Practical Business Skills & Tools Episodes

Tired of wrestling with clunky spreadsheets or paying a fortune for software that doesn't quite fit your business? James Edgell, a former technology leader at giants like McDonald's, IBM, and Deloitte, is here to show you a better way. He shares how his new venture, SoftExit Studio, is using AI to make custom business software accessible and affordable for everyone. This episode is a masterclass in leveraging technology to solve real-world business problems without a team of developers or a vent...

Tired of hearing about AI as a novelty? This episode cuts through the noise. Serial entrepreneur Marty Reed joins the show to reveal how to implement AI with a founder’s mindset, focusing on one thing: a tangible return on investment. He explains why simply chatting with an LLM is the lowest bar and shares how to build custom AI agents that automate complex workflows, multiply your team's productivity, and directly impact your P&L. For any wantrepreneur or entrepreneur feeling overwhelmed by AI,...

Is your business leaving money on the table? According to data science expert Robert Tan, the answer is almost certainly yes. In this episode, Robert pulls back the curtain on how B2B SaaS companies are uncovering millions of dollars in hidden revenue opportunities simply by looking at the customer data they already have. He shares a powerful story of how a payroll company discovered a brand new, multi-million dollar product line by realizing their "one-size-fits-all" approach was failing a huge...

If you’re an expert in your field with a game-changing software idea but no idea how to build it, this episode is your roadmap. We’re joined by Warren Johnson, the founder and co-CEO of Plexor Labs, who has cracked the code on turning domain expertise into market-ready products. Warren shares his incredible journey from a nearly two-decade career at Microsoft to becoming a substitute teacher and eventually graduating from Harvard with a master's in education, all of which shaped his unique appro...

Tired of AI hype that offers more talk than action? This episode cuts through the noise. Austin Zhang, founder and CEO of SIDUS, reveals the true power of AI for small and mid-sized businesses: agentic workflows. Forget simple chatbots that give you answers; Austin explains how AI agents are systems that actively do the work for you—connecting fragmented data from your CRM, email, and project management tools to execute entire operational workflows with human oversight. This episode is a masterc...

In an era where AI's trustworthiness is constantly questioned, Yousef Ahmad is pioneering a solution that builds accuracy through agreement. Yousef, the founder of IntakeIQ, reveals how he developed a multi-model AI "consensus engine" to solve a critical problem his wife faced as an attorney: wasting countless hours on unqualified leads. This episode breaks down how leveraging multiple AI agents to debate and verify information can drastically reduce errors and save businesses up to 80% of their...

In a world saturated with generic AI hype, how can entrepreneurs use this technology to create a genuine competitive advantage? Victor Weigman, founder of Aeneas, joins the show to reveal a future where AI isn’t a top-down mandate but a personalized tool for every single person on your team. He breaks down his conviction that your unique perspective is your greatest asset and explains how building an AI "digital twin" can amplify your judgment and creativity. This episode is a masterclass in lev...

Michael La Spisa is an entrepreneur who embodies the spirit of leveraging every experience for the next big thing. He joins the podcast to break down his journey from co-founding Googipet, a 7-figure natural dog supplement brand, to launching OptiCommerceAI, a B2B service that helps businesses implement cutting-edge AI solutions. This episode is a masterclass in modern entrepreneurship, showing how to scale an e-commerce brand in a hyper-competitive market and then use that expertise to build a ...

In an age where our attention is the most sought-after commodity, how can we as entrepreneurs protect our focus and build businesses that truly serve people? This episode features Terry Gromes Jr, a former robotics engineer who is now the founder and CEO of The Canary Project. Terry breaks down why our relationship with technology is broken and how he's building a mission-driven company to fix it. He shares a powerful perspective on viewing attention as a currency, arguing that the most successf...

In a world where DoorDash can optimize your burrito delivery to the second, why is it so hard to make data-driven decisions about critical public issues like healthcare and the economy? Shyamsunder Sriram, a data analytics veteran from tech giants like DoorDash and HubSpot, is tackling this massive problem head-on. He joins the show to discuss his new venture, Point Luna, an organization on a mission to centralize the entire world's public data and connect it to AI. This episode is a masterclass...

Tired of hearing about AI chatbots and ready for the next evolution? In this episode, serial tech entrepreneur Bradley Younge pulls back the curtain on Agentic AI—the future of business automation. Bradley, who helped scale his last company (SkyKick) to over $45 million in ARR, explains why he’s betting his next chapter on building an autonomous AI workforce for small businesses. He shares how his new company, Outermind, is giving entrepreneurs an "unfair advantage" by deploying AI agents direct...

Worried that implementing AI in your business means navigating a minefield of risks? In this episode, AI governance expert and CEO Will Coffey flips the script, revealing how "governance" isn't about restriction—it's about acceleration. He breaks down why putting the right systems in place is the key to unlocking AI's full potential safely and responsibly. For any entrepreneur looking to innovate without gambling their company's data, reputation, or intellectual property, this conversation is a ...

Ready to operate your business with the strategic power of a company ten times its size? In this mind-blowing episode, we sit down with Brandon Katz, the visionary founder of DreamLever, to unpack the revolutionary concept of the "AI Chief of Staff." Brandon explains how we're entering the golden age of entrepreneurship, where AI isn't just automating tasks—it's becoming a strategic partner. This episode is a must-listen for any founder who wants to move beyond simple AI prompts and harness the ...

Are you tired of outdated industries ripe for a shake-up? In this episode, Dr. Bill McCumber, a finance professor and founder of Rowan Elder Productions, joins us to reveal how he’s tackling higher education's biggest flaw: the boring, ineffective classroom lecture. Dr. Bill breaks down why the future of any expertise-based business, whether in education or e-commerce, depends on creating "watchable" and "digestible" content that captivates your audience. This episode is a masterclass in industr...

The creator economy is projected to become a half-trillion-dollar industry, but the path from idea to income is littered with tech headaches and complexity. In this episode, we sit down with Bruce Skaar, a systems-thinking entrepreneur with a background at Nike and Microsoft, who is on a mission to eliminate these barriers. Bruce breaks down the massive opportunity within the creator economy and reveals how high the true barriers to success really are, despite low barriers to entry. He introduce...

In a world buzzing with AI hype, most enterprise-level projects are quietly failing. Robert Toshiyuki Morrell, founder of ThreddSync and an AI expert since 2009, joins the show to pull back the curtain on why this is happening and what entrepreneurs can learn from it. He breaks down the critical "execution gap" between AI strategy and real-world results, revealing why simply giving your team access to AI tools—a practice he calls "token sprinkling"—is a recipe for wasted investment. This episode...

Tired of hearing about AI as a vague, futuristic concept? In this episode, we pull back the curtain on what it really looks like to build and run a business on a fleet of AI agents. Drew Mehta, founder of ThinkFraction, joins us to share how he went from managing products for Major League Baseball and a $750B asset management firm to launching his own AI-native company. He doesn't just talk the talk; his company’s content, outreach, and research are all powered by AI agents he designed, with him...

In an era where AI can feel like a tool reserved for giant corporations, Margo and Nate Shulman are leveling the playing field. In this episode, the dynamic mother-son co-founding team behind NATEX AI pulls back the curtain on how they’re building truly bespoke AI solutions that deliver enterprise-level power to small and mid-sized businesses. They reveal why a "vertical" approach to solving industry-specific problems—from healthcare insurance denials to subcontractor workflows—is the key to cre...

Ever dreamed of buying a business but felt completely out of your depth? This episode is your masterclass in demystifying the world of business acquisition. Carter Micklem, a former private equity VP, pulls back the curtain on the due diligence process, sharing the exact strategies institutional investors use to vet a company—and how you can apply them to your first (or next) purchase. He breaks down the difference between buying a business and starting a franchise, the critical data points to a...

In this special Collab Week episode of Wantrepreneur to Entrepreneur, nine founders answer one creative and surprisingly powerful question: What is a concept from another discipline, hobby, or part of life that changed how you think as a founder? You’ll hear from Shawn Sundsvold, Jaimz Hodge, Jane Alexander, Drew Dorenfest, Erik Berglund, Lisa Larson, Nate Hebbert, Stephen Custer, and Nicholas Cook as they pull lessons from recovery, fiction writing, gardening, baseball, fitness, running, softw...

How can you leverage powerful AI like ChatGPT or Claude without exposing your sensitive business data? Rami Akeela, founder of Nera Systems, predicted this exact problem long before it became a mainstream concern and built the solution. In this episode, Rami unveils the Nera Chat App, a tool that delivers the full intelligence of major AI models with truly zero data exposure, eliminating the trade-off between power and privacy. For entrepreneurs, this conversation is a masterclass in not only so...

As entrepreneurs, we're constantly feeding data into AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude, but have you ever stopped to ask: where does that data go, and who really owns it? In this eye-opening episode, we sit down with Joshua Rhines, a fourth-generation Montanan and the founder of CubCloud AI. Joshua is on a mission to bring AI infrastructure back to a local level, championing the concept of "Sovereign AI" to ensure your data stays yours. This conversation is a must-listen for any entrepreneur who ...

Tired of hearing about AI as a fun toy? In this episode, we get down to business with AI transformation expert John Bush. John demystifies the world of AI, cutting through the hype of "shiny object syndrome" to reveal how entrepreneurs can use these powerful tools for what actually matters: creating operational leverage and driving real revenue. This episode is a masterclass in shifting your mindset from simply prompting AI to deploying it as an active, "agentic" part of your team. John shares h...

Are you tempted by the promise of AI building your business in minutes? In this episode, software engineer and Physie founder Daniel Veenkamp dispels the hype around "vibe coding" and makes a powerful case for building with patience and intention. Daniel shares his journey from a "disgruntled employee" at a personal training platform to creating his own solution, Physie, which reimagines how workouts are programmed, tracked, and shared. This episode is a masterclass in building a sustainable, hi...