Contributed by Jo Miller, CEO, Women’s Leadership Coaching
During a recent women’s leadership webinar, I asked Krista Thomas, Vice President, Marketing and Communications for The Calais Initiative at Thomson Reuters, how a person should determine what their organization needs in these challenging economic times. In addition to answering the question, she addressed a more intriguing issue – how to provide visionary leadership during challenging economic times:
1. Don’t keep your head down / check in often
“You really can make a mistake by keeping your head down and staying quiet, because sometimes you get caught up in a stream of activity that really isn’t core or strategic to your company,” said Thomas.
“My policy is to check in often,” she added, “Make sure that the goals and the metrics that you’re measuring are still priority number one in executing on your goals for the company. Also, don’t be afraid to raise your hand, go personally to your management, and really make sure you’re still on target.”
2. Be adaptive and go with the flow
“It can be tempting in troubling times like this to get flustered and frustrated and be upset when things go off-plan, or when the plan changes. You may not necessarily always be in the loop. If you’re not at that senior level, you may not know when some of the strategies change, which can happen in real time.”
She continued, “The key is to be able to be flexible, to demonstrate your ability to not get stuck in the old thinking when the thinking has changed. Check in, know what’s going on, know where others’ thoughts are going, and show that flexibility. Show your adaptability and ability to go with the flow.”
3. Move toward the next opportunity
“Things are going to be chaotic, especially in this economy. We saw this when ‘Web 1.0’ imploded all around us. The way to survive was to look for the next opportunity and walk towards that as opposed to being afraid,” she explained.
4. Create an environment of calmness and creativity
In a final point, Thomas emphasized the importance of generating new ideas. “Nothing is more helpful in a difficult time than creativity. If you’ve got creativity and you can bring problem solving or people skills, you’ll help mitigate other people on the team being upset. If you’re one of those people who can come in and calm people down, and get them re-focused on new priorities, you’re very valuable right now.”
Since 1998 Jo Miller, CEO of Women’s Leadership Coaching, has developed and implemented coaching programs that have benefited women worldwide. Jo created the Women’s Leadership Coaching Inc. leadership coaching system, and has logged many thousands of hours coaching women who are in executive and management positions, or aspire to be. She was named one of Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal’s 40 people to watch under the age of 40 in 2006, and one of Silicon Valley’s Women of Influence in 2008.
Playing the Corporate Chess Game: Mastering Strategies for Career Success
Office PoliticsSuccess strategies in the corporate world bear a surprising resemblance to those employed in the game of chess. There’s a reason for this: corporate contexts and chess share certain commonalities. Both are games of strategy and patience, of mental dexterity over physical strength, and combine offensive and defensive measures to achieve the desired outcome. In other words, they’re both “mind” games, which require the employment of strategic efforts for advancement and winning. These strategic efforts are often described as “corporate chess.”
Such strategies are of particular importance to the career development of professional women of color, because they have made markedly less progress in the workplace than their ethnic male and white female counterparts. According to Catalyst, women are 15.7% of corporate officers, but only 2% of them are women of color.
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Four Tips for Becoming a Visionary in Challenging Times
Expert AnswersDuring a recent women’s leadership webinar, I asked Krista Thomas, Vice President, Marketing and Communications for The Calais Initiative at Thomson Reuters, how a person should determine what their organization needs in these challenging economic times. In addition to answering the question, she addressed a more intriguing issue – how to provide visionary leadership during challenging economic times:
1. Don’t keep your head down / check in often
“You really can make a mistake by keeping your head down and staying quiet, because sometimes you get caught up in a stream of activity that really isn’t core or strategic to your company,” said Thomas.
“My policy is to check in often,” she added, “Make sure that the goals and the metrics that you’re measuring are still priority number one in executing on your goals for the company. Also, don’t be afraid to raise your hand, go personally to your management, and really make sure you’re still on target.”
2. Be adaptive and go with the flow
“It can be tempting in troubling times like this to get flustered and frustrated and be upset when things go off-plan, or when the plan changes. You may not necessarily always be in the loop. If you’re not at that senior level, you may not know when some of the strategies change, which can happen in real time.”
She continued, “The key is to be able to be flexible, to demonstrate your ability to not get stuck in the old thinking when the thinking has changed. Check in, know what’s going on, know where others’ thoughts are going, and show that flexibility. Show your adaptability and ability to go with the flow.”
3. Move toward the next opportunity
“Things are going to be chaotic, especially in this economy. We saw this when ‘Web 1.0’ imploded all around us. The way to survive was to look for the next opportunity and walk towards that as opposed to being afraid,” she explained.
4. Create an environment of calmness and creativity
In a final point, Thomas emphasized the importance of generating new ideas. “Nothing is more helpful in a difficult time than creativity. If you’ve got creativity and you can bring problem solving or people skills, you’ll help mitigate other people on the team being upset. If you’re one of those people who can come in and calm people down, and get them re-focused on new priorities, you’re very valuable right now.”
Since 1998 Jo Miller, CEO of Women’s Leadership Coaching, has developed and implemented coaching programs that have benefited women worldwide. Jo created the Women’s Leadership Coaching Inc. leadership coaching system, and has logged many thousands of hours coaching women who are in executive and management positions, or aspire to be. She was named one of Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal’s 40 people to watch under the age of 40 in 2006, and one of Silicon Valley’s Women of Influence in 2008.
Ask-A-Career-Coach: How Do You Maintain Career Momentum?
Ask A Career CoachA lot of jobseekers get caught up following one lead at a time. Then, if that lead doesn’t work out, their job search starts from the very beginning all over again. For employed jobseekers, this same phenomenon is present with people who focus solely on their current role without maintaining ties to other departments, to colleagues outside the company or to colleagues in different industries. Then, if something happens to that current job, the once gainfully employed person is caught unawares. In both cases, there is a loss of momentum that negatively impacts the job search and career. Here’s how to maintain career momentum:
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Law Firm Gender Diversity Efforts Not Enough to Ensure Meaningful Inclusion of Women of Color
Featured, NewsAs we’ve previously reported, women in law firms have traditionally lacked the advancement opportunities their male counterparts enjoy due to inadequate access to plum assignments, a dearth of sponsors and mentors, and competing demands of work and family life. In recent years, progressive firms have taken an aggressive stance, establishing women’s initiatives and internal policies in an effort to level the playing field for female attorneys in the firms. But, according to Catalyst’s study released last week, while those efforts have, in fact, improved the conditions for women in general, these efforts have been significantly less successful in improving the development, advancement and retention of women of color.
According to Kathy Giscombe, Ph.D., Vice President, Women of Color Research at Catalyst, “The study shows that women of color feel very excluded within the environment of the law firms.” As a result, women of color are leaving their law firms en masse –75% of women of color associates leave their firm by the 5th year of practice, with that number jumping to 86% by the 7th year, as per the American Bar Association figures referenced in the report.
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Voice of Experience: Lynne Doughtie, National Managing Partner for Advisory Services, KPMG
People, Voices of ExperienceRead more
In Case You Missed It: Business News Round-up
NewsIn case you were too busy to have kept up with all the news, contributor Martin Mitchell has gathered some important market events from last week to help you start this week well informed:
Economic Backdrop
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Queen of the City: The Equality Bill as the Bright Spot (Other Than the Weather) Amidst all the Doom and Gloom
Queen of the CityYeah, we used to have Dress Down Fridays, but these days it’s as likely to see a banker in casuals as it is to catch sight of a Dodo – the world’s a much less relaxed place, especially in the financial district. Sartorially, it’s much more Brooks Brothers than Gap, and the more somber, the better, too. As a barometer of the money world’s health and happiness, the more uptight the dressing, the worse things are. So it seems that the City’s mixing its messages: we’re all told that the Worst Is Over, but the attire is sending a different message entirely.
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Women in Law Firms: Stuck in the Middle
NewsFifty-one percent of the U.S. population is female and women have been graduating from law school at the same rate as men for at least 25 years. But when you look at the number of women partners in law firms, the 50/50 split no longer holds.
Certainly the number of female lawyers, and even partners, are growing, but still only one in five big-firm partners are women according to The American Lawyer’s first Women in Law Firms study. Several firms in the study — Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton; Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison; and Ropes & Gray—are close to having a 50/50 gender split of lawyers. However, the study reports the greatest numbers of female lawyers are still at the associate level.
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Top 10 Professional Networks for Women in Finance
NetworkingBy Marian Schembari (New York City)
The great thing about being a woman in a man’s world is that it brings us closer together. The glass ceiling is difficult and annoying, but women in finance are so scarce that the connections made with each other are usually strong and supportive.
This is why we at The Glass Hammer have put together a list of great associations specifically designed for the ever-so-inspiring women who have taken on the financial world. Some with chapters around the world, others entirely based on the web, we give you (in no particular order) the top 10 networks for women in finance:
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5 Ways To Make Mondays Better
Expert AnswersDo you dread Mondays? Is it always a hassle to get out of bed after the weekend and drag yourself to the office? It doesn’t have to be like that, says Roxanne Emmerich, CEO of Emmerich Financial, a consulting firm specialising in community banks. She has a stack of tips in her new book, Thank God it’s Monday! Here are The Glass Hammer’s favourites, designed to help you start the week with a spring in your step.
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