The Phoenix nonprofit does not take equity. It teaches founders the unglamorous work - budgets, buyer math, customer interviews and the three-minute pitch - then uses philanthropy to put better networks within reach.
The Phoenix software company started with an electronic medical record for trucks. A decade, 5,000-plus shops and $6.5 billion in annual commerce later, it is betting that the repair ledger can become an early-warning system.

After turning a student invention into an acquired industrial-safety company, Sean Petterson chose an older adversary: plywood. His second act is a lesson in selling change to factories that have no patience for disruption.