Work Friends

In a very special episode, Sali is joined by Secretary Hillary Clinton. Having entered the spotlight as First Lady of the United States in the ‘90s, Secretary Clinton later became the first First Lady to win a United States Senate seat in 2000. In 2009, President Obama appointed her to Secretary of State. Secretary Clinton also ran twice for president: first in 2008, and again on the Democratic ti...

Brittany Packnett Cunningham has been an activist nearly all her life. With a background in education, today she sits at the intersection of culture, justice, and policy as the Chief Strategy Officer at Children's Defense Fund and host/EP of the The Meteor’s UNDISTRACTED podcast, now in its fourth season. She sits down with Sali to discuss the hard-learned lessons of having your work thrust on...

Jessica Tarlov is one of the co-hosts of The Five on FOX News, where she offers a liberal POV among the primarily conservative roundtable. She also co-hosts the podcast, Raging Moderates , with NYU Professor Scott Galloway. Jessica did not start her career in broadcasting—she’s a former Democratic pollster, researcher, and strategist—but her ability to argue her position goes back further than any...

Today on a special episode of Work Friends, we’re flipping the script—as Monica Padman, Co-host and Producer @armchairexppod, interviews Sali in celebration of 10 years of Argent and the upcoming launch of its most ambitious campaign to-date. Monica asks Sali about why and how she built a fashion brand without a fashion background, why it’s beneficial to be the opposite of a gatekeeper, and how Ar...

Emily Current and Meritt Elliott are the cofounders of the LA-based clothing and lifestyle brand, The Great . The two met in college and have been friends and creative partners practically ever since, navigating several successful career chapters. Most notably, they founded the iconic denim brand of the 2000s and 2010s, Current/Elliott. As business partners and best friends, they've rewritten the...

April McDaniel and Savannah James cohost the podcast Everybody's Crazy , lead a 400-plus members-only community for women, Let It Break , and launched their own holding company this year, Signed . But more so, they’re best friends navigating BIG success—one they didn’t see coming. In the lead up to a new season of Everybody’s Crazy, they swap hosting seats to share with Sali how their hit show sta...

Valerie Jarrett, CEO and a member of the board of directors of the Obama Foundation, joins us to discuss how she became the longest-serving advisor to any US President. From law school to local politics to a vital role in the highest office of government, Valerie’s career is exemplary and—as evidenced by the Obama Presidential Center that opened just weeks ago in Chicago—continues to make history....

Misty Copeland is the truest definition of the trailblazer, most notably making history as the first Black woman to be promoted to a Principal dancer at American Ballet Theatre. After 25 years with the company, she took her final bow last fall...and yet her life’s work has only just begun.  Through the Misty Copeland Foundation and her role on the boards of Lincoln Center and other arts insti...

An award-winning filmmaker, advocate, and the First Partner of California, Jennifer Siebel Newsom is a staunch advocate for women and girls. It’s been the throughline of her career—from her work with Conservation International to earning a Stanford MBA, from acting on screen to moving behind the lens of her award-winning 2011 documentary, Miss Representation. Now, on the heels of the follow-up, Mi...

One of the biggest stylists of the moment, Sophie Lopez, got her start in magazines after some very persistent letter writing. And her resiliency continued to pay off as she transitioned to a freelance styling role. She built a list of incredible clients—including Kate Hudson, whom she’s worked with for two decades—built her personal brand on social media, and recently stepped into a stylist role...

Suneera Madhani is fully aware that being an entrepreneur is one of the wildest career choices one can make. And yet, this unicorn CEO is on a mission to help more women build their dream businesses. As the former co-founder of Stax, current founder of Worth AI, and founder of CEO School , Suneera has a lot to share about what it means to be an entrepreneur, to shift from a founder mindset to a CE...

Hannah Bronfman has worn many hats in her career: DJ, entrepreneur, VC, content creator. And today, she’s walking through them all…without glossing over the tough parts. After all, Hannah has built a community that comes to her for her openness to share—from wellness advice to deeply personal losses to business plans that inevitably turned soul-crushing. We spoke with her on the heels of her debut...

Jennifer Fisher, the Founder and Chief Brand Officer of jewelry label Jennifer Fisher , and the NYTimes -anointed “queen of hoops,” sits down with Sali today. She’s sharing a glimpse at the 20+ year success story that started unintentionally—with a piece of personalized jewelry to celebrate the birth of her child. It's grown into a lifestyle brand with her personal story at the forefront. From des...

Melissa Murray is an NYU Law professor, New York Times bestselling author, and cohost of @strictscrutinypodcast , where she breaks down the biggest legal battles and political messes in our country. She’s also the author of The U.S. Constitution: A Comprehensive and Annotated Guide for the Modern Reader , set to release on May 5. Today, she sits down with Sali to share how she established herself...

Today, Sali sits down with Kerry Docherty. With a background in law and as a mindfulness coach, Kerry is a cofounder of Faherty Brand , where she works alongside her husband and her brother-in-law, pushing for progress in the fashion industry. Kerry is also the author of the upcoming memoir, Selfish, debuting April 21. In it, she shares an intimate look at her relationship to her career, her marri...

Starting in her late teens, Chelsea Leyland built a global DJ career, collaborating with some of the world's biggest fashion brands. However, it was her personal health struggles that led to her work now in advocacy and as the cofounder of Looni , a menstrual health and wellness company.  Chelsea was diagnosed with epilepsy in childhood and, after suffering with painful periods for years, she...

Emily Tisch Sussman, host of She Pivots and co-owner of Gotham FC and the New York Giants, doesn't just talk about making career changes—she’s lived it. BIG time. This week, she sits down with Sali to get candid about struggling to make a name for herself, placing her value in her work, and what happened when it all fell apart. Spoiler alert: Right around the time she became a mother. A lawyer by...

Trailblazer and self-professed rulebreaker Reshma Saujani joins us on Work Friends this week. Reshma is the founder and former CEO of Girls Who Code, a New York Times bestselling author, and the host of the podcast “ My So-Called Midlife .” Today, she’s also the founder and CEO of Moms First, where she continues to be an awe-inspiring culture-shifter and staunch advocate for women—from girlhood to...

We are thrilled to welcome Retta to Work Friends today. The actor, HGTV host, and one-half of the team who brought us “ treat yo self ” joins Sali to share how a prospective medical student and a somewhat reluctant stand-up comedian found herself cast on one of the most beloved sitcoms in history. Retta is best known for her portrayal of Donna Meagle in all seven seasons of Parks and Recreation, a...

Today, Beth Hutchens sits down with Sali. Beth has spent her career in fashion, first cofounding the Rebecca Taylor brand in her 20s, alongside designer Rebecca Taylor. As CEO, Beth saw the company reach massive success. But after nearly two decades, she stepped away and launched Foundrae . The celebrity-loved jewelry brand is known for its stunning, statement-making adornments that feature 18 kar...

Nikki Ogunnaike joins Sali to tell the story of her career, one that’s landed her at the top of the masthead as the Editor-in-Chief of Marie Claire . Prior to taking the helm over two years ago, Nikki stacked her resume with roles at some of the most prestigious fashion publications in the world: InStyle , Glamour , Elle , GQ , and Harper’s Bazaar among them.  Over the course of her career, she’s...

Today’s guest on Work Friends, we have a guest who—for many—needs no introduction: Ricki Lake .  As a teen, Ricki landed her breakout role as Tracy Turnblad in John Waters’ Hairspray and, just a few years later, became the youngest talk show host in history with her self-titled show, Ricki Lake . Today on Work Friends, the ‘90s icon sits down with Sali to get into the reality (and major missteps)...

This week, Sali sits down with Lisa Joseph Metelus , the Head of Athlete Brand Strategy and Board Member at Creative Artists Agency, and Co-founder of PlayMakeHer .  Over Lisa’s three-decade career, she’s been a force behind the biggest, most-celebrated athletes of our time. This includes Hall of Famers Alonzo Mourning and Dwyane Wade, with whom Lisa has worked for over 20 years.  Lisa has not onl...

Today, Sali is joined by the President and CEO of the National Women’s Law Center , Fatima Goss Graves. A staunch champion for all women and girls and defender of civil rights, Fatima is a first-generation lawyer who comes from a family that intimately understands the importance of equal protection under the law.  In this episode, she gets into her backstory, as well as what it was like navigating...

This week, Sali welcomes Gregg Renfrew, the Founder of Counter , a beauty company that launched earlier this year. Previously, Founder and CEO of the now-defunct Beauty Counter, Gregg has experienced all the highs and lows of entrepreneurship as she grew her first beauty brand into a $1 billion business—only for it to go into foreclosure a few years later. At the last minute, Gregg decided to buy...