Zoe Bogan, founder and CEO of the female-focused investment firm, ZB Agency, advised college students eager to engage with the business world to surround themselves with the right people throughout their work.
“What I always say to college students is to just keep going,” Bogan said. “But you have to put the work in. You have to put the work in. You have to surround yourself with the right type of people. You have to be coachable. Be intentional with what you are doing.”
Bogan shared her journey from working in the corporate world to building entrepreneurial success at the Women in Leadership Forum on Tuesday evening, hosted by the Winston Center for Leadership and Ethics.
Bogan discussed the struggles and worries she experienced in the early stages of her career, noting the importance of humanizing the often competitive reality of business professions.
“I do think at times that what got to me was fear,” Bogan said. “I was like, ‘I’m new to the firm. This project is zoomed in on me. It’s big. What am I going to do?’ But you know what? You raise your hand, you take a deep breath, and you knock it out of the park.”
Bogan emphasized the critical importance of developing connections and networking, regardless of career stage.
“Network outside of your role, because that really matters,” Bogan said. “That is where people will start to learn your name, and it’s really important also when you get into a corporation. Get out there and stretch yourself, because what you want to do for opportunities is have people say your name when you’re not in the room.
Bogan also spoke about her commitment to diversity and inclusion in the corporate world, emphasizing the importance of allocating more funding to diverse entrepreneurs and businesses.
“We don’t have a diversity problem, we have a revenue problem,” Bogan said.
Bogan also emphasized the importance of having male allies to aid this effort, noting that she often has men on her panels at conferences who provide their perspectives on the corporate sector.
“It is great that we have women-owned funds,” Bogan said. “It is great that we have funds for people of color. But we need allies in terms of bringing the scope so we’re all kind of engulfed with one another. We actually do need men at the table to deploy more capital to diversity entrepreneurs.”
Bogan urged those interested in corporate success to find a mentor or coach. In her own experience as a mentor, Bogan said she prioritizes finding mentees who are eager to succeed.
“I want you to win, but you actually have to focus on wanting to win,” Bogan said. “There’s an intensity. That’s an exchange share.”
Though much of Bogan’s advice highlighted the female experience in business, her guidance can be applied to all people of all professions, she said.
“It really all matters,” Bogan said. “The corporate and entrepreneurial journey was challenging, but what I want to say to everybody here is to take a step back and look at the whole chessboard.”
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