Today, we’d like to introduce you to Janene Ingram. Janene was introduced to us by the brilliant and talented Patty Williams-Downs.

Janene, can you walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I am a proud native Chicagoan from the far south side of the city. I started my business after a deeply traumatic experience. It was an inflection point in my life and my career in which I had to choose to stop listening to what society told me I was supposed to be doing because of my background and that I should continue to focus on my weaknesses in order to improve them. Honestly, mid-career, I know what I’m great at and the things that bring me joy. I decided to do that – my natural talents in being a strategic maximizer set me up for success when setting and working towards goals. I decided to do the same for others in my community who do not have the time or skill set that I have. It was one of my executive coaching conversations with Patty, when she reinforced my belief in myself by sharing her observations about the ways in which I was moving and working. Her affirmation was the catalyst I needed; her support and collaboration helped me attain my first client immediately boosting my confidence in my abilities.

Let’s talk about your work and career – what else should we know?
I am a Fractional Operations Consultant. You would consider me a part-time Chief Operating Officer for your company, nonprofit, or small business. I have clients who are starting a business who need support creating and implementing a strategic plan. Others desire support building startup infrastructure in order to adhere to state and federal rules and regulations. These are the things that boggle the minds of entrepreneurs that they should honestly delegate. Their focus should be solely on building the business while I help run it behind the scenes. My business is different than others because of my background. I intentionally lead and build systems, policies, and practices through a lens of equity and inclusion. If you want your business to serve all stakeholders, we think about the different needs of your audience in order to ensure they are considered when systems are created that are supposed to serve them. We make sure they do! If you want employees to love working with you and for you so much that they never leave, because hiring and talent development is the most expensive cost to any business, we create the conditions that build and maintain employee satisfaction so that they love the work and the company so much they never want to leave. I see the world differently – not as it is – but as it should be, that is what makes me uniquely different from others in my work and I love the impact I am able to have in partnership with businesses and social impact organizations on the lives of both employees and customers.

So, as we mentioned to our audience earlier, you were introduced to us by Patty Williams-Downs and BreakingBounds and we really admire them and what they’ve built. For folks who might not be as familiar, can you tell them a bit about your experience with BreakingBounds.
Patty completed transformed the vision I had of myself as a professional. When serving in a position of leadership it is lonely and difficult. Patty was an amazing collaborator and thought partner who pushed my thinking and strategic approach to my work. I found our sessions invaluable because the operating policies, systems, and processes I was able to create as a direct result of our partnership reinforced my natural talents and provided the encouragement I needed to move forward with new initiatives.

It was Patty’s belief in me and her ability to revoice the thoughts and ideas I shared with her during any moment of stream of consciousness that provided the clarity I needed to build the vision for my business. Sometimes you need a partner to propel you forward for your own. good. Her articulation of her observations was powerful and transformative for the services I provide and the ways in which I continue to approach my work today. I have a business because of my work with Patty; I don’t know if I would move with the confidence I have today had it not been for our partnership and collaboration.

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janeneingram/