His hard work and dedication paid off, and the Franchisor leadership asked him to join their team so he could train and advise franchisees across the Midwest. He then moved on to an even larger franchise organization and traveled throughout North America, launching, training, and advising businesses. That was where he was teamed up with Casey Clark, fellow co-founder of Cultivate Advisors. After helping Casey grow his franchise, they realized that they had a great partnership and sought a way to start their own company.
After helping so many franchises succeed in even the most difficult economic markets, Dan was ready for his next challenge: launching Cultivate Advisors. His experience in multiple industries helped highlight the core business foundations that all leaders need to scale successfully. It just made sense to Dan to support small-to-mid-market business owners that cared about scaling and creating a sustainable business and life.
Dan watched too many of his family and friends run businesses that were too reliant on the owner. It ignited a passion in him to help entrepreneurs build something that can exist without them over time and allow them to achieve their personal goals with freedom.
Launching and leading hundreds of franchises helped prepare Dan as an advisor and leader. He was full-time Advisor #1 at Cultivate Advisors. His vision for the business inspired him to quit his job, move from Milwaukee to Chicago and move in with co-founder Casey. Together, they networked to find their first clients in the city. They spent their early years building out their processes before scaling. It took three years to bring on their first advisor, but their efforts and strategy paid off: they used their techniques to bring on more clients and all of the amazing advisors at Cultivate today.
As a leader, Dan is outcome-focused and driven by his vision. He starts with the end in mind and plans the details from that. Genuine in conversations, he is realistic and not afraid to have hard conversations when necessary.
Dan is most passionate about the people at Cultivate, both his team and clients. He cares deeply about his clients and team and will do whatever is necessary to help people reach their goals. Everyone has a blast together but is willing to get into the trenches to solve problems and create a plan. As a result, Dan is most proud of the culture he helped build at Cultivate.
Fun fact: an avid athlete, Dan’s greatest success was in throwing discus for track and field. He was the top-ten record holder at his high school, competed in early college, and coached after college. As Dan says, “Who knew that throwing a heavy frisbee would be my thing?”
