LAUREN GEPFORD

From burnt out to building better — for herself, and for others.

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For nearly two decades, Lauren Gepford has helped lead the chaotic, high-stakes world of politics and public impact work.  She has run multimillion-dollar programs, managed and cultivated 300+ staffers, founded and merged national organizations, and scaled scrappy projects across 40+ states.

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Ms. Gepford's “workaholic” side became her personality, and she eventually became exhausted.  She reset after a life-changing 2021-2022 journey of juggling a national expansion of the successful program she created while caretaking for her single dad during his cancer journey.

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Often the death of a loved one, the birth of a child, or a pivotal election result will help you see things in a new light—and for Ms. Gepford, it did.  Based on her experiences, it was her belief that for all the strategy and purpose in the mission, the insides of nonprofit and social good organizations are often running from an unskilled place, requiring their work to be harder than it needs to be.  It was for this reason that she decided that she wanted to fix organizational underlying systemic problems, putting to use her systems design, leadership, operations, spokesperson, and management experience gained through being the Director of Data and Technology for Bredesen for U.S. Senate, Executive Director and Vice President roles at The Missouri Democratic Party and Movement Labs, respectively. 

 

In these culturally and politically uncertain times around the globe, she feels passionately now more than ever that the “inside of our houses” need to be well run; mission-driven work cannot effectively make change with unclear staff and board roles, ineffective meetings and systems, and inconsistent, unmeasurable, and unaccomplished goals.

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Over the years, Ms. Gepford has spoken and participated on numerous panels, such as the Democratic National Committee & Association of State Democratic Parties - "Organizing Tools" Panel - Winter 2024 Conference (Scottsdale, Arizona); The Pipeline Fund - "Building The Bench" Panel - 2023 Pipeline Conference (Washington, DC) and the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry - "Breaking Barriers: Women in the Political Arena" Panel - 2019 Women in Leadership Conference (Jefferson, MO).  

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Ms. Gepford currently serves as a Coach, Consultant and Strategic Advisor.  

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