Influential Woman · Grants and Professional Development

Laurielle Roberson

Senior Grants and Contracts Manager, Sage Bionetworks

Baton Rouge, LA

Certifications · Degrees · Memberships

Degree Bachelor's in Business Administration with a concentration in Human Resources Degree Master's in Business Administration with a specialization in Human Resources Degree Master's in Public Administration with a specialization in Grants and Public Policy Member Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated Member National Grants Management Association (NGMA) Member Grants Professional Association (GPA)

Her Story

About Laurielle

I have been in grants management for over 10 years, and I'm passionate about what I do - this is something that I eat, sleep, and breathe. I'm the founder of Empirical Pen Solutions, a research and writing firm where we provide professional development for individuals, strategic writing for organizations, and grant research and writing for nonprofit organizations within the community. I'm also a Senior Grants Manager and Grants and Contract Manager with Sage Bio Networks, where I've been for about a year and two months. In this role, I oversee the full life cycle of grants from pre-award to post-award to closeout, focusing on pre-award and post-award processes including reporting, and I assist our principal investigators with their proposals, proposal writing, budgets, and submissions. Before this, I was a senior consultant with Eisner Amper in grants management, where we assisted different clients in their grant management roles - this experience is what made me want to start my own business. Prior to that, I was an operations manager of research and graduate programs for Louisiana State University's College of Business, where I oversaw the entire grant life cycle within the college, assisted PIs with pre-award and post-award processes, and managed the scholarship committee, handling all scholarship funds, donors, processes, and candidate selection. Starting my own business has been my most notable professional achievement - it's something I've always dreamed of doing, and many people encouraged me to do it, but I was afraid. I finally stepped out on faith and started my business, and here I am.

Her Interview

Ten minutes with Laurielle

01What do you attribute your success to?

I would attribute my success to my mentor. Without her, I probably would not have started on this path, because I was focused in human resources. I'm not sure what business I would have, because I really, really enjoy grants - this is something that I eat, sleep, and breathe. Without her mentoring me, I probably would have never had that interest. I wouldn't have gone to that conference, or I would have attended but would not have had that interest had she not given me those accolades and recognition for going at such a young age and taking those notes for her. As my mentor, she has really been such a positive light in my life, as far as what I need to do for my career, staying focused, being successful, and just growing in my personal life and in my professional life. Her talk really encouraged me with starting my business, so I would attribute my success to her.

02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?

The best career advice I've ever received was that it's okay to fail. My mentor told me that when I mentioned to her recently that I wanted to start my business, but I was afraid. I was telling her that I'm getting older, and time is winding down, and I was just counting my days. But she said it's okay to fail, and once you fail, you get back up, and you do it again, and again, and again, regardless of how old you are. That advice is what made me want to really start my business, because if I fail, I'll get back up again. I no longer count my days, and I realize that I can do it regardless of what age I am.

Keep Exploring