Women on the Rise: Forging the path

On Thursday, January 18, Verity hosted a “Women on the Rise” breakfast for more than 55 leaders from all levels of experience and across all sectors. The purpose of the event was to create an honest conversation about the topics affecting women in leadership today.  Led by Karen Calder, Senior Associate Consultant for Verity, attendees gathered over coffee and croissants to talk about motivational practices, individual and corporate development strategies, and trusting your instincts.  Karen opened the discussion by sharing the story of her journey from Walmart executive to becoming a motivational speaker, and ultimately a high-performance coach with a practice that is mostly focused on “paying it forward” to women who aspire to be at their best.

Karen’s presentation discussed the representation of women in leadership roles and the obstacles that they are faced with, both systemic and individually based on personal belief systems. A highly interactive conversation, participants engaged in networking with one another, understanding the impact of sponsorship for women in leadership, and diving into some of the key differences between genders in terms of brain science.  To finish it off, participants went through a guided reflection exercise, designed to get in touch with their mental state and determining whether it is a resourceful or un-resourceful state.  Karen’s presentation style was a refreshing combination of honest, open and vulnerable, and it was clear that her approach resonated with the audience.

From wage gaps to sexual harassment, women, especially those in leadership roles, face many ongoing challenges in their career. Karen brought attention to these issues with a fresh perspective and her message was clear.  Focus on choice and finding your resourceful state personally.  And as an organization, we need to change the way we develop women in leadership roles. “The research is slim but it is clear that the current approach to developing women in leadership is not good enough. We need to forge our own path; be trailblazers, experiment, encourage sponsorship and involve both women and men in solving how best we do this.”

To learn more about Verity’s Women in Leadership programs, visit us at theLEADhub.