All businesses face challenges. Execution decides who wins.

We help the most ambitious entrepreneurs build remarkable organizations by bringing deep expertise in operational excellence, capital strategy, and practical modernization.

Investors and Operators Who Have Been Where You Are

60+ years
as operators ourselves

Partners who show up.

We’ve built companies, raised capital, founded investment funds, managed boards, and led teams through hard change. That experience shapes how we work. We stay practical and grounded, and we focus on building strong organizations without burning out the people who run them.
200+
Meritage companies

Built for capital-backed growth.

Meritage began as an investment firm. We work with startups, family offices, PE and VC firms, and public companies. We are purpose-built for companies that raise outside capital, and for the investment firms that deploy it. We apply EOS® with a deep understanding of investor expectations, governance, and scale. That brings clarity where complexity often takes over.
Billions
invested in our companies

At Meritage, our purpose is to help entrepreneurial leaders build remarkable organizations while leading remarkable lives.

Every leader today faces real pressure to perform. The rules of competition keep changing. Aggressive new entrants, shifting customer expectations, AI, and investors demanding higher returns all push at once.

For high-growth companies, it's new AI-native competitors appearing daily with massive funding. For acquisition entrepreneurs, it's transforming a business built for the 1990s into one that can compete today. For investment firms, it's the pressure of deploying capital effectively while knowing that 7 out of 10 portfolio companies will struggle not with strategy, but with execution.

Most companies respond in one of two ways. Some freeze, paralyzed by the pace of change. Others thrash, chasing every new tool and trend without a system. Leaders feel out of control and their leadership teams grow dysfunctional.

Meanwhile, boards demand results, investors want returns, and employees need clarity. The result? Brilliant companies with great products and services fail not because they lack vision, but because they can't execute fast enough to matter.

Meritage started with a simple observation. The companies that win are not always the ones with the best ideas or the most funding. They are the ones that execute with discipline while others chase shiny objects.

Our founding team came together after decades of parallel experiences across wildly different industries. We've built tech companies and bought traditional businesses. We've raised venture funds and bootstrapped new ideas to profitability. We've managed software engineers and frontline employees. Despite these different contexts, we found the same truth. Effort does not scale. Clear owners and a weekly Scorecard do.

We each found EOS® (Entrepreneurial Operating System) at critical moments in our own companies and watched it transform chaos into clarity. It worked just as well for a 1000-person B2B SaaS company as it did for a multi-location food and beverage company. The principles of operational excellence are universal. Only the application changes.

We created Meritage to be what we wished had existed when we built our own companies. A partner with operational discipline, capital expertise, and practical modernization guidance. That might mean implementing AI, or getting your core business systems to work.

We believe in straight talk, proven systems, and the belief that capital, expertise, and discipline compound together.

‍

-Meritage Team

Some of Our Companies

Techstars

Techstars helps founders scale their startups into world-changing businesses.

Little Man Ice Cream

Handcrafted ice cream company with multiple locations across Colorado, known for their famous giant ice cream sculptures and premium quality ice cream.

Stormbreaker

Early stage venture investing in wireless, mobility, and connectivity technologies that advance the connected ecosystem.

The Dyrt

The leading marketplace for unique outdoor stays - camping, glamping, RV sites, and cabins across North America.

LumenServe

We give tower owners piece of mind

The Expert Press

We help companies conceive, create, and publish high-authority thought leadership, nationwide.

Entity Academy

Closing the skills, confidence, and wage gaps that disproportionately impact women and diverse talent.

828

Unique wedding and event venues across the nation

First Western Trust

First Western's mission is to be the best private bank for the Western Wealth Management Client.

Oakwood Homes

Top home builder in Colorado, Utah, and Arizona. Sustained value, efficient home designs, and strong customer service.

Arcland

Class A storage development, investment and management

The Unreasonable Group

We build community between entrepreneurs, institutions, and investors to profitably solve pressing global problems.

Origin CPA Group

You deserve more from your CPA relationship. At Origin CPA Group, our focus is you.

XTI Aerospace

Building air mobility with vertical lift technology for point-to-point travel.

Koelbel

Colorado's Premier Real Estate Developer

Luggage Forward

Official luggage shipping partner for luxury cruise lines and tour operators.

Rallyday Partners

A private equity firm providing capital to emerging industry leaders, built by founders for founders.

Panoptyc

Panoptyc uses video AI to detect retail theft in real time.

Cubby Beds

Smart Beds for Special Needs

The Invention Network

We help inventors win

Mav

Mav is the AI-powered insurance expert that engages unlimited leads with friendly texts to quality, quote, and connect prospects to agents.

Bonfire

Broadband planning, engineering, construction, and fiber operations.

Syntrinsic

An investment firm for foundations, endowments, and nonprofits.

Zesty Paws

Help pawsome pet parents spoil their besties with flavorful and functional products.

Sunday

Your guide to growing, mowing, and caring for your yard in the best ways.

Longpath

Improving methane management with laser technology.

ScaleIP

Simplifies market assessment and monetization by delivering actionable data insights.

Ninety

Build great organizations by helping teams work more effectively together.

Campminder

The very best summer camp management software.

Envision Imaging

Improving diagnostic imaging for patients everywhere.

Highlands Vista Group

A strong environment where residents, employees, and investors grow together over the long term.

Meet The Team

Jack Tankersley

Partner Emeritus & EOS Implementer

Jay Tankersley

Partner & EOS Implementer

Bart Lorang

Partner & EOS Implementer

Sarah Lorang

Operating Principal, Strategic Initiatives

Diana Steverson

Executive Assistant
Jesse Gordon

Jesse Gordon

Integrator & Practice Manager

Latest Articles

The Agentic Workforce Is Here. Is Your Business Ready?

Mar 7, 2026
∙
Bart Lorang
Read Post

From Builder to Leader: Why Scalable Companies Require Founders to Let Go

Jan 26, 2026
∙
Bart Lorang
Read Post

With a Well Crafted V/TO, Your Pitch Deck Writes Itself

Jan 19, 2026
∙
Bart Lorang
Read Post

Private equity investors and entrepreneurs: How to keep companies on the right path

Dec 3, 2025
∙
Jay Tankersley
Read Post

Frequently Asked Questions

Don't see the answers you're looking for?
Send us an email.
Where are you located?

 We are based in Denver and work nationally. We travel to clients, or you can run offsites and sessions at our locations in Denver, Vail, or Winter Park.

Who is behind Meritage?

Meritage is led by entrepreneurs, operators, investors, and founders who’ve built, bought, funded, and scaled real businesses. We’ve worked across technology and traditional industries, venture-backed and self-funded companies, and teams ranging from software engineers to frontline operators.

We came together around a shared insight. The companies that win aren’t always the ones with the best ideas or the most capital. They’re the ones that execute with discipline while others chase shiny objects.

Meritage exists to be the partner we wish we’d had: grounded, practical, and deeply experienced in execution, capital, and modernization.

What is a Business Operating System?

A Business Operating System is a framework for how a company runs day to day. It aligns leadership around a shared vision, establishes clear accountability, and creates a consistent cadence for setting priorities, solving problems, and tracking performance.

Every business has an operating system. Often it evolves by accident, without much thought to how the whole system fits together. Teams end up relying on heroics and intuition. Systems like these break down when your business is under pressure.

A strong business operating system helps organizations stay focused, make better decisions, and move forward with clarity, especially during rapid growth or transformation.

What is EOS® (Entrepreneurial Operating System)?

EOS® is a complete business operating system. It simplifies the most complex business challenges. It focuses on six key components of a healthy business: Vision, People, Data, Issues, Process, and Traction. 

Rather than theory, it emphasizes consistent habits and discipline, helping teams gain control of their business, create momentum, and execute more effectively as they scale.

Why did we choose EOS® as our preferred Business Operating System?

We'd each found EOS at critical moments in our own companies and watched it transform chaos into clarity. It worked just as well for a 1000-person B2B SaaS company as it did for a multi-location food and beverage company or a small family business. The principles of operational excellence are universal. Only the application changes.

What kind of companies does Meritage work with?

We work with ambitious, growth-minded leaders who want to build something enduring. At the earlier stage, our clients have real traction, often $2M+ in revenue or $3M+ in outside capital. They are moving from entrepreneurial momentum to disciplined scale. 

Many of our companies have between $10M and $50M in revenue, though we also regularly partner with much larger organizations facing meaningful transformation, including public companies. 

What matters most is mindset. We look for leaders who are open to change and committed to growth, and who worry more about standing still than about hard work.

What is Meritage’s history?

Our founders pioneered venture capital in the Rocky Mountain region, with over 40 years of investment experience. As a firm, we have always been dedicated to helping entrepreneurs build remarkable organizations. 

We still invest and manage capital today. As venture capital became just another asset class, we paired capital with hands-on expertise, helping entrepreneurs build remarkable organizations.

How are you different from other EOS® implementers?

We are the only firm of EOS® implementers that specialize in serving companies that have raised outside capital. We understand the pressures of venture-backed and private equity growth. We serve the companies that raise outside capital, and the venture and PE firms that back them. 

We also have unique expertise in AI. Our team has led modernization across many industries, from AI-native startups to long-standing, operationally complex businesses. We understand the realities of legacy systems, frontline teams, regulatory constraints, and investor expectations. We apply EOS® with a unique view towards improving outcomes via smart technology modernization.

All businesses face challenges. Execution decides who wins.

We partner with select leaders to establish world-class execution—bringing operational discipline, capital fluency, and thoughtful modernization to build remarkable businesses.
"Jay has been with us from the beginning of our EOS journey. His knowledgable and professional approach helped overcome the natural reticence that accompanies any major operational change."
Carl Koelbel
CEO, Koelbel
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