OUR STORY
Maureen Lucas
It’s interesting to me that some of the best ideas start with simple conversations. In a get together with Jennifer Charron, President of Logic Executive Search (and part of my former management team at LucasWorks), she expressed the desire to initiate an Advisory Board to support her business. I agreed that one of the key elements for a successful entrepreneur is to be able to get good advice from smart people. In the seven years since I have retired, I have been honored to support entrepreneurship in the City of Windsor and through the EPICentre at the University of Windsor. I believe that if we want to see more female entrepreneurs, we need to support them in the startup phase of their business. Many of the businesses that do survive and thrive are because those women have had mentors or advisors to support them through the many roadblocks and challenges they will deal with.
Jennifer Charron
Launching my own business, Logic Executive Search and Workplace Solutions in 2020 as the pandemic started was one of the most exciting and terrifying journeys in my career. I was confident in my knowledge of the recruitment industry but recognized that I was not an expert in the business fundamentals that were essential for starting and growing a successful business. I leveraged the expertise of those around me in finance, marketing, technology, etc. as I focused on what I did best, recruitment. As I continued to focus on how to grow my business and what expertise I was seeking to bring in-house, I kept coming back to the concept of developing an Advisory Board comprised of knowledgeable industry leaders who could provide mentorship and guidance in the areas that was not an expert in. I was certain that there were other female entrepreneur who were working through the same challenges as I was but unfortunately didn’t have the tools, resources or support to tap into. The concept of having a peer advisory group of other female entrepreneurs to share successes, navigate challenges and create a support system was something I felt strongly would benefit myself and others who were navigating this entrepreneurial journey on their own.
Blending Maureen’s passion for supporting female entrepreneurs and Jennifer's idea of an advisory board, we realized other female entrepreneurs could benefit from a similar concept. Hence, we launched FOCUS – Female Owners Collaborating to Unlock Success. Our idea is to hold 10 meetings a year where we will focus on business foundations, guided by Mentors and most importantly where each participant will act as a peer advisor. What one entrepreneur has been through could help someone else in their business challenge. But we wont just deal with challenges – we want to offer a place where women can share their success stories. We look forward to the success of FOCUS and of all the female owned businesses that participate.
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Maureen Lucas and Jennifer Charron