PICA Member Spotlights

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

 

Q: Please tell us the name of your company and your consulting specialty.

A: I’m Stacye Brim, owner and principal consultant of STB Consulting. STB Consulting provides a range of services to help organizational leaders in the areas of strategy and project management. I help leaders:

  • Establish clarity on the direction of the organization and a common focus of energy and resources through strategic plan development and strategy implementation guidance

  • Build stronger and more effective project delivery across the organization through establishing project management processes

  • Advance the project management capabilities of their team members through team PM training and one-on-one coaching services

Q: How long have you been independent?

A: I’ve been independent over ten years. Time flies! 

Q: What drew you to PICA?

A: I joined PICA in October 2019, over five years into my journey as an independent consultant. I reached a point where I wanted to understand what to do to take my business to the next phase. At that time, my independent consulting experience consisted of two very long consulting gigs, with the first one structured as a W-2 contract. I definitely took things step-by-step into this world of independent consulting. The second engagement was a corp-to-corp contract paying on a 1099 tax basis so that was the next step on my journey. But I knew I wanted to move into a new chapter. I wanted to shift from supporting one client at a time to working with multiple clients on various projects at once. I was grateful to find PICA. It’s the first independent consulting network that I joined and it was an enormous help!

Q: Let's step back to ten years ago when you said you made the first baby step into the independent consulting world as a W-2 subcontractor. Why did you even decide to go independent?

A: Well, my career path has been very interesting and I've worked in a number of industries and sectors. Before becoming independent (so when I was an employee) I realized I liked working in project management, strategy, and process improvement, which are all industry agnostic. So went to work for a big consulting firm, Booz Allen Hamilton, for two and a half years. After some time I decided that I wanted more flexibility and to work on a variety of projects, so I said, ‘You know what? Why don't I try doing this on my own so I can have better control of the work that I'm doing and more flexibility,’ which led me to say, ‘If not now, when?’ So that's when I took the first step.

Q: How did you make the leap? How did you find that first client?

A: Well, I set up my LLC while I was still an employee and I put my résumé out there. At that point I didn't know what I know today about business development. I put my résumé out there and I was getting contacted by staffing firms. I told them I was looking for contracts only, either on a W-2 or corp-to-corp basis. I was really okay with W-2 for my first contract because there was so much I didn't know about business taxes and things of that nature. So I just started having conversations around W-2 consulting opportunities and that's how I put a toe in the pool.

Q: Then how did you find your second client?

A: After finishing the long W-2 contract with my first client I knew I wanted the next step on my journey to be a corp-to-corp contract or 1099. I was really adamant about that but it was really a little bit of wading in the dark because I didn't have a clear business development strategy at that time. Again, I updated my résumé and put it out there, and there were lots of W-2 contract roles, but I kept firm to what I wanted for my next step. I think that was important. I knew the rate I wanted and I knew I wanted it to be corp-to-corp, paid on a 1099 tax basis. Fortunately, someone in my network who I had worked with before reached out to me and said, ‘Hey Stacye, I see on LinkedIn that you're looking for a new contract and we want someone to set up a PMO at the CDC. Would you like to work on that with us?’ And I said, ‘Oh my goodness, that sounds so fun. Absolutely let's talk.’ So really the second contract came through my network. It was the first income or revenue for STB Consulting so that was exciting. It was also a very fun project.

Q: You mentioned that you were clear that you wanted to be on a corp-to-corp 1099 basis for the second big contract, and you said, "I knew what rate I wanted to get." How did you figure that out?

A: Determining my ideal rate felt like more of an art than a science. Obviously you always want to be paid the best that you can for the work that you do and the expertise you bring to the table, but the question was how high will the market allow? As a first step, I had conversations with other friends who were also independent to find out about the market. Also, as I mentioned, I was getting lots of calls from recruiters about various opportunities for W-2 contracts, full-time roles and occasionally corp-to-corp opportunities. With each recruiter conversation I would try to feel out what the rates were. In some cases the recruiter was willing to share their ideal rate range and in those cases it was always below my target. In other recruiter conversations, I would be asked to provide my target rate first. Based on their response I would get a feel for what I thought the client was willing to pay. Again, it was definitely more of an art than a science.

Q: What do you think has been one of your biggest challenges in the last ten years? What other things besides billing rates have you had to figure out?

A: Shifting from being an employee to being an independent consultant and business owner is a continual journey of learning to be honest. I know project management, strategy, and process improvement…but I had to learn how to be a business owner and all of the things that entailed. My steepest learning curve began when I shifted from working on long-term contracts with one client at a time to my current model of working with multiple clients at once. That was about four years ago. There was a lot I needed to learn about growing a consulting practice. Did I need a website right away? How do I find clients? How should I price and package my services? I’m an engineer through and through and a checklist person, so I like to know the next steps. Before I joined PICA, I had  random sources of information. PICA was a wealth of information via webinars, networking and office hours. PICA also lead to my participation in a Solo Practice Accelerator (SPA) Workshop provided by David A. Fields. Between PICA and SPA, I was able to create a list of things that I needed to accomplish to properly set up my business. Even though I’m four years into this season of my business, there is always something new to learn with regard to growing and managing a consulting practice. And as a solo entrepreneur a constant challenge is balancing working both on the business and in the business.

Q: So what's next for you and STB Consulting?  

A: Though it’s a lot of work to wear so many hats as a solo entrepreneur, I really enjoy the work that I do and the clients that I get to partner with. This has been a fun “season” of my business. I’ve worked with some interesting corporate clients but I’ve also partnered with several mission-driven organizations focused on various issue areas. My work often takes place in my home office via virtual engagements, but as the world has opened up “post-pandemic” I’ve also enjoyed working with clients in person locally here in Atlanta, in various cities across the US, as well as overseas. I am also enjoying the mix of work: from working with a client on development of their 3-year organizational strategic plan…to facilitating a Project Management Fundamentals Training course for an organization and leading them through a pilot of project management processes…to coaching and mentoring PMs one-on-one….to facilitating senior leadership team workshops to work through strategy and leadership challenges. In terms of what’s next, I look forward to continuing to enjoy this variety of engagement types. Earlier this year I even updated my website to add more clarity regarding my services so that clients can better understand how I can assist them. As I previously stated, it’s a balancing act as a solo entrepreneur to wear so many hats as I both run my business and work directly with clients. Today, I have a great team of folks that help me behind the scenes. I also partner with fellow consultants on some projects. It’s possible in the future I may narrow down my offerings or decide to grow my team to help balance it all. For now, I’ll continue to have fun working with leaders and their teams maximize their impact through strategy development and execution, establishing solid project management practices, and “leveling up” the project management and leadership capabilities of their team members.   

Q: What’s the best way for other independent consultants, or boutique firms, or clients to find out more about you?

A: They can reach out to me on LinkedIn or check out my website where there's a contact form. I am happy to talk about any strategy, project management and process improvement needs that anyone may have. I really find that type of work fun and I enjoy talking about it!

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