VEST Her Podcast

In this episode, we're joined by Dr. Vanessa Scaringi , a licensed psychologist and co-owner of CALM Counseling in Austin, TX. Dr. Scaringi recently authored an insightful article in TIME magazine examining the psychological effects of modern identity trends like the "soft girl" and "tradwife" movements, which are gaining popularity among Gen-Z women. Together, we'll...

In this episode we talk to Shalynne Jackson, Oklahoma City's Chief Equity Officer, and Mikeale Campbell, Diversity & Inclusion Program Manager at Williams on the topic of Future of Work as it relates to inclusion. We talk about SHRM's decision to remove the word “equity” from DEI due to the anti-DEI movement. If and how companies should evolve DEI efforts. How executives can address...

In this episode VEST Member Terra-Branson Thomas , Senior Policy Advisor at Clause Law and former Secretary of the Nation for the Muscogee Creek Nation talks about the Status of Women in Politics with Kelly Dittmar , Associate Professor of Political Science at Rutgers University and Director of Research at the Center for American Women and Politics at Eagleton Institute of Politics. Kelly is a pub...

In this episode VEST Members talk to gender-inclusive culture expert Brad Johnson, Professor of Psychology at the United States Naval Academy and Faculty Associate at John Hopkins University, about the skills and benefits men earn when they engage in advocating for women at work. The misconceptions and challenges that often get in the way of men engaging in gender-equity advocacy and the economics...

In this episode we talk to Oklahoma State Senator Julia Kirt and Oklahoma State Representative Melissa Provenzano about why it is becoming harder and harder for people to engage in politics. Join us as we talk about why people are feeling disenfranchised and divided. How can we better navigate the process, skip the noise, and be more effective in our advocacy efforts?  Together, we dissect the urg...

In this episode we talk to VEST Members about how they've managed to navigate career transitions and setbacks, while rediscovering themselves and building meaningful connections. We discuss the importance of asking for help, leveraging peer networks, advocating for ourselves and other women unapologetically. Join us as we dive into double standards women face at work like self-promotion, work...

Remote-work has dwindled over the past few years as employers issue return-to-office mandates. But will that continue in 2024? In this episode VEST Member Jess Kyle, Data Engineer Manager at Underdog Sports, a fully remote company with more than 350 distributed employees, talks to Lynn Greenberg, Founder of Pivt, a platform helping employers reduce turnover and enhance the social well-being of rel...

More and more women are considering switching roles or leaving the labor force in general as a result of burnout. This burnout is in large part due to caregiving responsibilities. In fact, caregiving responsibilities are the number two reason (behind retirement), that people, mostly women, leave the labor force. This negatively impacts our nation’s workforce availability as well as women’s lifetim...

In this episode Accountability Coach and Author of "Why Not You," Amanda McKinney shares tips, tools and resources with VEST Members on how to achieve goals through discipline and accountability systems. We also talk about the struggle we all grapple with: self-doubt, fear of failure, and decision fatigue. We share strategies to overcome these barriers and discuss how honesty about our f...

In this episode we talk about overcoming fear of failure with Sarah Amico, Chair of Jack Cooper Holdings, North America’s largest car hauling company and Women-Owned Enterprise. We discuss Sarah’s journey building a company where she employs thousands of hard working union workers, in the midst of the auto workers strike. Her approach to managing setbacks when she was the Democratic nominee for Lt...

What if your career as a working parent came crashing down because of a lack of accessible childcare? Could you imagine being forced to choose between your profession and your child's wellbeing?  We're peeling back the layers on a pressing issue - the Childcare Cliff - and how its domino effect threatens the progress women have made in the workforce. The expiration of $24 billion in fund...

Last week we were joined by the wonderful, Danette Leighton, CEO of Women’s Sports Foundation, and we discussed everything from the gender pay gap and representation in sports, to the political discourse surrounding Women athletes.  For this session, lets dive deeper into the world of sports and the real time obstacles hindering female athletes as as VEST Talks about the power of Women in Sports....

We're  doing things a little different. In this episode, get to know the team behind VEST for our latest podcast installment of VEST Talks.  Get to know Erika Lucas, VEST Founding Member, Gaby Eichenlaub, Operations, Sarah Soetarjo, Member Relations and Kourtney Leigh, Entrepreneur-in-Residence.  We dive deeper into the mission and vision of VEST, our individual perspectives on the barriers w...

Imagine a world where women's sports stand shoulder to shoulder with men's, where the prowess and athleticism of female athletes are celebrated instead of their appearance. This utopia is not so far-fetched if we rally behind the mission of the Women's Sports Foundation. We sat down for an eye-opening conversation with Danette, dissecting the highs and lows of women in sports, the p...

Ever wondered how meaningful relationships can a play a pivotal role in shaping our personal and professional life? We joined Susan McPherson, serial connector, founder of McPherson Strategies and author of The Lost Art of Connecting, in an intriguing conversation about the power of authentic connections. Susan shares her journey of becoming a connector and provides valuable insights on how to bui...

In our latest podcast episode, we talk to Nadya Okamoto, co-founder of August and Gen Z marketing expert, about how we can better understand, support, and leverage Gen Z in the workplace. Join us as we unravel the myths and misconceptions that often surround GenZ.  Nadya's fresh perspective comes from her own experiences and expertise in understanding Gen Z's mindset and motivations. Tog...

Have you ever felt the weight of trauma in the workplace, struggling to find healing and equity? We are joined by the incredible Minda Harts, bestselling and award-winning author of "The Memo", "Right Within", and "You Are More Than Magic", to share her journey of overcoming these hurdles and finding ways to create safe, inclusive and thriving work environments. In th...

In this episode we  about career transitions, navigating workplaces and the challenges of getting to and staying in the C-suite in a male dominated industry.  Join us as we talk to talk to Jill Castilla, President & CEO of Citizens Bank of Edmond. Jill Castilla is a nationally recognized innovator in banking and financial technology. She currently serves on the 12-member Federal Advisory Counc...

In this episode we discuss common misconceptions and stereotypes about the LGBTQ+ community with a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, sex therapist, and the founder and CEO of Inclusive Insight Psychotherapy, Laura Grimes. We also cover ways to identify our own cultural blindspots, so that together we can build more inclusive workplaces. For our guest full bio and show notes click here . Support the...

In this episode we discuss all things women's health with Jacqueline Blocker, the Data & Policy Director at Metriarch an Oklahoma women’s public health think tank that aims to normalize and broaden women’s health conversations through data storytelling, policy evaluation, and interactive outreach events. We discussed everything from the social determinants impacting women's health to...

In this episode we discuss the value of Executive Coaching with Dr. Sofia Pertuz, Managing Director for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for the Billie Jean King Enterprises, a women-owned and women-led investment, consulting, and marketing firm that puts Billie Jean King’s philosophy and brand value to work, capitalizing on her long-standing advocacy for equality. Available on Spotify , Apple , Go...

In this episode we talk to Jamie Fiore Higgins , former Managing Director at Goldman Sachs and Author of Bully Market, about her experience of discrimination and misogyny working for one of the largest banks in the world. We also talk about the importance of having our own identity, not tied to any job, any person, or organization. Special thanks to VEST Member Heather Lawrence for moderating the...

The non-profit sector is going through a transition involving generational change, a national labor shortage, and a demand for systemic change by new leaders in the space. In our latest podcast episode VEST Members share learnings and advocate for better ways to advance non-profit missions while supporting leaders in the space. Brought to you by Instrumentl , helping grant professionals scale thei...

"If men are 75% of leadership today, we are 75% of the problem with advancing women (in the workplace), but we are also 75% of the solution" Join us as we talk to Gender Strategist, former Coca-Cola Executive and the President of YWomen , Jeffery Tobias Halter about the importance of engaging men in the advancement of women in the workplace.  About Jeffery Jeffery Tobias Halter is a Cons...

As we head into the 2022 Midterm Election we invited Kelly Dittmar to talk to us about the status of women in politics. Kelly is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Rutgers University–Camden; and Director of Research and Scholar at the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) at the Eagleton Institute of Politics. She is the co-author of A Seat at the Table: Congresswomen’s Perspec...