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In this episode of The Intangible Brand, Jerry and Carl sit down with George Ghneim, a veterinarian, restaurateur, and distiller, to explore what brand and experience look like in businesses where emotions run high and the work is deeply human.

George shares lessons from veterinary medicine and hospitality, two fields where trust, empathy, and presence are not optional. We talk about how client experience is inseparable from employee experience, especially when teams are navigating stress, grief, or urgency. George also unpacks how he thinks about brand at a small-business level, from naming and visual identity to the signals leaders send through everyday decisions.

The conversation digs into how leaders can stay grounded in tense moments, why listening is often more powerful than reacting, and how support teams quietly shape the outcomes clients remember most. Throughout, George emphasizes care as a leadership discipline, not a soft value, and explains why the best brands are built through consistent human behavior rather than marketing alone.

This episode offers a grounded, practical perspective for leaders in professional services who want to build brands rooted in trust, empathy, and real-world service.

We cover:

• What veterinary medicine and hospitality teach us about experience
• Why employee experience and client experience cannot be separated
• Staying calm and empathetic in emotionally charged situations
• How listening builds trust more effectively than quick fixes
• Building brand through everyday leadership decisions
• The role of support teams in shaping client outcomes

Resources mentioned:

• Peace Is Every Step by Thich Nhat Hanh

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Follow the Hosts: Jerry Gennaria & Carl Winstead

Learn More about TOKY & Cline

Get In Touch: hello@theintangiblebrand.com

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In this episode of The Intangible Brand, Jerry and Carl sit down with Benjamin Sachwald, Senior Vice President of Acoustics, Noise, and Vibration at AKRF, to explore a dimension of employee experience that is often overlooked but deeply felt: sound.

Benjamin helps unpack why acoustics is becoming a more visible and strategic part of workplace design, especially as organizations rethink offices, hybrid work, and what it means to create spaces people actually want to use. We talk about how “office vibe” is shaped not just by what we see, but by what we hear, and why sound plays a major role in focus, collaboration, and overall well-being.

The conversation also looks at why acoustics can feel like a black box for many teams, how late-stage fixes often fail, and what it takes to make sound an intentional part of the design process. Benjamin shares how tools like Pindrop help teams hear design intent earlier, and why creating the right mix of spaces for calls, focus, and collaboration is really about cultural clarity.

This episode offers a practical lens for leaders, designers, and firm owners who want to think more holistically about how the built environment supports both employee experience and client perception.

We cover:

• Why acoustics is gaining importance in people-centric workplace design
• How sound shapes “office vibe” and cultural perception
• The challenges of open offices, hybrid work, and acoustic privacy
• Designing spaces that support focus, calls, and collaboration
• Making acoustics an intentional part of the design process
• How tools like Pindrop help teams understand sound earlier

Resources mentioned:

• 20,000 Hertz podcast, with a recommendation to start with the THX Deep Note episode
• AKRF and Benjamin Sachwald on LinkedIn

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Follow the Hosts: Jerry Gennaria & Carl Winstead

Learn More about TOKY & Cline

Get In Touch: hello@theintangiblebrand.com

Watch this episode on YouTube

In this episode of The Intangible Brand, Jerry and Carl talk with Dr. Will Percy, Executive Vice President at TeamOptix and author of Slaying Zombies: Reimagining Workplace Engagement, about why so many engagement efforts feel busy but ineffective.

Will introduces the idea of “engagement zombies” the outdated beliefs, metrics, and programs that continue to walk around organizations long after they have stopped helping anyone. We explore why happiness and engagement are not the same thing, how toxicity often hides inside “high-performing” cultures, and why leadership behavior, not perks or surveys, ultimately shapes the employee experience.

The conversation digs into how chaos, unclear expectations, and tolerance of the wrong behaviors quietly drain teams, especially in creative and professional service environments. Will also shares how data can be used as a coaching tool rather than a weapon, and what collective leadership actually looks like when it is done well.

This episode is a practical look at how leaders can move beyond surface-level engagement efforts and create environments where people can do their best work without burning out or checking out.

We cover:

• Why happiness is not the same as engagement
• What workplace toxicity looks like beyond extreme examples
• How chaos and lack of clarity become cultural toxins
• Why promotions and tolerance reveal true leadership values
• Using data to support growth instead of surveillance
• What collective leadership looks like in practice

Resources mentioned:

• The Chimp Paradox by Steve Peters
• Zombie Economics: The Dead Ideas Still Walk Among Us by John Quiggin
• Slaying Zombies: Reimagining Workplace Engagement

Connect With Us

Follow the Hosts: Jerry Gennaria & Carl Winstead

Learn More about TOKY & Cline

Get In Touch: hello@theintangiblebrand.com