Contributed by Liz Cornish, Leadership Coach and Keynote Speaker
It’s been a tough and frustrating year for financial professionals. Watching other smart, motivated people lose their jobs is sobering. Increased regulation is forcing many institutions that were playing by the rules to endure shrinking margins and panicked customers. It’s like being grounded because your sibling broke curfew. As the economy shifts and uncertainty prevails, what should women in finance do to ensure their own future?
First, congratulate yourself. You’re a motivated woman in the right industry. Sure, there will be changes and disruption, but finance is here to stay. As Patty Vantuhl of Bank of America noted, “There will always be a financial world. Names and players will change. But people will always need a way to store, access, invest, leverage and keep track of their money.” If you were in the newspaper publishing business, this would be a very different article.
So you’re in the right place, right career. Now what? What will it take to thrive in the new economy?
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Thriving with Breast Cancer
Intrepid Women Series“Thank god for hot flashes,” said Kim Michel, owner of Michel Financial Services firm in Los Angeles, “They very likely saved my life.”
Last year, just as Michel turned fifty, she began to be troubled by those telltale signs of menopause, and went to consult with a doctor about hormone replacement therapy. During that examination, the doctor felt something “very deep down” in her left breast. And although the annual mammogram and ultrasound she’d had just 30 days prior had disclosed nothing, the doctor wasn’t convinced, and sent her for an urgent MRI.
Just a couple of days later, the doctor called with the results. “He said, ‘You have four tumors on both sides.’ I was shocked, stunned,” said Michel.
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The Shape of Things to Come: The FWA’s Economic Forum Inaugural Event
Pipeline, What's OnBy Melissa J. Anderson (New York City)
“Most of the conferences I attend are 90 to 95 percent men,” said panelist Beth Ann Bovino, Senior Economist at Standard & Poor’s, to the audience of over a hundred women (and a few men) at the Financial Women’s Association Economic Forum, held on November 16th in New York City. Gina Martin Adams, Equity Strategist at Wells Fargo Securities; Dr. Sherry Cooper, Executive Vice President and Global Economic Strategist at BMO Capital Markets; and Ellen Beeson Zentner, Senior U.S. Macro Economist, The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. joined Bovino in sharing their thoughts on the shape of things to come in the recovery from the recent economic melt down.
Vanna Krantz, Chief Financial Officer for the Media Division of Thomson Reuters and moderator for the event, opened the evening with a rundown of this year’s major financial events: the financial collapse, AIG bailout, the government’s acquisition of a majority share in Citi, Bernie Madoff and other recent scandals, the stock market decline, loss of $12 trillion in capital – and her list went on. But Krantz emphasized that, rather than focus on the negative, she wanted to discuss the opportunities arising out of downturn.
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Voice of Experience: Ida Liu, Head of the Fashion, Retail and Consumer Group, Citi Private Bank
Voices of ExperienceIda Liu creates wealth management strategies for ultra high net worth individuals in her role as Head of the Fashion, Retail and Consumer Group at Citi Private Bank. From high finance to high fashion and back, her career path is a testament to following your passions and to keeping in touch with your contacts.
Born in California and raised in a Mandarin-speaking home by her Chinese parents, Liu said, “My father really is an inspiration to me. He instilled in me from a very young age a work ethic and the ability to work really hard, not give up. I saw him start a business and the can-do attitude and work ethic were instilled in me at a very young age, and still inspire me everyday.”
Liu graduated from Wellesley College with a dual major in Psychology and Chinese Studies, with a concentration in Economics and a passion for fashion. “I was one of six corporate buying interns at Neiman Marcus during my junior summer while at college and was offered a job to be an assistant buyer out of college but decided to take the investment banking route [after acing the on-campus interviews]. At the time, I thought that it would be easier for me to go into investment banking and then into fashion rather than the other way around.”
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Beyond Skills and Smarts: Thriving in the New Economy
Expert AnswersContributed by Liz Cornish, Leadership Coach and Keynote Speaker
It’s been a tough and frustrating year for financial professionals. Watching other smart, motivated people lose their jobs is sobering. Increased regulation is forcing many institutions that were playing by the rules to endure shrinking margins and panicked customers. It’s like being grounded because your sibling broke curfew. As the economy shifts and uncertainty prevails, what should women in finance do to ensure their own future?
First, congratulate yourself. You’re a motivated woman in the right industry. Sure, there will be changes and disruption, but finance is here to stay. As Patty Vantuhl of Bank of America noted, “There will always be a financial world. Names and players will change. But people will always need a way to store, access, invest, leverage and keep track of their money.” If you were in the newspaper publishing business, this would be a very different article.
So you’re in the right place, right career. Now what? What will it take to thrive in the new economy?
Read more
Ask-A-Career Coach: Is It Possible To Over-Prepare For An Interview?
Ask A Career CoachIn just this past week, several of my clients have sounded tired during our interview practice. I even got a very detailed response that was related to, but not quite exactly on point to what I had asked. These are hardworking jobseekers who I know are diligently working through the coaching assignments. Is it possible to over-prepare for interviews?
Most jobseekers don’t prepare enough. So don’t use this column as permission to slack off your search. You still need to research the company, industry and specific individuals you will be meeting. You still need to stay abreast of current events and be able to engage in timely discussions. You still need to have the 3-4 key message points that will present you in the best light and position you appropriately for the specific job at hand. So there is much work to do, and over-preparation is a rare problem. Read more
Do Women Create Their Own Glass Ceilings?
Breaking the Glass CeilingBy Liz O’Donnell (Boston)
A study from the University of New Mexico Anderson School of Management that shows women managers are three times more likely to underrate their bosses’ opinions of them has led to a flurry of articles and blog posts asking “Do women create their own glass ceilings?”.
The study looked at 251 female and male managers from a variety of industries nationwide. It asked the managers to rate themselves on leadership, communication ability, initiative, self-awareness, self-control, empathy, bond-building, teamwork, conflict management and trustworthiness. It also asked participants to predict how others would rate them and then compared the results with actual ratings from supervisors, peers and staff.
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Voice of Experience: Jan Floyd-Douglass
Voices of Experience“I’ve always been a cold contactor,” says Jan Floyd-Douglass, when I ask her how she landed her top city jobs at Zurich and Barclays. “I find it’s much better to circumnavigate all the job ads.”
Jan started out with two job offers on the table: Lloyds and Citicorp and back in the ’70s took the lower paid role because Citi created “a hum” inside of her. It turned out to be a good choice. Over her fourteen years with Citi, she had seven different roles, ultimately ending up as Resident Vice President for mortgage sales.
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In Case You Missed It: Business News Round-up
NewsContributed by Martin Mitchell of the Corporate Training Group.
The eurozone emerged from recession in the third quarter. U.S. senator Chris Dodd proposed consolidating the four agencies that inspect banks into a single regulator. The London Stock Exchange suffers an embarrassing technical outage. These are but a few highlights of important market events that we’ve gathered to help you start the week well informed.
Economic Backdrop
Retaining Technical Talent
Breaking the Glass CeilingBy Liz O’Donnell (Boston)
According to a recent report by the Anita Borg Institute (ABI) for Women in Technology, “Retaining a Diverse Technical Pipeline During and After a Recession,” top talent is at risk of disengagement during a recession and should be considered a high flight risk when the recovery starts. Dr. Caroline Simard, vice president of research and executive programs for the Anita Borg Institute and author of the study, cautions that while companies undergo cost-cutting measures to weather a downturn in the economy, they should protect the practices that support a healthy work/life balance. Otherwise, they may experience a spike in turnover when the economy improves.
It makes sense. Often the “survivors” of layoffs are burdened with more work and no extra pay, if not reduced pay, as employers cut staff in order to maintain profitability. The team that remains can experience significant stress from bigger workloads and longer hours. And at the same time that job demands increase, benefits and perks often disappear. While no more free coffee may be disappointing, no more flex time can put pressure on an employee trying to manage childcare, elder care or health issues as well as a career. And the loss of professional development programs such as training and mentoring can lead to cynicism and disengagement from once motivated employees. Simard says these conditions create “a perfect storm” and increase the likelihood that talent will leave once they get the chance.
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Pay Czar Cuts Comp: Can Women Help Correction?
NewsBy Liz O’Donnell (Boston)
The recent announcement that pay czar Kenneth Feinberg would cut executive compensation for the 25 most highly paid employees at seven Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) recipients (AIG, Bank of America, Citigroup, General Motors Co., GMAC Inc., Chrysler Group LLC and Chrysler Financial) drew strong opinions from Wall Street observers. Most industry insiders feel strongly in favor or against the move. Many believe it demonstrates an over confidence in government. This from a recent op-ed in The New York Times by David Brooks:
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