The Orchard’s Product Manager of Podcasting, Olivia Wherry doubles as the host of her own podcast titled, Boss Ladies. In conversation with influential female leaders, each episode highlights that subject’s path to success and the obstacles and knowledge they’ve acquired along the way.
Previous features include Kim Shariff (Chief Administrative Officer, American Ballet Theatre), Kelsea Bauman (Actor, Producer & Director), Christina Stembel (Founder & CEO of Farmgirl Flowers), Abby Stein (American Transgender Author, Activist, Blogger, Model, Former Rabbi, and Speaker) and many more. Every episode is titled after the speaker’s advice or key takeaway. Future Boss Ladies can learn how to “Advocate For Yourself” and why you need to “Be Willing To Fail” in order to succeed.
This week, Olivia Wherry sits down with her own ‘Boss Lady,’ Colleen Theis, Chief Operating Officer of The Orchard. In her interview with Olivia, Colleen dives into her early work experience and how she found her way to The Orchard having cemented herself as a global leader in the music industry. The purpose of the podcast is to highlight the stories of female leadership across industries for the next generation. The two discuss Colleen’s experience as a “boss lady” in a male-dominated industry, imposter syndrome, and how to be an ally to female colleagues in the workplace.
Colleen’s music business career began as a coordinator in the international department at Elektra when she was 28 years old. The common thread throughout her career, Colleen mentions, is her passion for working music internationally.
“I followed my passions wherever they took me.”
Colleen Theis
After working for international teams in the States for a couple of years, Colleen jumped across the pond and worked in London for 11 years at Rykodisc. While in the UK, Colleen met The Orchard’s current CEO Brad Navin, who pitched The Orchard for Rykodisc’s digital distribution solution. The funny thing is, Rykodisc didn’t see the potential that was digital distribution – this was still the CD age, after all. In 2011, Colleen joined The Orchard at their UK office and worked her way up from there. Nine years later, she continues to lead one of the largest global music distributors for independent artists and labels.
Listen to the full podcast on Apple Music or Spotify!
