Ladies Who Launch is pleased to announce the appointment of Jennifer Warren as its new Executive Director. Warren succeeds Julie Kikla, who served as Executive Director since 2019. Kirka also served previously as a member of the organization’s volunteer corps, since 2017. Ladies Who Launch is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a mission to inspire, educate and empower women and non-binary entrepreneurs
“We are thrilled that Jennifer is joining the Ladies Who Launch community. After a highly competitive search, we, along with the Board of Directors, agreed unanimously that Jennifer has the experience, leadership and passion to accelerate our purpose and mission,” said Sarah Friar and Kelly McGonigle, Co-Founders of Ladies Who Launch. “Ladies Who Launch is at an exciting moment organizationally as we grow from a relatively young start-up to a more operationally mature, fast-scaling, sustainable organization. Jennifer brings a unique mix of experience and expertise focused on fostering systems-change, achieving operational excellence and driving performance, all while putting people and communities first.”
An impressive resume
Prior to joining Ladies Who Launch, Warren was Managing Director of Harvest, a boutique women-owned and led consulting firm. Harvest partners with nonprofit organizations and foundations to develop comprehensive fundraising and development strategies to drive change. Among clients, Warren worked with organizations advancing educational equity and social and criminal justice reform. These organizations included The Legal Aid Society, Breakthrough Silicon Valley and Equitable Facilities Fund. Earlier, Warren worked at Children’s Aid, Year Up, and the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development. In these roles, she developed and executed strategic initiatives, built mission-critical public-private partnerships and generated new and increased revenue.
“I started my career as a Development Intern at Tostan in Senegal because I cared deeply about ensuring all girls and women have access to education and opportunity, because when you lift up women, you lift up families and communities. Nearly 20 years later, my commitment to supporting girls and women, to making quality education available for all, to driving equitable resources to communities and to fostering inclusive communities remains central to who I am and what I do. Joining Ladies Who Launch is the opportunity of a lifetime, and I look forward to partnering with aspiring and current entrepreneurs, donors, corporations and other partners to ensure women and non-binary business owners have the access and opportunity to build the businesses of their dreams. I thank Sarah Friar, Kelly McGonigle, and the Board of Directors for this tremendous opportunity and responsibility,” said Jennifer Warren.
About Ladies Who Launch
Ladies Who Launch (LWL) celebrates and empowers women and non-binary business owners across small towns and big cities globally. We focus on four pillars: Inspiration, Education, Funding and Community. We provide women and non-binary entrepreneurs with motivation, resources and connections. Our goal is to help them follow their dreams and launch and scale their companies.
Check out the 2021 cohort of Ladies Who Launch’s “Launch Program” for women-owned businesses impacted by COVID.
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