The Esteemed MBAi, which teaches the foundational best practices of leadership and management, was actually born years ago at my first company, gap intelligence. We were in hyper-growth mode, jumping from 10 to 40 employees in less than 18 months. That kind of growth forces you to put people into management roles who have never received a lick of formal training.
When I looked at the resources available in San Diego at the time, the options were underwhelming: overpriced, out-of-touch extension courses on one end, and incredibly expensive business schools on the other. We couldn't justify either, so we rolled up our sleeves, built our own internal management program, and called it "gapUniversity."
Over the years, we got so dialed in on our best practices — how we framed one-on-ones, how we established clear roles and responsibilities, how we organized goals into shared milestones — that we decided to build our own digital platform. We wanted every manager communicating on the exact same standard. We called that system HighFive.
The original HighFive software was eventually retired, but I've always wanted to bring it back so my Esteemed MBAi students could put the frameworks into practice while they learned them.
Well, this past weekend, my AI Chief of Staff (Marvin) and I sat down and rebuilt HighFive from the ground up.
In the spirit of making the business world a more effective place through proper leadership and management, I'm releasing the platform 100% free to the public.
What's Inside
Create an account at highfive.esteemed.mba and get started today. Inside, you'll be able to:
- Manage 1-on-1s — Keep a structured, running agenda with each of your direct reports.
- Establish Clarity — Document and align on crystal-clear roles and responsibilities.
- Host Reviews — Run quarterly and annual kickoff reviews using our streamlined, high-impact format.
- Track Goals — Set goals that actually get done, with precise date planning and milestone creation.
- Map the Team — As your company populates the platform, a dynamic org chart is automatically generated so everyone knows exactly who reports to whom.
- Give Teammates Digital Highfives — Teammates need to be recognized. With HighFive, co-workers and managers can exchange digital Thank You cards acknowledging amazing work and support.
Give it a spin with your team. If it helps you become a better leader, drop me a note. And if you're interested in learning the management frameworks behind it — or how to train your own AI Chief of Staff to build software for you over a weekend — let's talk.
Be Esteemed.
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