Fixers & Founders

Forrest Derr and Tony Lilja
  • 0.0 (0)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Biweekly

Fixers & Founders is a podcast about the partnership between visionary founders and the fractional executives who help them bring structure, clarity, and scale. Each episode features candid conversations with founders and the operators who steady the ship—highlighting how ideas get fueled, how systems get fixed, and how businesses move forward when vision and execution finally meet.

  1. 3d ago

    The Pyramid of Pain | Stop Carrying Problems Your Team Should Own

    In this episode of Fixers & Founders, Tony and Forrest sit down with Derek McLarty, fractional COO and Integrator at Duke Business Consulting Group, to explore why growing businesses often become increasingly dependent on the very founders trying to scale them. Derek introduces his “Pyramid of Pain”—a leadership trap where founders carry the frustration of underperformance while the people closest to the problems lack the visibility or ownership needed to solve them. From the “genius with a thousand helpers” to leaders who answer every question themselves, Derek explains how good intentions can quietly create organizational bottlenecks. Drawing on more than 15 years of operational and leadership experience, Derek challenges conventional thinking about efficiency, process documentation, and delegation. His philosophy is refreshingly simple: make problems visible, build systems people can actually use, and develop leaders who eventually don't need you. In this conversation, we explore: • The Pyramid of Pain: Why founders absorb organizational frustration instead of giving their teams the visibility and accountability to address it. • The Founder Bottleneck: How becoming the answer to every question prevents employees from developing into independent decision-makers. • Processes Without Bureaucracy: Why a useful checklist can outperform a hundred-page SOP—and why simplicity is a sign of mastery. • Making Performance Visible: How scorecards, dashboards, and clear expectations help teams recognize problems and take ownership. • Hiring Your Weaknesses: Why founders should understand their natural strengths before deciding what kind of second-in-command they need. • The Human Side of Leadership: What years of difficult feedback taught Derek about emotional intelligence—and why some moments with family should never be optimized for efficiency. Whether you're a founder carrying too much of the load, an operator building a more scalable business, or a leader trying to develop a team that can thrive without you, this conversation offers practical perspective on turning responsibility into shared ownership. Connect with Derek McLarty Duke Business Consulting Group: https://dukebcg.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derekmclarty Intro & Outro Music "Which One Is the Jellyfish?" by Aunt Cynthia's Cabin Used with permission under a non-exclusive license. Bandcamp: https://auntcynthiascabin.bandcamp.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/auntcynthiascabin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/auntcynthiascabin Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/artist/5XoG0H2D0vY58n32W8xI2K

    The Pyramid of Pain | Stop Carrying Problems Your Team Should Own

  2. Nov 4

    Who's Number One? | The Overlooked Power of the Second-in-Command

    This time on Fixers & Founders, Tony Lilja turns the tables on co-host Forrest Derr, a self-described serial second-in-command and author of Who's Number One? The Overlooked Importance of the Second in Command. After nearly three decades working alongside visionary founders, Forrest has learned that hiring a great operator isn't enough. Founders must also be willing to share authority, accept difficult conversations, and let someone else make decisions. Otherwise, that supposed leadership partner may be little more than an expensive executive assistant. In this candid conversation, Tony and Forrest explore: Why founders sometimes discover the value of their second-in-command only after losing them. The difference between an operations manager, an executive assistant, and a true integrator. How Forrest confronted a founder who wasn't giving him the authority to lead. What changes when founders escape the day-to-day weeds and focus on their strengths. Plus, Forrest shares why becoming company president wasn't everything he'd hoped, a wild Christmas Eve furniture repossession story, and some unforgettable marriage advice that became a lesson in leadership. Connect with Forrest and buy his book:https://fractionatorhq.com About Fixers & Founders Hosted by Tony Lilja and Forrest Derr, Fixers & Founders brings together entrepreneurs, operators, and business leaders for candid conversations about the challenges, decisions, and lessons behind building better businesses. From leadership and operations to growth, strategy, and the people who make it all happen, we explore what it takes to turn ambitious ideas into meaningful results. Fixers & Founders — Where vision meets velocity. #FixersAndFounders #ForrestDerr #SecondInCommand #FounderLeadership #BusinessGrowth Intro & Outro Music "Which One Is the Jellyfish?" by Aunt Cynthia's CabinUsed with permission under a non-exclusive license. Bandcamp: https://auntcynthiascabin.bandcamp.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/auntcynthiascabinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/auntcynthiascabinSpotify: http://open.spotify.com/artist/5XoG0H2D0vY58n32W8xI2K

    Who's Number One? | The Overlooked Power of the Second-in-Command

  3. Oct 28

    Winning the Numbers, Losing the People | Why Growth Isn't Always Success

    In this episode of Fixers & Founders, Tony and Forrest sit down with Keith Singler, founder of Kinetic Factor Partners and former president, CRO, and Integrator at Altaworx, to explore a troubling reality of business growth: revenue and profits can be climbing while the organization underneath is quietly falling apart. Keith has seen companies post impressive financial results while their best people become overworked, their culture deteriorates, and customers begin to leave. What looks like success on the balance sheet can actually be the beginning of a much bigger problem. Sustainable growth requires more than hitting the numbers—it requires protecting the people, maintaining focus, and building an organization capable of delivering consistently. Drawing on his experience across finance, technology, sales, and operations, Keith also shares why Visionaries and Integrators need honest conversations, how chasing the next shiny opportunity can derail execution, and what surprised him when he became a founder himself—including the realization that he wasn't following his own advice. In this conversation, we explore: Winning the Numbers, Losing the People: Why growing revenue and profits can disguise employee burnout, declining culture, and customer dissatisfaction—and how those problems eventually catch up with the business. The Shiny Object Trap: How constantly chasing new opportunities pulls teams away from their priorities, creates chaos, and prevents otherwise capable organizations from finishing what they started. Pushing Back Without Saying No: Why a good Integrator can't simply agree with every new idea, and how honest conversations about priorities, capacity, and execution build trust with a Visionary. Becoming the Founder: What Keith discovered when he launched Kinetic Factor Partners without a Vision/Traction Organizer (VTO), and why he had to stop and apply the same operating disciplines he recommends to his clients. This episode is for founders, Integrators, and business leaders who want to grow without burning out their teams, losing their best people, or sacrificing the long-term health of the business for short-term financial results. Connect with Keith Singler Website: https://kineticfactorpartners.com Email: ksingler@kineticfactorpartners.com Intro & Outro Music "Which One Is the Jellyfish?" by Aunt Cynthia's Cabin Used with permission under a non-exclusive license. Bandcamp: https://auntcynthiascabin.bandcamp.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/auntcynthiascabin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/auntcynthiascabin Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/artist/5XoG0H2D0vY58n32W8xI2K

    Winning the Numbers, Losing the People | Why Growth Isn't Always Success

  4. Oct 21

    What Problem Are You Actually Solving? | Stop Hiring Before You Know

    In this episode of Fixers & Founders, Tony and Forrest sit down with Raquel Castillo, founder of The Online Integrator, fractional COO, EOS Integrator, and strategic mapping consultant, to unpack a mistake founders make when their business starts feeling harder to manage: jumping straight to a solution before clearly identifying the problem. Hiring another person, adding a process, or introducing another piece of software can feel like progress. But Raquel argues that founders should first ask a much simpler question: What problem am I actually trying to solve? Otherwise, they may hire one person expecting them to fix five different issues—or build structure the business isn't ready to support. Raquel also shares what a true Integrator should own, why founders become trapped in the day-to-day, how to filter a Visionary's constant stream of ideas without killing their creativity, and why accountability works better when people have ownership rather than simply being told what to do. In this conversation, we explore: • Diagnosing Before Hiring: Why “What problem am I trying to solve?” should come before deciding you need a COO, project manager, or another employee. • Getting the Founder Out of the Weeds: How founders become indispensable to their own businesses—and why that can eventually turn success into frustration and resentment. • Filtering Visionary Ideas: Why a good Integrator can't simply say “no” to every new idea, and why some ideas need a “no for now” while others genuinely need to be killed. • Creating Ownership: Why accountability becomes more effective when people help define what they own, understand why it matters, and buy into the expectations around their role. This episode is for founders who know their business needs more structure, accountability, or operational leadership—but want to make sure they're solving the right problem before adding another person, process, or platform. Connect with Raquel CastilloWebsite: https://theonlineintegrator.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/theonlineintegrator Intro & Outro Music "Which One Is the Jellyfish?" by Aunt Cynthia's Cabin Used with permission under a non-exclusive license. Bandcamp: https://auntcynthiascabin.bandcamp.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/auntcynthiascabin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/auntcynthiascabin Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/artist/5XoG0H2D0vY58n32W8xI2K

    What Problem Are You Actually Solving? | Stop Hiring Before You Know

  5. Oct 14

    Reach Out and Touch Someone | Turn Your Network Into Real Relationships

    In this episode of Fixers & Founders, Tony and Forrest sit down with Jaimie Skultety, founder of Upscale Your Business and a visibility strategist who has been helping experts get seen since 2009, to talk about turning LinkedIn connections into actual relationships—and eventually, real business opportunities. A big network might look impressive, but a connection count alone doesn’t create value. Jaimie explains why simply posting and hoping the right people notice—what she calls “posting and praying”—isn’t enough. The real work is intentionally growing and nurturing your network, staying useful and visible, and giving people a reason to remember you when their “readiness factor” finally kicks in. And sometimes the best LinkedIn strategy isn’t much of a strategy at all. Notice something about another person. Get curious. Start a conversation. Jaimie’s advice cuts through automated pitches, manufactured engagement, and vanity metrics with a refreshingly simple idea: go be a good human online. In this conversation, we explore: • Stop “posting and praying”: Why publishing content without intentionally building and engaging your network leaves too much to chance. • Turn connections into relationships: Why collecting thousands of LinkedIn connections means very little if you never actually talk to the people behind them. • Understand the readiness factor: Why someone might follow you for years before becoming a client—and why consistently showing up with useful expertise matters in the meantime. • Be a good human online: How curiosity, generosity, thoughtful outreach, and simply noticing something about another person can open doors without immediately turning the conversation into a sales pitch. If you’re a founder, consultant, or fractional executive sitting on hundreds—or thousands—of connections and wondering why they aren’t creating opportunities, this conversation is a reminder that your network may already be big enough. The question is what you’re going to do with it. Connect with Jaimie Skultety LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaimieskultety Website: https://upscaleyourbusiness.com Schedule with Jaimie: https://upscaleyourbusiness.com/schedule Intro & Outro Music "Which One Is the Jellyfish?" by Aunt Cynthia's Cabin Used with permission under a non-exclusive license. Bandcamp: https://auntcynthiascabin.bandcamp.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/auntcynthiascabin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/auntcynthiascabin Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/artist/5XoG0H2D0vY58n32W8xI2K

    Reach Out and Touch Someone | Turn Your Network Into Real Relationships

  6. Oct 7

    Talk to the Humans | Building Systems People Actually Use

    In this episode of Fixers & Founders, Tony and Forrest sit down with Katie Barnes, founder of Rise and Optimize and a fractional COO who works with Seed through Series B SaaS companies, to talk about what happens when a business is growing but its systems are not keeping up. Katie takes a human-first approach to operations. Rather than dropping in a generic framework or immediately layering on more tools, she starts by talking to the people actually doing the work, mapping the real workflow, and building systems around how the team operates. The goal is not just to document a process—it’s to create something the team understands, owns, and will actually use. The conversation explores why founders often misdiagnose operational problems as people problems, how broken handoffs can quietly turn into revenue leakage, and why AI should come after the workflow is clear—not before. Katie also explains why slowing down long enough to understand the process can ultimately help a company move much faster. In this conversation, we explore: • Talk to the Humans: Why the best operational improvements start with the people doing the work—not with a template, tool, or consultant’s favorite framework. • Build Systems People Will Use: How involving the team in process design creates ownership, accountability, and a much better chance the system survives after the consultant leaves. • Stop Automating the Chaos: Why adding AI or automation before understanding the workflow can simply make a broken process fail faster. • Where Revenue Gets Lost: How weak handoffs between sales, customer success, and finance can lead to missed billing, delayed onboarding, and ARR that never gets collected. If your team is busy, your systems are messy, and adding more tools or people hasn’t fixed the underlying friction, this episode will help you rethink how better operations actually get built. Connect with Katie Barnes Website: https://riseandoptimize.com Email: katie@riseandoptimize.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katie-barnes-operations-leader Substack: https://substack.com/@thekatiebarnes Intro & Outro Music "Which One Is the Jellyfish?" by Aunt Cynthia's Cabin Used with permission under a non-exclusive license. Bandcamp: https://auntcynthiascabin.bandcamp.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/auntcynthiascabin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/auntcynthiascabin Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1jnj9sPepqZOcWFZ8XMwLU

    Talk to the Humans | Building Systems People Actually Use

  7. Sep 30

    Too Small to Get Hacked? | Rethinking Cybersecurity Risk

    In this episode of Fixers & Founders, Tony and Forrest sit down with Chris Farr, Vice President of Operations at Invision Technologies and author of Built in the Trenches, to talk about a risk many small and midsize businesses underestimate: cybersecurity. It’s easy to assume that if your company has never experienced a serious cyber incident, what you’re doing must be working. But as Chris puts it, small businesses aren’t too small for a cyberattack—they’re just too small to wind up on CNN. And when an attack does happen, the financial and reputational consequences can hit a smaller company especially hard. Chris explains why cybersecurity is ultimately a leadership responsibility, not simply an IT problem. From email hygiene and employee training to choosing trusted technology advisors, protecting the business requires ongoing discipline—not a burst of attention when an insurance renewal or compliance deadline rolls around. The conversation also explores what happens when strong technical performers become leaders and have to stop solving every problem themselves and start developing the people around them. In this conversation, we explore: • Too Small to Get Hacked?: Why small and midsize businesses are still attractive cyber targets—and why their size can make the consequences even more personal. • The Human Side of Cybersecurity: Why email remains a major vulnerability and employee training has to become an ongoing business discipline. • Cybersecurity as a Leadership Responsibility: Why security can't live exclusively inside the IT department or become something leadership thinks about only when there's a box to check. • From Technician to Leader: Why great problem-solvers have to learn to stop fixing everything themselves and instead develop people who can solve problems without them. If your business has been treating cybersecurity as something the IT department handles—or assuming that having avoided a major incident means you're adequately protected—this episode will help you rethink the risk and the leadership required to manage it. Connect with Chris Farr LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris-farr-409b3585 Website: https://invtech.com Book — Built in the Trenches: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GWFNXWGM Intro & Outro Music "Which One Is the Jellyfish?" by Aunt Cynthia's Cabin Used with permission under a non-exclusive license. Bandcamp: https://auntcynthiascabin.bandcamp.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/auntcynthiascabin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/auntcynthiascabin Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1jnj9sPepqZOcWFZ8XMwLU

    Too Small to Get Hacked? | Rethinking Cybersecurity Risk

  8. Sep 23

    Busy Is a Form of Hiding | What Founders Should Stop Doing

    In this episode of Fixers & Founders, Tony and Forrest sit down with Becky Boland, founder of Practice Precision Partners, to talk about one of the biggest constraints facing growing business owners: their own capacity. As a business grows, the small things multiply. Calendars, inboxes, client follow-up, recurring tasks, and administrative work can quietly consume the founder’s week. And while “it’s faster if I just do it myself” may work for a while, eventually it becomes a bottleneck. Becky explains why repeatable work should be systemized, automated, or delegated—and why creating free time is only half the battle. Founders also have to protect that capacity instead of immediately filling it with more low-value work. Sometimes, being busy is simply an easier place to hide than doing the work that actually moves the business forward. In this conversation, we explore: • The Founder Capacity Trap: How to recognize when doing everything yourself has stopped being efficient and started holding the business back. • Systemize, Automate, Delegate: Why anything you repeatedly do the same way should become a system—and eventually leave the founder’s plate. • Busywork as a Hiding Place: How inboxes, calendars, and familiar tasks can become a comfortable way to avoid higher-value work. • Protecting the Time You Get Back: Why freeing up ten hours accomplishes very little if you immediately refill those hours with work you shouldn't be doing. If your calendar is packed, your inbox never ends, and too much of the business still depends on you personally keeping everything moving, this episode will help you rethink what deserves your time. Connect with Becky Boland Email: becky@practice-precision.com Website: https://practice-precision.com Intro & Outro Music "Which One Is the Jellyfish?" by Aunt Cynthia's Cabin Used with permission under a non-exclusive license. Bandcamp: https://auntcynthiascabin.bandcamp.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/auntcynthiascabin Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/auntcynthiascabin Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1jnj9sPepqZOcWFZ8XMwLU

    Busy Is a Form of Hiding | What Founders Should Stop Doing
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About

Fixers & Founders is a podcast about the partnership between visionary founders and the fractional executives who help them bring structure, clarity, and scale. Each episode features candid conversations with founders and the operators who steady the ship—highlighting how ideas get fueled, how systems get fixed, and how businesses move forward when vision and execution finally meet.

Information

  • Creator
    Forrest Derr and Tony Lilja
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    38
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Forrest Derr and Tony Lilja
  • Show Website
    Fixers & Founders