Advertising Week 2027: Imagining What's Possible
Advertising Week and the future of industry conferences get a full rebuild on We Fixed It You're Welcome, recorded live in New York with Erica Boeke, CEO of XP Land. Aaron sits down with Erica in NYC while Melissa and Chino join remotely to ask why Advertising Week New York now runs out of an old Herald Square mall, why event sponsorship budgets are shrinking, and why the best conference networking happens at fringe events. Erica, who spent years creating brand experiences for Condé Nast titles, lays out an experiential marketing and event marketing strategy playbook for Advertising Week 2027 built around the attendee experience. In this episode: - Why Erica last spoke at Advertising Week in a former JC Penney boys department - The dirty little secret: why she hasn't bought a badge for SXSW, AWNY or Cannes in years - How 86 devices for the 86th Oscars beat a $250,000 logo-on-a-napkin package - Why Canva, Sephora and Target no longer need conferences to reach their fans - The fixes: make New York the campus, program downtime, design moments of awe What you will learn Why Advertising Week moved from Broadway theaters to a Herald Square mall, where Erica last spoke inside the old JC Penney boys department The dirty little secret of big conferences: why Erica hasn't bought a badge for SXSW, AWNY or Cannes in years, and why that should worry organizers How Erica got Samsung to deliver 86 devices for the 86th Oscars green room, and why that story beats a $250,000 logo-on-a-napkin sponsorship Why one major insurance tech conference's sponsor list shrank to roughly half of what it was three years ago How Canva, Sephora and Target built audiences big enough that conferences now need them more than they need conferences Why the best feedback from a Fast Company Innovation Festival survey was about networking on the shuttle buses The 2027 fixes: audit the attendee journey, make New York the campus, get out of the mall, program downtime and design moments of awe About the guest Erica Boeke started her career as a journalist before moving to the brand side at Condé Nast, where she created experiences for titles including GQ, Teen Vogue, Wired and Architectural Digest. Her work includes the Oscars green room with designer David Rockwell. Today she runs XP Land, which hosts experiential events alongside Advertising Week and is launching its first experience upfront next year. Connect with Erica Boeke: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erica-boeke/ Connect With the Show Subscribe for more deep dives where we fix big business problems with fresh perspectives. • Website – www.wefixeditpod.com • Follow us on: Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/wefixeditpod LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/company/wefixeditpod YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@WeFixedItPod If you liked this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends! Keep listening to find out how we fix companies and put them back better than we found them. Disclaimer A quick disclaimer. We are going into this somewhat cold and nothing we say should be construed as legal advice, financial advice or anything that would get us in trouble. These are our views and opinions. We’re here to ask the kinds of questions everyone’s thinking, have an engaging conversation and maybe come to some conclusions that we feel are worth exploring. By the end, if we fixed it, you’re welcome. All trademarks, IP and brand elements discussed are property of their respective owners.
Paper or Plastic?
It feels like one of those environmental debates we settled a long time ago. Paper comes from trees, breaks down, and feels natural. Plastic comes from fossil fuels and represents pollution. So if we're trying to make the environmentally responsible choice, paper seems like the obvious answer. Except the closer you look, the less obvious it gets. Depending on the conditions, paper can require more material, water, and energy to produce than plastic. Plastic can perform better in some lifecycle assessments, while also creating challenges around recycling, microplastics, and environmental impact. In this episode of We Fixed It, Christine Yeager joins the conversation to unpack the complicated reality behind one of the most familiar sustainability questions. Christine spent more than 11 years at Coca-Cola, eventually leading its North American Sustainability Project Management Office. She also worked with Circular Action Alliance to help move Extended Producer Responsibility programs from policy into implementation. Today, she helps producers and service providers navigate EPR. The conversation explores packaging choices, lifecycle assessments, recycling infrastructure, consumer behavior, corporate sustainability, and the economics behind Extended Producer Responsibility. Because the real question isn't simply paper or plastic? It's: What happens to that material across its entire lifecycle? What You Will Learn Why paper isn't automatically more sustainable than plastic Why plastic can perform better in some lifecycle assessments How lifecycle assessments influence packaging decisions Why packaging weight matters How energy sources can change the environmental impact of paper Why recyclability doesn't guarantee actual recycling What Extended Producer Responsibility means How EPR changes the economics of packaging Why EPR primarily incentivizes recyclability Why recycling is heavily influenced by geography Why the same packaging can have different outcomes in different locations Why local infrastructure matters Why consumers respond strongly to “recyclable” and “compostable” Why compostable packaging can still create infrastructure challenges What companies can learn from McDonald's paper straw experience What Coca-Cola learned from changing Sprite's packaging Why some sustainability work is invisible to consumers Why recycling needs functioning end markets Why recycled material can be more expensive than virgin material How EPR could change corporate packaging decisions About the Guest Christine Yeager is an environmental sustainability professional, consultant, and founder of CSY Impact Consulting. Christine spent more than 11 years at Coca-Cola and eventually led its North American Sustainability Project Management Office. She later worked with Circular Action Alliance, helping move Extended Producer Responsibility programs from policy toward implementation. Today, Christine helps producers and service providers navigate EPR and sustainability challenges, with a focus on the systems, economics, and practical realities behind environmental impact. Christine also hosts the Change Cycle podcast. Connect with Christine Yeager LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinesyeager/ Website - https://www.csyimpact.com Change Cycle podcast - https://www.csyimpact.com/podcast Connect With the Show Subscribe for more deep dives where we fix big business problems with fresh perspectives. Website:www.wefixeditpod.com Follow us on: Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/wefixeditpod LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/wefixeditpod YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@WeFixedItPod If you liked this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends! Keep listening to find out how we fix companies and put them back better than we found them. Disclaimer A quick disclaimer. We are going into this somewhat cold and nothing we say should be construed as legal advice, financial advice or anything that would get us in trouble. These are our views and opinions. We’re here to ask the kinds of questions everyone’s thinking, have an engaging conversation and maybe come to some conclusions that we feel are worth exploring. By the end, if we fixed it, you’re welcome. All trademarks, IP and brand elements discussed are property of their respective owners.
Tackling Sports Streaming: The Hidden Cost of Watching Sports
Watching your favorite team used to be simple. Turn on the television, find the channel, and watch the game. Today, following one team can mean navigating multiple streaming platforms, subscriptions, blackout restrictions, premium tiers, and constantly changing media-rights deals. In this episode of We Fixed It, Renee Washington joins the conversation to unpack the rapidly changing business of sports media and what it means for the people who actually watch the games. Renee brings experience from across sports broadcasting, including work with ESPN, FIFA, NBC Sports and other major sports platforms, along with her background as a former professional soccer player and three-time All-American. The conversation explores why sports leagues are increasingly prioritizing global audiences, how enormous media-rights deals are reshaping distribution, why local broadcasters and communities still matter, and why athletes themselves are becoming increasingly powerful brands. For decades, sports broadcasting was built around a relatively simple relationship between fans, teams and television. That relationship has changed dramatically. Today, leagues are negotiating enormous media-rights agreements with traditional networks and streaming platforms. A single sport can appear across multiple services, forcing fans to figure out where individual games are being broadcast. Renee Washington explains that the driving force behind much of this change is money. Sports media rights represent enormous revenue opportunities, while streaming platforms see live sports as a way to attract audiences, collect viewing data, build habits and introduce viewers to their broader entertainment ecosystems. But the financial opportunity comes with a cost: complexity. Fans can find themselves juggling multiple subscriptions simply to follow one team. Local broadcasts have also become less prominent in some markets, while national and global programming has become increasingly important. What You Will Learn • Why watching sports has become increasingly complicated • How the battle for sports media rights is reshaping broadcasting • Why streaming platforms are aggressively pursuing live sports • How multiple subscriptions affect the fan experience • Why sports leagues are increasingly focused on global audiences • What local broadcasters bring to a team's relationship with its community • Why some sports broadcasts are produced away from the actual venue • How athlete-driven fandom is changing traditional team loyalty • Why players can now build audiences that transcend teams and countries • How soccer's global model has influenced American sports • Why the NFL's predictable broadcast structure works differently from other sports • Why baseball, basketball and other leagues face different streaming challenges • How exclusive media-rights agreements affect where fans can watch games • Why streaming platforms care about more than the game itself • How sports broadcasts can become gateways into movies, shows and other programming • Why audience data has become such an important part of sports media • Whether a single team-based login could simplify sports streaming • Why leagues and networks may resist simplifying access • How sports could preserve local communities while expanding globally • Why more in-person experiences could become important in the future Connect With Renee Washington Website: www.reneepwashington.com Renee Washington can also be found across social platforms under Renee Washington, with her X account using @ReneePwash Connect With the Show Subscribe for more deep dives where we fix big business problems with fresh perspectives. Website: www.wefixeditpod.com Follow us on: Instagram: @wefixeditpod LinkedIn: @wefixeditpod YouTube: @wefixeditpod Disclaimer If you liked this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share it with your friends! Keep listening to find out how we fix companies and put them back better than we found them. A quick disclaimer. We are going into this somewhat cold and nothing we say should be construed as legal advice, financial advice or anything that would get us in trouble. These are our views and opinions. We’re here to ask the kinds of questions everyone’s thinking, have an engaging conversation and maybe come to some conclusions that we feel are worth exploring. By the end, if we fixed it, you’re welcome. All trademarks, IP and brand elements discussed are property of their respective owners.
Can UPS Still Deliver?
UPS has spent 119 years building one of the world's most disciplined operating systems. But now the company is changing that machine from the inside: consolidating responsibility, restructuring operations, reducing costs, closing facilities and moving away from Amazon volume that no longer fits the economics of the business. Noel Massie knows what that machine looks like from the inside. He spent 42 years at UPS, beginning as a college student loading trucks in 1977 and eventually becoming a president of five business units and Vice President of U.S. Delivery Operations. He describes a company where managers were given real ownership, frontline employees were trusted to make decisions, and culture was treated as an operating system rather than a poster on the wall. Aaron Wolpoff, Chino Nnadi and Melissa Eaton use Noel's experience to examine a much bigger business question: Can a company become more standardized and efficient without becoming too rigid to respond when reality gets messy? The conversation goes deep into UPS's long-running transformation, its volatile relationship with Amazon, the economics of unpredictable volume, the difference between standardizing guardrails and localizing judgment, and why Noel believes the company's biggest competitive advantage is ultimately its culture of ownership. About the guest Noel Massie is a former UPS executive with more than four decades of experience in operations, logistics and leadership. He began working for UPS in 1977 while attending San Jose State University, initially taking a night-loading job to pay for college. He expected to leave UPS after graduation for a position at Hewlett-Packard, but the company convinced him to stay and promoted him into management. Over the course of his UPS career, Massie became a manager, mid-level leader, president of multiple business units and ultimately Vice President of U.S. Delivery Operations. In his final role, he supported the company's domestic presidents and provided perspective on last-mile delivery, P&L, service levels and succession planning. Today, he works as an author, executive coach and leadership consultant. His LinkedIn profile identifies his specialties as executive leadership, operations management, and supply chain & logistics. What you will learn Why UPS's latest restructuring is not actually as sudden as it looks from the outside, and how its current transformation has been developing for years. How UPS went from 76 domestic business-unit presidents to 17, and what that consolidation says about the company's changing operating model. Why Noel believes ownership—not just stock ownership, but decision-making authority—is central to UPS's culture. The hidden cost of having one enormous customer: how Amazon's explosive growth created capacity, staffing and aircraft-planning problems for UPS. Why Amazon's growth eventually forced UPS to rethink the relationship—and why more volume does not automatically mean better business. The operational reality behind Amazon's unpredictable volume, including one period when Noel says UPS needed seven additional aircraft in a single day. Why "UPS doesn't need no supply chain company freight or otherwise [give] free shipping" became an important part of the Amazon conversation. Why the best operating model may be to standardize the guardrails while localizing the judgment. Why Noel describes UPS's culture as a "Yoda culture"—where experienced leaders invest in younger people before expecting results from them. Why companies going through massive change need to make employees feel that they matter more, not less. The leadership blueprint the panel believes other companies can take from UPS: invest in people, expect change, protect autonomy and build ownership. Connect with Noel Massie: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/noelmassie/ Website - https://noelmassie.com/ Connect With the Show: We Fixed It, You're Welcome Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/wefixeditpod/ LinkedIn - linkedin.com/company/wefixeditpod/ If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to Like, Subscribe, and leave a review. Share it with someone who loves business strategy, operations, leadership, branding, or marketing. Disclaimer A quick disclaimer. We are going into this somewhat cold, and nothing we say should be construed as legal advice, financial advice, or anything that would get us in trouble. These are simply our views and opinions. We're here to ask the kinds of questions everyone is thinking, have engaging conversations, and explore ideas worth discussing. If, by the end, we fixed it... you're welcome. All trademarks, intellectual property, and brand elements discussed remain the property of their respective owners.
Can Companies Predict the Future?
Can companies predict the future? Allen Nejah, founder and CEO of SunMan Engineering, joins Aaron Wolpoff and Melissa Eaton on We Fixed It, You're Welcome to explain why he built a connected, voice controlled car dashboard in 2005 and then watched the rest of the industry sell it fifteen years later. This is a conversation about corporate innovation strategy and the distance between a good idea and a good idea at the right time. We get into why only 12% of advanced manufacturing companies ever commercialize an innovation at scale, why 95% of filed patents never earn a dollar, how quarterly earnings pressure quietly shrinks R&D ambition, why a corporate innovation lab has to be funded and measured differently from the rest of the business, and how large companies use patent litigation to push small inventors out of a market. In 2005, Allen Nejah built a touchscreen tablet that lived in a car dashboard, connected to the internet, and answered when you spoke to it. He called the voice assistant Genie. The iPhone did not exist yet. Tablets did not exist yet. The carriers he pitched asked him whether he was trying to get people killed. Twenty years later every car on the lot ships a version of what he built, and he is not the one selling it. Aaron Wolpoff and Melissa Eaton use his story to work through the question sitting underneath every innovation budget: how do you tell an idea that is wrong from an idea that is only early? The conversation runs from Ernst and Young's finding that just 12% of advanced manufacturing companies ever commercialize at scale, through the legal machinery large companies use to squeeze small patent holders out of a market, and lands on a practical playbook for funding, measuring and killing innovation projects without punishing the people who ran them. It is for founders, R&D leads, product people and anyone who has been asked to justify a project that will not pay off this quarter. About the guest Allen Nejah is the founder and CEO of SunMan Engineering, where he has spent more than 35 years doing product development and prototyping across automotive, aerospace, robotics and telecom. His team has delivered over 1,670 projects for clients including IBM, Sony, Samsung and Apple. He is a serial entrepreneur and a professor at San Jose State University, and he holds patents on the connected car technology he started building in 2005. He is currently developing what he describes as the smallest transmission in the world, a robotic transmission his research suggests could increase EV range by 40%. What you will learn Why Allen's 2005 connected car system was allowed only a seven inch screen, and what that reveals about how organisations decide what is possible The two numbers Melissa opens with: 12% of advanced manufacturers commercialize at scale, and 95% of filed patents never earn a dollar How a nonprofit law firm funded by the largest players in an industry can invalidate a small holder's patent, and why Allen was told he could go to jail for owning one Why Allen says engineers build from product to customer, and why reversing that order is the mistake that has cost him millions The case for funding an innovation lab out of the cash cow rather than the operating budget, and giving it milestones instead of company OKRs Why "fail fast" is mostly a slogan when pilots run for eleven years, and what rewarding the kill instead of only the win looks like in practice How Sunman builds its own technology in the idle gaps between client projects, and what that funding model makes possible In this episode: - The driverless car project Allen started in 2005, and the tablet he had to build himself because none existed yet - Why carriers and automakers told him internet in the car would get people killed - The Ernst and Young numbers sitting underneath most failed innovation programs - Why engineers build from product to customer, and why that order has cost him millions - Funding an innovation lab out of the cash cow instead of the operating budget - Rewarding the kill and not just the win, and why "fail fast" usually is not fast - The robotic transmission that could add 40% to EV range, seven years in and still waiting for a window Connect with Allen Nejah LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allen-nejah/ Connect with We Fixed It, You're Welcome Website: https://www.wefixeditpod.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wefixeditpod LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wefixeditpod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WeFixedItPod If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to Like, Subscribe, and leave a review. Share it with someone who loves business strategy, branding, or marketing. Disclaimer A quick disclaimer. We are going into this somewhat cold, and nothing we say should be construed as legal advice, financial advice, or anything that would get us in trouble. These are simply our views and opinions. We're here to ask the kinds of questions everyone is thinking, have engaging conversations, and explore ideas worth discussing. If, by the end, we fixed it... you're welcome. All trademarks, intellectual property, and brand elements discussed remain the property of their respective owners.
Armchair quarterbacking isn’t just for sports anymore. We’re taking the same approach to companies: what would you do in their shoes? Each episode, our lively panel will debate a new issue ripped from the headlines involving a different well-known company. Between our instincts, experiences, and unsolicited opinions, we may just come up with gold. At the end, we’ll critique ourselves and see how we did. If we fixed it, you’re welcome! Season 3 launched January 20, 2026. Subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss a single episode!
