A wise expert on management coaching, John Keyser, asked me to pen some thoughts that might be helpful to women seeking leadership positions in business.   John is one of the guys who gets it; he knows that men are promoted because of their potential while women must prove themselves
over and over to be promoted.  The research group Catalyst has confirmed this in their studies.

Much has been studied and shared about women’s leadership and the lessons that must be embraced for success.  Here are some helpful ideas for women to consider for advancement in the work place:

1. Get ‘investors’ behind you.  Find people who will go to bat for you and ask them to think of you for projects, committees, speaking opportunities, etc.  Ideally this would be a senior ranking male in your firm who knows your skills and will comfortably recommend you for projects and promotions.    Men will often say to a CEO; “I want to work for you”.  Women need to be bold and say the same. 
2. Share your wins.  As a general rule, women are averse to ‘bragging’ yet this often means they are overlooked for promotions as their accomplishments are not showcased or not known by the leadership.  After leading your team to completion of a successful project, write a thank you to all members of your team, with a cc to the CEO, that details these accomplishments.   Then the CEO will have clear data on your work and efforts. 
3. Raise your hand.  Find out what associations are applicable for your industry or sector -- where the leaders you admire are involved.  Join these groups and volunteer for committees.  The chairs of these committees are well respected and connected individuals and will notice the work of a good committee member.  Their recommendation of you for a position will be well received. 
4. Be your best friend… and saleswoman.  I am often in awe of how men introduce themselves compared to a woman’s modesty.  Humility works for sure but women must make sure they don’t discount what they have accomplished.  Try an introduction that truly summarizes the breadth of your work; “I am an  entrepreneur who has built four successful businesses including a real estate company, a health care practice, a consulting practice, and a national nonprofit organization.  All of my work incorporates women’s empowerment around their bodies, leadership, money, and the true ownership of power.”
5. Report to a Board that looks like you.   If you hear the leadership say, we can’t find any women for our Board, refer them to this smart list of resources.

 

So - with the energy and passion that hopefully pervades the work of the organization and its leadership, come on out and tell your stories - then true Fun Raising can happen and campaigns can be launched.  Feel free to read another blog I wrote on this from a philanthropist's perspective. 

 

 

What is at the core of your giving?  What factors motivate your decision making?  What is it that you would need to be more strategic in your philanthropy?  These are questions that help build a foundation for conversations around personal giving.  Before one can truly understand the impact or focus of any gift, it is helpful to distinguish between the types of organizations the gift supports.  There is a significant difference in the characteristics of “Charity” versus “Social Change” Philanthropy and understanding these differences may make a difference in deciding the type of organization your gift supports:   

Charity Philanthropy                                               Social Change Philanthropy
Short-term fixes                                                          Long-term solutions
Social services                                                             Social change
Reactive                                                                      Proactive
Individual responses                                                    Collective, organized responses
Dependent communities                                             Empowered, independent communities

This distinction is important as it helps people understand and ‘name’ the focus of their giving and whether they wish to address systemic or structural issues of discrimination, access, or equity through changing society or more immediately help those that are the victims of such issues.   No matter what type of work a donor chooses to support, there should be an assessment of the effectiveness of the organization, always seeking to support the human talent and capacity of organizations that make the bold changes happen.

Women’s funds have been at the forefront of social change philanthropy for decades.  The Women’s Funding Network (WFN) is the largest women’s philanthropic collaborative network in the world and lifts up the work of more than 150 women’s funds.   WFN has been a global champion for the investment in women led solutions to the most critical issues; economic security, access to education and health care, and freedom from violence.   Successful programs of WFN focus on leadership capacity, outcome measurement, and philanthropic engagement with the most public of these efforts being the recent Women Moving Millions campaign.  A recent study by the Foundation Center demonstrated that women’s funds have been delivering impact through effective coalition building and a bottom up / top down strategy.  The report also shared the work of women’s funds as leaders in the democratization of philanthropy and as social innovators working across sectors..

Now we are on the brink of a sea change as philanthropists begin to focus on investing in women as a solution to resolving or healing key issues in communities and society. Innovative and determined women’s funds  have led such smart investing for the past 30 years and are thrilled to have more folks joining the movement.  We welcome the social change investment to be directed towards women’s funds – a proven model that works.  To learn more about where a women’s fund may be near to your philanthropic focus, please visit the Women's Funding Network.  

This post is shared with gratitude to the smart women from Wellesley who did this fabulous summary of what is happening at the International Women's Sports conference we are attending.  I had dinner with Sarah and Lindsay last night and enjoyed their quick minds and passion! Here is their post which lives on the blog - FairGameNews.com

By Sarah Odell and Lindsay Rico

Have you ever considered access to athletics a human right? Do you wonder why it it matters for women to play sports? And, what the heck is Netball?

These are a few of the questions being put forth at the Fifth World Conference on Women & Sport. Some 500 people from 60 countries have made their way Down Under to Sydney, Australia to examine the implications — and complications — facing the worldwide women’s athletic community.

The four-day conference is raising challenging issues, but there is already one overwhelming response: Women’s access to sports is more than just a game.  FairGameNews.com is on site and blogging (watch for Q&A’s with key leaders coming up).

While female athletes (and would-be female athletes) may face particular barriers in their home nations, it is striking how much about the nature of the struggle for access, equity, and support are common across the globe. Some big themes:

– SPORT IS POWER: Women’s access to sport is not just a privilege, but  a right. This has been recognized in official declarations for years, but increasingly, this is not just about fitness, health, and the right to control one’s body, but about the political, economic and social tools that come as part of involvement in sports and sports culture.

– EQUITY IN SPORT IS A PUBLIC MATTER: Governments DO have an interest and a role to play in seeking — even regulating — gender equity in sports, several presenters have suggested. And one — Kate Ellis, Australian Minister of Sport — is actually taking action. She announced at the conference that her government would track and publish the gender make-up of sports governing boards and compile a Women in Sport Register to counter men who say they can’t find any qualified women to fill leadership roles. “If it’s really that hard for sport to go out there and find these women, then I’m prepared to work with them to do it,” she said.

– WOMEN’S SPORTS ARE MISSING FROM THE MEDIA: Female athletes around the globe are poorly covered and represented in the print and TV coverage (several studies showed a reproducibly predictable breakdown or representation: 80% men; 10% women; 10% other – horse racing typically gets more coverage than women, several speakers noted). What’s more, researchers say it hasn’t gotten any better in the past 30 years. As a result, said Toni Bruce, PhD, “we are teaching girls to be happy watching boys [play sports] and  teaching boys that they don’t have to watch girls [play sports].”