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Aligning People, Processes, and Technology: A Conversation with Lisa Levy of Lcubed
Oct 22nd, 2022
Lisa Levy, founder of Lcubed, author, speaker, and podcaster, is a force to be reckoned with in the tech world. Her story is one of resilience, reinvention, and unwavering dedication to helping businesses and individuals harness the power of transformation. In an episode of the Elephant in the Room podcast, Lisa shared her journey from a career that didn’t align with her passions to creating her path and empowering others to do the same. Continue reading to explore Lisa’s key insights on innovation, leadership, and how embracing disruption can lead to success.
From Video Production to Tech Leadership
Lisa’s path into the world of technology was anything but traditional. Armed with a degree in electronic media management, she initially set out to work in video production, dreaming of a future in directing movies. However, the reality of low-paying jobs in the industry pushed her to pivot toward technology in the mid-90s, where she discovered project management—a field that, as she puts it, is “exactly the same as producing, just in a different industry.”
Her tech journey saw her building teams and teaching others the importance of process and structure in managing projects. However, as much as she loved the work, Lisa found that technology often failed to align with the end-users’ needs. This realization fueled her desire to create something different; thus, Lcubed was born.
The Birth of Lcubed
Lcubed was founded on the belief that combining best practices across industries—such as project management, performance management, internal controls, and organizational change—could drive meaningful, transformative results. Lisa recognized that many organizations were getting stuck in inefficient processes, and Lcubed was her way of helping them do more with less.
“The economy was rough from 2008 to 2009, and I was working a job I thought was my dream, but it was miserable,” Lisa recalls. She left that job and decided to take control of her career, forming Lcubed to help businesses achieve greater efficiency and effectiveness by aligning people, processes, and technology. Since then, Lisa and her team have worked with major organizations, including APS, SRP, Honor Health, American Express, and state governments.
The Role of Process and Customer-Centricity
When Lisa walks into a new client’s office, the first question she asks is simple: “What do you do?” From there, she observes how teams operate and evaluates whether their processes align with customer needs. “If the customer isn’t at the center of every decision, there’s waste in the process,” she explains. Lcubed helps businesses streamline their operations by focusing on the customer journey, resulting in higher customer satisfaction and loyalty.
For Lisa, improving processes isn’t about imposing rigid structures but empowering people to innovate and collaborate. She helps organizations balance structure and creativity, ensuring that teams can operate efficiently while fostering innovation.
Challenges as a Woman in Tech
Lisa’s rise to success wasn’t without its challenges. Early in her career, she often found herself the only woman in the room, particularly in leadership roles. “I was the only director and the only woman on the leadership team,” she recalls of one pivotal job in the early 2000s. Despite her accomplishments, she faced opposition from her male colleagues, including one boss who instructed her not to speak up in meetings. He wanted her to follow his lead, taking credit for her ideas.
This experience was disheartening, and after five years of enduring it, Lisa walked away. “I couldn’t not be me anymore,” she says. It was a turning point in her career that ultimately led her to create Lcubed, where she could empower herself and others to have a voice and take ownership of their ideas.
Embracing Failure as a Path to Growth
One of Lisa’s key messages is the importance of reframing failure. In American culture, failure is often seen as a negative outcome, but Lisa views it as an essential part of the learning process. “If we hadn’t had failures, we wouldn’t have penicillin,” she points out, highlighting the role of the scientific method in driving innovation.
Lisa advocates for treating every business decision as an experiment. Some experiments will succeed, while others won’t—but both outcomes provide valuable insights. By embracing this mindset, businesses can take calculated risks, learn from their mistakes, and move forward more confidently.
Empowering Diverse Voices and Innovators
Lisa is passionate about fostering diversity in leadership, particularly for women and people of color. “We’re 80 years away from actual parity in executive ranks,” she says, pointing out the stark underrepresentation of women in leadership roles. While there has been some progress—there are now 44 women in CEO roles in the Fortune 500, up from 41 two years ago—it’s not nearly enough.
Lisa is determined to raise the voices of women and other underrepresented groups in business, technology, and leadership. By creating more inclusive spaces and breaking down barriers to entry, she hopes to accelerate progress and inspire the next generation of disruptors.
Innovation, Strategic Risk-Taking, and Designing a Purpose-Driven Life
As a strategist, Lisa helps businesses ignite their innovation engines while maintaining a practical approach to risk. She believes that bold, out-of-the-box thinking leads to breakthroughs, but it’s crucial to test ideas carefully and iteratively. By scaling innovation gradually, businesses can mitigate risk and ensure that new initiatives are sustainable.
“Every business needs new ideas constantly coming into the environment,” Lisa says. “But you have to test them and mitigate risk at each step.”
Lisa’s journey from video production to tech leadership is a testament to the power of resilience and reinvention. By taking control of her career and embracing both the highs and lows, she built a purpose-driven life that allows her to impact others positively. Today, she uses her voice to advocate for innovation, diversity, and collaboration, reminding us that we can achieve great things when we’re willing to take risks, embrace failure, and lift each other up. To learn more about Lisa Levy and her professional growth, listen to her full podcast episode.
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