Me in 90 Seconds (even if you’re a slow reader)
Me in 90 Seconds (even if you’re a slow reader)
Invested in a mentor in 2003 because I knew the traditional world of corporate politics and cumbersome hierarchy wasn’t for me. At a young age I learned the principles of selling and communication from a master and learned how to sell not only a product or service, but to sell an idea, to communicate, and to sell myself.
I entered real estate investing and graduated to oil and gas exploration and acquisitions where, at age 25, I negotiated with billionaires and multi-billion dollar companies (Paragon Petroleum). I became a presenter of strategy, ideas, and inspiration.
I spent time with gurus, motivational speakers, elite trainers, leaders in growth and performance programming. I met legends like Tony Robbins, Dean Graziosi, Robert Kiyosaki, and some – perhaps even more impressive – lesser known names and faces. I learned that no matter how great the plan, people find a way to mess it up and that inspection and inspiration are two different but equally important things.
I learned the ins and outs of retail through the beer world with the help of some great people and watched a market change and leave stale companies in the dust. Through mastery of a 1500 SKU portfolio, I positioned and promoted products for over 90 retail & hospitality locations. I learned the world of restaurants, bars, and convenience and more importantly learned the need for extreme ownership, work-life alignment, and glimpsed the need for a powerful culture. (Amoskeag).
I worked with an industry leader in transparency & service to provide vial functions to small and medium sized businesses. I saw first-hand the founder factor at work and watched a culture change overnight as a result of acquisition (Heartland).
I learned the value of culture, of leadership, and realized in order to reach my goals, it is time to lead, to own, to be responsible for my future. I joined Beyond in May of 2017 and experienced a solid 18 months of a tough, but strong winning culture. What Beyond accomplished during its infancy was nothing less than amazing. Sadly that momentum stalled, the culture slowly faded and progress slowed. I learned the power of being nimble, and how even great leaders can lose tough with an evolving industry (Beyond).
In May of 2020, I was brought into KastenBerry not to lead a sales team, but to bridge operations and sales. My role was the responsibility for all the things that frustrated me and my teams at Beyond and even at Amoskeag and my seminar experience. How can we make the sales process as frictionless as possible? I started as the EVP of Operations and was named Chief Operating Officer in December of 2020. My seat on the board, and my status as a C-suite executive means that my sales people have someone in operations that understands their day-t0-day. My work as KastenBerry is to foster and maintain the incredible culture we have built, to grow quickly and responsibly, and to show the world that small is the new big (KastenBerry).
I have taken risks. I’ve won, I’ve lost, I’ve learned.
Things I Can’t Live Without:
My wife Stefanie, and my two little monsters Cayden and Chaeson. The memories of my beloved Wheaten Cashy. My amazing family. A steno book and a UniBall Vision Elite pen.
Major Influences in My Life:
Dedicated and selfless parents. Loving siblings. A life of competitive athletics. Innate curiosity and a need to solve problems.
Things I Love:
The calm of determined strength. Ordinary people who leave extraordinary legacies. Family, like-minded friends. Superheroes – seriously who doesn’t love superheroes?