Having myself run a women’s network in the UK, I’ve watched very closely the stratospheric rise of Chief - the US-based female network founded only four years ago. I’m intrigued by why it’s achieving such cut-through when there are a vast number of other women’s networks out there. Some, like my old shop, Women on Boards, fill a very specific niche, some, like Allbright, offer more general leadership/ career focus, while others, like FEA, are very targeted at entrepreneurship. But fundamentally they are all about helping women “achieve better” or be more successful in the workplace. So what’s this new kid on the block doing that’s so effective? I discussed this with one of Chief’s London-based founding members, and here are my take-aways.
1. It’s exclusive
Chief is not an open network. Women need to be at a certain stage in their career (+15 years, VP or higher) and be proposed by someone else in the network or known to it. They are very open about this. Their website used to have photos of highly influential / celebrity women, such as Amal Clooney, but now they have slightly shifted focus to big corporate names. However, the message remains clear - this is for serious players. There’s a selection process that members need to go through, including a short, informal interview. A brilliant touch - this sets expectations and further drives desire to “belong” to this exclusive group. Chief makes sure those who are joining are not only of the right calibre - Chief's reputation depends on having the right kind of members in the room, after all - but also on having the right mindset, including a demonstrable commitment to supporting others to succeed.
It’s not cheap either, with annual membership rates ranging from £5800 to £7900, or about 2X Soho House global membership. Sure, many members will get their companies to pay for them, but committing to this kind of spend on yourself ensures that you’re going to take it seriously.
2. The product is really good
The digital platform and Club House are top class. The app works really well and the Club House is at the level of professionalism and style that you would expect from the exclusive nature and expense of the offering.
3. It has nailed community
There’s one thing that won’t surprise our regular readers - Chief does community really, really well. Members talk it up endlessly among their contacts, so most potential candidates pick up the excited buzz long before they actually think about applying. The member we spoke to first heard about it from someone she admired, and said “it resonated for me at this stage in my career”.
The core of the offering is the community you will join and the connections that you will make. Sure, there’s training and information available to support your career goals, plus jobs and candidates boards, but fundamentally people are there to meet others. As our member says, “Chief is offering access to a powerful ready-made global network. It’s now up to me to decide how I tap into it”.
Members seem very in tune with the ‘shared values’ vibe. “People show up as much for each other as for themselves”. Members carve out “Chief time” in their week when they network, maybe have virtual coffees with women whose profiles interest them. In other networks, it would be rare for very successful senior people to regularly devote time to help or advise people they don’t know, but that’s precisely what Chief members commit to doing.
We should stress that none of this is a formal expectation or requirement - no-one in Chief overtly asks members to do any of this. The culture has organically developed that way, and members are just getting on and doing it for themselves. The member we spoke to explained that when she joined, her profile as a new joiner appeared on the app for the rest of the global network to see (nice touch, Chief, nice touch). Immediately she began to receive messages of welcome, and offers of support or to meet for virtual coffees. From total strangers. She was blown away. She admits that it would normally take her a while to get into the habit of logging into a new app, but with Chief she finds herself checking in with it regularly and is now also of course offering her own time to meet new members. This is all about member-to-member connection, not based on any diktat from on high. (I suspect there may have been some pump-priming hints in this direction from the Chief team early on, but that’s all that was needed - a perfect example of ‘nudge theory’ in practice.)
In March last year, Chief completed a $100M series B raise, valuing the company at a tad over $1bn, making it a rare female-founded unicorn. That’s a pretty punchy valuation for a business that reportedly then had only 12,000 members (plus 50,000 on their waiting list.) Clearly the VC world had perceived real potential in the way they are harnessing and growing the power of the network. But could this sow the seeds of a threat to their golden formula? VCs usually want to see a continuation in explosive growth. But no organisation can capture 100% of the market, and will there really be enough senior level women executives joining every year to keep fuelling the rocket? Because if they start lowering their selection standards, discounting their rates, some of the magic might wear off. It’s the problem with “exclusivity”. Like a desert island paradise that builds too many hotels, or a “limited edition” that’s surprisingly easy to find.
Whatever happens we will be watching with much interest.
Thanks for sharing, I'm curious, are you a member of Chief?
I've also added it to a collection of Chief insights here: https://village.rosie.land/t/chief-valued-at-1-1-billion-with-17k-members/975