What separates a leader who builds a winning team from one who just reports bad news?
In this episode, Chris Thomson hands the mic to College Works alumnus Jeff Gunhus, Co-Founder and CEO of Home Genius Exteriors, who scaled the company from $2.7 million in year one toward a $500 million target, all while chasing a billion-dollar goal.
Jeff lays out the framework his leaders live by, Teach, Track, and Inspire, and why fastest growing means nothing without most respected. He gets into leading from the front, the difference between leading and lagging indicators, and why world-class customer service is a desire, not a training issue.
If you want the mindset and the system behind teams that grow people and profit at the same time, this one is for you. Listen now.
Timestamped Highlights
- 03:51 – The secret behind the company name, and why everyone secretly works for his wife
- 04:44 – The Jim Collins principle that turned a departing leader into a business partner
- 07:42 – Fastest growing or most respected? Why he refuses to pick one
- 09:10 – The billion-dollar goal that started as a someday dream
- 11:59 – Why you should chase adversity instead of running from it
- 14:17 – Teach, track, and inspire: the entire framework on one pie chart
- 14:48 – The three leadership traps: the professor, the tracker, and the cheerleader
- 19:20 – The Jocko Willink rule that Home Genius leans on hard
- 24:26 – Why “what gets measured gets measured” is a trap for new leaders
- 34:04 – The truth about customer service that no training can fix
- 38:19 – The Jim Rohn line he closes meetings with
About the Guest
Jeff Gunhus is the Co-Founder and CEO of Home Genius Exteriors, one of the fastest growing home improvement companies in America, and Co-Founder of its parent company, National Services Group. A College Works Painting alumnus who started as a first-year operator before becoming a coach and then a partner, Jeff has grown Home Genius from $2.7 million in its first year toward a $500 million target, while holding the company to being both the fastest growing and most respected in its industry. He is known for his Teach, Track, and Inspire leadership framework, his focus on culture, and giving back through the Home Genius Cares program, all under a standard he calls happy but not satisfied.
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The Leaders of Tomorrow Podcast is an original production by Chris Thomson. Production and editing by Podcast Your Brand.
