Success Beneath the Surface

In this commentary, Deborah emphasizes a key point that Herby made about his evolution as an entrepreneur, which was shifting from doing everything himself to focusing on company culture. Herby shares his belief that it's not enough just to make money, but you need to make an impact. He emphasizes the importance of creating an environment where employees can be themselves and enjoy what they do, which he believes results in unbreakable bonds and exponential growth for the business.
Herby's story of invention, disruption, and reinvention is truly remarkable, and next week's episode will delve deeper into his journey. Through his story, listeners can gain valuable insights into entrepreneurship, leadership, and the power of culture.
Herby Duverné is the founder and CEO of Rise Development and Construction and the principal and CEO of Windwalker Group. Herby shares his inspiring journey from being a young immigrant who didn't speak the language and was homeless to CEO of two companies and recently named as one of the 150 Most Influential Bostonians.
Listen to the full episode here.
Links from this episode:
Herby Duverné on LinkedInWindwalker
Deborah Fell on LinkedInChief Outsiders

Deborah welcomes Herby Duverné, a successful real estate developer and founder of Rise Development and Construction. Duverné shares his story of growing up in Haiti with a single mother who worked long hours in a factory to provide for her children. He credits his mother's optimism and hope for his success in life, along with his ability to turn setbacks into opportunities. Herby also discusses how he met his business partner, who was once a dissatisfied client, but through transparency and authenticity, they built a trusting relationship and formed Rise Development and Construction. The company has since grown to a 2.7 billion dollar development firm in just three years. He attributes their success to their ability to connect with people, bring value to the table, and maintain an optimistic mindset.
About Deborah's guest:
Herby Duverné, Founder and CEO of RISE Development & Construction and the Principal and Chief Executive Officer for Windwalker Group, a client-focused, award-winning, Minority-owned 8(a) small business. Since becoming Windwalker’s CEO in 2012, Mr. Duverné has increased the organization’s workforce and introduced new business offerings in cybersecurity, physical security, and professional services. He has led the company’s efforts to earn a Defense Security Services top-secret security clearance, expand operations in multiple states, and build contracts with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense. Mr. Duverné has 25 years of experience in infrastructure protection, intelligence, law enforcement, investigations, security and loss prevention, crisis and risk management, and aviation and port emergency management.  
Links from this episode:
Herby Duverné on LinkedInWindwalker
Deborah Fell on LinkedInChief Outsiders

In this episode, Deborah gives commentary on our last episode's interview with Brian Williamson, the Brand and Video Leader, and Chief Story Seller at Google and YouTube. Brian shares his insights on modernizing brand strategies and the importance of a full-funnel data-driven approach in today's market. He emphasizes the need for companies to have a clear mission, vision, and values that are current and relevant to the current ecosystem, and to tell an authentic story that connects with customers across channels.
Brian also discusses the challenges of measuring the effectiveness of marketing campaigns and the importance of identifying signals and health indicators to track progress. He stresses the need for companies to focus on the top of the funnel, not just the bottom, to fuel growth and build a strong customer base.
Deborah highlights the importance of supporting prospects and customers throughout their research and buying process, even at the problem identification phase, to become their trusted advisor and gain a competitive edge. Join her for this episode of Success Beneath the Surface, "Measuring Marketing Effectiveness: Tips from a Google Expert.
Listen to the full episode here.
Links from this episode:
Brian Williamson on LinkedIn
Chief OutsidersDeborah Fell on LinkedIn

Today's guest is Brian Williamson, a digital media veteran with 20 years of experience in digital marketing and video. He is also Brand and Video Leader and Chief “Story Seller” at Google and YouTube. 
Brian inspires customers to modernize their brand strategies, emphasizing a full-funnel data-driven approach.  He walks us through what that means and why it’s critical to growth-oriented businesses today.  Brian shares his journey from growing in a farm town in New York to becoming the brand marketing evangelist at Google, interacting with and impacting businesses and marketers around the world.
Williamson shares his journey and passion for video and storytelling, emphasizing the need for a clear mission, vision, and values. He also stresses the importance of proactive branding investments and balancing performance marketing with brand marketing. Williamson advises CEOs to have realistic objectives and be patient for branding investments to pay off in the long term. Overall, this episode provides valuable insights into the world of branding and its impact on a company's growth.
Links from this episode:
Brian Williamson on LinkedIn
Chief OutsidersDeborah Fell on LinkedIn

In this episode, Deborah Fell interviews Chris Yeung, co-founder of Vimbley Group. This company acquires profitable but inefficient companies and optimizes them for even greater profitability. Chris shares his insights on seeking profitability, the synergy between business units, and identifying inefficiencies to improve operations. Deborah encourages companies to look for gold bricks that they may be stepping over and to seek out the wisdom of their employees in finding and fixing processes that can drive profitability and improve engagement.
Listen to the full episode here.
About Vimbly Group:
Vimbly Group is a technology-oriented business-growth company. We believe that technology is the key ingredient to better than linear growth. As such, Vimbly Group partners with businesses from an ever-widening range of categories to identify inefficiencies in their operations and then develop unique technologies that resolve them and realize significant sources of new revenue.
About Chris Yeung:
Chris's passion for automation started in asset management, where he was responsible for building portfolio management systems at BlackRock.  His journey ultimately led to Vimbly Group, where he now takes pleasure in applying technology to build businesses across a variety of industries.
 
Links from today's episode:
Vimbly GroupChris Yeung on LinkedIn
Chief OutsidersDeborah Fell on LinkedIn

Deborah's guest is Chris Yeung, Founder and CTO of Vimbly Group. Deborah and Chris discuss his approach to identifying businesses where he can leverage his strengths in IP and technology to optimize them. Chris believes in being opportunistic and making strategic decisions. He discovered his strengths lie in operational efficiency and unlocking additional value based on his understanding of processes. He shares his experiences, from his role as a lowly analyst at BlackRock to how he and his partner founded Vimbly.com, a platform for discovering and booking recreational activities. The platform was born out of Chris and his partner's frustration with trying to book a photography class in NYC. They realized that their strengths in IP and technology could add value beyond Vimbly.com, and they began consulting for other organizations. The value they brought was their entrepreneurial mindset to problem-solving, which helped improve operational efficiency for their clients. Chris emphasizes the importance of trust in relationships, which is the most important thing for him.
About Vimbly Group:
Vimbly Group is a technology-oriented business-growth company. We believe that technology is the key ingredient to better than linear growth. As such, Vimbly Group partners with businesses from an ever-widening range of categories to identify inefficiencies in their operations and then develop unique technologies that resolve them and realize significant sources of new revenue.
About Chris Yeung:
Chris's passion for automation started in asset management, where he was responsible for building portfolio management systems at BlackRock.  His journey ultimately led to Vimbly Group, where he now takes pleasure in applying technology to build businesses across a variety of industries.
 
Links from today's episode:
Vimbly GroupChris Yeung on LinkedIn
Chief OutsidersDeborah Fell on LinkedIn

In this episode of Success Beneath the Surface, Deborah Fell gives commentary on last week's episode with Tom Zucker, president of EdgePoint Capital. Tom emphasizes that gross margin is becoming a critical indicator of a company's value and that sustained margins are a reflection of the company's worth. He stresses that businesses need to offer distinct value propositions that set them apart from competitors and resonate with their clients and customers.
To illustrate this point, Tom provides an example of a closely held family business that developed a unique friction-break product with superior intellectual property. The company should have traded for six times its value, but it traded for north of 11 times because it offered a distinct value that no one else had, enabling it to maintain and grow its margins.
Deborah and Tom discuss the fragility of business owners and the importance of ego fulfillment in M&A advisory services. They also acknowledge that family dynamics are consistent among businesses, regardless of their size and sophistication. Join us for this episode, "Family Dynamics are Consistent Among Businesses of All Sizes."
Listen to the full episode with Tom Zucker here.
About Deborah's guest, Tom Zucker
Tom Zucker serves as the President of EdgePoint Capital, managing client transactions, overseeing its day-to-day management, and executing strategic initiatives.
Tom uses his extensive business and financial experience to assist business owners in completing transition events, acquisitions, or recapitalizations. His diverse experiences range from executing corporate divestitures for General Electric to assisting small closely held businesses in executing family ownership transitions.
Links from this episode:
EdgePoint Capital
Tom Zucker on LinkedIn
Deborah Fell on LinkedIn
Chief Outsiders

Deborah Fell interviews Tom Zucker, Managing Director at EdgePoint Capital, about transitioning a family-owned business. Zucker emphasizes the importance of preparation and planning, particularly in terms of understanding a business's competitive edge and unique position in the marketplace.
Zucker stresses the significance of storytelling in successfully transitioning a family business. A financial statement alone fails to convey a company's purpose or potential. He provides an example of a family business that sold successfully due to its unique product that fit perfectly into the product line of a larger company. Zucker notes that the story must be authentic, informed, and tied together to be effective.
Tom acknowledges the emotional side of transitioning a family business, advising that owners should start the preparation process at least 24 months in advance. He also highlights the importance of transparency and authenticity in communicating with employees and family members during the transition process. Listen to this episode, "Navigating Emotional and Financial Challenges of Business Transitions."
 
About Deborah's guest, Tom Zucker
Tom Zucker serves as the President of EdgePoint Capital, managing client transactions, overseeing its day-to-day management, and executing strategic initiatives.
Tom uses his extensive business and financial experience to assist business owners in completing transition events, acquisitions, or recapitalizations. His diverse experiences range from executing corporate divestitures for General Electric to assisting small closely held businesses in executing family ownership transitions.
Links from this episode:
EdgePoint Capital
Tom Zucker on LinkedIn
Deborah Fell on LinkedIn
Chief Outsiders

Last week, my guest Deborah Overdeput emphasized the opportunity for sales and marketing to drive success when they work together vs when they act in silos.  Deborah has a way of taking atmospheric statements like “sales and marketing alignment” and breaking them down into the practical day-to-day of what needs to be done and who needs to do what to move the business. She used the term “sales enablement” and I unpack what that means in this session.  I also bring in my perspective on the importance of understanding and supporting the prospective client’s research and buying process vs a one-dimensional internal view of the sales funnel.  
To hear the full interview with Deborah Overdeput, listen here.
About Deborah Overdeput:
Deborah has 20+ years of experience as a global marketing leader working with CEOs at financial technology (fintech), SaaS, business consulting, and technology companies to achieve double-digit revenue growth, turning flat businesses into growing enterprises. She applies modern marketing techniques to drive top-of-funnel activity and nurture leads, working collaboratively with sales to build revenue momentum.
Links from this episode:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahoverdeput/ 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahfell 
https://chiefoutsiders.com 

In this episode, Deborah Fell is joined by Deborah Overdeput, CMO and Chief Outsiders. Together they talk about the importance of alignment between sales and marketing in order to achieve business success. Drawing from her experience, Overdeput explains how marketing and sales are often at odds because they operate in different silos, with different perspectives and goals. When these two teams work together, they can drive business success. She also shares insights on some of the strategies and tools that sales and marketing can use to ensure that they are on the same page. For Overdeput, the key is trust, and building a relationship based on trust, sales, and marketing can create a collaboration that works towards a common goal. She also shares how her background in engineering and marketing enables her to operationalize marketing strategies to drive business growth. Finally, Overdeput highlights her love for helping businesses challenge their pipeline and providing them with the necessary tools and strategies to drive growth.
About Deborah Overdeput:
Deborah has 20+ years of experience as a global marketing leader working with CEOs at financial technology (fintech), SaaS, business consulting, and technology companies to achieve double-digit revenue growth, turning flat businesses into growing enterprises. She applies modern marketing techniques to drive top-of-funnel activity and nurture leads, working collaboratively with sales to build revenue momentum.
Links from this episode:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahoverdeput/ 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahfell 
https://chiefoutsiders.com