About Gold Thread

The thread that holds it all together.

Two decades of transformation. A foundation built on systems thinking, honest feedback, and the belief that AI only amplifies what human capability creates.

Julie Averill
The Short Version

Julie Averill

Julie Averill has spent two decades scaling companies and the teams inside them. At lululemon, she led the technology that powered the business as it grew from $2 billion to over $10 billion, building global teams across four continents and the operating model to sustain that growth. Before that, she led digital and omni-channel transformations at Nordstrom and REI, through system failures, high-stakes crises, and the messy reality of turning technology into business results at scale.

Today, through Gold Thread, she and her senior partners advise boards, CEOs, and founders on AI strategy and workforce readiness, the space where most transformations stall. She also serves as an independent board director and lives in Bellevue, Washington, with her wife Cindy.

Origin

Where the thread starts

My mom was an upholsterer and a seamstress. She ran a sewing machine at an upholstery shop. I watched her work with breathtaking precision. I also watched her run over her thumb and pull the needle out by herself, then get back to work. Twice. That's where I learned ownership. When something breaks, you fix it yourself. You don't wait for someone else to solve your problems.

“Gold thread is the beauty that connects our stories, the craftsmanship that holds transformation together.”

My father, Earl Averill, was a former Major League catcher, the son of a Hall of Famer. From his crouch behind home plate, he learned to see the whole field when everyone else was focused on the ball. He taught me systems thinking before I knew the term existed. Every decision shaped by invisible context. Every pattern revealing something deeper.

These weren't leadership principles I studied. They were patterns I lived. And they've proven more valuable than any advanced degree, especially now, watching companies wave AI at problems they've never actually looked at closely.

I spent two decades proving that culture isn't soft. It's the infrastructure that determines whether transformation succeeds or fails.

As Chief Information Officer and Executive Vice President at lululemon, I led the technology that powered the business as it grew from $2 billion to over $10 billion in revenue over eight years. My work reshaped ecommerce, retail, supply chain, and cybersecurity while building a world-class global tech team across Vancouver, Seattle, Shanghai, and Bangalore.

Building the India Technology Hub was one of the most meaningful chapters of my career. We built it with nearly 50% women engineers, in a market where the industry average sits around 34%. That didn't happen by accident. It happened because we designed inclusion into the foundation, not the afterthought. NASSCOM recognized that work with their AI Game Changer Award in 2024.

Before lululemon, I held the CIO role at REI and senior technology roles at Nordstrom, where I drove major digital and omnichannel expansions. I learned what transformation actually requires through system failures, high-stakes crises, and the messy reality of integrating technology with business strategy at scale.

My perspectives don't come from theory. They come from having led through failures I didn't get to hide from, at scale, under real pressure. That's the same posture I bring, and the one I ask my senior partners to bring, into every Gold Thread engagement: stop performing, start being honest about what's actually working.

$2B → $10B+
Revenue growth at lululemon
8 Years
Leading lululemon's global transformation
4 Continents
Global tech hubs built and led
~50%
Women engineers at the India Tech Hub
Forbes CIO Next 50 · NRF Foundation Honoree · Fast Company Queer 50 · CIO Dive CTO of the Year · see the full list on Press →

Ready to work with Gold Thread?

Whether you need a board advisor who's navigated what you're navigating, a strategic thought partner on AI, or a team that's actually run this before, Julie takes on select engagements each year alongside her senior partners.

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Looking for a keynote instead? Julie is also available for speaking engagements. See her speaking page at julieaverill.com →