Women in Product DC: Talking Leadership with Laura Neville, Chief Product Officer at EVERFI
The Women in Product DC chapter kicked off the 2019 event season with a rollicking good time hosted by EVERFI, where the networking and conversation flowed easily and we all learned something from Laura Neville, their Chief Product Officer, on the topic of leadership.
EVERFI is the leading education technology company that utilizes innovative and scalable digital learning to provide learners of all ages education for the real world…and they’re hiring for numerous roles across the country! We learned a lot about their company culture not just from Laura, but from all of the EVERFI hosts, including Ellen Patterson, their COO, who was also there for support. It was a kind and welcome space.
The content portion of the event was a casual “interview” style with back-and-forth conversation and audience participation (not just laughing in the appropriate places, but good questions, too!). Some key topics included the interdisciplinary field of product management and the diverse backgrounds of the people in it, working in startups, balancing work and personal life, and, of course, leadership.
We all appreciated Laura’s insight and honesty throughout the conversation, especially the constant theme of taking time to learn and grow. Several of her responses included the recognition that no one wakes up one morning and is deemed A Leader with all the knowledge of how to avoid mistakes and to achieve enormous and immediate success.
For example:
- Navigating the balance of career ambitions and personal life goals? You will need help from others, and you can be a help to others, and that trust and care is grown over time.
- Has she ever experienced impostor syndrome? “Who hasn’t?” she said. But you have to keep trying to embrace the scary stuff.
- How do you learn to be a good leader? By observing what works and what doesn’t from the leaders you have as models. Some will be good. Others will not be so good, but you can learn from all of them. Above all, remember it’s really okay to show more of your “human” side in leadership.
- How do you build a great team? This is another ongoing area of growth, but Laura says she knows she “doesn’t want a bunch of people who will just blow smoke up her skirt to be ‘yes people,’ and instead she wants critical thinkers who can help her do better and help the company do better.” [Julie’s note: SO TRUE.]
Good stuff.
As the co-founders of the Washington DC Chapter of Women in Product, Stephanie Neill and I are thrilled with the community that continues to form in the area, and the quality and caliber of people such as Laura who offer their time to speak with all the types of folks responsible for product development, who are all at different stages of their careers. There’s always something for everyone at these events, or at least we hope there is!
We are currently finalizing our March and April events, and our February event with General Assembly is sold out. In the mean time, stay in touch via the Women in Product DC Facebook group or send us an email at WomenProductDC@gmail.com if you’re interested in speaking or volunteering at an event or even hosting one — we’re all ears.
Keep on shipping!
- Julie & Stephanie
