HUSARCH is a proud women-led Chicago-based architecture and sustainability firm. They do a ton of different things, including traditional architecture, energy audits, property needs assessments, and workforce development, but the question that drives everything they do: How can we scale our work to make a bigger impact?

How did you hear about Anchor Advisors?

Some years ago, I was part of the 10,000 Small Businesses Program by Goldman Sachs. During the program, a colleague sent me a reference for something I was struggling with at the time, and the reference turned out to be an Anchor Advisors email written by Brad. I sat on it for a while. And then, a year or so later, I went back to the email and decided to reach out to Brad. I was like, “I need to talk to this person.” 

In that first conversation, we hit it off, and I knew that I didn’t need to talk to anybody else—he was the person I wanted to work with. Brad’s whole philosophy and approach isn’t just “How can we fix your business?” It’s “How can we make sure you’re living the life you want to be living?”

When you started working with Brad, what were you hoping to accomplish?

The initial focus was, quite simply, how can I save myself from myself? As an owner, you can’t just quit your job. I had all the right ideals and was trying to do the work I envisioned in the right way, but I was deeply unhappy and couldn’t figure out why. So, we set up regular meetings, and within six months, we figured out where things were going off the rails, restructured the company, and completely turned things around.

Any stand-out pieces of advice or moments of growth?

So many. Brad worked with us to restructure our hiring process—which had a huge impact— and, through his personal connections, helped me strengthen my network, connecting me with a fractional CEO and CFO and even a company to lead our rebranding process. After working together for about two years, Brad had touched nearly every system in our agency.

Brad’s most significant contribution, though, was actually something different. With his help, I finally stopped taking over for everyone and started letting my team develop their own accountability, which took a lot of hard work and didn’t come naturally to me. What came naturally was working 80 hours a week and jumping in to solve problems as they arose. And I’d done that for years. But as a new mom, I couldn’t keep that pace on a newborn sleep schedule. So, learning to step back and let go was a huge turning point. 

The result—a capable and accountable leadership team—was beyond exciting. We’re all living our best selves now. Today, the enjoyment and satisfaction that everyone on our team gets from their work is palpable. 

Who do you think would benefit most from working with Brad?

Anyone who is floundering and feeling out of sync with their work. The work he’s done with our leadership team has been transformative. Through this work, he’s helping the next generation of leaders become the leaders they want to be from the get-go, which is such an incredible gift. 

Your favorite thing about working together?

His sense of humor. I always leave our conversations feeling uplifted. Brad has a way of framing the issues I’m grappling with that makes them feel less overwhelming, less scary. He approaches everything with curiosity and wonder, and it’s infectious. Between the work I’ve put in and the things I’ve started to cultivate since working with Brad, I feel like myself again. I feel like I can laugh again! Which is huge.

If you had to describe your experience in just three words?

Humorous. Impactful. Honest.