Manic Energy Podcast

Manic Energy Podcast
  • 5.0 (13)
  • Business
  • Updated Weekly

Ryan Swor, president and part-owner of Lake Superior Consulting and colleague, Katie Brooks explore the often misunderstood world of energy infrastructure, how it shapes our daily lives, and the passionate, purpose-driven people who keep it all running. Expect stories from the field, honest reflections on leadership and company culture, and a no-BS look at what it takes to deliver safe, reliable energy in an industry under pressure to evolve. This isn’t your typical corporate podcast—this is Manic Energy.

  1. 3d ago

    Anyone Can Win: Grit, Growth, and Employee Ownership w/ Shane Stolp

    What does it take to build a company where people really win? Shane Stolp has spent more than a decade figuring that out from the field, the office, and a lot of long drives to North Dakota. If you know me, you know I'm all about businesses that bring people together, lift communities, and drive responsible growth. So I was really excited for Katie Brooks and me to welcome Shane Stolp into the studio. Shane is the CEO of Wesscom Inc., an employee owned business right here in Duluth, and the host of the Energizing America podcast. I was lucky enough to be a guest on his show about a year ago, so this one felt like picking the conversation back up. Shane calls his story a normal one. He was number seven of nine kids and the first to go to college. He finished his bachelor's degree with eight kids at home. Then he took over a five person electrical company in North Dakota that he was supposed to grow and sell. It turned out to be too fun to sell, and today it has a few hundred employee owners. WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT Success and fulfillment are different things. The people who win long term are usually doing it for something bigger than a paycheck. You need a plan, and you also need to say yes when opportunity shows up outside of it. Shane never planned to own a business. Opportunity tends to find the people who bring ideas forward. It's on leaders to make that feel safe. If you're going to be vulnerable, you have to be ready to be honest. Shane's anonymous town hall Q&A shows what that looks like. Real engagement means getting out with your team, whether that's a rooftop solar project or a payroll review. Travel is part of this industry. Being upfront early, with your crews and with your family, makes it easier on everyone. When people move on, give them strong wings. A lot of them become your best customers. OUR FAVORITE QUOTES "Every one of you is your own CEO." "If you're just chasing a CEO title instead of a CEO duty, you'll never be a CEO." "Let's give them really strong wings." "Bad news does not age well. So the sooner delivered the better." "By not making it about you, it becomes all about you." CHAPTERS 02:50 From a hot roof to a college degree 06:37 Hard work and grit 13:18 Plan or opportunity? 20:45 You are your own CEO 27:17 Boots on, safety glasses on 42:49 Give them strong wings 53:04 Energy is dynamic YOUR TURN If you were the CEO of your job today, what's one idea you would finally bring forward? CONNECT WITH SHANE Wesscom Inc.: https://wescominc.com/  Energizing America Podcast: https://wescominc.com/involvement/podcast/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shane-stolp-49454711/  Links & Mentions: Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/   🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend! MB010XUHAGMDWHV

  2. Sep 21

    Building The Toughest Pump In The World, Right Here In Duluth

    There is a piece of equipment buried under nearly every city in America that keeps your water running, and most of us have never thought about it once. Today we're pulling back the curtain on it. I've talked about critical infrastructure a lot on this show. We've covered a lot of industries. But today is one of those invisible ones, something we all rely on constantly and almost nobody knows exists. Blake Kolquist is the Distribution Sales Manager at GPM, a Duluth manufacturer of the world's toughest submersible slurry pumps. Blake walked into GPM in 2008 for what he thought was an internship and never really left. He's spent time in manufacturing engineering, safety, marketing, service and sales, and watched the company grow from around 25 people to over 90. Along the way GPM expanded from its roots in mining and power generation into nuclear waste sites and, more recently, municipal water and wastewater. This is a company built right here in Duluth that is quietly showing up in critical systems across the country, and Blake has had a front row seat to almost all of it. KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS What a submersible slurry pump actually is and why GPM builds them different from anything you'd find at the hardware store The invisible system that gets clean water into your house and wastewater back out of it Why the real cost of a pump isn't the price tag, it's the electricity to run it over its lifetime What flushable wipes have actually done to sewer systems nationwide, and why it's worse than you'd guess What it took to walk into a brand new industry after fifteen years of expertise in a completely different one How the Build America Buy America Act is reshaping who gets to bid on public water infrastructure What Blake has learned moving through nearly every seat at GPM, and what it's like becoming the mentor instead of the new hire FAVORITE QUOTES "My opinion is it's all about relationships. The product has to work, but it's the relationships that make the difference." "The fact that people are frustrated means they care. I've seen people who were checked out of a job, and none of that complaining ever showed up at work." "There's not enough time to learn all the things I want to learn, so it's about prioritizing that." "It's the pump. It's always the pump. Except sometimes it isn't, and that's the interesting part." CHAPTER MARKERS 01:38 Blake's path from a Duluth childhood to GPM's front door 07:53 What "world's toughest submersible pump" actually means 14:14 The flushable wipes problem nobody wants to talk about 21:59 Walking into a room where you don't know a single person 25:51 How new funding rules changed who gets to build America's water systems 36:04 Reverse engineering fifty year old equipment with modern scanning tools 41:33 From the new guy to the one training the next generation YOUR TURN This week's reflection: where in your work or your life have you quietly become the person other people now come to for answers, and how does that sit with you? GUEST CONNECT(No links or contact info were given in the transcript for GPM — flagging this so you can drop in a website or careers page link before this publishes. Worth noting Blake mentioned GPM is actively hiring.) Links & Mentions: Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/   🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend! MB01JSBMUU464ZQ

  3. Sep 7

    Behind the Scenes of Talent Recruitment with Anne and Jamie

    Ever applied for a job. Ever hired for one. Either way you have felt what it is like to be on one side of that table wondering what the other side is really thinking. This episode pulls back the curtain on it. Today I am joined by two people who live in that world every single day, our full time recruiters here at Lake Superior Consulting, Jamie Wiggins and Anne Lang. Katie Brooks and I sat down with them in the studio for a conversation that started with their own winding paths into recruiting and turned into one of the most useful conversations we have had about hiring, interviewing, and what it actually takes to stand out right now. Jamie and Anne have a combined career built almost entirely inside two companies, which says something on its own in an industry known for job hopping. We got into how candidates are using AI to generate canned interview answers in real time, how hiring managers can tell the difference between a scripted response and a real one, and why authenticity might be the single biggest differentiator left as AI use becomes normal on both sides of the table. KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS Candidates are increasingly using AI mid interview, typing questions in real time and reading back polished, generic answers. Recruiters can usually tell, and it works against the candidate more than for them. Authenticity is becoming the biggest differentiator in hiring. The people who stand out are the ones willing to give a real, imperfect answer instead of a scripted one. Following up with candidates, even to deliver bad news, builds a company's reputation more than people realize. Ghosting goes both directions and candidates remember who closed the loop. Strong hiring managers think beyond the immediate opening. They consider where a candidate could grow, not just whether every box on the job description is checked today. Pay transparency and posted salary ranges have made compensation conversations less awkward on both sides, though the conversation is still uncomfortable no matter your title. Total compensation now means more than the number. Flexibility, culture, and investment in growth carry real weight, especially for people who value work life balance over a bigger paycheck. Human judgment still catches what a resume or an AI screen cannot. A weak resume with a great in person impression, or a perfect resume that falls apart in conversation, happens more often than you would think. OUR FAVORITE QUOTES "You are not always going to have AI at your fingertips, so I think just being authentic and genuine and having it be more of a conversation is what stands out." "We really want them to speak highly of our company and the interactions they have had with our people, whether or not they get the job." "Good managers are not only thinking about today, they are thinking about what their team is going to look like down the road." "I do feel like our human judgment is what is best when it comes to figuring out if a candidate is a great cultural fit. That is something we cannot replace." CHAPTER MARKERS 07:19 How candidates are now using AI live during interviews, and how recruiters catch it 14:32 What good hiring managers do differently, and the habits that turn candidates off 31:03 How candidates can actually stand out, starting before the interview even happens 44:11 The compensation conversation nobody loves, and why pay transparency is helping 52:19 The bachelorette party story that somehow ended with a Hollywood premiere 58:11 The job offer mix up that still makes Anne double check every offer she sends CONNECT WITH OUR GUESTS Jamie Wiggins and Anne Lang are full time recruiters with Lake Superior Consulting. To learn more about Lake Superior Consulting or explore current openings, visit lakesuperiorconsulting.com. Links & Mentions: Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/   🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend! MB01SL9EPKR6YQM

  4. Aug 24

    Better in Our Backyard Is Proof That Reclamation Stories Win Arguments Statistics Can't

    I've never made it a secret that I think responsible local development should be a priority, so today I brought in somebody who's spent his whole career fighting for exactly that. Ryan Sistad is the Executive Director of Better in Our Backyard, an advocacy group that started as a scrappy Minnesota operation and has grown into a national force representing nearly 40 mining and energy projects across 15 states. We get into how a guy from Fosston, Minnesota ended up running for Duluth City Council, losing, and turning that loss into the connections that built his career. We talk about the Coca Cola warehouse story that taught him more about economics than his college classes did, why the NIMBY mindset is more complicated than people think, and how his team learned to change minds not by arguing louder but by showing reclamation success stories that actually move people. KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS Responsible development needs advocates, not just regulators. Ryan built an entire career on the idea that industry has to tell its own story before someone else tells it for them. The movable middle matters more than the loud opponents. Roughly 60 to 70 percent of people are paying just enough attention to be persuadable, and that's who Ryan's team actually targets. Reclamation stories change minds faster than economic arguments. Showing what a mine site looks like decades after closure does more work than any jobs statistic. Growth happens when you stop being scared to lose everything. Ryan's biggest strategic leap came from a season where his funding was so fragile that one member leaving could have ended the whole organization. Community concerns are hyper local and specific. Water quality in Duluth, school closures in Hoyt Lakes. You can't run one message for every town. Consistency beats intensity. Posting daily, staying visible, and being predictable earned Better in Our Backyard more trust than any single campaign did. Delegation is its own kind of growth. Ryan talks candidly about what it's like to go from doing everything himself to trusting a team to carry the load. FAVORITE QUOTES If it wasn't grown, it was mined. Success isn't proving somebody wrong. It's all about partnership. It's all about acknowledging concerns, acknowledging risks. If you don't like the way something is done, pick up a shovel and become a part of it. Don't complain about it, don't go oppose it, just try and fix it. CHAPTER MARKERS 01:20 From Fosston to the Iron Range 07:38 The Coca Cola raise that taught him economics 09:52 Losing a city council race and gaining a career 13:11 Why NIMBY is more complicated than people think 19:47 The COVID pivot nobody saw coming 25:59 The reclamation story that changes minds 33:26 Going from five states to fifteen 44:12 What communities actually fear GUEST CONTACT AND LINKS Ryan Sistad, Executive Director, Better in Our Backyard LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-sistad-39771490/ BIOB Website: https://betterinourbackyard.com/   Links & Mentions: Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/   🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend! MB01TH2M4G8FD5B

  5. Aug 10

    How Swiftrok Is Changing Tank Inspection with Austin Lanoue

    Austin walked into Lake Superior Consulting as a CAD intern almost 13 years ago with zero clue about oil and gas. Fast forward through pipeline design, a stint in IT, a relocation to Pittsburgh, project management, and a deep dive into 3D scanning technology, and Austin is now running Swiftrok, a business we spun up out of what used to be a side hobby. Swiftrok inspects underground storage tanks using 3D scanning instead of sending people down into the tank. No man entry, no confined space risk, just better data and a faster answer on whether a tank needs repair, replacement, or nothing at all. It started as a way to help our sister company handle warranty claims. Now it's its own business, four months into a real launch, and Katie and I sat down with Austin to talk about the whole wild ride. KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS Growth happens when you say yes to the hard stuff, even when you don't have the skills yet Integrity means doing what you say you'll do, when and how you say you'll do it Sometimes a hobby needs to become a real investment or it needs to go away Naming a company is genuinely harder than naming a kid Swiftrok replaces manned tank entry with 3D scanning, giving faster, safer, more complete data Roundness and deviation are leading indicators of tank health, not just age Building something brand new means real silence before the phone starts ringing, and that's normal OUR FAVORITE QUOTES "Do what you say you'll do, when and how you say you'll do it." "I don't think I ever said no to one, so I was willing to dive in and figure it out." "You can't just bring something new and have everybody love it." "It's not going to be their hobby anymore." CHAPTER MARKERS 02:29 Meet Austin and the road to Swiftrok 06:33 From CAD intern to full time hire 17:12 The pivot into project management 20:38 What integrity actually means 27:58 Why Swiftrok became its own company 41:14 How the scanning technology actually works 53:23 What's next, one year and five years out YOUR TURN Is there something in your work life right now that's still just a hobby, something you keep dabbling in instead of really committing to? What would it take for you to go all in on it? CONNECT WITH AUSTIN Website: swiftrok.com LinkedIn (Swiftrok): linkedin.com/company/swiftrok/about LinkedIn (Austin): linkedin.com/in/austin-lanoue-3a181467 Email: alanoue@swiftrok.com Phone: 218-213-1971 LINKS & MENTIONS Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/   🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend MB01FNVQBXIRQPK

  6. Jul 27

    Educating the Next Generation of Energy Workers with Tyler Tunic

    Natural gas powers 60% of American homes and makes up over a third of U.S. energy consumption, so I wanted to bring on someone who lives and breathes the workforce side of this industry. Tyler Tunic is Vice President of Industry Engagement and Workforce Advancement with SGA Natural Gas Association, and after 20 years at Lake Superior Consulting, I've watched Tyler go from operator to association leader in real time. This episode gets into what that transition actually looks like, why volunteering your time in this industry pays off in ways you don't expect, and the youth education project Tyler championed that's aimed at getting the next generation excited about energy careers before they ever rule it out. KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS Being of service to your industry, even before you have the title or experience to back it up, opens doors you can't predict Making the leap from operator to association work means learning to communicate differently, but the pride and passion travel with you Culture and communication are inseparable. How employees talk about their work at a cocktail party often reflects how well they've been onboarded and led Associations can offer more than networking. Training, continuing education, and access to shared learning resources are a real part of the value Getting involved and trying to change an industry from the inside beats complaining about it from the outside every time Youth education materials only work when they're built with teachers, tested with real kids, and adjusted based on what actually lands in a classroom The best resources in the world do nothing sitting on a shelf. Getting them into schools and into use takes ongoing effort, not a one time project OUR FAVORITE QUOTES "The best thing you can do is get involved in the industry and help try and change it" "If you don't like something, you can complain about it or you can get to work trying to change it" "You can't just stand there with a PowerPoint for an hour and talk to third graders" "I think it's really cool to see you at work, trying to just show that" CHAPTER MARKERS 00:00 Why natural gas still runs your everyday life 01:54 Tyler's path from operator to association VP 12:04 The advice that changed how Tyler shows up 22:01 What SGA Natural Gas Association actually does 34:57 Culture, communication, and the INGAA Foundation youth project 50:57 What good looks like and where energy is headed YOUR TURN This week's check in: where in your own industry have you been complaining instead of getting involved? What would it look like to raise your hand instead? Learn more about SGA Natural Gas Association: https://sganaturalgas.org/ CONNECT WITH TYLER Tyler Tunic: Vice President, Industry Engagement & Workforce Advancement | SGA Natural Gas Association 412.328.6921 | sganaturalgas.org | gmrc.org | Subscribe to SGA email updates Book time with Tyler: https://outlook.office.com/bookwithme/user/f82646d8eb1a4fd28701abffaca15055@sganaturalgas.org?anonymous&ep=signature LINKS & MENTIONS Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/   🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend MB0165A5RX0X7D6

  7. Jul 13

    Inside the Pipeline: Risk Management, Consulting, and a Hidden Crisis

    Ever reconnect with someone years later and realize your paths were more aligned than you ever knew back then? That's exactly what happened when I ran into Missie Hills again, and this conversation ended up going a lot deeper than I expected. Missie and I go way back, though not in the way you'd think. We reconnected through the unlikeliest source, and it turns out she'd actually interviewed with Lake Superior Consulting about ten years ago before life took her in a different direction. Fast forward through 15 plus years in the natural gas industry, from Arkansas to Houston to now joining LSC, and Missie brings a perspective shaped by operating one of the biggest pipeline systems feeding gas straight into New York City. We got into everything from operational risk management to a subject that hits a lot closer to home than people expect. KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS Missie’s path from mechanical engineering to natural gas operations to consulting wasn't planned, but each step built directly on the last Operating a pipeline means managing risk across community safety, employee safety, and environmental responsibility, all at once The companies that do risk management well are the ones that care about their communities first, not just the bottom line Aging infrastructure and rising energy demand are colliding, and the labor shortage in this industry is a real and growing problem A great consultant isn't a vendor, they're a trusted partner who tells you what you actually need, not just what you asked for Missie is a 20 year photography hobbyist who brings an artistic eye to her travels through the national parks Missie’s volunteer work with Red M is opening eyes about human trafficking prevention, and the numbers are more alarming than most people realize OUR FAVORITE QUOTES "It's not that your threshold changes, it's where you go focus your mitigations, because once you know more about your highest risk, you can focus on the next thing." "It doesn't really matter if it's one home or fifty homes. It really matters to that one home." "It's hidden in plain sight. It's right under our noses." "The number one thing that is going to protect your child is building that relationship of trust." CHAPTER MARKERS 01:26 A houseboat trip and a Minnesota national park 03:27 Missie’s path from mechanical engineering to natural gas 06:12 The reconnection nobody saw coming 11:13 What operational risk management really means 19:00 Where engineering logic meets human empathy 22:06 What separates a real consultant from a vendor 25:53 The hobby you wouldn't expect from an engineer 30:09 Missie’s work with Red M and human trafficking prevention 43:30 The future of natural gas and aging infrastructure YOUR TURN This week's reflection: think about a relationship or connection from your past that you assumed was closed. What might it look like to reach back out, and how might your paths align differently now than they did then? CONNECT WITH MISSIE LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/missiehills/ Learn more about the organizations Missie mentioned in this episode: Red Card United: www.redcardunited.com Red M: www.joinredm.com LINKS & MENTIONS Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/   🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend MB01XNWGEQTBZIY

  8. Jun 29

    How We Built a Real Strategic Plan Starting From Bar Napkins and Happy Hours (Dave Hokanson PART TWO)

    We've been doing strategic planning for a couple of decades now. And I'll be honest, for most of that time, I didn't even know that's what we were calling it. It was happy hours and bar napkins and whiteboards and somebody saying "can you email that photo out?" And somehow that turned into running a company. This episode is part two of my conversation with Dave Hokanson and Katie Brooks about how strategic planning has evolved at Lake Superior Consulting and now Manic Energy. We get into the real stuff: what it looked like when we were just guessing, what it cost us when we kept doing the same things and hoping for different results, and what we're actually doing differently now. Dave's been with LSC long enough to watch the whole evolution, and Katie's been deep in the communication and rollout side of it. This one is a ground-level look at what strategic planning actually feels like from inside a growing company. KEY THEMES + TAKEAWAYS Strategic planning started informally for us, complaints at happy hour turning into ideas turning into action, and it worked until the company got too big for that to scale. The difference between an ideal and an objective matters more than most people realize. If you can't measure whether you got there, it's probably an ideal, and chasing it will always feel like you're behind. "Measure backwards" is a concept from Dan Sullivan that I keep coming back to. Looking at how far you've come matters as much as where you're going. The value/effort matrix changed how we prioritize. Easy wins first, big bets when you're ready, and some things just live in the money pit forever. Asking "what should we stop doing?" was probably the most useful question we added to our planning process this year. People had answers. Real ones. Hope is not a strategy. I've said it a lot and I believe it more every year. The goal right now is to get our entire direction down to something as simple as "will it make the boat go faster?" so every person in our organization can use it to make decisions every single day. OUR FAVORITE QUOTES "Hope is not a strategy. Hope is not a good business plan." "What happens to a horizon as you approach it? It's still a horizon." "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." "I want somebody to get better and really good at strategic planning and delivering results, and then they should probably be doing my job." "We went from investing nothing to investing a lot of time, energy, and thought. And we're planning on it paying dividends." CHAPTER MARKERS 0:37 From bar napkins to business plans 7:33 When strategy was a secret 8:11 The publicly traded company education 15:18 Ideals vs. objectives and measuring backwards 18:51 The value/effort matrix 31:13 Defining the market, the customer, and the plan 40:56 Will it make the boat go faster? YOUR TURN What's one thing your team is spending real time and energy on that probably belongs in the money pit? And what would open up if you stopped doing it? LINKS & MENTIONS Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/   🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend MB01YQZZIKYT4AJ

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Ratings & Reviews

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out of 5
13 Ratings

About

Ryan Swor, president and part-owner of Lake Superior Consulting and colleague, Katie Brooks explore the often misunderstood world of energy infrastructure, how it shapes our daily lives, and the passionate, purpose-driven people who keep it all running. Expect stories from the field, honest reflections on leadership and company culture, and a no-BS look at what it takes to deliver safe, reliable energy in an industry under pressure to evolve. This isn’t your typical corporate podcast—this is Manic Energy.

Information

  • Creator
    Manic Energy Podcast
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    32
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Manic Energy Podcast
  • Show Website
    Manic Energy Podcast

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