Kathryn Minshew (The Muse)

Entrepreneur, Author, Investor, Broadway Co-Producer (Co-Founder & CEO of The Muse, 2011–2023)

The Muse — career-development and job-search platform

Kathryn Minshew co-founded The Muse, a career platform that grew to serve over 70 million users each year. Her journey from a failed startup to a celebrated career-tech company offers real lessons for any entrepreneur facing early setbacks.

Kathryn Minshew’s Early Career

Kathryn Minshew attended Duke University before starting her career at McKinsey as a management consultant. She then worked on vaccine introduction programs in Rwanda and Malawi with the Clinton Health Access Initiative. In 2010, she co-founded her first venture, Pretty Young Professionals. However, a disagreement among co-founders led to its dissolution shortly after.

Building The Muse

Kathryn Minshew didn’t give up after that setback. Instead, she teamed up with former McKinsey colleague Alexandra Cavoulacos and Melissa McCreery. Together, they founded The Muse in 2011. She has openly shared that investors rejected her 148 times before she secured seed funding.

The team built the platform around one key idea: values-based job search. Rather than listing generic job descriptions, The Muse gave seekers real insight into company culture. As a result, the platform grew rapidly. It expanded from zero users to over 70 million annual visitors under her leadership.

Recognition and Growth

Fast Company named The Muse one of the 50 Most Innovative Companies in the World in 2018. Additionally, Kathryn Minshew received One Young World’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2019. In 2022, she led The Muse’s acquisition of Fairygodboss.com, expanding the platform’s reach even further.

Furthermore, major publications recognized her individually. Forbes named her to their 30 Under 30 list in Media. Inc. also included her among their Female Founders 100. She co-authored “The New Rules of Work,” sharing career advice with a wider audience.

Life After The Muse

Kathryn Minshew stepped back from her CEO role in 2023 after twelve years leading the company. Since then, she has focused on investing and Broadway producing. Her production credits include the Tony Award-winning Parade, along with Suffs and Cabaret. Today, she continues shaping conversations around the future of work.

About

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About their Startup

The Muse is a career-development platform co-founded by Kathryn Minshew, Alexandra Cavoulacos, and Melissa McCreery in 2011, originally launched as The Daily Muse. The idea followed an earlier, less successful venture between Minshew and Cavoulacos, former McKinsey colleagues who tried a first version of the concept before refining it into what became The Muse. Minshew has spoken candidly about the company’s difficult early fundraising, including 148 rejections from investors before securing seed funding, and about her own negotiation experience, having reportedly gotten physically sick the first time she tried to ask for a raise — an episode that helped inspire the company’s mission. The Muse built its identity around what Minshew called “values-based job search,” giving job seekers an inside look at company culture, values, and day-to-day work environments rather than just listings and job descriptions. The platform grew from zero to more than 70 million annual users under her leadership, eventually reaching upward of 75 million people according to later company figures. In 2022, Minshew led The Muse’s acquisition of Fairygodboss.com, the largest online career community for women, further expanding its reach. In 2018, Fast Company named The Muse one of the 50 Most Innovative Companies in the World.

Awards & Achievements

Named to Forbes' 30 Under 30 in Media, Inc.'s 15 Women to Watch in Tech, and Business Insider's 30 Most Important Women Under 30 in Tech
The Muse named one of Fast Company's 50 Most Innovative Companies in the World (2018)
Led The Muse's 2022 acquisition of Fairygodboss.com, the largest online career community for women.