Ask the Board: "What was one of the pivotal moments of your career?"
Laura Murphy
October 29, 2015
Looking at the situation analytically, something that comes easily to me, it made sense to go. At a micro level, the company was not meeting my needs or moving in the direction I thought it should, and I did not have the authority to change its course. Yet, my instinct was telling me to stay at it; that at a macro level there was something worth fighting for. Specifically, I was working with some amazing customers doing what I thought was important work in supporting their goals. I was passionate about sustainability and I believed we were just scratching the surface of what software could do for companies' EHS programs.
Then in early 2002, I learned the owner of the company was ready to make an exit. The prospect of going forward solo was unrealistic given the consuming nature of my role at the time and so I began the painful process of winding down the customer relationships that meant so much to me. That's when an opportunity presented itself from out of the blue. A friend from the industry, who I had met only a few months earlier (at the 2001 NAEM Forum in fact) asked me to consider partnering with him to take over the company.
The speed at which this professional pivot needed to move was aggressive. However, I also knew that I had not done everything I had set out to accomplish with the company; and I could see that this potential partner and I had a contrasting set of skills that if we could find a way to make it work would make us a really great team.
So instead of shutting down, I ended up doubling down. Listening to my instinct and persisting made all the difference. That company, KMI, grew from two to over fifty people and recently merged with MSDSonline to become VelocityEHS, one of the largest EHS software companies in the world. Fourteen years later, we have had a positive impact on hundreds of companies and well as over a million employees. It has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life.
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About the Author
Laura Murphy
VelocityEHS
Laura is Vice President of Customer Experience at VelocityEHS Canada. She has worked in the EHS software industry since the mid-’90s and joined EHS software provider KMI at its inception in 1999. Laura’s professional experience spans software implementations, design, product management and the systemic user experience. She specializes in datavisualization, strategic planning and translating EHS business needs to software solutions. She has served as Affiliates Council President at the National Association for Environmental Management (NAEM) since January 2015. Laura holds a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies and Resource Management from the University of Toronto.