
This is Frontline Innovators. Hosts Justin Lake and Gene Signorini speak with experts who are leading the way and driving digital transformation to the frontlines. We explore how to overcome challenges and achieve success when we empower our essential workers. This podcast is sponsored by Skyllful, on a mission to help frontline workers learn and use the technology needed to succeed in their jobs.
Episodes

Friday Sep 22, 2023
Friday Sep 22, 2023
Today's guest has a passion for leading people, change management, and driving and evangelizing programs. Welcome Kayla Thorpe, Senior Manager of Professional Services at Softchoice. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated excellence in program and project management, technology implementations, employee experience, and end-user productivity.
Quote: "What I find when you're meeting with people is humans are humans, people are people. I can throw those numbers at people and sometimes they stick. Sometimes it resonates with folks. So I actually, instead of even bothering trying to quantify with data the value that adoption or change projects bring to any implementation or any change, whether it's technical or otherwise, rather than trying to give numbers and give data, I usually approach it from the human and the people perspective and I start to ask creative questions."
Here are a few nuggets of wisdom from her episode 🧠
➖ In order to anticipate where the stumbling blocks may be along that path toward change, you have to be able to ask the right questions
➖ It's not enough to know what hardware the company has issued, you also have to know what hardware they're actually using whether is BYOD, etc.
➖ You've got to pull in the right people in the right times—And it can't just be IT, L&D, and HR
➖ 85% of technology projects fail without the right tech adoption
➖ Aligning user adoption/change strategy into a customers existing problems makes it more meaningful
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kaylathorpe/
Company Website: https://www.softchoice.com/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/Ik3Jeo1dnWg
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at https://www.frontlineinnovators.com

Friday Sep 08, 2023
Consistency With The Frontline - Episode #112 - Dave Rozelle
Friday Sep 08, 2023
Friday Sep 08, 2023
This week's guest is Dave Rozelle, Senior Manager Learning Development at Take 5 Oil Change.
Dave brings many years of management and supervisory experience supported by decades of computer and communications technology experience. Dave has developed new software products and is a strategic thinker and team builder.
Quote: "It's a primary goal of what I'm doing with like our employee feedback surveys, is not to make the frontline feel better or to solve every possible complaint, but establish a level of comfort that you're willing to speak up. If you don't speak up and express a concern, it will never be resolved and without that level of confidence in the company from the frontline, you're just shooting in the dark."
Key Takeaways:
➖ Give clarity to your frontline above all else
➖ Culture is not what you want it to be but, the sum of people that exist in the organization today
➖ Even though everything you're saying/doing from the top is in line, your reality at the front line is not the same
➖ You've got to be able to close the feedback loop and come full circle
➖ You need to be able to establish a level of comfort that your frontline is willing to speak up
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daverozelle/
Company Website: https://www.take5.com/oil-change/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/LZWm_hd6m8w
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at https://www.frontlineinnovators.com

Friday Aug 11, 2023
Supporting The Frontline Generationally - Episode #111 - Gail Norris
Friday Aug 11, 2023
Friday Aug 11, 2023
This week's guest is Gail Norris, US Lead, SITRAIN Digital Industries Learning, Digital Industries Division at Siemens Industry
Gail is experienced in all aspects of customer and employee learning, performance management and optimizing organizational growth. She has extensive experience with tech support, consulting for contact centers, field service management, and meeting the needs of the frontline worker.
Quote: "I think if you focus on what does work, the biggest one to your point is communication. Making sure you've got that dialogue, making sure you've got the stakeholders engaged, and having an understanding of what the end goal is so that everybody can kind of revolve around the same thing."
Key Takeaways:
➖ Improve the employee experience and connect your people - and you'll retain and motivate them accordingly
➖ Appreciate and respect how different generations need support
➖ Make sure you have the stakeholders engaged and understanding the end goal
➖ We can't lose the human connection
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gailnorris/
Company Website: https://www.siemens.com/us/en.html
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/qRePunV31ns
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at www.frontlineinovators.com

Friday Aug 04, 2023
The Impact of Shortages In The Workforce - Episode #110 - Steve Mason
Friday Aug 04, 2023
Friday Aug 04, 2023
This week's guest is Steve Mason, General Manager - Field Service Management at GPS Insight.
Steve has extensive experience with tech support, consulting for contact centers, field service management, and meeting the needs of the frontline worker.
Quote: "You can't achieve a good outcome unless you're creating a great positive environment for your employees because otherwise their frustration that 'they can't deliver good service' is picked up by the customer."
Key Takeaways:
➖ Dark data is an invaluable asset for field service management
➖ Community-based approach to aggregating knowledge from other workers is key to passing the knowledge to other technicians
➖ You can't achieve a good outcome unless you're creating a great positive environment
➖ You need to fix systemic problems faster to go out to site less
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevemason3/
Company Website: https://www.gpsinsight.com/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/UMTC8VHVctA
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at www.frontlineinovators.com

Friday Jul 28, 2023
Frontline Communication Is Not One Size Fits All - Episode #109 - Cori Chang
Friday Jul 28, 2023
Friday Jul 28, 2023
This week's guest is Cori Chang, Organizational Change Management Sr. Manager at Unisys | Global OCM Team.
Cori has over 18 years of experience in helping organizations align strategy and improve performance, and she has expertise in developing and implementing effective Organizational Change Management strategies. She is skilled at working with all levels of management and staff to create innovative and sustainable solutions for the frontline.
Quote: "I think sometimes too, people don't feel like the automation's going to replace them and they'll lose their job. Sometimes that does happen, but I think the greater fear is that the automation is going to be so different that they won't have this capability to learn the new job well and that they'll just opt out and quit or they will, their fears, they'll get fired right, they won't be able to do the job."
Key Takeaways:
➖ Communicating to the frontline is not a cookie-cutter or one size fits all
➖ Leaders should empathize with the frontline worker's fears of automation
➖ Feedback loops are vital in communicating with the frontline
➖ OCM should not be brought in after a project fails - it should be included at the very beginning
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cori-chang-80579233/
Company Website: https://www.unisys.com/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/Z3MfOubLES8
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at www.frontlineinovators.com

Friday Jul 07, 2023
Friday Jul 07, 2023
We're excited to be back from our hiatus! This week's guest is Gyner Ozgul, President & Chief Operating Officer @ Smart Care Equipment Solutions.
Gyner has a passion for building successful teams and creating positive experiences, He has achieved significant success and growth in my career over the past 25 years by empowering teams to succeed. He oversees a commercial kitchen services business with exceptional technicians and a support team that serves customers nationwide.
Quote: "Don't wait for a stable process to fail. Step back from it and say, 'Hey, what could that be? If I kind of injected some thought into it, how could I make that better? How could I improve the experience for a frontline worker if I just took that and maybe did it totally differently or it just improved that process?' because if you run the failure, now you're kind of picking up the pieces and it's already too late."
Key Takeaways:
➖ Don't assume that all frontline workforces want to engage tech positively
➖ Knowledge is a currency in the organization
➖ As you get further up in the organization - you must stay accessible to the frontline
➖ Put your team in an environment where they can grow financially and professionally
➖ Don't wait for failure to start something new
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gynerozgul/
Company Website: https://smartcaresolutions.com/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyXOpIQ6qmg
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at www.frontlineinovators.com

Friday Mar 24, 2023
In Their Shoes - Episode #107 - Carl Hefele
Friday Mar 24, 2023
Friday Mar 24, 2023
We're excited for this weeks guest - Carl Hefele, the Director of Field Services East @ Idemia.
Carl has extensive experience with field service operations and leads a large team for oversight and leadership for the Eastern half of the United States Service Operations Division.
Quote: "When I work with these people, I'm trying to use all of the experiences and all the headaches of everything I had and all the frustrations, you know? And it's just that all the life experiences, you know, we got to figure out a better way to do this."
Key Takeaways:
➖ Use all of your experiences to help the frontline in a situation
➖ Let the field techs know why you're asking for the data
➖ Learn how to scale knowledge to the frontline
➖ Don't put in garbage data or you'll get garbage reporting
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlhefele/
Company Website: https://www.idemia.com/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/x9rxny7SbNo
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at www.frontlineinovators.com

Friday Mar 17, 2023
Understanding The Kinesthetic Learner - Episode #106 - Marie Elliston
Friday Mar 17, 2023
Friday Mar 17, 2023
Join us for our newest episode with Marie Elliston, Sr. Manager Commercial Sales Learning and Development @ WestRock Company. Marie is a learning and development strategist with 15 years of experience delivering enterprise-wide change and talent management initiatives within the performance and product fields.
Quote: "I'm a big proponent of giving people a play space, whether it's a sandbox, if it's ai, let the people get used to it in a safe environment, rather than just throwing 'em into production and being like, 'Hey, good luck.'"
Key Takeaways:
➖ Kinesthetic learners need time to fail and figure it out themselves
➖ Encourage a continuous improvement loop
➖ You need to pinpoint the issues and assign them
➖ Having a sandbox for them to fail in is invaluable
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marie-e-4539bb186/
Company Website: https://www.westrock.com/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/HoMT0G3isNk
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at www.frontlineinovators.com

Friday Mar 10, 2023
Keeping Frontline Technology Grounded - Episode #105 - Andrew Lorraine
Friday Mar 10, 2023
Friday Mar 10, 2023
Join us for a new episode of Frontline Innovators as we talk with Andrew Lorraine, CEO @ Resco. Andrew leads Resco’s mission to help mobile workers reach their full potential with technology. His focus is on developing business solutions for the key challenges of our era through authenticity and relationships.
Quote: "So I think the biggest challenge that is impacting mobile workers or frontline workers today is making sure that technology that's dreamt up in the clouds, works on the ground, works in the real world."
A few key takeaways:
➖ You've got to anticipate the challenges and requirements for a project
➖ One size fits all doesn't always work with technology
➖ You need to get a champion from the mobile workforce involved in the design process
➖ Make sure their voice is heard and the change is quick
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewlorraine/
Company Website: https://www.resco.net/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/K7NUzbcDp8I
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at www.frontlineinovators.com

Friday Mar 03, 2023
Meeting the Underserved - Episode #104 - Chris Bond - Part2
Friday Mar 03, 2023
Friday Mar 03, 2023
Join us for a new episode of Frontline Innovators as we talk with Chris Bond, CEO @ Bluewater Learning. He has been transforming the Learning and Talent Management field for over 20 years through his leadership, articles, speaking engagements, and consulting services.
If you missed Part 1 with Chris listen here - https://www.frontlineinnovators.com/e/meeting-the-underserved-episode-103-chris-bond-part-1/
This is Part 2 of 2 with Chris Bond as he discusses:
➖ What is Bluewater Learning & who they serve
➖ The right way to implement tech
➖ Transforming the learning experience & delivery for deskless workers
➖ Picking the right vendor that solves your problems
➖ Getting great measurements to justify your investment
Chris's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christophermbond/
Company Website: https://www.bluewaterlearning.com/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/b32wmO45A20
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at www.frontlineinovators.com

Friday Feb 24, 2023
Meeting the Underserved - Episode #103 - Chris Bond - Part 1
Friday Feb 24, 2023
Friday Feb 24, 2023
We're excited to be back with a new episode of Frontline Innovators as we talk with Chris Bond, CEO @ Bluewater Learning. He has been transforming the Learning and Talent Management field for over 20 years through his leadership, articles, speaking engagements, and consulting services.
This is Part 1 of 2 with Chris Bond as he discusses:
➖ The biggest challenge facing the deskless workforce
➖ Solving the People, Process & Technology issue
➖ Why the frontline has been underserved
➖ The 4 segments of training in L&D
➖ Short term versus long term employee experience - investing in the frontline
Chris's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christophermbond/
Company Website: https://www.bluewaterlearning.com/
Here's other ways you can listen:
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/Awcd-2K98CM
Find more episodes of Frontline Innovators at www.frontlineinovators.com

Friday Jan 13, 2023
Making Your Solution Scalable - Episode #102 - Adam Roesner
Friday Jan 13, 2023
Friday Jan 13, 2023
In this episode, we talk with Adam Roesner, Learning and Development Technology Manager @ Pactiv Evergreen Inc. He has extensive experience in the healthcare field and medical device training. Adam delves into giving the frontline access to the right learning and understanding the nature of the learning itself.
Takeaways
🔔 Teach them how to get to the answer rather than what the answer is.
🔔 Scale your solution, so that in the future you can integrate other systems & not disrupt your workflow.
🔔 Know the difference between a primary and secondary tool that the frontline uses day-to-day.
🔔 Just in time solutions should be a temporary fix to a more permanent training plan.
Quote of the show: "Make your solution scalable so that in the future, if there is a chance that something happens, you can plug other systems into it and not disrupt your workflow."
Links:
Adam's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamroesner/
Company Website: https://pactivevergreen.com/
Here's how you can listen 🎧
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/ywixH0XCIfI

Friday Jan 06, 2023
Asking The Right Questions - Episode #101 - Maria Feay
Friday Jan 06, 2023
Friday Jan 06, 2023
In this episode, we talk with Maria Feay, Director, Learning and Quality Coaching @ Quantum Health. She gives great insight into Learning and Development asking the right questions and solving for the problem.
Takeaways
🔔 What happens after the button is pushed? (Day 2)
🔔 The frontline needs competence but more importantly they need confidence that they can do the job they are tasked to do.
🔔 Meet the learner where they are at - then build content to fit.
🔔 Allowing your frontline to be resourceful rather than have everything memorized
Quote of the show: "What I love is coming into organizations and being the one that asks the question, so what are we solving for?"
Links:
Maria's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maria-gentile-feay-mba-b4a4741/
Company Website: https://quantum-health.com/
Here's how you can listen 🎧
Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Youtube - https://youtu.be/sb5yFJAxjLU

Friday Dec 02, 2022
Designing the Right Training - Episode #99 - Amanda Fullbright
Friday Dec 02, 2022
Friday Dec 02, 2022
This weeks episode host Justin Lake talks with Amanda Fullbright, Senior Vice President, Learning and Performance Development at BlueSprig Pediatrics. Amanda has many years of experience finding technology solutions in the healthcare field and speaks on the various challenges of developing training for the frontline.
Takeaways
🔔 Time and communication are the big struggles for the deskless workforce.
🔔 Design the right training for the right person at the right time.
🔔 Know how you are going to measure training before rolling it out.
🔔 It's really important to think about what device your training is optimized for.
Quote of the show: "Change can be good, but transition is always hard."
Links:
Amanda's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-fullbright-470071a/
Company Website: https://www.bluesprigautism.com/
Here's how you can listen 🎧
▪ Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
▪ Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
▪ Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
▪ Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
▪ Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
▪ Youtube - https://youtu.be/88w8jszI1j4

Friday Nov 11, 2022
Back to the Trenches - Episode #98 - Meg Vrabel
Friday Nov 11, 2022
Friday Nov 11, 2022
This weeks episode host Justin Lake talks with Meg Vrabel Chief Revenue Officer & SVP Innovation @ Capital Factory - the Center of Gravity for Entrepreneurs in Texas. Meg has extensive experience helping and leading frontline workers and delves into some great advice for frontline leaders.
Takeaways
🔔 Without an understanding of how people operate in the field, you can't make good decisions for them in a corporate environment.
🔔 Companies need to rethink the amount of time they're allocating to CM, training, and support.
🔔 A mistake made often with large companies - the frontline workers themselves are the last ones to hear about things
🔔 Get in the field and listen to your team. It doesn't mean that you're gonna be able to make everyone happy, because that is completely unrealistic, but if you're doing those first two, you just have such a better base to be able to help them.
Quote of the show 31:47 “Get in the field, listen to your team. It doesn't mean that you're gonna be able to make everyone happy, because that is completely unrealistic, but if you're doing those first two, you just have such a better base to be able to help them when you're their liaison basically to the corporate office. And lastly, I would. Not just listen to them, but trust them and be willing to put your neck out. If you really feel like you, this is the hill you wanna die on, be willing to do it as a leader, especially if you're a generalist, like you'll find another job if really the worst happens. But like if you don't take those chances and you're not willing to put your neck on the line and you're not willing to die on a hill for your team, you're probably just not gonna get the best outcome.”
Links:
Meg's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/megvrabel/
Company Website: https://www.capitalfactory.com/
Here's how you can listen 🎧
▪ Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
▪ Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
▪ Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
▪ Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
▪ Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
▪ Youtube - https://youtu.be/obfp4ZUM49A

Friday Oct 21, 2022
Tailoring Learning and Development - Frontline Innovators - Episode #097
Friday Oct 21, 2022
Friday Oct 21, 2022
Abby Fordham is the Director of Learning and Development at Pactiv Evergreen Inc. Abby is passionate about making sure that frontline employees are taken care of and that they are given every chance to succeed. Abby joins the host Justin Lake to talk about some of the biggest challenges frontline employees face and how we can overcome them.
Takeaways:
- The biggest challenge facing the frontline workforce today is the ability to access technology while being away from a desk. We have all the technology in the world but it is a struggle to get it to work when away from a desk or a spot without service.
- Frontline workers should be allowed to use their phones while away from the desk as a source for finding the answers to any questions they might have.
- The more you can help the frontline workers get their job the better their lives will be. Consider motivating and giving them access to the technology they might need to complete everything.
- Often when frontline workers are promoted and become their peers' boss, it is overlooked that they aren’t given leadership training and it is assumed that they will take the role. It’s important to provide them with the leadership skills and knowledge needed to succeed.
- Just because there is an issue when trying to implement technology doesn’t mean you stop what you are doing. A roadblock is an obstacle to overcome, not an excuse.
- You have to follow a procedure and see how things have been done, but it’s ok to have it customized slightly as long as all the proper steps are being followed.
- Let the technology do the hard work for you and the deskless workforce and then tailor the learning and development to them.
Quote of the show
31:47 “I never let no be a roadblock or a stop.”
Links:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abby-fordham-8061343a/
- Company Website: https://pactivevergreen.com/
Ways to Tune In:
- Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
- Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
- Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
- Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
- Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
- YouTube - https://youtu.be/BwIDcwL9UxU
Frontline Innovators is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through B2B podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/

Friday Oct 07, 2022
Serving A Greater Purpose - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 096
Friday Oct 07, 2022
Friday Oct 07, 2022
Casey Jensen is the Learning and Development Lead at Medtronic. Casey is passionate about making sure the employees on the frontline are able to ask questions and achieve their ultimate goals. Casey joins the host Justin Lake to talk about some of the biggest challenges facing frontline workers and how to help them better use the technology surrounding them.
Takeaways
- The deskless workforce is underrepresented in the amount of time it takes to learn a new task or technology. The change is often thrust upon them without enough training to make it viable.
- There is a lack of buy-in from management that allows enough time for learning new technology to happen.
- Feedback is an important part of communication with the frontline workforce. It’s essential to offer them a place to provide feedback so they feel heard and then you can see how you might be able to solve any of their issues.
- Learning and development miss the most important thing to link the training back to business development and business strategy.
- If somebody is on the floor but you are training them then you are losing productivity but at the same time, the training is essential to the frontline workers being able to do their job effectively.
- Different learning styles and different concepts come to people in different ways. It might take longer for some people to learn new technology and techniques than it would for others.
- You always want to make sure people are using training time wisely and appropriately and not dropping on the computer and going to Facebook or wasting the time.
Quote of the show
24:27 “The number one thing that I see that learning and development misses is linking it to the business objective and business strategy.”
Links:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caseywjensen/
- Company LinkedIn: https://www.medtronic.com/us-en/index.html
Ways to Tune In:
- Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
- Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
- Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
- Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
- Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
- YouTube - https://youtu.be/9JfQN_jYdtM
Frontline Innovators is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through B2B podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/

Friday Sep 30, 2022
Lead with Emotions - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 095
Friday Sep 30, 2022
Friday Sep 30, 2022
Molly Fields is the Senior Director of Learning and Development at TCC & Wireless Zone, a Verizon Authorized Retailer. Molly is passionate about making sure that leaders are emotionally invested in their teams and care for them. Molly joins the host Justin Lake to talk about the importance of being a good team leader and how that can motivate and make a difference to those working on the frontline.
Takeaways
- The biggest problem facing deskless workers today is that they aren’t able to balance things as well as they used to be able to because they have more on their plate than they are used to.
- The emotional aspect is where a direct leader can have the most impact on other members of their team.
- As a leader, it is your responsibility to lead your people and treat them with respect like the people they are, and then looking at them as workers comes second.
- Change doesn’t start from the top down. The best way to make change stick and work is by having the middle management people get the frontline workers to switch over and then the change will stick.
- When it comes to bringing in new technology a new strategy, you want to try and sell it to the frontline workers with the mindset that they won’t like it and then get them to see the benefits of it.
- Think about the “stars” of your company and get them on camera to try and sell some change. The message will be more impactful coming from them rather than from someone in upper management.
- If you are not actively pursuing some kind of skill development then you are falling behind. You have to look at it what you can you do to be better at your job.
Quote of the show
5:51 “As the leader, you do have to lead your people emotionally first as people, not as performers.”
Links:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/molly-fields-5bb54385/
- Company Website: https://www.tccrocks.com/
Ways to Tune In:
- Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
- Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
- Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
- Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
- Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
- YouTube - https://youtu.be/_Q0ntyaYFAw
Frontline Innovators is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through B2B podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/

Friday Sep 23, 2022
Working on a Spectrum - Frontline Innovators - Episode #094
Friday Sep 23, 2022
Friday Sep 23, 2022
Jason Aurora is the Senior Director of Learning and Development at Hilti North America. Jason has a passion for helping deskless workers to be more knowledgeable about the current technology that surrounds them but also sees the value of human interaction and communication. Jason joins the host Justin Lake to talk about some of the biggest struggles facing frontline workers and we can overcome them.
Takeaways
- It’s important to be really effective from a learning perspective because in a diskless environment it is hard for those employees to find free time in their day.
- Communication has become more complicated as the world becomes more digital. The digital aspect creates a lot of distractions with all the different apps to communicate with.
- There is a model of “70 - 20 - 10” where 70% of the skills you need for the job you will learn from being trained, 20% is the informal learning of being added to projects and 10% is being certified in a certain subject.
- The human interaction and the bonding that takes place during in-person training and other programs is something that can not be replaced by using zoom or other video call platforms.
- Everyone at a company learns differently and has different needs. To make sure you are meeting everyone in the best way possible, it’s important to have a good company culture and to support each other.
- An office isn’t just a place where you work, it’s also a place where you create, celebrate, and collaborate with others.
- Employees need to feel valued and appreciated in an organization so that they will bring in their best work, be dedicated to the company and want to stay at the company long term.
Quote of the show
13:56 “70% of your learning is really based on experiential.”
Links
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-aurora/
- Company Website: https://www.hilti.com/
Ways to Tune In:
- Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
- Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
- Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
- Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
- Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
Frontline Innovators is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through B2B podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/

Friday Sep 16, 2022
Solving Problems - Frontline Innovators - Episode # 093
Friday Sep 16, 2022
Friday Sep 16, 2022
Sumair Dutta is the Vice President, Product Marketing at ServiceMax. He is an experienced product marketer and industry analyst. Sumair has deep familiarity with field service, workforce management, and frontline worker needs. Sumair joins the host Eugene Signorini to talk about the changing role of frontline workers.
Takeaways
- The biggest problem facing the frontline workforce today is the disruption that new technology has brought. While some jobs can be automated frontline workers can be interacting with customers and spend less time on unnecessary paperwork.
- A true test of automation is to see if it still works after taking some fields away from it, rather than just adding more work to it and hoping that it works out well.
- The technicians and those on the frontline are the ones who represent your company to your customers, so you want to make sure they are fully capable and able to do any work they need to do in the field.
- The people who take on the role of a field service technician or someone else working the frontlines are people who want to help solve problems that customers are having a get over any potential hurdles.
- The work that frontline employees are doing is becoming more complex, requiring multiple steps for a single task to be completed.
- Organizations are going to want to tap more into the customer success part of the frontline workforce. Companies will be able to use that as a source of revenue and lead generation for themselves.
- It’s important to understand the needs of technicians and frontline workers and see where any of the pain points are and try to solve that for them.
Quote of the show:
12:22 “The folks who take on these jobs are inherently folks who want to solve problems.”
Links:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sumairdutta/
- Company Website: https://www.servicemax.com/
Ways to Tune In:
- Amazon Music - https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/2f4ecd92-6468-4769-b0bf-254e236510b7/FRONTLINE-INNOVATORS
- Apple Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/frontline-innovators/id1572329402
- Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/29m3wnK8pbFjdSvJ9wjmyS
- Stitcher - https://www.stitcher.com/show/frontline-innovators
- Google Play - https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZnJvbnRsaW5laW5ub3ZhdG9ycy5jb20vZmVlZC54bWw
- YouTube - https://youtu.be/f-swOhgPqcg
Frontline Innovators is produced by Ringmaster, on a mission to create connections through B2B podcasts. Learn more at https://ringmaster.com/