Navigating the World of Marketing Ops Consulting – Lauren Aquilino and Sydney Mulligan

There comes a time in every marketing ops professional’s life when they wonder if the grind of an in-house job is worth it after all.

Whether it’s politics, overwork, lack of resources, lack of respect, a toxic boss, or one of a million other things…it might make you think, “maybe I’d be happier as a consultant.”

But is the grass actually greener? What does it take to get started in consulting? Are you better off at an agency or as an independent? How do you find clients?

To answer these questions (and many more), I’m joined by Lauren Aquilino and Sydney Mulligan. With over 20 years of consulting experience between us, we have a no-holds-barred discussion on the pros and cons and how to succeed.

Thanks to Our Sponsor

Many thanks to the sponsor of this episode – Knak.

If you don’t know them (you should), Knak is an amazing email and landing page builder that integrates directly with your marketing automation platform.

You set the brand guidelines and then give your users a building experience that’s slick, modern and beautiful. When they’re done, everything goes to your MAP at the push of a button.

What’s more, it supports global teams, approval workflows, and it’s got your integrations. Click the link below to get a special offer just for my listeners.

Try Knak (https://revops.fm/knak)

About Today’s Guests

Lauren and Sydney are co-founders of EMMIE Collective – a for-hire collective of the most sought-after independent consultants and boutique firms in the marketing ops and ops adjacent space – and co-hosts of the Pretty Funny Business podcast.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurenaquilino/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydneymulligan/
Key Topics

• [00:00] – Introduction
• [01:08] – Origin story of EMMIE Collective
• [10:45] – Has the reality of the agency model met their expectations?
• [12:48] – Becoming an independent consultant vs. joining an agency
• [15:05] – The experience of transitioning from in-house to consultant
• [17:20] – In-house career growth limitations for technical marketing ops
• [18:34] – Challenges of moving from an IC to a manager
• [21:44] – Finding clients and financial planning as a consultant
• [24:16] – Layoffs pushing people into consulting
• [26:42] – Commercial arrangements – hourly vs. project vs. retainer
• [28:50] – Challenges scoping fixed bid projects
• [30:23] – Fractional consulting models
• [32:38] – How to ensure quality / consistency with a team of independents
• [36:57] – Client management skills and dealing with challenging clients
• [41:45] – The tattoo booth at MOps-Apalooza

Resource Links

• EMMIE Collective Official Site (https://www.emmieco.com/)
• Pretty Funny Business: The Podcast (https://www.emmieco.com/pretty-funny-business)

Learn More

Visit the RevOps FM Substack for our weekly newsletter:

Newsletter (https://revops.fm/newsletter)