- Kristy’s ‘Life After Corporate’ story. 2:26
- People are what make Ellevate unique and different from other women’s networks. It’s a place where the magic happens. 4:50
- Ellevate is an ecosystem built on elevating women in the workplace and in the world, and to support each other as the professional leaders that women are. 8:45
- The Ellevate community has over 200,000 women, but it feels quite cozy because of the idea behind it – adding more value, nurturing hyper-local connections, having meaningful conversations, and changing the business culture. 10:57
- There is a real need for a rebuilding of corporate: hope that 2021 will bring a greater acknowledgment of our humanness. 17:17
- Women are leaving the corporate workforce in record numbers to take control of their lives. 19:56
- One of the reasons for the lack of board diversity is networks and how we are building them, and that is changing. 22:07
- Ellevate nurtures the idea of diving deeper within the community by helping members to gain skills, offering expert-led discussions with peers, and facilitating squad conversations in roundtables. 24:41���
- Squads is unique to the Ellevate membership and a powerful microcosm. 27:51
- Mentoring meetups is speed dating for mentoring and offers an opportunity to change someone’s life. 28:40
- Ellevate lives in a culture of contribution. The best investment you can make for your future? Nurturing relationships. 31:58
Connect with Ellevate Network:https://www.ellevatenetwork.com/January promo: use code MOVEFORWARD for 20% discount.
Join the Life After Corporate Facebook Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/launchlabforwomenentrepreneurs
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Are You Surrounded By The Right People? With Kristy Wallace, CEO of Ellevate Network
Today’s guest is Kristy Wallace, the CEO of Ellevate Network – a professional women’s business network that has gone above and beyond to connect members of its global community during this challenging period.
Who are you hanging out with? Jim Rohn is famous for saying, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” The ultimate testimony to the importance of our personal and professional networks. Welcome back to another episode. If you were just discovering our show, welcome home. It’s here that you get the most practical tools and strategies to make the leap from corporate leader to entrepreneur. In this season of the COVID pandemic, spending time with the people you most care about as well as people who enhance your personal and professional goals has been exceedingly hard but one professional women’s network has gone above and beyond to connect the members of its global community and that is Ellevate Network. We are speaking with Ellevate CEO, Kristy Wallace.
I’m a full-on fan of Ellevate Network and was a member for years before signing on as a Chapter Leader in New York City, where I now lead the entrepreneur and small business owners community there. Kristy and I are talking about the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people, focusing on the right problems and collaborating on new solutions to move the needle on equality for women. Welcome to the show, Kristy.
Deb, thanks so much for having me here. I am looking forward to this conversation.
I know you do so much toward equity in the workplace. Before we dive deep into that topic, our readers would love to know how you came to lead Ellevate Network. In other words, what is your life after the corporate story?
My life after corporate story, which is finding your passion and tapping into your network. I started out in investment banking and quickly moved to the startup realm. It was an exciting time to be part of a startup to grow a business, which we eventually exited. I was in a sales role. I learned a lot about building relationships, talking about business and how you differentiate it. I learned a great deal about P&Ls and balance sheets, how to manage the finances and connect to relationships that grow them. Fast forward many years when I was looking for my next big thing to have an impact on women, equality and equity in the workplace. I was inspired by my earlier work, where we were doing a lot of DNI research and saw that the needle wasn’t moving fast enough. I wanted to be a part of the solution.
Each of us has a role to play in helping others achieve their dreams.
I tapped into my network, had some conversations, one led to another, which led to another. Ultimately, I met a woman, Ally McDonald, who had been President of Ellevate. She’s like, “You need to meet Sallie.” The next day I met Sallie and I had a job offer by the end of that conversation. It was about connecting my passion with those who shared it and had that need, tapping into my network to make me move along that path as a leader, how I look towards the relationship building, the sales experience, the P&L management and everything. I have learned through the years to continue to grow Ellevate and the impact we have on women in the workplace and the world.
Tell us about what makes Ellevate unique and different from most other women’s networks?
There’s so much. The biggest thing that makes us unique and different is the people. I say that but I will take a step back. We have a shared internal Slack channel where we are always posting feedback and comments from those in our community. Resoundingly, what we oftentimes hear is, “This community is different, special, welcoming and intentional.” Back when we had the in-person meetings, which seems so long ago, we would hear from individuals, “I walked in the door and felt immediately welcomed. I did not feel left out or alienated. I wasn’t afraid.” It’s meaningful to me personally, as someone who to be honest, is anxious about walking into the “networking events” because I’m a little bit shy and introverted. That’s intimidating. I have to say I agree that in Ellevate Network, the people who attend our events who are in our community genuinely understand the value of community building. It’s a long-term game. It’s about building relationships. It’s about not just what you are asking for but what you have to give. What makes Ellevate different is that community.
As we have moved to this virtual space, I have connected on a personal level with our community so much deeper than I had before. Before, I was going to events and meeting people in person. That was great. I’m attending Roundtables every week. I’m going to events, I will be in North Carolina virtually. I have seen how much this community has supported me. It’s not just the emotional support, which is certainly there but it’s the advice, actionable tips, connection to opportunities. It’s the real work that goes into building relationships that ultimately change lives that provide that insight and advice that move us all forward. Every week I’m tapping into this network for that advice, best practices and support. I’m a part of several networks. It’s through Ellevate that I have seen the magic happen.
As I look around me and the people that I’m surrounding myself with, I start saying, “I met her in Ellevate. I met you in Ellevate too,” whether it’s my clients, colleagues, collaborators, the special thing about Ellevate is when you walk in the room, you feel incredibly welcomed. I love the opportunities to learn from experts to give to others. The Mentor Meetups are one of my favorite things to do because I meet interesting younger women who are on the path to entrepreneurship or becoming better leaders in the companies that they are working for. It has been wonderful to do business with other Ellevate women in the community and support one another’s businesses. The concept of networking, going to big events and sharing business cards nowadays is like LinkedIn profile has shifted in Ellevate. It’s a culture of collaboration, contribution and connection. That’s what I have found special there too.
I always think of it as an ecosystem. It’s living and growing every day in its dynamic. That is hard to emulate and create in a real systemic and sustainable way because we are humans and we are all different. We communicate differently. We have different goals and values. We from the beginning with Ellevate and continue to do so, be very upfront about what are the values of our community? What is our goal here? It is to elevate women in the workplace and in the world to support each other as professional leaders that we are. When you are upfront around your values and intent, what you find is that shared goals of experiences are going to bring everyone into the room that’s saying, “Let’s do this for each other. Let’s support one another.” There’s that inherent trust that feeds the ecosystem and thus, drives that impact.
Right People: The biggest thing that makes Ellevate unique and different is the people.
What has been amazing to me, especially in the light of the pandemic, we have been able to take that small room of feeling safe, even if you are an introvert, you are not necessarily comfortable networking. Extend that to the global community and create real relationships. The Entrepreneur & Business Owners Roundtable and our monthly events for entrepreneurs and business owners have created a sense of global community within those of us in the network who have businesses that we are running. We have different objectives than women who are still rising up the corporate ladder. How have you seen Ellevate’s mission change or expand in light of the 2020 session and increased focus on racial inequality needed for greater diversity in our communities, companies and culture?
Heading into our 2020 vision, we are thinking a lot about how we develop and foster authentic connections on an everyday basis. On the one hand, we had hyper-local connections, experiences and communities through our chapters 1,000 events a year and building those connections on the local level. We have our Squads program, which is a three-month-long peer mentoring program where you are connected with peers at similar career stages to support one another to get to that next career stage that your business or running a business. In between, there were some events and workshops. We wanted to go deeper there. We wanted to say, “How do you make this large community, over 200,000 women feel small? You always have someone to turn to, you know who to go to for advice, you feel supported and you are continuing to meet new people and build those connections.”
Fast forward to March 2020, the world turned upside down. I like to describe it as we are driving down this major multi-lane highway and going parallel to some other cars. The pandemic hit and everyone merged into the exact same lane. It was a traffic jam. There are this and that virtual thing and companies who weren’t even doing Zoom or virtual events are now doing it. We were all struggling to support our customers and how do we engage with them. That gave Ellevate such a powerful perspective because as we were moving our virtual events online and launched Squads cohort focused on leading through uncertainty, we were listening to our members. We are saying, “What do you need? How do we best serve that need?” We don’t want to add more noise. We want to add more value. We want to make sure that you get what you need. If it’s a working caregiver, a business owner, a manager who’s trying to manage a team virtually for the first time, what is it?
What we have heard is, “I want to build connections with others who are going through similar experiences and learn from each other. This week, I might be struggling with PPP funding and next week, I’m struggling with how to sell to my customers during a time of pandemic?” After it’s maybe, “How to manage a remote team? How to continue to grow my brand?” What we did was, created these conversations. If you are a business owner, entrepreneur, senior executive, manager or individual contributor, we created weekly or regular conversations, expert-led, small groups and where we are tackling these challenges together. We are learning from each other and able to contribute what we have learned to ensure that we are all working together on this.
That has been meaningful because as we build those connections. We are also tapping into one diversity of thought because the central one of our core values is diversity. There’s power in diversity. We don’t just say that. We believe it and how are we learning from people with diverse backgrounds, experiences but also how we collectively coming together in conversations? I led an executive in Roundtable where we were talking about how do we approach racism within our companies? How do we as leaders, take a stand internally and externally? What does that look like? What do we do? For many of those in the discussion, they weren’t sure. They wanted to do better and more but they didn’t know how to go about that. Being able to have that conversation meant that more action was being taken and was being taken quicker.
Oftentimes, as we explore identity, we like to put people into boxes. Companies like to say, “We’ve got a women’s ERG.” That’s one bucket, but it’s much more nuanced than that. Identifying the intersectionality of our employees, giving them the space to shift however they want to, recognizing and supporting that is not just important for building an inclusive culture. It’s important for us as leaders, for being allies, advocates and knowing that each of us has a role to play in supporting and helping them to achieve their dreams.
It’s an exciting time for us to create a future that’s more inclusive and equitable.
What do you see ahead? There was a great need for collaboration and support and how we navigate this, whether we are suddenly moms who are now working at home and having kids being homeschooled and still trying to promote equality in the workplace, giving more opportunities. For some business owners literally, everything stopped dead in its tracks. Yet at the same time, there were new opportunities that emerged and to help teachers who are now teaching remotely with a curriculum that wasn’t meant to be delivered over Zoom or Google Classroom and help those that are struggling with the supply chain. There were still, even in the light of all this change and disruption, new opportunities. What do you see ahead for women in 2021? I have been noticing that some women are enjoying the flexibility of working from home and starting to second guess, whether or not they want to go back to the commuting rat race. They are seeing different options. What are you seeing?
I will take a step back. I am a business leader, an advisor to some startups and I sit on boards of organizations focused on supporting women and girls. I’m a mom of three. Through all of those hats, there have been a lot of ups and downs and great. I’m recognizing the privilege that my family has stayed healthy, that I can work from home, support my children and their education but that doesn’t mean it has been easy. I have spent many nights on the floor crying like, “What does this look like? Where do we go from here?” What I think is important in my approach often, especially during this time is hope.
The world and business are changing. We have known for a long time that we need disruption and to support more women in creating businesses, growing those businesses, raising capital for those businesses, more women in the workplace as leaders, that a lot of the systemic structures and systems for all of the time need to be dismantled and rebuilt. That each of us, our experiences and needs are different. Some are loving working from home and that is lonely and isolated. Some are finding out how to educate their children and that still struggling with that.
What I want to see happen in 2021 is one, a greater acknowledgment of our humanness, of how each of us has different things that work and don’t work that we have existed in these structures that were so binary that applied to everybody in one way. This is the opportunity for us to break down those structures, be it where you work, how you work, when you work, the types of businesses we create, how we grow those businesses, let’s break that down and rebuild them. This is our time and an exciting time for us to lead the way into creating a future that is more inclusive and more equitable. That will create that change that I seek. I believe all of us do.
Corporate culture needs to change. Let’s face it. The corporate culture was built to serve white men. Women have struggled in the corporate environment for years, balancing work, family and other challenges. For me, rising up the corporate ladder and getting to that place of being the only woman at the table was an achievement. It felt very sad and lonely. There was so much hope with a woman behind me who was looking for me to set an example of, “What does it take to get there, Deb? How do we navigate these politics?”
I remember when I decide to leave. I said, “I know you are going to replace me and please replace me with another woman because it means so much to everyone who’s behind me.” It has been very interesting. Women are leaving the corporate workforce in record numbers to take control of their lives in how they work when they work, the type of impact they want to make with their work and getting beyond that fear and those limitations to say, “I’m going to make a leap here and I’m going to create something that works for me.” There’s so much change on many levels. I was listening to your interview with Farnoosh Torabi on So Money. I heard that NASDAQ has demanded or required that to be on the exchange, that there is a woman on your board of directors and your board shows diversity. That was one signal that there is some change coming from standards bodies like financial institutions.
Right People: Ellevate has a culture of collaboration, contribution, and connection.
It’s exciting. I want to bring it back to how we started this conversation around networks, building networks and building communities. The reason I’m doing that is that one of the reasons, for the lack of board diversity is networks. It’s who on your board, in your leadership team, at the VC, private equity or funder is connecting you to that potential board member. If networks are homogeneous, the one white man on the board is going to connect you to, “Here are three other white men to consider for this opportunity.” It continues to build on that.
We need to change that. I’m worried about networks, community and connection. I know what we are building at Ellevate and I’m proud of that but when I think about, for example, the workplace, how are you connecting to that senior leader? How are you collaborating with other teams if you aren’t in a meeting with them all the time? How are we building relationships when it’s not so organic the way that it happens in the workplace? Similarly, with boards. How are you building your professional network when you are not going to conferences and events?
That’s why we have to one, rethink how we build those connections. How do you continue to foster deeper connections in this virtual space? Two, be much more intentional about it. If we consider what life was in 2019, we took for granted some of those small moments where we were building relationships that over time led to those opportunities, to that support and insight that is of networks. It’s about driving it differently, “Who am I connecting with? How am I doing that both within our companies but also within the broader landscape and the power that will yield?”
To that end, those connections are changing. You are not meeting anyone in the executive in the kitchen and striking up an informal conversation. How will Ellevate change in the coming year to support women differently because women need different support?
For us, it’s about our programs. We have built programs where you will be connected regularly with peers and advice that will help you move forward. If we think about business leaders, for example, so many of the topics I mentioned before, PPP or managing remote teams, we were responding to what was happening in the world. I know our community is not just responding. They are proactive. They are looking to the future control. How do we best give you the community and the resources to do that, to be intentional with your business and career?
When we look across our programs, it’s one, building the skills with workshops and skills development. Going to a community with regular Roundtables, expert-led, covering the topics that are top of mind for you and connecting you to your peers who are going through similar situations. You are building those deeper relationships. How are we doing more around our Squads program? I finished my Squads program where I was with 5 to 6 other women in similar career stages, all going through similar challenges. We are doing a deeper dive 1.5-hour a week. I learned so much. I am different because of the types of experiences and support I have received. The bigger picture here with our programs is if you are gaining skills, regular expert-led discussions with your peers where you are building those relationships.
We need to continue to share our knowledge and experiences to help others move forward.
If you are a part of a Squad, which is a deeper dive community to help you get to that next stage, that’s something that’s living and breathing. You can tap into it at any time. That can be 1.5- or 1-hour a week. It’s manageable and attainable. As we think about this virtual space were so much before this, we might have gone to that networking event and might have made that connection in the office, you are not counting up those minutes. You are not understanding the time you were investing in those communities.
At Ellevate, we are making it low-time commitment, high impact, continuing to build relationships that will help you succeed and move forward. We are proud of what we have created. We know it’s having an impact, it matters and it’s something that is not just for now but for the long-term and future. As we continue to build, grow back better and do things in new and different ways knowing that you have someone to turn to every single week to help keep you on that path, to help you overcome those challenges as you face them, that’s going to be transformative and keep all of us moving forward.
I’m glad that you mentioned the Squads programs. During my Ellevate membership, I have participated in five Squads and it’s building those kinds of relationships. That 30 minutes a week, it’s those people who have become referral partners. They have been people that I refer to you. You think about your Squad members. You stay connected in different ways. You can think about that person when a new opportunity comes up and make that connection. The Squads is unique to the Ellevate membership and a powerful microcosm of the overall community. I love Ellevate.
You also mentioned Mentoring Meetups. I want to quickly touch on that because it’s something on a personal level that is meaningful to me. As you, Deb, and as you talked about the impact you had in your corporate life, giving back to others is key. We need to continue to share our knowledge and experiences, helping others to move forward. Oftentimes, from others that I speak with, we always want to be a mentor to support someone but either don’t have the time or are not sure what that looks like. Sometimes it becomes a daunting big experience in the program. We created this Mentoring Meetup, which is speed dating for mentoring. It’s always around a specific topic. Throughout the course in the evening, you will meet with 6 to 7 different mentees or mentors depending on if you want to attend to your mentor. You are building those relationships and offering advice.
We had one on getting on board. I was meeting with all these different women who wanted to get on boards, either not for profit or for-profit. From that, I had all these follow-up conversations. I was able to share other advice or experiences and to connect with opportunities. I bring this up because I always leave saying, “I did something good. I helped someone. That was easy.” It’s 1.5-hour and you can change someone’s life. It’s back to where I think as we build businesses, relationships and look to create change. Sometimes it feels overwhelming and daunting. It’s like, “I have this idea for a business but it feels overwhelming. I would love to support someone else. I just don’t have the time.” I’m proud of the Ellevate team in our community because we have removed that objection. It’s not overwhelming, it’s one hour of your time and you can change the life of many people. It’s about how we break things down into bite-sized pieces to make sure it’s something you can do every day, every week, every month. It’s attainable, achievable and that’s important.
What I love about Ellevate is the culture of contribution. People don’t come there to get something out of the network. They come to contribute to the network. That for me is a very different vibe. When you walk into the room, it’s not someone trying to get something from you and get you to do business with them. It’s a culture of, “How can I help you?” That’s very special.
Right People: Networking matters. It builds relationships that make those connections and open doors to investors.
Networking is oftentimes seen as a dirty word. Let’s be honest, many of you are reading and you are rolling your eyes or thinking, “I have heard this one million times and it’s just a spiel.” It’s not. I will give you some examples. I used to do enterprise sales mentorship. When I came to Ellevate, there was a break in between that role and coming to Ellevate. I could turn back to those clients that I had before and pick right back up and say, “I’m at something new and you are going to love it.” That’s building relationships for the long-term or I met through the network for someone who’s starting a business and looking for some connections. She sent me a list that day. I reached out to a bunch of people. She sent me a note earlier saying, “Our meeting is set up next week. Thank you.”
Networking matters. It’s building relationships that make those connections, open doors to investors, opportunities, advisors or board members to a job. It’s having that support so that when you are trying to navigate, “What healthcare insurance are we going to get for the team or myself?” You have someone to turn to and ask that question. It’s about ensuring that you have the support you need to succeed. Networks change. The network I made in college is different than who was in my network as a recent grad, Manager and as a business leader. Continuing to foster those relationships and put in the work is the best investment you can make in your future.
It’s important to have people in your corner and building those relationships because none of us get to where we are alone, whether you are succeeding in the corporate world, as an entrepreneur or business owner, there are people with us, standing by us, behind us. Having people to count on for that support is priceless. Before we close if someone is interested in membership, let’s share with our readers, how can they get involved?
We would love for you to come to EllevateNetwork.com. Learn more about us. It’s an unbelievable community. Deb and I haven’t sold you. I’m sure there’s someone in your life that you know that’s a part of Ellevate. We would love to have you join us. In January 2021, we are doing a special promo. We believe that 2021 is going to be a year of great hope and change for all of us. We want to be there to support you and make sure that you succeed. If you use the code MOVEFORWARD, then you will get 20% off. We have different levels of access depending on what you are looking to do with the community. In February 2021, we open up applications for Squads, just as Deb and I were talking about the Squads program. You can register to be in a Squad starting. Join in January 2020, take advantage of that discount, 20% off, go for it. Join your first Squad, the first Roundtable, hit the ground running. There’s so much to do and we will be there to support you.
If you are an entrepreneur or a business owner, then you get to join me on the 1st or 3rd Thursday of every month for the Entrepreneur & Business Owners Roundtable. 2021 is a great comeback. We come back strong, powerful and supporting one another. To get access to Squads and the Entrepreneur & Business Owners Roundtable, join at the pro or executive level. Kristy, I am so glad we had this time to spend together. I have missed seeing you in person.
Deb, thank you for everything that you do. I’m sure the readers know after joining you every episode, you are truly special, who cares a lot about supporting others and sharing what you have learned along the way. I wanted to recognize you. I hope you know how amazing you are.
Thank you so much, Kristy. To be honest, I get back multiples of what I give in Ellevate. It has been a wonderful experience and community. I’m so grateful to have found a home there. That’s it for this episode. Until next time.
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