Meet Krischanna Roberson | Entrepreneur and Racial & Cultural Inclusion and Equity Consultant

We had the good fortune of connecting with Krischanna Roberson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Krischanna, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking

I believe that I cannot fit in and stand out simultaneously, so because of that belief, I have to be all about the risks. There is a safe comfort in staying in your lane, not rustling feathers, and not trying to be anything different than what you believe the world told you to be. Coming away from those thoughts and actions is completely centered on discomfort, which is what risk is all about.

The law of attraction says that you are attracted to the things you create in your mind; motivation is the action it takes to attain what you are attracted to. The action can only be fueled by the beliefs of your motives/your “why,” which is bonded to the things we are attracted to create.

Creation is all about risk. I have and continue to live my life fueled by my attraction to create, which requires me to be risky. I took significant risks in relocating from the east coast to the west and then back again. I got many stories on the risks I took to love others, parenting decisions, and jobs I have taken. I figured out what I wanted to be when I grew up when I actually grew up! A significant career risk I took was leaving a mid-six-figure job with a Fortune 500 organization to take on a job that was only $25,000 a year, so I could pursue a master’s degree in education. After over 15 years in the business industry.

I took a significant risk in fully launching my business Collabovate Consulting, which I have been part-time hustling since 2011, and launched during a global pandemic. I take huge risks when I decline to take on clients I don’t believe are ready to do the work I firmly believe in, which is at the core of my company’s belief. To be a risk taker means the choice of living your life to bring your dreams to fruition; to be a risk taker means that failing forward is required and that the journey of those risks will be the best education you receive during your lifetime.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?

Collabovate, which means working and learning collaboratively to elevate yourself and others, is a consulting firm that works globally across small and large industries to develop and create inclusive environments and healthy organizational cultures focusing on racial and cultural equity understanding. We partner everywhere and work both virtual and in-person using various tools, approaches, and strategies, including but not limited to executive one-on-one and all-level team coaching, building an inclusive and healthy culture that is psychologically safe. We guide the data gathering cycle and create and facilitate aligned professional development. Collabovate provides equity assessments and analysis and works with leaders to strategically align, plan, develop and implement realistic plans with metrics and sustainability. We partner everywhere based out of Alpharetta, GA, and Charlotte, NC.

What sets Collabovate apart from other DEI firms is the brain power of Krischanna Roberson. Yes, me! I have the unique ability to understand the complexities of business management paired with equity, inclusion, and racial and cultural diversity. This “BizDEIese” language I speak fluently allows me to do strategic and intentional work. I spent over a decade working for Fortune 500 companies in business roles focused on strategy, effectiveness, and efficiency. I then decided to pursue a Masters’s in Education focusing on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The dance I can do between business and equity got nothing on the cha-cha slide.

I am so proud of founding Collabovate. The work around educating on complex concepts like race, culture gender orientation is so personal, and because the world is in such disarray, I find it challenging and rewarding. I am proud of the organizations that recognize the equity and inclusion problem and want to begin investigating with Collabovate working beside them. Systems are made of people, and the only way to change a system is to start by changing the mindsets of the people making the system run. This work is hard; it’s personal, but there’s such pride in what I do because I believe this is what I was put in this world to do. I am excited by the people ready to collaborate and elevate themselves and others so we can be the change we want to see in the world.

I attribute today’s success to my risk-taking and not being afraid to fail forward. I am often reminded about what could have been. What could have been if I had stayed in New York? What could have been if I had remained in Virginia, Georgia, or Washington state? What would be of me today had I not been willing to make those moves and hard decisions? What could have been had I listened to the many people who thought I was crazy for moving or leaving a mid-6 figure job for 25K. I’m successful because I’m not afraid to ask for help, I’m not scared to cry, I’m not afraid to say I can’t, or I failed at something. I’m successful because I’m open to really being a learner on this journey.

Standing in my integrity and for what I believe in has allowed me to be successful, not wavering because someone else thinks I should be doing something else. Staying focused on Collabovates’ vision to create inclusive workplaces that engage employees through individual authenticity and vulnerability where racial and cultural equity and inclusion provide the essential skeleton for organizations to survive and thrive. Is what keeps me grounded and allows me to remain successful

The journey was really hard. I’m talking about everything I have learned and done through the moment leading to today. From graduating high school with a 1.9 GPA, not seeing myself in a college or around it, then earning a bachelor’s and master’s and attempting a doctorate (this time with GPAs well over 3.0) while parenting, working, and trying to discover who I am and what I want to do. The journey of trials and tribulations allowed me to evolve into the person I am today. An entrepreneur that I never envisioned myself to be, and I feel confident in saying there is absolutely nothing I would change. Not one of the failures, tribulations, or challenges because it was through these challenges I learned the most, and all those cleansing tears were genuinely worth it.

A lesson that I learned along the way is understanding the importance of your values and aligning your character and your integrity to them. When you don’t, you lose sight of your values, you lose sight of your dreams, you lose sight of your goals, and you end up following someone else’s. I learned that a collective tribe around you is vital; you don’t have to do it alone; you have to recognize there is a lot you don’t know that you don’t know you don’t know and be willing and open to learning. Do not be afraid to fail because everything is not going to go the way that you want. To be candid, things aren’t going how I want them to at this very moment, but I’m still pushing through. If I had known these lessons earlier, I would be further along today.

The most important thing I want everyone to know about Collabovate Consulting is that we value collaboration, integrity, and kindness. We’re about taking a personal first approach; the best part of the box is the outside of it, and that’s where we like to live. Patience, grace, and humility are at our center, first giving it to ourselves and then to others. We are about embracing the poetic chaos of change and learning. We want to partner with everyone who realizes that to create inclusive environments; we must first understand how people think about the concepts of race, culture, equity, and diversity individually because that’s who we are first, then how we are connected to organizations. My journey made me want to help others who, like me, felt isolated or othered in an organization. Collabovate was created because, as a Black woman, I understand precisely what it is like to move and shift yourself to fit in someone else’s box instead of being able to be the version of yourself that’s accepted and seen in the way you want it to be. Collabovate consulting sees the beauty and intricacies of everyone; now we just gotta get er’body else on board.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

I am blessed to have best friends that are foodies just like myself! It would be a full-on taste of Atlanta because there are so many excellent restaurants and experiences within a 60-mile radius of Atlanta. From the airport, we would have to hit Spondivits as a first-time experience. It will be brunch every day from Forks and Flavors, Atlanta Breakfast Club, The Breakfast Boys, Ms. Icey’s Kitchen, and The Real Milk and Honey, just to name a few that I love. For an experience with food and fun, we would hit Two Urban Licks and a trip to Illuminarium.

A visit to the New Black Wall Street Market, Piedmont Park, and the National Center for Civil and Human Rights, the High museum, is a must. For an authentic Latin experience, we would have to hit Mojitos; the food, drinks, and live band are everything. For some fun on Friday and Saturday nights, there is Monticello; their Friday night local comedy is excellent. There is also Robs Caribbean café and City Winery. Because there is always something unique and fun happening in and around Atlanta, I would also check Eventbrite in the event a music concert or cultural festival is happening.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My tribe is FIRE! I want to shout out to the members of my tribe who consistently lift me up and call me in and out. They provide me with the things I need that I don’t even realize I need. This great tribe of leaders, who I consistently lean and cry on, inspire me to be as unapologetic as they are, to stand in my unwavering character and integrity as we hold ourselves and each other in loving accountability. A special shout-out has to go to my two fantastic adult children because of their experiences, which put me on the path to doing what I am doing today; I thank them for showing me what I want to be when I grow up. And finally, my partner, who, without his push, I would not be a full-time entrepreneur, thank you for throwing me out of the frying pan and into the fire!

Website: https://www.collabovateconsulting.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/collabovate/

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/krischannaroberson

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CollabovateConsulting

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOXAC8qP0G_5kw3k1uIO8FA

Image Credits
FortePixVids/GreATLMarket took the professional headshots