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Kriste Goad and the Business of Starting Over
She trained to report other people’s stories. Then a lost job, an agency of her own and a difficult rebuild gave the Nashville founder a story she could no longer cover from a distance.
Amanda Farris Turned a Conference List Into a Community That Keeps Women in the Room
It began with Amanda Farris and Sara Malo writing down the women they knew at an industry conference. The list became LinkUnite - a practical network built around introductions, mentorship and the stubborn belief that relationships should outlast the event badge.
Morgan Wallen Turned a Vanished Baseball Future Into Country Music’s Long Game
Before the stadiums came church harmonies, a shortstop’s discipline and guitar charts taped to a bedroom wall. Wallen’s career is a study in how a very local voice learned to travel without sanding off its East Tennessee grain.
Dolly Parton Built a Life Big Enough to Give Away
She wrote her way out of the Smoky Mountains, kept the rights when it mattered, and turned fame into jobs, stories and more than 300 million books for children.
John Dyke Bet His Life Savings on Ugly Tomatoes
Before Nashville had a local-food boom, a former medical salesman opened a neighborhood grocery and learned the business one farmer, one customer and one costly mistake at a time. Twenty-five years later, he still stocks the produce aisle.
Cary Rosenblum Kept Following the Deal - Until It Became a Housing System
The Elmington co-founder started with finance, then kept moving closer to the buildings, residents and operating problems. Six business lines later, his career offers a useful lesson in what vertical integration can do - and what it demands.
Emily Brittain
Emily Brittain is a Senior Communications Manager at Microsoft, working within the Office of the Americas Markets & Industries President. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, she crafts the stories that shape how Microsoft's largest regional business - spanning Canada, the United States, and Latin America - communicates its vision internally and externally. A Northwestern University-trained journalist with over 11 years at Microsoft, she brought a multimedia storyteller's instincts to one of the world's most consequential technology companies, producing town halls, executive narratives, and brand messaging at scale.
Chris Boudreaux
Chris Boudreaux is a fintech professional and co-founder associated with Cherry (withcherry.com), a San Francisco-based healthcare financing platform trusted by over 60,000 medical providers across the United States. Cherry enables patients to access flexible, interest-free payment plans for elective medical procedures - dental, plastic surgery, medspas, and veterinary care - while giving providers same-day upfront payment. Based in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Boudreaux operates at the intersection of financial technology and healthcare access, helping expand Cherry's reach across the healthcare provider ecosystem.