The Women Who Lead In Business Interview and Talk Show discuss business topics with women from various industries.

Hosted by Dawn Marie Bornheimer, Janelle E. Taylor, Maisha B. Hoye, and Dr. Sharon H. Porter, in this episode, the hosts talk with guests, Simply Liz Love, Nakiea Smith, and Dr. Carol J. Geffner.

Elisabeth A. Reid, known as Liz Love, hails from Milwaukee, Wisconsin by way of Memphis, TN. After the death of her parents, she was adopted by her grandfather to be raised alongside five older sisters and two younger brothers. This midwestern girl with southern roots defied the odds and overcame adversity to arrive at her dream of being a college student.

While serving as the 80th Miss University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, she created Essence of a Woman, a peer-to-peer mentorship program to help young women matriculate academically, mentally, and spiritually while in school and life after graduation. Ten years later the initiative has transformed into a formidable organization that has with-stranded the tests of time. Liz earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and was commissioned in the United States Army Reserves as a Medical Service Corp Officer. Her life experiences molded her into someone who saw the value of what it means to be resilient and emotionally intelligent.

While obtaining her master's in Mental Health Counseling, she became pregnant with a child and a vision that changed the trajectory of her life forever. Liz decided to turn her side hustle and passion for enriching the lives of others around her into a business. As the spouse of a soldier and someone who serves, she developed a lifestyle that could contain all of the gifts she was blessed with and never worked a day in her life. Liz is the proud owner of Simply Liz Love and the founder of Tiny Human Skincare. As a licensed esthetician she is humbled by the opportunities to share her truths through writing, community service, and public speaking. All while making people feel beautiful inside and out with makeup and skincare experience

Liz is defining the new normal of what it means to be an army wife, mother, business owner, and soldier. She is heavily involved with charities, organizations, and boards that support girls, women, veterans, and entrepreneurs. Her husband, Michael, is an Engineer Army officer who proudly serves and shares the same passion for helping others. Her son Michael III is an adventurous toddler. Both of them are her biggest cheerleaders and supporters.



Nakiea was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and currently resides in Jonesboro, Georgia. Nakiea believes in learning something new every day. She received both her Master of Arts in Liberal Studies and Master of Public Administration from Clayton State University. Nakiea has worked in nonprofit, education, and government for 7+ years.

She is the founder and CEO of Butterfly 21 Inc., a business consulting company. Nakiea knows that if you are an entrepreneur, overcoming challenges, having access to resources, and balancing self-care with other life duties, are extremely important. She is also an author and a brand ambassador for Passion Planner. and digital creator selling planners and journals on Amazon. Nakiea believes in giving back to the community, as a result, she is a Board Member for the nonprofit Lawyers with Melanin Inc. Nakiea enjoys traveling and has been to places like Brazil, France, Colombia, and Trinidad and Tobago.


Carol J. Geffner, Ph.D. is a global executive coach, management consultant, and leadership scholar. She is President of CB Vision Consultants, LLC, a national management consulting and executive coaching firm, headquartered in Denver, CO. Until recently, she was the Professor of the Practice of Governance, Management, and Policy at the University of Southern California’s Sol Price School of Public Policy and Director of the Executive Master of Leadership Program.

Carol is also an affiliate of the Kets De Vries’ Institute, a global executive coaching firm based out of London. Dr. Geffner works with CEOs and their executive teams on strategy, executive development, and large-scale culture change. Her clients include ABC, United Healthcare, USC, Merck, Deutsche Bank, Kaiser, and numerous others in law enforcement, healthcare, environmental health and safety, and education.

Her new book, Building A New Leadership Ladder: Transforming Male-Dominated Organizations to Support Women on the Rise, was recently published by MIT Press. It is the first book to address the need for organization-wide change to support the success of women leaders.

Dr. Geffner earned a Ph.D. from Claremont Graduate University, a Master of Public Administration from the University of Southern California, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto.