Please meet Ben Blankenship, owner and principal of ACUO Business Coaching & Advising. With nearly 35 years of experience in entrepreneurial, financial, and operational leadership, Ben has a proven track record in start-ups, scale-ups, and organizational contractions across both for-profit and non-profit sectors.
Having held key leadership roles such as CEO, CFO, COO, and CSO, Ben now guides clients as a business coach, exit planning advisor, and fractional/interim executive. He began his career as a professionally trained chef at the Culinary Institute of America, later pivoting to finance. Ben was also part of the founding team at Qdoba Mexican Grill, contributing to its national expansion and successful exit.
Ben works with businesses of all sizes, from $5 million to over $1 billion in annual revenue, across various industries in the U.S. and internationally. He specializes in helping CEOs and owners clarify their vision, align leadership teams, develop actionable strategic plans, establish accountability, and achieve tangible results. Ben is a certified Scaling Up Business Coach, certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA), certified project manager (PMP), and former EOS Implementer™️ and EOS Integrator™️. He has a proven track record of helping businesses achieve their goals through:
- Identifying the right leadership team skills, abilities, attitudes, and candidates to support growth.
- Defining a clear organizational direction.
- Developing a leadership culture committed to healthy growth and accountability.
- Devising clear, actionable strategic plans and meeting structures.
- Providing technology to manage and measure strategic goals, priorities, and performance.
- Empowering teams with cash management tools and skills supporting sustainable growth.
Kolbe: 8-7-5-2 (Strategic Planner: specify, systematize, modify, envision)
Working Genius: DG (Intuitive Activator)
DISC: Di
Culture Index: Architect
