"Everybody has problems and issues," says J.D. Busch, chief energy officer of Houston-based Busch Global. "It is about how people have succeeded and grown effectively. I'm not afraid to ask people to learn from their mistakes and to learn from people who are doing things right."

Busch has been a disrupter in franchising from the start. In 1995, the former college cheerleader put three different franchises--an NCA Super Center, Kid Fit Sports Day Care, and United Taekwondo--under one roof, long before brand synergy was common practice.