Master the art of translating customer needs into scalable, profitable, and authentic business growth.
This course examines the intersection of customer motivation, data-driven decision-making, and long-term business strategy. It explores how to identify genuine market problems, build high-performing teams with complementary skill sets, and maintain brand authenticity through continuous feedback loops. The content emphasizes the importance of patience in business development, the role of innovation in creating competitive advantages, and the necessity of aligning personal values with professional pursuits to achieve sustainable success.
1 activity • 1 videos • duration: 1h 6m
Motivational & Leadership Speaker
Adam Mendler is a nationally recognized authority on leadership, renowned for his unique ability to deliver perspective-shifting insights shaped by interviewing more than 500 of America’s most successful leaders. The creator and host of the top-rated business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, Adam regularly elicits insights from America's top CEOs, founders, athletes, celebrities, and political and military leaders. A keynote speaker to businesses, universities, and non-profit organizations, Adam has written extensively on business and leadership, having authored more than 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc., and HuffPost. A Los Angeles native and lifelong Angels fan, Adam teaches graduate-level courses on leadership at UCLA, serves on the board of UCLA’s Master of Applied Statistics & Data Science program, is an emeritus member of USC’s Board of Governors, and is an advisor to numerous companies and leaders.
Co-Founder of Stamps.com
Jim McDermott is a co-founder and Managing Partner of Rusheen Capital Management, a Santa Monica-based private equity firm investing in energy, environment and sustainability. Before that, he founded and ran US Renewables Group, a private equity firm focused on renewable power, clean fuels and energy infrastructure. As an investor and entrepreneur, he has started, run and invested in over 25 companies. These include Stamps.com (Founder and CEO), NanoH2O (acquired by LG Chem), Fulcrum BioEnergy (Founder, Executive and Chairman), 1PointFive (Founder and CEO, sold to Occidental) and Carbon Engineering (former Board Member, sold to Occidental). He is also a founder and board member of Moleaer, Avnos, Carbon Ridge and Zero Industrial.
Chief Merchandising and Marketing Officer of Whole Foods
Sonya Gafsi Oblisk is the Chief Merchandising and Marketing Officer at Whole Foods Market, where she leads merchandising, marketing, communications and e-commerce, and oversees digital product management. She has nearly 20 years of experience in retail and consumer goods marketing and brand management, and she is passionate about putting customers at the center of decision-making and advancing the company’s mission through its product Quality Standards. Before joining Whole Foods Market, she was a company officer at Walmart, most recently as Vice President of Marketing for Sam’s Club. She holds an MBA from UCLA Anderson and a B.A. from Emory University.
