In this episode of MOVE Like This, Chelsea Sowers, incoming President of the Accounting and Financial Women’s Alliance (AFWA), audit manager specializing in cryptocurrency assurance at The Network Firm, and “Bitcoin Barbie” on the Atlanta Roller Derby team, joins Bonnie Buol Ruszczyk to talk about what it actually takes to build leadership pipelines that hold.
Chelsea’s own path is unconventional. A returning student who entered college in her mid-30s after years in restaurant work, she nearly walked away on her first day feeling out of place. Encouragement from her grandmother and professors became pivotal moments that eventually led to a successful accounting career and leadership roles within AFWA. That experience shapes her central argument: many professionals stay in accounting because someone believed in them before they believed in themselves. The challenge now is building systems where the next generation does not have to borrow as much belief from others.
The conversation moves through the distinction between mentorship and sponsorship, the role organizations like AFWA play in filling gaps that employers cannot, and the caregiving realities that quietly reshape leadership pipelines during peak career-building years. Chelsea is direct: firms are not losing future partners because ambition declines. They are losing them because support systems fail at exactly the wrong moment.
Key Takeaways:
- Retention Challenges Extend Beyond Recruitment: Firms may successfully attract talent while struggling to retain women at the manager and director levels where future leaders emerge.
- Sponsorship Changes Careers: Career growth often depends on people who actively advocate, create opportunities, and reinforce belief before professionals see it in themselves.
- Professional Communities Fill Important Gaps: Organizations like AFWA provide belonging, mentorship, leadership experience, and support outside employer structures.
- Caregiving Shapes Leadership Pipelines: Flexibility and support during caregiving periods may determine whether experienced professionals remain on leadership tracks.
- Belonging Supports Retention: Feeling supported and understood professionally influences whether people stay and grow within the profession.
- No One Advances Alone: Behind many successful careers are people who opened doors, advocated, or offered belief at pivotal moments.
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