We Fixed It, You're Welcome

For a long time, Airbnb guests have been asked to clean up at checkout. Wash the dishes, strip the beds, maybe take the trash with you. That all sounds reasonable. But wait, didn't you also pay a $100+ cleaning fee? Starting November 20, Airbnb will no longer enforce a guest chore list, and hosts can't fine you for skipping a request. Guests are thrilled. Plenty of hosts are furious. So who's right? Join Chino Nnadi, Aaron Wolpoff and Melissa Eaton as they uncover what this fight is really about: trust, transparency, and what happens when a powerful marketplace makes one side happier at the other side's expense. The panel looks at how Airbnb and VRBO made staying in a stranger's home feel normal, why a cleaning fee that's itemized stings more than one baked into the price, and where the line sits between fair house rules and unpaid housework. They also ask whether Airbnb punished every host for the behavior of a few, and how viral one-star stories shape a brand even while bookings keep growing. The conversation lands on a clear fix: standard checkout basics that are shown before you book, room for reasonable house rules that are explained up front, a "five-star guest" checklist for the extras, and a small reward for guests who choose to tidy up anyway. Clear expectations beat surprise chores. Panelists: Chino Nnadi – https://www.linkedin.com/in/chino-talentstrategist/ Melissa Eaton – https://www.linkedin.com/in/mseaton/ Aaron Wolpoff – https://www.linkedin.com/in/marketingaaron/ 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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The majority of Pizza Hut was just sold to investors for roughly $1.5 billion. Hot deal, right? Not exactly. The pizza category has cooled off, and one of America's most iconic brands is struggling to keep up. Can its new owners turn things around, or do we need to fix it for them? Join Chino Nnadi and Aaron Wolpoff with guest Brandon Solano, former VP at Domino's Pizza, CMO of Papa Murphy's and Wendy's, and current CEO of RAVE Restaurant Group, to dig into why Yum! Brands sold Pizza Hut to LongRange Capital. Stacking Pizza Hut up against Domino's, Papa John's, Little Caesars and Pizza Inn, the panel tackles third-party delivery, dine-in versus takeout, franchisee challenges and Domino's legendary turnaround, which happened during Brandon's tenure. They also question whether yet another limited-time offer can bring customers back, or whether the real fix starts with the product itself, right down to the freshness of the dough. The conversation lands on a turnaround plan: a handful of flagship dine-in restaurants with retro vibes and live stages for local talent, warmer delivery-and-carryout locations, a bigger personality on social media, and a quiet recommitment to fresh ingredients. Did we actually fix Pizza Hut, or is it just another half-baked idea? Panelists: Chino Nnadi – https://www.linkedin.com/in/chino-talentstrategist/ Guest Brandon Solano – https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-solano-48459392/ Aaron Wolpoff – https://www.linkedin.com/in/marketingaaron/ 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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A famous last name can get you the meeting, the press coverage and the first check. It can't answer your support tickets, fix your fulfillment or make the unit economics work. So when a last opens every door, how can we tell whether the business behind it is actually any good? Join Chino Nnadi, Aaron Wolpoff and Melissa Eaton to unpack the world of "nepo babies" in business, which we agree is a loaded term. Using Phoebe Gates' AI shopping assistant Phia, Hailey Bieber's Rhode, David Ellison's Skydance, the Kardashian brand empire and Stella McCartney as examples, the panel breaks down what a famous name really buys: the removal of doubt, faster access to investors, and a financial safety net most bootstrapped founders never get. They also look at who's really behind many celebrity "co-founder" brands, and why the Theranos board is a warning about trusting big names over real expertise. The conversation lands on a simple test: strip away the story, look at who's actually running the company, and judge it on retention, not reach. A head start isn't the problem. Pretending it doesn't exist is. Panelists: Chino Nnadi – https://www.linkedin.com/in/chino-talentstrategist/ Melissa Eaton – https://www.linkedin.com/in/mseaton/ Aaron Wolpoff – https://www.linkedin.com/in/marketingaaron/ 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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Middle managers were supposed to be one of the layers companies could do without. Organizations flattened their org charts, invested heavily in AI, and removed roles in the name of efficiency. Now the question is whether they also removed the people who help teams think, learn, and work effectively. Abhijit Bhaduri joins Aaron Wolpoff and Melissa Eaton to unpack the management reset happening in an AI-enabled workplace. Drawing on his experience in talent management and global learning and development, he explains why efficiency and effectiveness are not the same, how repeated restructures erode trust, and why employees need enough security to learn new skills. The conversation explores the future of middle management, the entry-level talent pipeline, the human cost of treating employees as interchangeable line items, and why AI needs thoughtful human escalation when systems fail. The answer is not to stop using AI. It is to redesign work so technology and people can make each other more effective. In this episode: Why companies are reconsidering middle management Efficiency versus effectiveness How layoffs and reversals damage trust Why fear makes learning harder The role of managers in coaching, culture, and escalation What happens when entry-level jobs disappear Why AI needs human judgment and customer-service escalation How employers can invest in employees’ next roles Connect with Abhijit Bhaduri: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abhijitbhaduri/ 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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices