By Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)
After studying government and international relations at Georgetown, Palmina Fava knew she wanted a career with an international scope. “But I wasn’t sure what that would be,” she explained. “So I went to Fordham Law School, wanting very much to litigate cases, be in court, and be in front of Boards of Directors.”
When she began her career at DLA Piper, Fava continued, “I became much more involved in complex commercial matters and IP litigations. In preparing clients for trial and in going through the litigation process, I began understanding more about a client’s business and became much more involved in working with clients on corporate governance matters.”
“Then Enron and Sarbanes Oxley happened,” she said. “There was much more of a focus on corporate governance and business ethics, and my practice became international in scope.” Fava’s career began taking on the global focus she had always sought, and within a few years, about half of the investigations she handled took place abroad, involving anti-corruption issues.
“About two years ago, I moved to Paul Hastings to work with the Firm’s global compliance practice group.” As co-chair of the Global Compliance and Disputes practice, Fava says she is proud of the reputation she has been able to establish with top-level clients.
“I’ve been very blessed to work with and learn from amazing lawyers and clients. I’m proud of having gained the trust of Fortune 100 clients and proud when they tell me I’ve provided them with practical, business-savvy advice. They have a choice in what law firm and lawyer to use, and I’m very proud when I get that call, that they trust me to work with them on critical compliance and anti-corruption issues.”
She continued, “I’m working on a lot of interesting investigations outside of the US. And I find it’s important to understand the politics, the economics, and the cultural issues of the country in which your investigation is focused.”
“The perspective of the witness I’m interviewing is completely different, so coming at it from a US perspective is not as effective. I try to step outside my experiences and put myself in the shoes of the people whom I’m interviewing,” she explained.
She says she has also learned over the years that, while passion for an issue is important, it’s also important to create boundaries between her personal feelings and her work. “Being passionate about a client’s case doesn’t mean you need to be invested emotionally in it.”
She explained, “Taking a step back and investigating an issue or analyzing it as opposing counsel, a regulator, or a business person would makes you a better negotiator and advocate for your client.”
Are Finance Careers Fair for Women?
Managing ChangeAccording to a new study by Treasury and Risk magazine, twice as many women as men in finance (80% versus 41%) see a glass ceiling for women in the corporate space.
This is only one of the notable divergences in views between men and women about gender in the corporate workplace. For example, the study also revealed that women are generally dissatisfied with corporate efforts to promote senior level diversity – only 43% of women would give their company’s initiatives an A or B grade, while 80% of men would.
But while it’s clear that more women see challenges to their advancement than men do, times are changing. In fact, the percentage of men who do acknowledge that there are unseen barriers to women’s advancement is increasing at a rapid rate. The percentage of men who do acknowledge a glass ceiling has increased significantly since just last year when it was only 29%.
Is it this just a statistical quirk, or does it mean times are changing for women in the industry? Either way, the vast difference between male and females regarding fairness for women in the industry is alarming. Despite (or maybe because of) decades of work to promote diversity in finance, the majority of men do not believe there are hidden biases that prevent women from advancing as quickly as they do – and this could be a barrier in itself.
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Day-to-Day Flexibility Increases, While Career Flex Drops
Work-LifeAccording to the latest study [PDF] by the Families and Work Institute and the Society for Human Resource Management, flexible working options are becoming more common. On the other hand, it’s becoming more difficult for individuals who make significant changes – like taking a break from work for family responsibilities – to get back into the workforce at the same rate as a few years ago.
For example, while the use of flex time, working from home, or taking time off during the day have all increased since the last survey was performed in 2005, more extensive changes in how people work have decreased. The ability to “return to work gradually after childbirth or adoption,” “take a career break,” or “move between part time and full time work,” have all decreased since 2005.
Day-to-day, the need for more flexibility is clear – today we are seeing increased workloads and busier workers, who are often part of dual-career families. New technology is cutting the physical ties that bind people to the office. And companies are recognizing that.
On the other hand, companies do not seem to be acknowledging the importance of retaining long-term, experienced employees who may need to decrease their work-schedule for a more extended amount of time due to personal pulls. Because women disproportionately take extended leaves of absence or shift between full and part time, this new data suggests that companies may face challenges keeping the pipeline of talented women flowing to the top.
Research shows that when companies refuse to work with women based on their long-term flexibility needs, they leave the workforce altogether. And that’s bad for families, communities, and companies.
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Voice of Experience: Stephanie Miller, Managing Director and Global Head of Alternative Investment Services, J.P. Morgan Worldwide Securities Services
Voices of ExperienceAccording to Stephanie Miller, Managing Director and Global Head of Alternative Investment Services at J.P. Morgan Worldwide Security Services (WSS), remaining open to change is critical for building a dynamic career. “I find personally – and I hope I exhibit this – that change is really okay.”
She continued, “Even though I’ve been doing this for twenty years, you have to be open to listening to other people, to be open to change. Keep an open mind and try to keep fresh on how you are approaching challenges, so you can continue to take yourself to the next level.”
This spring, Miller joined J.P. Morgan, taking on responsibility of strategy and direction for WSS’s Private Equity & Real Estate Services and Hedge Fund Services businesses. Before joining J.P. Morgan, Miller spent ten years at Citco Fund Services, serving as managing director and running the firm’s North American operations. “I handled the middle office, fund accounting, and transformational and technology change,” she explained. “I’m hoping to achieve the same size and scale of our business list at J.P. Morgan and I’m looking forward to this challenge.”
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Wall Street Exchange Prepares Next Generation for the Job Market
Mentors and SponsorsIt’s springtime – and that means many college students are hard at work, seeking internships and finding how they can make the most of their undergraduate training. But there’s a lot more to getting a job than landing an internship.
That’s why the Financial Women’s Association of New York is, once again, hosting its Wall Street Exchange program. It’s a nine-week program that runs from late June to early August to help students, women and men, learn to navigate Wall Street as they begin their careers.
“The Wall Street Exchange program was started for students between their junior and senior years of college, to prepare them for life after graduation,” Anne Izzillo, President of the FWA explained. “We’re trying to give them the tools they need to find a job and be successful in that job.”
Students learn how to write a resume, work on presentation skills, do mock interviews, and more. And, Izzillo said, the program is just as rewarding to women in the FWA who participate. That’s why the networking group has been successfully operating the program for over two decades.
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New Initiative to Increase Diversity on Director Candidate Slates
Industry Leaders, LeadershipEarlier this week, almost three hundred women board directors gathered at the second annual WomenCorporateDirectors Global Institute to discuss issues that corporations are facing in an increasingly global and complex marketplace.
Last year, the organization, composed of over 1,400 women in 42 chapters around the world, put forth a call to action to increase board diversity. In order to do so, this year, the group announced its newest project: the WCD Global Nominating Commission, a task force of CEOS and nominating committee chairs from top corporate boards, which will focus on increasing diversity on candidate slates for directorships.
Henrietta H. Fore, global co-chair of WCD, CEO and chairman of Holsman International, and a director at ExxonMobil and Theravance, Inc, said, “With the Commission, we are taking on the next challenge – urging nominating committees, who determine the composition of the board, to focus on global diversity.”
She added, “We will work with these important decision-makers in a whole new way.”
Alison A. Winter, global co-chair and co-founder of WCD and a director at Nordstrom, added, “With greater demand on boards and from boards to increase diversity, the Global Nominating Commission will be an important center of influence for nominating committees worldwide.”
Increasing diversity on candidate slates has been touted as a way to build more diverse boards, without resorting to quota rules that have been adopted in countries in Europe and Asia. Board diversity has been shown time and time again to drive better decision-making and has been correlated with increased corporate revenues.
Based on the challenges that corporations will face in the coming years, diversity can only improve boards’ ability to tackle the tangled web of global opportunities that lie ahead.
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Voice of Experience: Yvette Vargas, Managing Director, Head of Talent Development & Diversity, UBS Wealth Management
Voices of Experience“My role at UBS is to put in a talent management framework that is totally integrated with – subsumed in – our diversity agenda. I’ve been working to reframe how people think about managing talent, to make sure the right people are in the right jobs at the right time in the context of the business they’re in,” explained Yvette Vargas, Managing Director and Head of Talent Development and Diversity at UBS Wealth Management.
“When I look at financial services, diversity has really been focused on evolving from affirmative action and creating awareness around sensitivity to now understanding the importance of diversity from a values perspective,” she explained. “The challenges is getting people to think about this from a business perspective.”
She added, “If we do this right – set the philosophy, processes, tools – managers can become the best talent managers they can be.”
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Office Politics – Five Steps to Make It Joyful
Ask A Career CoachThe Joy of Office Politics. Oxymoron? Almost every leader I talk to hates office politics and sees it as a necessary evil to get things done. What if we discovered steps that would actually help make office politics joyful? Would you try them?
Here’s a recent client situation that inspired me to write this blog post. My client is a senior leader in a new role in the Supply Chain in a manufacturing company. She is responsible for major transformation of the Supply Chain function. The new CEO of her division is holding her accountable for making it happen. She has a dotted line reporting relationship to the Supply Chain Head who is the official Sponsor of the transformation project. The problem is that the Supply Chain Head was recently demoted in position and does not have a great relationship with the CEO. The transformation project is to dismantle some of what the Supply Chain Head created over his 20+ year career. He’s not exactly thrilled, as you might imagine. He is unconsciously sabotaging the efforts my client is responsible for.
She has been told by the current CEO she needs to be the “watchdog” to report back any sabotage. However, she needs the Supply Chain Head’s help, as most of the people implementing the changes work for him. Who should she be loyal to? How can she be successful? The “icky” politics of this is enough to get her to avoid the situation all together.
Does this situation sound familiar? Do you know anyone who is accountable for results where they have no direct authority and political agendas get in the way? Not you? Maybe a friend you know?
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Is the Opt Out Myth Officially Defeated?
Work-LifeRecently Pew Research released the results of a new study showing that career aspirations are increasing in women. According to the research, the importance women aged 18-34 placed on career aspiration increased by 10% between 1997 and 2011. Not only that, the importance of career aspirations to men aged 18-24 only increased by 1%. In fact, the study showed, more young women (66%) than men (59%) named “being successful in a high paying career or profession” as very important or one of the most important things to them.
And it’s not just young women. The importance of a high paying career to women aged 35 to 64 also rose significantly in the same time period – from 26% to 42%. That’s an even bigger leap than for younger women. Men of the same age group only saw a 2% increase in the importance of a high paying career.
The ambition gap is officially closed. But what’s really surprising is how much more quickly women’s ambition seems to be growing. Will companies be able to keep up with women’s soaring career goals? And now that we can clearly see that the importance women place on their career is equal to (surpassing, even) men at every age, can we finally lay the opt-out myth to rest?
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How to Talk about a Risky Career Move with Your Partner
Managing ChangeYou’ve just found out that you’re receiving a promotion—along with the extra hours that it entails. Or maybe you’ve been asked to join a new firm, or tackle an assignment abroad. While new career opportunities are cause for celebration, they can also raise complex work/life issues that need to be resolved with family members, particularly your partner or spouse.
Major job changes, while exciting, can also be risky—sometimes even more so for partners and other family members than for the person with the opportunity. Therefore, it can be difficult for ambitious women to announce to their significant other that they are considering a risky career move.
With a PhD in molecular medicine and leading a team of scientists, Teresa Bryan had been on the rise in the biotech industry. Yet she wanted to start a family-owned business. Because the change would entail giving up her current earning potential, as well as career growth and experience in her industry, Bryan was afraid such a drastic and high-risk career change would not be well-received by her husband. She describes the process that she went through in discussing the possibility with him:
“We found it best to talk things out and put all the pros and cons on the table. We also were sure to be completely honest with one another regarding expectations and pitfalls. We knew that we’d be losing a large source of income, likely need to delay having a child, have insanely busy work and travel schedules, and would need to drastically reduce our discretionary spending. But, we were also gaining the opportunity to be in control of our future—this was the most important benefit for us.”
Bryan says the most critical point was to get her husband on board with 100% buy-in to the commitment. “We agreed that this was the risk we wanted to take, and understood the implications,” says Bryan. “He was highly supportive since he realized the new career move was in the best interest for our family.”
Not everyone’s situation goes as smoothly as Bryan’s. What are the best strategies to handle this possible communication powder keg to ensure the best possible outcome for all involved? Read on.
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Voice of Experience: Palmina Fava, Partner, Litigation, and Co-Chair, Global Compliance and Disputes Practice, Paul Hastings
Voices of ExperienceAfter studying government and international relations at Georgetown, Palmina Fava knew she wanted a career with an international scope. “But I wasn’t sure what that would be,” she explained. “So I went to Fordham Law School, wanting very much to litigate cases, be in court, and be in front of Boards of Directors.”
When she began her career at DLA Piper, Fava continued, “I became much more involved in complex commercial matters and IP litigations. In preparing clients for trial and in going through the litigation process, I began understanding more about a client’s business and became much more involved in working with clients on corporate governance matters.”
“Then Enron and Sarbanes Oxley happened,” she said. “There was much more of a focus on corporate governance and business ethics, and my practice became international in scope.” Fava’s career began taking on the global focus she had always sought, and within a few years, about half of the investigations she handled took place abroad, involving anti-corruption issues.
“About two years ago, I moved to Paul Hastings to work with the Firm’s global compliance practice group.” As co-chair of the Global Compliance and Disputes practice, Fava says she is proud of the reputation she has been able to establish with top-level clients.
“I’ve been very blessed to work with and learn from amazing lawyers and clients. I’m proud of having gained the trust of Fortune 100 clients and proud when they tell me I’ve provided them with practical, business-savvy advice. They have a choice in what law firm and lawyer to use, and I’m very proud when I get that call, that they trust me to work with them on critical compliance and anti-corruption issues.”
She continued, “I’m working on a lot of interesting investigations outside of the US. And I find it’s important to understand the politics, the economics, and the cultural issues of the country in which your investigation is focused.”
“The perspective of the witness I’m interviewing is completely different, so coming at it from a US perspective is not as effective. I try to step outside my experiences and put myself in the shoes of the people whom I’m interviewing,” she explained.
She says she has also learned over the years that, while passion for an issue is important, it’s also important to create boundaries between her personal feelings and her work. “Being passionate about a client’s case doesn’t mean you need to be invested emotionally in it.”
She explained, “Taking a step back and investigating an issue or analyzing it as opposing counsel, a regulator, or a business person would makes you a better negotiator and advocate for your client.”
Read more