Office Hours with David Meltzer

Zane Stoddard Zane Stoddard launched the NBA’s Los Angeles office with the backing of Commissioners David Stern and Adam Silver, and has since built a 30+ year career at the intersection of sports, business, and media. He has held leadership roles with the NBA, Nike, NASCAR, and an NBA team front office, while managing both the NBA and NASCAR’s LA offices for nearly two decades. Featured in USA To...

Ross Buhrdorf Ross Buhrdorf is the co-founder and CEO of ZenBusiness which offers business products and services that help business owners in starting, running, and growing a business. The company has raised over $70 million from top-tier investors, drawn backing from investors like Mark Cuban, and grown to help more than 850,000 business owners. Prior to ZenBusiness, Ross was the founding CTO of...

Erica Groussman TRUBAR, founded by Erica Groussman, has rapidly grown from a startup into a category leader in the protein bar industry, generating over $50 million in revenue in 2024 and expanding into 18,000+ retail locations including Costco, Whole Foods, Target, Walmart, Erewhon, and Amazon. Known for its indulgent, clean, plant-based bars free of gluten, dairy, soy, sugar alcohols, and harmfu...

Pankaj Patel Pankaj Patel, a former Cisco executive and network engineer, is the founder of Nile, a company focused on simplifying networking for mid-size enterprises—often the most vulnerable to cyberattacks. With nearly three decades of experience in networking and a master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, Pankaj brings deep technical expertise to solving one of the industry’s most pre...

Fiona Simmonds Fiona Simmonds is the co-founder of Pinkie, the first period care brand designed specifically for young girls, offering non-toxic, perfectly sized pads and thoughtful features like noise-free disposal baggies to support tweens and teens with comfort and confidence. Founded in 2022, Pinkie fills a major gap in the market where products were traditionally sized for adults. Fiona, a Va...

Shaun Anthony McMichael Shaun Anthony McMichael is the Pushcart-nominated author of the forthcoming novel Whistle Punk Falls (Alternative Book Press), along with the short story collection The Wild Familiar and the poetry collection Jack of All…. Since 2007, he has taught writing in classrooms, juvenile detention halls, mental health treatment centers, and homeless youth drop-ins, while editing tw...

Marcy Syms Marcy Syms is a social entrepreneur, former CEO of Syms Corp, and the youngest woman to lead a NYSE-listed company, where she built the nation’s first off-price retail chain. A longtime advocate for education, justice, and the arts, she serves on boards including Columbia Law School’s ERA Project, CUNY’s Macaulay Honors College, the Sy Syms School of Business, and NPR. As past Chair of...

Dr. Kid Parchariyanon Dr. Kid Parchariyanon, a former medical doctor turned entrepreneur and investor, is the founding partner of SeaX Ventures, a $100M venture capital firm investing in deep tech and climate innovation across Southeast Asia. Based in Thailand, he focuses on early-stage startups that can both cut global carbon emissions and drive economic growth, with investments spanning lab-grow...

Christina Deering Christina Deering is a globally recognized Shaman, Business Intuitive, and host of the top 10% podcast You Unlimited. Featured in Forbes and Goss Manifest, she is a pioneer in wealth energetics and emotional mastery, known for clearing more trauma in a single session than decades of traditional therapy. Christina helps spiritual entrepreneurs overcome limiting beliefs, unlock the...

Steve Brown Steve Brown is a cancer survivor, AI architect, and founder of Curewise, a platform that helps patients navigate complex diagnoses and uncover overlooked insights. With a background spanning physics, filmmaking, and remote patient monitoring, he now serves as Chief AI Officer for Peter Diamandis’ Abundance360 community, advocating for human-centered AI in healthcare, education, and sto...

Lili and Ramon Montes Lili and Ramon Montes, siblings and co-founders of Limon, turned their shared passion for travel and entrepreneurship into a growing venture aimed at solving the challenge of finding trusted travel recommendations. Lili, now CEO, has been entrepreneurial since middle school, from selling gadgets to hosting a travel segment and serving as UCSB’s Instagram Ambassador. Her journ...

Delaney McGuire Delaney McGuire is the founder of Elevated Tech, a platform that helps professionals secure high-paying roles by streamlining their job search with automation and AI. Driven by a mission to help people earn their true worth without burnout, he grew his own salary from $80K to $390K, inspiring the creation of Scale Your Salary. Since then, his team has helped countless professionals...

Robert Glazer Robert Glazer’s upcoming book, The Compass Within: A Little Story About the Values That Guide Us (October 14, 2025), is a practical yet inspiring roadmap for anyone feeling stuck and seeking clarity, courage, and direction in life, love, and work. Known globally as the founder and chairman of Acceleration Partners, bestselling author, and creator of the widely read Friday Forward new...

Matt Melvin Matt Melvin is an author and activist from Massachusetts who was incarcerated in the federal prison system in 2017 for petty crimes. He currently resides in Shelburne, Vermont. Bullied Behind Bars is Matt's first book. Merrick Rosenberg Merrick Rosenberg is an entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and personality expert who transformed the classic DISC model into four easy-to-relate birds—Eag...

Dr. Christine M. Silverstein Christine M. Silverstein, EdD, is a Columbia University–trained educator inducted into the Nursing Hall of Fame, with an MPA from Long Island University and a BSN from The City College of New York (summa cum laude). For nearly 30 years, she has led The Summit Center for Ideal Performance in New Jersey, helping people of all ages excel in academics, athletics, health, b...

Thomas J. LaGrave Jr. Thomas J. LaGrave Jr. is a bestselling author, licensed clinical social worker, and founder of Honor Bound Academy, a year-long program in Sonoma, California, focused on healing and mentorship for adolescent boys. With over 35 years of experience, including as a former Hospital Corpsman with the U.S. Navy SEALs, LaGrave has worked with more than 3,000 young men, specializing...

Rain Bennett Rain Bennett is an award-winning filmmaker, author, keynote speaker, and storytelling coach. He hosts The Storytelling Lab, a weekly podcast featuring some of the world’s top storytellers, and published his debut book, Six Second Stories, in 2021. With over 20 years of experience and more than 1,000 interviews under his belt, Rain has discovered one consistent truth: stories hold imme...

Karl Maier Karl Maier, founder of Abunden and a seasoned CFO, has helped five companies double sales in just two years by improving cash flow, boosting profits, and building scalable systems. He addresses today’s business challenges—like inflation, labor shortages, and supply chain issues—by focusing on the numbers, aligning teams, and implementing predictable cash flow strategies. Believing most...

Steve Taylor Now based in the U.S., Steve is the founder of soCommercial, a direct-access marketplace that helps users list and monetize any type of commercial space—from spare desks to retail spots, parking, salons, or even vending machine locations. With no transaction fees and no middlemen, soCommercial makes it easy for anyone—whether first-time users or seasoned pros—to turn underused spaces...

Michael Erath Michael Erath is a seasoned entrepreneur and business coach who scaled his family business from $8M to $45M before losing it all during the 2009 crash and a partner’s fraud. Starting over in 2010, he used hard-earned lessons and top systems like EOS®, Scaling Up, and Topgrading to build a new venture that made the Inc. 5000 list. Now, through his firm Next Level Growth, Michael helps...

Steve Sanders Steve Sanders is the CEO of SPIRE Academy, a premier multisport boarding school and training center in Ohio. Since joining the organization in 2019 and becoming CEO in late 2024, Steve has led a period of remarkable growth, increasing student enrollment by 65% and camp participation by 45%. With a rich background in sports and entertainment, he combines operational leadership with a...

Bruce Clay Bruce Clay, often called the “Father of SEO,” has been a leading expert in search engine optimization since 1996. He pioneered key tools like the first web page analysis tool and the Search Engine Relationship Chart®, shaping the early foundation of the SEO industry. Through his company, Bruce Clay Inc., he has helped businesses worldwide improve their online visibility through SEO, PPC...

Erica Gray Erica Gray, a former model and photographer, is now a digital marketing expert known for her creative approach and focus on visual storytelling. She founded GOLS—named after her four children—as a reflection of her family-driven values. Erica helps entrepreneurs in the wealth niche grow sustainably online by teaching clear, step-by-step strategies that prioritize long-term success. Marr...

Sean Henry Sean is the co-founder and CEO of Stord, a company he launched in 2015 with Jacob Boudreau to modernize fulfillment and enhance consumer experience for brands of all sizes. His first hand exposure to outdated logistics systems while running e-commerce businesses and working in Germany inspired the venture. Before founding Stord, Sean attended Georgia Tech and has since earned recognitio...

Napoleon Smith Napoleon Smith, CMO of CubiOS, brings a strong background in sales, brand development, and intellectual property to the WOWCube team. He began his entrepreneurial career in his early 20s with the successful launch of YoYo Zone, securing placement in major retailers like Walmart and Toys R Us. He later moved into the entertainment industry, serving as Executive Producer for blockbust...