Michael J. Barbarita, Alex Fenton, Joe Wolfel | Office Hours #787

Michael J. Barbarita Michael J. Barbarita Jr. is a seasoned entrepreneur, award-winning speaker, and co-author with over 40 years of experience across retail, manufacturing, and service industries. After starting as a financial analyst, he led Ski Town USA, growing its revenue from $2.5 million to $8 million in under five years, before founding Next Step CFO in 2007 to help business owners achieve time freedom and consistent profits through innovative financial and business strategies. Today, he serves more than 40 clients worldwide, earning recognition as a thought leader and business innovator, with accomplishments ranging from having a product featured on QVC to building a thriving global client base. Alex Fenton Alex began his career trading emerging market commodities before moving into private equity fundraising for UK scale-ups. At just 25, he founded GapCap, a fintech lending platform that transacted over $500 million under his leadership. As CEO, he successfully scaled the business until its sale to Growth Lending in 2019, a milestone that highlighted his ability to build and grow innovative, technology-driven financial services companies. Since the sale of GapCap, Alex has remained deeply engaged in the investment and business services space. He has taken on key roles at The Legends Agency, FBX Capital Partners, Funding Bay, and Growth Lending, where he has developed expertise in customer service, marketing strategy, leadership, and business development. His journey reflects both entrepreneurial vision and a proven track record in scaling businesses and driving growth. Joe Wolfel Joe Wolfel is the CEO of Terradepth, where he is leading the mission to revolutionize subsea data and exploration through scalable, sustainable technology. A former Navy SEAL who earned the Bronze Star with Valor for heroic achievement in combat, he brings a unique blend of military leadership and technology expertise to his role. Joe previously commanded multinational special operations in Iraq, advised the U.S. Fifth Fleet on strategic planning in the Gulf, and supported counter-terrorism missions in Africa by training and advising partner nations. Today, he applies that experience to driving Terradepth’s growth, forging partnerships, and advancing ocean exploration for industries ranging from energy to environmental science, with a commitment to cutting-edge solutions that address global challenges and transform humanity’s relationship with the oceans.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.