{"podcast":{"title":"Follow The Yellow Brick Road","slug":"follow-the-yellow-brick-road-7056493","podcast_index_feed_id":7056493,"rss_url":"https://feeds.captivate.fm/follow-the-yellow-brick-road/","website_url":"https://followtheyellowbrickroadpodcast.com/","image_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/4c54bc52-27db-4657-8c91-caf35a4d3f86/Untitled-design-11.png","author":"Emma Rainville & Mitch Barham","episode_count":98,"summary":"Follow The Yellow Brick Road is the podcast for founders who want a clear path to turning clicks into customers. Hosted by Emma Rainville (Founder of Shockwave Solutions, Wizard of Ops) and Mitch Barham (Founder of Barham Marketing, Wizard of Ads), this show breaks down what actually drives growth — from acquisition to conversion to operations. Emma brings the systems and execution behind businesses that run without the founder in the day-to-day. Mitch brings the ads and acquisition that turn attention into revenue. Together, they connect both sides — so your business doesn’t just get clicks, it converts. If you're serious about scaling your business — subscribe and follow the path.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-15T10:21:18.337187+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/follow-the-yellow-brick-road-7056493"},"episode":{"title":"What happens when there’s no one left to manage the founder?","slug":"what-happens-when-there-s-no-one-left-to-manage-the-founder","published_at":"2025-11-11T20:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/follow-the-yellow-brick-road-7056493/what-happens-when-there-s-no-one-left-to-manage-the-founder","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/follow-the-yellow-brick-road-7056493","url":"https://followtheyellowbrickroadpodcast.com/","audio_url":"https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/33579096-4778-41ef-854e-7e93e6e4f2ff.mp3","summary":"In this tactical, no-fluff episode of Special Ops , Emma Rainville is joined in San Diego by Tiago and Richard from the Shockwave team to unpack the underestimated art of managing up. If your operator isn't pushing back, they're not doing the job. This episode exposes the accountability vacuum at the top—and what COOs, integrators, and operators must do to fix it. Together, the team walks through real-world scenarios of managing high-profile visionary founders, the emotional cost of operational leadership, and why structure must exist even above the CEO. If your founder won’t face reality, this is your playbook for holding the line. We cover: The difference between managing up and managing down Why operator silence signals a dangerous founder dynamic How to frame accountability as pro-founder, not adversarial Real systems for upward management and strategic delegation The emotional toll of leadership when no one's managing the top Timestamps: (0:00) Why your operator should say no to you (1:24) Managing up: what it really means (3:47) Real stories from the Shockwave trenches (6:02) The silent weight founders carry (and don’t admit) (9:11) Holding your CEO accountable without ego (12:42) The operator's final role: structure above all 🔥 Want the playbook? Download Tiago’s PDF: How to Manage Anyone (Even a Emma Rainville) — it’s free inside the Visionary Vault. Explore Free Resources inside the Visionary Vault: https://specialopspodcast.com/visionary-vault Get in Touch with Emma Rainville: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@specialopspodcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emma_rainville512/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmarainvilleoperationsguru Get in Touch with Richard: Email: richard@shockwavesolutionsllc.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard…","meta_description":"In this tactical, no-fluff episode of Special Ops , Emma Rainville is joined in San Diego by Tiago and Richard from the Shockwave team to unpack the under…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":802,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/follow-the-yellow-brick-road-7056493/episodes/what-happens-when-there-s-no-one-left-to-manage-the-founder/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/follow-the-yellow-brick-road-7056493/what-happens-when-there-s-no-one-left-to-manage-the-founder.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}