Meet Karen Pierce | Consultant and Executive Coach, Investor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Karen Pierce and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Karen, what do you attribute your success to?
Courage

I have always been an outside-the-box kind of person. Not many young girls wanted to fly airplanes when I was growing up. Most people laughed at me when I told them my dreams, and just the fact that I put it out there made me fearful. What if I couldn’t hack it? Either I stepped up and risked failure – or for that matter, success – or I lived forever wondering, “What if…?”

I got my wings early and learned quickly as a new flight instructor how to gain the respect of the older, macho, and even terrified guys I taught to fly. At 19, I looked 12 and was 5’8” and 110 lbs. I can’t begin to describe the look on the faces of these guys as they were introduced to their new instructor! They were going to entrust their life to…HER? Heck, buddy, it’s my life too! It was clear that if I had to fight for the controls, I wouldn’t win. If I didn’t get their respect – and trust – right from the start, our little jaunt in the sky could end badly very quickly.

That lesson, in how to step into an intimidating situation and win respect and trust served me well. When I graduated from university, all the airline jobs were filled with veteran pilots and I pursued my backup career, aerospace engineering. That industry, and especially as a female, was challenging to say at least. I faced a significant amount of resistance, despite my ability, and unfortunately, being good at what I did was not an advantage. I worked really hard, did great things, but wasn’t recognized for it, nor was I considered part of the team.

For example, my work was sabotaged. I was excluded from a team patent. Any advancement I made was the subject of watercooler conversations and with whom I slept to get it. And even at one point, my life was threatened. Changing companies didn’t change the situation. I did that too but all it did was change a parking spot.

I came to a decision point. So, what was my role? Should I persevere or change course to a “friendlier” career? Upon reflection, I realized I could make a difference. I could influence others about not only what I could do but in doing so, open the door to a more welcoming environment for other women. If I were to succeed in this mission, I needed to be aware of the challenges and very intentional about how I addressed them and not lose myself in the process.

Facing into the open hostility and active efforts to get me fired required all the courage I could muster. But the real test was about my self-respect.

One day, I was working at my desk when, from around the corner, one of my vice presidents charged onto the floor with hurricane force and headed toward my desk. As he approached, he unloaded on me with expletives at ear-piercing levels drawing the attention and fear of everyone within 10 miles. Evidently, something in my weekly report made it to the president’s rundown meeting that morning placing him squarely in the hot seat, and now he was there to share the love.
Without thinking, I calmly said this sounded like something we should probably discuss in a conference room. Then, without waiting for his answer, I stepped past him and headed for one that was unoccupied. The conversation didn’t improve in private, so I suggested that we might make more progress if we rescheduled our meeting when we both could discuss it more calmly, then turned and walked out of the conference room. Opening the door, I was met by about 40 drop-jawed colleagues, peers, and superiors who had been listening to his rant through the closed door.

Gathering all the poise I could muster, I smiled and walked with purpose back to my desk, pulled out some paperwork, and proceeded to have a quiet internal breakdown. While there wasn’t a corporate memo proclaiming the news of the incident in detail, there might as well have been. I thought not only is my reputation ruined, but I likely was going to lose my job.

Nothing was further from the truth. There was a measurable change in my esteem within the company after that incident and what it taught me was a real revelation in the definition of leadership. I realized if I didn’t have the self-respect to stand up and require respectful treatment for myself, why would my team believe that I could be trusted to defend them if needed?

I learned my integrity as a leader is intricately intertwined with how I demonstrate integrity and self-respect. My team learned that if I could stand up to a bully, I’d have their backs too. My bosses learned that they could rely on me to be professional even in the most humiliating and unjust circumstances. And my peers stepped up their game.

Later, opportunities opened for me and my family to move to Asia. What I learned about myself and leadership gave me the courage to step out of corporate life, even out of familiar surroundings, away friends and family, and move halfway around the world where I could communicate with no one! It gave me the courage to start my own business, learn the language while moving six times to different cities in Asia, and still adapt and thrive.

Courage brought me back to the US, and start again with a new business, build an international team, and invest in other businesses. Entrepreneurship is risky. Without courage, you don’t have a business; you have a hobby.

Dreams get you started, but courage brings them to reality.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
KMP Consultants is unique in that we believe for professionals and their organizations to benefit from outside help, they need guidance from people who have walked in their shoes. Whether it is a business owner of a thriving small business or a Fortune 100 company, we have the experience, lessons, and dealt with the issues they face firsthand. We can ask the right questions to get to the best answers – quickly. We also provide unique training and leadership development courses that provide industry-leading ROI validated by a third-party rigorous academic study conducted by the London School of Economics.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Karshner Caves The Boneyard airplane fields
Wine country – Cottonwood, Jerome
Stay at the Vineyard B&B

In Phoenix:
Eats: Ginya (great authentic Japanese food) and a night in downtown Chandler – so many great places!
Downtown Gilbert – catch a play at the local theatre
Musical Instrument Museum
Agritopia – especially at Christmas time with the lights in the area
Spring Training – SO much more fun than regular baseball
Old Town Scottsdale – shopping and a plethora of great restaurants
The Wrigley Mansion for a lovely sunset dinner over the valley
Asi es la Vida – quaint restaurant in a home with AMAZING Mexico City cuisine – then the local jazz clubs after dinner
Golf of course – anywhere
Kayaking on Canyon Lake
Hiking up Camelback or out near Canyon Lake with a stop in the Goldrush Mining Town

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My husband, Tom, my biggest fan and supporter Harvey Armstrong and Diana Uppman, bosses who inspired and supported me through some pretty ugly situations
My sons, Aaron and Blake Pierce who motivated me to be an example of a strong and positive woman.

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Facebook: @coachkarenpierce