Opendorse’s Post

This week I had the opportunity to feature Azzuu as a Growth Engine in Business Leader magazine after enjoying a rich conversation with founder, James Thomas and gleaning his insights into what has led to the company's ongoing success, including: 1. Wearing two hats: an operator hat to make things happen and an investor hat to build for future value. 2. Quality conversations: say what you do and do what you say with anyone and everyone you meet; opportunities are only a few degrees of separation away. 3. History matters until it shouldn’t: be driven by your past experiences, but don’t be led by them. 3. Tackling market challenges: Leveraging AI and data analytics to enhance customer experiences and streamline operations. 4. Future-proof your business: Staying ahead of technological trends and continuously adapting to market changes to ensure long-term growth. Find the feature here https://lnkd.in/dj9fX_UJ and share your thoughts in the comments below. #BusinessLeader #GrowthEngines #Leadership #BusinessInnovation #EvertonFootballClub

I love a good business spin-off story! This interview of Drop CEO and co-founder Derrick Fung, who started an adjacent company - Drop for Business - during the pandemic while scaling up their initial startup is a really inspiring read: https://lnkd.in/d5Ns7NF7 One of the key insights from this conversation is that diversifying your business with such new ventures not only sets your organization apart, but also builds a stronger, more resilient strategy for the future. Dive in to gain more insights from this interview. #BusinessBuilding #Leadership

Introducing Jeff Lerner: The New CMO Transforming Digitalage's Future 🌐 Exciting News from Digitalage: Leadership Expansion for Groundbreaking Growth 🌐 We are thrilled to announce a pivotal milestone in our journey at Digitalage, a subsidiary of Hop-on, Inc. (OTC:HPNN). In a move set to redefine our brand and escalate our growth trajectory, we have appointed Jeff Lerner as our new Chief Marketing Officer. With a sterling track record and a profound impact in the marketing realm, Lerner is poised to catapult Digitalage into a new era of social media innovation. https://lnkd.in/ggznHEMD Lerner, a seasoned marketing veteran with over two decades of expertise, brings to the table an extraordinary history of elevating startups to remarkable heights. His career highlights include generating over $500 million in marketing-driven revenue, instrumental roles in three significant acquisitions totaling over $2 billion, and playing a key role in securing $390 million in venture capital for emerging companies. Our Founder and CEO, Peter Michaels, expressed his excitement about Lerner's addition, underscoring the anticipated boost to Digitalage’s impact in revolutionizing social media. Lerner’s expertise, gained from pivotal roles at industry giants like Google, Cricket Wireless, and AT&T, aligns perfectly with our vision. His achievements at Cricket Wireless, leading to substantial e-commerce revenue and a $1.2 billion acquisition by AT&T, are a testament to his capabilities. Apart from his corporate achievements, Lerner is also a respected author and a sought-after voice in global marketing forums. His move to Digitalage is not just a new chapter in his career but a significant stride towards enhancing our platform's reach, user base, and overall impact. His focus will encompass user acquisition, content creator relationships, strategic partnerships, and leveraging user feedback to refine Digitalage’s offerings. Lerner’s holistic approach, combining the power of relationships and professional growth, resonates deeply with our ethos at Digitalage. As we aim to build a platform that safeguards our children's future in the digital world, his vision aligns seamlessly with our mission. Jeff Lerner, a George Washington University alumnus, balances his professional success with a rich personal life in Southern California, where he enjoys coaching his son's baseball team and spending time with his family and two dogs. #Digitalage #SocialMedia #NewCMO #JeffLerner #ContentProtection #Monetization #UserExperience #HoponInc #HPNN #MarketingLeader #Startups #VentureCapital #GoToMarket #InfluencerMarketing #StrategicPartnerships #RevolutionizingSocialMedia #OnlineSafety #ThePowerOfRelationships #MarketingExpert https://lnkd.in/gpyNpheg

Check out this awesome post by Julian Walder, MBA! In just a few words, he perfectly captures the essence of the "WE AS WEB" spirit - expertise, agility, entrepreneurship, and a growth mindset. No formal mission statements or empty words about values here! #WEASWEB #Expertise #Agility #Entrepreneurship #GrowthMindset

Do you ever ride the wayback machine and think, Whoa, I've done some s^*t? Malcolm Gladwell postulated it took 10,000 hours to achieve "greatness" in something, a theory some debate, but let's face it, it takes awhile to get good at something. And we don't usually notice our own capacity building as the hours stack up. A recent Linked In post totally caught my eye. It was a story about a wilderness based leadership development program led by Peter Van der Vlis that respected colleague Amy Elizabeth Fox shared. As an early innovator and practitioner in the world of adventure based experiences, I was a guide and program designer using nature as a catalyst in (gulp) the 1980's-early 2000's. My colleagues and I (bet you remember, Stephen Butler Paul Radcliffe Dick Prouty Drew Leemon Chris Doyle Jane Panicucci and others) had a blast designing programs that leveraged the power of vulnerability an self-awareness by leaving the hallways of organizations and building teams and culture with Project Adventure, Inc. OUTWARD BOUND INTERNATIONAL NOLS. We were experimenting, testing, forging, and innovation and it was a wild ride. I had the good fortune during those years in (ahem!) 1999 of having writer Todd Balf join an adventure with one growing company during the dot-com days in a piece featured in a few issues of Fast Company. It was good work and while Altrec the corporation didn't survive the dot-bomb and a cyber attack, it was so exciting all those years ago support leaders like Mike Morford Shannon Stowell Debbie Steinberg Kuntz, LMFT in doing the hard things they faced. And the trip down memory lane reminded me where I cut my teeth on working with people to improve their team's courage, build conscious company cultures and lead people well. I am so grateful for the early career experiences that built and forged my skills as a consultant and coach, even when I thought it was just a job. #loveyourwork #leadershipdevelopment #nature #wilderness #culture https://lnkd.in/gVaMjD9

Many founders (myself included) tend to underplay ther presence here on social media. Balancing product development with crafting smart content for LinkedIn or newsletters is no small feat. Yet, there's a strategic edge – positioning yourself as an industry leader can outshine even the heavyweight companies. Check out these stage-appropriate tips to carve your space as a thought leader as a founder: https://lnkd.in/gUQXk--y

We love polarization. Us vs. them sells. You see it all the time. But it's hurting beginners trying to make an educated decision. To fix this, I'm making a series of videos on decision making. Breaking down the pros and cons and the actual key decision levers you should consider. This is the first, very relevant right now if we look at Pitch and other companies firing half their staff. Check it out 👇 https://lnkd.in/dkzJHwvU Daniel Bruce 👀

When I first heard that WME was going private again, my immediate reaction was that it was a move to dissociate themselves from TKO, a red-hot pure-play sports and entertainment company. As a former agent, my sentiment has been that the agency business is in decline for many reasons—some being (1) talents such as influencers and actors do not need agents as social media and easy access to contact information for talent disintermediate agents; (2) generous back-end deals and packaging deals are remnants of the past; and (3) the 10% fee model does not make much sense when there is more content, more opportunities, and less money—in other words, the pie is bigger, but the slices are smaller. Moreover, with the upcoming AI storm, the consensus is thought to be that there will be less work for talent. However, the more I think about this position, I realize my gut reaction is wrong. I actually think WME went private because Wall Street does not understand the business, and the future is extremely bright for WME. As an owner in a sports media company, I am all in on live sports content, and WME negotiates some of the largest deals in sports, such as the $920 million, eight-year deal between the NCAA and ESPN earlier this year, or the $5 billion, 10-year WWE Raw-Netflix tie-up. That part of the business will only grow. Also, I am definitely walking back my thoughts on the importance of big-name talent—the Marvel movies made us feel that the IP was larger than the talent, but content on Disney Plus and HBO Max has shown that stars still matter, with the better-performing content featuring stars we love and recognize. "Oppenheimer," "Dune," and "Barbie" all proved that stars matter, and there has been a flurry of first-look deals for A-listers in the past few weeks. And finally, although AI may bring down production costs, I firmly believe we want to see actual humans act, and like in the music industry, we do not want to listen to AI versions of Drake and The Weeknd. In fact, I believe AI will increase the business, and we will have more content, more stars, and agencies may see an uptick in the traditional talent representation revenue business. My final verdict, echoed by many experts, is that Wall Street doesn’t understand WME. But with the company owning 51% of TKO, being a massive player in sports rights negotiations, and representing the best talent in the world, the future is extremely bright for Ari and Patrick, who are the best in the world at what they do! https://lnkd.in/gJ-YmA2D

Last week marked an exciting expansion of our new ExpertAccess Program, bringing even more leading Hunt Club Experts into your back pocket on a Hunt Club search. 🔔 This week, we're thrilled to introduce three new exceptional leaders from renowned brands to our growing list. 🔔 From being the earliest employees at companies like Gopuff and Instacart to growing and founding robust communities like Serial Marketers, they’ve all been invaluable in scaling incredible companies. Now, in partnership with Hunt Club, they are ready to advise on the right profiles for growing and scaling your company and introduce you to top talent in their networks. Please welcome our newest Experts to our ExpertAccess Program: Daniel Folkman, Scott Holloway, and David Berkowitz. They’re especially experienced at building teams and scaling with early-stage growth companies and fast-moving organizations. 1️⃣ Daniel Folkman has driven significant growth at Gopuff, leading the company’s global business functions and securing major partnerships. Daniel’s ability to identify and integrate top talent has been key to his success and will provide companies with the insights needed to scale their teams effectively. 2️⃣ Scott Holloway has been instrumental in building and scaling high-performing teams at startups like Instacart, Flexport, and Foxtrot. With his extensive experience in launching new markets and managing large teams, Scott knows what it takes to find and nurture the right talent to drive growth and innovation. 3️⃣ David Berkowitz is a connected agency and tech CMO with a focus on content, communications, and community. His deep understanding of how to build and connect talented teams will help companies strengthen their brand and effectively reach their audience. Want to learn more about how these Experts can help you hire and integrate the right talent? Reach out to learn more here: https://lnkd.in/gXzMEW7x

👏 Just a quick shoutout to Kira Klaas for creating an amazing brand strategy course. Coming from a tech startup background, I thought I'd seen it all – but was blown away by your fresh perspectives and innovative frameworks. And thank you for all the templates - saved me so much time. #brandmarketing