Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Hasson.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Lauren. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Five years ago, a male colleague, who was two years junior to me, I was managing his work, training him, and fixing his code left and right, pulled me aside and complained to me about how “difficult” it was for him to live on a certain salary (stating a specific number) in a very nice part of Dallas. This was a punch in the stomach because not only was he making exactly what I was making at the time (and I was managing his work and training him and two years senior to him) but he was making 50% more than me when I was at his level. Up until this point, I had suspected I was underpaid but I doubted myself because I didn’t have hard solid proof. And, every time I went into a salary negotiation, I would muster up the courage to ask for my money and was repeatedly told I wasn’t “there” yet – wherever there was. And I bought this hook, line, and sinker every time. And this drove to keep accomplishing amazing things in my career in hopes that when I got “there” I’d finally get paid what I’m worth. And I was hitting it out of the part career-wise too: I had played a critical engineering role in getting a number of high profile projects to market at the top mobile app development agency I worked at; I had an engineering leadership role in getting an app featured in the Apple iOS 7 keynote (mecca for an iOS engineer) and this work had not gone unnoticed. I had won the company-wide award FOUR times in just two years. Outside the company, I was also hitting it out of the park. I had participated in and won a number of high-profile hackathons, including the PBS hackathon and the SXSW hackathon the last two years in a row. I had been 1 of only 100 innovators invited to participate in the exclusive British Airways UnGrounded event alongside the likes of the founder of Craigslist and the other leading innovators. I had been invited to attend the UK G8 Innovation Summit to present ideas to the United Nations on how to bridge the global STEM gap. And for everything that I had achieved, the executive team at the company I worked at approached me and appointed me head of the innovation and culture committee. I was doing awesome. And yet I was still underpaid. So, I realized I had one of three choices: 1) I could blame myself and remain stuck, 2) I could blame others and expect the company and society to fix it in which I’d still be underpaid, or 3) I could recognize that while this isn’t my fault, I could take responsibility to own my own outcome, learn to negotiate and change my life. And that’s exactly what I did. I invested thousands of dollars in resources learning to negotiate even going so far as to hire personal negotiation consultants. And the result was in less than two years I not only tripled my salary but this additional income that I was earning was a six-figure amount. That’s six figures that I earn year after year after year. And yet I continued to meet tech women who were also underpaid. And I kept saying to myself “someone should do something about this” and I realized that I am someone, I could do something about this. And that’s exactly why I founded DevelopHer, to make career development both accessible and affordable to all tech women. To be the resource that I so desperately needed five years ago. I launched DevelopHer first with my podcast, The DevelopHer Show, in which I interview leading tech women about their careers and lessons learned to peel back that curtain and show tech women what it really takes to be successful, I started traveling the country speaking to women delivering my keynote “Become a NegotiatHer” to inspire women, show them what’s possible, and share my framework to earning more. And I’ve just rolled out my first online course, The Become a NegotiatHer Course, to teach tech women step-by-step how to implement my framework and negotiate for the salary they want and deserve. And, in just a few short months, I’ve already changed the lives of many women. Women are coming back to me and sharing that they’ve increased their salaries from 27-43% and changed their lives. I even heard from a husband of one of the women who enrolled in my program it had that much of an impact on their family.
Has it been a smooth road?
Absolutely not! One of the challenges that I have is that I work full-time as an actual women in tech writing code for a Bay Area fintech while running DevelopHer, speaking, and developing courses. In fact, right before I launched DevelopHer and my podcast, I not only went through an internal career change at the company and had to retool my skillset but I also launched the company while recovering from a cervical spinal fusion – which was incredibly painful – but I did it.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
What I do: career development for tech women by a tech woman and specialize right now in salary negotiation, overcoming fear, and building confidence
I’m known for inspiring women to take action and earn what they are worth and for my engaging keynote.
I’m most proud of the results that women who have applied my framework have achieved. Women contact me and share what a meaningful impact my framework has had in their lives. Women have shared they have applied the framework I teach and achieved salary increases of 27-43% to the tune of $30K more! Not only are they earning more but they are more confident!
What sets me apart is I walk my talk – I’m not just teaching tech women how to do this but I’m an actual tech woman myself who knows this and teaches this material from first-hand experience. Women relate to me because I’m one of them!
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I love Dallas and the city is large enough that I’m able to test new material here and have a large audience in the city!
Pricing:
- Free, online webinar launching soon (June)
- Monthly membership is $49
- Online negotiation course is $497
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.DevelopHer.com
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DevelopHerPlatform
- Twitter: @DevelopHerShow; @LaurenRHasson
- Other: http://www.LinkedIn.com/LaurenHasson
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
