Happy holidays from Raja and the staff of Your American Story Radio!
On this Sunday’s edition of Your American Story Radio, we feature an unprecedented FOUR never-before-heard interviews with business and thought leaders, as we head into the holiday season. These are stories geared towards educating you about the most prevalent trends in business and the economy, and to inspire you to achieve success in your own endeavors, be they personal or professional.
-When the U.S. first entered their recent economic downturn five years ago, one of the industries that was front and center on the business page was the auto industry, as government bailouts and “cash for clunkers” programs ruled the day. But what of the industry since then? How has the industry recovered, both on a national scale and as it trickles down to individual dealerships, and what lies ahead for the future? To help answer these and other questions, Raja enlists the help of Rob Cochran, CEO of #1 Cochran, the largest dealership in Western Pennsylvania, who discusses the story of the rise of the family business, how the auto industry emerged from its dire state, the strategies he employed to steer the dealership through rough economic waters, and what lies ahead for the auto industry.
-ALung Technologies CEO Pete DeComo is an award-winning entrepreneur who has been heralded as one of the region’s most prominent health industry entrepreneurs. The longtime health industry professional first made his entrepreneurial mark in the Pittsburgh health sector as the founder and CEO of Renal Solutions, a company that specialized in the production of a dialysis technology system that was, quite literally, a lifesaver for patients who were suffering from kidney failure. After Renal Solutions was purchased in 2007, Pete then moved on to his current company, ALung Technologies, the developer of a game-changing artificial lung for patients who are battling respiratory failure. Pete talks with Raja about his remarkable entrepreneurial career as the head of companies that provide lifelines for two critical parts of the human body, and what he thinks about the impact of the Affordable Care Act, as well as other government regulations, are having on entrepreneurial endeavors in the health sector.
-Plus, Raja checks in with Mark Uchida of A ReMARKable Kitchen Store, who discusses the changes and trends that are affecting his business on a daily business, and the considerations a homeowner must make when it comes time to install a new kitchen or bath.
-Recently, we featured a discussion with Alan Robertson of the Pittsburgh Business Times, who discussed the changing role of “traditional” print journalism in the face of a revolution caused by the emergence of social media and the internet. (You can hear that interview, and all of our past interviews, here.) Paul Gillin, a Boston-based media industry expert takes the discussion one step further, noting that social media is here to stay, and you’re best suited to hop onboard the train, or get left in the dust! Paul talks with Raja about the impact that social media has on our lives, both now and in the future, and offers advice on what you need to do right now to adapt to the sweeping changes that it is causing for the way we live our lives.
