Aspen Strategy Group

CASE STUDIES

The work in practice.
Results that speak for themselves.

Every case study represents real organizational transformation: strategic thinking combined with disciplined execution. We partner with leadership teams across industries to navigate complex challenges, align organizations around shared vision, and drive measurable results.

FEATURED CASE STUDY

Aligning a Regional Strategy Across 9 Business Units

Building the planning, portfolio, and performance management system for the North America business of a global food & facilities leader.

CHALLENGE

Nine business units, each with distinct priorities, market dynamics, and operational realities, needed to align against a shared North America strategy while coordinating with the enterprise's global agenda. Leadership lacked visibility into the full portfolio of initiatives, KPIs were tracked inconsistently, and executive conversations ran on static updates rather than active portfolio management. The core issue wasn't a lack of strategy. It was the need for an integrated system to manage execution across the region.

APPROACH

Embedded within the regional strategy team, Aaron helped align all nine business units to the North America strategy and connect regional priorities to global enterprise strategy. Strategic priorities were translated into initiatives, KPIs, and execution plans, and a portfolio and project management system was deployed and orchestrated in Smartsheet, creating a centralized view of regional KPIs, initiatives, owners, timelines, and progress.

OUTCOME

The region gained a disciplined strategy execution system: centralized visibility into KPIs and initiatives across all nine business units, stronger executive-level portfolio management, and more data-driven Executive Committee discussions, including a consistent mechanism for deciding which initiatives to start, stop, continue, or accelerate. Strategy became an active operating discipline rather than an annual planning exercise.

9

Business Units Aligned

1

Integrated Portfolio Management System

Full

Regional KPI & Initiative Visibility

C-suite

Start / Stop / Continue Decision Governance

The value was not just the deployment of a tool. The value was creating a more disciplined strategy execution system across a complex region.

Additional Case Studies

FRACTIONAL COO

Professional Services Firm

A professional services firm had growth ambitions but no operational infrastructure to back them. They knew they needed operational leadership, but not a full-time COO. We embedded as fractional COO, designing OKRs, dashboards, and automated workflows to close the gap between strategy and reality.

Profitability Increase
20%
Business Visibility
Real-time
Engagement Model
Fractional COO

INVESTMENT GOVERNANCE

Enterprise Technology Business Unit

A business unit inside a major technology firm had significant investment capital but no structured way to prioritize, allocate, or measure it. We designed and implemented the governance framework to manage the full portfolio, aligning funds to strategic priorities and building performance management processes to evaluate impact.

Capital Governed
$10M
Investment Reviews
Data-driven
Portfolio Visibility
Full

FINANCE TRANSFORMATION

Large Financial Services Regulator

Inside the Office of the CFO, the finance function faced slow close cycles, fragmented planning and reporting, and structures that hadn't kept pace with the work. Aaron helped redesign core operating rhythms across planning, reporting, and executive decision-making, and supported finance transformation efforts tied to Workday, data, and AI-readiness.

Financial Close
11 → 5 days
Operating Rhythms
Redesigned
Transformation Scope
Workday + AI

ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN

Financial Services Finance Division

A financial services firm's finance division was over-reliant on contractors and consultants, with no dedicated analytics or business partner capacity. We conducted a benchmarking and org design assessment, identifying how to convert contractors, reduce consulting spend, and fund net-new headcount within the existing cost envelope.

Annual Savings
$1.8M
Cost-Neutral Roles Added
23
Budget Increase
$0

GROWTH STRATEGY

Schools Portfolio, Global Food & Facilities Leader

The Schools business served public and private segments with very different economics, buyers, and growth potential. Aaron led a full competitor analysis across the market, assessed segments by profitability and right-to-win (including how free and reduced lunch programs shape public school economics), and supported a growth strategy that rebalanced the portfolio toward private schools and high-potential public segments.

Competitive Landscape
Full market
Segments Assessed
Public + Private
Portfolio Strategy
Rebalanced

PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

Restaurant Group

A beloved local restaurant had strong brand equity but needed stronger systems behind it: consistent operating processes, remote visibility into performance, and less dependence on day-to-day owner presence. We sharpened the brand positioning, built SEO and newsletter rhythms, launched retail product lines, and created the SOPs, dashboards, and delegation systems that let the business run consistently without constant owner involvement.

Revenue Streams
Dining + Retail
Operations
SOP-driven
Local Recognition
Voted Best Breakfast by Locals

Our Engagement Profile

15+

Years in Strategy & Transformation

F500

Organizations Advised

9+

Industries Served

100%

Senior-Led Engagements

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