Inside The Firm

Mark Gordon, known to founders as “The Rebel CRO,” is a revenue growth leader who has helped scale companies from $1 million to over $30 million in annual revenue. He specializes in breaking conventional sales and growth models, focusing instead on building predictable, scalable revenue systems that actually work in the real world. Mark works directly with founders and leadership teams to align sales, marketing, and operations into one cohesive growth engine. His approach is grounded in execution, not theory, helping businesses grow without relying on guesswork or hype.

Amber Hoffman is the Founder of The FS Agency, a digital marketing and AI advisory firm that specializes in high-precision visibility for local service businesses and professional firms. With over 15 years of expertise in digital marketing, Amber helps businesses navigate the shift from traditional search to LLM Visibility, ensuring brands are not just found on Google, but are accurately cited by AI models like ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity.

Rion Westfall is a founder, growth strategist, and creator of the Own Your Revenue program, where he helps small and mid-sized businesses identify the exact revenue levers that drive scalable, profitable growth. With experience spanning over 15 countries, work with the Department of Defense, and nine companies built across multiple industries, Rion brings a no-nonsense, battle-tested approach to scaling businesses without scaling chaos. His focus is simple: find what works, double down, and grow with margin.

Managing Broker Javier Santana plays a central role at Miami’s Sunland Group, a vertically integrated firm with development, design and construction capabilities. Specializing in residential and land sales, Javier leads Sunland’s Land Division, launched just over two years ago and quickly emerging as a dominant force in the market. Focused exclusively on unbuilt residential land, the division fills a critical market gap by providing dedicated brokerage services for an often overlooked yet high-volume segment of real estate.

Danny Brassell is a highly sought-after speaker, trainer, and coach—often called “Jim Carrey with a Ph.D.”—who has delivered over 3,500 presentations worldwide. A former inner-city teacher turned entrepreneur, he is the author of 20+ books, including Leadership Begins with Motivation and Misfits and Crackpots. As co-founder of WellCrafted Story™, Danny helps entrepreneurs and leaders turn storytelling and speaking into powerful client-generation tools. His work focuses on helping people communicate with clarity, authenticity, and impact.

On this episode of Inside the Firm, home remodeling profit margins hit highest rates since 2006, then we are short 10 million homes, and finally Ai workflows for architectural visualizations. Join us as we go back Inside the Firm!

Ben Olmos is a business leader, entrepreneur, and media founder with over 30 years of experience in the consumer packaged goods industry, working with both Fortune 500 companies and emerging brands. He is the founder of DissedMedia and The Daily Pitch, and the author of 10 Topics to Help Managers, Leaders & Entrepreneurs Get Better at What They Do. In addition to building companies, he has spent more than 20 years in higher education teaching business from undergraduate to doctoral levels. Today, he hosts the DissedMedia: A Startup Story podcast, sharing real-time lessons from building a company and interviewing founders in the trenches.

Phillip Lanier is an entrepreneur who built and sold an eight-figure business after growing up in poverty and experiencing homelessness. He didn’t follow a traditional path—he built success through discipline, problem-solving, and learning in real time. Today, he helps everyday people take control of their money through practical strategies, mindset shifts, and personal responsibility. He’s the author of No College, No Problem and teaches how to move from financial survival to stability and long-term wealth.

On this episode of Inside the Firm, is over regulation a help or kick in the butt for architects to become builders, then an update on interest rates, and finally why the most expensive way to build a house is in a factory. Join us as we go back Inside the Firm!

LuAnn Buechler, known as “The Little Spark,” is a transformational speaker, master trainer, and business coach who helps entrepreneurs align their passion with purpose to create meaningful success. After a 25-year career in corporate event planning, she hit burnout and pivoted into helping others build businesses that fuel both profit and fulfillment. She’s the creator of the Make Your Pa$$ion Pay™ Playbook and the 6 C’s Framework, guiding entrepreneurs to grow without sacrificing themselves in the process. LuAnn is also the founder of the iHug Movement™, a national initiative promoting human connection and emotional well-being through simple acts of kindness.

On this episode of Inside the Firm, should institutional investors own single family homes, then an update on interest rates, and finally why is the bar so low for running a successful architecture firm? Join us as we go back Inside the Firm!

Van Carlson is the Founder & CEO at SRA and has over 25 years of experience within the risk management industry. Van began his career with Farmers Insurance Group as an agent; eventually growing his book to be among the largest in his home state of Idaho. Van’s primary goal is to continue the upward growth of SRA and continue to develop new products to bring to market.

On this episode of Inside the Firm, business conditions for architecture firms may stabilize soon, then lessons from General Contracting, and finally why architects must reclaim the master builder mentality or become irrelevant. Join us as we go back Inside the Firm!

Matthew Fornaro is a South Florida business and commercial litigation attorney who has been serving clients since 2003. After working at two AmLaw 200 firms, he launched his own practice focused on contract disputes, construction law, intellectual property, and business formation. As both an attorney and small business owner, Matthew brings practical legal insight to entrepreneurs and mentors emerging business leaders throughout the community.

Carl Fudge is a "narrative strategist" who bridges the gap between deep business logic and world-class design. As the founder of Presentation Mode, he helps startup founders unlock capital by transforming complex business models into high-conviction fundraising stories.

On this episode of Inside the Firm, could Ai replace 64% of architects’ jobs, then Erie Colorado might get rid of sprinklers for single family homes, and finally how Ai pushes architecture marketing into a sea of sameness. Join us as we go back Inside the Firm!

Claudine Ripert is the Chief Operating Officer of Critical Control Restoration, where she works alongside executive teams during high-pressure operational disruptions such as fires, floods, and major system failures. She helps leaders maintain clarity, authority, and momentum when normal processes break down, protecting productivity, revenue, and team alignment when it matters most. Claudine brings practical, execution-driven insights on how disciplined leadership and strong systems prevent small incidents from becoming prolonged crises.

On this episode of Inside the Firm, Claude can Revit?, then the Colorado AIA on how architects can use two new state housing bills to build denser, more affordable multifamily, and finally why firms racing to automate may lose their project architects. Join us as we go back Inside the Firm!

Benas is a freelance SEO expert and micro-agency owner who quietly built a six-figure business generating over $120K per year with a lean, high-margin model. After stumbling into SEO more than a decade ago, he rejected corporate life and slowly built a sustainable solo practice by niching down, developing real case studies, and focusing on long-term client relationships. Today, he works hands-on with 4–6 clients at a time, runs an 80%-margin agency, and teaches freelancers how to charge more, escape feast-and-famine cycles, and design businesses that support their lives. Benas isn’t an overnight success story — he’s proof that slow, intentional growth works.

On this episode of Inside the Firm, AIA says billings are down, then BLOK and Jack lead the way on Ai driven layoffs, and finally what Ai software you need to be implementing NOW at your firm to stay ahead of the curve. Join us as we go back Inside the Firm!