Greyhawk founder Charlie Deaver sits down with Michael Ross, founder of Vision Forensic Engineering, a national firm that figures out why buildings fail and what really caused an insurance loss. Think CSI for claims: cause-of-loss investigations, telling the difference between real damage and fraud, and helping people get answers in their hardest moments.
But this conversation is as much about building a business as it is about engineering. Michael shares his unlikely path from pastor to entrepreneur, the case that hooked him on forensics, the licensing mistake that nearly sank the company, and how he grew Vision from a spare-bedroom office to a firm of more than 80 people covering all 50 states in about five years. Along the way: betting on yourself, leading with faith, taking care of your people, and why real entrepreneurs are builders, not get-rich-quick day traders.
CHAPTERS
00:00 A different kind of insurance episode
00:35 What forensic engineering actually is
01:42 Real damage vs fraud: the ball-peen hammer tell
03:09 When adjusters get it wrong
05:56 Meeting people in their hardest moments
06:48 From pastor to forensic engineering
08:11 The case that hooked him
10:25 Starting his own firm, and the licensing mistake
15:38 From 8 states to all 50
17:26 Hitting $1M in three and a half years
19:21 Betting on yourself, and faith through the fear
22:02 "$90K in debt... rookie numbers"
24:16 Taking care of your people, thinking generationally
31:21 Lawsuits, intimidation, and the 3% who don't quit
ABOUT THE GUEST
Michael Ross is the founder of Vision Forensic Engineering, a national firm providing cause-of-loss investigations and building consulting for insurance companies and private parties. A former pastor turned entrepreneur, he built the company from eight states to all fifty, and from a spare bedroom to more than 80 people, in roughly five years.
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Instagram: @greyhawkinsurance
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