Build. Grow. Learn.
How a Disappointment Sparked a Movement for Business Owners
Go back to January 2023.
I was five days deep into Business Mastery with Tony Robbins. The days were long—14 to 18 hours of pure adrenaline, strategy, mindset, and tactics. I was surrounded by driven entrepreneurs, soaking up insights I desperately wished I had known 15 years earlier.
I walked away with a notebook full of game-changing ideas and one powerful thought running through my head:
“Why didn’t anyone teach me this when I started?”
A couple of weeks later, I found out that Claris Engage—a key conference in the FileMaker community—wasn’t going to be held in person that year. I understood the decision, but the disappointment hit hard. In-person events hold a kind of magic you can’t replicate on a Zoom call: the hallway conversations, the spontaneous brainstorming, the late-night insights over drinks.
And that’s when the spark hit me:
What if we created a new kind of conference—focused not just on tech or tools—but on building better businesses?
What if we created something that gave people what I didn’t have when I started out? Real guidance on operations. Hiring. Delegation. Leadership. Finances. All the foundational stuff no one tells you about until you’re already drowning.
That spark became Build. Grow. Learn.
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A Phone Call That Changed Everything
I picked up the phone and called Susan Fennema, founder of Beyond the Chaos, a process and operations expert who had already helped transform my own business. I shared the vision. I talked fast. I could practically hear her head spinning.
Then I called Brandon Hayes, CEO of Kalos Consulting, who brings clarity and strategy to recruiting and business development. I threw the same fire at him. Same reaction: Let’s do this.
Within 24 hours, we were on a Zoom call mapping it out.
Within a few days, we were hunting for venues.
And just over a year later, in April 2024, Build.Grow.Learn. held its first in-person event in Greenville, SC.
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Why You Should Be There
This isn’t a tech conference with vendor booths and half-hearted product demos.
This is a business conference for people who want to stop being the business.
Build.Grow.Learn. is for business owners, founders, developers, and leaders who are ready to take their companies to the next level—with fewer headaches, better processes, and more freedom.
Here’s what you’ll get:
- Actionable sessions in leadership, marketing, automation, finance, and operations
- Expert speakers who’ve been in the trenches—not just consultants, but business owners themselves
- No sales pitches—ever. We don’t believe in wasting your time
- A like-minded community that’s serious about removing owner dependency
- Tools and templates you can take home and use immediately
- New friendships and partnerships that will serve you long after the event ends
And perhaps most importantly:
The clarity and courage to build a business that works without you.
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Meet the Founders
Build.Grow.Learn. was founded by three people who believe business owners deserve better—and are willing to build it.
Joseph Scarpetta
Founder & CEO of The Scarpetta Group, Inc.
Claris Platinum Partner, Custom Software Developer, and Co-Author of Your Business Is Holding You Hostage
Susan Fennema
Founder & CEO of Beyond the Chaos
Business Operations Expert, Process Queen, and Co-Author of Your Business Is Holding You Hostage
Brandon Hayes
Founder & CEO of Kalos Consulting
Talent Recruiter, Career Coach, and Champion of Building the Right Team to Grow Your Business
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What’s Next?
The next Build. Grow. Learn. takes place September 8–10, 2025, at the AC Hotel in beautiful Greenville, South Carolina.
We’ve got a powerhouse speaker lineup, deep-dive sessions, and optional add-on workshops like Small Business Startup Day and JavaScript Training Day to give you even more value.
🎟 Register now and use code FREEDOM25 to save 25% on your ticket.
Let this be the moment you stop being the bottleneck in your business.
Let this be the year you finally break free.
We’ll see you in Greenville.
