Russ Howard

About Russ Howard

40+ years building and scaling businesses — now helping others do the same.I served in the initial post-IPO C-suite at Take 2 Interactive (TTWO) — part of the first executive team running it as a public company during a period of explosive early growth. TTWO went on to become one of the most valuable gaming companies in the world.At GameStop (GME), I re-architected the buy-sell-trade model pre-IPO — including building the Reclamation Center (ROC), the refurbishment operation for discs and gaming hardware that became the backbone of the entire secondary market business. That infrastructure created the accelerated growth that carried GameStop to and beyond its IPO. The pre-owned business became the company\'s highest-margin profit engine, eventually generating billions in revenue and nearly half the company\'s gross profit.I co-founded MovieStop and built it from concept to 46 stores across 10 states with 450 employees. I conceived it, led it as CEO, operated it as a standalone spin-off from GameStop, and led it through acquisition. Full lifecycle — from founding to exit.I\'ve held executive roles at Blockbuster and across the home entertainment industry for three decades.I\'ve founded 6 companies. I built CardFunder to convert billions in wasted gift card dollars into cash for schools, churches, and nonprofits — because I spent my career finding overlooked value in secondary markets, and I wanted to point that skill at something that mattered.Today I advise founders and CEOs who are past the startup phase but stuck — growing but not scaling, busy but not building.Everything I advise on, I\'ve done firsthand — architected the concept, built the operating models, created the infrastructure, managed the P & Ls, hired and fired the teams, and made the hard calls when it counted.If you\'re a founder or CEO who knows something isn\'t working but can\'t see it from the inside — that\'s where I come in.

Experience

1. Executive Advisor to Ceos & C-suite Leaders

   Chief Executive Coaching

   Mar 2024 — Present · US

   I coach CEOs and senior executives through 1:1 executive development — focused on the leadership challenges that emerge when a company outgrows its founder.My work inside Chief Executive Coaching centers on the human side of scale: how CEOs make decisions under pressure, build leadership teams that don\'t require them in every room, and develop the executive posture that boards, investors, and enterprise-level partners expect.Areas of focus include CEO decision-making discipline, executive team alignment and accountability, leadership transitions during growth and acquisition, and preparing leaders for the demands of institutional-grade governance.I don\'t redesign operating models here. I develop the leaders who have to run them.

Education

• Southeastern Louisiana University

  Studied Business Administration