I work with founders and small business owners who are ready to stop being the bottleneck and start building organizations that run without them in every room.
Here’s something most people won’t say out loud.
The tension you’re feeling on your team? It probably didn’t start with your team.
It started with a leadership gap that nobody told you about, because nobody trained you for the people part of the job. They trained you for the technical part. The building, the selling, the operating. And you got really good at all of it.
But leading people? That was supposed to just happen.
It doesn’t just happen.
And the longer it goes unaddressed, the more expensive the silence gets. Gallup estimates US businesses lose $630 billion a year from disengagement and turnover alone. SHRM puts the cost of replacing a single manager at up to 200% of their annual salary.
Those aren’t abstract numbers. They’re what the leadership gap actually costs.
I work with founders and small business owners, mostly in nonprofits, tech startups, and private businesses, who built something real but were never given the tools to lead the people inside it.
They’re not bad leaders. They’re untrained ones.
And there’s a difference.
In a focused 60 to 90 day engagement, we close that gap. Not by changing who you are, but by giving you the framework, the language, and the self-awareness to show up the way your business actually needs you to.
The result isn’t just a healthier team. It’s a version of you as a leader that you can see and feel.
Every founder I’ve worked with says the same thing at the end: “I wish I’d done this sooner.”
Ron is based in Cincinnati, OH and works virtually with clients across the United States.
Most founders have no idea. The Leadership Cost Calculator gives you a data driven number in under 5 minutes, based on your actual team size and situation.
Take the Free Leadership Audit →Every engagement is built around your specific situation, not a packaged program.
Intensive coaching for founders and executives ready to step into a different kind of leadership. We work on the real issues, not the presenting ones.
Structural assessments, team design, and culture work for organizations navigating growth, transition, or dysfunction they can't name yet.
Facilitated planning processes that produce clarity, alignment, and a roadmap your leadership team will actually use.
Support for boards and executive directors on governance structure, board staff relations, and the leadership dynamics that make or break nonprofits.
When something has gone wrong, or is about to, I help leaders respond with clarity instead of panic and come out the other side stronger.
A structured assessment of your leadership costs, gaps, and opportunities. A clear picture of what's working, what isn't, and what it's costing you.
Part time embedded executive leadership: board meetings, strategy, and team leadership without full time overhead.
Learn more →Full time, time bound leadership during mergers, transitions, turnarounds, or rapid restructuring.
Learn more →Retainer based or board advisory counsel, a trusted thinking partner for strategy, governance, and growth.
Learn more →1:1 leadership development and accountability for founders and executives navigating their hardest seasons.
Learn more →Conferences, leadership summits, and executive retreats on organizational transformation and servant leadership.
Learn more →We talk through what's actually happening in your organization, not the surface issues, but the leadership dynamics underneath them.
I assess what's costing you most and where the leverage is. You get an honest picture, not a polished deck full of obvious observations.
60 to 90 day intensive. We work on the issues that matter, with regular sessions and real accountability between them.
The goal isn't dependence on coaching. It's building the leadership capacity that your organization keeps after we're done.
“Ron leads with loyalty, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to service. He also brings an energy that elevates everyone on the team.”
“The rare leader who combines proven expertise with true moral character. He consistently leads with compassion, ethical decision-making, and a quiet strength that inspires those around him.”
“Ron leads with integrity and composure bringing a strategic presence that helps organizations navigate complexity and move mission-driven work forward with clarity and discipline.”
“His ability to marry high-level strategic thinking with operational excellence is rare. His contributions were always rooted in data, efficiency, and a deep commitment to the Foundation’s mission.”
Leadership is a human skill. Here's a little of the human behind the work.
Ron has called the Cincinnati metro home for 23 years, settling here after living in the New York City metro area and Miami, FL. He and his wife Betty met at the University of Miami and have been married for 32 years. Together they have two grown children who have built careers in IT and law.
Most founders delegate tasks but keep all the decisions. Real delegation means transferring authority, not just work.
Avoidance is not kindness. A practical framework for having the honest conversation that changes everything.
It's not a bad hire or a failed strategy. The most expensive thing in most small businesses is a leadership pattern nobody is naming.
I share practical leadership content for founders and small business owners: real frameworks, honest conversations, and the kind of clarity that changes how you lead.
Subscribe on YouTube @ronhakes
A free 30-minute call to look honestly at what’s going on in your organization, and what’s possible on the other side of it.
Most engagements start with a 30-minute call. No pitch, no pressure, just an honest conversation about where you are and whether I can help.
