11-04-2025
The Power Move: Why Female CEOs Are Choosing Purpose Over The Status Quo
'This has completely enhanced my life. I've been able to do the thing that I love, which is building businesses - and also do it in a framework that impacts those that I love."
Many women at the top of their game, like PetMeds' CEO Sandra Campos quoted above, are rethinking the direction of their careers—not by stepping away from leadership, but by shifting toward work that better reflects their passions. This trend—what I call the passion pivot—is becoming a common next step for women looking to maintain professional momentum while aligning their work more closely with what they truly care about.
Campos, the former CEO of DVF and a seasoned retail executive with brands like Juicy Couture and Polo Ralph Lauren is a great example. With decades of experience in fashion, she recently made a seemingly unexpected move: becoming CEO of PetMeds, the original consumer pet healthcare company.
For Campos, the decision wasn't just strategic—it was deeply personal. 'After I left DVF, I started joining boards and asked myself, 'What do I love?' It's pets,' she says. 'That's the only reason I got into something completely different.' After serving on the PetMeds board for a year, she joined the search committee for a new CEO. As she evaluated candidates, she realized she had the experience, the consumer insight—and most importantly—the passion to lead the company herself.
Campos's passion for animals permeates all aspects of her life. She runs a farm in New York's Hudson Valley, home to nine rescue horses, three rescue dogs and a 20-year-old toothless rescue cat. And now she can continue her animal rescue work in the office. 'This is the first time in my career I can actually say we're saving lives,' she says, pointing to PetMeds' commitment to animal health and the vital work the company does with pet rescue organizations.
Today, on National Pet Day, Campos and her PetMeds team rang the Nasdaq opening bell. She, and a crew of adoptable dogs from pet rescue Bideawee, were all featured on the Times Square billboard—a symbolic celebration of Campos's passion becoming her profession.
Anne Fulenwider also knows what it means to pivot for passion. She spent decades in publishing, culminating in her role as Editor-in-Chief of Marie Claire. But a series of life moments reshaped her view on success.
'I had a moment—I was in my late 40s, and I had accomplished a lot, but I was always making something successful for someone else,' she says. 'And I thought, 'I have these skills and what do I want to use them in service of?''
The turning point came after her mother's sudden passing. 'I realized that summer that external affirmation wasn't that fulfilling. It wasn't connected to purpose.'
Her pivot became Alloy Women's Health, the company she co-founded to provide real, science-backed solutions for women going through menopause. 'In the publishing world, I had been helping women for all these years finding health from the outside in. And I really wanted to help women from the inside out.'
Though she had no prior startup experience, she wasn't deterred, mustering up the perfect combination of 'naiveté and chutzpah.' What's kept her going are the women she helps every day. 'The degree of suffering out there is so vast. We're blown away by the comments that we get every day.'
'It's harder than I thought,' she says, 'but it's a very different kind of stress. I found my purpose, and that's invaluable. In many ways, it was the easiest decision I ever made.'
For Reshma Saujani, her passion pivot took a slightly different form. As the founder of Girls Who Code, she had made a name for herself empowering the next generation of tech-savvy young women. But during the pandemic, Saujani saw firsthand how cultural inequalities forced young girls, particularly from marginalized communities, to abandon their dreams to care for younger siblings.
'I realized I could teach millions of girls to code, but if I didn't help their mothers, I hadn't done anything,' she says. That epiphany led her to step down from Girls Who Code and pivot to Moms First, a nonprofit advocating for affordable childcare, paid family leave and better policies for working mothers.
While her advocacy for female equality and empowerment remained steadfast, she pivoted her focus from young girls to moms. But to Saujani, the pivot wasn't so much a departure as it was an evolution. 'I like to solve problems that stand in the way of women's freedom. And there is no gender equality without childcare or paid leave.'
Hilary Hoffman spent over a decade in high finance at top firms like Goldman Sachs and Oaktree Capital Management. But something was missing. 'I couldn't find an efficient workout that fit my lifestyle without sacrificing results—so I created one,' she says.
That workout became SotoMethod, a fast-growing fitness brand designed for busy women like her. 'I wasn't setting out to build a business; I just wanted something that worked. But when I realized how impactful that solution could be for others, I knew I had to share it.'
Her Wall Street experience came in handy. 'The discipline, self-awareness, and decision-making I learned as a trader are the same muscles I use every day as a founder,' Hoffman explains. 'Finance didn't just prepare me to run the business—it gave me the reason to build it.'
SotoMethod is more than fitness; it's purpose. 'I'm more energized, more accountable, and more fulfilled because I'm building something I deeply believe in,' she says. 'The pace hasn't slowed, but the purpose is clearer. And that makes all the difference.'
Hilary Hoffman, founder of SotoMethod
SotoMethod
For these women, their passion pivots show what's possible when experience meets conviction. The result isn't just personal satisfaction—it's smart, impact-driven leadership that's reshaping what success can look like.
