, everyone will have an electric vehicle in their garage in the near future. Electric vehicles are going to be the “norm” soon enough, and there are already people grabbing the new Ford F-150 electric truck. Ford expects that by 2030, Ford industries will be 50% gas and 50% electric vehicles. Gas cars aren’t going away, but electric cars will be taking over soon enough. To learn more about the future of electric vehicles, tune into our latest podcast to get more information.

Her life was just progressing at Dow, and she decided that after eight years of commitment to them, she wanted to grow into something more and something bigger that would be able to help others the same way others had helped her. Please welcome Executive Director and Founder of Self Love Beauty, Lisa Thomson, this week on how she was inspired to grow her non-profit organization to inspire people across the state to be self-aware and confident both in the workplace and in this world we live in. We talk about how social media can majorly impact one’s self-esteem, workshops you can partake in through Self Love Beauty, and how a business owner can be more aware of their employees and when they should interfere and schedule a workshop with Lisa and her team. Lisa founded Self Love Beauty in 2012 and has been encouraging people since. She started just the same as we all do, with little confidence in herself and looking to grow for the better. She helps her participants understand that one size doesn’t fit all and to find the confidence in yourself to love that body that you’re in because it’s all you have, and only you can determine how to love it! https://www.selflovebeauty.com/ Connect with Lisa: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisathompson032/

“Architecture is as much about understanding why a building needs to exist as it is the relationships of its forms. Creating graceful space that enhances life is part of a fundamental belief behind our work at WTA Architects.” This is what guest speaker Paul Haselhuhn, Architect, Partner, and President of WTA Architects, speaks on in this week’s podcast. Employers and people, in general, tend not to recognize the importance of architecture and what effects it can have on an employee or family. Tune in this week to learn some of the benefits of an architectural style and how it can positively impact the work being created from within. Paul Hauselhuh, AIA, has been a project manager on a wide variety of projects for WTA Architects and now specializes in higher education and commercial facilities. Paul has a strong interest in sustainability and green architecture. https://www.wtaarch.com/

Have you ever wished you could get unlimited paid time off? That’s precisely what today’s podcast guest, Mark McDaniel, the CEO of Cinnaire, talks about with host William Zank. Cinnaire is a nonprofit organization that gets involved within the community by offering services such as lending funds, finance development, and managing and building all components of a healthy community. Within this nonprofit, employees are granted unlimited paid time off. Cinnaire wants to find better ways for their team members to feel more valued while also showing their team’s time was valued. What’s the benefit of offering unlimited time off? Cinnaire has seen how productive their employees are when given this freedom. With employee benefits like this, they now hold eight consecutive wins as Best Nonprofit to Work For by the Nonprofit Times, the leading business publication for Nonprofit Management. Mark McDaniel graduated from Michigan State University and worked as an architectural planning engineer in his hometown of Kalamazoo, MI. He ended up moving back up to Lansing when he found his love for helping develop affordable housing. He started to get involved with many nonprofits and faith-based organizations. He was able to draw up the Michigan Capital Fund for Housing idea, which ended up transitioning into the Great Lakes Capital Fund in 2002. To learn more about Cinnaire and their team, follow the links below: https://cinnaire.com/ (https://cinnaire.com/) https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-mcdaniel-4324413/ (Mark McDaniel | LinkedIn)

Have you been on the unfortunate side of getting a dent in your car? Do you let it be or Google your best options to fix it? Today’s podcast guest hopes you don’t just leave the ding and instead ask around. Chances are a friend, or family member will refer you to CD Dents. Welcome, Crystal Ellison of CD Dents. Crystal and her husband Duane own and operate a 5-star Google rating paintless dent removal business. Crystal has been in the car business for an impressive 24-years and was the first woman in the country to receive her Master Gold Certification. Today William Zank and Crystal talk about referrals. Referrals are the most valuable form of marketing, and Crystal shares some tips on how CD Dent goes about intentionally building its referral pipeline. 90% of CD Dents business is from referrals. This episode is for you if you are in a niche business looking to deepen engagement with your client base. Tune in to find out how she views customer service and how to build her main marketing source – her referral pipeline. https://www.cddentsrepair.com/

OH, SUGAR, SUGAR! This week we got the chance to chat with Rob Clark, Director of Communications and Community Relations at Michigan Sugar Company. Clark speaks out about their corporate purpose statement, “Making Life Sweeter.” He states that their employees embody Michigan Sugar’s purpose statement within the business and within their life, family, friends, and community. Michigan Sugar Company, a Michigan staple organization for 116 years, takes on many opportunities to create win-win-win partnerships within the community. Clark states that they speak out about the good Michigan Sugar does within the community because if they didn’t, how would it be noticed? Sweeten up your commute with this 24-minute master class, inspiring leaders to get involved in the communities they serve. https://www.michigansugar.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/michigan-sugar-co/ https://www.facebook.com/PioneerSugar/ https://www.facebook.com/michigansugar

Have you thought about what you will do in retirement? Maybe you dream of sitting on the beach or tinkering around with a long-term hobby. For some, they have an itch to continue working beyond their traditional retirement date. In this episode of Mitten Money, host William Zank speaks with Don Sheets. Don is currently retired after almost 15 years as Executive Vice President and CFO at Dow Corning. In this episode, Mr. Sheets shares how he planned to work as a consultant all along as his second career. Don also chats about some of the crucial moments where he lead Dow Corning out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2004 and through the 2008 financial crisis. He took advantage of those low points, and we touch base about one of his major milestones of leading the development and implementation of Xiameter internet business. This choice led to the growth of Dow Corning with the silicone business on a global scale. Don enjoys waking up early to get his day started with the latest news and a good book while participating in multiple organizations with his peers and loving wife! To get to know Don Sheets better, his LinkedIn is: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donald-sheets-2a6617124/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/donald-sheets-2a6617124/)

Have you ever wondered how Chick-Fil-A built its well-known culture and talent systems? How about their ability to select the top talent in the hospitality industry while still achieving a 95% retention rate for corporate staff AND franchisees? This week – we invited on the very talented Dee Ann Turner -who was not only the former VP of Talent, Human Resources, Enterprise Social Responsibility, and Sustainability for Chick-Fil-A but also a 3x bestselling book author. We chat in-depth about how to increase your employee retention, the process of developing your talent systems, and saying that talent is one of the most competitive qualities that a business can have. For more information on Dee Ann: https://www.deeannturner.com/ (https://www.deeannturner.com/) https://www.deeannturner.com/podcast (https://www.deeannturner.com/podcast) https://www.linkedin.com/in/deeannturner (https://www.linkedin.com/in/deeannturner) https://www.facebook.com/DeeAnnTurnerAuthor (https://www.facebook.com/DeeAnnTurnerAuthor) https://www.instagram.com/deeannturner/?hl=en (https://www.instagram.com/deeannturner/?hl=en)

Marc and Laura Owczarzak had as their visiOn for when they Opened O’s Pub and Grill. Staying true tO their vision has helped them grOw O's expOnentially. They nOw have plans tO Open a secOnd lOcation in Bay City, MI On the river. HOst William Zank talks with Marc Owczarzak, cO-Owner of O's Pub and Grill about their grOwth at O's Pub and Grill. FOr mOst restaurant’s, while fOOd can help drive grOwth Of the business, the custOmer service is what keeps peOple cOming back. In 2022, cOnsumers have the knOwledge and OptiOns to chOOse any fOOd option they want. It’s mOre crucial than ever tO nOt Only have a cOmpelling menu, but alsO Offer high levels of custOmer service tO keep guests happy. This sOunds simple in practice – but hOw dO yOu gO abOut implementing a strategy? Interested in knowing how and hearing O's phenomenal grOwth story? Tune in tO today's episOde. This style Of writing is inspired by O's eye catching way of making O's the real star Of the shOw. See their website and sOcial pOsts. https://www.ospubandgrill.com/ (www.ospubandgrill.com)

Special Episode in honor of Woman in Construction Week. On this special episode, we invited Shannon Tait of Three Rivers Corporation. Construction means more managing projects. It's taking personal pride in every project, whether new construction or a world-record canopy tree walk. During the episode, Shannon shares many personal stories throughout her career, highlighting when she was a recent college graduate given complete control over a local project. She described what helped her succeed: building rapport amongst her much older peers and remaining level-headed. She credits being coachable as a top trait for any person to have. We also discussed: Tips for employee development How to build a more open and diverse company The power of being coachable For more information on Shannon or Three Rivers: https://trccompany.com/ (https://trccompany.com/)