Episodes

Wil Schroter is the founder and CEO of Startups.com, the world's largest startup platform. They help over one million startup companies find customers, funding, mentors, and world-class education. Before founding Startups.com, Wil founded multiple successful startups like Swapalease.com and Fundable.com. He also founded Blue Diesel at the age of 19 and grew it to $700 million in capitalized billings before it became inVentiv, now valued at $6 billion dollars. In this episode, you’ll learn...

Andy Jenks is a General Partner at Drive Capital, a Columbus-based venture capital firm focused on investing in world-class technology companies outside of Silicon Valley. Before Drive, Andy was a 3-time founder at Formation Data Systems, Discovery Mining, and Infinite Research. Both Discovery Mining and Infinite Research were successfully acquired. In this episode, you’ll learn: Experiences from the early days of Silicon Valley. When to take venture capital instead of bootstrap. The ...

Matthew Achak is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Non-Linear Venture Partners, where he consults and invests in early-stage start-ups. Prior to Non-Linear Venture Partners, Matt Co-Founded FCR, the leading provider of outsourced live agent support services for tech companies. FCR was acquired by TTEC in 2019. In this episode, you’ll learn: The importance of establishing a company's DNA and core values early The value of having a complementary and trustworthy business partner ...

Ayden Syal is the Co-Founder and CEO of MOGL, a leading athlete influencer marketplace and NIL software provider that streamlines partnerships between brands and athlete influencers. Prior to starting MOGL, Ayden worked at Morgan Stanley, Lexington Partners, and IHS Markit (now S&P Global). Ayden has been named to the Sports Business Journal New Voices Under 30 list, The Marquis "Who's Who in America" list, and won the 2022 SXSW Pitch competition on behalf of MOGL. In this episode, you’ll ...

Tim Robinson is the CEO of AgencyBloc. AgencyBloc is the leading Insurance Industry Growth Platform serving the health, benefits, and senior insurance space. Prior to AgencyBloc, Tim was the COO of WorkWave, COO of FMG Suite, and COO of Cii. All of those companies are private equity portfolio companies. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to conduct a daily leadership team huddle The lifecycle of a private equity portfolio company How to manage and integrate company acquisitions H...

Rick Fox is the Chief Revenue Officer of Brightway Insurance. Brightway is one of the largest insurance distribution companies in the U.S., with over 300 franchises in 32 states. Prior to joining Brightway, Rick was the Head of Agency Sales at Vertafore, a leading insurance software company, and previously served as the President of Agency Revolution, an agency automation and marketing consultancy. In this episode, you’ll learn: How sports principles can transform corporate leadership ...

Will Zell is the co-founder and Executive Chair of AssetWatch, founder of Vessel, and founding partner of the Ohio Angel Collective. Will has been building and investing in companies since 2006, focusing on venture capital and technology startups since 2012. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to design your life How to navigate the entrepreneurial journey The role of a long-term vision and strategic pivots Why it’s important to think of yourself as a shareholder first Insig...

Matt Wyckhouse is the Founder and CEO of Finite State. Finite State is the leading provider of software risk management solutions for connected devices and software supply chains. Prior to Finite State, Matt was the founder and CTO of Battelle’s Cyber Innovations Business Unit, where he oversaw dozens of intelligence and national security Programs. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to keep your ego in balance The benefits of an executive coach How to build resilience as a ...

Grace Nikae is the Founder of Kizuna, a company that helps high-performing startups, subject matter experts, and thought leaders elevate their brand and content strategies across digital platforms. Before founding Kizuna, Grace was an international concert pianist, educator, and fiction author. In this episode, you’ll learn: The power of community How to build brand advocates How to approach a career change When to zoom in and when to zoom out The importance of letting crea...

Tarek is the Founder and CEO of Cuddles, a cloud-based business management platform that is modernizing the pet industry. Before Cuddles, Tarek was the CEO of HealthySmiles Pet Dental, President of FetchMyVet, and Co-Founder of WashMyWhip. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to create a feedback culture The dangers of concentration risk How to evaluate a potential market How great people force you to be better The benefits of working towards mastery Follow Tarek on Linke...

Alex Levin is the Co-Founder and CEO of Regal, a leading cloud contact center specializing in customer engagement. Having secured $42M in funding from Emergence Capital, Regal has attracted over 200 high-consideration consumer services and product companies, including AAA, Angie's List, and SoFi. Before Regal, Alex was the SVP of Growth at Handy, where he was an early employee and grew with the company through their acquisition by the publicly traded company Angi. In this episode, you’ll l...

Greg Kallman is the Founder of FanAmp, the community hub for all things Formula 1. FanAmp connects fans around the world with each other and their favorite motorsport creators, track guides, and daily news. Before launching FanAmp, Greg spent 12 years advising C-Suite executives and cross-functional teams in the US, Europe, and Asia at Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and J.P. Morgan. In this episode, you’ll learn: The benefits of unscalable activities How to leverage influencer market...

Alex Harris is the co-founder of Fiat Growth, the Fintech market’s leading growth consultancy, and the co-founder and general partner of Fiat Ventures. Prior to founding Fiat Growth, Alex led Paid Growth and Partnerships at Chime, leading them from Series A to becoming a Unicorn at Series D. Chime is the largest neobank in the US with nearly 20M+ members and was most recently valued at $25B. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to nurture a partnership When to add your next offering ...

Taylor Crane is the Founder of Fractional Jobs. Fractional Jobs is the job board for startups to reach and recruit fractional talent. These are part-time leaders embedded into startups to help them scale Before Fractional Jobs, Taylor founded Clubs Poker, which he started in 2020 and sold in 2023. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to turn a problem into a business The pros and cons of taking Venture Capital How to cost-effectively grow through acquisition How taking on invest...

Paul Monasterio is the CEO and Co-Founder of Kalepa. Kalepa's AI-powered Copilot workbench empowers underwriters to write more profitable business faster. Kalepa was recognized as one of the most innovative insurtechs in the world as part of FinTech Global’s Insurtech 100 in 2022 and 2023. Before founding Kalepa, Paul was an executive at Facebook, Mastercard, and Applied Predictive Technologies. Paul also graduated with a PhD in Nuclear Science and Engineering at MIT. In this episode, you’...

Alex Frommeyer is the co-founder and CEO of Beam Benefits, a digitally-led employee benefits company that offers dental, vision, life, disability, and supplemental health coverage. The company simplifies and modernizes the $100+ billion ancillary benefits industry through its intuitive online platform, self-service tools, AI-powered underwriting, and thoughtful coverage for improved overall wellness. Beam has raised over $200 million in funding and is available in 44 states across the U.S. Le...

Sam Rose is the Founder and CEO of Mvnifest, a full-stack product agency and 3PL. Before Mvnifest, Sam founded the award-winning kitchenware brand GIR, which she led as CEO until its acquisition by Pattern Brands in 2021. In this episode, you’ll learn: The power of storytelling The Best Day Ever Problem What a boundaryless life looks like How to work with friends and family The benefits of working at an early-stage company Follow Sam on LinkedIn Connect Follow Callan on...

Joe Emison is the Co-Founder and CTO of Branch Insurance. Branch is an insurance carrier that makes it simple to bundle home and auto insurance. Branch was listed on GlassDoor’s Best Places to Work in 2022 and 2023. Before Branch, Joe founded BuildFax (acquired by Verisk), Spaceful (acquired by DMGT), and BluePrince (acquired by Harris Computer). Joe is also an author and released his new book "Serverless as a Game Changer: How to Get the Most out of the Cloud" In this episode, you’ll lear...

Omid Bakhshandeh is the Co-Founder of Verneek. Verneek’s mission is to build the most helpful AI, enabling anyone to interact with any environment using intelligent conversational interfaces with deep domain expertise. Omid has two decades of experience in the research and development of AI systems, having founded and successfully led various AI teams. He received his Ph.D. in AI with a focus on Natural Language Understanding and Dialogue Systems and is a published author in multiple major AI...

Sam Jacobs is the Founder and CEO of Pavilion, the essential community-powered learning platform for CEOs, GTM leaders, and their teams. Today, over 10,000 people are paid subscribers to the Pavilion community. Before Pavilion, Sam spent 15 years as a senior revenue leader at VC-backed companies in the New York area, including Gerson Lehrman Group, Axial, Livestream/Vimeo, The Muse, and Behavox. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to manage hypergrowth The importance of recogni...

Jason Molnar is the Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Infinity Labs. Infinity Labs is a technology company that delivers innovative solutions in various domains. Jason is a decorated U.S. Army combat veteran. He serves on the board of directors of Operation Socrates, a non-profit organization that supports veterans and their families, and on the board of directors for the Ohio Veterans Collaborative, whose mission is to help Ohio Veterans find success outside of the uniform. In this...

Robin Dimond is the Founder and CEO of Fifth & Cor. Fifth & Cor is at the intersection of strategy, innovation, and creativity. They’re an Innovation and Immersive Marketing company harnessing the best tools to support brands, consumers, and communities. Robin brings over 18 years of marketing experience. She also aspires to uplift communities by sitting on multiple school boards and actively participating in various charitable initiatives. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to put on ...

Dan Manges is the Co-Founder of RWX. RWX develops software engineering tools that optimize build and test performance, reliability, and developer experience. Its flagship product, Mint, is a generation newer Continuous Integration platform that gives engineers unparalleled capabilities to optimize their builds. Dan was previously the CTO of Root, a technology-powered car insurance carrier, which he co-founded in 2015 and took public via an IPO in 2020. Before Root, Dan was the CTO of Braintre...

Rachel is the Founder & CEO of Geosite. Geosite is a Y Combinator-backed start-up working to build the geospatial marketplace. Their platform sources, visualizes, and analyzes the relevant geospatial data so their customers can make informed business decisions. Rachel is also completing her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering at Stanford and was listed on the Forbes Top 30 under 30 list. In this episode, you’ll learn: How to prototype your life How to find your strengths The pros and...