SeQent is an industrial automation software company and an early pioneer in the Industrial Internet of Things, with two decades of experience and thousands of installations worldwide. Their platform bridges industrial automation systems and the communication devices that plant teams actually use, so that alarms, events, and notifications reach the right people in real time, whether that's on a Motorola two-way radio, a smartphone, a PA speaker, a pager, or a display on the plant floor.
SeQent's customers span automotive and technology manufacturers, where uptime on the floor isn't a nice-to-have but a daily operating reality.
Based in London, Ontario, SeQent is a small team of around two dozen people running a business with deep roots. Founded in the 1990s and now serving customers globally, the company sits at an unusual intersection: a mature, category-leading product with decades of installed base, paired with the energy of new ownership.
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Michael knew the kind of structure he wanted. He had read Traction and was drawn to the EOS model as a way to bring discipline to strategy and execution. So he looked at EOS implementers and came away unconvinced.
"It was a lot too hands-off," he explained. "It was kind of just, hey, we got a session, there's a playbook... and that's all kind of on your own."
There was a question of fit, too. Standard EOS, in Michael's view, carried more weight than a company of SeQent's size needed. "I find parts of it are very heavy for a business of our size," he said. He didn't want to install a rigid system. He wanted a partner who would help him decide what to keep, what to leave, and how to shape it around the business he actually had.
That pointed back to Fahd. The two had history, the trust was already there, and Fahd's Founder Operating System covered the same ground Michael was after, with the flexibility to tailor it. Michael and Sheret made the call together to bring Unicorn Labs in for the year ahead.
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The engagement followed the shape of a Founder Operating System rollout, scaled to fit a smaller team: an in-person annual planning retreat to do the heavy strategic lifting, quarterly off-sites to keep the plan live, and monthly coaching sessions delivered virtually.
Onboarding was deliberately light. Michael doesn't recall a heavy intake process, and for an engagement this lean, that was the point. What he does remember is the pre-work landing ahead of each session, and the quality of what came back afterward.
The facilitation work happened in person. The coaching happened virtually. That split — intensive in-person sessions for the big strategic moments, lighter-touch virtual coaching to maintain momentum — fit the rhythm of a small, busy team.
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The relationship is continuing. Michael is committed to keeping Fahd for off-site facilitation, and sees a strong case for running the two-day annual retreat as the kickoff.
"I feel like I'm not contributing as much as I could if Fahd's doing it."His reasoning is practical: it's hard to both facilitate and participate.
"I think he's a really good fit for this section of the market."
Michael has already put the recommendation into practice; he connected another first-time operator with Unicorn Labs after seeing what executive coaches were charging elsewhere. He was thoughtful about where the fit is strongest, distinguishing between "professional CEOs" and what he affectionately calls "gunslinging CEOs," newer operators, often first-timers, running smaller and startup-stage companies.
"We're happy," Michael said. "It's been good, and we've enjoyed it."
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