Forge News and Updates |
At Forge, our members are constantly discovering new tools to help them work smarter, stay organized, and grow their businesses. So we asked them: What’s your favorite tech tool right now? The responses did not disappoint. From productivity powerhouses to design favorites and game-changing apps, here’s a roundup of the tools our community swears by—and why they love them.
#1 – Monday.com
“Our company uses Monday.com, which helps our teams with workflow management. It’s very helpful with organizing tasks individually and in a group setting.” – Drew
Monday.com is a project management and collaboration platform that helps teams plan, track, and manage their work in one centralized workspace.
#2 – Grasshopper
“Grasshopper for client calls. I get 1200 calls a day so I couldn’t imagine them coming to my personal cell!” – K’la Inman
Grasshopper is a virtual phone system that allows small businesses to use a professional business number on their existing mobile phones, with features like call forwarding, voicemail, and custom greetings.
#3 – Asana
“I’d be lost without Asana. That is where all of my “To Dos” & “Tasks” live that I need to execute or ideate on.” – Michael Testa
Asana is a project management tool that helps teams organize, track, and manage their work by creating tasks, assigning deadlines, and collaborating all in one place.
#4 – Loom
“Loom for sharing processes/feedback with the team.” – Rosie Stafford Smith
Loom is a video messaging tool that lets you quickly record your screen, voice, and face to create and share video updates, tutorials, or walkthroughs—perfect for clear, async communication.
#5- Airtable
“Airtable is a fantastic tool for tracking projects.” – Murray Lee
Airtable is a flexible, spreadsheet-database hybrid that helps you organize, track, and collaborate on everything from project management to content calendars, all in a visually intuitive interface.
#6 – ChatGPT
“Probably ChatGPT. It’s helped me speed up my data analysis by providing help on complex formulas, insights, dynamic OKRs/KPIs updates and more.” – Melissa Ralph
ChatGPT is an AI-powered assistant that helps you brainstorm ideas, write content, solve problems, and get answers—basically your smart, friendly sidekick for work and life.
#7 – Google Suite
“Google Suite because of all the different things that it offers to work and stay organized!” – Grace Lockett
Google Suite (now called Google Workspace) is a collection of cloud-based productivity tools—including Gmail, Google Docs, Sheets, Drive, Calendar, and more—that help individuals and teams collaborate and get work done from anywhere.
Whether you’re managing projects, streamlining communication, or just trying to stay on top of your to-do list, these tools are helping Forge members do it all with a little more ease and a lot more efficiency. From well-known platforms like Google Suite to favorites like Asana, Monday.com, and Grasshopper, there’s something here for everyone. We love seeing how our community works—and sharing their go-to tools might just help you find your next favorite too.
Forge News and Updates |
On March 7, Forge was buzzing with energy as we gathered to celebrate International Women’s Day with an inspiring morning of connection, conversation, and celebration. Our Celebrate Women event brought together an incredible group of women for an engaging panel discussion, networking, shopping, and more.
Photo by Matthew Niblett
The Ladies of Forge- Photo by Matthew Niblett
A Powerful Panel Discussion
The highlight of the morning was our panel of three accomplished Birmingham women business leaders, who shared their experiences, challenges, and insights on this year’s theme: Accelerate Action. We were honored to hear from:
- Amber Hooks – Accounting Manager at Immediate and Co-Founder of Happenins in the Ham
- Meredith Calhoun – Founder of Tessa Commercial Real Estate
- Cierra Belser – Founder of Enspire Executive Solutions
Their stories resonated with the audience as they shared lessons on leadership, entrepreneurship, and pushing past obstacles to build successful careers and businesses.
Photo by Matthew Niblett
Swag Bags, Shopping & Giveaways
Of course, no celebration is complete without a little fun! Attendees enjoyed fabulous swag bags filled with goodies from local women-owned businesses.
Swag Bag Sponsors:
Our mini market featured a curated selection of vendors, allowing guests to shop and support local female entrepreneurs. To top it off, we gave away some exciting door prizes, adding an extra touch of excitement to the day!
Mini Market Vendors:
Photo by Matthew Niblett
Photo by Matthew Niblett
Photo by Matthew Niblett
Thank You to Our Community
A huge thank you to everyone who attended, participated, and supported this event! It was an amazing reminder of the power of women coming together to share knowledge, uplift one another, and create meaningful connections. We’re already looking forward to next year’s celebration!
Stay tuned for more upcoming events at Forge!
Photo by Matthew Niblett
