Jeff Dudan, Undercover Boss: How I Built a Thriving National Franchise From Scratch

Leap Academy with Ilana Golan

Jeff Dudan started his first business in college, painting apartments to pay the bills. The business grew beyond his expectations, allowing him to support his younger brother and create jobs for other college athletes. Years later, he moved to South Florida to help with disaster recovery after Hurricane Andrew struck. Having learned to see opportunity in adversity, he started AdvantaClean, which eventually grew into a national franchise. In this episode, Jeff talks to Ilana about spotting hidden opportunities in crises and the mindset shifts that helped him build a successful franchise business to empower others.

Jeff Dudan is a franchise executive and the CEO of Homefront Brands. He brings decades of experience in funding, building, and scaling franchises to help others succeed in the industry. As a published author and host of The Homefront Podcast, Jeff also appeared on CBS’s Undercover Boss.

In this episode, Ilana and Jeff will discuss:

- Starting a business in college

- Pushing past your limitations

- Grabbing opportunities as they come

- Building Homefront to help franchise owners

- Lessons from his father’s business challenges

- Setting clear roles to make partnerships work

- Creating a unique franchise model

- Figuring out the right time to start franchising

- Leading franchisees with patience

- Why businesses are high-class assets

- Using real estate to fund his business

- The CEO’s role in setting standards

- Saying “yes” to chances for visibility

- Aligning your values with your business

- And other topics…

Jeff Dudan is the CEO of Homefront Brands, a published author, and a franchise executive with 25 years of experience building and scaling franchise businesses. He founded AdvantaClean in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew, growing it from a disaster recovery business to a franchise with over 240 locations before it was acquired. Jeff is a Forbes contributor and host of The Homefront Podcast, where he explores the world of franchising and leadership. He has also appeared on CBS’s Undercover Boss. He has worked with organizations like Novant Health, the IFA Franchisor Forum, and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

Connect with Jeff:

Jeff’s Website: https://jeffdudan.com/

Jeff’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffdudan/

Resources Mentioned:

Jeff’s Episode on Undercover Boss: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6432766/

Jeff’s Books:

Discernment: The Business Athlete's Regimen for a Great Life through Better Decisions: https://www.amazon.com/Discernment-Business-Athletes-Regimen-Decisions/dp/1544508506

Hey, Coach! https://www.amazon.com/Hey-Coach-Jeff-Dudan/dp/1511990570

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