Shift & Thrive: CEO Insights on Driving Change

S&T_Brandon Muniz
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[00:00:00] In today's business world, change is the only constant, and mastering transformation is the ultimate key to success. Welcome to Shift and Thrive. I'm your host, Natalie Nathanson.

Each week we'll bring you conversations with CEOs who delve into how they successfully drove critical change in their organization. This show is sponsored by Magnitude Consulting, bringing you the thinking power of a growth consult. And the getting it done, power of a full service B2B marketing agency.

Natalie Nathanson: I am really looking forward to speaking with today's guest. He is an entrepreneur and business leader who made a career transition from military into company ownership. He served in the United States Army, including the Army's old Guard, supporting one of the nation's most visible presidential and ceremonial events.

During his time in the military, he started studying entrepreneurship and exploring the idea of [00:01:00] acquiring and leading a business. That journey led him to acquire a company founded by a fellow veteran, and he stepped into the CEO role during a period of significant change in that com company and in the government contracting market.

This

is where his company focuses. He is the CEO of High Tech Services. Brandon Munis. Welcome to the show.

Brandon Muniz: Thank you so much for having me on. Natalie, I'm a huge fan of the show. Loved listening to it, and uh, I.

Natalie Nathanson: Thank you. I know there's a lot I wanna get into with you, so I'm very excited as well. And as You know, one of the themes we do explore heavily on the show is how leaders navigate real moments of change inside their organizations. And I know that you stepped into the CEO role at High Tech during what you described as one of the most difficult periods, uh, in government contracting in decades.

So I wanna unpack that a bit with you and, uh, understand, You know, what that looked like for you, stepping into the role and, You know, what was your approach for, for coming into

it?[00:02:00]

Brandon Muniz: Absolutely. Yeah, I think,

I think decades is an understatement, uh, potentially for all time. So a little bit of background

for those

who don't know.

Um, working within the government

contracting space,

the president of High Tech has, his name is Carl. He is an incredible,

incredible leader. Um, but in his experience over the past 37 years, he said

that 2025

was the most. Difficult, crazy, chaotic year for government contracting. Um,

and it just

so happened to be the same year that I became CEO, so I'm lucky in that.

Um, no, but, so the different factors that made it a difficult year

for a

lot

of small

and even medium and big sized companies. Is the fact that there was not only the doge cuts, which wiped out many, many companies that had 300, 400 employees just overnight. Um, companies that I knew actually just got completely wiped out.

And then there

was the longest [00:03:00] shutdown in government history, um, which disproportionately impacts government contractors.

We

were able to weather the storm and we were able to use the downtime in waiting for contracts that we had anticipated to come out that ended up getting delayed. Um, we used that

time to

reinvent high tech as a, as a company.

So previously the company has been around for 26 years,

was built

up by the First Navy veteran

to graduate

from the Naval Academy from Minnesota, who was a female. Um, she is, has an incredible story in and of herself. But it was largely, uh, focused on paper processing and paper records. However, in the last couple of years, they had transitioned to digital processing.

Um, but a lot of the marketing material wasn't focused on the digital aspects, the IT aspects and the technology aspects of

the company. So

that was one of the shifts that we made, um, in marketing ourselves for [00:04:00] what we were actually doing as opposed to what we had done in the past. And then also we created some incredible AI tools for the contracts, um, that the company had been managing for.

In some cases, 20 plus years,

that they

understood the workflows and we were easily able to identify some of the bottlenecks and create AI tools for those. So in a brief synopsis, that's how we were able to adapt to the chaos of the time. Um, but yeah, it was, it was certainly a time

of transformation,

not only personally, but also for the company.

Natalie Nathanson: and I'm

curious, You know, how are you deciding kind of what to change, how much to. Change both given the uncertainty, uh, in the market, but also that you were kind of newer into the organization.

Brandon Muniz: So

it took a lot of humility to not just flood the company with all the great ideas that I had. Um, we like to call that in the military, the [00:05:00] good idea fairy, where somebody would become the leader and then instantly try to change everything and inevitably it would never work out.

So I tried to. Just empower the team to implement what they thought needed to happen on their individual sphere of influence, and that seemed

to work

out really well. So rather than the ideas coming from the top down, it was more of a decentralized approach. And from the top down, we were just empowering our people to make those decisions.

Natalie Nathanson: I like that. I haven't heard the good idea fairy, but I can think of. Uh, a handful, um, that I, that I've known like that. And I think it takes, it does take some restraint not to kinda jump in with your perspectives, but ultimately, uh, listening, analyzing, and as you said, kind of leaning on and empowering the team.

And I think that is a, a sign of a, a strong culture and team.

Brandon Muniz: Absolutely. The

team is just fantastic. Um, they're missionaries, [00:06:00] not mercenaries. They really believe in the work that we're doing, uh, for veterans,

for people

with disabilities on the health IT side, um, securely

processing health

data. They're extremely passionate about the mission, not just the individual tasks of that mission.

So it's great to see. And I know that, um, as

I understand it

from your background, you dealt with a lot of. Management styles that were, um, the yes man type cultures where whatever the leader said, it would just go, and then, um, inevitably that would, I could assume that that would lead to some not so great outcomes.

Whereas if they would've decentralized and had humility, and it might have worked out better.

Natalie Nathanson: Yeah. I think it also creates that environment where, You know, if you're in middle management, it leaves the the manager kind of holding the bag for what has been promised of their team. Um, even if they don't believe that that's right for the team or know that they can't take it on or can't take it on, [00:07:00] well, um, I'm seeing a lot of friction with that in some organizations, uh, today.

I think because we're in times of disruption, um, that it's that much more kind of dangerous and risky, uh, to, to put people in that kind of position.

Brandon Muniz: Absolute.

Natalie Nathanson: I'm curious, um, You know, what did you learn about where your time was most valuable as CEO and over that first year?

Brandon Muniz: Oh, that's a really good question because that's something I think about a lot.

Um, and, um. Also, um, still being mentored by other CEOs and the previous owner and the president of the company. So I have a lot of good feedback,

um, that

I'm able to adapt and implement, but it does seem like in

my role.

The greatest, um, leverage activity is more outward facing than inward facing. I think that the management structure that we have in place

is very

good for the [00:08:00] day-to-day tasks.

So when it comes to the long-term vision, long-term investments, that's where my time is best spent.

Natalie Nathanson: Yeah, I think it's a nice relationship. It sounds like you have with, uh, the president and, and the former owner. I know for a lot of, uh, founders that I just know in my network and have had on the show. Um, you kind of have a lot of, uh, kind of legacy things that you've worked on because, You know, from when the company was smaller or because You know how to do them.

Um, so it's a nice opportunity I think coming in as CEO with a blank slate and really looking at, You know, where you can, uh, put your time to its best use. And to some degree that's a, a great, uh, exercise for any established kind of CEOs or founders to, to do. I had a guest on the podcast that talked about doing that.

For himself, for a company that he'd run for 20 years. And he just tried to kind of act as if he was coming new into the company and how would he approach it as a CEO. Uh, and it was really interesting and impactful. Some of the things that he realized and then changed about how he was [00:09:00] spending his time.

Brandon Muniz: That's

incredible. Yeah. And being able to have the outside perspective or even bring somebody in new, I'm a huge advocate for business owners who are looking to sell, to sell to younger people, um, for a number of different reasons.

One of which is that younger people understand ai. To a different degree than somebody who, let's say, has built the company from

the ground

up and understands the company itself. Um, and I think there's a fantastic synergy there. Young people have energy neuroplasticity. They're able to learn and, and, um, duplicate what the owner has already.

Established within their company and they're able to update it for the 21st century or even for the age of ai. So I'm huge advocate.

I think that

boomers and Gen Z are the solutions to each other's problems.

Natalie Nathanson: I know when we spoke previously, you mentioned that was an area that you're [00:10:00] passionate about and I think that's fantastic and I'm curious if you have any views on kinda what needs to happen kind of in society or kind

of at

a broader level to help enable that.

Brandon Muniz: Within the government contracting space, um, there has been a steady decline since, really the Clinton administration, but especially

since 2010

in the amount of small businesses that are actually receiving government contracts on an annual basis. So it's gone from about 120,000. Small businesses to about 60,000.

So

decreased by about 50% and decreasing rapidly, um, just because of the chaos of these last couple of years. And the barriers to entry within government contracting. So, because there's not a whole lot of new companies coming in, and a lot of these business owners are of retirement age. They built their companies, they have great revenue, great management teams, but.[00:11:00]

Nobody within the company wants to run it, and maybe their kids don't wanna run it either. And I think that's a great opportunity for Gen Z, especially people coming out of the military who have security clearances, who have worked within the DOD, um, or even on the federal civilian side. They could come in and carry on those legacies, whereas it would be more difficult for them to build up a company like that from scratch because of the amount of investment.

They would have to give.

So

I think demographically, especially within government contracting, but as a whole, I think more people who are approaching retirement need to look at. Who is going to take over for their legacy and what that exit looks like before they actually get to that point. Because when you get to the point where you're ready to retire, you don't want to just throw up your hands and, take the first person that comes.

You wanna make sure that, it's a well thought out

process.

Natalie Nathanson: Well, and I think of it too [00:12:00] from the, the other end of the spectrum, you're talking about, You know, gen Z and uh, folks kind of in the workforce already, but I also think of what are the skills that kids like school aged? Kids, uh, need these days to start to prepare themselves for kind of what the future of, of work and entrepreneurship and all of that will look like.

Um, and unfortunately I feel like we're woefully behind, but I am seeing pockets of, uh, kinda interesting and innovative programs to help teach those skills.

Brandon Muniz: Yeah. So what would be your recommendations to Gen Z who are entering the workforce in order to take over some of these companies or even just help the companies?

Natalie Nathanson: Uh, I would say having the, uh, some of the experience, so work at a, a smaller company and a startup, uh, government contracting to have some experience, uh, in the real world, operating in that environment because I think nothing really. Uh, beats that. Um, and then, uh, really using all that kind of modern day tech, uh, has to offer, I think [00:13:00] having that humility kinda, you don't know what you don't know, who can you learn from, who can, You know, like you talked about mentorship and kinda surrounding yourself with people that augment your skillset.

So I think there's tons of kind of tools and resources, uh, out there, but it's really kind of approaching it, uh, with some of that kind of real world experience and grit, knowing it won't be easy. Uh, and then learning as you go.

Brandon Muniz: Absolutely. And

I think that when it comes to ai, it's, it's an inevitability within pretty much every company.

So if it's going to become an inevitability, you might as well start implementing that now. So if young people can use the skillset of.

Identifying a

task that the business owner needs that's repetitive, that's, um, something that can be automated. And then implementing that little by little, I think that will give them greater job security in the long run than learning a specific task and then just hoping it doesn't get [00:14:00] automated.

I think if Gen Z focuses on. Building Goodyear tires as opposed to building better wagon wheels, then they can really elevate their

place within the market.

Natalie Nathanson: Yeah, definitely. And I'm curious, you mentioned there was an AI offering, uh, that, You know, you, uh, were involved in it at your company when you newly stepped in. I'm curious just how you're looking at kind of AI use and adoption in your, in your firm, and how much of that was like, already happening organically versus is that something that you're, uh, fostering?

Brandon Muniz: So not much of it was happening before I stepped

in.

Um, it was mainly traditional processes, which

is completely

fine because what they had been doing was working.

So it's, if it's working, you don't want to break it. Um, but we did wanna look into the future and automate repetitive tasks.

One of the points of automation is making sure that on our contracts that have repetitive [00:15:00] tasks, that we're at least creating solutions to the specific problems that our customers already have.

Um, and when it comes to the government, they have extreme. uh. I would say that it, it's much more difficult to implement AI within the government because they have so many, um, different rules and regulations and things like that. So it's a very slow process, but being able to identify the bottlenecks that the customer is dealing with and at least present a solution, um, is important for the customers.

And then the customers see that we're going above and beyond to try to make their lives easier.

Natalie Nathanson: Yeah, starting with the pain points is, uh, definitely the, uh, the most fruitful way, way to go. Um, and Brandon, before we keep moving forward, I wanna take, uh, one more step back before you acquired High Tech, because I know. Uh, around that time you were preparing to leave the military, uh, it was at [00:16:00] least in part, driven by a pretty significant, uh, kind of personal, uh, situation.

So wanted to, uh, see if you could share that story and talk a little bit about what that changed for you.

Brandon Muniz: What I, had actually left the military years before, um, but in preparation to buy the company that had started when I was still, um, in the military. And so, not to get into too much detail, but when I was in the

military.

as you said, uh, president's, escort and ceremonial unit, incredible job.

Um. But as I was nearing the end of my contract, I had a hip injury that, uh, started getting worse and worse and worse. And eventually it got to the point where I woke up one morning and couldn't walk at all, couldn't get outta bed. Um, a friend of mine had to come and. Carry me to the hospital. Um, so that was very scary because it was a definitive point

at which I

knew I couldn't rely on the security of the military.

Um, I couldn't extend my contract. And, And so even though I [00:17:00] knew that I wanted to get into business, I had been preparing for it. It just became very real in that moment.

And I

remembered, um, after I had the surgery, I was laying in bed. I was staring at the wall, just knowing, okay, this is, there's only one path forward and I have to make this work.

Um, so it worked very hard over the next couple of years to, uh, it worked

within government

contracting, did cleared work, um.

I

was mentored by, um, the founder of acquisitions.com.

He

was the one that taught me all about mergers

and acquisitions,

deal structures, things like that. Um, and then I ended up finding high tech and it was exactly what I was looking for, so I'm very thankful for that.

But it was, it was definitely a scary time when I didn't know how I was going to, uh, be able to. Um, interact with the world. I didn't know if I was going to be able to walk the same or, [00:18:00] um, how my hip was going to be after that

point, so

it was certainly very scary.

Natalie Nathanson: Yeah,

I'm sure. I'm sure. And I'm sure that required a lot of, uh, kind of resilience to, uh, to work through. I'm curious, uh, in what ways did that change you?

Brandon Muniz: I think it's certainly strengthens the faith that I had. Faith was always an important part of my life, but it becomes more real when, um, the.

The

realities of life set in. Um, and I was also extremely thankful for my wife at the time. She had, uh,

she

just made my life so much easier throughout that time, even though it was a time of difficulty.

And then, and then even having the company, I mean, uh, she gave birth to her son 20 days before I took over a CEO.

So

even before leading up to purchasing

the company

and everything like that, um, she was pregnant and, uh, didn't complain. She was supportive [00:19:00] every step of the way. So I'm extremely thankful for that.

Natalie Nathanson: That must have been a crazy time, but, uh, clearly a great testament to, to both of you and the relationship.

Brandon Muniz: Absolutely, but it is what you had said before. It's all about resilience. It's how resilient can you be in the face of adversity and can you still make the decisions that are right even if they're unpopular?

Um, whether it's within your family, within the organization that you're leading. It's important that you. Don't just rely on consensus that you take in the information, but that you do what's right, no matter what's popular at

the time,

and be resilient enough to continue that, um, even in the face of uncertainty.

Natalie Nathanson: Right. Right. Which I think matters for both leadership and, uh, parenting. Right? Sometimes decisions. You're making a call that is unpopular, uh, but doing what you, what you believe to be right, based on all the information you have.

Brandon Muniz: Yeah. I.

Natalie Nathanson: I'm curious to hear a little bit [00:20:00] more about your leadership style and, um, You know, how do you describe your leadership style and what are the things that, that jump out to you at what's helped to shape that?

Brandon Muniz: I think one thing that shaped my leadership style was. In, in making decisions that were popular as opposed to right decisions. Going back to what we were just talking about. Um, that's something that if I could do this last year over again, I would've right away, made more unpopular

decisions that I knew

in my gut were the right thing to do.

Um.

I was having lunch recently with a CEO of a $14 billion government contracting company, and he was telling me a story about when he was working under a previous CEO. He had a person

who

was a lovable guy, but he was kind of a slacker. He would never complete his tasks and [00:21:00] everybody liked him, but he just knew that he wasn't really putting the effort into the team that he needed to. One day the CEO came to John and he said, look, you're the leader. You're in charge of this team. We know that this guy's not pulling his weight. So if he is not gone by the next time I'm back, then you're going to be gone because nobody else is going to make this tough decision and it's going to be unpopular.

But You know that your team needs somebody who's right for that role. And that really stuck with me because. As, as leaders, we want to be liked, but we also want to make sure that our people are taken care of and we have to make the unpopular decisions in order to take care of our teams, even if they don't understand it at first, because eventually they will understand it.

Natalie Nathanson: Yeah, I think that's a great example and I, uh, I know I've been through those kinds of situations and I think as hard as it feels at the time. Uh, [00:22:00] ultimately like realize that it was the right, the right decision.

Brandon Muniz: What was the most, what was the most difficult decision that you had to make if you could talk?

Natalie Nathanson: there's probably a few that come to mind, but I remember one, and this was many years ago, uh, but there was someone. Um, that was a really strong performer, really talented, um, but, You know, toxic, uh, personality and a lot of blame kind of going around on other people. Um, and it took a while for me to see it maybe too long and maybe didn't wanna see it at first.

Um, but it was, it was scary, uh, to go through because of kind of the. The, the impact on kinda the actual work that this person was having. Um, but I started to really realize that the negative impact on, on the team, and that was worth much more to me, uh, than, than anything else. And so that was one of those cases where maybe took longer than, or definitely took longer than, than I should have to make the call.

Um, but was very happy once I had that, it was, You [00:23:00] know, knowing it was the right decision. And, uh, definitely learned from that and haven't let something like that happen again.

Brandon Muniz: And and did that help you to understand that nobody's replaceable or was it still a meaningful impact that that person leaving had on the organization?

Natalie Nathanson: question. I would say less of a negative impact on the work than I'd anticipated. So that was one takeaway is right. The team rallies together and figures out how to do what's needed, um, especially when the rest of the team is also, uh, strong and and competent. Um, but also really the, the culture and the importance of keeping, uh, You know, everyone on the team has to align with culture and the values and work well together and collaboratively.

Um, and just holding that as, as sacred.

Brandon Muniz: Wow. Well. It's, it's great to see that e even somebody like you has had to go through that, that same difficulty and, and mulling it over. Not sure if you should go [00:24:00] through with it or not, but, um, then you eventually made

the right decision

and it was best for everyone.

Natalie Nathanson: Yeah. Yeah.

And I think a lot of us have been through that, whether kind of different points in, in our career. Uh, I think to some degree it's a sign of a. Uh, I don't know if some, someone with heart, right? You, you, uh, wanna do what's right, you feel bad to towards the other person. Um, but you're right, like you said, have to sometimes make those those tougher decisions.

Brandon Muniz: Yeah. But everyone thinks that CEOs don't have hearts. See? So you're,

proving them wrong.

Natalie Nathanson: We are people too.

Hey, this is Natalie, your Shift and Thrive host. After chatting with lots of CEOs, one thing is crystal clear. Leveling up your company means having a killer Go-to-market strategy. That's what my crew at Magnitude Consulting does every day. If you're trying to step up your marketing game, whether it's strategizing, accelerating your pipeline, expanding into new markets, or getting into AI and [00:25:00] automation, let's talk.

No pitch, no pressure. Just good conversation. Visit shift and thrive podcast.com/natalie to schedule a time. Can't wait to connect. I.

Natalie Nathanson: Um, I wanna talk a little bit about the work that High Tech is doing, uh, today and just some of the, a little bit more about the environment that your customers are operating in. So can you talk about. Some of the challenges that, uh, federal agencies are facing and how you support them through that.

And you don't have to get into any specifics that you can't share, but just, uh, whatever you're able to.

Brandon Muniz: Yeah, so I didn't get into too much detail on what we actually do. So we, we do processing of medical information processing of, immigration data. And we also have a contract, um, that we're very passionate about, that it's telehealth for veterans and their families.

And so We have the nurses on staff and being in the military, that was something that was, um, it was always difficult to be able to get appointments, [00:26:00] so being able to have somebody face to face on, on FaceTime or on a Zoom call. Who's working with you is, is so vital to veterans and to their families. And so that's, that's something that we were very passionate about.

Um, but as far as our customers, when they're going through difficult times, because this last year was very difficult for them as well. Um, within HHS, I think they had over 3000 staff cut.

That's

our biggest contract is with the FDA. So we're very close with those people. We have some people within

our organization who have

worked with their counterparts on the FDA side for over 20 years.

So these are their friends. They go

to baseball

games together. Their kids know each other, And so to be able to see them going through the pain of having

whole

parts of their organization cut. In an instant. Um, and then some brought back and then some cut again. I [00:27:00] think the biggest thing that we learned when it came to our customer is sometime is that we didn't want to be the people who were just asking for things.

We wanted to approach them as humans and. Sometimes just sit and listen to what they're going through, not not presenting any solutions, just empathizing and being with them. And

I

know that our customers appreciated that and they've told us that since, um. But they really had a difficult time too, so we didn't want to be, uh, as a friend of mine calls it an asshole who's always asking, asking, asking for things, and never giving any value.

Um, of course we, we present solutions and things like that, but

there

was a time, at least this last year to just empathize with them.

Natalie Nathanson: I'm curious, uh, how you kind of encouraged that on the team. Like, was that completely organically? Were there things that you had to kinda give [00:28:00] quote unquote, like permission, uh, to the team that it was okay to kind of just listen and, uh, how did that play out?

Brandon Muniz: It was entirely organic. The team just naturally did it, and I was just observing from the outside. It was incredible to watch because on some of the calls there would be tears and

um.

The team was just so supportive

to them

during that time as a stabilizing force that, hey, we're not going anywhere. The work is important.

We're going to continue no matter what happens, we're here for you.

Um,

so it was entirely the team. I can't take any credit

for it.

Natalie Nathanson: That's amazing. Well sign of a, a very strong team. Then

Brandon Muniz: absolutely.

Natalie Nathanson: Brandon, I'd love to hear a bit more about you. You've told us a bit about kinda your journey over the last number of years. Uh, but tell me a little bit about, uh, Brandon as a child, You know, who were you and, uh, You know, did you, did you have a sense you'd become an [00:29:00] entrepreneur someday?

Brandon Muniz: So I

actually wanted to become an arson investigator. So I was really big into forensic analysis, detective type stuff. I loved anything investigation.

Um, but when I was about, I think I was about 14, I was

just kind

of lazing around the house and, uh, my mom told me, Hey, there's a shovel and a rake on the side of

the house.

Go and do some landscaping. Go do something productive.

Um.

I.

I just

listened to her. I, I started doing landscaping for the neighbors.

Found out you could get paid to, to do that. So, um, started making a little business for myself and that got me really interested in personal finance and investing. And, um, I just became hooked. So I started

reading about

entrepreneurship and figured out that that's something you could do as you could. Be in business for yourself,

you could

build [00:30:00] teams.

Um, so ever since then, probably 13, 14, um, I knew that I wanted to become a business

owner and

I would attend seminars at 1516, um, different business seminars. I would, I would, um. Save up my money and fly out to California or Tennessee and spend everything I had just to be able to learn from leaders. So it was at a pretty early age that I was doing that.

Natalie Nathanson: I love that. That's impressive to have that kind of a thirst for learning and a willingness to kinda spend money in that way on, on kinda your own, uh, future. I don't see a lot of, uh, kids at that age making those kind of investments.

Brandon Muniz: Yeah, it was, it was a lot at the time because I didn't grow up with any money.

Um, my family didn't really have anything.

Um, we grew up

partially on a ranch, so it was a lot of hard work and, um, so I just tried to apply the work

[00:31:00] ethic that

my dad and,

uh,

mom and stepdad taught

Natalie Nathanson: I think those values of kind of work ethic and hard work and showing up even when you don't want to, we're talking about resilience early, earlier, but that is, uh, I think one of the, one of the strongest ones.

Brandon Muniz: Yeah, and I think it takes a little bit of the pressure off as well. If you're working because you want to create, then it's. If something fails, it's not as big of a hit to your ego as if you're working for the success, for the title, for the money, for those different things. If you're creating just to create, um, then you could pivot, you could adapt, and you're not married to any one

idea.

Natalie Nathanson: Yeah. Yeah, that's a good point.

Are there any lessons from, uh, things you learned in the, the courses back then, or any of those conversations that really stuck with you?

Brandon Muniz: None that I could remember, um, from those courses. I know within the [00:32:00] military, uh, they talked a lot about adaptation and I think that is

just vital

for any CEO to have. Is the ability to pivot on a dime changing environments. Um, because you always, like Mike Tyson says, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.

And that's going to happen at any level. It's gonna happen with your people, it's gonna happen with the industry. It's going to happen in your personal life. And if you're able to adapt, that's, I mean, biologically, all of the. Animals, organisms that survive, they're the most adaptable. It's not necessarily the strongest within an environment.

Um, so I think adaptability is something that I think a lot about and trying to anticipate what's coming next, what's coming after ai. Um, is it quantum? Is it, um.

A

more [00:33:00] refined version of ai, more generalized as opposed to specific AI tools. Uh, these are the things that I think about a lot.

Natalie Nathanson: I'm curious, how is, uh, adaptation taught in the military or is there anything from kind of what you learned or how you learned it then that others, uh, including myself, might benefit from?

Brandon Muniz: Just that it's, it, it's okay to. Tactically retreat to a safer position at times. And it's also okay to take risks, um, when it's well calculated. So long as you understand what the consequences are, you are empowered to make that decision.

Um, and I think it's, it's just making the decision and sticking with it. That we were encouraged to do. And, uh, even within the very rigid structure

of the military,

it's important that you're still pushing the boundaries and that

you're still

giving good ideas and, [00:34:00] um, giving and getting feedback from your people as well.

Natalie Nathanson: I like

Brandon Muniz: I dunno if that answered your question, but

Natalie Nathanson: Yeah. Yeah. It

does. It does.

Um, and I'm curious, Brandon, I know we're running short on time, but, um. Maybe more of an introspective question is as you think back to kind of all of your experiences, what's the best piece of advice, uh, that you've been given that stuck with you?

Brandon Muniz: The best piece of advice when it comes to running a company, uh, was from

a business owner that I talked to out in Brazil. His name is Flavio. He has an IT company. And he has one of the greatest reputations that I've ever seen in an industry. Everyone from his employees to his partners, to his family, everybody has nothing but great things to say about him.

And so I asked him, what, what do you do to manage people? What's your management style? And he said, I don't manage anybody. He said, I hire people with leadership [00:35:00] potential. I give them tools and I give them tasks, and I get out of the way. He said that he never wants to be the bottleneck in his organization and he wants his leaders to take all of the credit.

And

so if

there's one thing that, that I could recommend to others that I've tried to apply, um, it's empower your leaders, empower your team, and give them all the credit, give them all the praise.

Natalie Nathanson: Uh, I love that. Very well said. So I think that's a great place for us to wrap up. And as listeners, uh, wanna get in touch, what's the best way to reach you?

Brandon Muniz: Best way is typically LinkedIn, um, if you're on the government side, SAML dot gov, SBS, um, but LinkedIn for those interested in following high tech's journey, we try to post there pretty regularly. So go give us a follow and, uh, we'd love to talk with you.

Natalie Nathanson: Well, thank you so much. I loved, uh, so much of what you shared and especially your story of stepping into the [00:36:00] CEO role during that challenging period. Uh, not being the idea fairy and really listening first, and, uh, empowering, uh, very, a very competent team. Um, and, uh, just all the, the values that you've brought to everything you do.

So thank you for that.

Brandon Muniz: Yeah. And thank

you so much for this platform, um, for leaders to come on here and share their experiences because nobody knows everything.

We all just have little parts of the puzzle. So I

think people

like you who bring it together in a holistic concept, it's, it's so valuable for us.

Natalie Nathanson: Well, Thank you,

Thank you. I, uh, definitely agree and, uh, we all, we all need to learn from each other, uh, especially in,

uh,

the, the times that we're living through today. So thank you so much, Brendan, for everything. That you shared. And thank you too to everyone who's listening. If today's conversation sparked something for you and I'm sure that it did, please pass this along to somebody else in your network.

We know that insights like this fuel fresh thinking for ourselves and help us drive [00:37:00] real transformation for our businesses and for ourselves. So thanks again, Brandon, and this has been another amazing conversation on Shift and Thrive. I'll see you all next time.

That's a wrap for this week's episode. For show notes and more visit Shift and thrive podcast.com. A special thank you to our sponsor, magnitude Consulting, bringing you the thinking power of a growth consultancy and the getting it done Power of a full service marketing agency to help B2B companies fuel their growth.

For more information on magnitude and to get your complimentary transformation readiness assessment, visit magnitude consulting.com/. Get ready. Thank you so much for listening. We'll see you next week.