Mission Critical

About Mission Critical

Behind every great company, every groundbreaking idea, and every game-changing innovation, there’s a leader on a mission. Welcome to Mission Critical with Lance Chung—the show where we break down the blueprints, the bold moves, and the battle-tested playbooks of today’s most impactful leaders. From CEOs and founders to artists, designers, and athletes, we’re talking to the visionaries who build, innovate, and lead.

Publisher

GLORY Podcast Network

Category

business

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

1 Oct 2020

Latest episode

8 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

150 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   8 Oct 2026

   Samantha Ong (Founder, Joeydolls): Why She Built the Dolls She Never Saw Growing Up

   This episode of Mission Critical is presented in partnership with Mastercard and explores what it really takes to turn a small-business dream into something real. What does it take to build a Canadian small business when you're self-funded, wearing every hat, and navigating a world of tariffs, supply-chain disruptions and constant uncertainty?Samantha Ong, founder of Toronto-based Joeydolls, knows the answer firsthand. Samantha created Joeydolls after realizing that she and her daughters couldn't find dolls that reflected their culture and identities. What began as a deeply personal gap has grown into a culturally representative toy brand serving families, educators and collectors across Canada, the United States and Australia. In this episode, Samantha gets candid about the realities behind that growth: launching Joeydolls with nearly 1,700 orders in its first 24 hours, learning the hard way how much infrastructure a growing business needs, figuring out wholesale from scratch, building a global operation with a lean team, and navigating tariffs and a devastating $50,000 inventory loss after a train derailment.She also shares how customer feedback keeps her connected to the mission, why she has learned to embrace imposter syndrome, how she decides where to spend her time, and why staying true to the company's purpose matters even when commercial opportunities come along. Samantha is a 2026 Canada Small Business 100 honouree, presented by Mastercard, recognizing the resilience, ambition and impact of Canadian small businesses. This is a conversation about entrepreneurship, representation, resilience and the messy reality of building something you believe in.

2. 

   29 Jul 2026

   Alessia Cara (Recording Artist): How to Build a Successful Career Without Losing Your Sense of Self

   What happens when the goalposts for success keep moving, and you decide to stop chasing them? In this episode of Mission Critical, Grammy Award-winning Canadian recording artist Alessia Cara reflects on a decade in the music industry and the lessons she's learned about building a career on her own terms. From navigating an industry that has fundamentally changed to letting go of perfection, trusting her instincts and embracing creative freedom, Cara shares a candid playbook for anyone trying to evolve without losing sight of who they are. Her journey offers a powerful lesson for entrepreneurs, creatives and ambitious professionals alike: sustainable success isn't about constantly proving yourself. It's about creating work you're proud of, staying open to change, and defining your own version of what it means to win. Key Takeaways 1. Stop creating for approval and start creating from conviction. The strongest work often comes when you stop optimizing for approval and trust your own instincts. 2. Let experience make you more free, not more rigid. After a decade in the industry, Cara says she feels she has less to prove and more freedom to experiment. Experience shouldn't narrow your thinking; it should give you the confidence to explore. 3. Don't let perfection get in the way of impact. For anyone building something, the takeaway is clear: perfection and impact aren't always the same thing, and sometimes the most memorable work is the work that feels human. 4. Your identity doesn't have to be fully formed before you begin. You don't always need to have the full vision before you start. Sometimes the work itself reveals who you're becoming. 5. When the goalposts move, redefine what winning means to you. When external measures become unstable, the most sustainable definition of success is one you control yourself. About the Guest Alessia Cara is a Grammy Award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter who rose to global prominence with her breakout hit "Here" before earning international recognition for songs including "Scars to Your Beautiful" and "Stay." She went on to win the Grammy Award for Best New Artist and establish herself as one of Canada's most distinctive voices in contemporary pop. Beyond her success as a recording artist, Cara's career offers a compelling case study in navigating early success, public expectations and personal evolution. From finding her voice as a young artist to redefining what success means on her own terms, her journey reflects the challenges and opportunities that come with building a career while continuing to grow as a person.

3. 

   26 Jun 2026

   Adam Minster (Managing Partner, Food Dudes): How to Reinvent Your Business When Customers Change

   If your customers are changing, your business has to change too. In this episode of Mission Critical, Lance sits down with Adam Minster, managing partner of Food Dudes and co-founder behind Toronto restaurants RASA and SARA, to unpack what happens when an entire market shifts (and how smart business owners adapt before it's too late.) As rising costs reshape the restaurant industry and consumers become more intentional about where they spend, Adam explains why the traditional "middle" of the market is disappearing, what prompted SARA's bold pivot to a tasting-menu-only concept, and how customer behaviour should guide your biggest business decisions. Whether you own a restaurant, retail store, agency, or service business, this conversation is packed with practical lessons on recognizing market shifts, creating experiences customers are willing to pay for, leading teams through change, and building a business that's designed to evolve. Key Takeaways Pay attention to changing customer behaviour, not just your sales: The biggest opportunities often come from recognizing shifts in how customers think and spend before they become obvious. SARA's transformation wasn't driven by instinct, it was driven by listening to customers and following the data. A great experience is becoming more valuable than simply offering a good product: As consumers become more selective with discretionary spending, businesses need to create memorable experiences that justify the purchase. People are increasingly willing to pay for something they'll remember. Your employees are often your best source of business intelligence: Adam explains how regularly gathering feedback from his team helped shape major strategic decisions, including SARA's evolution. The people closest to your customers often have the clearest view of what's changing. Hospitality is about people, not just service: Customers may talk about the food, but they remember how they were treated. Building loyalty often comes down to small, thoughtful moments that make people feel welcomed and valued. Great businesses evolve without abandoning what makes them special: Innovation doesn't always mean starting over. The strongest businesses stay rooted in their core values while adapting how they deliver value as markets and customer expectations change. About the Guest Adam Minster is the co-founder of Food Dudes, one of Canada's leading hospitality companies, and a partner behind acclaimed Toronto restaurants RASA and SARA. Over the past two decades, Adam has helped grow Food Dudes from a catering business into a multifaceted hospitality group spanning restaurants, large-scale events, and culinary experiences. Under his leadership, RASA has earned two consecutive Michelin Bib Gourmand recognitions, while SARA has been recognized by the Michelin Guide for its flavour-driven cuisine and guest-first approach to hospitality.

Who has been a guest on Mission Critical

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Shayla Stonechild
• Latoya Nugent
• Jonathan Van Ness
• David Moltz
• Kavi Moltz

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

457,258

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Spotify

4.7 / 5

10 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 82 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

92

Social presence

0

YouTube

86

Engagement

93

Contact Mission Critical

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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