MEET THE CONTRUENCE FOUNDER, MICHAEL BOULWARE MOORE
The Foundation
Michael Boulware Moore has spent his career leading brands, building institutions, and shaping strategy across commerce, culture, and the public sector.
As CEO of Glory Foods, he led a $100 million CPG brand serving millions of American households. As founding President and CEO of the International African American Museum, he built a world-class cultural institution named by Time Magazine as one of the "World's Greatest Places" in 2024.
He has run organizations, advised CEOs and boards, raised more than one hundred million dollars, and led teams in corporate, nonprofit, and heritage environments. His work spans global brands like Coca-Cola, CPG icons like JELL-O, sports apparel with the NHL, cultural institutions, and high-growth ventures.
Across every role, one insight proved constant: Identity drives behavior. It shapes how people choose, how they engage, and how they stay connected.
The Operating Years
Before founding Contruence, Michael didn't just consult - he operated.
As CEO of Glory Foods, he led a $100 million CPG brand serving millions of American households. Glory Foods is a heritage brand with deep cultural significance, and Michael navigated the challenges of category competition, retail consolidation, brand evolution, and consumer transformation in one of the most competitive sectors in commerce.
As founding President and CEO of the International African American Museum, he built a world-class cultural institution from the ground up. In 2024, Time Magazine named the museum one of the "World's Greatest Places"—a recognition of its power to tell transformative stories and shape cultural identity. Leading the museum required raising significant capital, building a team, and creating an experience that honors history while inspiring the future.
He also built a global department for a leading tech firm and even ran for the same Congressional seat his great-great-grandfather served in 150 years ago.
In the midst of all this, three of his four sons finished college, he became a grandfather twice over, and his family moved back to a place where his grandkids now represent the ninth generation to live there.
These weren't career detours. They were the laboratory where he tested, refined, and validated the frameworks he now brings to Contruence clients.
During that time, he also authored Bridging The Gaps: The Love of Marketing - a book that captures three decades of insights about identity, brand alignment, and consumer behavior.
The Philosophy
"Understanding human beings - their emotions, aspirations, and identities - is the key to building the deepest consumer connections, the strongest brands, and ultimately to selling more 'stuff.'"
This philosophy wasn't born in a boardroom. It was forged across three defining brand experiences:
At Mello Yello, Michael stood in NASCAR pit lanes watching a challenger brand take on Mountain Dew. Working with driver Kyle Petty, he learned that challenger brands compete on cultural relevance and speed. That freedom to test and experiment trained him to be scrappy and strategic - instincts that stuck with him throughout his career.
On the Coca-Cola brand, he discovered that the world's most iconic brand didn't just market soft drinks - it evoked feeling. Nostalgia. Belonging. Americana. His mother has a Ph.D. in psychology; his father earned his in philosophy. Coke gave him the canvas to apply that curiosity - to decode how branding shapes behavior, values, and identity.
It was there that he began building the foundation for what he now calls aspirational identity: the idea that people don't buy products - they buy the version of themselves those products promise.
At No Fear, he left the best corporate marketing job on the planet to join a Southern California startup on fire. What he found was a company deeply embedded in the cultures it served - motocross, surfing, auto racing. These weren't just sports to the No Fear team: they were religion.
At Coca-Cola, Michael saw the power of global brand systems. At No Fear, he saw the power of cultural alignment. It wasn't about selling to a market - it was about belonging to a movement.
When brands are of the culture - not just in the culture - when identity alignment isn't performed, it's lived - that's when consumers feel it.
These lessons became the foundation for Contruence.
How we work
Senior-Led, Purpose-Built Teams
Every Contruence engagement is led personally by Michael. You're not handed off to junior consultants or account managers - you work directly with a former Fortune 50 marketing executive, CMO and CEO who has led the exact transformations you're seeking.
For larger transformations or specialized workstreams - brand research, identity system design, organizational alignment, or implementation - we assemble purpose-built teams from a curated network of senior practitioners. These are not generalists; they are specialists Michael has worked with for years across commerce, culture, and technology.
This approach delivers three critical advantages:
1. Strategic Continuity
Michael leads every engagement from diagnosis through execution, ensuring your strategy doesn't get lost in translation.
2. Senior-Level Expertise
You get the judgment of an operator and the execution capacity of a firm, without the overhead of a large consultancy.
3. Customized Teams
We assemble the right team for your specific challenge - not a one-size-fits-all methodology delivered by whoever is available.
You get the agility and personal attention of a boutique firm, with the depth and capacity to deliver complex, multi-workstream engagements.
The Proof
Since founding Contruence, Michael has partnered with:
- Startup founders building breakthrough products
- Fortune 20 CEOs redefining their brands
- Cultural institutions telling bold stories
This work is built on trust, credibility, and a proven track record of helping leaders align identity with execution.
The Intellectual Foundation
Michael's mother has a Ph.D. in psychology. His father earned his in philosophy. So he grew up thinking about what makes people tick. His career gave him the canvas to apply that curiosity - to decode how branding shapes behavior, values, and identity.
"In the Identity Economy, human identity comes first. Authenticity opens the door; intellect earns the seat at the table."
Published Work
Over three decades in marketing, Michael has learned one timeless truth: understanding human beings deeply - their emotions, aspirations, and identities - is the key to building the deepest consumer connections, the strongest brands, and ultimately to selling more "stuff."
This book distills those lessons into practical frameworks for brand leaders navigating today's complex marketplace.
Thought Leadership
Thought Leadership
Michael maintains an active presence on LinkedIn, where he shares insights on identity-driven growth, brand strategy, and consumer transformation. His writing has reached hundreds of thousands of marketers and brand leaders, building the trust and credibility that informs every Contruence engagement.
His ongoing engagement with CMOs, VPs of Marketing, and brand leaders doesn't just build an audience—it builds architecture. Every conversation, question, and challenge contributes to the continuous evolution of the frameworks that power Contruence's work.