Ep43 John Yates and Gregg Bedol—How 2 Industry Veterans Are Solving Business Dev with TractionBD

Today in the Sky Lounge, we are joined by John Yates and Gregg Bedol. John has spent 44 years representing tech companies in Atlanta, starting in 1981 when IBM opened up the PC architecture—literally the beginning of time for the tech community. Gregg has been in consulting since the Arthur Andersen days and is now a serial entrepreneur on his latest venture.The conversation centers on their collaboration building TractionBD, a platform that takes John's four decades of business development expertise and makes it accessible through AI. They break down why most professionals fail at business development—it takes 7 to 10 touches to convert a prospect, but most give up after two or three. The solution isn't just about automation; it's about making those touches authentic, timely, and impossible to forget.John and Gregg also discuss Atlanta's opportunity to plant a flag in Applied AI, the evolution from business cards in coat pockets to voice-enabled relationship management, and why the traditional mentorship model for professionals is being compressed from decades into days. Plus, travel stories involving conference calls on Italian mountainsides and horse-drawn wagons at India's largest toll booth.ABOUT OUR GUESTS: John YatesJohn Yates is a partner at Gunderson Dettmer with over 40 years representing tech companies and investors throughout the Southeast as a recognized leader in the field of technology law. He co-founded several influential Atlanta organizations including the Southeastern Software Association, Technology Association of Georgia, Tech Executives Roundtable, and Tech Leaders Forum. A sought-after speaker, John has delivered 250+ presentations at events hosted by organizations like the American Bar Association. His contributions to Atlanta's tech community have earned him recognition as one of Atlanta's ""Most Influential Leaders,"" the Technology Association of Georgia's ""Leader of Influence Award,"" and induction into the Computer Museum of America's Hall of Fame. He also serves on the boards of Duke Law School and Furman University.Gregg BedolGregg Bedol is a technology executive, entrepreneur, and advisor with over forty years of experience in enterprise software, professional services, and consulting.He has worked both inside established organizations and as an independent consultant, delivering complex, long-running engagements. That experience gave him a clear view into how professional services really operate—where time goes, how follow-up breaks down, and why business development often becomes uneven even for capable professionals.Gregg is known for a practical, systems-oriented approach. He focuses on how incentives, tools, and workflows shape behavior over time. Today, he is Co-Founder and CEO of TractionBD, where he applies those lessons to building tools that support consistent execution without adding unnecessary overhead or sales pressure.CONTACT:John Yateshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/johncyates/Gregg Bedolhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/greggbedol/Find out what SUMMIT is from episodeWhat is THE SKY LOUNGE?Tales from the Sky Lounge takes you on a journey through business, consulting, and venture investing, hearing stories from the entrepreneurs, consultants, and investors shaping these industries.ABOUT OUR HOST:Todd Merrill is an experienced software executive who typically assists clients as a fractional or interim CTO and CiSO as a partner at TechCXO.Subscribe and turn on notifications to listen to new episodes as they launch!YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfeCS-Varb4gu2uCwyRTXWWEdP676Huh6Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6jz6ubcaUZ20Xh8TXhwzENApple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tales-from-the-sky-lounge/id1730134658Amazon: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/4ba289a5-0d33-4589-95c7-83416731a864/tales-from-the-sky-lounge