Ladies Who Strategize

Ladies Who Strategize is heading back to Cannes and YOU should join us-! This year we'll be hosting breakfasts and pre-party drinks at our apartment and private patio a half block away from the Carlton, right in the thick of the action. If you're looking to reach strategists and marketing execs for intimate gatherings before the craziness of the day starts, reach out to find out more about the sponsorships/partnerships available: https://lnkd.in/eKw93vNT Also, if you'll be at Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity reach out! I'd love to catch up over a glass of rosé.

The cat's out of the bag! Ladies Who Strategize is teaming up with The One Club for Creativity to help with their first Strategy Event ?? How we manage to keep up as strategists is a constant source of stress, wonder, prioritization, and moxie. Strategy is a rapidly evolving and ever-expanding profession, which means we constantly have to be at the top of our game. We’re constantly exploring and absorbing business and culture while identifying the best way to leverage these learnings for both our clients and our teams. To keep swimming and deliver we need to employ a range of tools and skills. In this session we’ll get down to brass tacks with leaders from 4 distinctively different perspectives: in-house, in-house agency, design firm, and creative agency. We’re joined by Ariana Koblitz, VP of Experience Design, Anita Schillhorn van Veen, Executive Director of Strategy at McKinney, Kathleen Bokar, Head of Strategy, the Kitchen at Kraft Heinz, and Katherine Lee, Executive Strategy Director at Athletics. Find out more about the free virtual panel AND the one day strategy seminar here: https://lnkd.in/eGwkwBPZ

A couple weeks ago, I had the unique opportunity to facilitate a training session on how change happens in organizations… from a pool. Not near a pool. Not around a pool. Session participants were in the pool. To be fair, I only let my legs dangle as I sat on the side, but still. What is this life?! In 2025? How lucky (and grateful) am I? Over the past few years, I’ve benefited greatly from the Ladies Who Strategize community, and last week I attended the Annual LWS Retreat for the second time. It’s an experience that’s honestly difficult to describe. As my dear friend Susannah Fogarty mused, this retreat is what emerges when you mix friendship, like-minded career paths, brilliant minds, and deep trust and respect together. And lots of sunshine, rest, and mangos. This year, I led a session on organizational change. Armed with floaties and cocktails, a group of us got into the pool and talked about the incredible abilities strategists have to influence change in agency and client systems. Link is the comments to read more (about how change happens, not mangos). Forever thankful to Kim Mackenzie for all she has poured into cultivating this community.?

LWS Retreats are more than pool hangs, they're strategy conferences. Last week we had 6 bangin' trainings sessions, ranging from Negotiation to Org Change, Account Management to Behavioral Change. Want to get a taste of what you can experience on an LWS retreat? Think your company or agency needs these skills? Speak Up, Cash In? Rosie (Siman) Yakob + Kim Mackenzie A dynamic workshop designed for entrepreneurs, professionals, and business owners who want to master the art of negotiation with confidence and strategy. Whether you're asking for a raise, closing a deal, or advocating for your business, this session will equip you with the tactics and skills to communicate your value and secure what you deserve. Everyone needs this, especially you. Org Change 101: Understanding how change happens in human systems Sarah Herberg Where there is a need for strategy, change is often afoot. Yet most strategists possess a superficial understanding of organizational change. This session offers a fresh perspective on org change and gets you thinking about how your strategist’s toolkit is filled with power. Designed for all strategists. It offers a fresh way to view and understand org change and reclaim their power when it feels like an org change is happening 'to' them. The Messy Middle? Whitney Donaldson This session explores that space when you’re knee deep in figuring out what it all means - finding sparks in unexpected places and pinpointing those magical moments when scattered pieces start clicking into a clear strategic direction. Behavior Change 101? Leah Carlisle Provides grounding in the fundamentals of behavioral science, defining what it is and outlining key principles of applying this lens ethically and effectively. We spotlight the holistic factors influencing human behavior, and participants apply these principles to their own behavioral challenges and goals. For anyone trying to change the behaviors of themselves or others - agency strategists and consultants alike! Power Moves: Applying Co-Active Coaching to Strategy and Life ?Hannah Jew A high-energy, interactive presentation for strategists of all kinds, exploring how coaching principles can enhance strategic thinking, creativity, and impact. It equips strategists with practical tools to foster deeper insights, stronger collaborations, and more effective decision-making in both their professional and personal lives. Account Management for Planners (or, Suit Loving 101) Laura Pearlstein Mills Whether you're in an agency working alongside account management, or out on your own trying to do what they do, you need to start by understanding?(and appreciating!) the role of account management. We discuss what makes a great account lead, and the tenets to remember in driving your own accounts. For strategists working with suits and indies who now have to do this work by themselves! All of these sessions will be available for paid Ladies Who Strategize Members over the next 6 months!

Ladies Who Strategize Statement on the Trump Administration to Members: The LWS Board and I felt it was crucial to acknowledge the pain that Trump’s presidency is already causing for many of our Members, express our strong disapproval with these actions and policies, and offer some resources and plans for moving forward. ? If you take nothing else from this, note this:?LWS is not a place for hate of any kind.?We refuse to be complicit in or tolerant of the damaging behavior shown by the Trump administration and some of its supporters. ? We are a community of and for women and nonbinary people. We reject the idea of “only two genders” and are appalled by the blatant transphobia coming out of this administration already. We will continue to be a welcoming and affirming space for our trans and nonbinary members. ? We are deeply alarmed and outraged by plans to gut reproductive rights and healthcare for women. We recognize our identities are not contained only by our gender; many of us are under compounded threats from this administration. Whether you are feeling the impact of these actions as an immigrant, person of color, LGBTQIA+ individual, member of a religious group, or as someone who is disabled, chronically ill, or neurodivergent, we want you to know we stand with you.? ? To our Jewish Members, their friends, family, and communities, we saw Elon Musk’s Nazi salutes and were horrified by both the gestures and the media’s response and subsequent dilution of the impact, pain, and seriousness that it has and will cause. ? What are our first steps? + Immediately, we will schedule a virtual session for Members to share how they’re feeling, process what’s happening, and find mutual support. + We will continue with our mission to eliminate sexism within our industry. + Importantly, we will continue to reflect on our own actions and change course as and when needed to reflect our community’s needs. + We will continue to solidify and grow LWS's commitment to DEI through community-informed actions. If you’d like to be involved with that effort, reach out to a board member.? ? We are open to ideas and suggestions, especially when they are paired with thoughtful recommendations and inclusively minded solutions. Please let us know what you’d like to see from us and what you’re available to offer as we navigate the next four years and beyond. ? We’re in this together, ? Kim Mackenzie, sam laubach, Rosie (Siman) Yakob, Nicole Aysan, Ariana Koblitz, Leah Carlisle, Tasha Gideon, Whitney Donaldson, Melanie McShane, Hannah Jew, Katherine Diaz, Nicole Ingra LWS Founder & LWS Board