Todd Barber's experience as a compensation consultant helped him find a career that was right on the money—and under the sea. As chairman of the non-profit environmental organization The Reef Ball Foundation (www.reefball.org), Barber, formerly of Towers Perrin, and his team of 100 "consultants" help restore coral reefs and beaches in more than 60 countries.
"We use the same model as consulting," he notes. "If we need someone for a project, I ask for a billable rate, how many hours they're available for and whether or not they're free in April. We're training people how to build reefs—just like a consultant would train management on how to build a better compensation plan or better marketing strategy."
The "reef balls," large concrete forms, are submerged into the ocean and attract the same plant and animal life that thrive in natural coral reefs, which are increasingly threatened by manmade hazards. The Reef Ball Foundation, which also helps restore beaches, is currently planting mangroves in the Cayman Islands to help restore beaches. The organization's environmental work recently garnered Barber, who is based in North Carolina, recognition as a "CNN Hero" by the network of the same name.
The Cayman Island project represents the closing of a circle that began in 1994 when Barber was two years into a nine-year consulting career. After working on compensation plans for his Alexander Group clients for seven years, Barber was hired by Towers Perrin. There, his compensation consulting included a growing amount of sales activity.
"The selling taught me how to clearly present my ideas to people," he recalls.
Barber made the leap after learning that the Cayman Island reef where he and his family enjoyed scuba-diving was destroyed in a hurricane. His father learned about a reef-restoration program in Florida and invited Barber to rebuild a reef there.
A few months later, Barber took vacation time to work a diving trade show booth with his mom, a diving shop owner. He talked to attendees about the reef restoration work he had done. Based on the response he received, Barber recalls, "my consulting mind started to click." A probability analysis suggested that there was $3 million in potential annual sales to be had in the artificial reef market. "So, I built a model to decide whether or not to change careers," he recalls. "I analyzed it back and forth mathematically."
The analysis took about six months. His boss said the idea was good, but warned him not to leave his stellar career. Barber also spent time observing his mentor, a highly successful consultant nearing the end of his career. "I noticed that he wasn't doing much more than putting more money in the bank," Barber recalls. "I started thinking: Do I really want to be here at that point in my career doing the same thing?" That his "lack of gray hairs" prevented him from taking on more sales responsibilities—work he enjoyed most—also influenced his decision.
Advice from his father, a successful businessman in manufacturing, helped sway Barber. "He said I should do it if I really wanted to," Barber says. "He also emphasized that my new profession would require even longer hours. He was right—I didn't know that you could actually work more hours in a week than you do as a consultant. I'm doing similar work that I did as a consultant, but with something I love rather than with compensation figures."
If you know a former consultant pursing a passion or unique endeavor, please e-mail your suggestion to ekrell@sbcglobal.net.
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