Season 8: Still Here • April 28, 2026

Discipline, vision, talent

Shana Cosgrove talks to Ross O’Rourke, CEO of Crimson Phoenix

Host Shana Cosgrove interviews Ross O’Rourke, CEO of Crimson Phoenix, on the critical topics of recruiting cleared engineers and driving authenticity in the competitive world of government contracting technology businesses. Ross shares his powerful journey: from an underprivileged Ohio upbringing and service as a Marine infantryman to founding iC-1 and scaling it to nearly 250 employees specializing in full-scope polygraph engineers. Discover his candid strategies for recruiter evaluation, metrics, and quick performance decisions. Ross also details the challenges and lessons learned from building and selling an in-house SaaS startup (Agile ATS) to ClearanceJobs, and offers non-negotiable leadership advice on building disciplined routines, visualizing goals, and balancing high-level travel with family priorities

Quotes

  • [04:08] “You just gotta be yourself and some people are gonna hate your flavor and some people are gonna love your flavor, but at the end of the day, you get to be authentic..” – Ross O’Rourke
  • [23:55] “Recruiting is frankly a numbers game. It really is a numbers game like. It comes down to how many people you can connect with on a daily basis.” – Ross O’Rourke
  • [34:38] “You have to set your plan based upon principles. Principles are greater than feelings. Feelings will deceive you..” – Ross O’Rourke

Timestamps

  • [00:00] Welcome
  • [03:54] Authenticity Builds Trust
  • [06:32] From Ohio to Marines
  • [10:12] Success Mindset and Sacrifice
  • [15:53] Leap to Entrepreneurship
  • [20:34] Building Agile ATS System
  • [22:49] Traits of Great Recruiters
  • [24:22] Interview Tests and Hiring Fast
  • [25:45] Firing with Radical Candor
  • [30:04] GovCon Talent and Standards
  • [36:33] Family and Time Management
  • [38:53] Office Items and Deal Toys
  • [41:36] Closing Thanks and Outro

Resources

Relevant Links

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Live well, Shana

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