Interview of Annie Lu, CEO and Co-founder of H2Ok Innovations

Episode Summary:

In this episode of the InPowered Women podcast, host Sharon Lee interviews Annie Lu, CEO of H2Ok Innovations, a company revolutionizing industrial liquid management. Annie shares her journey growing up in a manufacturing family and co-founding H2Ok Innovations with her brother, driven by a passion for improving the industry. They discuss the company's focus on data-driven decision-making, utilizing IoT technology for real-time insights and efficiency gains. Annie emphasizes the importance of being prepared and building a solid infrastructure to support growth, highlighting the significance of working on the company, not just in it. She also addresses the unique challenges she faces as a female leader in male-dominated industries and underscores the value of authenticity and diversity in entrepreneurship. Annie delves into the power of mentorship and her commitment to supporting other women founders, advocating for collaborative partnerships to drive sustainability. Additionally, she shares her passion for Formula One (Motorsports) and pageants, highlighting the lessons learned in teamwork, authenticity, and branding. Sharon praises H2Ok Innovations' culture of empathy and problem-solving, predicting continued success in driving innovation and sustainability within the manufacturing sector.

Sharon Lee

Sharon Lee is an accomplished entrepreneur and marketing expert dedicated to empowering female leaders. With a diverse background in sales and marketing across industries like advertising, magazine publishing, and solar energy, Sharon's journey showcases her versatility and determination. As the principal of Pinnacle Strategic Advisors, she assists businesses in enhancing their marketing strategies. Sharon's entrepreneurial spirit led her to establish her own consulting firm, reflecting her commitment to excellence. Alongside her professional pursuits, Sharon co-founded the InPowered Women's networking group, fostering mentorship and support for women in business. Through the InPowered Women’s podcast, Sharon will share stories of resilient female leaders with listeners encouraging them to pursue their aspirations fearlessly.

 

Annie Lu

Annie Lu, CEO of H20k Innovations, is a visionary entrepreneur and advocate for authenticity, navigating the male-dominated realm of venture capital with determination and empathy. Rising above bias, she champions diversity and empowers others to embrace their uniqueness. Through her leadership at H20k Innovations, Annie fosters a culture of creativity and empowerment. Beyond her business ventures, Annie is a dedicated mentor and philanthropist, supporting aspiring entrepreneurs, especially women and girls. Her passion for sustainability drives her collaborative efforts to address environmental challenges.

 

Insights from this episode:

• Introduction of the podcast by Sharon Lee, focusing on sharing insights and stories from female business leaders.
• Introduction of Annie Lu, CEO and co-founder of H2Ok Innovations.
• Discussion about Annie's background in manufacturing and her passion for improving the industry.
• Explanation of why H2O K Innovations focuses on industrial liquids and fluids, highlighting the lack of data and decision-making based on real-time information.
• Explanation of Internet of Things (IoT) and its role in H2Ok's system, involving sensors, data processing, and machine learning for optimization.
• Discussion on how H2Ok's solution helps save resources, improve efficiency, reduce waste, and enhance quality in manufacturing processes.
• Overview of how H2Ok's technology addresses challenges in the manufacturing industry and contributes to sustainability goals.
• Discussion on security measures implemented by H2Ok to protect data and ensure the reliability of their solutions.
• Strategies for scaling and managing the business, including building infrastructure, empowering the team, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement and innovation.
• Discussion of navigating male-dominated industries
• Emphasis on embracing authenticity and empathy, especially the importance of caring about people's real problems and unique perspectives in problem-solving.
• Discussion surrounding the power of mentorship: Annie acknowledges the crucial role of mentors in her journey as a founder and actively engages in mentorship herself: supporting college women, elementary school students, and other women founders, aiming to pay it forward.
• Discussion surrounding the role of businesses in addressing environmental challenges and the misconception that sustainability doesn't make business sense.
  
  

Quotes from the show:

• “And so this is why we are really excited to be in this space because not only are we helping our partners through technology, be able to help them meet their sustainability goals and their same target, so making social impact as well as driving efficiency, ultimately improving the bottom line, improving the top line… And for us really, our focus is sustainability and you know, business sense never is mutually exclusive.” – Annie Lu, InPowered Women, Episode #2
• “I think that is a reason why this has resonated with major manufacturers, dominating the industrial space… is this relentless hunger of uncovering real problems and developing solutions to actually solve problems. And so that's, you know, really that, that hunger, that empathy of how do you actually uncover those problems is something we approach every single conversation with no matter if we're talking to an executive of, you know, a fortune 200 company to a, you know, site operator on the shop floor. We come in in every single conversation with respect with empathy and with an open mind of really uncovering true problems that exist in this space.” – Annie Lu, InPowered Women, Episode #2
  
• “It's really important to take a step back and be building like you're working in the company, but you're also working on the company. And I think that aspect of working on the company is really important to make sure that you're able to properly, grow and have the structures to be able to grow. I think that's something that we have focused on the H20k innovations and we'll continue to do so, it's creating the proper infrastructure and process to do that.”  – Annie Lu, InPowered Women, Episode #2
  
• “We have this aspect of authenticity and creativity and empowerment in our team that yes, we are different and we come in with an immense amount of, again, empathy and humility in every single conversation we have with any person..."  – Annie Lu, InPowered Women, Episode #2
• "What makes us different is an asset in what allows us to continue innovating and being at the forefront of this industry."  – Annie Lu, InPowered Women, Episode #2
• “Embrace who you are and like, you know, what makes you different because again, that's an asset, what you bring to the table and so I, I think that there's no shortage of challenges that come with it, but also an immense amount of opportunity as well.” – Annie Lu, InPowered Women, Episode #2
• “You have this mindset of continuous improvement and never complacency." – Sharon Lee, InPowered Women, Episode #2
• “I think an issue, a reason that there's been unfortunately not as much movement in this space, in sustainability globally as we hope to is because when we think of sustainability, we oftentimes think of governments, right, like I will rely on governmental leaders to be able to do this. But really the public sector and the private sector go hand in hand in terms of the ability to make impact… I think that it's a mistake that sustainability is oftentimes thought of something that doesn't make business sense and I think it doesn't have to come up that way.” – Annie Lu, InPowered Women, Episode #2

 

Resources Mentioned:

• H20k Innovations
• Strong Girls
• The Girl Campaign
• Greentown Labs
• 100 Plus Accelerator
  
  

Sharon Lee

Email: sharon@pinnaclestrategicadvisors.net

LinkedIn: Sharon Lee

Annie Lu
Email: annie@h2okinnovations.com

LinkedIn: H20k Innovations

Website: H20k Innovations

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This episode was produced and managed by Podcast Laundry.