Podcasts

Wonder Woman in Business, Lisbeth McKinley

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Lisbeth McKinley

Lisbeth McKinley, M.A., CPO® 

Lisbeth “Lis” McKinley, is a certified professional organizer, move manager and owner of LET’S MAKE ROOM, LLC based in Oakland, California.

Lis along with her team at LET’S MAKE ROOM, serves busy homeowners to achieve their compelling vision of organization, with care and compassion, before or after moving, remodeling or simply to refresh their living, work and storage areas.  LET’S MAKE ROOM is in its 11th year of operation.

As a move manager and productivity expert and speaker, Lis also advises international audiences on moving, downsizing, as well as how to manage their time, tasks, and paper so they can enjoy life and get more done.

Everyone needs a little JOY GOLDEN, also known as ”Peggy Olson,” in their lives…Learn about the person who inspired Lisbeth the most in her life...Joy Golden, her Mom, the real Peggy Olson!

Joy Golden's NY Times Obituary

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Enjoy the podcast.

Lisbeth McKinley

Connect with Lisbeth:

LET’S MAKE ROOM
P.O. Box 18734
Oakland, CA 94619
(510) 846-1976

Wonder Woman in Business, Karen Hoskin

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Karen Hoskin

CEO/Co-founder of Montanya Distillers & Zoetica

Karen Hoskin

Karen is the CEO/Co-Founder of Montanya Distillers and Zoetica. When Karen started Montanya in 2008, she was the only female in a male-dominated industry in the US. This impacted her ability to gain respect, buy materials, sell her products, be safe from sexual harassment, and be taken seriously in her work. It also impacted the willingness of banks to lend her money, the willingness of investors to get involved, and venture capital firms to say yes (in 2018, female founders received 2% of venture capital in America and 4% of bank financing).

Karen watched male colleagues with smaller and less successful companies access resources regularly denied to her. Yet she persisted, stayed focused, and refused to let circumstances deny her success. Now, after more than a decade in business, her companies produce double-digit growth annually, and she is one of the larger private-sector employers in her community. She is known for training and mentoring women nationally, and she is the founder of The Women’s Distillery Guild, which is now part of Women of the Vine and Spirits (WOTVS). Karen leads the Women in Distilling group at WOTVS.

Sustainability

Karen has been operating environmentally sustainable businesses—a craft distillery, bar, and restaurant, and a lifestyle product line for zero-waste living—for more than a decade. Karen’s connection to stewardship has been a lifelong passion, but it becomes most meaningful to her when she goes beyond talk and into action as a business owner with 25 employees. It takes a daily commitment to live the ideals of the triple bottom line (people, environment, and profits), but this commitment helps Karen sleep at night as a business owner. She knows she is taking care of impacts up and downstream of her companies, all day every day.

Growth

Karen has seen double-digit growth every year since Montanya began 11 years ago and Montanya rums are now sold in 44 states and overseas. She recently received funding from Constellation Brands.

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Montanya's Signature Cocktail is the Maharaja.

However, you can access many other recipes here.

Recipes

Maharaja

Glass: Martini or Coupe (option: rocks glass, top with soda)

In a cocktail shaker with ice: 
1/2 fresh lime, juiced,
1.5 oz Maharaja Syrup,
1.5 oz Ginger Syrup,
3 oz Montanya Oro rum

Shake vigorously. Strain and serve. Garnish with a floating lime wheel and three Cardamom pods. Rim the glass with a combination of Turbinado sugar, powdered cinnamon and nutmeg (or other favorite spices).

Maharaja Syrup
2 1/2 c water
2 1/2 c natural or organic granulated sugar
2 1/2 T whole cloves
7 whole cinnamon sticks
25 Cardamom pods
2 1/2 t whole black peppercorns

Break all spices into small pieces in a mortar and pestle (do not powder the spices or substitute a powdered version). Place all spices in a dry frying pan and toast until lightly smoking and fragrant (do not burn). Transfer to a saucepan and add water and sugar. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 45 minutes. Transfer to a jar, refrigerate and chill for 2-3 days before straining off spices.

Ginger Syrup
Fill a 40 oz. Vitamix or durable blender carafé with chopped (but not peeled), fresh ginger root. Add 1 3/4 cups fresh lemon juice, 1 3/4 cups Simple Syrup and six fresh mint leaves. Blend until finely puréed. Strain through a fine strainer or cheesecloth bag. Refrigerate for up to 15 days. 

For more information, you're also welcome to check out their press page.

CONNECT WITH KAREN

Websites:
Karen Hoskin Site - https://www.karenhoskin.com/
Montanya - https://www.montanyarum.com/
Zoetica - https://www.zoeticalife.com/

Social Channels:
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/montanyarum/; 
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/zoetica.life/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/zoeticalife/; 
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/MontanyaDistillers/

Wonder Woman in Business, Lisa Kaplowitz

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Lisa Kaplowitz

Co-Director - Rutgers Business School Women’s Initiative

Lisa is the Co-Director of Rutgers Business School Women’s Initiative and an Assistant Professor of Professional Practice at Rutgers Business School. She teaches undergraduate, MBA and Executive MBA students the fundamentals of corporate finance, with a focus on applying these concepts to decisions typically encountered in corporations and investment banking. She earned the Dean’s Meritorious Teaching Award in 2018.  In addition, she provides career coaching and serves as faculty advisor for Women in Business and the Finance Alumni Network. In April 2019, Lisa launched the Rutgers Business School Women’s Initiative to create a thought leadership loop between industry and academia, with the mission of removing barriers and empowering women with confidence and expertise to succeed in a continuously evolving workforce.

Lisa began her career as an investment banker at Alex. Brown & Sons in the mid-1990s, covering financial institutions, and later moved to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where she focused on retail and consumer products companies. She then transitioned to the company side, where she served as the Treasurer of Bed Bath & Beyond for 8 years, and subsequently, as CFO of various private equity-backed start-ups.   

Lisa later created Kaplowitz Advisory Group, LLC to support executives, at all stages of growth, with using finance to help direct corporate strategy and decision making.  Specifically, she helps companies with the tactics of strategic planning, including execution, implementation, alignment, prioritization of initiatives and measurement of effectiveness.  In addition, Lisa provides executive management assistance in all functional areas, including operations, finance, legal and supply chain management.

Lisa also serves on the Board and is Treasurer of PowerPlay NYC, a non-profit that uses sports to advance the lives of underserved girls, helping them growth emotionally, socially and academically stronger.

Lisa earned a B.A. in Economics and International Relations from Brown and an MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.  While at Brown, she was captain of the Women’s Gymnastics team, 4-year MVP, 4-year All-Ivy, 3-year Academic All-Ivy, 2-year all-ECAC and was inducted in the Brown Athletics Hall of Fame in 2018. Lisa is a tireless advocate of women’s athletics and, in 2018, founded Brown Athletics W.O.M.E.N. (Women’s Opportunity, Mentorship & Empowerment Network).

Lisa resides in New Jersey with her husband and 2 sons, and enjoys traveling, skiing and anything active.

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Enjoy the podcast.

Lisa Kaplowitz

LISA’S RECENT & UPCOMING SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS:

-RBS Executive MBA Women’s Leadership Panel

-Prudential Women’s Breakfast

-Argyle Media – Hosted Fireside Chat with CFO Girl Scouts – “Approaching Mergers, Acquisitions and Divestitures form Differing Arenas” – Part of Event titled” 2018 Leadership In Corporate Divestitures and Aquisitions”

-Bloomberg CEO Breakaway Summit – “Leveraging the Finance Department for Growth” -2017

- Career transition/transformation – How to disrupt your career?  Career innovation

- Who Am I?  Being comfortable with your corporate persona. 

- Empowerment

- Creating a movement

-Using your voice

- Making it Happen -  Moving from strategy/concept to execution

- Getting buy-in/resources (even if they are not technically yours)

-Networking (organically)

- Performance Management – Creating leading indicators to measure success. Motivating teams to aligned goals.

LEARN MORE ABOUT LISA:

CONTACT LISA:

Lisa S. Kaplowitz

Assistant Professor of Professional Practice

Rutgers Business School

lisa.kaplowitz@business.rutgers.edu

(917) 576-5150

 


 

Wonder Woman in Business, Leeatt Rothschild

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Leeatt Rothschild

CEO & Founder of Packed with Purpose

Leeatt Rothschild is the Founder and CEO of Packed with Purpose, a specialty gifting company with a social mission. Founded in 2016, Packed with Purpose was born out of Leeatt’s desire to create a social impact and her appreciation for the importance of gifting in fostering meaningful relationships. She is thrilled to be building a business that creates deep societal impact through the everyday act of gift giving.

Prior to founding Packed with Purpose, Leeatt served as the VP of Advisory Services for Mission Measurement where she developed innovative social strategies for Fortune 500 companies to generate social impact and business results.

Prior, she was a Director of Marketing Strategy and Insights at Rosetta, a digital agency within Publicis Groupe.

Leeatt served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay from 2002-2004, witnessing first hand the profound positive impact that economic development can have on the lives of individuals living in underdeveloped communities. Following her experiences in the Peace Corps, she went on to earn her MBA from the Wharton School of Business, and a Masters in International Studies from The Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania, in 2010.

Leeatt is a board member of the Anti-Defamation League in Chicago, an advisory board member of Bright Endeavors, a mentor for Wesleyan University’s Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship, and is an alumni of the Schusterman Foundation Fellowship.

Education:

Wesleyan University: B.A, Psychology

The Wharton School of Business at The University of Pennsylvania: M.B.A., Marketing, Strategic Management

The Lauder School at The University of Pennsylvania: M.A., International Studies

Connect with Leeatt:

LinkedIn: in/leeatt-rothschild-b470a01/

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Enjoy the podcast.

Leeatt Rothschild, CEO & Founder of Packed with Purpose

Wonder Woman in Business, JoAnn Holmes, Esq.

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JoAnn Holmes, Esq.

JoAnn Holmes ("Jo") serves as Outside General Counsel, providing comprehensive legal solutions and executive level guidance to innovative midsize companies. She helps intimate management teams protect and monetize intellectual property, leverage legal positioning for enhanced profitability, and navigate risks to accomplish business objectives.

With over 20 years of experience serving global organizations, Jo is a pragmatic and trusted advisor. As an external member of clients’ leadership, she focuses on business and legal strategy, commercial contracts, and building licensing programs for recurring revenue. Over her career, Jo has successfully negotiated with multiple Fortune 100 companies, and managed IP portfolios spanning 150+ countries that generate over $2 billion in annual revenue.

Jo founded HOLMES@LAW to provide agile, business-centered legal counsel for the middle market. Our clients often create brands, deliver knowledge expertise, and distribute intellectual property (trademarks, software, creative and business content) with multinational reach. Their diverse industries include tech, food/beverages, manufacturing, healthcare, finance, government, advertising and professional services. The firm’s clients have remarked: “Jo is a top notch professional who brings a wealth of experience. She knows business.”

Jo has been an invited speaker for industry leaders like McKesson Corporation, and respected professional organizations such as the American Institute of Graphic Artists. She's served as an Adjunct Professor of Law, lectured at Cornell and Penn State law schools, and delivered customized workshops to meet client objectives on IP licensing, international expansion, and effective negotiation.

Beyond her legal practice, Jo is committed to service work. She supports local schools, leadership groups, and international charities. A graduate of Stanford University and Emory School of Law, Jo serves on the board of directors for the Stanford National Black Alumni Association. She’s also a member of the advisory boards for two organizations supporting immigrant, and low income, children’s education. Since founding HOLMES@LAW, Jo has dedicated over 300 hours to community service. Please visit our website at www.HolmesAtLaw.com to learn more about how we can work together to support your business success.

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Enjoy the podcast.

JoAnn Holmes, Esq.

Contact Jo:

JoAnn Holmes, Esq.

Holmes@Law, LLC - Your Business Ally™ 

T: 404.941.5770

E: jo@holmesatlaw.com 

W: www.holmesatlaw.com 

P: Click here on the link to Jo’s podcast, Your Business Ally™.

Wonder Woman in Business, Stephanie Corey

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Stephanie Corey

UpLevel Ops

Stephanie Corey, Co-Founder, UpLevel Ops

Stephanie Corey is a co-founder of UpLevel Ops, a consulting firm specializing in providing services for in-house legal departments, universities and law firms. UpLevel Ops provides a complete range of Legal Operations support, including IT solutions, Finance and Budget guidance, Talent Management and Development, Benchmarking, Best Practices and Metrics, and Outside Counsel Selection and Management.

Stephanie is also a co-founder and former executive member of the leading legal operations trade organization CLOC, Corporate Legal Operations Consortium.  She is a widely respected veteran in the Legal Ops field. 

Most recently, Stephanie has served as the Chief of Staff and Senior Director of Legal Operations at Flex, which has a global legal department of more than 150 people in 15 countries.  She has spent the better part of her career providing value-added services to Legal Departments, including building and deploying critical infrastructure to enable them to meet their business priorities.  Stephanie’s areas of expertise include Information Technology, Finance, Communications and Administration.

Stephanie began her career at Merrill Lynch in Pennsylvania, and after relocating to California, she worked at Bailard, Biehl and Kaiser, an investment firm in Foster City.  Once she decided to move into Corporate Finance, Stephanie took a position under the CFO, managing the Finance and Accounting Department at Provident Funding Mortgage Bank.

She later moved to Hewlett-Packard, where she was employed for eleven years as the head Legal Operations Manager, running a large IT and Finance Department.  Her most recent role at HP was Chief of Staff to the General Counsel, responsible for managing the daily operations of the Legal Department, working closely with the General Counsel and his reports to develop the strategy for the delivery of technology, finance and administrative solutions.   

Stephanie holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from Lehigh University, and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Wilkes University.

Who is UpLevel Ops and What Do We Bring to the Table

UpLevel Ops is unique in that both general partners have been in-house for the vast majority of their careers.   The UpLevel team brings real-world knowledge about industry trends, benchmarks and how peers in the market are defining “world class” as it relates to strategy, technology and all processes throughout the department.  Over the course of their in-house careers, they addressed the ever-changing legal environment by developing a governing framework aligned to the corporate business strategy so their departments could appropriately respond to and invest in critical areas of the business.  They created strategies that provided long-term direction and identified and capitalized on the unique competencies of their in-house teams, and now they’re doing the same for their clients.

  • Beyond strategic planning, the team at UpLevel has implemented multiple types of solutions and programs, including:

  • Legal operations strategies and roadmaps

  • eBilling and matter management

  • Contract lifecycle management

  • eSignature policies and software

  • Knowledge management and collaboration

  • Document management and retention

  • Workflow tools

  • Legal intake

  • Budgets and financial analysis

  • Outside counsel management

  • Value based pricing and alternative fee arrangements

  • Data analytics and metrics

  • Alternative support models and use of alternative service providers

  • Communication strategies

  • Growth and development

Most importantly, UpLevel will be available to work with your legal department to implement the recommendations, rather than just provide recommendations and move on to the next project.  UpLevel believes that this is a competitive differentiator and will stay involved to ensure that all proposed deliverables will be in place and fully functioning at the highest levels.

Why Work with a Qualified Operations Expert?

According to the 2017 Blickstein Group/Exterro Study of Effective Legal Spend Management, only 17% of companies find their legal technology to be “Very Effective,” with 33% finding their technology to be downright “Ineffective” or “Very Ineffective.”  Why such disturbing results?  Although solution providers are excellent at showing what their software can do, and legal departments have a clear understanding of their needs, much is lost in translation between the two, resulting in disappointing implementations.

Furthermore, while choosing the wrong tech is a significant problem, another factor that plagues tech implementations even more seriously is that not enough work is done up front to scope out the current state, streamline and document processes, create robust business requirements, and truly understand the needs of the legal department.  Tech vendors are not good at performing these critical steps in the process, and in-house teams often lack the bandwidth or expertise from a tech perspective. 

A qualified legal operations expert will…

  • Learn the culture of the company, the law department and its appetite for change

  • Help the law department understand which technology truly fits its budget, environment and culture, and can even help to find creative ways to fund the purchase (such as sharing the expense with another department within the company)

  • Create an ROI for each solution to facilitate buy-in

  • Provide feedback on which processes should be changed, enhanced, removed or streamlined

  • Suggest which practices can be automated such that attorneys and other team members can move up the value chain

  • Offer insight into industry best practices and provide recommendations on how to achieve them

  • Create a change management and communication plan for the successful adoption of new processes and systems

Lastly, there is an inherent conflict in having the selected vendor perform the implementation because their incentive is to upsell functionality and additional products clients may not truly need.  A third party will advocate on behalf of the client, not the vendor.

Our value add from UpLevel is to be an outside third party with extensive hands-on experience in all these areas, and the time and commitment to drive the process to a timely conclusion, having no separate agenda other than to produce the best results possible.  Most importantly, we will be focused on working with our clients to create a practical plan that can be easily implemented and operationalized.

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Enjoy the podcast.

Stephanie Corey

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