La Salle University Association of Women MBAs

Career Skills Workshop 102

2008-05-03T03:59:00.000-07:00

Career Skills Workshop 102 was a success. Speical thanks go to Adelle Crump and Alexis Douros. Guests were terrific - thank you for sharing your insights!

Open position - Vice President, Membership and Student Affairs

2008-04-21T02:26:00.000-07:00

What can better describe the position than recalling the wonderful year that Reshma Vaghese had in LAWMBA - graduating and thus resigning current VP!
We chatted with Reshma and this what we want to pass on. It was very very very busy year for Reshma. Reshma is graduating this May with concentration in HR. Sometimes emails found her out of state - on her job interview trips. Every time she would still find an important minute to communicate. Her emails were all about details - event preparation, web site, membership drives. Reshma was absolutely critical in developing LAWMBA 's digital image - aka she put energy and thought and organization towards putting LAWMBA website on line - wonderful product of concentrated effort - http://www.lasalle.edu/lawmba.
Reshma established and developed the process that helped signing up new members.
She is always cheerful, looking forward, and such a wonderful and reliable team player.

LAWMBA board wants to thank current VP Reshma Varghese for her year as Vice President, Membership and Student Affairs. We wish her success in her career and hope that this year was an interesting, exciting and productive and that her skills we all benefited from will help her in her future career.

Conversations - from the board

2008-03-15T07:59:00.000-07:00

Latoya Winkfield and Anna Gutkina chat about the corporate panel event on January.

Anna, were you impressed with the panel and the discussion?
Yes Latoya. I could see people's eyes sparkle. Even though I put this thing together, there were unexpected turns in the otherwise planned discussion - and these were really rewarding moments for me.

Remember, when discussion was wrapping up, Alexis asked an interesting question. I call it yell or not yell.

In the less formal discussion it would have called bitch or professional.

Latoya - oh yeah.

Anna - did you take it home Latoya - I did.

Remember, Alexis said that she was told to change her style of communication to soft. She was wondering if this was gender-biased recommendation.

Yes- that was really provoking. Remember, Bob Spires was bringing up the notion of how soft speech is making it more effective than loud speech.

Yes, but then Alexis was not satisfied and I think several people in the room had a notion that were she a man her style would be perceived as assertive and efficient.

You know, I think our panelists were also divided on this issue.

I think so too.

I actually think it is true- of a woman has strong opinion - she is bad because she misbehaves.

Right. There was a discussion about it but I felt a bit unsatisfied.

Yes, me too. I also think there is a rich historic explanation about the whole ethnography of being a good woman.And part of it is that most people grew up in the mythology of traditional view on a woman as subordinate and quite creature. I am not saying all of them. Upper classes always had considered their women equals. Society today however does not consist of the upper classes only. That's why we have men who are not used to thinking of women as equals. That's why there are a lot of men to whom synonym of a good woman is a quiet woman. It is interesting that if you are a quiet (aka good) woman you can not efficiently do your job.

Correct. I had so many cases like that in my experience with male colleagues.

I also think we often impose this good as quiet criterion on ourselves. That is why it is so often so hard for us just become loud.You do need to be heard. And then there comes this conflict of your old mythology and new reality in terms of education and law.

What else would you like to say?

Well, I think our panelists were tremendously interesting. The theme of exclusion struck a chord with me definitely. When Alex Otieno talked about conflict areas and their exclusion of women from health care - you understand the ultimate meaning of the term "exclusion". Of course it is not that dramatic for all of us here.

Yes, it never occurred to me that when you are excluded - you are actually wasting precious years off your career, your money, your well-being.

I especially liked light hearted approach and ability to seek better environment that Carol Williams demonstrated.

Right, she is always so uplifting, I enjoy her winning spirit and a good laugh.

I wish we had more women thought - we have these excelusice conversations and I feel more people should have been in the knowledge as well.

Well, we are launching our marketing campaign soon.
Spread the word.

Career skills

2008-02-25T04:19:00.000-08:00

March 15, noon, Bucks County Campus, Room 120

Career Skills Workshop

Throughout our academic and working careers we have all accumulated various skills. Some of these are technical and job specific, and some have been soft skills that are transferable to another job. This panel discussion focuses on both specific and the transferable skills that we all need to develop in order to be successful -how to communicate with colleagues and superiors, how to speak confidently publicly, how to change careers, interviewing skills, and how to network are a few of the subjects we will be discussing.

Patricia Omoqui is a uniquely inspiring speaker, author, poet and life coach. Patricia is a graduate of Princeton University, a former professional basketball player, and has excelled in management in Corporate America. These experiences have led Patricia to unique perspectives on how individuals can realize, focus and use inner resources to accomplish anything they want in life.

Ann Marie Dowell: Consultant/recruiter for Acsys Inc., a well known Accounting/Finance recruiting and consulting firm. Ann has first-hand knowledge of what skills potential employers look for in candidates for employment, as she communicates with both parties on a daily basis.

Kevin Richardson is a committed professional with 16 years of organizational development and educational technology experience and has worked with clients in the business, government and not-for-profit sectors. Kevin specializes in the areas of human capital management, educational technology, leadership development, change management, training effectiveness, strategic planning and competency management. Kevin supports clients in the recognition that neither technology nor capital by themselves can guarantee a client's sustained competitive advantage in today's global marketplace; a key source of long-term sustainable competitive advantage is the knowledge and skills of employees.

Russel Anthony DePersia: Russel founded and manages his solo law practice, Russel Anthony DePersia, Esq., to serve the Philadelphia and New Jersey areas with legal counsel. He has experienced significant jury trials, hearings, motions, and applications of all types. Russel also serves as corporate counsel for law-related companies; and he is a member of the Municipal Court Committee, which makes legal recommendations to local and state Bar associations. Russel has been a practicing attorney for over 15 years; and he also possesses a Bachelor's degree in Business Management. Russel is very active in the local community and sports organizations, so he spends much of his free time mentoring youth in boxing and basketball or giving community speaches on criminal law. Russel has countless professional connections and enjoys learning and sharing his professional and legal knowledge with others.

Patricia Wynn-Mason: Patricia Mason entered into the sales and marketing industry through telecommunications by working for Bell, AT&T, and Lucent early on in her career. After 15 years, she transitioned into advertising because she wanted to use more of her creative skills in marketing. In her advertising life, she worked for the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Daily news for several years. After these positions, Patricia went to work for both Mega Radio and Radio 1 to gain a better mix of media advertising. Due to her lover of print media, Patricia decided to take on the position of Advertising Manager at Idearc Media. Her primary account is Solutions At Home Magazine. Patricia also owns her own company, CBBE, Inc. CBBE (Come Back Business Ethics) trains company employees on how to deliver customer service excellence to ensure that business will come back! Patricia is an enthusiastic member of Zeta Phi Beta sorority. She spends much of her spare time making professional connections.

Spring 2008 - ambitious and interesting

2007-12-21T17:05:00.000-08:00

In the upcoming semester you are invited to be part of the following events:

January 13th: Community service outing at a local soup kitchen
January 19th: General body meeting with creative thinking session – College Hall, 206
January 25th: Challenges for women in the workplace- panel of HR, law and psychology professionals. See details below. College Hall 206, 7pm
February 16th: General body meeting. College Hall 206
February 17th: Community service at a local soup kitchen
February 20th: Entrepreneurial panel: A city-wide Women's MBA collaborative event
March: T-shirt launch and fund raising event (date tbd)
March 15th: Career development skills panel discussion, Bucks Campus Room 120, Noon
April: The art of business - MBAs and MFAs (with art museum) (date tbd)
May: Golf instructional outing – don’t miss on the scene (date and location tbd)

March 15th, Noon:
Career Development Skills Panel Discussion, Bucks Campus Room 120

January 25th:
Challenging situations in corporate environment – panel of HR, law and psychology professionals discusses causes, approaches, and remedies.

Difficult situations for workers in any corporate environment are inevitable. However, a lot of times they can be worked out to the benefit of all parties.To recognize patterns and know what is the possible array of actions is important.Are women approaching difficult situations differently from men?What are the most typical difficulties women face at work?How to deal with them?These are examples of questions we want to be answered by the panel for the MBA students. We thus propose an advisory panel to tackle issues that are typical for corporate environment with the emphasis on women's place, roles and challenges.
Also on our blog see more detailed discussion:
http://lawmba.blogspot.com/2007/09/taking-points-knowledge-points-agenda.html

January 19th:
General Body Meeting. Creative thinking interactive session.

Local artist and art teacher Elena Drozdova will conduct interactive session on how and when creative thinking works for successful modern artists.

General meeting will discuss all important issues to its members and seek feedback for driving more success to our members.

Organizer: Anna Gutkina

Networking event: art and business brought together

2007-10-14T09:19:00.000-07:00

DECEMBER 7 6:30
@
La Salle Museum of Arts

Art is such a powerful way of creative thinking, that we want to bring art and business together.

As women with high career goals we need to understand the powerful undercurrents of people's actions in corporate environment.

We are hosting this art-and-business event to promote creativity in the process of understanding factors that women deal with at work. When you look inside as artists do - you understand what drives you, what is your history, what is your face to the world, what is your identity.What is expected of you by the world? How does it apply to your place in corporate world and how to act upon this understanding?

What is a woman's identity? Is there a myth we are part of? Are we re-enacting this womanhood myth every day - at home and at work?

Hidden expectations and motivations- discovered by artists.
Applied to business environment - by business women.

This event will take place at La Salle University Museum of Art whose curators kindly agreed to be our hosts.

Date is December 7.

We plan to have a presentation by artist Amy Stevens whose works are about woman's identity and mythology of womanhood. Then there will be (endless) discussions, mingling, and networking of our student members with guests.

We hope this event will bring together creative forces of art and business, we hope cross-pollination of ideas will happen, we hope to make the difference.

Organizers: Anna Gutkina, Latoya Winkfield

Talking Points - Knowledge Points. Agenda.

2007-09-16T14:47:00.000-07:00

Corporate challenges panel.

We are proposing founding of a panel of experts that will help to navigate through difficult situations in the working place – with knowledge.

Difficult situations for workers in any corporate environment are inevitable. However, a lot of times they can be worked out to the benefit of all parties.

To recognize patterns and know what is the possible array of actions is important.

Are women approaching difficult situations differently from men?
What are the most typical difficulties women face at work?
How to deal with them?

These are examples of questions we want to be answered by the panel for the MBA students. We thus propose an advisory panel to tackle issues that are typical for corporate environment with the emphasis on women's place, roles and challenges.

HR expertise and legal expertise are thought to be part of such a panel. The first activity would be a presentation to a group of MBA women of the existing landscape in that area.

Are women sometimes scared to do raise the voice and improve the situation?
Do they have the tendency to under-utilize resources within their companies?
What are internal and external stereotypes and behaviors that can be articulated and changed? How can knowledge help to be more efficient not only in terms of their careers but for a company they work for just as much?
Where psychology ends and bottom line starts?

In the long run, we picture this as an important resource for women with high career goals to educate themselves in the areas of both rights and opportunities that can be exercised the best possible way with the best possible outcomes both for the success of their companies and of their careers.

We suggest to have an HR representative(s) and a legal representative(s) as members of the respective panel. Format of operation at the beginning can be a presentation by HR or/and legal professional with their view on this subject, followed by Q&A. Our side will probably have to guide the presentation by familiarizing speakers in advance with our goals and audience and the direction of the presentation.

Year started! Oh and Happy 1st!

2007-09-15T15:55:00.001-07:00

LAWMBA had its first meeting this year on September 15th.

So, we are launching into 2007 -2008 Academic Year, and - this is the second year for LAWMBA. We celebrate with the this blog and with a challenging and still emerging agenda.

Motto for the upcoming year is "Getting serious about business".

Become successful.
Improve your career if you work in corporate environment, with knowledge.
Become an entrepreneur, with knowledge.
Serve the community, with knowledge.

This is the tentative agenda for the upcoming year:

Saturday October 20th.
Workshop: entrepreneurship know-how and steps to starting a successful business.

Saturday November 17th..
-Financial Planning workshop with Mr.Muller from Common Cents Planning, Inc.
-Real estate as investment tool seminar.

Friday December 7th.
Networking event in the gallery with artists. Art as the new analysis tool - look inside and act out.