Field notes from the operator side of the table.
Essays, decision briefs, studies, and talk recaps for CEOs and owner-operators of audio and media businesses — no newsletter, no pop-ups, just the writing.
America’s best boards are hiring for certainty. Audio’s boards are leaving the one seat that matters empty.
Heidrick & Struggles’ Board Monitor US 2026 shows the best boards loading up on “day-one directors” while 42% admit they’re not built for the future. Audio’s boards share the blind spot — and keep leaving empty the one seat that decides whether the next expensive call lands.
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Kim Beyns on how NGroup tests a decision before it commits.
A few minutes with the CEO of NGroup — NRJ, Nostalgie, Chérie — on using a panel of 100 modelled listener personas as an everyday decision tool. His words, and what I think they mean.
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YouTube just became radio’s biggest podcast partner. Most stations still have it filed under social media.
39% of weekly podcast listeners now name YouTube as their primary platform. Spotify is at 20. Apple is at 11. The structural mismatch — not the content — is what’s holding broadcasters back this quarter.
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The three questions I ask before any format flip.
Stations rarely fail because the new format is wrong. They fail because the decision to flip was made on the wrong question. Here are the three I make leadership answer first.
Read essay →Nothing under this filter yet — new pieces are on the way.
If a piece here lands, the call is faster.
The writing is the warm-up. The Sprint is where we actually pressure-test the decision in front of you. 20 minutes, no pitch.