Technology, Creativity and Solutions | Shanika Palm

How have the Arts impacted your life?
I was born in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit is synonymous with handles like Motown and the Motor City. I grew up mindful of the blend of working-class Americans building a middle-class Mecca with a great appreciation for the creativity of world-renowned musicians, actors, dancers and pioneers of edgy works of art. At a very young age my mother introduced me to the Alvin Ailey dance theater and often took me to off Broadway productions by creators adept at crafting stories familiar to me and my everyday life. These artists presented their work with a creativity that yielded audiences across broad spectrums of race and wealth. Throughout my life art and the appreciation of artistic expression has helped me find and communicate commonality in themes and market my services to diverse audiences in business.
 
What inspired you to become an entrepreneur?
At a core level I would say that my creative spirit initially led me to seek my own unique skill and craft it into something useful for others. I’ve always had a big imagination and a knack for writing. In school I tested well in math and science so a career in stem was a natural progression. Technology was an arena that allowed me to hone in on my creative energy to develop innovation ideas and turn those ideas into technological realities. As an entrepreneur, my passion for writing and compelling others to see my vision, allows me to market innovation to audiences that would benefit from the services.

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Tell us about your company.
Suitable Solutions is an IT and Business Consulting firm that helps Owners and Executives transform their business and products for growth according to their unique business goals. Our team of technologists and creatives work to identify the root cause of pain points and hone in on a company’s competitive advantage to maximize product performance and revenue growth. Many businesses are missing their targets and need development in the areas of strategy, web development and design, branding and media marketing and/or staffing. At Suitable we partner with the client to understand their unique needs, quantify the needs and customize a solution that is suited to those specific needs to generate the required business outcomes.
 
What kind of experience will a client experience when working with you?
In a word I would say clients will get a “teaming” experience. The Suitable “solution” begins with an honest and transparent discussion of the clients “as-is” state. We actively listen and respect the knowledge and passion of the business owners and executives who have achieved success at some level thus far. Then we develop a roadmap that details how the Suitable team will partner with the client by executing strategy checked and balanced by analytics and quantifiable metrics to meet targets in cycles.
 
What is the most challenging aspect of being an entrepreneur?
I often think of the well-known quote “think outside of the box.” Entrepreneurship is defined by not only being able to think outside of the box, but by also having the ability and the desire to create the experience that exists without the box to contain it. When the possibilities are infinite, it is challenging to create the checks and balances of growth, development and expansion that prevents one from failing. So, I would say a challenge is knowing that the opportunities are endless but having the ability to determine which opportunities will provide the greatest returns given the current resources.
 
What advice would you give someone who seeks to become an entrepreneur?
You cannot do it alone. In my opinion, the key to success as an entrepreneur is having and leveraging a vast network of resources. It is vital to have and understand your larger team. Although it seems like a contradiction Entrepreneurship is indeed a team sport.
 
Where would you like to see your company in five years?
In five years, I would like to see Suitable’ s portfolio grow and diversify. 15% growth year-over-year would see Suitable’s customer base double in 5-years. The beauty in that is that if we are growing then the Suitable Solution is proving to be successful for our clients. I truly believe that the measure of success in any cycle is by the number of team’s you’ve impacted to achieve their own successes.

How can we follow you?
Website: https://www.suitablesolutions.net
LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanika-mcbounds-palm-84511748
Business LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/smp-consulting-llc/?viewAsMember=true
FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/yoursolutionexperts
IG: https://www.instagram.com/1solutioningsis/
Youtube:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCp3pLrPdPKK-MQyFpGbx7Dg?