Katrina Purcell: Winner of the 2024 Great Companies International Women Entrepreneur Award

Name: Katrina Purcell

Business Name: Katrina Purcell LLC

Location: New York , USA

Establishment (Year): 2023

Category: Consulting

Profession/ Specialty: Fractional Chief of Staff

Website: https://katrinapurcell.com/

Social Media: Linkedin

Company Detail:

The first 20 years of the company founder's career were spent working in technical operations roles across various organizations, including as Chief of Staff at two tech startups. This experience highlighted the necessity of their unique skill set in minority-led organizations, non-profits, and those lacking access to affordable services. The company focuses on assisting seed to series C tech startups and non-profits to create efficient growth and scale. Services include strategic planning, operational excellence, product roadmaps, agile tech transformation, and capital raise support, all with the mission to deliver tailored solutions that drive tangible results and unlock full potential. Unlike a typical consultancy, this company actively engages in the trenches with clients from evaluation through implementation, ensuring smooth transitions and the effective application of recommendations.

Unique Selling Proposition or Competitive Advantage:

The company's offering is distinct due to the founder's approach of bringing an external perspective to organizations, combined with hands-on mentoring and execution alongside their teams. This contrasts with other consulting firms that might provide recommendations but leave implementation to the client. Operating as a fractional COO or executive advisor, the founder embeds within businesses, bringing plans to life and fostering team growth. This approach allows clients to benefit from the founder's extensive experience, applying best practices tailored to their needs at a cost-effective rate compared to full-time hires.

Challenges Faced During the Journey:

A significant challenge encountered during the company's inception was overcoming the fear of the unknown. Entrepreneurship demands comfort with defining personal success, self-accountability, and self-motivation during challenging times. The founder suggests joining a community of like-minded entrepreneurs for guidance, support, and brainstorming, emphasizing the value of shared journeys in entrepreneurship, even when individual goals differ.

Advice for Women Entrepreneurs:

The key advice from the founder is for women entrepreneurs to become comfortable with their personal definitions of success, aligning them with what brings joy and fulfillment. It's important to not be swayed by external definitions of success, as true happiness comes from aligning personal goals with inner feelings. The founder encourages taking risks and following one's passions, underscoring that this internal drive can sustain entrepreneurs through difficult periods.