Critical Mass Radio Show

Marlene Sheehan Dandler is the Founder of Seashore Academy. Marlene graduated from the Lakeside School in Seattle, WA in 1994 and Dartmouth College in 1998. During her time at Dartmouth, she studied at the Freie Universität Berlin, Germany as well as at the Beijing Normal University in Beijing, China. While at Dartmouth, Marlene worked as a German language instructor for Professor John Rassias, the creator of the Rassias Method, a unique, intensive language immersion technique used by the Peace Corps to learn a foreign language in 10 days’ time. This revolutionary method of rapid, effective language acquisition impressed Marlene greatly and became the foundation of Seashore Academy’s language immersion philosophy. When her own three children were ready to start school, Marlene visited over 2 dozen public, charter and private schools searching for an academically intensive, nurturing school in which her children would be immersed in a foreign language. Marlene and her husband decided to immerse their three chi

Mara James is Founder & CEO of the Extraordinary Lives Foundation. Originally from New York, Mara James relocated to California with her husband and her three children in 2007. They established Dr. James’s OBGYN practice, and for seven years, Mara managed the busy office. Then, in 2014, Mara unexpectedly experienced a manic episode and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Through her battle with mental health, many wellness professionals helped Mara heal and transform her life. Mara’s experience—in addition to the experience of some of her close family members—has kindled in her a passion for forwarding the cause of children’s mental health. She established the Extraordinary Lives Foundation and created Piggie Bear & the HUGS for Life Healing Center to promote mental health awareness and provide both children and their parents with the resources they need to pursue holistic wellness in any and all avenues available. Mara lives with her family in Orange County, California. -- Critical Mass Business Tal

Ben Olbon is the Founder & CEO of Outcome Elite Coaching, and helps student-athletes overcome fear, anxiety, and self-doubt in order to help them maximize their potential in sports and life. Ben has 20 years of leadership and development experience from his time as an Officer in the United States Marine Corps, to his time in the financial and pharmaceutical industries. He has an extensive history in sales and marketing, strategic planning, tactical decision-making, and critical thinking. Ben has been awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement medal, been recognized as a top sales performer and trainer, an award-winning sales team leader, and a championship-winning pop-warner football coach. Between those career highlights are a multitude of failures and missteps. The highest of highs have been separated by equally devastating lows. With the correct mindset and internal fortitude, failures can be our greatest opportunities to learn. Ben’s transparent and emotional leadership style provides a safe and me

Garrett Day is the owner and operator of The Wellness Approach and Fitness and Wellness Inc, a holistic Sports Therapy practice in San Clemente that incorporates several methods of structural integration tools, separating him from other rehabilitation programs and wellness treatment centers. A wellness consultant of 20 years, Garrett's individual program designs have captured quick rapid results of healing qualities that helps to balance back ones emotional, physical and spiritual state of consciousness. Before devoting his work full-time to The Wellness Approach, Garrett served as an owner and operator of The Mind Body Wellness Club in Dana Point. While devoting his time into individual contractors in the fitness and wellness industry finding an easier way to build one's business without the financial stress of an individual start-up. In Garrett's words: "Caretaking and working with people is a true passion of mine. Each individual patient requires a unique wellness approach that will assist with their whole

Ramin Sedehi is passionate about closing the gaps between science, education, society, and policymakers to understand better the depth and breadth of the challenges facing humanity. To impact the health of communities, improve educational markers, and, most importantly, uphold democratic values and build inclusive societies, we must disrupt the status quo. Ramin’s career is highlighted by his three decades as an executive, intrapreneur, bridge-builder, strategist, and award-winning faculty. He has served as a transformative leader at several world-class organizations (UCSF Health, UCSF Stanford Healthcare, University of Pennsylvania, American University of Beirut, and Weill Cornell Medicine.) Ramin is the founder of Impact Human Learning, which focuses on strategies and actions to deepen learning in the 21st century. He currently serves as the Chief Strategy Advisor at EmC Leaders, focused on organizational and leadership training, development, and transformation. He is the co-author of Emotional Connection,

Rocky Foroutan is the Founder and Visionary behind LenderHomePage.com. He founded the company from his small home office in 2003 by building turnkey websites for mortgage brokers and loan officers. Sixteen years later, the company has grown to serve over 2,000 clients with an innovative, multi-channel digital platform that helps customers enhance borrower experience while gaining efficiencies and saving cost. Prior to LenderHomePage, Rocky spent nineteen years as a software developer, sales and marketing management in Fortune 5000 companies. -- Critical Mass Business Talk Show is Orange County, CA's longest-running business talk show, focused on offering value and insight to middle-market business leaders in the OC and beyond. Hosted by Ric Franzi, business partner at Renaissance Executive Forums Orange County. Learn more about Ric at www.ricfranzi.com. Catch up on past Critical Mass Business Talk Show interviews... YouTube: https://lnkd.in/gHKT2gmF LinkedIn: https://lnkd.in/g2PzRhjQ Podbean: https://lnkd.in/

Sheryl Utal is the Founder & CEO of Japa Health. Sheryl had a ten-year corporate career with senior roles in private equity, real estate development and management consulting, before she burned out and had to make a change. Sheryl has been the owner of two successful lifestyle businesses both with profitable exits. Although she had successful exits the journey wasn't easy or linear and included turnaround experience. She has over 13 years of experience in wellness including 40,000 customers and 5M in revenue. Healing herself from autoimmune disease and trauma, Sheryl is passionate about natural healing, disease prevention and human optimization, a passion which began over 15 years ago after conventional treatment for an autoimmune disease diagnosis failed. She took her health into her own hands and was determined to be the most vibrant and joyous version of herself possible. In 2013, Sheryl founded Red Diamond Yoga, a large yoga studio in LA and built a strong reputation for inspiring people through yoga,

Dina Miller is the Founder & CEO of Electi Management Inc. A highly motivated, self-directed and results-driven CEO of a business management company, Dina attended MIT and subsequently earned my B.S. in Business from Johns Hopkins University. She later completed her MBA at the University of Delaware. For over twenty years, Dina has built a “hands-on” track record of leadership, team-building and cross-functional collaboration. Thinking and planning globally while executing locally, Dina has a high-performing staff to support operational initiatives and client needs. She is passionate about what she does and embodies an energy and urgency as a culture creator and catalyst for change with an exemplary reputation for forging working relationships based on trust and respect. Dina loves to build strong, long-term, mutually beneficial relationships with individuals, businesses and organizations. Dina created Electi Management at the end of 2020, as the pandemic raged and she saw an opportunity to leverage her y

A 20-year award-winning Broadcast Journalist with an emphasis on Public Relations, Kelly Bennett has been a reporter, anchor, senior assignment manager, TV host, and Radio Host, then transitioned into public affairs managing community/public relations for two major cable companies. She worked with many programmers within the industry, CNN, Court TV, Bravo, Lifetime, Oxygen Networks, and more, to bring successful programs that received commendations and proclamations from government officials. In 2009, Kelly founded Bennett Unlimited PR giving her clients local, national, and international notoriety and connecting them to Influencers, networking groups, celebrities, VIPs, private clubs, executive round-tables, entrepreneur gatherings, and charity functions to further their career and goals. Her clients have been on the Kelly Clarkson show, Good Morning America, CBS, LA Times, Forbes, Entrepreneur Magazine, Inside Edition, HuffPost Live, Dr. Oz, CNN, Getty Images, Huffington Post, New York Magazine, KTLA, Good

A reformed 'Corporate Rat' turned Entrepreneur in 2017, Traci Shirachi is the CEO & President of The Mark USA Inc. (“The Mark” or “the Company”). The Mark is a data analytics applied research and evaluation company comprised of about 15 employees that work with organizations nationally and internationally to define and articulate community and social impact focused on helping the underserved thrive. The Mark uses rigorous data collection and research methods to evaluate and measure results for organizations and companies to achieve sustainable growth. Many of the organizations or companies that work with The Mark focus on demonstrating their social impact. These include universities and colleges to corporations and small businesses. Traci formerly worked for PricewaterhouseCoopers and has an MBA from Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt University and a BA in Political Science from the University of California, Davis. She is actively involved and on the Board of Orange County Advisors in Phila

Peggy Knauft is the Founder of Primary Pacific Properties. Peggy's incomparable customer service provides the optimal real estate experience for buyers and sellers and has helped her rank in the top 1% of all agents in Orange County, California. Peggy’s clients value her genuine care and ability to deliver outstanding results, underscored by her honesty, helpfulness, and desire not to take herself — or life — too seriously. She distinguishes herself from other agents by using her marketing background and staging talents to effectively and persuasively market homes that attract the right buyer and secure the best offer. Along with Peggy’s corresponding Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist designation, she is also a Seniors Real Estate Specialist® and a Certified Probate Real Estate Specialist. Peggy graduated from Santa Clara University with a B.S. in political science. Before her real estate career, she was a vice president of global marketing, honing her marketing expertise and accumulating more than 2

Dita Shemke is a highly-proficient financial executive with a wealth of experience in private and public companies, public accounting, angel investing and founding start-ups. Her biggest strength lies in her ability to think strategically and put the right people together to bring an idea to fruition. Dita is a passionate advocate for women. Her support for women to be more self-sufficient is both a personal and a business priority. She purposely developed her 20-year-old wealth advisory practice to primarily work with women in transition and assist owners of private companies to grow and eventually exit their business. Dita is the Orange County Chair for 50/50 Women on Boards, a global campaign to increase the number of women on boards of companies in the Russell 3000. She is a founding member and part of the leadership of the Southern California Chapter of Private Directors Association (PDA), a national organization that promotes excellence on private company boards. She spearheaded the formation of the Col

Dr. Shahrzad Nooravi is a business psychologist, Master Certified Coach (MCC) and Founder and CEO of Strategy Meets Performance, a business consulting firm that partners with leaders of mid-sized to Fortune 500 organizations to help them create engaging, innovative, and productive cultures. Dr. Nooravi has been named “Trailblazer of the Year,” “Citizen of the Year,” and “A Voice to Listen to” for driving positive change in her community. Dr. Nooravi's new leadership book, "A Powerful Culture Starts with You" was rated as the #1 New Release in Workplace Culture and Best Seller in Business Coaching. In a time in our history where employees have realized that they have many options for how and where they work, workplace culture is more important than ever. In her book, Dr. Nooravi shares the mindset it requires to be an engaging leader that employees are loyal to and do not want to leave. She will also share real-life client examples from her three-model approach for driving a strong, engaged and joyful workplac

Stewart Gandolf, MBA, is the Chief Executive Officer of Healthcare Success, one of the nation’s leading healthcare and digital marketing agencies. Over the past 20 years, Stewart has marketed and consulted for over 1,000 healthcare clients, ranging from practices and hospitals to multi-billion dollar corporations. A frequent speaker, Stewart has shared his expertise at over 200 venues nationwide. As an author and expert resource, Stewart has also written for many leading industry publications, including the 21,000 subscriber Healthcare Success Insight blog. Stewart also co-authored, “Cash-Pay Healthcare: Start, Grow & Perfect Your Cash-Pay Healthcare Business.” Stewart began his career with leading advertising agencies, including J. Walter Thompson, where he marketed Fortune 500 clients such as Wells Fargo and Bally’s Total Fitness. -- Critical Mass Business Talk Show is Orange County, CA's longest-running business talk show, focused on offering value and insight to middle-market business leaders in the O

Yuko Tsuchida, CPA, MBA, is a Certified Public Accountant with over 10 years of tax consulting experience advising multinational corporations on value-added tax strategies. Her career started with KPMG's Japanese tax practice where she provided audit, tax, and advisory services to Japanese companies operating in the United States. After KPMG, she co-founded Think, LLP, a strategic tax advisory firm specializing in income tax planning, R&D credits, investment, employee and training tax credits, and incentive services. Throughout her career, she has helped clients claim over $100 million in incentives and credits. Ms. Tsuchida founded Hito, LLC in October 2017 after seeing how many companies fail to achieve their projected growth because they lack the time and resources to implement tax planning strategies that aligned with their long-term business objectives. Hito is the Japanese term for ‘people’ and Ms. Tsuchida believes people drive business growth. Hito provides value-added tax consulting services focu

During an extraordinary four-decades in international business, William (Bill) Edwards, CEO & Global Advisor, Edwards Global Services, Inc. (EGS), has played a leadership role in the successful global growth of more than 40 small, INC 5000 and Fortune 100 companies. He is widely recognized as an International Problem Solver, strategist, advisor and specialist on global cultures. His career covers international operating executive, and entrepreneurial experience in the energy, technology, licensing, management consulting and retail sectors. He has been a technical specialist, district manager, master licensee, brand senior executive and brand country president. Mr. Edwards has also started several international businesses. Bill has lived in China, the Czech Republic, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Iran, and Turkey and directed projects in over 50 countries. Mr. Edwards’ company has twice received the U.S. Presidential award for export excellence. He has published the respected GlobalVue™ country ranking analysis q

John Mendola is the Founder of the University Curriculum for Independent Learning, Founder & Chief Financial Officer of the Irvine International Academic Academy, Founder of Johnny Rock Music Group, and Managing Director of IRM Consulting Group, Inc. Additionally, John serves as a Professor of Business & Education at Westcliff University in Irvine, and has experience teaching at University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Irvine Valley College, and other institutions. A well-rounded and highly successful business professional, John offers real-world, hands-on experience in all facets of business planning, e-commerce and traditional marketing, sales, staff training and growth, branding, and contract negotiations. Highly experienced in global business and travel, John has developed the insightful and powerful “3Rs” business philosophy of Rapport, Respect and Relationships.  -- Critical Mass Business Talk Show is Orange County, CA's longest-running business talk show, focused on offering value and insi

Mark A. Herschberg is the author of The Career Toolkit, Essential Skills for Success That No One Taught You. Educated at MIT, Mark has spent his career launching and fixing new ventures at startups, Fortune 500s, and academia. He’s developed new software languages, online marketplaces, new authentication systems, and tracked criminals and terrorists on the dark web. Mark helped create the Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program, MIT’s “Career Success Accelerator”, where he’s taught for twenty years. Mark also serves on the boards of non-profits Techie Youth and Plant a Million Corals. -- Critical Mass Business Talk Show is Orange County, CA's longest-running business talk show, focused on offering value and insight to middle-market business leaders in the OC and beyond. Hosted by Ric Franzi, business partner at Renaissance Executive Forums Orange County. Learn more about Ric at www.ricfranzi.com. Catch up on past Critical Mass Business Talk Show interviews... YouTube: https://lnkd.in/gHKT2gmF LinkedIn: 

Ashley Harris serves as Chief Financial Officer for Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast leading all finance and accounting operations to ensure the fiscal strength of the Club. As CFO, Ashley oversees financial reporting, cash management, forecasting, GAAP compliance and audit readiness. Ashley is committed to maximizing the Club’s budget to ensure the continued growth and success of the Club’s mission to serve 9,500+ youth in Orange County. Prior to joining Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast, Ashley worked in corporate finance at Johnson & Johnson and Hyundai Capital America where she honed her skills in the areas of cash forecasting, financial reporting, capital asset management, budget management, auditing and SEC compliance. Ashley prides herself on efficiency and implementation of strategies to streamline accounting processes and build financial metrics to complement business strategy, whether in the not-for-profit or for-profit world. Ashley has a strong passion for millenni

Dr. Kathryn Hamel is the Chief Executive Officer at the Hecht Trauma Institute. Before she transitioned into non-profit leadership, she worked in higher education and served her community for nearly 25-years as a law-enforcement professional for two mid-sized municipal police departments. Dr. Hamel is a certified trauma and resilience professional and educator and author of Body Mind & Badge: Strategies for Navigating Trauma & Resilience in Law Enforcement. She has worked as a police lieutenant, police sergeant, special victim’s detective, public information officer, and task force officer. In addition to her professional accomplishments, she holds a Doctoral Degree in Public Safety Leadership from Capella University, a Master's Degree in Criminal Justice from Chapman University, and a Bachelor's Degree in Occupational Studies from California State University, Long Beach. She also serves on the Board of Directors for KinderVision, a non-profit co-founded by her late mother, Ashby Sebastian, dedicate