We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Yanyn San Luis a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Yanyn thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you share a customer success story with us?
One of our proudest client success stories involves a large membership-driven organization in the U.S. that was focused on improving its supplier diversity efforts. The client wanted to identify gaps, establish a baseline to track progress, and showcase their commitment to increasing their spend with small and diverse businesses to both internal employees and external members.
To tackle this, we conducted a comprehensive assessment using tools such as economic impact reports and newsletters. We created an economic impact report full of strategic storytelling, weaving together data and real-world examples to illustrate the far-reaching benefits of diversifying their suppliers. This report was crucial in securing 90% executive support for their supplier diversity program, as it demonstrated both the economic and social value of their initiatives.
In addition, we developed an internal marketing plan to ensure that all employees could clearly see the impact of supplier diversity on the organization and the community. This plan highlighted why it was important to use small and diverse suppliers and empowered employees to align with the organization’s diversity goals. The internal campaign helped raise awareness and drive internal support, ensuring that the entire workforce understood the significance of supplier diversity.
The results were incredibly meaningful: our analysis allowed the organization to inform its stakeholders about the effectiveness of their current initiatives, which led to improved strategic planning. They refined their practices to better promote diversity, drive local economic growth, and market their impact effectively. It was a significant step forward in advancing their social impact initiatives, making a real difference both within the organization and in the communities they serve.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I founded The Win Woman Firm in 2011 with a vision to empower women in the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds. Despite its establishment, I remained committed to my corporate role, which limited my capacity to fully dedicate myself to the firm’s mission. It wasn’t until 2016 that I was able to devote my full attention to The Win Woman Firm as its CEO.
My firm’s inception traces back to a pivotal moment when I found myself in a toxic work environment, feeling unfulfilled, undervalued, and trapped. As a minority woman, I faced significant challenges in finding a pathway forward. Driven by a compelling force to change the status quo, I decided to walk away and forge a new path.
The Win Woman is a game changer in empowering forward-thinking companies and nonprofits to revolutionize social impact. Combining the strategic prowess of Deloitte with the speed and precision of a Formula One team, The Win Woman crafts powerful corporate social responsibility initiatives that seamlessly integrate with your core business, driving real value and lasting change.
As a social impact firm, The Win Woman offers a wide range of services to support your organization’s sustainability efforts. This includes ESG policies, fundraising strategies, supplier diversity solutions, executive advising, and more. Their team of experts is dedicated to providing tailored solutions that meet your unique needs and drive meaningful change.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Marketing has been a key driver in establishing our firm’s strong reputation within the industry. We’ve worked hard to make our branding distinctive from other social impact firms, ensuring we stand out as memorable and recognized leaders in the field.
In addition, our team frequently attends networking events, which naturally leads people to visit our website and social media platforms. To keep that momentum, we consistently post content showcasing our thought leadership and services.
What has really propelled our thought leadership forward has been our involvement in speaking at conferences and events, publishing articles and blogs, and creating video content for social media. However, our most impactful platform has been our monthly executive forums. These forums bring together thought leaders to discuss relevant topics in social impact, including sustainability, supplier diversity, corporate responsibility, DEI, and nonprofit initiatives. Each session features a guest speaker who is a leader in the field. Since launching last year, we’ve hosted 18 forums, engaging a total of over 400 attendees.
Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?
When managing a team, especially in the context of social impact, it’s essential to make sure everyone feels connected to the mission and valued for their contributions. One of the best ways to do this is through transparency—keep your team informed about how their work directly supports the larger goals. Celebrate their efforts regularly to remind them of their importance and keep motivation high.
Another key piece is investing in your team’s growth and well-being. Offer upskilling opportunities like workshops on topics that interest your team. In our team, we have brought in expertise in styling, AI, and even astrology based on Creating a culture where feedback is valued, helps foster a sense of ownership and keeps morale up.
Lastly, pay attention to signs of burnout. Social impact work can be emotionally demanding, so promoting work-life balance through flexible schedules or offering time off for volunteering can make a big difference in keeping your team energized and committed for the long haul.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://thewinwoman.com/
- Instagram: @thewinwoman
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yanynsanluis/
