City Women’s Network: Roadmap to the Board

Jacey Graham and Peninah Thomson, co-authors of bestseller “A Woman’s Place is in the Boardroom” and the follow up book “the Roadmap”, will talk about the findings from their work in the UK over the past 4 years with chairmen and executive women in FTSE 100 companies, as they work to develop a talent pool of ‘board-ready’ women.

In response to requests following the publication of their first book in 2005, Jacey and Peninah have developed a practical ‘how to’ guide in the form of a Roadmap with 8 steps that aspiring women directors and companies can take to address the lack of women in top positions.

Please join us as they share their insights and engage with us in discussion of a topic which arguably now more than ever, has become a critical one for good corporate governance.

Venue information: nearest tube is Bank, dress code is Business.

Organised by the Personal Development Committee. For more information please contact the organiser, India Gary, on india_gary@yahoo.com.

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Macro to Micro: Performance of Investments in Microfinance in the Current Financial Crisis

The story about:

  • MFIs in the Trenches, and Specific Regional Differences
  • Investors as they React to the Sector’s Challenges.

The on-going financial market crisis is hitting microfinance institutions and their investors. However, various country and/or market characteristics combined with individual institution policies are resulting in differing consequences. Come hear from the experts running these operations as they discuss their insights on what are driving these differences and how they are dealing with the challenges. Then hear how investors (public and private) are assessing the same challenges in their investment decisions. This will be a great evening with a lively and broad ranging panel examining the story of how a sector whose chief purpose is to supply small loans to those without collateral or access to traditional financial services is at once maturing and reshaping itself during this time of turmoil.

Register here

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Profile: Women Corporate Directors

by Tina Vasquez (Los Angeles)

It may be hard for some to believe, but an organization that now has a global network of 525 high-powered members who serve on 675 boards began rather humbly with a home-cooked meal around a small dinner table in a New York City apartment. Susan Stautberg, President of PartnerCom Corporation, first began her organization Women Corporate Directors (WCD) in 1999. The premise: to bring together like-minded women who serve as directors of corporations for a communal meal and some shared advice.

Janet Clarke, President of Clarke Littlefield, has been with the organization since its inception and can attest to the fact that times have definitely changed. “We used to sit around this tiny table in Susan’s apartment, talk business, and eat the dinner she’d prepared. At the time, there was always a dog around that we could feed our scraps to,” Clarke said. Major changes in leadership, locale and structure have since taken place, but one thing is for certain: Stautberg has created a truly unique community for executive women.

WCD co-founder Alison Winter, founding President and CEO of President of Personal Financial Services in the Northeast for multi-bank holding company Northern Trust Corp, became fast friends with Stautberg after a chance meeting at a Committee of 200 conference in Washington D.C. After a little convincing, Winter decided to join Stautberg in creating what, at the time, was treated as nothing more than a dinner series. “Susan was doing the dinners in New York and, after enough heckling, I decided to start a chapter in Chicago. It quickly became clear that Susan was the entrepreneur with the creative ideas and I was the corporate executive. I wanted the organization to have formal structure and cohesion, so I began working on a logo with my company’s graphics department,” said Winter.

Around 2004, formal requirements for membership were put in place. Members are usually very senior, influential executives (Chairmen, CEO’s, COO’s and other C-level executives) and on average, serve on 3-4 major corporate and/or non-profit boards. 85 percent of the women in WCD are directors of public or large private company boards, while the other 15 percent have or will soon serve on public boards and currently serve on private, mutual funds or major non-profit boards. All members of the organization are either hand-picked or recommended and they represent a dizzying array of industries; some serve as directors of both the New York and NASDAQ Stock Exchanges, while others hold top positions at recognizable American companies such as Black and Decker and Hormel Foods.

Maryann Bruce, who is the President of Aquilla Distributors and acts as WCD’s Charlotte, NC co-chapter chair, is a prime example of how the organization brings women together. “I am also a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors and I must say, it’s very male-dominated and I often feel like I can’t relate to my peers there. With WCD, I can relate to many of the women concerning a whole host of things that are relevant not just to women, but to professional women with high-powered jobs.” WCD became an official organization in 2002, but even in its earliest stages, it was clear that the fledgling dinner series would be for women exclusively. “The dialogue is different when it’s just women; women are able to get into deep conversations when they feel the environment is safe and supportive, rather than competitive,” Winter said.

In addition to its new chapters in Atlanta, Boston, and San Francisco, WCD is going global with new chapters set to open in Beijing, Hong Kong, Lima, and London. Says Clarke, “There’s no other organization out there just for women that’s networking on a global level. Despite the size of the network, our meetings are small, private, intimate affairs that have a very nurturing environment.”

The chapter dinners, which are held three to four times a year, give the member women a chance to network, share ideas, and get to know other women with similar positions in varying industries. “I really like that the meetings are private and ‘off-the-record’,” Clarke said. “We often discuss classified information pertaining to our individual boards; it’s nice to share, receive advice, and just let your hair down and speak freely.”

Even though each dinner begins with a cocktail hour, potential members shouldn’t expect a casual dinner filled with socializing. As a matter of fact, after cocktails, it’s strictly business. “We purposely host each dinner around one large table so that it’s reminiscent of a business meeting. Of course, it’s nice to see each other, but once dinner begins, all chit-chat ends,” Winter said.

Perhaps the most interesting thing about WCD is not that they are all women in high-ranking corporate positions but, rather, despite their great success, they are still hungry to learn how to be better board directors. And while the dinners are primarily about sharing new ideas and attaining knowledge, for many members, the organization has become more than that – it has become a safe place where ideas can be exchanged without fear of judgment, a place that inspires, and, perhaps most importantly, a place where lifelong friendships are made.

“WCD has provided inspiration and encouragement like I’ve never encountered before. Sure, women are underrepresented as corporate directors, but getting to know all of these highly successful, high-powered women has shown me that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. This organization helps advance women and for me, it’s not just a business association; it’s become a personal association. I have made good friends with women in similar professions that literally live in my neighborhood and not only wouldn’t I have known that they existed, but I could have never become friends with them any other way,” Bruce said.

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Employ a Woman

Key Features

  • Meet top employers
  • A fantastic opportunity to hear from and chat with outstanding women who have made significant achievements in the workplace.
  • Free CV reviews
  • Professional development (woman2woman) sessions
  • Networking opportunities
  • A fantastic opportunity to chat with recent graduates who have secured fabulous jobs despite the economic downturn.
  • Image consultations
  • Competitions and giveaways
  • Pensions for Women’ clinic

Register here

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A Noxious Environment: Bullying in the Workplace


iStock_000009129481XSmall_1_.jpgby Andrea Newell (Grand Rapids, MI)

Have you ever berated an employee or colleague in front of other employees? Told an employee they were lucky to have a job at all? Used a minor mistake to demonstrate to others how incompetent you think that employee or colleague is? Taken credit for another colleague or employee’s work? Used personal information about a colleague or an employee against them in a work setting? Commented negatively on another employee’s style of dress in front of others (even though it was within the dress code)? Set an impossible goal for an employee without giving them adequate instruction or direction? If you answered “yes” to one or more of these questions, you might be a workplace bully.

According to The Workplace Bullying Institute (WBI), workplace bullying is defined as, “repeated, health-harming mistreatment of one or more persons by one or more perpetrators that takes one or more of the following forms: verbal abuse, offensive conduct/behaviors (including nonverbal) which are threatening, humiliating or intimidating, and work interference (sabotage) which prevents work from getting done.”

Read more

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Breakfast Briefing: Bonus and Staff Incentivisation

As part of the Women in Technology ongoing partnership with internationally recognised law firm Kingsley Napley, we are hosting a series of employment law related breakfast briefings. This series of free events is specifically aimed at the HR and recruitment contacts within our network as well as senior technologists with team management responsibilities.If you don’t fall into this category of our membership but would be interested in the topic, please get in touch because if there is enough interest from other members, we will look into running an evening event with a similar theme for a larger audience later in the year.

This briefing is taking place from 8.30am (for 8.45am start) until 10am at the Kingsley Napley offices – Knights Quarter, 14 St. Johns Lane, London, EC1M 4AJ. The nearest tubes are Farringdon and Barbican.

Bonus and Staff Incentivisation
Tuesday 2nd June 2009 – 8.30am (for 8.45am start) to 10am

Sir Fred Goodwin’s pension payout and the controversial bank bonuses have been widely derided in the press. This seminar will discuss contractual obligations around bonuses and the threatened legislative changes in this area.

If you would like to attend, please RSVP to Sarah Lilley – slilley@womenin.co.uk – including the following details:
* First Name
* Surname
* Company
* Job Title
* Email Address
* Contact Number

Please note, there is no charge to attend this breakfast briefing.

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Tactics for Shameless Self-Promotion at Work

WomanHandshakeHI_1_.jpg“Today, more than ever before, it’s important that those who are in a position to benefit your career know who you are and what you’ve accomplished,” says John M. McKee, author of Career Wisdom–101 Proven Ways to Ensure Workplace Success. He’s put together a list of “shameless self-promotion” tactics he recommends to help establish a positive high profile and let others know about your achievements “but in a way that is not construed as bragging or conceit.” McKee, who works predominantly with women executives, recently spoke with The Glass Hammer about the ins and out of implementing such tactics.

Capitalize on Fortuitous Chance Meetings

As we have reported many times on The Glass Hammer, having an elevator speech—a two- or three-line message about your contributions— is an important first step in self-promotion according to McKee. “Being in an elevator with someone is a great chance. If you know who they are, it is a great opportunity to introduce yourself, using your name and department, thus increasing you get visibility. All you are trying to do is to get with anybody who is in a position to have impact on your career to know who you are and understand your contributions. Memorize your speech so you may capitalize on fortuitous chance meetings.” He adds, “Based on my experience with my female clients, women miss this opportunity more often then men because they tend to answer the [“how are you?”] question quite literally, sharing how they are personally, while guys use it as self-promotion. A guy in the same situation might just say ‘I’m just delighted with the way the project is going.’”

Read more

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Webinar: In-house vs. outside counsel: who decides?

Given the marked increase in economic and business risk anxiety, it’s no surprise that in-house counsel are scrutinizing litigation costs and, in many cases, seizing control of much of the discovery process. This webinar will explore the changing relationships and roles of in-house and outside counsel around what often is the single largest cost in a legal proceeding…electronic discovery. In this webinar you will learn about:

  • The in-house and outside counsel e-discovery management paradigm: its history, evolution, changing in-house counsel perspective, and outside counsel concerns
  • How in-house and outside counsel can work together to gain control over e-discovery spending
  • The potential pitfalls of too much in-sourcing, and how IT, Compliance, records managers and third party service providers can help or hinder


During the discussion, our panel will share their expertise on how companies, their outside counsel and third party consultants and providers can work cooperatively together to achieve cost-effective and risk conscious results.Register here

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Integrating Corporate Responsibility

To be an effective CR manager today requires not only knowledge of corporate responsibility but also an understanding of business and the skills to engage with colleagues across your company. This highly practical programme has been specifically developed to provide participants with the knowledge, understanding skills to be effective.

Register here

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20th Annual San Francisco Conference of the Professional BusinessWomen of California

Keynote Speakers

Register here

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