The Disruptor Podcast

John Kundtz
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Biweekly

"The Disruptor Series," your blueprint for groundbreaking innovation, started as a periodic segment of the Apex Podcast.  This is not your standard conversation around Design Thinking or Product Market Fit; this is the series that dares to go beyond conventional wisdom, confronting the status quo and exposing the raw power of disruptive thinking.  Our journey begins with intensely provocative dialogues that set the stage for the unexpected.  With a focus on Experience Disruptors, Product Market Fit, and a range of other captivating topics, we bring you face-to-face with the ideas that are revolutionizing traditional buying and selling experiences.   But we don't stop at ideas; we dive into their real-world applications.  "The Disruptor" offers an unfiltered glimpse into the lives and minds of those who are being disrupted, creating disruption, or strategically navigating it.  Our guests range from industry veterans to daring newcomers, all willing to share their experiences in shifting the paradigms that define their stakeholders' experiences.  If you're tired of business as usual and eager to question the preconceived notions that hold back innovation, "The Disruptor Series" is your ticket to a transformative journey.  Tune in, disrupt yourself, and become an agent of change in an ever-evolving landscape....

  1. Aug 11

    Behind the Swipe: Why Your Payment Processing Doesn't Have to Be Static

    Are you quietly losing up to 1% of your hard-earned e-commerce margins to hidden credit card processing fees? In this episode of The Disruptor Podcast, host John Kundtz sits down with Viktor Popovic, Co-Founder and President of Avendo, to challenge the static, locked-in pricing model of the legacy payments industry. Viktor reveals how merchants can bypass traditional middle layers and force payment processors to compete in real-time for every single transaction. But this isn’t just a story about fintech innovation. Viktor shares his extraordinary journey of starting over, from fleeing the civil war in Yugoslavia at age 18 and living on food stamps as a refugee in Hungary, to building a national e-commerce business, surviving Google's devastating "Penguin" algorithm update, and successfully exiting after 21 years of bootstrapping. If you are a small business owner, fractional CFO, or consultant looking to plug margin leaks and bring radical transparency to your payments, this episode is your blueprint. Key Takeaways From This Episode: 1️⃣ Stop Accepting Static Pricing: In legacy business operations, you compare the cost of inventory, shipping, and equipment from multiple vendors. Payment processing is the only major expense where merchants select one processor and stay locked in for years without knowing if they are still getting a competitive rate. 2️⃣ Bypass the Middlemen: By acting as a neutral decisioning layer rather than a payment processor, Avendo sits directly between the merchant and the processor. This eliminates up to three traditional layers of independent sales agents, saving merchants up to 1% per transaction. 3️⃣ The Millisecond Auction: When a consumer enters a card, Avendo automatically requests real-time rates from approved processors. Within milliseconds, the transaction is routed to the processor offering the best rate, with zero change or delay in the buyer's checkout experience. 4️⃣ Radical Transparency over Hidden Markups: Many businesses use flat-rate providers (like Stripe) advertising standard rates, but end-of-month assessments can quietly climb above 4% due to unrecognized network fees. Real-time transaction optimization provides consistent, predictable margins. About the Guest: Viktor Popovic is the Co-Founder and President of Avendo, a patent-protected fintech SaaS platform that helps e-commerce merchants access competitive, transparent card processing. Previously, Viktor spent 21 years founding, operating, and successfully exiting Ultimate Washer, growing it from a dropshipping startup into a nationally recognized brand. Today, he applies his decades of merchant-side experience to give online businesses massive leverage over legacy payment systems. Links & Resources Mentioned: Avendo Official Website: avendo.tech Connect with Viktor Popovic on LinkedIn: Viktor's Profile Comments or Questions? Send us a text Support the show *** Engage, Share, and Connect! Spread the Word: Valuable insights are best when shared. Share this episode with peers who may benefit from it if you find it insightful. Your Feedback Matters: How did this episode resonate with you? Share your thoughts, insights, or questions. Your engagement enriches our community. Stay Updated: Don’t miss out on further insights. Subscribe: You can listen to our podcast, read our blog posts on Substack, and watch our YouTube channel. Collaborate with The Disruptor and connect with John Kundtz. Got a disruptive story to share?  We’re scouting for remarkable podcast guests.  Thank you for being an integral part of our journey.  Together, let’s redefine the status quo!

    Behind the Swipe: Why Your Payment Processing Doesn't Have to Be Static

  2. Jul 29

    Making the Brain Your Ally: How Brain Science is Empowering the Next Generation of Women Leaders

    In this episode of The Disruptor Podcast’s special "Boardroom Bound" series, host John Kundtz sits down with Sarah Jakle, Founder and Executive Director of DemocraShe.  Sarah's disruptive approach to youth leadership training intervenes during the critical high school years, the exact moment when a young woman's belief in her leadership potential historically begins to drop.  By blending public policy training with evidence-based brain science, Sarah equips historically underserved young women with the tools to quiet their anxious inner critic, overcome natural self-doubt, and thrive in any space of power.  Discover why true leadership training requires more than just inspiration; it requires the science of persistence. Key Highlights & Takeaways: 1️⃣ From the Couch to a Catalyst: Sarah shares her deeply personal story of how a devastating autoimmune diagnosis led her to discover neuroscience "brain hacks" that eventually fueled her to register over 485,000 voters.  2️⃣ The High School Drop-Off: Why the teenage years are the ultimate battleground for building leadership confidence, and why it is the last time boys and girls think they can run for office equally. 3️⃣ Inspiration vs. Persistence: The crucial difference between motivating the brain's rational "prefrontal cortex" and soothing the threat-detecting "amygdala" when women face pushback in spaces of power.  4️⃣ Building Your "Inner Best Friend": A practical, evidence-based resiliency skill to combat the inner critic (Sarah uses Barack Obama and her dog, Branch!).  5️⃣ Grounding with Mother Earth: Simple, actionable techniques to settle the nervous system before stepping out of your comfort zone, whether it's taking a driver's test or making a campaign speech. 6️⃣ Disrupting the Pipeline: How DemocraShe breaks down economic barriers by paying high school girls a stipend to participate, and the power of their peer-to-peer mentoring model. Links & Resources Discussed in this Episode: 👉 Learn more about DemocraShe  👉 Connect with Sarah Jakle on LinkedIn:  Comments or Questions? Send us a text Support the show *** Engage, Share, and Connect! Spread the Word: Valuable insights are best when shared. Share this episode with peers who may benefit from it if you find it insightful. Your Feedback Matters: How did this episode resonate with you? Share your thoughts, insights, or questions. Your engagement enriches our community. Stay Updated: Don’t miss out on further insights. Subscribe: You can listen to our podcast, read our blog posts on Substack, and watch our YouTube channel. Collaborate with The Disruptor and connect with John Kundtz. Got a disruptive story to share?  We’re scouting for remarkable podcast guests.  Thank you for being an integral part of our journey.  Together, let’s redefine the status quo!

    Making the Brain Your Ally: How Brain Science is Empowering the Next Generation of Women Leaders

  3. Jun 19

    One Arm, One Mission, One Movement: How Gary Guller Is Making Others Greater

    Hi everyone, I'm your host John Kundtz, and today we’re doing something a little different. Welcome to Board Room Bound, The Disruptor's special series on not-for-profit leadership, purpose, and giving back. For those who are new to our show, the Disruptor series is your blueprint for groundbreaking innovation. We started the podcast in December of 2022. Our vision was to go beyond conventional wisdom by confronting the status quo and exposing the raw power of disruptive thinking. Today's guest embodies that spirit in every sense of the word. Gary Guller is a record-setting mountaineer, author, keynote speaker, and the first one-armed person to summit Mount Everest. He is also the founder of Make Others Greater, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization delivering health, education, and hope to some of the most remote communities on the planet.  In this episode, we explore how one man's journey from the world's highest summit led to the creation of a global humanitarian movement, and how the principles of servant leadership can make any organization or person greater.  Gary shares the incredible story of leading the largest cross-disability team to Everest Base Camp, the pivotal moment that inspired his non-profit, and the mindset shift leaders need to make to truly give back. In This Episode, We Cover: The Everest Base Camp Expedition: How Gary built a diverse, cross-disability team and proved that when we open our minds and hearts, the "impossible" becomes possible. The Origin of "Make Others Greater": The inspiring story shared by a Sherpa at the 50-year anniversary of the first Everest ascent that forever changed Gary's outlook on success and kindness. The "We Train" Mindset: Gary's advice for corporate and non-profit leaders to get off the "Me Train" and onto the "We Train" to make a positive difference collectively. A Lean Non-Profit Model: How Make Others Greater operates with minimal overhead, ensuring that 98% of every dollar goes directly to the source to provide medical stretchers, school supplies, clean water piping, and winter clothes to remote Himalayan villages. How to Get Involved: Why it only takes a small contribution (just $20 to $50) to change a life in Nepal, and how you can follow the real-time impact of Gary's team. Resources & Links Mentioned in This Episode: Make Others Greater Website: Learn more about the mission and contribute at MakeOthersGreater.org. Follow on Instagram: See live updates, photos, and videos of the children and projects in Nepal by following Make Others Greater. Connect with Gary on LinkedIn. Team Everest & Sherpa Stew: Check out the amazing video clips and the award-winning documentary Team Everest: A Himalayan Journey, which documents Gary's cross-disability trek to Base Camp. Thanks for joining us in this Board Room Bound edition of The Disruptor Podcast.  Remember to disrupt the status quo, reimagine what's possible, and lead with purpose.  Have a great day! Comments or Questions? Send us a text Support the show *** Engage, Share, and Connect! Spread the Word: Valuable insights are best when shared. Share this episode with peers who may benefit from it if you find it insightful. Your Feedback Matters: How did this episode resonate with you? Share your thoughts, insights, or questions. Your engagement enriches our community. Stay Updated: Don’t miss out on further insights. Subscribe: You can listen to our podcast, read our blog posts on Substack, and watch our YouTube channel. Collaborate with The Disruptor and connect with John Kundtz. Got a disruptive story to share?  We’re scouting for remarkable podcast guests.  Thank you for being an integral part of our journey.  Together, let’s redefine the status quo!

    One Arm, One Mission, One Movement: How Gary Guller Is Making Others Greater

  4. Trailer

    Why Your Nonprofit Strategic Planning Is Accidentally Creating Shelfware Instead of Growth & Doing THIS To Fix It

    Are you tired of pouring hours into strategic plans, only to watch them turn into dusty “shelfware” that your board never looks at again? Most organizations are treading water in a sea of “What”. They manage the day-to-day administrative tasks but lose sight of the overarching mission. If we want to disrupt the status quo, we have to stop managing the “what” and start leading the “why”. In this video, I break down The Five-Step Nonprofit Strategy Blueprint, a proven, agile framework designed specifically for 501(c)(3) Executive Directors and board members to move from outdated, static planning to active, human-centric leadership. What You Will Learn: The Double Diamond Approach: Why you need to pause and diverge (to deeply empathize with stakeholder needs) before you converge (to define the actual problem). The 5-Step Framework: A walkthrough of the exact steps to build a strategy your community will actually rally behind: The Cake Experience Roadmap: Why nonprofits need to abandon massive, expensive “waterfall” rollouts. Learn how to launch low-risk, low-cost “Cupcake” initiatives to deliver immediate value before scaling up to “Birthday Cakes” and “Wedding Cakes” 📚 Resources Mentioned: Get the Book: Dive deeper into these frameworks. Grab your copy of The Five-Step Nonprofit Strategy Blueprint: A Proven Playbook for Executive Directors to Drive Collaboration, Governance, and Growth.Read the Curated Primer: Check out The Disruptor’s Design Thinking Primer for Nonprofits to see the HBR, McKinsey, and Forbes research that backs up this approach.Call to Action: Are you ready to disrupt the boardroom? Watch the video, and let me know in the comments:  What is one “Cupcake” initiative your nonprofit can launch in the next 30 days? 👇 Don’t forget to subscribe (it’s free) to the Board Room Bound Substack to get more agile governance blueprints delivered straight to your inbox! Comments or Questions? Send us a text Support the show *** Engage, Share, and Connect! Spread the Word: Valuable insights are best when shared. Share this episode with peers who may benefit from it if you find it insightful. Your Feedback Matters: How did this episode resonate with you? Share your thoughts, insights, or questions. Your engagement enriches our community. Stay Updated: Don’t miss out on further insights. Subscribe: You can listen to our podcast, read our blog posts on Substack, and watch our YouTube channel. Collaborate with The Disruptor and connect with John Kundtz. Got a disruptive story to share?  We’re scouting for remarkable podcast guests.  Thank you for being an integral part of our journey.  Together, let’s redefine the status quo!

    Why Your Nonprofit Strategic Planning Is Accidentally Creating Shelfware Instead of Growth & Doing THIS To Fix It

  5. May 13

    The Disruptive Leadership Legacy That Built an Empire: What Modern Founders Are Forgetting About Grit & Scale

    Originally broadcast on September 13, 2025, on The Hungarian Hour (WCSB Cleveland 89.3 FM) In this special rebroadcast of The Hungarian Hour* (WCSB Cleveland 89.3 FM), hosts Walt Mahovlich and Elizabeth Papp Taylor are joined by John M. Kundtz.  John shares the remarkable “rags to riches” American immigrant story of his great-grandfather, Theodor Kundtz.  Tune in to hear how Theodor arrived in Cleveland with nothing and went on to build a massive manufacturing empire that profoundly shaped the city’s early Hungarian community and the historic Irishtown Bend neighborhood. Key Topics & Highlights:  1️⃣ The Journey to America: Discover Theodor’s origins in Metzenseifen (modern-day Medzev, Slovakia) and his arduous 1873 journey across the Atlantic in the muddy, unsanitary lower quarters of the S.S. Denmark. 2️⃣ Building an Industrial Empire: Starting as an apprentice cabinet maker in the Flats, Theodor took his pay in equity when his employer struggled, eventually buying out the company and renaming it the Theodor Kundtz Company. He became the sole supplier of ornate cabinets for the White Sewing Machine Company and expanded into school desks (”Eclipse”), high-end wooden bicycle rims, automobile bodies for local car makers, and church furniture. 3️⃣ Shaping Irishtown Bend: To staff his growing factory at 122 & 124 Elm Street, Theodor sponsored workers from his home country, driving early Hungarian immigration to Cleveland’s near west side. 4️⃣ A Legacy of Philanthropy: Remembered as a “friend of the worker,” Theodor was heavily involved in the community. He founded the Hungarian Savings and Loan Company, financially backed Hungaria Hall, and helped fund a George Washington monument in Budapest. Community Call to Action: The Cleveland Municipal Stadium Seats. Theodor’s company manufactured all 62,781 of the original seats for the Cleveland Municipal Stadium. There is an ongoing community initiative to locate a few of these surviving seats for installation in the future Irish Town Bend Park as a memorial to Theodor and the Hungarian laborers who built them. Resources Mentioned in this Episode Tori in Amerika: The Story of Theodor Kundtz: A private biography of Theodor written by Christopher J. Eiben in 1994. While hard copies are rare, an audiobook version is currently in development and expected to be available in mid-2026. How to help: If you have any of these stadium seats (ideally 2 to 4) in your garage or attic - Message us 👇 Comments or Questions? Send us a text Support the show *** Engage, Share, and Connect! Spread the Word: Valuable insights are best when shared. Share this episode with peers who may benefit from it if you find it insightful. Your Feedback Matters: How did this episode resonate with you? Share your thoughts, insights, or questions. Your engagement enriches our community. Stay Updated: Don’t miss out on further insights. Subscribe: You can listen to our podcast, read our blog posts on Substack, and watch our YouTube channel. Collaborate with The Disruptor and connect with John Kundtz. Got a disruptive story to share?  We’re scouting for remarkable podcast guests.  Thank you for being an integral part of our journey.  Together, let’s redefine the status quo!

    The Disruptive Leadership Legacy That Built an Empire: What Modern Founders Are Forgetting About Grit & Scale

  6. Trailer

    The Nonprofit Strategy Mistake That Makes Smart Boards Sound Junior and Why You’re Losing Funding Today

    Welcome to this trailer for another episode of Board Room Bound! Today, we are tackling one of the most frustrating challenges in the nonprofit world: strategic planning.  We all know the drill: a beautifully detailed document is created with high hopes, only to gather dust on a shelf as forgotten “shelfware”. In this brief preview, we introduce John M. Kundtz’s latest book, The Five-Step Nonprofit Strategy Blueprint, to discuss how nonprofit leaders can flip the script.  By shifting away from internal organizational assumptions and embracing a user-centric, design-thinking approach, you can create an agile, living roadmap that genuinely serves your stakeholders and drives impact. Key Highlights & Takeaways from the Upcoming Episode: The “Project Sedona” Epiphany: Hear the corporate cautionary tale of how focusing on your organization’s internal capabilities rather than understanding the users’ real challenges can stall your momentum. The Double Diamond Model: Discover how adopting the rhythm of “diverging” (exploring the problem without judgment) and “converging” (defining the core challenge) can revolutionize how your board approaches problems. The 5-Step Strategy Framework: We will walk through the exact, actionable steps to build your strategic plan: The Cake Experience Roadmap: Say goodbye to the overwhelming “waterfall” approach. Learn how to break your strategy down into deliverable chunks: low-risk “Cupcakes” for quick wins, medium-sized “Birthday Cakes”, and long-term “Wedding Cakes”. AI as Your Co-Facilitator: Learn how modern nonprofit leaders are utilizing tools like The Disruptor’s Custom GPT Facilitator to automate the heavy lifting of sorting data and generating insights. Other Books in The Disruptor’s Series: The Board Builder’s Blueprint: A Strategic Guide to Creating Exceptional Nonprofit LeadershipIntegrating Horses into Healing: Chapter 23 - The Key to a Successful Non-Profit BoardComments or Questions? Send us a text Support the show *** Engage, Share, and Connect! Spread the Word: Valuable insights are best when shared. Share this episode with peers who may benefit from it if you find it insightful. Your Feedback Matters: How did this episode resonate with you? Share your thoughts, insights, or questions. Your engagement enriches our community. Stay Updated: Don’t miss out on further insights. Subscribe: You can listen to our podcast, read our blog posts on Substack, and watch our YouTube channel. Collaborate with The Disruptor and connect with John Kundtz. Got a disruptive story to share?  We’re scouting for remarkable podcast guests.  Thank you for being an integral part of our journey.  Together, let’s redefine the status quo!

    The Nonprofit Strategy Mistake That Makes Smart Boards Sound Junior and Why You’re Losing Funding Today

  7. Mar 4

    The Donor-Driven Playbook: Engagement, Qualification, and Stewardship Done Right

    Heart without execution remains aspirational … … and systems without heart won’t scale In Part 2 of this two-episode series, John Kundtz sits down with Greg Warner, CEO & Founder of MarketSmart, to discuss bridging “Start with the Heart” from philosophy into an operating system. Greg argues that most nonprofits are still running outdated, transaction-first fundraising playbooks. Measuring activity instead of building trust, surfacing intent, and earning the right to have a major-gift conversation. The fix isn’t “more asks.” It’s a donor-driven approach built on signals, relevance, and disciplined follow-up, so engagement scales without losing the human element. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN 1️⃣ Why transactional fundraising fails (and why donors disengage when they feel managed vs. known)  2️⃣How to use donor intent signals to prioritize the right supporters at the right time  3️⃣ Why major gifts behave like enterprise decisions, and what those changes in qualification and stewardship are 4️⃣ How to shift from organization-centric messaging to donor-driven engagement that earns meetings  5️⃣ The leadership discipline required to make “heart” repeatable, measurable, and scalable LINKS & RESOURCES ➡️Connect with Greg Warner on LinkedIn   ➡️ Check out Greg's (free) Fundraising Report Card and ➡️ Greg's (free) DAF Widget  ➡️ Visit the MarketSmart website Comments or Questions? Send us a text Support the show *** Engage, Share, and Connect! Spread the Word: Valuable insights are best when shared. Share this episode with peers who may benefit from it if you find it insightful. Your Feedback Matters: How did this episode resonate with you? Share your thoughts, insights, or questions. Your engagement enriches our community. Stay Updated: Don’t miss out on further insights. Subscribe: You can listen to our podcast, read our blog posts on Substack, and watch our YouTube channel. Collaborate with The Disruptor and connect with John Kundtz. Got a disruptive story to share?  We’re scouting for remarkable podcast guests.  Thank you for being an integral part of our journey.  Together, let’s redefine the status quo!

    The Donor-Driven Playbook: Engagement, Qualification, and Stewardship Done Right

  8. Feb 24

    Start With the Heart: Why Transactional Fundraising Is Failing Leaders, and What Comes Next

    In this episode of The Disruptor Podcast, John Kundtz sits down with Bill Crouch, CEO of BrightDot Fundraising Advisors and former college president, to discuss why traditional development tactics are failing leaders, and what replaces them:  ➡️Trust,  ➡️Relevance,  ➡️Relationship, and  ➡️Mattership (the discipline of making supporters feel seen and valued, so philanthropy becomes relational, not transactional.) Bill shares the origin story behind his “start with the heart” philosophy (including the dinner that failed), why major donors evaluate leadership before the mission, and the practical disciplines nonprofit CEOs can use to build momentum without burning themselves or their teams out. What you will Learn: 1️⃣Why transactional fundraising is failing—and how donor expectations have changed 2️⃣What “start with the heart” looks like in real donor conversations 3️⃣How major donors assess leadership, credibility, and trust before committing 4️⃣The difference between targeting donors and earning a relationship 5️⃣A simple weekly cadence leaders can use to build a sustainable fundraising engine About our Guest: Bill has spent 40 years helping nonprofits and higher education leaders shift fundraising from transactional activity to transformational impact through BrightDot’s “Art of Fundraising” approach—blending strategy with human connection, storytelling, and leadership presence. Connect with Bill on LinkedIn Contact Bill Crouch: bill@thebrightdot.com Buy his book: Start with the Heart Visit BrightDot's Website  Comments or Questions? Send us a text Support the show *** Engage, Share, and Connect! Spread the Word: Valuable insights are best when shared. Share this episode with peers who may benefit from it if you find it insightful. Your Feedback Matters: How did this episode resonate with you? Share your thoughts, insights, or questions. Your engagement enriches our community. Stay Updated: Don’t miss out on further insights. Subscribe: You can listen to our podcast, read our blog posts on Substack, and watch our YouTube channel. Collaborate with The Disruptor and connect with John Kundtz. Got a disruptive story to share?  We’re scouting for remarkable podcast guests.  Thank you for being an integral part of our journey.  Together, let’s redefine the status quo!

    Start With the Heart: Why Transactional Fundraising Is Failing Leaders, and What Comes Next
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About

"The Disruptor Series," your blueprint for groundbreaking innovation, started as a periodic segment of the Apex Podcast.  This is not your standard conversation around Design Thinking or Product Market Fit; this is the series that dares to go beyond conventional wisdom, confronting the status quo and exposing the raw power of disruptive thinking.  Our journey begins with intensely provocative dialogues that set the stage for the unexpected.  With a focus on Experience Disruptors, Product Market Fit, and a range of other captivating topics, we bring you face-to-face with the ideas that are revolutionizing traditional buying and selling experiences.   But we don't stop at ideas; we dive into their real-world applications.  "The Disruptor" offers an unfiltered glimpse into the lives and minds of those who are being disrupted, creating disruption, or strategically navigating it.  Our guests range from industry veterans to daring newcomers, all willing to share their experiences in shifting the paradigms that define their stakeholders' experiences.  If you're tired of business as usual and eager to question the preconceived notions that hold back innovation, "The Disruptor Series" is your ticket to a transformative journey.  Tune in, disrupt yourself, and become an agent of change in an ever-evolving landscape....

Information

  • Creator
    John Kundtz
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    50
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Cedar Street Management LLC
  • Show Website
    The Disruptor Podcast