Reuben Levinsohn MSP StratOp Review: Strategic Alignment with Fox & Crow Group
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Reuben Levinsohn Fox & Crow Group StratOp Review: How the StratOp System Created Partner Alignment
Thank you to Reuben Levinsohn for this review of his StratOp experience with Ian Richardson, Co-Founder of Fox & Crow Group.
First Published: October 1, 2025
Last Updated: May 1, 2026
For MSPs led by multiple partners or owners, alignment is both essential and difficult to maintain. Partners who started the business together can drift apart in their priorities, their assumptions about where the company is headed, and their day-to-day focus. That drift does not always show up as open conflict — more often it shows up as slow decision-making, repeated conversations about the same issues, and a leadership team that is technically working together but not pulling in the same direction.
This Reuben Levinsohn Fox & Crow Group StratOp review describes what happens when that drift is addressed through structured planning.
"We were struggling to stay focused and consistent on our strategic goals until Ian got us on track with the StratOp system. Ian is passionate about the work he does, he's highly gifted in the art and science of strategic planning with business teams, owners, and stakeholders. I've never experienced as much alignment with my partners as we have now. Thank you Ian!"
The Focus and Consistency Problem in MSP Strategic Planning
Levinsohn identifies two specific problems the team was experiencing before the StratOp engagement: struggling to stay focused and struggling to stay consistent on strategic goals.
These are not the same problem, but they are related.
Focus is about where attention and energy go day to day. In most MSPs, operational demands constantly compete with strategic priorities. Client issues, team problems, and vendor relationships fill the calendar, and the work that would move the business forward strategically gets pushed to "when we have time" — which rarely arrives.
Consistency is about whether the goals the team agrees on in a planning meeting are still being worked toward three months later. Many MSPs have had strategic conversations. Fewer have built the systems that keep those conversations connected to daily and weekly decisions.
The StratOp process addresses both — by producing a clear set of priorities and a structure that keeps the team returning to those priorities regularly.
The Art and Science of Strategic Planning with Business Teams
Levinsohn describes Ian as "highly gifted in the art and science of strategic planning with business teams, owners, and stakeholders." That pairing — art and science — is precise.
The science of strategic planning is the methodology: the frameworks, the process steps, the tools for surfacing information and organizing it into a plan. StratOp provides that structure.
The art is what happens in the room. Reading the dynamics of a leadership team. Knowing when to push on a point and when to let it breathe. Helping people say what they actually believe rather than what they think they are supposed to say. Managing the competing personalities and priorities that make every leadership team unique.
Both are required for strategic planning to produce real outcomes. The science without the art produces a document no one acts on. The art without the science produces energizing conversations that do not translate into a coherent plan.
"I've Never Experienced This Much Alignment"
The most significant outcome in Levinsohn's review is not increased revenue or a better sales process — it is alignment. And specifically, more alignment than he had ever experienced with his partners before.
Partner alignment in a multi-owner MSP is a precondition for almost every other growth initiative. When partners are not aligned:
- Strategic decisions take longer and create more conflict
- Tactical decisions made by one partner undermine what another is building
- The team gets inconsistent signals about priorities and direction
- Clients sometimes sense the disalignment, which erodes confidence
When partners are aligned, the opposite happens. Decisions accelerate. The team receives consistent direction. Everyone's effort compounds toward the same outcomes.
Achieving that alignment is not just a matter of goodwill — it requires a structured process that surfaces the real differences in perspective and works through them toward genuine agreement. That is what the StratOp facilitation, well executed, produces.
Explore StratOp and MSP strategic planning facilitation with Fox & Crow Group.
See more Fox & Crow Group client testimonials and case studies.
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FAQ: MSP StratOp and Partner Alignment with Fox & Crow Group
What is the StratOp system?
StratOp is a structured strategic planning system that guides business teams through a comprehensive review of their current position, challenges, and opportunities — producing a prioritized, actionable plan and the alignment needed to execute it.
Why do MSP partners often struggle with alignment?
Partners in growing MSPs typically have different operational roles, different client relationships, and different views of where the business should go. Without a structured process for surfacing and resolving those differences, alignment erodes gradually over time.
How does StratOp help MSP partners align?
StratOp creates a structured environment where all partners engage with the same information, surface their actual priorities, and work toward genuine agreement — not just surface consensus. The process is designed to make real disagreements visible and resolvable.
How often should MSP leadership teams run a StratOp session?
Most teams run an initial comprehensive StratOp and then hold quarterly or semi-annual follow-up sessions to review progress and adjust the plan. Contact Fox & Crow Group to discuss a cadence that fits your organization.
The partner alignment dimension of StratOp that Levinsohn covers is something other MSP owners who have been through it describe differently depending on their team structure. Kathy Blair's review covers how the facilitation handled her leadership team, and the Aberdean Consulting team's account reflects on how the process connected strategic clarity to operational execution.
The partner alignment Levinsohn describes — achieved through structured strategic planning — is the foundation that makes every other part of a Fox & Crow sales process engagement actually compound; what that compounding looks like over two years in an MSP that committed fully to the system is the most direct answer to why the timing matters.