Founder@ Interview
With Nathan Dennis
“Trust the process, don’t rush it; It is far better to have a long-term plan and with that the time to grow and learn from your mistakes along the way, than to rush your journey without taking the time to step back and appreciate what you have and how far you’ve come. Trust in your vision but don’t be blinded by it. An outsider’s perspective can be a valuable tool for growth and success so, while you should trust in what you’re doing and how you’re going to achieve your goals, never underestimate the power of a strong team around you.” – Nathan Dennis
Today we feature Nathan Dennis, the founder at Legacy Consultants. We hear their story in their own words, their successes, their challenges and their insights.
Let’s start by getting to know you. Can you please tell us a little bit about you and what you do?
A little about me… I’m originally from Newtown in Birmingham but now live in Walsall with my wife and business partner, Sabrina, and our four amazing daughters. Sabrina and I have always been passionate about making a positive impact on our local community and beyond, and set up our charity, First Class Foundation, and business, Legacy Consultants, to try and be the change we want to see. Our efforts, both in business and life, are always focused on our core values; faith, love, family time, and laughter. We make sure these values guide everything we do and feel that they are part of the reason we are where we are today!
A great introduction and start to this interview. Can you please tell us, how did you start, from what age, and what made you decide to change direction and start?
It was actually a bit of an accident – there certainly wasn’t a business plan! Sabrina and I set up our charity – First Class Foundation – in 2019, with the main aim of addressing the over-representation of black and Asian people in the criminal justice sector, particularly young people aged 13-25. Legacy Consultants was really born from the success of that. Employers and public sector companies were seeing the impact we were making with First Class Foundation and would then reach out to us seeking advice on how they could engage with hard-to-reach communities, particularly African and Caribbean individuals. After the horrific murder of George Floyd in 2020, Legacy Consultants really evolved to meet the need of so many wanting to understand how best they could facilitate conversations on anti-racism and allyship, as well as things like microaggressions within the workplace.
Thank you for that insight. So can you tell us…What does your business do and where is your company based?
My wife, Sabrina, and I built Legacy Consultants – based in Birmingham – with the main aim of offering gold-standard and effective services to help any organisation tackle challenges within their workforce around diversity and inclusion. The core business model focuses on four areas: • Staff diversity and inclusion training – Aim to help businesses transform their workforce and encourage a productive workforce. • Consultancy – Our consultants work to help businesses develop models, products, and services that successfully engage with Black, African, and Caribbean communities. • Engagement – Helping organisations reach a new demographic, using innovative tools that ensure the product, strategy, or service meets the target group. • Events – We plan and deliver diversity and inclusion training events for workplaces, organising all aspects of the process. So far we have a 99% success rate with over 100 happy clients worldwide. We’re incredibly proud of how far we’ve come but are even happier that we’re able to make a difference to the lives of those in the black and Asian communities, by engaging with their employers and employees.
What’s the story behind your success? What led to your aha moment? how did you get to where you are now?
I think our success so far is, at least in part, rooted in our commitment to our mission and the passion that drives us. We set out to make a difference in the lives of individuals and organisations by addressing the challenges surrounding diversity and inclusion and that is still at the heart of what we do! It has also been a long journey of learning some valuable lessons and implementing the practices that work best for us and our team. On a personal level, I believe in proactively reaching out to business partners and staff, not just when I need something, but also for quick catch-ups on both business and life. It’s about building beneficial long-term relationships beyond just business.
Thank you for sharing that. What’s been your life’s biggest lesson so far?
It was quite early on in my career, but I learned very quickly about the importance of having written contracts and agreements in place and really doing my due diligence before agreeing to anything. Mistakes like that are easy to make when you’re starting out as a business owner but remembering the admin (as dull as it can be) is just as important as forming relationships etc. Another lesson that really has made a difference is to just believe in myself and not be dictated by the opinions of others. It might sound like a fairly easy lesson to learn but, for a while, I was so concerned about the thoughts of others and being judged that it was actually impacting my work and business. Since growing wiser, I have realised that fear of judgment should not hold us back because, in the end, people’s opinions matter much less than we think (if at all!).
There are lots of lessons and pieces of advice but I think just knowing how far we’ve come would have made the journey far easier. It can be so easy to lose sight of the bigger picture, especially when it comes to business, and stay focused on the nitty gritty but if I could show myself where we’re at now I think it would’ve been a valuable insight.
If you were to go back in time, what piece of advice would you give to your younger self?
The best piece of business advice I have received is “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail” and I think that is something I would definitely pass on to my younger self. The importance of remembering that, it is okay to not always succeed (whatever that may look like) but that if you have at least put your all into the journey and strive for success, you can’t be too far off. I also think I’d tell myself to try and take every opportunity with both hands and run with it; there have been times in my career when I’ve been unsure about what I am getting in return for my time and work but have said yes anyway. Sometimes it didn’t work out how I wanted and I learned a lesson, other times the outcome was better than I expected. Just say yes and you’ll figure it out along the way, the path you’re meant to travel is already paved for you anyway. You just have to find it!
What do you know now that you wished you had known before?
There are lots of lessons and pieces of advice but I think just knowing how far we’ve come would have made the journey far easier. It can be so easy to lose sight of the bigger picture, especially when it comes to business, and stay focused on the nitty gritty but if I could show myself where we’re at now I think it would’ve been a valuable insight.
What has been your greatest or proudest achievement or moment?
In terms of business, I think I’d say that one of my proudest moments includes our work with the senior leadership teams of Birmingham City Council and the West Midlands Combined Authority, facilitating discussions on race and anti-racism through our ‘Navigating the Terrain of Race’ workshop. Working with local government and authorities is such a huge milestone for us and proves that we really do have the power to reach national government and even international organisations and bodies. On a more personal note, I’ve been able to transition to a four-day workweek. It doesn’t seem like much, but it has allowed me to prioritise my mental health and well-being, as well as giving me additional time with my family, which is priceless.
What future life goals do you want to achieve and why?
I think one of our key aims is to connect with everyday individuals to share our story and our knowledge, in the hopes that we can inspire them to reach for their goals and also to try and help show them how to go about it. We’re also really keen to expand our national and international reach and do even more amazing work with businesses across the world.
To finish our inspire questions…”We believe that sharing inspiring words can inspire others.” If there was one positive thing you would say to someone to inspire and empower them what would it be and why?
Trust the process, don’t rush it; It is far better to have a long-term plan and with that the time to grow and learn from your mistakes along the way, than to rush your journey without taking the time to step back and appreciate what you have and how far you’ve come. Trust in your vision but don’t be blinded by it. An outsider’s perspective can be a valuable tool for growth and success so, while you should trust in what you’re doing and how you’re going to achieve your goals, never underestimate the power of a strong team around you.
“Thank you it has been great learning more about your founder story and Legacy Consultants”
To learn more about Legacy Consultants Visit https://legacyconsultants.co.uk/
Find on social media @ Instagram: @legacyimpactuk
Twitter: @LegacyImpactUK
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/legacy-consultants-104504196/
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