About
Why Joel Block?
Joel is a money man. He knows how to make it, how to invest it, and how to make it grow. As a long-time venture capitalist and hedge fund manager, he knows how to pinpoint success. Because he is also a futurist, he bets on the trends that he identifies. In addition to his experience of building and/or operating close to 40 companies, he has advised hundreds more, and has the experience of being inside of over 1,000 companies with the opportunity to analyze them, whether for acquisition, investment, or advisement. Joel has several secret weapons including his extraordinary wit which contributes to his lightning-fast understanding of the businesses he examines. He asks wicked sharp questions that may seem deceptively simple…but are the hardest questions to answer. Couple these abilities with his mind-bending creativity, and you have a recipe for success that will lead you to Disrupt Your Competitors’ Future. Wearing his futurist hat, Joel will help you map out your future; and with the advisor hat, he will tell you what you need to hear whether you like hearing it or not. Leverage his experience and knowledge to win the disruption game.
“Our goal is to help leaders and companies fast-track the innovative strategies it takes to be winners.”
– Joel Block
Honesty. Integrity. Knowledge.
We stand for respect dignity, fairness, and equality – which to us means that as a society, we must make sure everyone has the tools, education, and opportunities they need to succeed. This is especially important for children so we can create the best work force we can for the United States of America. For these reasons, Joel has long been a supporter of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, including serving 4 years as Chairman of one of the largest clubs, which is in one of the poorest neighborhoods in Los Angeles.
As Americans, we work to compete at the highest level the best way and the most strategic way that we can. That does not mean injuring our competitors, playing unfairly, and/or taking advantage of people improperly along the way. For the same reason we love sports in our country, we value winners. The key is to win while still valuing team players and playing by the rules.
Record Of Success
Demonstrating the “magic” that Joel brings to his clients and their problems is tricky without revealing clients – or their secrets. But we can show you public predictions and tell you about successful – anonymous – case studies. We’ll also share a few unsuccessful ones.
Media Activities
Joel is a regular commentator on a variety of media programs. He is called on to discuss trends, explain complex activities, and to make predictions about our futures. He is pretty accurate which is why he is invited so often. • When the pandemic broke, Joel was requested by numerous media outlets to comment on the financial impact of this unprecedented situation. A few days after the stock market plunged nearly 40%, he accurately predicted that investors should hold on to stock portfolios. At the start of the pandemic, he correctly predicted a bounce and recovery of stock prices. He shared this advice, along with the logic behind his thinking, on live TV, with his clients, and to his close personal contacts, family, and friends. See media appearance on March 17, 2020 (Note: Joel is not a financial advisor and he is not licensed by any financial oversight agency to provide specific financial advice.) • Library of recent media appearances
Large Company Activities
There have been numerous engagements over the years, and a few representative ones that we are especially proud of are shared below:
• In 1990, Joel and a business partner developed the concept of delivering stock quotes to investors by fax. As a young man, Joel raised millions to launch his company while the business partner, a brilliant computer programmer, built the systems that would run the company. Joel sold enough of these revolutionary services to recoup the investor’s cash advances in the first 6 months and put the business on solid footing. Thereafter, Joel personally travelled to most of the major newspapers in the country and he got 35 of the most substantial ones to co-promote the service. It’s funny how silly a fax service seems now, but in the early 1990s, this was head spinning. The Financial Fax service was sold to a Fortune 500 in 1995.
• Joel accurately predicted the home improvement business would spike when pandemic restrictions were loosened. This happened. As a result of Joel’s foresight, one of his Fortune 500 clients strategically organized their inventory logistics to profit where other companies failed and were therefore under-prepared when the Covid-19 restrictions began to loosen in spring 2020.
• Joel was asked by and executive at one of the nation’s largest commercial real estate brokerage companies to conduct a seminar on how to raise capital to buy real estate. This was in 2008 on the heels of the economic crash about the same time. That seminar became a recurring program that has been delivered 25 times to date, with attendees having raised private equity capital approaching $1 billion.
• Joel worked with the highest level of management of a banking industry client to design a growth strategy. That roadmap ultimately helped the company to grow its top-line sales by 350% over a 5-year period.
Early-Stage Company Activities
Joel has conceptualized and organized dozens of early-stage companies, helping them to become clear so they could raise the capital they need. Once achieved, his most unique and valuable services he been making the first sale for venture funded companies. And using his mantra, “make your first sale a giant sale”, these often put dozens of people to work, launching these companies into their orbit. Joel has arranged dozens of “first sale” meetings over the years by implementing his side door strategies. He somehow always seems to find a unique way to get in the door that other people simply do not know about, don’t understand, or can’t find.
• In 2007, Joel attended a trade show with a venture funded company in the construction materials business. The company had invented a patented new material that would speed up the grout process when laying flooring tile. After meeting with executives from several of the top companies in the flooring business, Joel procured a purchase order for more work than the company’s team could produce in several months, jumpstarting the company’s engine enabling it to self-fund future activities.
• A water scientist had invented a device that could remove toxins from the most contaminated water. This venture funded company had invented a solution to a problem they had not clearly defined, and they did not know what industry would buy the solution. Joel determined the best application would be the recycled plastic industry because margins on recycling were large (in the mid-2000s). The company realigned its focus and the first contract it signed with a California materials recycling facility, which was negotiated by Joel, had a lifetime value of over $40 million.
Beware: They Did Not Take the Advice
In 1994, one of the major newspaper companies flew Joel to London to help negotiate a deal with the Financial times and Prodigy (one of the earliest internet content companies). The newspapers were arrogant (fast forward 25 years and think about where that has gotten them) and saw themselves as the dominant player in all new media discussions. They felt that since they brought the content, they would be in control, but as we could predict, distribution became pretty important. The irony is that newspapers frequently fought and had to win territorial disputes in order to sell their newspapers in the early days. In the new frontier of electronic distribution, the newspapers only control content, but not distribution. The rules have changed. They players have changed. The outcome has changed.
Joel suggested to the executives of the domestic newspaper company, that they consider buying internet distribution upstart Earthlink, which at that time, could have been acquired for a song. The executives snubbed the idea. Funny enough, the newspaper industry had intel that hinted the phone companies were working on something that would be disruptive to newspapers. But it wasn’t the phone companies who marginalized the newspaper companies. It was companies who lifted the newspapers’ content, delivered by ISPs like Earthlink that quickly became a devasting threat to the 120-year-old newspaper industry which has never really recovered from the internet war.
Leverage Our Experience And Knowledge To Disrupt Your Competitor’s Future.
How We Enable Your Success
Disrupt Your Competitors’ Future is not just the name of a speech, or the name of a book. It’s a lifestyle. It’s an approach. It’s an attitude – with teeth. It’s our mantra. We live it. It’s our Sun Tzu.
You Are Either the Target or the Torpedo
Joel’s power strategies are designed for companies, senior leaders, and sales teams. Our techniques and approaches arm you with torpedoes to battle competitors, along with killer tactics for sales and customer service teams.
Your Business is at Risk
This is not hyperbole.
“The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.”
– Sun Tzu
“Fear? That’s the other guy’s problem. Nothing you have ever experienced will prepare you for the unlimited carnage you are about to witness. Superbowl, World Series – they don’t know what pressure is. In this building, it’s either kill or be killed.”
– Trading Places
Launch Your Offense
Why wait until your competitors are eating your lunch? You already know that some entrepreneur somewhere is aiming a torpedo at your business.
Without help, that tiny entrepreneurial entity won’t make a dent in your armor, but when partnered with the financial resources of the venture capital and private equity world, supercharged by the best minds in early-stage businesses, and that entrepreneur might just take you down, or at a minimum give you a run for your money.
You are Either the Torpedo or the Target
Amazon did it to Borders. Netflix took down Blockbuster. Some young upstart is looking to do it to you.
The question is who, and when, and will you be ready for it? Or even better, will you predict it so you can get in front of it? Put the offense on the field today and start scoring points. The time to transform your strategy is long before the last quarter.
Disrupt Your Industry
Discover the innovative thinking that can transform your business. Joel can help you discover opportunities and press your advantage. As industries mature and prices drop, along with margins, traditional competitors will consolidate or evaporate.
When only disruptors are left standing, will you be one of them?
Does any of this sound familiar? Does some version happen at your company?
Blockbuster, Sears, Radio Shack, Kodak, Blockbuster, and other major companies are toast due to poor management. Household names went down because they did not respond to rapidly changing markets.
You Are Either the Rock or the Dynamite.
Your business may be a rock that stood the test of time for a hundred years…like Sears. Until it’s blown up by competition you don’t understand or even know about.
If you want to be on top of the rubble when the disruption dust clears, schedule your consultation today.
Successful companies blow up the competition. Joel gives you the dynamite.
Joel is ethical, smart, and creative. 30+ years in the dog-eat-dog hedge fund and venture capital world toughens your skin.
He’s seen a lot. He’s done a lot. He shares that expertise with a select few clients who are prepared to take bold, decisive action.
He’s also a very real, down-to-earth guy you can have a beer or catch a game with – he’s a fanatical Dodger fan; if you want free advice, invite him to a game. And root for the right team.
His best insights come from honest conversations. It’s the personal connection that allows him to assess and address vulnerabilities you may not even be aware of.