A PARTNERSHIP BUILT OVER FOUR DECADES
Triad Advanced Directions, LLC was founded by longtime colleagues and friends Jim Surber and Joe Johnson—a partnership built on more than 40 years of trust, mutual respect, shared achievement, and an unwavering commitment to excellence.
Their professional relationship began when Jim hired Joe at a multimillion-dollar corporation where Jim led a large team. Jim immediately recognized Joe’s exceptional talent, character, and potential. That recognition began a remarkable journey that would take them—and, at pivotal moments, Joe’s family—from Texas to Central California, back to Texas, then to Atlanta, and ultimately to Lake Charles, Louisiana.
Throughout their careers, Jim and Joe have successfully confronted difficult challenges, rebuilt organizations, developed outstanding teams, and achieved results that few believed possible. Although Joe also spent approximately 20 years forging a highly successful path of his own, the trust, friendship, and professional respect between them never wavered.
Their strengths are distinctly different yet powerfully complementary. Each brings a unique perspective, proven leadership ability, and decades of real-world experience to every challenge. Together, they share an uncommon ability to recognize opportunities, solve complex problems, inspire people, and turn ambitious ideas into meaningful results.
After retiring from distinguished careers, Jim and Joe reunited professionally as co-founders and co-owners of Triad Advanced Directions, LLC. The company represents the culmination of their lifelong partnership—and the next chapter in a story defined by integrity, resilience, innovation, and the belief that extraordinary achievements begin with the right people working together.
IJIM SURBER
Born in Austin, Texas, Jim Surber has built his life around faith, family, leadership, competition, and the continual pursuit of excellence. At 68 years young, he is a dedicated Christian, a devoted husband, the proud father
of three daughters and their three wonderful husbands, a grandfather to six amazing grandchildren, and a loyal friend to many.
After earning his four-year Bachelor of Science in Applied Science degree from Youngstown
State University in 1979, Jim began his
professional career as a radio disc jockey. He spent seven years working at stations along the East Coast before entering the world of corporate America and beginning a distinguished career that would span more than four decades. During that time, Jim led large teams, earned numerous awards, achieved exceptional levels of success, and
ultimately became the owner of a company generating approximately $10 million in annual revenue.
Jim’s competitive drive extended well beyond the business world. While managing the demands of his corporate career, he spent weekends competing across the country on the national motocross circuit. Years of commitment and perseverance culminated in Jim winning a national championship in 1992.
After retiring in 2019, Jim turned his attention toward fitness, longevity, and new entrepreneurial opportunities. He began riding his high-performance carbon-fiber bicycle 25 to 40 miles a day, five or six days each week. Following two years of traveling with his wife and discovering that conventional retirement simply was not for him—Jim returned to business. Since 2021, he has launched four companies and continues to own and operate two of them.
Today, Jim owns a successful mobile dog-grooming company whose three vans serve clients throughout the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex. His greatest professional passion, however, is The Stem Cell Guys by Triad Advanced Directions, LLC, a company focused on helping people explore
regenerative therapies and pursue longer, healthier, more active
lives.
Jim finds tremendous fulfillment in hearing from people who report renewed mobility, reduced pain, and meaningful improvements in their quality of life. As an avid golfer who plays four to five days each week, he has personally made mesenchymal stem cell therapy and exosomes part of his own. approach to strength, recovery, longevity, and maintaining an active life with minimal pain.
Jim brings the same faith, integrity, competitive spirit, and determination to Triad Advanced Directions that have guided him throughout his life. For him, this work is far more than another business venture—it is an opportunity to help others pursue better health, greater freedom, and more rewarding years ahead.
JOE JOHNSON
Joe has embraced the relentless pursuit of
extreme challenges, thriving at the limits of personal and professional achievement. A fierce competitor in both business and sport, he has always demanded the highest level of
performance from himself and his teams while
upholding unwavering integrity and honor.
Joe’s 40-year career in upper-level
management, spanning both the private and public sectors, has been defined by his expertise in rescuing mismanaged companies, rebuilding failed systems, and cultivating 127 high-performing teams. His dynamic strategies for success have guided organizations through ever-changing markets, ensuring resilience and growth.
His passion for physical challenges began in the 1970s with rock climbing and rugby, followed by countless triathlons and cycling events in the 1980s. This drive eventually led him into the world of ultra and extreme sports, including adventure racing, expedition challenges, and hundreds of marathons and ultrarunning events.
At 68, Joe competed in The Tactical Games and appeared in Season 2 of Surviving Mann on American Stories TV. He celebrated his 70th birthday by completing six ultramarathons across the United States in six months, with distances ranging from 50K to 100K.
Joe’s passion for endurance and the outdoors also led him to create EverFurther and The Next Loop Endurance Series, with a mission to introduce more people to trail running and make endurance events accessible to athletes at every level. Built around the belief that success is measured by the willingness to keep moving forward, The Next Loop encourages participants to get outside, challenge themselves, and discover what they are capable of—whether that means completing their first trail 5K, their first ultramarathon, or simply going one more loop.
Joe’s story is one of relentless determination, resilience, and the pursuit of excellence—an inspiring testament to pushing boundaries and never settling for less.
