Ryan didn’t set out to build a training business. He was a paramedic who liked teaching, took a phone call he didn’t ask enough questions about, and accidentally landed a recurring contract for 50 students every six weeks. Then another one came. Then another. Almost 30 years later, Respond 365 operates across seven-plus states, runs near triple-digit instructors, and is entirely self-sufficient — all without chasing open enrollment or competing on price.
This isn’t a growth-at-all-costs story. Ryan made a deliberate choice: stay small enough to maintain quality, go deep on B2B, and build a business that serves its instructors as much as its clients. If you’re trying to figure out what kind of business you actually want to build — not just how to get more students — this conversation is worth your time.
Here are the main topics we cover and where to find them in the replay.
1. The phone call that started everything
0:00 – 5:59
Ryan was an EMT-turned-paramedic who taught a few CPR classes on the side for extra money. No business plan. No ambitions beyond education. Then his training center coordinator called.
A health college needed a contract instructor for rolling enrollments — roughly 50 students every six weeks. Ryan said yes without asking how many or who. It was supposed to be a one-off. It became a subscription.
A month or two later, a large aerospace company called with the same ask. He said yes again.
He formed a sole proprietorship — not because he had a vision, but because he thought he needed one. The business name? Medical Training Concepts. “How basic is that?”
A year and a half ago, he rebranded to Respond 365 — a name that finally matched the mission: prepare people to respond to emergencies anytime.
If you’ve ever said “I just fell into this,” Ryan’s origin story will sound familiar. The difference is what he did next.
2. You don’t have to be the biggest — and maybe you shouldn’t be
5:59 – 17:00
Ryan’s business could sustain his lifestyle full-time. He still holds a traditional job — by choice, not necessity. That tells you something about how the math works when you’re intentional about size.
Near triple-digit instructors across Illinois, Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, Iowa, Kansas, and Arkansas. Not huge. Not small. Deliberate.
His quality bar is non-negotiable. Every instructor who teaches on behalf of Respond 365 is a W-2 employee — zero contractors. “I’m not fighting with the IRS.”
The risk calculation: one rogue instructor doesn’t just put themselves in jeopardy — it puts every other instructor’s livelihood at risk. The larger you grow, the harder that is to control.
He doesn’t have a hard cap on size. It’s more of a feel. “Some people would say you can’t run a business on feelings. I’ve done it for almost 30 years and it’s worked out well.”
His bottom line: “I care more about my instructors than I do my business. If the business shut down tomorrow, it would be worse for my instructors than for me.”
If you think you need 5,000 instructors to be successful, this section reframes what “enough” looks like.
SitRep is a free weekly newsletter for CPR training operators. If this landed, subscribe so you don’t miss the next one.
3. B2B by design — not by accident
17:00 – 28:00
The first two contracts fell into Ryan’s lap. But staying B2B-focused? That became intentional over the last five to six years.
B2B means you’re not chasing hundreds of individual students with hundreds of individual needs. You’re serving businesses that want one reliable provider — and they tend to stay loyal.
The lift is different. No brick and mortar. No storefront. No posting classes hoping people show up. “I’m not chasing an individual. That’s part of my business model.”
Certain processes go on autopilot over time. “It’s not set it and forget it — but you’ve gotten to the maintenance phase, and maintenance is far less work than the startup phase.”
Ryan actually enjoys the backend — spreadsheets, P&Ls, the operational work most operators loathe. He was going to be a business and economics major before he stumbled into an EMT class. (He thought EMTs made enough to pay for college. They did not.)
If you’re running a hybrid or thinking about shifting toward B2B, this is the section that lays out why the model works differently.
4. Stop competing on price — sell preparation, not cards
28:00 – 43:00
Ryan isn’t the cheapest. He’s not close. And he’s not trying to be. Here’s why his clients don’t care.
The first question he asks every new client: “Why have you chosen a new provider?” He doesn’t need names — he needs to know what friction they’re trying to escape.
Businesses are more loyal and less fickle than individuals. They don’t want to babysit vendors. If you get in and remove friction, they want to keep you.
Pricing yourself way below market is a red flag for businesses — not a selling point. “They don’t think the other 50 companies are screwing them. They think something’s wrong with you.”
His pitch never leads with the card. “Our goal isn’t to come in and do the fastest class. Our goal is that if something happens 30 minutes later — or 18 months later — they feel more confident and better prepared.”
He won’t drop his price to match a competitor. “I’m not gonna beg for us to be your provider.” If they go with someone cheaper, he genuinely hopes they get a great class. And if they don’t — his number is there.
The daycare example: if an emergency happens with a child, there are only two news stories. Someone was a hero, or someone wasn’t. “I don’t want my name attached to the place where nobody had any idea what to do and they just had their CPR training last month.”
If you’ve ever been tempted to cut your price because someone undercut you by $10, this is the section to sit with.
5. Not everyone is your competitor
43:00 – 55:00
Ryan refers students to other providers — regularly and intentionally. Some people think that’s insane. He thinks it’s obvious.
The luxury car analogy: “If I sell high-end luxury cars and somebody across town has a used car lot, we’re both selling cars — but we’re not competitors. Our target audience is very different.”
He doesn’t do Red Cross. When someone calls asking for it, he doesn’t say “good luck.” He gives them a name and a number for a provider he trusts.
He helped a large assisted living company train their own traveling nurses as BLS instructors — instead of taking the contract himself. “Did we lose money? Yeah. But what made more sense was for them to have their own people.”
The industry math: roughly 10% of people who should be certified are. 40% say they want to be. “The bigger problem is that it’s hard for students to find providers — because everybody thinks of everyone as a competitor.”
If your instinct is to guard every potential student from every other provider in your area, this section challenges that.
SitRep is a free weekly newsletter for CPR training operators. If this landed, subscribe so you don’t miss the next one.
6. The common thread: be intentional about who you serve
55:00 – 1:06:00
Four episodes in, a pattern is emerging. Every guest has built something different — but they’ve all been deliberate about one thing.
Ryan’s version: know your customer, build the business to serve them, invest in the things that reduce their friction — some free, some expensive — and don’t try to be everything to everyone.
“I could give you everything we do here and you not have a successful business.” Geography matters. Goals matter. What you want matters. There’s no copy-paste model.
He loves learning from other operators — not to copy them, but to see how two equally successful businesses can do things completely differently.
His closing thought for anyone watching: “There’s nothing to lose with people being more willing to share about what their business is and why it’s successful.”
If you’ve been looking for the one right way to run a training business, this episode — and this series — is making the case that there isn’t one. There’s only the one that fits.
When you’re done, hit reply and tell us which part landed hardest for you.
Jon & Shubs
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