IMA CMA Certification Badge



Business Strategist and Growth Expert, Lea Strickland, MBA MA CMA CFM CBM GMC CDE, founded F.O.C.U.S. Resources in 2002.  F.O.C.U.S. Resources is a business consulting firm headquartered in Cary, North Carolina. Lea works with business owners, founders, CEOs, and senior management teams to start and grow their businesses. Lea works with her clients using the proprietary C.O.R.E.℠ Business System. The C.O.R.E.℠ Business System emerged through her work with over 500 organizations.

Education and Certifications

Lea holds an MBA in Accounting, Marketing, Human Resources (Change Management) from The Ohio State University and a BS in Finance and Management from The University of Charleston.  She also holds a MA in Applied Biblical Studies from Moody Bible Institute.

Her certifications include Management Accounting (CMA), Financial Management (CFM), and Business Management (CBM). She achieved certification in government grant and contract compliance (GMC). In 2021, Lea added the Certified Diversity Executive (CDE) credential from the Institute for Diversity.

 

Consultant

Lea is committed to developing organizations, entrepreneurs, leaders, and professionals who have well-defined core values. She is also focused on equipping clients to do business profitably while maintaining their values. Lea’s provides high-quality resources and training for personal and professional growth.

Technovation Entrepreneur℠ Program

Innovators, inventors, and technology pioneers are critical to improving how we live. Many of these brilliant people have little or no experience (and some have no interest) in starting or running a business. These individuals need options and guidance on those options.

  • How to protect their inventions and idea;
  • Options for monetizing/commercializing inventions;
  • How to start a business:
    • producing and selling the product/technology
    • licensing or selling the intellectual property. 

 

 

 

Creator C.O.R.E. Business System℠

Lea’s philosophy is that “success is a product of clear values, well-defined goals and the ability to execute.

The C.O.R.E.℠ elements consist of eight critical success factors that impact every business and are broken into C.O.R.E. Genesis (Start Strong) and C.O.R.E. Growth (Grow Strong).

C.O.R.E. Genesis addresses the business Concept, Opportunity, Resources, and Entity (business model).

C.O.R.E. Growth focuses on translating C.O.R.E. Genesis elements into an actual business structure, systems, and processes — Customer, Operations, Results, and Execution.

 

 

 

Our American Mission: Unite to Ignite Small Business Growth!

Lea is passionate about giving back and supporting other businesses and non-profits. In April 2020, FOCUS Resources worked with several North Carolina businesses to launch Our American Mission: Unite to Ignite Small Business Growth! (OAM)

OAM  provides events and forums for small business owners, independent contractors, and others the opportunity to connect via video conference to discuss the pressing issues of the day. 

Each Tuesday, OAM hosts Community Solutions Forums with a subject matter expert sharing insights and how-to’s for small businesses. Thursdays OAM hosts networking events that leverage technology to connect participants for one-on-one sessions and small groups.

 

 

Radio Talk Show Host

She is also the host of Lea Strickland‘s Focus on Business, a weekly talk radio show on WCOM-FM (Chapel Hill, NC) . Focus on Business covers the issues and challenges of starting, growing, and running small businesses. Topics include legislation/regulations, entrepreneur profiles in success, subject matter experts addressing accounting, legal, tax, marketing, websites, human resources, and more.

 

Author

Ms. Strickland authored multiple books, including:

  • 10 Minute Success: Goals;
  • Out of the Cubicle and Into Business;
  • ABC’s of Biblical Change: Lessons from the Pentateuch (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy)
  • SBIR Basics: The Numbers,
  • One Great Idea, and
  • Marketing Strategies.

 Columnist

Lea is a recognized leadership expert, author, columnist and radio show host with over 800 published articles in publications including FastCompany.com, AMA’s MWorld, MainStreet.com, TheStreet.com, FoxBusiness.com, Sales and Service Excellence, and many others. She works with for-profit and non-profit organizations to build strong business systems, concept, and financial performance. As an entrepreneur and dynamic speaker, Lea shares her real life experience as an entrepreneur and consultant using life lessons and experience working with small businesses, university spin-outs, as well as multinational and international corporations on developing a competitive advantage through how you do business.