Sam Frank
Sam Frank Growth
Detroit, MI, United States
About
Many companies hit a point where growth becomes harder, not easier. The business has real momentum, but complexity begins to outpace the structure. Too much still runs through the founder or CEO, the leadership team isn’t fully aligned, and decisions bottleneck at the top.
Sam Frank works with founder-led and growth-stage companies navigating the shift from entrepreneurial growth to disciplined scale. He brings the perspective of someone who has sat in the founder’s chair, bought out a family business, raised $15 million to launch a fintech, and helped CEOs across Michigan build the leadership teams they needed to grow.
Today, Sam helps founders and leadership teams bring clarity to strategy, strengthen alignment, and build the discipline required to scale. His job is simple: help leaders think better, ask sharper questions, decide faster, and move the business forward with less friction.
Professional Highlights
Sam’s path to coaching ran through the kinds of companies he now serves: privately held, founder-led, and family-owned.
He spent fifteen years inside Leo Frank and Sons, his family’s third-generation wholesale diamond company, before buying out the business and running it for another seven years, growing it 5x during his tenure. The experience gave him firsthand exposure to ownership transition, family dynamics, and long-standing customer relationships.
He went on to found Brilliance Credit, a financial services and fintech company, which he led for five years and for which he raised $15 million from private investors before winding the business down. The experience taught him what most coaching frameworks can’t: what it actually feels like to raise capital, carry payroll, and make the hard call to close a chapter.
Sam later spent four years as an executive search consultant with Harvey Hohauser & Associates, where he completed roughly 25 senior leadership searches for founders, CEOs, and family offices, placing executives across a range of senior roles including President, CFO, COO, and Chief Revenue Officer.
A former member of EO and Vistage, Sam graduated from the University of Michigan and earned his MBA from Walsh University.
Personal Highlights
Outside of work, Sam is drawn to challenges that demand discipline, focus, and long-term commitment. He completed a full Ironman and roughly fifteen half-Ironmans, along with a handful of marathons. That same mindset shapes how he approaches his work with leadership teams. Growth takes curiosity, discipline, and a willingness to keep learning as the challenges get more complex.
When he isn’t working or training, Sam golfs, gardens, and spent many years kite surfing. He keeps a saltwater reef tank at home and enjoys good wine. He has traveled extensively through Western Europe, with Barcelona and Florence at the top of the list.
Sam lives in Michigan with his wife and three children.
Coaching Regions
Canada - Atlantic Region
Canada - Central Canada
Canada - North
US - Midwest
US - Northeast
US - Southeast
US - Southwest
US - West
Industry of Expertise
Coaching/Business Consulting
Human Resources/Training/Development
Other