Our Mission
Empower young STEM professionals to design and create the career and life of their dreams.
- It makes them unstoppable because they get to chose the path that matches their talents and passions.
- We will keep more women and people from diverse groups in STEM disciplines. Thus, STEM organizations become more productive, and have an even greater positive impact.
- We will create a new sense of what is possible combining career and life goals in to a dynamic harmony.
- Everyone wins: The individuals, their families, the organizations they join or create, their communities and society as a whole.
Our STEM VIP Mentor Commmunity
Communities go beyond the individual and beyond the circle of family. Communities exist by declaration. They offer the opportunity to contribute on a level higher than self or family.
We have formed a community that consists of experienced professionals in academia, business and government who
- Have a graduate degree in a STEM disciplines and/or
- Are working or have worked extensively with STEM professionals
and who
- Are willing and keen to make a difference in the lives of young STEM professionals
- Realize that they have experience to give to others that is invaluable to them
- Are willing to contribute 1-2 hours of their time (1 hour with the students plus a few minutes to prepare and debrief)
We thank our STEM VIP Mentors!
You are making a huge difference in the lives of the STEM graduate students and postdocs you mentor. The ripple effect is tremendous.
STEM VIP could not exist without you.
We acknowledge that you are playing a big game; your life is about more than just you and your family.
THANK YOU!
STEM VIP - How This Vision Came About
The vision for STEM VIP was initiated by Dr. Stephie Althouse. It quickly turned into a community project, executed by currently around 20 other highly experienced professionals with STEM backgrounds.
Dr. Stephie Althouse, started out her career as a Ph.D. chemist, award-winning scientist, and innovator. Her career turned into a colorful, exciting adventure. From doing research in both academia and business, to becoming an executive and business owner, her career path has taken many turns.
2.5 years ago, Dr. Stephie visited the University of Tennessee in Knoxville to give a talk at the department of chemistry. Her talk was about sharing with the graduate students some of her career experiences. A second talk followed recently. The goal was for students to see even more possibilities for their careers and lives, and get a sense for how to explore them.
Dr. Stephie then realized that a community approach to this conversation would be a massive breakthrough. That is because a community of mentors can give the students access to many more career and life facets than one person alone. That is how STEM VIP was born.
If you would like to know more about her journey here are a few highlights:
- After three years of postdoctoral research and pursuing an academic career path Dr. Stephie changed course.
- She joined a small, yet rapidly growing high-tech company in San Diego, still doing research. She quickly became a group leader heading up her own research area, bringing in her own research funding via government agencies ranging from DARPA and NSF to BMDO and Air Force, to name a few.
- MIT Technology Review Magazine recognized her as 1 of the 100 most promising young innovators under the age of 35. She won two coveted "Small Business Innovation Research" Awards as well.
- Soon, she got intensely passionate about learning what it takes to successfully commercialize innovation. She won the company's first award of a commercialization grant, offered via the San Diego Regional Technology Alliance.
- Driving to succeed in her career and for her innovations to make a tangible difference in the world, she kept taking courses on entrepreneurship, leadership, marketing and business.
- After eight years, to the shock of her colleagues, she quit her job and started her own company. The company consulted at the interface of technology development and business development.
- Less than 3 years later, she was asked to lead a client’s high-tech company, filled with very smart, tech-savvy professionals, out of serious economic trouble. She built a reputation as a turnaround authority. Working with her team, she raised the company's revenues by 41% the first year.
- A few more "miracle turnarounds" later, Dr. Stephie Althouse, was sought out to write and speak about her turnaround and business growth experiences.
- As a result, she wrote her first two business books “101 Quick Tips for High-Talent Companies” and "101 Quick Tips for ESOP Leaders." (ESOP means Employee Stock Ownership Plan). Along with the books, she developed an innovative system called “Transforming Talent Into Wealth™”.
- Dr. Stephie is a relentless learner. She generously passes on what she knows and develops new tools to support others all the time. While immersed in her comapny turnaround work, she realized that consulting becomes even more effective when it is supported by a deep knowledge of coaching methods. She enrolled in a one-year long intense coaching program by Coaching Firm International (CFI) and got certified as CEO Action Coach. Top-Notch CEO and CFI are affiliated members of the Institute of Coaching at the McLean Hospital affiliated with Harvard.
- Dr. Stephie is also certified as Seminar Leader by the American Seminar Leaders Association (ASLA). She teaches both live and via video conferencing.
- She is the Founder and CEO of Top-Notch CEO where she coaches and consults with business owners, CEOs, executives and employee owners to maximize both business and personal success and happiness.
Accolades
