Sustainability and ethics are no longer separate conversations in business.

Today’s leaders are increasingly being challenged to build organizations that create innovation, operational impact, and meaningful responsibility toward people and the world around them.

In this episode of The Bliss Business Podcast, we will welcome Sam Berman, Founder and CEO of LARC (Logistics Advanced Research Center).

Sam Berman is an entrepreneur, engineer, and logistics innovator focused on transforming how the world moves high-value technology infrastructure. As Founder and CEO of LARC, he has developed sustainable, high-performance solutions designed to replace outdated packaging systems across industries including AI, cloud computing, semiconductors, and aerospace. Beyond innovation and logistics, Sam also leads Haven, a LARC initiative dedicated to helping end human trafficking and exploitation through industry-driven impact and advocacy. He is also the author of Militant Mind: The Psychology of Building What Doesn’t Exist, exploring the mindset required to challenge entrenched systems and build entirely new categories of innovation.

In Sustainable Business Practices and Ethics, we explore:

• Why sustainability and ethics are becoming essential business responsibilities

• How innovation can challenge outdated systems and industries

• The role businesses can play in addressing human trafficking and exploitation

• Why operational leadership and purpose-driven action must work together

• The mindset required to build what does not yet exist

• How long-term responsibility creates stronger businesses and deeper impact

🎙️ Hosted by Stephen Sakach and Tullio Siragusa

🎧 Produced by Martha Huerta

Sustainable leadership is not only about building better systems. It is about using innovation, influence, and business itself as a force for responsibility, dignity, and human impact.

Marketing should not just support growth. It should drive it.

The most successful franchise brands understand that marketing becomes a true revenue engine when strategy, operations, and leadership are fully aligned.

In this week’s Marketing With Purpose Kit from The Bliss Business Podcast, we’re joined by Madeleine Zook, Co-Founder of Catalyst.

Madeleine Zook, CFE, is a recognized leader in the franchise industry with experience as a multi-brand franchisor, multi-unit franchisee, and founder of multiple agencies across franchise marketing, operations, and recruitment. Most recently, she partnered with franchise executive David Barr to launch Catalyst, a growth and marketing advisory firm supporting emerging and mid-market brands representing more than $1 billion in system-wide revenue. Recognized as one of USA Today’s Top 10 CMOs to Watch and among Philadelphia’s Top 100 C-Suite Executives, Madeleine is also the founder of Together She Can, a nonprofit supporting underserved communities through access to essential hygiene products.

📅 Wednesday, May 13, 2026 | 🕗 8:00 AM PST

🎙️ Hosted by Tullio Siragusa

🎧 Produced by Martha Huerta

🧭 In this episode, we explore:

• What it takes to turn marketing into a true revenue engine

• Aligning franchise growth strategy with operational execution

• Supporting emerging brands through scalable marketing systems

• Why purpose-driven leadership strengthens long-term growth

🎧 If you’re building a franchise brand or looking to connect marketing more directly to measurable business results, this conversation delivers both strategic insight and inspiration.

Reaching 200 episodes is more than a milestone.It is a reminder of the incredible conversations, leaders, founders, and changemakers who have helped shape The Bliss Business Podcast into a platform centered on purpose, leadership, systems, empathy, and human connection.

For our 200th episode, we are honored to welcome John Francis, franchise expert, leadership advisor, and Founding Father of Fathers Eve.

Known to many as “Johnny Franchise,” John Francis has spent more than 30 years working across every side of franchising as a franchisor, franchisee, multi-unit owner, developer, advisor, and board member. Through decades of experience across more than 100 brands, he has helped founders and leadership teams navigate the difficult transition from early-stage growth to scalable leadership infrastructure. John is also the founder of Fathers Eve, a growing community built to help dads connect through honest, judgment-free conversations rooted in clarity, connection, and authentic leadership.

In Why Franchising Breaks Founders and How to Fix It, we explore:

• Why founders often become the bottleneck as businesses scale

• The leadership shifts required to grow from 30 units to 300+

• How franchisors can reduce operational friction and leadership burnout

• The importance of advisory boards, coaching, and honest conversations• Why connection and self-awareness matter in both leadership and fatherhood

• How sustainable growth requires both systems and emotional resilience

📅 Thursday, May 12, 2026 🕚 11:00 a.m. PST

🎙️ Hosted by Stephen Sakach and Tullio Siragusa

🎧 Produced by Martha Huerta

To every guest, listener, supporter, and community member who has been part of these first 200 episodes, thank you for helping us continue sharing the BLISS methodology and creating conversations rooted in growth, purpose, empathy, and connection.

#TheBlissBusinessPodcast #Leadership #Franchising #BusinessGrowth #FounderLeadership

Tullio Siragusa continues the BLISS Monologue Series with Episode 11, focused on a leadership advantage most organizations claim they want, but very few design for: truth-telling that moves fast.

BLISS stands for Build Love Into Scalable Systems. In this episode, we explore why slow truth is expensive. When people cannot surface bad news, risks, confusion, disagreement, capacity limits, or broken processes without getting punished, leaders end up operating with filtered information. Meetings turn into performances. Problems get larger. Customers feel the impact before leadership does.

Truth-telling in a BLISS-based organization is not harshness or public criticism. It is the ability to surface reality early, directly, and respectfully, then turn that truth into action.

A key idea in this episode: most companies do not have a truth problem because people are dishonest. They have a truth problem because the system teaches caution. People learn quickly what gets rewarded, ignored, or punished, and they adjust accordingly.

This episode also offers a tangible move you can use immediately: run a truth audit in one team meeting. Ask:

What are we pretending not to know?

What conversation are we avoiding?

Where are we paying the same price repeatedly?

Pick one issue and commit to a decision or design move within two weeks. Truth without action becomes cynicism. Truth with action builds trust.

Empathy is often described as a personal leadership quality.But in today’s workplace, it is increasingly becoming a critical driver of culture, trust, engagement, and organizational performance.

In this episode of The Bliss Business Podcast, we will welcome Sarah Feely, Chief Learning Officer of Compassionate Leaders Circle.

Sarah Feely is passionate about helping individuals discover their authentic selves and find meaning at work. As Chief Learning Officer at Compassionate Leaders Circle, she helps organizations align business strategy with people strategy through customized learning, coaching, and leadership development initiatives.

Sarah brings experience across executive coaching, organizational change, leadership development, recruiting, and talent advisory, with leadership roles at Korn Ferry, Hillstone Restaurant Group, and across multiple industries and organizations.

In The Role of Empathy in Leadership, we explore:

• Why empathy is becoming essential for modern leadership• How organizations can better align business strategy with people strategy• The connection between authenticity, culture, and leadership effectiveness• Lessons from leadership development, coaching, and organizational transformation• How compassionate leadership strengthens engagement and long-term growth

Hosted by Stephen Sakach and Tullio Siragusa

🎧 Produced by Martha Huerta

Leadership is not only about performance and results. It is also about creating environments where people feel seen, valued, and connected to meaningful work.

More data doesn’t automatically create better marketing.

Connection does.

In a world where dashboards, metrics, and automation dominate decisions, the brands that stand out are the ones that turn data into meaningful customer experiences.

In this week’s Marketing With Purpose Kit from The Bliss Business Podcast, we’re joined by Alexandra Russo, Fractional CMO & Marketing Consultant.

Alexandra is the founder of Alex the CMO and has partnered with 16 brands over the past 2.5 years across franchising, multi-location retail, and B2B, helping leadership teams move faster without the overhead of a full-time hire. With 13+ years of experience, including scaling the marketing function at Deka Lash across 100+ locations, she brings executive-level thinking on demand and builds real systems behind social media and marketing strategy that drive connection, consistency, and growth.

🎙️ Hosted by Tullio Siragusa

🎧 Produced by Martha Huerta

🧭 In this episode, we explore:

• How to turn data into meaningful customer connection

• Why systems matter more than tactics in modern marketing

• Building scalable strategies across multi-location brands

• Bringing clarity and speed to marketing leadership

🎧 If you’re looking to move beyond surface-level metrics and create marketing that truly connects, this conversation offers practical insight for today’s data-driven world.

Empathy and emotional intelligence are often discussed as leadership qualities.But in business, they are also powerful drivers of trust, culture, connection, and long-term growth.

In this episode of The Bliss Business Podcast, we will welcome Mike Weinberger, Co-Founder and Head of Franchising at Replay Sports Cards.

Mike Weinberger is a multi-brand franchise executive and founder of Community Franchise Group, the parent company behind Replay Sports Cards. Over the past 20+ years, he has led, scaled, and successfully exited franchise brands across food & beverage, fitness, cannabis, and collectibles, building systems that empower entrepreneurs to grow sustainable businesses. A former attorney turned servant leader, Mike is passionate about preserving the local card shop experience nationwide and believes strong businesses are built by treating people like people.

In Empathy, Emotional Intelligence and Connection in Business, we explore:

• Why emotional intelligence is becoming essential in modern leadership

• How empathy strengthens franchise culture and business relationships

• The importance of preserving authentic community connection while scaling growth• Lessons learned from leading across multiple industries over two decades

• How servant leadership creates stronger businesses and more sustainable teams

🎙️ Hosted by Stephen Sakach and Tullio Siragusa

🎧 Produced by Martha Huerta

Strong businesses grow through systems, but lasting businesses are built through trust, empathy, and human connection.

Most teams think AI is a productivity upgrade. It is more accurate to treat it as a culture amplifier.

In Episode 10 of the BLISS monologue series, Stephen Sakach breaks down a simple truth: AI will not fix misalignment, politics, or fear-based behavior. It will scale them. Fast.

Stephen covers:
• The first question leaders should ask before adopting AI: what kind of human system is AI entering
• Why trust, clarity, and agency determine whether AI becomes a force multiplier or a force disruptor
• The common adoption mistake: treating AI like a tech rollout instead of a human transition
• Three practical moves leaders can use to test AI responsibly without triggering resistance

BLISS means Build Love Into Scalable Systems. If you want AI to create capacity instead of chaos, BLISS is the foundation.