Dr. Barbara diSioudi is a business consultant for companies growing their scale and profitability in the Pre-K–20 products and services sector.
Barbara started her career as a teacher. She has also worked for several educational products companies in roles that have included Project Manager, Editor, Vice President of Research and Development, Publisher, and CEO. This variety of experience has shaped Barbara’s understanding of the complex educational materials marketplace and what it takes to succeed in it. Over the course of her career, Barbara has guided design, development, production, acquisition, marketing, and sales of supplemental and core curriculum classroom products as well as educational toys. She has accomplished development goals with internal teams, with third-party vendors, and with academic partners. Her direct product portfolio includes digital, video, audio, print, hands-on kits, and teacher training materials.
Since 2018, Barbara has been working as a strategic consultant, advising 6-8 businesses per year. For some businesses, she collects and presents key research to inform resource allocation and development direction. For others, she collaborates to help innovators position their businesses for sustainable success, working with founders to understand the “why” of their business as well as helping improve the “how.”
With deeper engagements, Barbara works with founders to help them effectively position solutions for success by developing a shared understanding of product-market fit. This may include the exploration of the competitive landscape; definition of specific purchasing processes and funding sources; laying out the sales cycle for target audiences; and establishing positioning language that will resonate with key decision makers. With this foundation, it is possible to develop a strategy that addresses the immediate business goals (winning grants, funding, partnerships, direct sales, distribution and/or acquisition deals).
