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Americans aren’t just unhappy at work; they’re quitting their jobs at record levels. So, how can you battle employee turnover and create a more engaged and loyal workforce? In this episode we interview Heather Younger - the founder of employee engagement and leadership development firm Employee Fanatix - and hear about her new book called The Art of Caring Leadership. She argues that if you are looking for increased productivity, customer satisfaction, employee engagement, and employee loyalty, you need to care for your employees first. As we hear, she says that means not only being concerned with what employees can do for you, but also caring about who they are and what they can become. "There has never been a more important time to lead with purpose, skill, adaptability, and resilience,” says Younger. “Even with budget restraints and a world that feels chaotic and challenging, your leadership team must have all the tools they need to stand out as an organization where employees can’t wait to help grow - and don't want to leave.”

It's National Safe Boating Week (and month), just before the start of peak boating season, but actually it's appropriate to talk about safe boating any time. Joining Boating Industry content director David Gee in this episode is Jim Emmons, Executive Director, Water Sports Foundation. Jim is also the former WSIA President and U.S. Coast Guard National Boating Safety Advisory Council Chairman. He will discuss the latest boating safety statistics, the impact on boating safety with a rise in the number of first-time boaters, and the part the entire boating industry can play when it comes to boating safety education. As he says, safe boating experiences are a critical component of positive boating experiences.

Chad Lyon was recently named to head the Marine group at Wells Fargo Distribution Finance, part of Wells Fargo & Company. The news follows the retirement of industry veteran Bruce Van Wagoner after 45 years in the industry and 33 years with Distribution Finance (DF). Shortly after the announcement, Boating Industry Content Director David Gee spoke with Chad via Zoom about his first thoughts after being named to the role, a little about his background, and what he sees as some of the biggest challenges and opportunities in the recreational boating industry.

The towboat segment has been one of the shining stars of the recreational boating industry when it comes to year over year growth. But as Correct Craft CEO Bill Yeargin points out in this Boating Industry Insider episode with David Gee, the category only recently returned to pre-recession unit sales levels in 2020. In this wide-ranging discussion with an industry leader, find out when Yeargin thinks supply will align with demand, what he has to say on the “affordability” of watersports boats, what virtual boat shows meant to the industry and what the future holds for electric watersports boats.

Pontoons these days offer better engineering, improved fuel efficiency, increased speed and space and all-around versatility. And that all comes at a higher cost of course. Some pontoon manufacturers are trying to mitigate sticker shock by offering different levels of pontoon lines that target different price points, from entry-level to high luxury. Others, such as Anthem Marine and Avalon, are offering pontoons with features such as surfable wakes. Whatever the sales strategy is, it seems to be working. The pontoon segment led the industry out of the last recession, and the NMMA says sales of freshwater fishing boats and pontoons accounted for 50% percent of all new powerboats sold in 2020. For the month of June, 2020, pontoon sales were up 23%, by July they were up 53%, and in August they were up 44% YoY. And Stratview Research estimates that the pontoon boat market will reach $2.5 billion by 2025. In this episode of Boating Industry Insider Content Director David Gee speaks with serial boat building entrepreneur Mark Overbye about the pontoon segment, the category’s popularity, where some of the high costs come from and what the future looks like for the segment.

There’s no denying that the sterndrive no longer holds the place in the recreational boating industry it once did. However, there are plenty of manufacturers, dealers and customers who still see value in the sterndrive market, and that’s why Ilmor, Mercury Marine and Volvo Penta continue to invest, iterate and improve their sterndrive offerings. In this Boating Industry Insider episode, content director and editor-in-chief David Gee speaks about sterndrives with Mike Lindberg, Chief Operating Officer of Ilmor Marine, who oversees engineering, sales and service for the company. Among other things they talk about how the COVID sales surge re-energized the category, especially among first-time boaters, as well as sustainability, eco-friendliness, electrification, corrosion and reliability improvements and the future of the sterndrive space.

In the modern workplace, disabilities are more common than we may know. Yet too often, a stigma still exists when it comes to employing people with disabilities. According to Tova Sherman—a CEO, TED Speaker, and thought leader with more than 25 years of experience in diversity and inclusion—educating your existing team is crucial to a ensuring a thriving workplace filled with diverse people. “Disability is not a dirty word, so let’s stop acting like it is,” says Sherman, author of the book Win, Win, Win! The 18 Inclusion-isms you need to become a disability confident employer. “People often choose not to discuss what they don’t understand and that is why myths about disability continue to persist. Silence can no longer be an option in the workplace - and leaders must replace it with honest conversation.” In this interesting interview with Tova, Boating Industry editor-in-chief David Gee discusses: -Actionable steps to build the foundation for a truly inclusive workplace -Why attitudinal barriers are the biggest obstacles to an inclusive culture -Biggest mistakes leaders make when managing people with disabilities -Why diversity is not the only aspect of an inclusive workplace culture

After a year of global disruption, leaders who want to stay relevant are transforming the way they manage and interact with their teams. As we hear in this Boating Industry podcast episode with Content Director David Gee, leadership expert Dan Pontefract says humility is one of the most essential leadership trends of 2021. “To put it bluntly, stop making everything solely about you. It’s time to break the mirror and start championing others,” says Pontefract, author of Lead. Care. Win. You’ll also hear about how to be more human at work and why managers who share their weaknesses with their teams can increase employee engagement.

Matt O’Hara owns and operates Freedom Boat Club located at Queen Boat Co. on Lake George, New York, in the Adirondack region of the state, about 200 miles from New York City. As David Gee finds out in this edition of Boating Industry Insider, O’Hara didn’t aspire to be a boating business owner. In fact, he didn’t even grow up boating. He was introduced to Lake George, the "Queen of the American Lakes," with its 109 miles of shoreline and 300+ islands, through his wife Rebecca. And he learned about Freedom Boat Club when they became a client while he was working in advertising sales in Boston. As you will hear, when he and his wife found the opportunity in 2016 to combine Lake George with the chance to own their own business, they took it! And never looked back.

What does the future of marine audio look like? Are there new developments in the pipeline? What are the hot segments in high-end marine audio at the moment? In this Boating Industry Insider episode, join Jeremy Bale, National Brand Manager, KICKER Marine Audio, as he talks with Boating Industry Content Director David Gee about the current – and future – state of marine audio. They’ll discuss how KICKER got started, their unique value proposition, and how they originally expanded from automotive audio products to also include marine.

For the past three years, overall boating deaths have declined in this country. That’s the good news. There is some bad news though. Deaths among paddlesports participants are actually on the rise. In this edition of Boating Industry Insider, content director David Gee is joined by Jim Emmons, Non-profit Outreach Grants Director at the Water Sports Foundation. They discuss the reasons behind the disturbing trend line and his organization’s efforts to reverse it.

In this Boating Industry Insider, content director David Gee talks to boat building serial entrepreneur Mark Overbye about the general state of the recreational boating industry, what he’s hearing from dealers and customers around the country, and why he would launch his fourth boat manufacturing company in these uncertain economic times.

Gone fishin’! More and more of us have been saying that since the COVID-19 crisis hit. Find out why in this podcast with Boating Industry content director and editor-in-chief David Gee and special guest, Stephanie Vatalaro, senior vice president of marketing and communications for the Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation.

In this edition of Boating Industry Insider, content director and editor-in-chief David Gee looks at the challenges – and upsides – of working remotely. He is joined by Stanford-trained computer scientist turned organizational collaboration expert Dr. Mark Mortensen from INSEAD, one of the world’s leading and largest graduate business schools. They discuss, among other things, how our new virtual reality has impacted the way teams collaborate and work together, what “structured” unstructured time is, and how organizational communication has changed since the conference rooms and the water coolers closed.

Join Boating Industry content director David Gee and Correct Craft CEO Bill Yeargin as they talk about the popularity of towboats and innovation in the recreational boating industry.

Join David Gee, host of Boating Industry Insider, as he discusses safe boating; a big – and important – topic for those who build boats, sell boats, service boats, or for any of us who even board a boat. He is joined by Jim Emmons, Grant Director for the Water Sports Foundation, the non-profit educational arm of the Water Sports Industry Associaton, as well as Pam Dillon, a career-long boating professional, who is Educational and Standards Director for the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators. They are a national non-profit that works to develop public policy for recreational boating safety in all 50 states. They talk about the latest Coast Guard report on boating injuries and accidents, life jacket use, alcohol consumption on the water, the importance of being weather aware and what the industry can do to mitigate prop-related accidents.

Want to hear all about Boating Industry's new conference for the marine industry? This podcast takes you through what the conference is all about. This is the first podcast in a series that will keep you current with Elevate updates! Elevate Summit coming November 22-24, 2019

Creating product lines that drive customers to market is a mission-critical task for today’s boat, accessory, and marine engine manufacturers. Join Boating Industry Insider as we visit with Chris Drees, Mercury Marine’s new parts and accessories president, as he discusses product and service innovations introduced or under consideration, and the importance of dealer networks. This episode is sponsored by Protective Asset Protection.

Engine suppliers face a critical task when they gear up their organizational capability and bring new products to market. As a vertically integrated company, Mercury Marine continues to make significant investment into personnel and its plants, especially in Fond Du Lac, Wisc. This episode is sponsored by Protective Asset Protection.

Join President of National Marine Manufacturers Association, Thom Dammrich, and Boating Industry Editor Tim Hennagir, to discuss the state of the industry, tariffs and more with our new podcast Boating Industry Insider. The first podcast series will feature three episodes talking about service related issues in our industry, and is sponsored by Protective Asset Protection.