As a business leader, it’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day whirlwind of running your organization. You have fires to put out, decisions to make, and projects to oversee —and that can leave little time to pause and consider the bigger picture. But as a leader in your business, setting and executing your strategy is some [ Read More ]
We’re knee-deep in Q4, and preparing for 2025 is top-of-mind for many business owners. If you’re ready to set you, your team, and your organization up for success next year, consider preparing in these three ways. 1. Prepare yourself: Lead your business with more confidence, intention, and clarity in 2025 Most businesses reach an inflection point where their normal [ Read More ]
Maximum Fire Protection is a family-owned and operated full-service commercial sprinkler company in Milford, Ohio. In 2013, after nearly 30 years in the sprinkler business, Renee Hoderlein and her husband, Nick, teamed up to build their own company. Their mission was to provide superior, personalized service and value by working closely with customers from project design to completion.Over the [ Read More ]
Superior Aluminum is a multi-generational family business that has thrived for more than 68 years. As the second generation of leaders began planning to retire, the organization’s board challenged the company to bring in a new leader who could provide fresh perspective and draw on outside experience. The organization hired Doug Borchers — a member of one of [ Read More ]
Nearly 30 years ago when Aileron was founded, our first service was designed to help private business owners design their strategies. Now, three decades of study later, we’ve learned a lot about small business strategy. This post captures three common but outdated perspectives on strategic planning and offers more productive thought shifts to replace them. Old [ Read More ]
America’s small businesses are the backbone of our economy; small businesses are responsible for 63% of new jobs in the last 25+ years, represent 99.9% of all businesses in America, and employ 46% of America’s private sector employees. It’s clear business owners and small business leaders have one of the most important roles in our society — and [ Read More ]
When it comes to a Board of Advisors, these five qualities separate the exasperating from the exceptional. Does your board have them? A cohesive, high-functioning Board of Advisors can be an invaluable source of wisdom, accountability, and support for a business owner. But if the board is ineffective, misaligned, or poorly managed, it can consume a business owner’s [ Read More ]
At Aileron, we practice customer intimacy and frequently conduct customer research so we can design services and content that support our community of business owners. Part of our process involves completing the Strategyzer Value Proposition Canvas. This tool helps us more deeply understand business owners, the challenges they face, and the outcomes they’re after. Since we started collecting [ Read More ]
Aileron was thrilled to host a Personal Vision Workshop in January to celebrate Founder’s Day and give our community guided time and space to explore their dreams. Nearly 200 community members participated in this workshop, and we heard an outpouring of positive feedback about it — so much so that we’re making the workshop materials available to the [ Read More ]
As Aileron’s community spends time and energy in January doing the meaningful work of vision-setting, it’s the perfect time to revisit your organizational vision and ensure it is providing the direction your organization and team need. When done well, a vision can have a monumental impact on the organization, its people, and the bottom line. Here’s how. A [ Read More ]
As a business owner, you understand that running a business is a team sport and your team is your most valuable asset. Your team members are the people who turn your vision into a reality and help you grow your business. As you work to install professional management in your organization, Activating Professional Management can help you onboard [ Read More ]
Your Content Goes HereSome of the greatest challenges a business owner faces can also feel like the loneliest — setting the direction for the business, navigating changes in the external environment, and preparing to leave the business to the next generation of leadership are emotionally, mentally daunting tasks. Which is why Aileron exists — to equip business owners and leaders [ Read More ]
