By Design Advisors: The Way To Value Podcast

“Good people are impossible to find.” False.

In this whiteboard, Dale shows the five steps to consistently hire A-players—starting before you post a job: Define your fish (KRA/impact/behaviors), ID your bait (Working Genius + DISC + real EVP), run an intentional interview (half-day, multiple interviewers, each with a specific lens), gather individual feedback (no groupthink), and close by selling the opportunity—not just the salar...

You don’t have a meeting problem—you have a clarity & pressure-test problem. In this whiteboard video, we go over some common meeting myths & why people love to schedule meetings. If the meeting falls into one of these myths, you cancel it—no guilt.

Links:

Book A Call: https://www.bydesignadvisors.com/contact-us

Learn More About Exit Strategy & Leadership – https://www.bydesignadvisors.com

Finding Significance b...

If your meetings are easy but nothing actually changes, you might be on Team Harmony—not Team Honesty. In this whiteboard session, Dale breaks down 5 signs you’re stuck in harmony culture and 3 quick tests to flip your team into honest debate, faster decisions, and real execution.

5 signs you’re on Team Harmony:

1. Easy meetings (status report-outs, nodding along, no debate)

2. Every issue is a 5-alarm fire (people waited...

This episode tackles three questions we keep getting from the community:

“My one-on-ones aren’t working—what should I do?”

“I’m a younger manager leading a more experienced team—help!”

“It’s a family business. Dad won’t delegate. How do we change it?”

We share the frameworks we use in the wild: make 1:1s intentional (owner + outcome + agenda), lead vets with humility + listening tours (assessments help), and get family owners...

What actually grows a media business? Showing up.

In this episode, Andrej Suttles (founder of Suttlesolution Media) shares how he went from shooting bulldog photos to producing podcasts, reels, and client content every week—by building a consistency + accountability machine. He talks free “test shoots,” fail-safes for production, authentic storytelling vs. Buzz Word Marketing, and why AI is a tool—not a substitute for showing up. ...

Most owners tie exit timing to age—not the business. In this roundtable, Dale, Marty, and Tom break down the real “right time to sell”: when you’re ready (mentally + operationally), the business is clean, and you can tell a story buyers will love.

We talk about the 5 Ds that force terrible exits (death, divorce, disagreement, distress, disability), why “sell in strength” always beats scared selling, and how multiples interact w...

Most leaders don’t fail because of markets—they fail because of ego.

In this episode of The Way to Value, Marty Osborne and Dale Thrush break down why leaders don’t ask for help and how BCD Syndrome (Blame • Complain • Defend) quietly destroys culture, hiring, and growth. They share practical plays: team-led hiring (“weigh in = buy in”), the Fresh Eyes onboarding practice, when to push back on yourself instead of your people, and ...

AI isn’t coming—it’s here. From Amazon automating at scale to Accenture using AI adoption as a litmus test, the people side of business is changing fast. In this episode of The Way to Value, Marty and Dale unpack what that means for leaders, recruiters, and job seekers—including AI showing up inside interviews and why assessments (DISC & Working Genius) matter more than ever. We also share practical plays like “Fresh Eyes” onbo...

If you think due diligence is just paperwork, wait until the 16 tabs hit your inbox.

In this episode, Steve Brindle (Advoco co-founder) explains how he led the financial excellence and due diligence that took the team from LOI to close in their acquisition—what buyers really check, why simple books beat “lipstick on a pig,” and when to say no without tanking the deal.

You’ll hear how multiple groups (finance, legal, HR, comp) ...

A full year. 50+ episodes. Dozens of leaders and teams. Here’s what actually stuck!

In this Yearly Recap of The Way to Value, Marty interviews Dale about the biggest lessons we learned this past year—working with founders, operators, and our own team. We boil it down to three buckets (Strategy • Focus • Execution), the 90-day / 3-rocks cadence that kept us honest, and why getting uncomfortable was the theme that changed everythi...

Most companies are shouting the same things: customer-focused, values-driven, people-first. If your competitors can say it too, it’s not a differentiator — it’s permission to play.

In this episode of The Way to Value, Marty Osborn and Dale Thrush break down the difference between permission-to-play statements and true unique value. We pressure-test mission statements, call out Buzzword Marketing, and share practical exercises to...

After 15 years at Michelin, Parker Baxter jumped from corporate innovation to launching Greener Fleets, where he helps trucking and delivery fleets become more profitable and sustainable!

We talk why fleets adopt EV, CNG/RNG, hydrogen (hint: long-term cost + shipper demand), how California programs can cover ~$200k per EV to close the TCO gap, and why razor-thin margins make fuel savings a multi-million-dollar lever. Parker als...

Leaders keep saying “communication is our biggest problem.” Kamber Parker Bowen says: it’s fixable—and it can become your advantage.

In this episode of The Way to Value, Kamber (author of The Generational Advantage) shares a practical playbook for multigenerational leadership: how to reduce “us vs. them,” set clear expectations, and match communication to how people actually work. We dig into today’s workforce mix (Boomers, Gen ...

Leaders keep saying “communication is our biggest problem.” Kamber Parker Bowen says: it’s fixable—and it can become your advantage.

In this episode of The Way to Value, Kamber (author of The Generational Advantage) shares a practical playbook for multigenerational leadership: how to reduce “us vs. them,” set clear expectations, and match communication to how people actually work. We dig into today’s workforce mix (Boomers, Gen ...

Tom Johnson didn’t take the safe route. In this Overtime sit-down, Marty & Dale go way back with their longtime friend—and BDA partner, Tom Johnson—about failure, execution, and why opposites build better teams. You’ll hear how Dale, Tom (High-C on DISC) and Marty balance each other, how getting comfortable with failure shaped Tom’s career, and why execution is more important than intention when it comes to building companies. ...

What does a great CFO actually do? In this episode of The Way to Value, Tom Johnson (20+ years as a CFO) breaks down the difference between bean counting and building value—from capital structure and cash forecasting to the exit process itself. He’s lived it: Tom helped take a company scale from ~$25M valuation to a $165M exit.

If you’re debating fractional vs. full-time CFO, wrestling with “growth at all costs,” or wondering ho...

Trey Gaskin didn’t outspend competitors—he out-served them!

In this episode of The Way to Value, Trey (Founder & CEO, Advanced Property Tech) breaks down the moves that took his multifamily low-voltage integrator from startup to successful exit. His formula? Be the integrator that actually integrates (access control, cameras, ERRC, Wi-Fi, smart locks/thermostats), lock in long-term contracts, and build an unsexy service moat...