Advisor & Operating Partner
I advise and operate alongside Founders,
CEOs, Boards and leadership teams at the
altitude where the real decisions get made.
The practice
Most advice comes from people who have only studied decisions. Mine comes with a P&L behind it and judgment from someone who has actually made the calls and lived with the outcome.
When the next stage depends on getting the big calls right, AI is rewriting the model, a leadership gap has opened, or a turnaround can't wait, I step in and run it. Name the real problem, set a clear direction, and execute a path the whole company can move on, not just a deck that gathers dust.
A trusted partner on the highest-stakes calls. I pressure-test the hard decisions, steady the room under pressure and stay close enough to the work to be useful and actionable. It's the difference between advice you have to translate and a partner who has already made the call you're facing.
When the hardest calls reach your desk or the team escalates every decision, you need a partner in your corner. Unlike traditional coaching, I act as a thought partner, confidante and counselor that helps build a team which doesn't need you in every decision. You can lead the company, not referee it.
Where my work lands best: advertising, marketing and creative agencies; consultancies and professional-services firms; founder-led startups and small-to-mid-sized businesses; private-equity firms and their portfolio companies; AI-driven ventures now reshaping all of them.
Judgment earned across full turnarounds, growth-stage
scaling, and the calls that don't come with a second try.
Trusted in the room
RJ has a rare instinct for knowing where a business needs to go next. I've watched him lead big, small and everything in between with a strategic, thoughtful and operationally sound approach. He's straight with you, steady under pressure and genuinely invests in seeing others win.Board Chair & President
I'm very selective with who I put in front of my clients. When we needed to make a critically important agency decision, I turned to RJ as I trust his experience and ability to listen carefully and get to the heart of complex and sensitive issues with clarity and honesty. His guidance helped my client make a hard call with a high degree of confidence.Co-Founder
RJ has a rare ability to see both the numbers and the people behind them. He understands where the real leverage is in a business, where the drag is, and what the numbers are telling you about the organization. Just as importantly, he'll tell you when you're avoiding the decision you already know you need to make. I've come to rely on that perspective. What sets RJ apart, though, is that he's always thinking beyond the immediate problem – about who's being developed, what capability is being built, and whether the solution will hold once he's no longer in the room. That combination of judgment, candor, and long-term thinking is rare. Working with RJ has raised my own bar.Managing Partner & CFO
References available on request.
About
Over the past 20+ years, I've run companies as CEO, served on boards, worked with founders and operated inside executive teams leading full turnarounds, scaling businesses quickly, and now pioneering in the AI space as a founding partner. Along the way I learned that the hardest part of growth is rarely the strategy. It's the nerve to act and the leadership to carry it through.
That's the work I do now: operating alongside leadership teams at the altitude where the real decisions and execution happen. What separates me from the crowded field is simple: I've sat in the seat and my advice comes with P&Ls and execution to back it up.
Connect on LinkedInConnect
Tell me what you're wrestling with. I only take on a few engagements at a time, so we'll start with a short, no-pitch conversation to see whether it's a good fit.
Prefer email? info@rjhilgers.com