Katie Burke

BCAN – Operators Edition This Thanksgiving week, I’m sharing Boston Community Appreciation Notes (BCANs) celebrating incredible people making Boston’s Early Stage ecosystem special this year. We’ve already spotlighted Founders and Investors. Today it’s Operators. There’s an old line: Startups run on individual acts of heroism, while businesses run on process for predictability, consistency and scale. No matter the stage or culture, or adoption of RPA/AI, great people remain a strategic company asset. Here are some of the standout Operators I had the privilege to see in action this year: Alyssa Krejmas, InnoCrew: SF is now learning what Boston already knows – you elevate Tech ecosystems Pardees Safizadeh, Connor Harbison & Sara Fraim: cheers to another year of Boston Tech Walks Gillan Hawkes & Melissa Appel: premier thought leaders in product strategy and execution (Pro Tip: read Melissa’s book, Aligned, https://amzn.to/4cujWEI) Michael Schumann: a true Traction Whisperer Stephan Smith: few are better at explaining complex technologies to any audience, technical or non-technical Natalie Muchnick, TriNet: the Gold Standard in Enterprise Sales, call her team to validate your corporate benefits or get you a better deal; strong contender for Boston’s Best Networker Simon Campbell: it’s going to be a BIG 2025, my friend Kristen Craft: Fidelity Private Shares delivers tremendous value, great working with you and Lynne Zagami, Peter Jordan, Isabelle Drury Steve Snyder, Gesmer Updegrove: Third Thursdays are epic with Hayden Huff, Amelia Heroux-Cummins, MBA, Eric Solem, Evan Macedo, MSA and others Travis M. Drouin & Ries McQuillan, Baker Tilly: thanks for all you do, our ecosystem would be vastly different (and much worse) without you Jason Ingargiola: every conversation with you uncovers a new go-to-market insight Doug Fox: you're Varsity-level marketing, sir Kate Morgan: when I I hear “Top Recruiter,” you’re the first person that comes to mind Irma Zeqo: a Finance standout, for compliance AND growth strategy Rebecca Schuette & Sarah Korval: appreciate our thoughtful conversations this year Andrew Gilman: one of the best friends a startup could ask for Jeanne Hopkins: you were an elite growth leader when we met years ago – nothing’s changed Randy Seidl: your positive impact on the community here is appreciated, I see it everywhere Kathy Pattison & Mark Maragni: always enjoy discussing B2B GTM strategy with you Valerie Wencis: you're awesome at finding, understanding and telling the story – you make us all better Thanks to these and other Boston Operators for a great year helping startups expand and accelerate. Final BCAN on Catalysts arrives tomorrow. Safe travels and Happy Thanksgiving!

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Thanks Lisa Landsman for chatting about the value of reviews to small businesses. A fun fact from our discussion: 70% of online experiences start with a search. That says a lot about today's consumer buying journey. As you stated, sometimes people know what they are looking for and sometimes they don't. Reviews and star ratings help shape consumer decisions. Thanks to Google for all they do to give small businesses a playing field in today's market. Take a minute to leave a review, it makes a difference!

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More and more I'm getting questions about Reverse Mentoring Programs. Does that resonate? If so, check out these helpful resources to get your gears turning (links at bottom of post): 1. Patrice Gordon: How Reverse Mentorship Can Create Better Leaders 2. Laura Francis: Reverse Mentoring: 11 Tips to Making it Work 3. Jack Kelly: How Reverse Mentoring Bridges Generational and Cultural Divides in the Workplace Keep calm and mentor on! 1.https://https://lnkd.in/edkysdud 2. https://lnkd.in/exrgUdjv 3. https://lnkd.in/eK8scYxN

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So very cool to see how BlackRock has streamlined product operations with Airtable: more than 80 hrs/week saved in productivity for PM and PMM! https://lnkd.in/gW-fb62V #productmarketing #productmanagement

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NEW RESEARCH: Developed in partnership with Dayforce, today JUST Capital published new research that shows the state of paid leave among America’s largest companies. Their results show continued gains for paid parental leave, parental leave parity, sick leave, and PTO, among other insights. Out of the Russell 1000 companies that disclose such information: ● They provide an average of 11 weeks of paid parental leave to primary caregivers and 8 weeks to secondary caregivers. ● Parental leave parity has risen from just over 11% in 2020 to 30% today. ● They most frequently offer between 15 and 19 days of PTO as well as 10 days of paid sick leave. ● The number of companies that offer unlimited PTO increased by 58% since 2020 and by 67% for unlimited sick leave. Strong paid leave policies have been shown to help organizations improve talent recruitment and retention, productivity, morale, and reduce absenteeism. Investments in them are the right thing to do for workers and the smart thing to do for businesses. JUST’s new toolkit also highlights industry-specific insights and trends as well as leading paid leave practices with guidance on how companies can best implement them. At Dayforce, we believe that every worker deserves the opportunity to realize their potential and enjoy happy, healthy, and productive lives. This toolkit is the second report in our new WorkWell research series, which is designed to deliver meaningful insights to organizations seeking to be high-road employers for their people. It’s being developed through internal Dayforce analysis, expertise from leading third parties, and surveys of the American public. The first report in the series was our inaugural Living Wage Index that was developed in partnership with the Living Wage Institute and was published last week. Huge shout-out to Aleksandra Radeva and her team at JUST for all of the time, talent, and energy that went into making this toolkit a reality. Please be on the lookout in September for new research from Riya Patil and Matthew Bahl at the Financial Health Network on innovative new practices to improve retirement security among low- and middle-income workers.

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If you're a GTM leader, get yourself to Boston next week. Here's a run down of what you'll be missing: ⭐ Wednesday, June 5: Pavilion coworking day. Thanks to our official coworking partner WeWork, we're taking over the entire 18th floor of the WeWork at 33 Arch Street and inviting Pavilion members and CRO Summit attendees to join us for a day of coworking, relationship building and networking (and bagels and sandwiches!). There is no cost to attend, but you have to register. Shoot me a DM if you want in. ⭐ Thursday, June 6: Pavilion CRO Summit. A one day, executive only summit for revenue leaders with a stacked lineup of CRO speakers, along with insights from leading VC and PE investors and operating partners. This event is at The Langham Boston, limited to 150 people, and we have limited tickets remaining, so hit the link in the comments to get yours before it sells out. ⭐ Friday, June 7: GTM Partners GTM Made Simple Roadshow. A one day, invitation-only event at the TechTarget offices where top GTM leaders will convene to talk about the GTM plays that are driving growth now, and the tech needed to execute them. Check out the link in the comments to get your invite. This 👆 is what you'll be missing if you're not in Boston next week. Well, this, plus hanging out with me, Sam Jacobs, Sangram Vajre and 150+ of your peers. What are you waiting for? Get your tickets to these events now, or send me a DM if you have questions. #Boston #CROSummit #kathleenhq

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Agree or disagree? Healthy debate on your leadership team is the only way to uncover blind spots, challenge assumptions, and drive better decisions. 💬 How do you encourage productive conflict in your leadership team? Tune into this week's LeadrPulse Podcast episode for tips on embracing healthy conflict from Maxio CEO, Randy Wooton: https://hubs.li/Q02XY2x70 #HealthyConflict #WorkplaceConflict #PoliticsatWork #StrongOpinions #LeadershipPodcast #BusinessPodcast #SaaS #LeadershipTips #FeedbackCulture #TeamCulture #EmployeeEngagement #HealthyDebate Matt Tresidder, Holly Tate

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🚀 Are your first-time managers set up for success? 🚀 Too often, rising leaders are thrust into roles without the support they need, leading to frustration and burnout. How can you tell if your mid-level talent is struggling? Join my live, two-part webinar series where we’ll dive into the findings from the workplace confidence study, capturing insights from over 300 emerging and mid-level professionals. Discover the challenges they face and how you can better support them to strengthen your leadership pipeline. Webinar Series Dates: Thursday, October 24th @ 1 PM EST: Emerging & Mid-Level Talent: Insights into Workplace Confidence and Development Needs Wednesday, October 30th @ 1 PM EST: Supporting Female Talent: Addressing the Challenges of Emerging & Mid-Level Career Women What you’ll learn: ✔️ Key factors impacting workplace confidence ✔️Critical development areas for long-term success ✔️Common challenges faced by first-time managers ✔️Retention and attrition indicators to watch ✔️Strategies to support women in your organization Don’t miss this opportunity to equip your future leaders for success! Plus, when you register, you’ll be among the first to receive a free copy of the Emerging & Mid-Level Talent Workplace Confidence report upon its release this fall! 👉 [Register Now] 👈https://lnkd.in/eFtHTUzn

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Marketers are meant to master communications. Yet, we often struggle to help non-marketers understand our world. When CMOs constantly use marketing jargon, it's difficult for other execs to even understand what they're talking about. It's a language barrier. And it's surprising how often it happens in the boardroom. Here are a few suggestions I shared in a recent article with The Drum: - Find a “bilingual” CMO who is fully proficient in both the language of marketing and the language of the boardroom - Place more marketing experts to serve directly on boards, or to advise board members and help "translate" marketing topics - Learn to speak each other’s languages... but know that this takes time, trust, and commitment. #marketing #CMO #CEO #CFO https://lnkd.in/eNcbw_bx

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HR Brew published a great summary of our USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism x Staffbase benchmark study into how employees feel about how companies communicate with them . 😬 Just 29% of workers are very satisfied with how companies communicate with them. Pretty shocking stuff with a real business cost, as there is a causal link to employee motivation and productivity. ⏰ This report really is a wake up call for leaders. It's time to put as much thought into HOW you communicate to your teams as WHAT you say. The best strategy in the world is worthless if employees neither understand it nor are aligned behind it. #employeecommunications #internalcommunications #internalcomms #HR #leadershipcommunication #leadership #aspiretoinspire #CEO #CXO #CHRO Neil Morrison FCIPD Melanie Bochmann Emma Fischer Brian Tomlinson Athena Koutsonikolas Dr. Juliane Kiesenbauer Fabian Liebig

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Does it all come down to respect and gratitude? This video from Threshold shares key insights into employee retention.

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75% of leaders have openly admitted to hoarding talent. Embracing talent mobility is key to retaining talent; a workforce that embraces talent mobility is inherently more dynamic, agile, and resilient. Employees who have experience working across different teams are better equipped to collaborate effectively, navigate complexity, and adapt to changing business needs. This flexibility enables organizations to deploy talent where it's needed most, optimize resource allocation, and respond swiftly to emerging opportunities and challenges. #talentmobility #talentplanning #talentmanagement #leadership

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To my CHRO friends. Business literacy - this is THE skill gap that will differentiate a HR professional. Having a deep understanding on how the business makes and spends money and what that means to value creation will make you a more impactful transformational business partner. h/t Laszlo Bock for having the foresight to create a program to help build this capability. #FutureOfWork #skills #CHRO

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I just started marketing consulting with Bravely, the personalized coaching and training platform, led by Sarah Sheehan. If you're in HR or Talent and curious about lifting up all your employees, supporting marginalized people, or working with truly talented and vetted coaches, check out Bravely. We might not have Prince Harry on call, but there's an excellent team here helping HR leaders make a difference in people's lives. #coaching #talentdevelopment #hr #hrleaders

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We're stuck in a catch-22. Consumers expect true personalization along the lines of Netflix and Amazon. But they also want increased privacy and tighter data controls. This is the personalization-and-privacy paradox, and it’s a delicate tightrope for marketers to manage. But why can’t customers have both? Businesses that still rely on speculative, third-party data to power their personalization strategies simply can’t deliver this. However those prepared to collect and use data sourced directly from their customers have an opportunity to create deeper and more enduring customer relationships. This isn’t just a competitive advantage against the former—it’s a long-term investment that will increase loyalty and engagement in a way we haven’t seen yet as marketers.

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LinkedIn Fam, There has been a lot of articles about how teamwork and common goals build great business results. What are the actionable ways you use to build a team “we win together’ culture within your org? #culture #teamwork #dreamwork

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Meet the latest great minds to join the #Newfire Leadership team. Welcome Gordon Wong. I share your passion for Data to Insight (#D2Ti) and look forward to turbocharging solutions to our clients most pressing #business questions

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The Federal Reserve’s half-point cut signals both the end of its fight against high inflation and a renewed focus on supporting the labor market. Chair Powell’s speech in Jackson Hole last month previewed this shift toward protecting the labor market, and those words are now turning into action. Read Indeed Hiring Lab's full commentary here. #Indeeed #HiringLab #Interestrate

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