We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Katerina Cozias. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Katerina below.
Katerina, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about growing your team – how did you recruit the first few people, what was the process like, how’d you go about training and if you were to start over today would you have done anything differently?
As a premium transformational leading expert in my field of Media & Communications, I can say through experience that when building a company from the ground up, it is imperative to be proactive not only with respect to the people you hire but with the hiring process itself. After years of working for large multinational corporations, in 2017 I branched out on my own and founded my first company. Today I am the helm of two firms, VasGeo Media Corp., a Hollywood-based media training and production company along with sister-team Charismark Communications, staffed with an elite communications and language training professionals, servicing organizations of all sizes.
From day one, our practice did not launch with a full team. It began as a single vision, gradually growing into the dynamic cohort that now powers our Educators, Global Outreach, Business Development and Media Production divisions. In those early days, I wore every hat: identifying high-value markets, formulating outreach pathways and sourcing the right training and/or collaboration opportunities.
When the time came to recruit our first key team members, experts fluent in communications training modalities , a seasoned business development team with multi-sector expansion experience, and a global outreach manager adept at cultural fluency and the creation of foundational strategic alliances, we placed enormous emphasis on three traits. These were adaptive communication across borders, genuine strategic partnership mentality, and a commitment to being first-movers in new regions. We found candidates through targeted industry networks, alumni lists of international programs, and referrals from trusted practitioners. Our interview process was rigorous and unconventional: alongside competency questions we included real-time role-plays (a mock outreach call, a mini pitch deck presentation) and peer-to-peer “language trainer vs business developer” scenarios to test collaboration under pressure and cross-functional agility.
Once hired, our training process leaned into immersive onboarding, trainees shadowed global-lead sessions, co-led short campaigns, and received weekly mentorship check-ins. We also instituted a “regional pilot” cohort where each new hire launched a micro-training before full-scale deployment; the experiment revealed strengths, uncovered gaps, and accelerated readiness.
If I were to start today, one adjustment I would make is bringing candidates into micro-engagements even earlier, short-term freelance projects before formal hiring in order to test fit, agility and cultural presence before onboarding. Additionally, I would build onboarding simulators to allow new recruits to rehearse global outreach scenarios (time-zone differences, multi-lingual delivery, rapid pivoting) upfront, thereby shortening the ramp-up period and ensuring first-six-month productivity from day one.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Known in media-circles as “American’s Media Mindset Mentor” my most recent journey began in front of the camera. As a communications specialist as well as an on-camera talk tv and radio host, I discovered that beyond great ideas and great offerings, the missing link for many high-achievers and visionaries is how they command presence, communicate influence, and effectively translate that into meaningful impact and profit. Through my practice I help ambitious organizations, entrepreneurs, executives and thought-leaders step into recognized authority in their field and turn average media, sales and public communications opportunities into 10x revenue experiences. Our signature system, designed with deep verbal and non-verbal persuasion techniques has proven to multiply revenue exponentially.
My flagship work is delivered through two interlocking pathways. First, via VasGeo Media where prior to Covid we co-produced and hosted the popular morning-show LA40 with LA Talk Radio & Television as well a collaborated with several independent digital television and content creators. Second, through my organization Charismark Communications which, as mentioned, offers next-level communication and influence training designed for teams and leaders: full-day on-site sessions, virtual workshops, advanced verbal & non-verbal success tactics and legacy-building presence work. We open the vault to communication tactics only 1% of the population have access to. With our methods you gain clarity on how to communicate at the highest-level mastering voice tonality, verbally and non-verbally micro-expressions, building compelling presence, turning media appearances into profit and truly mastering influence rather than simply hoping for results. Charismark offers training that takes you and your organization to the highest level of world-class communication and influence. It will
change everything. Because EVERYTHING is communication.
What sets me apart: My background as a professionally trained media personality, my global credentials (having presented in cities including but not limited to Miami, New York, Hong Kong, Athens, Cannes and beyond), my fluency in multiple languages, and my signature 5-step system that is designed to see our clients catapult past the competition. As a two-time published author and with over 20 years in the space, I ensure that our team brings both the craft of camera and the science of communication to the boardroom and the stage.
I am most proud of witnessing my clients step into their full power, secure high-visibility opportunities and generate significantly higher revenue by aligning their message, presence and platform. I want potential clients and followers to know this: if you are ready to escalate your visibility, become the recognized expert in your field, communicate with clarity and charisma and influence with results, our team at Charismark is here to partner with you. Your voice matters and how you use it can make all the difference. Most people believe communication is simply talking. When in reality, only 5% of how we communication comes from our words. 30-35% comes from our voice; our tonality, the inflection, our ability to articulate and enunciate. Which leaves about 50-55% that comes from body language. How much more powerful would your interactions be if simply your eyebrow raised at the right moment. What does that signal to the person sitting across from you? Wouldn’t you like to know? At Charismark Communications our trainers lift the veil with deep training into topics such as “reading micro-expressions” and “snap charisma”.
Have you ever had to pivot?
The giant professional pivot for me was moving from ‘working for a company’ to ‘owning a company’. The wisdom that I’d like to share today is the idea that for many, changing careers can feel like daunting, like having to suddenly leap from one mountain to another. Many stay frozen in situations they don’t like because starting over at the bottom of an unfamiliar climb seems like too much. In truth, everything you built on the first mountain comes with you: the skills, insight, resilience, and self-awareness earned along the way. Your relationships, communication abilities, and professional intuition become the ropes and tools that help you ascend the next peak faster. You’re not beginning again; you’re beginning from experience. So, when you pivot from one career to another, or from one career path to another, approach it with excitement rather than fear and know that you are already 70% of the way there, equipped with wisdom few newcomers possess.
Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?
The key to managing a team and maintaining high morale lies in trust, communication, and purpose. People thrive when they feel seen, heard, and valued. This is what makes our trainings at Charismark Communications so impactful. Did you know that 24% of companies that invest in communications training see dramatically improved bottom-line results? And that learning and training in the workplace are critically important to the modern workforce, with 87% of millennials valuing companies who invest in the professional development of their employees. At Charismark we do that not only for our clients but for our internal team as well.
Leading with transparency is another important attribute, for example, sharing the vision and including your team in decisions that affect them. Celebrating progress as much as outcomes and making recognition a daily habit. Empowering individuals to take ownership of their strengths while fostering collaboration rather than competition. When challenges arise, our leadership team attempts to address them with empathy and solution-focused dialogue. A leader’s energy sets the tone. The magic is in showing up grounded, positive, and consistent, and your team will mirror that stability, motivation, and shared sense of mission. Those energies will inevitably fuse themselves into the ethos of your company, and that will make, all the difference.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.cmcmastery.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katerinacozias/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katerinacozias
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katerinacozias/
- Twitter: https://x.com/katerinacozias
Image Credits
Headshot photographed by Dana Patrick