Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachael Rogers.
Hi Rachael, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
My name is Rachael Rogers, I live in Boston, I am the Founder of GameChangers, and by day I lead Implementation Consulting for Financial Products at a tech company in Boston.
A little backstory on how GameChangers got started: I am passionate about being a life-long learner and spent years looking for professional development options that felt fresh, dynamic, and engaging rather than stale or generic.
As a female leader in the tech world, I am also often the only woman in the room. So I started seeking out like-minded female leaders to connect with. Together, we would brainstorm our career obstacles, and offer feedback, advice, and encouragement. I would experience a momentum boost as I learned from these women, and I wanted more!
So, I founded GameChangers, a non-profit organization that offers dynamic, curated professional development retreats and events to advance equality in the workplace and accelerate the growth of female leaders.
At the first pilot retreat, one of the attendees, Sofie Svelander, was so impacted that she reached out to me and asked to join forces with the goal to expand the idea of GameChangers and make it accessible to more women. Sofie is originally from Sweden and is a marketing professional with a background in both brand building and performance marketing. She also has a background in women’s studies and has always been involved in women’s rights initiatives.
Her experience includes volunteer work at a women’s shelter in South Africa and a refugee camp in Palestine: educating women on microloans and entrepreneurship. Sofie is now the Head of Marketing and Co-Founder of GameChangers.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
My story certainly has its fair share of obstacles! I grew up in a low-income household and neither of my parents had earned a college degree. From a very young age, I saw education and personal development as the key to building the life and career I wanted. I spent my childhood focused on my education: I graduated from high school at 14 and earned my bachelor’s degree at 19.
A decade later, I am now about to graduate with my MBA. My unique upbringing made me who I am and also instilled in me a deep passion for empowering women to leverage education and personal development to reach their highest potential.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
The data shows that emerging female leaders are prioritizing professional development and are actively seeking out unique ways to gain career momentum.
GameChangers is the right solution because we offer community-driven retreats and events where ambitious female leaders can find community, sharpen professional skills, and share resources.
We stand apart in our commitment to the collective. Many retreats or conferences focus on keynotes, and GameChangers retreats are defined by connection. At its essence, we leverage each attendee’s unique strengths and experiences to provide value to other women rather than relying on a keynote speaker.
We are excited about the near-term expansion plans into GameChangers day-long events, a virtual community, and cultivating our rich alumni network! I am on a mission to uplift and empower women as they build their professional legacies, and we’re just getting started!
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
We are certainly all dealt hands in life: where I had to overcome significant barriers (low-income upbringing, difficulty accessing higher education) I also have been given privileges that have opened doors along the way.
My hope is that GameChangers reduces the role of luck in the success of professional women: if a woman wants to be a GameChanger, she should have access to the education, network, and opportunities that will get her there.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.gamechangersretreat.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gamechangers_retreat/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089894033661&mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/gamechangers-retreat/
