In 2013, we were doing a great deal of coaching for leaders, but most of the people we were working with were men. And while I like working with men, it seemed like more high potential women should have been in the mix.
With this in mind, we set about to create a program designed for and delivered to women who wanted to invest in themselves and proactively manage their careers. And so, Striving for Excellence: Women In Leadership was born.
Fast forward to today. We have had over 500 women go through our program and they have benefited greatly. We get great ratings from survey data, and we have lots of testimonials to prove that the assessment data, the coaching, and the material we deliver helps women change the trajectory of their careers and even their lives.
In talking to our customers, the reasons for supporting the Women In Leadership program are surprisingly diverse. Some like the program because, while women make up the majority of the workforce to a certain point, at the management level, women are underrepresented.
Others support it because they have seen the data that organizations perform better when there is even just one woman in a high-level leadership role. And then there are those who have daughters who will be entering the workforce and they want a more level playing field for them.
Whatever the reason, we have found with a high degree of consistency that people who attend our programs perform better for themselves, their teams, and their organizations.
Being a big believer in self-development and continuous improvement, I try every day to be a better leader than I was the day before. I hadn’t really thought about whether being a woman was to my detriment, but over the course of my career, I have been able to take on challenges, learn from feedback, and press forward to get good results. I have had many opportunities afforded to me over the years, so I see it as my role to do good for others and to help others live the lives they want to live.
One of the phrases that I live by is “to whom much is given, much is expected,” and I feel that we all benefit by encouraging other women to develop themselves, ask for what they want, and take some control of their own careers.
My kids would tell you they hear that phrase more often than they would like, but change starts with us and those closest to us. We reach women through our programs and encourage them to do better. If we all do our part to reach out to someone else, build each other up, and look for ways to further our collective cause, the world can work toward being a better place.
Learn more about PRADCO’s Women’s Leadership Programs here.
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