Female Founders' Expert Network:
The Must Know List
The Resources You Need to Grow Your Business
The journey to becoming a founder can be both thrilling and challenging, with many essential decisions to be made along the way. You need the right people in your community to help guide, inspire, and support you. But where do you find those resources?
Introducing our Female Founders’ Expert Network: The Must-Know List, a curated directory from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and The Female Quotient, that introduces you to best-in-class category experts in our community. Through this curated directory, we will help you launch and scale your businesses quickly and efficiently.
Come back and visit as we continue to expand our expert list!
LEGAL
Shakera Thompson
Trademark and Business Strategy Lawyer, TKA Law Firm
Location: New York, NY
Shakera is a former Wall Street attorney turned entrepreneur and the founder of TKA Law Firm where she focuses on trademarks and business strategy. Shakera advises on a variety of startup matters ranging from trademark registration, monitoring and enforcement to general business contracts, venture capital financing, mergers and acquisitions. As a founder herself, Shakera is passionate about helping startups make sound and strategic legal decisions to prepare them for success.
Email: hello@tkalawfirm.com
Adjckwc O. Browne
Founder, Browne Law
Location: White Plains, NY
Attorney Adjckwc O. Browne, the founder of Browne Law and a graduate of the Florida A&M College of Law, is passionate about fostering legacy through ownership. As a business, intellectual property and entertainment lawyer with a wide range of experience, her focus is primarily in deal-making through corporate, copyright, and trademark law. Through her practice, she works with a diverse body of clientele, ranging from individuals and creators, to established and new ventures, as well as for-profit and not-for-profit entities.
Email: abrowne@lawwhereyouare.com
Qharium Douglas
Owner and Founder, QKI Consulting, LLC
Location: Oklahoma City, OK
QK Douglas is an Eastside native in Oklahoma City with a law degree from Oklahoma City University School of Law. She’s worked in banking, mortgage mitigation, credit repair, compliance, and the consumer law sector of legal practice. She is dedicated to reshaping the way local businesses are treated within the legal landscape. QK chose to take a different path with her legal career as she shifts to running her own consulting firm. Working with clients to realize their dreams of being business owners and cultivating a solid foundation. Overall, her clients are able to take control of their lives and income with us in their corner.
Email: qkidouglas@gmail.com
Nuzayra Haque-Shah
Attorney and Founder, NHLegal-IP and NFT Law Boutique
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Nuzayra Haque-Shah is a founder and an award-winning intellectual property attorney. Nuzayra counsels U.S. and international clients on trademarks and copyrights, branding strategies, IP portfolio management, trade secrets, and privacy law compliance among others. As a small business owner herself, Nuzayra loves working with startups and creatives and has represented clients in e-commerce, blockchain, NFTs, coaching, cannabis, technology, design and entertainment. One of the first attorneys to successfully obtain federal cannabis trademarks, she has been recognized as a Super Lawyers Rising Star in Southern California since 2015, an award made to only 2.5% of attorneys in the region.
Email: nuzayra@nhlegal.net
Madhu Singh
Founder & Managing Attorney, Foundry Law Group
Location: Seattle, WA
Madhu helps early and growing companies, nonprofits, startups and entrepreneurs build and grow their ventures. She provides legal strategies at all stages of incorporation, financing, growth and eventual exits. She is also president of TIE Seattle, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to equipping entrepreneurs for success.
Email: madhu@foundrylawgroup.com
Shermin Lakha
Founder & Managing Attorney,
LVLUP Legal, P.C.
Location: New York, NY
Shermin is the founder & managing attorney of LVLUP Legal, a boutique female-owned law firm dedicated to empowering underrepresented startups, businesses, and entrepreneurs to “level up” and make smart legal decisions. LVLUP Legal practices business and intellectual property law, with an emerging focus on Web3, the Metaverse, and NFT projects.
Email: contact@lvluplegal.com
Megan McNally
Legal Officer,
Foundry Law Group
Location: Seattle, WA
Megan is a Seattle-based business attorney with deep experience helping founders build the legal foundations to support fast growth. As an entrepreneur and former startup founder, she’s adept at helping first-time founders navigate the many decisions coming their way. Megan launched The FBomb Breakfast Club, a thriving peer support community of 5,000+ women founders and business owners.
Email: megan@foundrylawgroup.com
Jennifer Justice
Founder & CEO,
The Justice Dept.
Location: New York, NY
Jennifer is an entrepreneur known for her expertise in building artists’ careers and business portfolios by marrying art with commerce. She is the founder and CEO of The Justice Dept., a business development, management, strategy, and legal firm that works with female entrepreneurs, executives, talent, brands, and creatives to build and maximize their value.
Email: jennifer@thejusticedept.com
Shahzad Qamer Qadri
Partner,
Wong Fleming
Location: Redmond, Washington
Shahzad is a Partner at Wong Fleming and Chair of the Corporate & Immigration Law practice group. His practice is concentrated in corporate transactions including securities issues, private offerings, IPOS, as well as business and immigration law with a focus on investment-based EB-5 Regional Centers.
Email: sqadri@wongfleming.com
David Horne
Partner,
Gunderson Dettmer
Location: Boston, MA
David is a startup/VC lawyer in the Boston area and currently a partner at Gunderson Dettmer, a leading law firm in advising venture capitalists and entrepreneurs. He is passionate about helping founders and investors solve difficult problems.
Email: dhorne@gunder.com
Brian C. Miller, Esq.
FOUNDER & MANAGING PARTNER,
BC
MILLER LAW GROUP
Location: Chicago, IL
Brian is a corporate attomey with over 25 years of experlence, specializing in business transactions and general contract revlew for entrepreneurs and family business owners.
Email: bmiller@bcmillerlawgroup.com
CAP TABLE MANAGEMENT
Carta
Carta sees an opportunity to expand the global ownership graph so that everyone has the opportunity to own a portion of what they build. Carta's infrastructure is built to make it as cheap and easy to issue equity as it is to run payroll. They have lowered the barriers to start investing through software, and they will always provide the education and tools necessary for owners everywhere. They believe that by providing the infrastructure that fuels innovation, they lower the barriers to entry and move the world forward into an era of ownership.
Email: info@carta.com
Capital Connect
J.P. Morgan has been building a new, innovative, digital business called Capital Connect. The platform brings together J.P. Morgan’s network of early-stage corporate and investor relationships and helps them connect, raise capital, and grow their businesses. Our cap table simplifies equity plan management for founders and investors, providing stock plan management, a comprehensive dashboard and scenario modeling. To learn more about the efficiencies our cap table can bring to your business, please reach out to Rachel Edwards at rachel.edwards@jpmorgan.com.
Email: rachel.edwards@jpmorgan.com
Standish Management
Standish Management is a majority employee‐owned provider of specialized fund administration services for Managers and General Partners of private equity funds, specifically: Buy‐out, Venture Capital, Real Estate and Fund‐of‐ Funds. For new General Partners, we provide consulting services to help accelerate the launch of their funds in addition to our full fund administration services. For established General Partners, we provide administration services and technology to whole fund families or select funds, to help scale their fund operations rapidly and efficiently.
Email: info@standishmanagement.com
ACCOUNTING / TAX
Leyanis Diaz
Founder & CEO, MAJOR
Location: Miami, Florida
Leyanis Diaz is a Bilingual Business Consultant, Small Business Advocate, Speaker, Afro-Latina Influencer and the Founder and CEO of MAJOR. Her work in community relations and economic development has allowed her to travel the world, work and collaborate with businesses, non-profits and organizations big and small, including but not limited to CNN en Español, Univision, Ford, America’s Small Business Development Centers, and KIND Snacks. Leyanis is passionate about helping small businesses start, grow and prosper and is on a mission to keep minority-owned businesses from closing their doors.
Email: info@wearemajor.com
Jennifer R. Calabrese
Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Calabrese Consulting, LLC
Location: Malverne, New York
Jenn Calabrese specializes in SEC financial reporting, compliance, and consulting services to facilitate the reporting between auditors and public companies on behalf of clients. Jenn founded Calabrese Consulting, LLC ("CCL") in 2012, a minority/woman-owned, full-service accounting and advisory firm which currently employs over 50 employees, serving more than 350 clients around the world. She applies a hands-on approach that stems from her tenure on both the client and audit sides, and exemplifies her dedication to her craft.
Email: Jcalabrese@calabresecpa.com
Jenni Monahan
WEALTH ADVISOR, BERNSTEIN PRIVATE WEALTH MANAGEMENT
Location: Seattle, WA
Jenni helps women define and stay on target towards their financial goals, Including guldance on prepping for the sale of their business, an exit or transition from the C-suite, or transferring their values and knowledge to the next generation. Meanwhile, she brings well researched ideas about taxes and estate planning to the forefront.
Email: jennifer.monahan@bernstein.com
Fatema Raza
PARTNER,
WITHUM
Location: East Brunswick, NJ
Fatema has more than 13 years of public accounting experience. She advises clients on audit processes, internal control assessments and implementation and maintenance of accounting procedures. She specializes in hedge funds, fund of funds, alternative investments and broker dealers under the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
Email: fraza@withum.com
Heroida Dedushi
Tax Managing Director,
BDO USA, LLP
Location: New York, NY
Heroida has more than 11 years of experience in the financial services industry, including tax compliance, structuring, and planning services. Her clients range from startup funds to multibillion-dollar funds. Heroida’s focus has primarily been with hedge funds, private equity funds, credit funds, fund of funds, management companies, and broker-dealers.
Email: hdedushi@bdo.com
Kathleen Baxley
Fractional CFO Advisor,
Baxley
Location: Seattle, WA
Kathleen has more than 30 years of experience building financial strategy tools for corporate teams and investors. She provides fractional CFO services, primarily to women-owned startups, including building custom scale-up forecasting models, capital structure analyses, market size assessments, pitch reviews, and other strategic services such as coaching on financial literacy.
Email: kathleen@startupvaluationresources.com
Beth Schoenfeldt
Co-Founder & CEO,
FundedBuy
Location: New York, NY
Beth is Co-Founder & CEO of FundedBuy, which is a marketplace and procurement platform for angel and venture-backed companies. FundedBuy services are completely free to the companies they work with. In the past 12 years, FundedBuy saved startups millions of dollars in operating costs and countless hours in research and negotiation.
Email: beth@fundedbuy.com
Megan Hannum
Partner,
FundedBuy
Location: Austin, Texas
Megan has been a trusted advisor and collaborator to entrepreneurs and private investors across the globe. For 11 years, she has been a Partner at FundedBuy, responsible for driving the profitability of the business, working closely with thousands of venture funds and startups.
Email: megan@fundedbuy.com
Jason Okrent
VICE PRESIDENT & FINANCIAL ADVISOR, BERNSTEIN PRIVATE WEALTH MANAGEMENT
Location: Seattle, WA
Jason is a vice president and financial Advisor at Bernstein Private Wealth Management. He has specific expertise working with entrepreneurs, real estate owners, corporate executives and familles with charitable intent. Jason uses his practice to be a positive force for women with a specific focus on family engagement and philanthropy.
Email: jason.okrent@bernstein.com
Shawn Delrahim
Advisor, DCPA
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Shawn has been a practicing CPA for over 10 years at various public accounting firms. As a trusted financial advisor, Shawn employs creative financial and tax planning strategies along with forensic accounting and bookkeeping skills to keep a business.
Email: shawn@dcpapro.com
