Episode 48: From Corporate Golden Handcuffs to $3M Healthcare Consulting Practice: How Dr. Kasia Hein-Peters Escaped Big Pharma Burnout

Season #1

Show Notes

How do you transition from a comfortable corporate role to building a thriving consulting practice when you're competing against your former industry contacts?

In this episode, host AJ Riedel talks to Dr. Kasia Hein-Peters, MD, a healthcare innovation consultant specializing in pharmaceutical and medical device commercialization. What distinguishes Kasia is her evidence-based assessment methodology for company capabilities and her focus on helping healthcare startups avoid the 90% failure rate through strategic commercial planning.

Why You Should Listen to This Episode: Self-employed consultants will gain valuable insights into overcoming the initial credibility challenges that come with leaving corporate roles, plus learn practical strategies for balancing equity-based advisory work with cash-generating projects. Kasia's honest discussion about the brutal reality of business development and her systematic approach to saying "no" to misaligned opportunities offers a roadmap for sustainable practice growth.

What You'll Learn in This Episode: 

How to navigate the transition from corporate "golden handcuffs" to independent consulting without burning bridges. 

Why having industry contacts doesn't automatically translate to consulting clients and what to do about it. 

The strategic approach to balancing equity-heavy startup advisory roles with immediate cash flow projects. 

How to hire and work effectively with digital marketing and PR agencies as a solopreneur. 

The importance of staying current with industry trends when you no longer have corporate research budgets. 

Why clarity of role definition is crucial for project success and client satisfaction. 

The one marketing focus that matters most when you're overwhelmed by advice.

Listen to These Key Moments:

[02:34] The Pandemic Awakening - Kasia explains how watching mRNA vaccine companies succeed during COVID became her "eye-opening moment" that breakthrough innovation happens in startups, not big pharma.

[07:31] The Golden Handcuffs Reality - Why comfortable corporate salaries and benefits prevented her from making the consulting leap earlier, and what finally pushed her over the edge.

[10:04] The Credibility Reset - The harsh reality that industry contacts don't automatically want to work with you as a consultant, and how losing corporate credentials forces you to rebuild credibility from scratch.

[13:39] Multiple Revenue Streams Strategy - How Kasia balances equity-based advisory roles, fractional work, training programs, and cash projects to build a sustainable practice.

[16:19] Hiring Your Marketing Team - Why she works with both a digital agency and PR agency, and her smart approach of learning the skills while getting the work done.

[22:27] The Art of Saying No - Her systematic approach to evaluating projects based on role clarity, skill alignment, and avoiding scope creep that leads to poor results.

[26:25] Business Development Reality Check - The brutal truth about how much time business development actually takes and why her initial optimism about quick success was misguided.

[30:37] Educational Series Strategy - Her upcoming experiment with free educational webinar series designed to showcase methodology and generate leads for consulting work.

[33:31] The One Marketing Focus - Her advice for overwhelmed consultants: understand your audience and be very specific about the problems you solve.

Connect with Kasia Hein-Peters on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kasiaheinpeters/