This past May, we at Team GrepBeat put the word out that we’d begun a search for our first-ever Executive Director.
The role was conceived as part of GrepBeat’s transition into nonprofitdom (and indeed was described by the GrepBeat Godfather as “the third leg of our proverbial nonprofit spinout stool”—the first two being the transition itself and the launch of our giving programs).
Some months later and following a vigorous search, we’re excited to announce that we’ve made our selection. As very few of you have heard (I think we actually kept a pretty tight lid on this one), Katy Breitenbach has come aboard as GrepBeat’s first Executive Director.
I can speak on her behalf in saying she’s excited to soon meet many of you who will be reading this. In the meantime, to help you all begin to get to know someone who will quickly become a key cog (or, I guess, stool leg) in the ecosystem, we conducted a brief interview with none other than the G.B.E.D.
Editor: On behalf of the entire world—all of which has been eagerly awaiting this appointment—welcome to GrepBeat! You were sneakily installed two weeks ago, so the first question is: How has the transition been so far?
Katy: Amazing. There’s so much information. But I have been caught off guard by how much not only the GrepBeat team but everyone I’ve met, who touches the community in any way, has wanted to help.
The first thing people say is, “How can I help? How can I help GrepBeat?” It couldn’t have been a better welcome.
Editor: You’re new to GrepBeat. Are you new to Durham as well?
Katy: Kind of! My dad’s family is from here, so I spent a lot of summers in the Durham area as a kid.
I moved here with my family in 2015 but have been on the Wake County side of the Triangle and am currently in the process of moving to Chapel Hill. So, I’m familiar but haven’t been a full-time resident yet. I’m really excited to be here.
Editor: Here’s the big one: What is your role at GrepBeat?
Katy: My role as Executive Director is to help GrepBeat continue to grow into Nonprofitland and to build operational infrastructure, as well as expand our fundraising and help us garner support for the work that GrepBeat does in storytelling for North Carolina.
I’m honored to be part of the GrepBeat mission to highlight startups and innovation happening across the state, while also growing a more connected entrepreneurial ecosystem.
I also aim to share GrepBeat’s mission beyond what folks already know of it—for instance, telling the stories of impact that the work has had on North Carolina, whether it be in building up the state’s economy, or attracting more innovation, or solving the world’s problems.
I’m here to help advance fundraising so that those capabilities and that storytelling and impact can keep growing and expanding.
Editor: What were you doing before you joined GrepBeat?
Katy: I have always been in some form of consultative selling and have worked with a lot of the biggest companies in the world for a long time.
I spent almost 12 years with a nonprofit called Catalyst and led the U.S. corporate engagement team as well as revenue operations for them. I then spent the last four years as a consultant working with nonprofits, building their operational infrastructure and donor models and doing some really cool projects with them.
Overall it’s been more than 15 years in the nonprofit space, really gaining a firm understanding of how nonprofits run, how people respond to the mission, how to engage donors, and how to work in the environment—all aspects of my experience I’m excited to bring to GrepBeat.
Editor: What drew you to this specific opportunity?
Katy: I think the impact that GrepBeat has in highlighting the things going on in this world in North Carolina is really important from a mission standpoint.
From a role standpoint, I have done a lot of modernization work within nonprofits, a lot of build-from-scratch work within nonprofits…. With this opportunity, I get to build on a really stellar foundation that’s already been set at GrepBeat over the past several years before it became a nonprofit. So to get to step in and drive that forward and build from there is really exciting.
And once I met the team, I was sold!
Editor: Over the next few months, you’ll spend a lot of time getting to know people in the Triangle and from the broader NC ecosystem. Without inviting a maelstrom of sudden intros, what’s your preferred means of connection? Zooms, walkabouts, coffee chats….?
Katy: I love all of them! Because I worked virtually for a long time, Zooms work for me. [A good friend] taught me the value of walkabout meetings, so I’m fan of those. Coffee chats: Big fan of coffee, and the GrepBeat team has already shown me some of the Durham hangouts.
Really, I just want to connect with people and learn from them. I want to hear about the impact GrepBeat has had on them; I want to hear about things that we should keep doing exactly how we’ve done, and things that they want to see more of; and I want to understand all the connections across the community.
Editor: You stealthily attended Grep-a-Palooza. What was your favorite part, or something that stood out?
Katy: Being, at that time, on the outside of the community, I wanted to come and understand whether this was a world that I really wanted to be a part of. And feeling the energy and camaraderie, and the support, and just the sharing of knowledge that was happening across that entire day—both by GrepBeat and by everybody who attended—was just so cool. Immediately, I thought, “I want to be a part of this energy.”
It’s hard to pick a favorite part of the day, but the pitches were so exciting. The folks pitching on that stage were finding the answers and services and ways to make life better and easier. I was so impressed by so many of them.
Editor: Recently, in the office, you said the words, “I get September rage.” Would you care to expand on this quote given that it’s currently September and you’ll soon be meeting a bunch of new people?
Katy: If anybody’s ever watched SNL, they’ll know the reference: Late September is when it’s supposed to be sweater weather. It’s supposed to be when things cool down, you ease into the fall season…. It should not be 100 degrees in September.
But I never take that out on anybody.
(Editor’s note: Don’t worry, she’s safe; also I will be adopting the phrase)
Editor: What’s something you like people to know about you that has nothing to do with work?
Katy: I love being social and around people, but my happiest place is actually at home with my husband, my son, and my two dogs. And we’re big movie buffs and my son is 13 now, so he’s getting to watch more interesting things. So, we’re burning through the classics of late.
As for the dogs, I call them mutt-tabulous and mutt-tastic. Ollie is mutt-tastic because he has 10 breeds; it’s shocking, he looks like a Pitbull/Great Dane mix but he’s 55% husky so he has all of the anxiety and attitude of a husky. Annie is mutt-tabulous because she has 17 breeds; she looks like a German Shepherd but snores like a Pug.
Annie is named after Annie Bonny, because she is a North Carolinian redhead—Annie Bonny is the most famous female pirate—and Annie’s a thief and unapologetic about it. She’s Ollie’s emotional support animal.
(In the process of taking photos for this article, the following attempt at a GrepBeat “album cover” occurred, please enjoy; Katy is pictured in her trapezoidal form on the far right.)
