Meet David

Hard Won Experience

I help leaders surpass their goals, fueling their business strategy and tactics with experience, curiosity, humility, and conviction.

I have a background in Fortune 100 leadership at Intel and Walt Disney, numerous startups, mid-market companies, and family-owned businesses. I’ve advised, founded, or invested in 50+ companies over four decades.

I’ve been where you’re going: I’ve raised money, sold companies, acquired companies, helped employees buy a company, formed boards of directors, built partnerships within industry, and spent years in venture capital.

I’ve touched the B Corp world by forming a public benefit corporation, and love that ecosystem and their values.

I have also been a hands-on operator: building teams of leaders, launching products, building manufacturing operations from scratch, driving daily marketing and sales, as well as serving as the CMO (chief marketing officer).

Years ago I wrote code, and today I still love a good spreadsheet and can also edit marketing copy with ease.

While I started my career in technology, both hardware and software, I have now worked in the market segments of retail, hospitality and food, construction, apparel, infrastructure development, real estate, and numerous consulting / professional services practices.

I am especially passionate about employee ownership, benefit corporations, and anyone manufacturing in the U.S.

I recently helped the owner-leaders at Kitsbow Apparel expand their business, implement lean manufacturing to reshore production, and gain confidence in their own individual capabilities. Paying their production team a living wage, within 2 years they first matched, then beat their labor costs previously paid offshore in Vietnam and China. In 2022 they gained a 30% increase in new customers, without significant spending in ads. Their accomplishments, not mine.

I do similar work alongside my clients, adjusted and refined for their specific challenges and goals.

I am a frequent speaker on a wide variety of business topics, and enjoy moderating, facilitating, and leading workshops and training sessions.

I love travel, new places, exploring the outdoors, endurance sports, and nearly every kind of food (I make most of the meals in my family). I consider myself to be a very lucky human.