In this concise interview, Professor Pete Alexander hosts Nikole Goddard, COO of Pana Knows, on the Winning at Business and Life podcast. Goddard explains her role in recruiting and client service, highlighting the excitement of engaging with professionals from varied fields. She emphasizes employee engagement as a critical driver of morale, productivity, and retention, and advocates for leader approachability to foster open communication and deeper connections with team members. Goddard acknowledges a former chief of staff who profoundly impacted her leadership development and suggests inviting her to the show. She recounts her first job as a teenage grocery store cashier, noting how early customer‑service experiences shaped her passion for people‑focused work. The episode concludes with her contact information—LinkedIn (Nicole Goddard) and Instagram (Nicole Marie)—inviting listeners to connect.
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This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast, where business leaders share their insights. It is 6 questions in 7 minutes because successful business leaders are busy and rarely have more time to spare. So let's get to it. Question number 1: In a few sentences, please tell me who you are and and what you do.
Awesome, thank you so much for having me. My name is Nicole Goddard and I work in recruiting and client service. I am the COO of Pana Knows and I work with our client partners on customized solutions to help them find the right talent for their team.
Nicole, it's so great to have you on the show. Question number 2: What is something that makes you smile and/or laugh about working in your industry?
That's a great question. I love getting to connect with different people, whether I'm talking to somebody from a data science and analytics background, or the very next hour I could be talking with a realtor or an auditor on the risk side. It really depends, and there's a lot of variety, and it keeps it exciting.
I love it, and I can hear the passion in your voice. It's great. Number 3: I have a fictitious book with all the answers for business. What chapter would you think most companies should read?
Love that. I would say for me personally, employee engagement. I think that working at firms where maybe culture and engagement wasn't as highly prioritized and then working at a place where I work now where it is truly what matters at the end of the day. The more engaged your employees are, the better work I think they deliver, the more they own their work. So all around it's a win. Morale, productivity, retention, all around employee engagement is the most important. At least to me.
And I, I, you, you, you sell— sold me on that as well. Question number 4: other than the generic work harder, have a great attitude, and care for customers, what advice or insight would you give to other business leaders?
Be approachable. I personally live by trying to bring a light and kindness to every interaction. You just— it's not saying I'm here for you, you can come talk to me, but I think it's actually showing that, it's actually living that. So So as a leader, you want your team to come to you when they have a potential roadblock or hurdle, if they have a unique solution, if they have an idea, or if something's just going on personally. The more approachable you are as a leader, the more your people will talk to you, the more in the know you will be, but also I think the better grasp you will have around how things are going and really just getting to know your people on a, on a deeper level.
I like that so much. And you know, I watched a keynote presentation several years ago at a conference where the presenter talked about approachability by the fact that he had forgot that he had left his name tag, you know, "Hi, my name is," and he got on the bus and apparently, you know, somebody wanted to be smart with him and said, "Well, hi Bob," and stuff. And then he realized that the reason the guy started talking to him was because he knew his name because of the name tag. And it was his way of being approachable. And so he actually ended up tattooing the, that, you know, "Hi, my name is Bob" to his chest as part of his approachability. So it's so important.
I love that.
It is. It was great. And I'm glad that you shared that because it is, it's really a powerful thing. Question number 5. What other business leader like yourself would you like to acknowledge and invite to be on my podcast?
So I do need to speak with her, but my former chief of staff at a leadership advisory firm where I worked was incredibly impactful for me and my career. She not only gave fantastic advice, but she was very transparent and she truly wanted you to grow as a leader no matter what role, no matter if you were an admin or if you were a manager or a managing director. She treated you like a true individual that had Potential and Purpose. So I think she might love something like this. I just need to check with her and make sure she's okay with that, but she's definitely somebody I would want to recognize as a true angel in my life, somebody who's really made a true impact on me personally and professionally.
Oh wow, it sounds like a great person for me to interview, so I'll look forward to hearing from you about that.
Absolutely, absolutely.
And our final question, question number 6, please tell me about your first job.
So my first job, I was a cashier at Gennardi's, a local grocery store. I actually had to have my mom sign papers so that I was allowed to work because I was a little younger than what they would normally employ. I think I was like 15 or 16, but I learned to really engage with people. I absolutely loved getting to know the people that would come through my line. I just really enjoyed every aspect, whether I was you know, gathering carts and, you know, taking them from customers or finding out where the items went and helping somebody. I just really loved being in customer service. And that's when I knew that being in people is where I wanted to be.
Oh, I love that story too. So it really helped you form who you are today as well. So that's a great, great—
Yes, 100%.
Great learning. Love it. So Nicole, thank you so much for being on the show. How can people find you?
They can find me on LinkedIn, Nicole Goddard. I'm on Instagram, Nicole Marie. Would— I always love making new connections on LinkedIn, and I think that's a great place to start. So I'd say find me there.
Perfect. This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast. Thanks for listening.
