Erica Seagrave is the proud owner of MJS Consultants, a strategic business coaching firm based in Fountain Hills.

Before owning her consulting firm, Seagrave owned and operated a medical services company, but her idea for coaching began early on in her career when she worked for a large corporation witnessing poor management and inefficiencies everywhere.

“The departments, I called them silos, because they really didn’t communicate with one another,” Seagrave said. She was fed up with the disconnect between company leaders and their employees and wanted to do something about it.

“I realized I shouldn’t be in this company anymore,” Seagrave said, “I have to break away and start my own business where I can help companies be more efficient and really maximize their potential.”

As a strategic business coach in the large-scale industry of consulting, people often wonder what Seagrave’s role encompasses.

“Sometimes that may be [developing] a strategy for growth, hiring new employees, training employees, appropriate onboarding, developing mission statements, taglines, SWOT analysis…it’s a little bit of everything,” Seagrave said.

Seagrave studied neurophysiology at Indiana University, where she became a certified neuromonitoring clinician, monitoring the spinal cord, brain and peripheral nerve functions during complex surgeries.

“The idea in 2003, when I started my company, was to just go to a couple of surgeons and offer this service,” Seagrave said. “It became so successful that I had to hire 20 employees and train everybody to do what I did.”

As she trained clinicians, Seagrave found the hiring and coaching part of the business enjoyable, watching her clients transform into leaders. It was then that Seagrave decided to expand outside of the medical field, coaching anyone from executives to small business owners needing help.

During her time in the medical field, Seagrave wasn’t aware of business coaching services and was too busy to ask for help.

“I was just so busy wearing many hats, I really couldn’t see the benefit of hiring someone as a coach,” she said.

She knows many business leaders today feel the same way and urges those feeling stuck, burnt out and discouraged to reach out to her for advice, guidance or simply a word of encouragement.

“When I owned my company, I didn’t have a partner,” Seagrave explained. “I ran it on my own and there were so many times I wish I would’ve had a business coach or consultant that I could trust that wouldn’t compete with me or share my intellectual capital.”

Seagrave moved to Fountain Hills in 2018 after successfully selling her medical services company of 16 years.

Despite having clients across the country, her business is in Fountain Hills where she meets with clients over the phone or in person. She charges by the hour and is available for as long or as short as necessary, depending on client need.

While there is no time commitment to her consulting service, Seagrave says that three months typically results in consistent progress for her clients.

Seagrave just completed an eight-month stint with a client who hired her to be an interim COO, writing policies and procedures, developing quality assurance plans and expanding her business. With the client’s business on track, Seagrave has taken a mentor role and provides guidance as needed.

“When I see someone is struggling or an underdog, I really wanna help lift them up and make them feel better and do better,” Seagrave said.

When asked what MJS stands for, Seagrave said it is named after her two sons, Morgan and Jackson Seagrave.

“They grew up watching me run a business,” she explained. “My desire is maybe one day they could take over.”

With one son in business school and the other starting law school this fall, her dream may not be far off.

To learn more about Seagrave’s coaching and consulting service or to book an appointment, call 317-503-1350 or send an email to erica.seagrave@gmail.com.