Women in the consulting industry who live in the San Francisco Bay area have a local networking resource right in their own backyard. Women in Consulting (WIC) is a nonprofit organization that started almost 10 years ago. “WIC is a grass-roots organization. It’s just grown through word-of-mouth,” says Karilee Wirthlin, president of the organization’s board of directors and principal and founder of KL Consulting. WIC (www.womeninconsulting.com), which now has 200 members, unites consultants who are primarily independent entrepreneurs. Consulting recently spoke with Wirthlin about the organization.

Consulting: What challenges do you see women facing within consulting?

Wirthlin: I think it’s asking for what they’re worth, and what they’re skills are worth. We just undervalue ourselves. I think that’s one of the biggest challenges for women—knowing what their skills are worth and what the information they’re providing is worth, and asking for that.

Consulting: What would you advise women who think they’re worth more but are hesitant to ask?

Wirthlin: I would encourage them to hook up with their peers and understand what’s happening. Because I think a lot of women [who are independent consultants] walk out of our meetings and say, “Yeah, I’m not charging enough,” or “I need to change the way I’m charging. I’m charging the right amount, but I’m not asking for enough up front.” A lot of what we talk about is not necessarily a set rate to set—“Oh, you should charge two hundred dollars an hour”—but how to make sure you’re asking for a fair amount, and you’re also getting paid in the right way. You’re not waiting until the end and then getting paid thirty, sixty days after.”

Consulting: How have you seen the industry change?

Wirthlin: I think that a lot of people look to consultants as a very viable resource for companies and you see a great mix of regular employees and consultants at any organization. I think in that sense consulting really is a career option, whereas especially before I started my own [consulting] business, it was certainly an option, but it wasn’t as possible.

Consulting: Is there a certain vertical where you’re seeing more women enter the profession?

Wirthlin: Because we’ve sort of grown up in Bay Area high tech, a fair amount of our consultants are high-tech marketing, although we’re getting more and more diversity into the organization.

Consulting: What topics does your organization cover?

Wirthlin: We have a speaker every month, and we talk about a range of topics. We talk about finances; we talk about how to collaborate with each other. We have our Leaders Network, where we offer kind of a mastermind group for senior consultants, which meets once a month. Oftentimes we bring in the Leaders Network people to offer best practices.

Consulting: Do you have any partner organizations in other parts of the country?

Wirthlin: We’re growing. We’re a nonprofit, all-volunteer organization. We’ve been allowing the growth to happen organically. We’re branching with local satellite groups. We get interest all the time. We actually have people many different parts of the country on our mailing list.

Consulting: How has the organization helped you personally?

Wirthlin: I started my business after getting laid off. I joined WIC almost immediately based on the advice of some friends. At that time, there were probably about 100 members. And I have to say that WIC is the reason that I have been successful, because I have a group of people who

I can go to and get advice. The first time my proposal was rejected, I was like, “Oh, I’m not cut out for this,” and then you’ve got all these women telling you, “Hey, pick yourself up; dust yourself off. Try it again. Try this.” I really feel like I have peers who are helping me build my business.