PICA Member Spotlights

Q&A with independent consultants who successfully “made the leap” and created the consulting career of their dreams

 

Q: Could you please introduce yourself and tell us the name of your business and your consulting specialty?

A: My name is Kaitlin Henze, and I am the founder of Passion to Profit Consulting. I help small businesses and nonprofit achieve their strategic goals by guiding them in the shift from annual strategic planning to continuous strategy iteration.  

Q: What does continuous strategy iteration look like?

A:  Living in a constantly changing world means that we need to quickly pivot HOW we accomplish our goals. The teams that partner with me experience an entirely different approach to “strategic planning”, and I recognize this makes some people feel uncomfortable at first. My practical and intentional 5 step process involves:

  1. Engaging team members and customers to set organizational priorities

  2. Using OKR methodology to set statements of intent and define outcome based metrics

  3. Aligning the team around the strategic goals

  4. Prioritizing the teams’ work based on what will best help them achieve their goals

  5. Continuously adjusting what we do based on quantitative and qualitative metrics

To learn more about why we need to think about strategic planning differently, you can read this blog post. For an example of what continuous strategy iteration entails, you can download the Strategy Development Guide.  

 

Q: Why did you decide to go independent and how did you make the leap? 

A: I have dreamed of starting my own consulting practice since I worked as a consultant for a boutique HR outsourcing firm back in 2016. At the start of 2016, I enrolled in the IDEO University Designing Your Business course, and this kickstarted Passion To Profit Consulting. I began by testing my ideas and offerings by doing pro bono work for people in my network who desired help with their strategic planning or wanted to create a more engaged and thriving culture for their teams.

After a few months of rapid learning, I developed my own Business Value Blueprint (now one of the core services that I offer to clients), and that was the launch pad for accelerating my growth! My intention was to slowly grow Passion To Profit Consulting as a side hustle while keeping my corporate job, and in August of 2023 the universe gave me big push to fully pursue life as a solopreneur when I was laid off from my corporate job. 2 weeks later I had my first 2 paying clients, and dove head first into marketing my services.

 

Q: What makes you unique in this space?

A: I truly believe that pursuing your passion and being financially successful do not have to be a choice (hence the name Passion To Profit Consulting). I start by helping business owners dig deep internally to discover what they want to achieve and why. This may include tangible defining the organizational culture and values or aligning the entire team around the elements on the Business Value Blueprint. Then, we dive into practical strategies to help teams actually achieve success. I focus on three primary categories -People, Process, and Profit. My super power is enabling teams to achieve their definition of success as a business while also empowering their teams and preventing burnout. If you are curious on how that comes together, I welcome further conversations!

Q: What advice would you give to somebody who has been doing a side hustle and is debating about whether or not it's really time to make the leap?

A: Determine whether it is fear holding you back or if your intuition is telling you that it is not the right path for you. Operating as a solopreneur is not for the faint of heart, so you have to really want it and be comfortable operating in massive ambiguity.  The past five or six months have felt overwhelming and stressful, and at the same time I have felt more invigorated and enlivened when I start working each day. So before deciding, take time to think about what is most important to you in life and what fuels your sense of purpose.

Q: What's one thing that has surprised you the most about being a solopreneur?

A: I think what has surprised me the most is actually how much more connected and collaborative it is than when I was working at a corporate organization. I think one of my biggest fears was that if I'm a solopreneur I have no team, I have no one to rely on, I have no one to ask for advice or push ideas back and forth and give me feedback, and I've actually found it quite the opposite. I think that is primarily true through joining organizations like PICA and building my network of other solopreneurs or other entrepreneurs and forming those relationships.

Q: You mentioned a couple times having to try or learn new things. What's one thing that you've had to learn since going out on your own?

A: There are many different skills that I have had to develop like learning an accounting system, how to draft a contract, write a proposal, design a website, write a blog… the list is endless! However, the most important lesson that I have learned is that stories sell, not facts. When I am networking or speaking with prospective clients or power partners, I introduce myself by telling a story about a client of mine or sharing something authentic and unique about me. I have realized that people remember this and are drawn to work with you in a stronger way than if you just explain your list of services.

Q: What's next for you and your consulting business?

A: I have just developed my first prototype for the Business Value Stimulator Community, so I am excited to launch that later this year. Right now, I am in the process of gathering input from several trusted people on my “team of experts” before I launch this more broadly to the community. At a high level, this program is designing specifically for solopreneurs to help them develop their Business Value Blueprint and then continuously utilize it to make decisions, craft their marketing content, engage int networking conversations, and determine where to invest their time and energy. The community will begin with three structured workshops and flow into monthly gatherings where the group of program graduates can evolve their blueprint through asking each other questions and testing out ideas. This has been incredibly valuable to my clients on a 1:1 basis, so I am excited to facilitate this in a group setting!

Q: How can people find out more about you and or your business?

A: You can connect with me personally or go to my LinkedIn business page. You can subscribe to my blog and view my Digital Toolkits as well to learn more about my approach and the resources that I use to help my clients grow. If you are interested to learn more, feel free to contact me and we can set up a time to connect!

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