Bruce Eckfeldt | Strategic Business Coach

INC.500 CEO TO STRATEGIC BUSINESS COACH

Strategic Coach to CEOs and Leadership Teams Seeking Predictable Growth | Inc 500 Founder & CEO | Inc. Author | Podcast Host | Retreat Facilitator

View fullsize As a business coach, I spend a lot of time with company leaders planning growth and developing strategy. A key part of this process is establishing the fundamentals for why an organization exists and how it chooses to do business. This step includes
View fullsize One of the programs I love running is manager training for early-stage companies. We cover how to manage yourself, your people, your projects, and your teams. Feeling those startup growing pains? That might be a sign it's time to level-up your leade
View fullsize This was last summer in a beaver, heading out to a remote section of Alaska to fish with my two older sons. I've learned that, sometimes, the best way to level up your leadership skills is to swap the suit for hiking boots and venture into the wild.
View fullsize As a strategic business coach, one of my main goals is to level up the performance of the senior leadership team. There are many models and frameworks I use to assess team behavior and performance. Each of them has pros and cons in different situati
View fullsize Want to take your team's dynamic to the next level? I'm planning immersive executive retreats in several vibrant cities this year. It's more than just meetings – we'll explore local hotspots, break out of our comfort zones, and discover hidden
View fullsize Sometimes the best strategy sessions happen far from the boardroom. This weekend, I swapped my laptop for hiking boots and took my biggest business challenges to the trails. Turns out, nature is a brilliant problem-solver. The tangled roots mirrorin
View fullsize As a strategic leadership coach, one of my key jobs is to help increase the leadership capacity of the organization so we can grow and scale the business. The easiest way to do that is to level up the current executives and managers to handle bigger
View fullsize You might think that with a market capitalization now of over $1.1 trillion, Apple owns the vast majority of the smartphone market. Logical, but wrong. In fact, Apple had under 25 percent of the total handhelds shipped for most of 2019 and was actual
View fullsize Embarking on a journey to explore new countries isn't just about stamping your passport; it's a masterclass in adaptability, cultural intelligence, and global leadership. As an executive coach, I've found that each new destination offers not only bre
View fullsize Scaling mountains with friends isn't just an adventure; it's a metaphor for life and leadership. As an executive coach, I see every peak as a goal, every steep path as a challenge to overcome, and every successful summit as a shared victory. Climbing
View fullsize As a strategic coach, I've run many dozens of strategy sessions with businesses of all types and sizes. From early-stage startups who just closed their first round of financing to growth companies with hundreds of millions in financing and poised to
View fullsize In the bustling world of leadership and executive coaching, where deadlines and targets often take center stage, it's easy to forget the simple joy of celebrating and having fun with our professional friends. Yet, it's these moments of laughter and s
View fullsize Diving into the wilderness isn't just an escape from the daily grind; it's a deep dive into the heart of what it means to lead, grow, and thrive. As an executive coach, I often draw parallels between the untamed beauty of the natural world and the jo
View fullsize As a strategic coach, I spend a lot of time working with leadership teams on strategy and accountability. My job is to help a team develop and agree to a set of priorities and actions, and then to drive the commitment and accountability process for i
View fullsize Diving into the world of podcasting has been an unexpected masterclass in leadership and communication. As an executive coach, sharing insights through this medium has not only expanded my reach but also deepened my understanding of what it means to
View fullsize Navigating the path to leadership and personal growth often means charting a course through the unexplored territories of our own potential. Yet, sometimes, the most insightful journeys begin with a simple step outside, into the great expanse of natu
View fullsize As an executive strategic coach, I've worked with hundreds of CEOs and senior executives, focusing on strategy and building high-performance executive teams. My job is to help teams find a way to differentiate themselves in their market and then buil
View fullsize In the realm of leadership development, who said all lessons must come from conferences and seminars? Sometimes, the most impactful insights are gleaned through the joy and strategy of playing games. Yes, games! From board games to outdoor team activ
View fullsize Not all of the work that I do is in conference rooms and business centers. This was Moab UT last fall working with a group of men on leadership and adventure. Slack lining, BASE jumping, and canyoneering for a few days. Getting out of the boardroom a
View fullsize As a strategic coach, I spend the bulk of my time with CEOs and leadership teams of high-growth companies, helping them set strategic goals and driving accountability on execution. Again and again, I see these companies struggle with finding the righ

Follow me on Instagram

Coaching Certifications

  • Certified Scaling Up Coach

  • Certified 3HAG/Metronomics Coach

  • Lean/Agile and SCRUM Coach

  • Predictive Index (PI) Certified Consultant

  • FRC Certified Flow Coach

Expertise Highlights

  • Strategic Planning and Roadmapping

  • Lean/Agile Software and Development

  • Leadership Team Development/Coaching

  • Multinational and Virtual/Distributed Teams

  • Social Sector and B-Corp Organizations

Career Highlights

  • 5X Inc 5000/500 Award Founder/CEO

  • Two degrees in Architecture from McGill University in Montreal

  • Entrepreneurs’ Organization leadership over a decade

  • Inc.com author weekly contributor since 2017

  • Podcast Founder and Host

Industry Experiences and Focus

  • Professional Services and Consulting

  • Software Development and SAS Products

  • Education and Learning Services

  • Financial Services and Technologies

  • Real Estate Development and Management

  • Creative/Design Services and Fashion

  • Cannabis/Hemp/CBD Products/Services

“One of the primary jobs of every CEO is to drive the strategic planning process, ensuring the company has defined an effective differentiated market position that is communicated throughout the organization.”

Connect with me on LinkedIn

  • 200+ Inc.com articles posted

  • Over 26K connections

  • Regular content on Leadership and Business Strategy

  • 50+ recommendations

My Purpose

Empowering leaders with the tools and insights they need to transform their vision into actionable strategies, embrace bold innovations, and guide their businesses towards sustainable and predictable success.

Let’s Book a Call!

Let’s talk more about your business, your business goals and challenges, and how we can break through them together.

Inspired Leadership

My experience as a Founder and Inc. 500 CEO gives me firsthand knowledge of the pressures of leadership and allows me to uniquely understand and personally connect with other leaders

Adventurous Spirit

My personal value of adventure, along with a history of setting big, audacious goals and pushing limits, makes adventure a core value. It's about leveraging risks, venturing into the unknown.

Architectural Mindset

Rooted in my background as an architect, I approach every challenge with precision and accuracy, crafting innovative blueprints with elegant solutions that have meaning and purpose.

Strategic Innovation

As a reflection of my ability to apply abstract design thinking to business strategy, I value time-tested, proven business principles that drive innovative solutions pushing boundaries.

Disciplined Execution

As a founder and CEO, I understand the importance of actionable insights. While I am a strategist at heart, I value practical and actionable strategies that move the business forward.

System Thinking

I apply a Systems Thinking approach to business strategy and growth, seeing every decision as part of a more extensive interconnected network of actions and decisions that impact and drive each other.

The foundation of any high-performance team is the web of individual relationships. A team composed of individuals who know each other as people, appreciate their unique strengths and weaknesses and know about each other's personal histories and lived experiences will have the connective tissue in place to weather any storm.

My Journey

School of Architecture, McGill University

Studying architecture taught me design thinking and how to solve complex problems with elegant solutions while meeting functional and programmatic requirements.

Product Strategist and Engagement Manager

Leveraging my design skills I transitioned to product design and digital business strategy working with companies such as Motorola, WebMD, Pfizer, and Prada.

Founder and CEO

In 2003, I founded a Lean/Agile software development agency that worked with dozens of mid-market companies on major system integration and core business applications. We listed the firm on the Inc 500/5000 list five years in a row, and I sold the company in 2013.

Fractional CEO/COO Executive

After selling my company, I worked with several high-growth companies as a fractional/interim CEO and COO, working on business strategy, building out leadership teams, and developing innovative products and services.

Certified ScalingUp and Metronomics/3HAG Coach

In 2017, I became a certified ScalingUp strategic coach, and in 2018, I became a certified Metronomics/3HAG coach.

Predictive Index & Flow Research Collective

I also joined Predictive Index as a certified consultant. And in 2023, I completed two coaching programs with the Flow Research Collective. I hold several other certifications in Lean/Agile, coaching, project management, and organizational development.

Founder and Host of Multiple Podcasts

In 2019, I launched Scaling Up Service, a podcast focused on growing service businesses. I also launched Thinking Outside the Bud, which focuses on the cannabis industry. And in 2022, I partnered with a venture capital firm to focus on the emerging psychedelic industry. In 2023 I recorded my 1000th episode and all three podcasts are leaders in their industries.

Partner/Advisor, Director of Programming at
Wilder Retreats

In 2023, I joined Wilder Retreats as an advisor and lead programming and facilitation services. I work with clients to develop program objectives and agendas, I facilitate meetings and workshops, and I develop curriculum focused on team building, leadership development, and strategic planning.

Professional Highlights

After graduating from McGill University in Montreal with two degrees in Architecture, Bruce transitioned to digital product development early in his career, where he worked as a product strategy consultant for companies such as WebMD, Prada, the Department of Defense, and Motorola. In 2003, he founded Cyrus Innovation, one of the first Lean/Agile consulting firms, and worked with companies such as Boeing, Kaplan Test Prep, Simon & Schuster, Eze Software, and The New York Times on product development and Lean/Agile transformation initiatives. Cyrus was an Inc 5000 honoree for five years in a row and placed #241 on the Inc 500 in 2009.

Bruce has been a member of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization since 2007 and has served in many chapters and regional leadership positions including Learning, Forum, and Accelerator. Bruce has served as the US East Regional Forum Expert and the US East Regional Accelerator Expert.

Personal Highlights

Born in Philadelphia, Bruce and his family moved to Minnesota when he was four. Growing up in Minnesota fueled his love for nature and the outdoors. As an athlete throughout high school and college, Bruce competed in rowing, cross country skiing, biathlon (shooting and skiing), and triathlon. He completed his first marathon cross country ski race at 18, first of four marathons at age 19, and completed an Ironman triathlon in 2003. Outside of competitive sports, Bruce has climbed to the top of Kilimanjaro, dove the Coral Sea off Australia, and hiked the Tour du Mont Blanc. He’s traveled extensively and has visited six of the seven continents. Bruce is also an avid freshwater and saltwater fly fisherman. He is a father of four young children and lives in New York City.