Today we’d like to introduce you to Deb Calvert.
Hi Deb, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in Grandview and later worked for 16 years at The Kansas City Star. I took a promotion to The Star’s corporate parent company, Knight Ridder. I relocated to San Jose for a corporate HR Director Role, resettled my family and was barely acclimated to California when the company was sold — less than 3 years after we’d moved. We decided to stay instead of relocating again. I opened my own business, People First Productivity Solutions, to continue working with HR, sales and leadership teams.
Getting started was easy. I had four job offers in four different cities. I called each of them to ask if they’d hire me as a consultant rather than as an employee. Within a week, three of the four agreed! After that, I set three targets that would be determining factors about whether or not to continue down this path. I set a revenue target for the first year and reached it in two months. I also set a goal for branching out of the newspaper and media industry and achieved that four months into my new venture when I ran into a former Knight Ridder colleague at O’Hare Airport. He had taken a role as the HR VP at Driscoll’s and connecting with him opened many new doors with produce and ag companies internationally. My third target was to create viable products that would appeal to people who weren’t in my network — I wanted to be sure I had something I could sell to people who didn’t know me. That one took a few more months to achieve, but I felt I was on solid ground when my sales training course on asking better questions got traction.
Over the past 20 years, I’ve worked with over 1,000 clients from every sector, of all sizes, and on 6 continents. As a professional speaker and influencer, I’ve been named to prestigious lists like “The 65 Most Influential Women in Business” by Treeline and “Top Sales Gurus” by Global Gurus. My first book, <i>DISCOVER Questions</i>®<i> Get You Connected</i>, was named by HubSpot as one of the “20 Most Highly Rated Sales Books of All Time.”
Over the past 5 years, my focus has shifted to leadership and executive team development. As a Certified Master of The Leadership Challenge®, I feel my work with leaders (at every level) truly makes an impact and creates meaningful differences for my clients.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I’ve been very blessed in business. But, yes, there have been a few lows along the way… Clients deciding to “go a different direction,” innovations that fell flat, Covid cancellations, trainers who went rogue and didn’t represent our brand well… But, all in all, these have been learning experiences and opportunities to pivot. They say that challenge is the crucible of leadership, so I try to push myself when challenged instead of lamenting about the situation.
Being nimble has helped with overcoming obstacles. I maintain a variety of products, services and clients so that I can flex to what’s needed now despite rapid shifts and disruptions in business. For example, there have been years when executives coaching was in high demand and years when 1:1 coaching was viewed as a luxury to be trimmed from the budget. Post-Covid, I’ve scaled back on in-person speaking engagements and stepped up the virtual presentation game with tools for interaction and engagement.
Each year, I conduct new research and develop new topics to remain relevant. Topics on recent years have focused on struggles that we can all relate to. In 2025, the most popular topic I presented was “Are Your Managers Coddling Employees and Causing Burnout?” Our natural response to post-pandemic issues for employees has caused us to over-compensate and actually impair employee development, so I wanted to address this to help others see the issue and course correct rather than remaining in that unproductive struggle.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My personal belief is that every single person on the planet has untapped potential. I also believe that employers who put PEOPLE first pursue that potential and unleash amazing people power.
To this end, at People First Productivity Solutions we offer leadership development for leaders at every level, growth coaching, and team effectiveness services.
What sets us apart is our focus on outcomes. We don’t just deliver training. We offer training, coaching, consulting and evidence-based methodologies to drive for real and lasting solutions. We focus on behavior change and tools rather than abstract ideas or concepts.
In 2021, we expanded to offer an online learning academy that supplements our core services. This provides every individual with a deeper dive into areas of personal interest or need. The academy is People First Leadership Academy at peoplefirstpotential.com and over 80 of the courses there are free.
What am I most proud of? That’s a tough question! I’d have to say it’s the bestsellers that I’ve written about asking questions to improve connections & communication. These are based on research and provide tactical, practical, and immediate improvements. The newest book, <i>DISCOVER Questions® for Connections, Clarity & Control</i>, is available on Amazon. The reason I’m proud of these books is that so many people have reached out to share stories about personal transformation after reading them. It’s really gratifying to know that my work can have that kind of impact on others.
How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
After relocating back to the KC metro area, I maintained a strong client base on the West Coast. I’ve also been traveling a lot to the Eat Coast in recent months. I’d like to connect with more local and regional businesses who need services related to building strong executive teams and developing leaders at every level.
As a professional speaker, I enjoy presenting to local chapters of professional organizations and philanthropic organizations. My topics on communication and leadership have wide appeal, and my interactive style is well-received.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://peoplefirstps.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PeopleFirstPS/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/people-first-productivity-solutions
- Twitter: https://x.com/PeopleFirstPS
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/PeopleFirstPS
- Other: https://peoplefirstps.com/
