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Resilience is often misunderstood. Were taught to think of it as some hardened mental posturethe ability to push through pain, to toughen up, to bend and not break. But real resilience doesnt come from brute strength. It comes from self-understanding. From owning your truth, finding meaning in your pain, and choosing who you want to become in the face of your worst fears. I learned that the hard way. At 19 years old, I took another mans life and was sentenced to 17 to 40 years in prison. I would spend 19 years behind bars, seven of them in solitary confinement. I went into that system broken, angry, and afraid. And for a long time, I let that pain define me. But at my lowest pointtrapped in a cell the size of a parking space, cut off from the worldI made a decision. I chose to change. I began to write. I read hundreds of books. I confronted the darkest parts of myself and committed to something radical: I was going to rebuild my identity from the inside out. That process didnt happen overnight. It happened through small, daily choices. The same way we build muscle in the gym, I built resilience by showing up for myself when no one else could. What I learned in that cell has guided me every day sincethrough my reentry into society, through building relationships, raising children, writing books, working with CEOs, and speaking on stages around the world. Here are a few of the most powerful lessons I took from that experience: 1. You have to tell yourself the truth. At the core of any transformation is brutal honesty. Most of us are in denialabout our pain, our patterns, our past. We bury the things we dont want to face. But until you confront your truth, youre a prisoner to it. For me, the truth was that I had been deeply wounded long before I ever picked up a gun. I had unresolved trauma, I felt unworthy of love, and I didnt know how to ask for help. Prison forced me to stop running from that truth. It taught me that freedom begins where denial ends. 2. You are not your worst decision. One of the most damaging myths we carry is that we are defined by the worst thing weve done. That belief keeps us locked in shameand it keeps others from seeing our humanity. I will never forget what I did. I live with that every day. But I also know that Im more than my past. The man I am todayfather, author, mentor, friendis a result of years of conscious work, reflection, and growth. You dont have to stay stuck in the story someone else wrote about you. 3. Stillness is a superpower. Solitary confinement is designed to break people. And for a long time, it nearly broke me. I was angry, bitter, and desperate for an outlet. But in that silence, I began to hear myself clearly. I began to feel emotions Id numbed for years. Stillness became my teacher. In the outside world, were surrounded by noise. But resilience requires space. You cant rebuild yourself in chaos. Whether its five minutes of breathing or an hour of journaling, carve out silence. Your growth depends on it. 4. You can choose your thoughts. This was the biggest revelation of all: I didnt have to believe everything I thought. I could challenge the stories in my head. I could reframe my pain. I could interrupt the loop of self-hate and replace it with something better. In prison, that meant shifting from Ill never get out to What can I do with this time? Outside of prison, it means shifting from Im not good enough to Whats one small thing I can do today to move forward? Your mindset is your operating system. Update it as often as necessary. 5. Growth is nonlinear. Change is messy. Youll stumble. Youll relapse into old patterns. I certainly did. But I kept coming back to the vision I had for my life. I held onto the version of myself I hadnt yet become. The goal isnt to be perfectits to keep growing. Thats what resilience really is: not avoiding failure, but learning how to recover with grace. These lessons didnt just help me survive prisonthey helped me lead. Today, I speak to leaders around the world about trust, culture, and transformation. And I tell them what I know to be true: the same tools that saved my life can strengthen their teams, their families, and themselves. Because in the end, were all doing time. Were all navigating systems, stories, and struggles that can box us in. The question is: will you let those constraints define youor will you choose to break free?Adapted from How to Be Free by Shaka Senghor. Copyright 2025. Reprinted by permission of Authors Equity.
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E-Commerce
The fastest way to destroy value in a high-potential company isnt a bad market, its scaling a business that isnt ready to grow. And this article highlights one of the few ways you can identify and take action before you find out the hard way. Mid-market companies ($20M$200M in revenue) often attract private equity attention for their expansion potential. Yet many hit a ceiling post-close, not because of market miscalculations, but because internal maturityacross leadership, systems, and culturelags behind external ambitions. Scaling when this is present magnifies disorder, not value. This is what we call the growth trap: a condition where external growth initiatives overwhelm internal capacity, suppressing returns and elongating the value creation timeline, ultimately delaying or decreasing returns. For private equity firms seeking faster time-to-scale and stronger exit readiness, avoiding this trap requires one critical shift: treat internal capability as the foundation for growthnot a post-acquisition fix. I. The Anatomy of the Growth Trap The growth trap isnt caused by ambitionits caused by misalignment. In dozens of post-acquisition performance reviews, we observed a consistent pattern of dysfunctions that emerge when growth outpaces infrastructure: Premature Expansion: Companies rush into new markets or product lines without conducting thorough due diligence or assessing the organizational impact. Operational Inefficiencies: Existing processes, often adequate for smaller operations, become bottlenecks as the company scales. Lack of standardized procedures, inadequate technology, and poor communication lead to operational chaos. Talent Gaps: Rapid growth exposes weaknesses in the talent pool. Existing employees may lack the skills or experience required for larger-scale operations. Recruitment and training lag behind expansion, leaving critical roles unfilled or filled with underqualified individuals. Culture Shock: Growth triggers significant cultural shifts that are often underestimated. Existing cultures can be disrupted, resulting in employee resistance, decreased morale, and a decline in productivity. Data consistently shows that organizational culture is not a soft factor but a core driver of business performance and growth. McKinseys Organizational Health Index further revealed that companies with healthy cultures deliver shareholder returns 60% higher than their peers and are more resilient during transformational change. Leadership Deficiencies: Leadership is the top internal determinant of a firms performance. Leaders may struggle to adapt their management style to the demands of a larger, more complex organization. This can lead to a lack of strategic direction, poor decision-making, and an inability to drive change. II. How Private Equity Can Learn to Architect Scalable Growth The good news: private equity firms can insure the operating company is uniquely positioned to intervene early, structure operational discipline, and drive scalability as a value lever. Rather than seeing talent and systems as post-close cleanup, the most effective firms approach internal optimization as a precondition for external expansion. Below is a four-part playbook to prevent or reverse the growth trapone that places people, process, and leadership at the center of value creation. We have implemented this strategy with business leaders that plan to scale to ensure the company is ready for growth. 1. Culture Change as a Strategic Imperative: Recognize that scaling is a significant change management effort, not just a transaction. Implement structured change management programs that address employee concerns and build buy-in. Foster a culture of accountability, transparency, and continuous improvement. 2. Right People, Right Roles: Conduct thorough organizational assessments to identify talent gaps and define clear roles and responsibilities. Invest in talent acquisition and development programs to build a high-performing team. Implement performance management systems that align individual goals with organizational objectives. 3. Operational Excellence: Streamline and standardize processes to improve efficiency and reduce costs. Invest in technology that supports scalability and automation. Implement robust data analytics to monitor performance and identify areas for improvement. 4. Strategic Leadership: Provide leadership coaching and development to equip executives with the skills needed to manage a larger organization. Foster a culture of strategic thinking and data-driven decision-making. Ensure clear communication and alignment across all levels of the organization. III. Case studies in transformation Here are a few examples of how our strategic partnerships can support growth. Case Study 1: Operational Discipline Drives Margin Expansion in Residential Construction A $50M portfolio company in the housing sector had ambitions to double revenue within five years. Initial efforts to scale via geographic expansion quickly exposed deep inefficienciesmanual scheduling systems, undocumented workflows, and informal project tracking. Operational leadership halted expansion efforts and implemented a scalable operations framework: documented and aligned operational processes and procedures, established a decision making framework on go/no go work, developed a KPI dashboard and standardized billable time and project tracking mechanisms. A new organizational design was rolled out to expand in multi-region rollouts. Within 12 months, operational waste dropped, top-line revenue grew, and margins improved, setting the stage for accelerated yet sustainable growth. Case Study 2: Culture Integration in a $1B Construction Firm A construction portfolio company scaling from $200M to $1B through acquisition faced significant cultural turbulence. Top talent exited due to unclear roles and shifting norms. Productivity dipped despite rising demand. Recognizing culture as a performance variable, the operators introduced a dedicated integration officer and initiated quarterly culture pulse surveys across acquired units. A “culture blueprint” was developed and shared through onboarding and leadership workshops. Within nine months, employee engagement scores rose and project delivery timelines improved, aligning performance with scale. Case Study 3: Scalable Leadership in a Bank Growing to $5B in Assets A regional bank executing a roll-up strategy grew from 800 to 3,000+ employees and from under $500M to $5B in assets in five years. Despite strong top-line growth, internal systems and leadership infrastructure struggled to keep pace. Operations implemented a focus on people, process, and technology integration. A shared operating model, “Shared Success, Shared Failure,” was adopted for each acquisition.The result: unified reporting lines, reduced duplication, and a shared cultural identity that anchored the business through hyper-growth. Case Study 4: Strategic Joint Ventures in Electrical Fabrication An electrical fabrication firm in the industrial services sector aimed to expand via joint ventures but lacked process rigor and alignment. Integration efforts stalled as internal teams were unclear on ownership, accountability, and delivery standards. Through a post-investment diagnostic, the operator firm uncovered structural issues in project ownership and communication. A centralized Project Management Office was created, roles were clarified, and joint venture integration playbooks were deployed. The company improved 25% in on-time project delivery within three quarters, unlocking the next wave of JV opportunities. IV. The takeaways For Private Equity Investors: Diligence Beyond the Deck: Evaluate internal readinessnot just market potentialduring diligence. Ask: Can the current systems, people, and leadership model handle 2x scale? Value Creation = Infrastructure + Strategy: True value creation doesnt begin at revenue accelerationit begins with operational predictability. People as Assets: View top talent not just as cost centers but as scale enablers. Investing in leadership often yields higher ROI than bolt-ons. For Portfolio Company Leaders: Build Before You Scale: Rushing growth without aligning structure will burn resources and reputation. Dedicate time and budget to organizational development as a proactive strategy. Make Culture Explicit: Dont let culture drift during scale. Define, document, and live the behaviors that will carry the organization forward. Train Leaders for Tomorrow: Your leadership team must evolve alongside the company. Equip them now to manage complexity later. Prioritize Culture: For all involved, prioritizing culture leads to better financial performance and outcomes. Studies show that when PE-backed firms prioritize culture, they see up to 2.3 times better financial performance and 25% higher first-year post-acquisition results when using experienced integration specialists to bridge cultural gaps. V. A Real and Present Danger The growth trap is a real and present danger for midsize companies. By understanding the underlying causes of this phenomenon and implementing an integrated strategy that prioritizes people, processes, and leadership, private equity firms can unlock significant value and drive sustainable growth. The key is to recognize that scaling is not just about increasing revenue; it’s about building a strong, resilient organization that can thrive in a dynamic market. By focusing on internal optimization, PE firms can insure their portfolio companies have a dedicated partner to avoid the growth trap and realize their full potential.
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E-Commerce
To understand how artificial intelligence is starting to shape the built environment, look at the ceiling inside Mt. Hope Elementary School in Lansing, Michigan. There, running across the tops of classrooms and hallways are thousands of feet of exposed metal electrical conduitthe tubing that holds the electrical guts of the building. This tubing runs through the entire school, bringing power exactly where it’s needed. And for the first time in the U.S., this electrical system was designed completely by AI. The AI company Augmenta created the tool that designed the electrical system. It uses a combination of machine learning and a deep background in electrical engineering to streamline the process of wiring up buildings. Augmenta cofounder and CEO Francesco Iorio says that in the growing sea of AI design tools being applied to architecture and construction, few are focusing so specifically on the complex inner workings of buildings. “It is not new that people use generative and artificial intelligence technologies for simple things like floor planning, making sure that the facade looks good, or for shape exploration, massing, and that sort of stuff,” he says. “This is the very first time artificial intelligence designed a piece of critical infrastructure.” While AI has made most of its splash in the digital realm through uses like chatbots and virtual assistants, the technology is also increasingly seen as a new paradigm for the design and construction of buildings. Architects were quick to glom on to AI’s image-creation and design-iteration abilities, and some have even turned AI into the basis for their entire architectural practice. But AI-designed buildings are still off on the horizon. For now, AI tools are bringing automation into more mundane, yet critical, parts of building design. [Photo: courtesy Augmenta] Why AI-designed electrical systems make sense Iorio says AI is an ideal tool to address the haphazard nature of designing electrical systems for buildings. Despite their essential role in making buildings work, electrical systems are often among the last parts of a building to get a detailed design. “Mechanical systems and plumbing systems generally take priority in terms of the space inside buildings,” Iorio says. “Electricians are actually left to last, and essentially have to just figure it out and fit everything they need to fit inside the building.” [Photo: courtesy Augmenta] Augmenta’s generative design tool analyzes the design of the entire building, from its architecture to its mechanical and plumbing systems, and uses those parameters to formulate a more detailed design for the electrical system that complies with building codes. Instead of electricians coming to a building site after the plumbing and mechanical systems have been installed, Augmenta allows the electrical system to be formulated alongside those parts of the building that usually get constructed first. [Photo: courtesy Augmenta] More speed, less waste The tool adds a level of precision to the material side of this work that speeds up construction. With highly detailed measurements of conduit lines, bends in those tubes, and connection points to outlets and breaker boxes throughout the building, Augmenta’s electrical system design can plug directly into automated tools that cut and bend conduit to exact specifications. Iorio says the design of the Mt. Hope Elementary electrical system took only about two-thirds of the time it would have taken to design manually, and also reduced material waste by 15%. “There are really multifaceted advantages that this technology brings to the industry overall. This is just the tip of the iceberg,” he says. Augmenta’s tools are being used to design electrical systems for other large-scale and commercial projects, from hospitals to data centers to manufacturing facilities, but Mt. Hope Elementary is the first project to actually come to completion. “For us, it’s very heartwarming that the first project is a school,” Iorio says. The school has used the electrical system to do more than just keep the lights on. The design called for parts of the electrical conduit and other building systems to remain uncovered by drywall and visible within classrooms. “They are using the systems as a teaching tool,” Iorio says. “It’s showing the kids that this is how a building works.”
Category:
E-Commerce
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