The “y’all” is a salute to our guest, Liz Brigham, and her journey back to her Southern roots from undergraduate education at Davidson College into corporate leadership in Chicago and back to North Carolina and higher education. Liz is now the W. Spencer Mitchem Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Jay Hurt Hub for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Davidson College. 

It’s very impressive to note the vast and varied experiences Liz has had in her career, which includes Disney, industrial supply distribution, and leadership in a global financial company. That journey finally led to her current role of being a catalyst for innovation and entrepreneurship within higher education. Liz’s role is not confined to higher education, but is focused on serving Davidson College, the community, students, alumni, and faculty, as well as the local community and the world at large.  

That winding road moved fast for Liz, but she stayed grounded and brought her love for people and desire to be a builder to every turn of her career. Liz is a big believer in Liberal Arts education and the need for business to include a “social awareness that impels to action.” 

Among the anchors that keep Liz grounded in a fast-paced, result-oriented world are: 

  • Constant focus on social awareness and relationship building. Coming from empathy and taking time to listen to people and to management. 

  • Ownership for brand and results at all levels, inspired by the Disney model of brand franchising. 

  • Practice of design thinking and human-centered design. 

  • Application of the Objective and Key Result (OKR) framework to keep alignment between people strategy and desired result.  

  • Ensuring that the team culture supports and models the very innovation they seek to promote.

  • Whole-being leadership. Suggestions on how we can maintain space for nurturing our body, mind, and soul.  

We are confident you will enjoy and benefit from our conversation with Liz Brigham as much as we have. 

As always, we encourage you to connect with us and share your thoughts and experiences with this community of conversation. 

Tom & Adrienne