Bill has over 35 years of experience in managing and advising closely held middle market companies. Therefore, he brings substantial real-world skills as an advisor to owners who wish to either transition out of their businesses or to implement value building growth strategies. Bill has significant expertise in marketing and strategic planning with particular emphasis on manufacturing businesses. He has completed over twenty M&A transactions both as an advisor and as a business owner.

Bill has spent most of his career in manufacturing companies supplying the automotive and industrial markets with highly engineered technical products. He held management and senior executive level positions with five separate companies ranging in size from over $100 million to $500 million. In the early 90's Bill was part of an owner-management group in a $35 million automotive supplier business. He was instrumental in implementing a strategic plan that dramatically increased sales and profit margins. Through internal sales growth and a series of acquisitions, the company grew to $170 million and was subsequently sold to a strategic buyer.

Bill is a founding partner of and has led the development of tailored advisory services for business owners in the Lower Middle Market segment.

Bill is active member of his community serving on the Board of Directors of the Charlevoix Area Humane Society as well as an advisor to various local entrepreneurial initiatives.

Bill graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in Business Administration and served four years as an Officer in the United States Navy prior to launching his business career.

Jim has a business career spanning 30 years in technology and business to business services sectors. His experience includes management and executive leadership roles large publicly traded companies including Control Data Corporation, ROLM Telecommunications, IBM, Siemens, and Norstan Communications, a high-tech systems integrator. He also held executive roles at smaller, privately held firms including SPS Commerce, an internet-based electronic data interchange company, and QCI Consulting, a network consulting firm. In 2002 he founded White Cedar Group, a merger and acquisition consulting firm. In 2005 he co-founded .

Jim's breadth of career experiences allows him to bring great value to middle market companies. His early experience was in sales, marketing and distribution of technology products to companies of all sizes and industries. As an executive in publicly traded and privately held corporations, Jim held P&L responsibilities in communications equipment, computer services and Internet Service Provider Companies. He has been responsible for the performance of business units as large as 1500 employees and $350 Million in revenues, high technology startups, and numerous assignments in between. Over his career, Jim has led numerous successful middle market M&A transactions, nationally as well as internationally. His consulting experience has included engagements in business strategy, sales and marketing strategy, performance management, customer service, process re-engineering, and M&A advisory services.

Jim served 11 years as an officer in the United States Air Force, where he was a decorated combat fighter pilot. He holds a BA in economics from Wittenberg University, an MA from Central Michigan University in management theory, and an MBA from the University of Michigan, specializing in marketing. He is active in the community of Frankfort, Michigan, serving as Treasurer of the Willoughby Rotary Foundation, Secretary of the Board of Directors of the Friends of Point Betsie Lighthouse, and a member of the Board of Directors for the Crystal Downs Property Owners Association.

Kirk is a co-founder of . He works with a range of middle market businesses on issues related to strategy formulation and planning, value creation, exit planning, and mergers and acquisitions. Kirk's experience includes particular strengths in manufacturing, consumer products, professional services and high technology industries. Throughout his career and with , Kirk has brought creativity and broad business skills to assist business owners with their most challenging issues - growth, profitability, succession planning and achieving liquidity.

Kirk began his career with Arthur Andersen & Co.'s consulting division (now Accenture) in 1980. In 1987 he was a co-founder of Andersen's successful small and medium size enterprise consulting practice, serving as managing partner of the Michigan practice and national director of the firm's middle market manufacturing & consumer products consulting team. Projects for which he was personally responsible include strategic planning, cost management, process improvement, due diligence, merger integration, and numerous systems planning, selection and optimization engagements.

In 1998 Kirk started his own small business consulting firm. He has also owned, operated and sold small businesses, and serves on the board of directors for 2 middle market manufacturing companies and a community bank.

Kirk is active volunteer in community affairs, economic development and entrepreneur/business incubator programs.

Kirk received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics & Management and Computational Mathematics from Albion College in 1980.