September 29, 2023 • 30 mins
Alicia Butler Pierre’s career in operations began 25 years ago as a chemical engineer in several chemical plants and oil refineries in her native Louisiana. Her passion is in designing processes that help people, places and things flow more efficiently. Alicia is the Founder and CEO of Equilibria, Inc., an 18-year-old operations management firm specializing in business infrastructure for fast-growing companies. Her company is currently the world’s largest and most comprehensive repository on business infrastructure for small businesses.
It is at Equilibria where she invented the KasennuTM system for business infrastructure
and software by the same name. She has since successfully applied this system in over 30
different industries and counting. Alicia has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Louisiana
State University and an MBA from Tulane University.
Her ability to blend scientific, business, and mathematical methodologies to solve complex
operational problems enables her to bring a unique, tactical, and realistic perspective to
her clients, who have also included larger organizations like The Coca-Cola Company,
Lowe’s, The Library of Congress, and Shell Oil Company.
She was appointed by the Indian-based Women Economic Forum as the USA Chair of the G100’s Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises sector. In 2023, the Process Excellence Network recognized her as a Top 50 Global Thought Leader in Operational Excellence. Alicia also holds a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification and has produced over 600 original articles, podcast episodes, case studies, videos, and white papers in the areas of business infrastructure, process improvement, and operational excellence. Combined, her content has over a million views across various online platforms. She teaches Lean Principles to students globally as an adjunct instructor at Purdue University.
Alicia hosts the weekly Business Infrastructure: Curing Back Office Blues podcast – a show
that ranks in the top 2% in the world with listeners in 68 countries. She’s also the author
of the two-time Amazon bestseller, Behind the Façade: How to Structure Company
Operations for Sustainable Success. Her book debuted on Amazon as the #1 New Release
for business books in the Production and Operations category. Committed to doing the
right things the right way, Alicia's mantra is "to leave it better than you found it."
https://www.eqbsystems.com/
https://aliciabutlerpierre.com/
https://www.facebook.com/AliciaButlerPierre
https://twitter.com/alicia_b_pierre
https://www.amazon.com/Alicia-Butler-Pierre/e/B07JJNF5X8?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1578492380&sr=8-1
https://www.youtube.com/user/EquilibriaInc
https://www.linkedin.com/in/aliciabutlerpierre/
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/i-am-refocused-radio--2671113/support.
It is at Equilibria where she invented the KasennuTM system for business infrastructure
and software by the same name. She has since successfully applied this system in over 30
different industries and counting. Alicia has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Louisiana
State University and an MBA from Tulane University.
Her ability to blend scientific, business, and mathematical methodologies to solve complex
operational problems enables her to bring a unique, tactical, and realistic perspective to
her clients, who have also included larger organizations like The Coca-Cola Company,
Lowe’s, The Library of Congress, and Shell Oil Company.
She was appointed by the Indian-based Women Economic Forum as the USA Chair of the G100’s Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises sector. In 2023, the Process Excellence Network recognized her as a Top 50 Global Thought Leader in Operational Excellence. Alicia also holds a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification and has produced over 600 original articles, podcast episodes, case studies, videos, and white papers in the areas of business infrastructure, process improvement, and operational excellence. Combined, her content has over a million views across various online platforms. She teaches Lean Principles to students globally as an adjunct instructor at Purdue University.
Alicia hosts the weekly Business Infrastructure: Curing Back Office Blues podcast – a show
that ranks in the top 2% in the world with listeners in 68 countries. She’s also the author
of the two-time Amazon bestseller, Behind the Façade: How to Structure Company
Operations for Sustainable Success. Her book debuted on Amazon as the #1 New Release
for business books in the Production and Operations category. Committed to doing the
right things the right way, Alicia's mantra is "to leave it better than you found it."
https://www.eqbsystems.com/
https://aliciabutlerpierre.com/
https://www.facebook.com/AliciaButlerPierre
https://twitter.com/alicia_b_pierre
https://www.amazon.com/Alicia-Butler-Pierre/e/B07JJNF5X8?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1578492380&sr=8-1
https://www.youtube.com/user/EquilibriaInc
https://www.linkedin.com/in/aliciabutlerpierre/
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/i-am-refocused-radio--2671113/support.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:05):
You are listening to I Am RefocusedRadio with your host Shamaya Reid. The
show is designed to inspire you tolive your purpose and regain your focus.
And now here's your host, Shamaiared. Hey, welcome to time we
Focused Readio. We are here onceagain today, just like any other day,
(00:25):
we have another amazing showliner for y'all. We have our special guests for
today, Alicia Butler Pierre. Sheis the founder and CEO of ECI Libria,
Inc. And I just want tofirst and say your story is awesome.
I read your bio. It's kindof lengthy, but we're gonna get
through this and learn about everything aboutyour business and also about your personal story.
(00:47):
So first and foremost, Alicio,how are you doing this morning?
I'm so well, Schemaya. It'sthe end of the week, much anticipated
and I'm really grateful to be herewith you on your show today. Thank
you well. I appreciate you takingtime talking to us. Like I said
in the introduction, you are thefounder and CEO Equilibria, Inc. And
(01:08):
you also you specialize in designing let'sgo ready businesses, and you specialize in
the infrastructure, and you can teachus all about that, but before you
do, tell us a little bitabout your life and how you got involved
into being an entrepreneur. Oh wow, let's see. So if I if
(01:32):
I sent focus this answer specifically aroundhow I came to be an entrepreneur,
my very first entrepreneurial venture should startedwhen I was just seven years old.
So I've always had this desire tomake my own money because I learned very
(01:52):
early on that there were certain thingsthat my parents were not going to give
me or do for me, andif I wanted it, I was going
to have to make it happen myself. So I loved candy, and they
were not going to always buy candyfor me. And so literally my very
first gig at seven years old,I would do some light chores at a
(02:15):
daycare, like things like sweeping theporch or you know, doing just very
light duty things, not breaking anychild labor laws. That was my first
entrepreneurial venture. And I remember mydad actually opened a checking account for me
right at seven years old, andI had that account, believe it or
not, until last year in twentytwenty two. The only reason I had
(02:39):
to close it was because someone stolemy identity. They were literally they swiped
a check that I had placed inthe mail and just kind of went to
town. But I had had theaccount for all those years, forty thirty
nine years to be exact at thatpoint. And then by the time I
(02:59):
got to high school, I didall kinds of things to make money.
And it's funny because I went fromdoing light chores to make money so that
I could buy candy to actually sellingcandy when I was in high school,
because that was how I was ableto buy pay for gasoline to fuel a
(03:22):
car so that I could drive myselfto school when I was in high school.
And then ultimately I did go onto college. I did graduate,
I did work professionally, but Ialways had some type of a side venture
going At that time, when Iwas in my early twenties, I had
I was kind of dabbling into realestate, so I had some real estate
(03:46):
things going on. But then ultimately, when I decided that I needed to
relocate, I was living in NewOrleans, Louisiana. I relocated from New
Orleans to Atlanta, Georgia, andI didn't find a job. I came
here looking for a job, butI didn't find one. Shamayah and what
I did instead was redirect the time, effort, and energy that I was
(04:11):
spending looking for a job working forsomeone else into creating my own opportunity.
And that is how my company,Equilibria literally started. This was back in
two thousand and five, and nowhere we are eighteen years later and I'm
on the I Am Refocused podcast withyou, and I appreciate you being on
(04:33):
again. When you kind of goback to high school, you were into
writing as well. You wrote forthe school paper, also discover your glove
for chemistry. Tell us a littlebit about your experience with writing for the
school and discovering a subject that youreally appreciate it. I always liked writing
(05:00):
always, I loved literature, andI really thought that I would become a
journalist one day. That was oneof my first career choices that I can
remember vividly. And I started workingon the school newspaper in high school and
I hated it, but not forthe reasons that some people might be thinking.
(05:25):
I like the idea of laying Wewere literally laying out articles, you
know, so that it could goto print, like physically cutting things and
laying it out type setting it theold school way. And then having it
sent off to be to be printed. But what I did not like was
what it took to make a quoteunquote good story. And I saw that
(05:49):
very early on, even in highschool, I saw that behavior taking place,
and it turned me off. Andown that time, I was in
eleventh grade when I took chemistry anddiscovered that I had a real aptitude in
(06:10):
it. And it's a complete deviationfrom the arts and literature. This is
science and I loved it, andI excelled in it. It came so
natural to me. And by thetime I was in my final year of
high school, twelfth grade, insteadof going on to physics, I decided
to take an advanced chemistry course,and my teacher strongly encouraged me that when
(06:35):
I went on to college, thatI not pursue a degree in chemistry,
but rather chemical engineering. And thatwas one of the first I would say
truly pivotal moments in my life.Was just, you know, going from
thinking I was going to be awriter or a journalist to m I might
(06:59):
become a science or maybe even anengineer instead. And when you enter LSU's
chemical engineering program at that point inyour life, did you know we're confidence
what you wanted to do for yourcareer, and if so, did you
(07:19):
have any mentors or professors that yougrew close to. No, I did
not know. I thought that's sucha great question. I've never been asked
that, by the way, soI did not know. I can honestly
tell you I was I was goingthrough the motions. I was literally being
(07:43):
guided by what other people told meto do, starting with the decision to
pursue chemical engineering in the first place. It wasn't as though that was my
choice. I was going for chemistry, but again it was a teacher who
suggested chemical engineering. So once Iwas at LSU, the curriculum was structured
such that it was really kind ofa pipeline to working at an oil and
(08:09):
a refinery or some type of achemical plant. I did not have an
appreciation and shame on them for notexposing us to this. But I didn't
have an appreciation Shamaya for the factthat I could have worked in food and
beverage, the food and beverage industry, I could have worked in pharmaceuticals.
I could have even worked, asyou know, on Wall Street, a
(08:31):
lot of engineers, people with engineeringdegrees end up on Wall Street. And
I don't know if your audience isfamiliar with Robert F. Smith, the
Black billionaire, but he also hasa degree in chemical engineering, didn't work
at a plant. He went andeventually got his MBA and started working on
Wall Street. So I didn't knowthat those different career options were available to
(08:56):
me. And that's I know.We're not supposed to live lives of regret,
but I actually I could kick myself. I'll go ahead and take the
blame for this for not educating myselffurther about what different career options existed for
me as a chemical engineer when Iwas getting close to the time of graduating.
(09:18):
So I wish I could tell youthat I had everything laid out and
that I had a plan, buthonestly, I didn't. I just knew
that once I graduate. As Iwas approaching graduation, I needed to start
interviewing and whoever whoever hired me andoffered me the best deal, that's who
I went with. Sadly, Iwould never ever approach something like that.
(09:39):
Now, things that I do aredefinitely a lot more thought thought out and
planned and strategized. But back thenI was I was doing whatever people told
me they thought I should do.To be honest with you, do this,
I don't refocus a ready, I'lltalking to try. I guess daily,
Sha Butler Pierre. And when youfinished LSU, you got your first
(10:03):
job. What was that experience like? And I understand from reading your bio
that after that season you end upworking for a small family owned engineering consulting
firm and enrolling in uh A NBAprogram. So what was that journey light
(10:24):
from that time period having your firstjob, going to your second one in
going back to school. I actuallystarted going back to school when I was
at my first job, which wasa large corporation, very large global company.
And nine eleven happened. And itjust so happened, Shamaya that all
(10:46):
the classes I was taking at thatat that time required required in person participation,
and I was stranded in Michigan ata conference. Nine eleven happened,
And to make a long story short, I just remember when I finally made
my way back down to New Orleans, I had missed quite a bit of
(11:09):
class and so I actually just justdidn't continue. And I remember thinking to
myself, Okay, either this jobgoes or I forfeit my dream of becoming
or of going back to business school. So I was working full time during
the day, going to school atnight, and would led to that decision,
which I think is really critical topoint out, was the fact that
(11:33):
I recognize how ignorant I was aboutbusiness, and it was business that was
driving our day to day production schedules. So, for example, we might
be told to run equipment to producewhat we were producing, you know,
at full throttle, you know,operate at one hundred percent today, and
(11:56):
then tomorrow we might be told tocut back by fifty percent, and then
the day after that we might betold to shut down all together, and
then after that you're running full throttleagain. It just seemed erratic. I
didn't understand the connection to changes incustomer demand for our product, for the
thing that we were producing. SoI was just very ignorant about business,
(12:20):
and that's what ultimately led to mydecision to go back to business school.
So again going to school at night, working full time during the day,
nine eleven happens. I sit outfor the year and I eventually meet the
man that owned the engineering consulting firmthat I ultimately went to work work at,
(12:41):
and that was. The environment wasdifferent, literally like night and day.
I went from this very large,corporate, siloed culture to one that
was it was a small family ownedconsulting firm engineering consulting firm, so there
was no bureaucracy because it was afamily owned company. So the only way
(13:05):
you were really going to ride tothe top is if you were one of
their family members. But I thinkthat's important to point out because because it
was small, I had an opportunityto actually see the interconnectivity of business.
In other words, I got tosee the role that HR plays and making
sure that the right people are hired. I understood the role that sales and
(13:26):
marketing played in actually selling our servicesand marketing and promoting our services and doing
the branding so that we could attractmore clients. I obviously understood the operational
component because that's where I worked,but also understanding the importance of it.
If we don't have the right technologiesin place to do our work, that
could be devastating. And then thefinancial and the accounting aspects of it as
(13:50):
well. So it was the perfectenvironment for me to be in, as
I decided, as I went backto school business school, and this time,
I was able to see it throughto completion getting my MBA. So
that was what that experience was like, and that's what led to my decision
(14:11):
to go back to business school inthe first place. And later in two
thousand and five, Ena making anotherchange, and six months later from that
change you face for a lot ofpeople in the area, Hurricane Katrine that
happened. Tell us a little bitabout that period. I was around the
(14:35):
time that I was getting close tofinishing up my MBA, there was a
really bad tropical storm. So thiswas around late August early September of two
thousand and four that passed through NewOrleans. And if if any of your
listeners have never been to New Orleans, it truly is a bowl. It
sits, you know, as mostpeople know by this point, it's well
(14:56):
below sea level and when it rains, just a regular rain, I mean,
the city floods so easily. ButI remember being stuck in my house
there was a tropical storm passing throughand I was really scared because the water
was you know, let me tellyou, when water, once water has
(15:16):
covered a street and it has nowhereelse to go, it only goes up
and it rises very quickly, butI really thought I was going to die.
I was, you know, Ilived alone. At that point.
You can't call for help because you'restuck. You're stuck where you are.
But thankfully, it eventually, youknow, the it stopped raining, the
(15:39):
waters receded, and everything was fine. But I just remembered Shmaya, thinking
I can't do this anymore. Ihave to get out of here. So
that led to me relocating to Atlanta, where I only knew one person at
the time. I just I justsaw Atlanta as this land of honey that
(16:00):
was going to be a far cryfrom what I was dealing with in New
Orleans. And I relocated well.First, I graduated with my MBA in
December of two thousand and four.I remember selling my home in New Orleans
at the beginning of two thousand andfive. By February of two thousand and
five, I relocated to Atlanta,and as you mentioned, six months later,
(16:26):
Hurricane Katrina happened. It was alot of people I remember during that
time contacted me saying, oh,I'm I bet you're glad you got out
of there just in time. Buthonestly, it was a it was a
very sickening feeling knowing that so manyof my friends and family were adversely impacted
(16:48):
by that. So it's almost akinto survivor's guilt in a way, even
though I was not physically there,just I was. I was actually in
New Orleans the weekend before Katrina madelandfall. So so there was a bit
of guilt that I felt that Iwas able to that I had the ways
(17:11):
and means to get out and theforesight to get out when so many others
did not. And later you decidedthat it was time for you to launch
your own company, would pushed youto make that decision. I couldn't find
(17:32):
a job that would that would doit. I came here. I came
here to Atlanta, you know,again looking for a job Shanaya because compared
to New Orleans, Atlanta, youknow, I saw Atlanta as this this
place where, this this thriving metropolis, where there were so many companies that
(17:55):
are headquartered here. So, forexample, for your listeners that may not
be aware, Atlanta is home toCoca Cola, Delta Airlines, Ups,
Rubber Made, Chick fil A,so so companies like that, and I
just saw, I just saw allof the opportunity that was here that was
not in the state that I hadjust left the state of Louisiana, my
(18:18):
home state by the way, SoI came here and this was again two
thousand and five. This was rightaround the time when things everything was starting
to go digital in terms of jobsearching and job applications, and I remember
(18:38):
what was a good two months ofjust getting on the computer every day,
applying for different positions and hearing nothing, nothing oftentimes, and it was disheartening.
And around that time I started watchingdifferent documentaries, reading books, reading
(19:02):
articles, and so many of thosebooks, documentaries, and articles were centered
around the fact that we're all blessedwith natural skills, talents, and abilities,
but through our process of quote unquoteeducation, we're literally taught to not
be entrepreneurs, but to go andwork for someone else. And I started
(19:25):
through a period of introspection, startedthinking, well, what is it that
I'm naturally good at? And itwas organizing, And so Shamayah I started
Equilibria as a professional organizing company.So I was I was the lady going
into people's homes and literally taking theircertain rooms and having it go from a
(19:48):
state of chaos to calm. Butwhat I noticed was that most of my
clients were entrepreneurs. They were homebased business owners, and it wasn't that
they were chronically disorganized people. Theycertainly were not hoarders. They just needed
processes and systems in place to makesure that things wouldn't if things ever did
(20:12):
get chaotic in their in their homeoffices, they at least had something that
they could revert back to to restorethe peace and the calm. And that's
that's honestly. Over the years howit shifted from professional organizing services to building
business infrastructure, and I got awayfrom working in people's home offices and into
(20:38):
actual, you know, brick andmortar type locations. So that's what happened.
That's how I started my company.It was literally because I couldn't find
a job, and so all thoseyears growing up always having a side hustle,
it was like, Okay, it'sno longer going to be a side
hustle that you're you're dabbling with.You You're gonna have to go at this
(21:02):
full time. Listen I refolks atradio talking to our guest today, Alicia
Butler Pierre, the founder and CEOEquilibria, Inc. Next question for you
is now that you have this businessin place and you're helping your clients,
helping small businesses, explaining to theaudience why business infrastructure is very important and
(21:27):
where some questions that you can answer. Business infrastructure is important shamayah because it
literally provides a foundation upon which youcan build, grow, and ultimately scale.
I had a client many many yearsago who used an analogy, and
(21:48):
I'm going to borrow that analogy becauseI thought it was so brilliant. He
said, you know, it's it'salmost like building. Do you want to
build your house on sand or doyou want to build your house on concrete,
which is going to be more stable. That's what business infrastructure gives your
company. So when your business hasthe benefit of more clients than you might
(22:12):
be able to handle, or youhave a really popular product an amazing service
that is garnering the attention of somany people, you ultimately are faced with
a decision. That decision being okay, I either significantly raise my prices so
that I don't get as many peoplecoming to me asking for this product or
(22:33):
service, but more than likely yourealize that you have to hire more people.
Well, in hiring more people.Those people need to know what to
do, they need to know howto do it, and they also need
to know the structure, because ifthere is no structure, people that you
hire will leave very quickly. Andif there is no structure, people will
(22:56):
do things. People that you hirewill do their own way, and that
can upset your customers because your customersbecome accustomed to a certain type of quality
that's associated with your products and services, and they become accustomed to it being
delivered to them in a certain orparticular way. That's what business infrastructure does
(23:18):
for you, is it links yourpeople, your processes, and all of
your tools and technologies into a cohesiveframework so that whenever there's a change in
one of those areas, you immediatelyunderstand the impact that it has on the
others. So no more silos everything. It truly speaks to what I mentioned
(23:40):
earlier, which is the interconnectivity ofeverything that's going on in your business.
It does answer four questions, andthose four questions are, what is the
work that has to be performed inyour company in the first place, How
is that work organized, how isit organized into apartments? Number three?
(24:02):
Who actually will do the work asentrepreneurs. When we first start our businesses,
we're doing the work of so manydifferent types of people, but we
can't that's not sustainable. And especiallyas you again you start having growing demand
for whatever it is you're selling oroffering to the marketplace, you have to
hire more people. So who arethose people? Who are those people?
(24:26):
What are the roles that need tobe filled at your company? And then
finally, the fourth question is howis that work performed? And that's when
you really get into identifying the processesand the procedures that you need to document
so that again you ensure consistency inthe way that you are producing or delivering
your goods and services. Wayne comesto sales marketing operations, you have a
(24:55):
statement that I read in my informationand battle between the scene and the unseen.
Explain what that means for the audience. Sure, and I thank you
so much for asking that. Whenwe're in business, everybody understands what marketing
(25:15):
is. We all understand that wehave to promote and brand and need some
form of publicity and even social mediato get the word out about what we
do and what we have to offer. There's no dispute about that. So
think of marketing activities in your companyas the things that you're doing to be
seen, because if you're not seen, nobody will know about you and you'll
(25:37):
be out of business really quickly.Well, operations is equally as important,
but unfortunately, shamayah, it doesn'tget the same type of love and attention
as marketing related activities. But thinkof operations as the things that are going
on behind closed doors that your customersnever seen, but they definitely experience.
(26:02):
We all know when we've had abad customer experience and it's not necessarily because
of something that we've seen them do. It could be things going on behind
the scenes. And then we getthat defective product that we've ordered in the
mail and we're like, well,what happened. Well, from an operations
perspective, what happened in the processof producing that good that the customer ordered
(26:26):
that you ordered that cause it tobe defective in some way or another.
So that's why I say marketing isthe scene the things that are seen,
and then operations are the things thatare unseen. Typically, and there is
a battle because so many people devoteso much of their time and attention and
(26:48):
effort on marketing related activities to thedetriment of the operations. And so I'm
just making the argument that one isnot more important than the other. They
actually have a symbiotic relationship. Youhave to have both. So that's what
I mean by that. It's it'softentimes the it's like the battle between the
scene and the end scene and lastquestion for you as an entrepreneur and so
(27:15):
on, that is in charge oftheir business, their services, what they
oversee based on your journey from growingup. I mean, I've been the
entrepreneur bug when you were a littlekid, from going to school, going
(27:36):
through LSU, from going all thesedifferent chapters in your life, getting through
all these ups and downs, ifyou will, was one thing that you
kept with you that points you toyour north star? Oh, great question.
Gosh. I keep a picture ofmy maternal grandmother with me at all
(28:03):
times, and she passed away backin two thousand and six, and whenever
I'm having a down day, oreven if I'm having a great day,
I will often look at her picture. I keep it in a little portfolio
that I have with me that's alwaysin my backpack, and I'll just look
(28:26):
at her and I'll just wonder,is she proud of me. Have I
just done something that that would embarrassher? But but I also think about
the opportunities that have been afforded tome as a woman that unfortunately, because
of the time and era that shelived, she couldn't have done so a
(28:48):
lot of times when I find myselfmaybe complaining about something or I'm just I'm
just you know, not feeling greator I'm kind of down and out because
it's it's tough being a business owner. It is. I will not I
will not sit up here and makeit seem as though every day is a
rosy day, because it isn't.But I often will look at her picture
and it's it's just a reminder ofyou know, keep going. You can
(29:12):
have a bad day, but pickyourself back up and keep going. She's
my north star. Once again,Then listen you folks on radio talking to
our guests today, Alicia Broler Pierre. You can go to her website It's
(29:32):
Alicia Butler Pierre dot com. Andalso for our listeners, do you have
a website that they can visit foryour business? Absolutely, it's e q
B Systems dot com. So EQBSystems dot com. Once again, I
(29:52):
want to say thank you to you, Alicia for taking time talking to us
today. Thank you so much.Tomaya
You are listening to I Am RefocusedRadio with your host Shamaya Reid. The
show is designed to inspire you tolive your purpose and regain your focus.
And now here's your host, Shamaiared. Hey, welcome to time we
Focused Readio. We are here onceagain today, just like any other day,
(00:25):
we have another amazing showliner for y'all. We have our special guests for
today, Alicia Butler Pierre. Sheis the founder and CEO of ECI Libria,
Inc. And I just want tofirst and say your story is awesome.
I read your bio. It's kindof lengthy, but we're gonna get
through this and learn about everything aboutyour business and also about your personal story.
(00:47):
So first and foremost, Alicio,how are you doing this morning?
I'm so well, Schemaya. It'sthe end of the week, much anticipated
and I'm really grateful to be herewith you on your show today. Thank
you well. I appreciate you takingtime talking to us. Like I said
in the introduction, you are thefounder and CEO Equilibria, Inc. And
(01:08):
you also you specialize in designing let'sgo ready businesses, and you specialize in
the infrastructure, and you can teachus all about that, but before you
do, tell us a little bitabout your life and how you got involved
into being an entrepreneur. Oh wow, let's see. So if I if
(01:32):
I sent focus this answer specifically aroundhow I came to be an entrepreneur,
my very first entrepreneurial venture should startedwhen I was just seven years old.
So I've always had this desire tomake my own money because I learned very
(01:52):
early on that there were certain thingsthat my parents were not going to give
me or do for me, andif I wanted it, I was going
to have to make it happen myself. So I loved candy, and they
were not going to always buy candyfor me. And so literally my very
first gig at seven years old,I would do some light chores at a
(02:15):
daycare, like things like sweeping theporch or you know, doing just very
light duty things, not breaking anychild labor laws. That was my first
entrepreneurial venture. And I remember mydad actually opened a checking account for me
right at seven years old, andI had that account, believe it or
not, until last year in twentytwenty two. The only reason I had
(02:39):
to close it was because someone stolemy identity. They were literally they swiped
a check that I had placed inthe mail and just kind of went to
town. But I had had theaccount for all those years, forty thirty
nine years to be exact at thatpoint. And then by the time I
(02:59):
got to high school, I didall kinds of things to make money.
And it's funny because I went fromdoing light chores to make money so that
I could buy candy to actually sellingcandy when I was in high school,
because that was how I was ableto buy pay for gasoline to fuel a
(03:22):
car so that I could drive myselfto school when I was in high school.
And then ultimately I did go onto college. I did graduate,
I did work professionally, but Ialways had some type of a side venture
going At that time, when Iwas in my early twenties, I had
I was kind of dabbling into realestate, so I had some real estate
(03:46):
things going on. But then ultimately, when I decided that I needed to
relocate, I was living in NewOrleans, Louisiana. I relocated from New
Orleans to Atlanta, Georgia, andI didn't find a job. I came
here looking for a job, butI didn't find one. Shamayah and what
I did instead was redirect the time, effort, and energy that I was
(04:11):
spending looking for a job working forsomeone else into creating my own opportunity.
And that is how my company,Equilibria literally started. This was back in
two thousand and five, and nowhere we are eighteen years later and I'm
on the I Am Refocused podcast withyou, and I appreciate you being on
(04:33):
again. When you kind of goback to high school, you were into
writing as well. You wrote forthe school paper, also discover your glove
for chemistry. Tell us a littlebit about your experience with writing for the
school and discovering a subject that youreally appreciate it. I always liked writing
(05:00):
always, I loved literature, andI really thought that I would become a
journalist one day. That was oneof my first career choices that I can
remember vividly. And I started workingon the school newspaper in high school and
I hated it, but not forthe reasons that some people might be thinking.
(05:25):
I like the idea of laying Wewere literally laying out articles, you
know, so that it could goto print, like physically cutting things and
laying it out type setting it theold school way. And then having it
sent off to be to be printed. But what I did not like was
what it took to make a quoteunquote good story. And I saw that
(05:49):
very early on, even in highschool, I saw that behavior taking place,
and it turned me off. Andown that time, I was in
eleventh grade when I took chemistry anddiscovered that I had a real aptitude in
(06:10):
it. And it's a complete deviationfrom the arts and literature. This is
science and I loved it, andI excelled in it. It came so
natural to me. And by thetime I was in my final year of
high school, twelfth grade, insteadof going on to physics, I decided
to take an advanced chemistry course,and my teacher strongly encouraged me that when
(06:35):
I went on to college, thatI not pursue a degree in chemistry,
but rather chemical engineering. And thatwas one of the first I would say
truly pivotal moments in my life.Was just, you know, going from
thinking I was going to be awriter or a journalist to m I might
(06:59):
become a science or maybe even anengineer instead. And when you enter LSU's
chemical engineering program at that point inyour life, did you know we're confidence
what you wanted to do for yourcareer, and if so, did you
(07:19):
have any mentors or professors that yougrew close to. No, I did
not know. I thought that's sucha great question. I've never been asked
that, by the way, soI did not know. I can honestly
tell you I was I was goingthrough the motions. I was literally being
(07:43):
guided by what other people told meto do, starting with the decision to
pursue chemical engineering in the first place. It wasn't as though that was my
choice. I was going for chemistry, but again it was a teacher who
suggested chemical engineering. So once Iwas at LSU, the curriculum was structured
such that it was really kind ofa pipeline to working at an oil and
(08:09):
a refinery or some type of achemical plant. I did not have an
appreciation and shame on them for notexposing us to this. But I didn't
have an appreciation Shamaya for the factthat I could have worked in food and
beverage, the food and beverage industry, I could have worked in pharmaceuticals.
I could have even worked, asyou know, on Wall Street, a
(08:31):
lot of engineers, people with engineeringdegrees end up on Wall Street. And
I don't know if your audience isfamiliar with Robert F. Smith, the
Black billionaire, but he also hasa degree in chemical engineering, didn't work
at a plant. He went andeventually got his MBA and started working on
Wall Street. So I didn't knowthat those different career options were available to
(08:56):
me. And that's I know.We're not supposed to live lives of regret,
but I actually I could kick myself. I'll go ahead and take the
blame for this for not educating myselffurther about what different career options existed for
me as a chemical engineer when Iwas getting close to the time of graduating.
(09:18):
So I wish I could tell youthat I had everything laid out and
that I had a plan, buthonestly, I didn't. I just knew
that once I graduate. As Iwas approaching graduation, I needed to start
interviewing and whoever whoever hired me andoffered me the best deal, that's who
I went with. Sadly, Iwould never ever approach something like that.
(09:39):
Now, things that I do aredefinitely a lot more thought thought out and
planned and strategized. But back thenI was I was doing whatever people told
me they thought I should do.To be honest with you, do this,
I don't refocus a ready, I'lltalking to try. I guess daily,
Sha Butler Pierre. And when youfinished LSU, you got your first
(10:03):
job. What was that experience like? And I understand from reading your bio
that after that season you end upworking for a small family owned engineering consulting
firm and enrolling in uh A NBAprogram. So what was that journey light
(10:24):
from that time period having your firstjob, going to your second one in
going back to school. I actuallystarted going back to school when I was
at my first job, which wasa large corporation, very large global company.
And nine eleven happened. And itjust so happened, Shamaya that all
(10:46):
the classes I was taking at thatat that time required required in person participation,
and I was stranded in Michigan ata conference. Nine eleven happened,
And to make a long story short, I just remember when I finally made
my way back down to New Orleans, I had missed quite a bit of
(11:09):
class and so I actually just justdidn't continue. And I remember thinking to
myself, Okay, either this jobgoes or I forfeit my dream of becoming
or of going back to business school. So I was working full time during
the day, going to school atnight, and would led to that decision,
which I think is really critical topoint out, was the fact that
(11:33):
I recognize how ignorant I was aboutbusiness, and it was business that was
driving our day to day production schedules. So, for example, we might
be told to run equipment to producewhat we were producing, you know,
at full throttle, you know,operate at one hundred percent today, and
(11:56):
then tomorrow we might be told tocut back by fifty percent, and then
the day after that we might betold to shut down all together, and
then after that you're running full throttleagain. It just seemed erratic. I
didn't understand the connection to changes incustomer demand for our product, for the
thing that we were producing. SoI was just very ignorant about business,
(12:20):
and that's what ultimately led to mydecision to go back to business school.
So again going to school at night, working full time during the day,
nine eleven happens. I sit outfor the year and I eventually meet the
man that owned the engineering consulting firmthat I ultimately went to work work at,
(12:41):
and that was. The environment wasdifferent, literally like night and day.
I went from this very large,corporate, siloed culture to one that
was it was a small family ownedconsulting firm engineering consulting firm, so there
was no bureaucracy because it was afamily owned company. So the only way
(13:05):
you were really going to ride tothe top is if you were one of
their family members. But I thinkthat's important to point out because because it
was small, I had an opportunityto actually see the interconnectivity of business.
In other words, I got tosee the role that HR plays and making
sure that the right people are hired. I understood the role that sales and
(13:26):
marketing played in actually selling our servicesand marketing and promoting our services and doing
the branding so that we could attractmore clients. I obviously understood the operational
component because that's where I worked,but also understanding the importance of it.
If we don't have the right technologiesin place to do our work, that
could be devastating. And then thefinancial and the accounting aspects of it as
(13:50):
well. So it was the perfectenvironment for me to be in, as
I decided, as I went backto school business school, and this time,
I was able to see it throughto completion getting my MBA. So
that was what that experience was like, and that's what led to my decision
(14:11):
to go back to business school inthe first place. And later in two
thousand and five, Ena making anotherchange, and six months later from that
change you face for a lot ofpeople in the area, Hurricane Katrine that
happened. Tell us a little bitabout that period. I was around the
(14:35):
time that I was getting close tofinishing up my MBA, there was a
really bad tropical storm. So thiswas around late August early September of two
thousand and four that passed through NewOrleans. And if if any of your
listeners have never been to New Orleans, it truly is a bowl. It
sits, you know, as mostpeople know by this point, it's well
(14:56):
below sea level and when it rains, just a regular rain, I mean,
the city floods so easily. ButI remember being stuck in my house
there was a tropical storm passing throughand I was really scared because the water
was you know, let me tellyou, when water, once water has
(15:16):
covered a street and it has nowhereelse to go, it only goes up
and it rises very quickly, butI really thought I was going to die.
I was, you know, Ilived alone. At that point.
You can't call for help because you'restuck. You're stuck where you are.
But thankfully, it eventually, youknow, the it stopped raining, the
(15:39):
waters receded, and everything was fine. But I just remembered Shmaya, thinking
I can't do this anymore. Ihave to get out of here. So
that led to me relocating to Atlanta, where I only knew one person at
the time. I just I justsaw Atlanta as this land of honey that
(16:00):
was going to be a far cryfrom what I was dealing with in New
Orleans. And I relocated well.First, I graduated with my MBA in
December of two thousand and four.I remember selling my home in New Orleans
at the beginning of two thousand andfive. By February of two thousand and
five, I relocated to Atlanta,and as you mentioned, six months later,
(16:26):
Hurricane Katrina happened. It was alot of people I remember during that
time contacted me saying, oh,I'm I bet you're glad you got out
of there just in time. Buthonestly, it was a it was a
very sickening feeling knowing that so manyof my friends and family were adversely impacted
(16:48):
by that. So it's almost akinto survivor's guilt in a way, even
though I was not physically there,just I was. I was actually in
New Orleans the weekend before Katrina madelandfall. So so there was a bit
of guilt that I felt that Iwas able to that I had the ways
(17:11):
and means to get out and theforesight to get out when so many others
did not. And later you decidedthat it was time for you to launch
your own company, would pushed youto make that decision. I couldn't find
(17:32):
a job that would that would doit. I came here. I came
here to Atlanta, you know,again looking for a job Shanaya because compared
to New Orleans, Atlanta, youknow, I saw Atlanta as this this
place where, this this thriving metropolis, where there were so many companies that
(17:55):
are headquartered here. So, forexample, for your listeners that may not
be aware, Atlanta is home toCoca Cola, Delta Airlines, Ups,
Rubber Made, Chick fil A,so so companies like that, and I
just saw, I just saw allof the opportunity that was here that was
not in the state that I hadjust left the state of Louisiana, my
(18:18):
home state by the way, SoI came here and this was again two
thousand and five. This was rightaround the time when things everything was starting
to go digital in terms of jobsearching and job applications, and I remember
(18:38):
what was a good two months ofjust getting on the computer every day,
applying for different positions and hearing nothing, nothing oftentimes, and it was disheartening.
And around that time I started watchingdifferent documentaries, reading books, reading
(19:02):
articles, and so many of thosebooks, documentaries, and articles were centered
around the fact that we're all blessedwith natural skills, talents, and abilities,
but through our process of quote unquoteeducation, we're literally taught to not
be entrepreneurs, but to go andwork for someone else. And I started
(19:25):
through a period of introspection, startedthinking, well, what is it that
I'm naturally good at? And itwas organizing, And so Shamayah I started
Equilibria as a professional organizing company.So I was I was the lady going
into people's homes and literally taking theircertain rooms and having it go from a
(19:48):
state of chaos to calm. Butwhat I noticed was that most of my
clients were entrepreneurs. They were homebased business owners, and it wasn't that
they were chronically disorganized people. Theycertainly were not hoarders. They just needed
processes and systems in place to makesure that things wouldn't if things ever did
(20:12):
get chaotic in their in their homeoffices, they at least had something that
they could revert back to to restorethe peace and the calm. And that's
that's honestly. Over the years howit shifted from professional organizing services to building
business infrastructure, and I got awayfrom working in people's home offices and into
(20:38):
actual, you know, brick andmortar type locations. So that's what happened.
That's how I started my company.It was literally because I couldn't find
a job, and so all thoseyears growing up always having a side hustle,
it was like, Okay, it'sno longer going to be a side
hustle that you're you're dabbling with.You You're gonna have to go at this
(21:02):
full time. Listen I refolks atradio talking to our guest today, Alicia
Butler Pierre, the founder and CEOEquilibria, Inc. Next question for you
is now that you have this businessin place and you're helping your clients,
helping small businesses, explaining to theaudience why business infrastructure is very important and
(21:27):
where some questions that you can answer. Business infrastructure is important shamayah because it
literally provides a foundation upon which youcan build, grow, and ultimately scale.
I had a client many many yearsago who used an analogy, and
(21:48):
I'm going to borrow that analogy becauseI thought it was so brilliant. He
said, you know, it's it'salmost like building. Do you want to
build your house on sand or doyou want to build your house on concrete,
which is going to be more stable. That's what business infrastructure gives your
company. So when your business hasthe benefit of more clients than you might
(22:12):
be able to handle, or youhave a really popular product an amazing service
that is garnering the attention of somany people, you ultimately are faced with
a decision. That decision being okay, I either significantly raise my prices so
that I don't get as many peoplecoming to me asking for this product or
(22:33):
service, but more than likely yourealize that you have to hire more people.
Well, in hiring more people.Those people need to know what to
do, they need to know howto do it, and they also need
to know the structure, because ifthere is no structure, people that you
hire will leave very quickly. Andif there is no structure, people will
(22:56):
do things. People that you hirewill do their own way, and that
can upset your customers because your customersbecome accustomed to a certain type of quality
that's associated with your products and services, and they become accustomed to it being
delivered to them in a certain orparticular way. That's what business infrastructure does
(23:18):
for you, is it links yourpeople, your processes, and all of
your tools and technologies into a cohesiveframework so that whenever there's a change in
one of those areas, you immediatelyunderstand the impact that it has on the
others. So no more silos everything. It truly speaks to what I mentioned
(23:40):
earlier, which is the interconnectivity ofeverything that's going on in your business.
It does answer four questions, andthose four questions are, what is the
work that has to be performed inyour company in the first place, How
is that work organized, how isit organized into apartments? Number three?
(24:02):
Who actually will do the work asentrepreneurs. When we first start our businesses,
we're doing the work of so manydifferent types of people, but we
can't that's not sustainable. And especiallyas you again you start having growing demand
for whatever it is you're selling oroffering to the marketplace, you have to
hire more people. So who arethose people? Who are those people?
(24:26):
What are the roles that need tobe filled at your company? And then
finally, the fourth question is howis that work performed? And that's when
you really get into identifying the processesand the procedures that you need to document
so that again you ensure consistency inthe way that you are producing or delivering
your goods and services. Wayne comesto sales marketing operations, you have a
(24:55):
statement that I read in my informationand battle between the scene and the unseen.
Explain what that means for the audience. Sure, and I thank you
so much for asking that. Whenwe're in business, everybody understands what marketing
(25:15):
is. We all understand that wehave to promote and brand and need some
form of publicity and even social mediato get the word out about what we
do and what we have to offer. There's no dispute about that. So
think of marketing activities in your companyas the things that you're doing to be
seen, because if you're not seen, nobody will know about you and you'll
(25:37):
be out of business really quickly.Well, operations is equally as important,
but unfortunately, shamayah, it doesn'tget the same type of love and attention
as marketing related activities. But thinkof operations as the things that are going
on behind closed doors that your customersnever seen, but they definitely experience.
(26:02):
We all know when we've had abad customer experience and it's not necessarily because
of something that we've seen them do. It could be things going on behind
the scenes. And then we getthat defective product that we've ordered in the
mail and we're like, well,what happened. Well, from an operations
perspective, what happened in the processof producing that good that the customer ordered
(26:26):
that you ordered that cause it tobe defective in some way or another.
So that's why I say marketing isthe scene the things that are seen,
and then operations are the things thatare unseen. Typically, and there is
a battle because so many people devoteso much of their time and attention and
(26:48):
effort on marketing related activities to thedetriment of the operations. And so I'm
just making the argument that one isnot more important than the other. They
actually have a symbiotic relationship. Youhave to have both. So that's what
I mean by that. It's it'softentimes the it's like the battle between the
scene and the end scene and lastquestion for you as an entrepreneur and so
(27:15):
on, that is in charge oftheir business, their services, what they
oversee based on your journey from growingup. I mean, I've been the
entrepreneur bug when you were a littlekid, from going to school, going
(27:36):
through LSU, from going all thesedifferent chapters in your life, getting through
all these ups and downs, ifyou will, was one thing that you
kept with you that points you toyour north star? Oh, great question.
Gosh. I keep a picture ofmy maternal grandmother with me at all
(28:03):
times, and she passed away backin two thousand and six, and whenever
I'm having a down day, oreven if I'm having a great day,
I will often look at her picture. I keep it in a little portfolio
that I have with me that's alwaysin my backpack, and I'll just look
(28:26):
at her and I'll just wonder,is she proud of me. Have I
just done something that that would embarrassher? But but I also think about
the opportunities that have been afforded tome as a woman that unfortunately, because
of the time and era that shelived, she couldn't have done so a
(28:48):
lot of times when I find myselfmaybe complaining about something or I'm just I'm
just you know, not feeling greator I'm kind of down and out because
it's it's tough being a business owner. It is. I will not I
will not sit up here and makeit seem as though every day is a
rosy day, because it isn't.But I often will look at her picture
and it's it's just a reminder ofyou know, keep going. You can
(29:12):
have a bad day, but pickyourself back up and keep going. She's
my north star. Once again,Then listen you folks on radio talking to
our guests today, Alicia Broler Pierre. You can go to her website It's
(29:32):
Alicia Butler Pierre dot com. Andalso for our listeners, do you have
a website that they can visit foryour business? Absolutely, it's e q
B Systems dot com. So EQBSystems dot com. Once again, I
(29:52):
want to say thank you to you, Alicia for taking time talking to us
today. Thank you so much.Tomaya
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