"...we all have something to bring to the market place, and we

all must celebrate and appreciate what we bring to the whole".

                                                                  -Mia Morris

Mia, it's a pleasure to speak with you and to feature you among our first Leading Women profiles! I've followed your work since 'uncovering' your company  a little over a year ago, and really appreciate the creative and community conscious work you're doing in the UK. Tell us about your organization and its mission.         

Thank you Lisa for inviting me! The Well Placed™  Consultancy is an Event Management Search and training Consultancy. We work with individuals, groups and organizations through structured events and activities.

Well Placed Consultancy's Search Division encompasses our speakers and creative animators .We have a wide range of clients which include Government Departments, Local Authorities, Media production companies and the Heritage and Cultural Sector.

The consultancy offers an array of opportunities for engagement. We offer training, motivational talks and lectures, consultation on organized event experiences; staffing searches, job coaching, reminscence and school curriculum-based programmes run under our Getting Wise To™  services.

We believe that ‘if you want to move people; it has to be towards a vision that ‘s positive to them; and it has to be presented in a compelling way that they feel inspired to follow’.   (Dr. Martin Luther King)

What inspired you to launch the Consultancy?

I had worked for a number of years with adults and young people around their career development in areas of high unemployment. This entailed developing training programs, encompassing self esteem and motivation, plus arranging and brokering work experience in Creative Industries and the Construction industry.

I have always been struck by how many of the young adults, for example, did not undertake work experience at school which they enjoyed as teenagers. I strongly believe that if they have a good experience with an employer this will alter their mindsets and attitudes towards school and life.

This is the genesis of the Consultancy’s work,  working with schools and local authorities . We have developed a number of education and training programs together with an academic and creative arts specialist team who we can take into a variety of settings including adult day care, Senior Citizens Centers and Nurseries...what I describe as working from ‘womb to tomb’.

Alongside the Well Placed Consultancy, I also run 2 websites in the process of a huge overhaul, www.black-history-month.co.uk and www.international-womens-month.co.uk. These websites have a growing international audience and carry events, activities, a book shop run by Amazon, and a growing news and profiles section.

Impressive! You're covering so many diverse areas, all based on things you're passionate about and experienced in, and they all merge together nicely. What did it entail to get things started?

My own money, time effort expertise and will to plan and get started. It is very easy to talk about what really needs doing.  Self-belief is critical plus experience of working with large employers helped me in terms of negotiating and liaising for assistance and having a good business advisor from the onset.  Do not be afraid to seek help and advice especially in the early days. At the end of the day nothing beats developing skills learning from your mistakes, moving on and keeping your integrity and your brand in place.

I agree totally. Brand and your business name mean everything, but a few mistakes here and there is part of the journey of business ownership, particularly at the start-up phase.

Yes.

Mia, describe your typical day at the helm!

No two days are alike. My day starts early with checking email. Responding to up to 3,500 enquiries a year takes some time! We get enquiries from young people looking for assistance with their homework, students completing assignments, small groups wanting to develop a project, and media production companies making documentaries trying to locate historians and researchers for a film.

Preparing, planning, and reading are essential elements. Much of my work can be done remotely, so I have to find a balance as it is easy to become isolated. I have developed a strategy for managing myself and my business. In all this I have to keep and be visible and attend a lot of networking events and activities. We have gotten better now at knowing what we need to do and when we need to do it.

Mia, you have just mapped out the life of every sister-entrepreneur/business woman I know, including myself. Long hours, multi-tasking, competing priorities, and incredible balancing acts! All of this on top of networking and remaining visible. How are you balancing it all while taking care of you?

Well I realize that whilst it is nice to go out and about, it is also important to grow and develop the business in a more coherent way. It is about getting a balance and managing all aspects of your life, for example, I need to ensure that I eat well, get a decent amount of sleep, walk, exercise, stretch--whatever it takes, and then get down to the business in head of running a business and keeping projects afloat.

On the subject of events, give us an example of the work your company does in this area.

In my business, you are only as good as your last event. Apart from completing taxes this month we are in the process of revamping the site and are also placing events, etc. for the www.international-womens-month.co.uk website, for  Random House. We have been working with them and author Cupcake Brown who will be visiting these shores for the first time. The tour in March will take her to several large cities. Our time now is spent sorting out the logistics for the event and arranging venues. Cupcake will be one of 18 authors we have worked with. 

We'll be sure to look for Cupcake in the months ahead. How else has Well Placed Consultancy grown or changed since its inception?

We have grown to develop a search division, created award winning web sites and now co-editors and co-publisher of a quarterly newspaper Black History 365. 

Well Placed Consultancy Search Division encompasses our speakers and creative animators .We have a wide range of clients which include; Government Departments, Local Authorities, Media production companies  and  the Heritage and Cultural  Sector. We are finding more organizations contacting us much earlier on when they are developing marketing strategies t o work with us in a more coherent way.

Last year we won two awards for our work, the new newspaper publication maiden edition  Black History 365 also available on line, this  is  a co publication with Smaart publishers. We were awarded by the Black History Foundation representing  the best of London. Earlier in 2007 we won our first award  from government department the Home Office for our work with its staff group The Network which works with black and minority ethnic civil servants. 

Well deserved, I must say. What has been your greatest challenge along the way?

The greatest challenge for all who work for ourselves is keeping on top of  the finance, and having the time to do the research and development which takes your work to the next level. When you run a business, no one pays you for your holiday, sickness and your pension. When you work for yourself and you don’t feel like working today, you cannot get your bills paid.

I often say at our workshops for people wishing to start a business that if you were one of those people who likes to do the minimum whilst working for someone, you better  increase your game as you will not be able to do the same in business.

It is essential that you have the right understanding of what it takes to keep on going with little money coming in, people to pay and work to do. Having the right  mindset is critical.

Yes! Mindset is everything!

Yes. The greatest challenge can often be in your mind. It is easy for some, unfortunately, to believe the myth that Black people are no good at running business, or that good stories do not sell papers. Maybe you believe that women can not want more  in life.  Whatever, it is that you want  to do find a way of fulfilling your life.

What has been your greatest reward?

My greatest reward comes at the end of the day when I get time to reflect on the day of activities, good or bad. I do not necessarily view life so simplistically. It could be that we have heard from a client again who wants to work with us, a student stopping me on public transport asking my advice or tracking me down and thanking me. One young lady has even asked me to be her child’s Godmother.

You do not go into business for rewards. I went into working for myself as it is part of my heritage. Both of my parents worked for themselves and someone else.

At the beginning of the year a colleague called me to let me know that I was required to speak at a roundtable with other organizations on the topic of  informal learning. I was the only person of colour at this time, which meant I felt even more pressure to ensure that our voices are heard at the most strategic and highest level possible.

Mia, what’s your vision for the future of your company?

The vision for the future is in regards to working  smarter, not harder and ensuring that all aspects of my business make a significant contribution to the whole.

I stand in agreement with you on that one--working smarter, not harder and while making a meaningful contribution. What legacy do you hope to leave behind through the Well Placed Consultancy?

The legacies that we have left behind is in regards to the numbers of young people we have worked with. One particular school has bought our training programs for the last 8 years, which means that nearly 1500 young people now have a better attitude towards work. Also, our websites have been regularly archived for the last three years by the  British Library, which means in years to come, you can type in a particular date and you can get a snapshot of life in the UK.

What words of wisdom can you offer to other sisters who want to bring their passion to life as you have?

Well, I'll share the wisdom that is encapsulated in our mission statement which is my firm belief:

‘Our mission is to anticipate needs, to exceed expectations and to deliver a positive experience by presenting new possibilities for developing individuals and communities.’

I  also have a quote from African American poet Gwendolyn Brooks that we use on our business card:

We are each other's harvest, we are each other's business, and we are each others magnitude and bond.

 

My take on both of these statements is that we all have something to bring to the market place, and we all must celebrate and appreciate what we bring to the whole. Isolation is one of the key things that marginalizes our businesses--not speaking out when it matters most hampers us all.

Mia, you are so right. I could not have said it any better! With that jewel of wisdom, I'd like to close by thanking you again for taking the time to talk with SisterSpeak Online. You're an inspiration to me and I know also to our readers. If ever we're in the UK--and we hope to be in the years to come, we'll be sure to pay you a visit!

Certainly...I look forward to it!

Learn more about Mia Morris and her work at the following links:

Walk Like a Champion: Mia Morris , Operation Black Vote