Episodes
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Jim Eickhoff is the President and CEO of Creative Dining Services based in Zeeland, MI. Jim joined Creative Dining in 2015 after 35 years of Senior Executive leadership experience from his time at Fortune 200 companies across the U.S., including the University of Phoenix/Apollo Education Group, Sallie Mae, HOSTS Learning, and The ServiceMaster Company. Under Jimâs leadership, Creative Dining has experienced 50% growth and leaped to the 24th largest food service management company in America.
He is the first non-founder serving as President & CEO and is focused on excellent client experiences: providing outstanding dining programs with the highest level of customer service and integrity. Jim is committed to upholding a company culture of family while coaching employees to leverage their unique strengths to reach their highest potential.
Jim Eickhoff received his B.A. in English and Secondary Education from Hope College in Holland, Michigan. Jim and his wife, Lynn, reside in Holland, Michigan.
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Tim Murphy is the CEO of APX Operating Company LLC, dba Boomers Parks, owned by Cerberus private equity ($60B AUM). Boomers Parks operates six family entertainment centers and two water parks in California, Florida, and New Jersey.
Since becoming CEO in 2020, Tim led Boomers Parks from bankruptcy to profitability within a year, amidst a global pandemic. Initially operating at a $10 million loss, he revamped the customer experience and introduced new revenue streams, resulting in a 180% revenue increase in 2021 and continued growth through today.
Tim began his 35+ year career at Walt Disney World and has worked with over 150 entertainment, restaurant, and food & beverage brands at more than 10,000 locations in senior roles. He is also a Board Director at Coney Park & Happy City, part of The Carlyle Group ($426B AUM), which operates 100+ family entertainment centers in Latin America.
Tim's expertise includes top brands like Disney, Darden Restaurants, Jimmy Johnâs, Applebeeâs, and Sonnyâs. He has managed over 35 transactions involving 1,200+ locations, negotiating deals from $11 million to $350 million+.
He is a member of IAAPA, CAPA, FAA, AAMA, NRA, CRA, WWA, ICSC, and IFA, and is a licensed commercial real estate broker in Florida. Tim holds a BS/BA in Accounting from the University of Central Florida and an MBA in Finance from Orlando College.
Connect with Tim at [email protected] and on LinkedIn at TimMurphyCEO.
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Chelsea Jubilee is the co-founder, CEO, visionary, and driving force behind the company Energized Health, which is dedicated to helping Americans optimize their health at the cellular level. With over twenty years of experience in operating businesses, the Southern California native, along with her Co-founder husband John Jubilee, is pioneering cellular health awareness. Energized Health utilizes a protocol to reduce the need for medication, prevent disease, and reverse ailments. Chelsea Jubilee aims to develop a company to help people get healthy in body, mind, and spirit.
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Dr. Matt Lucas has served in Christian non-profits for 20 years. Presently, he is serving as the CEO/President of Our Daily Bread Ministries, a global Bible engagement ministry with a staff of 700 serving in 32 offices to distribute hundreds of millions print and digital resources in 58 languages in more than 150 countries. Prior to ODBM, he served in Christian higher education as Provost at Corban University and Chancellor at Indiana Wesleyan University. He writes for ODBM, speaks regularly, and works with churches around the world. In his spare time, he loves to hike with his wife, Tammy, and spend time with his six daughters and three grandchildren.
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Thomas Ryan, CEO and founder of Bigly Sales, is a visionary leader transforming business communications with innovative AI solutions. With a background in staffing and executive experience at Workbeast LLC, Thomas identified the need for more efficient processes and founded Bigly Sales in 2020. Under his leadership, Bigly Sales is revolutionizing the industry by replacing traditional call centers with advanced AI technology. This approach offers 24/7 multilingual support in English and Spanish, significantly reduces operational costs by up to 90%, and boosts conversion rates, all while ensuring full compliance with TCPA and HIPAA standards for data protection.Thomas's dedication to efficiency and client satisfaction positions Bigly Sales as a trailblazer in the tech industry, committed to enhancing business communications through the power of artificial intelligence.
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John Rohde is the former CEO of RES Americas. He has more than 30 years of experience working in the energy market. He was Chief Executive Officer of the Renewable Energy Systems business in the United States and Canada, overseeing development, construction, operations & maintenance, and asset management for wind, solar, energy storage projects.
Prior to this role John was Chief Operating Officer of ENGIE Services North American, overseeing operations in energy services, construction, and facilities management, as well as M&A and managing the integration of the acquisitions.
John started his career with Siemens Energy moving to Mitsubishi International and he was also General Manager of Worleyâs North American Power Engineering business.
John has a wealth of knowledge regarding the Americas energy markets; he is passionate about health & safety, diversity and inclusion and is committed to working to decarbonize the energy sector as part of driving the energy transition. In addition, he has an MBA and a B.S. Mechanical Engineering degree.
John is married and in his spare time likes to travel and spend time with friends and his two rescue dogs.
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Josh McCall serves as Chairman Emeritus for the global brand experience agency, Jack Morton where he focuses on growth and consulting on key client relationships. In 2022, he stepped down as CEO and Chairman after being an integral part of the agency since 1984 and holding a variety of roles ranging from Account Executive to Chief Operating Officer. Under his leadership, the agency expanded its reach across the US, Europe, Australia, and Asia and was recognized for its creativity, winning awards at the Effies, Cannes Lions, D&AD, Clios, Ex, PRO, and Webby Awards. Josh was instrumental in transforming the agency into an ideas-focused culture that creates extraordinary work for brands and he kept the agency at the forefront of the Experience Economy. Josh McCall earned a bachelorâs degree from the University of Pennsylvania, completed business and management training at the Amos Tuck School at Dartmouth College and The Kenan-Flagler School at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and holds an honorary Doctor of Commercial Science degree from Suffolk University in Boston. Josh also serves on the board of The Vineyard Trust, the owner of historic island landmarks.
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Ken Reali has gained significant and varied experience in his 33-year MedTech career. He has individually contributed and then led areas including product development, global marketing, business development, commercialization, and sales of medical devices. He has a strong background in ethics and compliance, market analysis, reimbursement strategy, regulatory and clinical affairs, new product development, sales force optimization and domestic and international product commercialization. Ken has also been successful in utilizing M&A to diversify and broaden companies and has successfully led financing at both private and public companies.
As a CEO for 13 years, Reali has gained experience driving strategies to build shareholder value. He has worked with and led initiatives with medical societies, patient advocacy groups, governmental agencies, public and private insurance companies, investor relations, capital funding, strategic planning, and quality and lean production. He has led companies through sales processes to new ownership and into public markets through IPO.
Reali started his career at two large multi-national companies, Biomet and Stryker where he held positions of increasing responsibility. Ken then gained general management experience at Smith & Nephew starting in 2006 prior to taking on his first CEO role in 2010 at TranS1 driving a turnaround strategy. Reali then led Clinical Innovations, a womenâs healthcare company through successful exit after five years while doubling the business size and value. In 2020 he led Bioventus through an IPO while increasing the size of the business by 80% through strategic M&A.
Reali serves on the board of directors of a broad group of companies in MedTech from orthopedics to womenâs healthcare. Reali also donates his time serving on the board of directors of AdvaMed, the National Italian American Foundation, and Valparaiso University College of Business. Ken lives in Walla Walla, Washington with his wife Kristin where they started a vineyard several years ago.
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Since 2015, twin brothers Keith and Kyle Rossin have grown each mangrove by hand for all of MANG's Florida planting projects.
As MANG keeps growing, weâre not only planting mangrove forests throughout Florida, we're also planting internationally in an effort to affect positive change in countries and coastlines affected by deforestation and pollution across the globe.As the CEO of MANG Gear, Kyle Rossin is leading the way with his mission to preserve and restore coastal ecosystems around the world. MANG started its Buy One. Plant One. initiative by growing mangroves in Florida in 2015 and has continued to cultivate a culture for restoration one mangrove at a time. Through education, restoration, and apparel, MANG is committed to preserving mother nature for the next generation, so that we all can enjoy our natural resources.
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Joshua Gould is CEO of thebigword, one of the largest language service providers globally. With over 20 years of experience in the language, defense and contingent workforce industries, Joshua is passionate about connecting people and businesses across borders and cultures. As the Group Chief Executive Officer at thebigword, he leads a global team of over 400 employees and 15,000 linguists, delivering translation, interpretation, and localization solutions to clients in over 250 languages and dialects.
Joshua is also an Export Champion for the Department for International Trade and the Northern Powerhouse in the UK, where he advises and support companies on how to leverage international trade opportunities and expand their markets. His expertise in business growth, corporate strategy, and M&A preparation has been recognized by multiple awards, including the Stevie Award, the Business Insider 40 Under 40, and the European CEO of the Year Awards. He is always looking for new challenges and ways to make a positive impact in the world through innovation and enterprise.
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Jeff Weinstein grew up in the Detroit Metro area with a big extended family. His earliest work experience started at 13, answering phones and doing clerical work during tax season for the accounting firm where his father was a partner. He gained his first leadership experience as a founding member, chapter president and regional vice president of Bânai Bârith Youth Organization in Michigan.
He has over 30 years of experience in the food and beverage business, beginning with full service restaurant and cafe work while he studied Philosophy at the University of Michigan. His knowledge of the business comes from working on the job.
Jeff spent 12 years with Peetâs Coffee & Tea in the San Francisco Bay Area where he played every role they would allow him, from serving coffee, managing a store, running a district, building an operations services department and creating wholesale programs.
After time with Dean & Deluca and Starbucksâboth great learning opportunitiesâhe joined Jamba Juice where he led operations services for over 800 domestic and international locations. In 2015, Jamba sold most of their corporate units to franchisees. Jeff led operations for VitaligentâJambaâs largest franchisee with shops in Northern California and Washingtonâand eventually became CEO of the 96-unit restaurant group.
In 2022, Vitaligent was successfully acquired by an even larger restaurant group called Sizzling Platter. After supporting the transition, Jeff joined Wise Sons Jewish Delicatessen as CEO. Wise Sons operates six delis in San Francisco and Oakland, in addition to a scratch bakery, commissary and wholesale business.
Following the recent college graduation of their daughter, Jeff and his wife of 30 years moved to the Sonoma Valley where they serve multiple non-profit organizations.
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Jordi Ferre is an accomplished C-suite business leader with a strong commercial and operations background in the food sector including B2C (business to consumer) as well as the value-added food ingredients and agritech sectors. He holds dual citizenship in the United States and Spain, having lived and worked in the U.S. for over two decades, as well as Europe (France, Germany, Norway) and Asia (Singapore, Malaysia).
Mr. Ferre was CEO at Alvinesa Natural Ingredients through 2023 based in Madrid. Prior to Alvinesa he was the CEO of Nasdaq-listed AgroFresh Solutions, the global leader of post-harvest solutions to extend the shelf life of fresh fruits and vegetables. Other positions include Chief Operating Officer at PureCircle, the leading producer, innovator and marketer of high-purity stevia ingredients, Vice President, Sales & Marketing SPLENDAÂź Sucralose at Tate & Lyle; as well as ovarious B2C positions at Wise Foods, Chupa Chups and Warner Lambert.
In 2023 he launched Launch CIBUSNETÂź, a selective network of multi-discipline professionals across the global food industry providing identification of potential investor/partners, new technology advisory, go-to-market strategy, due diligence, and board/advisory roles. Through Cibusnet he has assisted a number of companies in the ready-to-eat meals, ingredients and precision fermentation industries. Since October, he is the interim CEO of HTBA USA, a leading manufacturer of flavonoids used in the food and beverage industry.
Mr. Ferre holds a BBA-MBA degree from Esade Business School and completed the PMD program at IESE Business School both based in Barcelona, Spain as well as a number of leadership programs at MIT, Drexler and IMD business schools.
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Gregg R. Florentin is a 30-year visionary leader who has consistently driven innovation, operational excellence, and strategic collaborations in the healthcare industry.
Prior to TriCity Cardiology, Florentin served as the President and CEO of Ahart Healthcare Solutions International in Dubai UAE and Houston Texas for eight years. During his tenure, he forged strategic partnerships with notable institutions such as Inova, Children's National, and SEHA.
Under Florentinâs leadership, AHART grew to over 500 employees where he was instrumental in holding various global interim executive leadership roles for 60 different specialties with mergers, acquisitions, joint ventures, private equity, and financial growth. These experiences were innovative, leveraging Lean techniques, artificial intelligence, predictive analytics, and patient and employee satisfaction to enhance safety, quality, and cost.
Florentin also held various executive leadership roles with Willamette Group, Group Health, Providence Medical Group, and Meritus Healthcare before his move to AHART. His illustrious career began at Community Tissue Services, one of the Nationâs Premier Organ and Tissue Banks.
Florentin has many accolades including:
Health Professional of the Year Award, Washington State Volunteers Society
3 Time Whoâs Who In Healthcare Executive
Distinguished Leadership Award, Medford Oregon Community Executives
AHART Executive Award for outstanding leadership in business and education partnerships.
COO of the Year Providence
CEO of the Year AHART
Diamond Executive Award for Service Excellence, Dubai Healthcare
3 Time Lean Six Sigma Innovation Award
Florentinâs leadership philosophy emphasizes transparency, rounding for authenticity, kindness, and collaboration. He firmly believes that prioritizing team membersâ overall happiness and satisfaction leads to positive outcomes for both the team and patients.
In summary, Gregg R. Florentin exemplifies excellence and enjoys sharing his vision as an invited speaker at numerous national and international conferences in the past 8 years sharing his knowledge on innovative healthcare to improving the patient experience, employee engagement, and the future of healthcare.
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Robb Munger, founder of Exodus Place, champions transitional housing for homeless men. With a background in finance, where he established a leading financial company in manufactured housing, Mungerâs journey took a pivotal turn when he joined the board of Guiding Light Mission. There, he propelled a struggling rescue mission into prominence and transformed a former state corrections facility into Michiganâs largest non-governmental transitional housing, offering new beginnings to those in need.
A former Army Officer, Mungerâs commitment to service shines through his philanthropic work and innovative solutions in community development. His collaboration with the Salvation Army and Goodwill in a small town within American City has showcased an innovative approach to addressing homelessness, demonstrating the impactful change that results from combining compassion with action. This initiative, with Munger at the helm, has become a testament to the power of collaborative community efforts in making a tangible difference in peopleâs lives.
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Jeff Bell is the past CEO of LegalShield, North Americaâs largest legal subscription service for households and small business. Jeff grew this business from a $650m valuation in 2014 to over $2.4b in 2022 when he retired. Presently, Jeff serves as an Operating Partner on the MidOcean Partners Private Equity Investment Team. Prior to LegalShield, Jeff served as the Microsoft Corporate Vice President for Xbox. He is known for launching Halo 3, Gears of War, Rock Band and Netflix on Xbox Live. He spent 5 years at DaimlerChrysler as the Vice President and General Manager of Chrysler and Jeep Divisions. He is credited with development and launch of the the Jeep Rubicon and 4-door Wrangler, as well as the Chrysler 200, among others. Jeff served Ford Motor Company for 12 years, including as Managing Director of Ford Spain. He serves on the Board of his alma mater, Johns Hopkins-SAIS, and has served on the Kenyon College and National Multiple Sclerosis Board of Trustees.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffbell801/
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Cheryl Bachelder is a passionate, purpose-led business leader -- the former CEO of PopeyesÂź Louisiana Kitchen, Inc. Cheryl is known for her crisp strategic thinking, a franchisee-focused approach, and superior financial performance. Guided by the servant leadership thinking of Robert Greenleaf, she believes highly caring, collaborative leaders with big ambitions for the enterprise, not themselves, generate the conditions for people to perform their best work.
Cheryl Bachelder served as CEO of PopeyesÂź Louisiana Kitchen, Inc., a NASDAQ traded company with over 2,600 restaurants in 26 countries, from 2007 to 2017. The story of Popeyes success is chronicled in her book, Dare to Serve: How to drive superior results by serving others. During her tenure, Popeyesâ stock price grew from $11 to $61, at which time the board sold the company to Restaurant Brands International Inc. for $1.8 billion dollars or $79 per share in March, 2017.
Cherylâs earlier career included brand leadership roles at Yum Brands, Dominoâs Pizza, RJR Nabisco, The Gillette Company and Procter & Gamble.
Cheryl serves as a director on the boards of Pier 1 Imports, Inc. (PIR), US Foods Holding Corp. (USFD), and Chick-Fil-A, Inc. She sits on the advisory board of Procter & Gambleâs franchising venture, Tide Dry Cleaners. She is a board member of CEO Forum, an organization that encourages and develops leadership capability in CEOs and senior executives.
Cheryl holds a Bachelorâs and Masters of Business Administration degree from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. She is married 38 years to Chris Bachelder and they have three grown daughters, two terrific son-in-laws, and four handsome grandsons. Cheryl and Chris reside in Atlanta, Georgia and attend Buckhead Church. They are avid learners, fans of the classical education movement, and can always be found reading a good book!
Website: Serving Performs at www.cherylbachelder.com
Former CEO, PopeyesÂź Louisiana Kitchen, Inc.
Director at Pier 1 Imports, Inc.
Director at US Foods Holding Corp.
Director at Chick-Fil-A, Inc.
Author, Dare to Serve: How to drive superior results by serving others
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Kevin Akeroyd is CEO of Sovos.
From a small town in Missouri to Stanford business school and 3-time CEO, Kevin Akeroyd is not the proverbial polished CEO. A man who is not afraid to go off message and proclaims, be âovert, loud and challengingâ to get things done. A CEO who declares it his mission to âkeep business leaders out of jailâ by helping companies traverse the complex and sometimes dangerous waters of compliance. A leader who puts his money where his mouth is and approaches diversity not with PR platitudes but by personally funding an annual college fund for underprivileged youth.â
âWith countless mergers and acquisitions under his belt and having worked for small venture-backed endeavors to being a division head for industry heavyweights like Oracle and Salesforce, Kevin is a builder who works to understand where companies are stagnating, where to innovate and find their break-through potential and ultimately how to move from point solution to platform. â
Kevin built the enterprise stack for the Chief Communications Officer at Cision, the Chief Human Resource Officer at Magnit and now is working at Sovos to deliver the global compliance system of record for the Chief Financial Officer. The Sovos Compliance Cloud is the first and only platform to bring together tax compliance and regulatory reporting into a single view for business. At Sovos he is building a new category, a new line of business for compliance, and taking the industry on a journey to conquer the complexities and challenges of compliance.â
âKevinâs leadership philosophy is that itâs not enough to be brilliant. Transparency and communication are paramount and itâs the job of the CEO to look around corners and see whatâs coming. Bad CEOs let things happen and good CEOs make things happen and at the end of the day, everything is your fault. Kevin brings this level of accountability to his customers, partners and employees. His mission at Sovos is to evolve compliance from its current state of being a painful requirement for business to being a force for growth in every company, in every industry and in every country.
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Herb Cogliano leads his own advisory practice, Aspire Growth Advisors, leveraging the Scaling Up Performance Platform, described in Verne Harnish's award-winning book, Mastering the Rockefeller Habits-Scaling Up.
As an International Business Coach, experienced CEO Scaling Up Practitioner, and Professor of the Scaling Up Masters Business Course, he has learned firsthand what it takes to overcome many business challenges. Herb is pursuing his passion of working with leaders of growth companies to achieve more freedom by helping them create industry leading strategies, a culture of accountability, flawless execution along with a healthy cash flow within their organizations.
Herb was formerly CEO of Sullivan and Cogliano Designers, a 53-year privately held family owned, Technology Staffing and Workforce Solutions firm and in 1993, he also founded the Sullivan and Cogliano education business.
Sullivan and Cogliano joined a select group of companies that have appeared on the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Company list multiple times. The Inc. 5000 is ranked according to percentage revenue growth over a four-year period. This achievement puts us in a unique position, especially if you consider that over 27 million businesses are registered in the USA.
His firm was a Multiyear recipient of Boston and South Florida Business Journal Best Places to Work Award. This honor recognizes Sullivan and Cogliano achievements for changing the business landscape, in creating a positive work environment that attracts and retains employees through a combination of employee satisfaction, working conditions and company culture.
Herb serves on the Carroll School of Management Board of Advisors at Boston College. He has served as a Board of Director of the American Staffing Association. He is past president of the Massachusetts Association of Staffing Services, and previously served on the boards of Employment Resources, Inc. and Junior Achievement.
He received his BSBA from Boston College in 1987 and his MBA from University of Massachusetts (International Honor Society Beta Gamma Sigma) in 2016.
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Jeremy Macdonald is the CEO of Bonney Plumbing, Electrical, Heating and Air where he and his team are on a mission to build the most trusted home services company in California.
Prior to joining Bonney, Jeremy worked as an entrepreneur in South Africaâs rapidly evolving telecoms industry. Jeremy moved to the US with his family 5 years ago in search of better opportunities and adventure. At Bonney, Jeremy Macdonald is focused on constantly improving company culture, hiring and developing talent and pursuing sustainable growth.
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Manos Kalaitzoglou is the co-founder and CEO of Arcweave and is a Greek founder originally from Crete, Greece. Before becoming a founder, Manos studied architecture in the National Technical University of Athens, then switched to becoming a web designer as he was always fascinated by design, tech and storytelling. He worked with various startups in design lead and consultancy roles, which eventually led him to realise he and his teams were not efficient with the existing collaboration tools for interactive experiences. He founded Arcweave to help lower the bar of game design and development and allow everyone to take their first steps in this fascinating industry.
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