Margin Theory

Kris Klein on Consulting to CEO in Three Years

Kris Klein is CEO and co-founder of PollenSense, a deep tech life sciences company whose optical sensors use AI to identify pollen, mold, and dust in real time across 25-plus countries. He came in three years ago as a consultant, told the founder "just let me, I'll work for free," paid his own way, and was named CEO and co-founder. We talk about running too many pilots and burning out his team, the inverted org chart he leads with, and the Turks and Caicos trip that reminded him why he's in it.

Scott Newman on Selling Bulletproof Whiteboards to Every School in America

Scott Newman runs Titan Armored, a Dallas manufacturer of bulletproof whiteboards and ballistic glass trusted by schools, government facilities, and corporate offices. He came up with the idea on a bar napkin after the Robb Elementary shooting in Uvalde. He quit drinking three years ago to make sure he could execute on it. We talk about Border Patrol shooting his product with a .338 Lapua round, building distribution to every school in America, and what it cost him to get there.

Daniel McCaulley on Turning Down Work to Protect His Culture

Daniel McCaulley, P.E., is the founder of Ultimus Engineering, a faith-based Texas firm that does MEP, aquatics, and structural engineering work across 22 states. He retired his wife from her job and set a hard 5pm cutoff for his team. Two accidental $300 brokered jobs showed him where the demand was, and he pivoted the whole business around it. We talk about pricing on cash basis instead of accrual, turning down work to protect culture, and why a bad cultural hire will cost you more than the job you turned down.

Gabe Draper on Selling the House to Keep Food on the Table

Gabe Draper is a fourth-generation manufacturer who founded Factur, a company that prospects new customers for industrial manufacturers. Before Factur, Gabe ran his family's machine shop, lost 72% of revenue in a single month, went bankrupt, and sold his house to keep food on the table. We talk about rebuilding from bankruptcy, what Gabe learned losing 72% of revenue in a month that he never could have learned growing, and how he got back to nearly 100 people.

Micki Gram on Accidentally Building an Agency After a Failed CBD Farm

Micki Gram built a social media and experiential marketing agency that grew out of filming brand events for fun. We talk about watching her dad lose a fortune and never consider a backup plan, the moment she told her mom she hated her and how that became the closest relationship in her life, and why she refuses to take a single client call before 10am.