Inspiring People & Places: Architecture, Engineering, And Construction BJ Kraemer, MCFA

In honor of Father’s Day, BJ’s dad, Brian Kraemer Sr, joins us for this episode of Inspiring People and Places to discuss all things life and leadership! 
 
Mr. Kraemer always knew he wanted to get married, coach, and serve his country. In this conversation, you’ll hear all about his family, his career in the military, and what inspired him to join the Air Force. 
 
Mr. Kraemer also tells us how sports and teamwork influenced his parenting style. In addition to his Air Force unit, the kinds of missions it did, and his time at Hurricane Huntershow. 
 
Finally, he shares some books he recommends, the lessons he’s learned from them, and why fatherhood is a man’s most important job. 
 
Thanks for listening and happy Father’s Day!
 
Key Points From This Episode:
•   How Mr. Kraemer became interested in the military and eventually, got into the Air Force. 
•   What his first deployment was like and how it affected his family. 
•   An overview of the kinds of missions his Air Force unit did.  
•   Leadership lessons from sports that have served Mr. Kraemer well in life and fatherhood. 
 
Quotes:
“Service before self!” — Brian Kraemer Sr
 
“Fatherhood is your main vocation. Once you become a father, that is your number one before work. God, family, country.” — Brian Kraemer Sr
“It’s a privilege to be a father, it’s even more fun to be a grandfather, and I hope I am able to stick around for another 20 years or so to maybe become a great-grandfather someday.” — Brian Kraemer Sr
 
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
 
Brian Kraemer Sr on LinkedIn
NOAA Hurricane Hunters
The Elements of Style
Make Your Bed
Inspiring People & Places Podcast
MCFA
MCFA Careers
BJ Kraemer on LinkedIn

In this episode, we welcome back Kyle Majchrowski to the show as we delve into implementing a human-centric approach to workplace environments. 
 
Kyle is a Senior Project Executive at Banner Health, where he provides support for teams managing new construction projects. He is also a founding member of Ripple Intent, a non-profit organization focused on improving workplace experiences by fostering community, reducing stress, and promoting collaborative and human-centric approaches to project delivery. 
 
We unpack the power of Ripple Intent’s programs and how they help people feel empowered and be intentional with their actions. We also uncover the types of topics covered at Ripple Intent’s events, how group discussions help clarify workplace nuances, and why self-awareness is vital for team productivity.
 
Hear about why you need to bring your ‘whole self’ into work, the importance of self-awareness, and the workplace culture pitfalls Ripple Intent solves. 
 
Explore pragmatic steps to start applying a human-centric approach at your organization and why leaders must form authentic relationships with their employees. 
 
Join us as we unpack practical tools and strategies to enhance workplace connection, joy, and productivity with Kyle Majchrowski!
 
Key Points From This Episode:
 
•   Why Kyle founded Ripple Intent and the impact it aims to make.
•   The value of fostering a collaborative and engaging work culture.
•   What got Kyle interested in the human-centric aspect of the workplace.
•   Advice for applying the Ripple Intent approach to your organization.
•   Mental health trends and why loneliness has become a pandemic.
 
Quotes:
 
“[Ripple Intent] tries to formulate and facilitate the conversations that we should be having to help us better understand who we are so we can impact how we work with other people.” — Kyle Majchrowski 
 
“When you start taking self-awareness to the level that [Banner Health] have, we see a lot less busy work [and] see a lot more empowerment.” — Kyle Majchrowski 
“For me [the human-centric concept] became a very complex problem that we needed to do some work in.” — Kyle Majchrowski 
 
“So much of what we do now is transaction-based.” — Kyle Majchrowski 
 
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
 
Kyle Majchrowski on LinkedIn
Ripple Intent
Ripple Intent podcast
Banner Health
Episode 32: Understanding and Refining Your Perspective with Kyle Majchrowski, Founder of Ripple Intent
Together
Ryan Holiday
Ryan Holiday Reading List
Inspiring People & Places Podcast
MCFA
MCFA Careers
BJ Kraemer on LinkedIn

Are you looking for a way to foster focus, accountability, and discipline within your team? 
 
Curious about implementing a process that can ultimately lead to entrepreneurial freedom? 
 
Then don’t miss out on today’s Inspiring People & Places episode. Joining BJ today is Mark O’Donnell. 
 
Mark is a Professional EOS® Implementer, coach, facilitator, seasoned business professional, and US Air Force Veteran. He is currently the Visionary and CEO at EOS®, and he’s here today to talk to us about his experience at the company. 
 
We learn more about the who behind Mark O’Donnell and his career journey. He also sheds light on Gino Wickman’s original vision for EOS®, the journey since its inception, and Gino’s eventual exit. 
 
To hear the cliff notes version of the EOS® process, his most-rated book recommendations, and more, don’t miss out. 
 
Thanks for listening!
 
Key Points From This Episode:
•   Gino Wickman’s original vision for EOS®.
•   EOS as being designed around entrepreneurial freedom. 
•   Mark details his experience taking over as Visionary, from a founder so intimately involved with the product.
 
Quotes:
“EOS® is really a philosophy.” — MarkO_Donnell
 
“EOS®, from the beginning, has been designed around entrepreneurial freedom. The value being assigned to your individual freedom over the value of a business.” — MarkO_Donnell
 
“Oftentimes, the best EOS® implementers are tired, burnt-out entrepreneurs.” — MarkO_Donnell
 
“Train resilience, grit, and perseverance and understand that your habits create your future.” — MarkO_Donnell
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Mark O’Donnell on LinkedIn
Mark O’Donnell on X
People: Dare to Build an Intentional Culture (The EOS Mastery Series)
EOS® World Wide
Vision Traction Organizer®
Gino Wickman
Entrepreneur’s Organization
The Strategic Coach
Dan Sullivan on LinkedIn
Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business
Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us
The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations
The Gap and The Gain: The High Achievers' Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success
The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer
Flow Research Collective
Epictetus Quote
Inspiring People & Places Podcast
MCFA
MCFA Careers
BJ Kraemer on LinkedIn

Welcome to this Memorial Day tribute episode where we sit down with Marion Zilinski, otherwise known as Mama Z, to discuss what Memorial Day means to people who have lost their loved ones in service. 
 
Tuning in, you’ll hear all about Marion’s late son, Dennis, why he decided to join West Point, and what 9/11 meant to him. Marion goes on to explain how it felt to find out that Dennis had died on deployment and shares her heartbreaking experience of losing her son. 
 
She also talks about Run with Dennis, the Dennis Zilinski Memorial Fund, and how to get involved. Mama Z reminds us what Memorial Day is truly about. 
 
Thank you for listening in!
 
Key Points From This Episode:
•   What it feels like to find out that a deployed loved one has died. 
•   What inspired the Zilinski family to start Run with Dennis and the Dennis Zilinski Memorial Fund. 
•   What Memorial Day is truly about, and why freedom isn’t free. 
•   The service dog program and how service dogs assist warriors with PTSD. 
 
Quotes:
“I was so angry [when my son died]. I have never been so angry in my life.” — Marion Zilinski 
 
“We want people to understand the dedication of our military.” — Marion Zilinski 
 
“Our freedom is bought and paid for by men and women that pledge to each of [us] their lives. And not all of them will come home. Many will be killed – or – wounded and their lives will be so impacted.”  — Marion Zilinski 
 
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Marion Zilinski on LinkedIn
Run with Dennis
Zilinski Memorial Fund on Facebook
Fisher House Foundation
Brooke Army Medical Center
The Strong Gray Line
Inspiring People & Places Podcast
MCFA
MCFA Careers
BJ Kraemer on LinkedIn

Are you managing a large team to reach your vision but feel like team members are not aligning correctly with the overall goal? Do you need help getting all team members on the same page?
 
In this solo episode, BJ unpacks the role of what we at MCFA regard as the meaning of KPI: keeping people interested. It is not your typical MBA academic term but a philosophy to help you be a better business and project leader. 
 
Discover the role of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) at a project and an individual level, how KPIs can help improve performance outcomes, and why a KPI needs to be associated with the bigger picture. 
 
Explore the fundamentals of a suitable KPI, the value of stacking success toward the bigger goal, examples of typical KPIs used in business, and more!
 
To uncover how KPIs can be a game-changer in your business and make you a more effective leader, tune in now!
 
Key Points From This Episode:
•   Why KPIs are important for achieving business success.
•   How measuring goals allows for informed decision-making
•   Steps to begin picking the right KPIs for your team.
 
Quotes:
“Most importantly [KPIs] allows [employees] to leave the day feeling like they won the day, and if they lost the day, how they can recover the next day.” — BJ Kraemer
 
“I look at KPIs as meeting daily [and] weekly goals that I know if I hit them I am doing my job well.” — BJ Kraemer
 
“Until you know what you are measuring, it is really hard to manage.” — BJ Kraemer
 
“You control how to keep people interested, and when you keep people interested and have a scoreboard, everybody knows how to win.” — BJ Kraemer
 
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
‘KPIs Invite Smart Business Decisions’
Inspiring People & Places Podcast
MCFA
MCFA Careers
BJ Kraemer on LinkedIn

As we continue to edge toward graduation and internship season, we felt there could not be a more fitting guest to join BJ on the podcast than our latest co-op, Isabella Damasceno. 
 
Isabella is currently a third-year student at Drexel University, pursuing a dual major in marketing and business analytics. 
 
Join us as we dive into details surrounding Isabella’s co-op program and how the process of matching students with co-op programs works. She shared her thoughts on how her program helped her figure out what she does and doesn’t want in her future career. 
 
Tune in to hear what students like her are looking for from a professional environment and the differences she noticed in her expectations versus the reality of working. 
 
Enjoy the episode!
 
Key Points From This Episode:
 
•   The recruiting process works to match students with co-ops.
•   How her co-op experiences have helped her figure out what she wants (and doesn't want) to do in her future career. 
•   Expectations versus experience: marketing in the engineering industry at MCFA.
 
Quotes:
 
“I think when you are introduced to something that you don’t know anything [about], you can either really hate it and be really intimidated or you can be inspired and motivated.” — Isabella Damasceno 
 
“I think, a lot of what I learned [in my co-op] was hands-on. And a lot of what I learned was [from] words. From just asking questions and talking to people.” — Isabella Damasceno 
 
“With every mistake that you make, you [also] learn from it.” — Isabella Damasceno 
 
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
 
Isabella Damasceno on LinkedIn
The Clay Studio
Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen) on Spotify
Die With Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life
The Surprising Key to Achieving Happiness and Success in Life and Business With Bill Watkins
Inspiring People & Places Podcast
MCFA
MCFA Careers
BJ Kraemer on LinkedIn