KnowThyBrand - Championing gender inclusion in business

In this episode, we talk with Kate Webber, lead product manager at Northern Trust and the founder of the award-winning network WiAS (Women in Asset Servicing).
 
 As Kate started progressing in her career she noticed that the number of women in the higher ranks of organisations was significantly dropping. Finding herself increasingly as the only woman in the room, Kate decided that something had to be done to support women.
 
 Her research on why women don't climb the corporate ladder as easily as men led her to identify 3 main challenges: 
 1) Lack of confidence: women are less likely than men to put their hand up and challenge themselves with new opportunities
 2) Too strict self-judgment: women tend not to apply for promotions or jobs unless they have 100% of the skills and experience required, while men apply for the same opportunities even if they have much less experience than required.
 3) Lack of networking: women find themselves isolated in a working world that is male-dominated.
 
 Setting out to make a difference, Kate created the WiAS network, where women can support each other and grow.
 
 In this episode, Kate offers a unique insight into these three challenges and what we can do to address them. We also tackle the critical role of men in achieving gender equality, the positive changes that have happened in the gender inclusion sphere, and the critical difference between role models and supermodels.
 
 Kate's favourite brand is Lego, for its ability to constantly evolve and stay relevant.

Ai Ching, founder and CEO of Piktochart walks us through her entrepreneurial journey. 

From bootstrapping to organic growth, from deliberate talent hiring to TikTok all the way to ensuring that you define your niche area to protect your business from bigger, richer and more aggressive competitors, this episode is not to be missed!

Approachable, genuine and business acute, Ching is the kind of entrepreneur that inspires future founders and change-makers

Find out more here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/gohaiching/
https://piktochart.com/

In this episode Rachel, a talented professional coach and mentor, shares with us some key elements that start-ups and business owners should address to ensure sustainable growth for their business.
Some of the areas we covered in the interview include:

• The importance of defining a vision
• The difference between long term and short term vision 
• What makes a good goal
• How to stay on track and how to measure success
• The importance of celebrating your success
• Overcoming challenges and finding support for your vision
• What a limiting belief is and how we can address it

Pro-tip: have you considered reciprocal work to get your business started with the help of complementary partners?

This and much more in this episode packed with business advice for start-ups and founders.

Find out more about Rachel here:
https://thrivebeyond.co.uk/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelrrussell/

Often the obstacles we face come from the outside world. But what happens when they come from inside ourselves? Fran, a "recovering CEO", successful entrepreneur and an incredible mentor, talks us through the challenges of recognising and addressing the impostor syndrome, as well as the cost that this struggle has on individuals as well as enterprises.
If you are feeling that scary tinkle, or are dealing with the full extent of an impostor syndrome, listen to Fran and especially reach out to her.
https://uk.linkedin.com/in/franferrisockwell 

In this episode, our very special guest, Kat Luckock, a Social Enterprise Coach and founder of Share Impact, tackles some of the most challenging topics for social entrepreneurs: profit, pricing and sales.
As social enterprises are born as a way to address social and societal issues, there is often pressure on social entrepreneurs when it comes to recognising the importance of making a profit as this seems to contradict their business purpose. In reality, though, profit is essential to make a social enterprise sustainable while increasing its positive impact. In the same way, getting the price right is essential to ensure not only that social enterprises are not exploited but especially that they can effectively achieve the purpose they set out for in the first place. The other quite unique challenge social entrepreneurs face is how to approach sales in a way that is genuine and in line with the values and goals of their organisation.
Kat Luckock walks us through these challenges and provides invaluable insights for social entrepreneurs to achieve greater impact.

Kat recommends reading Sell Well, Do Good by Roy Whitten and Scott Roy

If you want to find out more about the social enterprise HipHipHooray you can find them here. 

Here you can listen to Kat's podcast, on Apple on Spotify. 

And here a special free resource from Kat: https://shareimpact.org/success-habits-checklist

In this episode Hayley shares her experience in transitioning from a good corporate job to her dream freelancing  career. This is not an easy  kind of journey and Hayley shares the fears she had at the start, as well as her biggest motivators. Now an established freelancer, Hayley also shares important insights on how to get started, how to find the first clients, what are the biggest perks of her new career are as well as some of the pitfalls. In the process, the conversation brought us to discuss important topics such as mental health (and mental fitness!), personal branding and the importance of kindness, authenticity and human connections in business.
Find out more out Hayley https://pt.linkedin.com/in/hayley-smith-translator

In this episode Jon, a young, bright, innovative brand expert, walks us through some of the best practices, as well as the perils, of logo design.
From working on the strategy that defines a business visual identity, to the different typologies of logos, Jon  shares incredibly useful and practical insights for start-ups businesses and businesses working on their re-brand.
Find out more about Jon's work on his website: www.cultmethod.com

In this episode Mel tackles a quite untouched and certainly challenging angle of D&I: neuro-diversity.
We speak about some of the hurdles as well as the perks of welcoming and supporting neuro-divers talent.
What can be seen as an obstacle in the end can turn up to be your team's winning strategy!
We are so grateful to Mel for sharing her expertise, you can find out more about her work here:
https://uk.linkedin.com/in/behindthelines
https://www.behindthelines.co.uk/

In this episode, I share 3 business mistakes I made since turning my company into a social enterprise and what I learn from them.
Unfortunately I had to learn the lesson the hard way: a client not paying their bills, a prospect taking the whole programme I designed for her and getting a cheaper supplier to implement it, and a business partner cutting me out of the very same project I called them for.
If anything, I hope that these experiences might be useful to help fellow social entrepreneurs avoid finding themselves in my same situation.
Also, as mentioned in the video, do check https://shareimpact.org/ and listen to Kat's podcast, is packed with invaluable advice for social entrepreneurs.

In this episode we talk with a brand veteran: With decades working on brand strategy, Kevin guides us through a journey of understanding, building and delivering a strong brand promise for business success. If you are a start-up or an established business owner willing to grow your business, this is the episode for you.
Find out more about Kevin and his business here: https://www.boardwalkhq.com/