Today we’d like to introduce you to Mike Chirveno.
Mike, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I grew up in the home of a successful small business owner. I saw how hard it was to keep the pipeline full, get and keep good employees, manage the day-to-day operations of the business, and put out the string of seemingly never-ending fires. My dad encouraged me to pursue a different career path than he did, After college and a short stint as a school teacher, I started working for The Kansas City Star (where I had worked part-time during college). I rose through the ranks and, over the course of 24 years, did almost every operations job you can imagine. I spent the end of my corporate career managing large projects in addition to my operations responsibilities. While at the Star, I went to school at night and earned my MBA, After grad school, I contemplated the idea of consulting. I thought I had a set of skills that would transfer. In late 2006, a set of circumstances came together that allowed me to resign and start my consulting company, ClearVision Consulting. My goal then was to become the best resource possible for small business owners like my dad. Beginning then and continuing to this day, I’ve worked hard to assemble tools, resources, and knowledge to help business owners find fulfillment in their work, provide for their families, provide good jobs to others who can find fulfillment in their work and provide for their families, and to create organizations that are built to last and built to grow.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No. Filling the sales pipeline has been a challenge. In the early years, there were lean periods, More than once, I’ve missed a mortgage payment, maxed out a credit card, and dipped into the retirement account to pay bills. I know now that the challenge in filling the pipeline was actually the necessary process of finding a “tribe” – those clients and potential clients that share core values and similar goals.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
As I’ve learned from talking to potential clients, plenty of business owners have had negative experience with consultants, They’ve been charged lots of money for strategic plans that ultimately sit on shelves unused or received diagnoses of problems but no resolutions for those problems, That’s not the experience of my clients. I have a high regard for those folks who have risked their wealth and bet on their God-given talent to build and organization that can provide for themselves, their families, their employees and provide a value product or service to their community. That respect drives the consulting engagement. I treat their time and their money like it’s mine. Together, we work hard, using battle-tested diagnostics, to accurately assess the current state of the organization (or of the specific problem I’m hired to solve). We construct options for transformation by tapping the expertise of the business leaders, the people in the trenches, and my own experience from working across dozens of industries over the course of the last 19 years in consulting, Once we decide on a plan of attack, we’ll roll it out to the organization identifying responsibilities and spelling out what “winning” looks like so that everyone knows how we’re progressing towards implementing the solution. There won’t be any solutions from an ivory tower, I get my hands dirty so we’re certain we’ve crafted something that really works. Over the years, I’ve unloaded trucks, stocked shelves, checked-in resort guests, and much more. I learn a lot about client businesses, Former clients call me and ask, “How do we do …?”
I have eight product offerings –
Business Builder Groups – Bi-monthly meetings with a me and a small group of other folks who run their own businesses. We share insights, leverage the experience of others who have similar challenges, get accountability, and focus on personal and professional growth. Attendees typically see a 10X return on their investment.
The Built to Last, Built to Grow Assessment – The Built to Last, Built to Grow Assessment is a diagnostic tool that assesses an organization’s current state and its capacity for longevity and future growth. Initial results are available immediately after completing the assessment followed by a full analysis delivered shortly thereafter.
Transformation Workshops – Half-day, on-site workshops on critical topics that build strong organizational foundations, strengthen culture, enhance leadership, improve communication, and maximize employee engagement.
Strategic Planning Workshop – The Strategic Planning Workshop helps organizations accurately assess their current state, envision a desired future state, and create roadmap to get from the former to the latter. It includes a robust toolbox to spur meaningful conversations, engage team members in planning and execution, and tracking the desired change.
The Business Framework – The Business Framework structures an organization around eight vital disciplines. These disciplines ensure that nothing falls through the cracks but is flexible enough to tackle the organization’s unique challenges. It serves as an operating system for sustainable growth and health.
Fractional Chief Strategy Officer – As a fractional Chief Strategy Officer, I assess the organization’s current state, help identify the desired future state, and develop and implement execution plans to move from the former to the latter. I’ll support stakeholders as they execute transformation activities, track transformation metrics, and communicate those to all stakeholders.
Fractional Chief Operating Officer – As fractional COO, my two areas of focus are people and operations. I dig into leadership development, employee development, policies, processes, and vendor management. The outcomes will be improved employee engagement and improved customer experience – driven by higher quality and consistent product delivery. We’ll build to scale.
Business Consulting – Bespoke consulting engagements aimed at resolving specific challenges or exploiting specific opportunities. I have deep expertise in solving complex operations problems, reviving struggling projects, and improving employee engagement and productivity.
I’ve created introductory offerings that are affordable for every business owner because I know how important it is for every business leader to have access to someone that can support them as they grow. Other offering are more expensive because they are tailored to the unique challenges in the client’s organization. One thing doesn’t change, the level of commitment to the client’s wellbeing, professional growth, and success,
Clients trust me because I learn their business, tell them the truth, carefully guard their resources, and solve their ugliest problems.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
Build strong relationships with partners, vendors, and customers who share your core values. Be crystal clear on your value proposition – know why people are willing to buy your product or service.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://clearvision.consulting/
