Career Growth Advice from Rene Madden, Financial Services Executive and CEO | Career Tips for Women in Business

2B Bolder Podcast – Episode 139
Featuring Rene Madden

Episode Title: #139 Reinvention After Four Decades: Rene Madden's Journey from Secretary to CEO

Host: Mary Killelea
Guest: Rene Madden


Mary Killelea (Guest): Hi there, my name is Mary Killelea. Welcome to the 2B Bolder podcast, providing career insights for the next generation of women in business and tech. 2B Bolder was created out of my love for technology and marketing, my desire to bring together like-minded women, and my hope to be a great role model and source of inspiration for my two girls and other young women like you. Encouraging you guys to show up and to be bolder and to know that anything you guys dream of, it's totally possible. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the conversation.

Have you ever met someone who's not only survived four decades in fast-paced male-dominated industry, but reinvented themselves multiple times along the way? Today's guest is Rene Madden, and her story is packed with wisdom, grit, and the kind of career clarity we all aspire to have. Rene is a powerhouse with over 40 years of experience leading client service and transformation teams at some of the world's most respected financial firms, including JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, and Schroders. She's seen firsthand how unclear roles, outdated systems, and burned out leaders can hold teams back. And she's spent her career fixing those mistakes. She's now the founder of Eleva Dynamics, where she helps financial firms modernize, streamline operations, and lead change that actually sticks. She's also the creator of Uplift Career Coaching and author of Crush It: Conquer Workplace Challenges, a guide for anyone who's ever felt stuck, undervalued, or ready for more. And Rene, that sounds like everyone I know. So,

Rene Madden: I'm sure

Mary Killelea: I'm so excited to have you here. Thanks for being on the show.

Rene Madden (Guest): Oh, thanks so much, Mary. I'm really excited to be here.

Mary Killelea: Okay, so let's start at the beginning. That's kind of where I like to take people on this career journey. What led you to the world of financial services?

Rene Madden: So I kind of fell into it. I was again I started over 40 years ago and I actually started as a secretary in a bank PSFS in Philadelphia if anyone ever remembers that. But I worked for the assistant treasurer and I basically was like the office butterfly. I mean, I just talked most of the day. And then I realized, oh boy, I gotta go back to college and, you know, really define my career. So, I did go back to college. I went to St. Joe's University in Philadelphia. I grew up right outside of Philadelphia. And I majored in accounting. And that's how I started to get into the industry. I started at a small asset management firm in Philadelphia and I kind of wore many hats and I just loved it. I loved the challenge. I liked learning about the market and everything about it. And then when I got married, my husband was in New York. We decided to move to New York or live in New York. And he told me, "You got to work at Morgan Stanley. You really have to work at Morgan Stanley. And I thought, oh boy. I was afraid, you know, I am the girl from Pennsylvania and Morgan Stanley is a big prestigious firm, but I ended up there and ended up staying there for 19 years, believe it or not. And it was very challenging. I wanted to quit many, many times. In the beginning, I worked till like 2 am. I took the cars home. I mean, it was crazy. And you know, but I learned a lot. I loved the industry, even though the culture was always a bit conservative. And I think it was very hard for women when I started in the '90s, early' 90s. It was difficult. But I did look at those leaders, women who were like portfolio managers and just really smart and knowledgeable and I really looked up to them and kind of wanted to emulate them. So it was a very interesting time.

Mary Killelea: And so from there you progressed and told us where you are today.

Rene Madden: Okay. So then I went to Schroers which is a UK headquartered firm and I was there for only two and a half years but again learned a lot and managed a transition of a small firm into Schroers and that dealt with working with tech and all kinds of things and really doubling my team from when I started. After two and a half years, I got the call from JP Morgan and it was like, it sounded really interesting, you know, and challenging. I met with the hiring manager and they were like, "Oh, this team is like in the back office. Sales doesn't know who they are." And I was like, "Oh my god, I love that. I want to do that." Like, it was really interesting to me. I always loved a challenge. And so I said, "Okay, I'm off to JP Morgan." And I went there and stayed for 10 years. And then in March, I made the decision to leave to start my own business. And that's how I ended up with Eleva Dynamics. And it's essentially what I did at JP Morgan, right? It's looking at the chaos, which there was. You know, I'm not, you know, singling out JP Morgan, but

Mary Killelea: Right, it's everywhere.

Rene Madden: It's everywhere, right? It was at Morgan Stanley, Schroeders, but really, you know, looking at what I did there and taking that to small to midsize companies and helping them look at their process flow, look at how their teams are aligned and create efficiencies around it because it's and it starts with culture, right? When you look at tech and you build these processes and what happens and it happened a lot like we would build a process in client service but we didn't think oh this impacts sales and operations and so it's looking at all those teams first getting alignment and then building and so that's what I want to do with companies and also So look at their culture and look at leadership development because I do see that there are gaps especially for women in developing leadership skills.

Mary Killelea: Yeah, breaking those silos down is key to really accelerating any program because you can get all the way to the top and if you don't have mutual buyin, it can be killed like that which is incredibly frustrating.

Rene Madden: Absolutely.

Mary Killelea: So, did you have a sleepless night before you said, "I'm going to go off on my own?"

Rene Madden: It was scary. It was very scary. I, you know, look, I left a salary, a team, a title, and you know, even though I was turning six, I turned 60 last year and it was like everyone said, "Oh, Rene is retiring." And it was like no I am not retiring. I could work till I'm 70 or 80 like I am just beginning you know and at the same time I was also going for my masters at NYU for executive coaching and organizational consulting. So I was really just on this path like I want my masters. I always wanted it, but I just kept, you know, I have the kids and then, you know, I'll wait. And I kept waiting. And I said, you know what? I'm doing it. I don't care. I want to do it. And then it just, it led me to realize, this is what my passion is and this is what I'm going to do. And I just made the decision. And I went in and I talked to my boss and I said, it's time and I did it.

Mary Killelea: You're so inspiring because you know I'm in my late 50s, 58, I just had a birthday and I too feel like I am just starting like you know there's so much I have to offer and so many ideas I want to percolate. So the idea that I feel is real in corporate agism just kills me because women in later life when a lot of the timestaking pulls that we get from children and other responsibilities kind of go away and we just get this surge of new insight and level and passion for growth. And I think this is our best year.

Rene Madden: Yes, I do. I mean I'm just looking at myself like I'm in my 20s again. You know, I'm finishing college and I'm starting a new career and I have another 20, 30 years to go.

Mary Killelea: Oh, I'm so excited for you.

Rene Madden: Thank you. Like I don't want to retire. I don't want to sit home. I, you know, I've never done that. And I've seen my parents retire and it it wasn't good. And I said, you know what, that's never going to be me. I want to have a life. And so this just gives me that much more purpose, you know, for the next whatever years to go.

Mary Killelea: I love this. So throughout your career, was there a pivotal point or what would you say kind of helped shape the leader that you are today?

Rene Madden: So that's a good question and it's funny. I guess at one point when I was at Morgan Stanley, I hadn't managed, but they asked me to manage a team and I realized I was really good at it, you know, and it was like, "Oh, I like this." And I don't know what it was. I liked working with other people and helping them. And you know, I ended up taking over a team at the time that was emerging markets client service. And it was all manual. I mean, they were working all hours doing things in Excel. And that's where I was like, "Oh, let's get into this." Like, "How can we automate it? What can we do to make it easier?" And that's what excited me. And it was also, it wasn't just me. It was working with the team. And, you know, we had one girl on the team who was really techy and like, "Okay, what can you do? Let's do it." Okay. You know, I ended up turning that team around. And that's when I realized I'm really good at this. And so, it just kind of clicked for me. It wasn't like I saw someone in that role and said, "Oh, I want to be like they are." And I've definitely had a lot of leaders who weren't so great in this industry. And I knew what I didn't want to be, right? I didn't want to be a bully. and I didn't want to be, you know, someone who just was like a micromanager or anything like that. So, I kind of knew what I didn't want to do. I think the other part of me is although I was good at managing, I wasn't always good at managing up. You know, could have hurt me. Because I would say you know what I felt and you know I was very honest, very transparent and that wasn't always looked upon as favorable.

Mary Killelea: So tell me about your ideal client now for your business and how you selected that kind of persona if you will or audience to serve.

Rene Madden: So I'm looking at financial services companies mostly asset management but it could be wealth management or any financial services where you know it's they're dealing with operational chaos and they're automating but sometimes what happens is they're automating a bad process. So I can help them audit their processes, look at what's not working, what's working, what they need to stop doing because I think a lot of times companies have these processes, especially the larger companies, right? It goes to, you know, 20 people have to approve something and it just creates chaos. And so that's what I want to help them streamline, audit those, and then put a plan together to prioritize what they want to automate. And now with AI, there's so much that companies can do. And I know, you know, the bigger companies of course are already out there doing things, but you know, there's a rush to use AI, but we need to be smart about it, right? We can't just throw AI on it. We have to look at, you know, clean things up first before doing that.

Mary Killelea: Yeah. No, I think that's so true. I think there's so many companies rushing, kind of like a kid running down the hallway with scissors.

Rene Madden: Yeah.

Mary Killelea: Like, I don't know where I'm going, but mom, here's the scissors. You know, like someone's gonna get hurt. Something's going to go wrong.

Rene Madden: Oh, yeah. Because it's just like, oh my god. As soon as Chat GBT came out, all the big firms were like, you know, getting their own GPTs out. And like at JP Morgan, it was like using it every day. You know, they were kinda monitoring usage, you know, they were kind of monitoring usage and I love it. Don't get me wrong. I mean, you know, it's been so amazing to use it while launching a business. I mean, I don't think I could have done it without chat GPT. I love it, but I just think we need to be smarter about it. And I see firms like there's a lot of layoffs right now, and I think it's in their head like, okay, we're going to cut these areas because we're just going to throw AI at it. And that's not a good way to go about it at all.

Mary Killelea: I completely agree and I use AI for my business all the time. So that response made me think of a question. How do you feel about the landscape of what you just said? Like everyone a lot of companies in general are cutting people thinking AI is a quick solution. Do you think there's going to be a shift in I don't know when, but companies are going to need people back?

Rene Madden: I think they are because what they're losing is institutional knowledge. A lot of companies are cutting out middle management because they keep saying, "Oh, we want a flat organization and we don't want to have all of these hierarchies." But what happens is you have very junior people and then you have senior management and there's no one in between who's really doing the training, doing the oversight, thinking strategically about the day-to-day and how it actually works. Senior management knows it from up here. They don't get in the weeds, right? And that piece is missing. And I think that it's gonna turn around definitely. I would say, you know, in the next six months or so, they're going to start feeling it. They're going to feel that loss of institutional knowledge. And it's kind of like when we were in the great resignation, right? We had oh my god that year I think it I want to say 21 or 22 and we had about 13 people that year that left and it was crazy and we had to hire a lot of people to train them and it was not easy. So I just think firms need to think about that before they start cutting you know.

Mary Killelea: I absolutely agree. I want to talk to you about something that is a passion of mine and that's Uplift Career Coaching. You're the founder of the business and the author of Crush It, Conquer Workplace Challenges. What inspired you to launch that platform and write the book and who did you write it for?

Rene Madden: Great question. So uplift career coaching actually started in 2020 right before co. I remember February 2020 and what happened is in 2019 I was actually moved into a transformation role. I was managing a client service team and then they said my boss called me up one day and said I'm retiring and we want to move you into transformation because we know you like tech. And I was like what the heck? I wasn't happy about it. Although in hindsight I'm glad I did it because it was a passion of mine and you know it was at a time where we were digitizing processes and we were doing all that stuff. So anyway, but at the time I really missed managing because I was an individual contributor at that point. And so I started really doing a lot of reading and kind of figuring out what my true passion was and I realized I wanted to be a coach. So, I got a coaching certification, started my business right away, even though I knew this much, and I just kept doing it on the side of my full-time job. And it was great. It was a lot of fun. I kept, you know, moving forward in terms of thinking, what else do I want to do? And that's where I knew I wanted to do more. I wanted to go back to school. And ultimately it did drive me to go back to school last year. So, and you know with this program, I never even really thought of the consulting part, right? I was like, oh, I'm going to be a coach. And when I took this program and it was executive coaching and consulting, I realized, oh my god, like I can do both because I can take what I did in corporate and turn that into a consulting role and help other companies, you know, and look at, you know, some of the issues that I saw when working in corporate and take that and help them. So that was that's how that kind of came through. And then with Crush It, I always wanted to write a book. I had it in my head. I kept saying, "I'm going to do it. I'm going to do it." And just with all the different challenges that I had gone through in the industry. And so I actually took another certificate program at Wharton's executive presence. Great great program by the way. and we had to write this paper on where do you see yourself in five years. And so I wrote that I was going to be a best-selling author. And after I wrote it, I was like, I'm getting that book done. And so I did. It's really funny like I wrote it for myself because it was really kind of I needed to get all of that stuff out that I had dealt with, but I also wanted to help other people who are going through those same challenges. And so it became more like a guide for people.

Mary Killelea: I absolutely love this. You're extremely driven and a high achiever. What do you think fuels that?

Rene Madden: I don't know, Mary. I really don't know because again, I didn't go to college out of high school, right? And so, you know, my parents, you know, they were Italian parents at the, you know, in the 80s and they were like, "Oh, you're going to get married and have kids." And I just think I was a little rebellious. I just said, "No, I don't want to do that." And I don't know, I just kept pushing. It was something within me that slowly came out and then, you know, here I am at 60 and I'm like, I should have done all this 20 years ago, right?

Mary Killelea: It's never too late. I love it.

Rene Madden: It's never too late. Exactly.

Mary Killelea: Through your coaching work, what mindset blocks do you see most often among young women or women in general around clarity or confidence?

Rene Madden: So I see it a lot, the confidence you know I think women suffer a lot from impostor syndrome and it's really based on confidence and I and it's funny because I've been there as well. I'd be in a meeting and I'd be thinking I don't belong in this room. And I think it's our saboteurs that are talking to us, judging us, telling us we're not good enough. And so I think it's turning that mindset to a more positive one and telling yourself that you are good and you are smart. And it's funny, I coached someone the other day who had an interview and she said, "Well," I said, "What are you afraid of?" And she said, "Well, I'm afraid that my accent is, you know, they're not going to like that." And I said, "Oh, interesting. Well, you speak two languages, right? Isn't that a differentiator?" And she was like, "Oh, yeah. It's about the way you look at things, right? So, if you look at it like, okay, you know, they're going to look at my accent as a bad thing, but if you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change. Okay. So, now she's looking at herself like, I speak two languages. Not a lot of people do that.

Mary Killelea: Yeah. Refraining is so powerful.

Rene Madden: Exactly. So I definitely think I would also say for some women self-awareness not just women but I think for a lot of people and I suffered from this too many years ago is we get feedback like we wonder why aren't we getting promoted and we get that this feedback but we're like that's not me. I don't know. And we don't accept it, but we're still not getting promoted. Once you accept it, and I'm not talking about negative feedback that's coming from one person, but the themes you're hearing over and over again, take that and really try to develop it because if you can do that, you're going to just feel more confident anyway.

Mary Killelea: Those are great pieces of advice and we talk a lot about confidence or lack of confidence or conf you know that is holding us back. But what I appreciate is when successful women like yourself come on and are transparent and say that you've experienced this in your life because a lot of people look up to people up the chain in these businesses or organizations and they feel like oh they had it all together. They didn't feel what I felt. So having you articulate it and share that helps so many who are listening.

Rene Madden: I just think that's what I want to do is share my story so I can help others that may be in the same situation.

Mary Killelea: For women ready to step into leadership or negotiate for more, what's one strategy or mind shift you'd recommend?

Rene Madden: Don't be afraid to use your voice. Right? Speak up. Don't let anyone take your power away, which is so important. If you really feel strongly about something, go in there and talk about it. You don't have to yell or, you know, get angry, but go in there with the evidence, the facts, and use your influencing skills to get the right answer, to get to that yes. Right. Don't be afraid to use your voice. I would definitely if I could go back in time and use my voice more often, I would do that.

Mary Killelea: What's one underrated skill or habit you believe more women should develop to thrive in today's workplace?

Rene Madden: One thing that really helped me is I learned about positive intelligence PQ and that's actually about changing your mindset. And so what would happen to me is sometimes I could get hijacked during the day. Like if someone my boss came in and said, "Why did your team do this? It's all wrong." It could hijack my whole day. And now what I learned, and this was a couple of years ago, is you need to pause, reflect, and then respond. And if you can just think of those three things, and positive intelligence definitely goes more into it, but just pausing and reflecting first can really help you so that you can continue on with your day. Put that aside. Yes, you could be upset about it, but you don't want it to impact the rest of your day because then you're not going to be productive.

Mary Killelea: That's fantastic advice. What about visibility? The women I deal with struggle a lot with feeling comfortable about being in the limelight or speaking up because they feel like they're bragging or their work should speak for themselves. Yeah. Yet they want to be seen, yet they want that promotion. Like it's this weird dichotomy of.

Rene Madden: Yeah. You got to do it. And you have to really focus on not taking things personally because I know even with my LinkedIn posting sometimes I hear, "Why are you posting every day?" And it's like, "Well, I'm free marketing and I just launched a business, so I'm going to post." And the thing is, you don't have to listen to the naysayers. Just go out and do your thing and show your talents. Because if you don't go out and show them, you will be invisible. And no one will know what you're doing. If you're sitting at your desk all day just working, you won't get noticed. Unfortunately, you have to get out there and again, use your f voice. Speak up. Set up meetings with that senior manager that you see in the hall and never speak to. Set up a meeting with them.

Mary Killelea: What is your perspective on developing or I guess the importance of designing and owning a personal brand?

Rene Madden: I think it's important to really think about being authentic and that's what I try to do. I want to stay authentic to who I am and my beliefs and core values. I think it is so important to really work on that. Work with the specialists that you know. I've worked with a couple of people and it's been so helpful because sometimes you know what you want to do and you know what you want to say but you kind of need help in putting it in the right frame. It's kind of developing your pitch, even your elevator pitch, right? And it's important to go out there with, you know, what the right brand that you want for your business and yourself.

Mary Killelea: Absolutely. I think it is having clarity and that having clarity of personal brand gives you confidence. So, it's just so empowering. They kind of go hand in hand in my mind.

Rene Madden: Yes, absolutely.

Mary Killelea: What does to be bolder mean to you?

Rene Madden: To be bolder. It means if you have passion for something, don't be afraid. Do it. You know, make it a plan. I'm not saying, you know, go to your boss today and resign, but if you feel really passionate, put together an action plan, even a like a 90day plan of what you need to do to get there and then do it. Do what you say you're going to do, right? Just go out and do it.

Mary Killelea: So, I love that LinkedIn brought us together because I was following you and we've got connected. So, this is just a demonstration of how putting yourself out there on social media works because I've loved having you on the show. Thank you for sharing your expertise and your career journey. Anything that you want to share with the audience before we say goodbye?

Rene Madden: Well, I want to thank you so much for the opportunity. It's been great meeting you. And yeah, LinkedIn does work. I know a lot of people that say, "Oh, I don't use LinkedIn." It works and it's a networking tool. And as I said, it's free marketing. So, if you do have a business, don't be afraid to go out there. Even if you don't have a business and you have something to say, be a thought leader. Get your thoughts out there and don't listen to the naysayers.

Mary Killelea: Don't listen to that negative noise.

Rene Madden: Exactly.

Mary Killelea: Thank you.

Rene Madden: Thank you, Mary.

Mary Killelea: Thanks for listening to the episode today. It was really fun chatting with my guest. If you like their show, please like it and share it with your friends. If you want to learn what we're up to, please go check out our website at 2bbolder.com. That's the number 2 little bbolder.com.