WOMEN OF COLOR LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE
IT'S TIME TO PRIORITIZE THE ADVANCEMENT OF WOMEN OF COLOR IN THE WORKPLACE
Did you know that since 2016, the McKinsey report “Women in the Workplace” has conveyed the same trend: women are promoted to manager at far lower rates than men, and this makes it nearly impossible for companies to lay a foundation for sustained progress at more senior levels? Additionally, the gains in representation for women overall haven’t translated to gains for women of color.
Women of color continue to lose ground at every step in the pipeline—between the entry level and the C-suite, the representation of women of color drops off by more than 75 percent. As a result, women of color account for only 4 percent of C-suite leaders, a number that hasn’t moved significantly in the past three years. Perhaps even more alarming, they receive less support from their managers, according to the same McKinsey and Leanin.org study. They are less likely to have bosses who promote their work contributions to others, help them navigate organizational politics, or socialize with them outside of work. Thus, they lack the kind of meaningful mentorship critical for getting ahead.
Why I do it
Everything begins with the brain. From a young age we are conditioned to think and behave in certain ways based on our upbringing. These patterns become deeply ingrained and some of them serve to amplify our leadership potential while others detract from it. It requires a commitment to the ongoing process of self-awareness to continuously uncover our blind spots in order to discover which habits are working for us and which are not. Then it takes conscious effort to replace old habits with new ones and to sustain that change. But the rewards are priceless.
The neuroscience behind all the work that I do excites me not only because I’m a scientist by training but because I have experienced first hand how transformative this process can be. As the daughter of immigrant parents, I know what it’s like to be affected by Generational Conditioning (the beliefs and behaviors that have been passed down to me). There is no blame or shame in this process since this is simply how our brain functions much like unconscious bias. However, as an adult I’ve had to put in the work to discern which perspectives need to be changed in order for me to create the intentional results I desire rather than perpetuating outcomes from my default conditioning. As a student of these principles my own life has been impacted in ways I could have never imagined. In fact, I believe in this work so much that I changed my career path to dedicate my life to this.
To date, I’ve worked with thousands of leaders across the globe in various industries, in government, corporate and non-profit organizations as a speaker, trainer, coach and consultant. I’ve had the privilege of observing my clients experience their own transformation. And there are no words to describe that feeling other than to say, I live for this work because it’s more than a job – it’s my life’s purpose.
THE 2023 PROGRAM AT-A-GLANCE
The WOC LI is intended to be a community for WOC where they can safely navigate the barriers that keep them from advancing while developing critical leadership skills that will help their professional (and personal) growth, within a network of other supportive women. The program consists of the following components:
1. 360 FEEDBACK: An optional (included) online 360-assessment with up to 12 raters to help you uncover your blind spots and focus on targeted opportunities for growth to better devise an individualized development plan
2. LEADERSHIP MASTERCLASSES: Monthly workshops on various leadership development topics designed with a lens that will specifically support WOC advance
3. COMMUNITIES OF PRACTICE: small learning teams will be formed to help participants digest and process the content, while holding each other accountable to the individual development plans
4. Q&A: monthly calls will be set up to address challenges, acknowledge wins, share best practices and champion one another.
JOIN US FOR THIS TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY!
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