October 24, 2024 • 19 mins
Join us on the Female Founder Show as we welcome the remarkable Amy Bahrani, a trailblazer in aerospace and defense consulting at Accenture. Amy's captivating journey from rural America to making strides in a male-dominated field is nothing short of inspiring. She shares her passion for the intersection of business and government, emphasizing how strategic workforce initiatives can unlock the true potential of a company's people. Her commitment to championing women in aerospace through mentorship and recognition is a testament to her leadership. Amy also sheds light on innovative recruitment strategies that tap into underutilized talent pools, such as returning veterans and women re-entering the workforce, challenging conventional norms.
Beyond Amy's insights, this episode delves into the broader themes of women in leadership and business. We discuss the critical importance of cultivating confidence and owning one's voice, especially in environments that may not always be supportive. The analogy of balancing glass and rubber balls offers a fresh perspective on managing multiple roles and responsibilities. Additionally, the episode highlights the inspiring story of a young professional's journey toward becoming a managing director, showcasing her dedication to achieving both personal and professional goals. Tune in for a blend of practical advice and empowering stories designed to motivate and inspire women to excel in leadership roles.
Thank you for tuning in to The Female Founder Show with host and entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick. If you like what you heard, please give us a review and let us know what you think?
Want to hear and see more great content to help you run your business more profitably? Go to ASBN.com.
If you want to watch the full video version of The Female Founder show, go to TheFemaleFounder.com
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Announcer (00:07):
This is the Female Founder Show with host and
entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick, exclusively on ASBN.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (00:18):
Hello everyone and welcome to the
Female Founder Show On today'sepisode.
I'm excited to welcome AmyBarani, a seasoned leader in
aerospace and defense consulting, at Accenture.
With a long and distinguishedcareer in the aerospace industry
, Amy has worked extensively asa consultant and manager,
shaping workforce strategies anddriving innovation.
(00:38):
As a board member of women inaerospace, she is dedicated to
advancing women in the aerospaceand defense sectors, helping to
create a more inclusive anddiverse workforce.
Amy's insights on leadershipand her commitment to empowering
women in traditionallymale-dominated industries will
inspire and motivate you forsure.
(00:59):
So with that, Amy, welcome tothe show.
Thank you for having me Now.
You've accomplished so much andare such a powerhouse in your
industry, and an industry that'sreally predominantly male.
Can you share with us how yougot into this field?
Amy Bahrani (01:13):
It was not a foregone conclusion.
I grew up in what you mightcall flyover country, rural
America.
Aviation was not something onmy radar, but I found I really
liked the intersection ofbusiness and government.
And so in grad school, when Iwas focusing on economics,
someone said to me what abouttrade compliance?
What about working in aviation?
(01:34):
So got a graduate internshipand I've been in it ever since.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (01:38):
Awesome, awesome.
Now you are with Accenture,helping to build teams and
workforce strategies.
Can you talk to us about whatyou're doing there?
Amy Bahrani (01:46):
Yes, my real goal is to make sure that a company's
most important asset, which istheir people, that they are
being supported and they'regetting the most out of them,
and so it's really aboutunderstanding how does the
talent and the skills of yourworkforce make you successful
and how do you execute on yourstrategy?
By getting your people to aplace where they feel like
(02:07):
they're in the right culture,they've got the right skills,
the right leadership to reallythrive.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (02:11):
Yeah, and I know that your advice can help
a lot of small business ownersand entrepreneurs today, so
we're going to get into that alittle bit more later.
But you do have such a passionfor what you do, and especially
in helping women in yourindustry.
Can you talk to us about thework that you do as a board
member of Women in Aerospace?
Amy Bahrani (02:29):
Yes, it's one of my most exciting things I do.
Being part of Women inAerospace is really about not
just, you know, getting thenumbers out there, educating
leadership boards.
It's really about for the womenthat are in the industry now
how do we empower them, how dowe give them those skills so
that they really can show up thebest way to drive influence, to
(02:50):
be able to support the otherwomen in their workforces?
One of the other things we dois we identify who is the really
rising talent in this industryand get them support early on.
So how do we build thosementorship pathways?
How do we recognize the titansof our industry who have gone
above and beyond and reallyrepresenting what women can do
(03:11):
in this space?
Bridget Fitzpatrick (03:12):
Wow, wow.
That's great, great work you'redoing there now and during the
recruitment process.
Let's talk about that for aminute.
There's so much competitionright now for businesses to
acquire talent and we're forcedto really think differently
about how we go about recruiting.
So do you have an example of anapproach that kind of breaks
the norm?
Amy Bahrani (03:33):
Yeah, it really starts from understanding what
it is you need in a person'sskill set to be able to be
successful in that role.
One of the big challenges isjust availability of talent.
We know this war on talent is aphrase we're all familiar with,
but are you really needing toget that?
We call it a purple squirrel,that like perfect candidate
(03:55):
every time with that collegedegree or that master's degree?
Specifically in the space, Ireally challenge employers to
think about is a college degreenecessary?
Can you take someone fromautomotive and cross-train them
to be successful in aerospace?
Can someone with a supply chainbackground be a good
salesperson because theyunderstand the mechanics of your
(04:15):
business?
So I really think it comes downto understanding exactly what
you need out of that person tobe successful.
I also really like looking toworkforces that typically aren't
maybe top of mind.
So an example would be peoplelike women like myself who have
had children.
Maybe they've had a break intheir career.
How can you help encouragepeople to come back, recognizing
(04:38):
that gap on their resume andthinking about that as not a
hindrance but really anopportunity for someone to
redefine themselves and reallyjump into work?
So I think organizations thatsupport women, organizations
that support returning veterans,for example, and veteran
spouses.
It's a really, really importantpart of getting the right
talent and fulfilling yourpipeline.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (05:00):
Yeah, and then where do you look for those
people?
Maybe there's some talent poolsthat we might not consider, you
know, traditionally.
Can you help us there?
Amy Bahrani (05:09):
Yeah, you know, I went to an economic summit last
week hosted by the ChicagoExecutive Forum and one of the
speakers there said go talk toyour local high schools and it
was something that hadn'toccurred to me before.
But she said go talk to theguidance counselors and say, hey
, what are you doing with yourstudents that might not be on
the college path?
How can you get them involvedin internships in high school?
(05:31):
How can you get summer jobsinto your factories to start
building that exposure to yourbusiness, to your local
community?
I think that's reallyinteresting and powerful.
Interesting and powerfulReaching out to your local
veterans affairs organizations,your local VA asking, hey, do
you have returning vets that arelooking for work?
We have organizations like theMom Project that specifically
(05:54):
help women coming back fromleaves to take care of their
children.
So there's a lot of thesegroups.
But really I think it comesdown to asking and being clear
on what you need.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (06:05):
Yeah, yeah, that's sometimes the challenge
is being clear on what you need.
So, yeah, and as entrepreneursit's sometimes hard to develop,
once you have that person inplace, a recruitment and
onboarding experience to be surethat you're really setting the
new employee up for success.
What advice would you give thatwould help small to
medium-sized businesses when itcomes to this?
Amy Bahrani (06:27):
I have advice on two ends of the spectrum.
One is around job shadowing.
I think it's so important,especially with the move to so
much remote.
I think that informal learninghas really been lost, and so I
think about my first day workingin my dad's small business.
I sat there and just observedhim, learned what he did,
(06:48):
understood how he took the calls, how he did the sales, and so I
think observation is reallyimportant.
So baking that in from thebeginning, having someone set up
to learn and mentor thatinformal learning, and then, on
the other end of the spectrum,you have to have documentation
right.
What happens if Sarah inaccounting gets, you know, wins
(07:08):
the lottery next week, If sheleaves, who knows what that role
, responsibility was?
Is it documented?
And so that you know thatinflection of being able to have
the informal learning, and thenyou know having a standard
operating procedure, an SOP, apolicy written down by guidance.
There's a balance there thatreally supports your employee.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (07:29):
You know, as a small business owner,
you're creating a positionthat's that you've never
experienced before.
Whatever that may be, what doyou think the best way is to go
about putting the process inplace?
Or where do you go for that Tothe employee?
Do you look at, you know?
Is there some place online thatcan help you?
How do you get those processesin place?
Amy Bahrani (07:50):
You know, I did this exact exercise with one of
my best friends last summer.
She owns a therapy practice.
She went from five employees to18.
And she was still doing that,you know, as the owner, doing
the intake process, schedulingout things, and I, you know, I
said to her, jamie, like youneed to understand roles and
responsibilities.
I think that's the first place.
(08:11):
So, if you write out all of thedifferent tasks that need to
happen, maybe in a like a subprocess, or or end to happen,
maybe in a sub-process orend-to-end, whose responsibility
is it?
And then from that you candevelop okay, so what are the
steps to do it successfully eachtime?
Who owns the steps and who ownsaccountability?
And I think that's an importantpart.
It's understandingaccountability versus input.
(08:33):
So, as a business leader, whatdo you need to know about, what
do you need to be consultedabout and what are you
responsible or accountable for?
And we call that a RACI in thecorporate world.
So, having that set up, definingthe process and, importantly,
until you define the process,you can't really take an
objective, look at it and say Ithink we can do things better.
So it really comes down to itcan be something as simple as
(08:55):
writing it on a piece of paper.
You don't need to have anything, be fancy, but writing down
those process steps,understanding what good looks
like for you and then taking acritical eye to think can we do
something better to make it moreefficient, less painful.
And my last comment on that isbring your employee's
perspective in.
This doesn't have to be atop-down exercise.
(09:16):
By doing this with yourworkforce, it gives them an
opportunity to feel heard, whichis so important in culture and
so important in retention, andgive them fingerprints over
their work product, because thatreally helps build buy-in,
which is going to make you moresuccessful.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (09:33):
Great advice that I'm going to take.
Thank you Now, once they'rethere.
We talk so much about workplaceculture, and so often we do,
but how do we really measure andaffect cultural change?
Amy Bahrani (09:48):
Yes.
So culture, I think, can feellike a bit of an art and not a
science, but I actually thinkyou can measure it.
You can build strategies to getto where you want to be.
I define culture as the waythings are done around here.
It's the experience of yourpeople.
And so, thinking about, whatdoes that feel like for folks?
Go and ask them, do a littlepulse survey.
(10:10):
A pulse survey is a survey thattakes between three and five
minutes to fill out and you doit periodically and you track
sentiment.
So if you send it out to your10 folks this month and you say,
hey, on a scale of one to five,do you feel like you're able to
speak up and provide input?
Do you feel like you're able tobring an entrepreneurial spirit
and really solicit or provideinformation?
(10:31):
And so you go through a coupleof questions and you track it
and you can see all right, mypeople are saying they don't
feel like they're heard.
Okay, how can I address this?
Maybe we'll do a weekly standup as a team.
We'll spend 15 minutes andeveryone gets to share what
they're working on, be reallyspecific to what you're looking
to achieve.
It all starts with behaviors.
(10:58):
Those behaviors have to beproductive or you're not going
to get the most from yourworkforce and you're not going
to be able to achieve yourvision.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (11:05):
How do you see high-performing cultures
change over time to adapt whengoing from a startup to scaling
and sustainment?
Amy Bahrani (11:15):
It's important to know that a culture can't be
stagnant.
What got you to that first bigsale, that first series A, isn't
probably going to be what getsyou to series C or wherever
you're looking to get, and sopart of that is understanding
again the roles andresponsibilities of your team.
They're going to shift.
Hopefully as you get morepeople, the tasks and the focus
(11:37):
kind of narrows a little bit.
So you're focused on what yourprimary goal is and with your
culture, you may have to go froma really consensus-driven
culture to more of individualaccountability and
responsibility.
So that might mean before, fourpeople got in a room and they
made a decision about what thenext product design was going to
be.
In the future, you're going torely on your one person that
(12:00):
you've decided is your expert.
It's really about understandingwhat you need in that moment to
be successful.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (12:06):
Definitely, definitely Great, great advice.
Now, as a leader in yourexperience, what skills would
you say are the most importantfor women to cultivate as they
grow their businesses and teams?
Amy Bahrani (12:18):
Such a good question.
I hate to play into thestereotype, but I think being
confident in speaking your truthand your accomplishments is so
important.
Growing up in rural Wisconsin,I was just taught to always be
very humble, to not brag, toreally understand the power of
(12:41):
we and not I.
But there gets to be a point inyour career where you have to
make sure people understand yourstory, where your credibility
hinges on people knowing youraccomplishments, and so a silly
little trick I do sometimes is Ijust think what would Elon Musk
say in this moment He'd shyaway from talking about his
(13:03):
experience, and it's reallyabout just getting past that and
being your own advocate.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (13:11):
Yeah, that's great advice.
And I struggle from the samething.
I was raised the same way.
Keep your head down, do yourwork.
And I struggle from the samething.
I was raised the same way.
You know, keep your head down,do your work.
And you know, don't speak uptoo much.
But it really is.
You know the differencesbetween how a man is treated
when he speaks up or sayssomething is so different from
when a woman does a lot of times, and how you say it.
(13:32):
And you know the man can be oh,he's so, you know assertive and
aggressive, but the woman, oh,she's such a bitch.
You know, it's just, it's afine line.
So what would Elon Musk sayright now?
Amy Bahrani (13:43):
He would say whatever he wants, but and I
think that there is a reallyintentional way we can support
each other in a room.
Yeah, so, um, I heard thisphrase called a glow up, so if
you say something, I have theopportunity to say you know what
?
Bridget, that was a great point.
I'm so glad you raised that.
Thank you for that insight.
(14:03):
It's echoing what I heard, butit's also giving an opportunity
for your voice essentially to beheard twice.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (14:10):
Yeah, yeah, you know what, amy.
That is a great point.
Such a great point.
I like what you said there.
You know what, amy?
That is a great point, such agreat point.
I like what you said there.
Yeah, thank you.
No, that's great advice to besupportive so that everybody
does feel inclusive and theirvoice matters.
Everybody's voice matters,absolutely.
Yeah, well, change gears alittle bit.
You have so much on your platewith your business, your
(14:33):
participation in Women inAerospace, you're a mom to two
beautiful children and a wife.
Now how do you balance all ofthese roles and what advice
would you give to those watching?
Amy Bahrani (14:45):
My best advice is to really understand what is
critical and important and whatis okay, to let kind of sit.
And I give this analogy of youknow if we're juggling a lot of
balls in the air, which ones areglass and which ones are rubber
, which ones, if they drop, aregoing to break and you're going
to do irrevocable harm, whichones are going to be okay.
(15:06):
So you know, something that'sbeen really challenging for me
this past couple of years is myson has had health issues.
My little three-year-old hadbrain surgery last year and
there was an opportunity for meto go on this big business trip,
do this exciting thing.
I just realized like it's notin alignment with my values.
That can drop, it's not goingto break.
(15:27):
I'll have an opportunity to dothat in the future, but taking
care of my son is something thatI won't be able to do again,
and so you know it really comesdown to understanding what your
priorities are.
The other little trick I do andit can.
It can be from like doomscrolling on my phone to if I
want to go out with friends.
I try in the moment to think isthe thing that I'm doing
(15:50):
helping me or hurting me?
Is that, you know, doomscrolling, just like keeping me
up from going to sleep?
Is seeing my girlfriend tonightworth, you know, not getting
the sleep sleep?
Bridget Fitzpatrick (16:02):
Clearly it's a common theme here, yeah,
so important.
Amy Bahrani (16:06):
Yeah, so I think it really comes down to that, that
priority.
Um, because you're right,there's a lot on and I don't
want to be a subpar mom.
I don't want to be a subpar mom.
I don't want to be a subparemployee.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (16:18):
balance is hard and it takes constant
shifting yeah, you know, I'venever heard that analogy with
the glass and rubber balls.
I like that.
That makes a lot of sense.
So sometimes some things cansometimes drop and it's okay.
They're gonna feel they'll bethere the next day or the next
week when when you can get tothem.
But yeah, we're so're sooverwhelmed as small business
owners, entrepreneurs and withyour career.
(16:39):
I like that analogy.
I'm definitely going to thinkabout that next time I'm
freaking out about my list thatI have to do.
Yeah, yeah, now there are a lotof women watching that haven't
started their business yet orthey're just starting out as
entrepreneurs.
What advice would you givethose, specifically in the area
of stepping into a leadershiprole, such as a business owner?
Amy Bahrani (17:02):
Well, first of all, I'm proud of you for making
that decision.
What an exciting place to be,and I think it really comes down
to understanding what it isthat you want.
What does you know that visionlook like for you and being
really clear on why you're goinginto.
You know being a business owner, what it means for you that you
can hold true to that.
(17:22):
When you have those challengingum, you have those challenging
moments.
So, whether that is you want tobe able to be financially in
control of your own family's um,you can be in control of your
own finances.
Whether it's you want to buildcommunity, whether it is you
have a service or a product thatyou think is important for the
(17:43):
world to have, it's really aboutholding true to that, and so,
when you're faced with decisions, when you're faced with those
late nights, early mornings, youhave something that you can
hold on to and be inspired by.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (17:55):
Yeah, yeah, I love that.
Now, finally, you haveaccomplished so much at such a
young age, so what's next foryou?
Where do you see your career inthe next five to 10 years?
Amy Bahrani (18:05):
Oh, what a great question.
So, within the firm I work for,I really want to make managing
director.
That's my goal, and for me,what that means is a level of
revalidation in myself that Ihave the expertise to do that.
It means a financial securitythat I didn't experience growing
(18:27):
up.
For me, it's really aboutproving to myself that I deserve
to be in that boardroom and andwhat I have to share is
important.
So I'm just going to keepclimbing, um.
You know, it's a combination,like you said, of keeping my
head down doing the work butalso popping up and being really
proud of how far I've gone.
(18:47):
You know, college was not evenon the radar for me as a child,
and now I've got graduate degree.
I work with people who went toincredible schools, um, and so I
want to stay hungry, but I alsojust want to be able to sit and
feel proud.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (19:03):
And you should be.
You've accomplished so much andyou're a superstar in your
industry and we reallyappreciate the time that you've
given us today.
So your advice today has beeninvaluable.
We really appreciate it.
Amy Bahrani (19:15):
I've loved it.
Thank you so much.
Announcer (19:16):
Thank you.
This is the Female Founder Showwith host and entrepreneur
Bridget Fitzpatrick, exclusivelyon ASBN.
If you're a female founder andwould like to help other female
founders with your inspiringstory, we would love to hear
from you.
This is the Female Founder Show with host and
entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick, exclusively on ASBN.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (00:18):
Hello everyone and welcome to the
Female Founder Show On today'sepisode.
I'm excited to welcome AmyBarani, a seasoned leader in
aerospace and defense consulting, at Accenture.
With a long and distinguishedcareer in the aerospace industry
, Amy has worked extensively asa consultant and manager,
shaping workforce strategies anddriving innovation.
(00:38):
As a board member of women inaerospace, she is dedicated to
advancing women in the aerospaceand defense sectors, helping to
create a more inclusive anddiverse workforce.
Amy's insights on leadershipand her commitment to empowering
women in traditionallymale-dominated industries will
inspire and motivate you forsure.
(00:59):
So with that, Amy, welcome tothe show.
Thank you for having me Now.
You've accomplished so much andare such a powerhouse in your
industry, and an industry that'sreally predominantly male.
Can you share with us how yougot into this field?
Amy Bahrani (01:13):
It was not a foregone conclusion.
I grew up in what you mightcall flyover country, rural
America.
Aviation was not something onmy radar, but I found I really
liked the intersection ofbusiness and government.
And so in grad school, when Iwas focusing on economics,
someone said to me what abouttrade compliance?
What about working in aviation?
(01:34):
So got a graduate internshipand I've been in it ever since.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (01:38):
Awesome, awesome.
Now you are with Accenture,helping to build teams and
workforce strategies.
Can you talk to us about whatyou're doing there?
Amy Bahrani (01:46):
Yes, my real goal is to make sure that a company's
most important asset, which istheir people, that they are
being supported and they'regetting the most out of them,
and so it's really aboutunderstanding how does the
talent and the skills of yourworkforce make you successful
and how do you execute on yourstrategy?
By getting your people to aplace where they feel like
(02:07):
they're in the right culture,they've got the right skills,
the right leadership to reallythrive.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (02:11):
Yeah, and I know that your advice can help
a lot of small business ownersand entrepreneurs today, so
we're going to get into that alittle bit more later.
But you do have such a passionfor what you do, and especially
in helping women in yourindustry.
Can you talk to us about thework that you do as a board
member of Women in Aerospace?
Amy Bahrani (02:29):
Yes, it's one of my most exciting things I do.
Being part of Women inAerospace is really about not
just, you know, getting thenumbers out there, educating
leadership boards.
It's really about for the womenthat are in the industry now
how do we empower them, how dowe give them those skills so
that they really can show up thebest way to drive influence, to
(02:50):
be able to support the otherwomen in their workforces?
One of the other things we dois we identify who is the really
rising talent in this industryand get them support early on.
So how do we build thosementorship pathways?
How do we recognize the titansof our industry who have gone
above and beyond and reallyrepresenting what women can do
(03:11):
in this space?
Bridget Fitzpatrick (03:12):
Wow, wow.
That's great, great work you'redoing there now and during the
recruitment process.
Let's talk about that for aminute.
There's so much competitionright now for businesses to
acquire talent and we're forcedto really think differently
about how we go about recruiting.
So do you have an example of anapproach that kind of breaks
the norm?
Amy Bahrani (03:33):
Yeah, it really starts from understanding what
it is you need in a person'sskill set to be able to be
successful in that role.
One of the big challenges isjust availability of talent.
We know this war on talent is aphrase we're all familiar with,
but are you really needing toget that?
We call it a purple squirrel,that like perfect candidate
(03:55):
every time with that collegedegree or that master's degree?
Specifically in the space, Ireally challenge employers to
think about is a college degreenecessary?
Can you take someone fromautomotive and cross-train them
to be successful in aerospace?
Can someone with a supply chainbackground be a good
salesperson because theyunderstand the mechanics of your
(04:15):
business?
So I really think it comes downto understanding exactly what
you need out of that person tobe successful.
I also really like looking toworkforces that typically aren't
maybe top of mind.
So an example would be peoplelike women like myself who have
had children.
Maybe they've had a break intheir career.
How can you help encouragepeople to come back, recognizing
(04:38):
that gap on their resume andthinking about that as not a
hindrance but really anopportunity for someone to
redefine themselves and reallyjump into work?
So I think organizations thatsupport women, organizations
that support returning veterans,for example, and veteran
spouses.
It's a really, really importantpart of getting the right
talent and fulfilling yourpipeline.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (05:00):
Yeah, and then where do you look for those
people?
Maybe there's some talent poolsthat we might not consider, you
know, traditionally.
Can you help us there?
Amy Bahrani (05:09):
Yeah, you know, I went to an economic summit last
week hosted by the ChicagoExecutive Forum and one of the
speakers there said go talk toyour local high schools and it
was something that hadn'toccurred to me before.
But she said go talk to theguidance counselors and say, hey
, what are you doing with yourstudents that might not be on
the college path?
How can you get them involvedin internships in high school?
(05:31):
How can you get summer jobsinto your factories to start
building that exposure to yourbusiness, to your local
community?
I think that's reallyinteresting and powerful.
Interesting and powerfulReaching out to your local
veterans affairs organizations,your local VA asking, hey, do
you have returning vets that arelooking for work?
We have organizations like theMom Project that specifically
(05:54):
help women coming back fromleaves to take care of their
children.
So there's a lot of thesegroups.
But really I think it comesdown to asking and being clear
on what you need.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (06:05):
Yeah, yeah, that's sometimes the challenge
is being clear on what you need.
So, yeah, and as entrepreneursit's sometimes hard to develop,
once you have that person inplace, a recruitment and
onboarding experience to be surethat you're really setting the
new employee up for success.
What advice would you give thatwould help small to
medium-sized businesses when itcomes to this?
Amy Bahrani (06:27):
I have advice on two ends of the spectrum.
One is around job shadowing.
I think it's so important,especially with the move to so
much remote.
I think that informal learninghas really been lost, and so I
think about my first day workingin my dad's small business.
I sat there and just observedhim, learned what he did,
(06:48):
understood how he took the calls, how he did the sales, and so I
think observation is reallyimportant.
So baking that in from thebeginning, having someone set up
to learn and mentor thatinformal learning, and then, on
the other end of the spectrum,you have to have documentation
right.
What happens if Sarah inaccounting gets, you know, wins
(07:08):
the lottery next week, If sheleaves, who knows what that role
, responsibility was?
Is it documented?
And so that you know thatinflection of being able to have
the informal learning, and thenyou know having a standard
operating procedure, an SOP, apolicy written down by guidance.
There's a balance there thatreally supports your employee.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (07:29):
You know, as a small business owner,
you're creating a positionthat's that you've never
experienced before.
Whatever that may be, what doyou think the best way is to go
about putting the process inplace?
Or where do you go for that Tothe employee?
Do you look at, you know?
Is there some place online thatcan help you?
How do you get those processesin place?
Amy Bahrani (07:50):
You know, I did this exact exercise with one of
my best friends last summer.
She owns a therapy practice.
She went from five employees to18.
And she was still doing that,you know, as the owner, doing
the intake process, schedulingout things, and I, you know, I
said to her, jamie, like youneed to understand roles and
responsibilities.
I think that's the first place.
(08:11):
So, if you write out all of thedifferent tasks that need to
happen, maybe in a like a subprocess, or or end to happen,
maybe in a sub-process orend-to-end, whose responsibility
is it?
And then from that you candevelop okay, so what are the
steps to do it successfully eachtime?
Who owns the steps and who ownsaccountability?
And I think that's an importantpart.
It's understandingaccountability versus input.
(08:33):
So, as a business leader, whatdo you need to know about, what
do you need to be consultedabout and what are you
responsible or accountable for?
And we call that a RACI in thecorporate world.
So, having that set up, definingthe process and, importantly,
until you define the process,you can't really take an
objective, look at it and say Ithink we can do things better.
So it really comes down to itcan be something as simple as
(08:55):
writing it on a piece of paper.
You don't need to have anything, be fancy, but writing down
those process steps,understanding what good looks
like for you and then taking acritical eye to think can we do
something better to make it moreefficient, less painful.
And my last comment on that isbring your employee's
perspective in.
This doesn't have to be atop-down exercise.
(09:16):
By doing this with yourworkforce, it gives them an
opportunity to feel heard, whichis so important in culture and
so important in retention, andgive them fingerprints over
their work product, because thatreally helps build buy-in,
which is going to make you moresuccessful.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (09:33):
Great advice that I'm going to take.
Thank you Now, once they'rethere.
We talk so much about workplaceculture, and so often we do,
but how do we really measure andaffect cultural change?
Amy Bahrani (09:48):
Yes.
So culture, I think, can feellike a bit of an art and not a
science, but I actually thinkyou can measure it.
You can build strategies to getto where you want to be.
I define culture as the waythings are done around here.
It's the experience of yourpeople.
And so, thinking about, whatdoes that feel like for folks?
Go and ask them, do a littlepulse survey.
(10:10):
A pulse survey is a survey thattakes between three and five
minutes to fill out and you doit periodically and you track
sentiment.
So if you send it out to your10 folks this month and you say,
hey, on a scale of one to five,do you feel like you're able to
speak up and provide input?
Do you feel like you're able tobring an entrepreneurial spirit
and really solicit or provideinformation?
(10:31):
And so you go through a coupleof questions and you track it
and you can see all right, mypeople are saying they don't
feel like they're heard.
Okay, how can I address this?
Maybe we'll do a weekly standup as a team.
We'll spend 15 minutes andeveryone gets to share what
they're working on, be reallyspecific to what you're looking
to achieve.
It all starts with behaviors.
(10:58):
Those behaviors have to beproductive or you're not going
to get the most from yourworkforce and you're not going
to be able to achieve yourvision.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (11:05):
How do you see high-performing cultures
change over time to adapt whengoing from a startup to scaling
and sustainment?
Amy Bahrani (11:15):
It's important to know that a culture can't be
stagnant.
What got you to that first bigsale, that first series A, isn't
probably going to be what getsyou to series C or wherever
you're looking to get, and sopart of that is understanding
again the roles andresponsibilities of your team.
They're going to shift.
Hopefully as you get morepeople, the tasks and the focus
(11:37):
kind of narrows a little bit.
So you're focused on what yourprimary goal is and with your
culture, you may have to go froma really consensus-driven
culture to more of individualaccountability and
responsibility.
So that might mean before, fourpeople got in a room and they
made a decision about what thenext product design was going to
be.
In the future, you're going torely on your one person that
(12:00):
you've decided is your expert.
It's really about understandingwhat you need in that moment to
be successful.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (12:06):
Definitely, definitely Great, great advice.
Now, as a leader in yourexperience, what skills would
you say are the most importantfor women to cultivate as they
grow their businesses and teams?
Amy Bahrani (12:18):
Such a good question.
I hate to play into thestereotype, but I think being
confident in speaking your truthand your accomplishments is so
important.
Growing up in rural Wisconsin,I was just taught to always be
very humble, to not brag, toreally understand the power of
(12:41):
we and not I.
But there gets to be a point inyour career where you have to
make sure people understand yourstory, where your credibility
hinges on people knowing youraccomplishments, and so a silly
little trick I do sometimes is Ijust think what would Elon Musk
say in this moment He'd shyaway from talking about his
(13:03):
experience, and it's reallyabout just getting past that and
being your own advocate.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (13:11):
Yeah, that's great advice.
And I struggle from the samething.
I was raised the same way.
Keep your head down, do yourwork.
And I struggle from the samething.
I was raised the same way.
You know, keep your head down,do your work.
And you know, don't speak uptoo much.
But it really is.
You know the differencesbetween how a man is treated
when he speaks up or sayssomething is so different from
when a woman does a lot of times, and how you say it.
(13:32):
And you know the man can be oh,he's so, you know assertive and
aggressive, but the woman, oh,she's such a bitch.
You know, it's just, it's afine line.
So what would Elon Musk sayright now?
Amy Bahrani (13:43):
He would say whatever he wants, but and I
think that there is a reallyintentional way we can support
each other in a room.
Yeah, so, um, I heard thisphrase called a glow up, so if
you say something, I have theopportunity to say you know what
?
Bridget, that was a great point.
I'm so glad you raised that.
Thank you for that insight.
(14:03):
It's echoing what I heard, butit's also giving an opportunity
for your voice essentially to beheard twice.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (14:10):
Yeah, yeah, you know what, amy.
That is a great point.
Such a great point.
I like what you said there.
You know what, amy?
That is a great point, such agreat point.
I like what you said there.
Yeah, thank you.
No, that's great advice to besupportive so that everybody
does feel inclusive and theirvoice matters.
Everybody's voice matters,absolutely.
Yeah, well, change gears alittle bit.
You have so much on your platewith your business, your
(14:33):
participation in Women inAerospace, you're a mom to two
beautiful children and a wife.
Now how do you balance all ofthese roles and what advice
would you give to those watching?
Amy Bahrani (14:45):
My best advice is to really understand what is
critical and important and whatis okay, to let kind of sit.
And I give this analogy of youknow if we're juggling a lot of
balls in the air, which ones areglass and which ones are rubber
, which ones, if they drop, aregoing to break and you're going
to do irrevocable harm, whichones are going to be okay.
(15:06):
So you know, something that'sbeen really challenging for me
this past couple of years is myson has had health issues.
My little three-year-old hadbrain surgery last year and
there was an opportunity for meto go on this big business trip,
do this exciting thing.
I just realized like it's notin alignment with my values.
That can drop, it's not goingto break.
(15:27):
I'll have an opportunity to dothat in the future, but taking
care of my son is something thatI won't be able to do again,
and so you know it really comesdown to understanding what your
priorities are.
The other little trick I do andit can.
It can be from like doomscrolling on my phone to if I
want to go out with friends.
I try in the moment to think isthe thing that I'm doing
(15:50):
helping me or hurting me?
Is that, you know, doomscrolling, just like keeping me
up from going to sleep?
Is seeing my girlfriend tonightworth, you know, not getting
the sleep sleep?
Bridget Fitzpatrick (16:02):
Clearly it's a common theme here, yeah,
so important.
Amy Bahrani (16:06):
Yeah, so I think it really comes down to that, that
priority.
Um, because you're right,there's a lot on and I don't
want to be a subpar mom.
I don't want to be a subpar mom.
I don't want to be a subparemployee.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (16:18):
balance is hard and it takes constant
shifting yeah, you know, I'venever heard that analogy with
the glass and rubber balls.
I like that.
That makes a lot of sense.
So sometimes some things cansometimes drop and it's okay.
They're gonna feel they'll bethere the next day or the next
week when when you can get tothem.
But yeah, we're so're sooverwhelmed as small business
owners, entrepreneurs and withyour career.
(16:39):
I like that analogy.
I'm definitely going to thinkabout that next time I'm
freaking out about my list thatI have to do.
Yeah, yeah, now there are a lotof women watching that haven't
started their business yet orthey're just starting out as
entrepreneurs.
What advice would you givethose, specifically in the area
of stepping into a leadershiprole, such as a business owner?
Amy Bahrani (17:02):
Well, first of all, I'm proud of you for making
that decision.
What an exciting place to be,and I think it really comes down
to understanding what it isthat you want.
What does you know that visionlook like for you and being
really clear on why you're goinginto.
You know being a business owner, what it means for you that you
can hold true to that.
(17:22):
When you have those challengingum, you have those challenging
moments.
So, whether that is you want tobe able to be financially in
control of your own family's um,you can be in control of your
own finances.
Whether it's you want to buildcommunity, whether it is you
have a service or a product thatyou think is important for the
(17:43):
world to have, it's really aboutholding true to that, and so,
when you're faced with decisions, when you're faced with those
late nights, early mornings, youhave something that you can
hold on to and be inspired by.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (17:55):
Yeah, yeah, I love that.
Now, finally, you haveaccomplished so much at such a
young age, so what's next foryou?
Where do you see your career inthe next five to 10 years?
Amy Bahrani (18:05):
Oh, what a great question.
So, within the firm I work for,I really want to make managing
director.
That's my goal, and for me,what that means is a level of
revalidation in myself that Ihave the expertise to do that.
It means a financial securitythat I didn't experience growing
(18:27):
up.
For me, it's really aboutproving to myself that I deserve
to be in that boardroom and andwhat I have to share is
important.
So I'm just going to keepclimbing, um.
You know, it's a combination,like you said, of keeping my
head down doing the work butalso popping up and being really
proud of how far I've gone.
(18:47):
You know, college was not evenon the radar for me as a child,
and now I've got graduate degree.
I work with people who went toincredible schools, um, and so I
want to stay hungry, but I alsojust want to be able to sit and
feel proud.
Bridget Fitzpatrick (19:03):
And you should be.
You've accomplished so much andyou're a superstar in your
industry and we reallyappreciate the time that you've
given us today.
So your advice today has beeninvaluable.
We really appreciate it.
Amy Bahrani (19:15):
I've loved it.
Thank you so much.
Announcer (19:16):
Thank you.
This is the Female Founder Showwith host and entrepreneur
Bridget Fitzpatrick, exclusivelyon ASBN.
If you're a female founder andwould like to help other female
founders with your inspiringstory, we would love to hear
from you.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy And Charlamagne Tha God!
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.