WIN/WIN: Women in Innovation

In this episode, Amruta Moktali, Chief Product Officer at Skyflow, shares her journey in product management and discusses the challenges and decisions she has faced throughout her career. Amruta also explains the role of a Chief Product Officer at a Series B company and the need for a strong partnership between product and engineering. Amruta encourages women to overcome imposter syndrome and seek...

In this episode, Nisreen Hasib, CEO and founder of Signoff, shares her journey from being the COO of Unbound to starting her own company that focuses on solving the housing crisis. Nisreen challenges the traditional definition of success in the startup world and shares insights on getting into Techstars. Key takeaways:  Align your career choices with your foundational values. Trust your intui...

This episode explores Betsy Cohen and Amanda Abrams’ journey and experiences in the finance and investment industry. They discuss the skills and qualities they seek in founders, the vision for Cohen Circle and Radiate Capital, and their role in innovation in fintech. Through a discussion of their personal and professional experiences, Zoia, Amanda, and Betsy touch on what diversity means to them a...

In this episode, host Zoia Kozakov shares her personal experience with elective egg freezing and interviews Dr. Fahimeh Sasan, Chief Innovation Officer and Founding Physician at KindBody. They discuss the importance of proactive fertility care, the challenges and barriers in the industry, and the need for accessibility and equity in women's health. They also provide an overview of the egg-freezing...

In this episode, join Zoia as she interviews Patrice Meagher, CEO and founder of Milkmate, a revolutionary breast-pumping solution for the workplace. Milkmate’s solution is comprised of modular furniture components, including a multi-user breast pump, and single-use parts that are all ready for immediate use. Patrice shares her journey, from her career in commercial real estate to developing and r...

In this episode, join Zoia as she delves into the world of brand building and direct-to-consumer (D2C) innovation with Suze Dowling, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer at Pattern Brands. Discover how Suze and her team are revolutionizing the D2C industry by combining acquisitions and in-house incubations to create a family of home brands. Gain valuable insights into their approach to building s...

In this episode, Zoia and Emi Neitfeld, writer of “Acceptance: a Memoir,” have a captivating conversation as they delve into the gripping story of navigating workplace challenges, transitioning from engineering to writing, and challenging societal expectations. Explore the power of personal narratives, resilience beyond traditional narratives, and the future of innovation in journalism.  List...

In this episode, Zoia interviews Courtney Carlsson, the founder of Paradym, a mental health platform. They discuss Courtney's journey as a founder, how she approaches building her startup, and the unique features of Paradym that set it apart.  Listen for advice on: What’s it like fundraising as a pregnant female founder  How to innovate a two-sided marketplace What makes a successful men...

In this episode, Jameelah Calhoun, Eventbrite’s Vice President and Global Head of Product and Customer Marketing, sits down with Zoia. Together, they discuss Jameelah’s tremendous trajectory, ranging from financial services to working at Amazon’s Audible and Eventbrite. Jameelah’s visionary thinking and authentic speaking make for another meaningful conversation about innovation, leadership, and i...

In this week’s episode, Zoia sits down to talk with Shyvee Shi, Product Lead at LinkedIn. They discuss everything from navigating unconventional careers to mentorship, and the impacts of artificial intelligence on education. Listen for advice on: The most critical skills to future-proof your career growth How to navigate artificial intelligence advances in a tactical and additive way Balancing non...

In this week’s episode, Zoia connects with Inna Lobel, Creative Director, Head of Industrial Design, North America at frog, a leading innovation consultancy. Inna discusses the craft, art, and science of innovation, along with her role in enabling Campfire to raise $8 million in funding. Listen for advice on: The differences and similarities of working in-house vs. agency-side How to stay user-cen...

In this week’s episode, Zoia sits down with Evelyn Chou, Senior Product Manager at Coursera, one of the most prominent innovators in the edtech space. Evelyn breaks down the journey of finding her voice through her various career stops and how she embeds innovation into her products (hint: she weaves it into her planning!). Listen for advice on: Navigating the likability trap at work Why this is t...

In this episode, Zoia sits down with Sharifa Murdock, KITH's Chief Impact Officer and founder of ENVSN Festival. She shares her journey going from working in retail to now leading impact initiatives for one of the most established and fashion-forward brands. Sharifa also discusses how she approached building out ENVSN Festival, a culture-first experience to inspire the next generation to be innova...

In this episode, we are joined by Anomaly's Chief Innovation Officer, Natasha Jakubowski. Natasha is an "innovation veteran" with over 20+ years of experience in the industry, building out her own innovation practice, and growing it within Anomaly. Natasha has helped build new brands as well as put others, such as EOS (beauty brand) on the map. Listen for advice on: How to lean into your communica...

In this episode, Cynthia Plotch shares how running into her boyfriend’s mom while buying a pregnancy test factored into her journey to start a company focused on women’s healthcare. One of Inc.’s 100 Female Founders in 2021, and the co-founder of Stix, she aims to create better experiences and solutions with women’s healthcare products and talks about the challenge of raising funds from male VCs.&...

In this episode, Zoia sits down with Jess Houlgrave, who heads up crypto and go-to-market strategy at Checkout.com, an international payments platform valued at over billions of dollars. The conversation touches on how Jess navigates being a leader in an industry that often draws criticism and doubt, while leaning into being at the helm of innovation.  Listen for advice on: How to balance hel...

In this episode, we celebrate the 100th episode of the WIN/WIN podcast by bringing back the incredible Enshalla Anderson, who is the Global Head of Brand & Creative at Google Cloud. Enshalla was the very first WIN/WIN podcast guest, and she comes back to discuss her trajectory since the podcast and what she’s learned about the world of innovation through her new role and experiences. Listen fo...

In this episode, Whitnee Hawthorne, Chief Customer Officer of Navan (formerly TripActions) joins the podcast to discuss innovation in the world of travel, and how she’s thinking about it in her current role. Whether it is exploring the consolidation of expense management, travel bookings, and corporate cards or imagining the airport of the future, Whitnee is a multi-faceted leader with tangible an...

In this episode, Zoia sits down with Sharon Gauci, Executive Director, of Design at Global Buick, GMC, and GMC Hummer at General Motors. They discuss Sharon’s career and rise in the world of automotive. They touch on big trends in the electric car industry and how Sharon thinks beyond innovating on a “feature level.” Listen for advice on: Navigating innovating 5-10 years ahead (vs. for the short-t...

In this episode, Zoia live-podcasts from Las Vegas with May Zabaneh, Vice President of Blockchain, Crypto, and Digital Currencies at PayPal at Money 20/20, the world’s most prominent financial services and payments conferences in the world. May shares what it’s like to lead next-generation payment innovations at a major financial institution and how she thinks about leadership in the space. Listen...

In this episode, Kat Wang, Head of Product at Jasco Games talks about what it’s like to develop a card game and player experience for one of the most loved anime series in the world, “My Hero Academia.” Kat breaks down how she is building out her team and thinking about innovation simultaneously, and balancing forging ahead.  Learn more about:  Why being a different background and demogr...

In this episode, April Koh discusses her journey to starting Spring Health, a precision mental healthcare platform. April is the youngest woman at the helm of a unicorn (Spring Health was valued at $2 billion dollars when April was just 29) and is tirelessly working to innovate mental health in the hopes of breaking all barriers to fixing problems around it.  Listen for advice on: Finding the...

In this episode, we feature our first ever solo male guest, Chairman and Chief Purpose Officer at co:collective, Ty Montague. Ty sits down with WIN’s very own Global Development Lead, Lizzie Azzolino, to discuss purpose-driven innovation and business models, and opine on what it takes to successfully run and stand up such an organization.    Listen for advice on: How to distinguish betwe...

In this episode, Zoia Kozakov sits down with Jennifer Smith, Founder & CEO of Scribe, who raised over 30 million dollars to battle the innovation antithesis: over-indexing on processes. Jennifer shares her start-up founder journey and her trajectory to building and launching her product, which is used by thousands of companies and users around the world. Listen for advice on: Going from consul...

In this episode, Zoia sits down with the two co-CEOs at Splendid Spoon, Nicole Centeno and Elise Densborn, to talk about what it means to share a leadership role while staying agile in a start-up environment. The two leaders discuss how their own lived experiences have inspired the trajectory of the company and their views on what it takes to make it as a blooming start-up. Listen for advice on: W...