All professional women welcome whether members or guests

Wednesday, 25 January 2012, 7-9.30 p.m.
Entrepreneur, Ready-For-Board Woman and PWA Member Joyce Bigio presents:
“Personal Marketing & PR: Seizing Opportunity Every Day”

What do successes in securing a job, engaging new clients and obtaining a prestigious post all have in common? They all depend on treating the objective as your personal priority project and realizing that nobody else will do it for you: you are a company of one.

Success in any of these three pursuits requires a committed action plan that includes:

• clarifying goals
• planning an “attack”
• execution and follow-through
• continuous networking with purpose

Meet Joyce Bigio: successful business owner, “Ready-For-Board Woman” and networker extraordinaire.

Her current focus is twofold: actively seeking positions on company boards, while continuing to grow her client base in a competitive industry.

Joyce will share how she never misses an opportunity to communicate:

• who she is
• what she does
• what she’s looking for
• what she has to offer

She’ll share practical tips that you can put to work for yourself in creating and maintaining your reputation so that you stand out in a crowd and become a reference within your sphere.

Join PWA for a motivating and energising evening as Joyce shares her ongoing professional journey: the challenges, experiences and successes she’s encountered along the way.

About Joyce:
Joyce Bigio is the founding partner of International Accounting Solutions, specializing in CFO services, outsourcing of the accounting function and temporary accounting staff.

A long-time resident of Milan, Joyce is originally from USA, where she graduated from the University of Virginia and qualified as a Certified Public Accountant with Arthur Andersen, spending 10 years in the audit divisions in Washington and Milan. She then joined Euromobiliare as controller of this investment bank. In the early 90’s, she worked in London with Waste Management, first as head of European reporting, then in their merger and acquisition department. In 1998, she was appointed CFO of Italy for Sotheby’s and served on the Board of Directors in Italy and Switzerland.
She currently serves on the Board of Simmel Difesa S.p.A., the Italian subsidiary of Chemring Plc, a company quoted on the London Stock Exchange. In 2010 she was identified by Professional Women’s Association and Bocconi University amongst the top 200 women in Italy qualified to serve on Boards of Directors.

In addition to PWA, she is a sustaining member of the British Chamber of Commerce, on the organizing committees of ANDAF (Assoc. Nazionale dei Direttori Finanziarie) and IAIA (Italian Association of International Accountants) and AiiA (Associazione Italiana Internal Auditors).

NH Hotel President, Largo Augusto 10 (MM San Babila, Duomo)
Networking Cocktail: 7 – 8 pm Presentation 8 – 9:30 pm

Members and guests, please register in the calendar section of EuropeanPWN.

For more information, please send an email to speakers@pwa-milan.org

Speaker Meeting

All professional women welcome whether members or guests

Wednesday, 21 September 2011, 7-9.30 p.m.
Executive Coach and PWA Member Caroline Flanagan presents:
“Great Expectations”

The holidays are over and summer is drawing to a close. Evenings are shorter and suntans are starting to fade. Are you feeling energized, motivated and focused on your goals? Or are you wallowing in post-holiday blues and in denial about the challenges that lie ahead? Perhaps you are experiencing a mixture of both. Whichever is the case, Caroline’s “Great Expectations” presentation will give you the kickstart and the forward momentum that you need.

Join PWA for a motivating and energising evening that gets to the heart of the matter: your attitude. Let’s be honest – most of you know what you want, but do you believe you will actually succeed in realising these aims? What’s your relationship to your goals? Are you a Dreamer, a Wisher or a Hoper?

Caroline will introduce us to these 3 passive states that many of us are stuck in without knowing it. While each of these stages has a part to play in helping us to achieve success, on their own they are not enough. We need to move through these levels and on to the active and powerful state of being an Expecter – the state of having Great Expectations of ourselves and of the changes we want to see in our lives.

Come and discover why expecting more of yourself, and less of your surroundings is fundamental to success. Learn how to apply this active and powerful state to your personal and professional lives in order to achieve the results you are looking for.

About Caroline:
Caroline has a BA (Hons) from Cambridge University, England and trained as a lawyer at the College of Law in London. She worked for several years as a finance lawyer in two of the world’s leading international law firms, Allen & Overy, LLP and Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton.

After 8 years in the legal finance world Caroline retrained ad graduated as an accredited Coach with Coaching and Mentoring International UK. Caroline is a member of the International Coach Federation and has over 4 years coaching experience.

Caroline is an inspiring coach, writer and speaker who has a passion for personal growth and for discovering new ways to help others achieve better fulfillment in their lives.

NH Hotel President, Largo Augusto 10 (MM San Babila, Duomo)
Networking Cocktail: 7 – 8 pm Presentation 8 – 9:30 pm

Entrance free for members, 25 euro for guests, payable in cash at the event.

Members and guests, please register in the calendar section of EPWN – www.EuropeanPWN.net

For more information, please send an email to speakers@pwa-milan.org

Speaker Meeting
All professional women welcome whether members or guests
Wednesday, 22 June 2011, 7-9.30 p.m.
PWA presents a panel discussion:
“Reinventing Yourself”

“Human beings have an inalienable right to invent themselves…” ~ Germaine Greer

When you take away all the excuses and limitations, who is it that you would really like to be? We’ve arrived at our current situations by various paths that depended in varying degrees on choices we made when we were younger (education, family, geography to name a few), opportunities that presented themselves to us and commitment and drive that we dedicated to attaining our goals. Sometimes our current situations are exactly what we’ve strived for while other times it becomes clear that a change is desired or necessary.

Join us to hear the stories of 3 PWA members who made the decision – and took action – to reinvent themselves and their professional lives.

Meet the Panel:

Gini Dupasquier is the founder of DONNALAB, a startup consulting business specialised in the inclusion and development of women in companies (www.donnalab.it). Prior to devoting her energies to make companies understand the value of “gender balance”, Gini worked at Accenture and IMS Health where she gained her consulting and market research experience. Born in Milano, she graduated in Business Administration at Bocconi University and attended UCLA as an exchange student in Marketing. She loves travelling, has two young daughters, one husband, one cat and one horse.

Grazia Francolini graduated in Business Economics at Bocconi University. Having started her career in strategic consulting, she held several managerial and executive roles in various companies in the TNT Post Group, including Director of Public Affairs, Corporate Strategy Director, Managing Director and Board Member of a subsidiary, Controller, and Commercial Manager. She was awarded the “Young Women Executive Award” by ALDAI-Federmanager and was selected for PWA’s Ready-for-Board Women list. In 2010 she founded her own management and consulting firm and is a Civil Mediator. Active in the election campaign of Giuliano Pisapia, she is a founding member of the Lista Milano Civica per Pisapia and is married with two children.

Sheyla Rega is a Senior Executive Coach and Trainer on Management and Leadership programs, and a partner in the firm Lody srl. As Director of Lody Coach Academy, she trains managers and professionals on coaching techniques. She is the founder of the Community of Coaching Practice in Italy, where she supervises and is mentor to numerous professional coaches in Milan, Bologna and Rome. Author of the book “Dal business coaching al coaching etico”, she brought the DoLquest assessment to Italy in 2002, where she served as manager of the Italian DoLquest Experts Network as well as Quality and Ethics Manager for Italy. She earned a degree in Economia Politica at Bocconi University and has been visiting professor at the Université di Management H.E.C. Executive Education in Paris and at the University of Bergamo. Sheyla began her career as a manager in quality control and sales consultancy before founding her own company in 1998. French and Italian, she is the mother of two.

NH Hotel President, Largo Augusto 10 (MM San Babila, Duomo)
Networking Cocktail: 7 – 8 pm Presentation 8 – 9:30 pm

Entrance free for members, 25 euro for guests, payable in cash at the event.

Members and guests, please register in the calendar section of EPWN.

For additional information, contact speakers@pwa-milan.org

by Silvia Siliprandi and Valerie Ryder

Workshop “How to find your own Mentor”

PWA realizes that there is a significant gap between supply and demand of Mentoring programs in Italy, which is why the PWA Mentoring program was first conceived and is now continuing with its second edition. PWA is also aware that it will likely be difficult to fulfill all requests to take part in the 2011 program.

This is why Valerie Ryder, program leader, facilitated a Workshop on finding your own Mentor. In her presentation Valerie clarified that anybody can find a Mentor. No one’s professional and/or life situation is too “unusual” to start looking for one (or even several!). But where to look? It’s better to avoid close friends, family and significant others, who may not have the right experience and be too emotionally involved to be objective. Also avoid your direct boss and colleagues, as this could be tricky, possibly overexposing you, your uncertainties and your future intentions. Do not approach acquaintances with no significant ties with you and people with good intentions…but no time!

Do however consider approaching an industry leader of the sector you are interested in, a higher-up in the organization you work for, a mutual connection who has taken an interest in you, a peer at a professional association, or a community leader. Identify at least three potential Mentors and approach them by telling them why you would like to have them as your Mentors, being honest, informal and specific about your needs. Be flexible about time availability and basic logistics, but do set an appointment to get the relationship going once you are accepted as a Mentee.

Persevere if you can’t find one immediately. If you are unsure about a potential Mentor, ask a question and check if you’re satisfied with the answer. Look for a Mentor with the right experience and who is a role model for you, and also who has the right chemistry that can allow you to cultivate a strong and long-lasting professional connection or even a friendship. Do not postpone your search. If you think you need a Mentor, the time to get moving is NOW!

Valerie Ryder, Executive Coach & Consultant at Ryder & Associates, served as Mentor in the 2010 edition and invited her own Mentee, Chiara Cappelletti, Chemical Engineer and Development Technologist at BP Technology Centre near London, to share her experience on finding a Mentor after moving to the UK and subsequent to completing the PWA program. Chiara approached a successful young manager working in her company, several levels above her, asking candidly if she would become her Mentee. The much sought-after manager she selected agreed (!), stipulating that Chiara’s immediate manager be aware of the Mentoring relationship (standard practice). Chiara has effectively started her Mentorship within her own company, and is well-prepared to take on her ambitious professional challenges.

Please share with PWA your own success story on finding a Mentor by writing to professional@pwa-milan.org

View photos from the 27 April event here

Read La Carriera Rosa’s interview of Valerie Ryder on the PWA Mentoring Program here

Download the “Women Leading Women” 2010 mentoring publication here

Roger Abravanel is not a proponent of quote rosa to promote equal opportunities for women. Rather, he describes himself as “a friend of meritocracy”: excellence should drive leadership and not family name, gender or where one is born

Join us to hear from this celebrated author, blogger and advocate who will discuss themes from his latest book and update us on the status of his affirmative action project aimed at increasing the number of women serving on boards of Italian companies.

Going beyond the traditional condemnations of its absence, he will discuss why meritocracy is key for economic development, how successful societies promote it and why in Italy it is not properly valued. He will elaborate on the four action steps he proposes to promote a culture of meritocracy – including an affirmative action plan.

Reviewers of his book have defined Roger as a visionary. He wrote “Meritocracy” and launched his affirmative action project well in advance of the many current proposals on the subject.

About Roger
Roger Abravanel was Director of McKinsey & Company where his career spanned 35 years. He is currently an advisor in the private equity sector and sits on the boards of several Italian companies including Luxottica Group. He serves as president of the INSEAD Italian Council. His blog at Corriere della Sera takes its name from his book, Meritocrazia: Quattro proposte concrete per valorizzare il talento e rendere il nostro paese più ricco e più giusto (Meritocracy: Four concrete proposals to increase the value of talent and make our country richer and more equitable). Born in Libya, he emigrated to Italy as a young adult and earned a degree in chemical engineering at Milano Politechnico and an MBA at INSEAD. Read his blog here

Cocktails 7-8 p.m. / Presentation 8-9.30 p.m.
Hotel NH President, Largo Augusto 10 (MM San Babila)

Free for members, €20 for guests, payable by cash at the event.
Members, please register on EPWN

For guest reservations please email speakers@pwa-milan.org

All professional women welcome whether members or guests.

All professional women welcome whether members or guests

PWA, in collaboration with Korn Ferry International, presents a panel discussion: “Women in Technology – Making a Difference: How to Increase the Number of Women in Leading Positions”

A look at who occupies management positions in technology companies around the world shows a heavy bias towards men, and an even more dramatic disparity in numbers between male and female executives can be found in Italy. Why is this the case? What can be done to increase women in leadership positions?  For those who have managed to reach the upper levels, how did they get there?  What should companies and individuals be doing to bring more women into corporate leadership roles?

PWA President Monica Pesce, will moderate a discussion designed to help us understand how women have achieved success so far, what we can be doing to increase opportunities and what benefits female leadership will bring to the technology sector and world economy as a whole.

The panel will share their experiences and perspectives gained from working at different companies internationally to help us to find ways to increase opportunities for women seeking leadership roles.

Panel Members
Pietro Scott Jovane – CEO, Microsoft Italia
Barbara Poggiali – CEO and Managing Director Dada (Division of RCS Group)
Tatiana Rizzante – CEO, Reply

Cocktails 7-8 p.m. / Presentation 8-9.30 p.m.
Grand Hotel et de Milan. Via Manzoni 29, (MM Montenapoleone)
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Free for members, €20 for guests, payable by cash at the event.

Advance registration is required for all guests in the calendar section of www.EuropeanPWN.net

 Members, please register your attendance in the calendar section of  EPWN

For additional information, please contact speakers@pwa-milan.org