Intrepid Woman: Bonnie St. John, Former Director for Human Capital Issues at the White House National Economic Council, Paralympic Champion

BonnieStJohnBy Hua Wang (Kansas City)

“I remember the moment when this idea was planted in me,” says Bonnie St. John, Former Director for Human Capital Issues at the White House National Economic Council and Paralympic Champion. “When I was ten, my mom brought home a picture of a silhouette of an amputee on skis. The picture had the words, if I can do this, I can do anything.”

St. John said her initial reaction was: “Ski?! It doesn’t snow in San Diego! Black people don’t like cold weather!” But at that moment, her mother planted the seed without knowing how it would work. She was “a single mother who had more time left at the end of the month than money. But she knew how to dream and believe in things that don’t seem possible,” she explained. That crazy vision propelled Bonnie to fundraise, go to Denver and Vermont, find coaches, ski in the Paralympics and overcome all the subsequent challenges to win bronze and silver medals at the 1984 Winter Paralympics.

In addition to her multiple medals, St. John has led a distinguished career, graduating magna cum laude from Harvard, and winning a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford. After earning her master’s degree in economics, she joined the Clinton administration as Director of the White House National Economic Council. Today, she explained, she is CEO of her own company Courageous Spirit. She has also published three books, and has another due out in April which she wrote with her daughter: How Great Women Lead: A Mother-Daughter Adventure into the Lives of Women Shaping the World.

“Sometimes you have to break through all the barriers and figuratively build your own runway,” she said.

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Voice of Experience: Pat David, Managing Director and Global Diversity Officer, JP Morgan Chase

PatDavidBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“I’m not interested in diversity as it’s commonly known,” said Pat David, Managing Director and Global Diversity Officer at JPMorgan Chase. “I’m interested in using my life experiences in the context of helping people get to where they want – particularly underrepresented groups.”

She continued, “The way I was raised, my mother said ‘you’ve got to give more than you get.’ And when I look at my career, I’ve had an insatiable appetite to help people. My job enables me to help people 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

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Voice of Experience: Chloe Barzey, Senior Executive, Management Consulting, Supply Chain Strategy, CHT North America, Accenture

ChloeBarzeyBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

According to Chloe Barzey, Senior Executive at Accenture, one of the most important things professional women can do, especially as they advance, is make sure they are actively managing their career.

She explained, “As you move up in your career, it’s important to take steps to receive more education or training. You must continuously fine tune yourself in order to remain relevant in the marketplace. Being aware of your strengths and limitations and how others perceive you is key to advancing in your career path.”

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Movers and Shakers: Jamila Piracci, Vice President of OTC Derivatives, National Futures Association

JPiracciBy Sophie Fletcher (Chicago)

Jamila Piracci believes in a combination of serendipity and making the best of opportunities.  Previously a lawyer with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, she was looking for a new challenge when she was directed by an interviewer to the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA), a global financial trade association that represents participants in the privately negotiated derivatives industry, also known as the Over-the-Counter (OTC) markets.

She had been keeping up with ISDA activity and following the progress they were making related to documentation standards and, based on this person’s suggestion, decided to pick up the phone and call ISDA’s General Counsel.

It happened to be a brilliant time to call because it turned out they were looking to hire outside lawyers. The General Counsel was acquainted with Piracci through industry events and asked her to come in for an interview. “I am still in awe of how I got a job there,” remarks Piracci.

Before working at ISDA, Piracci spent a number of years at various law firms, having started her practice as a lawyer at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. While ISDA and the New York Fed were her favorite places to work, Piracci credits her diverse professional background in getting her to where she is now – Vice President of OTC Derivatives at the National Futures Association.

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Voice of Experience: Nicole Pullen Ross, Managing Director, Mid-Atlantic Region Head, Private Wealth Management, Goldman Sachs

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Nicole Pullen Ross“We all have the responsibility to be advocates for more junior women,” said Nicole Pullen Ross, Managing Director of the Mid-Atlantic Region for Goldman Sachs’ Private Wealth Management business.

“And it is a greater responsibility behind closed doors than when in the presence of the people we are mentoring.” She explained, “That advocacy means really pulling someone up behind you in a proactive way, the same way others have done for you.”

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Young Women Speak Up on Changing the World

young black businesswomanBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Despite the World Economic Forum’s controversial “quota” system of inviting one woman for every four men to its annual meeting at Davos, the ratio of women in attendance remained small this year. Only 17% of those in attendance last month were female, and, only 20% of those invited to speak on panels were women.

But according to The Guardian’s Jane Martinson, the WEF is standing by its quota system, and hopes that time will bring more women to the table. The organization believes that by engaging more women in top-level decision-making, the economic situation around the world will improve. She wrote, “This idea plays into one theme of this year’s Davos: that as the current economic and political crisis was made by men, the inclusion of more women can only help matters.”

She also quoted Cherie Blair, who had a more pointed take on the situation. “If the world doesn’t start giving a proper platform for women, then it will fall flat on its face.”

While Davos struggled to increase its percentage of establishment women, a group of dynamic young women presented big ideas to leading under-30 change agents at last month’s Sandbox Global Summit in Lisbon, Portugal (where 31% of conference participants were women).

Waiting for change at the top is no longer an option, remarked Kelly Calvin, winner of one of six Bloomberg Businssweek fellowships to the Lisbon conference. She believes it is critical for leaders to pay attention to young women when it comes to our global future, and, she said, many global leaders have not yet realized why.

“I think it should be clear, but unfortunately it’s obviously not clear to today’s leaders. There are more young women going to college and graduate school than ever before, and, in America, more women than men. We are entering the workforce in unprecedented numbers, we are starting businesses like never before, and in a very short time it will no longer be an oddity to see a female global leader, but an expectation.”

She added, “They need to pay attention to us now because our voices are the voices of the very near future.”

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Movers and Shakers: Anika Khan, Vice President, Economist, Wells Fargo

AnikaKhanBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

Anika Khan, Vice President and Economist at Wells Fargo, said one key to advancing your career is cultivating a broad knowledge base – but also developing an expertise in a field you are passionate about.

She explained, “If I was to think of one thing I wish I knew when I was starting out it would be to be an expert in something, but know a little bit about everything.”

“When you begin your career, you’re trying to get a sense of everything. But when I became a subject matter expert my career really gained upward momentum.”

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Voice of Experience: Lisa Sawicki, Partner, Assurance, PwC

LisaSawickiBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“Be proud of your accomplishments,” advised Lisa Sawicki, an assurance partner in PwC’s Charlotte office, and national diversity leader of the firm’s assurance practice.

“I still think we have a dynamic, even among successful women, to be less forthcoming with their accomplishments. Be confident and willing to talk about them!”

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Voice of Experience: Rosalie Mandel, Principal, New Jersey Office, Rothstein Kass

RosalieMandelBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“As a woman in a challenging industry, making principal is something I’m extremely proud of. But working on a flex schedule while I did it is even more of an achievement for me,” said Rosalie Mandel, Principal of the alternative investments accounting firm Rothstein Kass‘s New Jersey office. Mandel is an exuberant supporter of women in accounting, she believes that firms can be more successful when they fully support the work/life needs of their employees. That means supporting talented women with flexible schedules that make sense for their individual lives.

She said, “I really don’t believe in work/life balance – I believe in integration. How do you define success? That’s your balance.”

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Voice of Experience: Paula L. Rogers, President, Institutional Capital

PaulaRogersBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)

“Right now what I love about the industry is how dynamic it is,” said Paula Rogers, President of the Chicago-based investment firm Institutional Capital.

She explained, “Things are constantly changing, constantly improving, constantly evolving. I love this industry and it has provided me with a rewarding career.”

Rogers provided some key insight into how she’s built a rewarding career in investments and how women can rise to the top of the industry.

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