EP738: Emad Rizkalla - Why You Should Do Business With Rich Customers
“We were delivering five-star service to clients who couldn’t afford it.”
Most businesses don’t struggle because they lack talent or work ethic. They struggle because they’re solving real problems for customers who can’t afford meaningful solutions. When clients are under-resourced, even great work becomes exhausting, unpredictable, and hard to scale. The same effort, applied to better-capitalized customers, creates stability, clarity, and room to think long term instead of constantly chasing the next invoice.
Emad Rizkalla shares how his company worked with world-class brands yet still found itself financially strained. The issue wasn’t capability—it was deal size. By moving upstream into government, defense, and large-scale workforce development, everything changed. Larger contracts meant fewer distractions, longer runways, and the ability to plan years ahead instead of months. The work didn’t get easier, but the business finally made sense.
Emad is the founder of Bluedrop, a Canadian technology company focused on workforce development, training systems, and simulation for government and aerospace clients. Over more than 30 years, he’s built and evolved organizations by pairing strong culture with the discipline to pursue opportunities that actually support long-term growth.
Expert action steps:
Build a strong, non-toxic company culture before trying to scale revenue.
Stop tying your self-worth solely to outcomes you cannot fully control.
Hire for values and character first, and train skills second.
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