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We’re so excited that we found time to sit down with Mozelle, one of our talented Senior Associates. Mozelle is no stranger to RedCloud - she’s been on our team for over four years now (time files!) and came to us shortly after graduating from the University of Washington with her Bachelor’s in International Relations and Affairs. With a knack for project management, team building, team collaboration, leadership and a plethora of technical skills, she’s a gem to us here. Read on to learn more about her experience thus far and what she’s excited about digging into this year!
Briefly describe your role at RedCloud.
I'm a consultant at RedCloud working with our client’s Marketing and Consumer Business privacy team. I have been at RedCloud for 4 years. My role has evolved over the years working with the team and with RedCloud. I was brought on to be a project manager and assist in building out the team’s processes around complying with GDPR and has evolved into being the RedCloud team lead.
What was it like to join RedCloud (onboarding process)?
RedCloud was helpful in onboarding and the team I joined was very supportive to help me get started. My account manager Scott Ekman was present through the whole process, which made asking questions easy and less intimidating. There was a team of four other RedCloud employees and meeting with them to understand the requirements of the contract and the business relationship with the client made the onboarding process smooth. My team had meetings with other RedCloud teams at the client site to collaborate and share learnings. Team members who weren't directly working on my contract at the company were also happy to meet and discuss issues we may have struggled with or to simply answer technical questions. The corporate team was helpful in providing the information I needed on my benefits and providing me with my devices.
Given your background and other experiences, what stands out to you with RedCloud?
I have worked with other consulting firms and RedCloud has been involved in my journey from the beginning. I find that consulting can be a challenging role when you are balancing the relationship of your client with the relationship of your company. We are there to fulfill our role to consult for our client but are also the face of our company and to promote other areas of improvement we can offer as a business. RedCloud has been a good example of that balance of supporting their consultants while also trying to find new opportunities to support their clients. I enjoy the honest and open conversations I can have with the corporate team and the ability to make proposals and find support when needed. There is also a sense of trust in their consultants that I respect. We are treated as experts in our area of focus and reached out to as equals if there are any questions that may help the sales team in their work.
What originally drew you to RedCloud?
I was working for another consulting firm when our projects overlapped with a RedCloud team. We worked closely together and the RedCloud team was always respectful of my suggestions and training even though we worked for two different firms. When my contract ended the RedCloud team reached out to me offering me a role after working with me on the previous project. I enjoyed their sense of collaboration as a team of consultants rather than the sense of rivalry that can often occur in this line of business.
Where do you see the future of consulting or the future of RedCloud?
Consulting is imperative for businesses that need specialized skill sets to enhance business performance. For companies who hire full time employees for needs they currently face, consulting is a solution that brings in experts in fields that the company may not have or may not have the time or resources available to provide. Today everything is about improving and automating work streams, this may come in the form of gap analysis, tool enhancements, process improvement or merely having a 3rd party perspective on how things work today vs. how things can be improved to be more efficient. I think of consultants as a conduit for those endeavors. The benefit of being a consultant is that you are able to take the ideas and suggestions of the company and formulate an actionable plan and help them achieve that goal.
RedCloud as a company has done a good job of hiring those individuals who are able to work in this role successfully. There can be challenges to being a single person on a contract while working in parallel with your client, so you are primarily directly accountable. If you are lucky, like I have been, you get a team of RedCloud employees on a single contract and get to work more as a team. Though I can't speak for everyone and working individually has its benefits as well. The RedCloud corporate team is supportive and there has always been someone I'm able to connect with outside my contract. On top of all that, consulting can be ambiguous. If there is a gap in work then consultants are expected to fill it. Having good time management and understanding of what is most valuable to your client has always been the most effective work ethic I have in my role.
Name one piece of technology you couldn’t live without and why?
I want to say my phone, but I prefer the days that I'm on my phone less, so I'll say my oven. I love to cook and bake so without it, cooking wouldn't be as much fun and food wouldn't be as delicious.
What are you looking forward to the most this year with RedCloud?
My team at RedCloud is constantly looking for ways to offer more specialized services in privacy. The relevance of privacy has grown exponentially in the last five years, partially to new laws being passed like GDPR, and the advancements of technology and data collection, but also with the larger corporations being punished through the public's eye. I'm excited for the work that my team has been doing to focus on this area of business. It is constantly changing and to offer support in keeping up with how to protect customers data and build trust with their customers is important to me.