Shows
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs215: AI Can Do the Work but Can You Lead With Emotional Intelligence?In this new edition of the AmiSights Podcast, dive into the world of emotional intelligence with Virginia Knudsen! Learn how self-awareness, empathy, and effective communication can elevate your leadership skills and enrich your relationships. "Emotional intelligence is composed of self-awareness, who am I, and why do I react the way I react, and how do my behaviors and reactions affect others?" Today's episode explores a passion for personal and professional development rooted in the company's mission, the vision of building a thriving community for business owners, leaders, and CEOs, and the distinction between IQ and...
2025-12-0933 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs214: The AI Wake-Up Call: What Every Business Leader Should KnowIn this week's episode of the AmiSights Podcast, we dive straight into one of the biggest questions shaping our future: How will AI redefine the way we work, create, and compete? Joe Apfelbaum breaks down the rapid acceleration of AI technologies and what it means for marketers, content creators, podcasters, and anyone trying to stay relevant in a digital-first world. From job displacement to the rise of machine-generated content, Joe offers a candid look at how AI is reshaping expectations—and why understanding digital strategy will become a critical skill for every professional. Whether you're excited about the possibilities or...
2025-11-1847 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs213: The Rundown: Government Shutdown, SBA & the State of LendingWe're kicking off a new series on the AmiSights Podcast — The Rundown, where we break down the stories making waves in small business, SBA lending, and entrepreneurship. When big news breaks, The Rundown delivers. In these special episodes, Ami Kassar and Lynn Ozer share timely insights on what's happening in the world of small business lending—and why it matters to you. In this first installment, Ami Kassar and Lynn Ozer share real-time insights from the NAGGL Annual Conference — set against the backdrop of a government shutdown that's sending ripple effects across the lending industry. What happen...
2025-11-0511 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs212: Client Spotlight: How One Leap Built Misty Mountain SoapThis past summer, MultiFunding hit an incredible milestone — $1 billion in total loans funded. The final deal that pushed us over the top came from a business we're especially proud to support. In this special edition of the AmiSights Podcast, Lynn and I sit down with Senior Director of Business Financing, Fran Miller, who led the deal at MultiFunding, along with his client — Jennifer Scarbrough, owner of Misty Mountain Soap Company. Jennifer shares her journey from the corporate world to entrepreneurship, reflecting on the challenges, lessons, and triumphs along the way. "We wanted to take a chance on ourse...
2025-11-0430 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs211: SHINE: Inside the Mind of a Confident LeaderIn this conversation, Ami Kassar interviews LaVonna Roth, the founder of Shine, who shares her journey from education to empowering leaders through her unique methodology. LaVonna discusses the importance of self-awareness, confidence, and emotional intelligence in leadership, as well as her experiences as a keynote speaker. "I have been given different gifts. I shine in a different way, just like they do. But when we come together, we're unstoppable in that way," she said. "We light up individually. We each have our own shine, but when we synchronize together, that is when we actually elevate at the high...
2025-10-2124 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs210: Focus, Diagnose, Grow: The Real Growth PlaybookIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we speak with Certified Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) Implementer Amy Holtz, who specializes in helping entrepreneurs and non-profit leaders build their businesses and achieve their goals. She explains how EOS changed her own life. "Running a business is a lot of fun until it's not. Often, your business starts to run you instead of you running your business. It's crucial to find a balance and ensure you're steering the ship, not just reacting to the waves." The main topics in today's episode include why, even though EOS...
2025-10-0729 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs209: Racing Ahead: Real Estate, Taxes, and the New Era of Wealth BuildingIn this week's edition of the AmiSights podcast, Lane Kawaoka—Accredited Investor, Podcaster, Developer, and Syndicator with $2.1B AUM—shares his journey from a six-figure engineering salary to becoming a successful real estate investor and author. He discusses his book, The Wealth Elevator, which outlines the stages of financial growth and the importance of adapting to market changes. Lane also highlights the significance of working with competent operators and the potential pitfalls of diversification. "You put your eggs in one basket and watch it like a hawk. As you get more sophisticated, you keep learning and become an e...
2025-09-2332 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs#208: The Retention Playbook: Loyalty in 100 DaysIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, Joey Coleman discusses the critical importance of employee retention and experience, emphasizing that the first 100 days of an employee's journey are crucial for their long-term engagement. "When we think of employee experience and customer experience, they're actually two sides of the same coin. As we improve one and polish one up, the other one increases in value and shine as well. And vice versa. If your employee experience is going down and down, I can almost guarantee that your customer interactions are getting more and more negative as well."
2025-09-0933 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs207: Communication Blind Spots Costing Entrepreneurs Clients and Teams In this week's editing of the AmiSights Podcast, we speak with Alana Winter, Executive Coach and Retreat Facilitator. Tune in as we discuss the significance of clarity in business operations and the necessity of effective communication within teams. Alana also shares her insights on how to implement structures like the RACI matric to improve accountability and efficiency in business. "Most people wait to ask for help until it's too late. A growth coach isn't going to help you when you can't meet payroll. At that point, the founder can't be delusional and has to be hones...
2025-08-1948 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs206: Tax Planning: Missing the Big PictureIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Michael Sharp, founder of Sharp Financial, an integrated financial management company. This discussion touches on the challenges of navigating uncertainty in business, the significance of building a strong company culture, and the rewarding experiences of coaching youth basketball. "People are looking for advice, not just services. As technology evolves, the real value lies in guiding clients through uncertainty and helping them feel secure about their future. It's about providing comfort and confidence, ensuring they navigate challenges with resilience and foresight."
2025-07-2938 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs205: Built From Pain: Trauma, Success, and What Matters in the EndIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to sociologist and entrepreneur Travis Luther. After selling two successful companies—including founding the MOSO Pillow—he now teaches entrepreneurs and leaders how to transform past trauma to create a prosperous future that's all their own. He discusses his career change and his fascinating research behind his keynote, "What We Learn When We Learn We Are Dying – Life Advice From the Terminally Ill." "It was time for me to return to some other things I was interested in before, and do some things in the second half of my...
2025-07-1530 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs204: Inside the Billion-Dollar SBA Lending Journey of Ami KassarIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, the MultiFunding team discusses the company's journey to nearly $1 billion in secured funding. While Ami is proud of this incredible financial milestone, he is even more inspired by the impact it's had—helping small businesses grow and supporting the people behind them. I'm proud of everyone here, and thank you for everything you all do to help us reach this milestone. We've been through a lot of sweat and tears, and we've helped a lot of people through a lot of different stuff to get there. About 95% of that bi...
2025-06-1731 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs203: Emerging Trends in Franchising: What to Watch ForIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to franchise consultant Jon Ostenson, CEO of FranBridge Consulting, which helps connect entrepreneurs and investors around the country with top franchise opportunities. He explains what non-food industries are popular for franchising. "We connect entrepreneurs and investors with what we see as the top franchise opportunities in non-food franchising—industries that are often overlooked but highly scalable and resilient. It's all about stepping into business ownership with confidence, clarity, and the right support."In today's episode, we're diving into why hiring the right people is the most important pa...
2025-06-0326 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs202: Behind the Swing: Parkinson's, Coaching, and The MastersIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Eric Kaplan, CEO of AXYS Golf. He shares his entrepreneurial journey, detailing how his passion for golf and personal experiences with his father's Parkinson's disease led him to develop a unique coaching methodology."The more people that you help, the more people that you're able to inspire to teach or to play or, somebody with Parkinson's get back onto the golf course after thinking they would never play again. I have found that my journey has really been built upon helping one person at a time."Growing up...
2025-05-2038 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs201: Telling It Differently: A Media Veteran's Take on PR That WorksIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Jeff Crilley, CEO of Real News Public Relations and host of The Jeff Crilley Show. He explains how his 25 years in broadcast journalism helped him disrupt the traditional PR model. "There are New York PR firms that have really close relationships with Good Morning America and those Wall Street Journal reporters. But here in Dallas, I've yet to meet a PR firm that guarantees anything. They promise a lot. But we get refugees on me from other PR firms that are just, it's like Bugs Bunny's steam coming...
2025-05-0629 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs#200: The Kassar Brothers: A Legacy of EntrepreneurshipIn this special 200th episode of AmiSights, we mix things up—Ami interviews his brother Barak, and Barak interviews Ami. The two dive into their entrepreneurial journeys, shaped by their immigrant background, and explore how risk tolerance plays a role in both business and life. They discuss recent SBA rule changes that impact immigrant entrepreneurs and reflect on the importance of understanding different risk profiles in relationships, both personal and professional."We saw a lot of people coming to this country, and not all of them, but many of them, taking on different entrepreneurial journeys. We watched them sweat it...
2025-04-2231 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs199: Burnout to Breakthrough: Mental Health & Success in EntrepreneurshipIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Dr. Sherry Walling, founder and clinical psychologist at ZenFounder, which helps entrepreneurs thrive in business and in life by avoiding burnout and isolation. Dr. Sherry Walling discusses the mental health challenges of entrepreneurs, focusing on the importance of self-awareness, building a supportive team, and maintaining friendships outside of work. "I think it's really important for entrepreneurs to recognize their spouse as their first investor, the first person who said yes to their harebrained idea… The presence of a business is a little bit like the presence of...
2025-04-0835 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs198: The Cash Flow Blind SpotIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Michael Hsu, founder and CEO of DeepSky, an outsourced accounting team that specializes in digital agencies, IT outsourcing companies, and digital media properties. He explains why his mission is to "keep it simple" when helping small business owners with their finances. "Entrepreneurs are incredibly smart. If they know what the problem is, if they know what they need to work on, they can solve it. The problem is that, most of the time, they have no clue. They have no clue that they have a cash...
2025-03-2532 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs#197: Housing Market & Interest Rates: 2025 PredictionsIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Sue Meitner, president and founder of Centennial Lending Group (CLG), a full-service mortgage lender providing mortgage loans for new home purchases and/or refinances. She explains why she sold her company in 2018 and how she enjoys her new role on the "other side.""We definitely have a shortage of housing. We're not pre-COVID, and our shortage of housing and the demographic of the different generations moving into homeownership, there's not going to be enough houses for them. I do think that interest rates should be lower than they ar...
2025-03-1124 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs196: Unlocking the Mind with BreathworkIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Mark Worster,founder of The New Mysteries, a transformative global community that uses plant medicine and methods such as breathing to guide people on their journey of self-discovery and liberation. Mark started his entrepreneurial journey in the IT space before he entered the transformative medicine realm. As an entrepreneur of several successful companies, he explains how no matter what system you have in place, you still need a base foundation with your finances. "You got to have the base firm and solid," he said. "If...
2025-02-2547 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs195: Nonprofits, AI, and Marketing: Evolving Business Strategies for ImpactIn this conversation, Jessica Munday shares her entrepreneurial journey, discussing her dual roles as the founder of Trio Solutions Inc. and Partner of Cloud Nine Nonprofit Advisors. She emphasizes the importance of team culture, client relationships, and the impact of AI on marketing. Jessica also reflects on the challenges of balancing work and family life, the significance of mentorship, and her experiences during the pandemic. The discussion highlights her commitment to helping nonprofits and small businesses thrive while maintaining a strong company culture.Connect with Jessica: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jmunday/Check out Trio Marketing: https://www.linkedin...
2025-02-1134 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs194: Navigating the M&A LandscapeIn this week's episode, we talk to Scott Eisenberg, Founder and Managing Director of Franklin Capital Advisors, a firm specializing in mergers, acquisitions, and restructuring for small and lower middle-market businesses. In this conversation, Scott shares his extensive experience in M&A, discussing the complexities of evaluating businesses for sale, identifying buyer types, and emphasizing the importance of understanding business value. "The more planning you can put into it, the more you can do things to, get the business ready for sale. Maybe you've got your financial statements, your financial reporting function isn't really strong—you can fix that. Ma...
2025-01-2840 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs193: The Future of Work: How AI is Transforming BankingIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to David Becker, founder and CEO of First Internet Bank. He explains why he started the online bank way before internet banking became a common convenience and shares his insights on how AI is revolutionizing the financial industry. "I think the power of AI will be more revolutionary than the Internet was 25 years ago. A lot of people are scared to death... You, as the human, will get to decipher that data, take out the results, and resolve problems. So you'll get to actually do tasks that the machine...
2025-01-1443 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs192: Leading Through Change: Mastering Transitions, Acquisitions, and the Technology of TomorrowIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Ed Robinson, Founder and President of Capacity Building Solutions and Vistage Chair for six CEO peer groups in the Baltimore area. He shares insights on how he successfully manages and supports so many top executives. "We're dealing with a silver tsunami. There's more businesses that are going to sell. If you believe the data, there's more businesses that are going to change hands in the next 5 to 10 years than have changed hands in the last 20 because of the age of entrepreneurs and business owners. So now there's going...
2024-12-1748 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs191: From Addictive Design to Empowered Creation: Harnessing Career Changes and Stress SolutionsIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we speak with Natalia Matveeva, the Founder of PeakGenesis, a mentorship platform designed to empower entrepreneurs by helping them unlock their unique superpowers and align their inner strengths with business strategies and industry trends. Natalia also shares the story behind her decision to sell her gaming business, Realore, in 2017, at the height of its success. "Because you have to understand, 20 percent of players make 80 percent of your income. So, you only make money from those who are addicted, who buy games non-stop, and play them non-stop. And it got me thinking...
2024-12-1038 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs190: Master the Art of Long Sales Cycles for SuccessIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Richard Walton, founder of Outsell Sales, a company specializing in helping B2B businesses succeed with outbound sales development. Richard shares why he champions traditional marketing activities over relying solely on online networking. "The traditional marketing back in the '80s was all about meeting people, shaking people's hands, and then somehow we got lazy…technology made us lazy," he said. "I help our clients go back to the '80s, and I help them embrace more traditional marketing activities and to use technology to be very su...
2024-12-0329 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs189: Building a Timeless Brand: Storytelling Techniques for Lasting SuccessIn this week's episode of the AmiSights Podcast, we speak with Nir Zavaro, founder and CEO of Streetwise, a marketing company based in Tel Aviv, Israel. Nir, also an author, shares the inspiration behind the eye-opening title of his latest book, F*ck the Slides: Creating a Winning Pitch Using Storytelling Techniques. "I thought I can bring something new to that industry. And that's when I started my consulting company. And I started to fix businesses like that. And within 2 or 3 years, I became one of the top 5 in the country. So, take the bad things, learn from them...
2024-11-1930 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs188: Mastering Business Acquisitions: Solving Loan ChallengesIn this week's AmiSights Podcast, we dive into Joe McAleer's journey and experience as Senior Director of Business Financing at MultiFunding. Joe talks about how he knew MultiFunding was the right fit from his first visit 11 years ago. He shares insights into MultiFunding's unique approach, where the team acts as analysts first to ensure every loan opportunity is carefully evaluated and presented in the best light. "We are so hands-on; you know we are analysts before we are brokers. We dig in, we understand things, and we make sure that we're positioning an opportunity—or a loan request—in the...
2024-11-1229 min
The Jeff Crilley ShowAmi Kassar, Founder & CEO of Multifunding | The Jeff Crilley ShowI love to read books about history and successful business owners. Almost every one of them had one of those moments where they were so close to bankruptcy that they couldn't pay their bills, and then a bank saved them. But my next guest says that if you have a traditional banking relationship, you could be leaving money on the table. Ami Kassar is in the studio. He's the founder and CEO of Multifunding.
2024-11-0614 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs187: The Future of Work: Insights from a Intel VeteranThis week, we're thrilled to welcome Nirit Cohen, a leading HR strategist and thought leader on the Future of Work. With 30 years of global experience at Intel in HR and M&A leadership, Nirit bridges emerging trends with actionable insights to help organizations thrive in an evolving landscape. She's a Forbes columnist, author, and sought-after speaker with deep expertise in workforce transformation. Tune in for an eye-opening conversation on the trends shaping tomorrow's workforce and how to future-proof your career and organization. "Back is not a direction into the future. And saying, Let's go back into the office or...
2024-11-0535 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs186: Driving Innovation in SBA Lending with Lynn Ozer, President of MultiFundingIn this week's episode of the AmiSights Podcast, Ami has the pleasure of interviewing co-host Lynn Ozer, President of MultiFunding and fondly referred to as the "SBA Queen." Tune in as Lynn shares her journey to MultiFunding, which began about three and a half years ago, leading her to a role where she could support the incredible group of lenders that Ami assembled and connect with the entrepreneurs who turn to MultiFunding for guidance. "They always say when a door closes, a window opens," she said. "Well, this was the best window I ever walked through and...
2024-10-2924 min
15 Minutes Share Your Voice186: Driving Innovation in SBA Lending with Lynn Ozer, President of MultiFundingIn this week’s episode of the AmiSights Podcast, Ami has the pleasure of interviewing co-host Lynn Ozer, President of MultiFunding and fondly referred to as the "SBA Queen." Tune in as Lynn shares her journey to MultiFunding, which began about three and a half years ago, leading her to a role where she could support the incredible group of lenders that Ami assembled and connect with the entrepreneurs who turn to MultiFunding for guidance.
“They always say when a door closes, a window opens,” she said. “Well, this was the best window I ever walked through and foun...
2024-10-2924 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs185: Redefining Entrepreneurial Banking: The MultiFunding & Owners Bank AllianceIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, Ami talks with Erik Nilsen, Senior Vice President of Digital Strategic Partnerships at Owners Bank. Erik has a deep Product Management & Digital Banking background that was acquired from years of banking and fintech leadership. He is responsible for acquiring and managing strategic partnerships that help with the growth of Owners Bank. Owners Bank is a division of Liberty Bank based in Middletown, CT, which is one of the most innovative and established banks in the country. We've been looking for a bank that offers our clients lines of credit...
2024-10-2224 min15 Minutes Share Your Voice184: The MultiFunding Mission: Empowering Small Businesses Every Step of the WayIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, Heather Hoover and Julie Zarr discuss their roles and experiences at MultiFunding. From navigating the world of finance to providing tailored solutions for small businesses, they explain how working with passionate entrepreneurs makes their jobs both rewarding and exciting. Tune in to learn how these amazing women found their way to MultiFunding and why they love being a part of each client’s success story!
“We never have a boring day. When you learn about the blood, sweat, and tears that our clients have put into building their businesses, and...
2024-10-1529 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs184: The MultiFunding Mission: Empowering Small Businesses Every Step of the WayIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, Heather Hoover and Julie Zarr discuss their roles and experiences at MultiFunding. From navigating the world of finance to providing tailored solutions for small businesses, they explain how working with passionate entrepreneurs makes their jobs both rewarding and exciting. Tune in to learn how these amazing women found their way to MultiFunding and why they love being a part of each client's success story! "We never have a boring day. When you learn about the blood, sweat, and tears that our clients have put into building their businesses, and...
2024-10-1529 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs183: Mastering Business Sales: Navigating Market ChangesIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Albert Fialkovich, President and Managing Partner of the Prospere Companies owner of Transworld Business Advisors of Colorado; Texas: Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth Central & Waco; Nevada: Las Vegas South and Transworld Commercial Real Estate. Tune in as he shares how his father's experience with not selling his business and the challenges he faced with a broker while trying to sell his own inspired him to become highly productive in the industry. "A lot of these deals, when you're good at them, are about finesse, and that's to get a deal...
2024-10-0834 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs182: Unlocking Team Success: Trust, Accountability, and DISC MasteryIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we speak with Robin Huling, founder of Warner Communication, which delivers transformative workshops and consultancy services. Robin discusses how she transformed her skills into a successful business, driven by her passion for team building and leadership training, along with her deep expertise in DISC theory. "I think what holds people back is the thing that they don't know about, and they're too afraid to ask, and they don't know the different paths that they are able to take on their own," she said. "I had no idea that my experience and...
2024-10-0128 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs181: Mastering Financial Solutions: How MultiFunding's Advisors Empower Small BusinessesOn this week's episode of the AmiSights Podcast, Fran Miller and Nick Lasorsa from MultiFunding's loan team join Ami and Lynn to discuss the company's culture and mission, along with their experiences navigating the ups and downs of the financing industry. "You have to have all the tools in your tool shed and be comfortable and sort of get your hands dirty to a degree," Miller said. "And being in that position, I think, simply put, it's not for everybody. There's ebbs and flows of this business…some can ride that wave and others don't enjoy that up and down." The ma...
2024-09-2428 min15 Minutes Share Your Voice181: Mastering Financial Solutions: How MultiFunding’s Advisors Empower Small BusinessesOn this week's episode of the AmiSights Podcast, Fran Miller and Nick Lasorsa from MultiFunding's loan team join Ami and Lynn to discuss the company’s culture and mission, along with their experiences navigating the ups and downs of the financing industry.
“You have to have all the tools in your tool shed and be comfortable and sort of get your hands dirty to a degree,” Miller said. “And being in that position, I think, simply put, it's not for everybody. There's ebbs and flows of this business…some can ride that wave and others don't enjoy that up and down.”
The main...
2024-09-2427 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs180: From Unemployed to Innovator: A Ticket Tech RevolutionIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Morgan Katz, founder and CEO of Ticketnology, a company that works with executives across multiple industries to ease the frustration of corporate ticketing. She explains why she started the company five years ago. "So during that very long intermission, it was what am I going to do to be relevant to come out? And that's when we transformed to a ticket to a technology company, and so in late 2020 we started building software. We re-rolled out in April of 21 as a software company a ticket management platform." Tune in...
2024-09-1727 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs179: Uncovering True Paths: Transitioning from Business Ownership to CoachingIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Tim McDiarmid, Coach & Consultant, Founder/Owner of The Good Kind Hospitality Group, Co-Founder at The Bravery Strategy, and owner of Tim the Girl Catering. She describes how she became an "accidental entrepreneur." "The reason, what gets me up, what made me love this business, is people. People, experiences, being able to create things, interesting, unique experiences for people. And I've worked in hospitality most of my life. And I genuinely love to see when things come together." The main topics of today's episode will explore how treating fear...
2024-09-1022 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs178: The Entrepreneur's Edge: Peer Groups, Resilience, and Rising to the ChallengeIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Adam Silberstein, a YPO and EO retreat facilitator and co-founder of The Local Leaders Collective, which offers a peer group experience and community for entrepreneurs. He explains how focusing on holistic health has helped entrepreneurs get through tough times such as the pandemic. "Anybody who is an entrepreneur, anybody who owns a business and is not in a peer group, I think you're at a severe disadvantage of not accessing information, not only support but also learning how other people run their businesses." In today's episode, w...
2024-09-0338 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs177: Scaling Success: Doubling Revenue in Luxury CabinetryIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Joe Trave, Owner & CEO at Village Handcrafted Cabinetry, which makes customized high-end cabinets. Be sure to tune in as Joe explains how an increase in prices has made customers more hesitant to quickly jump into an extensive project. "I think emotional strength and resilience are important. The most important thing we can have as entrepreneurs, and I'm not going to blow smoke right now and tell you I have it every day, but I have to rely on prayer and meditation and just dial in and kind of...
2024-08-2739 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs176: Solving Small Business Accounting Problems: The Trusted but Not Trained IssueIn this episode of the AmiSights Podcast, we chat with Michael Ly, the founder and CEO of Reconcile. Michael shares his journey of starting the company in 2016, driven by a mission to support entrepreneurs by handling their daily bookkeeping and accounting needs, allowing them to concentrate on their core business strengths. "The business owner or the entrepreneur, they don't start a business because they're excited about accounting," he said. "They start a business because they're passionate about a product or service they want to provide to the world and provide to their end customer, and accounting generally is not...
2024-08-2035 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs175: Cybersecurity Myths: Why Small Businesses Are TargetsIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Chris Schalleur, CEO of Christo IT Services, which has been helping small businesses for the past 25 years. He explains the importance of cybersecurity in today's digital landscape. "The number one thing I hear, Ami, is from small business owners. This is all around cybersecurity, and how do I protect myself from all the bad guys out there? And most business owners I talk to say... 'I don't have anything of value. Why would anybody want to hack me?' And the book is to try and dissuade some...
2024-08-1336 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs174: From Hurdles to Heights: Empowering Women's Real Estate SuccessIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we speak with Elizabeth Convery, founder of The Confident Agent: A System for Growth and Success for Women in Real Estate. She shares how her transition from the corporate world right after college helped her become a more effective entrepreneur. "Women need a community of others who are at similar stages. And so the coaching model is group coaching because it allows women to experience together similar issues, similar challenges, hear how somebody's overcoming something, and get an idea from somebody else as they're saying things that have worked for them...
2024-08-0634 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs173: Avoiding Embezzlement: Financial Control Systems for Small BusinessesIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Lil Roberts, CEO and founder of Xendoo, which specializes in online bookkeeping and accounting, focusing on small business owners. Through a blend of cutting-edge technology and a dedicated team, Xendoo provides speedy access to financials with predictable pricing, seamless technology, and expert support. "Business owners can't get their financials in a timely way and have visibility to operate their business from the traditional CPA industry," she said. "Not to say that CPAs are bad because CPAs are great, wonderful people. It's that they don't have the...
2024-07-3036 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs172: The Future of Freelancing: Building a Sustainable Company in the Creative SpaceIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Bradley Baer, founder and CEO of Crafted Action, an innovation consultancy that enables organizations to create impactful and seamless visitor experiences, both onsite and online. He began his career as an architect but soon realized his business acumen, which led him to become an entrepreneur. "There's not a lot of those folks that are incredibly creative, but also business minded," he said. "So, my career has kind of been a back and forth of 'how do I be really creative, but how do I make something that actually...
2024-07-2333 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs171: Unlock Business Success by Prioritizing YourselfIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to health and performance coach Danny Martoe, owner of Agent of Change, which empowers individuals and organizations to reach new heights of personal and professional success. He explains how changing your health habits can change your business. "What happens with a lot of successful men and women and professionals is they tend to put the business before themselves, but then they realize that when they start putting themselves first, that they show up even better for their business – and that's the aha moment," he said. The ma...
2024-07-1629 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs170: Leadership Redefined: Employees as Owners with ESOPIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Deanna Walker, CEO of Venturity, a professional services firm that helps small and medium-sized companies with all aspects of their back office accounting and finance needs. She explains how, in 2012, the company made a purposeful effort to invest in its culture. "That's really where Small Giants comes into the picture," she said. "We got introduced to that organization, and it really resonated with us – a lot of values, alignment, investing in your people and doing the right thing." The main topics of today's episode wil...
2024-07-0926 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs169: Trust Your Gut: The Crucial Role of Field Reporting and AccountingIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Verne Harnish, owner and CEO of Scaling Up, a global executive education and coaching company with over 260 partners on six continents. Verne discusses the vital importance of field reporting and accounting in business operations. "We were given speech a 100,000 years ago. We were only given Excel spreadsheets 50 years ago. I think we're much more highly developed to feel and sense patterns and get a good gut feel for the business by speaking and hearing the data instead of staring at Excel spreadsheets." The main...
2024-06-2541 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs168: From Aspiring to Inspiring: Unveiling Thought Leadership SecretsIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Peter Winick, founder and CEO of Thought Leadership Leverage, a company that helps thought leaders, authors, consultants, and speakers monetize and scale their content and products. Despite their backgrounds or professions, thought leaders all have several traits in common. "The problem with a lot of thought leaders is that it's the curse of the expert. They're so good at what they do, and some of them are literally the best in the world, that they've lost the beginner's mindset in other things. So when you start to...
2024-06-1829 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs167: Fortifying Finances: Strategies for Sustainable Business ExpansionIn this week's episode of the AmiSights Podcast, Ami talks with Pete Heald, CEO of Signature Analytics, and Jason Kruger, President and Founder of Signature Analytics, a firm specializing in outsourced CFO and business advisory services. They delve into why they started the business, emphasizing the crucial role of accounting and finance in driving value, and discuss the risks associated with relying on a single individual for accounting tasks. "What I saw back then, and continue to see now, is the need for these types of companies in the small mid-market – they deserve better than what they're ge...
2024-06-1134 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs166: Little Gym, Big Heart: Growing Beyond BoundariesIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Devin Gage, founder and CEO of Engage Personal Training. He explains how he knew he didn't want a desk job but didn't realize he could make fitness into a career. "I've become obsessed with business and understanding this game of business, and just this understanding that every one of these things has been done before. These problems have solutions and exist in the market, and I love thinking about it from a strategic lens of like, if this then that, and how does this puzzle all fit together...
2024-06-0440 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs165: Bridging Gaps: Empowering Latino Entrepreneurs with EOSIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Cesar Quintero, certified Entrepreneurial Operating System® (EOS) Implementer and Founder of The Profit Recipe, where he helps entrepreneurs and their leadership teams build a business by design with EOS based on the book "Traction." He explains how he was drawn to entrepreneurship at a young age. "I launched something a little more dear to my heart and purpose is I launched an online entrepreneurial platform in Spanish for Latin America. So helping, Latin's because I think it's underserved and most, most of Latin America, they would d...
2024-05-2834 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs164: Educating for Empowerment: Dr. Malik Muhammad's Impact on YouthIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Malik Muhammad, founder and CEO of Akoben LLC & Transforming Lives Inc., which serve youth, school districts and leaders across the United States and abroad. Join us as he delves into how his personal journey has shaped his entrepreneurial trajectory. "My entrepreneurial journey really is rooted in freedom and wanting to be able to have more command of my own destiny," he said. "I grew up in pretty unstable conditions, the intersection of poverty and racism and dysfunction in my own family. So, wanting a lot of...
2024-05-2138 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs163: The Evolution of Business Cards: From Concept to MarketIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Haggai Klorman-Eraqi. Haggai leads the Aggaeus Group, focusing on developing and supporting innovative brands. This includes Kardz.Biz, the "Black AMEX" of smart business cards, and Better Weight for Life, a telemedicine company. He explains how being an entrepreneur has similarities with being an artist. Connect with Haggai: https://www.linkedin.com/in/klormaneraqi/ Check out Kardz.Biz: https://kardz.biz/ Check out Better Weight for Life: https://betterweightforlife.com/ Recorded on 4/8/24
2024-05-1428 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs162: Small Team, Big Impact: Marketing Strategies That WorkIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Sarah Noel Block, founder of Tiny Marketing, where she helps small businesses with everything from core content, podcasts, and videos to partnerships and social media presence. She explained how freelancing for years while working prepared her to make the leap into entrepreneurship. "Start building your personal brand early, so it's easy for people to say 'yes,'" she said. "If you have been on LinkedIn or you have a podcast that is showcasing your expertise all the time, it's so much easier for people to say...
2024-05-0726 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs161: Cybersecurity Innovations and the Impact of the Israel WarIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Aviv Grafi, founder and innovator of Votiro, a cybersecurity company specializing in neutralizing files of all kinds through Secure File Gateway solutions. Based in Tel Aviv, Grafi describes how the Israeli–Palestinian conflict which started last October has affected businesses there. "In the first few weeks we were all in shock," he said "Immediately a bunch of the employees here in Israel were called for duty. In fact, even now I have employees, including my engineering manager, my VP engineering, there on duty. I think that in...
2024-04-3028 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs160: Leadership Is for Everyone: Unleashing Potential in Every RoleIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Chris Hutchinson, CEO of Trebuchet Group, an organizational consulting firm focused on helping leaders achieve great accomplishments through creating great teams. "I started this organization to enable the best within people; not in a fuzzy, rosy, unicorns and butterflies way," he said. "When we can trust each other and work together really effectively, leaders can show up in a way that helps people get clarity and be able to do the right things, we can do anything." The main topics of today's episode will...
2024-04-2331 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs159: From Prep to Admission: Ivy Experience's Path to College SuccessIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Karan Shah, Owner/Director of Ivy Experience, a company that prepares students for their collegiate futures through test prep, tutoring and essay consulting. Karan sheds light on the impact of online learning on the tutoring industry, particularly in areas with limited access to such resources. "In Philadelphia, New York, LA Chicago, there's a lot of college prep options, but if you go to some more rural areas, there just aren't, right? There aren't many options. There might be one tutor available and they can...
2024-04-1630 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs158: The Cost of Ignoring IT: Everyone's Vulnerable to BreachesIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Sejal Lakhani-Bhatt, CEO of TechWerxe, a managed service provider for businesses. She discusses common misconceptions about IT services and offers valuable insights into how businesses can stay ahead in an increasingly digital landscape. "So here's the other thing. Small, medium businesses, one in four, right? One in four gets breached. It's that simple, one in four gets breached. It's not that it hasn't happened to you.It has already happened, and you may not know about it. It will happen, and one of two things will...
2024-04-0938 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs157: Acquisition Entrepreneurship: Strategic Vision, Operational ExcellenceIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Ben Smith, founder and president of TriTech Services Group, a company he formed in 2021 to acquire and grow small businesses. He explains why he left the corporate world after around 25 years to become his own boss. "I no longer wanted to allow somebody else to dictate my story or what I was going to do," he said. "I really wanted to take more control of my life, what I was doing and the quality of life that I was having." The main topics of...
2024-04-0242 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs156: Elevating Performance: Harnessing the Power of Organizational MuscleIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Kevin Nolan, founder and CEO of Nolan Painting and partner of Nolan Consulting Group. In his new book, "Organizational Muscle," Kevin explains how running a marathon in all 50 states has helped him with the ups and downs of running his own business. "Have an operating system. All companies that get to any kind of success level in size have an operating system. It's their own. It ends up being their own… Like I said, everybody knows what the operating system is. It's got to be predictable; it's got to b...
2024-03-2631 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs155: Smart Staffing: Leveraging Contingent LaborIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Chris Burkhard, CEO of Placers, a company that provides custom workforce solutions. A fourth-generation entrepreneur, Burkhard explains how his desire to be his own boss came early in life. "You could say it was a family calling, but when we had Sunday dinner, my dad would say to me and my two sisters, 'you have more control over your life if you're your own boss; don't give that up and don't work for somebody else,'" he said. The main topics of today's episode...
2024-03-1944 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs154: Pivoting with Purpose: How One Entrepreneur Found Success in Marketing after FranchisingIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Laura Meyer, CEO and founder of JoyBrand Creative, which leverages the power of emotional intelligence and AI technology to supercharge growth initiatives. She explains how she had to pivot and start over seven years ago after shutting down her once-successful photography business. "When you go through something like that, you learn so much that you can create something new, and you have to believe in your ability," she said. "I think we can always reinvent ourselves. We have that ability and that permission to create something n...
2024-03-1233 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs153: Growth, Accountability, Wellness: The CEO's Guide to SuccessIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Jennifer Walzer Berkowitz, Managing Director of R&J Advisory Group, which helps CEOs and executive teams scale up. Tune in as Jennifer explains her motivation in helping others achieve success. "I'm in a good place in my life. I don't have to be doing this. I could be on the tennis court every day. But the reality is that my whole purpose in life is to give others the same freedom," she said. "I look at it as a partnership. My clients look at me as a...
2024-03-0540 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs152: Avoiding Brand Graveyards: The Key to Cultivating Irrational LoyaltyIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Deb Gabor, founder and CEO of Sol Marketing, a strategy-led marketing firm. Deb talks to us about cultivating your human authority to create irrational loyalty. "I'm in the business of creating the condition that I call irrational loyalty – when people are so indelibly bonded to a brand, they feel like they were cheating on it if they were to choose an alternative," she explains. "Brands that create that condition of irrational loyalty scale more rapidly, more profitably, and are more focused. But the most important thing is...
2024-02-2740 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs151: The Rise of Customers Bank: A Blueprint for Banking SuccessIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Jay Sidhu, Chairman and CEO of Customers Bancorp, Inc. and Executive Chairman of Customers Bank. He is also author of "Never, Ever, Ever Give Up, " which started as a book for his grandchildren about being a first-generation immigrant from India, but evolved into a guideline for young entrepreneurs needing inspiration "I was very blessed that my dad had a great influence on my life, he was my mentor. And I wanted to pass on what he did for me on to others," he said. "Now I h...
2024-02-2041 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs150: CEO Concierge Chronicles: Empowering CEOs with Tailored Executive SupportIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Jana Franklin, founder of the CEO Concierge Virtual Assistant company, a business dedicated to providing virtual assistant services exclusively tailored to the needs of CEOs. She also franchises several Jimmy Johns and Fantastic Sams locations in the St. Louis area. She explains how her businesses are intertwined. "The best thing I've done in my business in the last three years was to bring on a virtual assistant, in each and every company to help me run efficiently so I can do the things that I am g...
2024-02-1331 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs149: Passion Pays Off: Small Business Triumph Through Niche StrategiesIn today's podcast, we talk to Matthew Pollard, founder of Rapid Growth® Coach, and author of "The Introverts Edge," a book laying out the steps on how a shy and quiet person can outsell anyone without changing their personality. "What makes me tick right now is helping people realize that introverts aren't second-class citizens; their path to success is just different to that of an extrovert," he says. "The biggest fake news you've ever heard is that introverts have to have a gift of gab to be successful. They just need to lean into their natural gifts and...
2024-02-0635 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs148: The Business Encore: Transforming Theatrical Talent into Professional TriumphIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Stacee Mandeville, founder of The Mandeville Method, a three-pillar soft skills approach that helps teams communicate with clarity and authority, use emotional intelligence to reduce stress, and develop personal influence to build relationships. "Everything the Mandeville Method does is concrete, actionable, practical. We talk about soft skills, but I concretize them so that you can do it," she said. "I bridge the gap between knowing what to do and how to do it." The main topics of today's episode will be how Stacee translated her gift...
2024-01-3038 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs147: Balance Sheet Breakthrough: Unlocking Potential with ExpertsIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Kira Wissman, CAS Controller of the client advisory services department at KWC CPAs, based in Alexandria, Virginia. She explains how she has tried to change perceptions about the accounting world. "The owner of the company I worked for initially was very passionate about people and really taught me the importance of motivation and how to get the best out of people," she said. "Accounting tends to be very nitpicky and pointing out the wrongs. So, I'm trying to flip that switch and point out what people...
2024-01-2328 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs146: PR Beyond the Norm: Businesswomen Empowerment and A Healthy Work CultureIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Amy Power, founder and CEO of The Power Group, a PR, social media and influencer relations firm in Dallas, where she is also president of the EO chapter. Amy tells us how she was inspired by her grandmother at a young age to become an entrepreneur. "My grandmother, in hindsight, was an entrepreneur. She had her own seamstress shop in Jackson, Tennessee, and as a little child, when I visited her in the summers, I would watch her serve customers and mend clothing," she said. Growing up...
2024-01-1629 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs145: Dynamics Unveiled: Lessons from a Real Estate to Market Research TransitionIn this weeks edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Jim Jacobs, CEO and Founder of Focus Insite, a nationwide market research firm. He explains how making a business plan and starting right away is the best path for entrepreneurs rather than waiting for the perfect conditions. "You're gonna do half the revenue, and your expenses are going to be three times what you project on any spreadsheet, right? It just happens. But you have to be in the game and you have to swing the bat," he says. In this episode we will he...
2024-01-0937 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs144: Navigating Entrepreneurial Terrains with Deliberate Growth and Leaps of FaithIn today's podcast, we talk to Ben Herman, co-founder and CEO of Mad Fish Digital, a digital marketing agency and certified B Corporation with its roots in Portland, Oregon. He explains how watching the stress of having investors at his previous company made him take slow and deliberate growth in his own company. "It's my wife's and my company, and that feels really good," he said. "It feels like we can make decisions for ourselves and we can make mistakes for ourselves and learn from them and not have a group of people that can take it...
2023-12-1936 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs143: The Nightmare of a Reiki Massage Therapist That Changed This Bodhisattva's LifeIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Keith Roberts, a transformational speaker, expert on leadership, and founder of the OAKJournal. He explains his journey to becoming a bodhisattva – a Buddhist whose purpose in life is to help others reach nirvana or enlightenment. "It is my goal in this life; I wouldn't say I've reached that yet," he said. "It really aligns with much more with what I do today than the two decades I spent building websites for airlines and bands and things like that." The main topics of today's episode wi...
2023-12-1228 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs142: Unlock the True Potential of Your Business by Mastering the Concept Of EBITDAIn today's podcast, we talk to Ryan Tansom, founder of Arkona, and the Intentional Growth™ Framework, which helps owners view and run their company like a financial asset through educational training and fractional CFO services. He developed the program after selling his family business with the goal of helping others avoid the same mistakes he made. "I think the blind trust, we can't do that anymore," he said. "Because you have situations like myself that you get into when you think everybody's looking out for you, but you realize they don't get paid to look out for yo...
2023-12-0533 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs141: Want to Sell Your Business? Learn What to Think About With Len BruskiewitzIn today's podcast, we talk to Len Bruskiewitz, owner of FocalPoint, where he helps small businesses, owners and entrepreneurs be more successful by coaching them to optimize their four key levers in their lives and companies – time, money, team and strategy. "I think one of the biggest things that small business owners don't realize is that you can't wake up one day and decide to sell your business the next. The guidance that I talk to is for at least 2–3 years... You've got to think about this before you do it. It's not something you can just snap...
2023-11-2825 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs140: Taking Care of Your Staff So They Can Take Care of Your BusinessIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Jeff Silbert, co-founder and president of Silbert Partners, which operates 10 locations of Hand & Stone Massage, and Facial Spa and Moxie Salon and Beauty Bar. He explains how he prefers franchising to starting a business from scratch. "Actually, franchising was new to me. It works out well because I like getting in kind of early, but I don't like being the first," he said. "So, this kind of works well with the way my head works and the way I think about things—getting in pretty early and...
2023-11-2125 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs139: Acquired to Acquirer: How This Entrepreneur Grew Her Business through an AcquisitionIn today's podcast, Lynn talks to Cassandra Bailey, the founder, president, and CEO of Slice Communications. She tells us how she made the transition from employee to employer when social media was just emerging about 15 years ago. "I had been doing media relations, and I recognized that social media was going to be this new emerging way for companies to interact with people," she said. "So, Slice was founded on that point of view—that media relations and social media really should work hand in hand." The main topics of today's episode will be how Ca...
2023-11-1435 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs138: A Fresh Look at Venture Capital: A Technology-Based Group Changing the RulesIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, we talk to Vik Thapar, managing director of Cypress Growth Capital, where he oversees all aspects of the firm's investment process and provides ongoing support to portfolio companies. He tells us what he looks for when acquiring venture capital. "We're looking to learn about the business in general, which includes technology, but at the end of the day, the management team is probably at the forefront of what we look at because it doesn't really matter what you're selling or how you're selling it. Because if the folks that...
2023-11-0729 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs137: The Secret Sauce to Being a Financial CookIn this week's edition of the AmiSights podcast, we talk to Michael Brady. Michael is a consultant with LPL Financial and the managing partner of Independent Advisor Group, where he mentors approximately 35 advisors and oversees the books of business owned by IAG, which total more than $200 million in assets. He tells us how he grew his business from the ground up, starting with a bunch of smaller accounts and eventually scaling up. "The way our industry works is you get a little bit of growth, a little bit of growth, and then a shot up," he said. "...
2023-11-0225 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs136: Making Decisions on How to Show Up in a Crisis as a LeaderIn this week's edition of the AmiSights Podcast, I found myself as the LIVE case study when an unexpected branding exercise unfolded in this episode with our guest, Deb Gabor. Deb Gabor is the founder and CEO of Sol Marketing, a strategy-led marketing firm. Known as the "branding queen," Deb and I talk about what companies should do, if anything at all, to respond to difficult topics such as the current crisis in Israel and Gaza. "My hope is that we are going to help leaders navigate the thought process behind whether or not they should make...
2023-10-2439 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs121: Fletcher Helps Us Solve Hard Hiring Problems and Understand Behavior AssessmentsIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Fletcher Wimbush, Founder, CEO, and Lead Executive Recruiter for The Hire Talent, a talent assessment company that solves difficult hiring problems primarily for companies with 0-250 employees. Fletcher tells us how he got into the industry and shares how to find the top talent. "I spent literally my entire life since I was 16 thinking about this," he said. "My father was a management consultant, like a business coach. And he developed these really cool behavioral aptitude assessments. He was an introvert – like a re...
2023-06-2730 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs119: As an Entrepreneur, Beware of Letting Your Stress Get To Your EmployeesIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Jessica Harrington, owner of Journey to Yourself, a company she started in 2020 that provides a six-month series of interactive corporate workshops focusing on habits and tools for employees as well as 1:1 coaching for employees on stress management. Jessica tells us how keeping the small stuff under control and nipping aggravations in the bud early on can prevent burnout or damaged relationships. "My mindset on stress is that a lot of it is self-caused on how we perceive it and how we're handling it,"...
2023-06-1328 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs117: How Running a Business Goes from Checkers to Chess for This Female EntrepreneurIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Angela Pointon, Owner and President of 11outof11, a digital marketing agency that offers outsource content marketing services and HubSpot expertise and training. Angela tells us about what makes her tick and the inspiration behind her book, "Stop Blending In: The 7 Steps for Achieving Thought Leader Status and Standing Out in Your Field." She explains that when she was working for an agency, she was working 60-70 hours a week, commuting an hour each way and hardly seeing her then-very young children. While she...
2023-05-3032 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs116: What an Ecommerce Marketing Guru Did When the World Shut DownIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Jon MacDonald, founder and president of The Good, an ecommerce conversion rate and customer experience optimization advisory that helps brands understand the clicks and movements of their website visitors, and use that data to convert more existing visitors into buyers. Jon also tells us how he spent his extra time during the pandemic writing a step-by-step book, "Opting in to Optimization." "I said, 'If I come out of COVID, what is the one thing that I could really do for the business that...
2023-05-2336 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs115: Are You Navigating Economic Landmines Successfully?In today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Chris Earley, an ex-franchisee, founder and president of Liberty Inspection Group, based in Media, Pennsylvania. Chris tells us how he started his own home inspection company after getting his feet wet with a franchise. He also talks about diversifying his business to make it through the fluctuating real estate market. If your business is or isn't experiencing shifts because of economic factors, let Chris' story inspire you on how to navigate economic landmines. "The franchise was good for us for a couple years; th...
2023-05-1631 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs114: The 5 I's of Leadership and How It Drives Your Top and Bottom LinesIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Marissa Levin, a five-time, 30-year entrepreneur, speaker, best-selling author, mindset expert, and globally recognized growth and spiritual strategist. In today's episode, she tells us about her latest venture, I5 Conscious Leadership, a leadership education and consulting firm guided by a mission to elevate the consciousness of the world through leadership. "At the heart of all of us is a beautiful spirit, and my spirit is definitely one that is here to uplift and empower others," she said. "My lifetime legacy mission – LLM – is to e...
2023-05-0937 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs113: A Serial Entrepreneur Takes His Horrific Accident and Turns it Into a BusinessIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Joe Torres, CEO and president of Developmental Therapy Associates, based in the Raleigh-Durham area of North Carolina. He also runs a software development company and a real estate group and holding company. In this episode, Joe tells us how a near-fatal incident changed the trajectory of not only his career but also his life. In 2012, he was riding his motorcycle to the gym when he was hit head-on by another vehicle, changing his life forever. He spent a month in the hospital and t...
2023-05-0231 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs112: Maximizing Business Value: Benefits of Thinking about Exit Strategies from the StartIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Tom Bronson, founder and president of the Business Transition Summit, as well as Mastery Partners and Mastering Mergers and Acquisitions. All three companies empower business owners to maximize business value and serve business owners in different capacities to help them achieve their dream exit. In this episode, we focus on what every business owner needs to know about business exit strategies for business success. "I am what most people call a serial entrepreneur. I have owned, operated, and sold 100 businesses in my career,"...
2023-04-2546 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs110: Demystifying Stakeholder Capitalism and Helping Build Thriving Stakeholder BusinessesIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Kent Gregoire, Co-Founder of Stakeholder Business, which is on a mission to help entrepreneurs transform their companies for maximum impact. In addition to his work with Stakeholder Business, he is also the Founder and CEO of Symphony Advantage. Being one of seven certified conscious capitalism consultants around the world, Kent wants to create more opportunities and solve more problems for stakeholders. The main topics of today's discussion will be conscious capitalism and stakeholder capitalism. "Conscious capitalism is a way of being able to...
2023-04-1144 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs109: How One Entrepreneur Did a 180 from Running Salons to Launching a Tech AppIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to serial entrepreneur Celeste Trapp, who has started an exciting new venture after nearly 20 years in the salon business. Celeste has begun her next venture as the CEO and Founder of Whoz, a SaaS social invite and engagement app to help companies and associations engage and retain their valued employees and members. After working more than 10 years in marketing, Celeste founded Hair M – one of the first high-end men's grooming salons – in October 2003. Based in Portland, Hair M had seven salons at its peak. The p...
2023-04-0433 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs108: Why Contract Lawyers are so Important to a Small Business Owner with Donya GordonIn today's podcast, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka SBA Queen, and I talk to Donya Gordon, a contract attorney who focuses on commercial contracts, eCommerce M & A transactions, contract dispute resolution, distress business sales, and escrow services. The main focus of today's conversation is what an entrepreneur should do to prepare for a successful transaction before the deal arrives on the attorney's desk. After working with prominent law firms and as a judicial clerk for several years, Donya went out alone a couple of years ago without any outside financing. As a result, she is a one-woman...
2023-03-2830 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs107: Controlling How You Scale Your Business with Josh WatsonWelcome back to the AmiSights Podcast! Today we welcome our new Co-Host, MultiFunding President Lynn Ozer, aka the SBA Queen. On this episode, we talk to Josh Watson, founder of EIS Automation, a Las Vegas-based manufacturing automation company focusing on product handling and end-of-line solutions. This is a must see episode for entrepreneurs in exponential growth mode. We discuss how to finance growth and how saying no can lead to success. Josh, who grew up in the printing industry, worked for a larger company when he decided to go out on his own in 2012...
2023-03-2138 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs7: The New President of MultiFunding, Lynn OzerOn today's episode, Ami Kassar interviews Lynn Ozer, the new President of MultiFunding on her transition from the corporate banking world to the more entrepreneurial MultiFunding. Lynn Ozer is a strategic and highly accomplished financial executive with vast expertise in small business lending departments, training existing and aspiring lenders on SBA's loan origination policies and procedures, and advocating on local and national level for policies that prioritize small business. To this day, she serves on the Small Business Board of The Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce. As the first woman to chair the board of t...
2021-03-1620 min15 Minutes Share Your Voice7: The New President of MultiFunding, Lynn OzerOn today's episode, Ami Kassar interviews Lynn Ozer, the new President of MultiFunding on her transition from the corporate banking world to the more entrepreneurial MultiFunding.
Lynn Ozer is a strategic and highly accomplished financial executive with vast expertise in small business lending departments, training existing and aspiring lenders on SBA’s loan origination policies and procedures, and advocating on local and national level for policies that prioritize small business. To this day, she serves on the Small Business Board of The Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce.
As the first woman to chair the board of...
2021-03-1620 min
AmiSights: Financing the Future For Small Business Owners and EntrepreneursBob Coleman TrailerIt's already February 1st, 2021 and you've guessed it! We've pivoted yet again and are excited to launch our new AmiSights Podcast. This week's special guest is Bob Coleman, Editor of the Coleman Report, a trade newsletter for small business bankers and a nationally recognized expert on small business financing. In our inaugural podcast, Ami sits down with Bob and discusses what the SBA has done during the pandemic, the differences compared to the Great Recession, the PPP, the EIDL, and their thoughts on what's to come. The weekly AmiSights Podcast will feature dynamic interviews with entrepreneurs, thought l...
2021-02-0101 min
Coleman Small Business Lending PodcastEpisode 11 -- Ami Kassar, Founder and CEO, MultiFundingDecember 14, 2015
By Bob Coleman
Editor, Main Street Monday
Main Street Monday -- Why Transparency is Critical for Main Street Borrowers
Ami Kassar, CEO and Founder of MultiFunding, is a nationally renowned small business advocate and leader. He is committed to ensuring that small business owners have the best possible access to the capital they need to help grow and manage their businesses.
Kassar has been featured in renowned publications including the New York Times, The Huffington Post, INC., The Wall Street Journal, Entrepreneur, and Forbes, and has appeared as a guest on Fox Business News. Kassar is the 2014, 2013 recipient of...
2015-12-1400 min