Twenty-five years ago, after 15 years spent as a Fortune 500 vice president for BP Global, Julie Krivanek launched her own Denver-based, internationally connected strategic thinking and planning firm for the fresh produce industry.

Many stories with that lead paragraph would go on to say, “Today she announced her retirement, describing plans to fashion mosaics from sea glass she’s collected on the beach.”

Instead, she told The Produce News that while she celebrates the 25th anniversary of Krivanek Consulting Inc., her 20th year with the United Fresh Leadership Program and her 40th year in Colorado, she is also offering three new services from her company this summer and has put together a detailed 10-year plan.Julie Krivanek

“This year in celebration of the 25th anniversary of KC, I’ve put a spotlight on the many facets of strategy,” she said. “In June I spoke at an invitation-only session on Strategic Leadership for the Produce Industry to alums of the United Fresh Leadership Program. In July I was the featured keynote speaker for the Pro*Act 50-member board of directors in Strategies for Profitable Growth.”

She went on to say the celebratory aspect of 2015 has “been a really great reflective time,” adding that she’ll continue to look at what lies ahead.

Key to her future is staying ahead of her clients’ needs, changes in the industry and trends, which she said is “reaching from the U.S. to global to product to food to consumer, and I swim in those streams constantly.”

One of the three new services being launched this year is Advanced Strategic Thinking and Planning, which is “geared toward companies that want to evolve and accelerate their profitable growth.”

Krivanek is also providing M&A Strategy for the Fresh Produce Industry, which addresses mergers and acquisitions and the “number of conditions [that] are ripe for the merger mania we are seeing now.” She said the fact remains that “about 70 percent of the deals fail to deliver on the promise [and] this services helps companies beat the odds.”

She said, “During the first six months of this year there were $1 trillion in mergers and acquisitions, and the U.S. economy is looked at globally as on the uptick.”

Third in the new services is Exit Strategy for Owners and CEOs, looking at baby boomers who are “struggling with what’s next [and] finding that next level of meaningful contribution.”

She added, “People need to figure out what is their next career, ‘what is waiting for me?’ I help people walk out the door.”

Krivanek’s own energetic outlook is that the “the next 10 years of my business will continue to evolve and expand strategy expertise in ways relevant to trends and needs of our industry.”

One observation is that “most businesses are flat, and very few are growing double-digits.”

Her challenge is to “figure out which levers to flip and I bring that eye to my clients. We have a heartbeat in the industry, and it is exquisite. There are a lot of families and relationships in produce, and we have the glue of human communications. We are the good guys who wear the white hats, and health and wellness come naturally from what we do.

“But there is somewhat of a disconnect,” she continued. “There is a clock that is ticking, and a lot is passed from generation. That is both good and bad. Sometimes companies are afraid to bring in people from the outside, and the growth model is not current. It is vital to have the magic of this industry blended with the strong teeth of sustained growth. If that is out of whack, you see a lot of companies looking at selling.”

The veteran strategist looked at the phenomenon of millennials and that demographic’s clout.

“In terms of numbers, they’re the largest bloc coming up,” she said. “They are the bellwether for the food and beverage industry, and that’s why they are so interesting. But the economic power still resides with the boomers.”

She continued, “Now we have two blocs. The boomers have the buying power, and the millennials have technology. There are new business models coming into the industry that we haven’t grasped yet. We need to bring them in, but we can’t forget the boomers.”

One tenet Krivanek emphasizes is “not to look back but to look forward” using critical thinking and analysis — Advanced Strategic Thinking and Planning — and connecting the dots, “thinking inside and outside the four walls.”

Another tenet is not to fear occasionally ripping it up.

“Every once in a while I crash out everything,” she said. “I redo it completely. I have constantly said rip it up, start it in a different way and at a higher level. It can be a pretty big explosion if it’s a business doing that, but it’s really revitalizing.”