School for Startups Radio

Darryl Kelly – Chief Executive of Aspect Software, Futurist, 3x Founder, 7x Board Member, Angel Investor and Podcast Host 

When he was a middle school student, his family was homeless, but it never deterred him from being a great student and citizen. He excelled in high school, taking numerous advanced placement courses. He then entered college at sixteen and eventually received my Bachelor’s degree, MBA and MFA. Darryl Kelly’s pro...

Lawrence Lam – Managing Director & Founder of Lumenary Investment Management and Author of The Founder Effect: Three Pillars of Success in Founder-Led Companies

Lawrence Lam is the Managing Director and Founder of Lumenary Investment Management, a funds management firm. He specializes in strategic investments in global, founder-led companies. Prior to founding Lumenary in 2017, Lawrence was an investment banker with Royal Bank ...

Ed Walsh – Senior Managing Consultant, Hybrid Cloud Transformation, IBM Consulting

Edward Walsh is seasoned technology strategist specializing in digital and cloud transformation initiatives. He brings deep expertise in transforming complex technological challenges into strategic business opportunities, helping organizations reimagine their digital futures. As a Senior Managing Consultant in IBM’s Global Cloud Advisory practice, he...

Sam Liebowitz – Talk Radio Executive Producer, 4X Best-selling Author, TEDx Speaker and Helping Conscious Business Leaders Become Thought Leaders 

Sam Liebowitz, known as The Conscious Consultant, is a facilitator, mentor, speaker, healer, serial entrepreneur, host of the top rated radio show, The Conscious Consultant Hour, and is a four time best-selling author, and author of the #1 empowerment book, Everyday Awakening. He is also...

Kevin Wade – Hollywood Veteran and Author of Johnny Careless: A Novel

Kevin Wade has been the show runner – and regular contributor – to Blue Bloods since 2011. A noted screen writer, his credits include Maid in Manhattan, Working Girl, Meet Joe Black, Mr. Baseball, and True Colors. When the Hollywood writers’ strike and the pandemic left him a wee bit idle, he decided to write a novel. The result is JOHNNY CARELESS! There are a lo...

Joel Zeff – Speaker and Author of Make the Right Choice: Lead with Passion, Elevate Your Team, and Unleash the Fun at Work

Joel Zeff creates energy! His spontaneous humor and vital messages have thrilled audiences for more than 25 years. As a national speaker, work culture expert, author, and humorist, Joel captivates audiences with a unique blend of hilarious improvisational comedy and essential ideas on work and life. He has shar...

Andy Hamilton – CEO and Co-founder of When – Post-Employment Insurance

Andy Hamilton is the CEO and Co-founder of When, an AI-powered offboarding platform and severance solution. He has previously co-founded two technology companies, both of which were acquired by public companies. The latter company, ApartmentJet, was acquired by Expedia Group. During the Covid pandemic, experiencing a layoff firsthand motivated Andy to create a b...

Owain Yeoman – Entrepreneur. Partner/ Chief Commercial Officer of edYOU TECHNOLOGIES & Principal Producer and CEO @ SHOWMAN PRODUCTIONS

From his unforgettable portrayal of Wayne Rigsby in The Mentalist to a diverse range of roles across television and film, Owain Yeoman is blending his acting experience with a passion for innovation. Now serving as Chief Commercial Officer at edYOU, a cutting-edge AI-powered platform, Owain is ...

Dr. John Hillen  - Author of The Strategy Dialogues: A Primer on Business Strategy and Strategic Management

The Honorable Dr. John Hillen is a highly accomplished CEO, Board Chairman, former US Assistant Secretary of State, and award-winning professor. With extensive strategic leadership experience spanning business, government, the military, and academia, he is the author of The Strategy Dialogues: A Primer on Business Strategy...

Elizabeth Bieniek – Tech Pioneer, Human-centric AI Consultant and Author of Cake on Tuesday: 25 Lessons to Unlock Corporate Innovation

Elizabeth Bieniek is an author, speaker, and consultant focused on “good peopling” as the secret to exceptional execution. As a founder and Fortune 100 innovation and engineering leadership veteran, her expertise lies in challenging assumptions, embracing diverse perspectives, and leading through am...

Michael Barbarita – Owner of Next Step CFO

Michael Barbarita has owned and operated Retail, Manufacturing and Service companies over the last 30 years. One of the retail companies he operated called “Ski Town USA” grew from $2.5 Million to $8.0 million in less than 5 years. One of the products he manufactured was “Cookies To Scoop Frozen Cookie Dough” and was featured on the QVC Home Shopping Network and was selected as one of the ...

Rosco Graves Jr – CEO of Polaxis

Rosco Graves Jr. – For over twenty years, Rosco has partnered with CEOs and executives to gather and interpret data in order to generate meaningful insights. He has a proven track record of leading initiatives to unlock value through tax, financial and operational strategies and enjoying making the complex simple, clear and actionable. As the CEO of Polaxis, Rosco enjoys meeting with business owners...

Michel Buffet – Senior Client Partner at Korn Ferry

Michel Buffet advises C-suite executives and enterprise leaders on strategies to unlock the potential of individuals, teams, and organizations through tailored organizational and talent development solutions. With over 25 years of consulting experience, Michel specializes in executive succession, leadership assessment, coaching, high-performance team development, and organizationa...

Dr. Michael E. Platt – Author of Adrenaline Dominance: A Revolutionary Approach to Wellness and his Cream

Michael E. Platt, M.D., a specialist in natural hormone replacement, has successfully treated thousands of patients from around the world. He has also given numerous seminars on hormones worldwide and been a speaker on hormones in Europe and Asia. He’s the author of the popular Miracle of Bio-Identical Hormones and his latest b...

Ivan Lansberg – Co-Founder at LGA and co-author of The Enduring Enterprise: How Family Businesses Thrive in Turbulent Conditions

Ivan Lansberg is the co-founder at LGA and co-author of The Enduring Enterprise: How Family Businesses Thrive in Turbulent Conditions, with Devin DeCiantis. About the book: While blue chips, tech titans, and big banks are often hailed as the leading drivers of modern capitalism, it turns out that family b...

David Daneshgar – 2008 World Series of Poker Winner and Founder of Whippy

David Daneshgar is the co-founder and CEO of Whippy, an AI-driven SaaS platform transforming how businesses communicate. Whippy’s smart voice and text agents help companies across recruiting, medical, and other industries streamline operations and engage clients more effectively. Before Whippy, David co-founded BloomNation, a SaaS platform that has driven ove...

Lesle Lane – Corporate Photographer and Owner of Studio 13

Lesle Lane is a third-generation photographer with more than 3 decades of personal experience in the industry. She serves on the Alumni Board at her alma mater, Butler University, and earned her MBA from Indiana Wesleyan. Lesle has raised a couple of children into adults and loves being “Bam” to her grandkids. She and her husband live in Noblesville and enjoy days on the la...

Dustin Williamson – Managing Director of VCFO

Dustin Williamson, a seasoned CFO, strategic advisor, and the Houston Managing Director of vcfo, a professional services firm known for pioneering the “Virtual CFO” concept. With decades of experience in financial strategy, operational efficiency, and business transformation, Dustin has been on every side of the M&A table. He’s seen first-hand how the biggest wins aren’t always the ...

Dr. Dale Copeland – Professor of International Relations at UVA and Author of A World Safe for Commerce: American Foreign Policy from the Revolution to the Rise of China

Dr. Dale Copeland is Professor of International Relations at the Department of Politics, University of Virginia. He is author of three books: A World Safe for Commerce: American Foreign Policy from the Revolution to the Rise of China (Princeton UP 2024); Economic I...