#12: Jennifer Devine, Founder & CEO | Devine Consulting LLC

In this episode of In the Thick of It, Scott learns about what led Jennifer Devine to leave corporate life behind to start Devine Consulting, an outsourced accounting firm based in Houston. One of the unique things about Jennifer’s story is that she bought an existing book of business and grew it from a one-woman show to a 10-person company today. She is transparent about the struggles and surprises faced in the early days, from working out of her home to office plumbing fiascoes, along with keys to eventually building a positive culture focused on relationships. Jennifer also discusses pivoting her offerings over time, including a failed attempt at becoming a software reseller, before finding her niche in bookkeeping and controller services. Aspiring founders will relate to the evolution of hiring and managing staff, including early mis-hires, bringing on her sister as employee #1, and now adding offshore team members. Jennifer reflects on important lessons learned about investing in the right people, establishing systems and processes, and building a brand, culminating in her biggest honor to date - making the Aggie 100 list.About Jennifer & Devine Consulting LLC:Jennifer has in excess of 15 years of experience, which includes serving as the Controller for an internationally respected commercial real estate investment, management and brokerage firm. She was responsible for all aspects of accounting for the operational divisions, which included internet services, real estate development, property management, brokerage services, and club activities. Since it was an international company there was the need to report in both domestic and international currencies. Jennifer specifically utilized the cross currency functionality of software to report multi-currencies out of one system (versus dual entry), ultimately saving the company hundreds of thousands in manpower.The idea of running her own business and doing exactly what she loves has always been Jennifer’s dream. In 2011, Jennifer had the opportunity to purchase Accounting & Technology Solutions from the previous owner. Accounting & Technology Solutions is a certified reseller of the software Microsoft Dynamics SL (formerly known as Solomon). She then merged Accounting & Technology Solutions into Devine Consulting to encompass her accounting professional expertise with the software side of the business. Jennifer strives to provide her clients with personalized customer service.To learn more, visit devineconsultingllc.com.