UNBOSSED by Marina

Wepa! I'm Marina. I am a technologist, mom, podcast host, leadership coach, cruciverbalist and aquarian. ;)

UNBOSSED is “Stories of Amazing Women in Chicago”.

If you are a new listener to UNBOSSED, we would love to hear from you. Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/marina-malaguti

In this episode I interview Katie Edmonds, Strategic Designer at Rhode Island School of Design.

Katie Edmonds is a strategic designer specializing in the intersection of design and research. As Studio Lead, she develops and delivers programs that introduce and develop strategic design capabilities. Directly prior to joining RISD she worked in New York City at the intersection of nonprofit and government developing strategic interventions in economically vulnerable communities. This practice was based in placemaking and participatory design on topics including public safety and smart cities for clients including the NYC Mayor’s Office of Tech and Innovation and the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice. Prior to her graduate studies she worked in Silicon Valley and New York City in a variety of startup contexts focusing on entertainment and technology. She holds a Masters degree in Media Studies and a Masters degree in Transdisciplinary Design from Parsons School of Design, and an undergraduate degree in Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley.

Key Highlights/Tools:

Memorable Quotes:

Useful Links and Resources:

Our favorite part of recording a live podcast each week is participating in the great conversations that happen on Linkedin,Twitter, and in our comments section.

In this episode my guest is Felicia Davis, President & CEO of Chicago Foundation for Women. Felicia Davis is a self-described “girl from the South Side.” She is deeply committed to the community through inclusive service to others. As president and CEO of Chicago Foundation for Women, she leads their strategic efforts in investing in women and girls as catalysts, building stronger communities for all.

Felicia is passionate about transforming lives and serves as an educator and mentor through a variety of networks, participating on numerous boards and committees, including as a member of Governor JB Pritzker’s Inauguration Committee, the Board of Regents for Mercy Home for Boys and Girls, an appointee to the Illinois Senate Sexual Discrimination, Harassment Awareness and Prevention Task Force, the American Cancer Society, and iHeartMedia Chicago’s Local Advisory Board.

She has been in public service for the majority of her career. As a member of the Chicago Police Department, she served with distinction for a decade, as a police officer and then as a violent crimes detective. As Interim President of Olive-Harvey College, appointed by City Colleges of Chicago’s Chancellor Juan Salgado, Felicia led the College’s efforts in developing, maintaining, and evaluating academic programs and enhancing the student learning experience for optimum achievement. She served as the inaugural Executive Director of the Office of Public Engagement in Mayor Rahm Emmanuel’s administration, where she led efforts to connect communities to resources. As Mayor Emmanuel’s First Deputy Chief of Staff, she implemented community-focused strategies to increase public safety across the City.

Felicia exemplifies leadership in all she sets out to do. She is a Leadership Greater Chicago Fellow and a founding member of the Chicago Foundation for Women’s South Side Giving Circle, where she has blazed a trail for supporting Black women and girls through philanthropy and collective giving.

Memorable Quotes:

Useful Links and Resources:

Our favorite part of recording a live podcast each week is participating in the great conversations that happen on our Linkedin and Twitter, and in our comments section.

Wepa! I'm Marina. I am a technologist, mom, podcast host, leadership coach, cruciverbalist and aquarian. ;)

UNBOSSED is “Stories of Amazing Women in Chicago”.

If you are a new listener to UNBOSSED, we would love to hear from you. Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/marina-malaguti

In this episode:

I Interview Sandee Kastrul, President and Cofounder of i.c.stars. Sandee Kastrul sees stars.

Sandee is president and co-founder of i.c.stars, an innovative nonprofit leadership and technology training program founded in 1999 to prepare inner-city adults for technology careers and community leadership.

An early pioneer of the social enterprise model, i.c.stars has graduated more than 300 community leaders, and will expand into multiple cities in 2016 and 2017. Under Sandee’s leadership, i.c.stars was highlighted by the U.S Chamber of Commerce for its work in youth employment. She is a proud board member of Good City, The Ryan Banks Academy, and HICC (Hispanic Innovation Center in Chicago). She’s also an advisor for the Axelson Center, Chicago Ideas Week, and the Experience Institute.

Key Highlights/Tools:

Memorable Quotes:

Useful Links and Resources:

Our favorite part of recording a live podcast each week is participating in the great conversations that happen on our live chat, on social media, and in our comments section.

This week's question is: What challenges have you faced as a woman founder?

Ask Sandee anything by leaving a question/ comment on Substack.

Today you will hear an interview with me! 

Wepa! I'm Marina. I am a technologist, mom, podcast host, leadership coach, cruciverbalist and aquarian ;)

UNBOSSED is “Stories of Amazing Women in Chicago”.

Follow our Podcast Youtube:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDTz6_FepG04QTs1BjFLBjw/ Spotify: https://lnkd.in/eUhfH8E Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/e7cWtBv Google Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/enjChPt And all others..

Wepa! I'm Marina. I am a technologist, mom, podcast host, leadership coach, cruciverbalist and aquarian ;)

UNBOSSED is “Stories of Amazing Women in Chicago”.

If you are a new listener to UNBOSSED, we would love to hear from you. Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/marina-malaguti

In this episode:

Cheryl Kemp is the Founder & CEO of indiFIT, a business management platform for fitness and wellness instructors.

Cheryl's earliest roots are in the restaurant industry, which she jumped into at the ripe age of 16. Those roots led her to several exciting career adventures in the food delivery and digital ordering space - including being an early marketing hire at OrderUp, who was ultimately acquired by Groupon, and leading Enterprise Partnerships at Ritual. The only thing she loves more than building startups is group fitness, which is why she is deeply passionate about empowering fitness instructors with technology. She is also a dog and plant mom who can be spotted scooting around Chicago on her Vespa.

Key Highlights:

Timestamp:

0:00 - Introductions

5:00 - Get to Know Cheryl

15:00- Early Days and Cheryl’s Entrepreneurial Spirit

30:00 - You won’t want to miss this section, Listen to Cheryl talk about starting IndieFit

45:00 - Talks about being a woman founder

Memorable Quotes:

Useful Links and Resources:

Our favorite part of recording a live podcast each week is participating in the great conversations that happen on our live chat, on social media, and in our comments section.

This week's question is: What challenges have you faced as a woman founder?

Ask Cheryl anything by leaving a question/ comment on Substack:

Wepa! I'm Marina. I am a technologist, mom, podcast host, leadership coach, cruciverbalist and aquarian. ;)

UNBOSSED is “Stories of Amazing Women in Chicago”.

If you are a new listener to UNBOSSED, we would love to hear from you. Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/marina-malaguti

In this episode:

Dr. Suzet M. McKinney is a public health expert, medical executive, thought leader, strategic thinker and nationally recognized expert in emergency preparedness and response. As Principal and Director of Life Sciences for Sterling Bay, Dr.McKinney oversees relationships with the scientific, academic, corporate,tech, and governmental sectors involved in the life sciences ecosystem.She also leads the strategy to expand Sterling Bay’s footprint in life sciences nationwide. She previously served as CEO and Executive Director of the Illinois Medical District, where she managed a 24/7/365 environment that included 560 acres of medical research facilities, labs, a biotech business incubator, universities, raw land development areas, four hospitals and more than 40 healthcare-related facilities. Within two years

of leadership, Dr. McKinney accomplished a financial turnaround of the IMD, successfully retiring  more than $40 million in debt.

In 2020, Dr. McKinney was appointed by Illinois Governor JB Pritzker as Operations Lead for the  State of Illinois’ Alternate Care Facilities, a network of alternate medical locations designed to  decompress the hospital system during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prior to leading the IMD, Dr. McKinney served as the Deputy Commissioner of the Bureau of  Public Health Preparedness and Emergency Response at the Chicago Department of Public Health  (CDPH), where she oversaw the emergency preparedness efforts for the Department and  coordinated those efforts within the larger spectrum of the City of Chicago’s Public Safety activities,  in addition to overseeing the Department’s Division of Women and Children’s Health. She also

provided support to the U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Threat Reduction Agency, lending subject matter expertise in biological terrorism preparedness to the country of Poland.

Previously, she served as the Sr. Advisor for Public Health and Preparedness at the Tauri Group,  where she provided strategic and analytical consulting services to the U.S. Department of Homeland  Security’s (DHS), BioWatch Program.

Dr McKinney also serves on numerous boards and advisory committees and works in academia.

Dr. McKinney holds her Doctorate degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago School of  Public Health, with a focus on preparedness planning, leadership and workforce development. She  received her Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Brandeis University (Waltham, MA) where she was  also a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Fellow. She received her Master of Public Health degree  (Health Care Administration) and certificates in Managed Care and Health Care Administration  from Benedictine University in Lisle, IL.

Key Highlights/Tools:

Wepa! I'm Marina. I am a technologist, mom, podcast host, leadership coach, cruciverbalist and aquarian. ;)

UNBOSSED is “Stories of Amazing Women in Chicago”.

If you are a new listener to UNBOSSED, we would love to hear from you. Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/marina-malaguti

In this episode:

I interviewed Laurie M. Joyner, who began her service as the 20th president of Saint Xavier University in January 2017.

Known as a “mission-driven, student-centered and accomplished administrator passionately committed to institutional success,” President Joyner has championed mission integration efforts, inclusive excellence initiatives and the alignment of organizational structure and resources to drive educational quality and improved institutional performance.

During her presidency, SXU embarked on the STRIVE 2025: Pathways to Institutional Excellence,

Accountability and Sustainability Strategic Plan (STRIVE 2025), enrolled its two largest and most diverse first-year classes in its 175-year history, increased first-to-second year retention for three consecutive years, expanded high-impact educational practices and institutionalized a service excellence initiative aligned with the core values of respect, collaboration, responsiveness and effectiveness.

Under her leadership, SXU has also secured the largest federal grant in institutional history, established the first endowed professorship, and since FY17 has reduced long-term debt by 46.6%, increased cash on hand by 288%, increased total financial assets by more than 312%, increased its quasi-endowment tenfold and nearly tripled its total endowment (282%).

President Joyner is passionate about improving diversity, equity and inclusion on campus and is a 2019 National Inclusive Excellence Leadership Academy (NIXLA) Fellow. During her tenure, SXU became one of 29 colleges across the state to form the Illinois Equity in Attainment (ILEA) initiative, a partnership geared toward eliminating racial and socioeconomic achievement gaps across student groups while increasing graduation rates by 2025.

Key Highlights/Tools:

Memorable Quotes:

Useful Links and Resources:

Our favorite part of recording a live podcast each week is participating in the great conversations that happen on our live chat, on social media, and in our comments section.

Wepa! I'm Marina. I am a technologist, mom, podcast host, leadership coach, cruciverbalist and aquarian. ;)

UNBOSSED is “Stories of Amazing Women in Chicago”.

If you are a new listener to UNBOSSED, we would love to hear from you. Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/marina-malaguti

In this episode:

Elena Valentine is a workplace filmmaker and design researcher. Elena has made it her mission to help people find meaning in their work through stories that matter. With the motto “you cannot be what you cannot see” Elena started filming jobs as a way to get young people excited about careers. Since then, her team at Skill Scout has since built a world class media company. Their films have helped clients like Nike, McDonalds, and American Airlines engage candidates and employees alike. Elena's particularly excited about Skill Scout's latest project, the Humans@Work documentary and virtual film festival series that shares stories of people who find passion and meaning in their work.

Elena was recently named HR Superhero by DisruptHR Chicago and Newcity's Film 50 of 2020. She is also the co-founder of Mezcla Media Collective, a a thriving community based Chicagoland non-profit that elevates femme identifying filmmakers of color.

Key Highlights/Tools:

Memorable Quotes:

Useful Links and Resources:

Our favorite part of recording a live podcast each week is participating in the great conversations that happen on our live chat, on social media, and in our comments section.

This week's question is: What challenges have you faced as a woman founder?

Ask Elena anything by leaving a question/ comment on Substack.

Music from Uppbeat (free for Creators!):

https://uppbeat.io/t/infraction/live-it

License code: 0OYRKRXZRCJPIFYY

Wepa! I'm Marina. I am a technologist, mom, podcast host, leadership coach, cruciverbalist and aquarian. ;)

UNBOSSED is “Stories of Amazing Women in Chicago”.

If you are a new listener to UNBOSSED, we would love to hear from you. Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/marina-malaguti

In this episode:

I interviewed Dorri McWhorter,President and CEO at YMCA of Metro Chicago. Dorri joined the YMCA in August 2021. Before serving at the Y, Dorri joined YWCA Metropolitan Chicago in March 2013 and has led the organization’s transformation to a social enterprise, including the YWCA’s expansion of digital services with the launch of YShop.org (e-commerce platform), womenshealthexchange.org (health insurance and information) and the MPWR, pronounced “empower”, mobile app (community engagement). Dorri leverages her large-scale change experience from working over 20 years in management consulting to the work that the YWCA does to create social change. Dorri lead the process for the YWCA to develop an exchange traded fund (ETF) for women’s empowerment (NYSE: WOMN) in partnership with Impact Shares, which is the first non-profit investment advisor to develop an ETF product. Dorri was included in the inaugural list of “The Blue Network”, comprised of the top 100 innovators in Chicago, by Chicago Tribune’s Blue Sky Innovation and is a 2019 Inductee in the Chicago Innovation Hall of Fame. Dorri serves on the Board of Directors for William Blair Funds and Skyway Concession Company (Chicago Skyway), and Lifeway Foods, Inc. Dorri co-chairs the Advisory Board for First Women’s Bank (in formation). McWhorter’s civic and philanthropic leadership includes the board of directors for the Chicago Center for Arts and Technology, 1871 (Technology Business Accelerator), Civic Consulting Alliance, and the Civic Federation. Dorri is also a member of the Illinois Charitable Trust Board. McWhorter received a bachelor of business administration degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a master of business administration degree from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Lake Forest College.

Memorable Quotes:

Useful Links and Resources:

Wepa! I'm Marina. I am a technologist, mom, podcast host, leadership coach, cruciverbalist and aquarian. ;)

UNBOSSED is “Stories of Amazing Women in Chicago”.

If you are a new listener to UNBOSSED, we would love to hear from you. Please visit our Contact Page and let us know how we can help you today!

Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/marina-malaguti

In this episode:

Gabi is Co-founder and CEO of Trvlpage, a travel based social media app where you can share your travel experiences and plan a trip with your trusted network’s recommendations. She is an avid traveler who spent 5 months post college traveling SouthEast Asia and South Africa. She studied Marketing at University of Illinois and attended Fullstack Academy where she learned software development. Before Trvlpage, she worked as a developer at Jellyvision. She has been the sole developer and CEO of Trvlpage since 2019.

**USE CODE “UNBOSSED” TO BYPASS TRVLPG WAITLIST**

Key Highlights/Tools:

Timestamp:

2:00   How Gabi and I met - we go back!

5:00   Gabi’s story

9:50   Transition to Tech

16:00 What is a Dev Bootcamp

22:00 Traveling Abroad and her solo journey in Asia and Africa

27:00 Lessons Learnt while traveling

34:00 Stating Travel Page

40:00 Being the software developer and CEO of a company

47:00 Outros

Memorable Quotes:

Useful Links and Resources:

Our favorite part of recording a live podcast each week is participating in the great conversations that happen on our live chat, on social media, and in our comments section.

This week's question is: What challenges have you faced as a woman founder?

Ask Gabi anything by leaving a question/ comment on Substack.