Today we’d like to introduce you to Randy Moon.
Randy, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
In the 1990’s and by the early 2000’s, I had risen through the ranks of a Fortune 500 company to a director’s level and also reached the level of regional vice-president in a smaller but sizable corporation. I can’t say I enjoyed the rise and I realized how much I really wanted to be an entrepreneur. It was my calling to start a business and control my own destiny.
In each of those previous businesses I had risen quickly and built successful departments within my control. Ultimately, I was then assigned, by each of my superiors to larger divisional problems that were out of control. I was, in essence, performing as an internal consultant which fit my personality since I got bored easily without extremely tough challenges in front of me. But corporate politics wore on me. I believe I was too blunt and outspoken.
I left corporate America in 2006 to start my own consulting company. The economic downturn in 2008 made the early going rough but I was able to find enough work with different small businesses to save their companies from failing, helping other companies grow further and in some cases provided the structure for young companies experiencing runaway growth. I also learned a lot about different industries along the way.
Advising, training and mentoring business owners is immensely challenging and extremely rewarding. There’s never a dull moment and I excel at facing the very worst problems, staring them down and bringing creative solutions to bear.
I do most of my own consulting but have a few trusted associates that I either share or provide work to who bring a different perspective to problems than I do. I wake up every day challenged and excited to go to work. Every day I’m either advising or helping a rising young star entrepreneur build a future; or I’m working with an old, family-owned business and helping them make their way profitably in the modern business landscape.
I have found my true calling. I love my work so much, I will probably pass away at my desk. It’s been a great run and continues to be so.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
There’s no such thing as smooth road for any start-up company or most any entrepreneurial venture. Even when the sales are taking off, there are always issues cropping up and decisions about who to hire, when to hire, what software to incorporate to help and other vital decisions that are not always well thought out and don’t always end up well. It’s about perseverance and belief and a little luck.
My company, RMoon Consulting started out with two clients I had known for years that needed help and I was able to bill about $50,000 in 5 weeks. This launched the business forward but growing sales after that first surge became an issue. Marketing in the consulting industry from scratch requires a lot of phone work, pressing the flesh, developing a creative and eye-catching website and begging for referrals from all acquaintances.
One problem is that marketing and selling must be ongoing, all the while you are also performing consulting work for your clients. It’s not an easy balancing act. Its long hours, even on weekends, writing a lot of proposals, some with only a small chance of winning and a lot of turn-downs. You can’t survive without a lot of confidence and drive.
I launched a year and half before 2008, which, in retrospect, was not the best decision. But I plowed forward and was able to squeak by the very lean times by staying in cheaper hotels, waiting in longer lines at the discount auto rental companies and taking cheaper flights early or late in the evening, and just dreaming about first class.
I remember one bleak time staying at a cheap hotel in Hollywood (imagine the grunge) in mid-2008, waiting on a response from two sales calls and working on my resume to start going after a General Manager or VP position back in the corporate world. I was that close to going back to where I swore I would never go back to. That morning a response from a proposal came in that launched me on a two-week job paying quite well and then business took off from there. I’m sure there are a lot of similar stories. There’s no such thing as a smooth road for any start-up business.
Please tell us about RMoon Consulting, Inc.
RMoon Consulting is a problem-solving company. A lot of business I’ve won has been in the construction industry. It seems many construction companies get started either by a person who just put up a shingle and started working for him or herself and before long their single truck turned into ten trucks doing plumbing or carpentry or some sort of construction contracting.
And in many cases, that owner passes the business down to a son or daughter. In both cases, fathers or sons and daughters are very good at the work they do but rarely have the business acumen to insure the business not only provides a good living but provides a solid retirement. It happens in all business but seems to be more the case in construction.
All small businesses need some sort of help whether it’s accounting, managing human resources, pricing, productivity or simply making a profit beyond just a livable wage. RMoon doesn’t try to focus on any one industry. We are business experts. We mentor, advise, teach and consult on the business of business. We don’t feel we need to be industry experts even though some business owners prefer to have an industry expert and I can appreciate that.
But whatever business I’m called into to help, I see common problems that are rarely industry specific. If you’re not keeping good books, then you don’t know the score and therefore you don’t know if you’re really winning or losing; or maybe you know you’re losing but you can’t possibly know why. Numbers tell you why. That’s generally where it starts. Profit is the common identifier. Why a company is not profitable has its origin either in purchasing, pricing, labor productivity or processes. Our job is to go in and identify what’s causing the problem or a lack of profitability and then show the owner how to change that.
I can’t say that every company I’ve worked for has completely turned their problems around. Some owners don’t like the bad news I have to tell them (their brother-in-law is incompetent, they’re too dependent on one client for instance) or they don’t want to make the necessary changes. Some companies are not willing to move into the 21st century in their use of technology and better HR decisions. They will eventually succumb to the prevailing market forces. Some companies’ time has just passed and the world has moved on (taxis to Uber). I’m always honest about reality and can almost always find alternative means to help the owner survive, but as they say, “You can lead a horse to water…
I’m most proud of the fact that I offer a basic guarantee. If you don’t like the work I’ve performed, don’t pay me. I just don’t feel right taking money from an unsatisfied client. After hundreds of clients, I’ve never not been paid and I’ve never had to pay back a nickel.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I can’t think of anything I would do differently. I made mistakes but it’s a necessary part of learning and becoming successful. I tell clients one of the best benefits in hiring me is that I can help them avoid all the same mistakes I made. I have a few fun sayings I like to pass on to clients who always eventually become friends.
This one came from a Deepak Chopra book who he attributed to someone else, possibly Confucius, and it rings true to me: “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.”
My own personal motto I’ve tried to live by is: “No fear, No regrets, No excuses.”
And for those who might think that it’s easy to climb to the top without a lot of hard work, blood, sweat and tears, I like to remind them of something from AC DC. “It’s a long way to the top, if you want to rock n roll!”
Jump right in and start swimming. And don’t mind the sharks!
Pricing:
- $195 per hour
- Set pricing for certain projects with scope of work clearly defined.
Contact Info:
- Address: RMoon Consulting, Inc.
3626 N. Hall St
Suite 610
Dallas, TX 75219 - Website: www.rmoonconsulting.com
- Phone: 469-767-5012
- Email: randy@rmoonconsulting.com
Image Credit:
Michel Boutefeu
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