Business strategy advisor to owners of established service businesses

Most growth problems aren't what they look like on the surface.

I help owners find what's actually in the way, decide what they want the business to be, and build the structure to get there.

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The business is working, but it's taking more out of you than it should.

You've built a real business, and you care what happens to it. Revenue may be growing or holding steady. But growth has started taking more work than it should, and profit isn't keeping pace with what you're putting in.

The natural response is to work on one area at a time: more marketing, a new hire, another system. Each of those moves makes sense on its own, and each one adds cost and complexity.

But tactics without strategy don't add up. They pile up.

Past a certain point, growth requires a different version of the business.

A practice you run yourself turns into a team that needs management and systems. At some point you stop managing people and start leading the people who manage them. And every new investment adds another place where marketing, sales, and delivery have to connect.

Nobody sets out to build a version of their business that doesn't fit. It evolves as the business grows. If you've noticed that it no longer fits, you're seeing the business clearly, and it means there's room to make it better.

The question is: what version of the business do you want to build?

That decision is yours, and it works best when you make it on purpose.

Strategy that starts with you,

not someone else's blueprint.

We start with you.

Before I can say what the right next step is, I need to know what you want the business to be, the life you want inside and outside of it, the constraints you're working within, and what you need to earn for the work to be sustainable.

We look at the whole business.

A change in one part ripples into every other part, so I work from your real numbers and look at how marketing, sales, delivery, operations, and your team affect each other. That's how we find where the business is actually constrained.

We decide what to build, and in what order.

You make the decisions. I give you my honest view, help you see the options clearly, and stay with the work so the changes stick. And if what you need is something I can't help with, I'll tell you.

The result is a version of the business you chose on purpose.

A business that supports the life you want, inside and outside of work
Profit that can grow whether or not revenue does
A team that can deliver without you in every decision
A business your clients can keep relying on as it changes

That might mean a bigger business, a more profitable one, or one that's ready to be put in good hands.

What this looks like in practice

A projected loss that never happened

A training and events company brought me in for marketing. The real issues were a leadership structure the business couldn’t support and planning spread across too many priorities. We restructured, cut costs, and put stronger financial management in place.

Results: A projected multiple six-figure loss became a profitable year, with about $200,000 in debt paid down along the way.

He thought he needed more marketing

A fitness business had tried social media, email, and a podcast with inconsistent results. The real constraints were financial clarity, capacity, and leadership, so we addressed those first and activated marketing last.

Results: Within six months, personal training revenue rose over 10 percent, overhead fell, and the owner took two full weeks away for the first time.

From launch to launch to a business with structure

An education and online retail company was growing quickly but relied on live launches, costly contractors, and decisions were made with limited financial visibility. My role grew from managing campaigns to leading across marketing, operations, and finance.

Results: Revenue grew from about $430,000 in 2020 to $1.74 million 2024, while contract and platform changes cut costs by more than $30,000 in 2025.

"Her decades of experience are the North Star in my business. She has helped my business grow from about $430,000 to over $1.7 million in annual revenue, and boosts the revenue on every single project by tens of thousands of dollars. She keeps me centered on what matters most and always has my back."

Sarah Thomas | Founder & CEO, Upper Clarity

I work with owners who are ready to shape the future of their business.

Most of the owners I work with run established service businesses, often with a team in place.

Others have built a strong practice on their own and reached the limit of what one person can carry.

Some want to grow, some want to step back, and some are thinking about eventually handing the business off.

In every case, they want it in good shape and on solid ground.

A trusted peer who has been there

Rachel Anzalone, business strategy advisor and founder of Ease & Acumen

I'm Rachel Anzalone.

I've spent over 25 years working across marketing, operations, and strategy, both inside companies and alongside owners in many different industries.

I’ve worked inside businesses at every stage of growth, from helping build the operating structure for a cafe company preparing to franchise to running seven restaurant locations with 350 employees and full responsibility for their profitability. Since then, I’ve guided many owners of service businesses across industries as they built the systems their companies run on.

That history informs why I look at how the parts of a business affect each other, and what to fix first. You’ll always get straight answers from me, delivered with care.

More about me

Some owners come to me with one question they need to think through.

Some have something larger they want to work through in depth.

Others have an objective that calls for a defined project with their team.

How we work together depends on what you're facing.

See the options

Let's talk about what you're working on.

Tell me what's going on in the business and what you want from it. I'll tell you what I'm seeing and what I'd recommend, whether that involves working with me or me pointing you in the right direction.

Schedule a conversation

What season is your business in?

Fourteen questions about demand, capacity, structure, and what you have left in the tank will show you where you are and what the season asks you to decide.

It takes about five minutes, and your result appears right away with no email required.