Mike Zisman from GolfGenius on Building a Niche Software Empire

I am happy to have Mike Zisman, the founder and Executive Chairman of Golf Genius Software, the leading tournament management platform serving 11,000+ golf clubs across 62 countries In this episode, Mike Zisman, founder of Golf Genius Software, shares insights on building a capital-efficient tech company, forming game-changing partnerships, and navigating today's exit landscape. Discover how a single USGA deal transformed the company's trajectory, why raising less capital can make a startup stronger, and what it really takes to build resilient remote teams that stick around. Learn What did it actually take to build enough trust with the USGA to replace their entire tournament management system? Michael targets 20% EBITDA margin and reinvest the rest - how did he land on that number specifically Michael runs acquired brands as separate brands rather than folding them in. What's the actual criteria for when to keep a brand alive versus absorb it? What's your favourite business book ->innovator's dilemma What's your favourite business tool ->gmail If you could go back, what would you do differently ->understand how a golf course operates Timestamps 00:00 From MIT Professor to Software Entrepreneur 03:04 Leaving Academia: The Leap Into Building Companies 06:13 The Birth of Golf Genius and Its Early Struggles 09:08 Why Trust and Relationships Win Deals 12:12 The USGA Partnership That Changed Everything 15:13 Raising Less: The Case for Capital Efficiency 18:21 Employee Ownership and Building a Real Culture 21:09 Remote Teams and the Retention Playbook 24:05 Where AI Actually Fits in Business Today 27:05 The Future of Programming and Productivity 28:25 The Brutal Job Market Facing New Graduates 32:16 Why Interpersonal Skills Still Beat Technical Ones 34:19 The Golf Industry's Shifting Strategies 36:24 Reading Market Dynamics and Growth Levers 39:52 Exit Strategies in Today's Market 41:55 How Company Ownership and Investment Are Evolving 43:56 The Future of Venture Capital and Private Equity 49:13 Resilience: The Entrepreneur's Real Edge Mike's Links LDN/ X – https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-zisman-51528/ Website – https://golfgenius.com/ My Links Podcast: https://lifeselfmastery.com/itunes Newsletter: https://partner-grow.beehiiv.com/subscribe YouTube: youtube.com/lifeselfmastery Twitter: https://twitter.com/rohitmal LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohit857/ Course: https://www.udemy.com/course/outbound-sales-mastery/