Continuing our celebration of entrepreneurs for National Entrepreneurship Week, we’re proud to highlight the recent collaboration of two long-time members of the Dell Women’s Entrepreneur Network (DWEN) who used their multicultural experience to start an intercultural consultancy.
Lili Hall of KNOCK, Inc. and Elisabete Miranda of CQ Fluency met in 2010 as EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women awardees. At the award event on the Strategic Growth Forum, they were introduced to JJ Davis from Dell, who invited them to join DWEN. Their first event was in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 2011.
On the very first day, during a walk on the beach, they collaborated on a business idea that led to KNOCK’s rebranding of CQ fluency (formerly Translation Plus). Their friendship grew through the years, so much so that they call each other sisters. Not only do they share a strong relationship but also their respective teams have a great professional bond.
They have joined forces to create Drumm: an intercultural consultancy rooted in the human experience, and poised to promote greater universal understanding among people.
Their vision for Drumm evolved out of the realization that businesses need to establish deeper connections with their consumers. It was destined to happen: Their combined values and capabilities allowed them to create something they couldn’t have imagined on their own.
“As a daughter of mixed-race parents — born in Chicago, then raised in Brazil before returning back to the U.S., I used to check ‘other’ when defining myself. It was a profound awakening that we are more than one attribute; we’re a collection of distinctions that make us all unique,” says Hall. “Drumm aims to bring us together in acknowledging and celebrating those differences.”
Miranda is a Brazilian native who immigrated to the United States twenty years ago. With experience in multicultural services and dedication to inclusion and diffusing adversity, the creation of an intercultural agency aligned perfectly with her professional background.
The concept of “intercultural” stems from the limitless possibilities that humanity has to offer, promoting meaningful interaction that breaks down barriers and embraces all humankind. In this construct, individuality is honored within a multitude of groups, allowing for more intimate engagement.
“Drumm evolves the conversation, going beyond language to get to a holistic understanding of cultural nuances,” offers Miranda. “That opens up our world to include niche groups who identify in a number of ways — from ethnicity and race to sexuality and disability. The possibilities are endless.”
Drumm synthesizes authentic insights — generating original content as well as complementing existing initiatives to challenge how companies reach people and cultures. Utilizing primary and secondary research, Drumm changes the conversation at an internal level, assembling teams based on project needs and goals, and activating human truths that make “human sense.”
