Tidewater Affairs Office

Lin Chao, 34, is the founder of Tide Consulting. Formerly employed by a leading commercial park investment and promotion firm, he went independent because he was dissatisfied with an industry that put profits ahead of the right fit. His business focuses on corporate park investment consulting and brand strategy, with core client projects modeled on parks like Green Valley Smart Hub. Steady by nature, he likes to organize his work with project schedules and keep his feelings at arm’s length. But when eight women make their “perfectly timed entrances,” the firm boundary he has drawn between work and life begins to crumble.