Dr. Travis Steffen

Dr. Travis Steffen is a multi-exit founder and turnaround CEO. 

For nearly twenty years he's been the person companies call when something is broken and the clock is running — and across eight exits as a founder, co-founder, or CEO, he's made a career of fixing what others walked away from. He's turned around companies in both B2B and B2C, in regulated and unregulated industries alike, on the simple conviction that a good company in trouble is worth saving.

He started his first company in 2006 and hasn't stopped operating since. He's raised nearly $150 million across the companies he's led, put companies on the Inc. 500, and built partnerships with some of the world's top M&A brokers so that every company he turns around is seen by the right buyers and funds when it's time to exit. 

He mentors founders at Techstars, 500 Startups, SOSV, MassChallenge, and a dozen other accelerators, speaks at business schools around the world, and advises multiple companies as a board member. He holds an MA, an MBA, and a Doctorate of Business Administration.

The instinct for high-pressure situations isn't new. He played Division I football at the University of Northern Iowa, competed in professional MMA, lived in a Muay Thai camp in southern Thailand, ran ultramarathons and adventure races, and cashed in multiple World Series of Poker events as a former online poker pro. It's the same temperament he brings to a company in crisis: comfortable where most people fold.

Travis lives in Southern California with his wife and young son.