About
Mark Fotohabadi, PhD, MBA, MDR has spent the last 21 years building businesses and studying how high performers think, lead, and grow. He has navigated high-stakes legal battles, scaled companies through chaos and growth, coached top investors, and turned every scar into sharpened strategic insight.

His academic foundation mirrors the versatility he brings to coaching: a BSc in Urban Planning (systems thinking), an MBA in Finance (strategic decision-making), a Master’s in Dispute Resolution (high-stakes negotiation), and a PhD in Business Leadership (behavioral patterns of top performers). Over the past six years, Mark has also taught graduate-level courses in advanced negotiations and business strategy capstones at several prominent Southern California universities (CSU campuses and Loyola Marymount) — shaping the leadership thinking of more than 2,300 students.

As a Scaling Up Certified Coach, Mark helps C-level executives design and implement powerful Business Operating Systems that align people, strategy, execution, and cash (the 4 D's of Scaling Up). Having led and partnered across multiple industries, he brings a rare ability to extract best practices from one sector and apply them systematically to another—compressing timeframes and amplifying results. His approach blends analytical rigor with real-world experience, helping leaders turn strategy into motion and motion into momentum that endures long after the engagement ends.

Along the way, he developed strategic frameworks like MILF (for acquisitions) and DICK (for dispositions) — lighthearted yet battle-tested approaches proven in boardrooms and deal tables alike. The nickname “The MILF Man” stuck, not just for its humor, but because the strategies consistently deliver results.

Mark is also an avid reader, backgammon enthusiast, and competitive sailor. He makes his home in coastal Orange County, California with his family.

Professional Highlights
- Over 21 years of building businesses, leading startups, coaching investors, and scaling companies across multiple industries.

- Academic credentials: BSc in Urban Planning, MBA in Finance, Master’s in Dispute Resolution, and PhD in Business Leadership.

- Taught graduate-level courses in advanced negotiations and business strategy capstones at several Southern California universities — impacting more than 2,300 students.

- As a Scaling Up Certified Coach, designed and implemented Business Operating Systems (BOS) for C-level executives, aligning strategy, people, cash and execution to deliver accelerated results.

- Developed and successfully applied proprietary frameworks — MILF (for acquisitions) and DICK (for dispositions) — across boardrooms and deal-tables alike.

- Broad partnership experience across sectors including healthcare, finance, automotive, technology and services — enabling the transfer of best practices and systemic process innovations across verticals.

Personal Highlights
- Proud husband and father of two young children, Mark draws daily inspiration from balancing high performance in business with presence at home.

- Avid reader, backgammon enthusiast, and competitive sailor, he brings the same focus and discipline from the ocean and the board game to his coaching practice. - Based in coastal Orange County, California, he believes leadership isn’t just built in boardrooms — it’s refined through family, challenge, and the pursuit of mastery across all areas of life.

- On a mission to help top executives turn strategy into motion and motion into momentum, long after the coaching engagement ends.

Coaching Regions
US - Midwest
US - Southwest
US - West

Industry of Expertise
Banking/Real Estate
Coaching/Business Consulting
Education/Training
Engineering
Human Resources/Training/Development
Legal Services
Logistics/Transportation
Manufacturing/Production/Operations
Medical/Health