Why Small Businesses Matter
Shop small, do big things for your community
Why Small Businesses Matter puts a spotlight on the local merchants who donate their time, talent, goods, and services for the betterment of our community. The shop local movement spreads virally as local businesses who are “tagged” have the opportunity to share their story!
You're IT FoundHer!
Four questions with Runa Knapp, Co-Founder and Chief Business Development Officer, and Jasmine Silver, Co-Founder, and Chief Operating Officer of FoundHer (formerly Connectalent).
Why did you start your business?
After having successful corporate careers and taking time off to be with our young kids, we co-founded FoundHer when we realized there was a void for mothers like us, eager to return to work but also seeking flexibility. We did not know of any local companies or resources geared towards finding jobs for return-to-work mothers like us, so we created one ourselves.
We realized that our respective strengths and passions were similar and complementary to each other and that we could create a successful company and a helpful platform for women. Also, Jasmine’s law firm did not provide paid maternity leave, sparking an interest to start the business and become an advocate for all working mothers.
What is your best-selling product/service?
We are return-to-work mothers ourselves, so our best-selling service is our commitment to helping women - especially mothers - return to work. And we introduce our clients to diverse and unique talents that all return-to-work candidates possess.
We won’t always say ‘yes’ to taking on a client. It’s important for us to understand a client’s policies around supporting women through parental leave, promoting women internally, hiring women for executive-level positions, and implementing policies around flexibility and equal pay.
FoundHer became B Corp certified in the spring of 2022 because we use our services to solve a social issue through our work serving an underserved population of candidates, to combat the discrimination that mothers often face when returning to the workforce after a career break. We’re working with and on behalf of women at all levels of our business.
How many local businesses do you use to support your business (products & services) and can you name them?
Westport-based Impact Growth Partners was integral in helping us get involved with B Local CT (Runa is on the board), and in guiding us through our B Corp Certification process.
And we work with several local freelancers - all women and small business owners - for marketing, PR, legal, and business development efforts.
Have you “reimagined” your small business?
After becoming the first female-focused recruiting agency in the country to achieve a B-Corp Certification in March 2022, we desired a name that more accurately reflected the company’s mission of “recruiting with purpose. So, we went through a company rebrand from Connectalent to FoundHer.
FoundHer focuses on connecting today’s generation of women and mothers, passionate about a corporate culture that shares their values, with corporate clients designed to welcome and support these talented women in a flexible working environment. FoundHer’s platform helps companies achieve diversity and greater efficiency in the workplace and empowers talented women to seek modern opportunities.
Employers face challenges recruiting top talent in this current working environment, and these challenges necessitate a paradigm shift in how women, especially women returning to the workforce after a career break, are viewed in the job seeker market. The name FounderHer reflects the company’s target-based recruiting approach to solving this social issue.
Runa and Jasmine would like to nominate Impact Growth Partners to be featured next!
Visit FoundHer online here, and make sure to check out their Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter pages as well!
HamletHub thanks Fairfield County Bank for making our Why Small Businesses Matter series possible!