Founders Future

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we sit down with Ryan Fidell, Founder of Fidell Consulting Group (FCG), a boutique advisory firm helping mission-driven nonprofits and startups break through resource constraints. Ryan shares his journey from public sector consulting at Booz Allen to launching FCG as a "lean, no-BS" alternative to corporate consulting—driven by his passion for impact over ego. With a focus on operational process improvement, grant strategy, and AI-powered efficiency, Ryan reveals how he’s bridging the gap between high-level strategy and hands-on implementation for organizations navigating funding cuts and burnout risks.

Ryan dives into FCG’s unique "current state → future state" gap analysis framework, the rise of fractional consulting, and why 2025 is the perfect time to build a lean consultancy with AI as a force multiplier. He also shares hard-won lessons on trusting your gut, why energy matters more than credentials in client relationships, and his vision for scaling FCG’s impact—including a potential nonprofit arm to serve underfunded missions. For founders balancing purpose and profitability, Ryan’s insights on niching without losing flexibility and building referral-worthy client experiences are gold.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Mishal Saeed, we sit down with Mark Dronen, President and Founder of Elevator 321, a leadership development firm specializing in scaling tech-driven businesses. With over 40 years of entrepreneurial experience, Mark shares his journey from founding product and service companies to launching Elevator 321’s unique "Leadership Development as a Service" (LDaaS) model. He dives into how his firm helps founders and emerging leaders—particularly those backed by venture capital or private equity—navigate growth challenges, refine sales strategies, and build resilient leadership frameworks.

Mark also discusses the power of The College of Coaches, Elevator 321’s network of seasoned executives who provide deep mentorship to entrepreneurs. He emphasizes the importance of humility, trusted counsel, and structured discovery in avoiding costly mistakes. Whether you're a founder scaling your first $50M or a leader preparing for investor scrutiny, Mark’s insights on balancing visionary thinking with tactical execution offer invaluable lessons for high-growth entrepreneurs.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Mishal Saeed, we sit down with Kimberly Anzarut, founder and CEO of Allay Consulting, a pioneering cannabis and hemp compliance firm. Recognized as a "Pioneer of Pot" by Marijuana Venture Magazine and a TEDx speaker, Kimberly shares her journey from being the first cannabis regulator in Denver to launching her consultancy. She dives into the critical gaps in cannabis compliance that inspired her business, how Allay helps companies navigate complex FDA, OSHA, and state regulations, and her vision for shaping a safer, more sustainable industry.

Kimberly also discusses the challenges of scaling a compliance-focused consultancy, from maintaining consistency in client services to balancing growth in a fluctuating economy. She emphasizes the importance of building a strong, full-time team (no 1099s!) and fostering long-term client relationships through education and incremental compliance strategies. Whether you're in cannabis, hemp, or another regulated industry, Kimberly’s insights on operational compliance, industry evolution, and entrepreneurial resilience offer invaluable lessons for founders navigating high-stakes regulatory landscapes.

In this episode of Founders, Future, with host Mishal Saeed, we sit down with Sarena Diamond, founder and CEO of Diamond Solutions Group, LLC. With over 20 years of experience at Fortune 100 companies like IBM and Pepsi, Sarena shares how she pivoted from corporate life to entrepreneurship, driven by her passion for the human side of organizational change. She reveals her unique approach to helping leaders navigate mergers, strategy execution, and cultural transformations—not through dependency-building consulting, but by equipping teams with self-sufficiency tools. Sarena discusses her "kind accountability" framework, where she empowers leaders to drive change while holding them responsible for sustaining it, and why she deliberately avoids the traditional consultant trap of creating long-term client reliance.

Sarena opens up about scaling her impact through a three-pronged growth strategy: authentic LinkedIn engagement, strategic partnerships with talent agencies like Catalant, and an ambitious goal of 25 in-person speaking engagements in 2026. She explains why she prefers interactive workshops over keynote speeches and how she's positioning Diamond Solutions Group for the future of consulting—where companies increasingly seek flexible, high-expertise support rather than full-time hires. Listeners will walk away with insights on why most change initiatives fail (hint: it's not the strategy but the human adoption), and how Sarena's "magic wand" vision involves making her own consulting obsolete by teaching organizations to master change independently.

In this episode of Founders, Future, with host Jae Encarnacion, we sit down with Len Bland, CPA and CEO of Nanogas Environmental, a company revolutionizing wastewater treatment and oil production through patented nanobubble technology. Len shares how witnessing an 80% reduction in wastewater sludge sparked his mission to replace chemical-dependent processes with sustainable solutions using only oxygen and nitrogen from the air. From transforming toxic golf course lagoons in just 12 days to helping oil wells increase production, Len reveals how his "overnight success" (14 years in the making) is now scaling to meet demand across billion-dollar industries through mobile equipment leasing and strategic partnerships.

Len discusses the challenges of educating markets about nanobubble technology's potential, emphasizing the importance of emotional problem-solving over technical specs when winning clients. He opens up about Nanogas Environmental's transition from pilot projects to full production, the critical role of patents in their growth, and his vision for displacing outdated, costly methods in wastewater and energy sectors. Listeners will gain insights into Len's unique "take your foot off the bag" philosophy for scaling and why solving real-world problems—like saving a Texas community $800,000 on lagoon cleanup—drives both impact and business success.

In this episode of Founders, Future, with host Jae Encarnacion, we sit down with Holly Hoffman, founder of Sales Tax Advisory Network and "The Sales Tax Lady." With over 20 years of experience—including 8 years as an auditor and technical tax specialist at the Wisconsin Department of Revenue—Holly shares how she’s revolutionizing sales tax compliance for small businesses and contractors. Frustrated by the lack of accessible, personalized guidance in the industry, she launched her advisory network in 2019 to offer audit protection, multi-state filing, and—most importantly—education. Holly reveals her unconventional "no billable hours" model, which prioritizes long-term client relationships over short-term profits, and how this approach has helped her stand out in a field dominated by high-priced CPAs and impersonal AI solutions.

Holly also opens up about her vision for scaling Sales Tax Advisory Network, including her plans to build a learning management platform to train businesses (and her own team) at scale. She discusses the challenges of balancing her role as a solopreneur with her mission to democratize tax knowledge, emphasizing the power of education over technology in an industry starving for human expertise. Listeners will walk away with insights on why authenticity and confidence are the ultimate competitive advantages—and why Holly believes "sales tax is easy" when you have the right teacher.

In this episode of Founders, Future, with host Jae Encarnacion, we meet Ron Macklin, founder of Macklin Connection, who transformed decades of leadership experience—from setting world records in nuclear plant operations to building award-winning workplace cultures—into a revolutionary 7-step method for team transformation. Ron shares how his journey began with a losing football team and evolved into a mission to help organizations unlock 100% of their team’s potential by replacing fear with authentic connection. His biology-based approach helps mid-sized companies ($20M–$100M revenue) shift from hierarchical leadership to collective creativity, where every team member can lead in their moment.*

Ron reveals how Macklin Connection’s "word-of-mouth flywheel" fuels growth, with clients becoming coaches and spreading the methodology organically. He discusses the challenges of scaling while maintaining integrity (turning down clients who want to "fix" employees rather than transform culture) and his audacious goal: impacting 50,000 lives. For founders, Ron’s lightning-round advice cuts deep: "Surrender to being enough. The ideas in your head deserve to live—whether they succeed or become foundations for others." A masterclass in leading with vulnerability and purpose.

In this episode of Founders, Future, with host Jae Encarnacion, we meet Joshua Stratton, founder of Against The Current, who transformed his 15-year battle with addiction and 25 years in outdoor industries into a revolutionary branding agency. What began as a passion project to restore authenticity in hunting/fishing brands has evolved into a fractional marketing powerhouse, helping $3-5M companies and nonprofits scale through strategic storytelling and data-driven insights. Joshua shares how their unconventional model—charging based on value created rather than hours worked, with options for equity stakes or performance commissions—allows them to operate with just 4-5 core team members while delivering $400K+ profit contracts.*

Joshua reveals his counterintuitive approach to growth: prioritizing deep relationships over transactions, embracing seasons of rest as strategic pauses, and maintaining a "small but mighty" team of owner-employees. His vision includes expanding into cycling and golf industries while staying true to their core mission: helping brands create trends rather than follow them. For aspiring founders, Joshua offers hard-won wisdom: "Success isn't about hustle—it's about stewardship. Build a business that serves your life, not the other way around." A masterclass in values-driven entrepreneurship.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Jae Encarnacion, we meet Sydney Campos, a visionary leader and spiritual teacher who bridges intuitive wisdom with razor-sharp business strategy. Sydney shares her decade-long journey of creating a holistic framework for modern leaders—born from her own struggles as a founder—that blends emotional intelligence, energy mastery, and operational leadership. From running a PR agency to hosting transformative global retreats, she reveals how empathic visionaries can scale their impact without sacrificing wellbeing, and why this integration is especially crucial for leaders in high-pressure fields like tech and impact investing.

Sydney pulls back the curtain on her advisory consulting model, offering hard-won lessons from organizing large-scale events like her 100-person "Odyssey" convergence. She discusses the power of lean, intentional team-building and her mission to democratize impact investing through an innovative tech platform. With insights on avoiding "growth for growth’s sake" and practical tools for finding clarity in chaos, this conversation is a masterclass in aligning purpose with profit—and why true success begins with presence, not just productivity.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Jae Encarnacion, we meet John Trainor, President and CEO of Kreativa-Inc., whose Emmy-winning career in media led to a groundbreaking nearshore outsourcing model. Inspired by late-night collaboration challenges with Indian teams at the Chicago Tribune, John founded Kreativa-Inc. in 2015 to leverage Latin American talent in the same time zone—a strategic advantage that now delivers 2-3x performance gains for small businesses through AI-driven marketing and operational efficiency. He reveals how the pandemic validated his remote-work vision and why overcoming stereotypes about Latin American talent requires targeting C-suite decision-makers who "get it."

John pulls back the curtain on scaling a 65-person firm while remaining its chief rainmaker, sharing hard-won lessons on authenticity in leadership ("fake it till you make it is dead") and why AI will disrupt mediocre marketing, creating opportunities for innovators. His "one new client per month" growth philosophy and emphasis on keeping operations human-centric—even as technology advances—offer a masterclass in sustainable scaling. For founders, this conversation is a goldmine on turning time-zone challenges into competitive advantages and why the future belongs to leaders who keep it real.