Advisory

The job got bigger.The staff didn't.

Fractional Strategy: a senior strategy seat beside a department head who can't hire one.

Marques Colston mid-explanation in a working session.
A working session

Revenue sharing became a budget line. NIL moved under fair-market-value review. The portal turned roster management into talent management. Donors now have more places to give, and presidents, CFOs and boards are asking harder questions. Most departments were built for a model that no longer exists. The biggest risk isn't competitive. It's structural, and misalignment compounds quietly.

I've operated the comparable business: clubs with no media-rights money, where every commercial obligation had to be funded by earned revenue. College athletics wasn't built that way and is now being forced to.

Marques Colston at an Arena Football League press conference in Albany.
Arena Football League expansion announcement, Albany.

Who I sit beside

  • Athletic directors and their deputies
  • Conference and league executives
  • Players association leadership

Where the work focuses

01
Financial architecture.
What the department actually costs, what it earns, and how much subsidy the institution will carry.
02
Athlete compensation.
Revenue sharing treated as an investment category, not an equalizer.
03
Donor and external revenue.
One funding story across giving, NIL and revenue share, so donor trust holds.
04
Governance and decision rights.
Who decides what, and how fast.
05
Execution systems.
An operating rhythm instead of an annual plan that's out of date by spring.

This isn't a staffing replacement. It's decision support.

The boundary

Strategy and capacity, never capital. No advice on transactions, valuations or raising money.

“Marques's unique vision and thoughtful approach have allowed us to take an unstructured plan and turn it into a formalized business model that has positioned us to take things to the next level. He made quick work of becoming a critical member of the center for innovation team.”

— Adam Glasofer, Chief Innovation Officer, Virtua Health System

Next step

Start with a 45-minute working session: pressure-test where you stand and decide whether a Read is worth doing.

Engagements are limited and usually booked a quarter or more ahead.