Leading the Way: Women Innovators Share Their Stories

In honor of Women’s History Month, this webinar brought together three executive-level women to share their stories of resilience, innovation, and impact. “Moving Forward: Celebrating Women Innovators and Change-Makers” dives into how these leaders broke barriers, secured sponsorship, and paved the way for future generations. Whether you're a job seeker looking for inspiration or an employer striving for inclusion, this conversation is full of actionable insights and heartfelt stories.

🎥 Watch the full webinar here.

👇 Read on for the full transcript.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Thank you for joining today's webinar, “Moving Forward: Celebrating Women Innovators and Change-Makers.” Here at CareerCircle, we are a workforce solutions company on a mission to change lives by connecting underserved communities with career opportunities and helping organizations build skilled, diverse pipelines.

We have a wonderful group of panelists today. I'm so excited to hear from them, celebrate their successes and listen to them provide actionable advice for supporting women personally as well as professionally. Now I know that I've gotten you all feeling energized and ready to go. But before I get to the panelists, I have to introduce myself first, right?

My name is Brittany Knowles. My pronouns are she/her/hers, and I am the Learning and Development Specialist here at CareerCircle. I have black natural hair. I am wearing black cat-eyed brimmed glasses, a smile, and an electric blue dress for you all this afternoon. And I'm so very excited to be with you all today. We're currently recording this webinar to ensure accessibility for all of our participants. You may enable closed captioning by clicking on “more” on the bottom right screen, then clicking “captions” and “show captions”.

Today we have the privilege, as I've already mentioned, to hear from three remarkable executive-level women who are going to be talking about their identities, struggles, challenges,  successes – All of the amazing things that have led them to this point in their respective fields, and how they've paved the way for future generations of women leaders. Their journeys are a testament to resilience, innovation and the power of mentorship. 

Women's History Month is a time dedicated to honoring the contributions and achievements of women throughout history. It's a month where we celebrate the trailblazers who have broken barriers, and the everyday heroes who continue to inspire us by highlighting the stories of our panelists. We aim to continue this tradition of recognition and empowerment.

Whether you're a job seeker looking for inspiration and guidance or an employer seeking to foster a more inclusive and supportive work environment, today's discussion promises to provide you with practical insights and actionable strategies without further ado.

I know you all have been waiting for this. I'd like to begin introducing our amazing panelists. Now, panelists, could you each provide a descriptive introduction? Tell us a bit about yourself and express what being a change maker means to you personally as well as professionally. And let's start this off with Kelley Steven-Waiss.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): Hello! It's great to be here. My name is Kelley Steven-Waiss, and my pronouns are she/her.  I currently work at ServiceNow as a Chief Transformation Officer, and prior to that had several years as a founder and CEO of an HR Tech company called Hitch. I have brown hair and brown eyes. I am getting older, so I wear my readers on occasion, so sometimes I wear those. I have on a knit suit that is bright pink and gray and I am currently in Silicon Valley, California. I am sitting in my home office and thrilled to be here today. 

The other question that Brittany asked was about, you know, what has really gotten me excited about being a change-maker personally and professionally. My mom was one of the first women to go through the LA Police Academy at 45 years old. She was a badass. Before that, she achieved a huge accomplishment with women 20 years younger than her in the Academy as well, and she was such a trailblazer. Unfortunately she lost her life in the line of duty, and so, personally, I have taken up the helm to not only support women going into careers that they never thought they could. So professionally, how that has changed me is that one of the pillars that I really stand on is supporting women and helping them, and being an active sponsor for them. So it's a huge part of my giving back. And since I was a female founder myself, that is one of the ways that I do it. So I'm thrilled to be here today with my esteemed panelists all feeling the same way. 

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Thank you so much, and let me just say I know that your mother is with you. You are still embodying her, and I thank you for your service. Thank you so much for sharing with us your mother's story. That inspired me – like I felt a little tickle in my throat. And I know that what you're doing is continuing her legacy. And so you should feel so proud and thank you so much for sharing that with us. I'm going to turn this over to Beth.

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): Hi, thank you. First of all, thank you to CareerCircle for having us here today and having this panel. And, Kelley, I just have to say one thing. Your title, Chief Transformation Officer – That is a change-maker right there in that position in terms of what you're embodying. 

So I'm Beth Bengtson, and I'm the founder and CEO of an organization called Working for Women. What we do is we're a business giving community. And partner with CareerCircle to help pave more opportunities for women in pathways that are going to allow them financial independence. And so as a community, we invest in three areas: We invest in connecting women to jobs, investing in pathways – in their training and education, in terms of supporting them on those pathways – and then changing the conversation around barriers in the workforce. 

I'm wearing a denim shirt and I have glasses on because I, too, need readers at this stage, so it gives you a sense of my age. I have dirty blonde hair, I think my eyes are blue. I haven't checked them in a while, and most importantly, I put on specifically for today the shirt that my team made me that says “I'm a badass change-maker with Working for Women.” I am located in the Hudson Valley in New York State, while our work, though, is national. It's across the United States in terms of organizations and women that we reach to help pave new pathways for them, right pathways that are going to allow them to start gaining economic mobility.

In terms of change, not only do I have my change-maker t-shirt on. I think I'm in the right company on this call, but I always find out that I'm kind of a strange person. I like change. I love changing things up, and that's on a personal and a professional level, right? I feel sorry for my family often, because they will leave the house during the day, and if I'm inspired they'll come home, and the house will look very different. And if you ask them, everything was okay, and I'm always like, “But couldn't it be a little bit better? Don't you think? The way we've now organized?”

And so in terms of that, that's always come a place in my career, too, as well. I've always found myself in roles, in organizations at different points, that have ended up being in that change-maker position. Kind of shaking things up and having organizations think about how they could do things differently.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Thank you so much. And I have to take a moment for this. Okay, this is off script. But I have to do this. I wanted to jot down a few words that describe my fearless leader. One of the things that we hear often about her is that she's the energizer bunny. She's a devoted mom. She's a fearless leader. She's a barrier breaker. She is a cultivator of leaders, and she's one of my truest inspirations. I dedicated my dissertation to her. And so with that, with that I want to hear from you, our leader at CareerCircle. None other than Kim Sneeder.

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): Thanks Brittany. How do you even do an introduction after that? Thank you so much for your kind words. Hi, everybody! Thank you so much for joining.. My name is Kim Sneeder. My pronouns are she/her/hers. I have blonde hair, blue eyes. I'm wearing a black shirt, and I am joining from Richmond, Virginia.

I’m so excited to be here today. For the last 26 years I have worked in different roles at Allegis, which is one of the largest staffing organizations in the US. However, about six years ago I founded CareerCircle. I often say, while I've been in this work for 25-26 years, the last 6 years became what I call my “passion project” to give back.

And Brittany, when you ask about being a change-maker, it really comes down to this – and why I wanted to build CareerCircle and the amazing people that we work with every day – which is advancing organizations, advancing people and removing barriers. And I think the foundation of that starts with change.

If I look at the body of work, and what's possible when you unlock and know the skills and the power that people have, not only do you change their lives. Not only do you drive generational change, but you positively impact an organization's bottom line.

And there are some barriers to make that happen. So I'm so excited to be here today. I've learned so much from Kelley and Beth, so this is such an honor. I appreciate everyone being here.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): So with that being said. I want to get right into the question: Can you describe a defining moment in your career that shaped your path as a change-maker?

I'm going to go with you first, Kelley.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): Well, one of the most difficult things that I faced in my career was when I chose at 50 years old, and it was the pandemic. So everybody was locked down. I had started a tech company inside of another one, so I was an entrepreneur. I had started Hitch, which was taking skills of people and matching them to opportunities project-based and full time. And the CEO came to me and said, “We're going to shut this whole thing down. You basically have 50 days to get funding.” And I'm like, you know, this is like the worst time. We're in a pandemic, and we're shut down, and I'd never pitched investors or anything. So I had to hit the pavement.

I was so passionate about what this software was going to do for people. Remember, my mom completely reimagined herself at 45, and I felt that there were so many invisible people in the company that maybe didn't have the network or weren't seen, valued, or heard. And this was a way to really unlock all of that.

So what was really kind of difficult for me is that I'd never done this before. I was a female. And if you're fundraising out there as a founder, it's really really hard. In fact, only 0.05% of female founders were funded in 2020. So think about how I was sort of hitting the pavement. I think this was May of 2020. So all locked down. And I just got creative. I think women are amazing at getting creative. And I just put myself out there and started walking the Stanford campus with investors. No slides, no computer, just my sheer passion. And it was all me out there, and I think it was a very much of a change process for me.

I realized how important it was for me to go out there and do this, and to show other women that they could do this. But it was definitely, really, really hard. And then from that point forward, I wrote a book later called Valley Girls: Lessons of Female Founders in the Silicon Valley And Beyond, where I interviewed 30 female founders across different ages, industries, and cultural backgrounds. 

And the one common theme. I'm sure you might guess what it is. We build companies for impact. We really put ourselves out there with that mission and purpose. And so from this point forward, it is my duty. I helped so many other female founders to understand how to do fundraising and how to lift that percentage of women who get funded from that deplorable less than 2% to much higher. So this was a really pivotal moment in my career, and that's really made me a huge change-maker in that space.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Absolutely. Thank you so much for sharing that. Wow, that percentage. What did you say? What was that percentage? Was it 0.05%? So 0.05%, just 5 years ago. Wow, wow, wow.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): We gotta lift that up. So we lift that up by lifting each other up. And so I think if we can get behind other ones, put our money where our mouth is, but also our time, our effort, our sponsorship. So that's that's kind of what I'm trying to stimulate up there

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Absolutely. And I'm seeing individuals networking over in the chat and listening to what you have to say. And I want to say kudos to you all in the audience, because that is what this is all about. Networking, being able to connect so that we can uplift each other. 

Kim, I’d love to hear from you on this.

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): First of all, everyone go on Amazon right now and get the book Valley Girls: Lessons of Female Founders in the Silicon Valley And Beyond that Kelley wrote. I literally sent Kelley a message, and I'm like “I feel like you're in my living room with me, and you see me, and you feel me.” I'm reading this book, and I did not feel alone, and I felt like I remember I was just having one of those rough weeks, and it was as if reading that book she was speaking to me, so I cannot recommend it enough. It was really helpful.

But to your question, Brittany, you know I'll say it's interesting as we started CareerCircle during the pandemic, too, and I feel like for the years before it I would see things like running operations and hearing recruiters say you weren't qualified, and then they quickly move to the next requirement because they have to. They're trying to fill that requirement.

And I remember thinking, “Well, gosh! That's not super inspiring. If I'm told I'm not qualified, and then I hang up. Well, then, how do I get qualified?” And how do you stop the cycle if you don't do something different?

And while that makes a lot of sense, I probably underestimated how difficult the work was. So as we were building CareerCircle, I'd never built a company. I'd certainly never built technology, and what I learned is everything that we believed in, that the foundation of this was true, which is my transferable skills would allow me to do it.

But it was hard. I had to ask for help when I needed it. And then I had to work exponentially harder in the areas where I didn't have experience to gain it. So when I think about building CareerCircle, some things that come to mind are number one: Having the idea is really important, not being married to the idea as you think of it in your current mind. I remember reading a book called The Messy Middle, and it hit me originally when we built CareerCircle, it was to be an upskilling platform, but what I was seeing was the problem people were getting upskilled, but they weren't getting a job.

And it’s not  just about upskilling. That's a piece of the puzzle. But if we don't help people get a job, we haven't changed a life, and I haven't connected them to an employer. So, knowing when to slightly pivot versus completely abandoning the idea, right? 

And then number two: Don't give up on yourself.

So just know it's gonna be hard, I mean, just know it's gonna be hard. But if you believe in what you're doing, if you're passionate about what you're doing, you will find a way through.

Ask for help when you need it, study like heck, practice like heck. Put in all the work to make it happen. Read, get mentors, get sponsors.

But don't give up on your dreams.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Absolutely, absolutely. I could not stress that enough, not giving up your dreams, 100%. Beth, you want to add to that?

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): Yeah, great great conversation all around. I want people to think about the fact that you can be a change-maker in any role that you're in. Like, you're listening to us. And you're hearing founders and people starting organizations, you know. Kelley made a point before, that in being an entrepreneur that happens. So there are change-makers within organizations, and wherever you are. If you have that aptitude and you like to see and shake things up, you can utilize that anywhere to bring things across. 

And I think the other piece is passion. I don't know that there ever was a defining moment in my career. I think when I look back at my career, I've noticed I've always been in a change-maker role, whether I was in a company working within that company or founding. Prior to starting Working for Women, I ran a boutique marketing firm, and having founded that, and then hitting a point in my career where I wanted to take the skills. 

And the biggest thing that I saw through my career was that women so often don't have enough confidence, and don't often enough see their potential of what they could do. Wanting to create an organization that helped women aspire to their dreams, really be able to go and follow them and see that through in a supportive environment. Because I think having that is also key to success and moving forward. 

But I do want to challenge everybody – anyone can be a change maker in whatever role you're in. If you see something that you think needs to be different in your organization, you can be the person to pick that up and run with it. And I will share that starting Working for Women has been a real journey. I was running another organization before this, and I spent a couple years trying to find the person that was going to start Working for Women to only have someone sit down with me who actually came on my board and say, “Why not you? Why is it not you?” And let me tell you, I had a very long list of reasons why it was not me.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): Isn't that amazing? We always have a list of why we can't do something.

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): I was very sure about why I couldn't. Why I was not the right person to do it. At the end of the day, this was my calling, because it comes into that passion. It's what Kelley was talking about being, you know, in there having that passion. That's what brings people along. That's what brings the investors. You need to have that light, because that's what gets you through those hard days and moving forward.

And one last thing I want everybody to realize: While Kelley talked about that very dismal statistic of the percentage of women founding organizations. Everybody should understand that. How capital flows over all the women, and why this conversation is so important, and why the partnership for us with CareerCircle is so important about getting more money into the hands of women. Venture capital overall is less than 3%. That goes to female-founded companies in the United States. And as you go down that from a racial standpoint it just gets worse and worse in terms of that. 

And we need to shift the flow of capital, right, we need to be able to get more money into women's hands, because at the end of the day, if we're doing the purchasing, we also know what we should be investing in and what those investments are.

So that, and to me, is the biggest part of being the change that I think of. We're probably all doing work to help to change what capital looks like in this country, and get women into places where they have not only financial independence, but they're able to then invest back in their families, their communities. And that's how we start improving society.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): In that regard, I've done a talk called “#underestimated”, and how you can turn that into a competitive advantage, and I think that a lot of it is about our mindsets, what we tell ourselves, why we shouldn't take the job, why we're not qualified. Somebody else should be doing it.

But I want to turn that mindset into, you know, being underestimated. We can over-achieve. We can outperform. And we have every one of the critical foundations about being a woman is that we have an uncanny ability to reflect, to make pivots, to hire people better than ourselves, because we have humility, and I want to turn that underestimated into competitive advantage. And so all the great work, Beth, that you're doing, and Kim in this space is really going to make a difference. I think that there's so much that we can do if we put our minds to it.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): So let me say this, this next question, we're gonna pivot a little bit. And instead of having all three of you respond to this question, I'm gonna only have two.

How has sponsorship specifically impacted your career trajectory? And can you share an example of a successful sponsorship relationship that you've had?

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): I can go on that. And you know I wish that this were a woman, but it was a guy, but you know I would never have gotten into HR as a CHRO if a certain gentleman hadn't gone to the mat. I even said “No”, because I was too busy saying why I was not qualified for the job. I went through a litany of “You don't want me. I don't have that experience”, you know.

So I had a hundred excuses, and he went to the mat and got me that first VP of HR job, and it turned into a 13 year career. It was one of the best things I ever did, which then brought me to starting a tech company, and all the rest. He also was the one that when I said I wanted to be on a board and he was on a board years later I would end up on that board. Guess what I would do? I would turn around and put two more women on that board who had been networking with me, and who I knew wanted that type of opportunity. So it's the gift that keeps on giving. But the headline here is there was a difference between being just a mentor to me, and actively going and ensuring I got the job. We have to help people get to the last mile, so I am forever grateful to that gentleman, who – I was not qualified in my mind – and he just kept pushing me to the end zone. So it was a huge change-maker for my career.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Wow! Wow! What I'm hearing is imposter syndrome when we feel like we are not good enough. When we have all of these excuses for why we shouldn't go for it. And so that is something that I have seen on so many panels that I have moderated. So many women have experienced that in some way, shape or form. And so to see the caliber of individual and executive at your level, saying that that was something that you experienced. Thank you for your transparency, and thank you for putting your money where your mouth is. That you not only got a hand up, but that you brought somebody along the way. So often we see individuals that talk about what we need to do, but they can't give an example of what they've done to be able to support this mission, and so kudos to you on that kudos to you and Kim.

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): Yeah, I was gonna say, and and I'll say these two individual’s names, because I'm just so grateful for them. And they made such a big impact on my career and my life.

But you know, six years ago the president of Allegis at the time, Andy Hilger, and then the gentleman who ran all of technology, Neil Bryson. They were sitting in a room trying to figure out who would found and build CareerCircle. They later called me because my name came up because they were talking through skills that would be required to do it.

And here's the thing about sponsorship: Sponsorship is the person who has to know you. They have to know your body of work. They have to trust that you can do the work. They have to have seen that you can do the work. And then in the rooms where those conversations are happening, they have to speak your name. If it wasn't those two individuals, my name might not have been in that room because somebody might not have known my body of work. 

So that's the first piece. Number one: How does the sponsor know your body of work? Because it's not just, “I like this person, or I have a relationship.” It's “I know they can do this job because of XY, and Z.”

The second thing that's really important about a sponsor – and Kelley, I heard you say this, and it was such a big part of my story – I remember being so excited that they had called me. And truly, Andy always believed in me, I would say, before I believed in myself. 

But then about two days later I said, “When are we gonna talk about the elephant in the room, which is, I've never done this?”

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): And I don't know how to do it. Yeah.

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): And I'll never forget, he said. “Number One, you can. You have everything it takes. You're gonna figure it out. Number 2: I'm never gonna let you fail.”

And that is so powerful, because even if you believe in yourself, even if your confidence is high, all of us have that moment when you're like, “I've never done this. And what happens if…?” And when that sponsor knows you so well, to know what you need to hear, and then just that simple voice of “I would never let you fail.” It made me feel as if I could take on more risk, or I wasn't worried about all those what if’s because I had somebody in my corner.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): A life jacket, right.

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): What a great analogy! And I say their names out loud and proud so often, because of them giving me an opportunity. It's allowed me to give an opportunity to so many others, not just our leadership team and the people within CareerCircle, but the 185,000 people that are counting on us that have joined the platform.

And when I say their names out loud, it also reminds me that I owe them gratitude. And then I also owe those 185,000 people because they trust us. And, as I often say, trust is basically a promise to say I'm going to give you all I have to support you.

So grateful that they brought me into the room. And then that sort of career “life jacket” to say, “Also, we'll take on more risk and and and push the envelope, because I know you've got people that believe it.”

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Absolutely. And it's funny that you two were the ones that volunteered for this question, because the next question kind of goes right on along with it. And this is for you, the two of you, Kim and Kelley. What are the key differences between mentorship and sponsorship in your experiences? And what are the benefits of both?

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): Yeah, I mean at a high level, to me, a mentor is gonna teach you a skill.

You know. If I go to a mentor, I'm saying, “I want to learn this particular skill. I've identified you as someone that's really strong in that area. Can you help teach me?” And it doesn't have to be a skill. But there's something in particular that I'm asking to learn from that person.

To me, a sponsor is that person that is seeing your body of work that's advocating for you that's bringing you into the room. They have a voice, and they're willing to use it.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): Yup, and I'm just going to second that as I use the word “last mile” in sponsorship. People have asked me to help them in many, many ways, or to mentor them, right? And I can't mentor people without being willing to be a sponsor, and I think that that's super important. And sponsorship is an active role. It's not just a name, only right? It's a hands-on job. And so I would sort of offer that if people ask you to mentor them, I would ask yourself, “Are you also willing to sponsor?” So not only teach them something, but, many times, Kim, they're asking to try to get into a role. And so that's much more of a sponsorship position. 

So understand the differences and maybe ask the question, you know, “What are you trying to achieve? What is the outcome that I can help you with?” If it's to learn a skill. Then you know exactly where those guardrails are, but make sure that you can really take it that last mile. 

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): I was interested both in your thoughts on that, but also for the women of Working for Women. What do they typically need? I was curious what your thoughts were, Beth.

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): So we brought in a level of mentorship in that way, and you do have to define it. You have to have people understand what it's like and be a mentor.

What we see is more than helping people along the lines of their goals, really identifying the goals of where they want to go. So I would almost argue that mentorship is great from that goal standpoint. And I think then out of that comes those opportunities to sponsor where you see that maybe with someone you're working with, the network that you have, you can help open doors for them or help advocate and bring it in along those lines. 

But the other thing that we see in Working for Women is really building that community of support. The peer-to-peer piece just as much, especially for so many of the women that we work with, because they've never had someone else around that believes in them, right? Just that piece of having somebody that believes in you is life-changing in any of the programs that I've worked in, right? 

Just because so often, you think back to your own life. And even as you talk through both of you [Kelley and Kim], from people that saw that you had potential. They kind of saw it in that case. But if you have that community around you to come into that will lift you up on those days.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): I wanna make sure that we get to all of these questions, and so I thank you so much for sharing because I absolutely did want to hear from you on that. So this next question is for everybody!

What steps can individuals take to attract and secure sponsorship?

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): I'll pick it up on there. Let's let Kim catch her breath after that.

It's reaching out. It's looking for people within your community. It's seeing people on panelists, you know. I sat in a room one time at the beginning of starting Working for Women. I was at a Women's Conference, and a Women Business Owners conference. And they said in the room, “How many of you, if someone reached out to you, would make 15 minutes for someone that wanted to learn something from you?” Every hand went up in that room, every person in that room was like, “Yes.” Then they said, “How many of you actually have reached out and asked somebody for help or a question?” Five hands went up in the room, and there were over 200 people in this room, right? It was really reflective that we are all willing to be there and support someone and help them on their journey. 

But we don't. We're not asking, right? We don't go out there and reach out. I'll say to people, “The worst thing that will happen is you get a ‘No’. The worst thing is, ‘I don't have time’. The best thing is, ‘You get time’. The in-between is, they say, ‘Hey, I don't have time. But here's someplace else that maybe could work with you’.” So I think the first step is just asking, right? Just saying, “Hey, could you spare a few minutes for me,” and being very clear about what it is that you also want to learn from that exchange. And I think the other piece, you know I'm listening to Kelley and Kim. And I've heard this story again and again.

I think so often, you know, especially in this world of gender, and going back and forth and thinking about women supporting women and elevating. There are a lot of good men out there that are looking for that opportunity that want to be allies that want to help support women. Reach out like, really, don't limit your circle in terms of who you're looking at in terms of thinking about that. And the last piece I think that you have to do is you have to be willing to self-promote. It's kind of like the elephant in the room. Women are like, “Oh, well, someone will know all of what I'm doing.” You need to know your accomplishments. You need to know what it is and be able to share that, right? You need to kind of go in there, and not so much sell yourself, because I don't think people feel comfortable in that. But go in there and talk about what your aspirations are, what your dreams are, where it is that you want to go, because nobody's going to know that.

I think too often we think other people have gone and read our Linkedin, and know our accomplishments and know the other things. We do a disservice to ourselves when we don't go in and talk about what we've done in our accomplishments.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): Beth, one question about that, because I think, how to help people is – I don't think we're always clear about what we're asking for. It's almost like we dance around it, you know. Like for me, when I went in for the sponsorship.  

For them to take it a last mile, I was really clear about what I wanted from them, so that they could actually act on it. I said I would really like an introduction to these types of people, or I would really like you to put my name on a slate for a board. So the more we can give a very clear action someone could take, because people generally want to help most people. But you know, I think people want to help. But in the sea of all of the things they have to do, you have to give them an action that they can clearly take. Sometimes it's also about, “Here's a snippet on me, or here's some resources to make the introduction.” Make it easier for them. So I think that clarity on the ask is really really important. Don't be afraid to ask with clarity.

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): Yup, and don't be afraid of the “no”, just keep going, right? Like again, I think so often that we're not clear because we're afraid of the response we might get back. The worst response you're going to get is “no”.

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): And you're not in a better or worse place than when you started, if you get the “no.” The one thing I would be remiss if I didn't say is: Do the work.

And I know if you're on this call, it probably doesn't even pertain to you. But there have been situations where people spend so much time looking for a mentor or a sponsor that they forget to like, get in there and really do the work, and then have the results to sponsor.

So I do want to say that because it does start with: Are you out there? Are you putting in the work? Do you have the results for someone to go out and showcase about you? It also builds trust with that sponsor, you know, when people come to me and they have that, Kelley. I love what you said about the specific ask. 

I know that if I put my name on them, they're gonna do it. I'm more likely to say yes to whatever the ask is so just make sure you have that strong foundation when you come to the conversation.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Absolutely, absolutely. So. My next question is, can you share an example of a successful initiative that helped break down barriers for women? This question is for you, Beth, and for you, Kelley, in that order.

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): So, you know, it was interesting. I was thinking more along the lines of movements when I started thinking this. You know, I thought it through. You think historically, women's suffrage right? The right to vote, you know, that is a historic movement of moving things along, in terms of finally, starting to change the conversation around sexual harassment in the in the workplace. The women's soccer team is another one, right, and trying to get to that place of pay equity.

I think we are still in that time that we need an ongoing movement, right? Kelley talked before about the dollars going to venture capital when I talk about how many dollars go to supporting women in philanthropy. It's less than 2% of all of us. Philanthropy goes to helping women. And most of that money doesn't go in helping change it from an economic standpoint, right? Most of that goes to the health and reproductive debate.

While there have been some successful initiatives in the past, I still think we still have a lot of work to go and moving forward. And I would like to see us continuing those types of movements right to get to a place where we actually have women in a place of pay equity. What we're really seeing is it's more of a gender-wealth conversation, really putting a movement in place that allows women to get to a place for parity from a wealth standpoint, because all of those other costs add up to keep us further behind. 

So you know, we are looking to kind of launch something along those lines called, we are Working for Women and bringing companies and individuals together to continue this conversation about financial independence.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): So I think one of the initiatives that had a huge impact for women at the time was about in 2000, 2008, 2009. I started a Women in Tech group in a semiconductor company. I was the only female vice president and 2,500 people.

So semiconductor is primarily men, it's getting better as an industry. But it was all guys. And there were no women in those leadership positions. So again, as the only female VP, I wanted to see more of myself at that level, so I created this group.

It turned out before I left, I was the CHRO, so I was in a position to make a difference. But we got two more women into the VP level before I left the company. One of those VPs ended up becoming on the board of form factor because we stayed in touch, and I continued to sponsor her. So, you know, fast forwarding that value of that relationship then turned into a board assignment for her. I am so proud of Rebecca Obergon Jimenez. I'm going to put her name out there, which is Badass Latina, and will be the CEO of a tech of a semiconductor company. So I mean just a phenomenal story. 

Then I was thinking of another situation when the George Floyd issues were happening. I was CHRO of another company, and until I really leaned into that situation which was really hard as a white woman, I will say, because I'm not a black woman, even though I'm a mother. But I pulled all these women together, African American women in Chicago to talk about this issue, and it turned out through that conversation that those women who were kind of being held down were not getting a career. 

Opportunities were not seen, valued and heard. And so what started out, as really, you know, demonstrating empathy and opening up conversation actually turned into an opportunity for me to be a sponsor for this group of women who were not being seen. Several of those women went on to incredible positions. We just opened up the conversation, and it just started to change the trajectory. And I'm proud to say that I still mentor two of those women today.

They are Badass, and one of them is now a COO. I mean, super proud of them. And it all started because we opened an initiative or conversation. So much you can do being a change-maker in so many different circumstances. So those are two examples.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Absolutely, absolutely. So, this last question is for all of the panelists. The question is: What are some actionable steps that the audience can take after today's webinar to support and advance women innovators and change-maker organizations? 

While you're thinking of your responses, we have a bit of time at the end to be able to do some Q&A. And so to our audience members, please shoot questions over in the chat.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): I was gonna say, if you can take away one thing, there are 365 days of the year. If every day you choose to lift up one woman in any way, shape or form, introducing them, advocating for them, helping them negotiate. One woman every day, and what will happen is it could be 365 women that you change their lives. But it becomes a muscle you develop, and it turns into five women,seven women. Whatever those acts of kindness and sponsorship. Just expand and guess what other people start to follow you. So if I leave you with anything, one woman every single day, lift them up in any way, shape, or form.

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): And I'm going to add on that. Take a look inside your organizations. Look at the organizations that you're working with and find out whether or not there are groups, right? Are you working in a company organization that has a pathway that it's working to lift up women, and how can you get involved? And how can you get men involved into the initiative as well to help support, because the awareness needs to be on both sides, and they have a role in helping change this, as well. 

And if that group doesn't exist, there's no reason you can't be a change-maker and start creating that group within your organization, start to pull women together and look at how you can support each other on that career trajectory. Right? Think about community and creating communities where you can all uplift each other.

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): Love it. And I was, gonna say, I love everything that's being said, you know, when you're in conversation, maybe ask one question, which is, “What do you need?” or "What's in your way?”

And the reason why I ask is that a lot of people might not be able to answer right away, but it gets them thinking. And two things come in that conversation. A, you know, if you can remove that blocker or refer them to someone else. But I think the other thing is, you start to hear trends over time. It might just ignite something inside of you to say, “I can start a movement to address this trend”, so just get inquisitive.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Absolutely, so, I'm seeing some questions coming up for our panelists, and this is for whomever would like to respond to them. 

Question number one: What motivated you to break into your industry and what keeps you inspired?

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): Yeah, I loved that I was in retail for a long time. And I loved how challenging it was because it was so cyclical. And so what got me into tech is that it is always changing the landscapes, always moving the business models, always getting disrupted. And I am a junkie for change. 

What keeps me inspired is voraciously learning from other incredible women. All the time I have put myself on that pillar to help women, which has given me the opportunity to meet some phenomenal women. And so, just like I said, you know, I'm a mom of four, and I have two daughters, and I feel like I need to be representing them and being a good role model. But when I sit in a board meeting, and I hear Rebecca say anything, and she's so smart, and I sit there like a proud parent. We worked together, and we got her in that role, but she did it. She achieved it, right? And I sit there so proud and so those are moments that, it makes it all worth it right when you see other people just grow and be successful and get to achieve their objectives and continue to dream big. It makes me super happy, so that gets me out of bed every day.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Absolutely, anyone else want to share on that?

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): Yeah, I would say, initially what inspired me was just hearing recruiters say over and over again, “You're not qualified.” And then, hearing, you know, CTOs or tech leaders say, “I can't find talent, and there's a skills gap.” I just knew we could fix that and so I was inspired to figure out – how do we fix it? And then how do we leverage technology to fix it at scale?

And for what inspires me today. My gosh, number one, knowing we're moving the needle. And it's small and it's hard work. But we're looking at the statistics of women in tech and people of color in tech and watching it move up. You see it change, which means it's possible.

And then, number two, when you hear the stories – and for those of you that are CareerCircle members – you've shared your stories with our team, it just means so much, and it gets me out of bed because I know you by name, and I know your family, and I know what is important to you. Every morning, if I feel tired or I feel like it's hard, I know your story, and that makes us leap out of bed to say, “We we've got you.” It doesn't matter if it's hard. We're gonna show up every day because we can, and we will move the needle.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): I love that. This next question is for the three of you.

How do you stay resilient in the face of setbacks and obstacles?

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): So I'll jump in on that. You just heard Kelley and Kim talk. It's the stories, right? It's the people that you know you're working with. I know it works for women, you know, the days that are hard are the hardest when you're out there, you know.

Kelley talked about getting funds when you're running a for-profit business. Well, getting people to invest in women when you're running a nonprofit is even exponentially harder. People have no understanding why we need to invest in women and why we need to help women advance economically. It's those days where I get the story of a woman that's either worked with us and gone through one of the career circle programs or has come in and done a negotiation skills workshop that we offer, and they're like, “I've advanced in my career. I've gotten further. I increased my salary. I'm going to be able to do this. I'm a step closer to my dreams. I got the job that I've been looking for, that I didn't know I could get and I now feel empowered to advocate for myself.”

While we talk about negotiation skills, what it really is, is getting it and why I was encouraging you all earlier to just ask to have that place where you have that confidence, to ask for what you want and what you need.

That's what gets me up every day. There's never been another point that I have been more impassioned in the work that I do. The work is hard. This is the hardest work I've ever done, and it is the most rewarding work that I have ever done on any daily basis. There's not a day as hard as it is that I would change what I do, because when you have the opportunity to help people move towards their dreams.

For me, there's nothing more rewarding than that.

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): I will say, embrace the closed doors because they keep you from pathways you weren't meant to be on, I think sometimes we just take it as a negative, or worse, we beat ourselves up because we didn't get the job. But embrace it, because I know that I have looked back on situations where I didn't get the job and that it would not have been the right manager or leader or company. It wouldn't have been the right person for me to marry. God forbid! I mean, there are big decisions in our lives, so embrace it sometimes. It's just it keeps you from the wrong path.

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): And take care of yourself physically and emotionally, you know. There was a time in my life, and not too long ago, where you know sometimes it would just be you'd throw yourself in. You would just keep working, and you always have to do that. But what I realized is I needed to be at my best, so that I could be resilient, and I needed to be at my best so I could think clear-headed.

Just don't forget whatever that means for you – Physically, spiritually, emotionally. Take care of yourself. So you're coming in at your best on those hard days.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): Awesome, absolutely. And so y'all, with four minutes to spare. I would love for you to give us your parting words for those that are in the audience. If there was something that you wanted to capture, a nugget that you felt a mic drop that you needed to give at the end. We are waiting to hear from you. Who'd like to go first?

Kelley Steven-Waiss (She/Her): I will say you can be a change-maker. That is something that each of you can do. You can lift up a woman every single day. Don't just look for other people to help you, but look for a way that you can really be a change-maker yourself. It is a great feeling, and it brings a lot of change for all of us. It lifts all of us up.

Kim Sneeder (She/Her): I would just say to use your voice. You know the world needs you. We all need you. Don't be afraid to share what's on your mind. There is no right or wrong, it's your voice. So get out there and use it.

Beth Bengtson (She/Her): So I'm gonna leave the one word: Self-Care. The piece that I want to leave everybody with is: Think with your dollars. We have an opportunity right now to vote with our dollars. And so think about where your dollars are going. Are you investing in companies that are supporting women? Are you investing in companies that are women-owned? Where are your dollars going on a daily basis? We have a lot of financial capital as women that we can leverage to change things for women. 

And you know, shameless plug, support Working for Women right? So that we can help get more women into pathways like what CareerCircle is offering. So we can get them on that path to economic mobility. If I could get you to leave with two or three things: Self-care. Realize that you have the opportunity for a change-maker. Invest with your dollars.

Brittany Knowles (She/Her): I love it, I absolutely love it. So, audience members, put your virtual hands together for this amazing panel. You all have been so awesome. We thank everyone for sharing your experiences, your perspectives, and your knowledge with us as members of the community as well as representatives from your organization. We thank you so much for joining us. We hope you've learned something and pulled some best practices.

Please check our events page on www.careercircle.com/events to register for upcoming webinars and events we have in store. Our next one is April 3rd. You do not want to miss it. We have a webinar, entitled “Inclusive Hiring Practices for Neurodiverse Talent”. It's going to be from 1:00-2:00 PM. Eastern Standard Time, and we'd love for you to check it out and be our guest.

Make sure to follow our panelists and CareerCircle on Linkedin. Take the survey after this webinar. We absolutely would like to hear from you, and maybe some of the things that we can do in the future. As far as our activities and events are concerned, we'll be sending you an email right after this – including some resources that have been discussed, the recording, as well as additional events that will be happening. So be on the lookout. Thank you again for coming and see you next time. Until then, thank you so much, panelists, and thank you so much to our audience members. This has been an hour well spent. Have a wonderful day!