Raintree Recruits Sundi Ford as New Vice President of Operations

Franchise sales organization Raintree was founded in 2013 as a way to help brands find viable franchise candidates and scale their businesses. Raintree has come a long way since then — the consultancy works with 16 brands, including Hounds Town USA and Nékter Juice Bar, and has helped each of them meet and even surpass their franchise growth goals. Recently, the organization added a new role to their leadership team, bringing on franchise industry veteran Sundi Ford as the company’s new vice president of operations. 

“I started my career in the fitness and wellness industry about 20 years ago with a company called Muscle Activation Techniques,” said Ford. “I was able to partner with the CEO and grow from a small organization to a company that was delivering super high-end education in the fitness industry in all major cities. We were lucky enough to expand into countries all over the world and share our programs internationally.” 

In 2013 Ford was approached by Dish Network to join their team in Denver and knew it was a prime opportunity to grow and learn more about operations and development. “The role provided me with great experience, and I was with them for a brief time before being picked up by Postnet International Franchise Corporation, where I ended up falling in love with the franchising industry,” she said. “As the director of training and development, I oversaw all of the company’s operational aspects and really focused on relevant and innovative training for franchisees. I wound up leaving and taking a job with Verus Global as vice president of operations, overseeing marketing, training and all major operational functions.” 

When the COVID-19 shutdown forced Ford to start looking for new career opportunities, she ended up connecting with Raintree CEO Brent Dowling. “I was immediately drawn to Raintree as an organization with a tremendous amount of traction and structure,” she said. “The way that Raintree highlights the client-nurturing process by co-creating a strategy that helps clients achieve their growth goals is incredible. I also love how Raintree brings in the entire team of experts to create a growth roadmap for a brand — having been on the client side of it, I know how amazing it is to have a full team focused on making sure your experience is best-in-class. Another differentiator is their internal passion for leadership and their focus on company culture. From day one, I was able to see that they walk the walk — if the culture is good internally, it will show with clients externally, and Raintree takes that responsibility very seriously.”

Ford started as the vice president of operations with Raintree on August 10 of this year. “I am able to lend my expertise when it comes to operational efficiencies, culture, processes and systems, as well as highlight all of these differentiators that Raintree brings to the table for clients,” she said. “In this new role, I have the honor of working closely with the brand management team, the marketing team, the accounting team, the I.T. team and more. It is my responsibility to ensure that each and every team member is set up for success. I am also responsible for setting up the infrastructure to ensure that Raintree can achieve its strategic mission of helping clients. If there are any issues that come up operationally, my job is to come up with the solutions to ensure that the team has what they need to successfully satisfy clients.”

Looking ahead, Ford is excited for the future and is currently working with the team to put together a plan for 2021. “Next year will really be about refining brand intimacy and working with clients to further establish our systems and processes,” she said. “We are also looking to revamp our internal operations as well. For 2021, my overall goal as vice president of operations is to create a space where the whole team feels empowered to make a plan together. My role is to create air cover for the team so that they can continue thriving. Whether it be operations, development or financial reporting, I am excited to further refine what is already strong about Raintree.”

Dowling notes that Ford is a great fit for the Raintree brand. "Over the last 7 years, we've slowly built a roster of all-star franchise sales and marketing teammates who are driving some truly innovative strategies right now. The growth we've seen has been awesome," he said. "Accordingly, we knew we needed another all-star to bring some structure, leadership, and sophisticated processes to help ensure we continue to grow rapidly, but the right way. Sundi brings all of that, and so much more." 

To learn more about Raintree, visit https://raintreesales.com/

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