Editor’s Note:
This episode was recorded in January 2025. Since then, we’ve witnessed an alarming rise in legislative and rhetorical attacks targeting the transgender community. As a company, we want to be clear: we stand in unwavering solidarity with trans people. We recognize their right to exist, to lead, to thrive, and to be celebrated for who they are. Our platform is and always will be a place for amplifying and voices that champion equity, dignity, and justice.
We are proud to share this conversation with Ashley Brundage, whose leadership continues to empower meaningful change.
Ashley Brundage knows a thing or two about power. Not the kind you wield over others, but the kind you cultivate from within—and share. From starting as a part-time bank teller to becoming a VP of Diversity & Inclusion, to launching her own leadership company, Empowering Differences, Ashley has built a career—and a movement—centered around turning authenticity into impact.
In her conversation with host Elin Barton on the Riveo Impact Lab podcast, Ashley dives deep into what it means to lead from a place of empowerment. But for Ashley, empowerment is far more than an inspirational idea. It’s a real, actionable process—rooted in lived experience and refined through strategy and data.
From Surviving to Leading
Ashley’s journey is one of profound transformation. During the 2008 economic recession, she lost both her job and her home—circumstances that pushed her into a period of instability. Around the same time, Ashley was also navigating the deeply personal process of coming out as a transgender woman. “I reached a breaking point where I could not really survive anymore, and live a lie about who I am, so then I made the decision to start gender transition,” explained Ashley.
Rather than retreat, she turned her situation into an opportunity to observe and understand the mechanics of power. She studied how people accessed influence, and began to build a system for reclaiming her own agency. “I thought if I could go out and find employment and be my true authentic self, that it would send a ripple signal of inclusivity, and so that’s what I did.” she reminisced.
“I thought if I could go out and find employment and be my true authentic self, that it would send a ripple signal of inclusivity.”
Her first major step came when she landed a part-time job as a bank teller. Through consistent performance, clear communication, and strategic networking, she rapidly climbed the ranks—eventually becoming the bank’s Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion. It was in that role that she began formalizing her empowerment framework, recognizing that the keys to her success could help others rise, too.
Building Empowering Differences
That realization was the catalyst that led to Ashley publishing a bestselling, award-winning book and eventually creating her company, Empowering Differences. The four-step model—Know Yourself, Know Others, Develop Strategy, and Empowering Action—grew from her lived experience and professional success.
Ashley offers two self-assessments on her website to help people begin their own empowerment journey. The Differences Assessment focuses on the 10 Most Common Differences in her model and asks individuals to reflect on how they identify with each. She explained, “We all have ten differences. This is what makes diversity so powerful in the world. We all have these differences, but it’s just a matter of whether or not we feel that we’re being empowered or not for each of them, and whether or not we’re empowering other people.”
“We all have ten differences. This is what makes diversity so powerful in the world. ”
What sets Ashley apart is her commitment to tracking the outcomes of her work. She’s not satisfied with good intentions; she wants proof of real change.
Under Ashley’s leadership, Empowering Differences has worked with organizations across the country to improve leadership equity, expand representation, and design environments where inclusion is more than a buzzword. Her DEI initiatives have helped drive promotions, boost employee engagement, and create quantifiable results that ripple throughout businesses and communities.
A Leap into Public Service
Ashley’s next chapter led her into the political arena. In 2022, she became the first transgender person to win any political election in Florida when she won the Democratic primary for Florida House of Representatives District 65 with 81.1% of the vote. It was a historic and emotional victory—not just for Ashley, but for trans visibility and leadership across the nation.
“I was actually not going to run.” Ashley reflected, “I was going to move to New York, because I was kind of over Florida at that point, and I wanted to leave. I got recruited by the Democratic pro-choice women’s organization for the state of Florida. They called me and were like, “We really need you.” And I showed up.”
She went on to run in the 2024 general election for the Florida State House of Representatives. Though she ultimately lost the race, she earned an impressive 40,198 votes against an incumbent who received 52,824. For a first-time candidate—and a transgender woman challenging a well-established opponent—her campaign was nothing short of groundbreaking.
Ashley’s run for office was grounded in the same principles she built her career on: transparency, measurable action, and community empowerment. Her candidacy sent a powerful message to underrepresented individuals everywhere: your voice matters, and your leadership is needed.
Beyond Allyship
Through her work and public speaking, Ashley emphasizes the difference between active and passive allyship. To truly empower others, it’s not enough to support them from the sidelines. Real impact happens when you advocate for people in the rooms they can’t yet enter—when you invest in their growth and celebrate their wins.
Using an example of allies to the LGBTQIA+ community, Ashley explained, “An ally has an opportunity to stand up and provide an opportunity to showcase why that person exists, why they’re there and why you should listen to them. And that could be so powerful.”
“An ally has an opportunity to stand up and provide an opportunity to showcase why that person exists, why they’re there and why you should listen to them.”
Ashley’s work encourages leaders to reflect on their own empowerment stories and share them openly. She reminds us that leadership is not about perfection—it’s about resilience, authenticity, and action.
The Power of Being Seen
Visibility has always been a central theme in Ashley’s life. Early in her transition, she looked around and saw very few people like her in executive roles. That absence became fuel for her mission. She vowed that if she could survive and succeed, she would become the representation she once needed.
“I use the word differences, because no one will argue that we’re all different, right?” she explained. “There are 8.5 billion different people on the planet, right? No two people are exactly alike. Even identical twins are different in their way of thinking and their way of building relationships. That’s diversity. But people don’t always realize ‘diversity’ includes everyone.”
“There are 8.5 billion different people on the planet, right? No two people are exactly alike…That’s diversity. But people don’t always realize ‘diversity’ includes everyone.”
Her philosophy of inclusion is built on the idea that every person’s unique lived experience has value—and that empowerment begins when we stop excluding people from the conversation. In the workplace, in public life, and in the stories we choose to tell, Ashley shows how visibility can be a catalyst for both individual and collective change.
Now, she lives out that commitment every day. Whether she’s delivering a keynote, training a leadership team, mentoring emerging leaders, or advocating for policy reform, Ashley brings visibility with purpose. Her story is not just one of personal transformation—but one of opening doors and building pathways so that others can walk alongside her.
Channeling Her Impact Through the Page
Ashley’s impact isn’t limited to the stage or the boardroom. Her book, Empowering Differences: Leveraging Your Differences to Impact Change, offers readers a blueprint for using what makes them different as a strategic advantage. More than a memoir, the book is part leadership manual, part empowerment toolkit—blending personal narrative with practical steps.
She also developed an accompanying course that helps readers apply the framework in real time, with reflection prompts and action plans designed to spark growth.
Closing the Empowerment Loop
Ashley’s philosophy is clear: empowerment is not a one-time event. It’s an ongoing cycle of action, reflection, and growth. Whether you’re a CEO, a frontline employee, or someone navigating your own personal transformation, you have the capacity to influence change. The question is: how will you use that power?
Want to learn more about Ashley Brundage and her four-step empowerment model? Visit Ashley’s website and explore her leadership training and resources.
And don’t forget to tune into the full Riveo Impact Lab podcast episode for more inspiration from Ashley’s story.
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