TOP 100 MAGAZINE

Dana Gilland

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In the bustling heart of New York City, where innovation and social impact converge, Dana Gilland stands as a true leader and changemaker. Dana’s narrative is not only captivating, but profoundly inspiring. Dana has served in a myriad of impactful leadership roles, currently as co-founder, president, and board chair of Nest Egg Foundation, with a mission to help families facing the financial hardships of fertility challenges. 

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Dana’s entrepreneur and pioneer skills are anchored by her successful roles in corporate leadership, law, philanthropy, and societal stewardship. Using her expertise and extensive knowledge base, she has collaborated to enable innovation and business growth for many organizations. Dana is known for engaging opportunities with sound legal strategy, launching new initiatives, innovating across multiple business sectors, connecting people, and building community to enable meaningful progress.

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In her executive career, Dana’s legal expertise encompasses global intellectual property, innovation, marketing, commercial transactions, governance, and business transformations, among other areas. She is acclaimed for driving global commercial success and leading or contributing to numerous high-stakes deals, including M&A and corporate transactions collectively valued at over $6 billion. Her strategic insights enabled companies to achieve competitive advantages, market cap growth, market leader positioning, revenue increments, and address unmet consumer needs. Notably, Dana led the global intellectual property integration of a pivotal $5 billion acquisition, resulting in the company's elevation to global market leader with a significant increase in market share. 

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Dana’s passion for entrepreneurship and championing social causes is reflected in her advocacy for executive women. Dana is an investor in several women-owned businesses, such as Simplifyber, Lilith NYC, The W Fund, and Athena Alliance. She also co-founded an early-stage stealth startup company in the consumer goods/home healthcare space, with a goal to launch next year. 

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For several years, Dana has been a catalyst to help women leaders thrive and accelerate their corporate board journeys as part of a movement to accelerate board diversity. She empowers executive women to become thought leaders and change the landscape of corporate leadership. As a member of Chief, a private organization of women executives, Dana founded and leads the Board Services Community. She co-chairs 50/50 Women on Boards NYC Leadership Committee, is a founding member of The Fourth Effect, and a member of the inaugural Board Initiative Steering Committee for Women’s General Counsel Network.

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Dana’s passion to positively impact her community extends to the advancement of health and wellbeing. To help those seeking a higher quality of life, Dana became a Chopra certified Global Primordial Sound Meditation instructor, with a Chopra certification in Ayurvedic Health in progress. Dana is a founding member of HLWF Alliance, an executive thought-leadership community uniting healthtech, healthcare, life-sciences, wellness, and fitness. She collaborates to drive solutions by breaking down silos and taking a holistic view of wellness.

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Both in 2023 and 2024, Dana received the White House President’s Volunteer Service Award, bestowed by President Biden to those positively impacting our nation’s communities. In 2023, Dana received the Women of Innovation, Community Innovation and Leadership Award, from the Connecticut Technology Council, celebrating Connecticut’s leaders in STEM and their contributions to innovation, career advancement, economic growth, and the state's overall trajectory.

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For those seeking strategic business growth, leveraging expertise across business sectors, or driving social impact, Dana is the professional to engage. Dana welcomes speaking opportunities and consultations to enable growth of future leaders and organizations.

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We spoke with Dana to learn more about her experience and delve into the narrative behind her trailblazing career.

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Dana, can you share more about Nest Egg Foundation and its mission?

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Nest Egg Foundation is dedicated to providing financial grants to families facing both infertility and financial constraints. Our mission is to offer hope to people striving to start families, believing that everyone deserves the chance to experience the joys of parenthood, regardless of financial challenges.

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Your professional journey spans diverse sectors, from law to corporate leadership to social impact. How have these experiences shaped your approach to leading Nest Egg Foundation?

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My diverse background provides a broad perspective on addressing complex issues. Drawing from my legal expertise, philanthropy, and global corporate leadership roles, I bring a strategic and compassionate approach to guiding Nest Egg and other organizations. It's about leveraging my skills to catalyze growth and meaningful outcomes in the business landscape and empower those in need. Key elements to this are vision, collaboration, and innovation, which are critical to value creation.

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You've been a staunch advocate for gender diversity on corporate boards. How do you see this advocacy intersecting with your work at Nest Egg Foundation?

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Gender diversity is not just a corporate imperative; it's a societal imperative. At Nest Egg, we recognize the global importance of access to healthcare for all. Fertility challenges affect people across the gender spectrum, so we help pave the way for inclusivity and financial support for those navigating fertility hurdles. 

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What drives your passion for social impact and community empowerment?

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My passion stems from a deep-seated belief in the inherent value and unique potential of every individual. As a changemaker, I feel compelled to help close the gender wealth gap by investing in women-owned businesses, advocating for holistic health and wellbeing, and championing diversity and inclusion to strengthen organizations at all levels. My goal is to inspire executives to thrive and live their purpose, creating a ripple effect of positive change that will extend across generations, industries, and communities worldwide.

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Dana Gilland
President, Co-Founder, and Board Chair
Nest Egg Foundation, Inc.
Website: https://www.nesteggfoundation.org
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danagilland/