September 13, 2020

#172: Stephanie Lampkin, Fortune 40 under 40, and Founder & CEO of Blendoor, an Inclusive Recruiting & People Analytics Software, on Building Bridges, Prioritizing Corporate DE&I, and the Challenges of Fundraising as a WOC

50 minutes

Stephanie Lampkin is the founder and CEO of Blendoor, an AI and people analytics platform that helps companies hire and retain a diverse workforce by mitigating unconscious bias and leveraging big data and analytics to drive more meritocratic decision-making. Candidates are sourced from hundreds of strategic partners & universities and presented to recruiters without name, photo or dates. Then, Blendoor integrates with a company's HR systems to track candidates based on demographics to identify where & how bias happens; this transparency drives accountability within orgs, teams, and even individual hiring managers. In addition to measuring bias, Blendoor provides metrics that demonstrate the ROI of diversity & inclusion initiatives. With data & AI, they aim to move the discussion from social good to business intelligent.

Stephanie has had a 15 year career in the tech industry founding two startups and working in technical roles at Lockheed, Microsoft, and TripAdvisor. She holds a BS in Management Science & Engineering from Stanford University and an MBA from MIT.

Connect with Stephanie Lampkin

Blendoor
YouTube
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
LinkedIn
[email protected]

Some of the Topics Covered by Stephanie Lampkin in this Episode

How Stephanie taught herself coding at age 13
What Blendoor is and what led Stephanie to found it
Stephanie's original vision for Blendoor and how it has pivoted and evolved into what it is today
How Stephanie created the idea at a hackathon
How Stephanie approaches customer acquisition
The early fundraising process for Blendoor and what she learned from it
The importance of relationship building
Product development as an AI SaaS B2B company
How Stephanie has defined her ideal customers and approached sales
Stephanie's move to Silicon Valley
Leveraging press and PR for sales
Building out the team for Blendoor
How Blendoor sources diverse talent
How Stephanie approaches partnerships for Blendoor
Identifying and onboarding clients that are ready to work with Blendoor
The importance of DE&I and getting companies to prioritize it
The challenge of fundraising as a black woman
The business model for Blendoor
The big vision for Blendoor
Stephanie's advice for entrepreneurs
How Stephanie recharges away from work
Stephanie's book recommendations
Stephanie's entrepreneurial experience founding Hoowenware prior to Blendoor
Deciding to get an MBA
How to get involved with Blendoor

Links from the Episode

Black Data Processing Associates
Hackathon
Blendoor on Fast Company
Blendoor on Forbes
Tech Inclusion Conference
Blendoor's BlendScore tool
National Black MBA Association
Society of Women Engineers
Anita Borg Institute
Grace Hopper Celebration
National Society of Black Engineers
Mellody Hobson on Corporate Diversity
#131: Olivia Owens, Creator and General Manager of IFundWomen of Color and Head of Partnerships at IFundWomen, a Platform for Female Entrepreneurs to Raise Capital Through Crowdfunding
IFundWomen of Color
Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
#143: Lillian Rafson, Founder and CEO of Pack Up + Go, a Travel Agency with Surprise Destinations, on Bootstrapping the Business, Planning 10,000+ Trips, and Running a Travel Company During the COVID Crisis
#121: Samantha Patil, Founder and CEO of Well Traveled, a Members Only Review Platform for Millennial Travelers

...more

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By Justin Gordon

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