“Upon my joining Experience Grand Rapids, our board and I saw an opportunity to better align our staff and board roles. We also wanted to provide more definition for board member contribution and involvement. Steve worked with our management team, our board Executive Committee and eventually the entire board in developing board policies, measures of performance and roles and responsibilities of staff and board members. This has helped us a great deal in having everyone on the same page as we focus on our mission and contribution to the community.”
Doug Small, President, Experience Grand Rapids
“When DA Blodgett for Children and St. John’s Home decided to join forces and merge into one agency serving children and families in 2010, we needed some assistance in determining the new management, board representation and structure, and how we were going to integrate the cultures in the new organization. Steve worked with our board and management leadership on these topics and really helped us with a clear and smooth transition to our new entity. We were very glad we did this- the people side often gets weak consideration when there is a joining of organizations.”
Sharon Loughridge, Former Executive Director, DA Blodgett-St. Johns
“When we were faced with replacing our VP of Business Services – a very key position for us, Crandall/Partners provided the ideal solution. Because of the interim executive’s in-depth knowledge of our particular business and our industry, she was able to step in and very rapidly assess the situation and develop just the right action plan. She was able to maintain the pace of decision making in the department, provide confident leadership that gave employees confidence, and facilitate an exceptional hiring process for the new Vice President that is perfect for us! We couldn’t have asked for a smoother transition.”
Fred Keller, Chief Executive Officer, Cascade Engineering
“The partners in our firm are all busy and in very demanding jobs, but we needed to take the time to put our heads together and really concentrate on the strategies and initiatives that will be important for a successful future. We engaged Crandall/Partners to help us with this process, they took the time to really understand our business and current challenges, and then facilitated a long range planning workshop where we outlined our future aspirations and priorities. The result was a comprehensive roadmap with ownership by all, it really helped us put the future in focus.”
Robert L. Herr, Former Managing Executive, Crowe Chizek and Company
“Grand Valley has a variety of graduate programs in the University, and we were in need of finding ways of bringing the leadership together to forge a common vision with initiatives that would enhance the graduate system as a whole. Crandall/Partners was able to understand our needs and provide an excellent facilitation process that brought many diverse perspectives and roles together. We now have a clear path with several meaningful objectives that we can all work on together.”
Priscilla Kimboko, Ph.D., Dean of Graduate Studies and Grants Administration, Grand Valley State University
“Our business model depends as much on our values and culture as it does on our technical skills. Our managers need to be exceptional leaders to accomplish this balance. Steve has helped us a great deal in this arena; he has been a coach for our senior management members and has provided excellent leadership training that has instilled these necessary skills for our team members. Crandall/Partners is an integral part of our organization.”
Graham Irwin, President and CEO, Irwin Seating Company
“As our company continues to grow, we have recognized that identifying key talent and developing their skills is imperative for our future success. Steve has been instrumental in helping us accomplish this by providing coaching for our senior management and high potential candidates, and advising me on organizational structure and dynamics. His experience and outside perspective has been invaluable to us.”
Ray Reitsma, President, Mercantile Bank of Michigan
“We have worked with Steve the past seven+ years as an executive coach in building and continuously improving our company. I first met Steve at a time when I was pursuing a transition in ownership and my role in our company. Steve’s insights of how to best onboard a new president and help me develop a strategy to shift from day to day management has helped me immensely. His skills in personnel management, defining company success and building a unique virtual culture has helped us manage over 200% growth providing valued energy efficiency services to utilities and energy related organizations.”
Roger Spring, Chief Executive Officer, Evergreen Consulting Group