James (Jim) E. Lara has been passionate about aviation since childhood. Combining his 40-plus years as a pilot (12,000+ hours) with his corporate experience, Jim speaks the language of both business and business aviation. His vast expertise and hands-on approach have helped industry leaders develop high-performing individuals and teams, align those teams with their enterprise’s goals, and enable operations to regain stability, traction and profitability.Since 1996, under Jim’s leadership, Gray Stone Advisors has grown from a small firm that worked with one company at a time, to an entirely aviation-focused advisory practice that now serves many clients simultaneously.In addition to earning a BS in Business Management from San Francisco State University, Jim engaged in post-graduate studies at Stanford University, Southern Methodist University, Northwestern (The Kellogg School), Thunderbird University and the University of Virginia. He is a lifetime member of the American Bonanza Society, Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association and the National Business Aviation Association, where he serves on the NBAA Safety Committee’s and its Single Pilot Working Group. Jim is also involved in several professional societies and community organizations. Key attributes and skill sets include:• Forward-thinking, entrepreneurial mindset • Coaching and mentorship to executives and individual contributors• Effective developer and orchestrator of high-performance teams• Organizational design and implementation • Mergers and acquisitions• Business viability assessments• Experience raising public and private capital• Acute ability to close deals• Net profitability maximization• Intelligent cost management • Process definition and simplification• Experience as a board member of firms and civic organizationsPlease contact Jim at +1-865.357.5077 or jlara@graystoneadvisors.com. You may also view Jim’s blogs at graystoneadvisors.com/blog.