Organization Evolution
Cicada: Every Organization Has "A Shell" It Must Outgrow
August 10, 2026
Leadership evolution for growing companies
Growth happens in stages. Leadership must evolve with it.
We help founders and leadership teams evolve how the company leads and operates as it grows.
Do any of these sound familiar?
Too many decisions still depend on the founder.
The strategy has become harder to see in the day-to-day.
Leaders leave meetings aligned, but make different decisions afterward.
Teams are busy, but the business isn't moving faster.
Accountability becomes less clear as the organization grows.
Processes that once created speed now create friction.
The Cicada Framework
Every stage of growth asks the company to evolve.
- Emerge
Create alignment for the next stage.
Align leadership around what is changing and what it requires.
- Shed
Recognize what no longer serves the company.
Name the habits, structures, and roles the company has outgrown.
- Expand
Build the capacity for what comes next.
Strengthen the leadership and operating systems that make growth sustainable.
One connected system
Friction shows up in one place. Its cause is usually somewhere else.
The team at the top, the operating model, how work gets done, and your own role as founder all shape one another as the company grows. Our four practices are built to work together, because fixing one in isolation usually just moves the problem.
Leadership & Executive Teams
For the team at the top. Build trust, clarify decision rights, and create accountability so the leadership team functions as one team instead of a collection of strong individuals.
Operating Model & Execution
For the organization. Design the operating model, priorities, governance, and delivery systems that turn strategy into consistent execution.
AI & Ways of Working
For how work gets done. Adopt AI intentionally, establish practical working norms, and create systems that help people make better decisions and move faster together.
Founder Evolution
For you, the founder. As your company grows, your role has to evolve too: learning to delegate, building a true leadership team, and stepping out of the center of every decision.
Experience supporting teams from startup to enterprise
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Who we are
Two perspectives. One connected system.
Leadership, coaching, product, delivery, operations, organizational design: we work across the whole system, because growth is rarely limited by one team or one process.
Shawna Cullinan
Co-founder
Works with organizations on product development, delivery, operations, and the operating systems that let strategy move.
Julia Kaissling
Co-founder
Works with founders and leadership teams on leadership evolution, coaching, and the human side of organizational change.
What brought your company here may not take it forward.
Let's identify what your organization has outgrown and what must evolve next.
Discovery CallFree
30 minutes. A first conversation about where your company is.