Every brand is trying to influence you but only a few succeed. Why? Because great brands understand human psychology better than their competitors. In this episode of the Profit or Pivot Podcast, I sit down with Rena Nickerson, the General Manager of the Quaker and Sabra brands in Canada, who has spent her career understanding how people think, what motivates them, and how to turn that into real business growth. We go deep into the mechanics of brand building, behavioral influence, and the subtle line between persuasion and manipulation. How do you shape perception? How do you create emotional attachment? Why do some brands scale to millions while others burn out? Rena also opens up about her own corporate path: learning she was going to be fired, the wake-up moment that forced her to rethink her leadership style, and how that experience reshaped how she approaches communication, team dynamics, and personal identity and being Jewish in the corporate world today. If you care about marketing, growth, influence, or building something that actually lasts, this episode is for you. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _  About Rena Nickerson Rena is a respected leader within the Consumer Packaged Goods industry. As General Manager, Quaker Canada, she has led a national team of 650 since 2023. Prior to that, she was GM, SodaStream Canada for 7 years, tripling the business. Prior to joining PepsiCo as a GM, Rena started her career as a marketer on top brands such as Colgate, Campbell and Kraft. You can find her on LinkedIn, where she spends way too much time. LinkedIn