Portland, OR – August 17, 2022—TiER1 Impact has announced the acquisition of XPLANE, a global design consultancy that helps large organizations clarify, communicate, and activate their vision. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon with a team in Madrid, Spain, XPLANE will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of TiER1 Impact and sister company to strategy activation firm, TiER1 Performance.
“XPLANE’s expertise in strategy activation, visual thinking, and human-centered design has helped to accelerate change and transformation for more than 150 Fortune 500 clients and our valued government and not-for-profit partners,” shares Aric Wood, XPLANE CEO. “We know we are poised for growth and even greater impact for our clients. Our partnership with TiER1 Impact will provide the systems and structures to support that, while expanding the depth and breadth of ways we can support our customers.”
Aric Wood, CEO of XPLANE will continue to lead the organization in that capacity, while joining TiER1 Impact as Chief Strategy Officer. The XPLANE team has served clients as diverse as AstraZeneca, Carhartt, Harvard University and the World Bank to accelerate change in their organizations through vision and strategy articulation; employee engagement and culture change; service design; training and development tools; and strategy activation. Like TiER1 Performance, XPLANE is also a Certified B Corporation and a “Great Place to Work.”
“We’ve admired the work and approach of XPLANE for a long time,” notes Greg Harmeyer, CEO of TiER1 Impact. “We believe there is a significant opportunity to enhance both XPLANE and TiER1 Performance services by learning from each other, sharing resources, and collectively investing in systems for growth. Together we will work to create healthy, high-performing organizations for our clients.”
The XPLANE management team will continue to manage the daily operations of the business—providing the high level of value, results, and people-focused solutions that clients have come to expect from the team. While XPLANE and TiER1 Performance teams will market and offer their core services independently of each other, they will also extend the value they bring to their clients by promoting the unique capabilities of the other. In addition, collaborations will be created to co-market both organizations’ professional development services, XPLANE’s Studio X and TiER1 Performance Institute.
About TiER1 Impact
TiER1 Impact is an employee-owned, professional services development company that invests in, develops, and grows professional services firms that have a long-term outlook and an interest in helping clients build healthier, more holistically successful organizations. TiER1 Impact companies include TiER1 Performance, XPLANE, and Mercury Executive Development. Learn more about TiER1 Impact at tier1impact.com.
About XPLANE
XPLANE is a global design consultancy that helps large organizations clarify, communicate, and activate their vision. In pursuit of its purpose to “accelerate positive change”, XPLANE leverages visual thinking, human-centered design, and co-creation to help clients transform their companies by aligning and engaging their employees to accelerate results. XPLANE is headquartered in Portland, Oregon and Madrid, Spain. Learn more at xplane.com.
About TiER1 Performance
Founded in 2002, TiER1 Performance consults, designs, and builds solutions that activate strategies through people. As a Certified B Corporation®, our 300+ consultants partner with more than 350 of the world’s most successful corporate, healthcare, and governmental organizations. TiER1 has received 40+ Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Awards, 26 Brandon Hall Excellence Awards, a B Corp Best for the World award, and numerous Best Places to Work awards (including three times on Inc.’s Best Workplaces list). TiER1 is a 15-time member of the Inc. 5000 (2007-2020). Learn more at tier1performance.com.