Built for This

Carly Pepin
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Business
  • Updated Weekly

 Where vision meets execution and legacy begins. Built For This is the podcast for founders, business owners, C-Suite Executives, and vision-driven leaders who know their business isn’t just what they do, it’s an extension of who they are. Hosted by business strategist and human behavior specialist Carly Pepin, each episode dives into candid, intelligent conversations with high-performing business owners and executives. These are the real stories behind growth: the pivotal moments, the internal shifts, the strategic moves, and the unseen pressure that comes with building something that lasts. With a sharp eye for strategy and a deep understanding of human behavior, Carly brings out the clarity, conviction, and contradictions that drive exceptional leadership. You’ll hear what’s working, what’s not, and what it actually takes to grow a business without losing yourself in the process. This is where business and personal development meet: honest, direct, and built to bring life to your vision. Whether you’re growing your next big thing or recalibrating to get back on track, Built For This is your space to think, build, and lead with purpose.

  1. Building the Future of AI Infrastructure: Michael Wu on Innovation, Storage, and Scale

    2d ago

    Building the Future of AI Infrastructure: Michael Wu on Innovation, Storage, and Scale

    In this episode of Built For This, Carly Pepin sits down with Michael Wu, President and General Manager of Phison Technology USA, to explore the technology powering much of today’s digital world and the leadership principles that have helped drive Phison’s remarkable growth. Michael shares the story of joining Phison USA as employee number one and helping grow the organization from a one-person operation into a thriving team of more than 80 employees across the United States. Along the way, he played a key role in transforming Phison from a behind-the-scenes technology provider into a recognized leader in NAND flash storage innovation and the launch of its enterprise-focused brand, Pascari. The conversation dives into the realities of leading global teams, bridging cultural differences between Taiwan and the United States, and building a company culture grounded in trust, accountability, and empowerment. Michael explains how effective leadership often requires acting as a translator between different perspectives, communication styles, and ways of working. Carly and Michael also explore one of the most exciting developments in artificial intelligence today: the growing demand for memory and storage infrastructure. Michael shares how a simple internal challenge led to a breakthrough innovation that uses NAND flash storage as an extension of AI memory, dramatically reducing infrastructure costs while expanding AI capabilities. This episode offers a fascinating look at leadership, innovation, AI infrastructure, and how questioning assumptions can unlock entirely new possibilities for growth and technology.   Key Themes: Innovation Begins with Better Questions: How challenging accepted limitations led to a breakthrough in AI memory and storage architecture. Leadership Across Cultures: Why empathy, communication, and cultural understanding are essential for scaling global organizations. Speed Creates Competitive Advantage: How rapid iteration and continuous improvement help companies stay ahead in fast-moving industries.   Memorable Quotes: “You sometimes lose by winning.” “You don't know what you don't know.” “Our goal is never to make the perfect device. We want to turn ten chips in a year instead of making the perfect chip.”   About Michael Wu: Michael Wu is the President and General Manager of Phison Technology USA and a respected expert in NAND storage technology with more than 20 years of industry experience. Over his 17+ years with Phison, he has held leadership roles including General Manager, Director of Global Customer Relations, and Project Manager, helping establish Phison as one of the world’s leading NAND storage solution providers. Today, Michael oversees Phison’s U.S. operations, driving growth, innovation, and strategic partnerships while helping shape the future of enterprise storage and AI infrastructure. Prior to Phison, he worked as a Verification Engineer at RF Micro Devices. He holds both a Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from Virginia Tech.   Connect with Michael Wu: https://www.phison.com/en/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-wu-a273694/ https://www.facebook.com/phisonUS/

    55 min
  2. Building Tech Parents Can Trust: Kate Doerksen on Protecting Kids in a Digital World

    5d ago

    Building Tech Parents Can Trust: Kate Doerksen on Protecting Kids in a Digital World

    In this episode of Built For This, Carly Pepin sits down with entrepreneur and innovator Kate Doerksen, co-founder and CEO of Sage Haven, a safer messaging platform designed to protect children from cyberbullying, harmful content, and unhealthy digital habits. Kate shares her remarkable entrepreneurial journey, beginning with the creation of Ditto, a pioneering augmented reality and AI eyewear technology company that ultimately served more than 70 million users worldwide before being acquired by 1-800 Contacts. She opens up about the realities of building a venture-backed startup, raising $35 million in funding, navigating years of costly litigation, and staying committed through more than a decade of challenges before achieving a successful exit. The conversation then turns to the deeply personal experiences that inspired Sage Haven. After witnessing the devastating impact of cyberbullying and harmful online content on a close family member, Kate became determined to create a safer digital environment for children. Through extensive research with parents, kids, psychologists, and technology experts, she identified a critical gap in the market and built a platform designed with children's wellbeing at its core. Carly and Kate also discuss the lessons learned from building multiple companies, the unique experience of partnering with her sister as a co-founder, how AI is reshaping entrepreneurship, and why mission-driven businesses often create a level of resilience and energy that purely commercial ventures cannot. This episode is a thoughtful exploration of entrepreneurship, technology, leadership, and the responsibility of creating products that positively impact future generations.   Key Themes: The Best Businesses Solve Personal Problems: How firsthand experience with cyberbullying inspired a mission-driven company designed to protect children. Experience Creates Clarity: Why Kate approaches entrepreneurship differently after building, scaling, and exiting her first company. Purpose Fuels Persistence: How a mission centered on children's wellbeing creates the motivation to overcome challenges and keep moving forward.   Memorable Quotes: “I don't follow the trend. I don't give a shit. I'm just building a product that a lot of people need.” “I learned the first time you can't predict the future. Your plan doesn't matter. Make it make sense right now and wait and see.” “The mental health of kids is at the center of every decision that we make. That's clean fuel.”   About Kate Doerksen: Kate Doerksen is the Co-Founder and CEO of Sage Haven, a safer messaging app created to help reduce cyberbullying and protect children from harmful digital interactions. Throughout her career, she has focused on building technology that improves the lives of individuals and families. Before launching Sage Haven with her sister Anne, Kate founded Ditto, a groundbreaking augmented reality and AI eyewear technology company that served more than 70 million users globally before being acquired by 1-800 Contacts in 2021. Kate holds an MBA from Stanford University and a Bachelor's degree in Entrepreneurship from Ball State University, where she was inducted into the Hall of Fame for her academic and athletic achievements. She lives in Danville, California, with her husband and two children.   Connect with Kate Doerksen: https://sagehavenforkids.com

    54 min
  3. Leadership Beyond Profit: Josh Block on Growing People and Business Together

    May 28

    Leadership Beyond Profit: Josh Block on Growing People and Business Together

    In this episode of Built for This, Carly Pepin sits down with Josh Block, President of Block Imaging and author of People Matter at Work, for a powerful conversation about leadership, trust, company culture, and what it takes to scale a business without losing sight of people. Josh shares the story of unexpectedly stepping into leadership at just 29 years old after his father transitioned him from sales representative to president over the course of a single weekend. At the time, the company was still recovering from a painful round of layoffs known internally as “Black Thursday,” forcing Josh to confront difficult lessons around transparency, trust, and leadership very early in his presidency. Throughout the conversation, Josh explains how the philosophy of “People Matter” evolved from a simple idea into the cultural foundation that helped grow Block Imaging from $30 million to more than $250 million in revenue. Carly and Josh unpack the importance of psychological safety, transparent communication, leadership development, and creating ownership within teams rather than simply managing employees. The episode also explores succession planning in family businesses, navigating difficult employee transitions, leading remote teams, and why meaningful workplace relationships can transform not just organizations, but families and lives. This conversation is a thoughtful and practical look at modern leadership, proving that companies grow strongest when people are treated as human beings first, not just resources.   Key Themes: Culture Is Built Through Action: Why values only matter when they shape decisions, leadership behavior, and accountability. Transparency Creates Ownership: How open communication and shared understanding strengthen trust and engagement across teams. Leadership Means Multiplying Leaders: Why great leaders focus on developing others instead of centralizing power.   Memorable Quotes: “When people matter at work, everything changes. Business grows, families thrive, and lives are transformed.” “People want to know the answers to three questions: what’s going on, what the leader’s thinking about, and what the leader’s thinking about them.” “Right decision done in the wrong way is the wrong decision.”   About Josh Block: Josh Block is the President of Block Imaging, a global medical imaging company, and the founder of Cube Mobile Imaging. A Michigan native, husband, father, leadership advocate, and author of People Matter at Work, Josh has spent decades working across every level of business, from entry-level jobs to leading a company through significant growth and transformation. Under his leadership, Block Imaging grew from $30 million to more than $215 million in revenue while building a culture centered on trust, transparency, leadership development, and meaningful human connection. His work focuses on helping organizations become places where both businesses and people thrive together.   Connect with Josh Block: https://www.blockimaging.com/ https://amzn.to/46QXd4F

    55 min
  4. From Landscaper to Software Builder: Tommy Lather’s Unexpected Journey

    May 25

    From Landscaper to Software Builder: Tommy Lather’s Unexpected Journey

    In this episode of Built for This, Carly Pepin sits down with Tommy Lather, founder of Takeoff Monkey, to explore how automation, customer service, and operational simplicity helped transform a hands-on service business into a highly scalable company. Tommy shares his unconventional journey from working in landscaping and estimating to building a rapidly growing takeoff services company that now processes hundreds of projects daily for contractors across the United States. Along the way, he taught himself software development and began building custom automations that dramatically improved efficiency across the business. One of the biggest breakthroughs Tommy discusses is how Takeoff Monkey reduced overhead by roughly 70% through strategic automation, process optimization, and smarter systems. Instead of relying on huge teams or outside funding, the company focused on simplifying repetitive workflows, eliminating bottlenecks, and using AI-driven tools to scale sustainably. Carly and Tommy also dive into the realities of managing remote teams across the United States and India, building strong culture inside a fully remote company, and why responsiveness and reliability have become the foundation of customer loyalty. Beyond operations, the conversation explores the emotional side of entrepreneurship, including founder loneliness, staying focused during growth, avoiding shiny object syndrome, and why persistence is often the biggest differentiator between success and failure. This episode is a practical and honest look at building a modern business through systems, simplicity, and relentless consistency.   Key Themes: Automation Should Simplify, Not Complicate: How removing repetitive tasks and operational friction dramatically improved efficiency and scalability. Culture Starts With the Right People: Why attitude, integrity, and work ethic matter more than credentials alone. Persistence Beats Perfection: Why long-term success often comes from refusing to quit and continuing to adapt over time.   Memorable Quotes: “You can’t teach someone to give a shit.” “Just by not quitting, you will be successful.” “We do what we say and we say what we do.”   About Tommy Lather: Tommy Lather is a lifelong landscape construction professional, self-taught software developer, and founder of Takeoff Monkey, a company helping contractors streamline estimating and takeoff processes at scale. With more than 25 years of experience across supply, operations management, sales, and estimating, Tommy developed a passion for building systems and processes that improve efficiency and simplify operations. Today, he combines industry expertise with automation and software development to help customers save time, reduce costs, and operate more effectively.   Connect with Tommy Lather: http://www.takeoffmonkey.com https://www.instagram.com/takeoffmonkey

    54 min
  5. Why Most Entrepreneurs Scale Too Wide Too Early with Hadley Nightingale

    May 21

    Why Most Entrepreneurs Scale Too Wide Too Early with Hadley Nightingale

    In this episode of Built for This, Carly Pepin sits down with Hadley Nightingale, CEO of New Zealand Property Buyers, to unpack the realities of building a fast-growing business while navigating some of life’s hardest personal and professional challenges. What started as Hadley’s own property investment journey quickly revealed a major gap in the New Zealand real estate market: buyers lacked true representation and strategic guidance when making one of the biggest financial decisions of their lives. That realization became the foundation for New Zealand Property Buyers, a company designed to help investors confidently navigate property acquisition, renovation, project management, and long-term property management. But this conversation goes far beyond real estate. Carly and Hadley dive deep into the realities of entrepreneurship, including the pressure of scaling too quickly, hiring before systems are ready, and trying to build multiple divisions before the core business is fully stabilized. Hadley also speaks candidly about building a company while navigating divorce, custody battles, financial stress, and immense uncertainty, revealing the emotional resilience required to keep moving forward when life and business collide. The episode also explores remote team culture, accountability, offshore hiring, leadership, and why documented systems and processes become essential as businesses grow. Together, Carly and Hadley unpack what truly creates sustainable success: ownership, consistency, operational clarity, and the willingness to improve imperfectly over time. This episode is an honest and practical look at entrepreneurship without the highlight reel, showing that long-term growth is rarely linear, but it is possible when resilience and systems work together.   Key Themes: Scaling Too Wide Too Early: Why trying to grow multiple divisions before stabilizing the core business creates unnecessary pressure and complexity. Systems Create Sustainable Growth: How SOPs, playbooks, and operational processes transformed hiring, delegation, and team performance. Resilience Over Perfection: Why entrepreneurship is often about continuing forward through uncertainty, setbacks, and imperfect conditions.   Memorable Quotes: “People want the perfect house, but the perfect house never comes along.” “If anything goes wrong, just put your hand up and say, ‘Hey look, I got this wrong.’” “Better processes, better people. Better processes, better people. It’s just how it works.”   About Hadley Nightingale: Hadley Nightingale is the CEO of New Zealand Property Buyers, a rapidly growing property investment company founded in 2020. Under his leadership, the business has scaled quickly, helping hundreds of clients acquire and manage investment properties across New Zealand while operating with a remote team across New Zealand and Southeast Asia. New Zealand Property Buyers offers a fully integrated, end-to-end investment service covering acquisition, renovation, compliance project management, and ongoing property management. Hadley’s focus is on helping investors avoid costly mistakes while creating systems and operational structures that allow businesses and people to scale sustainably.   Connect with Hadley Nightingale: https://www.newzealandpropertybuyers.com/ https://www.instagram.com/hadleynightingale/ https://www.tiktok.com/@hadleynightingale https://www.linkedin.com/in/hadleyn/ https://www.facebook.com/Newzealandpropertybuyer/

    58 min
  6. Why More CEOs Are Hiring Chiefs of Staff with Keziah Wonstolen

    May 18

    Why More CEOs Are Hiring Chiefs of Staff with Keziah Wonstolen

    In this episode of Built for This, Carly Pepin sits down with Keziah Wonstolen, founder of Vannin Chief of Staff, to explore why the chief of staff role has become one of the fastest-growing and most valuable positions in modern business leadership. Drawing from her background at Accenture and her own experience serving as a chief of staff, Keziah shares how she built a company dedicated to helping CEOs scale more effectively through operational support, strategic execution, and leadership alignment. What began as a fractional consulting model evolved into one of North America’s leading chief of staff talent providers before eventually being acquired by the Chief of Staff Association. The conversation dives into the critical differences between executive assistants, chiefs of staff, and COOs, and why more founders, private equity firms, and scaling companies are turning to chiefs of staff to operationalize vision, manage change, and improve organizational execution. Carly and Keziah also unpack the realities of growth, implementing frameworks like EOS and Scaling Up, building intentional culture, and creating structures that allow leaders to spend more time in their zone of genius rather than drowning in operational complexity. Keziah also opens up about the deeply personal experiences that pushed her toward entrepreneurship and her passion for helping leaders reclaim their most valuable resource: time. This episode is a practical and insightful look at modern leadership, operational scale, and why the right support structure can completely transform a company’s growth trajectory.   Key Themes: Vision Needs Structure: Why even the strongest leaders need systems, accountability, and operational support to scale effectively. Time Is the Ultimate Asset: How chiefs of staff help executives focus on high-value work while reducing operational overwhelm. Culture Must Be Operationalized: Why values should shape hiring, communication, accountability, and leadership behaviors across the business.   Memorable Quotes: “Leaders are managing more change than they ever have in the past.” “Time is not a renewable resource.” “The chief of staff takes this ambiguous challenge, creates structure around it, and turns it into something executable.”   About Keziah Wonstolen: Keziah Wonstolen is an award-winning entrepreneur and management consultant based in Denver, Colorado. After spending 13 years at Accenture, where she advised global organizations on operational strategy and leadership effectiveness, she founded Vannin Chief of Staff to help executives scale more efficiently and build stronger operational foundations. Through Vannin, Keziah and her team specialized in supporting private equity firms, portfolio companies, and family offices, helping leaders optimize execution, improve alignment, and build scalable leadership structures. Her work has earned recognition including the Denver Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 and participation in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program. Today, she is recognized as a leading voice in the evolving chief of staff space and continues shaping how modern organizations approach executive leadership and operational strategy.   Connect with Keziah Wonstolen: https://www.vanninchiefofstaff.com/

    53 min
  7. Buddy Teaster on Why the Best Charity Models Create Entrepreneurs

    May 14

    Buddy Teaster on Why the Best Charity Models Create Entrepreneurs

    In this episode of Built for This, Carly Pepin sits down with Buddy Teaster, President and CEO of Soles4Souls, to explore how business principles can create sustainable social impact around the world. Buddy shares how Soles4Souls evolved from a disaster-relief nonprofit into a global organization focused on creating economic opportunity through entrepreneurship. Rather than relying solely on traditional charity models, Soles4Souls helps people, especially women in developing countries, build businesses using donated shoes and clothing as inventory. The result is not just aid, but ownership, dignity, and long-term transformation for families and communities. The conversation dives into the difference between handouts and empowerment, why entrepreneurship restores hope, and how even small economic opportunities can completely change the trajectory of future generations. Buddy also opens up about the major organizational turnaround he led after joining Soles4Souls in 2012, including rebuilding company culture, implementing operational discipline, strengthening leadership systems, and scaling global logistics operations. Carly and Buddy explore the realities of leading a mission-driven organization, the complexity of sustainable nonprofit growth, and why emotional storytelling must be paired with strong systems and accountability to create lasting impact. This episode is a powerful look at leadership, purpose, operational excellence, and how entrepreneurship can become one of the most effective tools for fighting poverty.   Key Themes: Empowerment Over Dependency: Why creating entrepreneurs leads to more sustainable impact than traditional aid alone. Purpose Requires Systems: How operational discipline, leadership alignment, and accountability helped transform Soles4Souls into a global movement. Culture Drives Mission: Why intentional communication, shared values, and leadership consistency are essential for long-term impact.   Memorable Quotes: “When a woman is a customer and not a recipient, it is a big deal.” “Most of it is not the mission that you’re thinking. It’s work.” “If we can be a small part of helping create something that allows her to stay in her community where she is respected and participates, that is amazing.”   About Buddy Teaster: Buddy Teaster is the President and CEO of Soles4Souls, a global nonprofit dedicated to creating opportunities through shoes and clothing. Under his leadership, the organization has distributed more than 103 million pairs of shoes and garments across 137 countries through both relief efforts and sustainable micro-enterprise programs. Known for blending philanthropy with entrepreneurship and operational excellence, Buddy has helped transform Soles4Souls into one of the most respected nonprofit organizations in the world, earning recognition as one of The Nonprofit Times’ Best Nonprofits to Work For multiple years in a row. He is also the host of the re:Purpose podcast and author of Shoestrings and From Tailspin to Tailwind.   Connect with Buddy Teaster: https://soles4souls.org/ https://amzn.to/49KXkAy https://www.linkedin.com/in/buddyteaster/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/soles4souls-inc-/posts/?feedView=all https://www.instagram.com/soles4souls/ https://www.facebook.com/Soles4Souls

    56 min
  8. How to Build Marketing for an Industry That Hates Change with Mark Kenigsberg

    May 11

    How to Build Marketing for an Industry That Hates Change with Mark Kenigsberg

    In this episode of Built for This, Carly Pepin sits down with Mark Kenigsberg, VP at Azami, to explore what it really takes to transform a traditional sales-led organization into a scalable, product-led growth business. Mark shares how he joined Azami, a legal tech company specializing in intellectual property and patent software, during a period of major organizational change. Instead of focusing solely on short-term marketing campaigns, the company invested heavily in rebuilding systems, aligning teams, and deeply understanding customer behavior before aggressively scaling growth efforts. Carly and Mark unpack how marketing can become a catalyst for company-wide transformation, not just lead generation. From rebuilding CRM and revenue systems to aligning departments around shared customer outcomes rather than isolated KPIs, Mark explains how sustainable growth requires operational alignment and cultural change. The conversation also dives into the challenge of marketing innovation to a naturally risk-averse audience. Through webinars, education, thought leadership, and direct customer conversations, Azami introduced new technology in a way that felt collaborative rather than disruptive. Along the way, they explore broader themes around product-led culture, customer-centric growth, AI in legal tech, and why businesses often lose sight of the humans behind the metrics they measure. This episode is a thoughtful look at systems thinking, leadership, and how companies create sustainable growth by aligning around genuine customer value.   Key Themes: Systems Before Scale: Why rebuilding operational foundations and customer journeys is essential before pursuing aggressive growth. Product-Led Growth Is Cultural: How shifting from sales-led to product-led requires changes in mindset, onboarding, retention, and customer success. Customer Outcomes Drive Growth: Why businesses scale faster when incentives align around helping customers succeed.   Memorable Quotes: “Revenue is an ecosystem rather than four departments.” “When incentives align, growth happens naturally.” “KPIs are meant to be a measure of how well we serve customers.”   About Mark Kenigsberg: Mark Kenigsberg is a marketing and growth leader focused on aligning systems, incentives, and teams around long-term value creation. He has led go-to-market and transformation initiatives across health, legal tech, and global digital businesses, helping organizations balance innovation, trust, and scalable growth. His work specializes in integrating sales-led and product-led growth models without disrupting the systems already working inside organizations. Mark also publishes the Product Marketing Weekly newsletter and regularly speaks internationally on growth strategy, marketing transformation, and organizational alignment.   Connect with Mark Kenigsberg: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marckenigsberg/ https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/7211059272065941504/

    51 min
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out of 5
2 Ratings

About

 Where vision meets execution and legacy begins. Built For This is the podcast for founders, business owners, C-Suite Executives, and vision-driven leaders who know their business isn’t just what they do, it’s an extension of who they are. Hosted by business strategist and human behavior specialist Carly Pepin, each episode dives into candid, intelligent conversations with high-performing business owners and executives. These are the real stories behind growth: the pivotal moments, the internal shifts, the strategic moves, and the unseen pressure that comes with building something that lasts. With a sharp eye for strategy and a deep understanding of human behavior, Carly brings out the clarity, conviction, and contradictions that drive exceptional leadership. You’ll hear what’s working, what’s not, and what it actually takes to grow a business without losing yourself in the process. This is where business and personal development meet: honest, direct, and built to bring life to your vision. Whether you’re growing your next big thing or recalibrating to get back on track, Built For This is your space to think, build, and lead with purpose.

Information

  • Creator
    Carly Pepin
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    54
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Built for This