The people closest to the problem are almost always best positioned to solve it. That belief is the foundation of everything I do at Silent Partners, where we work alongside frontline operators inside established organizations to cut through AI theater and build practical, measurable AI capability; not slide decks, not dependency on consultants, and not pilot programs that die in committee.
I grew up as a sixth-generation farm kid in Ohio. Turns out, chopping weeds out of soybean fields is surprisingly good training for business. You learn to identify what doesn't belong. You learn that the work doesn't care about your feelings. And you learn that real results come from doing something, not just talking about it.
My career has been anything but linear. Immediately after college, I made $734 on the life insurance policy I sold my wife and me, before deciding I was not interested in selling financial services to unsuspecting strangers. I pivoted into entrepreneurship, built a design/build firm from scratch, and lost it to a bad partnership decision. That failure, which felt like the end of the world at the time, turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me. Every successful entrepreneur I know and admire has a version of that story.
I spent seven years at a fast-growing organization where I held 14 different roles, including building a network of aftercare homes for girls rescued from sex trafficking in India. That chapter gave me what I call my MBA in People, the best management training of my professional life.
As Chief Storytelling Officer at Luxottica, I led global narrative work for Ray-Ban, Oakley, Sunglass Hut, and LensCrafters. It was the job many people dream about. The gap between that image and the reality of being a globe-trotting executive taught me something important: Be careful what you wish for.
I've now started or bought into five companies. The first failed. The next three were sold. Silent Partners, having just entered into a landmark joint venture, is the work I intend to do for the foreseeable future.
I hold a BA in Communication and Copywriting from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. More importantly, my four kids have certified me as the world's best dad.
If you lead an organization that's tired of talking about AI that produces nothing but meetings and presentations, let's talk.
From the Founder
Need a break from AI? Every week on Substack, Andrew Peters writes about leading, family, friends, and whatever he's reading or listening to. The kind of writing that starts with an ordinary moment and ends with something worth thinking about.
