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Welcome to Team RedCloud, Tonia! An actress in her early career turned expert account manager over the years, Tonia brings a creative spin to her work and we can already tell how much of an asset she is to our team. She comes to us from Denny Mountain Media, which you may have heard we recently acquired. As she settles into our team over at RedCloud, she brings a multitude of skills from content management, web, print, research, and even writing and editing. We can’t wait to see what she does here (we’re certain it will be amazing), and we’re lucky to have her. Read on to hear her initial thoughts directly since transitioning to our team.
Briefly describe your role and how long you've been in the consulting industry.
I’m an Account Manager, a role that requires both client and consultant focus. I’ve been working with Microsoft clients off and on since 1996, either as a consultant myself or as an Account Manager to support Microsoft's business.
Given your background and other experiences, what stood out to you initially with RedCloud?
I’m stating the obvious here, but account management is largely about relationship-building, and good relationships are built on traits like trust, transparency, and clear communication. I’ve worked with numerous organizations—both established and start-ups, nonprofits, and for-profits—in which one or more of these traits were missing. I’ve been with RedCloud for just a few weeks, but it’s already obvious to me in the way my RedCloud colleagues interact that these are core values, and the fact that clients and professionals continue to come back to RedCloud speaks volumes.
Where do you see the future of consulting (or the future of RedCloud), particularly with the impact of Covid, remote work, etc?
An opinion piece in Inc. published back in the spring of 2020 declared that “the rapid adoption of remote work and related technologies that occurred during the pandemic will stick. As a result, clients will demand their consultants and consulting firms shift delivery models to the digital world.”
Fortunately, RedCloud and many consulting firms in this space were already well-positioned to respond to remote work requirements imposed by COVID. RedCloud had built a network of professionals both familiar with and ready to work productively from home, allowing for quick and relatively easy flexibility and adaptability when clients could no longer provide onsite options. Of course, a small percentage of clients may request that their consultants be back onsite, placing consulting firms in the position of negotiating for hybrid scenarios to keep both clients and talent happy. But I think the primary challenges will be staying on top of the technologies that enable remote consulting solutions and recruiting professionals who can deliver with the latest technologies.
Name one piece of technology you couldn’t live without and why?
I expect that everyone’s first thought is their cell phone, and of course, that’s a critical piece of tech I use daily. But I wouldn’t be functioning daily at all without good, quiet nightly sleep, so I’ve got to say I couldn’t live without my husband’s CPAP machine. I realize I’m outing him for peak snoring, but since he got his CPAP, we both sleep like babies.
What are you looking forward to the most about your projects and the people here at RedCloud?
“New” sparks creativity, and learning never stops. Many of my RedCloud colleagues have—like me—been in the consulting and staffing business for a long time, and I look forward to tackling new projects and learning new things from this talented crew.
Is there anything else about your background we should know about your work, your approach to client service, or anything else?
I actually started my professional life as an actor. This is less of a stretch than you’d think. Actors need to know how to read people, pick up cues, and rely on collaboration. Account Managers do, too.