(Women on Top in Tech is a series about Women Founders, CEOs, and Leaders in technology. It aims to amplify and bring to the fore diversity in leadership in technology.)
Here is our interview with Emily Rotolo, Founder/CEO of SimpleForms. My company actually just went live on a crowdfunding website to bring accredited and non-accredited investors the ability to invest in startups.
What makes you do what you do?
There are a few things!
I realized I can help more people in the world from the CEO chair of a Public Benefit Corporation then I can working at the non-profit I was at helping 3 people at a time. Mix that with the fact that I lived a problem SimpleForms now solves. Luckily I was working at a Startup in Utah when I first encountered the issues around employment documents, the lucky part was that I was in an environment that was motivating and supportive. It really helped me realize that if you are not building your passion you are only helping someone else achieve theirs.
How did you rise in the industry you are in?
I went to Georgetown University where I wanted to be a doctor. However, I thought I should probably try and internship in another field before really committing. It was my junior year of college when I joined Bisnow Media as their first ever intern ( it was acquired this year) and I was hooked on the startup culture. I went from there to my goal company to work for in the Startup world which was Summit Series. I was a part of Summit Series when we purchased Powder Mountain. In these two startups I learned more than I could have ever imagined.
Why did you take on this role/start this startup?
It’s definitely a challenge, especially being a female. I get asked the most inappropriate questions from investors, and each time it makes me stronger. The idea that something is challenging is really an exciting fact, not a deterrence. Also, I am REALLY open to help. I ask for it and seek it out, we’ve built amazing mentors and advisors into our company. So yes am I out of my comfort zone… every day. Did I learn to hire smarter, yes! Does that make it even more challenging sometimes — yes! But I couldn’t sit by idol. The idea that as a population we fill out government regulated forms without assistance just isn’t right, especially when it affects every paycheck in the country.
Do you have a mentor that you look up to in your industries or did you look for one or how did that work?
YES! I love my mentors. We have advisors (official and non-official) and tons of mentors. We were fortunate to complete Techstars this year, which if you know starts with mentor madness. The key is to really find someone you connect with whether it’s industry-specific or not. We do have some that are very industry specific joining us from Inuit specifically Turbo Tax, but then we also have mentors that build hardware, so while it might not seem like we have a lot in common the experiences and conversations are what elevate a mentor relationship
If you haven’t watched it yet- Ted Talk: The Art Of asking — It really allowed me to find the best mentors for our company.
How did you make a match if you and how did you end up being mentored by him?
One of our non-techstars mentors came from our engineer. He was friends with the VP of engineering at GoFundMe, so with him being the first employee, he was really able to help coach us and show us what it is going to take to make this work. The key is finding not only the mentor that you can connect with and have open, honest, vulnerable conversations but also incentives them so that they work that much harder to help you succeed.
I have 2 personal mentors that I’ve known for years one became our official advisor with his brand knowledge and design expertise the other, is a huge support system for me to turn to about the struggles of being a female founder, or the ups and downs of building a team. It’s a roller coaster!
Now as a leader how do you spot, develop, keep, grow and support your talent?
We have two really young employees, a college grad, and a college dropout. They are my favorite! I wanted to hire me when I was an intern at Bisnow. A sponge, someone with a thirst for knowledge and want to learn. Watching them grow has been one of the most exciting things to date. We focus on really deep learning, training, and onboarding in the beginning followed by autonomy for the second month. During the first month, it’s important to find the “puzzle piece” what made them want to join our startup? what excites them about what we are building, what’s the hook? The second month is really a proving point, can they keep up with outpace, does the work they are doing excite them, and can they bring new fresh ideas to our meetings. This level of independence and respect has really worked with our team.
We also do fun things along the way! If you stay with me for one year you get your birthday off PTO. Year two you get a second day until ideally you’re with me for 5 years and you get the entire week of your birthday as a paid vacation.
Do you consciously or unconsciously support diversity and why?
Consciously and unconsciously. We hire the best candidate for the job. We’ve been lucky to have a very diverse team, with a founding team of two females and two males. I wish I could say I favor females to hire, or race, however, any favoritism doesn’t help the system in my eyes.
I want to build the best product and to do that we need the best team. We do however Consciously give back to more diverse areas as a public benefit corporation we give back to low-income education.
What is your take on what it takes to be a great leader in your industry and as a general rule of thumb?
It’s so hard! Just the other day I had one of my employees tell me that because he’s from the west coast and I’m from the east coast there is a tone difference and attitude difference, which is hard for him to feel like he’s doing a good job. (Being from the east coast I rolled my eyes). However, it’s really important to listen and learn what your employees need. I know that when I have a manager I need them to tell me “good job” we have a few of those on our team. We also have the employees that want to hear “good job” as a pay raise or promotion, or even just an afternoon off, or email announcing it to the team.
Really listening and learning how your employee’s work will make you a better leader. I try to stress, it’s not about the hours at the desk but the work that’s getting done. So if my employee doesn’t feel well, you’re not a child you don’t have to convince me, but if you’re going to stay home your work should reflect the same respect as if you were in the office.
Advice for others?
I could fit this into every answer: TRANSPARENCY — explain it. What you are doing and why. Especially in the startup world, I think it’s really hard on employees when they have no idea what’s going on with the company, upper management, or the founders. I share my schedule, my action items, my weekly updates as well as probably too much information. But it all comes together when you’re team has a question or you need to ask for help because you were transparent there is a better understanding.
