Member Spotlight: Kristin Keen
By Kate Jostworth
Can you provide a brief background on yourself for those who do not know you?
I grew up mostly on a Quaker homestead (yes, you read that correctly!) just outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Bryn Gweled (the name of the homestead) was a great place with a community pool, community garden, and common facilities that all members of the homestead took care of collectively. I was fortunate to spend my formative years in the house my grandfather built with his own hands, and taking walks with my grandmother to visit with neighbors.
Painfully shy growing up, I was an overachiever throughout grade school, active in theatre and music- violin and vocal. With a heavy focus on STEM as a teen, my dream was to become a pediatric neurosurgeon. In the summer of 1997, I was accepted into the Minority Access to Research Careers (MARC) program through the Temple University School of Medicine in Philadelphia. As part of it, I spent a summer working at the Fels Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Biology.
I received my undergraduate degree at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., where I got in the hard way (pre-med!) and switched to a liberal arts focus my sophomore year after quickly discovering that juggling two jobs was not conducive to both sleep and further academic achievement (ha!). By my senior year, I was working full-time during the day, doing business development at a 110-year-old construction firm in downtown D.C. and managing GovDocs at the library at night.
I graduated ahead of my peers professionally but felt some early 20s remorse for my atypical college experience. The experience did pay off with the connections and experiences that enabled me to get ahead in my career. A background in theatre gave me the confidence to “perform” in my jobs and eventually realize that the “extroverted introvert” mentality was consistent personally and professionally. I obtained an MBA in International Business and Strategy from Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business exactly 10 years after receiving my BA in English Writing with a concentration in Rhetoric, Genre, and Form.
I have enjoyed a robust career within the professional services industry for over two decades. With humble roots in construction, my path wound itself through a law firm, a branding agency (where my current boss was my first client!), and a Big 4 accounting firm during my 18 years in D.C. Moving to Charlotte in 2018, I joined the executive team at DELTA |v|, a forensic engineering firm that does motor vehicle accident reconstruction. Since May 2023, I have also served as acting president of REDLINE Forensic Studios–currently the branded visual media service line at DELTA |v|.
Outside of work, I am on the BOD at Project One Scholarship Foundation, and a Founding Member of the Novant Health Novateurs (a young professionals networking/philanthropy arm).
I feel blessed that my mom quit her job to move from South Jersey to help me raise my ‘threenager’, Sage, and our loving American Foxhound, Bonanza. Without her, there is no way I would have been able to stay on the aggressive course and take advantage of opportunities over the past three years. Accolades-wise, I was one of the Charlotte Business Journal 40 Under 40 Class of 2021, Women We Admire’s Top 50 Women Leaders in NC (2022) and was the overall female winner of the 2022 RP Strength National Transformation Challenge.
What makes our purpose or mission meaningful to you?
I joined WIF barely a year after moving to Charlotte because it was important for me to find a way to get to know my new hometown. I knew what it was like growing up in need and working diligently to get to the point where I could contribute meaningfully to both my family and those around me. As a woman with a daughter, I feel it is also important to show how to have a life of abundance on all levels–relationships, careers, etc. WIF’s mission to be a community of philanthropic women impacting the world resonates with me on multiple levels, as do the WIF values.
What energizes/ motivates you? It can be anything from a quotation, a song, a person, a workout routine, etc.
Being outside is core. My happy place would be a cabin, deep in the woods, with access to mountain hiking nearby.
What are you the most excited about for the upcoming year?
The 20th Anniversary of WIF, my first year as a Board member, and all the excitement and potential in store.
Advice to make the most out of your Women’s Impact Fund membership?
Join a committee. It’s absolutely the best way to get involved and get to know fellow members.
What is your favorite restaurant or activity in Charlotte?
My favorite restaurant is Dot Dot Dot. It is an intimate, unassuming restaurant lounge tucked next to Blackhawk Hardware in the rear of Park Road Shopping Center. Very easy to miss or drive by, but once you enter, you’re immediately transported into another world. The speakeasy styling and vibe, combined with the talented staff and the vast array of bourbon, whiskey, and other spirits is unmatched by anywhere I have been within or outside of Charlotte.
