Thursday, May 2, 2019

Rachel Watson, Interim Chief Executive Officer at Pacific Hydro & Kathy Bremner, General Manager at Pacific Hydro

As Madeleine Albright famously said, “There is a special place in hell for women who don’t help other women.”

One of the keys to unlocking greater diversity is the power of women supporting one another.  Women face cultural and systemic hurdles that make it challenging to advance, such as conscious and unconscious bias. One proven method to overcome these hurdles is to form close connections with other women, who can share experiences from women’s perspective.  Rachel Watson, Interim Chief Executive Officer at Pacific Hydro & Kathy Bremner, General Manager at Pacific Hydro, have proven there is Power in the Pack! They shared their unique perspectives from years of professional relationships in which they supported each other in finding their voices and “making the ask” for roles they wanted.  They have also built a strong circle of trust and found ways to amplify each  other’s voices.  When you help another woman rise, we all shine!  

Rachel also shared the importance of stopping thoughts of impostor syndrome (a psychological pattern in which an individual doubts his or her accomplishments and has a persistent internalized fear of being exposed as a “fraud.”) If these thoughts are not blocked, they become a self-fulling prophesy.  Kathy discussed the importance of not taking ourselves so seriously.  As Brené Brown explains in her book Daring Greatly, seeking approval disconnects us from our desires. Women are expected to be naturally perfect. Men live under the pressure of not being perceived as weak. The author captures the need for worthiness in the sequence “pleasing, performing, and perfecting.”  External expectations are a moving target; when we try and please everyone, we end pleasing no one (including ourselves). So have FUN!

Rachel Watson & Kathy Bremner book recommendations:

1. The First 90 Days: Critical Success Strategies for New Leaders at All Levels by Michael D. Watkins; Named one of 100 Leadership & Success Books to Read
2. Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton; A novel of love, crime, magic, fate and coming of age, set in Brisbane’s violent working class suburban fringe

Valeria Ignatieva, CEO and CO-FOUNDER of WORK180

Every woman on the planet deserves transparency in the workplace and WORK180 is a global jobs network that operates at the forefront of a new workplace revolution.  As an advocate for working women, WORK180 provides job applicants with a transparent directory of endorsed employers who support diversity, inclusion and equality.  They share information around pay equity, flexible working, paid parental leave, equal opportunities and a range of other important criteria.  What I loved about my conversation with Valeria is her sincerity of her passion around helping women pursue rewarding careers and enabling women to find employers who will value and support them.  They aren’t interested in “naming and shaming.” Rather, WORK180 is focused amplifying an international jobs network that connects employers with talented women.  They are innovative and their approach is driving change in the corporate landscape!  It’s supporting leaders in the corporate landscape to lead loudly around the topics of diversity, inclusion and equality!

Another wonderfuland innovativeevent that Valeria and I discussed was SuperDaughter Day.  It’s an annual event hosted by WORK180. Since 2016, more than 3,000 girls ages 5-12 years old became superheroes along with the parents, exploring the exciting world of STEM (science, technology, engineering, math). The girls also met some amazing female role models in tech!  This event is held on National or International Daughters Day.  I am so in love with this event, I want to be personally involved in taking this event global.  Does your organization want to support SuperDaughter Day 2020? Please reach out to hello@work180.co.  

Valeria Ignatieva Book Recommendations:

1. The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers by Ben Horowitz – Ben Horowitz, cofounder of Andreessen Horowitz and one of Silicon Valley’s most respected and experienced entrepreneurs, offers essential advice on building and running a startup—practical wisdom for managing the toughest problems business school doesn’t cover, based on his popular Ben’s Blog.
2. Stop Fixing Women: Why Building Fairer Workplaces is Everybody’s Business by Catherine Fox – Her book is an important tool for male leaders who say they want to make a difference. She throws down the gauntlet, showing how business, defense, public service and community leaders might do so, rather than just talk about it.