Independence by Design™

My protein powder went from $62 to $122. The company's response was a mass email that started with "we understand your frustration." That is exactly how most businesses handle price increases. No plan. No segmentation. Just a surprise and an apology nobody asked for.   Kim Clark and I sat down to talk about pricing. Not theory. The real conversation that happens when your input costs are moving and you have to decide what to do about it. We started with a protein powder subscription that went from $62 to $122 in a single month with no warning, no communication plan, and a mass apology email nobody asked for. From there we got into why pricing is an ownership decision that runs through valuation, cash flow, and distributions. I walked through the income statement to balance sheet to ownership decision chain the way I do it in a quarterly board meeting.  Kim broke down rates of change analysis on your input costs as the early warning system, the customer segmentation framework for who gets a phone call, who gets a personal email, and who gets the mass communication, and how to give your sales team the "why" and the training to hold the line. We also talked about what is happening right now with the Strait of Hormuz, what that means for supply chains, and why this is different from every other inflationary cycle most of us have lived through.   Top 10 Takeaways  Pricing is an ownership decision. The math runs through valuation, distributions, and cash flow. That conversation belongs in the boardroom, not with your VP of Sales.  The Strait of Hormuz is closed right now. Twenty percent of the world's oil and fifty percent of its helium are not flowing. Pull up IMF PortWatch and see for yourself.  You cannot print molecules. Money printing is one problem. Physical supply chain disruption is a different problem. Both are happening at the same time.  The boiling frog kills more businesses than the crisis. A container going from $2,500 to $20,000 gets an emergency call. Margins sliding from 43% to 37% over seven months gets ignored.  Rates of change on your input costs are the early warning system. The 3-month rate leads the 12-month rate. When those diverge, your tire pressure light just came on.  Build tiered battle plans before you need them. If input costs hit 8%, here is Plan A. If they hit 12%, here is Plan B. Do the math now so you are not doing it in a panic.  Your salesperson is caught between company pressure, customer pressure, and the fear of losing the deal that pays their mortgage. Without the "why" and the tools, you are sending them into an impossible position.  Segment your customers before you communicate a price increase. Tier 1 gets a personal visit. Tier 2 gets a personalized email from leadership. Tier 3 gets the mass communication.  State what is NOT changing before you discuss what IS changing. Casey Brown calls these power statements. Anchor the customer on the value that continues, then explain the adjustment.  Run at least one full pricing analysis per year and rotate which customer segments get increases. Pricing discipline is a cadence, not a crisis response.   Kim Clark- This is a co-hosted episode with Kim Clark, iBD's Chief Revenue Officer. Kim spent years at ITR Economics before joining iBD, and her background in economic forecasting and revenue operations is all over this conversation. Ryan and Kim recorded this as both a standalone episode and an introduction to the Profit War Room workshop (April 27, 2026). The protein powder story that opens the episode came from a real text exchange with Ryan's buddy Michael the week before recording. Chapters:  (00:00) Introduction - pricing and margins  (01:27) The boiling frog: margins sliding from 43% to 37% ignored  (05:11) Build tiered battle plans before you need them  (06:06) The Strait of Hormuz is closed; you cannot print molecules  (13:57) Pricing belongs in the boardroom, not with your VP of Sales  (35:37) The math runs through valuation, distributions, and cash flow  (41:05) Rates of change on input costs: the early warning system  (49:51) Segment your customers before you communicate a price increase  (55:15) State what is NOT changing; empower salespeople with the "why"  (1:09:41) Profit War Room Workshop: April 27th, 9–noon, $100  This episode was produced by Castos Productions.  Resources:  iBD Profit War Room Workshop — April 27, 2026 | 9:00 AM–12:00 PM CT | $100 Register here — Half-day working session with Ryan Tansom, Kim Clark, and economic speaker Alex. Morning session on the geopolitical landscape, afternoon breakouts to build your own input cost tracking and pricing communication plan.  Casey Brown / Boost Pricing — boostpricing.com | caseybrown.com — Pricing expert and author of the power statements framework for sales teams. Referenced throughout this episode; featured in Ep. 487.  ITR Economics — itreconomics.com — Economic forecasting firm where Kim Clark and workshop speaker Alex both built their forecasting backgrounds. The 3-12 and 12-12 rates of change methodology comes from ITR's analytical framework.  IMF PortWatch — portwatch.imf.org — Live shipping traffic data including the Strait of Hormuz. Ryan pulls this up daily to get an objective read on what is actually moving through the strait versus what is being reported.  Lyn Alden — lynalden.com — Macroeconomist Ryan follows for supply chain analysis, global liquidity, and US dollar dynamics. Referenced for the "upside-down pyramid" framing of the global financial system.  Luke Gromen / FFTT — fftt-llc.com — Macroeconomist and founder of Forest for the Trees. Ryan references Gromen's morning Strait of Hormuz chart-check habit and his analysis of petrodollar dynamics.  Ray Dalio — principles.com — Referenced for his framing of the current geopolitical conflict as a generational shift in the world order.  Shoe Dog by Phil Knight — Amazon — Ryan's recommended business memoir. The "what do I know to be true?" decision-making framework Phil Knight uses throughout the book is the lens Ryan applies to navigating uncertainty.  Ep. 487 — Casey Brown: The Fear That's Eating Your Margins — Previous episode referenced. Check your Castos dashboard for the link.  LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kimberlyclark   Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/  

Dr. Sabrina Starling is the founder of Tap the Potential and the author of The Four Week Vacation. This is her second time on the show. We got into what $10,000/hour work actually means for the owner and for every person on their team. Watch on YouTubeWe talked about how AI is accelerating the opportunity to delegate. How A-players are 900 to 1,200% more productive than average performers. Why delegation always goes down the org chart, never up. And the 4-week vacation test as the single best forcing function for figuring out what you are still holding onto that someone else should be doing. Sabrina works 10 hours a week now. Her team of 7 part-time A-players produces what people assume takes 20 full-time staff. Two years ago her husband passed away suddenly and she was out for six weeks. Her team never missed a beat. We also got into something most owners do not talk about: the friendships, the hobbies, the life outside the business that disappears when work becomes the only identity you have. Top 10 Takeaways $10,000/hour work is not about billing rate. It is any activity where you are working from your strengths and making everything else easier for yourself or others. If it does not meet that test, it should not be on your calendar. 41% of a knowledge worker's week goes to discretionary tasks that could be delegated or automated. In a 50-hour week, that is 20 hours you are giving away for free. The 4-week vacation test is not a perk. It is a diagnostic. Take four weeks completely unplugged. Whatever breaks is what you have not actually delegated yet. Once you delegate something and it works, do not take it back. The moment you pull it back, you just told your best person their growth has a ceiling. A-players try three things before they ask for help. When they do ask, they show you what they already tried. If your team leads with "what should I do?" you have a hiring problem, not a training problem. You cannot afford not to hire the more expensive person. Sabrina's framing: treat the hire as a loan to yourself. The right person frees hours immediately that are worth more than their salary. Five direct reports. That is the cap. More than that and your weekly one-on-ones become status updates instead of actual development conversations. A-players are 900 to 1,200% more productive than average performers. Before AI. Sabrina's team of 7 part-time people produces what outsiders assume requires 20 full-time employees. Boredom is the prerequisite for creativity. Every time you pick up your phone when you have nothing to do, you kill the process before it starts. Cal Newport calls scrolling "Doritos for your brain." The owner who cannot sit still for 10 minutes without checking email is the same owner who says they never have any good ideas. Q-Storming: instead of brainstorming answers, brainstorm questions. The right question reframes the entire problem. Most rooms full of smart people are solving the wrong thing. Dr. Sabrina Starling is the founder of Tap the Potential, a business coaching firm that helps entrepreneurs build businesses that run without them. She is the author of the How to Hire the Best series and The Four Week Vacation, and co-hosts the Profit by Design podcast. Sabrina's work centers on building A-player teams, delegating effectively, and helping owners identify and protect their $10,000/hour work. She was previously on this podcast in Episode 335. Chapters: (00:00) Dr. Sabrina Starling and what $10,000/hour work actually means for owners and every team member (03:21) Narratives that create glass ceilings and block true delegation (06:35) A-players, strengths-based roles, and Leadership Bootcamp at Tap the Potential (16:20) Time audits reveal 41% of work is discretionary and ready to delegate (19:33) The 4-week vacation test as the best forcing function for delegation (29:31) Friendships, hobbies, and building a real life outside the business (35:52) Boredom is the prerequisite for creativity; why scrolling short-circuits ideas (48:43) A-players are 900 to 1,200% more productive; building lean and mighty teams (1:04:32) Q-Storming: brainstorm questions, not answers, to solve the right problems This episode was produced by Castos Productions.Resources:$10,000/Hour Activities Chart (free download): https://tapthepotential.com/10KTap the Potential (website): https://tapthepotential.comProfit by Design Podcast: https://tapthepotential.com/podcastThe Four Week Vacation (book): https://tapthepotential.com/the-four-week-vacationHow to Hire the Best (book series): https://tapthepotential.com/how-to-hire-the-bestLeadership Bootcamp (Tap the Potential program): https://tapthepotential.com/leadership-bootcampDopamine Nation by Anna Lembke (mentioned): https://www.annalembke.com/dopamine-nationDeep Work / Cal Newport (referenced on boredom and junk food scrolling): https://calnewport.comThe Road Less Stupid — Keith Cunningham Recommended by Sabrina as a source of powerful thinking-time questions. Ryan references Cunningham's concept of the "dumb tax" — the cost of avoidable mistakes. Independence by Design — Episode 335 (Dr. Sabrina Starling's first appearance)Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/

Most owners plan their transition around money. Pete Walker thinks that's why so many of them end up with regret.Watch on YouTube Pete grew up on a 100-acre potato farm in a community of 90 people in Prince Edward Island. When his dad shut the farm down, 15 neighbors lost their seasonal jobs, local businesses lost a customer, and the tax base shrank. That story is now playing out across thousands of communities in the U.S. and Canada as owner-operators approach retirement without a plan. Pete spent 14 years at TD Bank, served in Canadian government economic development, and now runs Boughton Riverview Consulting, where he helps owners figure out what they actually want before a crisis forces a binary choice. We got into his "story of you" framework, why employee ownership is gaining traction in Canada, and how to normalize the hardest conversation most owners will ever have.Top 10 Takeaways If you don't decide what happens to your business, someone else will. And you probably won't like their version. The false choice between maximizing sale price and preserving legacy is eating owners alive. If you plan early enough, it doesn't have to be binary. Pete asks every owner one question: "What is the story of you that you're trying to create?" Most have never been asked. Their eyes bug out because they don't have an answer. When Pete's dad shut the family farm, 15 neighbors lost their jobs, local businesses lost a customer, and the tax base shrank. That's what happens when a business leaves a community without a plan. Multiply that by thousands of retiring owners across the U.S. and Canada. Employee ownership isn't charity. It's a strong economic case. 8-12% more productive. More resilient in downturns. Faster loan paybacks. Employees retire with roughly twice the wealth. Private equity isn't evil, but the incentive structure is baked in. Shorter hold periods, higher leverage, and a built-in need to sell create a fundamentally different game than employee ownership. Canada just launched an Employee Ownership Trust with a $10M capital gains tax exemption for sellers. But the incentive sunsets at the end of 2026 if it doesn't get made permanent. The advisory ecosystem is broken for the lower middle market. Fees have tripled. Minimums have gone up. The $2-3M EBITDA company with 120 employees can barely get anyone to return their calls. Most owners conflate cash flow and wealth. Separating the two, and understanding how time connects them, is the first step toward making a confident decision instead of a panicked one. If you or your advisor even hint at projecting a decision onto the owner, it won't work. It's their story. Your job is to help them write it. Pete Walker is the principal consultant at Boughton Riverview Consulting and a board member of Employee Ownership Canada. He is a Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) who helps business owners figure out what they actually want from their transition before they get pushed into a decision by a crisis or an unsolicited offer. Pete grew up on a 100-acre potato and cattle farm in St. George's, Prince Edward Island, a community of 90 people, where his family had been on the same land since the 1800s. He attended Yale University (BA) and Ivey Business School (MBA, Honours). His career spans three acts: political advisor for Atlantic Canadian economic development, 14 years as an executive at TD Bank in Canada, and now business transition planning and employee ownership advocacy. He is passionate about keeping businesses locally owned, operated, and thriving in their communities through the generational transition of business ownership. Chapters: (00:00) Pete Walker and the employee ownership movement in Canada (04:07) From a PEI potato farm to Yale to TD Bank: Pete's three-act career (08:39) Community values thread through every career decision Pete ever made (12:00) Defining community: shared place, values, working for everyone's benefit (16:00) Capital flows, the unbundling of community, and where ESOPs fit in (20:29) Employee ownership isn't charity — it's a strong economic business case (26:35) When Pete's dad closed the farm, 15 neighbors lost their jobs (31:46) Private equity vs. employee ownership: the incentive structure is baked in (37:00) "What is the story of you that you're trying to create?" (47:31) Identity, personal loss, and the story that changed Pete's career path (57:11) Owners aren't executives: if you don't decide, someone else will (1:01:37) Most owners conflate cash flow and wealth — separating the two (1:19:58) Canada's Employee Ownership Trust and the $10M capital gains tax exemption (1:25:20) Pete's mission: tens of thousands of Canadians becoming owners This episode was produced by Castos Productions.Resources:Employee Ownership Canada https://employee-ownership.ca The national organization advocating for employee ownership in Canada. Pete Walker serves on the board. The site covers all forms of employee ownership, including transition vehicles and share structures. Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) — Canada.ca Government Overview https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-canada-revenue-agency-cra/federal-government-budgets/budget-2023-made-canada-plan-strong-middle-class-affordable-economy-healthy-future/employee-ownership-trusts.html Canada's newest employee ownership model, effective 2024. Offers a $10M capital gains tax exemption for qualifying sellers. The personal tax incentive is set to sunset at the end of 2026 if not made permanent. Boughton Riverview Consulting — Pete Walker https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-e-walker/ Pete Walker's business transition planning and employee ownership advisory practice. Helps owners clarify what they actually want before a crisis forces a decision. Ep. 113 — Daniel Goldstein / Foliance: Building a 134-Year-Old Company Using The Purest Form of Capitalism https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USNi_PKpcuE Ryan's earlier episode on ESOPs as the purest form of capitalism, featuring Daniel Goldstein and the ESOP holding company Foliance, referenced during the conversation on why employee ownership aligns economic and human incentives. Ep. 481 — Nick Bradley: The Private Equity Operating System https://ryanmtansom.castos.com/episodes/nick-bradley-private-equity-operating-system Ryan's recent episode with Nick Bradley on how private equity operates, referenced as context for the PE vs. employee ownership incentive structure discussion. Ep. 343 — Josh Golden: The Decision-Making Process of Selling TXI to an ESOP https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38az-0A_-Tg Ryan's episode with Josh Golden, the mutual connection who introduced Ryan and Pete. Josh converted his Chicago software firm TXI into an ESOP and is referenced throughout this episode as a real-world example of the legacy-over-top-dollar decision. Family Business Atlantic https://www.familybusinessatlantic.ca Canadian organization supporting family-owned businesses in Atlantic Canada. Pete hosted a fireside chat with Josh Golden here on employee ownership and the question of "what is enough." Doughnut Economics by Kate Raworth https://www.amazon.com/Doughnut-Economics-Seven-Ways-21st-Century/dp/1603587969 Referenced by Ryan as a framework for understanding how incentive structures embedded in economic systems drive wealth inequality — directly relevant to the PE vs. employee ownership discussion. Makers and Takers by Rana Foroohar https://www.amazon.com/Makers-Takers-Rise-Finance-American/dp/0553447238 Also referenced by Ryan alongside Doughnut Economics, examining how financialization has reshaped the American economy and pulled value away from workers and communities. Andrew Huberman & Jordan Peterson — Noble Aim and Dopamine Framework https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0hkhbGYaGQ Ryan references a Huberman/Peterson podcast conversation on how a clearly identified noble aim, pursued over the longest time horizon with the broadest impact, produces the highest dopamine response — used to connect goal clarity to the motivation to act on business transition planning.Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/

Most owners plan their transition around money. Pete Walker thinks that's why so many of them end up with regret.  Watch on YouTubePete grew up on a 100-acre potato farm in a community of 90 people in Prince Edward Island. When his dad shut the farm down, 15 neighbors lost their seasonal jobs, local businesses lost a customer, and the tax base shrank. That story is now playing out across thousands of communities in the U.S. and Canada as owner-operators approach retirement without a plan. Pete spent 14 years at TD Bank, served in Canadian government economic development, and now runs Boughton Riverview Consulting, where he helps owners figure out what they actually want before a crisis forces a binary choice. We got into his "story of you" framework, why employee ownership is gaining traction in Canada, and how to normalize the hardest conversation most owners will ever have.   Top 10 Takeaways  If you don't decide what happens to your business, someone else will. And you probably won't like their version.  The false choice between maximizing sale price and preserving legacy is eating owners alive. If you plan early enough, it doesn't have to be binary.  Pete asks every owner one question: "What is the story of you that you're trying to create?" Most have never been asked. Their eyes bug out because they don't have an answer.  When Pete's dad shut the family farm, 15 neighbors lost their jobs, local businesses lost a customer, and the tax base shrank. That's what happens when a business leaves a community without a plan. Multiply that by thousands of retiring owners across the U.S. and Canada.  Employee ownership isn't charity. It's a strong economic case. 8-12% more productive. More resilient in downturns. Faster loan paybacks. Employees retire with roughly twice the wealth.  Private equity isn't evil, but the incentive structure is baked in. Shorter hold periods, higher leverage, and a built-in need to sell create a fundamentally different game than employee ownership.  Canada just launched an Employee Ownership Trust with a $10M capital gains tax exemption for sellers. But the incentive sunsets at the end of 2026 if it doesn't get made permanent.  The advisory ecosystem is broken for the lower middle market. Fees have tripled. Minimums have gone up. The $2-3M EBITDA company with 120 employees can barely get anyone to return their calls.  Most owners conflate cash flow and wealth. Separating the two, and understanding how time connects them, is the first step toward making a confident decision instead of a panicked one.  If you or your advisor even hint at projecting a decision onto the owner, it won't work. It's their story. Your job is to help them write it.   Pete Walker is the principal consultant at Boughton Riverview Consulting and a board member of Employee Ownership Canada. He is a Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) who helps business owners figure out what they actually want from their transition before they get pushed into a decision by a crisis or an unsolicited offer. Pete grew up on a 100-acre potato and cattle farm in St. George's, Prince Edward Island, a community of 90 people, where his family had been on the same land since the 1800s. He attended Yale University (BA) and Ivey Business School (MBA, Honours). His career spans three acts: political advisor for Atlantic Canadian economic development, 14 years as an executive at TD Bank in Canada, and now business transition planning and employee ownership advocacy. He is passionate about keeping businesses locally owned, operated, and thriving in their communities through the generational transition of business ownership.   Chapters:   (00:00) Pete Walker and the employee ownership movement in Canada  (04:07) From a PEI potato farm to Yale to TD Bank: Pete's three-act career  (08:39) Community values thread through every career decision Pete ever made  (12:00) Defining community: shared place, values, working for everyone's benefit  (16:00) Capital flows, the unbundling of community, and where ESOPs fit in  (20:29) Employee ownership isn't charity — it's a strong economic business case  (26:35) When Pete's dad closed the farm, 15 neighbors lost their jobs  (31:46) Private equity vs. employee ownership: the incentive structure is baked in  (37:00) "What is the story of you that you're trying to create?"  (47:31) Identity, personal loss, and the story that changed Pete's career path  (57:11) Owners aren't executives: if you don't decide, someone else will  (1:01:37) Most owners conflate cash flow and wealth — separating the two  (1:19:58) Canada's Employee Ownership Trust and the $10M capital gains tax exemption  (1:25:20) Pete's mission: tens of thousands of Canadians becoming owners  This episode was produced by Castos Productions.  Resources:  Employee Ownership Canada https://employee-ownership.ca The national organization advocating for employee ownership in Canada. Pete Walker serves on the board. The site covers all forms of employee ownership, including transition vehicles and share structures.  Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) — Canada.ca Government Overview https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-canada-revenue-agency-cra/federal-government-budgets/budget-2023-made-canada-plan-strong-middle-class-affordable-economy-healthy-future/employee-ownership-trusts.html Canada's newest employee ownership model, effective 2024. Offers a $10M capital gains tax exemption for qualifying sellers. The personal tax incentive is set to sunset at the end of 2026 if not made permanent.  Boughton Riverview Consulting — Pete Walker https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-e-walker/ Pete Walker's business transition planning and employee ownership advisory practice. Helps owners clarify what they actually want before a crisis forces a decision.  Ep. 113 — Daniel Goldstein / Foliance: Building a 134-Year-Old Company Using The Purest Form of Capitalism https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USNi_PKpcuE Ryan's earlier episode on ESOPs as the purest form of capitalism, featuring Daniel Goldstein and the ESOP holding company Foliance, referenced during the conversation on why employee ownership aligns economic and human incentives.  Ep. 481 — Nick Bradley: The Private Equity Operating System https://ryanmtansom.castos.com/episodes/nick-bradley-private-equity-operating-system Ryan's recent episode with Nick Bradley on how private equity operates, referenced as context for the PE vs. employee ownership incentive structure discussion.  Ep. 343 — Josh Golden: The Decision-Making Process of Selling TXI to an ESOP https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38az-0A_-Tg Ryan's episode with Josh Golden, the mutual connection who introduced Ryan and Pete. Josh converted his Chicago software firm TXI into an ESOP and is referenced throughout this episode as a real-world example of the legacy-over-top-dollar decision.  Family Business Atlantic https://www.familybusinessatlantic.ca Canadian organization supporting family-owned businesses in Atlantic Canada. Pete hosted a fireside chat with Josh Golden here on employee ownership and the question of "what is enough."  Doughnut Economics by Kate Raworth https://www.amazon.com/Doughnut-Economics-Seven-Ways-21st-Century/dp/1603587969 Referenced by Ryan as a framework for understanding how incentive structures embedded in economic systems drive wealth inequality — directly relevant to the PE vs. employee ownership discussion.  Makers and Takers by Rana Foroohar https://www.amazon.com/Makers-Takers-Rise-Finance-American/dp/0553447238 Also referenced by Ryan alongside Doughnut Economics, examining how financialization has reshaped the American economy and pulled value away from workers and communities.  Andrew Huberman & Jordan Peterson — Noble Aim and Dopamine Framework https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0hkhbGYaGQ Ryan references a Huberman/Peterson podcast conversation on how a clearly identified noble aim, pursued over the longest time horizon with the broadest impact, produces the highest dopamine response — used to connect goal clarity to the motivation to act on business transition planning.  Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/  

Steve Moss has spent his career figuring out why senior executive hires blow up. It almost never has to do with whether they can do the job. Watch on YouTube If you are thinking about hiring your first real C-suite leader, or you have already been burned by one who didn't work out, this conversation is going to hit close to home. Steve runs Executive Springboard. He matches new executives with mentors who have sat in that exact chair, and his retention rate is 95% over 18 months. We got into the real stuff. Why coachability matters more than IQ. What Steve calls the "passed over and pissed off" problem. Why he thinks the CHRO is the missing seat at the table. And how to build a leadership bench when your company can't afford the price tag of an off-the-shelf C-suite.   Top 10 Takeaways  50% of senior executives fail within 18 months. And it's almost never because they can't do the job.  Mentoring is not coaching. Mentors share their scars. Coaches ask questions. Consultants tell you what to do.  The "passed over and pissed off" problem will blow up your culture if you don't address it head on.  Consider building before buying. Your internal person who knows the culture might beat an external hire who takes six months to find and another six to ramp.  The CHRO is the missing seat at the leadership table. Not open enrollment. Strategic talent and culture as a counterweight to the CFO's numbers focus.  Executive presence is character, substance, and style. Change your style to fake presence and everyone will smell it.  AI adoption is lumpy. Most organizations know they're behind. The real risk is employees adopting unsanctioned tools while leadership sits on their hands.  AI doesn't replace the need for leaders who can think. It amplifies whatever's already there. Clear goals or confusion.  Coachability is the number one predictor of executive success. Not functional skill. Not IQ. The willingness to ask for feedback and act on it.  Managing change is managing other people's grief. Go too fast and you'll turn the corner to find nobody followed you.   Steve Moss is the founder and president of Executive Springboard, a network of 100+ current and former C-suite executives who mentor leaders to help them excel in new roles. Before founding Executive Springboard, Steve was the chief marketing officer at Pillsbury International, Nestle Ice Cream, and Imation. He reversed Smirnoff's decline in Canada and set the brand on six consecutive years of growth, expanded Goldschlager from the US to 20+ countries and four continents, and has had 50+ direct reports go on to become VPs or presidents. Steve holds a BA from Georgetown University and an MBA from The Wharton School. Executive Springboard offers structured 8-month mentoring programs for senior onboarding, promotion readiness, executive engagement, off-boarding, and outplacement. The company works with organizations from $20M to $10B in revenue across all industries. Steve previously lived in Minnesota for 26 years and now operates from Maryland. Learn more at ExecSpringboard.com.    Chapters:   (00:00) Steve Moss, founder of Executive Springboard - AI roundtables reveal most organizations know they're already behind  (03:21) Executive Springboard expands from onboarding to full executive career lifecycle  (16:00) 50% of senior executives fail in 18 months — almost never the job skills  (18:24) The "passed over and pissed off" problem will blow up your culture  (22:42) Mentoring is not coaching: mentors share their scars, coaches ask questions  (34:00) The CHRO is the missing seat at the leadership table  (50:46) Executive presence is character, substance, and style — fake it and everyone smells it  (59:49) AI adoption is lumpy: employees go rogue while leadership sits on their hands  (1:09:21) Build before buying: coachability beats IQ, managing change means managing grief   Resources:  Executive Springboard — ExecSpringboard.com  Kevin Cashman / Korn Ferry — Vice Chairman, CEO & Enterprise Leadership. Definition: "Leadership is authentic self-expression that adds value." — Korn Ferry Profile | CashmanLeadership.com  Leadership from the Inside Out by Kevin Cashman — Amazon  The AI-Driven Leader by Geoff Woods — Referenced by Ryan as a first-principles framework for AI adoption — Amazon  Ben Bomar / Lithyus Group — Institutional knowledge retention and off-boarding (Minnesota-based) — Lithyus.com | LinkedIn  Meg Gold / Bonde Community — Referenced for the authenticity gap between corporate leaders and owner-operators — JoinBonde.com  Cyndi Gave / The Metis Group — Referenced for Job Scorecards and Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Test — TheMetisGroup.com  Ep. 260 — Steve Moss (previous episode) — YouTube  Kim Clark — CRO and Predictable Revenue expert, iBD collaborator — Ep. 480  Pat Hobby — Fractional CFO, iBD collaborator — Ep. 438  Nick Bradley — Private equity expert ($5B in deals), recent iBD podcast guest — Ep. 481  Ikigai — Japanese concept: what you love, what you're good at, what you can be paid for, what the world needs  Leadership IQ Study — Research on why executives fail: coachability, EQ, motivation, personality, functional competence (only 11%) — LeadershipIQ.com  Kubler-Ross Change Curve — Reframed from grief model to change management model  Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/  

Here's something I keep running into. My clients need leaders. Not bodies. Not fractional band-aids. Real people who can think, decide, and own results. And every time I ask where they're looking, it's the same answer: recruiters who send resumes written by AI for roles described by AI. Nobody is talking to anybody.Watch on YouTube Meg Gold has been on both sides of this. She spent thirteen years at ADP. Sold payroll door-to-door in Stillwater (my town). Rose to VP in San Francisco, where she was sent to flip an underperforming region. She fired a top performer for being a cancer to the culture and caught heat from every direction for it. She knows what it takes to build a real team and what it costs to lead one honestly inside a system that punishes you for it. Then she held her son for the first time and realized she was done being someone else for a living. She and her co-founder, Parnian, built Bonde, a vetted community for women leaders who are done being stuck and ready to do real work. If you're trying to build a team that doesn't need you in every room, listen to this one. Top 10 Takeaways The authenticity gap between corporate leaders and owner-operators is the biggest hidden talent problem in the middle market. Most career pivots don't start with clarity. They start with action. I call it "effing around to find out." Your network is narrower than you think. Thirteen years heads-down at one company and Meg looked up to realize her entire network was ADP people. Bonde accepts 30% of applicants. Vetting isn't gatekeeping. It's how you protect the room. The best recruiter for your next leader is the person already on your team who loves working there. If your interview doesn't feel like two people grabbing a beer at an airport layover, you're doing it wrong. An inch of cancer can kill a 300-pound man. Fire the toxic top performer. The team will cover the number. Leaders don't need to be taught to be human. Leadership is human. Corporate just trained it out of them. The demographic cliff is real. For every five boomers retiring, there's one of us. Authentic leadership is about to become the scarcest asset in the market. Owner-operators have what everyone wants. Real autonomy, real culture, real impact. Start telling that story.  Meg Gold is the co-founder of Bonde, a private professionals club for women in the second and third stages of their careers. Before building Bonde, Meg spent over 13 years at ADP, starting as a door-to-door payroll rep in Minneapolis and rising to Vice President overseeing the San Francisco Bay Area region, where she was tasked with turning around an underperforming territory. Meg's career has also included private equity advisory work with Globalization Partners and fractional revenue and leadership consulting for venture-backed companies. She and her co-founder Parnian built Bonde after experiencing firsthand the gap between what corporate environments offer and what experienced women leaders actually need: vetted community, authentic connection, honest career support, and access to opportunities through trusted relationships rather than broken recruiter pipelines. Bonde launched in September 2024, currently has over 150 members with a 30% acceptance rate, and a waitlist of over 2,500. Learn more at joinBondee.com. Chapters: (00:00) Building Bonde: a vetted professional community for women in their second and third career acts (05:59) Meg's origin story: Craigslist roommates, door-to-door payroll sales, and finding her footing at ADP (09:23) Promoted to lead: discovering a passion for people leadership over individual performance (12:09) The clarity moment: holding her newborn son and deciding it was time to leave corporate (23:17) Hot potato management vs. thoughtful leadership: adjusting levers without blowing things up (33:57) Owner-operators have what everyone wants — real autonomy, real culture — but no one is telling that story (36:00) Authentic followership: the "are you in or out" interview style and firing the toxic top performer (46:30) Corporate trained authenticity out of leaders, and it's costing everyone forty hours a week (57:15) How Bonde works: 30% acceptance, vetted community, retreats, and a band-of-brothers dynamic (1:03:10) Dunbar's number, deliberate networking, and treating the CEO search like a first date (1:13:00) Women in leadership: representation gaps, the demographic cliff, and what Bonde is really built for Resources:Bonde: https://joinbonde.com/Meg Gold LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meggold/Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/

How do you grow your leadership team when you can't afford a full C-suite, your best people are buried in tactical work, and you have no idea whether they can actually think strategically? Cyndi runs The Metis Group and has spent 30 years turning fuzzy leadership development into something tangible and measurable. Watch on YouTubeIn our first conversation, she walked us through her Job Scorecard, a tool that quantifies what a role actually requires instead of hiding behind vague job descriptions. Once you know what the job is, how do you know whether the person in it has the cognitive horsepower to own outcomes, not just execute tasks? We unpacked the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Test, the TriMetrix assessment, and why most behavioral assessments (DISC, Culture Index, Predictive Index) only tell you half the story. If you're trying to figure out whether to elevate your controller into a CFO, promote your best salesperson into a sales leader, or just understand why your team keeps waiting for you to tell them what to do — this episode is a roadmap. Top 10 Takeaways If you can't afford an off-the-shelf C-suite, then stop trying to buy one. Elevate internal talent instead of chasing expensive fractional magic bullets. The Job Scorecard is the foundation — quantify the role before you evaluate the person. Every leadership role needs separate buckets for oversight and talent management. Outsource the tactical to create space for strategic development. A 5-year valuation goal is non-negotiable; without it, your leaders are flying blind. The Watson-Glaser test quantifies critical thinking, and a raw score of 28+ is the magic number. Behavioral assessments tell you how someone communicates — not whether they can think. Strategic thinking has atrophied across all generations — and COVID made it worse. If someone says, "Just tell me what to do," that's a red flag — not a work style.  Cyndi Gave is the founder of The Metis Group, a behavior-expert consultancy focused on getting the right people in the right seats — and getting extraordinary performance out of them. Celebrating 30 years in business in March 2025, Cyndi is a self-described "recovering HR person" who built her practice around tangible, process-driven tools that entrepreneurs actually have the patience to implement. Her specialties include the Job Scorecard, the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Test, and the TriMetrix assessment — a three-part diagnostic that measures behaviors (DISC), motivators, and the Hartman Value Profile. Previously based in Michigan, Cyndi now operates out of Charlotte, North Carolina, and hosts a monthly leadership podcast through The Metis Group.Chapters: (00:00) Introduction of Cyndi Gave and the leadership development challenge (02:18) The Metis Group: 30 years making leadership tangible and measurable (07:37) The demographic cliff and why internal talent development can't wait (17:06) Can't afford a full C-suite? Stop trying to buy one (29:00) Job scorecard: quantify the role before you evaluate the person (44:00) Elevate internal talent: outsource tactical to make space for strategic (47:00) "Just tell me what to do" is a red flag, not a work style (01:00:41) Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Test and the magic score of 28 (01:11:34) TriMetrix: behaviors, motivators, and the Hartman Value Profile (01:20:55) Why using only one assessment gives you half the pictureResources:Cyndi Gave: https://themetissgroup.com/Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/

Matt Curry built Curry's Auto Service from $103,000 and 13 credit cards into a 10-location, $18 million auto repair chain — then sold to a private equity firm and watched them burn it to the ground within six months. After a year of "now what?", Matt realized he could've had the freedom he wanted without ever selling. So he started over. In 2017, he and his wife Judy launched Craftsman Auto Care, and in eight years they've built it to eight stores doing $36 million — with nearly 10,000 five-star Google reviews, techs making $300K+, and Matt free to leave for a year without the business missing a beat. This conversation is a masterclass in what happens when you build the machine right the second time around.Watch on YouTubeTop 10 Takeaways You don't have to sell to get freedom. Private equity destroyed everything he built in less than a year.  The "now what?" after selling is real — and brutal.  Most owners don't know how much they actually spend.  Begin at the beginning — and master the business from the bottom up. Say yes. Then figure it out.  Enforce and reinforce. Every. Single. Day.  Pay in the top 1% and you'll never have a talent shortage.  ADD isn't a disability — it's an entrepreneur's superpower.  Before you sell, ask the real "why."  Matt Curry is a serial entrepreneur, Wall Street Journal bestselling author, and 45-year veteran of the automotive repair industry. He built Curry's Auto Service from one shop to 10 locations with $18M in revenue before selling in 2013. In 2017, he and his wife Judy launched Craftsman Auto Care outside Washington, D.C., growing it to eight stores doing $36M with nearly 10,000 five-star Google reviews. His book, The A.D.D. Entrepreneur: How to Harness Your Superpowers to Create a Kick-Ass Company, is a WSJ bestseller. Matt also runs A Dash of Curry Consulting and is an avid endurance race car driver. Chapters: (00:00) Introduction: Matt Curry's comeback story, debt to $36M (01:17) ADD diagnosis at 12: the label that became his superpower (11:00) Building Curry's Auto Service on $103K and 13 credit cards (21:20) Private equity destroys everything he built in six months (32:34) Building the machine again: SOPs, delegation, and the second comeback (57:00) Culture from the top: enforce and reinforce creates amazing teams (1:11:13) Say yes: the Vail ski trip that unlocked hidden revenue (1:19:00) You don't have to sell to get freedom: succession and estate planning (1:25:56) Before you sell, ask the real "why": wisdom from both rounds Resources:Matt Curry: ADashOfCurry.comCraftsmanAutoCare.comRyan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/

If you’ve ever wondered why private equity–backed companies often look more disciplined, more focused, and ultimately more valuable than most owner-led businesses, this episode pulls back the curtain on the operating system behind it—and shows you how to apply the same structure without giving up control.Watch on YouTube Nick Bradley (27+ and $5B in acquisitions) breaks down the private equity governance model: how firms start with a clear investment thesis, define specific EBITDA levers, install a 90-day execution plan, run tight board cadence, and align leadership around measurable value drivers—all with a 3–5 year, 3–5x exit in mind.  Then we contrast that with the iBD Ownership OS™. Mechanically, the systems are nearly identical—governance above operations, KPI clarity, disciplined capital allocation—but the outcome is different. Private equity optimizes for IRR and multiple expansion; iBD optimizes for time, cash flow, wealth, and optionality through the Owner’s Scorecard™. This episode helps you decide which scoreboard you’re playing for—and how to build accordingly. Top 10 Takeaways Private equity doesn’t outperform owners because they’re smarter — they outperform because they install governance you’ve never been forced to install. PE defines how value will be created before they ever touch operations — most owners grow first and justify it later. The first 90 days in PE are about installing discipline; most owners are still reacting 10 years in. PE boards review forward-looking value drivers; most owner meetings review last month’s fires. Capital creates clarity — because when money has a clock on it, excuses disappear. EBITDA expansion in PE is intentional and measured; in owner-led companies it’s often accidental or inconsistent. The gap between PE-backed businesses and independent owners isn’t capability — it’s structure. PE always knows the exit they’re building toward; most owners don’t know what “winning” looks like beyond growth. The iBD Ownership OS™ installs the same discipline without forcing a sale — but only if the owner commits to board-level governance. The scoreboard you choose — IRR or Owner’s Scorecard™ — quietly determines every major decision you make.  Nick Bradley has spent more than a decade on both sides of the PE table – as CEO of PE-backed companies four times and as an Operating Partner evaluating acquisition targets. Across 27 transactions totaling $5B+ in exits, he’s seen what separates businesses that command premium multiples from those that get picked apart in due diligence. Now he brings that insider playbook to founder-led businesses. His book Exit for Millions hit #1 on Amazon. His podcast Scale Up with Nick Bradley has over 1 million downloads across 130+ countries. But his real work happens behind closed doors – helping 7-8 figure business owners transform their companies into investor-grade assets that sell on their terms, not the buyer’s. Chapters: (00:00) Nick Bradley's background: helping founder-led businesses become investor-grade (03:14) The gap isn't capability — PE outperforms because of governance you've never been forced to install (05:00) Capital creates clarity: when money has a clock on it, excuses disappear (17:22) PE defines how value will be created before they ever touch operations (22:36) Deal structure decoded: cash at close, earnouts, and rollover equity explained (32:27) The first 90 days install discipline; most owners are still reacting ten years in (50:27) PE boards review forward-looking value drivers, not last month's fires (55:42) Weekly and monthly cadence: catching problems before the board does (1:09:30) The scoreboard you choose — IRR or Owner's Scorecard™ — determines every decision (1:32:33) The iBD Ownership OS™: same discipline as PE, without forcing a sale Resources:Nick Bradley: https://highvalueexit.com/Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/

“Most companies don’t have a revenue engine; they have a collection of tactics.” - Kim Clark Watch on YouTube This episode is about helping owners understand why revenue feels so frustrating and chaotic—and what actually has to exist for it to become predictable. Kim Clark walks through what a Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) really does, not as a title, but as an owner-level responsibility for designing and governing the entire revenue system end-to-end.    We break down why revenue silos form across sales, marketing, and leadership, how that fragmentation destroys forecasting and cash flow clarity, and how Kim’s CRO framework and nine core modules give owners a concrete picture of what “good” looks like so revenue stops being a guessing game and starts supporting real ownership goals.  Top 10 Takeaways  Revenue feels chaotic when no one owns it end-to-end.  A CRO is responsible for designing the revenue system, not just driving sales activity.  Predictable revenue is created through structure and constraints, not hustle or volume.  Most revenue silos exist because accountability is split across functions instead of unified.  Without a clearly defined ICP, every downstream metric becomes noisy and misleading.  Marketing spend becomes wasteful when it isn’t tied to pipeline math and unit economics.  Forecasting fails when assumptions aren’t explicit and owned by one accountable leader.  Growth without economic clarity often increases stress instead of creating freedom.  Owners don’t need to run revenue, but they must understand what “good” looks like to govern it.  When revenue is designed properly, decision-making shifts from reactive to intentional.    Kim Clark is a sales and marketing strategist who helped scale ITR Economics from a founder-led advisory firm to a professionally managed company that exited at eight figures. As head of sales and marketing, she built the firm’s first CRM, content strategy, and inbound engine—moving the company from personality-based selling to a system built on data, automation, and strategic execution. Today, she works with business owners to build marketing engines that align with their strategy, team, and long-term cash flow goals—so they can grow without chaos and delegate without losing visibility. Her frameworks are directly aligned with the "Maximize Growth" track inside the Build a Valuable Business module of the iBD™ Magic Model.    Chapters:   (00:00) Why revenue feels chaotic when no one owns it end-to-end  (03:00) Designing the revenue system: architecture, journey, and predictability over campaigns  (05:10) Breaking silos: unified accountability across sales, marketing, and operations  (09:15) Womb to tomb, service level agreements, eliminating blame between sales and marketing  (17:17) Marketing spend guardrails: tying budget to pipeline math and profitability  (24:20) Building systems that support structure and constraints, not just hustle  (28:55) Defining ICP and winning position: without clarity, all metrics become noise  (40:02) Systems & Forecasting with explicit assumptions: one accountable leader owns the numbers  (47:00) CRO, COO, CFO priorities: understanding constraints to avoid chaotic growth  (54:13) Growth without economic clarity increases stress instead of creating freedom  (58:13) Owner education as governance: spotting bad advice and wasteful spending   Resources: Kim Clark LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/kimberly-clark-79634845/ Ryan Tansom Website https://ryantansom.com/