Monday Manufacturing Motivation – with Jeanette Stevens-Cunningham

Curt Anderson  00:02

Now Hey, Damon. Happy Monday. Thank God it’s Monday. How you doing, dude?

Damon Pistulka  00:07

I’m doing great Kurt. Happy to be here.

Curt Anderson  00:09

Hey, how was your weekend? Do you survive? All right, awesome.

Damon Pistulka  00:12

Awesome. We had sunshine in the Pacific Northwest a little chilly. But man when we get two days of sunshine, it’s a great time.

Curt Anderson  00:20

trumpets are playing angels are singing warriors. So hey, I’m glad you had a phenomenal weekend. So Damon, what were you doing about a year ago this week? Do you have any idea what you’re doing about a year ago this week? No. Well, Damon, I don’t know if you’re sitting down for this. We have a repeat offender on the program today. A year ago this week we had the one the only now there’s a little difference here. There’s a little different. A little happened in the past year we’re gonna dig into this. But a year ago this week, we had the one the only Jeanette Stevens now Jeanette Stevens Cunningham Jeanette. Happy Monday, my friend. How are you?

Jeanette Stevens  00:58

I’m great. Thank you. Happy Monday to you both Kate. Kurt. Sorry, Damon. Happy Monday. Thanks so much for having me on.

Curt Anderson  01:07

Absolutely. Just like you know, there’s Damon. If you notice there’s like a little that smiles us a little bit more radiant. There’s a little bit more glow. She’s got like a whole professional setup this year. But Genet curious minds want to know, there’s a little difference in your name from a year ago to today. It looks like there’s a hyphen Cunningham that something happened in the past year that we need to know about.

Jeanette Stevens  01:30

Yes, sir. I am a newlywed. So thank you. Thank you. Thank you. So I was married in December. So really, really new. And yeah. So next chapter.

Curt Anderson  01:44

Next chapter. Leave her. You are on a year ago this week and Nikaido I was one back into the scanner like Hey, what did we chat about? So there was no football that weekend. And Jeanette we were talking about the Olympics, and we were talking about skating and skiing. And so man how like the year just

Jeanette Stevens  02:00

fine. It does. I mean, time does not slow down for us. It goes by so quickly. Absolutely crazy.

Curt Anderson  02:07

So anybody out there and boy, we’d love to have you drop a note connect with Jeanette here. I just dropped her LinkedIn profile jobs her website. She is the Outreach Program Manager marketing guru marketing divas. I like to call her she’s a marketing people at Gen edge Gen edge. This is the Virginia MEP Manufacturing Extension Partnership. We’re gonna dig into that. But Jeanette, before we go there, I have a question for you. I did not ask you last year. I’m going to ask you this year, and we actually we actually did a live together in person. That was a that was a wonderful experience. We’re going to cover that today. But my first question for you today. Who was your hero? As a little girl growing up as a little girl growing up who? And I believe you’re a Bronx girl, aren’t you? Aren’t you?

Jeanette Stevens  02:52

Yes, I’m from the Bronx, Oh, little girl in the Bronx.

Curt Anderson  02:55

And when you were growing up who was your hero?

Jeanette Stevens  02:58

I have to say my hero growing up was my father. I mean, I’m a daddy’s girl through and through. I watched everything he did. You know, I snuck around corners. And you know, I tried to emulate him in every way that I could, you know, the best parts of him. He was definitely my hero.

Curt Anderson  03:21

That is awesome. And Damon is girl dads as well. You know, we love hearing that answer trying to do the best we can. What’s dad’s name?

Jeanette Stevens  03:32

Yeah. Yeah, my father’s name was Joseph Stevens.

Curt Anderson  03:37

Oh, god bless Joseph, we want to give a big shout out for just producing such a wonderful, amazing person. And you know, it’s been an honor for me, we’ve become fast friends. You’re on the program a year ago. And so I want to start in you and I had a great event. I know, like, pre COVID was like not so much a big deal. But in COVID You’re like when you meet somebody, when you take this virtual relationship and put it on in person. It was very special. You and I met together at Chicago at the manufacturing extension partnership to MVP national convention conference. And you did a lights out just a dynamic program. You and I did a LinkedIn live together. But before we dig into that, could you just for anybody out there? It’s never that they’re not familiar, haven’t heard of the MEP. Could you just share? What is the MEP and just talk a little bit about GENEDGE?

Jeanette Stevens  04:23

Yeah, absolutely. So the MEP, which stands for Manufacturing Extension Partnership, is a place where manufacturers and I can speak for Virginia but all across the country and all 51 states including Puerto Rico. This is the place that they can go to get resources and tools to help their businesses innovate, compete and grow. So we have helped small and medium manufacturers with everything from growth services processes to work force development, cybersecurity, you name it Supply Chain Management, we’re there to assist manufacturers with the problems and issues that they need so that they can get what they need to grow and to develop from an economic standpoint, and also from a competitive standpoint.

Curt Anderson  05:19

Yeah, absolutely. And we had what was great Daymond, we had one of genets colleagues on the program, Scott, probably two years ago now. And Scott was a great, hugely successful entrepreneur, and he was a manufacturer, and he is on your team, or I believe so on your team at Gen edge. And he came on the program and said, You know what, one of the things is a manufacturer, I wish I knew the MEP existed. So our goal is how do we help them stop being the best kept secret? So let’s, let’s go here, Jeanette. So you’ve done an amazing job, great, vast experience in marketing. And what’s wonderful about the MEP network is just folks like yourself, there’s hundreds and hundreds of literally 1000s of experts, like yourself at the MEP network. Just I know, we hit it last year, but let’s just do it no, for we’re gonna have some new people here today, just share a little bit about your background, your superpowers, how you bring your passion for marketing, from your, your previous walk of life into GENEDGE, how you have met manufacturers.

Jeanette Stevens  06:16

Absolutely. So in my past life, I really can say that I started my career working for Yahoo hot jobs. And I worked with an amazing group of individuals. And it really set the stage for everything that I do today, every career path that I’ve taken, because I have worn several hats, it’s really helped to set the stage for that. And one of the things that I really appreciated that I never forgot was they would literally pull us off of the phones. And I don’t know if anybody in the Yahoo family is listening to this right now. But I mean, they would literally pull us off the phones, and we would have classes. So we there was this continued education, it was never, you know, will you work here, that’s it, you know, you learn what we’re going to teach you and and that’s it, you grow within that. The idea was always learning, it’s it was always continual learning continual growth, and knowing and being comfortable with the fact that, you know, there is so much to learn. And at the time that I was working for Yahoo, digital marketing, as we know, it today was really emerging, and it was really getting its legs, and it was more so online advertising. And, you know, I really had the opportunity to kind of see it develop, and really learn how to utilize it as a form of communication, because this was a new form of communicating, you know, with audience, so, you know, we were kind of moving away from the traditional forms of marketing, like, you know, dropping off a brochure or, you know, printing out manuals, you know, to leave behind, and we were going towards, you know, turning that into digital, and being able to kind of influence the hearts and minds of folks and saying that, you know, I am still communicating with you, I still care about, you know, your business, but this is, this is a new way to communicate, this is a new way to stay connected. So that’s just something that really stayed with me. I did work in logistics. And I did that for five years, I developed a lot of my account management, working in the tech industry, working in finance, working in logistics, and really focusing in on building those client relationships. But I have to say that, you know, tech, marketing, communications, brand building was always you know, something that was special to me, you know, it’s always something I had in my heart and it was always something I was able to go back to because it was something that I did well. And so all of that is what I take into the position that I have today. It’s leaning on those skills, those foundational skills in marketing and growth and brand building and account management and customer service and customer relationship that helps me to create some of the strategies or lean in on some of the strategies that I utilized today. For Janet.

Curt Anderson  09:45

Alright, Jeanette, I don’t know if you remember from last year, we’re just we’re taking a little moment of silence right there. So that was absolutely brilliant. That was phenomenal. So much uncovered right there now gaming as juicy and as delightful in his power. For those that just was picture, capturing Genet in person, man, like, I had to turn off the pacemaker I like top notch the handle was a powerhouse Genet what I absolutely love what you just uncovered. With your background at Yahoo, you talked about how they would that continuing education. And then you also talk about communication. So two things that I’d like to really hit hard today, education and communication. Damon, we’d love that line as like, you know, Hey, you don’t need to outspend your competition, how about a few out teach your competition. So Jeannette, you know, your workshop last year, and how you help your manufacturers, you really help them, you’re helping educate them, but you’re also educating them on how to educate their own customers with their marketing message, can you just talk a little bit for like a manufacturers out there where like, Boy website is brand new, this whole digital transformation is brand new e commerce, all that talk about, like how important it is to help educate their customers front of mind for their marketing strategy.

Jeanette Stevens  11:01

It’s so and thank you for that it’s so important to really dig into education, because education really is a foundation of trust, right? So one of the things that, you know, I was able to hold with me and why I’m still talking about Yahoo, so many years later, is because of the trust that they have built with me and with other employees, you know, that I’ve worked with, and it’s that, you know, education says that I’m not going to hold this knowledge away from you, you know, I’m not going to hide it, I’m not going to keep it behind any walls, you know, I’m not, you know, going to charge you for all of this information, you know, I’m going to teach you, I’m going to help you to understand why it is that I’m communicating this to you. I’m I’m telling I’m showing you that I understand what it is that you’re asking for. And I’m showing you the solution, I’m going to teach it to you, I’m going to offer this to you. And as I continue to, you know, help and providing you with these resources in these tools that helped to build your business, we begin to have this relationship where you are coming to me for that resourceful information. And I’m also sharing that I’m also sharing that relationship with you as well, because I’m getting from you what you need, you’re telling me what you need, you’re not holding those things back from me because you trust that I am going to be able to handle that information with care and turn that into a solution that’s going to at the end, at the end of the day help grow your business. So I think I think the basis of education really is in building that trust and building that relationship and saying, you know, I’m not holding this back from you. I want to see you succeed. I want to see from

Curt Anderson  13:06

Yeah. Oh, my gosh, that is so good. Hey, we got Diane by here. She says hello, Diane Go Eagles. I know her Eagles one off to the Superbowl. Yeah, gratulations everybody, our friends in the Philadelphia area and of course in Kansas City. So super excited for those folks. So Janette, let’s keep this rolling. So a judge guys are doing some really fun and exciting things. Again, if you guys just join us, please drop us a note, let us know that you’re out there connect with Jeanette. She’s with Jen edge, the Virginia State of Virginia MEP Manufacturing Extension Partnership. So we have a couple of things to talk about here. You have the Jen edge Alliance. You we share what is a super exciting program that GENEDGE Alliance.

Jeanette Stevens  13:46

Yeah, so the GENEDGE Alliance is a membership. So it’s a free membership to small and medium manufacturers in Virginia. And it’s a place where they can go to get resources and tools to help their business in any way that they need. You know, so one of one of GENEDGE has visions and mission is to be the number one place for small and medium manufacturers in Virginia to you know, innovate, compete and grow. And so the GENEDGE alliance is basically that it’s a membership portal that has resources and tools like the connects marketplace that will help them with supply chain and building supply chain in Virginia. We also have blogs and articles, educational content that will help them you know, with any of the information that they may need, that you know, to grow their business. We also have a podcast that we’re doing, it’s manufacturing now and then yeah, and that podcast is based off of information that’s relevant and valuable to manufacturers, you know, things that matter. So basically, it’s a place where our small and medium manufacturers can go, or all meat manufacturers in Virginia can go to get the information that they need to help them grow. We also have a place where they can connect with experts as well. You know, so it’s it’s not just about, you know, what you can do self paced, did want to also bring in our tools and new partnerships. So we do have an online learning segments. And that is a place where you can go and get self paced learning. You can also customize your learning and growth for manufacturing organization, but really, the GENEDGE Alliance, membership portal is just a powerful resource for small medium manufacturers is where they can go to get the information that they need. And you can do that by, you know, connecting with an expert or just in a self plaits self paced standard.

Curt Anderson  16:09

You know, if you’re cool with this, you know what, I’ll pull it up real quick. Can I? Yeah, that’d be great. That cool. Okay. And just let me know if you guys, let’s see, let’s go here. Let’s go here. And here came and you think I’d be a master of this by now. All right.

Damon Pistulka  16:24

So don’t have time to.

Curt Anderson  16:27

And how about, can you see that? Yes. Okay, great. So guys, again, thank you for joining us today. Happy Monday. Hope you had an amazing, wonderful, incredible weekend. Daymond. I certainly did. And we are with the newlywed, the one and only Jeanette Stevens Cunningham. And so we’re taking a look at Gen. Ed’s Alliance right here. So just talk a little bit about what what we’re looking at. And again, for manufacturers. Now, hey, if you’re coming to us from outside of Virginia, don’t fret, you have an MEP near you. You want to contact your local manufacturing extension partnership. But Jeanette just talked about for Virginia manufacturers, what’s going on here when they connect? And what does that look like when they reach out to you? Yeah, absolutely.

Jeanette Stevens  17:07

So what you’re looking at right now is the new I’d like to say newly minted genedge.org website, we did recently undergo a rebrand. One of the reasons why we went to a rebrand and I just wanted to kind of back up the truck for that is because, you know, like we talked about earlier, education is really important. And building that trust with our community is also extremely important. And so we put, we did some research, and we found that, you know, well over 60%, of manufacturers in Virginia, were looking for ways that they could basically get information and resources that they needed, I you know, that they felt that they may not have readily available to them. And so the GENEDGE Alliance was born, and it was a place and it is a place where they can go to get those resources and tools for free or at discount. So on the homepage, manufacturers can click the Join the Alliance button, and that’s the portal to get to all the resources and tools that we were talking about. So like the connects database marketplace. So the blogs, as well as the learning management tools. And it’s really simple. You just fill out the information here on the website, and you have access to all of this information. And it’s right there at your fingertips. Obviously, of course, if you would like to speak to a person, or if you have additional questions, we have a place where you can connect with us really easy. We wanted to make sure that the language on our website spoke to specifically what it is that we discovered, our audience needed. So it really took us kind of rethinking the way we were communicating with our audience. And you know, I can’t say enough about the work that was put into the Alliance and the work that continues to go into the Alliance, and how you know, this what you’re seeing here, this isn’t built in stone. So that’s also something that is relevant and marketing. None of the strategies that we utilize or that I utilize is ever built in stone. Because at the end of the day, I’m learning I’m always learning from my audience. I’m learning from the community that I’m speaking to, and if there’s anything that I see, that needs to change, any and all of this can be iterated and I think that’s what’s so great about what we have here with the Alliance. We’ve taken everything that we’ve learned About our audience, and we’ve created this amazing tool that will help them and what we have seen is what they needed. So those four subjects here, these four categories, getting supplies, identifying ways to optimize processes, finding the workforce to get the job done, learning how to grow their companies, this is exactly what we have learned from doing market research. This is what our audience has said that they needed. And this is what we have created for them. And again, if we find that in any of this, as we’re learning our audience and what they need, because this isn’t a tool, we can iterate any of this. So it’s really important to sign up for the GENEDGE. Alliance, if you are a manufacturer in Virginia, because we’re learning from you. We’re learning from you. So just as you’re learning from us, and we’re private, we’re giving you the information that you say that you’re needing from us, we’re also learning from you. So you’re telling us what you need. And we’re, you know, hopefully giving that back to you.

Curt Anderson  21:11

And Jeanette might, you know, I have um, you know, I’m not a young guy anymore. My I’m a little forgetful, how much did you say it was? What was the cost here? I don’t recall.

Jeanette Stevens  21:19

So this is free, it’s free to sign up. For the GENEDGE. Alliance, there are tools that, you know, I do want to note that there are tools that are in the Alliance, that are add discounts, and those there are a little star next to each of those where there is a discount if you are an alliance member, but for the most part, all of this information here is free to access and free T.

Curt Anderson  21:47

Absolutely. So, you know, I want to break down a couple of things real quick here. And I love seeing is how you’re in Daymond I can’t see anybody, I’m just seeing her screen. So please chime in. But like from a website standpoint, like you know, Jeanette Roy’s, like, again, I want to talk about the program you did in Chicago. But you know, we talked about with our manufacturers, you know, you said, you know, we’re speaking their language, we’re listening to their challenges. So right here at the top, you have your call to action join the Alliance, you have multiple times, you have a nice video, you know, that’s like your huge kind of hero image right here is that is a huge video, breaking down the four buckets of their challenges, and then another video, or I’m sorry, then another call to action here. And then another opportunity of just explaining walking through Damon, what what thoughts on your end?

Damon Pistulka  22:37

Now, I just think you can really tell that you, you took the feedback from what people need it and built this to to answer their questions. Get down the information to make an informed decision on this page, whether I should join the Alliance or not, then I’m sure it just continues on the alliance is is you can answer those four buckets and help them in each one of those buckets inside the alliance with you know, it could be just information, it could be paid program, and there’s just so many different things that you can do. But these communities building a community like this really allows people to get in and get answers. I mean, this is when people see this in manufacturers, you know, as an old manufacturer, we didn’t have this stuff before, right? But when you look in industries, like SAS and other ones, they have places like Reddit or or some of these other online communities where they can actually ask a lot of questions get answers from from others in the industry that are peers, or experts. And I really think that Gen Ed’s has taken a big step forward here with this because you’re you’re providing your constituents, the people that you need to help with information that they need and can use. It’s really cool. It’s really good.

Jeanette Stevens  23:56

And I’m really glad that you brought up, you know, Reddit communities and other places where manufacturers will go to get information from manufacturers, you know, and, and creating the content strategy for this website. And that includes the language that is here. That is one of the places, you know, that that I leaned on, to kind of understand, okay, so what we’re finding is that manufacturers are going to manufacturers for assistance, they’re not necessarily going in some of the places that we may automatically think of Top of Mind. So how do we how do we position our content in such a way that it builds that trust and it says that, you know, this is another avenue for you to go in order to get that valuable information? So a lot of that thinking was put into this and I have to say that what the beauty of Working with MEP s, manufacturing extension partnerships is that in our organizations, we have manufacturers that work with us. So this it’s not like, you know, this is just, you know, kind of sterile, technical, general information, though this is information that’s coming from the field. And this is saying, you know, again, this is a place that you can go to, to get information from manufacturers to manufacturers. So, you know, and about manufacturing. So, you know, that’s what the idea was when we were creating this GENEDGE. Alliance. And as we continue to build a Genetic Alliance, very cool.

Curt Anderson  25:46

Yeah. And what I love, there’s no combination things, and I’ve had the honor and privilege of meeting number your teammates. So, you know, again, Jeanette, if somebody’s new to the MEP network, it’s just like, realizing, you know, like, we’ve had Scott on a program, and I’ve had the privilege of meeting de ICERs. In fact, I think I sat next to Dean at your, your workshop. And you know, the cool thing is just the enormous amount of talent skills, expertise, experience, you know, the passion of all your team members of helping manufacturers, right can use, let’s give a little shout out some of your teammates, or you want to just talk about like, again, when a manufacturer out there, they connect with you and your team? What does that look like, as they’re connected with different folks here that we’re looking at? Yeah, so

Jeanette Stevens  26:29

right here, where you were the industrial development team, you know, these guys are your first arm, you know, this, this is who you go to, to speak to, to get that expert information, you know, or to ask questions about specific topics. These guys are experts in their field, and I can’t say enough about the education and the experience that’s backed here at Gen edge. You know, I always in our meetings, when we’re having discussions, a lot of it is me just, you know, kind of listening and learning from these guys, you know, and all of the all of the knowledge that they bring to the table, I can’t say enough. I mean, you’ve got you know, obviously Phil, who is our executive director, and Tony Dean, of course, Scott, Teddy. I mean, Josh, you name it. This is a powerhouse bunch of individuals, all that bring years and years and years of expertise and experience to the table. And you know, if you have a question about it, someone in this organization has an answer.

Damon Pistulka  27:42

Yeah. Great about the MEPs. I mean, the MEPs. There’s just so much depth in the MEPs. And Jen edge is a great example of that.

Curt Anderson  27:52

And hey, Jeanette, I’m impressed you get your you even caught up your new your newlywed name. One very question on top. So let’s come up here. So coming back to your website, and I and I hope you’re cool. I didn’t mean to, you know, go too deep here. But you’ve got gas, you’ve got your manufacturing. Now, you have, you know, for tooling, you’ll, you I know these guys, they were in Chicago at the MEP conference, if this is new to somebody just talk a little bit about the resource and value that somebody would connect with the totally new team.

Jeanette Stevens  28:25

Yeah, so I mean, the simplest way that I can put it is, you know, if you think about if you’re utilizing a platform like LinkedIn, and you’re using it for LinkedIn learning, let’s say, to get business acumen and to, you know, get business certifications, and learn more about how, you know, you can boost your career through some of the classes and courses that are on LinkedIn learning, this is kind of the same thing, tooling you for the manufacturing industry. And what’s really great about the LMS that we have here is that these, this training is customizable, so depending on you know, a manufacturer we can go in, and they can look at over 400 courses that are available, and they can create a solution that works well for their organizations. So it’s not, you know, again, it’s not etched in stone, these are things that are bespoke, you know, you can say that, you know, for this particular group, you know, I need them to take a couple of courses on additive manufacturing, you know, or I’d like to learn a little bit more about industry 4.0 or metal cutting, CNC, whatever it is, you can customize that for your group, and you can either reach out to us for that for assistance and creating that customized solution or you can go in on your own and you can do it so that’s what’s I think that’s the best part about this is that you know, you don’t necessarily he’d to speak with someone in order to get some of the these answers and some of these solutions, you can go in at your own pace and you can do this. Or like I said, you can reach out to one of the experts at GENEDGE to help you. Damon, like,

Damon Pistulka  30:16

like the depth out here. That’s really cool. Yeah,

Curt Anderson  30:19

I mean, like, welding shop math, I mean, like, just, you know, in picture, you know, robotics 75% of all manufacturers are 20 employees or less, I mean, like, like, yeah, like, let that sink in for a minute. You know, you’re a manufacturer, you’ve got 10 employees, man, you’re thrown on a different hat literally every hour on the hour, right? One minute I my own marketing department. Next minute, I’m on the floor, putting out a fire. Next minute, I’m doing HR next minute I’m doing sadly, right. Next minute, I’m doing health care, health insurance. And you know, the cover all these topics is virtually impossible. But to have a trusted guide, and an incredible resource like this Genet this is just such a powerful tool, let’s fight into our friends, I know, it is perfect. I’m gonna get these guys on our program, Damon, you will love I interviewed these guys. I live in Chicago, but not just talk a little bit about the value here for connects. Now I know they’re working with numerous MEPs. As matter of fact, I was in Alaska, Damon doing a program and one of the one of the folks from the program grew up in Alaska, we did a program together, and they’re doing a great job helping manufacturers through the MEP network. Now, Jeanette, just share a little bit of what’s going on here with the connects marketplace.

Jeanette Stevens  31:32

Yeah, absolutely. So the connects Marketplace is a supply chain connector, you know, if you are a manufacturer, and you’re looking for a way to get supplies, or you know, to get customers within the network, you have the ability to do that through the connects marketplace. And what’s really great about the connects marketplace is that, you know, typically it’s about $500 in order to look for look nationwide, you know, at other, you know, in order to connect with other suppliers, and get opportunities like that nationwide. But by joining the GENEDGE. Alliance, and by signing up, you have up until March 1 to do so you can get that for free. So you as a manufacturer would be able to search a national nationwide database of suppliers and order to you know, exactly in order to find supplies all over the nation. So you know, what’s really good, what’s really great about this is that you can find that if you’re looking for supplies that you may not have thought, you know, is in Virginia, you can go into connect and find out that, hey, you know, I was looking elsewhere overseas for a supply that this guy, you know, 50 miles down the road is actually manufacturing. So it’s for economic development, and for you know, building the supply chain here, not just in Virginia, but nationwide. The connects Marketplace is a real eye opener, and it’s a great place for manufacturers to go to find that. And what’s good is that once you do sign up for the connects marketplace, it’s important to kind of fill out your capability statement. So that’s one of the things that you do after registration, you know, you go in as a manufacturer, you fill out your full capability, because that will help you as you know, connect with other suppliers and also to get them to connect with you. So it really helps to build your brand within the supply chain, as well as your business overall. So and as you’re where you are here searching Made Easy. These are all the things that the platform allows you to search by. So you can search by certifications, equipment, materials, NAICS, codes, products and services, small business designations, you name it. And all of these sections are places that you would want to fill out as a manufacturer when you do register, because the more information that you put into the tool, the better it is to connect you to other you know, OEMs and buyers and suppliers in not just Virginia but nationwide. Hmm,

Damon Pistulka  34:33

man, very cool. Very cool. I think you said one thing there are a lot of people look on the other side of the globe for supplies that they probably can find in the county or the city next to them. And without even knowing and that’s why these tools are so powerful.

Curt Anderson  34:49

Yeah. As a matter of fact, when I was in Alaska, the gentleman gave and I butchered the example but if something like you know, they were outsourcing, you know, looking over, you know, another continent Asia, you know, for a product and you know, exactly as you said Genet 5050 miles down the road was exactly what they’re looking for. And it turned into a multi multi million dollar, you know, relationship with somebody that was nearby, they just didn’t know. And the, you know, the great thing is, you know, Damon, we have, you know, folks like, you know, search and like E commerce and everything, you know, this is such a powerful tool to have in your tool chest, where, you know, Jeanette and her team, you know, you have vetted partners, you have great resources here, it’s just, you know, the goal is like, how can we make that manufacturer that just stretched so thin? How can we make their life as easy as possible? So yeah, exactly. I wouldn’t be mindful of your time, man, I didn’t even watch the clock. So I want to do anything else? Should we hit communities or anything else that you want me to hit on the website before? We before we step back?

Jeanette Stevens  35:49

Well, I mean, one thing that you did say that I, that I did want to shine a light to shine a light on, again, was the under 20, employee manufacturers. So that is our emerging business segment. And as you’ve stated, you know, we’ve found that a lot of manufacturers in Virginia, you know, they are part of that designation. And so this is a perfect place for them to go in order to get you know, some of that assistance, and some of that help, you know, like you said, if you’re the HR manager, and you’re also doing marketing, well, where can I go to quickly get that in that information that I need, you know, without having to pull myself away from my daily duties, you know, so this is this is that place, the GENEDGE alliance is that place in order to get that help get that assistance, you know, and not necessarily, you know, by taking extra time to do that, you know, because it’s self paced, and you can do it at your own your own pace, and at your own time.

Curt Anderson  36:50

Yeah, and just look at this lineup lineup of all star partners from SBDC. So universities, community colleges, NIST, and just, you know, all sorts of, you know, just a great network throughout the Great State of Virginia. So, again, guys, just an in I love again, from a throne, our website, had on, you know, call to action right there, join the Alliance, join the Alliance. So, you know, I just love what you’re doing. So guys, if you’re a manufacturer out there, you know, so many things, not only of thinking about what the MEP offers to you, but look at you know, Jeanette, I don’t know if, like, Daymond I always use that line, you know, the cobblers kid with no shoes, you know, a lot of times as marketers, you know, somebody might be, you know, consulting folks and how to do things, but then you look at their own website, and it’s getting, you know, they’re not really paying exactly, you’re doing a phenomenal job of like really setting the standard of like, making it easy for your manufacturer, and also showing your manufacturer, hey, this is probably how you want to speak and communicate to your customer and make your web presence as easy as possible to do business with you. So hey, I’m gonna big round of applause. I’m gonna give you I’m gonna stop sharing. I’m going to come back to you guys now. And so good stuff. Big. Yeah,

Damon Pistulka  38:03

good stuff. Good stuff.

Curt Anderson  38:05

Alright, so I want to I I’d be remiss if we don’t talk about your awesome workshop in Chicago. So Damon, you’ll love this. So we were in this wonderful, amazing hotel, downtown brake hardest Chicago. And Jeanette was that hotel, just spectacular is like, Hell was

Jeanette Stevens  38:24

amazing.

Curt Anderson  38:24

It was like, you know, it was like old school prohibition. 1920. Chicago, you know, and so just it was just a just a majestic place. Huge ballroom. And so a number of folks that have been on the program, Paola, from IMEC, we had Janelle from Magnin. Cleveland. We had Jeanette come came on, Alyssa and Sammy Jo from Alaska. We had Renee from Purdue MEP, and all these amazing women in manufacturing at the MEP network, one by one, we just did a great little like an impromptu on the spot. Little Live jam session. And Jeanette, you were talking about the workshop that you gave man, it was like it was packed house, people a lot, a lot of great marketers throughout the MVP. Now we’re several years ago, there were not a lot of marketers at the MVP network. Now we have rockstars. And superheroes like yourself, just talk a little bit if you recall, it was a few months ago, but you just talked about like some of the big points that you felt at that workshop are some of the takeaways or just share with anybody what you’re what you’re thinking from your workshop in September.

Jeanette Stevens  39:24

So mine, specifically, customer experience. Yeah. So thank you for that. I think, for me, the biggest takeaway was really in building a communication style that is really dedicated towards the customer. And I think we hear that a lot. It’s almost become a buzzword, but what does that really mean? What that really means is understanding first who your customer is, right? So what I’ve realized and You know, reading the brand guide for the MEP network, and then you know, kind of thinking about who the audience is for my specific MEP agenne edge, you know, I realized that the customer segment that we have is, is very, it’s big. And I don’t mean big by just like a huge network, it’s just that I have the customer that I’m speaking to, so the manufacturer, and then I have the customer that I work with, right, so we have our internal customers as well. And internal customer, you know, those are the RGM, you know, those are the guys that are out there in the field. And they are talking to manufacturers. So when I’m building a communication style, customer experience is all about saying, you know, this is what your problem is. And this is the solution based off of what I’m hearing, and being able to communicate that in such a way that everybody is on board with it. So I can communicate externally as much as I want to everybody on the outside, but if my internal customers, my coworkers, if we’re not all speaking the same language, that is really difficult for anyone externally able to get on board with whatever it is the company is doing. So we all have to really understand, you know, what is the goal? What is the collective goal here? And how are we going to get to it? You know, what is the language? What are we going to talk about, you know, how are we going to build these relationships, and one of the things that I really zeroed in on was Be our guest. So be our guest is obviously a song from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. And, and I talked about this, because I was trying to find the simplest way that I can explain what that means. What that means. And you know, in this and in the song, Belle, she stuffed into this castle, you know, and she’s she had this, this preconceived notion of what she thought was going to happen. And it was the council’s responsibility to make her feel comfortable to say, Okay, we understand that you’re nervous, we get that you’re scared, you know, and that this is new. So we’re going to take all of that, and we’re going to show you how we can make this a great experience for you. I understand, you know that you don’t understand what an MEP is, but you know, I understand that you don’t get how, you know, we can help your manufacturing business, I get that. But what I’m going to do is I’m going to show you, I’m going to make you my guest, and I’m going to speak your language, I’m going to talk to you the way I know that you will be able to ingest this, you know, and then when you speak with people from the company, they’re also going to speak the same language to you, we’re all going to say the same thing. We’re we’re all moving towards the same goal. So I think at the end of the day, the biggest point that I was trying to make with that workshop was just understanding the customer experience. And, you know, I always start everything off with grace, you know, I started with grace, because there’s so many things going on, especially in marketing, you know, it’s so in a lot of senses, you know, it’s really, it takes grace to say, this is the way we’ve always done something, we’ve always done it this way. And I’m I’m kind of nervous about doing things in a different manner. And with customer experience, you’re almost you know, doing things differently. Because you’re saying that this is the way I’d like to do it. This is the way I’ve always done it. But my customer is telling me something else. And I have to have grace and I have to trust that I’m taking my company in a new direction. I’m speaking a different language, but I have to trust that I’m speaking it the way they need it. You know, so a lot of that is just, you know, saying that this is scary for everybody, you know, we’re all nervous, you know, we’re, we’re all you know, kind of in this together. But at the end of the day, what’s really important is that you’re comfortable, and that you’re getting everything that you need from us that we’re fulfilling the promise, we’re saying that you know, we are the place to go to for innovation, for growth, for competitiveness, you know, for for technology for all of those things, you know, then then we have to be able to make you feel comfortable with that, you know, we have to trust that this is what you’re saying that you need. And we’re going to give that. So, you know, it was just really about understanding and dissecting kind of the customer experience. And giving your giving us as the company, you know, or giving you or whomever who whomever’s company it is, you know, just saying that I know, it’s scary. I know that it’s new, you know, but if your customers are saying that they need this, then it might mean that you should go in your direction, you know, and everybody at the end of the day is trusting that we’re moving towards the same goal. I hope that

Curt Anderson  45:45

was awesome. No words. That was Genet that was just so wonderful. That was Damon. And again, just picture that in person that yeah, I got I could listen to you all day, Jeanette, that was just so good. I can’t even unpack that one. Just like you know, listen to the customer, I guess you know, what a sum, sum it up like this statement, you know, be our guest. If you just like, let that stick in your head. Like every customer transaction, every interaction, your website, you know, what genets done with the GENEDGE website. I’ve just like really listening, understanding speaking to the customer, from call to action buttons, to answering their questions to, you know, the services that they’re not providing it just, you know, listen and respond, listen and respond to Dr. guests. I absolutely love that. Jeanette, you have a couple open positions, as I understand that Janelle will give a shout out there to see if there’s anybody out there listening that happens to be in a great state of Virginia and is looking to join an amazing, incredible team. Jeanette, what’s going on there?

Jeanette Stevens  46:47

Yeah, so you know, we’re, we’re looking right now we have a contract position open for merging Services Program Director. So that is someone that would be responsible for, you know, helping our emerging businesses under 20. Manufacturers with the questions that they may have, you know, to help them along with the resources and tools that we have in the GENEDGE. Alliance, you have questions about LMS, you have questions about the next marketplace, the emerging services program manager would be the perfect person to go to so we are actively looking for someone in that position. We’re also looking for a regional growth manager in our region three section of Virginia. And that’s, you know, really helping working directly with manufacturers in that region of Virginia. So we are looking for someone there. And we’ll also looking for a it and cybersecurity professional as well to come on board Business Services Director. So, you know, and everything that we do, we have experts in place that are there to help our manufacturers with the questions and issues that they have, so that they get on to solutions and building their businesses and being successful. So we do have, if you go to our website, you’ll be able to learn more about those positions. There’s a post actually today about some of those open positions. So definitely check out our LinkedIn, Facebook Twitter page, and you can go directly there to learn more about how to apply come on board.

Curt Anderson  48:31

Awesome. Well, Jeanette, I have to say, you know, we we interviewed tons of different MVPs on the program here and I had the honor and privilege of working with a number. And boy, you are certainly leading the charge as far as your GENEDGE. Alliance, the podcast, I know you did your first LinkedIn live last month. And that was a huge hit. And I know a couple of the folks that were on that program. And so I kudos to you. And it’s just such a gift and blessing to have your expertise your superpower as part of the MVP family, the network, because you are just truly elevating things and so it’s just it’s great to have a front row seat. As you know, I might be present in the fan club for Jeanette here. Maybe her son and her new husband right and one of us agree right that right.

Jeanette Stevens  49:14

Thank you. We’ll

Curt Anderson  49:15

wind down I know you’re super busy. My last question for you today is before we wind things I think we covered I think we’ve covered most So, Jeannette, my question to you when I opened up was your hero was Dad Joseph was your hero as a little girl growing up in the Bronx. Okay. Now, for 2023 I know you are just so ambitious aggressive. You’re taking Gen Ed’s to the next level. You have aggressive audacious goals for 23 who are what is your inspiration as you’re just as driving force at Gen Ed’s who are what is your inspiration?

Jeanette Stevens  49:54

Well, um, I would still say that you know, I take a lot of what my father taught me a lot of that foundation, a lot of those values. But I have to say that, you know, what’s beautiful about all of this is that we have alliances in our name. So it’s, it’s everybody that I work with, they’re all inspiration to me. And I have to say that like, I really and truly work with a great of folks, and I’ve been able to learn so much. So taking it back to the very beginning of this conversation. You know, one of the things that I love so much about working with Yahoo was not just the people, but the fact that I learned so much, you know, that they were willing to invest in my education. And I feel like I’m finding the same thing here with GENEDGE, I work with a really great group of people, and I learned so much from from them. And I think that’s really important in everything that I do. And everything that we do, you know, it’s learning doesn’t stop, it continues. And that’s one of the foundational teachings that my father always taught us, you know, we were raised with books, books, on books on books and books, and I can remember whole summers where I didn’t go outside, I would stay inside and just listen to my father talk, I kid you not, I mean, we talk about all sorts of subjects, everything. And I’m a learner. I’m a lifetime learner, and I any situation that I’m in, where I can learn and grow, is important to me, because I don’t ever think that it stops, you know, I think it’s something that’s fluid. And there’s always room for iteration. And I’m always looking for ways to gain more knowledge, because knowledge is power. And I think, you know, that just bringing it all back to the GENEDGE. Alliance, I mean, that’s what we’ve done, we’ve taken and we’re continuing to take, you know, all of those resources, all that knowledge and all that wisdom, and we’re putting it in a place where other manufacturers can can access it, you know, and can take it and use that to expand and grow their own businesses. So, to answer your question, I mean, you know, it started with my dad, and actually lost my father in 22,021. But those, that foundation is there, you know, that foundation is there, he’s still my hero. But I would say that my heroes today are just, you know, the people that I encounter, you know, the people I encounter the people that I work with, the network that I have, I have a great network of folks, you know, that I’ve leaned on and support me and, you know, that’s what propels me forward. You know, as long as I can learn as long as I can continue to gain knowledge and wisdom that I’m good you know, I understand that things don’t just stop you know, they they continue their fluid

Curt Anderson  53:13

Genet that was like the that was like our third for drop my last count Damon, I’m not sure where we’re at. So first off, our thoughts and prayers to Jeanette with, with dad, Joseph, I know he’s looking down in you just just beaming with pride, and just looking down on his baby girl and just what a huge monster of success that you’ve become, I’d say you are just such a gift breath breath of fresh air. I just I cherish the friendship that you and I have developed and you know, just your job, boy, if anybody listen to this, please hit rewind. You know, knowledge is power. You’ve covered things from like you know, the grace. And what I love is Damon we had a wonderful guests that introduced the idea of saga, the organization’s the companies that really separate themselves from others. They’ve created a saga that the rest of the company buys into and it’s a call culture of integrity. And Janette what you’re describing I feel like Bill and you know, your leadership at GENEDGE has just created this saga then like you’re like I’m getting chills right now like your enthusiasm is just like popping through the computer of like, just the passion of trying to help manufacturers just be more competitive on a global scale is just so admirable, so exciting and so inspirational. That’s why we love we call this show manufacturing Monday motivation and boy, you absolutely crushed it with motivating everybody out here.

Jeanette Stevens  54:32

So can I say one thing one more thing was really, really important because I want to hold on to that point, I think was really important. The reason why you can feel the chills and I and the reason why there’s so much you know behind this is because I truly love what I do. Right? So you know, I definitely you know, just want to state that. I love what I do so because I love what I do. I put everything I have into it. And I can say that about everybody that I work with. We love what we do. You know, I mean, we push through the frustrations, the obstacles and the challenges because at the end of the day, what’s really important to us is the manufacturer. So I definitely, you know, just wanted to put that out there.

Curt Anderson  55:19

Awesome. Well, with that, I’m going to invite anybody listening out there you’ve you’ve been sitting for I don’t know how long I invite you welcome. You encourage you once you give a stand up and give a round of applause to our amazing incredible wonderful guests today. Jeanette Stephens Cunningham, newlywed from Virginia. So Jeanette, thank you. Thank you for sharing your time, your energy, your passion today, boy, appreciate you. You are welcome anytime and the comeback guys connect with Jeanette here on LinkedIn. Find her on YouTube. Go to Gen edge in your manufacturer, Virginia boy do yourself a favor and connect if you’re coming to us from outside another state. Boy reach out to us and we’ll get you connected with your local MVP. Guys go out and have an amazing incredible week Damon we love the line. Radical gratitude Genet I’m in deep radical gratitude to you and to everything that you do and spending time with you today. Guys go out and just be an incredible inspiration to whoever you encounter just like our dear friends net. Damon any parting thoughts as we close out today?

Damon Pistulka  56:26

No, I just you know, you can tell when you love what you do. It shows through. It just

Curt Anderson  56:30

shows through so guys have an amazing credible week. Daymond I’ve got a big surprise you. We have got a great guest on Friday. I’m gonna see you this Friday, man. I can’t wait. Jeanette, hang out with us for one second, and guys have an amazing credible

Jeanette Stevens  56:44

for having me. Thank

Curt Anderson  56:45

you. Have a great week, guys.

Jeanette Stevens  56:47

Bye. See ya.