Leadership in the Messy Middle

About the Host

Advise Me was founded in 2019 to support startups and small businesses at the moments where growth gets real—and messy. The business grew out of my own career path and a simple truth I’ve seen over and over again: early-stage companies don’t fail because of a lack of talent or ideas, they struggle because systems, people, and leadership aren’t aligned yet. My “40 years in a nutshell” starts with the $64 million question: are leaders born or made? In my case, I was born with it. I’ve always been the person people came to for advice, clarity, and problem-solving. That instinct initially led me into education. I earned my undergraduate degree and master’s in education and psychology and spent five years in the New York City public school system. While I loved the people, I quickly realized I was spending more time on paperwork and bureaucracy than actually helping humans grow.That realization pushed me into operations. I joined a retail company in New York City and spent over a decade helping scale the business building teams, systems, processes, and infrastructure from the ground up. Over ten years, I helped grow the company through multiple stages, including an eventual acquisition, learning firsthand how people, operations, and leadership intersect under pressure. In 2019, I launched Advise Me as a fractional and consulting-based business so I could bring all of those skills together. Since then, I’ve partnered with more than 40 startups and small businesses, supporting everything from People Operations and HR to organizational development, fundraising support, leadership coaching, and overall business growth. Advise Me allows me to wear many hats, solve real problems, and meet companies where they are. I’d rather be over-utilized than under-utilized and that mindset is at the core of how I work.