01
The Founder-Operator
Running a five-to-fifty-person business, post-product-market-fit, fighting the busy-and-broke cycle. Reads. Wants the rooms where the people two and three steps ahead actually talk.
A private network for builders
The Orchard.
A paid private network of practitioner-leaders building businesses, ministries, and brands meant to outlive them. Curated, intentionally small, and structured for application — not just consumption.
For leaders building something they want to outlive them.
Begin your application →Format
Application-only
Cadence
Monthly · Quarterly · Async
Founding cohort
Capped at 50
What it is
A place where serious people meet, learn, and intervene in each other's work.
The Orchard is where the road signs become practice. The books explain the principles. The framework gives you the map. The Orchard is where you sit in a room with other operators applying the same map to their own work — and intervening in yours when you ask for it.
Membership is paid, application-only, and intentionally small. The room is built to compound the value of being inside it. Members get access to my thinking before it becomes a book, structured ways to apply what they learn, and a directory of operators they would not otherwise be in conversation with.
What it is
A working network of practitioner-leaders.
- A room of operators building businesses, ministries, and brands.
- A space for application — not just consumption.
- A structured rhythm of monthly teaching, group counsel, and quarterly in-person gatherings.
- A directory of people you would not otherwise know — searchable, intentional, and curated.
What it is not
It is not a coaching program or a content library.
- Not a coaching program. The work is between peers, not on a single ladder of access to me.
- Not a course platform. The teaching is live, applied, and recorded — not pre-packaged.
- Not a "mastermind" in the bloated sense the word has come to mean.
- Not a place to show up to receive without giving. That is non-negotiable.
Who it's for
Three kinds of builders. One shared posture.
Different titles, different sectors, same instinct — operators who care about more than the next quarter, who are honest enough to admit they need help, and who want to be in a room with people two and three steps ahead.
02
The Ministry Leader
Pastor, ministry director, or nonprofit founder. Operationally sophisticated or working to become so. Sees the parallels between leading a church and leading a business, and is unembarrassed to learn from both.
03
The Corporate Practitioner-Builder
Senior operator inside a larger company who is also building something on the side — an investment vehicle, a side business, a future venture. Wants signal from peers who are further along the operator-to-owner path.
What members get
Four pillars, each delivering something concrete.
— Pillar 01
Learn.
The content layer — teaching designed to be applied.
- Monthly MasterclassA 60-minute live teaching from me on a single road sign, with discussion and Q&A. Recorded and added to the Vault.
- Full Library AccessEvery book, workbook, and audio edition — free for as long as you are a member. The shelf grows as new work ships.
- The VaultA private archive of recorded masterclasses, member sessions, working notes, and source materials. Searchable, member-only.
— Pillar 02
Connect.
The relational layer — the room is the asset.
- Member DirectorySearchable by skill, sector, city, and current focus. The phonebook a serious operator actually uses.
- Curated IntroductionsOne personally-made 1:1 introduction per quarter, based on what you are working on. The highest-leverage feature in the offer.
- Monthly RoundtableA virtual gathering on a single rotating theme. Small breakouts. Real conversation, not panel theatre.
- Quarterly In-PersonA half-day gathering in Lagos to start. Expands to other cities as membership justifies.
— Pillar 03
Counsel.
Access to my thinking, carefully scoped.
- Monthly Office HoursA 90-minute group call with me. Members submit questions in advance; I work through as many as time allows. Recorded.
- Private Q&A FeedA members-only channel where you ask questions and I answer within 48 hours on weekdays. Asynchronous, reliable.
- Member Mentorship MatchingTwice a year, members opt into being matched with another member as mentor or mentee — a structured "here's who you should talk to," not a forced program.
— Pillar 04
Build.
The transformation layer — what separates this from a paid Slack.
- Quarterly Implementation SprintsSmall groups of four to six members pick one road sign and apply it to their business over six weeks. Real artifacts produced — a hiring system rebuilt, a brand audit shipped, a delegation framework installed.
- Accountability PairsOpt-in monthly 1:1 between members to report progress on whatever each is working on. Self-organising, member-led.
The curriculum spine
Everything in The Orchard is organised around P.A.T.H.S.
P.A.T.H.S. is the framework I teach publicly — five forces that determine whether an organisation actually works. Inside The Orchard, it is the spine of the curriculum. Masterclasses rotate through the letters. Sprints focus on one. The directory tags members by which letters they are strong on and which they need help with.
P
Process
A
Audience
T
Technology
H
Human
S
Spirit / Soul
The rhythm
What a member's month actually looks like.
A steady monthly drumbeat, designed so the work compounds without overwhelming you. Three live touchpoints, one quiet week, and an asynchronous Q&A running throughout.
Week 01
Monthly Masterclass
A live 60-minute teaching on one road sign. Discussion follows. Recorded for the Vault.
Week 02
Office Hours
A 90-minute group call. You submit questions in advance; I work through them live.
Week 03
Roundtable
A virtual member-led gathering on a single rotating theme. Small breakouts, real conversation.
Week 04
Quiet week
Asynchronous Q&A, accountability pair check-ins, sprint work. No calls.
The quiet week is deliberate. A community that demands attention every week breeds resentment. The Orchard is built for operators who already have full calendars.
Membership
Founding cohort first. Then a stated monthly price.
The first cohort is the founding cohort — application-only, six months of access in exchange for three things: a testimonial when it is earned, at least one introduction to another builder, and actually showing up to the monthly sessions. After founding, membership moves to a stated monthly or annual price.
Founding cohort · Opening soon
Founding Membership
Free
Six months of access in exchange for engagement.
Capped at 50 seats. Application-only. In return for the six months of free access, founding members commit to: showing up to monthly sessions, contributing one introduction to another builder, and providing a testimonial once it is earned.
After founding
Cohort 1 onward
₦25,000 / month
or ₦240,000 per year (two-month discount on annual)
Application is still required. Founding members renew at a 50% discount for their second year. International pricing in USD or GBP is available on application.
How to apply
Three steps. One conversation.
Every member is reviewed personally before being accepted. The room only works if every seat earned the right to be there.
— Step 01
Submit the application.
A short form. Who you are, what you are building, why you want to be in the room. About ten minutes.
— Step 02
I review it personally.
Turnaround is within five working days. Some applications get a short conversation before a decision. Some get accepted directly. A small number get a polite decline with a pointer to the free content.
— Step 03
Welcome to The Orchard.
Accepted members get a personal welcome, library access on day one, the calendar for the next monthly session, and an introduction to the room within seven days.
Common questions
The things people ask before they apply.
How much time does The Orchard require each month?+
About four to six hours, if you show up to the three live sessions and contribute to the Q&A. Sprint cycles (six weeks, quarterly) add another two to four hours per week while a sprint is running. Plenty of members participate at lower intensity. The room rewards consistency more than volume.
How is this different from a "mastermind"?+
Most masterminds are paid Slack channels with a monthly call. The Orchard is structured around four pillars — teaching, connection, counsel, and applied building — with concrete outputs from each. The implementation sprints are the largest single difference: real artifacts get built inside the room, not just discussed.
Will I get 1:1 access to Chris?+
Counsel is structured at the group level — monthly office hours, the private Q&A feed, and quarterly curated introductions. I am not your 1:1 mentor, and the room is healthier because of that. Deep one-on-one work in The Orchard happens between members, supported by the directory and mentorship-matching twice a year. If you want focused 1:1 consulting from me directly, the PATHS Audit is the right product — and members receive a discount on it.
What if I am not sure I am at the right level yet?+
Apply and tell me. I am the person reading the applications. If the room is not the right place for you right now, I will tell you that — and I will tell you which of the free resources will serve you best until it is. Saying no to an applicant is a sign the room is being protected, not closed.
What is the cancellation policy?+
For founding members, the commitment is the six-month founding cohort — you are committing to show up for that window. For paid members from Cohort 1 onward, the monthly option can be cancelled anytime; the annual option is non-refundable but can be paused once during the membership year.
Can international members join?+
Yes. Most live sessions are scheduled to work for African and European time zones. Quarterly in-person gatherings begin in Lagos and expand as membership justifies. International pricing is offered in USD and GBP — flag it on your application.
How does this connect to PATHS, the Audit, and the books?+
The books teach the principles. The PATHS framework gives you the map. The PATHS Audit applies the map to your organisation in a single deep engagement. The Orchard is where you practise the map continuously, alongside other operators doing the same. They are complementary, not competing — most serious members eventually use more than one.
What happens to my membership if I miss a few months?+
Life happens. If you go quiet for a stretch, the membership keeps running and your access stays open. If a member is dormant for an extended period, I reach out personally before any seat changes hands — both because the room is small and because most quiet stretches end. Active participation is the spirit of the membership; perfect attendance is not.
The room is small by design. Tell me what you are building.
Founding cohort capped at 50. Application-only. The work is harder than the room makes it look, and the room is what makes it possible.
Begin your application →Seats remaining will be shown on the application page.