Who We Are

Welcome to Smart People Podcast! Thanks for checking out the website. We hope you are enjoying the podcast.  We spend most of our time behind the microphones getting to know other people, so we figured it was only fair to let you in on who we are. If you enjoy the podcast, follow us on Twitter: @SmartPeoplePod and Facebook: SmartPeoplePodcast!

Chris Stemp – Host & CreatorChris Stemp

Chris is an entrepreneur, marketing expert and lifelong student. Having spent over 6 years as a financial analyst at a Fortune 100 firm, Chris traded the cubicle for the cutting edge and co-founded Smart People Podcast, LLC.

Once the podcast became successful and stable, Chris focused his entrepreneurial spirit on another passion of his and helped launch the United States Healthful Food Council (now EatREAL), a national, non-profit dedicated to decreasing food related disease. He went on to act as the COO and VP of Marketing for 5 years, while also concentrating on the growth of the podcast.

After he left the non-profit, Chris decided to completely jump into the learning and development space by becoming a Senior Consultant with Franklin Covey. For 5 years as a consultant, Chris traveled the country facilitating workshops and giving keynote presentations on leadership, effectiveness, and productivity.

Today, Chris is a Manager of Learning and Development at Nestle, where he focuses on leadership development and organizational effectiveness.

Chris is a trained Life Coach through the Coaches Training Institute (now Co-Active coaching) and semi-regularly presents to various organizations and associations on topics such as health, marketing, goal setting, and entrepreneurship. He currently lives in Northern Virginia with his wife Heather, his two boys Austin and Finn, and his Rhodesian Ridgeback Zoey.

Jon Rojas – Host & Creator

Jon Rojas

Jon is a technology enthusiast, aspiring developer/creator, and dog dad.

Jon considers himself a comedy and tech nerd and he doesn’t care who knows it. He’s always wanted to be involved in comedy and took one step by going through improv classes at the DC Improv. When he is not watching or listening to comedy, you can find him at a computer learning how to code.

Jon is Virginia born and raised. He received his undergraduate degree in marketing at James Madison University and worked for a “Big 4” consulting firm for 8 years. After quitting a six-figure job to pursue his passions, he co-founded Smart People Podcast with his long time friend, Chris Stemp.

Jon took his first step into the tech industry by joining General Assembly and becoming the Education Programs Manager in charge of the education programs at the DC General Assembly campus. He took a Product Manager internship, which led him to the role of Associate Product Manager. After leaving General Assembly in 2018, he joined Brightspot (previously Perfect Sense) as A Product Manager. He currently holds the title of Principal Product Manager.

You can reach Jon on Twitter – @jonrojas or @SmartPeoplePod. Read what he has to say at jonrojas.com. Just want to say ‘hi’? Shoot him an email at jon (at) smartpeoplepodcast (dot) com.

Comments (17)

  4. Your podcast is great. I also have a “Big 4” job and I listen to you guys while at work to keep excel from eating my soul. I will be making all amazon purchases through your link. Would love to hear either something about finance/business or maybe a guest with a fresh race/class socioeconomic theory that differs from the norm. Keep up the great work.

    Reply

  5. Hi Jon and Chris,
    I just came back from a lovely weekend skiing in Vermont and I spent a good couple of hours listening to your podcasts while I skied…what a great day and how inspiring. Your popularity is clearly a sign that you are doing the right thing. You are personable, honest, and direct. Your genuine curiosity comes through in the way you ask questions without prejudice or predisposition in the pursuit of knowledge. Thank you so much.
    I would like to suggest you interview some climate scientists and environmentalists. If you have not yet explored them, try listening to some of the archived lectures at the Long Now Foundation in San Francisco. I would love to hear you interview Stewart Brand.
    Thanks again…..Willy Kaye

    Reply

    • Willy, thanks so much for the kind words! After doing some research on Stewart Brand, we are going to try to reach out to him.
      Keep spreading the word!

      Reply

  6. I am an International Baccalaureate Coordinator and will use some of your podcasts to stimulate thought, discussion and writing within my Theory of Knowledge classes. Great work. I applaud your entrepreneurial spirit. We live in the Age of Innovation and your site provides more evidence that Americans can get the job done.

    Reply

  8. Guys, I love your podcasts! I have found them because you have guests that interest me from TED talks and NPR, and really enjoy your dialogue with them. Thank you!

    Reply

  10. Hey guys,

    As a 28 year old I totally understand why you guys started this. Working in the corporate world, I sometimes wonder if there are any smart people left. I discovered the podcast after reading Joe Peta’s book, which was fantastic. He tweeted the link, I listened, now I am hooked. It has been especially great this week, since I am driving an hour each way in South Dakota. Keep up the excellent work.

    Reply

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