Ohio Business: Unfiltered

🏢 From Blue-Collar Roots to Building a Thriving Cleaning & Restoration Business | Ken Taylor | Ohio Business: UnfilteredWhat does it really take to build a successful service business from the ground up?In this episode of Ohio Business: Unfiltered, host Rick Plaskett sits down with Ken Taylor, founder of Common Courtesy Cleaning, to discuss the realities of entrepreneurship, business growth, leadership, customer retention, and building a company through hard work and community relationships.Ken shares his journey from a blue-collar upbringing in Northwest Ohio to launching and growing Common Courtesy Cleaning into a trusted provider of cleaning, restoration, mitigation, and specialty services throughout Central Ohio. Along the way, he reveals valuable lessons about marketing, hiring, company culture, controlled growth, and creating a business that serves both customers and employees.Whether you're a small business owner, entrepreneur, service contractor, or aspiring leader, this conversation is packed with practical insights and real-world wisdom.🔹 In This Episode You'll Learn:✅ How Ken built Common Courtesy Cleaning from scratch✅ Why word-of-mouth marketing still outperforms paid advertising✅ The importance of controlled business growth✅ Hiring strategies that focus on people and culture✅ Leadership lessons from entrepreneurship✅ How to build a strong reputation in your local market✅ The role discipline plays in business success✅ Why customer retention is the key to long-term growth✅ Lessons from the restoration and cleaning industry💡 Key Takeaways:• Discipline is the foundation of success• Growth should be intentional, not chaotic• Strong customer relationships create lasting business opportunities• Great businesses are built by serving people first• Word-of-mouth remains one of the most powerful marketing tools available📍 About Ken Taylor:Ken Taylor is the Founder and Owner of Common Courtesy Cleaning, a Central Ohio-based company specializing in residential and commercial cleaning, carpet cleaning, tile and grout cleaning, restoration services, water mitigation, mold remediation, biohazard cleanup, and more.📞 Connect with Ken Taylor:Phone: (614) 940-1653Email: [email protected]🔔 Subscribe for More Business Leadership ContentIf you enjoy conversations about entrepreneurship, leadership, business growth, sales, marketing, and small business ownership, be sure to Like, Subscribe, and Turn On Notifications for future episodes.🎙️ Connect with Rick Plaskett:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-plasket-4b6a157🌐 Learn More:ActionCOACH: https://rickplasket.actioncoach.com🎧 Listen to Ohio Business: Unfiltered:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033jtpIBICapFc5c0uLDjEApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ohio-business-unfiltered/id1896769046Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/70038bf4-21c4-44ef-91a4-5fdca2d11607/ohio-business-unfilteredAbout Ohio Business: UnfilteredOhio Business: Unfiltered is the podcast for Ohio business owners who want straight talk on what it actually takes to build a profitable, sustainable company. Each week, Rick Plaskett sits down with entrepreneurs, executives, and business leaders from across Ohio to discuss the challenges, decisions, and lessons that shape successful businesses.Rick Plaskett is a certified ActionCOACH, West Point graduate, and Army veteran with decades of experience in leadership, business coaching, and organizational growth. Through candid conversations and practical insights, he helps business owners build stronger systems, develop better teams, and create businesses that work without consuming their lives.#KenTaylor #CommonCourtesyCleaning #OhioBusinessUnfiltered #RickPlaskett #OhioBusiness #Entrepreneurship #SmallBusinessOwner #BusinessGrowth #Leadership #BusinessLeadership #CleaningBusiness #RestorationBusiness #MarketingStrategy #CustomerRetention #ServiceBusiness #BusinessPodcast #LeadershipDevelopment #BusinessCoaching #ActionCOACH #OhioEntrepreneur

Kurt Nederveld, founder and CEO of Rainstar Capital Group, joins Rick Plasket on Business Unfiltered to talk about 12 years of building one of the most diversified debt advisory platforms in the country. Rainstar sits across $20M+ middle market companies, small businesses, commercial real estate deals, and equipment lending — with 250 registered lenders spanning banks, hedge funds, private equity, and specialty finance. Kurt breaks down how the firm works, why bank financing often falls short during growth phases, and how AI is now changing the way they generate leads and process loans.Beyond the business model, this episode gets into leadership — the realities of being a Type A CEO, how Kurt structures his day between strategy and client work, and why he still gets personally involved in larger transactions rather than delegating everything away. He also shares what has shaped him as a leader, including experiences most people wouldn't talk about on a podcast.What you'll take away:Why businesses that are growing often outgrow their bank debt — and what the B, C, and D lending tiers actually offerHow Rainstar uses CFO-level tools to help clients weigh the cost of alternative capital against the revenue opportunity it unlocksKurt's approach to time-blocking: mornings for strategy, afternoons for leading by doingWhy he still works directly with clients as CEO, and where he draws the line on delegationHow Rainstar is using AI for lead generation and loan process automation — and why they're prioritising that over headcount growthThe hiring philosophy: culture fit and right timing over filling seats"Every great deal dies seven times" — and what it takes to be the advisor who gets it across the lineConnect with Kurt Nederveld:Website: rainstarcapitalgroup.comEmail: [email protected]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtanederveldIf this conversation gave you something useful, like and subscribe — new episodes drop weekly.I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly.– Rick and the Ohio Business Unfiltered podcast teamConnect with Rick Plasket on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-plasket-4b6a157Visit the ActionCOACH website here: https://rickplasket.actioncoach.comListen to Ohio Business Unfiltered on these podcast platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033jtpIBICapFc5c0uLDjEApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ohio-business-unfiltered/id1896769046Amazon Podcasts:https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/70038bf4-21c4-44ef-91a4-5fdca2d11607/ohio-business-unfiltered#OhioBusinessUnfiltered #RickPlasket #ActionCOACH #OhioBusiness #BusinessCoaching #SmallBusinessOwner #EntrepreneurMindset #BusinessGrowth #LeadershipDevelopment #ScaleYourBusiness #OhioEntrepreneur #ExecutiveCoaching #BusinessStrategy #WorkLifeBalance #MindsetMattersOhio Business Unfiltered is the podcast for Ohio business owners who want straight talk on what it actually takes to build a profitable, sustainable company. Each week, Rick Plasket sits down with entrepreneurs, executives, and business leaders from across the state to get into the real conversations — the obstacles they faced, the decisions that changed everything, and what they wish they had known sooner.Rick Plasket is a certified ActionCOACH, West Point graduate, and Army veteran with decades of experience spanning corporate leadership and business coaching. He works with business owners across Columbus and Ohio to help them stop working in their business and start working on it — building systems, developing teams, and reclaiming the freedom they got into business for in the first place. On Ohio Business Unfiltered, Rick brings that same direct, accountability-driven approach to every conversation.

Todd Sullivan has built and sold four companies, played professional hockey, and is now on his fifth venture — ExitWise, a marketplace that connects business owners with exited founders who've sold companies to some of the biggest names in the world. In this episode, Todd talks to Rick Plaskett about what most founders get catastrophically wrong when it's time to sell, why your investment banker and attorney are not actually on your side, and how having someone in your corner who's already been through the emotional rollercoaster of M&A can be the difference between a deal dying and a deal closing.The conversation covers the full arc of what ExitWise does — from working with founders 2-3 years before they're ready to sell, right through to closing — and why personality fit between a seller and their M&A team matters more than the size of previous deals. Todd also shares his thinking on goal-setting, why his superpower is zero to one, and what the goalie mindset from his hockey days taught him about running a business.What you'll take away:Why ExitWise clients sell for 30% or more above market — and what role exited founders actually play in getting thereThe red flag Todd watches for immediately: if your attorney is taking weeks to turn around an NDA, he'll walkWhy searchers and fundless sponsors have ruined multiple deals — and why Todd advises staying away from themThe difference between what a banker wants, what a lawyer wants, and what you actually need as a founder going into a saleHow exited founders translate emotion into finance and back again — and why bankers say they've saved deals because of itTodd's advice for aspiring entrepreneurs: treat it as a career, go work inside the industry you want to disrupt, and launch with customers already in handWhy his magic wand answer is a tighter ICP — and why AI is changing how quickly they can prepare a business to go to marketConnect with Todd Sullivan:Website: exitwise.comEmail: [email protected]: https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddfsullivanLike and subscribe for new episodes every week.I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly.– Rick and the Ohio Business Unfiltered podcast teamConnect with Rick Plasket on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-plasket-4b6a157Visit the ActionCOACH website here: https://rickplasket.actioncoach.comListen to Ohio Business Unfiltered on these podcast platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033jtpIBICapFc5c0uLDjEApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ohio-business-unfiltered/id1896769046Amazon Podcasts:https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/70038bf4-21c4-44ef-91a4-5fdca2d11607/ohio-business-unfiltered#OhioBusinessUnfiltered #RickPlasket #ActionCOACH #OhioBusiness #BusinessCoaching #SmallBusinessOwner #EntrepreneurMindset #BusinessGrowth #LeadershipDevelopment #ScaleYourBusiness #OhioEntrepreneur #ExecutiveCoaching #BusinessStrategy #WorkLifeBalance #MindsetMattersOhio Business Unfiltered is the podcast for Ohio business owners who want straight talk on what it actually takes to build a profitable, sustainable company. Each week, Rick Plasket sits down with entrepreneurs, executives, and business leaders from across the state to get into the real conversations — the obstacles they faced, the decisions that changed everything, and what they wish they had known sooner.Rick Plasket is a certified ActionCOACH, West Point graduate, and Army veteran with decades of experience spanning corporate leadership and business coaching. He works with business owners across Columbus and Ohio to help them stop working in their business and start working on it — building systems, developing teams, and reclaiming the freedom they got into business for in the first place. On Ohio Business Unfiltered, Rick brings that same direct, accountability-driven approach to every conversation.

Joseph Badger didn't plan on ending up in insurance. His career wound through economics academia, telecoms marketing, custom home design, HR leadership, and teaching business seminars across the US before a temporary role with Colonial Life became the foundation for Upper Room Solutions. In this episode, Joseph talks to Rick Plaskett about what it actually looks like to build a business with the intention of one day not being needed in it — and why that's harder emotionally than most founders expect.The conversation covers Joseph's leadership philosophy, which centres on self-awareness, the difference between being nice and being kind, and what he calls "leading with a limp" — the idea that acknowledging your own flaws makes you a better leader, not a weaker one. He also shares a story from the night before recording that captures exactly the kind of successor relationship most business owners spend years hoping for.What you'll take away:Why Joseph structures his role around making himself unnecessary — and how that's changed where he spends his timeThe distinction between being nice (doing things so people like you) and being kind (doing the right thing for someone, regardless of whether they want it)How personality profiling tools like DISC aren't just for sales — and why he teaches them as life skillsWhat "leading with a limp" means in practice, and why leaders who haven't worked through their own wounds can cause serious damage to the people around themHis magic wand answer: sales discipline — and why even great hunters on a sales team need structure to stay focusedThe custom-forged sword from Nepal, and what it meant about the successor relationship he's built over yearsConnect with Joseph Badger:Website: upper-room-solutions.comPhone: 440-915-8442LinkedIn: Upper Room Solutions — linkedin.com/company/upper-room-solutionsIf this resonated, give it a like and subscribe — new episodes weekly.I hope you enjoy this episode! Give it a like, share, and subscribe to not miss the content coming your way weekly.– Rick and the Ohio Business Unfiltered podcast teamConnect with Rick Plasket on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-plasket-4b6a157 Visit the ActionCOACH website here: https://rickplasket.actioncoach.comListen to Ohio Business Unfiltered on these podcast platforms: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033jtpIBICapFc5c0uLDjEApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ohio-business-unfiltered/id1896769046Amazon Podcasts:https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/70038bf4-21c4-44ef-91a4-5fdca2d11607/ohio-business-unfiltered#OhioBusinessUnfiltered #RickPlasket #ActionCOACH #OhioBusiness #BusinessCoaching #SmallBusinessOwner #EntrepreneurMindset #BusinessGrowth #LeadershipDevelopment #ScaleYourBusiness #OhioEntrepreneur #ExecutiveCoaching #BusinessStrategy #WorkLifeBalance #MindsetMattersOhio Business Unfiltered is the podcast for Ohio business owners who want straight talk on what it actually takes to build a profitable, sustainable company. Each week, Rick Plasket sits down with entrepreneurs, executives, and business leaders from across the state to get into the real conversations — the obstacles they faced, the decisions that changed everything, and what they wish they had known sooner.Rick Plasket is a certified ActionCOACH, West Point graduate, and Army veteran with decades of experience spanning corporate leadership and business coaching. He works with business owners across Columbus and Ohio to help them stop working in their business and start working on it — building systems, developing teams, and reclaiming the freedom they got into business for in the first place. On Ohio Business Unfiltered, Rick brings that same direct, accountability-driven approach to every conversation.