Carrie Maultsby-Lute is supporting Northeastern students by expanding opportunities for co-ops, jobs, faculty research, experiential learning and skill development.
OAKLAND — Carrie Maultsby-Lute’s first career took her to more than 15 countries as a professional figure skater. Performing as part of a multilingual cast in Disney on Ice gave Maultsby-Lute a love of culture, history and diversity.
Today, as head of partnerships at Northeastern University’s Oakland campus, Maultsby-Lute continues to forge connections and bridge divides. She supports Northeastern students by working with institutions and businesses to expand opportunities for co-ops, jobs, faculty research, experiential learning and skill development.
And her hard work has not gone unnoticed. Maultsby-Lute was recently recognized as one of the most influential women in Bay Area business by the San Francisco Business Times.
“Work in partnerships often feels like it’s behind the scenes,” she said. “We’re connecting people all the time. But for the most part our work is not as visible.”
As someone who supports community within higher education, it means a lot to be recognized with other business leaders, she said.
“It’s motivating,” she added. “It’s nice to have the work I’ve done to build trust and be an emerging anchor educational institution in the region be recognized.”
Maultsby-Lute works with more than 200 organizations throughout the Bay Area: companies, nonprofits and governments. Her work has led to wide visibility for the Oakland campus and access for students, providing students exposure to businesses including Tesla, SAP, the Golden State Warriors, PayPal and Salesforce.
She also worked with Alicia Sasser Modestino on Northeastern’s Boston campus to launch the Community to Community impact engine initiative, hosting government, business, cultural and sports leaders on the Oakland campus to address urgent local issues.
Her path to leading partnerships was unique and took a turn in West Africa, where she studied for a year while working on her bachelor’s degree in cultural anthropology at U.C. Berkeley. While studying abroad in Ghana, she launched her first business selling fair-trade arts and crafts.
She went on to earn her MBA from Mills College, where she taught while working as a marketing leader with startup and tech firms before becoming director of the Center for Transformative Action at Mills.
As part of its annual selection of influential women in Bay Area business, the Business Times asked each honoree three questions:
Biggest influence: “Losing my father at age 9 shaped my sense of responsibility. I helped support my mom and younger sister, learning resilience early. Watching my mother reinvent herself through education inspired me to take on challenges, embrace change, and pursue life with grit, optimism and a belief in possibility.”
Undervalued business skill: “Empathy is one of the most undervalued skills in today’s business world. It’s often mistaken for softness, but in reality, it’s a powerful driver of trust, collaboration and innovation. Leaders who listen with empathy create inclusive environments where people feel seen, heard and motivated. As someone with a marginalized identity, I have had to deeply reflect on the actions of others and this superpower has given me the ability to understand diverse and divergent perspectives. As automation increases, empathy will remain a distinctly human advantage that shapes how we lead, serve and grow.”
Definition of success: “Family and community health and happiness.”