Amy Nelson

Amy Nelson has spent the past several years shaping the conversation around women in the workplace. As co-founder and CEO of The Riveter, launched in January 2017, she built a national network of collaborative work spaces designed for working women, named in honor of Rosie the Riveter, the iconic symbol of female factory workers during World War II. Her leadership of the company and her writing have made her a recognized voice on entrepreneurship and workplace equity.

Raised in Ohio and born in 1980, Nelson came to business through law and politics. The daughter of a middle school teacher and an attorney, she went door-to-door for political campaigns as a young woman and worked first as a nanny, then a waitress. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Emory University, interned at the Carter Center, and received her J.D. from NYU School of Law before handling corporate litigation at Cahill Gordon & Reindel and fundraising for pro-choice political candidates.

In 2017, Nelson co-founded The Riveter with social worker Kim Peltola, raising $700,000 in seed capital and opening the company’s first Seattle office that May. She moved to Seattle in 2012 with her husband, Carleton Phillip Nelson. Her written work has appeared in Inc. Magazine and Forbes, extending her influence beyond the boardroom.

On air, Nelson co-hosts the podcast ‘What’s Her Story With Sam & Amy’ alongside fellow entrepreneur Samantha Ettus, interviewing women at the top of their fields, with past guests including Gloria Steinem, Melinda Gates, Abby Wambach, Randi Zuckerberg, and Huma Abedin.