Member Spotlight: Nancy Geenen, CEO of Flexability

Nancy Geenen is an accomplished entrepreneur, trial attorney, and strategic facilitator whose educational background includes Stanford, Harvard, and Santa Clara University Law School. Early in her career she was a Senior Legal Officer for the United Nations in Geneva, where she focused on adjudicating damages arising from Iraq’s unlawful invasion of Kuwait.Geenen is now a sought-after advisor on matters of company culture, retention, career development, and leadership. She brings all of these skills and more to her roles as the CEO and a Founder of Flexability. Read on to learn more about both her and this important social impact firm.GGBA: Please describe your business and its mission and values.Nancy Geenen: Flexability is a social impact enterprise that wants to change the world by changing the workplace. We connect employers with highly skilled job seekers with a disability and equity lens, using temporary placement, direct hire, and executive search. We work with client leadership teams on the next phase of a company’s disability culture and training. We exist to help our clients develop a disability inclusive culture, find great talent, create career paths for individuals with disabilities, drive profitability through employee engagement and retention, and build equitable ecosystems.Flexability is a social impact firm with a vision to change the world by changing workplaces. We believe championing people is good business and good business drives profit. We partner with like-minded companies, communities, and job-seekers to build diverse, dynamic, and productive working environments. We exist to help our clients develop a disability inclusive culture, find great talent, create career paths for individuals with disabilities, drive profitability through employee engagement and retention, and build equitable ecosystems.GGBA: Why did you decide to create your business?Nancy Geenen: The Flexability leadership team is passionate about equity in the workplace. We share a set of core values that guide our behavior in all respects: people first, keep every promise, and lead with abundance, bravery, and creativity. With unemployment the lowest in many decades, individuals with disabilities are a skilled, innovative, and productive talent source that is work-ready and available. We partner with like-minded companies, communities, and job-seekers to build diverse, dynamic, and productive working environments.GGBA: Why did you decide to join the GGBA?Nancy Geenen: The GGBA is the San Francisco business voice of the LGBT business community. It is the oldest and best business association for LGBT entrepreneurs and business owners. As a social impact start-up, the GGBA is one of the best opportunities for networking and referral business.GGBA: How long have you been a member of the GGBA?Nancy Geenen: Flexability joined the GGBA in August 2019, just as Flexabilitiy opened its doors for business in San Francisco.GGBA: Why has being a long-term member of the GGBA been important for your business?Nancy Geenen: In the long-run, Flexability’s success depends on the referrals and networking within the business community. Many in the LGBT community have stories to share about barriers to the workplace. Our mission is to create employment opportunities for all who experience such barriers. Members of the GGBA are a great source of business and business referrals.GGBA: How has the GGBA helped your business so far?Nancy Geenen: GGBA members like Dawn Ackerman have been very helpful. As part of our certification process, Dawn and I spent time talking about the importance of LGBT entrepreneurs to the growth of our economy.GGBA: What brings you back to the monthly GGBA Make Contacts? Have they added value to your business?Nancy Geenen: Networking and business referrals are the most important aspect of the GGBA. Because Flexability supplies a talent source for small and midsize businesses, our attendance at the Make Contact events is beneficial to all.GGBA: What advice would you give to someone who is thinking of starting their own business?Nancy Geenen: Read Entrepreneural LEAP and Traction, both by Gino Wickman. Develop the core values unique to the business and the owners, then hire, retain, and reward on these core values. Getting the right people in the right seats will propel the enterprise toward the business goals. Surviving the first 3 to 5 years is about discipline, execution, and accountability.For more information: https://www.flexability.com/