Jennifer Erickson | This Leader’s Work Saves Lives and Billions of Dollars
“There is amazing stuff happening everywhere. How do we amplify it and accelerate it?” — Jennifer Erickson
With a career that spans from the Scottish parliament to the White House and beyond, Jennifer Erickson creatively leads change for those who need it most. Today, much of her work focuses on ending the organ transplant waiting list which would save innumerable lives and tens of billions of dollars. She also advocates for inclusive entrepreneurship which can benefit both the individual and society as a whole.
Jennifer served in the Obama Administration as the Assistant Director of Innovation for Growth in the Office of Science and Technology Policy. Previously, Jennifer worked at the Center for American Progress and served as the Special Adviser to the First Minister of Scotland. At the White House and as a Schmidt Futures Innovation Fellow, Jennifer focused on how applying data-driven solutions could help to end the critical organ donation shortage.
In this episode you’ll learn:
Big leadership lessons Jennifer learned in the nonprofit world
How gathering data can help solve social issues
Jennifer’s experience working in Scottish politics
The skewed demographics of venture capitalists
How Jennifer took advantage of her opportunity at the Obama White House
What smart ideas kids brought to the White House Science Fair
Why Jennifer chose the organ waitlist as her White House initiative
What astronomical price the government pays for kidney disease annually
Why the current organ waitlist system is failing
How you can ensure you’re on the organ donor list
Why Jennifer looks to those “smarter than her” for advice
And so much more!
Read Jennifer’s article in the Washington Post:
I want a journalist to see what happens to my organs after I die. Here’s why.