Russ: This is The BusinessMakers show, heard here and online at thebusinessmakers.com. And now it's time for the Aflac BusinessMakers Flashback, brought to you by Aflac. Ask about it at work. And for this morning's flashback, we're going to roll back to April of this year, episode 202, when we had our own Esther Steinfeld on as a guest. She was the founder and author of notallceosarejerks.com. And it was actually that interview that lead to her being a host for the BusinessMakers Overtime Show. Let's join this conversation now. Esther, tell us about notallceosarejerks.com.

Esther: Well, there's an incredible amount of media attention on CEOs getting crazy bonus, Ponzi schemes, golden parachutes and layoffs. And I just really don't understand how CEOs even feel comfortable taking these outrageous bonuses. It just doesn't make sense to me. So the real problem is that that's just not the face of the CEO. And in reality, the guys that are getting the press, it's well-deserved, that negative press. But it really only makes up a miniscule portion of the CEO population.

Russ: Great point. I totally concur. So you're saying there are some CEOs out here that are not jerks.

Esther: Oh, trust me. There are plenty of them.

Russ: Okay, so that motivated you to do something about it.

Esther: Sure did.

Russ: Okay, well tell us a little bit about when you had the idea, when you launched and what sort of results you've been getting.

Esther: Well, the idea came about at the gym at 6 in the morning. I was watching the news as I do, and I really was depressed. I mean, I couldn't really watch the news. I had to turn it off. It was very depressing, very upsetting. And I just thought about all the people I know, including my father, who are great CEOs; and who really are champions of the economy and create jobs and create the economy-you know. They really give back, and it just isn't fair. And on my family vacation, I was canoeing with my father, and I mentioned this idea to him, and he thought it was a great idea. So he said, "Roll with it." And I did. And a few weeks later, we got the site up and running. and the response has just been amazing.

Russ: Okay. Now before we get into that, just so our listeners know, Esther's dad has been on the show. It's a fantastic interview, Jay Steinfeld, the founder and CEO of Blinds.com. It was probably two and a half years ago. It's a very popular interview on the site. And so your dad is one of these CEOs that's not a jerk, right?

Esther: He is. He's a great guy.

Russ: Okay. You explained it to him. He thought it was a cool idea, so you put in motion to launch it. And what kind of responses have you gotten?

Esther: I've gotten great responses. It's been truly amazing, the outpouring of support. And not just the postings but really the support of the CEO networks that are out there like Vistage and Entrepreneur Organization Network. It's truly amazing; these people are craving this.

Russ: Okay. Well, let's say I'm listening right now, and I work for a CEO that's just a champion and definitely not a jerk. And I want to get his or her information up on the website. What do I have to do?

Esther: It's so easy. You go on the site, notallceosarejerks.com. You create an account. It's 1 step. There's not even a confirmation. You can instantly upload a photo. You can include a description. You can include a link to your website. And include some information about your CEO and tell us why he or she is so awesome.

Russ: Okay. Now can a CEO put her or his own information up, or does it have to come from somebody that works for them?

Esther: No, absolutely. We would love for CEOs to post their own, and, in fact, plenty have.

Russ: Okay. Cool. So it seems like this is a cause that others probably totally agree with then, right?

Esther: I think so. You know, the ones who get the press are the bad ones. The reason you don't know the names of the CEOs on the site is because they don't get press because-

Russ: -they're the good people.

Esther: Exactly, they're the good ones.

Russ: That is so, so cool. All right. So how in the world then are you monetizing this site?

Esther: We don't monetize it. We have no ads. We have no plans for ads. In fact, one of the rules-you'll see there are some rules on the site, and CEOs appreciate rules. You cannot post a commercial for your company.

Russ: Ah, okay.

Esther: You have to post something of yourself doing something good for the community, something that you love to do like kite boarding or softball. And that's it.

Russ: So this is just an honorable cause. You're trying to get the word out there that there are some good people that are CEOs.

Esther: That's right. That's it-

Russ: Cool. All right. So that brings me to my next question then. What do you do for a living, Esther?

Esther: I actually work for my father now at Blinds.com. I'm in the marketing department. I do the public relations, and I do a lot of things in the marketing department. We're a very small marketing department. We have 7 people. So we kind of all pitch in and do a lot different things to be honest.

Russ: How long have you been doing that?

Esther: About 3 years.

Russ: Okay. Blinds.com. And from what I remember back in the interview and from what I hear now, you guys are really doing well.

Esther: Yeah. It's amazing how the focus on the customer has really been the way we've succeeded even through this recession.

Russ: That is so cool, so cool. We've been talking with Esther Steinfeld, the originator and author of notallceosarejerks.com. Esther, thank you so much for spending some time with us. And thank you for championing a real cool cause.

Esther: You're so welcome. It was so great to be here.

Russ: You bet. And that wraps our discussion with Esther Steinfeld. And concludes this mornings Aflac BusinessMakers Flashback, brought to you by Aflac. Ask about it at work. And now it's time for another Advantage Point, so let's welcome Katie Laird.

[Advantage Point]

Russ: But be sure to stay tuned into for the featured guest segment because Esther Steinfeld is going to interview Peter Shankman, the founder of The Geek Factory. You're listening to The BusinessMakers Show, heard here and online at thebusinessmakers.com