After years of working in the family business, Jim Smith suddenly became CEO of Keith Smith Company, America’s largest independent producer and provider of broiler hatching eggs, in the early 1990s. Looking for support and guidance in his new leadership role, Jim eagerly connected with Aileron’s founder Clay Mathile through a mutual acquaintance and began his professional management [ Read More ]
We’ve all been there—stuck. We’re running fast, doing more, but not seeing the results. We’re making a lot of motion but seeing little progress. Sound familiar? It takes courage to step away from the rut and take a look at the whole system in question. But how do you take the first step? Recently, we sat down with Chuck [ Read More ]
Like many organizations, Aileron has long understood that technology can and should play a role in our business. But what role? Technology can be hired to do an infinite number of things, but unless you know what you want technology to do for you, it’s difficult to know how to use it. That’s the question we’ve been chewing on [ Read More ]
Growing revenue and growing the life you’ve dreamed of are common goals we hear from new founders and seasoned entrepreneurs alike. For Matt Carlton, CEO of Carlton Construction, growth was great – until it was outpacing what he could handle. In 2018, the company experienced the best revenue year in its history, having doubled revenue for two consecutive years. [ Read More ]
Management consultant and author Peter Drucker is known for saying culture eats strategy for breakfast. Anyone who’s run a business can attest to the power culture has over all areas of the business. Underlying cultural struggles can make collaboration, recruitment and retention, and growth difficult or even impossible. Said differently, unless your culture is in working order, no strategy [ Read More ]
Regardless of our title, status, age, or experience level, we’re all leaders. The question is not whether you lead, but how you lead. At Aileron, we believe the best way to lead is consciously. Conscious leadership is an approach to leading the self and others that emphasizes radical self-awareness, energetic responsibility, and a we > me mindset. Traditional vs. [ Read More ]
The start of a new year often brings renewed energy and commitment to your business and its goals. As you look to the year ahead, consider scheduling time now for these best practices for professionally managed organizations so they don’t get lost in the shuffle. 1. Time to work on your business, not in it If you’re like most [ Read More ]
As many people prepare to gather with loved ones, visit distant relatives, and even meet new members of the family, it’s a great time to prepare to make the most of these interactions. No matter the climate around us or the difference in our own beliefs or values, we can always choose to show up positively and productively. [ Read More ]
Doing the work of a CEO is one thing; feeling like a CEO is a whole different ballgame. We hear that sentiment a lot at Aileron, especially from young leaders who are fresh in their roles. While imposter syndrome – the self-limiting belief that you’re not as capable as you are – can contribute to not feeling CEO-ready, other [ Read More ]
You may have heard that Aileron turned 25 this year. We chose not to make a big announcement, and instead stayed focused on developing services to empower our community of business leaders to thrive during what continues to be a dynamic time for some. We did choose to celebrate this milestone as a small group at our annual company [ Read More ]
When a mistake or problem occurs in your organization, do team members usually blame a person? Or, do they take a step back and look at the system for answers? “Instead of anyone pointing a finger at a person if things go wrong, with a system’s view, we look at the system to uncover answers,” says [ Read More ]
Aileron sees business owners from all walks of life and all industries come through our doors. We’ve seen professional management transform $2M family-owned small businesses as well as $200M large corporations. Recently, Course for Presidents alumni and CEO of Mailchimp Ben Chestnut was featured in NPR’s How I Built This. During his conversation with Guy Raz, [ Read More ]
