The Power of Grit

Long before Adrienne Lieberthal, FSA, CERA, EA, MAAA, founded Athena Actuarial Consulting, drafting business plans for her future entrepreneurial endeavor was already a pastime. She didn’t always know what exactly the business would be, nor did she expect it would happen within the first decade of her actuarial career, but she knew that when the conditions were right, the tinderbox of her passion, drive and grit would ignite. That moment came in August 2020, during the fifth month of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.

Fiercely competitive and intuitively pragmatic, Lieberthal already had the natural drive to succeed as an entrepreneur. She credits her grittiness and “no pain, no gain” mindset to growing up in Philadelphia, along with a reservoir of determination and perseverance she gained from her mother.

In this interview, Lieberthal shares her insights about her journey from actuary to founder and CEO of Athena Actuarial Consulting.

Can you tell us about your start in the actuarial profession and what led to starting your consulting company?

The pandemic created a wake-up call for me—I found myself sitting in Seattle during the COVID-19 shutdown thinking about whether I was spending my time on things that truly brought me joy. Coincidentally, I was working in the government space and had taken on the task of searching for diverse suppliers for our firm to partner with and go to market together. I noticed that there were few, if any, woman-owned businesses taking advantage of supplier diversity programs in the government actuarial marketplace.

This created an entrepreneurial spark for me—a business opportunity waiting to be harnessed. At the same time, I loved the team I was working with thanks to a fantastic managing director and leader. He fostered something really special that, to me, was a case study for what is possible when people feel personally connected, like they can bring their full selves to a space. This environment of belonging led me to think: What if an entire company was centered around putting people first? I felt it would add value to the entire consulting ecosystem—the employees, clients and ultimate beneficiaries of the programs that our clients oversee. By August 2020, I incorporated my LLC, gave my notice to my employer, stayed for four months to wrap up a project and officially left on my 31st birthday, Dec. 18, 2020.

On the personal front, I became engaged to my now husband six days later, and it feels like life has moved quickly since! There have been many highs and lows in life and entrepreneurship. I got married, welcomed my first daughter last year and scaled Athena from one to 25 employees in three years. Through our passion and grit, we have grown annual recurring revenue and forged partnerships with other firms, clients and small businesses. It’s been an amazing journey, and it truly feels like we’re just getting started.

You talk about “the power of grit” and a “no pain, no gain” determination. What’s an example of this you can share for someone starting their own business?

There is a special kind of torture in ambiguity. Starting your own business means taking a leap of faith based on an idea, some rough projections and determination to make it a reality. You have no idea how many 12-to-16-hour days you’re going to have to put in before you break through to your first glimmer of success. You really can’t predict how many weeks, months or years will go by before you are profitable. You can’t even grasp the length of time that will pass before you get the necessary momentum to find some relief in hiring the right people to take on critical responsibilities within the business and get some balance back. The number of curve balls and distractions that will come your way during this initial grind will be discouraging, disheartening and truly test your belief in your own ability.

My own, very real example was having to drain my family’s personal savings to float payroll, as it was more important to me that my employees trusted that payroll would never be at risk than it was for me to have a personal financial safety net. The financial strain wasn’t even the hard part; it was not knowing whether that amount of cash was going to cut it. It’s this ambiguity that keeps many—especially actuaries—in analysis paralysis because you are required to take a leap every day toward building a future for your business without actually knowing what the future holds. It’s all the more reason to run a fiscally responsible venture while also trusting in your ability to manifest success and make your vision a reality. It will pain any actuary to hear that sometimes, there is way more to the story than the numbers will tell you.

You played field hockey competitively at the University of Virginia (UVA) when you heard about a career opportunity as an actuary. Tell us what happened afterward.

I played field hockey at UVA and pursued a dual major in math and French. My early professional energy came from passing two exams on back-to-back days and subsequently landing my first job at Willis Towers Watson (now WTW). From there, I fell into being a pension actuary for corporations before moving to the government sector.

When I think about my journey from my first job to now leading Athena, my actuarial experience has been invaluable. Taking exams for years forces you to prioritize long-term outcomes over short-term goals. The skills I developed in understanding finance, leading through ambiguity and thinking mathematically are crucial in running a small consulting firm today. While I still do pension actuarial work, I find that the executive functions of running a business give me more energy right now. Embracing risk and opportunity is core to running a business, and while many actuaries are traditionally risk-averse, this background helps me be more comfortable taking risks.

You were 30 when you incorporated your business, and the first day in business was your 31st birthday. Now, four years later, what are some lessons you’ve learned from this journey?

Here are three major lessons I’ve learned:

1. Surround yourself with people you want to model personally and professionally. This is crucial because your personal and professional selves are so intertwined. Early in Athena’s history, I received great advice to have a board of advisers. They help me face challenges that I would otherwise handle alone, and they ensure our company’s actions align with our vision. Between my board of advisers, my participation with an organization called the Women Presidents Organization (WPO) and the amazing people I met through cofounding and serving as a board member with the Network of Actuarial Women and Allies (NAWA), I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to have a mix of network connections that both challenge you and lift you up.
2. Have a clear plan and stick to it. Whether you want to remain a small firm or grow into a larger boutique firm, your strategy should reflect your goals. For example, a five-person firm doesn’t need an HR manager, but a larger firm will need an entire department at some point. Clarify your vision and make decisions that align with that North Star. We run our business as if it’s 10 times bigger than its current size, and it’s led to some powerful hiring decisions and investments in vendors that have grown with us.
3. Face hard truths instead of looking the other way. Any issue you ignore will only get bigger over time. This lesson has influenced every aspect of my life, personally and professionally. Addressing issues head-on and developing a plan is a better approach than letting them fester.

What was the scariest moment for you when founding your business?

The scariest moments typically involve taking my eye off the ball and trusting the rockstars I have brought on board to take care of my first baby—Athena. Two examples were taking my first week off for my wedding in September 2022 and taking maternity leave in December 2023. Up until then, I could fully focus on the business. Fortunately, I have a supportive partner who shares my dream of balancing professional and personal fulfillment, which makes it possible for me to lean into work the way that running a business requires. When it comes to leaning into the personal, for my wedding, I set up infrastructure to step away for two weeks, revealing gaps and blind spots in our processes. For my maternity leave, I converted the business into a partnership in anticipation of parenthood’s unpredictability and brought on two partners who share my personal and professional values. Leaving the business was scary, but putting my own and my family’s needs above the business was one of the reasons I wanted to start Athena in the first place. Striving for a balanced, full and busy life filled with highs and lows makes the hard moments feel like “the right kind of hard,” and the cycle continues.

What advice can you give about growing a business and balancing expenses and personnel investments?

I’m still working on that balance. I aspire to provide the world’s most epic employee experience and have learned hard lessons about how expensive that can be in terms of compensation, benefits, flexibility and time off. [One thing I’ve done] is select a leadership team that is nearly empathetic to a fault. We push ourselves to show up for people and make holistic decisions that consider all impacts. I always think about our future state when balancing expenses and investments, planning for where we want to be in one, three, five and 10 years, not just today.

My advice would be to take the addition of payroll very seriously—you are taking on the responsibility of someone’s livelihood, their ability to support their family and pay their rent or mortgage. I utilized many methods of augmenting my own efforts before I brought on my first full-time employee, including interns, subcontracting, contractors, fractional support, part-time employees and swapping time with other small business owners. By the time I was ready to have my first set of full-time employees, I made sure that I had the cash reserves, forecasted pipeline and fully scoped out roles to set them up for success. They will still need to be ready for a rollercoaster of change that comes with joining a startup, but you will have done all you can to make sure they have a well-fitting seatbelt.

What can you tell us about transitioning a consulting business from ownership to partnership?

Many advised against converting to a partnership due to the challenges of driving consensus with a group of non-founders and, in a worst case, the fact that dissolving a partnership can be more challenging than a divorce. However, I wanted balance, the ability to step away occasionally and share the mental load of running the business. Despite advice, I trusted my gut and saw the opportunity to go into business with two role models I admire. Their commitment to work-life balance, to their families and careers as actuaries, was something I wanted to be around.

No one knows what is best for your family and your business other than you, and it’s important to listen to your gut. For me, leveraging their experience and partnership was worth giving up equity. Surrounding yourself with people who understand and support your vision is crucial. Our partnership model fosters a consensus-driven style with a layer of trust, benefiting all employees. Under this values-aligned partnership model, we try to make decisions our employees trust and can be proud of.

What type of work culture do you aim to create? What does true belonging mean to you?

I aim to deconstruct professionalism so people are not just brought into the company but celebrated for their unique perspectives and experiences. Conforming is the enemy of belonging in a team-based environment. We run traditional business components through this filter, including policies, benefits, remote and hybrid work, and camera-on requirements. While we may not always get it right, our culture of openness means employees trust us to address their needs and take care of them when times get tough.

What do success and fulfillment mean to you?

The theme is constant—peace comes when your heart, gut and head are in alignment. Ignoring this alignment is unsustainable. Aligning your work with who you want to be is hard but rewarding. Valuing your skills and experience and executing decisions aligned with your values will inherently make you feel valued and fulfilled.

Do you have any daily rituals?

My morning routine includes coffee, sitting in silence for five minutes, reading for 20 minutes and exercising—even if just for 10 minutes. My husband usually makes breakfast for my daughter and me, which is a special moment we get to spend together some days before the chaos of daycare drop-off and work picks up. I have found that, as a working parent, it’s getting harder to carve out time for myself—to achieve a reasonable work-life balance—so I rely heavily on scheduling blocks in my calendar. I have an executive assistant who is a fierce advocate for my mental health, and I’ve found that she often has a better lens through which to determine whether I am setting myself up for success by balancing my personal daily rituals and the demands of work.

Any other advice?

Don’t take the first “no” too seriously.

If what you want doesn’t exist, create it.

If it’s hard, you’re probably on the right path—if it were easy, everyone would do it.

Statements of fact and opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors and are not necessarily those of the Society of Actuaries or the respective authors’ employers.

Copyright © 2024 by the Society of Actuaries, Chicago, Illinois.