National Small Business Week runs May 3–9 this year, and I will be honest with you: I almost let it pass without saying anything.

I am in my first year of running Vogel Consulting LLC. I do not have a team of employees to showcase across social media. I do not have a storefront with a window display or a lobby full of branded merchandise. I am not handing out free coffee or running a flash sale tied to a countdown timer.

So it is easy to look at Small Business Week and think… this is for other people.

The businesses with the Instagram-worthy storefronts. The ones with staff photos and team culture posts. The ones who have been around long enough to frame their “ten years in business” milestone on the wall.

But the more I sat with that thought, the more I realized it was wrong—and exactly the kind of thinking that keeps small businesses invisible when they should not be.

So here is what I am doing instead. I am going to be direct about what this week means to me, why I started this business, and why it should matter—whether you are a business owner, a potential client, or someone who believes that how we spend our money and attention shapes the communities we live and work in.

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Why This Business Exists Here

Vogel Consulting LLC was founded less than a year ago—but I have called Grand Forks home since 1993.

That is more than three decades of living and working in this community. Over the years, I have worked for organizations many of you know—Ecolab and Acme Tools among them. After 2014, I transitioned to working from home here in Grand Forks, spending a decade as a senior consultant while supporting projects across the country.

The work took me into manufacturing, distribution, retail, pharmaceutical, and technology organizations. I have led ERP implementations, supported enterprise transformations, and worked inside complex environments where decisions carry real operational and financial consequences.

I have seen what happens when systems and people are not aligned. It is expensive—in time, money, and morale.

I have also seen what happens when they are. The difference is not incremental. It is transformational.

That experience is what I bring to client engagements across the United States, with connections extending into Canada and Mexico. The dollars I earn are reinvested locally—in the tools, the time, and the people who help this business run.

That is a deliberate choice about where value flows and who benefits from it.

I started this business because I believe organizations of all sizes—not just large enterprises—deserve access to experienced, accountable consulting. Not a model where the sales conversation is senior and the delivery is handed off. A model where the person you talk to is the person doing the work and standing behind the results.

That is what I am building.

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An Invitation, Not an Announcement

This is not a post to acknowledge that Small Business Week exists.

It is an invitation.

If you—or someone you know—is dealing with an outdated ERP system, a broken workflow, a stalled implementation, or processes held together by spreadsheets and institutional knowledge, that problem is not going to resolve itself. It compounds over time.

I offer free 30-minute discovery conversations. No obligation. No pitch deck. Just a direct conversation about what is actually happening in your business and whether I can help.

If there is a fit, we will know quickly. If there is not, I will tell you that—and point you in the right direction.

That is how I operate.

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Why I Took the Risk

There is a part of this story I do not always say out loud.

A few years ago, the work that supported my role at a large consulting firm quietly disappeared. Projects ended. Priorities shifted. And I found myself at a crossroads that many people in this industry eventually face.

Find another role and repeat the cycle—or build something of my own.

I chose to build.

Not because it was easy, and not because it came with certainty. It did not. It was a response to a moment that forced a decision.

What I brought into this business was not just experience. It was a conviction that consulting done well looks very different from consulting done at scale.

It requires accountability. Proximity to the work. A direct connection between the person making recommendations and the person responsible for outcomes.

That is harder to build. But it produces better results.

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To Other Small Business Owners

I do not yet have a long list of formal partnerships to highlight. Building those relationships is part of what this first year is about.

But I want to say this clearly:

Small businesses do not succeed in isolation.

When someone chooses a locally-owned business, that decision does more than complete a transaction. It supports jobs, strengthens local networks, and keeps value circulating within the community.

If you are a business owner who wants to collaborate, cross-promote, or simply stay connected, I am open to that conversation.

No agenda. Just shared alignment around building something real here.

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Why Small Works

In consulting, size often gets mistaken for capability.

In reality, it often introduces distance.

A senior partner sells the work. A different team delivers it. Layers of process separate decisions from outcomes.

That structure is not inherently wrong—but it is not always effective.

When you work with Vogel Consulting LLC, you work directly with me. The same person who understands your business is the one responsible for execution.

That creates clarity, speed, and accountability that is difficult to replicate in larger structures.

That is one of the advantages of staying intentionally small.

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What This Business Stands For

This business was not built in isolation from the rest of my life.

My involvement with Scouting America began around 2008, but it expanded significantly in 2014 as I became more actively engaged in supporting my son on his journey to Eagle Scout.

What started as showing up as a parent grew into something much deeper. I became invested not just in his experience, but in the program itself—the leadership development, the service mindset, and the impact it has on young people over time.

My son earned his Eagle Scout rank and has since gone on to pursue a career in computer science. But my involvement did not end there. I stayed.

Today, I continue to invest time mentoring and supporting young people through Scouting, helping them develop leadership skills, accountability, and a sense of responsibility to something larger than themselves.

That commitment to building something meaningful did not start with this business. Years earlier, a simple idea grew into the founding of the Purple Martin Association of the Dakotas—an effort focused on conservation, education, and community engagement around a shared purpose. No formal playbook. Just the decision to build something that mattered.

I have also contributed advisory support to organizations that needed help but did not have the resources to pay for it.

Those experiences matter. They influence how I approach client work, how I make decisions, and what I expect from myself professionally.

The same standards apply across all of it: integrity, accountability, and doing the work the right way—even when there is an easier path.

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A Note to Local Journalists and Business Reporters

If you cover business in the Grand Forks area and are looking for a Small Business Week story, I would welcome a conversation.

There is a broader question here that extends beyond one business: what does responsible, accountable consulting look like in 2026—and can small and mid-sized organizations access enterprise-level expertise without the layers, handoffs, and overhead of a large firm?

That is the question I am building this business around.

If that is a story worth telling, I am easy to reach. A message on LinkedIn or through the website contact form is all it takes to start the conversation.

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What Happens After This Week

Small Business Week creates visibility.

What matters is what comes after.

For this business, that means continuing to:

• Share useful, experience-driven insights—not content for its own sake
• Stay available for real conversations with business leaders
• Build stronger relationships within the local community
• Operate consistently with the values the business was built on

The momentum only matters if there is substance behind it.

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One Ask

If you made it this far, you are exactly who I want to connect with.

If you are evaluating your systems, dealing with operational friction, or simply want a second perspective from someone who has been through it before—reach out.

We will have a real conversation about your business and whether I can help.

No pressure. No pitch. Just clarity.

Schedule a free 30-minute discovery call at www.VogelConsultingLLC.com/contact

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Happy Small Business Week. Let us make it count.