All Operational Problems Have a People Component.
We Solve Both.
You can see what's broken. The harder question is why the usual fixes don't hold.
We work with founders and senior leaders who are done guessing. We've been inside organizations like yours and we know what moves the needle.From getting your operations right to helping your team work better with AI, we make sure the people powering the work don't get left behind.
Find Your Starting Point
We work with founders and senior leaders at growing companies, usually 20 to 200 people, who can see the problem clearly but haven't been able to fix it for good. The four areas below aren't separate specialties. They're the four places we've seen that same underlying problem show up most often.One of these is probably yours. It's rarely just the system. It's rarely just the people. Let's solve both.
AI Enablement
The Leader Watching
AI Happen
You know your team is already using AI, with or without you. What you don't have is a deliberate approach, just a sense that it's happening to your organization instead of being led by it.
Coaching
The Founder Who’s Still
Holding It All Together
You built this business from the ground up. But now the team is growing, and you're still the go-to for too many things. You want to lead at a higher level but the day-to-day keeps pulling you back in.
Training
The Team That
Holds Back
Meetings are a drag, conversations happen twice: once in the room, then for real in the hallway (the meeting after the meeting). It can feel like the team is better at looking busy than working together.
Operations
The Business That
Needs a New Playbook
The demand is there, but the structure isn’t. You need better processes, clearer roles, and a team that can execute with confidence so your next phase of growth doesn’t collapse under its own weight.
Want the Full Picture?
Want to bring this to your team? Download our one-page overview of how we work.
Our Work, Their Words
"The Workplace Collaboration training with Karen and Brian has had an immediate and meaningful impact on all 90 members of the State Fair team. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, and the benefits continue to grow as we carry the work forward."Renee Alexander, CEO, Minnesota State Fair
The Pattern Holds:
400+ professionals trained
One client grew revenue 33% in 9 months
Every client has expanded our work together
That's what solving both sides of the problem looks like.
About Us
A few things we believe that most firms shy away from:
We don't advise. We sit at the table.
We teach human skills, not labels.
The work is only done when it runs without us.
Karen works with your people, what's driving them, what's holding them back, and what they need to hear to move forward. Brian works on your systems, your structure, and the operational gaps that keep the same problems coming back. Together, they bring a complete picture to every engagement. That's not how most firms work. It's exactly how we do.
Karen Knab
Executive Coach • Family Business Advisor • LMFT
Karen brings 20 years of experience as a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and certified executive coach. She works with leaders and teams on the conversations, dynamics, and development that determine whether an organization actually functions the way it's supposed to. Whether she's coaching founders, developing leadership teams, or building the communication skills that power collaboration, she works at the level where lasting change actually happens. Her background in family systems gives her a rare ability to see the relational patterns inside an organization that most advisors never think to look for.
Brian Hanley
Business Operations • Strategic Planning • Executive Advisor
Brian spent over 30 years running complex organizations before founding The Alignment Company. He has managed $100M+ budgets, led 500-person workforces, and delivered operational turnarounds across manufacturing and technology environments. His 20+ years leading enterprise technology gives him a grounded, practical perspective on what AI can and can't do for a growing business. He holds a Master's in Conflict Resolution. He knows what it takes to build systems that scale and has learned, from experience, that the systems only hold when the people inside them are aligned.