Welcome to Capacity Builders
Build high-performing teams that achieve uncommon results.
What is the common thread among the NASA's Apollo 11 Team, The Beatles, the Mars Rover Curiosity Team, and the Red Bull Stratos Team?
Answer: They are all exemplars of high-performing teams that achieved uncommon results.
I created Capacity Builders with a singular purpose: to aid others in becoming architects of high-performing teams.
Over the course of my 18+ years on the frontlines of IT and cybersecurity, I've seen firsthand how teams either drive a company's success or leave its leaders puzzled, asking, “Where did we go wrong?”
My purpose is to share insights drawn from both my successes and failures, along with tools that enable you to build high-performing teams that achieve uncommon results.
My commitments to you:
I'll share valuable insights that you can apply right away.
I'll be candid and transparent, even when it's uncomfortable.
The insights I share on management and leadership come from my experiences, which include:
Growing Expel from an idea into a Forrester market leader (twice) with a valuation over $1B.
Guiding early startups.
Building and launching a new venture with seed funding.
What’s next?
If you want to be part of this journey, just click on the "Subscribe now" button below. Every seven days I’ll send you a new email with learning and insights you can apply right away.
In the meantime, here’s an insight drawn from failure (I promised candor):
You create high-performing teams by hiring today what you’ll need in the future.
I once hired a manager focusing solely on the immediate need, neglecting to truly understand what team success looked like in six to twelve months. In a fast-growing startup, the needs of the company and its customers change rapidly for most teams. This was certainly true for this particular team and its manager.
So, what happened?
What the organization and its customers needed from the team evolved quickly and we struggled to meet the new demands. In just a few short months it became obvious that we no longer had the right team in place to work the new problem set. The team was facing significant challenges.
After just six months in the role, the new manager exited the company.
The lesson?
Build a team based on the future, not just the present.
To apply the lesson, ask:
What will your team need to accomplish six to twelve months from today?
Do you have the right team to work the problems of the future?
What skills, traits, and/or experiences will you need more of?
Can you build this person? Is there a path to internal promotion?
If you need to hire externally, where would you find this person?
Capacity Builders hire (or build) now for what they’ll need in the future.
Best regards,