The CFO Behind The Wing Co-Working Space

In an interview with Black Enterprise, CFO at The Wing, Diedra Nelson, talks about her career in finances, coming to work for The Wing, and advice to other black women wanting to work in a similar career path.

Nelson shares that she started college as a biology major, didn’t like it and changed her major to marketing and fiance. She states that listening to her gut was the best choice. She secured an internship with General Electric for two summers which led to a full-time position after college. A few years later, Nelson was recruited at Goldman Sachs to support their Securities Division. She spent the first decade of her career learning about process, structure, profit, and losses.

Nelson stated, “When they hear me introduce myself as CFO of The Wing, there is almost always a visible moment of disbelief.”

When thinking about The Wing, Nelson believes in the company’s mission and the opportunity to make something better. Women of color are drawn to places that allow us an opportunity to make our communities better or create something that adds value to people’s lives. Serving as the Chief Financial Officer is a role that would enable a path for others.

“The playing field is not level for us — and you will have to work both harder and smarter.”

The Wing started with 200 members in just one small location in Flatiron just a little over two years ago, and today are nearly 8,000 strong across 7 cities and scaling internationally this summer.