10. The Supply Chain Consultant Who Testifies in Court with Steve Hopper

Steve Hopper spent years climbing the corporate ladder before a toxic work environment - and a nudge from his wife - pushed him to bet on himself. In 2004, he founded Inviscid Consulting, a supply chain and warehouse operations firm that has since worked with clients ranging from $80B corporations to PE-backed startups. What started as turning over rocks with a small network has grown into 21 years of steady upward trajectory, a thriving expert witness practice across 65-plus legal cases, and a side life as the drummer for the Falls Brothers Band. Steve breaks down exactly how to think about consulting ROI (a client once passed on a 200% return because of the wrong budget bucket), why the mid-market is where the real opportunity lives, and the difference between being accountable and being set up to fail. How a Ben Franklin pros/cons list convinced Steve to turn down a corporate offer and start his own firm in 2004 The "authority and accountability relationship" framework Steve teaches every client - and lived through himself Breaking down the market pyramid: why Steve ignores the top and bottom and focuses everything on the $200M-$2B middle Why Inviscid has been on 65-plus expert witness cases - and what it actually means to "advocate for the truth" on the stand The $31M jury verdict, 1,000+ documents, and why this work is nothing like the TV version How to calculate real consulting ROI - and the auto parts company that wouldn't act on a 6-month payback Lightning round: timewithsteve.com, 4-5 phone numbers (one for band bookings), 100+ unread emails, and Googling someone mid-meeting Chapters: 0:00 - Intro and Fun Fact: Ducks Have Regional Accents 1:44 - Growing Up in Charlotte and Atlanta 3:40 - The Entrepreneurial Bug and Cub Scout Sales 5:23 - Turning Down the Corporate Offer and Taking the Leap 7:57 - The Early Days of Inviscid: Turning Over Rocks 11:44 - Stability vs. Control: The Real Trade-off of Entrepreneurship 14:30 - Authority, Accountability, and Driving Your Own Destiny 19:13 - KPIs in Warehousing: From DC-Level to Individual Workers 21:08 - The Market Pyramid: Why Steve Focuses on the Mid-Market 27:03 - Consulting ROI: The Auto Parts Company That Passed on 200% 32:59 - The Expert Witness Practice: 65+ Cases, $31M Verdicts, Advocating for Truth 40:14 - Lightning Round: timewithsteve.com, Band Bookings, and Googling Mid-Meeting Guest: Steve Hopper - Founder, Inviscid Consulting Website: https://inviscidconsulting.com Host: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-tompkins/ Company: https://www.pineapplecf.com Speaking: https://www.pineapplejacktompkins.com/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCalnj5yLU0ZH9y_tVl1J4ng