What is Acumen Dynamics

A keenness and depth of perception in practical matters. The quality of being able to grasp and comprehend what is obscure. Accuracy in the power to discern, distinguish, and select what is true or appropriate
 
Our Mission
Development and delivery of applied entrepreneurial education & learning programs focusing on the development of practical knowledge and skills that help organizations align vision and strategy, with execution and performance.
 
Our Programs
Acumen Dynamics Applied Education & Learning Programs are built on our 20 plus years of experience working with thousands of businesses, professional service providers, and nonprofit organizations around the world.
 
Our Focus
Large & mid-sized family and closely held corporations.
Divisions & operating groups of Fortune 1000 companies.
Professional service providers to family & closely held enterprises.
Non profit organizations who foster entrepreneurship education & research.
 
Our Approach
Acumen Dynamics focuses on helping organizations build and apply practical performance management systems that align strategy & execution to drive superior performance.
 


Meet the challenges of the economic environment and increasing business complexities
Build employee commitment to strategy by linking rewards with performance systems
Define, depict, and operationalize strategy with balanced scorecards and strategy maps
Align people, organizational processes & strategy with the customer value proposition

 

Our Founder
Prof. Dr. David Pistrui

David Pistrui, Ph.D., holds the Coleman Foundation Chair in Entrepreneurship, and is Industry Professor of Business at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, Illinois USA. With over 20 years of business experience, Dr. Pistrui serves as an educator, advisor, and consultant to family & closely held businesses, global corporations, and not-for-profit organizations. The following examples serve to illustrate the depth of his experiences.

First, as the Managing Director of Acumen Dynamics, LLC, Dr. Pistrui has led the development of a strategy based education training and research firm that focuses on practical knowledge and skills that help organizations align vision and strategy with execution and performance. Dr. Pistrui has developed a series of solution based tools and techniques focused on identifying, developing, and assessing strategic growth opportunities. Dr. Pistrui develops both general business management tools as well as special programs focused on specific issues confronting organizations.

Second, as the Director of Sales for VideoCart, Incorporated, Dr. Pistrui worked on the global development of the first "real time micro marketing network" linking consumers, retailers, and manufacturers. Activities included the development of electronic promotion and couponing programs, consumer research studies, and the development of strategic alliances with venture capitalists and investment groups.

Third, Dr. Pistrui served as Mid-West Regional Vice President, and Chicago District Manager with Time, Incorporated (Time Distribution Services, Inc.). Responsible for a quarter of a billion dollars of newsstand magazine business, Dr. Pistrui's turn-around strategies advanced the fifteen-state Mid-West Region and Chicago District from last place to consistent top tier national performance. While at Time, Incorporated, Dr. Pistrui led a team of six district managers and a field staff of 175 full and part-time employees. In 1985 Dr. Pistrui was inducted into the Sports Illustrated Newsstand Hall of Fame.

Dr. Pistrui has held a number of scholarly appointments in the US and Europe. He served as the founding Managing Director of the Wharton Enterprising Families Initiative, in the Wharton School, at the University of Pennsylvania. In addition, Dr. Pistrui held the Raymond Chair in Family Business, and served as the founding Director of the Center for Family Business and Entrepreneurial Leadership at Alfred University (Alfred, NY).

Dr. Pistrui is also an active researcher focusing on the growth and societal impact of entrepreneurship and enterprise development. He is the co-author of groundbreaking work including, Growth Intentions and Expansion Plans of New Entrepreneurs in the Former Soviet Bloc (Ashgate, 1997), Characteristics and Attributes of New Chinese Entrepreneurs and Their Enterprises, (Business Forum, 2001), A Millennium Perspective on Family Business Research, (Family Business Review, 2002-03), Entrepreneurship in the new Germany, (Ashgate, 2003), and Family and Cultural Forces Shaping Entrepreneurship and SME Development in China, (Elgar, 2006).

Dr. Pistrui served on the Board of Directors, Executive Committee, and was Vice President, of the Family Firm Institute (Boston, MA, 1998-2001). He served as Program Chair, for the Family Firm Institute 2000 Annual Conference (Washington, DC). He is a Book Review Editor and has served as Special Issue Co-Editor of Family Business Review. Dr. Pistrui appears frequently on TV and radio programs. He often provides commentary to business publications and the popular press having appeared in Family Business, MEED, CNN, INC. Magazine, Entrepreneur, Los Angeles Business Journal, Bahrain Tribune, Alwasat, Rochester Business Journal, Buffalo Business First, the Illinois Entertainer and Screen Magazine.

Dr. Pistrui holds a Ph.D. in Business Administration (Cum Laude) in Entrepreneurship, Strategy, and Management from Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, (Spain), and a Ph.D., in Sociology from the University of Bucharest, (Romania). He earned a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies degree from DePaul University, Chicago, and a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing and Economics from Western Michigan University.