It’s been four years since we started In Good Companies and, as we look ahead, we feel that our vision for this show is complete. Together we navigated the forces shaping your business over the past six seasons, bringing in experts on culture, M&A, corporate security and so much more. We conclude this series with a special final episode. We’re keeping our promises and launching you into 2025 with a conversation you don’t want to miss.

Our final guest, Doug Farren, is a pioneer in business research and the co-founder of the National Center for the Middle Market at Ohio State University. A thought leader, researcher and educator, Doug joins us to share his insights into one of the most overlooked segments of the economy: mid-size businesses — a "forgotten third" that drives a significant portion of private sector growth.

In this episode, Doug sheds light on the challenges and opportunities facing middle-market companies in 2025. From technology adoption to talent retention, risk management and succession planning, we discuss how to help mid-sized businesses navigate the road ahead. We also break down the findings of the Middle Market Indicator – a cutting-edge study that Doug runs bi-annually, to outline the needs of mid-size businesses and connect leaders in the field. Together, we share important business stories, as we love them on this podcast.

If you’re a business owner, entrepreneur or visionary who wants to know what is shaping 2025, this episode is for you. Here’s to embracing the future – and being with us – one last time, on In Good Companies.

Highlights:

• Introducing Doug Farren (01:59)
• What is the Middle Market? (03:02)
• Scaling up: Needs, Challenges and Opportunities for Midsize Companies (06:59)
• Building a Network, with the Middle Market Indicator (10:46)
• Understanding the Macro-Economic Environment in 2025 (14:38)
• Technology and Innovation in the Middle Market (16:57)
• The Issue with Middle Market Brand Visibility & Talent Retention (19:42)
• Thinking Ahead: Governance, and Succession Planning (22:28)
• The Climate Question: Assessing Risks for Business Growth (25:12)
• Where to Find Resources for Middle Market Leaders (30:14)
• Telling Business Stories, Making New Connections (32:44)
• A Final World from In Good Companies (35:07)

Links:

• Cadence Bank Website
• Cadence Bank X (Twitter)
• Cadence Bank LinkedIn
• Cadence Bank YouTube
• Doug Farren LinkedIn
• Doug Farren - NCMM Website
• Doug Farren - Fisher College of Business
• National Center for the Middle Market Website
• “The Market that Moves America” - NCMM Podcast
• Middle Market Indicator - Year End 2024
  
  

Feedback:

If you have questions about the show or its topics , email our producers Natalie.Barron@cadencebank.com or Eydie.Pengelly@cadencebank.com.

Acquisitions are a major tool to grow your business; but for leaders, they can feel like a daunting leap. So how do you gain confidence in your company to make that jump? What are some key steps to consider before sealing the deal? And once you’ve successfully expanded your ventures, how do you do it again?

For our next season six episode, we bring in co-founder and business leader Miles Crowe for a story that is nothing short of inspirational. His company Crowe Custom Countertops is one of the leading granite fabrication firms in the southeast U.S. Through strategic acquisitions and a commitment to teamwork, Miles has expanded his business to five locations and gained international reach.

With our host Ari Marin, Miles discusses how he found his footing in business and established a strong foundation before pursuing acquisitions. He breaks down how he made the most of his opportunities for expansion. From assessing other companies critically, to planning for integration and strengthening his business model; there are many lessons to be learned.

So tune in to learn how a humble two-person operation becomes a multi-location enterprise generating millions in revenue. This is a story from a small business guy who’s done well – just as we like them on In Good Companies.

Highlights:

• Introducing Miles Crowe (1:23)
• How Miles launched into business by accident (3:21)
• “The two-man days”: starting Crowe Custom Countertops (5:02)
• The first growth spurt: overcoming challenges and finding your foundation (7:00)
• How the recession helped Miles find his business model (10:01)
• First acquisition: becoming a distributor (13:14)
• Navigating authority and the emotional load of business expansion (15:30)
• Second acquisition: expanding to Chattanooga (19:19)
• Third acquisition: Nashville during the Covid-19 pandemic (22:32)
• Latest acquisition: return to the Atlanta market (25:14)
• Aligning your business goals to the future of your industry (25:52)

Links:

• Cadence Bank Website
• Cadence Bank X (Twitter)
• Cadence Bank LinkedIn
• Cadence Bank YouTube
• Crowe Custom Countertops Website
• Crowe Custom Countertops LinkedIn
• Crowe Custom Countertops Facebook
• Miles Crowe LinkedIn
• Book: Michael E Gerber, “The E-Myth: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It”
• Book: Don Soderquist, “The Wal Mart Way: The Inside Success Story of the World’s Largest Company”
  
  

Feedback:

If you have questions about the show or topics you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producers, Eydie.Pengelly@cadencebank.com or Danielle.Kernell@cadencebank.com.

Before In Good Companies returns next week, we'd like to help you finish January on a high note; so we're bringing back one of our favorite episodes on joy.

Recent research by Oxford University found that workers are 13% more productive when they’re happy. And yet, another study by BCG found that most company leaders aren’t building their strategies around how their employees feel at work. So joy? It’s a real business question.

In this episode, we are joined by designer and joy specialist Ingrid Fetell Lee, to find out how to make our workplaces, our jobs, and ourselves more joyful. A former design director for IDEO, Ingrid is a self-starter with a decade’s worth of research into the science of joy. Her findings made it into a book: Joyful: The Surprising Power of Ordinary Things to Create Extraordinary Happiness.

Today, she helps us answer the hard questions: how do we get to feel joyful? Our surroundings, the objects in our homes, the things and people we interact with every day… Why do they influence our emotions? And crucially: what does that mean for our companies? Together, we discuss how to make our workplaces more enjoyable and productive, and what joy means for leadership, teamwork and our business philosophy.

Join Ingrid and Ari to spread joy today and make it an integral function of your organization.

Highlights:

• When Ingrid first stumbled upon Joy (2:45)
• Universal joyful patterns (4:54)
• The evolutionary explanation for joy (7:32)
• The difference between joy and happiness (9:33)
• The Aesthetics of Joy in the Workplace (10:29)
• How physical space can impact our mental health (13:32)
• The branded environment: “No one wants to work inside the corporate logo” (15:30)
• The case of joy contagion at Coca-Cola (16:34)
• Adopting a new joyful leadership (18:56)
• “The biggest mistake that I've seen employers make is inconsistency” (20:56)
• Undoing the corporate bias against joy (22:03)
• Signs that we have changed our team for the better (23:23)
• Finding joy while working remotely (25:57)
• Embracing joy in the present (27:46)
• Gen Z: a new philosophy of joy (29:27)

Links:

• Cadence Bank Website
• Cadence Bank X (Twitter)
• Cadence Bank LinkedIn
• The Aesthetics of Joy Website
• The Aesthetics of Joy Instagram
• Ingrid Fetell Lee X (Twitter)
• Ingrid Fetell Lee LinkedIn
• Ingrid Fetell Lee Instagram
• Ingrid Fetell Lee Pinterest
• Ted Talk: “Where Joy Hides and How to Find It”
• Research: Oxford University - “Happy workers are 13% more productive”
• Research: BCG - “Joy at work matters more than you realize”

Feedback:

If you have questions about the show or topics you'd like discussed in future episodes, email our producers, Natalie.Barron@cadencebank.com, Eydie.Pengelly@cadencebank.com, or Danielle.Kernell@cadencebank.com.