Women Building Businesses by Fostering Community: The NAWBO Story.

Ever wondered how the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) brings together a community of women entrepreneurs to support and inspire each other? Join me as I chat with Christina Dixon about NAWBO’s vibrant Sacramento chapter, a standout in California with its innovative initiatives. Discover how they're fostering the next generation of businesswomen through partnerships with schools and organizations like the Girl Scouts, creating a pipeline of future leaders ready to make their mark.

Christina and I explore the unique power of collaboration within NAWBO, a volunteer-driven organization fueled by the passion of its members. As we share stories of balancing roles within NAWBO, hear about the dedication that goes into leading such a dynamic community. From hosting the annual OWL Award Gala to nurturing partnerships with corporate giants, learn how NAWBO leverages relationships to uplift and celebrate outstanding women leaders. The organization provides members with a variety of educational, social, economic and political programs that support women in building successful ventures and making effective changes in business culture. 

Imagine the possibilities at the For Women by Women Capital Summit, where women entrepreneurs gain insights into non-traditional financing options. Christina and I discuss the organization's ambitious vision to offer expansive support, despite financial constraints, and the critical role of growing awareness and engagement. With a thriving board and an unwavering commitment to empowering women, NAWBO is poised to continue its legacy of championing women in business for generations to come.

To learn more about NAWBO Sacramento or to attend their events, visit the website HERE

Chapter Summaries

(00:00) Women Business Owners Collaboration
NAWBO's Sacramento chapter supports a diverse range of women-owned businesses and exposes high school students to entrepreneurship through clubs and a pitch competition.

(09:18) Building Relationships for Women Entrepreneurs
NABO's impactful work and partnerships with Girl Scouts, Junior Achievement, and chambers, funded by corporate partners, celebrated at OWL Award Gala.

(16:12) Opportunities and Growth for Women Entrepreneurs
NABO supports women entrepreneurs through events like the Capital Summit and Business Builders, with a focus on growth and sustainability through corporate sponsorship and outreach efforts.

(29:00) Empowering Women Entrepreneurs Through NABO
NABO supports women in business, led by Christine and 23 board members, engaging with younger entrepreneurs and students for community growth.

Thank you so much for listening! We appreciate you. Please visit the website to sign up for our email updates. https://www.nonprofpod.com/ And if you like, leave me a voicemail to comment on the program, leave a question for us to ask in the future or a message for me, Jeff Holden. I may even use your voice mail message in a future episode. https://www.nonprofpod.com/voicemail. Thanks again for your support in listening, commenting and sharing the great work our local nonprofits are accomplishing.

Transcript

00:00 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
The women that I've encountered through NAWBO, both at the national level, different regions in our chapter in California. Since everyone's an entrepreneur, they're, for the most part, the boss right. They're very driven, very focused and, I think, have different talents to offer. It helps us in our mission as far as making sure we're offering a broad range of programming and considering all angles and perspectives of programming. And considering all angles and perspectives, the thing that I see really is that since they're driven to be entrepreneurs already, they're driven to give back as well. 

00:43 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Hi, I'm Jeff Holden. Welcome to the Nonprofit Podcast Network. Our purpose and passion is to highlight a nonprofit organization in each weekly episode, giving that organization an opportunity to tell their story in their words, to better inform and educate the respective communities they serve, as well as provide one more tool for them to share their message to constituents and donors. Our goal is to help build stronger communities through shared voices and to both encourage and support the growth of local nonprofit organizations through podcasting. Thanks to our founding partners for their foresight in helping us transform the way conversations start CapTrust, fiduciary advice for endowments and foundations. Runyon Saltzman Incorporated. Rse, marketing, advertising and public relations. Creating integrated communications committed to improving lives. And Western Health Advantage, a full-service health care plan for individuals, employer groups and families. 

01:44
Women have been an integral part of the workforce for years Now. Women are an integral part of business ownership and entrepreneurship, and their rate of growth has been increasing year over year. According to a recent study done by Wells Fargo, over 39% of all businesses are women-owned. And as for entrepreneurs, consider this In 2023, women represented 49% of the new business owners in the US. That's up from 29% in 2019. And those women are represented by all ethnicities and races. Women-owned and operated businesses mirror those of men, and, while there's still a ways to go for all things to be equal, there are organizations demonstrating and supporting the strength of women-owned businesses. The woman I'm speaking with is the current president of the Sacramento chapter of NAWBO, or the National Association of Women Business Owners. She also happens to be a partner in a woman-owned business. Acus Law is a mother of two and is active in several organizations that support and empower women-owned businesses. Christina Dixon welcome to the Nonprofit Podcast Network. 

02:54 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Thank you for having me. 

02:56 - Jeff Holden (Host)
I'm excited to talk to you today because we haven't had an organization like NABO on before. And before we get into it, what is NABO? I mean it goes by its acronym, which is a little atypical N-A-W-B-O. 

03:14 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Right NABO is the National Association of Women Business Owners. 

03:19 - Jeff Holden (Host)
And keyword national there. So you are an affiliate or a chapter. What does that look like across the country? Right? 

03:27 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
So we are a chapter. We are the Sacramento region chapter and obviously I mean. So California is interesting of the national chapter because we have 11 chapters in California. 

03:37 - Scott Thomas (Ad)
Wow. 

03:37 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Most states have one or two, so we have 11. So in addition to national, which is based in Washington DC for advocacy purposes, we have chapters throughout the country and California has 11. And on top of that kind of an intermediary level there is a chapter just for California, so it's a California chapter. 

04:00 - Jeff Holden (Host)
So it encompasses all of the nuance of business in this state and maybe so many entrepreneurs and business owners and women business owners, not to mention state capital of the largest state in the union. So it's great to see that presence. What do you see as maybe some of the differences as you look with some of your peers across the country? Do you notice some novelty in the state of California chapters? 

04:25 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
That's interesting. I'm trying to think if we have differences. I mean, I think one of the main differences is just the sheer number of chapters that we have and the variety of businesses that we have here. So NABO encompasses businesses at all stages, so we have early stages to mature. We're getting ready to sell and exit and I think because we have so many chapters in California, we encompass a kind of broader base of those types of businesses. 

04:51 - Jeff Holden (Host)
And you just answered partially the next question, the scope of women-owned businesses that you work with. Obviously, we have auto construction with Allison Auto. It's really large all the way down to, I would imagine, startups, and you see the same here in Sacramento. 

05:09 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, absolutely, and you may have actually met with some of the other organizations but Sacramento Entrepreneurs Academy, sea Growth Factory, fourth Wave. So we have a wide variety of surprisingly many startups in our organization, as well as solopreneurs all the way up to large multi-million kind of dollar revenue organizations. So it's really all stages. And one thing that's interesting about our chapter is that we at the helm of Liliana Bernal, who you know, she started the high school clubs piece of our chapter and we're the only chapter in the country that has that. 

05:40 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Oh, really, I think that's fabulous to integrate and orient youth at such an early age into seeing all these successful women. What a great experience for the students. 

05:52 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Students yeah, Yep. So our first school is St Francis, which is obviously great feeding grounds for us. 

05:56 - Scott Thomas (Ad)
Yeah. 

05:57 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
And our relationship there really started with Liliana. She started the high school chapter, or high school clubs piece of Nabo Sacramento and now we have a collaboration with Junior Achievement. No-transcript geared towards them. 

06:15 - Jeff Holden (Host)
And you're leading up right into the very next question of collaboration. It's just flowing, naturally. We're not having to ask the questions. You're going there. So, st Francis, are there any other significant high schools that you're coordinating and collaborating with? 

06:27 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Right. So right now we have Oak Ridge. 

06:29
That was actually our first chapter Another big school yeah, oak Ridge, and that one was actually founded by I don't know if you know Renata Jenick. She's the CEO of Foodum. Her daughter was a high school student at Oak Ridge and she was so inspired, I think, by seeing her mom win an Owl Award. She founded the very first high school chapter and then it kind of blossomed from there. It became something that we could support even more, which is awesome. So then we got St Francis and now we're working on growing into Crystal Ray and other schools where there might be a population interested in this. 

07:02 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Oh, and Crystal Ray, especially because of the work-study program. How perfect is that and that's exciting. That's really encouraging to hear and to see that you're giving the students the ability and the opportunity to actually engage in the workforce through a variety of different perspectives. Let's say so, not necessarily in the environment, but in the environment of women who are successful and they get to experience it in a unique way versus what they hear about and, in some cases, don't hear about. 

07:31 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Right, and it may not always just be the women who are already successful, but the women who are at the early stages or kind of in that toddler stage or teenage stage of their business, where there can be difficulties. 

07:41 - Jeff Holden (Host)
You know, capital finding people, growth, scaling, those are all those kind of obstacles you have to overcome in your journey and see some of the challenges and or the opportunities that you will probably have in the scholastic environment, either through high school or college. Small businesses start that will take place and continue to thrive after the students graduate, so that'd be really, really interesting. 

08:12 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, and the other kind of interesting piece of that is that, along with the high school club, which they can participate in throughout the school year, we also offer the high school pitch competition, which gives them an opportunity to come up with a business and pitch it to our judges. And some of our judges include some of our corporate partners, but I mean it includes other community leaders as well, which is great, because then they get to be on the receiving end of like where are the gaps and opportunities in their business plan? 

08:36 - Jeff Holden (Host)
That's great life skill To be able to do that. Envisioning Fast Pitch or something like that, the SVP Fast Pitch and or the presentation for Impact 100, those are somewhat stressful events. 

08:49 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, for sure. 

08:51 - Jeff Holden (Host)
But what great experience to be able to get a student up there with their own business plan and idea. 

08:57 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, it's also, I think, nice too, too, because it's a little bit more supported. It's not Shark Tank. 

09:01 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Right right. Yeah, when you're talking about $100,000, it changes the difference in terms of the perspective on the presentation. 

09:06 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, exactly, but it's a nice chance for them to get some feedback on their business plan and their business model, so I think it's a great program. 

09:14 - Jeff Holden (Host)
And are they coached along the way? 

09:16 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, they have an opportunity through their club to receive coaching. 

09:19 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Oh, that's wonderful. You also mentioned OWL, which we'll get back to in a second, but the other collaborations Junior Achievement, who are some of the other organizations that you might work with? 

09:31 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Sure. So we've worked with Girl Scouts. That's actually a relatively new relationship. We're in our second year of collaborating with them, which is amazing. 

09:38 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Makes great sense though. 

09:39 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, especially so. It's Girl Scouts and I'm going to get the name wrong, but it's Girl Scouts, Heart of Central California. 

09:45
I think it's a very long name, but I loved their mission and so one of our partners, kelly DeMarco, brought us in as a partner for them for their first annual gala and I got to learn what they do, which really the fundraising piece of it is supporting girls who are otherwise unable to participate financially in a troop. So that was just really, I think, amazing for our community to support that. And then we over the summer we went to Camp Menzies and did this whole kind of adult school you know Girl Scout experience until we got smoked out and we had to leave. 

10:18
Like there was literally a fire. 

10:19 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Six miles away and they had to evacuate us. Yeah, that really happened. It wasn't a bunch of s'mores burning or something, it was the real deal. 

10:24 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
It was the real deal. Yeah, we got a radio call and they were like there's a fire six miles away. 

10:29 - Jeff Holden (Host)
We're going to have to evacuate. 

10:30 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
So look forward to the next one. 

10:33 - Jeff Holden (Host)
I would imagine that's a great experience for everybody. 

10:36 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yes, we got to go experience Camp Menzies and have like an adult, so there was canoeing, there was archery, all the different things and you could make flower crowns and I mean, you know we didn't get to do all the things because we got evacuated. But yeah, I mean I think it's been a great partnership and I really love that we can support them and also create the path right so you can start in a troop. And the interesting thing is, and if you talk to Linda Farley before but she always asks how many women that you know in business or you know that are in companies have been a Girl Scout, and a lot of times we often raise our hands Many, many many. 

11:11
Yep, I was a Girl Scout. 

11:13 - Jeff Holden (Host)
More than Boy Scouts Really? Yeah, more than if you talk to guys, yeah Well, you were a Boy Scout or a Cub Scout or whatever, not so much. But when you talk about Girl Scouts, oh yeah, I was a Girl Scout, I was a Brownie and graduated and did my whole thing. So I don't know if it's more prolific here or if that's nationwide. It would be a good question. We have to ask Linda at some point. 

11:34 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Right, I know we will. We will, yeah. So we partner with Girl Scouts, junior Achievement, and then we have great partnerships with most of the chambers, and then we also form relationships with some of the entrepreneur organizations. 

11:45 - Jeff Holden (Host)
So Growth Factory we're working on a relationship with SEA and Fourth Wave as well. Yeah, those are great organizations because they take in so much to the community. 

11:55 - Scott Thomas (Ad)
Not to mention. 

11:55 - Jeff Holden (Host)
They can expose you both ways. People who didn't know about NAMBO now do, and vice versa. Great organizations or great businesses and startups that you're talking to now by presentation. 

12:07 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, and I think the nice thing with collaborating with those organizations is that they provide an avenue for startups where you may not be at an EO level or some of the others right Like. You might want something a little more supported maybe not as you're on your way on that journey. 

12:23 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Well, you mentioned EO Entrepreneurs Organization. There's thresholds there, that one has a significant threshold to be a participant. 

12:29 - Scott Thomas (Ad)
It does, yeah, it does. 

12:31 - Jeff Holden (Host)
It eliminates a lot of the opportunity for many, many people. And not unjustly. It's just that type of an organization, so they're a little bit different. The thing that's unique about NABO is that it's also all volunteer. Tell me a little bit about what that looks like, because stuff still gets done, but you're not paying anybody for it. 

12:51 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
That's true. I know it's really interesting. I feel like the women that I've encountered through NABO, both at the national level, different regions in our chapter in California since everyone's an entrepreneur, they're, for the most part, the boss, right, they're very driven, very focused and, I think, have different talents to offer, and so I think it helps us in our mission as far as, like, making sure we're offering a broad range of programming and considering all angles and perspectives. But I think that is the thing that I see really is that, since they're driven to be entrepreneurs already, they're driven to give back as well, and then there are different ways, right, some people might be really good at social media or marketing. Some people might be really good at ops and processes and protocols and things like that. Everyone offers something different. I think, as a volunteer organization, I guess one of the more difficult thing is for me as president is making sure I'm pulling at the right levers and in the right way to motivate people, because it's more of a carrot approach, right? I mean, they're not paid employees. 

13:58 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Oh, you're not going to get a stick in this. They walk. 

14:00 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Exactly so it's. I think a big learning curve for anyone that steps into a leadership role is that you have to figure out. It's different than running your business. It's not the same. They're volunteers and so there's certain limitations to what you can ask them to do, what's reasonable. But I think there's also more incentive because they're in it for the mission, so it's not like you're paying them like an employee. They're there because it's a job. They're there because they want to be there. 

14:23 - Jeff Holden (Host)
They're cause driven. Yeah, I want to compliment you in that situation as well. As president, you have the responsibility of all of that. You're also an attorney, you're a mother of two. That's a lot of work in itself. And then to find the time to give back to the organization, which is a relatively demanding organization as well, because you have so many things going on. Let's talk a little bit about that, because a lot of those things are what fund the organization. So how are you funded? 

14:53 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
We are funded primarily by our corporate partners. 

14:56 - Jeff Holden (Host)
And what does that look like? So our corporate partners have investment opportunities with that look like. 

14:58 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
So our corporate partners have investment opportunities with us to partner with us, I mean at various levels, and we have a variety of corporate. We're actually really lucky we don't have just one type of organization or one industry. So we have financial institutions that partner with us. We have a large manufacturing organization with us and we have I mean they're partners. I think they're partnering with us because they are also mission driven or at least want to be along with us and support us on our journey. 

15:26
So we are primarily funded by corporate partners. We have some money that comes from national because of membership dues but, that's a very small percentage of our budget. 

15:35 - Jeff Holden (Host)
What about events? I think you have at least one big event every year. Will you share that with us? Sure you did mention already, but yes, I did. 

15:43 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
We have the Owl Award Gala, so that is the Outstanding Women Leaders Award Gala, and we are in our 29th year. 

15:51 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Oh my gosh. 29 years in Sacramento the organization has existed. 

15:55 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
No, we've existed for. Oh, I'm terrible at math now. 

15:59 - Jeff Holden (Host)
More than. 

16:00 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
I think well, I guess it'll be. I think we started in 1987. 

16:06 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Okay. 

16:06 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
But we're in our 29th year. I don't think that they did it the very first year, but I'm not sure. But our founding member is Eva Garcia and she's still active with our community. 

16:17 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Oh, wow. It's so neat to see organizations that have some historical equity in the community, and especially when those leaders are still around I mean, we see it with many of the chambers, you know, until somebody ages out or passes and just that history and that knowledge and that experience that they bring into the organization, having seen so much and Sacramento's grown so much, much, much, much in the last 30 years that the dynamic of everything has changed, but they've seen every bit of it and they offer so much to the organization when they're able to say, well, historically, here's that person or that organization because they know from experience. 

17:02 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Right, right, yeah, we're lucky that Eva and her daughter Rosanna, was also a president of our chapter and they are very active. They just actually supported us in our membership drive event. And, as we were mentioning Owl, we are approaching the 50th anniversary of NABO nationally, so in March on March 8th, coincidentally, not so much it's International Women's Day. That's the day we're hosting our OWL, our 29th annual OWL Awards Gala, so I invite everyone to come and support. Tickets are on sale right now. 

17:31 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Okay, and that'll be the 2025 OWL Awards? Correct? 

17:35 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, we always do it in March, because that's Women's History Month. 

17:38 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Okay, in 2025,. 

17:39 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
We're extra lucky because it's not only our 50th anniversary, but we can hold it on International Women's Day, which is great. 

17:46 - Jeff Holden (Host)
So if you're listening to this episode past March 8th in 2025, it will happen sometime in March in 2026. We just don't know that date yet. 

17:57 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
And there are other opportunities. We have our For Women by Women Capital Summit. We're in our second year of hosting that annually, which is a fantastic event. It's a way for us to provide not only just as far as information and programming as to how you can get capital financing but the different kinds of financing, so it's not just traditional lending. 

18:15
There are other ways to get financing or capital for your company to grow and scale. So that's our other kind of main event. The other types of things that you'll see through NABO are the quarterly business builders. Those are really geared towards, obviously, the women business owners, but any allies or community members as well. So there's a variety of different ways to get involved. If you're listening, after March 8, 2025. 

18:40 - Jeff Holden (Host)
different ways to get involved. If you're listening, after March 8th 2025. We'll be back to learn more about women-owned businesses with Christina Dixon right after this message from those people who make the program possible. I was in the media business for over 35 years and had the great privilege of working with Runyon Saltzman, rse Marketing, advertising and Public Relations. We collaborated on many different campaigns, but their commitment to the nonprofit sector hasn't changed since their founder, gene Runyon, started the agency. Over many years and many campaigns, runyon Saltzman has been committed to improving lives by tackling California's most challenging issues, guided by research-informed strategies and insightful, creative solutions. Rse develops innovative communications campaigns that raise awareness, educate and reduce stigma in diverse communities throughout our state and beyond. To learn more about RSE, visit rse-ecom. 

19:32 - Scott Thomas (Ad)
Hello, this is Scott Thomas with CAP Trust in our Sacramento office. I specialize in working with local nonprofits and associations. Annually, we survey private and public nonprofit organizations across the country to better understand challenges they see in today's environment. In our more recent survey we heard concerns about proper board governance, mission-aligned investment and how to implement all-term investments. If you would like a copy of the survey or to discuss your organization, look me up, scottthomas at captrustcom. 

20:03 - Jeff Holden (Host)
I'm thrilled to have Western Health Advantage partnering with us, as they do so much to support so many nonprofit agencies in our community. To support so many nonprofit agencies in our community as a truly local health plan. You'll find individual and family options, employer options, plans for CalPERS and Medicare Advantage, from medical services to pharmacy, health and wellness support, as well as behavioral health care. Western Health Advantage has a plan that fits what you need as an employer for profit or nonprofit business, individual or family. You can find more at westernhealthcom. If the organization didn't have budget constrictions in Sacramento and I don't mean that in a negative way Well, you have to live within a budget. But if there was no budget, if you had basically an unlimited budget, what would it look like? 

20:52 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
I was thinking about that before our time together and I think that I mean, if we had every resource, I think we would be able to offer more support for entrepreneurs at all different stages. So we do offer the high school clubs. I wish we could be in more right. We need more people and we need more awareness. 

21:13 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Oh, that's right. You could have the interest, but somebody's got to take care of it. 

21:24 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
So you are limited just by scope and capability of the staff and financials, right, because we have a relationship with Junior. 

21:27 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Achievement, but it's not finance-free. 

21:28 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yes, yes, so we do have to pay for that. So I think it would be nice to offer that at more levels and a little bit more. I mean, it's wonderful that we have the program, but we don't have the depth and breadth, because we don't have the capacity or the finances to support that. And we do also have a relationship with Sac State, but we don't necessarily have the means to offer the depth of programming that we would like to. I think there are more opportunities there, but I think, more than anything, we would want to be able to do a couple things. One we'd like to be able to offer an entrepreneur scholarship, which we don't have yet. I'm hoping I can do that sometime in my term. And then I think I'd also like to. My pie in the sky is I would like to have a NABO-hosted TEDx in Sacramento. 

22:11 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Oh, that'd be fabulous. I can envision what that would look like. Yeah, that would be fun. 

22:16 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
It would be cool. I've been looking into it a little bit and I've observed that there are some licensing roadblocks and all these other kinds of things. But hopefully if we can get some additional financial support, we could navigate that. 

22:29 - Jeff Holden (Host)
That's the unlimited budget part. That is the unlimited budget part. 

22:31 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
That is the unlimited budget, yep, that's the pie in the sky. 

22:33 - Jeff Holden (Host)
You go out and make that happen. Yep. So if we take a step back into reality of budgets, what is the greatest need that you have at this point? 

22:44 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
It's twofold. I think we had touched on it a bit. Additional financial support is helpful, so it would be great to have corporate partners in a little bit more variety of fields and areas. And then I think the other thing is we really want to raise awareness so that we can capture and engage members that really are here for all the reasons that we're here and the sentiment of the organization. So really getting those really deeply engaged members would be for a number of reasons. One, because we can add to the perspectives, we can create those lasting relationships, but also so that we can create succession planning for the chapter to continue the chapter for generations. 

23:25 - Jeff Holden (Host)
And, to reiterate, as an all-volunteer organization. It's not like there's a staff somewhere manning certain things, handling the events, doing the administrative functions. It's all on the volunteers, it's all on the people who are your board and or yourself. 

23:42 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
We have slowly introduced some contracting help. So we contract with some particular event help and we, as finances allow, we get some administrative help when we can afford it. But yeah, it's us. 

23:57 - Jeff Holden (Host)
How many people on the board? 

23:59 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
23. 

24:01 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Okay. Well, this is one of those situations where the bigger the board, the better for the organization, because that's more people to do the work. 

24:08 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, and we really I mean we honestly. It's exponential growth, because last year we had 12. So we doubled the size of our board. 

24:17 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Just year over year. 

24:18 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah. 

24:19 - Jeff Holden (Host)
How long is the president's term? 

24:20 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
President's term is two years. 

24:22 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Okay. 

24:22 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, and actually the board member each of the board commits to two years as well. So we've had some board members that have stayed with us for, I mean, obviously they term out at some point, but beyond their two-year commitment, and so we're grateful and lucky for that. But yeah, I mean we have 23 board members, which is great, and I think it's even better that we're able to tap into new areas of expertise. 

24:46
So this year, for example, we added someone that has a deep radio and TV presence and understands that and is helping us explore that which is helping us to raise awareness, and we have people that are gifted in different areas, so I think it's really helping us kind of expand our reach and elevate our presence. 

25:02 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Well, to your point about that corporate sponsorship too, the types of corporations, the bigger the board with the expertise on that board, somebody's going to know somebody in a different category of business to say, okay, here's an opportunity, maybe I can go talk to those people and see what kind of support we can get, Because there's certainly no lack of opportunity from the student population and or the community at large interest in so many different categories of business. I would imagine there's enclaves where you see a greater density maybe of women-owned businesses, but not exclusive to any category. Every category has women-owned business in it. 

25:39 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, absolutely. 

25:40 - Jeff Holden (Host)
I mentioned auto construction earlier. Construction is not typically what people think about as a woman-owned business or a woman-driven or run business. Yet we've got Mary Teichert over at. Teichert, which is a behemoth in the construction industry. 

25:55 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah. 

25:56 - Jeff Holden (Host)
And of course Allison and Otto, and I'm sure there's others that I'm not coming up with. Yeah, christina, tell me a story of somebody that was a Novel member and continued on and today we would either recognize or you could say they started from here and grew to there as a result of not only their hard work and intuition and perseverance and smart, but because they had this circle of women around them to support them. 

26:24 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Yeah, absolutely so, you might know, anne Staines. Yes, agent Marketing, absolutely so she just was recognized in, I think, the journal. 

26:33 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Yes. 

26:34 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
And she was a former president of our chapter and so for our fall business builder. She spoke just beautifully about how NABO impacted her, her business and how she really felt that she was called to serve. So yes, absolutely, Anne, and she's still a beacon for us. You might know of Rachel Zillner and Anne Descalzo of Clutch, so NABO was one of their first clients when they opened Clutch and we used their services to produce our owl awards. 

27:05 - Jeff Holden (Host)
That is amazing because everybody in the community by now probably knows who Clutch is. If they don't remember the two names of the women that are running it, they certainly know its presence, having just bought one of the biggest marketing and PR firms in Sacramento. So that is amazing that I would claim as a great success story Back to Ann Staines, who is a marketing and PR firm as well. 

27:32
How interesting that you've got such synergy in that community. And to the point that we were talking about before we started our conversation, nabo to me presents much larger than its budget would belie, and I seem to recognize that logo. Good. Why yes? I think just because of its presence and the way it's been supported. Maybe it's from Comstocks Magazine, another woman-owned business, but to me the presence feels larger than maybe even the hundreds of members that you've got. I've been to a couple of the events the Owl Awards, and again, that's hundreds of people in a room. 

28:14
So I think that's a real testament to what you're doing and the way that it's being done. And that's just membership. Then you have all your student advocates now who are going to be out there as you continue to grow with St Francis and Crystal Ray and some of the other schools, Oak Ridge, as this continues to morph into more and more. You just need more board members. That's all you have to do? We need more student ambassadors. 

28:38 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
There you go. It would be a little bit easier that way, right. 

28:40 - Jeff Holden (Host)
But even with 23 board members, you keep adding. It just perpetuates the organization into the community because the cause is so great. For somebody who's doing it on a volunteer basis you know when they're that committed it's a different dynamic. Right so what would you like to leave the audience with? You say here, just here's us. 

29:03 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
That is a good question. I think that what I'd like people to remember about Nauvoo Sacramento is that we would love to bring as many supporting allies male, female along on the journey with us, because we truly feel that, like it's the same. It's the adage right A rising tide lifts all boats. Many, many small businesses in California and I don't have the number in my head at this moment are women owned and they do an amazing job supporting the economy, creating jobs, creating community, and I feel like that's a really special thing. So I want people to share what they know about NAPO and, if they don't, send them to our website or to any of the social media handles, and encourage them to lean in and take a look and consider and review and join us at an event and see if we're a right fit, because not only do we create the lasting connections, the community, the opportunity to elevate your business and to scale and grow, but we also prioritize advocacy work. 

30:07
That's a big piece of what we do. That's a big piece of what we do, and so, if they want to know more about us, come to an event, come to our website, but also consider how you can support Navo If you can't join, or if you are not an individual business owner, how you can support it otherwise, whether that's in in-kind partnership or a community partnership or just a financial partnership, which we love those too or a community partnership or just a financial partnership, which we love those too, that would be, I think, a wonderful ask is for people to consider and remember. 

30:38 - Jeff Holden (Host)
NAWBO, what's the best way to find out about the organization you? 

30:41 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
can go to our website. So nabo-sacorg Nabo. 

30:47 - Jeff Holden (Host)
N-A-W-B-O, dash sac, S-A-CC dot org. And we'll put that in the show notes as well. Great. And in terms of board membership participation, what if somebody's interested in getting involved at a different level? 

31:02 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
We offer opportunities for multiple types of volunteers. We have volunteers that do just particular projects. We have committee members that will sit, just like, in a particular role or alignment, you know vertical, whether that's membership, marketing, media, community. We have specifically an OWL committee. 

31:23 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Of course. 

31:23 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Putting on OWL is a huge endeavor. So even if you just want to offer some of your time or your wisdom or your expertise For a period of time, we would love the volunteer time. 

31:34 - Jeff Holden (Host)
As a pro-business person and one that loves seeing support mechanisms in place for those to learn and share in the success of those businesses, I've really enjoyed learning about NABO. Your presence in the community, as we mentioned, really belies the investment and I think that's a testament to the people that are running the organization as well as the people that have been through it and support it, and I think it also is demonstrative of the need for organizations to support women business. So what you're doing is really phenomenal and the way that you're engaging now our student population and bringing in younger, either women business owners, younger entrepreneurs to experience and see and really understand what it takes, is what our community needs for business to thrive. Christine, thank you, thanks to the great group of volunteers, all 23 members of that board, for what you're doing and making such a presence in the community with such a great effort. 

32:35 - Christina Dixon (Guest)
Thank you so much for sharing our story and for having me here today. Appreciate it. 

32:40 - Jeff Holden (Host)
Thanks. Thank you for listening to the Nonprofit Podcast Network. I hope you enjoyed the episode. If what you heard moved you, please reach out to that organization and do what you can to help. If you like and appreciate what we're doing to support local nonprofits, please give us a positive review, subscribe and share. If you're a nonprofit with an interest in participating in an episode, you can reach me at jeff at hearmenowstudiocom. If you have a need for the services or products our sponsors offer, please reach out to them. Cap Trust, fiduciary advice for endowments and foundations. Runyon Saltzman Incorporated, rse marketing, advertising and public relations. Creating integrated communications committed to improving lives and Western Health Advantage a full-service health care plan for individuals, employer groups and families. The Nonprofit Podcast Network is a production of, is recorded at and edited by Hear Me Now Studio. Thank you.