After a very busy Spring and, hopefully, a relaxing and energizing holiday, we are back to work. Before focusing again on our work we believe it’s important to summarize the most important activities and initiatives that have been organized in the past months and what is still to come.

In the first 7 months of 2011 we have focused on our regular network activities as well as our well-established special programs. We have:

• Organized regular monthly networking aperitivi, in the new successful format that includes a mini-workshop, and monthly speaker meetings
• Launched the second edition of our Ready-for-board Women list, today with 165 women listed – I invite you to read it on our website here
• Launched the second edition of our Mentoring Program, with 26 mentor-mentee pairs working until the end of the year – I invite you to read our 2010 program book, you can find it online on our website here

In addition to the above, our Professional Development Director Valerie Ryder launched the skill building workshop series, with access limited to maximum of 12-15 attendees for a 2 and a half hour meeting focused on very specific topics. Three workshops were held before summer, two more are expected in the Autumn. Our Autumn workshops will focus on entrepreneurs:

• “How to prepare a Business Plan” will be held on October 12
• “How to prepare and deliver effective presentations” will be held on November 16

If we look at the Federation level, as you know our European Platform is undergoing major improvements (and your feedback is always welcome!). In order to take advantage from this powerful resource, remember to:

• upload your photo, so that women who have met you at an event and maybe don’t recall your name can easily find you on the platform,
• complete your bio, let us know what you do and how we can connect, network and support each other
• update your bio, you’ve changed job or reached a new challenging position or have been appointed to a board…let your peers know!

As a Board we try to pursue two parallel and complementary goals :

• support our members in their professional and personal growth through networking and mentoring opportunities as well as inspiring speakers and events
• contribute to national and local initiatives that concretely impact the life of working women and help them reach rewarding and powerful positions

Given the fact that we are all volunteers and our willingness to make an impact implies a lot of time and energy, we would like to take the opportunity to launch a call to action: put yourself forward for a board position and/or as external support to our board. A wider active support to the Board would allow PWA Milan to provide more initiatives and opportunities!

We hope to meet you in the next months at our events and we wish you a successful and interesting Autumn.

Radio Colonia recently interviewed PWA Milan President Monica Pesce and RFBW and Bocconi Professor Paola Profeta on the impact of quotas on our economy and society.

Listen to the interview (in Italian) here.

Il Sole 24ore is launching on May 4th the 4th edition of the executive course “Leadership al femminile”.

If you wish to know more download the brochure here.

PWA Milan members have a 20% discount on the full price of the course, download the registration form from the Milan group inside our EPWN platform (click here).

As we anticipated in various articles and letters, in 2010 the Board was working on fine tuning the vision and the mission of PWA Milan, in order to be more effective in communicating our unique value proposition and in selecting programs and events.

I would like to thank the 2010 Board: Maria Lassila – Vice President, Laura Salvaneschi – Treasurer, Viviana Cavalli – Corporate Members Director, Hema Mali – Events Co-Director, Kristina Tool – Events Co-Director, Valerie Ryder – Professional Development Director, Lucia Fracassi – Membership Director, Marcelle Sartori – PR & Marketing Co-Director and Monique Svazlian – PR & Marketing Co-Director for their time, energy and creativity in defining who we are and what we want to provide.

PWA Milan

Italian Member, European Professional Women’s Network

 Vision 2011 – 2013

 We aim to be the premier international association for career-oriented women in Italy, recognized for our networking opportunities, professional activities and pioneering initiatives which set the stage for significant change.

 Mission

 PWA Milan’s mission is to support the advancement of career-minded women in their professional growth and development through activities including networking, skill-building and mentoring in an international environment.

 We provide:

• Inspirational and informational speakers and role models
• Mentoring program
• Physical and virtual platforms for networking and interaction
• Facilitated networking events
• Professional skill-building workshops
• Tools and techniques to increase assertiveness and empowerment
• Exchange of experiences and best practices
• Powerful initiatives to lead change
• Access to 17 sister networks across Europe, thanks to our membership in the European Professional Women’s Network

by Kristina Tool

On October 20^th, PWA hosted a panel presentation entitled, Attracting and Retaining Talent – Strategies for Success.  PWA president Monica Pesce posed the initial questions to the panel comprised of:

• Sara Liviero, PWA member and Human Resources Manager,  for Janssen Cilag (Business Partner of Johnson & Johnson Italia)
• Gianluca Pessina, Human Resources Director Italy & Central Europe, USG People (operating in Italy through Start People and Unique – Employment and HR Services)
• Paola Scarpa, Industry Leader Technology, Media & Entertainment, Google Italy

The interactive presentation included numerous questions and answers on what businesses were doing to attract and retain the best employees and what individuals seeking career growth could be doing to make themselves more attractive to companies.

Despite the current economic climate, forward thinking businesses have not resorted to cutting all costs, but rather, have decided to invest in their employees through creating a positive work environment.

In USG People’s work to find the best talent, they carefully look through resumes to ensure that they are not passing up strong candidates because someone followed a non-traditional path or may have gaps in their experience.  They take the time to interview those with potential to ensure that what is written is a good fit with where they would be placed. Johnson and Johnson has invested heavily in training and retraining employees who may shift roles within the company. Google has created an office setting which includes recreational and relaxation features as they recognize that innovation and ideas can come at any time, so creating an environment where employees are happy to spend time fosters a place where many can contribute to the growth of the company.

The panelists were in agreement on removing some of the barriers to employee input and enabling all who work for a business to feel as if their work mattered. Matching the right person to the right culture was also a key factor in success for both the individual and the business.  The positive aspects of the benefits and environments these businesses have invested in,  are a key component in attracting and retaining the best employees in order to make the businesses successful.

The outcome of the event resulted in the development of the following two lists; what businesses are currently  doing or can be doing to attract and retain the right talent and what individuals can be doing to better position themselves.

BUSINESSES

• Recruitment programs with universities and graduate schools
• Internship programs
• Make sure individuals are a good match with existing company culture
• Provide opportunities for career growth at every level
• Create more open, less hierarchical environment
• Create relaxed and “play-time” activities within the work environment to encourage exchange of information and new ideas.
• Include areas of recreation and relaxation in work environment
• Create a sense of belonging
• Provide an “emotional salary” ( benefits not just from paycheck, but also from feeling you are an important part of success for the company)
• Practice meritocracy by awarding promotions through a cross function committee to ensure impartial evaluations.
• Provide wellness benefits
• Invest in employees
• Offer leadership and mentoring programs
• Offer flexibility in terms of hours and roles for employees

 INDIVIDUALS

• Make sure statements on your resume are supported by your actions
• Have good reasons for changing job and/or career
• Account for all periods in your life on your resume, and be prepared to provide good reasons for gaps or inconsistencies
• Have needed technical competencies
• Demonstrate skills in entrepreneurism
• Demonstrate passion through taking risks for what you believe and activities in your free time
• Be able to back up what you say, cite examples
• Achieve results
• Be willing to learn
• Be flexible and be willing to adapt to new roles and responsibilities
• Be prepared to show how your life outside of work reflects your personal characteristics

Following recommendations discussed and shared by all City Networks at the Federation level  and taking into consideration that PWA Milan’s membership fee has been kept stable at 100 euro for more than 5 years while costs have increased, PWA Milan General Assembly has deliberated to increase the membership fee to 125 euro per year starting on January 1^st 2011.

Current members can renew their membership for 2011 at 100 euro by paying the dues online via credit card between December 1^st and December 31^st 2010.

If you wish to renew your membership at 100 euro all you have to do is log in to the platform after December 1^st and you will find a  message on the top of the home page notifying you that your membership is about to expire. All you have do is click on the link and you will be directed to the online payments for PWA Milan Network.

I would also like to inform you that starting January 1^st 2011, no grace period will be allowed. This means that if you don’t renew your membership before the end of December, you will not have access to the platform or to your profile starting from January 1^st. Furthermore, if you decide to renew your membership after that date the new membership fee (125 euro) will be charged.

New members that decide to join PWA Milan during the month of December, paying either online by credit card or cash during the Christmas Party on December 1^st , will be charged 100 euro.

A couple of days ago I was surfing on Facebook when I came across a post from Caterina Della Torre – founder of Dol’s – on a horrible advertisement on photovoltaic (click here to see the advertisment).

I was commenting on the above mentioned adv suggesting that the only way to impact such attitudes is to focus on what companies care about: money and profit. I thought about the most recent compaign from Diesel (Be stupid), that irritated me so much that it convinced me to cancel Diesel from my list of potential brands in case I need to purchase a pair of jeans.

I am sure that being outraged because of a communication campaign or a specific policy is not enough to put pressure on companies’ attitudes and behaviour: we have the power to make things happen by simply deciding not to purchase products that are publicized in a way we feel is offensive for women and their dignity.

Is there a similar experience you would like to share with us? Which was the advertising campaign that irritated you most?

But most important of all, do you think that PWA Milan should take an active role on this and support a moral persuasion initiative against companies that don’t respect our dignity?

Read the article in Il Mondo about mentoring, where PWA’s own mentoring program that will be launched on May 19th is presented.

Read the article (in Italian, pdf) here.

by Kristina Tool

What can companies do to not lose valuable resources when employees take time for maternity leave? What can women do to remain competitive in the workplace if they take time away from the office for maternity leave? PWA hosted a panel of speakers on February 17 at the Grand Hotel et de Milan and generated a list of tactics that both women, and the companies who value them, can use to continue to benefit both business and women.

The panel was comprised of Barbara Cominelli, Strategic Planning Director at Tenaris Dalmine, Lynn Chasson, EU Controller at Arvin Meritor and Mara Caverni, Partner at Price Waterhouse Coppers – Private Equity Leader.

Questions about returning to work post maternity leave initiated a discussion in which    the panelists spoke candidly about their experiences. Barbara Cominelli explained that a successful maternity leave begins with planning what to delegate, what to reduce and which responsibilities to keep control of while away. 

Lynn Chasson related how her experiences away from work varied with each of her three children. With more than ten years of work experience, she had risen up the corporate ladder and did not want to lose her place while growing her family. Due to company restructuring during her first two pregnancies, she was unable to return to job. During her 3^rd pregnancy she was without work and post pregnancy faced the challenge of getting back into the job market and achieving her pervious level. She started small and actively pursued opportunities through her networks, eventually working for a previous boss who knew that having a family did not interfere wither abilities to perform her job.

Mara Caverni provided a perspective, not as a mother, but as a partner who did not want to lose two strong employees who left for maternity leave. In each case she was able to shuffle her teams and shift their responsibilities to manage projects while these women were away. It was not always seamless but with open communication and a commitment to stay in touch, Mara and her team were able to manage this temporary shift with great success.

All panelists agreed that good planning and outside help were essential to making this work. The discussion opened up to an active Q&A period from the audience, generating more suggestions about what both companies and individuals can do to have a successful maternity leave. Many from the audience contributed to help formulate a list of actions, including Maria Grazia Bizzarri, HR Manager Corporate Function Vodafone. Maria Grazia shared information about Vodafone’s culture of recognizing the value which diversity in the workplace contributes and how they actively cultivate an atmosphere which supports women, something that we hope more companies will begin to do.

With the goals of supporting women and bringing more value to business, the evening’s event produced the following tactics:

COMPANIES:

• Allow flexible schedules
• Allow part time work
• Enable employees to redefine roles and duties
• CEO and top executives must demonstrate support for diversity and set up business to allow women to return
• Educate the employees; produce written guidelines to provide all employees with strategies on how to work successfully with colleagues on maternity leave
• HR to maintain contact and provide guidance during transition
• Make it a goal to manage people by objectives met, not simply physical presence in the office.
• Provide coaching to employees on leave
• Evaluate process in place to manage maternity leave and share success of established programs

 INDIVIDUALS:

• Plan leave in advance
• Decide which duties you can delegate, reduce, keep
• Stay in touch with work
• Strategies to return:
  • Start small, freelance in current field
  • Use professional and social networks
  • Use personal coach to validate your value
• Have support at home
• Don’t stay away too long
• Choose good companies and supportive bosses
• Be clear with your boss and company about your intentions
• Don’t lose your ambition

It’s with pleasure that we share the information below on EuropeanPWN Oslo member, Magali Rouyer Johnsen who is the recipient of an IE EPWN Scholarship (read the post).   She will receive 20.000 Euros toward her academic program at IE Business School.  

On behalf of the EuropeanPWN Federation we congratulate Magali! President Council EuropeanPWN

Magali writes to all Presidents

“Thank you so much for all your congratulations. I am awed to be part of such a wonderful organisation and would like to thank you all at EuropeanPWN!  Special thanks go to Jennifer who has been giving me her unconditional support since July 2009 and to Marijo who has brilliantly negotiated this great scholarship!  I will be using the week-end and the next few days to plan for this incredible opportunity! Warm and excited greetings from Oslo!”   Magali