Croixstone Consulting Turns “5”

We are celebrating!  Founded by Patti Weber and Mark Weber in 2016, Croixstone Consulting celebrates its fifth business anniversary this month.  Launched in a loft in Charlotte’s South End neighborhood with the aspiration to provide a highly-differentiated business model in management consulting, Croixstone has grown rapidly thanks to the deep expertise, talents and support of our consulting team, internal staff and partners/supporters.

As all entrepreneurs understand, the art of the start-up is filled with times of both great exhilaration and sleepless nights (hello global pandemic)!  We are fortunate in that our five-year ride at Croixstone has been one of tremendous positivity. 

Here are some of our favorite special moments over the past 5 years. 

  • Launch:  Croixstone began operations in June 2016 in Loft 309 in the former Lance Crackers building on South Boulevard in Charlotte’s booming South End neighborhood.
  • Hello Uptown:  Croixstone relocated from the start-up loft to the new Industrious Charlotte Uptown co-working community in the Bank of America Plaza tower at Trade & Tryon in December 2017.
  • TABL:  Croixstone introduced TABL, the firm’s unique culinary team building experience, with a playful social media launch in January 2018.
  • New Practice Area:  Croixstone announced the launch of its new human capital solutions practice and a new executive search offering in June 2019.
  • FORTUNE Magazine:  Croixstone announced in May 2020 that Patti Weber (CEO) had been accepted as part of a competitive application process into FORTUNE magazine’s Rebuild Program that was inspired in response to the global pandemic.
  • Hello NoDa:  Croixstone relocated into larger offices in the newly-opened Industrious Charlotte NoDa co-working community in June 2020.
  • Supplier Diversity Certification:  Croixstone received national certification in July 2020 as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) by the Greater Women’s Business Council, a regional certifying partner of the Women’s Enterprise National Council (WBENC).
  • Accelerated Growth:  Croixstone announced in January 2021 that Patti Weber (CEO) was one of 25 women across the USA accepted in the NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners) Accelerated Growth Program sponsored by Wells Fargo.
  • Forty Over 40:  Croixstone’s CEO Patti Weber was named as a “Forty Over 40” award recipient by The Charlotte Ledger in May 2021.

Consulting Industry Insights: Restructurings & Turnarounds

The global pandemic has fueled an increase in consulting engagements focused on restructurings and turnarounds over the past 15 months.  In its May 2021 newsletter, BDO Consulting Group published the below informative chart highlighting U.S. corporate bankruptcies with debt greater than $10MM by industry.  Interestingly, approximately 40% of the 302 bankruptcies filings were in two industries:  1)  Oil & Gas and 2) Retail & Consumer Products.

Source:  BDO Consulting Group, LLC, Debtwire Restructuring Database
* Includes companies with at least $10 million in funded debt

So what are the common restructuring and turnaround services that consulting firms like Croixstone offer?  As published in a recent article by Consultancy.eu, these services include: 

  • Diagnosing the problem:  Identifying drivers for the crisis, stage & severity of crisis
  • Stabilizing operations:  Managing short-term liquidity & working capital concerns
  • Cost efficiency & austerity strategies:  Evaluating business needs for cost-cutting measures; designing & implementing austerity plans
  • Procurement cost reduction:  Analyzing contracted spend & redesigning & renegotiating contracts
  • Business model innovation:  Rethinking operating & core business models, value creation & enhancement
  • Divestiture strategies:  Offloading non-performing business units, distressed segments, portfolios, etc.
  • Organizational effectiveness:  Streamlining resources; revamping processes & business segments; interim C-level deployment
  • Change management:  Developing change implementation plans to ensure minimal people disruption

The Rise of the PORTFOLIO Career

Much like COVID-19 has accelerated the pace of digital transformation, future of work experts are seeing a rise in the pervasiveness of professionals with “portfolio careers.”

Ben Legg is an engineer, serial CEO of global digital businesses, former COO of Google Europe, and former McKinsey consultant.  He believes the portfolio career is a continuation of the automation of work and is here to stay. 

Croixstone’s business model is built around our deep understanding of the portfolio professional.  So what is a portfolio career? 

  • A portfolio career isn’t reliant on a single source of income.
  • Income is derived from serving multiple clients that might include project work, consulting engagements, interim roles and/or board roles.
  • Unlike a “gig economy worker,” a portfolio career is thoughtfully put together and is focused on offering differentiated services in order to maximize earnings.

Learn more about portfolio career insights from Ben Legg.


Management Consulting Factoids + Trends

The team at ReportLinker (a tech-driven market research firm) has published a new report entitled “Management Consulting Services Global Market 2021:  COVID-19 Impact and Recovery to 2030.”  Highlights of the report include:

  • The global management consulting services market is expected to grow from $819.79 billion in 2020 to $895.46 billion in 2021.
  • This represents a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.2%.
  • The market is expected to reach $1201.06 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 8%.
  • While COVID-19 constrained growth in the industry in 2020, it is expected that management consulting will recover from the shock.

Learn more here.


New Year. New Possibilities.

Isn’t it terrific that we get the opportunity every year to hit the “reset” button? A fresh start.  A new runway to consider the possibilities to reimagine your life, your career and your personal growth in the year ahead.

Croixstone is launching into 2021 following a year of significant achievements where we:  

  • Celebrated our 4th business anniversary
  • Achieved record sales
  • Marked the 1-year anniversary of our Human Capital practice
  • Expanded our geographic service footprint to the western USA
  • Earned two national diversity certifications & one state diversity certification
  • Gained acceptance into FORTUNE Magazine’s new “Rebuild Program”
  • Introduced a new suite of services for Private Equity
  • Relocated to a larger office in Charlotte’s NoDa district
  • Launched a virtual series of professional development & networking events

While recognizing the continued health and economic challenges facing our nation, the Croixstone team is excited to build on last year’s momentum in making the most of 2021 together with our employees, clients, partners, friends and family.

Let’s go.


Get to Know ESG!

ESG is seemingly in conversations everywhere in the business world these days. The letters ESG are short for “environmental, social and governance.”

Simply stated, ESG refers to the three central factors in measuring the sustainability and societal impact of an investment in a company or business. These criteria help to better determine the future financial performance of companies.

KPMG believes that acting on ESG issues was important before the global pandemic and will be even more important after it.  And McKinsey states, “Your business, like every business, is deeply intertwined with environmental, social, and governance (ESG) concerns.  It makes sense, therefore, that a strong ESG proposition can create value…”

Today’s business leaders need to have an understanding of ESG factors to create value for both their companies and shareholders. 

Learn five ways that ESG creates value via McKinsey.



Reimagine Your Organization

Now is the time to imagine + build a better company. But how do you thoughtfully create + build impactful + lasting organizational change?

As current business conditions continue to flex and change, now is the time for leaders to recognize that the “next new normal” will require team and agile organizations with the right people in the right places to drive the results. 

Join global business leader Beth Stolarick, founder of Prism Leadership Partners and a senior consultant in Croixstone’s human capital practice, for an interactive, 60-minute Zoom video meeting. Beth is a global human capital leader who has worked across multiple industry sectors and has driven organizational transformation in companies ranging from $1.7B to $55B in revenue. 

You Will Learn the Following

  • How to craft a roadmap to reimagine and transform your organization
  • Tips for strategic communication planning
  • Best practices to drive impactful and lasting organizational change

Event Details

  • Cost: Register for free with Eventbrite registration
  • Registration Deadline: 5pm EDT on Monday, July 6
  • Zoom Log-In Info: Is available via Eventbrite’s “online event page” and will be sent to each registrant in a “Know Before You Go” email to be delivered the night before the event.

So How Is The Labor Market Looking?

Given our connectivity with middle market and large corporations across the greater Charlotte region, the Croixstone team is asked this question almost every day.

Our answer?  It’s simple.
The story varies greatly based on education level attained.

As of May 2020, the unemployment rate for those with a Bachelors degree or higher was significantly lower than the 15.0% rate for high school graduates with no college degree:

  • Bachelors Degree:  8.4%
  • Masters Degree:  5.6%
  • Professional Degree:  5.9%
  • Doctoral Degree:  3.5% 

Keep in mind that economists have long believed that the overall economy is at “full employment” at a rate of around 5%.

Based on our understanding of these rates and ongoing discussions with c-suite leaders, the Croixstone team believes ample career opportunities continue to exist for highly-educated professionals in today’s workforce.

That said, the market is certainly more competitive in 2020 than the past several years.  For that reason, professionals in career transition mode are wise to focus on their personal branding and professional networking strategies to ensure a competitive edge. 


Patti Weber, Croixstone’s CEO, joins FORTUNE’s Rebuild Program.

We are excited to announce that Patti Weber has been accepted into FORTUNE magazine’s new Rebuild Program. Introduced by FORTUNE on May 4, 2020, the Rebuild Program helps small business owners to tackle today’s pressing challenges.

As a leader in the program, Patti will participate in six weekly virtual conversations, featuring industry consultants and experts and moderated by FORTUNE editors.  Accepted as part of a competitive application process, Patti will participate in the program with leaders from other U.S.-based companies with fewer than 500 employees. 

Learn more here.