

LEADERSHIP LOWDOWN Tony Josifek with Xcellent Accounting and Tim Schlink with AZ Concrete Repair

Xcellent Accounting is a full service CPA firm based in Phoenix AZ and advisor to small business clients throughout the U.S. They offer bookkeeping, payroll and accounting outsourcing, corporate and individual tax preparation, growth and profitability consulting and financial consultation to exiting business owners through business brokers.
Tony Josifek is a licensed CPA with over 25 years of accounting and financial analysis and leadership experience in mid-sized through Fortune 100 companies and multiple industries. Tony has been a part of global brand teams including Monroe shock aborbers, Fram auto filters, Collections Etc. catalog, Bendix King avionics, Hefty bags and Boulder Canyon potato chips.
Tony left the corporate world to help small business owners focus on growing and serving customers by maintaining their accounting, taxes and other compliance and providing insights and resources to improve profitability and growth.
Connect with Tony on LinkedIn.

Az. Concrete Repair Inc., is a 30 year contracting institution in the Valley, is family owned and operated and has grown into a premier specialty flooring and concrete treatment company. They are proficient at Terrazzo, Concrete Polishing, Stains, Waterproofing, Industrial and Decorative fluid applied systems and more. What started in a small rental home decades ago has blossomed into a business that provides for many families, has withstood the test of time and continues to innovate and grow to this day.
“ACRI” is Co-Founded and owned by Tim and Pete Schlink.
Tim Schlink worked side by side with his brother Pete learning the tricks of the trade. Their relationship has provided the cornerstone for stability and growth through the years. With an open door policy and decades of experience Tim understands and manages in many areas including HR, Estimating, Team Building, Job Costing platforms, Systems Efficacy, Employee Performance, Safety and Silica Awareness, Collections disputes and more.
The Leadership Lowdown was created to share the REAL story behind valley leaders’ rise to the top, and the truth about what it takes to TRULY succeed in life and business. Hear the raw stories of these leaders’ journeys…the pitfalls, the victories, and all of the heartaches and triumphs in between.
Follow ACRI on Facebook.
ABOUT YOUR HOST
Jodi Low is an accomplished corporate trainer, inspirational speaker, and the Founder and CEO of U & Improved. Jodi has trained thousands of entrepreneurs and executives on how to build a booming business, master a mindset for success, and achieve the lifestyle they desire through heart-fueled leadership.
Through U & Improved—an award-winning personal and professional leadership development company based in Scottsdale—Jodi has redefined traditional leadership training by creating a sustainable and actionable model that is personal, challenging and meaningful to each and every individual who enrolls in any of the two-and-a-half-day experiential training classes. She and her elite training team have advanced the charge in heart-based leadership
development and empower U & Improved graduates with knowledge, tools and awareness to immediately be more effective and responsive leaders at work, home and within their communities. 
Among her many accomplishments as a Valley leader, Jodi launched a teen leadership program in 2014 to empower young adults to become more confident, motivated and focused stewards of our future. In 2016, she founded a non-profit arm of the company—the U & Improved Leadership Foundation—that makes the program more accessible to deserving teens.
Jodi has been recognized by industry publications and organizations for her work in leadership development and serves as a source of inspiration within the community. In 2015, she was honored as an “Outstanding Women in Business” by the Phoenix Business Journal and by the Phoenix Suns and National Bank of Arizona with the “Amazing Women” award. She has received both the prestigious “Diversity Leader of the Year” and the Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce’s “Sterling Award.” She was also awarded a Silver Stevie Award for Female Entrepreneur of the Year 2015 and was a finalist for the Junior League of Phoenix’s Valley Impact Award. Jodi is a devoted single parent who volunteers her time at her daughters’ school programs and with organizations such as Angel Mamas, where she’s served on the board for three years.









Steve Miksta was nationally ranked among the top 1% of loan originators in 2012. Instead of continuing to grow his production, Steve believed there was a greater opportunity in streamlining the mortgage process and assisting Loan Originators across the country in providing a better service to their customers. Steve partnered with VIP Mortgage in 2013 with the vision of building out an enterprise platform on Salesforce that would maximize company efficiencies, while attracting top Loan Originator talent. To date, VIP has grown over 50% since Steve’s arrival, while many competitors have continued to see volume drop. VIP continues to expand recruitment of top producing loan officers throughout Arizona, as well as in the other markets where they operate.
your repeat business. With their Reward Program, you earn points with repairs and NEW CUSTOMERS 1st visit receives $25 of, Try us & Take us for a TEST DRIVE!
Howard Fleischmann Sr. has been in the industry for the past 49 years, starting his career in Tucson in 1969. After 27 years in the automotive wholesale business, he ventured into the retail auto repair business. In 2008, he went to his teams & recreated their direction of the business. Howard & his wife, Pat went to the clients instead of waiting for them… good old grassroots, Networking! We are a “Hassle-Free.Guaranteed” Tire Pros to satisfy everyone to the best of their ability! Ten years later are a few accolades to their Team Efforts: Proud to be the National “Top Shop” of the year by Tire Review /Tire Industry by our peers! 

With only a high school diploma, Deborah Dubree catapulted her career from answering phones as a receptionist to become the owner/CEO of a $20 million corporation. After selling that company, Deborah founded ClearEdge, LLC.
Ed Smith is a former two sport professional athlete. His journey through a nine- year minor league baseball career and the transition to the NFL, culminating in Super Bowl XXXIII (1998 NFC Champion Atlanta Falcons) exemplifies the definitions of perseverance and determination.

give any image an urban feel. The camera room is light and bright and features natural window light for a soft feeling image. A large dressing suite provides a spacious place to prepare for your image and the feeling of ‘home’ gives each client a sense of peace.
Kay is a member and Past President of the Arizona Professional Photography Association and is one of Kodak-Alaris’ Approved Speakers. She is a PPA Certified, a Master-Photographic Craftsman and holds numerous awards, including the National Award, the Arizona Photographer of the Year, the Kodak Gallery Elite Award, the Phoenix Portrait Photographer of the Year, and the Arizona Illustrative Photographer of the Year. In addition to running a successful local business, Kay is an accredited and sought-after educator for her industry. She has traveled to China, Japan and Europe to teach other photographers and is well known for leading workshops and seminars throughout the United States. She is considered by her peers as a leader in her field and serves as a Trustee for the Professional Photographers of American’s Charity.
endurance, body weight movements, and flexibility in a professionally coached program that produces results, never gets boring, and creates a strong community of people who work together to improve their lives through fitness. The workouts and exercises can be infinitely scaled to fit whatever fitness level each person may be or even to accommodate an injury concern. The environment produces results in areas beyond what we typically think of in fitness such as increased confidence, teamwork, positive attitude, stress relief, productivity and more.
As a Justice Studies major at ASU, fitness and nutrition wasn’t exactly a huge priority for Tiffany Divelbiss. She discovered it after she got a job at a weight loss clinic in Scottsdale. She found she had a passion for helping people. She understood how challenging losing weight could be and was able to help people by developing specific plans of action that would hold them accountable and produce results.

on engaging authentic and energized employees. Unlike traditional and large consulting companies and individuals, we bring a non-traditional, culturally fresh perspective and learning approach that creates better attachment, demands action and drives results. Our diverse set of experts provide workshops, speeches, strategy development, leadership events, and deep strategy-to-action consulting engagements across the following areas of expertise:
Jen Coyne, Co-Founder & CEO, The PEAK Fleet has long had an entrepreneurial and creative energy, including a love for creating and selling fused glass art. In the corporate world, she has applied that spirit to leading change for 25 years. Helping people thrive is her passion and her reason for creating The PEAK Fleet with co-founder Brian Stinson. She has combined her background as a Certified Public Accountant and Project Management Professional with extensive background in strategy development to develop a strong understanding of business priorities and the ability to translate strategies into action.
Brian Stinson, Co-Founder, The PEAK Fleet is a father, engineer, and athlete with more than 20 years building high performing teams and driving culture change. Early on, at the University of Washington, Brian discovered Industrial Engineering and realized that “People Engineering” was in his DNA. During his 21 years at Intel Corporation, he learned to combine the science of data and analytics with the power of empathy and authentic relationships to solve real world business problems. Brian developed and led effective and engaged teams across multiple organizations. 
Deb Caron is the owner and principal consultant of 

Rick McCartney has been publishing in Phoenix for the past eighteen years. He is President and CEO of InMedia, a tech company that is developing multiple mobile apps and data-driven tech products, and produces many local, regional and national publications and media products including the In Business Magazine brand, Vicinity Magazines brand and community publications, marketing automation tools, social media platforms and websites.
In April of 2000, Brian Mohr became a founding member of a job board called 



As a talent consultant, Juan Kingsbury guides teams and individuals to turn self- awareness and peer awareness into opportunities. He believes that, put in the right environment, any individual can and SHOULD be a superstar performer and be eager to prove it. Additionally, he collaborates with other consultants, recruiters, trainers and executives to foster their own expertise in talent management and recognition with Career Blindspot training and coaching.
Adam Wong brings over 15 years’ leadership and business management experience to Rockstar Workforce, including expertise in building high-performance teams, leadership development, sales, operations and administration. Most recently, he held key leadership roles at TTI Success Insights, a global leader in talent management. As Senior Vice President of Professional Services, he worked with mid- to enterprise-size businesses, leading efforts to implement new hiring and people-development initiatives.















