jon@cedarwaveholdings.com
Stewarding culture from the inside out.
Culture shows up in your financial performance in countless ways - from talent recruitment and retention, to productivity, to the customer experience, and everything in between. Yet there is no greater responsibility of a leader than to foster an environment where people can thrive. Stewarding culture with as much intentionality as we do our business strategy and our financial capital is one of the privileges - and responsibilities - of leadership.
I have spent the last decade building and leading cultures that are authentic, values-oriented, and resilient. I know what it takes to start them, refine them, and scale them, so that you attract and retain the right people.
I also know how hard it can be. You don't have to do it alone.
Our world is rapidly shifting beneath our feet. We know that AI will help us accomplish many things, driving our businesses forward and widening our capabilities. But it cannot build a culture, refine a culture, or sustain a culture.
If this is your work, and you care about doing it with excellence, you need someone alongside you.
Someone who has been there before and who knows the way.
Jon is a proven executive leader, entrepreneur, and culture builder. He spent nearly a decade as a founding team member at Simple Modern, a bootstrapped drinkware company he helped scale from startup to over $150M in revenue. In serving as Chief Culture Officer, he was responsible for building and sustaining an award-winning culture, widely recognized for its values-based and out-of-the-box approach. During this period, he made 100+ hires, scaled headcount by +200%, and led all people operations through a transformative stretch of rapid, sustained growth.
Prior to Simple Modern, Jon spent years in the financial sector, most notably at RiskMetrics Group where he experienced the full business lifecycle: VC funding, IPO, and eventual acquisition by MSCI for $1.6 billion. As another values-based, culture-first organization, those years were instrumental in learning how companies evolve, and knowing what it takes to scale with integrity.
Jon brings this operator's perspective to his work. Through real experience in stewarding both financial capital and human capital, Jon understands the tensions of creating a healthy culture in a sustainable way.
But despite the success and tangible results, Jon knows firsthand how this can be quiet work. It is cultivated behind the scenes, often unnoticed, but carries incredible significance - felt by everyone from executive leadership to each individual contributor. Jon carries that humble approach into this work as a guide and a confidant, helping you drive culture that is true to your story and uniquely your own.
Every organization is somewhere on the journey. This work meets you where you are.
Cedar Wave Advisory works with a small number of leaders at a time, by design. If you're curious whether this might be the right fit, the best next step is a conversation – there is no obligation and no sales pitch. We would simply love the opportunity to explore whether we can help.
Engagements operate on a month-to-month retainer. No long-term contract required.