If you’ve ever been hired at Rōnin—or needed someone to explain labor law in a way that’s both pleasant and firm—you’ve probably crossed paths with Ronda Coyle. She’s Rōnin’s Chief Solutions Officer, a title that started as an inside joke. “Byron made it up,” she said. “He’d message me, ‘BOOM. Solutions!’ Every time I fixed something. After a while, we just rolled with it.”
But behind that unofficial title is very real expertise. Ronda is a certified HR professional (PHR) with over 40 years of experience across every area of human resources. She’s been with Rōnin since day one, shaping the company’s culture, compliance practices, and people-first philosophy from the ground up.
“I’ve done HR for companies where leadership believed in fear and intimidation,” she said. “One CEO told me, ‘I tried being nice once. It didn’t work.’ And I thought—well, that explains everything.”
After leaving one particularly toxic role, Ronda launched her own HR consulting firm, determined to only work with companies that aligned with her values. That’s how she found Rōnin. “They were one of my clients, and they were different—ethical, caring,” she said. “I kept telling Byron, ‘You guys are the only ones I want to keep working with.’ So I dropped everyone else, and I’ve been with them now for eight years.”
Growing Up, the Rōnin Way
Ronda has seen the company grow from a handful of close-knit friends into a thriving consultancy with clients across various industries and employees spread throughout the country. With that growth came some serious infrastructure changes, most of which she quietly orchestrated in the background.
“There was a time when it was just Byron, Ryan (the co-founders), and a few other folks they knew personally,” she said. “Everything was casual. But once we started hiring people who didn’t already have that personal history, I knew we needed to formalize things: handbooks, policies, the works.”
She even presented a PowerPoint to the leadership team titled What Ronda Can Do for You. “I told them, ‘You’re a real company now. Time to act like it.’ And to their credit, they listened.” Now, the company is more than 40 Rōnin strong and continues to grow.
Remote Doesn’t Mean Disconnected
One of Ronda’s most significant challenges and biggest successes has been fostering a culture in a primarily remote company.
“When you’ve got folks in different time zones, on different projects, and most of them aren’t physically in the same space, you can’t rely on hallway chats to build culture,” she said. “You have to be intentional.”
That’s where the Culture Club comes in. Founded by Ronda, the group meets quarterly with a rotating cast that includes new hires, veterans, local team members, and fully remote team members. The mission? Maintain Rōnin’s culture as strong and inclusive as possible.
“I named it Culture Club because I send out Boy George swag,” she said with a laugh. “But really, it’s about listening. What makes people feel like they belong here? What matters to them? We don’t want a top-down culture. Nobody wants that. We want to create something together.”
Even though Ronda doesn’t attend most in-person events herself (she’s based in California), she still organizes and champions them for others. “It’s about making sure there are events that people have a chance to connect and feel seen. Whether they go or not is up to them. It’s not mandatory fun.”
Rōnin and AI: We’re Leaning In
While Ronda doesn’t write code, she’s acutely aware of the industry’s evolution and the pressure AI puts on consulting firms.
“If we don’t use AI, we’ll fall behind,” she said. “Other firms will do the work faster and cheaper. Clients will expect it. And if we’re still billing by the hour while others are moving ten times faster using AI tools, we’re going to lose work.”
She’s seen the impact firsthand. “I was talking to Ryan, and he said he built something in a weekend that would’ve taken months. That’s amazing and terrifying. But it also proves the point. We can’t just sit by and watch it pass.”
Ronda isn’t just talking about it; she’s helping organize AI knowledge-sharing sessions internally. She helped the Co-founder, Ryan, organize and restart Rōnin’s “Lunch & Learns,” where employees can teach each other the tools and techniques that make them more efficient. ” I loved bringing back Lunch & Learns. We need to make sure that everyone is aware of the available options and how to utilize them effectively. Especially when we’re remote, it’s easy for knowledge to get siloed.”
The Human Side of a Tech Company
Ronda’s mission is to keep Rōnin human—even as it grows, scales, and evolves alongside the tech it builds.
“I want to end my career feeling like I made a difference,” she said. “And I’ve worked at places that were all about the bottom line—Rōnin’s different. The people are kind. They care. And they trust me to do what’s right.”
That trust, she believes, is what makes the culture work. It’s a place where people take their work seriously, but not themselves. “We’re not stiff. We joke around. We share a lot of memes in Teams. We make space to be human,” she said. “That matters when you’re not all sitting in the same room every day.”
Outside of work, Ronda’s life is full. She’s married, has two kids, and is a proud grandmother of seven. She enjoys being outdoors, whether it’s hiking, fishing, or just unplugging for a bit. And while her day job is all about structure and strategy, one of her favorite pastimes is anything but: she’s a big fan of competitive eating. “It’s ridiculous and impressive,” she said. “I can’t look away.”
She’s proud of how far the company has come and can’t wait to see what’s next for Rōnin. “We’ve grown up, but we haven’t sold out,” she said. “We’ve built something meaningful—and we’re still building.”
