Jon Spiesman

One Percent Better Leader

Just like other skills, leadership is something that improves through willingness and consistent practice.  No one becomes a true leader overnight, but working at it consistently and targeting small improvements over time leads to great results!  Are you willing to put the effort in to get 1% better today?  OPBL is dedicated to helping leaders achieve their goals 1% at a time.

Founder and CEO

Tala Peak Leadership, LLC

"Culture eats strategy for breakfast" - Peter Drucker.  I help leaders intentionally build the culture of their organizations and exceed their goals.  Tala Peak Leadership works with leaders to analyze their situation and create a specific plan to shift the culture of the organization and create measurable results.

Managing Owner

Center for Executive Coaching

Certified Executive Coach 

Bayer

Business lead for Integration of Bayer and Monsanto entities, business processes, and ERP systems.  Set up enterprise project governance and project management systems for $200M integration effort.  Identified and recruited talented leadership team.  Drove collaborative teamwork across teams of Monsanto and Bayer experts, senior executive stakeholders, and complex business teams.  Maintained highly engaged teams throughout grueling and intense 2 year project schedule through visible and authentic leadership, fun and engaging team activities, and regular newsletters and town hall style communications.  Project stakeholder management and communications was considered best-in-class internally and was implemented on other enterprise critical projects.  Creatively addressed the challenges that COVID placed on a global project team to achieve an on-time implementation with fully remote teams.

VP, Business Lead US/CA Integration Project

Continuation of Monsanto role through transition to Bayer ownership.  Responsible for customer support and account management, logistics and delivery, and business process support for $8B revenue business.  Lead team of ~500 with $50M direct budget managing ~$200M of Logistics spend.  Leader of cross functional team, each leader with diverse and independent functions and sometimes diverging interests.  This role required a CEO mindset to elevate vision of team success and foster collaborative teamwork.  Consistently maintained highest levels of engagement scores within function/division/region by prioritizing communication, clear goals, employee trust, and celebrating wins.  Success required effective team building, stakeholder management, authentic leadership presence, and high personal accountability and credibility.
Notable Accomplishments in Team Performance and Innovation Leadership:
•	Defined and implemented new business model pilot for outcome-based pricing and direct to farm delivery
•	Implemented Monsanto’s first Digital Transformation of customer experience encompassing B2B strategy, customer portal strategy, digital finance tools, and market funding tools.
•	Implemented TMS system for transportation optimization and shipment visibility – project won global recognition from JDA for customer value creation, completed on-time, and achieved savings goals.
•	Implemented perfect order metric to drive improved customer experience and streamline processes
•	First implementation of Robotic Process Automation – automating ~10,000 process steps in first year.
•	Implemented hub support model across select support functions to enable standardization and efficiency gains of 20% in cost and resourcing

Director, North America Customer Care

Monsanto Company

Responsible for customer support and account management, logistics and delivery, and business process support for $8B revenue business.  Lead team of ~500 with $50M direct budget managing $200M of Logistics spend.  Responsible for customer support and account management, logistics and delivery, and business process support for $8B revenue business.  Lead team of ~500 with $50M direct budget managing ~$200M of Logistics spend.  Leader of cross functional team, each leader with diverse and independent functions and sometimes diverging interests.  This role required a CEO mindset to elevate vision of team success and foster collaborative teamwork.  Consistently maintained highest levels of engagement scores within function/division/region by prioritizing communication, clear goals, employee trust, and celebrating wins.  Success required effective team building, stakeholder management, authentic leadership presence, and high personal accountability and credibility.
Notable Accomplishments in Team Performance and Innovation Leadership:
•	Defined and implemented new business model pilot for outcome-based pricing and direct to farm delivery
•	Implemented Monsanto’s first Digital Transformation of customer experience encompassing B2B strategy, customer portal strategy, digital finance tools, and market funding tools.
•	Implemented TMS system for transportation optimization and shipment visibility – project won global recognition from JDA for customer value creation, completed on-time, and achieved savings goals.
•	Implemented perfect order metric to drive improved customer experience and streamline processes
•	First implementation of Robotic Process Automation – automating ~10,000 process steps in first year.
•	Implemented hub support model across select support functions to enable standardization and efficiency gains of 20% in cost and resourcing

Promoted to Lead cross functional team including Customer support and account management, logistics, demand and distribution planning, and business process support for $6.5B revenue business.  Success in this role required strong partnering and negotiation with sales and marketing functions and functional global leadership.
Notable Accomplishment Areas in Operational Excellence and Innovation Leadership:
•	Led first Monsanto implementation of SFDC – over 1M cases, 36% increased NPS, 49% reduction in resolution time, and 32% improvement in customer effort score.
•	Implemented Monsanto first mobile track and trace and delivery feedback process, enabling real-time feedback on 19,000 deliveries with a satisfaction rating of 99%.
•	Implemented new OTC system to enable movement of $800M brand to agency model.
•	Established dashboards, metrics, and governance processes to drive consistent operational excellence across business lines.  The improved target setting and harmonization between functions delivered $10M in logistics savings, improved OTD, and a 90% variance reduction against quarterly targets.

Director, US Supply Chain

Notable Accomplishments
•	Influenced key decisions makers to change the strategic plan for the 5 year soy crop LRP through creation of a model to help bring visibility to hidden costs and risk associated with the ramping up of new product volumes.
•	Created and implemented novel contingency plans to replace 20% of total supply plan impacted by historic 2012 drought conditions.

Director, North America Soybean Seed Mfg

Notable Accomplishments:
•	Led first Monsanto implementation of new SC model integrating Procurement, Planning, Logistics, and Customer operations into one organization.  
•	Post-centralization of Customer Service function led a full re-evaluation of the function and the OTC processes which led to several impactful initiatives including:  Implementation of a new distribution model in Italy reducing product returns by 50% with an increase in sales, implementation of a front/back office split in Customer Service enabling 50% improvement in efficiency and labor arbitrage of $2.5M USD to East Europe.
•	Designed and implemented a new Procurement model for EMEA, increasing staff H/C from 1 to 45 but reaching breakeven savings 7 months into first year and 2X committed financial contribution over 3 years ($70M USD).
•	Led definition and implementation of first measure of NPS and OTD in EMEA and drove a 10% improvement against baseline in the first year.
•	Oversight of hosted site shutdown and demolition in Antwerp, Belgium including negotiated settlement with asset owners, labor unions, and works councils.

EMEA Supply Chain Director

Manufacturing Business Unit Leader

Monsanto

Production Planning

Area Leader

Site Manager

Freeing Execs to work ON their business instead of IN their business.

You finally have time set for that romantic dinner date with your spouse.  Her favorite location, the smell of butter, garlic, and wine wafting from the kitchen as you imagine a plate of Veal Parmigiano.  The maitre’d seats you and you open the menu as you feel a familiar buzz from your jacket pocket….
Your phone ringing.  It's work…again.

You missed another of your son’s soccer games.  His dejected gaze at his shoes when you explain, it carves at your soul.  That look from your wife….all too familiar.  

You can see that your strategy is outdated, opportunities laying lonely on the table like those magazines articles you keep meaning to read.  

You just need time…you need to get ahead of a few things.  You need freedom to work on your business, not stuck feeling trapped in your business.

You sacrificed much to build your business.  You deserve success….you also deserve to live your life and enjoy what you have built, not be a slave to it.  You can regain your treasured personal time, you can pursue those business opportunities and catalyze the next level of growth.

If you recognize yourself here….there is hope.  You grew your business career one block at a time…the way out of this situation is the same….to grow out of it. 

I use proven coaching frameworks to target measurable improvement areas for your leadership.  True organizational change starts through courageous change with senior leaders like you.  I’m so confident in this process that I offer a results guarantee.  You will see measurable improvement or you don't pay.  What do you have to lose?

Want a leadership master-class? The Johari window is a pretty good candidate.

Leadership is relationship…when relationships and trust are strong, you have a good chance as a leader.

The Johari window is a framework to expand trust and achieve potential.

The “arena” is where you can openly lead….leveraging your strengths and those of others to achieve results.

In the arena - you build trust through competence and leading with humility.

You also build trust through vulnerability - sharing some of the hidden things in the ‘facade’.

What are the things that you lose sleep over? What are you working on to be a better leader?

Vulnerability requires a lot of courage but it brings humanity into the leadership equation.

When you have gained enough trust, you may start to learn about “blindspots”.

In my last post, we talked about blindspots….negative or positive, they represent opportunity.

A workplace with trusted relationships allows for exploration into the “unknown”.

When you are consistently expanding the arena by shrinking the other three quadrants….I would wager your results will be strong.

It may seem oversimplified to think about this with a 2x2 matrix.

But if you really think about it….does leadership need to be more complicated than this?

What is missing for you?

Have you seen or used the Johari window before?

💡Leadership Tips that make you think
🔔 Follow me or connect if you are cheeky

Best sketchnote by Tanmay Vora ✍️ — make sure to give him a follow!

#EncouragingLeaders #JohariWindow #Leadership #Trust #GreatPlaceToWork #LeadershipDevelopment

Hounds Of Business Community

Founder

Flourish Foundation Project

Chief Operations Officer

Kindness Worldwide

Global Ambassador

Primerica

Financial Coach

SEAM

Chief Executive Officer

Revenue Recovery

Zoneton & Shepherdsville FD

Firefighter/CO

Unique Computer Solutions Inc

Senior Consultant

The Redneck Connecktor | Helping Business Owners Land Premium Clients Without Cold DMs or Pitchy Networking | Building Trust-First Businesses in a Low-Trust World | Founder of the Hounds of Business Community

Most business owners don’t fail because they’re lazy or clueless.
They fail because, in a low-trust world, they’ve been 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒅.

Played by networking groups where everyone’s just waiting their turn to pitch.

Played by coaches who promise clients but never had to make payroll.

 Played by “systems” that feel sleazy and suck the joy out of business.

That was me once too, all heart, no clue. Until I discovered a better way:

𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭. 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝. 𝐓𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐬𝐭.

Because when trust becomes your strategy, clients stop hesitating, partnerships start compounding, and business finally feels right again.

Now we help entrepreneurs, coaches, and business owners:

🐺 𝐂𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐢𝐬𝐞 on LinkedIn & YouTube without playing algorithm games.
🐺 𝐋𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐮𝐦 𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 without cold DMs, funnels, or fake engagement tactics.
🐺 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐫𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐬 & 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐜 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬 that replace solo ad spend for good.

We do it through three layers:

 1️⃣ 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐂𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠- my 4 C’s framework (Clarity, Connections, Community, Conversion).
 2️⃣ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲- a vetted pack of professionals who actually care about each other’s success.
 3️⃣ 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚 & 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐄𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦- visibility, partnerships, and introductions most people never get access to.

The Results

🐾 1 M+ views in 90 days
 🐾 Members going from ignored to inbound, stalled to booked, and “coffee chats” to clients
 🐾 Partnerships with Level Up Academy, Kindness Worldwide, Pantheon.FM, The Connector Community, and more

I’m not here to sell magic buttons.
I’m here to show you the game, the rules, and how to pick the 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮.

If you’re serious about growing your network & net worth without chasing, pitching, or selling your soul, we should talk.

👉 Grab the free 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤: https://crm.houndsofbusiness.com/master-attractor
👉 Or pull up a chair at our next 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYtduGurToqHdMRgxOel3B0ItmZOiU7dxkz

Because business grows at the speed of trust.
𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭. 𝐀𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬.

Mike Ashabraner

Ever notice how some rooms move faster, not because of competition, but because of connection?

That’s what I call the 𝐓𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫 in community.
When people feel safe, seen, and supported, momentum explodes.
Referrals fly. Partnerships form. Collaboration replaces comparison.

It’s not about chasing clients or clout, it’s about building a circle where trust does the heavy lifting.

𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐢𝐭, 𝐲’𝐚𝐥𝐥 
🐺 What’s one sign you’ve found a real community (not just another crowd)?

View newsletter: How to Build a Community

Why trust is the fuel that turns business groups into growth engines Let’s be real, y’all, the fastest way to slow down your business is to surround y

Open article: The Trust Accelerator in Community: How Connection Outpaces Competition by Mike Ashabraner • 3 min read

The Trust Accelerator in Community: How Connection Outpaces Competition

Presented by the Hounds of Business Community on Mike King Biz Radio (ESPN RVA 106.1FM)

In a world that glorifies hustle, the real power lies in slowing down and no one knows that better than Cynthia Fluck, former Navy pilot, corporate strategist, and now Holistic Transformation Practitioner.

After years of flying helicopters in Japan, closing international deals, and building a top real estate business, Cynthia’s body and mind finally hit a wall. What felt like burnout became her greatest breakthrough and what she discovered changed everything.

Today, she helps high-performing entrepreneurs and executives reclaim their energy, clarity, and creativity by aligning physiology, mindset, and energy. Her unique approach blends functional medicine, neuroscience, and energy work to help ambitious leaders tap into flow, attract opportunities, and perform at their best, without burning out.

In This Episode:
🐾 Why “busy-ness” isn’t business and how slowing down can multiply results
 🐾 The science behind focus, flow, and nervous-system regulation
 🐾 How to rewire your body and brain from stress to success
 🐾 Practical resets that help high achievers perform sustainably

Whether you’re a founder, executive, or everyday high performer running on fumes, this episode will show you how to do less, be more, and achieve better results through the science of flow and the power of alignment.

Tune in live and learn why slowing down might be your next big business move.

Learn more about Cynthia’s work at www.CrescentHolistic.com

Royce Blake, Amy Cornforth-Long and 3 other connections attending

Slow Down to Level Up: The Science of High Performance

Presented by the Hounds of Business Community on Mike King Biz Radio (ESPN RVA 106.1FM)

The holidays expose something most high performers never admit out loud:
When the world slows down… they often struggle the most.
That’s why Curtis Rivers is the perfect guest for this moment.

Curtis is an award-winning author, former Hollywood stuntman, peak-performance coach, and one of the most spiritually grounded high-achiever mentors working today. His clients call him “the reset button you don’t know you need.” His blend of emotional mastery, mental clarity, and practical performance psychology has transformed leaders, founders, creators, and executives across the globe.

As we close out the year, Curtis joins us to talk about what high performers really need during the holidays — not more hustle, not more goals, and definitely not more stress — but the right kind of reset that sets up a breakthrough year.

In This Conversation, Curtis Helps High Performers Learn How To:

1. Navigate holiday pressure with emotional intelligence
 So you avoid the self-sabotage loops, hidden expectations, and old emotional patterns that tend to surface this time of year.

2. Reset mentally and spiritually without losing momentum
 The secret to entering 2025 with clarity, calm, and a sharper edge — not burnout disguised as productivity.

3. Use reflection, simplicity, and presence to fuel next-level breakthroughs
 How to turn the quiet moments of the holidays into power multipliers that accelerate you into your best year yet.

Curtis will also share the mindset shifts, personal rituals, and inner practices he teaches elite performers, the same tools he used to rebuild his own life after decades of high-stakes stunt work and success pressure.

If you’re ready to stop dragging the weight of this year into the next…
If you want to make 2025 a year of aligned, unstoppable growth…
If you want a December that actually lifts you up instead of wearing you out…

This is your reset moment.
Tune in and rise.

The Redneck Connecktor | Helping leaders build sovereign, trust-driven businesses that consistently attract premium clients, without cold outreach or performative networking | Founder of the HOB Community & Media Network

Reset to Rise: How High Performers Elevate During the Holidays

Presented by the Hounds of Business Community on Mike King Biz Radio (ESPN RVA 106.1FM)

The healthcare system is changing fast and not always for the better. Costs rise, patients wait, and innovation often lags behind need. But every so often, someone steps forward who isn’t afraid to challenge the system, call out the broken parts, and build something better.

That’s Dr. Jay Joshi.

A nationally respected physician, double board-certified in Anesthesiology and Interventional Pain, Dr. Joshi has spent 30 years at the cutting edge of medicine pioneering procedures, creating first-in-the-world protocols, predicting the OxyContin epidemic before it happened, and pushing for ethical innovation long before it became a buzzword.

He’s the mind behind the first virtual interventional pain practice, groundbreaking regenerative medicine systems, and AAI Health, a platform redefining musculoskeletal care, digital health, and patient-centered treatment.

But what sets him apart isn’t just the innovation.
It’s the integrity.

Dr. Joshi believes medicine should be built on truth, transparency, and doing what’s right even when it’s unpopular and he’s bringing that message straight to entrepreneurs, founders, healthcare leaders, and everyday citizens who are tired of the noise and ready to understand what’s really going on.

In This Episode, We’ll Break Down:

🐾 The Good, the Bad & the Broken in Modern Healthcare
 Why musculoskeletal care is failing millions and what needs to change.
🐾 Innovation with Integrity
 🐾How AI, AAI Health, and ethical digital medicine can transform patient outcomes (without cutting corners).

Leadership Under Pressure
What 30 years of first-in-the-world medical breakthroughs taught Dr. Joshi about courage, precision, and staying human in high-stakes environments.

Whether you’re a founder, executive, creator, healthcare professional, or someone who wants to be better informed about the future of care, this is a rare chance to hear directly from a physician who isn’t afraid to tell the truth and who’s actively building what comes next.

Tune in to get a clearer picture of healthcare’s future…
 and the leadership mindset needed to fix it.

👉 Learn more at:
 JayJoshiMD.com
 AAI.health
 NationalPain.com
 AltruisticWellness.org

LeeAnna Stock-Luoma  RD, LD, CD, CDCES 🇺🇸, Amy Cornforth-Long, Esq. and 1 other connection attending

Disrupting Medicine: Integrity, Innovation & the Future of Care w/Dr. Joshi

Presented by the Hounds of Business Community
The holidays are supposed to be joyful, but for most busy professionals, it’s the season when stress spikes, routines collapse, and momentum disappears.

This year, we’re flipping that script.

Join Mike “The Redneck Connecktor” Ashabraner and two powerhouse HOB members, David Medansky (“The Health Guy”) and Curtis Rivers (“The Soul Guide”), for a practical, honest, uplifting conversation designed to help you finish the year strong without burning out in the process.

Whether you’re running a company, leading a team, or trying to keep your own goals alive while juggling holiday chaos… this panel will give you the tools to stay grounded, energized, and on track.

What We’ll Dig Into

1. Holiday Health Without the Hassle
David Medansky reveals why most people gain weight, lose energy, and feel sluggish during the holidays and the simple daily habits his clients use to stay vibrant without dieting, restriction, or guilt.

2. Resetting Your Mindset When Life Gets Loud
Curtis Rivers breaks down how stress, comparison, and expectations hijack your clarity and how to shift into peace, purpose, and emotional resilience even in your busiest season.

3. Keeping Business Momentum When Everyone Else Slows Down
Mike shares the practical “Hounds way” of staying visible, connected, and moving forward without grinding yourself into dust.

4. Real Talk on Boundaries, Balance & Being Human
The conversation your audience actually needs and how to stay healthy, present, and purposeful during a time that pulls people in every direction.

5. Audience Q&A: Your Biggest Holiday Challenges

We’ll address the real obstacles professionals face in December:

How to avoid losing progress

How to stay consistent without overwhelm

How to protect your peace

How to reset for a powerful New Year

Why You Should Tune In
This isn’t a “self-care fluff” conversation.
It’s real, usable insight from:
A bestselling author who reversed his own health crisis (David)

A former Hollywood stuntman turned award-winning life coach (Curtis)

A community-building strategist leading one of the fastest-growing entrepreneurial ecosystems (Mike)

If you want to stay healthy, focused, energized, and ahead of the curve through the holidays then this is the show for you.
Join Us Live

Bring your questions.
Drop your challenges in the chat.
Get the support you need to end the year strong and enter the next one with confidence.
Because the holidays don’t have to derail you, rather they can prepare you.

Royce Blake, David Medansky, The Health Guy and 2 other connections attending

Holiday Rescue: Real Talk on Health, Mindset & Momentum

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