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Talent Scout with Dave Neff

Talent Scout with Dave Neff

Written by: IBJ Media
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 Talent Scout with Dave Neff is a podcast spotlighting Indiana’s next generation of leaders who are shaping the future of business, community, and civic life. Hosted by Dave Neff—known for his gift in building authentic relationships that create meaningful value—the show features candid conversations with emerging changemakers across industries. With a focus on mentorship, intentional networking, and statewide impact, Talent Scout offers a platform for rising talent to share their stories, values, and vision for Indiana, while inspiring listeners to invest in leadership that lasts. Presented by Prolific, the Growth Firm.All Rights Reserved Careers Economics Personal Success
Episodes
  • Jason Vansickle on the IMS Museum's $60M Transformation

    Jason Vansickle on the IMS Museum's $60M Transformation
    May 7 2026
    The Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum's $60 million renovation changed how 115 years of racing history gets told, and Jason Vansickle helped make it happen from the inside. Vansickle, Vice President of Curation and Education at the IMS Museum, traces the museum's origins to a 1956 tribute to three-time Indianapolis 500 winner and Speedway president Wilbur Shaw, through the 1976 building that stood for decades, to the sweeping renovation that reopened in April 2025. He explains how a collection of 200 vehicles and 55,000 artifacts gets curated, restored, and selectively displayed, including a recent acquisition of 14 Chip Ganassi Racing cars that filled a critical gap in the museum's modern racing history. Vansickle also details the museum's expanding education programs, from iRacing simulators and a dissected IndyCar to STEAM classrooms and summer camps developed in partnership with BorgWarner. He previews a planned 72,000-square-foot restoration and event center on Polco Street that will open public access to nearly 150 vehicles and allow visitors to watch the restoration team at work. His own story mirrors the institution's growth. He started as a volunteer docent in 2011 while studying history at Indiana University Indianapolis, joined the full-time staff in 2015, and has built the curation, restoration, and education departments into what they are today. His advice for early-career professionals centers on one consistent theme: build real relationships and ask for advice often.
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    44 mins
  • Michael Kaltenmark on Marketing the Indy 500 to a Sellout

    Michael Kaltenmark on Marketing the Indy 500 to a Sellout
    Apr 16 2026
    Michael Kaltenmark, Vice President of Marketing at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, has helped transform the Indianapolis 500 into a perennial sellout, drawing 350,000 fans and 8.5 million television viewers to one of sport's most iconic events. Here he explains how strategic marketing, the Snake Pit EDM stage, and a generation of experience-hungry young fans drove that growth. Kaltenmark traces a career that began with a journalism degree from Butler University, an early pass on motor sports job offers from CART and Walker Racing, and nearly two decades building Butler's live mascot program through back-to-back Final Four runs in 2010 and 2011. He also shares how a Crohn's disease diagnosis and a kidney transplant from his brother shaped the empathy and resilience that define his leadership approach. On the professional side, Kaltenmark breaks down the vision behind positioning the Indy 500 alongside the Super Bowl, the Masters, and Wimbledon on every sports fan's bucket list. He previews what the 110th running on May 24, 2026 has in store, including a patriotic pre-race production tied to the nation's semiquincentennial, the return of Black Hawk helicopters and the Wienermobile, Zedd headlining the Snake Pit, and Counting Crows and Switchfoot on Carb Day. He also reflects on the mentors who shaped his path and why relationships, not applications, have driven every career opportunity he has ever received.
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    50 mins
  • Sarah Myer of Indiana Sports Corp on What Makes Indianapolis Unique

    Sarah Myer of Indiana Sports Corp on What Makes Indianapolis Unique
    Apr 2 2026
    Sarah Myer has spent her career turning Indianapolis into a destination, and she is not done yet. As Senior Director of Communications and Marketing at Indiana Sports Corp, she helped execute the 2021 NCAA Men's Tournament bubble, led the 2024 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials at Lucas Oil Stadium, and is now building toward the 2026 Men's Final Four and beyond. Myer traces her path from a Cleveland suburb to Butler University, where a professor handed her a $30-per-game rooftop camera job with the Indianapolis Indians and opened her eyes to what the city could offer. She talks about interning with the Indiana Pacers during the 2004 brawl, marketing the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra through a financial crisis, and what those hard seasons taught her about crisis communications, self-advocacy, and resilience. She also speaks candidly about personal loss in 2020, the grief that followed, and how a November phone call about hosting the entire NCAA Tournament gave her something to pour herself into. The conversation covers what makes Indianapolis's local organizing committee model unique, why the city is pursuing an NFL Draft bid for 2030, and what fans can expect for free at the 2026 Men's Final Four on American Legion Mall. Myer closes with three words she would give any young professional: be curious, be humble, and do not be a jerk.
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    58 mins
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