2005 PWA survey results

In order to understand better what the perceptions of PWA are of those who know the association well, those who know it a little and those who have never heard of it, a survey was recently conducted of the opinions of 15 women representative of each level of familiarity. The aim was, first, to discover how well PWA meets its members' expectations and, second, to find out the views of those who had been a guest only once or twice or had heard of PWA only via word of mouth. In-depth interviews were conducted in order to gain even more insight than traditional multiple choice or open queries.

The women who participated in the survey were demographically diverse, in terms of age, marital status and nationality. Some were entrepreneurs, some were from the corporate sector, and some worked for smaller companies.

PWA member Francesca Arra, an innovation policy and project manager with experience in data collation and analysis, prepared a list of guidelines, areas to cover and interview techniques designed to elicit responses that would be the most complete possible. After the interviews were finished, Francesca analysed the data and drew the following conclusions, which the current Board is using as guidelines to continue to shape and improve the overall PWA experience.

The Speaker Dinners and Speaker Meetings were widely appreciated since they combined the opportunity to network and to hear and interact with interesting speakers. It was mentioned that the time allotted to the speakers sometimes was not sufficient and that the aperitivo area in the bar was too crowded. These issues have already been addressed by extending the Speaker Meetings by half an hour to 9.30 p.m. and by moving the cocktail hour venue into the restaurant.

The desire to be integrated more easily into the group was mentioned repeatedly. Newcomers often find it difficult to meet members; and learning about all of the benefits of membership, also, is not an easy task. The Orientation Directors are concentrating this year on putting into place specific action plans that introduce newcomers to others and communicate clearly the value of PWA to those not familiar with the group.

Networking expectations was a common theme: almost all of those interviewed cited a desire to expand their circles of contacts as a primary motive for becoming involved with PWA. It was stated frequently that there were obstacles to personal interaction that could be removed by providing an atmosphere more conducive to professional and personal exchanges. In response, focus has been placed on providing a comfortable environment without size constraints and inappropriate distractions where members can meet: the area at the StarHotel Rosa used for the aperitivo prior to Speaker Meetings has been expanded; and networking events have been converted into unstructured affairs where participants can mix and mingle as much as they like for the price of a drink.

Increasing PWA's professional services was suggested as a way of raising the perceived value of membership. Therefore, the Professional Services table has been launched to encourage the exchange of members' promotional material; also in the works is a Professional Services Offered board on the PWA website, where members will be able to post - free of charge - announcements of their services, including links to their sites. New membership benefits will continue to be implemented and existing ones will be further explained and publicized.

The Board is constantly striving to be proactive in soliciting feedback from members and guests and acting upon suggestions that have a wide appeal so that PWA Milan may continue to grow in a direction that contributes to the professional and personal progress of its members.

The assistance of Francesca and of the women who participated in the survey is appreciated and gratefully acknowledged.

Maria Lassila
Vice President

Careers News

The Career Services Directors have been busy meeting with top recruitment firms, hoping to establish a working relationship between them and PWA: Career Services wants to be able to offer more inspiring jobs to the membership, and the recruiters are looking for high-calibre professionals.

These executive search companies would be delighted to meet with any current PWA member wishing to enquire about the potential of their CV or who is currently looking for a job. They would be pleased also to retain a copy of your CV on file so that, should a position that may be of interest arise, they can contact you.

Please contact the Career Services Directors if this opportunity is of interest and to arrange a meeting.

Ann Marinelli and Karmen Simic Raimondi
Career Services Directors

Holiday Party

Speaker Event

Speaker Dinner - All professional women welcome whether members or guests

What holds us back from achieving our financial goals and taking control of our personal finances? The answers are not always what you think. Often, our biggest obstacle is not knowing where to start. Robert Gignac's presentation focuses on four key areas:

1. What does "rich" mean? (It isn't all about money, is it?)
2. What is a "richly imagined future"? (The picture of life we carry around inside us.)
3. What will you disrupt? (Please don't tell me I need to make changes!)
4. How do you sort through all of the choices? (Oh great, more decisions to make…)

Robert is the owner of Swiss-based Taynac & Associates <www.taynac.com>, an organization that focuses on personal and financial development. An insightful speaker at events across North America and Europe, Robert also writes about personal and financial development issues and is a regular contributor to both Enterprise Magazine and Career Bound Magazine. He has been featured extensively in print and on the radio.

Robert is the author of the bestseller Rich Is a State of Mind, a novel that examines personal finance through the eyes of a Canadian family. As a student of the financial planning process for more than 15 years, he strives to encourage people to take control of their personal finances in order to have a "richly imagined future".

Cocktails 7-8 p.m. / Presentation 8-8.45 p.m. / Dinner 8.45-10 p.m.
StarHotel Rosa, via Pattari 5 (MM Duomo)
€25 for members, €40 for guests

Reservations and prepayment are required. Space is limited to 65 participants. Members, please reserve and prepay online by credit card via the calendar section of the EuropeanPWN website <www.europeanpwn.net>. Alternatively, members as well as guests may prepay by bank transfer, or in person in cash or by cheque at any of the events preceding the Speaker Dinner.

To request a vegetarian meal, to reserve and/or arrange payment, or for more information in general, please contact: speakers@pwa-milan.org.

Deadline for reservations: Friday, 13 January 2006. Please note that reservation priority will be given to PWA members until 10 January.

Special Event - Conference

PWA members are invited to attend a conference organized in a joint collaboration by the Gruppo Donne Manager of Manageritalia Milano and PWA. Entitled "Work Smarter, Not Harder" or "Equilibrio tra lavoro e vita privata: testimonianze, prospettive, proposte", its aim is to set the stage for change in Italy by sensitizing both women and men managers to the importance of attaining a healthy balance between the time dedicated to work and that reserved for one's private life. Prominent figures from leading international firms and academia will discuss how this can be accomplished in a way that is beneficial to individuals as well as to the companies they work for, based on concrete examples from personal and professional experiences and on their research.

Change is indeed imperative. A study undertaken by the Università Bicocca of Milan upon the request of Manageritalia has confirmed that face-time in the workplace - i.e. staying in the office beyond "normal" work hours - is viewed positively by the top management of Italian companies. As a consequence, women who tend to work intensely during the day and leave earlier than their male counterparts, typically motivated by family obligations, are penalized. This represents a further discriminating factor against women and their careers, one that impacts many of PWA's members directly.

This is a free event. Participation is limited to Manageritalia and all current PWA members. The discussion will be held in Italian; a light lunch will be served afterwards.

* Information on the venue will soon be available at www.pwa-milan.org.

From the Board

PWA Milan: 100 members strong and growing fast... Who are we?

PWA Milan has crossed the 100 mark in this new membership year. The Membership Directors thought it might be interesting to share a little information on PWA's members with readers of the Newsletter by presenting a brief cross-sectional analysis; in short, a description of "who we are".

The Professional Women's Association of Milan (PWA) is an international group of women living and working for the most part in the Milan area of Italy. The membership is growing every day, and as of mid-November it numbers more than 100 women.

A truly international organization, PWA's members come from 16 different countries, from Italy and its European neighbours to countries in North and South America, Africa, Asia and Australia. Italy is in the lead representing 30% of members, followed closely by the USA, after which comes the UK and Canada. Twenty-three per cent of members are dual citizens, most of whom include Italy as one of the nationalities.

PWA is strongly anchored by its renewing members, as demonstrated by the fact that 51% of our members were enrolled last year as well, and a further 7% are former members returning to PWA after a period of absence. New members bring new energy and represent 42% of the total. This combination makes for a healthy state of growth for the association.

About two out of five of PWA's working women are employed by a company, and this same number of members is then split between independent workers and entrepreneurs. The remaining 20% consists of women who work in the fields of government, education, and research; who are pursuing higher education; or who are simply in a transitional period. PWA is professionally varied. Its members cover 27 different professional fields with a strong representation (30% collectively) in marketing and public relations, information technology, and education and training.

The PWA woman is between 24 and 70+ years old, with 46% representing the core 30-40-year age range.

Members are attracted to PWA for professional development, personal growth, networking and socializing. For many, the decision to join PWA stems from the search for new career opportunities or the desire to develop their own businesses; for others, new friendships or help with orientation in Milan and Italy are more important. Members seek contact and communication with other women who might be going through a similar life stage or work situation and with whom something can be shared or learned. Whatever the reason, membership in PWA seems to represent an important opportunity to start a new page in life, or to build on one already opened.

Pamela Fries and Alenka Petan
Membership Directors

Success Story

A week in the world of networking

Tuesday, 18 October 2005 started out like any other day for me in my new hometown of Milan. I moved here in December 2004 from Minneapolis, USA, with my husband, whose career path brought us both here. I came knowing full well that it would not be easy to find a job. But we had made our decision and I was optimistic about finding opportunities that would take advantage of my experience in marketing. By now the excitement of moving to a new country and having my days free to explore my surroundings were giving way to a realization that this was indeed my new life and I didn't know what to do with it! I had been out of work for longer than I had ever been since I was 15 years old; I knew I needed a fresh challenge, but didn't know how to go about finding one.

That Tuesday morning, I went to a Benvenuto Club coffee meeting, where my friend Andrea Wiarda - whom I had met through PWA - told me about a job opportunity that might be of interest. She called fellow PWA member Carolyn Wade, who had told her about it, and passed me the phone. Carolyn explained that SDA Bocconi University's Alumni Association (AMSDA) was seeking someone to help grow the Alumni Network, including building the website and developing other tools. Since I love to network and was familiar with the reputation of Bocconi, I was happy to comply immediately with her request to forward her my CV. That same afternoon, I received a telephone call from a staff member of SDA Alumni Relations to schedule an interview for the following day.

When I met with the AMSDA board member and hiring manager the following afternoon, he had already received a reference from Carolyn. The interview went well, and he told me the next step would be to meet the President of AMSDA. Forty-eight hours later, the appointment was set up.

On Monday, 24 October at 4 p.m., I arrived for my second interview. An hour later, I was being welcomed to the team and asked to start the next morning at nine! Tuesday, 25 October seemed a world away from the Tuesday only one week prior, which had seemed like any other day, but in fact was the beginning of a bright new phase in my Italian life.

On Wednesday 26th, I attended a PWA Networking aperitivo where I looked forward to meeting and thanking Carolyn for her helpful role in my story. She in turn introduced me to fellow PWA member Pilar Chaparro and SDA Bocconi employee, who had told Carolyn about the opening. Without the networking that brought me to Andrea, Carolyn and Pilar, I wouldn't have now my wonderful new job, which I truly love.

Monica Prom
PWA Member

How to Join

Individual membership
To join, simply fill in completely and submit the online application form at www.pwa-milan.org. Probably the best way to find out if PWA Milan is for you is to experience the association by coming to one of our events as a guest. Meet members, ask questions, speak to the members of the board and see whether joining would be beneficial for you.

Membership fees
January 2006-December 2006    €100

Corporate membership
Companies may join PWA Milan, enabling designated women employees to benefit from all that PWA has to offer. For further information, please refer to the website www.pwa-milan.org or email pwa@pwa-milan.org.