By Tina Vasquez (Los Angeles)
Verizon’s Jeannie Diefenderfer, Senior Vice President-Global Engineering and Planning for wireline business, has only been in her current role for eight months, but she already has a strong opinion concerning her favorite—and least favorite—aspects of her job. “The best part of my job thus far is accomplishing seemingly impossible and tough challenges through a group of people across organizations,” said the mother of two. “My least favorite is going to meetings with no real objectives or deliverables.” Being productive is a major concern for the Tufts University graduate, as she’s come a long way both in the world and professionally.
Diefenderfer is originally from Seoul, South Korea. At thirteen, she immigrated to the U.S. with her father and siblings, with no idea of what the future, let alone her career, would hold. “I don’t ever recall actually thinking about what I wanted to be when I grew up,” Diefenderfer said. “I had to learn a whole new language and culture as a teenager, so I think I was mostly focused on mastering the language and excelling in school, despite my obvious language barriers.”
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Voice of Experience: Ann Margaret Pointer, Partner, Fisher & Phillips LLP
Voices of ExperiencePointer, who has been practicing labor and employment law for 30 years, was guided to the specific area of practice while at the University of Virginia School of Law. “I said I wanted to do litigation in Atlanta, and a law school professor told me to try to get a job with I. Walter Fisher, who he said was the best management labor lawyer in the country.” She did indeed get that job and has been with the firm ever since.
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5 Tips for Executive Women Concerning Corporate Social Responsibility
Corporate SustainabilityThe days of make money at all costs are quickly disappearing. There is value to be built-in products and services that bring profit to society and the bottom line. As a busy executive woman and manager, you can use these five simple tips to incorporate social responsibility into your management style and, ultimately, your company’s culture:
Each time you have the opportunity to take part in developing a product, service or new strategy, ask the group what the implications of this ‘new effort’ are to the environment and to society. If there are risks to people or the planet, ask how it can be re-strategized or mitigated. You can cite examples of “socially responsible” efforts of other companies in your industry and make mention to any news articles or press releases on their website. You don’t have to have the answer, but simply raising the question may get others thinking. Read more
Ask-A-Career-Coach: How Long Do You Wait To Follow-up?
Ask A Career CoachI had an interview with a small financial services firm this week. I thought it went well and the interviewer (in this case, the owner) muttered that he would decide to hire me by the end of the day. 3 days have passed and I have not heard anything. He seemed like he would tell me either way. I really want the position and it seemed like we connected. How long do I wait before contacting him? What do you suggest I do or say?
While I normally advise waiting a business week before following up, if you know a decision is forthcoming much earlier or much later, then you follow up according to the timetable you know. In this case, since the owner (and clearly a key decision maker) said he was going to know by end of day, I would certainly call him after 3 days. I would have called him earlier in fact because he suggested he would have known earlier. Had he said that they were just starting the process and he was going to be on vacation next week, then you would need to wait till well after the vacation.
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Women on Corporate Boards: The New Economic Stimulus
NewsSince Catalyst first published the report “The Bottom Line: Connecting Corporate Performance and Gender Diversity” in 2004 showing a positive connection between women in top management positions and an organization’s bottom line, a number of financial institutions, law firms and Fortune 500 companies have introduced some kind of gender diversity program. However, when you look at how few women there are in the top spots today, and then you contemplate the magnitude of the financial crisis we have witnessed, it begs the question: what if there was greater diversity on the boards and management teams of our financial institutions and major corporations?
“Would we have avoided this [economic crisis]? No. [But] I do believe it would have been different,” says Jacki Zehner, a founding partner of private wealth management firm Circle Financial Group and a former partner at Goldman Sachs. ”
While we can’t change the past, we can re-examine how businesses operate going forward. As Shyama Venkateswar, Ph.D., Director of Research & Programs for the National Council for Research on Women, says of Wall Street, “It is so full of opportunities.”
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Voice of Experience: Carolyn N. Dolan, Founding Principal, Samson Capital Advisors
Voices of Experience“I wish I could say that I woke up one morning and decided to leave my social work profession to work in the investment management business,” says Carolyn N. Dolan, founding principal at New York-based Samson Capital Advisors. “But, in reality, the change was gradual and the piece that did not fit into my background and my academic strengths was the social work experience.”
Carolyn graduated from college in 1968 with a political science major and a math minor. She says that women then only had a handful options – teacher, administrative assistant, Peace Corps volunteer, airline stewardess, to name a few. “In my search for employment, I took a civil service test and wound up working for the State of New Jersey as a caseworker watching over the lives of children under the age of 18.”
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In Case You Missed It: Business News Round-up
NewsBernie Madoff’s right-hand man pleads guilty. Publicis beats Microsoft out on a bid to acquire Razorfish. Guidelines on bankers’ pay issued by UK and German regulators. These are but a few highlights of important market events that we’ve gathered to help you start the week well informed .
Economic Backdrop
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Queen of the City: Finery and Frills Versus Feminism
Queen of the CityWhile no one can deny that equality for women (and girls) is a desirable and thoroughly deserved destiny for us of the so-called weaker sex, there are some strident voices decrying the pink, princessy world that Disney,Toys‘R’Us and fictional romances line up for young girls from as young as three.
I am majestically perplexed: what’s wrong with being a Princess?
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Voice of Experience: Jeannie Diefenderfer, Senior Vice President-Global Engineering and Planning, Verizon
Voices of ExperienceVerizon’s Jeannie Diefenderfer, Senior Vice President-Global Engineering and Planning for wireline business, has only been in her current role for eight months, but she already has a strong opinion concerning her favorite—and least favorite—aspects of her job. “The best part of my job thus far is accomplishing seemingly impossible and tough challenges through a group of people across organizations,” said the mother of two. “My least favorite is going to meetings with no real objectives or deliverables.” Being productive is a major concern for the Tufts University graduate, as she’s come a long way both in the world and professionally.
Diefenderfer is originally from Seoul, South Korea. At thirteen, she immigrated to the U.S. with her father and siblings, with no idea of what the future, let alone her career, would hold. “I don’t ever recall actually thinking about what I wanted to be when I grew up,” Diefenderfer said. “I had to learn a whole new language and culture as a teenager, so I think I was mostly focused on mastering the language and excelling in school, despite my obvious language barriers.”
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Life in a Boutique Firm: Pros and Cons for Women in Fund Management
Featured, Industry Leaders, Leadershipby Elizabeth Harrin (London)
There’s more to fund management than the big players like Santander and Jupiter. Fixed income boutique firms might be smaller, but they are more agile and offer different career opportunities.
“In a boutique firm, people may find themselves wearing many hats,” says Carolyn Dolan, founding principal at New York-based Samson Capital Advisors. Samson is a fast growing money management firm designed to meet the special needs of affluent families, foundations, corporations and endowments. The firm currently manages over $5 billion. “This can be good as well as bad. It is good in that a person is exposed to various parts of the business. The negative is that one may have to worry about things that are taken for granted at a larger firm. For example, during the past two weeks I have worked closely with an attorney on the lease for our new space,” she adds.
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Ask-A-Career-Coach: How Do You Explain A Gap In Your Résumé?
Ask A Career CoachWhat do prospective employers really think when they see a gap in your résumé?
It depends on the length of the gap, the industry and function you are targeting, and how the gap compares to everything else in your marketing campaign.
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