Stefanie Thelen / Slalom
Excellence in Leadership
Stefanie Thelen comes from a big, close family, so she says she's had the blessing of unconditional love and unfailing support all her life. That's really the ultimate privilege and biggest reason for her success, she says. "When you're safe, seen, and loved, it's easy to look for the good in others, have the courage to ask for help, and bounce back when you fall," Thelen says. "And the universe keeps leading me to incredibly open, gifted people who help me learn and grow."
Thelen, a General Manager at Slalom, is a seriously formidable woman. Colleagues say she might be the only person at the firm who thinks even bigger than CEO Brad Jackson. Poised to be a top five market in the next two years, she and the team she has assembled in St. Louis are thinking outside the box and reimagining the blueprint for how to build a successful market.
Ask her about her greatest accomplishment and she'll say "bringing 180 brilliant, growth-minded people together around a common purpose who have love for each other and our community; being recognized for unprecedented 'Customer Love' scores and helping key customers begin their digital journeys; and finally, setting new growth records for Slalom for people, revenue, and speed to profitability."
She excels by marrying her passion for building phenomenal teams with her relentless drive for results. Thelen has brought together a team bound by a common purpose, and it's no accident that together they were profitable in their first full year as an office, or that they consistently set new run rate records.
When it comes to Slalom's strategic priorities, Thelen is most excited about growing experts and leaders. She says, "it's about realizing our potential together—supporting each other and our entire ecosystem of clients, partners and communities to grow and develop mastery."
Thelen has a bold vision for St. Louis as the gateway to innovation and growth. She is committed to making a difference for her team and in the community, and within days of opening the office created a community engagement lead role on the Slalom team to help drive her vision forward.
"It's taken me a while, but at this point I'm more focused on embracing the journey and on the deeper impact I can make as a leader, rather than the next big win. There have been some uplifting outcomes over the years—jobs saved, careers launched, companies turned around," she says. "I'm just proud of leaving people better than I find them – helping them to see their unique potential and creating opportunities for them to understand and connect with each other to do great things."
As far as being recognized as one of the Top 25 Consultants, Thelen says "it's a great affirmation for our team, all of Slalom, and our clients that putting people first and going all in to make a positive impact is the right path and purpose truly equals profit."
Q&A: What motivates you to excel?
Thelen: I think [Spider-Man's] Peter Parker said it best: 'With great power, comes great responsibility.' I've been blessed with a lot of gifts and I want to spend my breaths and heartbeats in a way that matters."
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