Starting a
business was always in the back of Laurie Wajda’s mind, but her satisfaction in
the corporate environment kept her vision just that. After leaving her corporate
Human Resource executive position to spend time with family and continue serving
as a board member with Bucks County Association of the Blind and Visually
Impaired, Wajda sought an outlet for her human resources expertise.
Following 25
plus years of work in human resources, she made the move to become her own boss
and in April 2023 launched LKW
Human Capital Solutions LLC. This new venture allows her to flex
her human resource generalist skills to meet the needs of a variety of clients.
Her work to date has included HR strategy development and execution, change
management, and executive coaching to name a few. Her clients range from US based companies with
40 – 200 employees to a global organization with over 1,000 employees in the
US.
“I pride
myself on being a trusted partner,” Wajda said. “I’m flexible. Because of my diverse
experience in human resources, I can flex and customize solutions specific to
the client.”
From a
business startup perspective, Wajda, of Yardley, knew what type of work she
wanted to do and where she wanted to focus, but was unsure of where to begin.
She enlisted assistance from SCORE Bucks County mentors Linda Zangrilli and Joe
Lutes, who provided a very personal touch.
For example, Lutes,
through a virtual meeting and a shared computer screen, assisted Wajda with completing
and filing the necessary paperwork to apply for her LLC.
“To me, that
was going above and beyond,” she said. “It gave me peace of mind that I completed
the process to register my company correctly. I was grateful!”
Zangrilli,
whom Wajda calls her “accountability partner,” provided critical feedback in
development of the company’s mission statement, unique value proposition,
marketing materials and also assisted in setting financial goals.
“Linda is
always there for me to bounce around ideas and answer questions,” Wajda said of
Zangrilli. “She’s always available. I needed to do the work, but she was there
to guide and support me.”
Wajda maintains
her meeting cadence and connectivity with Zangrilli. She looks forward to paying it forward to
support other SCORE clients. “If there are others that can benefits from my knowledge,
I am happy to help.”
In addition
to support from SCORE, the biggest boost to LKW Human Capital Solutions LLC stemmed
from Wajda’s success in networking and connecting with others. She reached out to former colleagues and referrals,
attended networking events and followed up.
“You need to
always be networking”, Wajda shared. Even
though she is based in Bucks County, none of her clients are in the local area.
The power of virtual meetings enables her to collaborate with clients in
Chicago, New Jersey and beyond.
Today, “fractional”
and “project-based” human resources is a need that is common across all
businesses, both large and small. Considering
this, Wajda is confident in her business trajectory.
“I’m having
fun, which is great,” she said. “And I love my clients and enjoy the work.”
About SCORE
Since 1964, SCORE has helped more than 11 million aspiring entrepreneurs. Each
year, SCORE provides small business mentoring and workshops to more
than 375,000 new and growing small businesses.?With more than 70 members
across Bucks and Eastern Montgomery counties, SCORE Bucks?County?provides
over 4,300 free mentoring services annually to local small
business owners through one-on-one counseling and small business
seminars. To stay up to date on news and happenings, join SCORE Bucks
County’s email list. Text SCOREBUCKS to 22828.
