Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Monn Ginsburg.
Hi Laura, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
After graduating college on the cusp of the Great Recession, I got my first job at a small company that built print ordering software. While it wasn’t the most exciting, it was an excellent introduction to the corporate world. As the recession descended, I bounced through a few jobs as I found myself caught in downsizings due to financial fluctuations. I stayed in the software space for many years and while it wasn’t changing the world, I enjoyed working with global marketing teams.
To morally supplement my corporate work, I got deeply involved in volunteering with organizations focused on improving the lives of women, children, and families. Through this avenue, I ended up joining — and leading — several boards of directors which has continued to give me the opportunity to build skills, relationships, and experiences I could not have through my professional work alone.
In 2016, it was time for a change and to do something more personally fulfilling. My friend, Leili, had an idea that saw us founding Apparatus and later adding our cannabis division, Blunt Strategies. Apparatus is a general benefit corporation — a for-profit entity that’s mission-based — focusing on projects and work that advance social justice and equity as well as environmental sustainability.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
If anyone has ever had a smooth road, I’m convinced they didn’t do it right. We’ve faced countless struggles in building and evolving our business, especially one that involves political strategy and strategic communications. Nothing is ever stable in these spaces and you must have an appetite for change and a willingness to pivot to find, if not success, at least the road (bumpy thought it may be).
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
apparatusgbc.com
What’s most fun about our work and the business we’ve built is that we’ve worked exclusively on projects and for clients that align with our mission. We’re known for being efficient and effective communicators, smart and fluid strategists, and willing to put in the work to get a job done.
We never wanted to be a big firm with a lot of employees or clients. It was always about staying true to ourselves and work that felt meaningful. A lot of the work I specifically lead is with nonprofits as they navigate crisis and opportunity as well as manage their mission-driven organizations across board and professional staff.
Specific areas of specialty: board governance and facilitation, crisis and strategic communications, press and media management
Who else deserves credit in your story?
Certainly my business partner, Leili Fatehi, who is much more than a colleague. We each have one child and they were born 12 days apart in 2013. We joke that Apparatus is the second child neither of us physically gave birth to but that’s been just as difficult and rewarding. Leili and I have a balance and synchronicity that makes the other better and stronger.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Apparatusgbc.com
