What is your name and title?
Ruchi Saxena, Team Lead, Ceptes.
Briefly describe your role at your company:
My role is to provide direction, instructions, and guidance to my team to achieve a certain goal:
Develop a strategy the team will use to reach its goal.
Provide any training that team members need.
Listen to team members’ feedback (I always prefer to spend some time with each of my team members individually on a weekly basis).
Manage the flow of day-to-day operations.
How long have you been in your current position?
3 years
What advice do you have for women who are just starting their career?
Be focused and confident.
Have a vision, a purpose in professional life and set your goals straight.
Focus towards what skills you need to achieve your goals and work towards it.
It’s always better to say NO than regret. Learn to say “No” to what you are not committed or ready for.
Don’t afraid to discuss your past achievements. Learn to apply your college experience in career.
Good thing comes to those who work towards it. Don’t procrastinate.
Build the ability to speak about your success.
Do you serve as a mentor? If so, what does mentorship mean to you?
I am leading a team of 5+ highly trained professionals. I believe in hiring people smarter than me and encourage them to bring their best forward to the table.
Leadership doesn’t need any title, one has to earn it. I strongly believe being a true leader means to lead by example. I set the goals, define actions, ask for accountability thereby drive the results.
I don’t micromanage team instead transfer the sense of responsibility to an individual for greater contribution and ownership.
Lastly, I share the “Wins” with the team and “Owns” the failures.
What’s the one piece of advice you would give to yourself 5 years ago?
That is the time when I start my career, I was always giving excuses to myself,
Stop procrastinating
Believe in yourself
Have a vision
Don’t wait for change, be the change
Learning is a journey, not a destination
Be the person you want your daughter to be.
Lastly, be persistent and discipline. The only factor that will differentiate you from others.
Are you reading anything interesting at the moment? Please share your most recent favorite read!
“The Magic of thinking BIG” by David Schwartz. I would suggest everyone to read this book at least once. This is a complete package to refrain you from so many things which are hurdles in your life.
Originally posted: March 10th, 2019
Q1: What is your name and title?
Cathy McCabe, CEO Proximity Insight
Q2: Briefly (1-2 sentences) describe your role at your company?
Following a diverse 30-year career in retail moving from shop floor to shop tech I am now the CEO of an innovative retail tech startup – I work with an awesome, global team who are passionate about helping brands to get closer to their customers. My role varies every day encompassing sales, marketing and product vision and I love the variety of working with leading retail brands and great visionary people. It is a tough but hugely rewarding role.
Q3: How long have you been in your current position?
18 months
Q4: What advice do you have for women who are just starting their career?
I have been lucky to enjoy a diverse career. Finding your path and enjoying what you do is really important and I often put my hand up to work on something that no-one else wanted to do. So never be afraid to try new things.
You absolutely have to work hard, take risks and lead by example but don’t let your career consume you.
My Mum always said “You can never make a bad decision. If something does not work out you simply change track and move forward onto the next path”
Q5: Is there a cause that is particularly close to you? If so, why this cause and how did you get involved?
I am particularly drawn to Africa after visiting my son in Uganda where he was working with a youth trust helping to train young Ugandans to construct water tanks and school buildings with eco-friendly bricks that are sustainable and do not require firing with wood. It was an inspiring and thought-provoking journey in a very beautiful country. I want to continue exploring ways to help out with causes in Africa and I am hoping to join a Building Blitz with Mellon Educate in November 2019.
Q6: Do you serve as a mentor? If so, what does mentorship mean to you?
I love mentoring and I currently mentor a variety of different people – it provides me with a simple way to give back, to help, to guide and to continue to learn about myself and new ways of working.
Q7: What’s the one piece of advice you would give to yourself 5 years ago?
Don’t chase a title or the money – in the end the title and the salary does not mean that much. It is more important to keep learning and trying new things.
Q8: Are you reading anything interesting at the moment? Please share your most recent favorite read!
Super Engaged by Nikki Gatenby – absolutely fabulous book about how to transform business performance by putting people and purpose first – great nuggets that any business can use regardless of size.
Q9: If you could sit down with three women (living or dead) for dinner, who would those three women be (and why!)?
Gosh this is a tough one – so many women I admire for lots of very different reasons!!!
Angela Ahrendts – an amazingly strong, astute woman, ahead of her time and yet super approachable and a great leader. Angela leaves a footprint on your life and the time I spent with her as part of the leadership team at Burberry was truly inspirational.
Mary Portas – I love her frankness, openness and her downright pragmatic approach to revamping retail and her wacky confidence and ability to be just so utterly true to herself.
Jose Powell – my maternal Grandmother – a working woman with four children who had a strong work ethic and amazing family values – she taught me to be strong, inspired me to travel, to read and taught me to be kind and thoughtful. A woman who grew up in the 1930’s and continued to travel until her 80’s passing away in when I was only at the very start of my career.
Q10: What’s something coming up soon (personally or professionally) that super excites you?
Personally, I am writing a book about the future of retail which provides me with my space to reflect and develop my own perspective. It can be a struggle to fit in the research and writing time but the moments I find to take stock and breathe help me to think about how the real principles of retail have not changed yet the purchase path has changed incredibly in the last 10 years.
Professionally we are about to embark on our first round of funding and that will be a completely new and important learning journey for me – a pivotal and exciting moment in my career!
Please share your Twitter handle (if applicable):
@cathymccabe
Originally posted: March 7th, 2019
As originally published on blog.procore.com.
Employees from offices across the globe gathered at Procore’s headquarters in Carpinteria, CA for Procore’s 2nd annual Revenue Summit, a two-day event bringing together our customer-facing teams. As we prepared to discuss company goals, products and cross-department collaboration, an idea was sparked: during Revenue Summit, we should not only focus on making a positive impact on Procore’s business and employees, but on our communities as well.
At Procore, we prioritize having a culture that supports and cultivates our communities. Procore employees are encouraged to take two paid days off per calendar year to engage in community service and are connected regularly to local volunteer opportunities. As community service is core to our culture, Will Anastas, SVP of US Sales, had the idea to make it a part of our 2019 Revenue Summit.
We searched for the right organization to partner with to host the largest volunteer event in Procore history. Having over 700 employees present, we were excited to connect with Rise Against Hunger, an international hunger relief nonprofit. Through Rise Against Hunger’s volunteer meal packaging program, we set the goal to package 100,000 meals for distribution across the world to those who need it most.
“Service is central to who we are as a team, it is why we exist as a company and it is who we are as human beings. It’s not just something we should do. It’s something we get to do, together. Partnering with Rise Against Hunger was the perfect way to work together to do something meaningful.” -Will Anastas, SVP of US Sales
As the first day of Revenue Summit came to a close, attendees mobilized around the mission of ending world hunger and quickly learned how to package and box the meals. Wearing team t-shirts and colored bandanas, hundreds of employees moved around a buzzing room, working together to make the most impact in a short amount of time. An hour and a half later, employees shared smiles and high-fives as we surpassed our goal of packaging 100,000 meals.
Rise Against Hunger is working to end world hunger by the year 2030 not only through their meal packaging program, but by promoting improved agricultural methods, business skills, and market access, among other things. It was an honor to not only participate in their volunteer meal packaging program, but to support a sustainable approach to ending world hunger.
Whether it’s working with nonprofits, schools, or local organizations, we’re always working to better the industry we serve and the communities we are a part of. Follow the progress of Procore.org here.
Originally posted: March 6th, 2019
As originally posted on businesswire.com
Twilio.org’s Impact Fund Supports Organizations Using Innovative Strategies to Achieve Their Missions.
SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Twilio (NYSE: TWLO), the leading cloud communications platform, today announced that the company’s social impact arm – Twilio.org – has awarded more than $1.4 million to 15 nonprofits, its largest grant round to date. These grants were made through the Twilio.org Impact Fund, which has awarded more than $3 million to social impact organizations in the past year. These grants are possible through Twilio’s commitment to allocate 1% of its equity as part of the Pledge 1% initiative to support social impact.
“With these grants, we want to empower more organizations who are using technology to deliver critical resources and support to the communities they serve.”
“Through the Twilio.org Impact Fund, we’re proud to help nonprofits and social enterprises working on a wide array of issues realize the power of communications to enhance their impact,” said Erin Reilly, Vice President of Social Impact and General Manager of Twilio.org. “With these grants, we want to empower more organizations who are using technology to deliver critical resources and support to the communities they serve.”
The organizations that have received grants include:
- Benefits Data Trust helps people live healthier, more independent lives by creating smarter ways to access essential benefits and services. With the funds, Benefits Data Trust will expand its SMS engagement to serve more beneficiaries with greater efficiency and convenience, improving quality of life and reducing long-term healthcare costs.
- CommunityConnect Labs provides high quality and affordable tools for government and service providers to reach low-income and hard-to-engage individuals. With the help of the Twilio Impact Fund, CommunityConnect Labs will educate, motivate, and activate low-income, immigrant, minority and other underserved groups toparticipate in the 2020 Census, a decennial process that influences $700 billion of federal funding.
- DoSomething is the largest tech organization focused on activating young people to make positive change both online and offline through campaigns that make an impact. DoSomething received its first Twilio.org grant last fall as it helped underrepresented voter populations participate in the 2018 midterm elections. With this new grant, DoSomething will build on their expertise in digital activation to engage youth with DoSomething Clubs, a new initiative in high school and college campuses nationwide.
- Kiva is an international nonprofit that expands financial access to help underserved communities thrive. With the funds, Kiva plans to expand access to capital to low-income entrepreneurs across the United States.
- MindRight is a tech nonprofit that empowers youth of color to heal from trauma from systemic oppression, including structural violence, poverty, and discrimination. MindRight provides personalized mental health support over text message. The grant from Twilio.org will help MindRight grow the number of students receiving its text-based coaching program.
- Partnership for Drug-Free Kids, which has recently merged with Center on Addiction, provides families with the tools they need to take effective action for their child’s addiction. Funding will be used to expand the usage and reach of communications tools providing opioid prevention and recovery resources to youth and families across the US.
- Streetwide built and manages Detention Lifeline, a first of its kind call center and CRM dedicated to immigrants and asylum seekers currently imprisoned in detention facilities. Streetwide plans to use the funds to expand the number of immigrants and asylees receiving support through their newly established national hotline.
- TalkingPoints unlocks the potential of all families to support their children’s learning by meaningfully connecting them with their school communities through two-way translated messages and support, especially in underserved, diverse communities. Their grant support will be used to expand the reach of their student, parent and educator engagement tools.
- Tarjimly is a tech nonprofit committed to improving the lives of the world’s 23 million refugees by eliminating language barriers. Twilio.org’s funding will enable Tarjimly to successfully launch an independent mobile app that engages a growing number of volunteers over voice, text, chat, and video.
- Law Centres Network defends the legal rights of people who cannot afford a lawyer. Twilio.org’s support will be used to help scale the Law Centres Network’s SMS support to clients from disadvantaged communities in the UK.
Each of these recipients are using innovative communications strategies that make it easier, faster, and more affordable for organizations to connect with the people they serve.
As a company built by developers, for developers, Twilio believes in the power of a diverse set of voices to create the technologies that will shape the future. To help increase diversity in the tech industry, Twilio.org is also funding the following organizations that provide technical training and career development to adults from underrepresented backgrounds seeking to join the field:
- Inclusion seeks to empower underserved communities through coding programs.
- Hack The Hood introduces members of under-resourced communities of color to careers in tech.
- Lesbians Who Tech + Allies is the largest LGBTQ technology community in the world — committed to visibility, intersectionality, and changing the face of technology.
- Douar Tech aims to provide technological skills training to rural communities in Morocco.
- BRIDGEGOOD, a project of Oakland Digital, is dedicated to bridging the tech gap for underrepresented communities.
For more information on the Twilio.org Impact Fund, visit twilio.org/impact-fund.
About Twilio.org
Twilio.org works with nonprofits and social enterprises to fuel communications that give hope, power and freedom. By connecting social impact organizations, passionate software developers and the full power of the Twilio platform, Twilio.org ignites positive change on a local and global scale. To date, more than 3,000 charities and nonprofits have used Twilio to send more than a billion messages for good.
About Twilio
Millions of developers around the world have used Twilio to unlock the magic of communications to improve any human experience. Twilio has democratized communications channels like voice, text, chat, video and email by virtualizing the world’s communications infrastructure through APIs that are simple enough for any developer to use, yet robust enough to power the world’s most demanding applications. By making communications a part of every software developer’s toolkit, Twilio is enabling innovators across every industry — from emerging leaders to the world’s largest organizations — to reinvent how companies engage with their customers.
Originally posted: February 27th, 2019
As originally posted on blog.showoff.ie
What is Pledge 1%
Pledge 1% is a global movement to create a new normal in which giving back is integrated into the DNA of companies of all sizes. Pledge 1% encourages and challenges individuals and companies to Pledge 1% of equity, profit, product, and/or employee time for their communities.
Why Showoff have joined Pledge 1%
Pledge 1% gives us the structure and toolkit to give back. We divide our efforts in two ways. Project work or non-profits as well as individuals giving time back.
Showoff is a collection of developers, technologists, engineers and entrepreneurs who love to build awesome technology products. Technology has the power to transform industries and has made a lasting impact on our societies and communities. Showoff passionately believes in the transformative capability of technology and believe in the principles that technology should be used to support all in society equally.
As a Salesforce partner company that is very active in the huge salesforce ecosystem, we first came across the amazing Pledge 1% in 2017. Immediately we knew this organisation provided a suite of tools to support us in putting structure to our philanthropic endeavours.
Since then we have become a fully fledged member. It is motivational to see the efforts other companies are making in this ecosystem. On-boarding as a member is straight forward and not time-consuming.
As a member, we have taken on some philanthropic technology products however this is very much subject to business and commercial considerations.
In 2018 our CEO Shane Byrne agreed to complete the Irish Kidney Association’s project as part of our 1% commitment. This resulted in the launch of digital donor cards in September 2018.
In addition to ad hoc projects, Showoff support staff in giving time back to charity and causes that motivate them. A number of our team are very active in their communities and have the full support of the company in their endeavours to give back to non-profits such as the amazing Social Entrepreneurs Ireland and Aiséirí . This is really simple support and it has a great impact on both staff and the organisations that they support.
At Dreamforce 2018 the Showoff commercial team met the Pledge 1% team in the partner lodge and had the huge pleasure of sitting down to discuss Pledge 1% with their amazing CEO and president Amy Lesnick. This interview is available on the Limor App. It was great to share insights with Amy and learn more about how Pledge 1% is supporting companies.
Showoff has just started their journey with Pledge 1% and our plan is to strengthen our commitment in the years ahead with numerous initiatives.
As Showoff scales globally we have made a commitment as a team to make giving back one of our principles.
For information on how Pledge 1% can help your company give back check out https://pledge1percent.org/
For information on how Showoff are building innovative technology solutions check out www.showoff.ie
Originally posted: February 27th, 2019
Originally posted on the Veniture blog.
What is Pledge 1%
Pledge 1% is a corporate philanthropy movement dedicated to making the community a key stakeholder in every business. Within this business model companies can commit 1% of their equity, profit, product or employee time for charitable purposes. We as venITure joined this great network because our corporate philosophy is reflected in their values and goals.
venITure is committed to operating as a socially responsible business, since we consider giving back to the world, as a core value of our company’s identity. We aim to leave a positive and most especially a sustainable impact on the society which we are part of. Specifically, this means for us to support voluntary initiatives and charities with the main focus on creating lasting values for social and environmental issues, education and science, cultural diversity, youth and sport activities within local communities. To reach this goal, our team gets the chance to allocate working time to share expertise, experiences and resources with those who need it the most. We are convinced that taking social responsibility enriches the team spirit and social skills. Furthermore, it adds to one of our major priorities – the personal development of our employees. We increase awareness for the life circumstances of others and continuously offer new perspectives and possibilities to improve life situations.
venITure at JUGZ and the “Social Day”
In keeping with the goals of the Pledge 1% movement, we are very proud to announce our voluntary commitment in the interest of the youth centre “JUGZ” in Cologne-Meschenich. venITure supported them by providing at least one percent of employee time, expertise and equity. Furthermore venITure donated equity to be part of the youth centre’s Christmas project, which includes Christmas gifts for every child.
Youth Centre “JUGZ”
The main focus of this organisation is set on youth and social work. Eight employees take care of more than 100 kids and teenagers by providing them afterschool support, social and sport activities e.g. playing soccer, offering dancing or music classes. Most of us would take all of the mentioned offers for granted, but unfortunately this is not the reality of everyone’s life in society. Due to its location in an area of Cologne, which is considered as a social hotspot, many of these young people don’t have access to these privileges. Therefore, we were even more happy to get the chance to volunteer at JUGZ throughout a whole day. Part of our day was to clean and organise the areas in which the children spend time. Some of us provided technical support for their employees. We also assisted as reading partners to help improving their literacy, self-confidence, communication skills and attitude towards reading. These routines are of course part of the daily work of the house. We’re looking forward to continue supporting JUGZ in the future as one of our employees said “This day taught me that even the smallest actions can have huge impacts on the lives of others. What matters is to actually start doing something.”
Impressions of the Social Day
Originally posted: February 11th, 2019
As originally published on prnewswire.com
DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan. 22, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — As part of its drive to remove paper from the process of doing business, DocuSign Inc. (NADSAQ:DOCU) today announced its ‘DocuSign for Forests’ initiative—a broad commitment to help protect the world’s forests that includes financial donations, broad scale support of non-profit organizations, and a commitment to donate 1% of expanded revenues earned from customers that pledge to improve their paper-use practices.
The initiative was unveiled at the ‘Fighting for Forests’ session during the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2019 in Davostoday alongside several sustainability luminaries—including Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE, Founder of the Jane Goodall Institute and United Nations Messenger of Peace; Thomas Friedman, author and New York Times columnist; Paul Polman, outgoing Unilever CEO and co-founder of the Tropical Forests Alliance; and Suzanne DiBianca, EVP of corporate relations and chief philanthropy officer at Salesforce.
As part of the DocuSign for Forests initiative, DocuSign will initially commit $1.5M this year to support organizations doing critical work to preserve the world’s forests—and it will continue to donate more over time.
This includes an immediate grant of $1M to the Jane Goodall Legacy Foundation—a non-profit organization announced today to ensure that Dr. Goodall’s tireless work to protect the environment can continue to benefit future generations. The commitment to the Foundation will come in equal parts from the DocuSign IMPACT Foundation and from company CEO Dan Springer in his personal capacity. The remaining $500,000 will then be earmarked for other forest-focused organizations.
DocuSign will also invite new and existing customers to improve their environmental and paper-use practices by taking a pledge at docusign.com/forests, and by moving more of their paper-based processes onto DocuSign. In return, the company will donate 1% of the expanded revenue from those customers to forest-protection causes. It will also add a calculator into its core eSignature product to showcase how people are reducing waste and positively impacting the environment—and they can also evaluate their green score at docusign.com/esign/green-score.
“As a company whose core offering is inherently forest-friendly, we are helping to save hundreds of trees every day as our more than 450,000 customers around the world decrease their use of paper. As a result, we believe we can galvanize even more people to act to protect the world’s forests,” said Springer. “We want everyone to ask whether it’s necessary to print documentation, and if so to print as little as possible. We want them to recycle all their discarded paper. And we want them to continue embracing technology to digitize as many of their business processes as possible.”
In terms of the Jane Goodall Legacy Foundation, for almost 60 years Dr. Goodall has pioneered our understanding of the animal kingdom and the environment at large—as well as the harm that humanity is inflicting on it, and solutions for protecting it as a result. The Foundation seeks to support innovative, scalable global solutions that serve to address the critical balance between preserving nature and meeting the needs of humankind.
“I have launched the Jane Goodall Legacy Foundation in the hope that we can create an endowment that will enable the programs I have developed to continue, new ones to be initiated, and so that the fight for the good of the natural world will continue beyond my lifetime,” said Dr. Goodall. “DocuSign and Dan Springer are among the first supporters of the Foundation, and I am delighted to partner with them in our goal of protecting and restoring the planet’s resources.”
“DocuSign’s new initiative is an impactful commitment to environmental causes that reinforces the mission of Pledge 1%, while addressing one of the world’s most urgent and important challenges: climate change,” said Suzanne DiBianca, EVP of corporate relations and chief philanthropy officer at Salesforce. “At Salesforce we believe that every business can be a platform for positive change and we co-founded Pledge 1% with the intention of evangelizing that message. We’re thrilled to see DocuSign implementing a bold commitment like this and hope others sign the pledge to make early-stage philanthropy the standard.”
For more information please visit docusign.com/forests.
Originally posted: January 25th, 2019
Qalaxia and Pledge 1% have partnered to make it convenient for existing members and new members of the Pledge 1% community to pledge and fulfill 1% of their time at their leisure from home or office by helping provide the best answers to student-questions posted online.
Pledge 1% members can help solve a pressing problem via ten-minute bite-sized chunks. Many students leave their questions unasked because they are afraid of ridicule by peers, are concerned that they are wasting their teachers’ time, or do not have access to experts at home who can answer. Qalaxia changes that. Qalaxia, a Pledge 1% partner and an NSF funded startup, is working to ensure that no student question goes unasked. Qalaxia provides schools, afterschool programs and non-profit organizations that are working with underprivileged students with a free online student Q&A service that provides a safe environment and answers students questions on topics ranging from homework to career choices.
Many companies can only afford to start in the Pledge 1% community by pledging 1% of their time (1% of a 40 hour week is just 20 minutes!). Even this can be burdensome for early-stage startups looking for opportunities to give back to the community. Qalaxia changes that. With Qalaxia, members who are pressed for time can make a meaningful impact in students’ lives by doing it whenever and wherever they can find ten minutes in their calendar. Qalaxia’s downloadable reports also make it easy for members to measure their impact.
To learn more about Pledge 1% or to see how you can participate, visit pledge1percent.org or email the team at members@pledge1percent.org .
To learn more about Qalaxia and how to give 1% of your time in bite-sized ten minute chunks visit qalaxia.com, or email Raji at r@qalaxia.com.
Originally posted: January 24th, 2019
Pledge 1% is a movement, a commitment, and a promise – and we are humbled to be a part of it. It allows us to expand on what we’ve already been doing: donating our time, our equity, and our product. The community is made up of incredible companies all working toward “building a movement in corporate philanthropy.” The likes of Salesforce, Box, Atlassian, Splunk, Twilio, Yelp, TechCrunch, and many more have joined.
Fluxx is a mission-driven company. And while we value and emphasize diversity, we have one fundamental thing in common – our commitment to giving back. I am proud of the fact that our entire team gives back to their respective communities individually, while as a company we come together to support our local nonprofits. These values are partly what made joining Pledge 1% such a no-brainer.
For us, Pledge 1% is a constant reminder to go above and beyond. We focus on doing that in three ways:
We donate our time
Throughout the year, our HR team organizes multiple volunteer opportunities. We volunteer at local shelters, food banks, soup kitchens, and we’ve even made our way over to our shorelines for beach cleanups. Every Giving Tuesday our entire office (including our satellite NYC employees) spends a half day volunteering as a team. This year we will be at Alameda County Community Food Bank and Grand Central Neighborhood Social Services. We’ll share more on that in our upcoming Giving Tuesday blog posts – so stay tuned!
Last year we sorted 38,570 pounds of produce, the equivalent of over 32,000 meals for our community at Alameda County Community Food Bank.
At the same time, our employees participate with local nonprofits individually. I personally spend the last Tuesday of every month at Project Open Hand which provides nutritious meals to our sick and vulnerable neighbors in SF and Oakland.
We donate a portion our product
Our Grantseeker solution was specially designed for nonprofits. It allows nonprofit teams to streamline the grant process, manage grants from multiple foundations, and provide real-time anecdotal, and measurable feedback on the impact they are having to their funders and via social media. Importantly, it enables nonprofits to showcase what matters most to them. Not to mention, if a nonprofit is managing grants from multiple foundations that use Fluxx for Grantmakers, all of these grants can be easily managed within the same platform. This streamlines their processes, saving them valuable time.
Because we intimately understand how tight budgets are at nonprofits, we promise to always provide a version of the Grantseeker solution – for free – to the boots-on-the-ground teams who need it most!
We donate our equity
Lastly, we’re committed to donating a portion of our equity. We do this because we believe that when organizations donate a portion of their equity, the entire community they touch is supported. Business doesn’t have to just be about the bottom line and appeasing shareholders. We can (and do) elevate our work to do more.
To learn about Pledge 1% and see how you can get involved, check out the Pledge 1% website.
To learn more about Fluxx, read more about our solutions here.
Originally posted: January 24th, 2019
