Our advisors
Former CEOs. Matched to your moment.
Every Capstone partner has sat in the CEO chair. When you engage Capstone, you work with the partner whose operating history fits your inflection point — scaling, turnaround, exit preparation, or leadership transition.
Founder
Lew Jaffe
FOUNDER & MANAGING DIRECTOR
Lew has led and scaled multiple companies — ones he founded and ones where he was the hired gun, private and public, up to $750 million. He was CEO of PictureTel Corporation, which he led through its sale in 2001, and of Oxford Media; President and COO of Verso Technologies; and founder of MoviMe Network. An engineer by training, he began his career at Intel, including a posting in Hong Kong.
He has been a board director or advisor to more than 50 organizations. He serves on the boards of Reed’s Inc. and FitLife Brands, is lead independent director of York Telecom, and was formerly lead independent director of Benihana Inc. He holds a Master’s Certification as a Public Company Board Director.
Before founding Capstone, Lew ranked in the top 10% of coaches for client outcomes and client satisfaction scores at a leading global CEO coaching firm.
Lew is a Clinical Professor and Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Loyola Marymount University’s Fred Kiesner Center for Entrepreneurship, where he teaches undergraduates and MBAs and was named Professor of the Year in 2016 and 2024. Practitioner and professor: he coaches CEOs from experience and teaches the next generation from the same playbook.
All businesses are the same. They exist to gain and retain customers, profitably, in order to create real value.
The Capstone Partner Standard
Every partner clears the same bar
We don’t add advisors to fill a roster. Every Capstone partner meets all three of these standards before working with a client.
01
Ran a $100M+ company
Every partner has led a company of $100 million or more in revenue — growth stage, PE-backed, or public.
02
Worked with dozens more
Beyond their own companies, every partner has worked with dozens of others as an executive, board member, or advisor.
03
5+ years coaching CEOs
Every partner has at least five years coaching and advising CEOs after leaving their own operating role.
Capstone’s founding partners ranked in the top 10% of coaches for client outcomes and client satisfaction scores at a leading global CEO coaching firm.
You’ll meet your partner on the first call. We introduce partners by engagement — matched to your inflection point, not by geography or availability.
The expertise we bring
Four areas where our partners go deep
Growth & go-to-market
Scaling from founder-led to team-led growth: go-to-market rebuilds, first enterprise sales motions, fundraising, and team design.
Revenue scaling · GTM · Team design
Execution & accountability
Closing the gap between strategy and results: accountability systems, leading indicators, operating rhythms, and the hard conversations that unlock performance.
Execution systems · Turnarounds · OKRs / EOS
Leadership & organization
When the original team stops scaling: succession, organizational design, and executive alignment across founder-led, PE-backed, and public companies.
Team effectiveness · Succession · Org design
AI roadmaps
The workflows and roadmap that make AI valuable for a $10M+ company — reducing cost, accelerating revenue, and competing with larger players.
AI roadmaps · Workflow design · Cost reduction
Find your partner
Start with a direct conversation
No pitch. No intake form. A candid conversation about your business, and we’ll tell you quickly if we’re the right fit.