Peace Through Business

girlsholdinghands.jpgby Jessica Titlebaum (Chicago)

The Institute of Economic Empowerment for Women (IEEW) is in the business of providing opportunities for underprivileged women. Believing that nations with a stable economy are in a better position to promote and accept peaceful solutions, they launched the Peace through Business initiative.

According to Kathy Neill, Program Coordinator at IEEW, the program actually grew out request from the U.S. State Department to develop a business training program for women in Afghanistan. “The program is founded on a simple premise: It’s possible to change the world by educating women about business and giving them the tools to succeed,” said Terry Neese, the president of IEEW in a Northwood University Press Release.

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The Gender Agenda at Standard Chartered

bank.JPGby Elizabeth Harrin (London)

In the United States, women currently make up almost 75 percent of the banking industry’s entire workforce, but hold only 9 percent of chief executive positions. Conventional wisdom is that it is not much better in the United Kingdom. Yet, against this backdrop, an amazing 20% of women reach senior positions at Standard Chartered Bank (SCB), a bank formed in 1969 through a merger of two banks: The Standard Bank of British South Africa and the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China. The organization, which prides itself on having one of the most diverse workforces in the global financial sector, knows it can do even better. Enter Maram Habash, Group Diversity & Inclusion Manager, who coordinates the effort to support women as emerging leaders.

“The Group Women’s Council was set up to drive the bank’s ‘gender agenda’ supporting our overall Diversity & Inclusion programme,” she says. “The Council’s objective is to help women in Standard Chartered realise their full potential through personal development and supportive workplace practices implemented in an engaging and inclusive workplace.”

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Women Business Leaders Take Center Stage in Campaigns

istock_000005778419xsmall1.jpgby Erin Abrams (New York City)

Lately, several high profile women business leaders have reemerged onto the political scene, bringing their charismatic personalities and knowledge of the economy to the campaign trail.

Carly Fiorina, former CEO of Hewlett Packard, has become a familiar face on Sunday morning political talk shows as a surrogate for John McCain’s presidential campaign. Though she was asked to step down by the Board of HP in 2005 after amid concerns about the controversial merger with Compaq, Ms. Fiorina, 53, is a proven fighter who didn’t stay out of the public eye for long.

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Ask-A-Recruiter: In Crisis Mode, You Still Need Career Planning

Contributed by Caroline Ceniza-Levine of SixFigureStart

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I just got laid off so I’ve been applying to as many jobs as I see posted or hear about, but none of them seem quite right. Can I afford to wait for the right opportunity?

If waiting implies doing nothing until the exact dream job arises, then, no, you cannot afford to wait. But even when you are laid off and in need of another job quickly, applying to everything in sight isn’t a good strategy either. You might think that stepping back and taking time for career planning is a luxury. In fact, career planning is a necessity that can both minimize current harm and prevent future damage. In a time- urgent situation, such as a job loss, career planning needs to balance coping with the present while building a foundation towards the future.

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Career Women: Their Own Worst Enemies?

book_cover_lg.jpgBy Zoe Cruz (New York City)


A study published in “The Psychology of Sales Call Reluctance: Earning What You’re Worth in Sales” by Shannon L. Goodson, made news last week. Ms. Goodson, co-founder and president of Behavioral Sciences Research Press, is a specialist in visibility management. She compared nearly 11,500 professional women with about 16, 700 men from 34 countries, and concluded, “Being able to draw attention to your contributions and competencies at work has become an important part of modern career management, and it is something most women are still unwilling or unable to do as consistently as their male counterparts.” Reuters printed the findings in an article entitled “Career women are their own worst enemies: study”.

According to the study, men get further ahead in the workplace because they feel little or no reluctance, uneasiness, guilt, or shame, in self-promotion. Men often climb up the corporate ladder with ease; women don’t because most women “still cling to the myth that self-promotion is “socially unacceptable”, “unlady-like” and “morally suspect” says Goodson.
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50 Best Law Firms for Women

law.JPGby Pamela Weinsaft (New York City)

When we think of the life of a lawyer in a big firm, we often think of the time commitment it takes to get to be partner.

In the past, women attempting to balance life and work have been unceremoniously pushed off the equity partnership track. The times are changing, however. While one still must put in the time and effort, top firms are now competing with one another to get and keep top talent.

Working Mother, in conjunction with Flex-Time Lawyers, published its second annual list of the Top 50 Law Firms for Women this month. The list recognizes the efforts of firms aspiring to hire the top female attorneys, including the availability of flexible work arrangements, in-house networking, mentoring and management training to enable the female lawyers develop the skills and contacts they need to advance to the partnership level.

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Voice of Experience: Kathy Robb, Partner, Hunton & Williams

03011.jpgby Erin Abrams (New York City)

Kathy Robb, a partner in the New York office of the law firm Hunton & Williams, credits her success as an attorney in part to a willingness to embrace change and a passion for environmental issues.

The Glass Hammer recently sat down with Kathy, whose practice focuses on energy, environmental and administrative law, to talk about her background, her accomplishments and her advice for young women in law.

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TAWPI 2008 Forums & Expo

The digital transformation in payments and forms processing is underway. TAWPI is right in the thick of things with a one-of-a-kind Forums & Expo to showcase ideas, technologies, tools and techniques in three key subject areas: Payments Automation, Distributed Capture, and Imaging & Forms Processing.

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Passions: Women on Boards

surfing.JPGby Nicki Gilmour (New York City)

Every summer, the beaches of Long Island are filled with women and girls on surfboards. I am one of them. As far as I’m concerned, if the sun is shining, the ocean is clear and the waves are clean, the best board to be on is a surfboard.

I am sure that there are lots of successful professional women among my fellow surfers. It’s a tough sport—I have the injuries and scars to prove it. It’s thrilling. You need stamina and strength, as well as some talent to keep improving. You also need a desire to conquer yourself, not just the ocean; in other words, all the stuff that you need to make it in the other “boardroom” at the office.

The first time you catch a wave, it will rank as one of the best feelings in the world, like falling in love: the butterflies flit in your stomach, sending a signal to your brain that gives you a euphoric feeling of taking flight. You are flying on top of the wave even though it’s probably just the frothy white water breaking around you and lifting you along with it. Then you get bolder and better, paddling out further and taking many hits as the ocean drags you along the seabed like a spin cycle on a washing machine. A few hours later, you will emerge and you arms will feel like they each weigh 100 lbs. from all the paddling out and paddling in for the wave.

It’s all worth it.

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The Gamma Woman: The New and Improved Box

The Gamma WomanLast week, Advertising Age held its annual Women to Watch Awards Luncheon, honoring thirty of “the most innovative, empowered and accomplished women in the world of media and marketing.” Hailing from industries as varied as energy, internet entertainment, professional sports and banking, among others, the honorees were given just a couple of minutes to answer a single question posed – mostly related to marketing advice or work-life balance.

 

Each of the speakers was inspiring and powerful. Helen Clark, Corporate Marketing Manager of Chevron Corporation-under whose guidance the successful “Power of Human Energy” campaign was launched-advised “be brave…know your challenges.” Lynda Clarizio, President of Platform A at AOL, the world’s largest online ad network, told the crowd of the importance of having a “clear, strategic vision…” and “to not be afraid to make the tough decisions.” And Annette Stover, CEO of Euro RSCG, New York, advised to “capitalize on teamwork and technology” when attempting to achieve work-life balance.

The room was packed with powerful and accomplished women–event organizers, honorees, and audience members alike–who have broken free of stereotypes and surpassed expectations to reach the top of their fields. This made the announcement by Meredith Publishing, one of the sponsors of the event, all the more incongruous. Meredith Publishing’s new study, “The Gamma Factor,” purports to define a powerful marketing segment: the “Gamma woman.”

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