BOULDER – Liz Ryan, founder and chief executive of WorldWIT, is shutting down the e-mail discussion group and moving onto other endeavors.

Founded in 1999, WorldWIT grew to 50,000 members in 25 countries. The organization began “as a lark,” Ryan said, to support women “at the intersection of work and life.” The online discussion group covered the gamut from careers to technology along with personal needs from attorneys to childbirth techniques.  

In March, Ryan decided to return full time to her preferred career –  work place columnist and speaker. “I’m a pundit, not a publisher,” she said. “I just wanted to be realistic. Life is long, and there’s a lot of opportunities.”

Running the international discussion group in Boulder with a staff of seven required a constant search for money, something the former human resources professional did not enjoy. “It didn’t seem like the universe had spoken and said I needed to do this. I’m about the workplace for everybody.”

In addition to a 2007 speaking tour, Ryan will continue her syndicated column for Freedom Communications, regular career column and Q&A for Business Week Online, and her Career Confidential column in the Boulder Daily Camera. She also launched a Web site, www.asklizryan.com, and blog, www.asklizryan.blogspot.com