In celebration of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, Embarc Collective is excited to introduce you to Women in Tech Tampa Bay — a content series profiling women who are building at Embarc Collective and how they’ve built their careers.

Meet more women tech founders and investors across the state of Florida here.

Meet Muirelle Montecalvo, CEO of Vacayou.

What pivotal points in your career led to your current role?

After college, I planned to work in the travel industry in the agency world. I took my first job out of college in the hotel industry and quickly discovered that I was good at sales. I have had the opportunity to be part of the sales teams as a top producer at some of the most successful online travel and consumer marketplace startups. Although I have always been entrepreneurial and in 2017 I was in a role at my company that was not really for me. I missed traveling and building relationships and working with national and international accounts. The timing was right and I wanted to get back into the world of travel. The travel industry is a strong relationship business and I was missing being a part of it. The timing was right and I decided to fulfill a lifelong dream and start my own travel company. At the time after seeing some health issues in my family I was learning a lot about wellness and living a healthy lifestyle. I was embracing daily workouts, healthy eating, although I still loved to get away with my friends to the spa or a good wine tasting trip! How could I incorporate both! I was looking for a spa getaway for a group of friends to enjoy while we were traveling and I spent hours and weeks trying to find the right one and it was only a small piece of the trip we were planning! It was at that point I realized there was an opportunity to combine both so why not build a wellness and active travel company! Vacayou was born!

What do you wish you had known earlier in your career?

Be yourself, be heard, voice your opinion, trust your intuition and don’t be afraid to seek external advice. Believe in yourself and your abilities and stand Up for what you believe in and don’t let people hold you back.

What communities, networks, or resources have helped you build in your career?

I was very fortunate to work with a company in my 20’s that had an amazing culture and some really great people. This network of people have remained constant in my career moves and decisions. Almost like a family! I had an amazing female mentor who ran the division of a team I was on early in my career. She gave me some amazing advice that I still use today. “Surround yourself with the best and you will be the best”.

The other resource that changed the landscape for me was LinkedIn and being able to build connections very quickly with people that may have been less reachable before.

What is one piece of tactical advice that you would give to another woman considering your career path?

Place passion and joy at the center of what you are doing. Don’t get anxious about what other people perceive of your abilities. Concentrate your energy on the joy you get from your work, your clients, and your team. Be yourself and confident in your abilities, don’t question yourself and let self-doubt get in the way of your decisions. Your passion will come through

Connect with Muirelle and follow Vacayou.

Want to stay up to date on the latest startup news, events, and resources? Get the Weekly Collective delivered directly to your inbox by subscribing here.

In celebration of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, Embarc Collective is excited to introduce you to Women in Tech Tampa Bay — a content series profiling women who are building at Embarc Collective and how they’ve built their careers.

Meet more women tech founders and investors across the state of Florida here.

Meet April Caldwell, CEO at fayVen.

What pivotal points in your career led to your current role?

Serving in the Air Force for ten years really helped me develop as a leader — it taught me how to serve selflessly, work with integrity, and communicate with others in order to achieve a mutual goal. I believe that the military helped me fine tune skills and forced me to step out of my comfort zone time after time, creating the desire, confidence, and assurance to know that I could keep stepping out, without worrying about the specifics of HOW all the time.

My first business was owning and operating a gourmet popcorn company, because we made our popcorn from home, I had to get creative with where I could sell it. Farmers’ markets just weren’t cutting it and decided to start going to local businesses to see if they’d allow me to sell out front of their stores… from those experiences and talking with other vendors like me, fayVen was born — a dual-sided marketplace for vendors and venues to connect.

What do you wish you had known earlier in your career?

I wish I had known that entrepreneurship was a possibility for me sooner… once I decided that I was going to start a business, all these amazing resources started pouring into my life. I realized that there was this whole other world full of entrepreneurs just like me, willing to share their knowledge, experiences, and resources. I wish I knew that there was an alternate to the corporate world, the 9–5. I feel like I lost a few years off of my life doing things that didn’t serve me — ultimately, they led me to where I’m at now, so I know those years served a purpose… I just wish that I had figured that out sooner.

 

What communities, networks, or resources have helped you build in your career?

SO MANY! I have such an amazing network… I started with SCORE, SEED SPOT, Bunker Labs, IVMF, InLab at HCC, Action Zone, TWO39 Labs, SCF Incubator, FGCU, AMSE, Embarc Collective, Synapse, Babe Crafted, TheVentureCity, FAVOB, Veterans Florida, JULO Strategy, 1 Million Cups, ECC, WBEC, TBWBC, TBBJ, Tampa Bay Inno Business Made Simple University, MasterClass, the list goes on and on!

 

What is one piece of tactical advice that you would give to another woman considering your career path?

Starting a business isn’t for everyone. I would tell someone getting started on the same path as me, that resiliency and tenacity are imperative to becoming an entrepreneur. If you don’t have the heart to be told no or turned down around every corner… this may not be for you. I call it the entrepreneuracoaster because there are so many highs, lows, twists, and unexpected turns. It’s exhilarating but it can also be very stressful and disappointing at times. You really need to do a heart-check before you start down this path that is taxing on your time, energy, finances, relationships, etc. But once you decide that it is for you — go ALL in!

Connect with April and follow fayVen.

Want to stay up to date on the latest startup news, events, and resources? Get the Weekly Collective delivered directly to your inbox by subscribing here.

In celebration of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, Embarc Collective is excited to introduce you to Women in Tech Tampa Bay — a content series profiling women who are building at Embarc Collective and how they’ve built their careers.

Meet more women tech founders and investors across the state of Florida here.

Meet Heather Holland, Managing Partner at Edgility.

What pivotal points in your career led to your current role?

• Working in multiple healthcare systems around the country to assist implementation of their Electronic Medical Records technology system gave me the exposure to see what is going wrong and right.
• Moving from Tampa to San Francisco and working at PwC gave me the boost of confidence I needed to take the plunge and go out on my own with my co-founder.
• I have a passion and empathy for the frustration that is faced on a daily basis at healthcare systems. I not only saw it, I experienced it first-hand. Having these experiences gave us the courage to say; you know what, we know we can fix this and help this problem, so let’s do it!

 

What do you wish you had known earlier in your career?

This is a roller coaster the lows are LOW and the highs are HIGH but just buckle in and try and enjoy the ride (easier said than done) You will wear many different hats.

 

What communities, networks, or resources have helped you build in your career?

• Embarc Collective, of course!
• WITI
• HIMSS
• Local support (mentors, friends, family, colleagues)

 

What is one piece of tactical advice that you would give to another woman considering your career path?

Be empathic and confident, have values not goals, and do not lose sight of who you are! Be responsive to like-minded women and foster those relationships where you can! And know that you are not in this alone.

Connect with Heather and follow Edgility.

Want to stay up to date on the latest startup news, events, and resources? Get the Weekly Collective delivered directly to your inbox by subscribing here.

In celebration of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, Embarc Collective is excited to introduce you to Women in Tech Tampa Bay — a content series profiling women who are building at Embarc Collective and how they’ve built their careers.

Meet more women tech founders and investors across the state of Florida here.

Meet Tatyana Harris, CEO of PECRKO Research.

What pivotal points in your career led to your current role?

I am a Clinical Researcher, IRB Administrator/Education Coordinator and an Adjunct Faculty. As I grew in my field, I learned the importance of research as well as why minorities are needed in the participation of pharmaceutical and medical research. When minorities do not participate in pharmaceutical and medical research, the medication and medical devices can have unknown side effects which cause medical issues. This causes more doctor visits and increases healthcare costs for all citizens. There is a large deficiency in the amount of minority research participants and the reasons may vary from trust in their medical provider to discrimination to access. — largely due to trust and education. Many minorities do not trust the federal government or their medical provider, nor do they understand research or research regulations. With my comprehension of this distrust and on the topic, I feel that it is my duty to present this information in a way that minorities can understand. Not only am I a Black-African American Clinical Researcher, but I am also a Veteran, and I understand the complexities in learning and participating in clinical research. This makes me uniquely understand the barriers in pharmaceutical and medical research and able to explain why pharmaceutical/medical research must facilitate trust. I created PECRKO Research to facilitate trust, teach, and connect. I want to have a platform that supports trust, explains research and research regulations in simple terms and then I want to take it a step further and connect minorities to local researchers.

 

What do you wish you had known earlier in your career?

When I fell into this career, I had many questions about research. I didn’t understand the importance of research nor how it helps in the development of medications, medical equipment, and therapies. I also had some stigma against research due to my distrust of the federal government and medical providers.

I wish I had a better understanding of the impact of research on the medications, therapies, and medical devices that we as a community utilize. Then I would have obtained more certifications and research education to support my community earlier in my career.

 

What communities, networks, or resources have helped you build in your career?

I am a veteran and utilized the many veteran entrepreneurial opportunities that Florida offers such as the STRIVE and Veterans Start-up. I have also utilized business start-up companies such as White and Black Consulting. In addition, I utilize the network opportunities available across USF, Task Force Communities, Erwin Tech, and through the Hillsborough Advisory Committee.

 

What is one piece of tactical advice that you would give to another woman considering your career path?

As a minority women business owner, I have a network of other business owners in a variety of businesses to offer me support. Having a network of individuals that are entrepreneurs at various phases in their entrepreneurial journey allowed me to have a team of experts that can help me in the different entrepreneurial phases. I would suggest that women seek out these entrepreneurs to support comprehension and team building. It can be a lonely road but with support, you know that you are not alone.

Connect with Tatyana and follow PECRKO Research.

Want to stay up to date on the latest startup news, events, and resources? Get the Weekly Collective delivered directly to your inbox by subscribing here.

In celebration of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, Embarc Collective is excited to introduce you to Women in Tech Tampa Bay — a content series profiling women who are building at Embarc Collective and how they’ve built their careers.

Meet more women tech founders and investors across the state of Florida here.

 

Meet Whitney Marshall, EVP and Co-Founder of qualifiedMEETINGS.

What pivotal points in your career led to your current role?

Everything that has led me to where I am today is because I took a chance. When I graduated college, I accepted a job that I thought I wanted as a career based on my major. I quickly realized it wasn’t the career I wanted so I took a chance and applied for a position in tech sales that I knew very little about. Ultimately, I fell in love with the industry and the opportunities that came along with it. When starting qualifiedMEETINGS, I took a leap of faith and just went for it! There’s never going to be a perfect time to start a business but if you have a great team (or you’re flying solo and can make the time), a vision and the tenacity, you can create something amazing.

What do you wish you had known earlier in your career?

Something that isn’t discussed nearly enough for entrepreneurs is prioritizing mental health. When starting a business, you are going to have to wear multiple hats, be a “yes” person and feel like you need to be Super Woman all of the time. This is important to you get your business off the ground but not for a long-term strategy to scale AND to stay happy and healthy. Compartmentalize all of the things you do into specific job roles and know that you will need to hire people to specialize in them. Designing your business to operate without you from time to time allows you to take the breaks you need for self-care that helps avoid burnout. Neglecting your mental health will become detrimental to everything you’ve worked so hard to build. Being an entrepreneur will always have its stressors but it is critical that you care for yourself and train to cope with anything that’s thrown your way.

What communities, networks, or resources have helped you build in your career?

The Tampa business community in general has been an incredible place to network and learn about other entrepreneurs and their journeys; more specifically, Embarc Collective and Synapse. They have truly been wonderful, welcoming, diverse and educational resources. From meeting emerging leaders & successful entrepreneurs, getting advice on any topic I need insight on or just having someone be a sounding board, I genuinely feel lucky to be a part of a community that is the biggest advocate for people like me and couldn’t be prouder to be involved.

Books in general have also been wildly helpful resources for me on this journey. No matter what I’ve been going through, there’s always been a book for it. Reading has helped me pause and be in the moment which allows me to come back and be a better me for my business.

What is one piece of tactical advice that you would give to another woman considering your career path?

My ultimate #1 piece of advice is if you’re offered an opportunity and don’t feel you’re ready for it, take it anyway and work hard to figure it out as you go. That’s what it’s like to be an entrepreneur. When I began my career in this industry, I didn’t know everything but I had the will to learn, the mind to be innovative and an amazing mentor who I now call my business partner. Because of that experience, I felt more comfortable starting a business knowing that I was going to have to figure things out along the way.

Connect with Whitney and follow qualifiedMEETINGS.

Want to stay up to date on the latest startup news, events, and resources? Get the Weekly Collective delivered directly to your inbox by subscribing here.

In celebration of International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, Embarc Collective is excited to introduce you to Women in Tech Tampa Bay — a content series profiling women who are building at Embarc Collective and how they’ve built their careers.

Meet more women tech founders and investors across the state of Florida here.

Meet Sheron Brown, Executive Director of Tampa Bay Healthcare Collaborative.

What pivotal points in your career led to your current role?

Over the course of climbing my career ladder, I’ve experienced a break every 3–4 years. In 2007 it was a health issue, in 2012 I was laid off, and in 2016 I was laid off again. By the third break, I knew the universe was trying to show me something and it was time to pay attention. I decided to pause “climbing the ladder” and started health coaching, became a yoga instructor, doing speaking opportunities. That led me to organize a health and wellness conference at USF St. Petersburg in 2019. Then it hit me — I wanted to do work where I could bring people together to solve health inequities.

What do you wish you had known earlier in your career?

To know how to go with the flow — in my career and in life. You don’t have to struggle and hustle so hard, but instead, set clear intentions and work from your heart every day while paying attention to what the universe is putting in front of you. This is a much more joyful experience than simply climbing the ladder.

What communities, networks, or resources have helped you build in your career?

Leadership programs like New Leaders (during my time as a school Principal and Superintendent) and Leadership St. Pete (as a recent transplant to the region). In both instances, I built formative relationships and friendships that lastest beyond the term of the program. Another resource is to identify whatever keeps you grounded and go deeper in that in order to build a network with folks that moves you forward to your center. For me, that’s been through yoga instructor training and a philosophy school I visit annually in India.

What is one piece of tactical advice that you would give to another woman considering your career path?

Two that go hand-in-hand. First, no matter what you’ve accomplished, if you feel there’s a direction you’re being drawn toward, explore that. I spent 20 years in K-12 education before pivoting to health. When you look at everything you’ve done and the skills you’ve developed, think beyond the “role you were in” and know that the industry knowledge can be gained from books.

Second, create a clear vision for what you want in life, develop a plan, and then surrender and allow the flow of life to take you in the best direction. When you’re confused about where to go, step back and evaluate what the universe has put in front of you.

 

Connect with Sheron and follow Tampa Bay Healthcare Collaborative.

Want to stay up to date on the latest startup news, events, and resources? Get the Weekly Collective delivered directly to your inbox by subscribing here.