Growth + Exit

Thomas William Deans, PhD, is a best-selling author and globally recognized expert on family business succession and intergenerational wealth transfer, helping families and business owners navigate ownership transitions and long-term wealth planning. He has delivered more than 2,000 keynote presentations worldwide. Dr. Deans is the author of Every Family's Business , Willing Wisdom , and The Happy...

Todd Girvin is the Founder and CEO of Futuremakers Leadership Forge, a peer advisory and executive coaching community for leaders of innovative organizations. A former technology founder and CEO, he helps executives strengthen leadership, navigate complex decisions, and build healthier, more resilient companies. Todd previously co-founded Improving, a software development consulting firm, where he...

Kimberly (Kim) Wasney is the Co-founder of Ripples Edge Advisors, a Chicago-based advisory firm helping business owners grow strategically, prepare for transition, and build more transferable companies. An experienced operator and former head of business development, Kim grew the company's revenue from $160K to $9 million over the course of five years. Her background includes scaling revenue, buil...

Victoria Sivrais is the Co-founder of Female Mavericks, a platform helping ambitious moms launch and scale profitable businesses while raising families. With experience in ESG, investor relationships, and executive communications, she helps women entrepreneurs develop their business vision to scale. Victoria previously co-founded and exited Clermont Partners, was named to  PRWeek 's 40 Under 40, a...

Beth Mazza is the Co-founder of Female Mavericks, a platform helping ambitious moms launch and scale profitable businesses while raising families. A serial entrepreneur and seasoned marketing and communications strategist, she has founded and sold strategic advisory firms focused on investor relations, corporate communications, and executive messaging. Beth now mentors women founders, shares pract...

Kelly McLaughlan is the Co-Founder and CEO of KME.digital, a digital marketing agency that helps organizations grow through SEO, paid media, web content, and digital strategy. A systems engineer turned entrepreneur, she leads the firm's strategy, client service, and team development while helping businesses strengthen their online presence. Kelly is also the Co-founder of Power of 100 Washington,...

John Cox is a Partner at Newport LLC, a business advisory firm helping middle-market companies grow and exit. With over 35 years of senior financial management experience across private industry and government, he advises owners and CEOs on finance strategy, budgeting, capital markets, M&A, due diligence, and exit readiness. John brings an operator's perspective to helping businesses strengthen fi...

Scott Ryan is the Founder and CEO of Investature, a sustainable finance and fintech company helping organizations align retirement benefits, investment choices, and financed-emissions goals. He leads the company's strategy, growth, partnerships, and development of tools that connect financial wellness with environmental impact. With leadership experience at firms including Salesforce, Morgan Stanl...

Jeff Aplin is the CEO of Aplin, a Canadian staffing and recruiting firm providing temporary, contract, permanent, and IT talent solutions across North America. He leads the company's growth strategy, acquisitions, capital partnerships, and response to industry and technology shifts. Drawing on strategy and operations experience at Deloitte, Jeff has transformed the family business toward recurring...

David Reid is the Founder of Plan B Gurus, a consulting firm that helps business owners strengthen operations, build value, and prepare for successful exits. A seasoned CEO, board advisor, and the author of  Getting to Exit , he spent decades scaling Epic Information Solutions from a small technology company to a 100-plus-person enterprise before guiding its strategic sale. David advises owners an...

Tony Medrano is the Co-founder and CEO of LongevityPlan. AI, a physician-supervised wellness company using peptide protocols, health data, and AI to support longevity, recovery, and performance. A three-time tech startup CEO with two successful exits, he leads strategy, product development, and growth while applying expertise in AI, molecular diagnostics, enterprise sales, and personalized health....

Molly McCartan is the Managing Partner at The Whisper Group, an M&A and exit-readiness advisory firm helping women founders scale and sell their companies. She is also the Founder and CEO of The Mom Pact, a career strategy platform for working mothers. With over a decade of experience in strategy, operations, business development, and acquisitions, Molly guides owners through growth, valuation, an...

Newt Fowler is a Partner at Womble Bond Dickinson, a global law firm advising businesses on corporate, transactional, and regulatory matters. He helps companies, investors, and entrepreneurs navigate mergers and acquisitions, private equity and venture financing, governance, technology and intellectual property issues, and complex commercial deals. With more than 30 years as a transactional attorn...

Maggie Lord is the Co-founder of The Whisper Group, an exit-readiness advisory firm and community helping women business owners scale and sell their companies. In her role, she advises female founders on exit readiness, strategic acquisition planning, and navigating the personal and professional transition that comes after a sale. She previously founded Rustic Wedding Chic, a digital wedding media...

Ari Pirutinsky is the Founder and CEO of Steady Growth Partners, a digital marketing agency focused on long-term, data-driven growth strategies. In this role, he leads client strategy, oversees service delivery, and works closely with both clients and internal teams to build transparent, trust-based marketing systems that drive measurable results. He is also the COO of Mesoodar Media, a publicatio...

Tom Jacobs is the Founder and Board Partner at Avanza + MedHQ, which provides outpatient advisory services and administrative solutions to the healthcare industry. Under his leadership, MedHQ expanded its service offerings and partnered with Avanza Healthcare Strategies to bring outpatient advisory expertise to hospitals, physicians, and ASCs nationwide. Tom also has experience as an ASC Administr...

Andy Crestodina is the Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer at Orbit Media Studios, an award-winning digital agency. With over 20 years of experience in analytics, SEO, content strategy, AI, and website optimization, he is widely recognized as a leading expert in the marketing industry. Andy has written over 500 articles on content strategy, SEO, AI, social media, and analytics, and is the autho...

Lynda Ellis is the CEO of Capitol Concierge, a leading provider of corporate, residential, and commercial concierge services. She joined the company in 1998 and later purchased it in 2007, guiding its growth into a nationally and internationally recognized service brand serving more than one million people worldwide. Lynda has received multiple industry honors for her visionary leadership and comm...

Robert Gomez is the Owner of Beat Kitchen, a popular Chicago live music venue and restaurant known for its blend of food, drinks, and nightly performances. With over 30 years of experience in the food and beverage industry, he has operated other venues in the Chicago area, including Subterranean, Underbar, and Bar Sol. Beat Kitchen has expanded to three locations, including two on Navy Pier. In th...

Mikki Williams, CSP, CPAE Speaker Hall of Fame, is an international speaker, storyteller, author, and executive speech coach. She holds both the Certified Speaking Professional designation and the CPAE Speaker Hall of Fame honor, a combination held by fewer than 1% of professional speakers worldwide. Recognized by  Meetings & Conventions  magazine as one of the country's favorite speakers, Mikki i...

Catherine Connelly is the Founder and Fractional Head of Marketing at Connelly Ventures, LLC, a marketing advisory firm that helps entrepreneurs and growing teams build scalable, practical marketing strategies. As an entrepreneur, marketing leader, speaker, and author, she co-founded myYearbook as a teenager and helped grow it into The Meet Group, a NASDAQ-listed social dating and livestreaming co...

Kathleen Perley is the Founder and CEO of AdaIR, an AI intelligence platform for capital market communication. She is a linguist-turned-entrepreneur and an AI thought leader focused on making advanced technology practical for business leaders. Before AdaIR, Kathleen founded DemystifAI, an AI consulting and education firm, and DECODE, a healthcare digital transformation agency that grew to $17 mill...

Rob Stepen is a Certified Business Performance Advisor at Insperity, a leading human resources and business performance solutions company. With decades of experience as a business owner, he helps organizations improve efficiency, accelerate growth, and drive revenue. Outside of Insperity, Rob serves on nonprofit and academic advisory boards and supports initiatives that foster entrepreneurship and...

Julie Castro Abrams is the CEO and Chair of How Women Lead, a national network of executive women dedicated to advancing gender equity, expanding board representation, and increasing access to capital for women-led companies. As an entrepreneur, investor, and gender and racial justice advocate, she has spent her career building women-owned businesses and creating economic opportunities for women....

Adam Spector is the Founder and CEO of Chore, a startup that helps founders offload back-office operations through fractional chief-of-staff services. As a four-time founder, startup advisor, and investor, he has backed over 100 startups, gaining insight into scaling companies and optimizing operations. Adam hosts the  Entrepreneurial Excellence Podcast , which features conversations with some of...