Episodes

How do we protect the consumer from shoddy, fraudulent, or dangerous products and services? There's a long tradition that government must do something, which has led to a proverbial alphabet soup of regulatory bodies: the FDA, CPSC, USDA, and many more. Join Ed and Ron as they explore the legitimate issue of market failure, and also the less recognized government failure.

Three weeks ago, Ron and Ed interviewed Antony Davies co-host of the Word and Numbers podcast. This week they welcome Antony's co-host, political scientist James R. Harrigan. James is the F. A. Hayek Distinguished Fellow at the Foundation for Economic Education and the director of education at the Freedom Center at the University of Arizona. He co-hosts the Words & Numbers podcast and has written for The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and a host of other outlets. Prev...

In government and political science courses, students are taught the traditional “political/economic spectrum.” It shows Communism on the far left end of the spectrum; moving to the right, then Socialism; then Capitalism; and Fascism is at the far right end of the spectrum. Yet this spectrum is not only misleading, it is false. Join Ed and Ron for a discussion of why that is, and what the real political/economic spectrum actually looks like.

Join Ed, Ron, and VeraSage Senior Fellow, and recidivist guest, Dr. Reginald Lee, as they engage in a round-table discussion about value, pricing, cost accounting, project management, and capacity; and how they all change, and don’t change, in the subscription business model. This is an adaptation of a Bonus Episode from July 14th that ran for approximately 80 minutes, available to our Cost-Plus Subscribers on our Patreon channel (https://www.patreon.com/TSOE).

Ron and Ed will be joined by Professor Antony Davies, associate professor of economics at Duquesne University. He is co-host of the podcast, Words & Numbers with Professor James Harrigan. He is co-inventor on a patent for generating supercomputing power from idle Internet-connected computers, and recipient of a NASA grant for developing statistical techniques for data mining using supercomputers. In other words, he is super smart.

Even though forty-five states permit marijuana, and one-third of Americans live in a location where recreational marijuana use is legal, it is still a controlled substance as a matter of federal law. Supreme Court justice Clarence Thomas recently wrote: “Once comprehensive, the Federal Government’s current approach is a half-in, half-out regime that simultaneously tolerates and forbids local use of marijuana. This contradictory and unstable state of affairs strains basic principles of federalism...

Should sustainability be our new standard for investing? According to Larry Fink of BlackRock (more than $7 trillion in assets) the answer is yes. The ESG movement is an investment trend focused on Environmental, Social, and Governance matters in assessing a company’s long-term value. American investors have put more than $20 billion into ESG funds in 2019. Will ESG save the world from climate change, increase social and racial justice, eliminate fossil fuels, etc.? This is a new variant of the ...

Your market cares about how much value they will get from your product. Purchase decisions are driven almost entirely by the perceived value of the alternatives. This is just some of the wisdom from our Guest, Mark Stiving. While our conversation with Mark will focus on his new book Win, Keep, Grow: How to price and package to accelerate your subscription business.

This episode is dedicated to the possibility that we can understand project management quite differently when we view it through the lens of the subscription model. Rethinking this is challenging because it requires us (read ED!) to think differently than we (HE) have (has) in the past. If you think you are capable to engage in this type of thinking (or just want to hear Ed have an on-air mental breakdown), we invite you to join us in listening to this episode.

Ron and Ed welcome Turkish journalist and author, Mustafa Akyol. Like Rabbi Daniel Lapin and Father Robert Sirico, Mustafa ardently defends the free market in a religious context in his case, Islam. In addition to writing, he is also a public speaker who has given hundreds of lectures and talks on numerous platforms, including TED, where he spoke on “Faith vs. Tradition in Islam.” He has also been a commentator on public affairs programs, including the BBC’s “Hardtalk” and CNN’s “Fareed Zakaria ...

Ron and Ed look forward to welcoming value pricing disciple turned evangelist, Mark Wickersham. Mark started his own accounting firm in 1996 and made dozens of stupid mistakes in the first 2 years. These mistakes had disastrous consequences on his profits and cash balances. But in November 1999 all that changed. With help from Steve Pipe, Michael Gerber, Paul Dunn, and our own Ron Baker he created the 7-step “Fastest Way To Double Your Profits” formula. We look forward to talking to Mark about h...

Ed and Ron are honored to welcome back Rabbi Daniel Lapin back to the show, for the fifth time—a record for the highest number of appearances on The Soul of Enterprise. We will have a far-ranging discussion on a number of topics, including envy, and income inequality. You don’t want to miss this episode!

In one of our most listened to shows, Episode #61, we discussed the 10 Factors of Price Sensitivity, in the context of Value Pricing 1.0. This episode Ed and Ron will discuss how to use these factors in the context of Value Pricing 2.0, the Subscription Business Model. They are still as relevant, only you view them at the macro level of the firm's strategy, branding, positioning, and value proposition, rather than at the micro of level of pricing each customer.

Listeners know that Ron is more a conservative and Ed, well, he's pretty dang libertarian, so who better to appear with them than the author of a book entitled The Conservatarian Manifesto. Charles C Cooke is a Senior Writer at National Review, a co-host of the Mad Dogs and Englishmen podcast. Charles is a graduate of the University of Oxford, at which he studied modern history and politics. His work has focused on Anglo-American history, British liberty, free speech, the Second Amendment, and A...

Productivity Is For Robots is a book that’s a perfect fit for The Soul of Enterprise. It’s the E’ffing Debate on steroids (efficiency vs. effectiveness). Corey McComb writes in the Epilogue: “My hope for this book is that it is used as a shield against the robotic calls of cold-hearted efficiency and conformity. That it serves as a reminder to prioritize people, deep thinking, laughter, and leisure.” Join Ed and Ron for what is sure to be a fantastic conversation with a dynamic thinker.

Ed and Ron are honored to have Tony Dolan on the show, former President Ronald Reagan’s Special Assistant and Chief Speechwriter. He graduated from Yale University in 1970. He wrote two of the more famous Reagan speeches, “The Evil Empire,” and the British House of Commons speech where he used the line “Ash Heap of History” to define the Soviet Union. Like our conversations with Peter Robinson and Joshua Gilder, two other Reagan speechwriters, being able to interview Tony is living history.

Ron and Ed are joined by Patrick Reasonover to discuss his new film, They Say It Can't Be Done, a documentary that explores how innovation can solve some of the world's largest problems. It tracks four companies on the cutting edge of technological solutions that could heal the seas, solve hunger, eliminate organ waitlists, and reduce atmospheric carbon. Innovation never comes without risk and often brings consequences that can impact our health, safety, and environment. That is why the regulato...

Ron and Ed will be joined by author and speaker John Tamny to talk about his new book When Politicians Panicked. In the boo, Tamny makes a relentless case that free people don’t just produce the wealth that renders today’s killers yesterday’s news. They also produce crucial information about health threats that shine a light on that which threatens us. This is not about COVID-19, it is about the political response to it. Be ready for an incredibly nuanced dialogue.

Ron and Ed welcome professional business consultant and author of The Billable Hour Is Nuts, Jonathan Stark. He is the host of Ditching Hourly podcast, and writes a daily newsletter on pricing for independent professionals. Join us for what will surely be a screed against the billable and some interesting takes on subscription-based pricing.

Ed and Ron are honored to welcome Leah Power, Executive Vice President, Strategic Operations Consultant, of the Institute of Communication Agencies, in Canada. Leah recently co-authored a study on the broken RFP process. As they write: “The RFP selection process, for all types of clients, brands and agencies, is flawed. That’s why we’re pushing ‘to retire the RFP’ from global business practice. And we’ve got a firm plan for what should replace it. Our QBS Agency Search Guide focuses on QBS (Qual...

Ron and Ed are both strong advocates of immigration although they do differ on some policy details. On this episode, we welcome Alex Nowrasteh, the director of immigration and trade at the Cato Institute’s Herbert A. Stiefel Center for Trade Policy Studies. Alex understands not only the subtlety of immigration policy but can cite chapter and verse the latest data on immigration.

Back in December Ron and Ed received an email with a link to a custom video from Dre Baldwin in which he pitched us on why he should be a Guest on The Soul of Enterprise. We get dozens of requests via email and Dre's was NOT the first to have a video, but it was so authentic, we knew we had to have him on. His story of perseverance will knock you out.

Cited in Episode #1 of The Soul of Enterprise, Declaring Independence from the Tyranny of Taylorism, Matthew Stewart has influenced Ron and Ed's thinking for over a decade. His seminal book, The Management Myth, eviscerates any notion that business is a science. It is art, full stop. During this episode, we will dig deep into Matthew's thinking and what he suggests as alternatives.

Join Ed and Ron for another angle on the Subscription Business Model. We’ll dive into the 2020 Subscribed Institute and The Harris Poll international survey on what consumers most value about subscriptions. And some fascinating findings from the latest Subscription Economy Index™. We’ll also answer a listener’s question on pricing and offering options, and how they are different under Value Pricing 1.0 and 2.0.