The Story
I didn't start Brooklyn Pencil because I had a business plan.
I started it because I had two kids to feed and no income.
I'd just been laid off from my third corporate layoff, and this one hit different. I was a single mom. The bank foreclosed on the house. It was me and two kids and a decision to make.
So I went back to Brooklyn, where I was born and raised, and I got to work.
I took everything I'd built over a career spent in Manhattan high rise buildings and call center desks, the attention to detail, the organization, the ability to talk to anyone and make complicated things simple, and I started offering those skills to small businesses I knew.
No LLC at first.
No fancy website.
Just real work, done well, and getting paid for it.
That was Brooklyn Pencil.
12 Years corporate operations experience
2011 Year I started doing this work
15 Years doing admin work for blue collar businesses
NY, NJ, CT, CA, NV Serving clients across the country
What I Do Differently
My dad calls me when he gets an email he doesn't understand.
He says: "Explain it to me like I'm a blue collar worker." (He is) And that's what I do for every client.
I spent years working call center desks where you can't see the person on the other end, you're just a voice helping them navigate something complicated. You learn fast that you have to meet people exactly where they are. No jargon. No assumptions. Just clear, intentional communication that actually helps.
Whether it's setting up Buildium for an HOA board that's never used property management software, or building out a Google Business Profile for a plumber who's never thought about his online presence, I make the technical stuff simple and I make sure it's done right the first time
How I Work
Intentional. Not rushed. Done right.
Not a rush-mode operator.
I don't operate in chaos and I don't create it. I'm deliberate about what I take on and how I do it.
If you need something done yesterday, I'm probably not your person, and I'll tell you that upfront.
Right the first time.
I like things done correctly so we don't have to backtrack. That means I ask the right questions before I start, not after. It saves both of us time and it means the work holds up.
Your business, represented well.
When I'm handling your emails, your proposals, your documents, I'm representing you. I take that seriously. My name is on everything I touch, even when only your name shows up.
Background
Corporate-trained. Community-built.
Before Brooklyn Pencil I spent my career in some of the biggest financial and media companies in New York. I know what organized looks like at scale. I also know what it looks like when a small business is running on chaos and hoping nobody notices.
At my last corporate role, I managed a remote team of 25 women across the country, moderating, monitoring, and supporting a social network for millions of moms, before remote work was something anyone talked about.
My Client List is Confidential
However, my corporate experience includes:
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Kinkos
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Salomon Smith Barney
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Citigroup
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Prudential Securities
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Credit Suisse
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GroupM / Mindshare
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LavaTrading
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HLCC
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Brooklyn Pencil LLC founded 2019
In the many places I worked, I learned what it takes to run a distributed operation with no room for error.
I've been doing back office work in some form since 1999. I know this work. And I love it.