#38: Allison Monaghan McGuire, Founder and CEO of Walc, on Overcoming Adversity and Building Multiple Businesses

Allison McGuire is the Founder and CEO of Walc, a walking navigation app based on visual cues (turn right at Starbucks, left at the bank) and Monaghan McGuire (MM), a premium boutique consulting firm.

A passionate presenter and brand builder, she has won every competition in which she’s pitched Walc. Billed Waze for walking, Allison’s Walc attracts top talent, such as Waze’s CMO and the former CFO of Snapchat. Allison also created a pedestrian navigation app that within six months gained 500,000 MAUs with $0 spent on marketing and PR.

Allison founded MM to give intrapraneurs and entrepreneurs alike the confidence they need to target customers, share stories, and rally an audience around their vision. Whether it's building an online presence, leading a technical roadmap, or optimizing a website for targeted traffic, MM provides high-touch services and product direction.

Prior to entrepreneurship, Allison managed communications and business development at a tech company formed by AOL, Cisco, and Yahoo!, Network for Good. She also has political experience in national security and human rights through her work on Capitol Hill, with organizations such as MassEquality, and for the UK Parliament.

Allison is an internationally acclaimed entrepreneur, belonging to organizations such as Vista Caballo, Women's Startup Lab, and Dreamers//Doers. She has delivered keynote speeches, guest lectured, and presented at China's Global Business Innovation Summit, SXSW, Plug & Play, BMW iVentures, NJ Tech, NYU, CUNY, Georgetown University, Columbia University, Mississippi State University, the Coalition for Queens, the East Harlem School, Mayfield Senior School, Soundview Academy, and the Chandler School.

A former award-winning actress, Allison obtained a degree in Theatre Arts and Political Science from Boston University.