The Business Game

The Business Game
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The Business Game The Business Game is not another highlight reel of overnight success. It is a structured, honest breakdown of what it really takes to build, scale, and sustain a business at every level. We built The Business Game around a simple truth: business changes as revenue changes. The problems at $500K are not the problems at $5M. The mindset at $5M is not the mindset at $50M. That is why every conversation is grounded in our 10-Level framework, from Level 1 Startup and Survival through to Level 10 Legacy and Exit. If you are: • Trying to get your first consistent revenue • Building your first real team • Breaking through the messy middle • Scaling toward eight or nine figures • Or preparing for exit There is an episode that meets you where you are. Hosted by Steve Plummer and Kalena Stano, who speak to founders operating at every stage of the game. No gatekeeping. No hype. No recycled advice. Just real numbers, real mistakes, real strategy, and real decisions that moved the needle. Each week, we publish two episodes every Monday and Thursday at 6pm AEST, featuring global founders, operators, and investors who break down what actually works at their level and what does not. The Business Game exists to give you clarity. To help you identify your current level. To show you the moves required to reach the next one. Because scaling is not random. It is a game. And every level has different rules. Find your level. Play it properly. Then level up. Watch video episodes on YouTube and explore more at thebusinessgamegroup.com

  1. 2D AGO

    LEVEL FIVE: The SEO Strategy Behind a $20M Business

    Send us Fan Mail LEVEL FIVE: ORGANISER $20M to $50M  On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Tim Vipond, Co-Founder and CEO of Corporate Finance Institute, a global education platform training finance professionals in over 200 countries.  After building a $20M+ business off the back of SEO and digital distribution, Tim shares how he turned content into a global growth engine, and why scaling an education company is far more complex than it looks from the outside.  If you’re trying to scale your business, expand globally, integrate AI, or build something that doesn’t rely on you day-to-day, this episode is for you.  Let’s dive in, with Tim Vipond:  • how SEO became the growth engine behind a global business • why certifications outperform traditional online courses • what actually breaks when you scale into 200+ countries • the real challenge of pricing a product globally • how AI is changing both the way they operate, and what they sell  • the leadership shift from operator to CEO at $30M+  • what founders get wrong about scaling digital education  • how to think about distribution before product  • the hidden complexity behind ‘simple’ online businesses  • what could stall the next phase of growth – and how to avoid it  Support the show Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business. Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap. For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework? Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com It's time to Level Up! We’ll see you at the next level.

    1 hr

  2. 6D AGO

    LEVEL SEVEN: “I’ve Seen 80,000 Businesses… Here’s Why Yours Isn’t Making Money”

    Send us Fan Mail LEVEL SEVEN: GLOBAL LEADER $150M to $500M On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Jay Aldebert, Chief Growth Officer at International Services Inc, and a profit strategist who has analysed more than 80,000 privately held businesses over the past 25 years.  Having generated billions in consulting outcomes, Jay shares why most business owners don’t actually understand how their company makes money...  and how focusing on growth instead of profit is quietly destroying businesses at every level.  If you’re trying to scale your business, improve cash flow, increase profitability, or build something that creates real long-term value - this episode is for you!  Let’s dive in,  with Jay Aldebert:  • why most businesses struggle with profitability (even at high revenue)  • the truth about cash flow, debt, and working capital  • why growth alone won’t fix your business  • how to design profit instead of hoping for it  • the biggest financial mistakes founders make when scaling  • why accounting is a lagging indicator — not a control system  • how to build a business that actually creates value  • what determines the real worth of your business  • why selling more won’t solve underlying problems  • how to think about profit, structure, and long-term wealth  Support the show Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business. Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap. For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework? Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com It's time to Level Up! We’ll see you at the next level.

    1h 6m

  3. APR 27

    Climate Change Expert: The $22 TRILLION Housing Crash No One Is Ready For

    Send us Fan Mail LEVEL FOUR: SCALE BUILDER $8M to $20M  On today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Ben Gilliland, Founder of Future Proof Property Intelligence, a business tackling one of the biggest and fastest-growing threats facing homeowners today: the collision of climate risk and insurance.  With over 37 million homes already at extreme risk, and $22 trillion in real estate on the line, Ben breaks down what’s actually happening behind rising premiums, insurers pulling out of entire regions, why most people still don’t see it coming - and what his company is doing to help.  If you own property, are scaling a business in a complex market, or are trying to build something that requires real-world behaviour change… This episode is for you!  Let’s dive in, with Ben Gilliland:  • why climate risk and insurance risk are now the same conversation   • what’s really happening when insurance companies pull out of neighbourhoods   • how millions of homes could become uninsurable over the next 20 years   • the real reason most homeowners aren’t taking action yet   • how AI is being used to assess and fix property-level risk   • why this problem is bigger than construction – and requires system-level thinking   • the tension between homeowners and insurers (and why both sides are right!)   • what breaks first when you try to scale across multiple industries   • how this could trigger foreclosures, housing instability, and mass migration   • what needs to happen now to prevent a much bigger crisis  Support the show Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business. Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap. For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework? Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com It's time to Level Up! We’ll see you at the next level.

    1h 20m

  4. APR 23

    Viral Beauty Founder: From a 3D Print to Kendall Jenner, 1 BILLION views, and the Daily Mail

    Send us Fan Mail LEVEL TWO: $1M to $3M: EARLY BUILDER In today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re sitting down with Sarah Forrai, Co-Founder of Contour Cube, the viral tool designed to make facial icing easy and accessible for everyone. With organic endorsement from Kendall Jenner, over 1 billion views on social media, and features in GRAZIA and the Daily Mail, Sarah breaks down for us how she created the viral moments that skyrocketed her brand - and the reality behind the scenes of trying to capitalise on that momentum. If you’re building a product, hiring your first team, or trying to turn attention into predictable revenue… This episode is for you! Let’s dive in, with Sarah Forrai: • how a 3D-printed prototype turned into a $3M+ business  • what actually happens when your product goes viral overnight  • why views and demand don’t guarantee stability  • the moment they had millions watching… but no product to sell  • how they collected 20,000 emails while out of stock  • why supply chain nearly broke the business  • the reality of scaling with a lean team  • what most founders misunderstand about “demand”  • how social media can build or break a product business  • what it takes to turn momentum into something sustainable Support the show Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business. Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap. For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework? Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com It's time to Level Up! We’ll see you at the next level.

    51 min

  5. APR 23

    Coffee Entrepreneur: We Turned $74k Into A $25m Business... And We're Still Growing!

    Send us Fan Mail LEVEL FOUR: SCALE BUILDER What does it actually take to build a business when capital is tight, competition is high, and every mistake gets amplified as you grow? In today's episode of The Business Game, we're chatting with Justin Giuffrida, co-founder and CEO of Citizens, a rapidly growing Australian café brand redefining coffee culture in the United States. In this conversation, we’re talking with Justin about what happens when you push past the early wins and start dealing with real complexity. From opening a café in New York with just $74,000, to scaling across multiple cities, to now preparing for major expansion, Justin tells us all about the shift from scrappy startup to structured growth. From learning how to hire properly, to building systems that remove the founder as the bottleneck, to managing culture and consistency across locations, Justin breaks down what it actually takes to scale without breaking the business. If you’re building a business, managing a growing team, or navigating the challenges of scaling operations, this episode is for you. Let’s dive in with Justin Giuffrida: • why most founders get hiring wrong • why Citizens runs 123 interviews (!) to find the right hire • how to build systems that scale beyond the founder • why founders become the bottleneck and how to fix it • how to maintain culture while scaling across locations • what it really takes to raise capital and expand • the leadership shift from operator to CEO • how to use mentors to shortcut years of mistakes • the biggest risks when scaling too quickly • what changes when complexity starts to compound Chapters 00:00 – Building a Café with $74K  03:30 – Spotting the Opportunity in the US  06:10 – Opening with No Money  12:50 – From Launch to Line Out the Door  17:30 – Knowing the Model Would Scale  22:30 – Systems Behind Multi-Location Growth  29:20 – Why Hiring is So Hard  36:30 – Raising Capital and Scaling Fast  49:00 – The Founder to CEO Shift  01:02:00 – Mentors, Growth, and Long-Term Vision Support the show Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business. Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap. For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework? Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com It's time to Level Up! We’ll see you at the next level.

    1h 22m

  6. APR 20

    Cybersecurity Expert: Deepfakes, Voice Cloning, and How To Keep Yourself Safe

    Send us Fan Mail LEVEL TWO: EARLY BUILDER What does it actually take to build a business where the biggest risk isn’t your product… but people?  In today’s episode of The Business Game, we’re talking to cybersecurity expert Robert Siciliano to break down what’s really happening as AI reshapes fraud, deception, and trust – and why most businesses are completely unprepared for it.  Robert tells us the risks now that AI has removed all the obvious red flags of scams, making deception feel completely real – from voice cloning to deepfakes – and why the biggest vulnerability in any business isn’t its technology, but its people who can fall victim to these scams. And on top of that, we go deep with Robert on what it actually looks like to build a business around your own expertise.  From operating as a solopreneur, to learning how to sell your knowledge, to navigating the collapse of income during COVID, Robert shares the reality of stabilising a business when you are the product.  Let’s dive in, with Robert Siciliano:  Why AI has made scams almost impossible to detect  The dangerous gap between security awareness and real behaviour (and the need for a strategic human firewall) How apathy exposes both individuals and businesses  What it really takes to build systems when you’re still doing everything  How to start scaling expertise beyond yourself  If you’re in the early stages of building a business, hiring your first team, or trying to turn your expertise into something sustainable… This one is for you!   Support the show Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business. Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap. For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework? Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com It's time to Level Up! We’ll see you at the next level.

    1h 5m

  7. APR 13

    Project Management Expert: Why Bad Clients Only Get Worse... And What To Do About It

    Send us Fan Mail LEVEL ONE: STARTUP & SURVIVAL What does it actually take to build a business where execution isn’t the problem… but you are? In this episode of The Business Game, Rachel Losser, founder of Losser Consulting Solutions, shares what it really takes to build a consulting firm focused on one thing most businesses struggle with: getting things done. In this conversation, we're chatting with Rachel about about what happens when you realise that not every client is worth keeping, that growth comes from saying no more than yes, and that the biggest bottleneck in your business… is often you.  From learning how to fire the wrong clients, to building systems that don’t rely on the founder, to creating accountability across teams, Rachel breaks down what it actually takes to move out of chaos and into control - and how to get out of your own way in the process. If you’re building a business, hiring your first team, or trying to stop being the bottleneck in your own company? This episode is for you! Let’s dive in, with Rachel Losser: • why bad clients don’t get better… they get worse  • the moment she realised she was the bottleneck  • how saying no leads to better opportunities  • why “ready for change” and actually changing are different  • how to build trust while still holding accountability  • the simple system that keeps projects moving forward  • why most founders delay the conversations that matter  • how to scale without turning into a micromanager  • the real reason projects fail in growing businesses  • what it takes to move from doer to leader Chapters 00:00 – The moment Rachel knew she could do it better 02:02 – Firing clients and why it changed everything 03:25 – How to spot bad clients early 06:23 – Why clients don’t actually want change 08:26 – “I am the bottleneck” 10:15 – Training a team without losing control 11:42 – The “reverse micromanager” problem 13:22 – Turning custom work into scalable systems 16:00 – Why founders hold onto work under pressure 39:00 – The real shortcut: good work gets more work Support the show Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business. Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap. For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework? Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com It's time to Level Up! We’ll see you at the next level.

    56 min

  8. APR 9

    Female AI Founder: “We Made $200,000… And Had $16,000 In The Bank”

    Send us Fan Mail LEVEL TWO: EARLY BUILDER What happens when your business is growing… but your fundamentals are quietly breaking underneath you? In this episode of The Business Game, Carla Penn-Kahn, co-founder of ProfitPeak, shares what it really takes to build and scale a company in one of the fastest-moving spaces in business, AI-driven and agentic commerce. This isn’t just a conversation about growth; it's a conversation about what happens when the numbers look good on paper, but the reality behind the scenes tells a very different story. From making $200K in revenue but not being able to pay payroll, to hiring the wrong people because they were the best available at the time, Carla breaks down the moments that most founders do not talk about, but all eventually face. Carla shares the reality of building from zero for the first time after previous successful turnarounds, this time in a new category and a new market with no brand awareness, as well as her personal lessons from building from scratch. From learning (the hard way!) that you can't run a company like a family, to shifting from earning trust to giving it first, Carla talks us through how her leadership style has evolved across multiple businesses... and what it takes to build a team that can keep up with the speed of an AI-first world. If you're building a business, hiring your first team, or trying to move out of the chaos of early growth... This episode is for you!  Let's dive in, with Carla Penn-Kahn: • why making revenue does not mean you have cash  • the $200K payroll mistake that changed everything  • how unclear messaging can stall growth and how to fix it  • why problems in business happen hourly, not daily  • hiring the wrong people and why it is often unavoidable early  • the role of resilience in surviving constant setbacks  • the leadership shift from “nice founder” to real CEO  • why trust is given first, not earned over time  • how AI is changing e-commerce and decision-making  • what founders need to build now to stay competitive Follow The Business Game for more real conversations with founders building across all levels of business.  Support the show Thank you for listening to The Business Game, where real founders break down the real levels of business. Whether you're building at Level 1 ($0–$1M) or scaling through Level 6 and beyond, this show is designed to help you understand exactly where you are, and what it takes to level up. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, follow and leave a review. It helps more founders find the roadmap. For full episodes, level breakdowns and behind-the-scenes content, follow us on YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. Want to identify your level or learn more about The Business Game framework? Visit www.thebusinessgamegroup.com It's time to Level Up! We’ll see you at the next level.

    55 min
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About

The Business Game The Business Game is not another highlight reel of overnight success. It is a structured, honest breakdown of what it really takes to build, scale, and sustain a business at every level. We built The Business Game around a simple truth: business changes as revenue changes. The problems at $500K are not the problems at $5M. The mindset at $5M is not the mindset at $50M. That is why every conversation is grounded in our 10-Level framework, from Level 1 Startup and Survival through to Level 10 Legacy and Exit. If you are: • Trying to get your first consistent revenue • Building your first real team • Breaking through the messy middle • Scaling toward eight or nine figures • Or preparing for exit There is an episode that meets you where you are. Hosted by Steve Plummer and Kalena Stano, who speak to founders operating at every stage of the game. No gatekeeping. No hype. No recycled advice. Just real numbers, real mistakes, real strategy, and real decisions that moved the needle. Each week, we publish two episodes every Monday and Thursday at 6pm AEST, featuring global founders, operators, and investors who break down what actually works at their level and what does not. The Business Game exists to give you clarity. To help you identify your current level. To show you the moves required to reach the next one. Because scaling is not random. It is a game. And every level has different rules. Find your level. Play it properly. Then level up. Watch video episodes on YouTube and explore more at thebusinessgamegroup.com

Information

  • Creator
    The Business Game
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    131
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 The Business Game
  • Show Website
    The Business Game

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