Panel Discusison From Employee to Entrepreneur

BURLINGTON, Mass. - May 4, 2013 - PRLog -- We will have a panel of five local small business owners; who have each taken the journey from unemployment to business ownership. These entrepreneurs will share their personal experiences, what they did prior to business ownership, their concerns, fears and how they made the transition.  We'll have plenty of time for Q&A!  

Our Panel Includes:

Steve Thibault:  Steve spent 25 years in Corporate America, with finance and general manager experience.  He knew he wanted to be his own boss, but did not want to reinvent the wheel; that’s why he decided to research franchises.  He is currently owns multiple units of a Great Clips franchise, and is leveraging his success to additional units over the next few years.  Steve has managers overseeing the day to day operations of his business so he has time to work for a former employer on a contract basis.    

Max Ward:  After a long career as a Senior IT Manager, including 10 years as the CTO at Staples, Max was in career transition.  He was goal-driven and motivated by challenge.  He was not ready for retirement.  But, he also wanted to have the flexibility to spend time with his 4 grandchildren, travel and pursue his passion for genealogy.  Max currently owns and operates an AdviCoach franchise and offers coaching services to small and medium-sized businesses.

Kimberly and (Ron) Jones: Kimberly was managing Marketing and Community Outreach for a state run career center and felt like she had no opportunity for growth in the organization.  She was also pursuing a Masters degree in Education.  She and her husband, Ron, had a young son and Kimberly wanted more flexibility and control over her schedule and more work/life balance after she earned her degree.  Ron was the “breadwinner” in the family and had worked over 30 years as an executive in C-level positions in the medical/hospital industry.  He was burnt out from the hours and the commute.  Kimberly wanted to create an opportunity to “get the family to a better place.”  They invested in a Business Licensing Opportunity called Med Elite Staffing in the medical staffing industry and now Kimberly devotes her FT efforts to running that business.

Margie and Anthony Pascetta: Margie “liberated herself” from a 29 year career in sales with AT&T.  Shortly thereafter, she invested in a franchise of The Entrepreneur’s Source, a coaching company that specializes in helping their client’s explore franchising as a career option.  In the spring of 2010 her husband, Anthony, a Public School teacher, got a pink slip.  Ironically, they were totally unprepared for the loss of his income and benefits.  Margie took Anthony on as a client.  Although his job was reinstated, Margie and Anthony had come to the realization that they needed a “Plan B”.  Also, they had very clear goals for retiring within the next 10 years in a waterfront home no less.  They realized they couldn’t get there from here.  Margie and Anthony now own and operate Mosquito Squad of the North Shore, a seasonal business offering outdoor pest control.

Deborah Toppi:  Deb came to a Career Transitions meeting looking to find her next act.  She had  a long career as a software engineer.  During her job hunt, she not only discovered that the jobs in software engineering were few and far between, but that she was bored with her work and that she really did not desire to go back into that field.  As the breadwinner in her household, she needed a plan to replace her income, but she wanted to do something she could be more passionate about.   Deborah now owns and manages, Stay at Home, a franchise that provides compassionate in-home care to those seniors and others who require assistance.  

The following  session, “Building your Team”, will be held Tuesday May 14th at 10 AM - 12:30 PM at the Burlington Public Library.   There will be a panel of small business experts. These experts help small business owners with their legal, financial and accounting needs, among others.   Pre-registration is preferred at http://careertranstionsboston.eventbrite.com