The 2022 Women Leaders in Consulting: Lana Manganiello

Lana J. Manganiello is the Managing Director with Equinox Strategy Partners, providing service professionals and firms with strategic counsel to increase market visibility and drive revenue.

Trained and certified through Cornell University in Diversity and Inclusion, Lana is committed to working with law firms to attract and develop diverse professionals and improve diversity in leadership within our client's firms and ultimately the legal profession.

For over 15 years, Lana has been a leader in professional service sales and sales management. A graduate of the University of California, Irvine. She's devoted over 10 years to coaching new and experienced service professionals on topics related to annual business planning, business development coaching/training and marketing. Lana is a volunteer in various organizations throughout Southern California.

Lana is a volunteer in various organizations throughout Southern California. Most recently, Lana was recognized for the Diversity, Equity + Inclusion "DEI Community Impact Award" by the Los Angeles Business Journal. In 2021 she received an "Inspirational Woman Award" from Los Angeles Times Magazine and the Los Angeles Business Journal selected her as a Women's Leadership Awards "Woman to Watch."

What do you consider your greatest personal or professional achievement?

Getting very clear about what I want and then changing careers and creating an opportunity for myself to do work I truly believe in and care about has been my greatest professional achievement.

What advice would you give to a female consultant just beginning her career?

Be intentional about proactively initiating and growing relationships with people you truly respect and admire. There are plenty of people who hold job titles that on paper, make you think there will be value in maintaining a connection, but unless you truly connect on a human level you will find yourself wasting a lot of time and energy.

What do you enjoy most about your consulting career?

I love what I do because I get to work with smart and talented experts on elevating their careers, their practices and their impact. I choose to work with lawyers because I want to do everything I can to ensure that smart, empathetic women and diverse people thrive in the legal profession and raise to positions of power. I believe that lawyers play an integral role in shaping our societal structures and we need diversity in leadership.

What's the best advice—personal or professional—you've ever received?

To work with the willing and that you can't care about your client's outcome more than your client does.

What does being honored as a Woman Leader in Consulting mean to you?

It is fantastic that the consulting profession values work in diversity, equity and inclusion enough to recognize it as its own award category. I am honored to receive this award and hope that DEI thinking is prioritized until it is deep-seated into every profession, organization and community.