As a student in the University of Oregon Lundquist College of Business (‘02) Matt Thomas never dreamed that a simple prompt in class senior year would turn into a $50+ million business. As the founder and CEO of Brew Dr. Kombucha, Matt is a massively successful beverage entrepreneur who leads with a growth mindset. Assigned a straightforward student project -- develop a business plan for an underserved market – Matt landed on tea drinkers. His vision? A teahouse, with all things tea under one roof.  Hear Matt chart the course of this success story, from his early days scraping by on capit ..read more

Today we're joined by Soledad Hurst '88. If her voice sounds familiar it’s probably because she spent years on-air, covering the New York Stock Exchange for Bloomberg Television. She’s also spent time as an attorney and an investment banker, but these days she’s best known for her transformative philanthropic work. As the board member of several charitable nonprofits, she works to help provide opportunities to people who wouldn’t otherwise have them. She knows first hand how hard it can be to beat the odds and carve out opportunity. Growing up in Springfield, her father was a truck driver and ..read more

 Today’s show features the Lerner twins: Andrew, a divorce lawyer and Mike, a marriage therapist. And they work across the hall from each other! Throughout the episode, the brothers discuss the symbiotic nature of their professions, despite the initial humorous contrast. They emphasize their shared goal of helping people through tough times and highlight the advantages of their collaborative approach when working together on cases. They also touch upon the challenges and emotional aspects of their work, acknowledging the importance of having someone who truly understands the weight of the ..read more

Today’s guest is Gurdeep Singh Pall (’89, MS Computer and Information Science), Corporate Vice President for Business AI at Microsoft. He is an "intrepreneur," a product strategist, and an enthusiastic technologist. Having spent more than three decades at Microsoft, Gurdeep is now focusing on creating scalable and ethical Autonomous Systems. His tenure at Microsoft began during the advent of the internet, and he played a key role in developing critical technologies such as TCP/IP, VPN, and cloud-based communications that underpin today's digital economy. When he arrived in Eugene in the late 1 ..read more

Mark Twain once said, “Too much of anything is bad, but too much good whiskey is barely enough.” Today’s guest knows a little something about whiskey. Alex Chasko is the Master Distiller and Blender and was employee number one at Teeling Whiskey, which was built in 2012 and was the first new distillery in Dublin for over 125 years. However, Alex didn't start there. His passion for brewing can be seen as early as sophomore year when he started making beer with at-home brew kits and spent his summers at Bridgeport Brewing Company. Through working at Bridgeport, Alex learned how biology and chemi ..read more

While some of us spent the long days of the early pandemic cleaning out the refrigerator or adopting a puppy, others – like Dr. M Jackson – spent it searching for a hidden hoard of pirate gold in Alaska. The adventure, filmed in summer 2020 and chronicled in the hit 2022 Netflix series Pirate Gold of Adak Island, is but one of many far-flung locales that this UO grad has traveled in her exciting career in search of what the earth can reveal. Indeed – as a geographer, glaciologist, National Geographic Explorer, Fulbright Ambassador, TED Fellow, Peace Corps volunteer, and author – Dr. Jackson’s ..read more

Today we are joined by John Pooley, an '82 graduate of the business school. John is a food production industry expert who recently became CEO of Stir Foods, a custom sauce manufacturer based in Orange County, California. As if he didn’t have enough on his dinner plate, John keeps busy through his board memberships in the following companies: Tropicale Foods, American Nuts, McClancy Foods & Flavors, and Stir Foods. He shares insight into how global trends are impacting food prices, what it takes to be a supplier for food giants like Starbucks and McDonald’s, and his first-generation co ..read more

Today we are joined by Jen Bell, BA '94 (Journalism/Advertising). Jen is Partner and Strategy Director of Bell+Funk, a marketing and advertising agency in Eugene, Oregon. Jen began her advertising career in San Francisco. With renewed appreciation for the joys and opportunities of small-town life (Jen grew up in rural Oregon), she returned to her home state 15 years ago to build her successful firm and career. A brand and communications strategist, Jen shares insights about how advertising has changed, why she identifies with the Volkswagen brand, what Mad Men gets right, keys to the creative ..read more

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