CSI Chat

#34 - Robert Mazur

Robert Mazur served for 27 years as a special agent for the IRS Criminal Investigation Division, the Customs Service and the Drug Enforcement Agency working predominantly as a undercover agent working as a money launderer.  Robert wrote two terrific books, "The Infiltrator" and "The Betrayal", the first of which was turned into a movie which starred Brian Cranston as none other than Robert Mazur!
Robert joins CSI Chat and we touch on a number of topics including:
- How did someone go from working at the Internal Revenue Agency (IRS) to working undercover going up against the most dangerous drug cartels in the world?
- What is the mental skill set one needs in order to prepare themselves to go undercover?  How do you prepare your family for this dangerous experience?
- What is the "day in the life" of an undercover agent?  How do you deal with the stress and the fear of potentially being caught?
Robert is an American hero and an incredible person who has been fighting against the illegal drug trade in the United States his entire life.  We are very lucky to have him join "CSI Chat".  

#33 - Barbara McQuade

We are joined by the former United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan (and HUGE Detroit Tigers fan) Barbara McQuade to talk about her book "Attack from Within:  How Disinformation is Sabotaging America".  After spending some time talking about the pros and cons of both the Detroit Tigers and Toronto Blue Jays signing Alex Bregman during the offseason, we get down to business and address:
Her experience as the former US Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan and some of the high-profile cases she prosecuted during this time.
How disinformation is used by politicians to push their agenda and help sway voters.  
What we can do as citizens to ensure that we are not a victim of a disinformation campaign.  
It was a terrific conversation with Barb and I would encourage everyone to check it out!  
  

#32 - Dawn Meyerriecks

We are joined by the "Q" (James Bond fans will know "Q") of the CIA, Dawn Meyerriecks.  After learning a bit more about Dawn, perhaps it is more accurate to state that "Q" is the Dawn Meyerriecks of the British Secret Service.  In any event, Dawn was the Deputy Director of the CIA for Science and Technology.  Dawn recently led a "Masterclass" on "The Art of Intelligence" which I would highly encourage everyone to check out.  
We talk to Dawn about:- There are a few questions that we have always wanted to ask someone from the CIA (including whether it is true or false that there are CIA agents who speak over 30 different languages fluently).  Dawn does her best to answer these questions!
- What is a "day in the life" of the "Deputy Director of the CIA"?  How did she spend a typical day?
- How does Dawn compare life in the public sector vs. the private sector (as she has worked in senior positions in both).
- We ask Dawn about the current state of technology in society and whether we should be concerned about the increased investments being made in Artificial Intelligence.  
I hope everyone enjoys the "CSI Chat" with Dawn!  

#31 - Colin Bryar

We are joined by Colin Bryar, a former Amazon executive and co-author of the outstanding book, "Working Backwards:  Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon".  How did Amazon grow from a tiny start-up to one of the most successful companies on the planet?  What best practices did Amazon leverage to facilitate this success?  Colin was Jeff Bezos' "shadow" (Jeff's Chief of Staff") during those early days and talks to CSI Chat about:- How was Amazon able to hire the best and the brightest employees?  Colin explains Amazon's "Bar Raiser" hiring approach and how it was leveraged to hire 1,000's of Amazon's top employees.  
- Amazon has banned the use of PowerPoint within their organization for most meeting presentations.  Why did Amazon ban PowerPoint and what format does Amazon now use for most presentations?  
- How has "thinking long-term" and "focusing on the customer" resulted in some of Amazon's life changing products and services including "Amazon Prime" and "Amazon Web Hosting"?
End of the day, Colin explains how nearly all of Amazon's best practices can be leveraged by all corporations to facilitate their growth and success.  
 

#30 - Michele Rigby Assad

Michele Rigby Assad, who is a "super spy" and a renown author, joins us to talk about her latest book, "Get off the X:  CIA's Secrets for Conquering Obstacles and Achieving your Life's Mission".  Michele spent 10 years working in the Central Intelligence Agency ("CIA") and is now an international corporate advisor, author and keynote speaker.  
Michele talks to us about:
How do you go through the process of joining the CIA?  How do you apply and how does the interview process work?  What types of folks are the CIA looking for?  
What is it like living in a war-torn country while working for the CIA?  What is a typical "day in the life" of a super spy?  
What does Michele imply when she says to "Get off the X"?  How do we apply the training she received in the CIA to real world examples?
After listening to Michele (and reading her book!), you will have a tool kit to "Get off the X" and achieve your life's mission.  

#29 - Frank Perri

Frank Perri joins CSI Chat to talk about "Red Collar Crime".  Frank is the author of "Red Collar White Collar Crime:  Corporate, Predatory Violent Fraud Offenders".  Frank debunks the myth that white collar criminals reflect the kinder, gentler offender and Frank explains how red collar criminals resort to violence to prevent the detection of their fraud schemes. 
Frank takes us down a fascinating journey of how a white collar criminal can turn to violence ("Red Collar") when cornered.  

#28 - Bethany McLean

We are joined by Bethany McLean on CSI Chat to talk about the learnings from Enron, the 2008 financial crisis and her most recent book, "The Big Fail:  What the Pandemic Revealed about Who America Protects and Who it Leaves Behind".  Bethany is a well-known journalist who published in 2001 the now famous article in Fortune, "Is Enron Overpriced".  Bethany is the author of several books, cohost of the podcast "Capitalisn't" and a special correspondent at Insider and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair.  
During our "Chat" with Bethany, we talk about a number of topics including:
We go back in a time machine to March 2001 when she first wrote "Is Enron Overpriced"?  What was Bethany thinking at the time?  What conversations did she have with the Enron executive team?
After 20+ years since her article and the Enron collapse, have we learned anything?  Is history due to repeat itself?
Why did she decide to write a book on the financial crisis of 2008 entitled "All the Devils are Here"?  Was the 2008 financial crisis preventable?
Her most recent book, "The Big Fail", goes through the learnings of the COVID 19 pandemic.  What did we do well during the pandemic?  What were the areas that we could have done better?  Are we prepared for the next global pandemic.   
It is a fascinating conversation with Bethany and I hope everyone enjoys it.  

#27 - David Giersdorf

David Giersdorf joins us at CSI Chat to talk about his experience in the cruise industry and his fantastic book, "Hardships:  Navigating your company, career, and life through the fog of disruption".  
David has spent nearly his entire professional life involved with the travel and cruise industry.  When COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic in March 2020, the cruise industry was hit extremely hard.  How did the cruise companies deal with this disruption?  How were they able to navigate when a huge portion of their costs are fixed?  David was called upon by several cruise companies to assist during this difficult time.  
David provides his strategies and insights on how to deal with disruption which are applicable to all industries.    

#26 - Kelly Paxton

The "Pink Collar Crime" lady Kelly Paxton joins us on CSI Chat for a terrific discussion on "Pink Collar Crime".  Kelly Paxton is the author of the book "Embezzlement: How to Detect, Prevent, and Investigate Pink-Collar Crime" and is a world-renown expert and global speaker in the area.  Kelly's background ranges from investigating narcotics crimes for the United States Customs to investigating how owner managed businesses are at risk of fraud.  
 
During our Chat with Kelly, we touch on:
The definition of "Pink Collar Crime" and the type of businesses which are most susceptible to this issue.  
What are some of the "Pink Flags" that would indicate a potential issue in a business?  
What are the most common methods to facilitate a "Pink Collar Crime" and how do we build an effective internal control environment to prevent these issues.  
 
I hope everyone enjoys the "Chat" with Kelly Paxton.  

#25 - Tom Hardin

Tom Hardin, also known as "Tipper X", was working his way up the corporate ladder on Wall Street when he was stopped on the street by a couple of FBI agents and his life was never the same.  Tom was faced with accusations of insider trading and decided to cooperate with the FBI.  It was at this point Tom transitioned from being "Tom Hardin", up and coming Wall Street banker to "Tipper X", undercover agent for the FBI.  After working with the FBI, Tom is now a renown public speaker and sought after expert in the area of corporate ethics.
The discussion with Tom is fascinating as we touch on a number of subjects, including:
When Tom is first stopped in the street by the FBI agents, the FBI suggests they go to a private spot to discuss the situation.  Where is the spot of choice?  The restaurant "Wendy's" of course. 
The amount of profit on the insider trades was approximately $46,000.  Hard to believe that someone's life can be turned upside down for $46,000. 
Tom tells some shocking stories about the process wearing a wire, including one experience in a pool.   Truth stranger than fiction?  Perhaps.  
Tom is a very interesting guy and I hope everyone enjoys the "Chat".