Innovating with Purpose: Steve Shriver on Capitalism, Community, & Technology
Steve Shriver on Purpose-Driven Entrepreneurship, Automation, and Tech at EcoLips & More
Host Joshua McNary interviews Steve Shriver, CEO of EcoLips and Bug Soother in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a serial entrepreneur who owns five businesses and advises startups. Shriver describes EcoLips as a certified B Corp guided by the triple bottom line of people, planet, and profit, and shares how mountaineering experiences shape his approach to goal-setting, resilience, and perspective.
He outlines his other ventures—Bug Soother, Brewhemia cafe, Soko Outfitters, and The Olympic event venue—plus a new patented product, Secure Outlet, and recounts making and distributing hand sanitizer during COVID through a partnership with Cedar Ridge Distillery. On technology, he discusses manufacturing automation, the Red Zone production monitoring system, challenges of equipment uptime and power needs, and the complexity of disparate tools driving a move to the DCOM ERP.
They also discuss early experimentation with ChatGPT, organizational change management, and Shriver’s advice to “try something new” with technology.
