As part of the Morning Lazziness series about empowering women who encourage and do incredible things with their ideas in society, I had the pleasure of interviewing Katrina Purcell.
Katrina Purcell has held many titles in her career: technical advisor, project manager, head of global PMO, director of product operations, chief of staff to the CEO for two separate businesses, and now founder. A graduate of Columbia Business School, Katrina Purcell has prided herself on her business acumen as she steadily rose through the ranks no matter where she was employed. It became apparent to her that her expertise was in high-demand in the business world. However, while she was making capital for major corporations, the fire in her soul demanded more. She realized her particular brand of skills would be able to feed that fire through service to minority-led organizations, non-profits, and those who may not have access to such services at a reasonable cost. In true Katrina Purcell fashion, she dreamed big then excelled as she completed her vision. Katrina Purcell, LLC, works with seed to series C tech startups and nonprofits on creating efficient growth and scale. Whether it’s strategic planning, operational excellence, product roadmaps, agile tech transformation or capital raise support, her mission is to deliver tailored solutions that drive tangible results and unlock their full potential. Katrina lives in Brooklyn, New York with her brilliant, supportive husband and her very spoiled pets. When she’s not volunteering, she’s living life to the fullest in everything she does.
Here’s what we found out about Katrina’s daily routine, followed by an exclusive Q+A.
What inspired you to become an entrepreneur, and what sparked the idea for your business?
As my skill set grew over the course of my career, I realized that perhaps my passion was better suited through service to minority-led organizations, non-profits, and those who may not have access to such services at a reasonable cost. I drew inspiration from the missions of many underserved founders and organizations, and I wanted to help them achieve the goals they were working toward. Because I saw a need for these organizations to have a COO but recognized that it wasn’t necessarily a permanent need, I began offering my services as a fractional COO. In this way, I was able to have agency over my time, schedule, and who I worked with while teaching founders and CEOs how to transverse the business world in a way they may not have anticipated.
As a woman navigating the business world, what challenges have you faced, and how did you overcome them?
It’s easy to listen to the small voices demanding that you’re not enough. Whether those voices are internal or external, it’s possible to silence them. For me, imposter syndrome rears its ugly head often. It’s my own voice insisting I shouldn’t strive for more, but that voice is a liar. It’s exhausting always feeling like you have to prove yourself. Women, in particular, tend to feel the need to excel in all things to prove we belong. I combat this need by ensuring I have the credentials. I’ve done the work. I deserve to be here and I’m going to do the best job I can possibly do. I studied hard while working full time and achieved my MBA. I network to ensure I have support while I continue to strive for more. I continually learn new skills and maintain the skills which have helped me achieve so much. I practice gratitude and consistently silence that small voice with my achievements.
How do you balance the demands of running a business with maintaining a healthy personal life?
On the seesaw of work and life, perfect balance is a myth. There’s no way for the board to be perfectly balanced because there will always be a heavier focus on personal life or business. The key is to hold yourself accountable for the choices you make as you determine where your energy is needed. There’s a constant reprioritization depending on what is most important to me. There’s a set amount of time I can spend in general, and it’s up to me to determine where that time is spent. There are trade offs and seasons of need. I’m able to practice self-awareness in my decision-making by putting everything on the same calendar to ensure I have hard data keeping me informed. Running a business requires immense amounts of work and hard decisions, but it’s possible to still find time for priorities.
Which networking strategies have most effectively built meaningful connections within your industry?
I approach networking by truly building connections. These are not just people I know in passing, and I’m not just thinking about what’s in it for me. I want to know I’m helping the people in my network just as much as they help me. Who you surround yourself with can be the difference between stagnant mundane business as usual and striving for consistent growth.
Find the group of people who push you to excel, pull you up when you need the help, and support you in any situation. Dreamers and Doers has been a shining example of networking for me. I’m able to surround myself with the right people to ensure I’m learning, connecting, and building symbiotic relationships. This way, even if I can’t personally help someone, I know where to direct them within my network so that we can all continue to grow individually and together.
How do you approach mentorship, and how has it shaped your entrepreneurial path?
Throughout my career, I have been extraordinarily lucky to have had many mentors who encouraged me to use my talents to the best of my abilities. People who challenged me to grow and recognized my potential. I’ve also been fortunate to build relationships with sponsors who helped bring me opportunities by speaking my name even when I wasn’t present. Those experiences helped me determine what kind of mentor I want to be.
In general, I try to surround myself with people who are always striving to grow and learn. I want to be around the people who are trying to make the world a better place. Since that’s how I seek the people I want in my atmosphere, those are the people I’d rather help on their journeys.
For that reason, I keep myself open and available to be sought out by people striving to improve themselves. I find those people making an effort will be the most benefited by my time and effort. Because a large part of my job is helping teach people to fly in the business world while I’m in the cockpit with them, mentoring is a huge part of my life. I love the light bulb moment when something clicks and the growth is exponential. Mentoring allows me to find joy through someone else’s achievements. It’s so fulfilling to add to my network with people I helped get to that level.
What strategies have worked best for selling your products and reaching your ideal customers?
I have created an invaluable service. If I focus on delivering the most effective and useful product, I don’t have to try to hard sell. I prefer to allow customers to see how they can benefit from the value I provide. When they receive exemplary service, my customers are more likely to refer their network to me. I strive to exhibit a strong work ethic, proficient skills, and to inspire growth in those around me. In this way, I’m able to thrive with referrals from existing clients and former coworkers as well as networking.
Which marketing techniques have been most successful for your business, and how do you track their performance?
By increasing the availability of information via creating access to free resources such as my podcast Managed Chaos, I’ve been able to attract more interested parties. I’m able to track performance by studying the quality of inbounds. I know I’m being successful when they’re aligned with my ideal customer profile.
Can you share a significant setback in your business journey and the steps you took to overcome it?
When I started my business, I knew I had a quality service which could make a positive impact on customers. My major setback was figuring out how to prospect for potential clients. I knew I didn’t want to cold call or try to hard sell people. How could I appropriately tell the world about this amazing service I could provide to ensure I’d have a pipeline of upcoming work?
Overcoming this setback has been an ongoing process. Venturing out of my comfort zone to create a podcast, Managed Chaos, allowed me to get my ideas out there. I’m still working on maintaining a more active social media presence on sites like LinkedIn to reach my target audience. I’ve learned you have to get your ideas out into the world no matter how they’re received. Allow that the response may not always be what you expected or what you wanted. That’s okay. The chance that your ideas will reach the right audience is always worth that effort.
What’s the most important advice you’d give to women just starting their entrepreneurial journey?
Be bold enough to see yourself for who you are rather than listen to any naysayers. Build a network which provides support both by simply standing beside you and by offering help when you need it. Be confident enough to recognize when you need help and be unafraid to ask for that support. Surround yourself with people who will listen to your challenges, be there for you as you navigate the peaks and valleys of the business world, and will cheer along with you when you tackle the roller coaster of opening your own company. Strive to excel and never stop learning.
Is there a mantra or quote that guides your actions and decision-making as an entrepreneur?
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” -Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc.
I’ve had to redefine what success and happiness look like for me. Society loves to tell us what we should want, but you’ll never find satisfaction achieving goals which don’t matter to your heart. You can’t live your life based on someone else’s expectation and still find fulfillment. You must be self-aware. Determine what makes you happy, then don’t veer from your path as you achieve that goal. Don’t let judgment from anyone deter you from what you know will feed your soul.
