Considering business advisory or executive coaching? These are the most important questions to ask before making your investment. Get straight answers from someone who’s actually built, scaled, and sold businesses.
My philosophy is simple: “Leadership Powered by Common Sense®”. After 30+ years leading businesses from the military to Wall Street to founding 5 companies, I’ve learned that effective leadership isn’t about complicated theories—it’s about applying practical, proven principles that actually work. I focus on helping business owners transition from being operators stuck in the daily grind to becoming true CEOs who can scale their companies while reclaiming their personal lives.
Unlike many business coaches who’ve never run their own companies, I’m a serial entrepreneur with real skin in the game:
I don’t just teach business growth—I’ve lived it, including the failures and comebacks that teach you what really matters.
I provide both coaching and consulting because different situations require different approaches:
Most business owners need all three at different times, which is why I’m structured to provide whatever level of support serves you best.
Hard Financial Metrics:
Leading Performance Indicators:
Personal ROI Measures:
Most of my clients see measurable improvements within 90 days, with significant transformation occurring over 6-12 months.
Great question—this confusion trips up a lot of business owners.
Business Coaching focuses on the company: strategy, operations, systems, and growth. We work on your business to make it more profitable and scalable.
Executive Coaching focuses on you as a leader: your decision-making, communication style, leadership presence, and personal effectiveness. We work on you to make you a better CEO.
For mid-size companies, you need both. You can’t separate the leader from the business at your stage. That’s why my approach integrates both through the EDGE framework:
This is the defining challenge for growing businesses. Here’s my proven 4-phase approach:
Phase 1: Awareness – We identify where you’re still operating instead of leading. Most owners don’t realize how much tactical work they’re still doing.
Phase 2: Systems – We build processes and train people to handle the work you’ve been doing. This includes hiring, delegation frameworks, and accountability systems.
Phase 3: Leadership Development – We develop your strategic thinking, communication skills, and executive presence so you can lead effectively at a higher level.
Phase 4: Sustainability – We ensure the changes stick through ongoing coaching, performance monitoring, and continuous improvement.
The goal isn’t to remove you from the business—it’s to elevate your role to where only you can add value.
Most family business owners wait too long to start succession planning. The ideal time is when you’re still actively engaged and have 10-15 years until planned retirement.
Warning: I’ve seen too many families wait until health crises or market downturns force rushed decisions. Emergency succession planning often leads to family conflict and business disruption.
My military background taught me that successful missions require long-term planning, clear objectives, and contingency strategies. Succession planning is your most critical mission.
This is one of the most common—and most difficult—situations I encounter. The key is honest assessment and strategic development rather than wishful thinking.
Success Story: I worked with a manufacturing family where the son wasn’t ready at 28. We created a 7-year development plan including external consulting experience. He returned at 35 as a genuinely qualified leader, not just “the owner’s kid.”
This scenario requires both strategic thinking and family diplomacy. The goal is creating roles that leverage each person’s strengths while maintaining business performance and family harmony.
Critical Mistake: Trying to force equal roles when abilities aren’t equal. This destroys both business performance and family relationships.
From my military experience, successful teams put people in positions where they can excel, not where it’s “fair.” The same principle applies to family businesses.
You can’t completely separate them—and trying to do so often creates more problems. Instead, you need clear structures and processes that acknowledge family relationships while protecting business integrity.
Example: One client implemented “Business Tuesday” family dinners where business topics were allowed, but all other family meals were business-free zones. This simple structure reduced home tension by 80%.
The key is acknowledging that family businesses ARE different, then creating systems that manage those differences rather than pretending they don’t exist.
This is where most family businesses either succeed or fail. You need the courage to address performance issues directly while maintaining family relationships.
Tough Truth: Tolerating poor performance from family members destroys credibility with non-family employees and ultimately hurts both the business and the underperforming family member.
In my military experience, the hardest leadership decisions involve people you care about. But protecting the mission (your business) ultimately protects everyone who depends on it.
Family businesses often involve sensitive personal and financial information that goes well beyond typical business coaching. I have extensive experience managing confidential family dynamics while maintaining professional objectivity.
My Approach: Having managed sensitive military operations and FDIC bank closures involving billions of dollars, I understand how to handle confidential information and facilitate difficult conversations between stakeholders with competing interests.
Everything we discuss remains strictly confidential unless you specifically authorize me to share information with other family members or advisors.
Absolutely. Everything we discuss is completely confidential. I have standard confidentiality agreements for all coaching and consulting relationships. Your business challenges, financial information, and strategic plans remain strictly between us.
The only exception would be if your company specifically requests progress updates (which only happens if they’re paying for the coaching), and even then, you control what information is shared.
I believe in regular check-ins and measurable outcomes:
Monthly Progress Reviews: We’ll assess both business metrics and personal leadership development Quarterly Strategic Sessions: Deeper dive into what’s working, what isn’t, and course corrections needed Semi-Annual Planning: Updating goals and strategies based on market changes and business evolution
You’ll always know where you stand and have input on adjusting our approach based on what’s working best for your situation.
I don’t maintain “files” in the traditional sense, but I’m completely transparent about my observations and recommendations. After each session, you’ll receive summary notes of key insights and action items.
My approach is collaborative—we’re working together, not me working on you. Everything I’m thinking, I’m sharing with you directly.
Chemistry matters in coaching relationships. If after our initial sessions we determine we’re not the right fit, I’ll help you find someone who is. I maintain a network of other qualified coaches and consultants I can recommend based on your specific needs.
The goal is your success, not keeping you as a client if I’m not the right person to help you achieve it.
No fees are paid until we agree there is a fit and a positive interest to work together
The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.
If you’re ready to stop feeling overwhelmed by your business and start building something that works without you being involved in every decision, let’s talk.
No heavy sales pitch. No pressure. Just a candid conversation about where you are and where you want to go.
“Leadership Powered by Common Sense®” is a registered trademark of HeadwayExec, LLC DBA The Doug Thorpe Group.
