Pass the Mic: 5 Years of Impact, A Future of Possibility

Pass the Mic is our platform for shining a spotlight on women in leadership and inspiring the leaders of tomorrow. So, it’s not surprising that we often team up with The Female Quotient (The FQ). The FQ is changing the equation for women everywhere—creating the largest global community of women across every industry and allowing space for them to shine. These powerful women encourage passion, curiosity, and courage and are committed to driving real-world change through conversations that drive intentional action—creating lasting impact. The FQ's legendary Equality Lounge has become a staple at events like Cannes Lions, CES, and Advertising Week, giving women the room to connect and celebrate in their strengths together. 

To celebrate five years of Pass the Mic, Jocelyn Hudak, Senior Director, Content and Digital Marketing, had a conversation with the leaders of The Female Quotient. Shelley Zalis, Talia Bender Small, and Amber Coleman-Mortley dove into the future of possibilities for women in the workplace and the impact they’ve made thus far.  

To hear the full conversation, check out the audio below. And if you want to see the powerful conversation in action, tune in to the recording on Linkedin. 

Say hello to the incredible women making meaningful changes to organizations everywhere.

Make room for everyone.

Meet Jocelyn Hudak, Senior Director, Content and Digital Marketing at SiriusXM Media. Jocelyn is the brains and the voice behind Pass the Mic, championing change for women in the workplace one conversation at a time. Her leadership skills embody what it means to be a truly inclusive and thoughtful leader, giving women (and everyone else) a chance to excel in their strengths and find power within themselves. 

Highlight: "It is so refreshing to have a space that everyone is welcome to… Something that excites me is hearing all these women in power—CEOs and high-level women—that have this more inclusive and conscious mindset and approach to leadership. And that's so refreshing and exciting because it makes a big difference for everybody to have a leader and boss like that as well.” - Jocelyn Hudak

Replace failure with risk.

Shelley Zalis, A.K.A. Chief Troublemaker, is the CEO and Founder of The FQ. She is a trailblazer in her field, redefining the rules of leadership, driving systemic change, and working to close the gender gap. Her vision has united over 6M women across 30 industries and more than 100 countries. And her renowned work has led her to become a LinkedIn Top 20 Most Influential Voice, and a contributor to TIME, Forbes, and IMD. Shelley’s commitment to change has been rewarded with several awards and her bold leadership and innovative action are creating a new blueprint for the workplace.

Highlight: “Get rid of the word ‘failure’ in your vocabulary and put in ‘risk’ instead. How much risk are you willing to take? …People say, ‘Oh, you might fail.’ Well, who wants to try something if they think they're going to fail, versus how much risk are you willing to take? No risk, no reward. No risk, you'll have a regret if you didn't do something, which brings me to my ‘no regret’ policy. I never wanna look back and say, ‘Shoulda, woulda, coulda.’ I always think forward and say, ‘Will I miss a moment that matters to me?’ And if the answer is yes, I won't do it, and I'll make the other choice. And if not, I'll move that forward.” - Shelley Zalis

Always find the solution.

Meet Talia Bender Small, President of The FQ. Talia’s fierce passion for visibility, leadership, and entrepreneurship opportunities for women is what helps her move the needle forward. She has been the cornerstone to The FQ since it began, overseeing a multi-talented team as well as client partnerships. Her work is instrumental in shaping the largest female community at conferences and events around the world. 

Highlight: “There is always a solution, and sometimes it's not obvious, and sometimes that's really hard, but there is always a solution. If you can remain committed to figuring it out and being resourceful, you will figure it out… just being really open to opportunities in the world and saying yes. I attribute a lot of myself being able to continue to accelerate here by being really open to opportunity… Continue to be interested and to keep growing or else you become stagnant and stale and status quo. And that's just boring.” - Talia Bender Small

Learn to swim with the sharks.

Meet Amber Coleman-Mortley, Senior Director of Community and Culture for The FQ. Amber is a major advocate for The FQ’s initiative for equality in the workplace. Her focus on expanding reach and connectivity for The FQ is brought to life through the LinkedIn Live community conversation series, Power of the Pack, which engages timely topics through a culturally relevant and intersectional lens. 

Highlight: “The best piece of advice I got was from my grandfather... Right before I got my first job and before entering the workforce, he was like, ‘You're a woman. You're black woman; it's going to be hard for you.’ And so he said, ‘You can't train a shark like you train a dolphin. So you have to learn to swim with the sharks.’” - Amber Coleman-Mortley

With five years of Pass the Mic under our belt and 10 years of The FQ making change for women everywhere, we’re well on the way to transforming what it means to be a female leader in the workplace, and even just a woman in general. For more inspiring words, check out the Pass the Mic podcast. 

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