Julienne and Jerome speak with Amy Bach, founder and CEO of Measures for Justice, a criminal justice nonprofit that develops data tools and services that help communities, including the institutions that serve them, reshape the system.
A journalism fellowship led to a book idea, the book led to an idea for an organization, and now that organization (60+ employees and growing) is reshaping the justice system. In this episode, Amy talks us through some of the most crucial turning points along this journey and the power of the stories, and the people and relationships, that helped shape them. She tells the story that helped bring the organization to life and explains how the opposition her new organization encountered made them realize that they were really onto something: what started as a research organization in startup mode became a tech/product organization with established (people) operations processes.
Amy was ahead of the curve in recognizing systemic injustices within the criminal justice system and as the world changed, so did the organization and Amy as a leader. She tells us about the lessons she learned along the way, including the importance of diversity of thought, doing the work and making that consistent, and forging connections. Finally, she points out how in many ways, the process of raising children is very similar to the process of building an organization.
This episode is filled with thoughtful reflections, examples of small conversations of connection, and well-told stories. It’s a must-listen for anyone interested in the process of building a disruptive organization within well-established systems- from the use of storytelling to make data come to life to the transition out of startup mode, this episode has it all.
You’ll also hear about our latest online workshop offering “Leading with story”, which you can find out more about here. It’s a great opportunity to learn to tell and practice presenting your own leadership story, just like Amy did!
Links and resources:
Website Measures for Justice
Amy Bach’s LinkedIn
