499: Ted Decker & Ian Cinnamon—Orbiting Home

What do a Home Depot employee and a satellite have in common? More than you might think. In this episode, Mike Rowe talks with two CEOs about the people and technology quietly building the future around us.

First, Mike sits down with Ted Decker, CEO of The Home Depot, to talk about workforce development, the company's "inverted pyramid" philosophy—where frontline associates and customers sit at the top and management exists to support them—and why developing people from the ground up is central to the company's success. Decker also explains the story behind Home Depot's Kids Workshop program, which has introduced generations of young people to tools, building, and the satisfaction of making something with their own hands.

Then Mike talks with Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree Ian Cinnamon, CEO and co-founder of Apex, a company tackling one of the space industry's biggest challenges: making satellites faster and at much greater scale. Cinnamon explains just how many aspects of everyday life depend on satellites—from communications and navigation to weather and national security—and why getting more capable spacecraft into orbit is becoming increasingly important.

From the aisles of Home Depot to the edge of space, this is a conversation about building things, building people, and building what comes next.

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