STEM Mentorship for Canadian university women

 Point A to B 

Points of Interest. Shortest Point. Get the Point.

Guest Post by Katharine Cornfield

 How to Develop Leadership 

Outside of Work

It’s not often that I find myself in a room full of scientists.  Honestly, I think the last time was high school chemistry class, and yes, I realize that is stretching the definition of ‘scientist’.

Fast forward a few years (let’s not count how many),  and I find myself part of the Women in Leadership - Women in Science and Engineering (WIL/WISE) project team working to develop a mentorship program for university-level women in Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) fields.  Needless to say, it has been an amazing window into a world I don’t   know well.

Apparently, the path forward for the intrepid women who choose to move into STEM is fraught with challenges, from classroom culture and job options to professional development and advancement outside the lab.  But, with the right nurturing and support, there is plenty of reason for optimism and hope.  Enter WIL/WISE’s new mentorship program, designed to help tomorrow’s leaders get a head start today.

To launch the first session, each project lead had an opportunity to speak to the full group of participants. With nothing much to say on the subject of STEM careers, I shared a few reflections on what I believe to be the essential ingredients to developing leadership, regardless of professional path.  

So, here are my top “to-do’s” for developing your leadership outside of work.

1. JOIN:  Become a member of an industry or issue-based association, organization or community group.  Be bold and try the unexpected.  Expand your horizons beyond your usual subject areas of expertise.

2. LEARN:  Cover ground you haven’t considered.  Take advantage of any and all formal and informal opportunities to learn. Uncover how organizations work.  Unlock the secret to good marketing & communications.  Brush up your presentation skills.  Follow the money and learn finance.  Get comfortable with being a beginner.

3. APPLY:  Put yourself forward to speak at conferences or events. Apply for leadership programs.  Have your friends nominate you for awards.  Look for and apply to any opportunity that comes your way, and don’t wait to be noticed.    

4. CONTRIBUTE:  Pick a cause or a favourite organization and volunteer your time.  Serve on a Board of Directors or a sub-committee.  Join a political party or community association.  Flex your good citizenship muscles.  While you’re at it, develop your skills and your network.

5. PRODUCE: Make something. Publish a blog, take photos, or pen poetry. Buy a url and own your content.  Build a body of work outside the office, and let it evolve in parallel to your professional career. Consider that someday, the two may intersect.

6. CONNECT:  Do not underestimate the power of your professional and personal network. Your classmates or colleagues today are the leaders of tomorrow.  Nurture your network, by always adding value, and stay in touch.  Together, you may change the world.

Katharine Cornfield is a small business owner and social entrepreneur; and is a member of the Women in Leadership –Ottawa executive team.  She believes cities should be vibrant, welcoming, inclusive places for people; that good citizenship means taking action; and that business can be a force for good.  Follow Katharine on Twitter @girlaboutOtown.

Point A to B 

 

Points of Interest. Shortest Point. Get the Point.

L-R Mary McGrath, Nancy Neamtan,

Itifo Engulu, Tessa Hebb, Tonya Surman

 Celebrating Women in 

Impact Investing

On Thursday Nov. 6th, an evening reception was held at the Social Finance Forum 2014, by the Women in Leadership Foundation for four outstanding women who work in the impact investing field in Canada. Partnered with MaRS Centre for Impact Investing in Toronto, the celebration highlighted the years and dedication plus vision needed by the women to create the industry that exists today. 

The evening was an opportunity for Forum attendees to celebrate the achievements of the four successful women and their tremendous contributions to the sector. Without them, Canada could not be providing the opportunity for people to invest in businesses and causes that benefit society. Social Finance leads the way in doing business differently and the four women represented have taken the steps to make it possible.

Emceed by the ever popular Allyson Hewitt, the Awards ceremony began with Itifo Engulu of CIBC and formally of the Montreal Community Loan Fund, providing terrific summaries of the many achievements of the award recipients while emphasizing that these achievements had formed the foundation for Canada’s impact investing field today.

Nancy Neamtan has been working to develop investment in the social economy in Quebec since the late 1980's. Currently, she is the President and Executive Director of the Chantier de l’économie sociale. She was the first person to convince government and various corporate funders to invest millions of dollars in the non-profit and cooperative sector, laying the groundwork for future investments and providing a model for partnership for the social finance sector.

Tessa Hebb is currently the Director of the Carleton Centre for Community Innovation and also a full-time professor at Carleton University in Ottawa. In the mid 1990's, Tessa attended Harvard and Oxford universities pursuing post-graduate degrees in her field now known as Impact Investment. However, at the time of her studies, this term and everything associated with it did not exist. As Canada’s longest standing academic in the field of impact investing, Tessa had the vision to work in the field before it had words. She has since helped to form the policies, structures and terminology for impact investing in Canada.

In 2007, Mary McGrath, working in collaboration with Ruth Richardson, co-founded and developed Canada’s first crowdfunding site ‘Small Change Fund’. Pre-dating Kickstarter and Indiegogo, Small Change Fund allows Canadians to fund issues of environmental sustainability and social justice. The organization has enabled support for grassroots projects, mostly in rural and isolated locations. Mary’s leadership has given the sector its best tool to engage Canadians to connect to, care about and support the environment.

In 2009, Tonya Surman created Canada’s first community bond to buy and renovate the Centre for Social Innovation in Toronto. Now with three additional locations including one in New York, CSI leads the sector in innovative finance development made available to all people who want to build their communities. With facilities housing more than 800 social enterprises and non-profits, CSI has given impact investing a large scale, direct way for individuals to enact change.

The women were awarded certificates of achievement for their outstanding efforts in the field of Impact Investing. The 200+ crowd signified loudly that the awards were well-earned. From the achievements of the award recipients, it is obvious that Canada has had tremendous female leadership for many years in the social finance sector. The Women in Leadership Foundation was proud to have participated in a significant night of recognition.

Tina Crouse
WIL Ottawa

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Points of Interest. Shortest Point. Get the Point.

from WE magazine

Impact Investing: Women and Millennials: Here comes the money – FINALLY!

While I can only find US statistics on the new wealth now in the hands of women, the numbers are fantastic. American women now own and control 60% of private assets, which amounts to $16 trillion dollars. (see the article ) And why do I find this good news? Because more than 70% of married women fire their financial advisors within one year of their husbands’ deaths (Pershing Investments Women are not a niche market )  The main reason? Women find the advisors don’t understand them because truth be known, women are value-investors and that’s good news for the Impact Investment field.

I watched a YouTube video called Mainstreaming Impact Investment on the sector's new reality. Again, it’s US content for women and new investors but the numbers are unbelievable.  What’s even better is the expected long-term gains that will come from Millennials. Yes, these young people who receive so much bad press for living at home, avoiding the corporate world and delaying major life events are intent on using money for good and they are set in the next few years to begin impact investing with $1 Trillion US dollars. Think what this will do for the world of social innovation, poverty reduction, healthcare improvements, affordable housing. The list can go on ~ and it will.

These two populations have been left out of the traditional investment world but they will suddenly become the power brokers. Considering their interests, it gives me faith that the world will become more balanced and money will be used in the service of human kind and not just to make more. What gives me such confidence? There are new studies indicating that women, by nature, are better investors. Their long-term gains are better, they outperform men in their portfolios and they reduce volatility in the market. You can read the information yourself form TD Bank ’Are Women Better Investors? and MSN.

And the long-term gain part? The number one indicator of successful women who manage their own money was that someone taught them. Do you really think all these wealthy Boomer mothers will forsake their children?

The world just got richer in the best way possible – through caring.

Point A to B 

Points of Interest. Shortest Point. Get the Point.

Sacrifice to Gain Balance?

By Karen Laimite
Membership Outreach

Taken from A Little Piece of Sunshine

A home, a career, a family, a husband, friends and children...they are all things I expected to have in my adult life but as a child little did I know how much I would have to sacrifice to make those expectations a reality. I've blogged about balance before, see Every New Experience but every week seems to bring a new challenge.

You sacrifice time spent with your family and friends to build the career you always sought. You sacrifice a pay cheque to make up for lost time with those friends and family. You sacrifice space and social time to save up for that down payment for that first house. It's all a necessary learning curve but the more I experience this sacrifice the more motivated I become to find that balance in life. 

Enter Dale Stevenson's EdgeWalking Workshop. I am super excited to attend this event on Jan. 18th. When Dale did a mini version of this at the Women in Social Business Forum, participants were cheering each other on. I was amazed how much everyone was getting out of it and the excitement they were exhibiting from trying to gain balance. This New Year's Resolution is going to get done!

It's so interesting how one realization leads to piecing together your life vision. Be aware of what is happening in your environment, embrace the chaos, make necessary sacrifices and create the life you expected. And come to the Workshop!

Point A to B 

Points of Interest. Shortest Point. Get the Point.

The Big Tick: Leadership Simplified

post by Tina Crouse  
President, Women in Leadership

From Download Clipart

There's a raging debate on LinkedIn on a Theory of Leadership. My take is to keep things simple: Leaders should do what no one else can and bring others with them. We can find examples of poor leadership and examples of poor outcomes but those do not negate leadership skills; they merely pose as an answer to a subjective experience of whether someone 'liked' it or not. For me, it doesn't change the fact that leadership was present and it was exercized otherwise nothing would have happened. So, does this definition tick your box?

The whole discussion around defining 'leadership' has expanded over the last few years and there is still a lot of subjective experience and judgment. Does the CEO who increased profits by slashing 30% of its staff deserve a leadership medal? Do politicians grinding government to a halt show leadership by proving that yes, government can be brought to its knees? Do elected and non-elected dictators (rigged elections) show leadership by maintaining their positions? Are any of these things new? No? Do you see leadership in any of these examples?

I would like to engage you, yes you the reader, to shape leadership anew. Can we find examples of where people have never tread before? We can in tech like Elon Musk and Richard Branson. Do people realize how many times they have failed or how many years have passed before an idea could be actioned? Is failure a component of leadership and would you support someone who has failed many times in order to try something new?

You are part of leadership. Regardless of whether you follow or lead, you are helping to define what leadership is. I invite you to comment on what it is (or could be) by refraining from what it is not - bad, criminal, injurious, harmful. Bad examples are easy to come by: I'm asking you to add to the body of what leadership can be. Good Luck. Bonne Chance. The discussion rages on.

Point A to B 

Points of Interest. Shortest Point. Get the Point.

post by Tina Crouse
President, WIL Ottawa 

Photo: Authentic Parenting

Funny How We Changed the Rules By Picking Up Our Toys and Going Home

The business world is full of criticisms of women: we don’t go after capital or go into debt; we don’t stay at our post (we actually take maternity leave and don’t come back); we don’t play the game. Yep, heard it before; men’s rules and the demand that we follow them. But with the uptick in female-led businesses exploding all over the world and people coming to realize the value of having women AND men work together and the positive impact on the bottom line, well, I’d say the rules are changing. Finally.

Interestingly, these changing rules are spreading, even into places that are considered sacrosanct like investment.  So while I stated that women don’t go after investment, there is a new kind on offer, the type that comes with understanding, mentoring, coaching, SYMPATHY and yes, money. Women held out for the good stuff and it’s arrived (see Forbes article Accelerate Women Now )

I like this shift. Those old rules weren’t made for us; they didn’t make sense and they made us uncomfortable, so a lot of us wouldn’t play and sure enough, the other team got tired of playing by themselves. Now this is not to say that all the other players are on onboard; many like the old game where they made the rules and got to win most of the time. We also have to remember that there were a lot of women who had to change sides and learn the game inside out in order to succeed within those rules. Luckily, those women then decided to help the rest of us. And, here we are.

STATS  

• Over the last 20 years, Canada has seen a 200-percent increase in the number of women-owned firms. 
• In 2001, nearly half (47 percent) of all small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Canada had at least one female owner 
• Firms with at least one female owner employed 2.6 million people producing annual commercial revenues of $72 billion.  

I say, ‘Let’s Keep Going’. Why not? We’re finally rounding 3^rd and we’ve got 2 more on base: our daughters and our sisters. Surely, we’ll win the game this time.