S02E17 - InnovaterHERS: A Chat with the Authors | Dr. Barbara Kurshan & Laura Smulian

Build Momentum - Thought Leadership for Education, Global Workforce Edition

In this episode of Build Momentum, we are joined by Dr. Barbara Kurshan and Laura Smulian. Dr. Barbara "Bobbi" Kurshan is the president of Educorp Consultants Corporation and senior fellow and innovation advisor of the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania, and a former education industry entrepreneur who has more than 40 years of experience in education, including developing the first children's software products for Microsoft.

Laura Smulian is a writer, an editor, and an award-winning learning designer who spent the past seven years building out operations for quickly growing edtech startups in Latin America. She also launched a venture called the E-Ship Bootcamp, a four-week program that takes teams of students through the process of building their own startup from zero to launch.
Some Questions I Ask:

• How did the InnovateHer project come together? (2:19)
• What do you want potential and future innovators to achieve through this book? (4:07)
• How do you describe the benchmark for entrepreneurial mindset throughout the book? (5:03)
• Would you share a snapshot of some of the people you included in the book? (21:40)
• What would you love to see women pursue to embark on their careers as purposeful innovators after reading the book? (23:30)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• The beginning of InnovateHers (2:26)
• Key takeaways from reading the book (4:19)
• About the “Entrepreneurial Mindset Profile” (5:22)
• The story of innovator Lisa Hall (21:53)
• Actions to be taken after reading the book to be a purposeful innovator (23:46)

Quotes:
“I wanted them to see that the stories were personal, that they could do it too, and that there were certain things they needed to be aware of along the way so they wouldn't have the traps that women have had in the past.”

“I'd like to see [people] share the book with young innovators. I think it's a great gift to give to somebody that you're mentoring. The other thing I want to see them do with it is to share their story. I'd like to build a community of people that are sharing their stories so people understand that we're all not that different, but we can learn from our entrepreneurial mindset.”

“There's no one right way to rise to the top. It has nothing to do with external indicators and checking off boxes, but rather traits and skills that are powerful that we can build and work to leverage in order to rise to the top. There's not a formula for this; everyone was a little different.”

Connect with InnovateHer:
InnovateHer website
Dr. Barbara Kurshan's LinkedIn
Laura Smulian’s LinkedIn

Stay in touch with Sarah Williamson:
Free Case Study Guide
SWPR GROUP Website
LinkedIn
Stay in touch with Chad Bolser:
LinkedIn
About "The Secret to Transformational Leadership," which Sarah co-authored with Dr. Quintin Shepherd:
Transformational Leadership Secret website
Purchase the print or ebook