Chief
TypePrivate company
IndustryWomen's professional network
FoundedJanuary 2019 (2019-01)
FoundersCarolyn Childers
Lindsay Kaplan
Headquarters
New York City
,
United States
Number of locations
5 (2023)
ServicesMentoring, workshops, workspaces, events and related services for women executives
Members20,000 (2022)
Websitechief.com

Chief is a private women's business networking organization for senior executives. The membership-based community was launched in New York in 2019.[1] The company attained unicorn status in 2022. As of 2023, Chief is accessed by members online, at hosted live events, and at its five clubhouses, located in the United States and the United Kingdom.

History

Chief was launched as a networking organization for senior executive women in January 2019[2] by former Handy and Primary Venture Partners executive Carolyn Childers and former Casper vice-president Lindsay Kaplan. The membership-based business network is headquartered in New York City.[3][4]

In June 2019, the company raised $22 million in a Series A funding round led by Chief board members – General Catalyst chairman Ken Chenault and Alexa von Tobel, managing partner of Inspired Capital.[5] Early investors also included GGV Capital, Primary Venture Partners, Flybridge Capital and BoxGroup. In October 2022, Chief became a $1.1 billion unicorn following a Series B funding round which raised a total of $140 million in 2022 from General Catalyst, GGV Capital, Inspired Capital, Primary Ventures and Flybridge, led by Alphabet subsidiary CapitalG's $100 million investment, with its partner, Laela Sturdy, joining Chief's board.[6][7]

In 2020, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Chief transitioned from live networking to exclusively virtual activity,[8] bolstering growth[5] as women accessed online platforms in greater numbers.[4] Membership was 400 in March 2019,[2] and 2,000 one year later.[5] Two years later, membership reached 12,000 women leaders from 8,500 companies,[4] with over three-quarters of members employed by Fortune 100 companies.[9] In October 2022, membership reached 20,000.[10]

In March 2023, Fortune magazine reported criticism from some members; Chief acknowledged "growing pains" in pivoting to a fully digital model during the pandemic-era and scaling quickly in response to heightened demand.[7][11] The company stated that they have addressed operational challenges.[11] Criticism was also noted for perceived under-representation in diversity and in social and political engagement.[12]

As of February 2023, Chief has opened physical clubhouses in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago,[8] San Francisco[13] and London, England.[14][15]

Operations

With subscription to its digital platform integral to the company business model,[13] Chief's mission is "to drive more women to the top—and keep them there"[7][10] by constructing a live[13] and online support system for senior executive leaders.[9][16] Chief membership grants access to its "vetted network" of peers;[4] mentoring;[3] workshops;[5] curated monthly peer groups[5] with executive coaches;[4][17] and talks with noted women executives, such as Amal Clooney, Indra Nooyi, Michelle Obama, Arianna Huffington, Gloria Steinem and Mindy Kaling.[9] Members pay additional fees for access to some of Chief's clubhouse facilities.[4]

Membership is limited to women and non-binary[18] vice presidents and C-suite executives, with about 70 percent of members sponsored by their individual employers.[19][10]

Chief conducts surveys[20] and partners with other organizations in women's leadership studies.[21] In 2023, the company began gender diversity coaching for companies as Chief Enterprise.[18]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "How Chief Became One of the First Women-Led Billion-Dollar Success Stories During the Pandemic" Britt Morse, Inc., March 31, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Scaling Chief" Katherine Coffman, et al, Harvard Business Review November 6, 2019. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  3. 1 2 "Chief's Carolyn Childers and Lindsay Kaplan Are Changing The Path To The Executive Suite" Carrie Hammer, Forbes, August 28, 2019. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "A members-only club for female executives is coming to San Francisco with the help of Google’s cash" Jennifer Elias, CNBC April 24, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 "How the founders of Chief, a private network for C-suite women, are expanding amid the pandemic" Courtney Connley, CNBC, July 8, 2020. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  6. ↑ TechCrunch "Women’s leadership network Chief surges to unicorn status" Jordan Crook, TechCrunch, March 31, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  7. 1 2 3 Fortune1 "Chief, the $5,800-per-year women’s networking startup, is worth $1 billion and has a waiting list of 60,000. Some members say the club isn’t living up to the hype" Katherine Dunn, March 16, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  8. 1 2 Forbes2 "This Exclusive Women’s Network Is Going National" Jena McGregor, Forbes, January 11, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  9. 1 2 3 "Chief Expands to the United Kingdom" Yahoo!, October 4, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  10. 1 2 3 Yahoo590 "Chief, the $5,800-per-year women’s networking startup, is worth $1 billion and has a waiting list of 60,000. Some members say the club isn’t living up to the hype" Katherine Dunn, Yahoo!, March 16, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  11. 1 2 "Inside the 'growing pains' at Chief, the exclusive women’s networking club with a waitlist of 60,000 and a valuation of $1.1 billion" Claire Zillman and Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, March 20, 202.3 Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  12. ↑ NYT "Is Empowering Corporate Women Enough?" Emma Goldberg, The New York Times, March 28, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  13. 1 2 3 "Women tech execs rejoice as female-only leadership club opens in San Francisco" Jennifer Elias, CNBC, November 26, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  14. ↑ Bloomberg1 "Google-Backed $1 Billion Women’s Networking Firm to Launch in UK" Ruth David, Bloomberg News, October 4, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Women’s networking club Chief lands in London" Lucy Tobin, The Times, February 5, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  16. ↑ "The Club With a 60,000-Woman Waitlist" Jeff Green, Bloomberg News, December 5, 2022. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  17. ↑ "The Only Private Club for Women Executives Just Opened in SF" Julie Zigoris, The San Francisco Standard, January 19, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  18. 1 2 "Chief Helping women rise" Alison Van Houten, Time, June 21, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  19. ↑ "The New Perk For Women Executives: Membership In This Exclusive Group" Jena McGregor, Forbes, January 24, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  20. ↑ Chief’s Study Finds 80% of Women Leaders Use Networking to Drive Career Success" Yahoo!, July 19, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  21. ↑ "IBM and Chief study finds gaps in women's leadership pipeline" Anne Stych, The Business Journals, March 2, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
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