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Our recent webinar, “Women Founders in Talent Acquisition,” featured three entrepreneurs making a significant impact in the HR tech industry. Moderated by Katie Fortunato, President and Co-Founder of RecruitmentMarketing.com, the discussion delved into the personal journeys, challenges, and successes these women experienced while building their companies in a male-dominated field.
Milena Berry — Co-founder, PowerToFly
Milena Berry co-founded PowerToFly with a mission to promote diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) in the workplace. As a woman in tech, a member of the LGBTQ+ community, an immigrant and a parent, Milena brings a multifaceted personal perspective to her work.
One of the key lessons Milena has learned in her entrepreneurial journey is the importance of being transparent about what you don’t know. Unlike many of her male counterparts who tend to project an image of confidence even in unfamiliar territory, Milena is comfortable acknowledging when she needs support or advice.
“I find myself very comfortable saying what I don’t know. I think that vulnerability and humility and saying, I do not know this, I need help, is very important,” she said.
Having a co-founder to collaborate with has been invaluable for Milena. Bouncing ideas off each other and dividing up responsibilities based on their strengths has made the challenging experience of founding a company more manageable and rewarding.
As a founder, Milena has had to grapple with “decision overload syndrome” from being in a constant state of making high-stakes judgment calls. With so much mental energy going into the business, Milena has had to consciously prioritize making time for her family – something that hasn’t always been easy but is deeply important to her.
When it comes to networking, Milena has learned that investing time and energy into building professional relationships pays off, opening doors to valuable opportunities down the line. However, she’s also found that it’s critical to find a balance that aligns with your personal values and priorities. Turning down some networking engagements to be present for her children is a tradeoff Milena has chosen to make.
Summer Delaney, MBA — CEO & Founder, CollabWORK
Summer Delaney started her career as Katie Couric’s producer, with Couric serving as an important role model and mentor. This experience showed Summer the impact that having successful figures to look up to can have on one’s career trajectory.
Summer also learned the value of being part of supportive professional communities. She joined groups like Media Mavens, a 20,000-member network of women and non-binary people working in production. “I trust pretty much everyone in that group,” Summer said of Media Mavens, even though she only knows about a dozen of the members in real life.
One piece of advice Summer has for aspiring leaders is to surround yourself with allies and advocates who will promote you and have your back. As a solo founder herself, Summer has benefitted from finding communities of other female founders to lean on – both peers at a similar career stage as well as those who are further ahead on the entrepreneurial path, like Milena.
Balancing the competing demands of moving quickly to launch new products with taking the time to get feedback and input from others is an ongoing challenge in Summer’s founder journey. Her approach is to seek out diverse perspectives to inform decisions while still maintaining momentum. Having a strong support system of family, friends and peers who have “been in the same shoes” has been crucial, allowing Summer to learn from the experiences of others as she navigates the uncharted territory of founding a company.
Mona Tawakali — Chief Strategy Officer, Recruitics
Mona Tawakali co-founded KRT Marketing and successfully built the company from the ground up, demonstrating strong leadership and business skills. The company was later acquired by Recruitics, a leading data-centric recruitment marketing agency, where Mona now serves as the Chief Strategy Officer.But as a working mother, her path came with challenges. Mona described feeling like an “octopus” being pulled in many different directions at once. “That struggle is real. And that’s why a lot of women in the workforce look for flexibility, because that helps them manage it all,” she explained.
To juggle her many responsibilities, Mona had to develop strategies to optimize her time. One tactic was waking up early to get focused work done before the rest of the world woke up and the demands of the day kicked in.
Working in the male-dominated tech industry, Mona frequently found herself the only woman in the room – an intimidating experience. To tackle this challenge head-on, she brought in a leadership coach to help her female employees develop executive presence and feel more confident speaking up. The coach taught them a valuable lesson Mona never forgot: “When you have something you want to say, count down 3-2-1 and jump into the conversation.”
Mentoring other women and supporting their career growth is something Mona feels strongly about. “We all stood on the shoulders of those that preceded us, and paying it forward is a big part of what drives more women into leadership positions,” she noted. By actively creating opportunities for other women and sharing what she’s learned, Mona aims to pave an easier path for the next generation of female leaders.
The experiences shared during our “Women Founders in Talent Acquisition” webinar showcased the leadership, resilience and success of these women in HR tech. By being transparent, relying on supportive communities and adhering to their values, they built successful companies while uplifting other women. As the HR tech landscape evolves, their stories inspire aspiring female leaders to make their own mark on the industry.
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