The Emerging Women Leaders Webinar Series is a year-long, six-part series of webinars blending leadership skills training with advice from guest speakers who are senior-level leaders.

In every webinar,
• Hear outstanding women leaders share their top career and leadership tips.
• Add to your toolkit of leadership skills.
• Learn proven strategies to advance your career.

Program Schedule
 1. Dealing with Difficult Conversations at Work, 2/26
 2. Building an Influential Brand with Social Media, 4/30
 3. Leading Meetings, 6/18
 4. Breakout Career Moves, 8/27
 5. Take Charge of Your Career Trajectory, 10/29
 6. Ask a Male Executive 12/3

 

Guest speakers include

• Betty Chan-Bauza, Vice President, Product Management, Identity Theft 911
• Erin Chapple, Group Program Manager, Microsoft
• Margaret Resce Milkint, Managing Partner, The Jacobson Group
• Luann Pendy, Vice President, Global Quality, Medtronic
• Sara Sperling, Head of Diversity, Facebook
• Donnell Green, Global Head of Talent Management, BlackRock
• David Head, SVP, Customer Segment Executive, Employee Banking and Investments at Bank of America
• John L. Hall, Senior Vice President, Oracle University

   
Cost
Single log-in for the 6-part series, $188

Corporate partner registration of 50 log-ins, $2,698

 

REGISTER NOW

Working Effectively in a Virtual Workforce

By Jo Miller.

Does your job require you to work with virtual team-members? Most professional careers now do. How well you perform depends on your ability to collaborate effectively with colleagues who aren’t in the same building or even the same state or country. You can’t afford to focus on working effectively with only those team members that you see face to face.

In the webinar, Working with Virtual and Global Teams, I interviewed Marie Pettinos on what it takes to thrive as a team-member in a global, virtual, and highly diverse workforce. Currently Senior Director of Strategic Business Management at Siemens Healthcare, Pettinos grew up splitting her time between New York and Ireland. She has since worked in Japan, England, and India.

Her role now requires her to lead globally distributed teams that she coaches to break out of their geographic silos and build trust, alignment, and accountability in their virtual workplace relationships. Here are what she considers to be the critical skills for being effective as a team-member in a virtual workforce.

Start from a position of trust
“In the past, I have had team-members take an exception to working with virtual peers”, said Pettinos. “They would ask, “How do we know they’re really working? How do I know that they’re putting as much time into this as I am?”

“The most critical skill is to start from a position of trust,” she advised. “You have to trust that all team members are aligned and working with you on the same objective. Assume that they are there and that they are working. Whether they’re sitting at their desk or sitting on their bed or wherever they’re doing it, they’re actually working.”

Engage remote employees
Whether you are leading a meeting, leading a group or participating as a team member, you need to engage remote employees. “It often happens that there are teams partially collected in a remote location,” observed Pettinos. “Engage those remote people, first and foremost. Make sure they know that they’re part of the team.”

Effective facilitation of virtual meetings requires being very inclusive. “Start by asking for participation from the people on the phone”, she suggested. “Be very aware, if you’re leading the discussion, to direct your conversation towards the microphone. You’ve probably seen examples where people turn away to look at a whiteboard or screen and without realizing that people on the phone can’t hear them.”

Don’t forget to compensate for your own cultural biases. “Pause and wait for input. In certain cultures within the United States and elsewhere, we’re very quick to talk over somebody to make sure we get our point heard,” Pettinos pointed out. “In some cultures, to be respectful of people’s space and time, they’ll let you finish the sentence before they jump in. Allow people to contribute.”

And don’t always presume that the meeting should be held at your convenience. Pettinos recommends being highly sensitive to time zones. “Be flexible. Compromise, and make sure you’re really inclusive of everybody.”

Treat everybody like they are in the room
Finally, your objective as a team-member is to create an atmosphere where everyone can contribute and collaborate fully. “To put everyone on a level playing field, act like everybody is in the room, and that everybody is a key player,” Pettinos added. “Once you do that, you can set the stage for effective collaboration.”

Marie Pettinos was guest speaker in the webinar Working with Virtual and Global Teams, part of the Emerging Women Leaders webinar series. 

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From the Article Archive: Making the Most of Mentoring

Question: Is it okay to have more than one mentor?

Answer:

Absolutely. Most successful women leaders will advise you to have more than one.

Sandy Postel is an award-winning leader who will advise you to seek out a diverse slate of mentors. Postel retired last year from her position as Vice President of Manufacturing, Quality, and Boeing Production Systems for Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Postel has been recognized as a Society of Women Engineers (SWE) Fellow in 2009, is recipient of SWE’s Upward Mobility Award, and was recently was named SAE’s J. Cordell Breed winner for outstanding woman leader in the mobility industry.

So what does an award-winning leader advise?

“One mentor is useful but you should have a whole portfolio of mentors. It’s like your personal board of directors” explained Postel, who is frequently called upon to deliver speeches on career-related issues.

Postel has refined a list of what to look for in a mentor. “There are really four different roles for mentors”, she said, referring to the roles of Coach, Appraiser, Advisor and Referral Agent, as described by Caela Farren in the book Career Spark for Managers.

1) The Coach

The first type of mentor is the coach.

According to Postel, this is “someone who’s probably not in your line of management but who really wants to see you improve your skills, encourages you, and helps to unlock organizational secrets for you.”

“Sometimes it is a peer”, she added. “Sometimes, it’s a one-time deal, for example, if somebody talked to you about a specific assignment or opportunity, or to coach you through a specific event. Or you may have a coach just on one dimension of your development plan, for instance if you needed to develop your public speaking skills.”

2) The Appraiser

“An appraiser observes your performance first-hand and speaks honestly with you about your performance versus your potential”, Postel explains.

Most commonly an appraiser is a person’s manager; however, Postel is quick to point out “… it could be a customer who is very familiar with the work you do, or it could be a colleague or a group of colleagues that you spend the most time with.”

Most companies have an annual performance management process, though some managers are better at performance management than others. According to Postel, the onus may fall on an employee to encourage their manager to become a better appraiser. “You really need to pull out the honesty, even if your boss isn’t very good at it, and find what he or she thinks about your potential, versus your performance.”

3) The Advisor

An advisor helps you to understand what the business needs are and assess what portfolio of skills you require to advance within that business environment.

Postel views this as an ideal role for senior executive mentors to fill, through participation in formal company mentoring initiatives, and says “This person tells you about the career path in your company and talks about risk and how the company perceives what risks you take. 

Advisors can assess your plan. This is a role that senior executives can play because while they may not observe your performance first-hand, they can certainly give you the lay of the land and describe what the company is about.”

4) The Referral Agent

“The last one is a referral agent and that’s the person who can create connections”, said Postel. “People come to a referral agent to find out how to navigate or to get information. They’ll help coach you around your development plans and your approach for getting training and the new assignments. For instance, people whose performance I did not know well used to come to me and say, “I want to get experience in new product development. Who can I talk to, to get started?”

Postel would act as a referral agent, advising mentees on who they should talk to and introducing them to leaders in her network who could answer their questions in thirty minute informational meetings.

She concluded “A referral agent’s role is valuable to you because it extends your network. It is also important to the company as its mentors and leaders are passing good people’s names to other leaders. It’s a real win-win and it makes for a great collegial environment to make the most of talent in the organization.”

Sandra Postel was a guest speaker in the webinar, Making the Most of Mentoring, part of the Emerging Women Leaders Webinar Series.

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2013 Emerging Women Leaders Webinar Series: Now open for registration

We're excited to announce a stellar line-up of new topics and speakers for our 2013 Emerging Women Leaders Webinar Series. The year-long, six-part series of webinars blends leadership skills training with advice from guest speakers who are senior-level women leaders.

In every webinar, you will: 

• Hear outstanding women leaders share their top career and leadership tips
• Add to your toolkit of leadership skills 
• Learn proven strategies to advance your career.

A one-year subscription gives you access to six new webinars and to a library of over 30 recorded webinars on demand--all featuring top women executives sharing the secrets to their success.

Register now

2013 WEBINAR SCHEDULE

Tuesday, February 26, 2013 | Dealing with Difficult Conversations at Work
There will almost certainly be a time when you need to have a difficult conversation with a subordinate, a peer, or even your boss. The stakes can be high. Are you fully prepared? In this webinar, we'll cover real-life examples, do's and don'ts, and communication tools for handling tough conversations gracefully and effectively.

Guest Speakers:

Betty Chan-BauzaVice President, Product Management,
Identity Theft 911

 
Erin Chapple,
Group Program Manager,
Microsoft
    


April 30, 2013 | Building an Influential Brand with Social Media
Guest speakers: Liz Brenner, Senior Director of Talent Marketing, SAP and Margaret Resce Milkint, Managing Partner, The Jacobson Group.

June 18, 2013 | Leading Meetings
Guest speaker: Luann Pendy, Vice President, Global Quality, Medtronic.

August 27, 2013 | Breakout Career Moves
Guest speakers: Nehal Mehta, Director QA, NetApp and Sara Sperling, Head of Diversity, Facebook.

October 29, 2013 | Take Charge of Your Career Trajectory
Guest speakers: Donnell Green, Global Head of Talent Management, BlackRock and Caroline Simard, PhD, Associate Director, Diversity and Leadership, Stanford School of Medicine.
 
December 3, 2013 | Ask a Male Executive
Guest speakers: David Head, Senior Vice President, Customer Segment Executive, Employee Banking and Investments at Bank of America and John L. Hall, Senior Vice President, Oracle University.

Members, log in now to reserve your space.
Not yet a member? Join now for access to the webinar on February 26.

Five Ways to Accelerate Your Career Advancement in 2013

It is every up-and-coming leader’s dilemma: You can’t get a leadership job without experience, but you can’t get leadership experience without the job. If you aspire to advance into a role with greater responsibility, you really can’t afford to wait to receive an invitation to lead. You also can’t afford to wait for someone to hand you a promotion.

Being proactive in how you manage your career takes more than setting goals and working hard, so I took a look back through my ‘Ask Jo’ articles from the past eighteen months, searching for a handful of career-advancement strategies that will give you an edge. Here are five top tips for steering your career toward advancement in 2013.

1. Stop ignoring office politics

In an article titled Seven Career Killers, careers author Erin Burt points out that refusing to engage in office politics can be a career-killing move. “Avoiding politics altogether can be deadly for your career. Like it or not, every workplace has an intricate system of power, and you can — and should — work it ethically to your best advantage. To get a promotion, avoid downsizing or get a project approved, you need co-worker support.”

Nina Simosko, Senior Vice President of SAP’s Global Premier Customer Network, agrees, “Politics are a reality and one must not ignore them or do so at their own peril. I am not a fan of politics, but I have learned that ignoring them can have negative consequences. So, I do believe that we all must understand the nature of the politics within our respective companies and participate to the extent necessary.”

Instead of ignoring office politics, become a savvy observer of the communication and relationships that surround you in your organization. Pay attention to how people interact with each other in meetings, in the hallways, at lunch, or virtually. Seek out those who have influence. I call this skill “organizational savvy,” and it is also the most important skill for navigating office politics in a positive and effective way.  Read more about developing organizational savvy in Why You Can’t Afford to Ignore Office Politics.

2. Re-brand yourself

Have you allowed others to define your reputation? Everyone has a certain reputation or “brand” that they are known for in their workplace, however for most people that brand is created by default, not by design.

Re-branding yourself starts with understanding your current brand. What reputation are you currently known for? What do others say about you? It’s important to know, because then you can choose to embrace that perception and build on it, or take steps to change how you are perceived. Get a baseline to understand the existing brand that you are known for. Ask managers, mentors, trusted colleagues or HR partners to describe how you are currently perceived by others.

Identify the new brand you want to be known for, and create a short, concise brand statement that describes what you want to be known for, and align your communication and actions with the brand you want to be known for. Read about the three steps to take in How to re-brand yourself for a big leap forward in your career.

3. Build a diversified network of sponsors

A study published in 2011 by the Center for Work-Life Policy found that people who have sponsors are more satisfied with their advancement and are more likely to have access to stretch assignments than those who do not have sponsors.

Think about the next job you would like to have. When that opportunity opens up will it be your name that is mentioned? Don’t rely on mentoring alone to get you there. In addition to having mentors, line up a diversified network of influential advocates and educate them about your value and your career goals.

Michelle Johnston, General Manager of Channel Platforms and Strategy with Intel, recommends having more than one sponsor. “I would recommend that everyone needs to have three to four advocates outside of their direct management chain. You need to build networks so that you have people who are looking for opportunities for you.” Read more about the critical difference sponsors can make, in Sponsors: A Key to Career Advancement.

4. Say “no” to stretch assignments

In a webinar for women in the energy industry, I interviewed a partner in a consulting firm who stated categorically, “I wouldn’t be in the position I am if I hadn’t had the courage to step into leading activities that were not in my area of expertise.”

But despite all the benefits of volunteering for stretch assignments, there are times when the extra workload can work against you. How is it that some women use these opportunities to make a big leap forward in their career, while others just burn out? The key is to be highly selective. If you are going to take on responsibilities outside the bounds of your job description (and I hope that you do), you must choose strategically.

One common career misstep that many women make is accepting too many low-visibility assignments which require them to work long hours without gaining the benefits of recognition and skills growth that a true ‘stretch assignment’ would bring. Here’s a checklist for evaluating whether a stretch assignment will move your career forward (or not!), in When to say “no” to stretch assignments.

5. Put yourself forward to be developed as a leader

I have known many women who were smart and hardworking, but nonetheless believed that if they just worked hard enough for long enough, someone from management would eventually stop by, hand them a promotion and say, “You’re a leader now!”

“Don’t be shy or hesitant about putting yourself forward as someone who’s interested in being developed as a leader” said a corporate secretary in the energy industry. She added, “Sometimes, there’s not a formal way to do that in your organization, so be sure to communicate that to people that you work with. Let them know that you see yourself as someone who has that potential and interest to develop in that area. Waiting for something to happen to you may well bring disappointment.”

You can’t afford to wait for someone to come along and develop you as a leader. Don’t wait for permission or an invitation to move beyond your current role or take on more responsibility. Read more tips on taking charge of your career in Own Your Career: Six Ways to Take Charge of Your Career Trajectory.

Jo Miller is CEO of Women’s Leadership Coaching, Inc. Join Jo for her Emerging Women Leaders Webinar Series beginning February 26, 2013. 

From the Article Archive: Getting the Lay of the Land in a New Role

What is the best way to navigate a role-change to a new team at a large company?

During a leadership webinar, Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, Senior Vice President and Chief Tax Officer of the Wal-Mart Tax Department, shared with me the importance of quickly getting the lay of the land when coming into a new position. She explained, “The first step that I take when taking on a new assignment or a new project is what I call ‘surveying the landscape.’ I study my surroundings, and I try to understand the people and processes that drive value in that particular area.”

Here's how to quickly survey the landscape when you start a new role.

1. Find someone with organizational savvy

Find someone who is well-regarded and well-networked in your new group and ask if you can schedule some time to speak them. It could be your new manager or someone who appears to have some influence in your new group. Let them know you appreciate how knowledgeable and well-connected they are, and that you would appreciate their advice as you begin your new role. Review the org chart with them. Ask:

• Who are the key stakeholders I should get to know?
• Who should I introduce myself to?
• What questions should I ask them?

Create a checklist of names and create a plan to connect with each person in your first months in the job.

2. Become the go-to-person

Before you set out to meet those key people, develop a 30-second commercial that concisely explains your role, your responsibilities, and how you can be of help. Share it at every opportunity as a way of educating others about your role, and the reasons why they should come to you. Use it to introduce yourself to all the key people, asking how you can help each other and listen for tips on how you can make the greatest impact in your role. Here is a format to use:

 

a)    Your name

 

b)    Your new job title

 

c)    I am responsible for… (share three concise bullet points that describe your role)

 

d)    Come directly to me whenever you need… (share three more concise bullet points that describe the reasons why they should come to you.

 

Seize every opportunity to introduce yourself in this way so that you can educate others about your new role, the value that you add, and why they should come to you.

3. Embark on a listening tour

Start your new role with a “listening tour” by connecting with every individual on your list of key stakeholders. The purpose is not just to introduce yourself, but to have a meaningful and educational discussion with each one of them in your first month in the job.

Your goal is more than just getting introduced. In each conversation you will most definitely need to introduce yourself and your role, and ask them to do the same. Discuss the ways that you can help each other, but also listen for additional information that is going to help you uncover who people and processes are that really drive value. Gather intelligence on the following categories:

a) Informational powerhouses

Try to discover who the “informational powerhouses” are: those individuals who keep a finger on the pulse of what is going on in the organization, the industry, and the broader business environment. By knowing who to go to for historical data and emerging trends, you will find yourself empowered to make better business decisions more quickly.

b) Influencers

Listen for who the key people of influence are: those who have an enhanced ability to lead change and make things happen. They are not necessarily found in high-level or high profile positions, so pay attention to who holds influence regardless of their job title.

Notice which way influence flows in the relationships surrounding you in your new team. Is influence flowing in the traditional top-down manner? Are there people who are equally able to influence each other? Are there any of those rare individuals who have the ability to “manage upward” who are influencing their management?

c) Coalitions

Look out for groups of people who have formed groups that work together effectively, and are freely share information, resources, and opportunities. Ask yourself, “What do they have in common? What is the social glue that binds this group together?”  This will give you clues on how to work more effectively with those groups and individuals.

By taking time to build relationships, listen, and get "the lay of the land", you will pick up momentum and add value in your new role much more rapidly than if you spend all of your time mastering the technical aspects of your role.

 

Claire Babineaux-Fontenot was a guest speaker in the webinar, Are You The Invisible Employee?, part of the Emerging Women Leaders webinar series.

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From the Article Archive: How to Build a Leadership Brand that Your Company Values

Your ideal leadership brand is one that utilizes your talents, feeds your passions, and delivers a service that is needed and wanted by your company.

Titina Ott is Vice President of Organizational Effectiveness with a leading global software corporation, and founder of their corporate women’s initiative. Ott’s advice to any woman hoping to build a dynamic leadership brand is to understand what you are passionate about, understand how that aligns with your company’s objectives, and clearly articulate it to your manager.
 
Understand what you are passionate about 
When describing her leadership brand, Ott said, “Throughout my career, I have always been known as the go-to person. They would say, ‘Give it to Titina—she will find a solution.’ I was known for my ability to work in high-pressure, short-term situations, building something new from the ground up. When the solution was in place, I would move on.”

Ott reached a point in her career seven years ago where she began to ask herself what it really meant, to be a leader. “For me, leadership is all about finding the possibilities in others,” she said. This insight would eventually lead to her current role, overseeing global strategy to improve employee engagement and to strengthen alignment of talent to business strategy for over 14,000 employees.
 
“My brand now includes helping others find their possibilities,” she said, demonstrating her passion for developing and enabling others. This is evident not only in her role but also in her drive to create a women’s leadership initiative that cultivates and retains her company’s female talent.
 
Articulate how your passions align with your company’s objectives
It is vital in recessionary times to build a brand that demonstrates how you are adding value to your company. Ott believes it is important that every employee is able to create a direct “line of sight” between what they do each day to their organization’s bottom line. She designs and leads webinars for employees on how to do this.
 
Her step-by-step approach is as follows:

1. Understand your company’s vision, goals, and value proposition. These can be found on your company’s web site.
2. Understand the goals for your line of business by asking your manager.
3. Understand your team’s goals, objectives, and priorities. Ask your manager, as this is a critical part of their role.
4. Take a look at your development plan for the year. It is your responsibility to put this plan together. Map your goals to objectives for the company, your line of business, and your team.
5. Discuss your plan with your manager to gain his or her alignment. Ott states, “A plan is not effective unless your manager knows about it, acknowledges it, and assists in providing the opportunities and support to execute against it.”

Ott understands that it’s not always easy to find an alignment between passions and organizational goals, but emphasizes “You a really have to think about this. We all work in a world that’s about the bottom line. Ask yourself if what you are passionate about is important (to your company), and to what level you are willing to adjust. You need to find the balance that’s right for you.”
If after this process of self-discovery you find there’s no alignment, Ott agrees, “It’s OK to explore other opportunities.”
 
Build an industry-wide brand
Ott stressed the value of building a brand that reaches beyond your company. “Having an industry-wide presence is important. Don’t develop yourself in a silo inside the culture of your company.”
 
“Develop skills that work independently of your company’s culture,” she advised, which she models by participating in activities outside her company that include speaking at national women’s leadership conferences and serving on several non-profit boards and leadership programs in her local community.


Titina Ott was a guest speaker in the webinar Create Your Leadership Brand, part of the Emerging Women Leaders webinar series.

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