ROI’s Into the Corner Office Podcast: Powerhouse Middle Market CEOs Telling it Real—Unexpected Caree...

Cameron Gunter is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of PEG Companies, a full-service commercial real estate investment firm known for its unique approach to creating value. A bold leader, Cameron has a widespread reputation for successfully guiding his teams through challenging endeavors that many others in the commercial real estate space have shied away from.  Cameron’s farm-raised work ethic, outside-the-box thinking, commitment to absolute transparency, and past professional experience have helped him to lead PEG to where it is today. A CPA by training with over eight years mastering the entitlement process in city management, Cameron brings a perspective that helps PEG offer compelling investment opportunities through innovative and cost-effective solutions to the complexities of real estate markets today. As one of the youngest finance directors in Utah’s city government history, Cameron structured the largest tax incentive project in the western United States at the time for the city of Lehi, Utah with Micron Technology, Inc. and continues to make headlines as PEG grows throughout the United States and Canada.  With dozens of projects completed and many others underway, Cameron is proud of the market-leading position PEG has secured in its nearly 20 years of operation. Whether it is becoming the first developer ever to finish an AC Hotel by Marriott on time and under budget, building one of the only four-story branded hotel buildings in downtown Jackson Hole, developing a major student housing hub for Utah’s largest university, or breaking ground on the first Qualified Opportunity Zone projects in multiple states, Cameron rises to every challenge and finds great fulfillment in spurring economic growth for communities everywhere.  Cameron received his BA in Business Administration from Idaho State University.

Culture. Culture. Culture. - It’s everything! As CEO and President of Massage Heights Franchising, I am proud to lead a talented group of people to drive continuous growth in our overall culture. Culture is everything, and it is the cornerstone of my leadership beliefs. Massage Heights is about creating a culture of caring where we focus on providing a personalized, elevated, and awesome experience to every member and guest. Health and wellness are part of our daily lives, and we are proud to work with our amazing franchisees and partners to grow our brand. Franchising has been my 35-year career with various industries. The journey has been so rewarding, and helping franchisees, team members, partners, and consumers achieve their goals is what gives me the most satisfaction. Prior to Massage Heights Franchising, I was the President of TITLE Boxing Club and oversaw over 180 clubs domestically and internationally. I have been an executive leader and franchising subject matter expert, steering vision casting for some of the best-loved and most-recognized brands, including Massage Envy, McDonald’s, Sport Clips, Cold Stone Creamery, and Godfather’s Pizza. I have a proven history of providing business strategies and financial due diligence to help franchisees achieve operational excellence aligned with company mission, values, and goals. An innovative, forward-thinking trailblazer focused on driving results in relentless pursuit of excellence. Expertise: Talent Development ~ Brand Stewardship ~ Strategic Business Planning and Execution ~ Change Management ~ Strategic Partnerships ~ National Promotions ~ Business Intelligence ~ Research & Analysis ~ Loyalty Programs ~ Market & Media Planning ~ Target Messaging ~ Local Store Marketing ~ Budgeting & Forecasting ~ Coaching & Mentoring

Matt Blumberg is the founder and CEO of Bolster, a marketplace for on-demand executive and board talent launched in 2020. Matt was Chairman & CEO of Return Path, Inc., the company he founded in 1999, until its sale to Validity in 2019. Return Path was the market leader in email optimization, helping thousands of businesses use the email channel more effectively to promote and protect their brands and winning numerous employer of choice awards including #2 on Fortune Magazine’s “Best Companies to Work for” list. Prior to founding Return Path, Matt was founder and General Manager of the Internet division of MovieFone, Inc. (777-FILM) until the company’s acquisition by AOL, and had previously worked in venture capital and management consulting.   In addition to his corporate entrepreneurial work, Matt is co-founder and Chairman of Path Forward, a nonprofit that was spun out of Return Path in 2016, whose mission is to empower women to restart their careers after time spent focused on caregiving, working with more than 75 companies including Apple, Amazon, Wal-Mart, Intuit, Campbell’s Soup, PayPal, Verizon, and Oracle. He is also the author of 3 books: Startup CEO: A field guide to scaling up your business (based on his popular blog on entrepreneurship, StartupCEO.com), Startup CXO: A field guide to scaling up your company’s critical functions and teams, and the forthcoming Startup Boards: A Field Guide to Building and Leading an Effective Board of Directors, all published by Wiley & Sons.   Matt has been recognized as one of New York’s 100 most influential technology leaders by Business Insider, by Crain’s as one of New York’s Top Entrepreneurs, and by Ernst & Young as an Entrepreneur of the Year finalist. He has served as a Board Member of numerous corporate, nonprofit, and community organizations, as well as Chairman of the Board of the Direct Marketing Association, and he completed a brief assignment as founder and leader of the State of Colorado’s COVID-19 Innovation Response Team in 2020. Matt attended Princeton University where he graduated Summa Cum Laude with an A.B. in Urban Planning in 1992. He lives with his wife Mariquita and his three children, Casey, Wilson, and Elyse in Scarsdale, NY.

Alejandro Martinez is a Partner, Chief Executive Officer of the U.S. and Canada and Head of the Global Clients Organization for SDG Group, a global consulting firm that provides specialized services in Data and Analytics through a unique combination of business domain expertise and state-of-the-art technologies. Before joining SDG Group, Alejandro developed his professional career in important local and international companies as a consultant. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, postgraduate degree in International Management, and a master’s degree in Project Management from the Polytechnic University of Valencia in Spain (UPV). He also has a degree in Business Engineering from the School of Engineering of Antioquia (EIA University), Colombia. In the last few years, Alejandro has been recognized as one of the Top 50 Global Healthcare Consultants by The Consulting Report and as a Visionary Leader in the Data & Analytics field by Analytics Insight. He contributes to SDG Group’s technology alliances in their partner advisory councils and direct engagements with their R&D departments to influence the market execution and the technology roadmap.

Madeleine MacRae serves as CEO, Founder and Chief Innovator for Homepro Toolbox, a digital resource center focused on leveraging rock solid sales, marketing and business education to drive the growth of companies throughout every segment of the home services and improvement industries. Madeleine is a former corporate executive and a 3x founder.  She has more than 15 years of experience leading, consulting and growing businesses of all sizes from family-run to fortune 500. She understands how to harness the power of people and how to leverage the power of dynamic educational content to catalyze growth. Her down-to-earth style makes even the most intimidating topics feel well within reach and her ability to blend cutting-edge information with fiery inspiration drives audiences – both live and virtually – to stand up and take action towards their growth and business objectives without losing sight of who they truly are and what they desire the most.   She’s taught over 25,000 people and inspires leaders to hit the next stage of their growth, whether it’s going from $5k to $45k months, hitting their first million in sales or even growing to $5-, $10-, even $30+ million dollars of revenue a year!

Eric Rieger is the Founder and CEO of WEBIT Services, Inc. (www.webitservices.com). WEBIT is an Employee-Owned, People-Focused, IT Strategy, Service, & Support company serving organizations in 8 counties in Northern Illinois along with our remote workforce around the country. In addition to providing Managed IT Services, the SecureBIT managed security team helps organizations identify and reduce risk and our Upstream Impact software division creates applications that help non-profit organizations achieve their mission.  Our most recent application PantryEasy, (www.pantryeasy.com) is an online market that helps food pantries get their goods to their clients quickly and efficiently. Our goal is to positively impact 1200 organizations by the year 2030.

Steven Sashen is a serial entrepreneur who has never had a job, a former professional stand-up comic and award-winning screenwriter, and a competitive sprinter -- one of the fastest men over 55 in the country (maybe the fastest 55+ Jew in the world!). He and his wife, Lena Phoenix, co-founded the footwear company Xero Shoes, creating "a MOVEMENT movement" that has helped hundreds of thousands of people Live Life Feet First with happy, healthy, strong feet in addictively comfortable footwear. Steven and Lena also appeared on Shark Tank, where they turned down a $400,000 offer from Kevin O'Leary. 

Dr. Thomas J. Dammrich, DBA Former CEO, National Marine Manufacturers Association and IPC-Connecting Electronic Circuits Business Strategist, National Association of Healthcare Quality Advisor, Global Marine Business Advisors Thomas Dammrich was president of NMMA for 21 years.  When assuming the role, he knew he had to get the industry working together and focused on things everyone could agree to work on.  One of the first things he tackled was focusing on market expansion efforts that were also measurable.  Dammrich’s leadership helped unify the industry to do just that with the Discover Boating campaign, now entering its sixteenth year.  Dammrich also served as President of IPC, an international trade association of companies producing printed circuit boards and doing electronics manufacturing services. After retiring from NMAA in 2019, Dammrich continued his service on a number of Boards of Directors and has chaired or served on over 15 Boards of Directors including both non-profit and for-profit companies.  He is currently engaged as Business Strategist for the National Association for Healthcare Quality and as a founder of Global Marine Business Advisors Thom can’t help but look forward.  He has said, “I constantly scan the environment in which industries operate to anticipate challenges and identify opportunities to keep the industry healthy, growing, and working together.” Dammrich is a builder, having doubled revenues and members in every organization he has led. Dammrich has a BA in Economics, an MBA in Finance, an MS in Accountancy, and a Doctorate of Business Administration, all from DePaul University in Chicago.  He is a member of the NMMA Hall of Fame, ASA Sportfishing Hall of Fame, and Boating Safety Hall of Fame and has been recognized for lifetime achievement by the Water Sports Industry Association.  He is a member of the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Management Committee for the Center for Sportfish Policy and serves on the Board of Directors of Niven Marketing.

Amy Pyles is the President at Saxum, an integrated digital agency obsessed for good. Amy excels in solving complex problems for brands and organizations using technology, insights and creativity. She oversees the execution of Saxum’s business strategy, operational strategy and the overall quality of services, and champions the alignment of people, business and clients. Throughout her career, Amy has delivered data-driven strategies across industries and brands including Walmart, Gathering Place, Walton Family Foundation, Williams, Procter & Gamble, and Anheuser-Busch. Prior to joining Saxum, she also led agency operations for WPP’s Rockfish Digital (now part of VML/Y&R).

Mary joined the MTI team in 2020 as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and in January 2021, she joined the MTI Board of Directors. She has an extensive background as a passionate business leader and operational expert. She brings 30 years of experience developing, commercializing, delivering, and supporting technology-related products, services, and companies. She values integrity, a purpose-driven and compassionate company culture, sustainability, and diversity as key factors in every company’s success and leads consistently with these values. Mary has served as CEO, CTO, COO, CSO, VP, board director, board chair, founder, consultant, and advisor for private and public companies from early-stage startups to Fortune 500 across a variety of industries. A licensed Professional Electrical Engineer, P.E., Ms. Jesse holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Electrical Engineering, and nineteen technology-related patents. She is a frequent advisor, speaker and writer on technology, innovation and diversity, and is passionate about supporting underserved populations in STEM, technology, and business.