Courageous Conversations

Kristen Hadeed believes that authentic, human leadership can change the world. At 19, with hardly any leadership experience, Kristen started a cleaning business called Student Maid. She never expected it to be her career; it was simply a way to earn money while she was in college. But before she graduated, her company received a contract to clean hundreds of apartments, and it changed her path forever.

Kristen hired 60 people to help her and, within days, 75% of the team had quit. That’s when Kristen’s obsession with learning how to be a leader began. Over the next 14 years, Kristen learned a lot by screwing up. But most importantly, she learned how to lead from her heart. Doing so helped her take Student Maid from a small cleaning company to a business known globally for its culture of belonging, its focus on people, and its purpose of building leaders.

Today, Kristen spends her time helping leaders, teams, and organizations around the world embrace their humanity. She’s worked with just about every industry with one purpose behind it all: to build a better world through courageous, compassionate leadership.