Jill Belconis

About

Jill Belconis has had the opportunity to be the “first woman” throughout her entire career. Jill has never been one to accept the status quo and has always been ready for the next challenge. Her deep passion for leadership has taken her down an extraordinary path. She has shared her journey and authentic leadership style in her TEDx talk, “Succeed Like a Man, Lead Like a Woman”.

After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a business degree in finance and marketing, Jill became the first woman hired as a salesperson in the Data Processing Division of her IBM branch. Many didn’t believe a 21-year old woman could succeed in sales at a conservative technology firm in the early 80’s. But despite many challenges, she forged ahead, excelled and learned to lead.

After IBM, Jill entered another competitive field; residential mortgage banking. She quickly became the President/CEO of Shelter Mortgage Company which qualified her to join YPO Chicago, one of the oldest chapters in the Young Presidents’ Organization, the premier global organization for Chief Executives. When Jill joined the Chicago chapter of 180 members, she was one of only five women.

Jill became actively involved in the YPO Chicago chapter and in 2005 was the first woman ever elected as Chapter Chair. She didn’t stop there. She got the attention of the global community of CEOs and Presidents and was selected as a Director on YPOs International Board. Then in 2011, Jill was the first woman voted in as YPO International Chairman of the Board since its founding year in 1950. In the role of leading over 20,000 worldwide CEOs, Jill learned the true meaning of servant leadership.

In 2013, Jill was able to successfully sell Shelter Mortgage Company which had scaled to over 500 employees across 35 states, and then exit the business a year later. With all of her years of experience of operating and growing a company, Jill decided to share her wisdom with other CEOs and formed her new company, Jill Belconis Enterprises, LLC. Through this, Jill has pursued her passion as a Strategic Business Coach for mid-market companies and is certified in the Scaling Up methodologies. She has taken her vast leadership experience and has helped CEOs grow, scale and thrive in their businesses. Jill facilitates strategic planning meetings for leadership teams, driving accountability for executing on their plans, seeking alignment throughout the company, maximizing profitability and building a culture of leadership development.

Jill’s personal passion is focused on living an active and healthy lifestyle. Jill attributes much of her personal and professional success to balancing her physical and emotional wellbeing with the demands of a career and raising kids.