Fireside Chats: Behind The Build

What happens when a founder scales a franchise to 100+ locations in just five years—then hits a wall? In this episode of MustardHub Voices: Behind the Build, Curtis Forbes sits down with Landon Eckles, former founder of Clean Juice and now a professional EOS implementer, to unpack the journey from entrepreneurial chaos to organizational clarity. Landon shares how the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) helped him regain focus, foster accountability, and build healthier teams—and how he now helps others do the same. From confronting hard truths to creating culture-fit teams and using scorecards to track what really matters, this conversation is packed with takeaways for leaders who want more than just growth—they want alignment, health, and traction.

About Landon:

Landon is a founder who implemented Entrepreneurial Operating Systems to scale and successfully exit the business. Landon understands the challenges entrepreneurs face firsthand. As a Professional EOS implementor and consultant, Landon helps businesses with 10 to 250 employees clarify their vision, gain traction, and build healthier teams. Landon leverages rich experience to guide leadership teams to break through barriers and achieve sustainable growth using the EOS.

The savings rate in the United States is alarmingly low, with some studies indicating that nearly a quarter of American households have no emergency savings, and a significantly larger percentage of US families lack sufficient funds to weather a financial crisis. These statistics are scary, but this is where Devin Miller and SecureSave come in. Join Curtis and Devin as they discuss the importance of financial wellness to today's labor force and how employer-sponsored emergency savings accounts are a must-have benefit to support today’s workers and drive better business outcomes.

About Devin:

Devin Miller is an expert in workplace emergency savings. Devin is a financial technology entrepreneur who has built FinTech solutions used by tens of millions of Americans. Today, Devin serves as the CEO at SecureSave.

Perry Lunsford is a people person, committed to the health, wellness, and happiness of others. His career has been all about putting love and awesomeness into the world, building and supporting great teams along the way. Perry and Curtis delve into how to attract and retain top talent by setting realistic expectations, leading authentically, learning from failure, and being human. Of course, they also discuss compensation (including benefits such as health insurance) as they discuss how employers can get it right when it comes to their people.

About Perry:

Seven years ago, Perry Lunsford changed the way health insurance is sold in America. Today, he and his team at The Healthy Insurance Dude have a goal to FIX the way health insurance is sold in the United States.

What do franchisees really need? Dan Martin, CFE, has been answering that question for decades — not just with tools, but with empathy. In this episode, Curtis chats with Dan about his journey from fast-typing admin to tech entrepreneur, the “gravity-free” thinking that shaped his innovations, and the people-first mindset that powers business success in franchising and beyond. Come for the war stories, stay for the mirror speeches.

About Dan:

Dan Martin stumbled into franchising after college. He’s a pro now, but then, he knew nothing. After learning from the best, he started his own franchise management firm in 1985 to assist startup franchisors, and he became a multi-unit owner, purchasing a large territory franchise and running 18 franchises. Later, he would go on to launch the tech company version of his franchise management firm, IFX, with 10 impressive SaaS modules designed to help franchise organizations grow (and make it so they're yelled at less by their franchisees). These SaaS applications and the Mentoring Strategies bring everything together for both startup and established franchise brands.

You need to walk the walk if you talk the talk, just like Chris Igou. A seasoned entrepreneur and business owner, Chris knows what it's like for small businesses trying to recruit, hire, and retain the right people for the right roles. In this episode, Chris joins our host, Curtis Forbes, to discuss how small businesses can build and grow their culture.

About Chris:

Chris Igou started his career as an entrepreneur, owning a home painting franchise in his early 20s. He's spent most of his career in franchising, running and building brands. Today, Chris serves as the Vice President at CareerPlug. He's been a part of growing a number of businesses, but his true passion is coaching others and helping them grow their business to reach their potential.

The more you know about your organization's culture, the better you’ll be able to further build and support that culture and see better outcomes. There is no one better to discuss this than Behavioral Scientist and Zorakle Pofiles Founder, Rebecca Monet. In this installment of MustardHub Voices: Behind The Build, Rebecca breaks down the data and trends in the evolving world of work. She provides incredible insights on how these metrics impact finding, training, and retaining talent and fostering employee engagement.

About Rebecca:

Rebecca Monet is a behavioral scientist who specializes in human performance specifically as it relates to business ownership and leadership roles. She is the founder of Zorakle Profiles, a profiling tool based on 7 statistically validated sciences. These sciences determine franchisee/employee compatibility and predict performance. Zorakle tools provide franchise companies a means to reduce training, support and litigation costs while increasing employee and franchisee satisfaction, validation and performance.

Each of us has our own value system, influences, priorities, preferences, desires, fears, and ambitions. Understanding that this is a unique combination for everyone and respecting this is the key to attracting, retaining, and motivating talented people. This human side comes first, distinguishing one organization from the next, and then here comes technology that can create cohesion, build community, and support a healthy culture. Scott Greenberg – international speaker, business performance expert, founder of the Hourly Employee Management System, and author of The Wealthy Franchisee and Stop the Shift Show is overflowing in this installment of MustardHub Voices: Behind The Build.  

About Scott:   

Scott Greenberg is an international speaker, business performance expert, and founder of the Hourly Employee Management System. He’s the author of The Wealthy Franchisee and Stop the Shift Show, and a contributor to publications like Nation’s Restaurant News and Entrepreneur. Scott has delivered keynotes and training in all 50 U.S. states and around the world, with clients including McDonald’s, KFC, Allstate, Wyndham Hotels, RE/MAX, and the U.S. Air Force.

Welcome to the first episode of MustardHub Voices: Behind The Build. Matt Posey, Senior Business Developer at Wipfli, joins our host Curtis Forbes. Matt shares his insights on company culture, employee engagement, and team dynamics as organizations embrace change and new technology.

About Matt:

Matt Posey is a seasoned professional with over 25 years in the Business Technology space. Matt has worked for small boutique firms up to some big names like Capgemini prior to his Senior Business Developer role at Wipfli. Over his career, he worked way up from a Business Analyst to a Practice Director before finding himself in a more Business Development-focused role.