We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Amirah Raveneau-Bey a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Amirah, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
Finding my purpose has been a journey that I am still on.
As I have grown into myself, I have found hidden treasures within me that have unveiled my purpose and my purpose has gotten greater over time. I recalled the nine-year old Amirah. She was tenacious and fierce. She thought she was going to be a famous dancer on Broadway with lights around her name. She took classes and thought that was her dream, until a brutally honest teacher told her she wasn’t talented enough to make it. Oof! I guess it was pretty clear watching other kids skyrocket to advanced classes, but it still stung.
I was in beginner ballet class for a while and it didn’t click that without dancing on my toes like the other girls, I wouldn’t be the world’s next great ballerina. While I was daydreaming in class about my future stardom, I was also noticing the office outside wondering why it was always so chaotic. It was messy and noisy – I could see so much potential to make it run efficiently. One day, I asked the owner if I could help in between classes by answering phones. The owner, who didn’t seem to find joy in office work, gladly said yes and that’s where I found my happy place.
Turns out I didn’t need the dance room or ballet shoes. I enjoyed running that office, handling the calls, making schedules, filing, and filling out forms. I enjoyed helping people, and giving the owner ideas. I wanted things to be easier for the teachers, parents, and students. I remember pitching the idea of selling branded sweatshirts and offering snacks for kids and parents to buy while waiting in between classes. Seemed super easy and the owner loved it. I remember that look she gave me at that moment. It was the look she gave to the best dancers. She “saw” me in a whole other way. So the owner told my parents that if I helped her in between classes we could have a few free classes in exchange. Yes – after crushing my dreams she wound up keeping them alive. Go figure! I still had my fun in dance classes, and my excitement came from the office work. Over the years, I went from helping out occasionally to running the office on the weekends and ultimately managing all of the recitals and shows. Truth be told, I wanted to run that dance studio more than perform. At the time, I didn’t have words for what I liked but I knew what it felt like and I was great at it.
After college, I spent the first part of my career building and leading sales, operations, analytics and customer-facing teams. I worked for Citibank, Trulia, NerdWallet and Opendoor. I thought that was what I wanted to do and all I needed to be “happy” in my career. Yet my heart said “there is more” to do.
Throughout my life, I’ve had many moments similar to the dance studio. In experiencing a product or walking into a store, I’d have ideas to enhance the user experience or clearly see other income streams for the store owner. And then it came to me – I was a natural, creative problem solver. A fixer. I didn’t design it this way, but my life’s work became just that. When I worked at a bank, I ran branches and territories – they always gave me the ones that had “potential.” I didn’t fully appreciate how good I was at quickly assessing what was needed, then building a stellar service experience, hiring and training great people, and ultimately getting the business profitable. I resented it at one point because after I would create my ultimate team, I’d be sent to another place to rebuild. I understood the company’s needs but it became clearer and clearer that I needed my needs fulfilled as well. I took the leap and launched my first company The Home Dispatch with some friends and then found my true zone of genius.
I launched Grow Scale Develop, Inc. An advisory and executive coaching company where I get to help businesses who are looking to grow and scale their sales revenue. I also help them coach and develop the leadership team to be able to execute and achieve the greatness that is hidden within them.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
My company Grow Scale Develop, helps and guides entrepreneurs, founders and business leaders to grow their sales and unlock additional revenue to help them sustain and thrive in their industry. I take the 25 years of working in corporate and tech companies and utilize my own unique process to assess company performance and recommend high leveraging strategies to help drive results. The key is centering around the customer journey and helping them solve their needs by a companies service or product.
We have three offerings:
1. Fractional Sales and GTM leader. We work side by side embedded within the company to help unlock and execute high leveraging sales initiatives.
2. Voice of Customer Deep dive- We uncover and unlock customer insights to help identify and strengthen current and future product/service offerings and experiences.
3. Leadership Catalyst: We help leaders redefine their strengths to inspire their teams and build confidence and clarity on how to bring the best out of others.
For entrepreneurs we also have an intimate sales mastermind group to help give them the sales tips and insights to continue to grow their businesses.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The advice I give to others is to continue to dive deep and learn more about yourself. We sometimes spend time learning new things to include in our lives (self improvement, history, new hobbies, etc.) However, I would say the more you spend time learning about the parts of you that come easy, that irritate you, that others value, the help you offer and more. These insights will help you understand how the others value your existence. Just you being you is huge value for the world. Then our job is to ignite that good part of ourselves and accelerate it. Find more ways to use that to help others.
Looking back, it has always been my ability to see opportunities to add business value, to encourage others to lean into their strengths and help others grow into their next level of greatness.
How would you describe your ideal client?
There are three types of ideal clients we work with:
1. Ambitious Leaders & Customer-Centric Founders: CEOs, founders, and senior leaders driven to scale their business and elevate leadership impact while maintaining a customer-first mindset. Open to adopting new sales strategies, improving team performance, and leveraging tools to accelerate growth.
2. Executives Ready for Career Reinvention: Professionals transitioning to a new role, industry, or entrepreneurial path who want to refine their personal brand and leadership narrative. Seeking personalized coaching and strategies to align their experience with future goals.
3. Teams Seeking High-Impact Sales Training and Coaching: Sales teams or business development groups looking to improve closing rates, shorten the sales cycle, and sharpen negotiation skills. Leaders who value ongoing accountability, pipeline review, and tailored coaching.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.growscaledevelop.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amirah77777/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amirahraveneaubey/
Image Credits
Photos by Darren Raveneau Photography
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
