Fireside at FemSTEM: Carol Shen

Fireside at FemSTEM:
In Conversation with Carol Shen

Join H2i on February 4, 2026 as we sit down with special guest Carol Shen!

FemSTEM 2026 continues with an inspiring lineup of distinguished leaders in health innovation!

Fireside at FemSTEM is an interactive conversation series held each winter as part of H2i’s broader FemSTEM programming. During each Fireside, we sit down and chat with one incredible speaker. Speakers are distinguished women within the health entrepreneurship space and are joined by members of the H2i and UTE community as moderators.

Meet the Speaker

Carol Shen, founder of Start Culture Shift, helps leaders build people-centered, high-performing cultures. She advises founders/CEOs, leadership teams and boards on how to embed culture into strategy, paving the way for improved work environments and scalable growth.

Carol has spent over two decades in advisory and leadership roles including 7 years as ILPA Institute curriculum advisor and faculty, fractional Chief Learning Officer at a philanthropy advisory firm, Director of Learning & Development at CEB, now Gartner, and non-profit board and executive director roles. Both at CEB, and Mercer HR Consulting, where her career started, Carol developed her expertise in organizational effectiveness and leadership best practices.

With extensive instructional design and teaching expertise, Carol also facilitates workshop experiences and leadership offsites that have a life-long impact on improving work (and personal) relationships, teamwork and accelerating productivity. In her workshops, she brings a cross-functional lens complemented by her roles as a mother of two kids, spouse, business owner, coach, friend and mental health advocate.

Carol has a BA in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from UC Berkeley and MBA from University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith Business School. She lives in Northern Virginia with her two children, her husband of 20 years, and her two dogs, Roxy and Skye. She is originally from California, and has also lived in Indiana, Hawaii, Thailand and Shanghai. She is an avid reader, and her top recommendations for this year are Clarity and Connection by Yung Pueblo, Likable Badass by Alison Fragale and Matriarch by Tina Knowles. 

FemSTEM 2026 Programming

• FemSTEM Kickoff: Tuesday January 13th | 3:30-5 PM ET (Virtual)
• FemSTEM Pitch Competition Applications Open: Friday January 16th
• Fireside at FemSTEM: Wednesday February 4th | 4-5 PM ET (Virtual)
• Fireside at FemSTEM: Wednesday February 18th | 4-5 PM ET (Virtual)
• Fireside at FemSTEM: Tuesday March 3rd | 4-5 PM ET (In-Person)
• 2026 FemSTEM Pitch Competition: April 22nd (In-Person)