Cratons: Stability in a World of Change

Founding and launching a startup is not for the faint of heart.  As I reflect on my first few weeks as employee number one at Craton, I'm struck by the remarkable opportunity that I have each day to influence our business strategy and culture.  Prioritization in this dynamic environment is always against a broader backdrop of managing risk and reward, and it's far less challenging to force rank your priorities when your team shares a vision and set of values for the way you will do business.
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Craton's vision is to be a Montana force for global consulting good—to empower our clients and partners with strategic insights that fuel growth, and to advance economic and workforce development opportunities in our home state.

Our core values reflect our shared experience working with exceptional people—from a wide variety of backgrounds and from all corners of the world—and noting the characteristics that define them.

In geology, a craton is a stable, enduring part of Earth’s crust—unchanging despite external forces. At Craton Consulting, we believe there are similar foundational elements in both enterprise technology and talent development—principles that you can count on for long-term success. These "cratons" are our values, and we believe they are present at the core of every high-performing technology ecosystem:


    1.  INTEGRITY
      "Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one is watching." -C.S. Lewis
      Integrity forms the bedrock of every strong organization. In our work, we prioritize ethical decision-making and transparent communication with stakeholders, ensuring alignment and long-term success.
    2.  TRUST & TRANSPARENCY
      "It does not require many words to speak the truth." -Chief Joseph
      Open and honest communication creates transparency, which fosters trust within teams and with clients and partners.  We believe that clear, concise communication lays the foundation for successful collaboration. 
    3.  HARD WORK
      "I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it." -Thomas Jefferson
      Effort and dedication are non-negotiable.  Success stems from consistent hard work, even (especially) when the results aren't immediate.
    4.  PERSEVERANCE
      "Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts." -Winston Churchill
      Perseverance is about pushing through challenges and learning from them.  It's not about the absence of failure, but the persistence to keep going.
    5.  TEAMWORK & PARTNERSHIP
      "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." -African Proverb
      The most successful ventures are built on the strength of partnerships and collective effort, and they yield results that are greater than the sum of their parts... 1 + 1 = 3 !
    6.  KINDNESS
      "People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel." -Maya Angelou
      Kindness fosters connection, builds trust, and cultivates a positive culture.  In all of our engagements, we lead with kindness and mutual respect.
    7.  OPEN MIND
      "The measure of intelligence is the ability to change." -Albert Einstein
      Being adaptable and open to new ideas is critical in consulting and in life.  Leading with curiosity allows you to build genuine rapport and influence, seize greater opportunities, and deliver the most innovative results.
    8. AUTHENTICITY
      "Find out who you are and do it on purpose." -Dolly Parton
      Authenticity fosters genuine leadership and creates meaningful connections with others.  It is the backbone of company culture and crucial to talent development and retention.  We work with teams and leaders that recognize the value of diversity and empower employees to be their authentic selves. 
    9. GRATITUDE
      "What you focus on expands, and when you focus on the goodness in your life, you create more of it." -Oprah Winfrey
      One of the most powerful tools we have is our ability to set the tone in our life and our work.  Curating an abundance mentality centered in gratitude has a ripple effect that fosters positive growth and deepens connections with the world around us.
    10. HUMOR
      "Common sense and a sense of humor are the same thing, moving at different speeds. A sense of humor is just common sense, dancing." -William James
      A well-developed sense of humor is core to the art of great leadership.  It can motivate and reset the tone when unforeseen challenges arise.  Strive for excellence always but don't take yourself too seriously. 
Whether optimizing your Quote-to-Cash processes or building a talent development strategy, these principles remain constant. Like cratons, they provide the stable foundation for long-term success in times of disruption.

At Craton Consulting, we're committed to embodying these values in every project we undertake, ensuring that we deliver not just solutions, but a partnership built on a solid bedrock of shared principles.

Tom and I have made some big bets in our careers, and together, we know the conditions that seed innovative, best in class businesses. Craton can help you scale your strategy and execute on your vision, and we want to work organizations who believe that modern business must be a force for good in the world. If you want to learn more about our Operations as a Service, Company Formation, or Board and Advisory offerings, please reach out to me on LinkedIn or at [email protected]!

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