Matthew Diteljan Email & Phone Number

Nelson, Bc, Ca

Nelson, British Columbia, Canada

Empower entrepreneurs with the mindset and tools required to scale their business beyond $1M in revenue. We help them work on the business rather than in the business.

As a Board Member at NextGrad, I provide insights and recommendations on key aspects of the business, including strategic planning, budgeting, financial analysis, and growth initiatives. While my formal involvement began after the acquisition of Glacier, I have continued to offer valuable commentary during board meetings, drawing on my extensive experience in the youth marketing space.My contributions have centered around guiding NextGrad in its growth trajectory, ensuring the company remains financially strong and aligned with its mission of connecting brands with the high school demographic through digital innovation.Key contributions:Strategic Review: Provide critical input on NextGrad’s strategic plans, helping to refine the company’s roadmap for growth and expansion.Financial Oversight: Offer commentary on budgets, financials, and investment decisions to ensure fiscal responsibility and sustainable growth.Growth Planning: Collaborate with the board to recommend and evaluate growth strategies, ensuring alignment with market trends and future opportunities.Advisory Role: Assist in steering the company through post-acquisition challenges and offering perspective on maintaining leadership in high school advertising.

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

As the CEO and Co-Founder of Glacier, I spearheaded the transformation of youth marketing by creating innovative, purpose-driven advertising strategies that authentically connected brands with high school students across North America. Glacier’s approach revolutionized high school advertising through strategic digital placement on campuses.Under my leadership, Glacier expanded into the US market and rapidly scaled, becoming a recognized leader in the youth media space. Our success led to Glacier being a finalist for the Calgary Chamber of Commerce Culture Award, a testament to the strong, mission-driven company culture we cultivated.Key achievements:Growth & Expansion: Led the company from inception to an exit at a mid-seven figure valuation, selling to NextGrad. Expanded Glacier into the US market, participating in leading industry conferences such as the American Marketing Association.Innovation in High School Advertising: Built a cutting-edge media platform that utilized advertisements in high schools, providing brands with unique, hyper-targeted access to Gen Z.Team & Culture Building: Fostered a high-performance, inclusive culture that was central to our operations and team success, with a focus on ethical youth marketing.Strategic Vision: Orchestrated large-scale campaigns, managed cross-functional teams, and drove revenue growth through strategic partnerships and innovative media strategies.Exit Strategy: Successfully navigated the sale of Glacier to NextGrad.My time as CEO of Glacier was not just about building a profitable business, but about creating a meaningful connection between brands and the next generation, while staying true to our core values of do the right thing and have fun. I’m passionate about creating scalable, impact-driven businesses, and Glacier was the embodiment of that mission.

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

For two years, I served as the Chair of the Accelerator Program for EO Calgary, where I was responsible for guiding early-stage entrepreneurs to scale their businesses from $250K to over $1M in revenue within two years. Leading a dedicated volunteer board of four, I managed a cohort of approximately 30 entrepreneurs, ensuring their growth and success through mentorship, workshops, and strategic support.In this role, I oversaw the entire program’s operations, reporting on progress and deliverables to the EO Calgary board. I traveled internationally to Bangkok and Toronto for the Global Leadership Conference, where I engaged with a global network of entrepreneurs and learned cutting-edge strategies to apply back home.Key achievements:Program Leadership: Led the Accelerator Program to support entrepreneurs in scaling their businesses to $1M+ in revenue.Board Leadership: Managed a team of four dedicated volunteers and collaborated with EO Calgary leadership to align program goals with the broader organizational strategy.Entrepreneur Development: Mentored and supported early-stage entrepreneurs in becoming better leaders, providing the tools and resources necessary for long-term success.Global Leadership: Represented EO Calgary at leadership conferences in Bangkok and Toronto, further expanding my understanding of global entrepreneurial ecosystems.My favorite part of the role was watching these entrepreneurs grow, scale their businesses, and emerge as stronger leaders, driving the Calgary business community forward.

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

At 23, I co-founded and led Pocket Homes, a real estate technology startup aimed at simplifying the home-buying process through a mobile app. Despite my ambition and drive, we faced major challenges and ultimately failed due to a lack of clear product vision and failure to validate our model before investing heavily in development.We didn’t test our hypotheses, skipped essential validation steps, and spent too much money on building a product without truly understanding the real estate market or the needs of our users. As a first-time CEO with no prior experience in real estate, I quickly learned that enthusiasm alone doesn’t create success in a complex industry.Key learnings:Product Vision: Realized the critical importance of having a clear, validated product vision before building out tech.Market Validation: Learned the hard way about the necessity of testing assumptions and getting early feedback from users to avoid costly mistakes.Leadership at a Young Age: Gained invaluable experience leading a tech startup at 23, navigating the challenges of decision-making, team-building, and product development with limited industry knowledge.Financial Oversight: Understood the importance of aligning spending with validated milestones rather than pouring money into untested ideas.While Pocket Homes didn’t succeed, the lessons I took away from this experience shaped my approach to future ventures, making me a stronger entrepreneur and leader.