Strategy Elevation Alliance
Executive Preview · Pre-Operational Readiness · April 28, 2026

Poarch Band of Creek Indians

Sovereign Nation · Atmore, Alabama · Pre-Operational Birmingham Destination Resort
Built for Tribal Chair and CEO Stephanie A. Bryan and the Poarch Creek leadership team.
Thirty Minutes
This is the moment to set the enterprise up right, and it will not come again. Every decision made now, while it is still a clean sheet, costs less than the same one made after the doors are open. Set it now and you carry it cleanly instead of fixing it later. We are asking for thirty minutes of your time, and it will not be wasted. The three of us have carried tribal and hospitality enterprises through this same moment at Chumash Enterprises, Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Chickasaw Nation, and Pinnacle Entertainment. With our multiple-property and startup experience, we can help your team eliminate future costly issues through one approach, Illuminate, Focus, Perform, to accelerate the results that matter.
Climb Higher. See Further. Execute Intentionally.
Strategic Context · July 2026

Three Fronts at Once

Wind Creek is just over a year into operating the Birmingham Racecourse it acquired in April 2025, the Alabama legislation that would have authorized a state compact stalled again in the 2026 session, and the Tribe has been publicly pressing for consultation on solar and data center proposals near the reservation since late May. The window to set the operating system that carries a portfolio moving on that many fronts is open right now.

Apr 2025
Wind Creek Completed Racecourse Purchase
2026
Alabama Compact Bill Stalled in Session
May & Jun
Tribal Statements on Solar and Data Centers
Wind Creek
Tribally Owned Gaming and Hospitality
What Just Happened

A portfolio operator defending its ground and waiting on a compact.

Poarch Creek runs its gaming and hospitality through its own PCI Gaming Authority and Wind Creek Hospitality. The enterprise decision path runs through that structure, which is exactly where one operating standard across properties either exists or does not.

  • April 2, 2025. Wind Creek Hospitality completed its purchase of the Birmingham Racecourse, which continues parimutuel and historical horse racing while conversion planning advances.
  • 2026 session. Legislation that would have let Alabama voters authorize a state compact with the Tribe stalled as the session wound down. Alabama properties remain Class II.
  • May 28 and June 5, 2026. The Tribe issued public statements pressing for consultation on proposed solar and data center developments in Baldwin and Escambia Counties and the cultural-impact risk to land near the reservation.
Sources

PCI press releases, April 2025 and May to June 2026. CDC Gaming, February 2026. Verified against public record July 28, 2026.

The Partnership

Three Practitioners. One Accountability.

SEA is not a firm that deploys associates. The three partners below own the work end to end, together. What you see below is what shows up in the room.

John Elliott
Chief Executive Officer, MacKinnon Enterprises LLC · Principal, Strategy Elevation Alliance · Economic Development · Adjunct Instructor, The Mana College
Innovative Venturer · Analytical Machine · Entrepreneurial Builder · Inspiring Storyteller · Future-Oriented
35+ years leading organizations through transformation as CEO, COO, CFO, and consulting practice leader. Career spans Big 5 consulting across Asia, Native American Tribal economic development, and corporate leadership in manufacturing, defense, and utilities. Known for navigating complex, regulated environments and delivering measurable growth. Established strategic partnerships and completed $1B of economic development transactions alongside Native Nations.
Core Expertise
  • Organizational Transformation & Strategy Execution
  • Leadership Development & Executive Coaching
  • Mergers & Acquisitions Integration & Growth
  • Economic Development Initiatives
  • Operations, Supply Chain & Outsourcing
  • Shared Services & Enterprise Performance Systems
  • Change Management & Cultural Transformation
elliottjohn32@gmail.com 508.272.4710
Teri Hill
Owner, Hill-Summit Consulting · Principal, Strategy Elevation Alliance · Strategic Advisor · Executive Coach
Strategic Persuader · Vision Translator · People Optimizer · Alignment Builder · Outcome-Focused
Trusted business advisor with 35+ years helping executives grow and transform. Former Accenture Managing Director brings enterprise-grade expertise typically reserved for Fortune 500 companies to small and mid-sized organizations. Architected Chumash Enterprises' shift from functional silos to self-directed teams. Grew Accenture practice team 5x and Fortune client base across healthcare and energy. Predictive Index® Consultant, The Leadership Challenge® Advanced Facilitator, and licensed Line-of-Sight℠ practitioner.
Core Expertise
  • Enterprise Transformation & Strategy Execution
  • Leadership Development & Executive Coaching
  • M&A: Integration, Growth, Divestiture
  • Organizational Design & Operating Models
  • Talent Optimization & Behavioral Analytics
  • Strategic Planning & Expert Facilitation
  • Change Management & Cultural Transformation
trhill@hill-summit.com 602.831.0051
Tommy Rhoads
Founder & CEO, RTI Enterprises · Principal, Strategy Elevation Alliance · Chief Reinvention Officer, Brave Business AI · Adjunct Instructor, The Mana College
Full-Stack Operator · Systems Builder · Execution Catalyst · AI-Native Reinventor · Relentless Finisher
Tommy Rhoads is the Founder and CEO of RTI Enterprises, a Principal of Strategy Elevation Alliance, and Chief Reinvention Officer of Brave Business AI. He is a practitioner who has owned every function of an enterprise transformation at once, strategy, operations, and the customer and employee experience, and built one integrated system to run them as a whole. That range is the product. He has worked at every altitude, from the floor of live operations to the boardroom, across hospitality, tribal enterprise, and corporate transformation, and today builds the AI execution layer that turns proven methodology into operating software.
Core Expertise
  • Enterprise Transformation (people, process, digital, cultural)
  • Organizational Change & Leadership Activation
  • Hoshin Kanri & Strategy Deployment
  • Customer & Team Experience Strategy
  • Tribal Gaming & Hospitality Performance
  • Operational Excellence (Lean Six Sigma® Master Black Belt)
  • M&A Value Realization
tommy.rhoads@rtienterprises.com 469.475.4277
Next Step

A Thirty-Minute Conversation About the Next Twelve Months.

A direct working conversation about your twelve-month priorities, the operating system the tribe needs to lock them down, and whether a relationship with SEA belongs in that room.

Email the Partners to Set Up a Conversation Email John Elliott Directly