Meet Tiffany. After more than 15 years helping organizations build and improve IT Asset Management (ITAM) programs, Concord resident Tiffany Johnson began noticing a pattern.
Regardless of the industry, the size of the organization, or the technology being implemented, the same challenges kept appearing. Companies were investing in tools, responding to software audits and hiring talented professionals, yet many programs struggled to become sustainable because the underlying governance and operating structures were never designed to support long-term success.
Rather than continuing to solve the same problems one organization at a time, Tiffany decided to build a company dedicated to addressing the root cause.
“I realized the problem wasn’t technology,” she said. “It was that organizations were trying to build mature ITAM programs without first establishing the governance, accountability and operational foundations needed to support them. That’s when I knew there was an opportunity to help companies in a different way.”
Just a few months ago, Tiffany stepped outside her comfort zone to launch Nine Bridges Consulting, a boutique advisory firm that helps organizations design sustainable IT Asset Management programs through governance architecture, operational transformation and executive advisory services.
At the heart of the business is the Nine Bridges Framework™, a methodology Tiffany developed after seeing the same organizational challenges repeated throughout her career. Rather than focusing solely on compliance or technology, the framework helps organizations build lasting capability by strengthening the governance, processes and operational discipline that support successful ITAM programs.
“For years, I was often the only person responsible for building or maintaining these programs,” Tiffany said. “The workload kept growing, but the organizations themselves weren’t becoming more capable. I wanted to help companies build programs that could succeed long after the consultant or subject matter expert moved on.”
Throughout her career, Tiffany worked with increasingly large and complex organizations, leading enterprise ITAM initiatives involving software licensing, compliance, governance and operational transformation. Those experiences exposed a common market gap.
“My last several assignments were far beyond what one person should have been expected to manage,” she said. “The more organizations I worked with, the more I realized this wasn’t an isolated problem. It was happening everywhere.”
That realization became even clearer while searching LinkedIn for her next career opportunity.
“I kept reading job descriptions and seeing organizations looking for someone to fix deeply rooted structural problems,” Tiffany said. “I found myself thinking, ‘Someone should help these organizations before they hire another person into this situation.’ Eventually, I realized that someone could be me.”
The final encouragement came from home.
“My wife kept asking, ‘Why don’t you just do it?'” Tiffany said. “The more I talked about the idea out loud, the more I gave myself permission to believe I could actually build it.”
Since 2024, Tiffany has worked remotely from the Cabarrus Center in downtown Concord, surrounded by entrepreneurs building businesses of their own. Watching those journeys unfold helped make entrepreneurship feel possible.
“I’ve watched incredible businesses grow here,” she said. “Being part of that community gave me confidence that I could take everything I’d learned over my career and build something meaningful.”
As she began laying the foundation for Nine Bridges Consulting, Tiffany turned to the Rowan-Cabarrus Small Business Center (SBC) for guidance.
Through one-on-one business counseling, support from contracted counselors Mark Shropshire and Grant Colgan, and the encouragement of the entrepreneurial community at the Cabarrus Center, Tiffany transformed years of professional experience into a business with a clear strategy and long-term vision.
She also credits her wife, Megan, Director of the Rowan-Cabarrus Small Business Center, for helping her navigate many of the practical aspects of launching a business.
“Megan helped me understand everything that happens behind the scenes of starting a company,” Tiffany said. “From registration and insurance to legal resources and operational planning, she kept me moving forward.”
One of Tiffany’s biggest challenges, however, wasn’t technical.
“It was putting myself out there,” she said. “I’ve always been more comfortable building programs than talking about myself. Learning to share my expertise publicly has probably been the biggest personal growth experience of this journey.”
With encouragement from her counselors and the entrepreneurial community, Tiffany has begun sharing educational content on LinkedIn, where she writes about IT Asset Management, governance, leadership and building sustainable organizational capability.
“They’ve reminded me that progress matters more than perfection,” she said. “This business is still young, and every conversation is an opportunity to learn.”
Today, Tiffany is focused on helping organizations move beyond reactive IT Asset Management. Through executive advisory services, governance assessments and the Nine Bridges Framework™, she works with organizations to build programs that remain effective long after implementation projects have ended.
Looking back, Tiffany encourages aspiring entrepreneurs to take advantage of the resources available through the Small Business Center.
“There were so many things I didn’t even know I needed,” she said. “The knowledge, guidance, and encouragement have been invaluable. The Small Business Center doesn’t just help you start a business – it helps you become a business owner.”
As Nine Bridges Consulting continues to grow, Tiffany hopes to become a trusted advisor to organizations seeking to transform IT Asset Management from a compliance function into a strategic business capability.
“Every organization deserves a program that’s sustainable, governed, and built to evolve with the business,” she said. “That’s what Nine Bridges was created to help accomplish.”
To learn more about Nine Bridges Consulting, visit their website or connect with Tiffany on LinkedIn, where she regularly shares insights on IT asset management and program maturity.
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