Two environmental specialists conducting a site assessment near a construction project, using a soil auger and tablet.

Environmental Consulting Firm: Early Planning Guide

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What to Expect From This Guide to Starting an Environmental Consulting Firm

This guide walks you through the key decisions and practical steps for starting a mobile environmental consulting firm. The bullets below highlight selected areas, and the full article goes further.

Inside the guide, you will find:

  • Startup steps: Follow 16 ordered steps, from choosing a narrow service list and validating demand to legal setup, vendors, pricing, and a dry test.
  • Industry interviews: Hear from firm founders and senior consultants through six linked interviews, each with a short note on why it helps.
  • Common questions: Find short answers to questions the steps leave open, such as degree requirements, sampling gear, and hiring field help.
  • Daily reality: See what a typical day involves, including the parts owners often enjoy and the parts they find hard.
  • Business fit: Check whether the paperwork, travel, field risk, and detail work suit you before you spend money.
  • Local requirements: Learn which rules may attach to your services and location, and which offices to check before offering regulated services.
  • Financial planning: Plan startup costs, operating capital, funding, pricing, and break-even logic, plus a business plan section that pulls them together.

The overview below covers the services, customers, and tradeoffs of this business so you can judge fit before you commit.

How to Prepare for an Environmental Consulting Firm

Overview of an Environmental Consulting Firm

Environmental consultants help clients understand environmental risk, meet rules, document site conditions, and make defensible decisions before work starts or property changes hands.

In the mobile version of this business, you travel to client sites, gather facts in the field, and coordinate sampling.

You also manage documentation, then finish analysis and reporting from your office or home base.

Work usually moves from first call to scope and proposal, then to site visit, field forms, and chain-of-custody paperwork.

From there, you coordinate the lab, write the report, and send the invoice.

Your clients care about legal handling, clear documentation, reliability, and fast communication.

Clients are not paying you for vague advice. They want clean records, solid judgment, and a process they can defend later if questions come up.

The upside is that you can start leaner than a laboratory because you can outsource sample analysis.

The hard parts are liability, field safety concerns, weather delays, travel time, and strict scope control.

Environmental consulting sounds technical because it is technical, which is why a sloppy start causes expensive problems.

  • Common services: site reviews, compliance support, sampling coordination, stormwater support, spill planning, hazardous waste documentation, remediation oversight, and reporting.
  • Common customers: commercial property owners, industrial clients, developers, contractors, municipalities, schools, utilities, lenders, and legal teams.
  • Main strengths: lower overhead than running a laboratory, repeat work potential, and room to specialize.
  • Main drawbacks: field risk, documentation burden, travel inefficiency, contract exposure, and extra credentials for some specialties.

Is an Environmental Consulting Firm a Good Fit for You?

This business suits people who can stay calm under pressure, write clearly, follow procedures, and make careful decisions in the field.

You need to be comfortable with paperwork, travel, weather, and safety gear.

One missing form or a bad assumption can damage trust fast.

Start with two questions: does owning a business fit you, and does an environmental consulting firm fit you?

Owning a business and running this kind of firm are not the same thing.

You may love environmental work and still dislike quoting jobs, chasing payment, or checking insurance terms.

You may also dislike loading a vehicle first thing in the morning or fixing a broken field process before a client sees it.

Passion matters, but passion is not enough by itself.

Read why passion matters in business, then be honest with yourself.

Are you moving toward something or running away from something?

If your only reason is escaping a job, chasing status, or forcing income fast, you are building on a weak base.

That weakness will show when projects get technical and the pressure rises.

You also need a reality check before you commit.

Review these points to consider before starting your business and look at your day-to-day tolerance.

Can you handle route planning, field notes, chain-of-custody control, follow-up calls, proposal writing, and insurance renewals without getting sloppy?

  • Good fit signs: you like field work, technical writing, process discipline, and responsibility.
  • Bad fit signs: you dislike paperwork, hate travel delays, avoid detail, or want to offer every service before you can support it with proper safety controls.
  • Skills that matter from the start: environmental science knowledge, report writing, client communication, field safety judgment, scope control, and document control.

Talk to Owners Who Won’t Be Your Competitors

Before you open an environmental consulting firm, talk to owners you will not compete against.

Look for owners in another city, region, or market area.

You want honest answers, not guarded ones.

A good place to start is this guide to inside advice from real business owners.

You are trying to see the business clearly, not collect praise.

Ask questions such as these:

  • Which services looked easy at first but created the most liability?
  • What field documents became essential once real projects started?
  • How often did travel time ruin the original schedule or quote?
  • Which insurance gaps surprised you?
  • What would you refuse to offer at the start if you had to begin again?

Red Flags Before You Start

These warning signs mean you should pause, narrow your services, or verify more before you commit money to this business.

  • Trying to look full service before you can support the work legally and with proper safety controls.
  • Offering regulated specialty services without the required credentials, partner firms, or insurance.
  • Ignoring route planning and underpricing travel.

A Day in the Life of Running an Environmental Consulting Firm

A typical day mixes office work, client communication, and some fieldwork, with reports and records tying all three together.

Government occupational data describes mostly office and lab settings, with field visits and travel to meet clients when a project needs them.

On office days, you answer email and calls, talk with clients and your team, and write up findings.

On field days, you collect samples, inspect conditions, and record what you find before the paperwork begins.

Reports and field records follow site visits, so documentation fills much of your week.

Owners also handle business tasks that clients never see, such as finances, operations, and staff development.

Building client relationships is a steady task too, through conversations, introductions, and follow-up.

Extra hours can cluster around fieldwork and project deadlines, and time pressure shows up most weeks.

What owners often enjoy:

  • Work that helps protect the environment and public health.
  • Building a team and helping others grow their careers.
  • Setting your own standards for client projects and your team.

What owners often find hard:

  • Financial uncertainty while the business gets established.
  • Finding your first clients and earning their trust.
  • Finding and keeping skilled staff once you hire.
  • Switching between technical work and running the business.

Does a day that mixes fieldwork, reports, client calls, and business tasks sound like one you would want?

Step 1: Choose a Narrow Service List First

Your first real decision is what you will offer on day one, because an environmental consulting firm can grow in many directions.

Keep the list tight. A focused start is easier to price, insure, document, and carry out.

Good first choices often include:

  • Site reviews
  • Compliance support
  • Stormwater support
  • Spill-plan support
  • Basic field sampling coordination
  • Hazardous waste documentation
  • Reporting

Be careful with anything that can trigger extra credentials, certified laboratories, or licensed professional sign-off.

Examples include asbestos inspections, lead work, drinking water compliance sampling, or engineering opinions.

Do not provide regulated specialty services before you confirm the exact rules that apply to that service.

The type of material, the kind of site, and the tasks you physically perform can change licensing, training, equipment, and liability fast.

Step 2: Pick Your Business Model, Territory, and Service Area

Your main model is mobile and on-site, but you still need to define how far you will travel.

Decide which types of sites you will accept and how much same-day movement your schedule can handle.

You lose money quickly when travel flow is weak.

If you’re mobile, build a territory you can serve reliably with your current vehicle, field kit, and reporting capacity.

Think about drive time, parking, weather, traffic, and sample drop-off timing.

Set a weekly limit on site visits, reports, and proposals so your paperwork does not stack up.

If you run from a storefront, your service area may grow around a physical office.

You still need to plan parking, storage, and field mobilization.

A fixed location does not remove travel problems; it changes how you stage gear, records, and staff.

Decide whether you will be a generalist or a niche firm.

A narrow specialty can lower confusion but shrink your customer base.

A broader service list brings more demand but increases compliance and documentation burden.

Step 3: Validate the Market Before You Spend Too Much

Validate the market by finding who already pays to solve problems you can handle.

Your best first customers are usually people already facing environmental pressure.

Likely first customers include:

  • Property owners dealing with a transaction
  • Contractors dealing with stormwater or dewatering issues
  • Industrial site operators needing compliance support
  • Developers who need site facts before they move forward

Ask these questions:

  • What problems are people already paying to solve?
  • Which of those problems can you solve effectively with your current skill level and setup?
  • Which jobs require outside labs, outside specialists, or higher insurance limits?

Test your offer through real conversations with contractors, property managers, and facility contacts about the environmental help they already pay for.

Check local competition too.

Environmental consultants do not all chase the same jobs.

Some focus on due diligence, while others focus on compliance, waste, stormwater, air, remediation, or industrial hygiene.

You need a clear lane before you build your brand.

Step 4: Form the Business and Set Up Banking

Once your service list is clear, form the business entity, file any assumed name if needed, and get your Employer Identification Number.

Confirm your business name is available, as Step 5 explains, before you file.

Then open the business bank account and set up bookkeeping, invoicing, and document storage immediately.

Many owners compare a sole proprietorship, limited liability company, and corporation.

Your choice of business structure affects taxes, liability, paperwork, and how clients and banks view you.

Field work and client contracts carry liability, so choose your entity before you sign client agreements.

Ask an attorney and a tax professional to confirm the final choice.

You can get an Employer Identification Number directly from the Internal Revenue Service at no cost.

Confirm state tax registration before you bill, because the tax treatment of consulting services varies by state.

You need orderly records from the start.

You will handle proposals, field logs, lab forms, invoices, insurance certificates, and client onboarding paperwork.

Mixing business records with personal accounts creates confusion when projects get more complex.

Before you take payment, have your W-9, invoice format, and expense tracking ready.

Many business clients prefer Automated Clearing House payments.

Many also ask for tax forms and insurance details before they approve you as a vendor.

Step 5: Lock Down Your Name, Domain, and Digital Footprint

Choose a business name that sounds credible, is easy to spell, and works on a report header, a proposal, and a certificate of insurance.

Check the state business registry, look for trademark conflicts, and secure the domain before you print anything.

Then claim the social handles you are likely to use, even if you stay quiet there at first.

You should also have a basic website with service pages, a contact form, service area details, and a page that explains credentials and scope.

Core brand assets should be ready before you open:

  • A clean logo
  • A report template
  • A proposal template
  • A capability statement
  • An email signature
  • Business cards
  • A file structure for project records

Step 6: Handle Legal and Compliance Before You Promise Work

No single nationwide license covers every environmental consulting firm, so check which rules attach to the services you plan to offer.

Environmental consulting is a regulated field, so the legal side goes beyond entity filing and tax setup.

General consulting is one thing. Hazardous waste work, asbestos, lead, drinking water work, dewatering, right-of-way activity, and licensed professional practice each bring their own rules.

Your setup can trigger state, city, county, or specialty approvals.

The triggers depend on your services, your location, and what you handle in the field.

If you’re mobile, verify local business license rules and zoning for your base location.

Verify vehicle-related requirements and whether any public right-of-way work needs permits.

Dewatering, discharge, or public-site jobs can add more approvals.

Check whether your home base or small office can legally store field gear, coolers, preservatives, compressed gas, or company vehicles.

If you use a storefront or leased office, verify the location use, certificate of occupancy, and local licensing.

Confirm signage rules, parking, and whether the space suits any storage tied to your service line.

A lease is not proof that the use is approved.

At the federal level, pay attention to hazard communication and personal protective equipment rules.

Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) rules cover only certain hazardous waste operations and emergency response situations, not every consulting job.

If you generate hazardous waste or transport regulated material, other rules can come into play.

Opening before approvals are in place can delay your start and force rework.

Check with these offices:

  • Internal Revenue Service: Employer Identification Number and federal tax setup.
  • Your state: business formation, assumed name filing, tax registration, and employer accounts.
  • Your city or county: general business license, zoning, certificate of occupancy if needed, sign rules, and right-of-way approvals.
  • Specialty regulators when relevant: engineering board, environmental agency, health department, labor agency, or transportation regulators.

Step 7: Build Your Safety System, Field Documents, and Quality Controls

Build your documents before you book real jobs, because clients judge you by your records as much as by your technical skill.

Create these documents before your first job:

  • Field logs
  • Chain-of-custody forms
  • Calibration logs
  • Sample labels
  • Site safety notes
  • Proposal templates
  • Report templates
  • Change-order forms

Write procedures for field tasks, sample handling, and decontamination steps when needed.

Add procedures for vehicle preparation and for what happens when site conditions do not match the original scope.

If you will rely on project-specific quality plans, set up the template before you take jobs.

Sort out these safety items before your first site visit:

  • Hazard communication files
  • Personal protective equipment selection
  • First-aid supplies
  • Spill response basics
  • Any respirator program needs

In this business, missing paperwork is not a small problem. It can weaken the entire project record.

Step 8: Buy the Equipment and Ready Your Vehicle

Do not buy tools just because they look professional. Buy what supports the services you actually plan to sell.

List what you need now, but hold major purchases until Steps 11 and 12 confirm your costs, funding, and break-even numbers.

Many new firms start with strong documentation tools, sample handling supplies, basic field meters, and a reliable vehicle.

If you’re mobile, your vehicle is part of the operating system.

Your vehicle needs storage bins, chargers, emergency supplies, traffic cones if needed, a first-aid kit, and a spill kit.

A simple layout should keep forms, labels, sample bottles, and personal protective equipment easy to reach.

If you use a storefront, you still need a field-ready loading flow.

Plan a staging area for coolers, meters, labels, batteries, and project files so crews are not scrambling before departure.

Common starting equipment includes:

  • Laptop, camera, rugged clipboard or tablet, and field notebook
  • Coolers, ice packs, sample bottles from the lab, custody seals, and labels
  • A meter for pH, conductivity, and temperature
  • Measuring tape, flashlight, and hand tools
  • Gloves, safety glasses, high-visibility gear, hard hat, and boots
  • Storage bins and secure packaging materials

A water-level indicator, gas monitor, photoionization detector, air pump, or other specialty tools should come later unless your service line clearly requires them.

Step 9: Set Up Labs, Vendors, and Specialty Partners

Vendor setup is a startup task, because most environmental consulting work depends on outside laboratories and specialty contractors.

Choose a primary lab and a backup lab.

Review bottle kits, turnaround times, shipping rules, certification limits, and who to call when a sample needs rush handling.

Line up calibration support, personal protective equipment vendors, and software vendors.

If your services depend on them, line up specialty partners such as drillers, survey crews, asbestos professionals, lead specialists, or waste transport firms.

Some jobs are won or lost because the vendor chain was weak, not because the consultant lacked technical skill.

Ask each vendor these questions before you open an account:

  • What does account setup require?
  • Are there minimum orders?
  • How long does calibration take?
  • What happens if a meter fails in the middle of a busy week?

Good vendor choices reduce delay, confusion, and risk.

Step 10: Build Pricing Rules and Contracts Before the First Quote

Build your pricing rules and contract terms before the first quote goes out.

Your pricing should reflect:

  • Labor and travel
  • Site complexity and safety level
  • Number of visits and number of samples
  • Lab turnaround
  • Reporting depth
  • Subcontractors and contract risk

There is no safe shortcut here. If you guess low, you will feel it later in field time, report time, or client pressure.

If you’re mobile, travel time and territory discipline matter a lot.

Long gaps between appointments, bad routing, parking delays, and extra courier runs can turn a good quote into a weak job.

If you use a storefront, fixed location costs can push you to raise minimums or focus on larger jobs.

A physical office can help your image and storage, but it changes your break-even point.

Common pricing methods include:

  • Hourly billing by labor level
  • Fixed-fee work by deliverable
  • Per-visit pricing
  • Per-sampling-round pricing
  • Monthly compliance support retainers
  • Pass-through billing for labs and specialty subcontractors when the contract allows it

Your contracts should clearly define scope, exclusions, assumptions, added-sample charges, rush charges, deliverables, and change-order triggers.

Step 11: Plan Startup Costs, Funding, and Payment Flow

Your startup costs depend on your service scope more than almost anything else.

You need far less cash if you outsource lab work and start with basic sampling gear.

Buying advanced instruments, hiring staff fast, leasing space, or taking on regulated specialties from day one raises that need.

Startup costs usually include entity setup, assumed name filing if needed, insurance deposits, and website and branding.

Vehicle costs, field gear, software, training, laboratory setup, contract review, and working capital also belong on your startup cost list.

Working capital matters because some clients pay slowly while labs and vendors expect faster payment.

Plan operating capital by listing your monthly expenses, such as insurance, fuel, software, and lab bills, and covering them until client payments arrive.

Clear scope, clean invoices, and firm payment terms protect your cash flow because one delayed job can squeeze a small firm.

Many owners start with savings, partner investment, or a business loan.

Other owners use a Small Business Administration-backed loan, a line of credit, or equipment financing.

Before you apply, ask each lender or investor which documents they require.

Then use the Business Plan section below to pull your costs, pricing, break-even numbers, and funding request together.

Use the break-even check in Step 12 before you commit to a loan.

Keep payment flow simple before you open. Set invoice terms and choose whether to accept card payments.

Confirm that you can receive Automated Clearing House payments without confusion.

Step 12: Check Your Profit Potential and Break-Even Logic

Your profit potential depends on whether your jobs can cover your costs, and your break-even point shows where that happens.

Your break-even point is the sales level where income equals total costs, with no loss and no gain.

Run this check before you sign a lease or buy major equipment.

Use your pricing methods from Step 10 and your cost list from Step 11 as the inputs.

List your fixed costs first, such as insurance, rent, salaries, and loan payments. These costs continue even in a slow month.

Next, list the costs that rise with each job, such as lab fees, fuel, travel time, and subcontractors.

Split mixed costs like fuel into fixed and variable parts where you can.

Then compare your price per job with those variable costs to see what each job contributes toward your fixed costs.

Divide your fixed costs by that contribution per job to estimate how many jobs you need each month.

Add a cushion for costs you cannot predict, and plan for slow months and delayed client payments.

Ask whether that number of jobs fits your territory, your travel time, and your own capacity.

If it does not, change your service list, pricing, or territory before you spend more.

Step 13: Put Insurance and Risk Controls in Place

A basic policy bundle is often not enough, so review general liability, professional liability, commercial auto, and workers’ compensation if you will have employees.

Depending on your services and contracts, you may also need protection that addresses pollution-related exposure or environmental professional risk more directly.

Separate what is commonly required from what is commonly recommended.

Workers’ compensation is commonly required when state employee thresholds are met. Vehicle financial responsibility rules also apply.

Professional liability may not be legally required in every case, but many clients and contracts treat it as essential.

Read client contract insurance language carefully before you sign anything.

High limits, extra endorsements, or broad indemnity language can change the whole job.

The cheapest policy is not the same as the best policy.

Step 14: Prepare Your Base Location, Staff Plan, and Training

Even in a mobile model, you need a stable base, such as a home office, a small leased office, or a light industrial space.

The best choice depends on vehicle parking, storage, client image, local zoning, and whether your supplies or project flow create storage limits.

If you start alone, keep training focused on the services you will actually perform.

If you bring in staff, train them on:

  • Field documentation
  • Sample handling and chain-of-custody control
  • Personal protective equipment
  • Client conduct
  • Vehicle checks
  • What to do when the site does not match the scope

Do not rush staffing.

One person who treats forms casually or improvises in the field can damage a new firm.

Slow, careful training is better than a fast headcount increase.

Step 15: Plan How You’ll Reach Your First Clients

Reaching your first clients starts with credibility, not flash.

Focus on direct outreach, referrals, repeat relationships, and a website that explains what you do.

Service pages, contact details, service area, credentials, and a strong capability statement matter more than broad social posting.

Make your focus clear to the clients you want.

Spell out the problems you solve, the sites you work on, the documents you produce, and the limits of your services.

A contractor, property owner, or facility manager should know within a minute whether to call you.

A public grand opening event usually does not fit this business.

Work typically comes through referrals, project bidding, and direct business relationships rather than walk-in traffic.

Step 16: Run a Dry Test Before You Open

Run a full internal test before you take a real project, from mock proposal to final invoice.

Create a mock proposal, load the vehicle, visit a practice site, and fill out field notes.

Then complete chain-of-custody paperwork, label sample containers, draft the report, and create the invoice.

Each stage of this test shows you where your weak points are.

Use a pre-opening checklist during this test.

In a technical field business, a dry test can save you from embarrassing errors that would otherwise show up in front of a client.

Your pre-opening checklist:

  • Business setup ready: entity filed, Employer Identification Number issued, bank account open, bookkeeping active.
  • Local approvals checked: business license if required, zoning confirmed, certificate of occupancy if required, parking and storage rules confirmed.
  • Compliance scope clear: service list defined, specialty work either approved or excluded, permit triggers reviewed.
  • Insurance active: certificates available, vehicle covered, workers’ compensation handled if needed.
  • Documents ready: proposals, field logs, chain-of-custody forms, calibration logs, report templates, change-order forms, invoices, W-9.
  • Equipment ready: vehicle stocked, meters checked, coolers ready, labels and custody seals ready, personal protective equipment loaded, spill kit and first-aid kit in place.
  • Vendors ready: lab accounts open, bottle kit process confirmed, calibration support confirmed, specialty partners prequalified.
  • Opening systems tested: contact form works, email works, file storage works, invoice process works, payment process works.

Business Plan

Draft your business plan as you complete the earlier steps, then finish it once your costs, funding, pricing, and break-even numbers are in place.

This plan pulls your startup steps, cost list, pricing, legal checks, and break-even work into one practical document.

Your plan should pull together:

  • Your service list, territory, and target customers
  • Legal setup and compliance checks, including any services you exclude
  • Equipment, vehicle, lab, and vendor plans
  • Pricing methods and contract terms
  • Startup costs, operating capital, and funding sources
  • Your break-even logic and your plan for slow months
  • Insurance, staffing, and pre-opening checks

Include your break-even reasoning from Step 12 and how you would cover slow months or delayed payments.

Lenders and investors differ on what they ask for, so confirm their documents before you apply.

What Your Pre-Opening Days Look Like

Before you open, you usually move between admin work and field prep all day, and that mix tells you a lot about fit.

Running this business takes more than science: organization, client communication, travel discipline, document control, and a habit of checking details before problems appear.

A Short Pre-Opening Snapshot

You start the day by checking emails from a lab and an insurance broker.

After that, you review your field forms, print chain-of-custody sheets, and restock gloves and custody seals.

By midday, you drive a test route to see how long a real appointment cycle would take.

In the afternoon, you draft a sample report and review the wording in your proposal exclusions.

Before the day ends, you confirm your website contact form and your invoice settings.

Opening-Day Red Flags

These pre-opening problems tend to appear before the first client, not after, so check each one before you take a project.

  • Quoting jobs without clear assumptions, exclusions, and change-order language.
  • Storing supplies, sample materials, or vehicles at a base location without checking local rules.
  • Opening without strong field forms, calibration control, or chain-of-custody discipline.
  • Treating lab setup as an afterthought.
  • Signing client contracts without reading insurance and indemnity language carefully.

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: Can I start an environmental consulting firm without a science degree?

Answer: It depends on the service. For property assessments that seek federal liability protection, a qualified “environmental professional” must sign the report.

The federal definition includes a license plus experience, a relevant science or engineering degree plus experience, or long full-time experience.

Check the federal rule and your state licensing board before you offer assessments.

Question: Do I need sampling equipment to offer Phase I site assessments?

Answer: No. A Phase I environmental site assessment centers on interviews, records review, and a visual inspection of the property.

Sampling and analysis, called Phase II work, is a separate service beyond the federal all appropriate inquiries rule.

Question: Should I hire field help before I open?

Answer: Only if your workload truly needs it or a job is unsafe to do alone.

Government occupational data notes that fieldwork is often done by technicians.

That split can help you decide how much field time to keep for yourself.

Learn From Environmental Consulting Leaders

Study founders and senior consultants who have already built firms and handled startup risk before you open.

The resources below can help you spot better service choices, stronger positioning, cleaner startup decisions, and common traps to avoid before you open.

Panorama Environmental: Tania Treis and Susanne Heim

Tania Treis and Susanne Heim are co-owners and principals of Panorama Environmental. This podcast episode covers their approach to leading an environmental consulting firm.

This episode is useful if you want to see how two owners split strategy, finances, operations, and staff development.

Listen to the Interview

Thomson Environmental Consultants: Nancy Thomson

Nancy Thomson founded Thomson Environmental Consultants. The podcast covers a consultant’s role, typical projects, and who she hires.

The podcast also follows her career story and how she set up two consultancies, so it suits readers who want a founder’s path.

Listen to the Interview

Florida Environmental and Land Services: Elva Peppers

Elva Peppers founded Florida Environmental and Land Services. The episode follows her path from a biology degree to business ownership.

She also discusses hiring and a small business program’s peer network, which helps if you are moving into ownership from science.

Listen to the Interview

TripleWin Advisory: Kate Gaertner

Kate Gaertner founded TripleWin Advisory, a sustainability consulting firm. She explains how market feedback reshaped her services.

She also covers her first clients and bringing on contractors, so it is useful when you are narrowing your service list.

Listen to the Interview

Verdical Group: Drew Shula

Drew Shula founded Verdical Group, a sustainability and green building consultancy. He and another founder trade stories about starting their firms.

The transcript covers his first project, his first hire, and building a team, so you can read how a founder’s first years unfolded.

Read the Interview

CQG Consulting: Patrice Brown

Patrice Brown founded CQG Consulting, an environmental consultancy in Australia. She started as the only employee and later grew a team.

She discusses recruiting slowly and getting through an industry downturn, which helps if you are weighing hiring decisions.

Listen to the Interview

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