Episode 74: Empowering Teams and Professionals in the Digital Age with Lorraine K. Lee 

Guest Bio

I’m passionate about helping managers and mid-career professionals supercharge their professional presence — i.e. *how* and *where* others see you — to propel them into senior leadership. Professional presence is now a two-part equation: how and where others see you.

The “how” encompasses what one would typically think of when they think of presence (confident, strong communicator, reliable, etc.). However, just as the world of work has changed, so has the definition of what constitutes presence.

The “where” is another critical element. Because it doesn’t matter how positively you’re viewed — if you’re not seen in the right places (on platforms like LinkedIn or in important team meetings), the “how” part of your presence can only take you so far.

I’m an introvert and a manager who spent the first 10 years of my career leading editorial teams at tech companies like LinkedIn and Prezi. I’m now the founder of RISE Learning Solutions, where I speak and train, consult, and teach through platforms like LinkedIn Learning and Stanford Continuing Studies.

🎙️ Speaker @ Fortune 500 companies. In 2023, 100% of surveyed attendees say they learned something new; 98% of attendees said they found the session valuable; and I have a speaker rating of 4.9/5. Recent clients include: Amazon, Zoom, Ericsson, and McKinsey and Company.

👩🏻‍💻 Consultant on a variety of topics, ranging from creating powerful Prezi presentations and advising C-Suite leaders and executives on how to create a strong LinkedIn presence. Recent clients include: UC Irvine, Pledge.

👩🏻‍🏫 Course Instructor @ LinkedIn Learning and Stanford Continuing Studies. I also create custom courses for organizations. I’ve empowered more than 150,000+ learners. Watch: lorraineklee.com/linkedinlearning

✏️ Content Creator: I publish on LinkedIn M-F, and share bite-sized career and leadership tips and best practices through my weekly newsletter, Career Bites (lorraineklee.com/subscribe).

🏆 Named a LinkedIn Top Voice
🏆Top virtual keynote speaker by ReadWrite (2020)
🏆 Finalist for “Content Marketer of the Year” – Women in Content Marketing Awards (2021)
🏆Featured in Inc, Entrepreneur, ReadWrite, and more

🎓 BSJ from Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism

📧 DM me or email me at contact@lorraineklee.com if you’d like to collaborate! (See what it’s like to work with me in my recommendations below)

🥊 Outside of work, I can be found doing muay thai, taking singing lessons, and eating my way through San Francisco.

Recap & Takeaways

Key Takeaways

• • [00:00 – 02:15] Episode overview: Lorraine K. Lee on maximizing LinkedIn for professional success, globally recognized keynote speaker and Stanford Continuing Studies instructor with LinkedIn Learning
  • [02:03 – 03:57] Dane introduces Lorraine, Founder of RISE Learning Solutions, and she speaks about her 10 years leading editorial teams at tech companies, getting into side hustles, and becoming a “solopreneur”
  • [03:57 – 05:19] When people would say, “Lorraine, do you ever think about wanting to become an entrepreneur or doing your own thing?”
  • [05:20 – 06:00] Fear of entrepreneurship, changing times and acceptance
  • [06:03 – 08:36] LinkedIn as a vast resource for professionals, how did the platform catch Lorraine’s eye? News, influencers, personal branding, and professional-focus. Notes on working at SlideShare, owned by LinkedIn.
  • [08:31 – 09:17] LinkedIn – an untapped resource from active user numbers, a billion members with 1% monthly active users posting
  • [09:23 – 10:56] Creating visibility on LinkedIn: your profile is your online landing page, so fill it out and connect with your colleagues. Add photos. Optimize for the algorithm.
  • [11:10 – 12:45] How you interact with LinkedIn determines your community and conversational algorithm. Start by commenting, they’re like mini-posts.
  • [12:45 – 14:29] LinkedIn is a place for discussion, but it seems less chaotic than other social media sites since it is work-focused, and people may be hesitant to post the same types of content
  • [14:30 – 15:54] LinkedIn is becoming more of a place to post about your personal life outside of work
  • [15:55 – 16:38] Does sharing your life become easier on LinkedIn by different professions? Differences between posting and profile styles
  • [16:40 – 18:40] Developing your network, reaching out to strangers about professional interests, and why you should “send a note”
  • [18:51 – 19:57] Gathering perspective, understanding challenges in 2024
  • [19:58 – 20:28] “Get 50 cups of coffee,” reaching out to people for coffee meetings
  • [20:38 – 21:37] A shortage of good people for the right roles, people who are more active on LinkedIn
  • [21:34 – 23:47] “Your manager really dictates your experience” — Thoughts on focusing on leadership and communication preferences, especially around feedback
  • [23:49 – 26:05] Passive-to-Active Meeting Framework, how Lorraine helps teams have impactful and productive meetings
  • [26:09 – 29:20] Taking pauses, preventing endless follow-ups, and a focus on asynchronous communication
  • [29:21 – 30:50] No rule on the number of meetings, generally once per week, and using tools like Clockwise to help
  • [30:50 – 31:50] No shows to meetings, being respectful of people’s time
  • [31:54 – 33:26] Video as a method of asynchronous meeting, video can be a learned skill
  • [33:26 – 35:51] Types of training and quick tips for video: eye contact, curating a background, gesticulating, hand gestures, and Lorraine’s class on establishing a virtual and video presence.
  • [35:53 – 37:11] A golden rule on following key points and talking vs reading from a script — memorizing isn’t always the best option, but practice never hurts
  • [37:12 – 38:06] Dane on needing practice time for events, recording and listening to yourself
  • [38:07 – 39:44] Productivity in remote environments, focus on outcomes and performance. Micromanagement doesn’t make anyone feel good and doesn’t promote trust.
  • [39:47 – 41:58] Flexibility is the next frontier of work, it takes a lot of trust but is the future of teams
  • [42:01 – 43:30] Innovative ways to onboard team members with today’s technologies — A welcoming document, onboarding document specific to your team, not just HR onboarding to the company, outline their functional partners
  • [43:37 – 44:35] Creating a buddy program for new hires, especially
  • [44:36 – 45:45] Dane talks about Kahoot and how he has used it in onboarding efforts. Lorraine talks about Two Ideas remote escape rooms
  • [45:52 – 48:12] What Lorraine hopes teams start to enjoy doing more in the next few years: Flexibility and support from companies for employees building their brands
  • [48:15 – 49:20] Connect with Lorraine onlin