Chief, the private leadership network for senior women executives, has made headlines for its popularity and success. And during times of crisis, such as now, Chief has proven its value by increasing its commitment to connect and unite women leaders by moving all of its services to virtual, including Core Groups, Chief’s flagship, peer group experience. This past April was Chief’s first entirely virtual month and the number of members that participated in events was 3x that of pre-COVID attendance. To respond to this increase in demand, Chief has expanded its events programming and created new workshops that focus on topis like managing finances during a crisis and motivating remote work teams. Chief also plans to expand its physical footprint beyond NYC as prepares to open locations in Los Angeles and Chicago – two cities where they are already operating virtually.
AlleyWatch caught up with CEO and Cofounder Carolyn Childers to discuss how Chief has adapted to the crisis and continues to flourish. Since our last interview with Childers in 2019, Chief has grown from over 800 members to 2,000 members with 8,000 people on its waiting list. Chief has raised a total of $40M across three rounds since its founding.
Who were your investors and how much did you raise?
Chief secured $15M in new funding from existing investors, including GGV Capital, General Catalyst, Inspired Capital, , Flybridge Capital and BoxGroup.
Tell us about the product or service that Chief offers.
Chief is a private leadership network designed for senior women executives (VP level through CEO) to strengthen their experience in the C-suite, cross-pollinate ideas, and effect change from the top down.
The Chief community is using services now more than ever, all of which have transitioned to be completely virtual, including Core Groups, programming, and personal executive coaching.
What inspired the start of Chief?
If you’re a woman who is in a senior leadership position, you are likely spending so much time mentoring other people, managing your teams, and speaking on panels that you no longer have a real community for yourself. We know it is lonely at the top, but it gets lonelier for women so much earlier. That is why we built Chief. It’s a place where you can find support and community with women who are also tackling the challenges of leadership.
How is Chief different?
There is an amazing ecosystem of women’s organizations out there, but we identified a lack of resources and community for the 5 million women in America who identify as senior leaders. Getting women into executive positions is important but succeeding in those roles is paramount to systemic change. Chief is helping women build lines of succession into these leadership positions.
What market does Chief target and how big is it?
Chief is designed for women at the VP level and above. Thousands of senior executives in New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago have joined, representing companies including Google, IBM, HBO, Chobani, Walmart, Visa, Teladoc, Doctors Without Borders, Netflix, LVMH, and the New York Times.
What’s your business model?
Our members pay an annual fee. The vast majority of our members are sponsored by their companies, because they see the value of bringing back the ideas and knowledge that women get from one another. Companies look at this as an expense for an entire year for around the same price as, say, a one-day executive conference, and much lower than personal executive coaching sessions, which can cost $30,000 for a 6-month engagement.
How has COVID-19 impacted your business?
Now, more than ever, Chief is doubling down on its commitment to connect, support, and inspire powerful women leaders. In rapid response to the global pandemic, Chief shifted its banner services and programming to become completely virtual. Memberships include Core Groups (Chief’s critically acclaimed peer group experience); community platform, and event programming—including leadership workshops, conversations with industry icons, and community roundtables.
In April, participation in Chief events tripled, and Core Groups have had record high attendance and satisfaction, indicating the overwhelming demand for Chief’s brand of mentorship and support. We’ve always thought of ourselves as a community that happens to have a space, not a space that a community is built around.
We recently launched one-to-one personal executive coaching and a hiring board to better serve members in this time.
What was the funding process like?
Our investors are committed to our mission of getting women into power and supporting them when they get there. We’re proud to welcome Robin Li, a founding member of Chief, to our boardroom.
What are the biggest challenges that you faced while raising capital?
We’re fortunate in that we’ve had relationships with all of our returning investors who understand the value of Chief. Our phone and video meetings were just as effective as in-person meetings.
What factors about your business led your investors to write the check?
The demand for Chief continues to grow despite the difficult economic climate. In an uncertain world, we have never been more certain about the power of community to drive meaning, support, and connection — and our investors understand and support our mission.
The demand for Chief continues to grow despite the difficult economic climate. In an uncertain world, we have never been more certain about the power of community to drive meaning, support, and connection — and our investors understand and support our mission.
What are the milestones you plan to achieve in the next six months?
In the next six months, we plan to accelerate our growth to meet demand in new cities and fast-track the technology infrastructure to support our expanded services. Digital investment includes Personal Executive Coaching and the Chief Hiring Board — a platform for members to privately list best-in-class, diverse candidates, and job openings. We’ve also begun our expansion to Los Angeles and Chicago, with Founding Members in both cities already taking advantage of Chief’s services.
What advice can you offer companies in New York that do not have a fresh
injection of capital in the bank?
The advice we offer all companies is to think creatively, move quickly, and put your people — employees and customers — first.
Where do you see the company going now over the near term?
Since expanding to Los Angeles and Chicago, members in those areas are already taking advantage of digital services, Chief is aiming to open its physical locations later this year.
What’s your favorite restaurant in the city?
King in the West Village — led by a talented trio of powerful women, including friend and founding member Clare de Boer.
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