Working alongside businesses on the problems worth solving.
I work in parallel with owners, CEOs and operations teams to find what's holding the business back — most often in sales and marketing — recommend how to fix it, and bring in the right people to make it happen.
Running alongside the owner.
Most owners can't see everything going on in their own business — they're too close to it, or too busy running it. I work across the organisation in parallel with them: talking to the teams, finding where things are getting stuck between them, and reporting back on the friction and what it would take to fix it.
Strategy, worked in parallel
Alongside the people running the business rather than above them. Sales and marketing is home ground, so that's usually where we start — but the work goes wherever the problem is.
Technology and AI, where it fits
Plenty of problems can be solved with the right systems, automation or AI. Plenty can't. Part of the job is telling the difference before anyone spends money.
The right people to deliver
A strategy is only useful once it's built. I bring in the specialists to execute, brief them properly, and keep everyone pointed the same way.
Across all of it, I'm a connector.
Twelve years running an agency leaves you knowing a lot of very good people — and which tools are worth using. Half the job is knowing who and what to bring in. The other half is knowing when.
Identify
Time with owners, leadership and operations. Where things are getting stuck, what it's costing, and which problems are worth solving.
Recommend
A clear report back to the team: what to do, in what order, and why. Technology and AI where they genuinely help, simpler fixes where they don't.
Make it happen
Once the strategy is agreed, I get it moving — hands-on where that's useful, bringing in the right people where it isn't, and staying close until it's working.
Some of the businesses I've been working with recently.
Two businesses I'm part of. Neither is the default answer — I bring them in only when they're genuinely the right fit for the problem in front of us.
ADVISOR
Growth strategy with Nick Sterling. Innovation Activator works alongside New Zealand businesses on strategy, innovation and commercialisation — with AI where it genuinely adds value.
- Built by Callaghan Innovation alumni
- Business strategy and growth planning
- Innovation, funding and commercialisation
- AI capability, workshops and delivery
CO-OWNER
AI systems for business operations and decisions. Part Magic builds practical, human-led systems that create leads, streamline operations and improve knowledge access.
- Editor — SEO and AEO optimised content
- Custom AI workflows and agents
- Custom apps and interfaces
- The company brain — searchable internal knowledge
I'm Steve Crowe.
I'm a business strategist, working in parallel with owners and leadership teams. Enough distance to see the whole picture, close enough to see how it actually runs.
More about me →
Let's talk.
Tell me where the business is stuck and what good would look like. I'll come back within a day or two.
Get in touch