Her Story
About Lilly
I've been in learning and development for 28 years, and I founded my own company in 2014. My background is in learning and development instructional design, and I started out working for big consulting firms - what was then the Big Ten, now the Big 4. I was hired out by these firms to their clients, and I realized I could actually hang my own shingle and do it better, faster, and cheaper for customers. It was a big risk - saying goodbye to benefits, PTO, and all those things you get as an employee - but I wanted to provide customers with a better ROI. I was astounded at how much the big firms charged based on their overhead. Clients were paying for managing partners' salaries and ancillary back-end office costs that didn't add value to what they actually wanted. I knew if I could streamline that and take all that extra fat out of the invoice, I could serve them better. My firm specializes in creating learning curricula, learning programs, and learning strategy for organizations. Some have been around forever and need a facelift to make employees more efficient and productive. Others are startups that know they need training but don't know what that looks like - I do assessments and create phased plans so they don't try to boil the ocean. The bigger Fortune 500 firms I support have infrastructure in place and want employees who can significantly impact their bottom line, and I help them do that. During COVID, my business exploded because organizations needed to put learning online and implement learning management systems for remote employees. Now I'm focusing on helping organizations transform their learning and development programs into a more AI-centric approach, which is what companies want. I've been fortunate to be in the right place at the right time, and I've worked with clients like Kaiser Permanente for a decade, helping them achieve goals like a 20% increase in revenue in their Medicare line of business.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Lilly
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to being in the right place at the right time, combined with following my instincts. When I finished my MBA in Houston in the mid-90s, I didn't even go to graduation - I got on a plane to San Francisco because I instinctively knew Northern California was where I needed to be. This was right when the internet boom was happening. It wasn't like I was reading the Wall Street Journal telling me to go - it was just instincts, and I followed my gut. That timing and trusting my intuition has been huge. I've also been fortunate in that some of my success has been out of my control - like during COVID when my business exploded because organizations suddenly needed to put learning online and implement learning management systems for remote employees. Being positioned in e-learning and learning management systems before that wave hit meant I was ready when the demand came. So I'd say it's a combination of instinct, timing, and being prepared when opportunities arise.
02What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
What's most important to me is making sure my customers meet their goals at the end of the day. I'm not motivated by accolades or awards - what drives me is ensuring my clients achieve whatever goal they want me to help them accomplish. For example, when I worked with Kaiser Permanente for a decade, they wanted to realize a 20% increase in revenue in their Medicare line of business, and I helped them achieve that - they took in $84 billion that year. Do I get an award for that? No, and I'm okay with that, because Kaiser Permanente is happy and I'm happy. That's what matters to me - that my customers are successful. I also really value providing clients with a better ROI. When I was working for big consulting firms, I was astounded at how much they charged based on overhead that didn't add value to what the client actually wanted. Being able to streamline services, take the extra fat out of the invoice, and give clients better value for their investment is really important to me. It's about delivering real impact and results, not just collecting fees.
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