Joe
Scharnweber

Build.
Scale.
Sales.

I build the systems behind revenue: sales, CRM and AI automation. Built and sold two businesses. Top-performing SDR at Kenko AI. MBA at DePaul. Off the clock: Lead Guitarist in Midway Down and Fitness Enthusiast.

See my work ↓ Download résumé

Work

Operator first: I find where revenue leaks, build the process and tools to fix it, and get teams to adopt them. Two exits, a decade of leading teams and customers, now putting AI to work in sales.

Businesses built & soldDiamond Entertainment, Stratum Fitness

Gym revenue growth$180K to $550K at Stratum

Top

Performing SDRMy AI workflow was adopted across the team

People hired, led & developed8 coaches at Stratum, 10 DJs, musicians and staff at Diamond

Click any role for the details.

Sep 2026 → now

Sales Development Representative, Kenko AI

Kenko builds software that helps fitness studio owners run their business. As a former gym owner, I talk to owners about problems I've lived.

See 5 key achievementsHide achievements

Top-performing SDRWorkflow adopted team-wide

Recognized by leadership as a top-performing SDR within my first months on the team
Built an AI-assisted follow-up workflow on my own that leadership adopted as the standard across the SDR team
Partner with leadership to standardize sales processes and create training resources for team-wide rollout
Run consultative outreach to studio owners, using my own experience as a gym owner to build trust fast
Use AI tools and sales tech to personalize outreach and keep follow-up consistent

Mar → Sep 2026

Customer Success Associate, Wolters Kluwer (CT Corporation)

Supported leading U.S. law firms and enterprise legal teams with entity formation, registered agent services and compliance in all 50 states.

See 4 key achievementsHide achievements

50-state complianceTrained new hires

Exceeded customer satisfaction, productivity, quality and resolution targets within months of joining, earning recognition from leadership
Managed 11 to 25 client requests a day, including expedited filings and multi-state compliance issues
Worked with internal teams and state agencies to resolve complex filing problems for enterprise clients
Selected to train and mentor new associates on Salesforce, compliance procedures and internal workflows

2020 → 2025

Owner, Head of Sales & Marketing, Stratum Fitness · San Diego

Ran every part of a high-performance gym, from operations and finances to marketing, sales and coaching. Became full owner in 2023 and sold the business in 2025.

See 6 key achievementsHide achievements

Members +300%Revenue 3xTeam of 8Sold 2025

Grew membership 300% and tripled revenue from $180K to $550K, then led the business to a successful sale in 2025
Acted as CEO, COO and head coach, owning operations, finances, marketing, sales, client services and programming
Hired, managed and mentored a team of 8 coaches to deliver a consistent, high-quality member experience
Built the marketing and sales engine behind 165+ members, from D1 and pro athletes to older adults
Launched the 63 Day Transformation nutrition program plus workshops, competitions and community events that drove retention
Organized a marathon row fundraiser for Natural High, a drug prevention nonprofit

2016 → 2023

Founder & Owner, Diamond Entertainment · San Diego

Turned a one-person side hustle into a boutique wedding and event company serving hundreds of clients.

See 5 key achievementsHide achievements

150+ events a yearExited 2023

Grew a one-person side hustle into a full event company serving hundreds of clients, then exited in 2023
Recruited, trained and led a roster of 10 DJs, musicians and event staff
Owned sales end to end, from first consultation to signed contract
Built digital marketing and referral programs that kept the client pipeline full
Delivered high-stakes live events where reading the room and adjusting in real time was the job

2017 → 2018

Drift & Facebook Ads Specialist, Accelerate Marketing

Ran paid social and conversational marketing that turned traffic into pipeline.

See 3 key achievementsHide achievements

Marketing automation

Managed end-to-end Facebook ad campaigns: audience targeting, creative, A/B testing and performance analysis
Built, launched and refined Drift conversational playbooks that qualified leads and supported sales
Aligned messaging across paid and conversational channels for a seamless buyer journey

2016 → 2017

Music Therapist, Alvarado Parkway Institute

Board-certified music therapist in a behavioral health hospital.

See 3 key achievementsHide achievements

Board certified

Led evidence-based group sessions (songwriting, lyric analysis, improvisation, mindfulness) for adults in mental health and substance use treatment
Worked with clinical teams to build music therapy into treatment plans for co-occurring disorders and trauma
Passed the Music Therapy Board Certification exam in 2016

Case studies

Three problems, how I solved them, and what happened.

Stratum Fitness · 2020 to 2025

Turning a boutique gym into a growth engine

Challenge: A small San Diego gym with no repeatable way to find, convert or keep members.
What I did: Built a lead pipeline with data-driven outreach and email, social and event campaigns. Set up Everfit workflows to track activity, forecast revenue and prioritize follow-ups. Launched the 63 Day Transformation program and hired and coached a team of 8.
Result: Members up 300%, revenue tripled from $180K to $550K, 165+ members, and a successful sale in 2025.

+300% members$180K → $550K revenueSold 2025

Kenko AI · 2026

An AI workflow that became the team standard

Challenge: Follow-up after demos was manual and inconsistent from rep to rep.
What I did: On my own, built an AI-assisted workflow with Claude that turns call notes and meeting details into a clean handoff and personalized follow-ups. Then worked with leadership to turn it into a standard process with training resources.
Result: Recognized by leadership as a top-performing SDR, and the workflow was adopted across the SDR team.

Built with ClaudeAdopted team-wide

Diamond Entertainment · 2016 to 2023

From side hustle to a multi-city event company

Challenge: Grow a one-person DJ gig into a business that could book and staff events across cities.
What I did: Owned the full sales cycle from inquiry to signed contract. Set up CRM workflows to track deal stages, automate follow-ups and forecast revenue, and built digital marketing and referral programs. Recruited and led 10 DJs, musicians and staff.
Result: 150+ events a year across multiple cities, no qualified lead left behind, and a successful exit in 2023.

150+ events a yearExited 2023

School

DePaul UniversityMBA, Finance & Real Estate · AI Management & Strategy · 2028
University of IowaBA, Music Therapy

Certs

SalesforcePlatform Administrator
SalesforceMarketing Cloud Engagement Foundations
AWSCloud Practitioner
IBMFull Stack Software Developer
NSCACertified Strength & Conditioning Specialist
CrossFitLevel 1 & Level 2 Trainer
USA WeightliftingWeightlifting coaching certification
Music TherapistBoard Certified (MT-BC)

Code

Harvard CS50Intro to Computer Science
ReactCoursera
PythonCoursera
Chrome ExtensionsVideo Lesson Progress Tracker
Tidbyt AppsPawcast

Toolkit

What I use to build, sell and scale.

CRM & sales

SalesforceHubSpotNooksEverfitPipeline forecastingConsultative selling

Marketing & automation

Salesforce Marketing CloudDriftFacebook AdsEmail & social campaignsA/B testing

AI

ClaudeAI workflow designPrompt designClaude API

Code & cloud

JavaScriptReactPythonAWSSupabaseChrome extensions

Leadership

Hiring & coachingProcess designTraining & enablementKPI tracking

Side Projects

Tools I build because I need them, from AI-powered music apps to everyday utilities. Some shipped, some still in the works.

Video Lesson Progress Tracker

A Chrome extension for musicians who learn from long lessons on YouTube and Patreon. Count practice reps, rate your comfort 1 to 10, loop and slow down hard passages, bookmark sections, and pick up right where you stopped. Everything stays in your browser.

Chrome extensionJavaScriptManifest V3

Pawcast

A Tidbyt display app that turns the local temperature and humidity into a safe dog walk time. Built for our senior pup, who has strong opinions about Chicago summers.

TidbytPixletStarlarkWeather API

Midway Down Website

The official site for my band, built and launched for our first single in eight years. New music, upcoming shows, live photos, the band and booking info, all in one fast single page with its own custom domain.

HTML/CSSJavaScriptVercelCustom domain

Visit midwaydownband.com →

The Late ShiftPop-punk · Chicago · 94% sound match

It's a match!

×♥

In development

Full Bill

A matching app for independent bands looking to share a bill. Bands verify with their Spotify songs, Claude ranks matches by how close they sound, and once both say "Let's play" they can chat, plan hangouts, and get AI-drafted pitch emails to venues that fit their draw.

React NativeExpoTypeScriptSupabaseClaude API

TUNER OD DIST DELAY VERB

"Build me a board for a '65 Princeton and a Tele"

In development

Tone Board Planner

An AI rig builder for guitarists. Pick your guitar, amp and cab from 170+ models, or just describe the sound you want, and it lays out a pedalboard in signal-chain order. A built-in chat helps you tweak the board and talk through gear choices.

JavaScriptClaude APIAI chat

Music

Midway Down

Lead guitarist, songwriter and producer

I write, produce and play lead guitar in Midway Down, a Chicago pop-punk band. Before Chicago I played in San Diego bands Transpire, Make the Cut and Dad Hat, and I've been DJing since middle school.

Listen now

Anchors

Midway Down

0:003:36

Open in Spotify →

Midway Down performing live at Reggie's Rock Club, Chicago

Singer leaning over the crowd under stage lights

Joe playing guitar under red stage lights

Wide shot of the band and crowd at Reggie's

Midway Down · live at Reggie's

Band website Instagram Spotify

New single · drops Nov 13

Go On

Eight years in the making. Follow Midway Down on Spotify so it hits your feed the second it drops.

0days

0hrs

0min

0sec

Follow on Spotify Release show ↓

Upcoming shows

@midwaydownband for new dates →

Nov14Fri

Cobra Lounge · Chicago, IL

"Go On" single release show, 3:30 PM matinee. With Cliffhanger, celebrating their new single "Brain Bleed." Only 100 tickets.

Tickets

More+2026

More dates coming

Follow the band for announcements.

Fitness

Mornings belong to training. Running and lifting before work, every week.

Joe running under fall trees on the course

26.2CHICAGO 2026

Marathon

3:36

Chicago Marathon · Oct 2026

Half

1:38

Apr 2026

10K

46:03

Jul 2026

19:51

Apr 2026

Mile

<5:30

Broke the 5:30 barrier

Official race video · Bank of America Chicago Marathon 2026

Fitness achievements

CrossFit Open, top 11% worldwide2024 · advanced to Quarterfinals with 9 Stratum members
Wodapalooza SoCal2024 · competed as a team with my coaches
9 CrossFit Opens2016 to 2024 · improved 20,000+ places in a single year
Spartan Race TrifectaSprint, Super and Beast · top-20 age group finish in Arizona · World Championships
Epic Series obstacle race, 17th overallFirst Epic Series race
DEKA MileFirst one, finished in 22:00