Scaling With People

Send us Fan Mail AI can sift resumes, flag cheaters, and surface real talent—but only if you pair it with clear roles, smart assessments, and disciplined communication. That’s the system Ben Johnson, CEO of Particle 41, walks us through as we compare notes on hiring at scale, building global engineering teams, and turning remote work from transactional to tight-knit. We get specific on how an AI r...

Send us Fan Mail Growth shouldn’t require sacrificing your sanity. We sit down with first‑gen founder and medical professional Nelly to unpack how she turned a survival hustle into a sustainable business by aligning purpose, hormone health, and a team she can trust. Her story moves from 3 a.m. anxiety and cortisol spikes to clear decisions, warmer leadership, and a brand that converts through real...

Send us Fan Mail Fundraising doesn’t have to be a black box or a waiting game. We sit down with Woodie, co-founder of Crowdfund Capital Advisors and a key architect behind the JOBS Act crowdfunding rules, to map a founder-first path that fuses data, community, and disciplined execution. From Wall Street to Silicon Valley to Washington, Woodie’s journey reveals why regulation crowdfunding has unloc...

Send us Fan Mail Buyers don’t pay top dollar for a founder’s heroics; they pay for a business that runs without the founder. We sit down with M&A advisor John Martinka to map the moves that turn people power into enterprise value, from reducing owner dependency to proving that your management team and systems deliver results without you. If you’ve ever wondered when to start planning an exit,...

Send us Fan Mail Want the truth about RTO, hybrid, and remote without the noise? We cut straight to the work: define how value is created, then choose the model that best serves it. With guest Nahed Khairallah, a veteran HR and scaling leader who’s supported 150+ companies from seven to nine figures across multiple regions, we dismantle assumptions, expose the traps leaders fall into, and lay out...

Send us Fan Mail What if the biggest threat to your growth isn’t competition or cash, but hesitation? We sat down with John Marvin, president and CEO of Texas State Optical, to pull back the curtain on how decisive leaders hire earlier, set cleaner guardrails, and turn people into the engine of compounding growth. John traces lessons from small-town medicine to a 90-year network of independent opt...

Send us Fan Mail What if the fastest way to grow isn’t a new channel, but a new mindset? We sit down with founder Todd Schuchart for a candid masterclass on turning chaos into compounding growth by optimizing the only two things you fully control: your conversations and your decisions. From the first four seconds of a sales call to the last line on your P&L, Todd breaks down the simple, repeat...

Send us Fan Mail What if you stopped selling features and started winning on outcomes? We sit down with founder Jason Bryll to unpack the plays that turned a one-person consultancy into a high-performance services engine built on trust, speed, and rock-solid systems. From healthcare data trenches to global team leadership, Jason shares the unvarnished moves that drive compounding growth without th...

Send us Fan Mail What if growth didn’t feel like a grind? We sit down with founder Ricardo Viso to explore how joy can be designed into your day, your team, and your culture so creativity, focus, and results compound. Ricardo’s path—from retail and e‑commerce to beating a severe cancer diagnosis—reshaped how he thinks about work and life. He breaks down why happiness often depends on outcomes, whi...

Send us Fan Mail What if your biggest win isn’t the highest revenue month but the day you walk away on your terms? We go straight at the myths around exit timing, value creation, and “someday” planning with succession expert and wealth strategist Joseph LoPresti, breaking down the moves that turn a chaotic founder led operation into a transferable, high multiple business. From defining your Freedo...

Send us Fan Mail What if the fastest way to scale isn’t hiring more people, but removing the friction that slows the people you already have? We sit down with executive coach and lean practitioner Lorraine Armijos to break down a simple, repeatable way to grow: align strategy, process, and people, then empower the front line to solve problems where the work happens. We start with the mindset shift...

Send us Fan Mail Growth gets loud when sales spike and calendars fill, but profit whispers through the numbers. We sat down with CFO and founder Natalia Zacharin to unpack the simple, durable moves that turn frantic effort into financial clarity. We start with the non‑negotiables: founders must sell until the offer is proven, resilience is built on reframing “I can’t” into “I can’t yet,” and your...

Send us Fan Mail Micromanagement can’t fix burnout, noise, or fragmented teams—and perks won’t, either. We sat down with inclusive leadership expert Kelli Lester to show how clear vision, better questions, and real follow‑through unlock performance across stressed, remote, multi‑gen workplaces. From aligning on what “empowerment” actually means to closing the loop on engagement data, we unpack spe...

Send us Fan Mail What if the fastest path to growth isn’t a new playbook, but a new way of seeing people? We sit down with bestselling author and executive coach Susan Inouye to unpack Sabona leadership—the Zulu-rooted philosophy of “I see you”—and how it transforms culture, performance, and profit. Susan shares how a gift-centered approach, forged in youth mentoring programs and refined across 60...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever wondered why some workplaces thrive while others struggle, despite having similar talent and resources? The secret might be hiding in plain sight – it's your culture, and contrary to popular belief, it's not just HR's responsibility. In this eye-opening conversation with Brett Hoogeveen, founder of Better Culture, we dive deep into what truly makes wor...

Send us Fan Mail Every founder dreams of rapid growth, but few are prepared for the leadership challenges that come with it. In this candid conversation with John Marvin, who brings 25 years of experience as President and CEO of a major eye care company, we dive deep into the leadership strategies that actually work when your business hits the "messy middle" - that critical scaling phase...

Send us Fan Mail What if your greatest competitive advantage is hiding in plain sight within your HR department? Terri Wilson, CEO of Doing HR Differently, joins me to shatter outdated notions of HR as merely a compliance function and reveals how transforming your people operations can become your rocket fuel for growth. Terri passionately unpacks how most organizations drastically underutilize th...

Send us Fan Mail What if the biggest obstacle to your business success isn't your strategy, market, or team—but the narrative written decades ago in your childhood? Dr. Sharon Spano joins Gwendolyn McCreary to reveal how our earliest experiences create patterns that silently shape our leadership decisions. These subconscious scripts influence everything from hiring practices to work-life inte...

Send us Fan Mail Workforce flexibility isn't what you think it is. While most businesses scramble to plug staffing gaps when demand spikes, true flexibility comes from strategic planning that anticipates shifts before they happen. James Terry, a workforce transformation leader at Indeed Flex, reveals how businesses can build resilience through data-driven labor planning. "Flexibility act...

Send us Fan Mail What's the real difference between profit and cash flow? For many founders without finance backgrounds, this distinction remains frustratingly opaque—yet understanding it could mean the difference between securing crucial funding or watching growth opportunities slip away. Kyle Smith, a former professional poker player who pivoted to become a CPA and co-founder of Strata Clou...

Send us Fan Mail Trust has become the scarcest resource in the digital marketplace. As consumer skepticism grows and advertising costs skyrocket, brands are discovering that third-party validation isn't just nice to have—it's essential for survival and growth. Digital growth strategist Tye DeGrange pulls back the curtain on how affiliate marketing has evolved from a misunderstood, often...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wonder what happens when your startup outgrows its scrappy beginnings? The transition from founder to CEO isn't just about a new title – it's a fundamental shift in how you lead, who you hire, and sometimes, the painful decisions about who stays on the journey. Gwendolyn R. Curry sits down with Aviva Leebow, a Vistage Chair who coaches ambitious CEOs, to explore the...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wonder why some startups scale smoothly while others struggle despite having great products and funding? The secret weapon might be hiding in plain sight: organizational culture. When you're racing to build your product and secure your next funding round, culture can feel like a luxury you'll address "someday." But as our conversation with Lilith Christian...

Send us Fan Mail What truly separates struggling businesses from thriving ones? Is it just about having a great product or brilliant marketing? According to James Brown, retired attorney and business growth expert who scaled his law firm to $8 million annually with offices in four states, success comes down to mastering seven essential components found in every successful business. This eye-openin...

Send us Fan Mail Boards have the power to transform your company's trajectory, but founders often struggle to leverage them effectively. Dr. Keith Dorsey, author of "The Boardroom Journey" and boardroom expert with experience spanning military service, corporate leadership, and academic research, joins Gwyneth Beaver-Crary to decode what truly makes a high-functioning board. Drawing...