The State of Girls and Women in STEM 2023

Created annually by National Girls Collaborative Project, this March 2023 resource presents a high-level summary of the most compelling statistics and research on the state of girls and women in STEM, focused on K-12 Education, Higher Education, and the STEM Workforce. 

At the Women Presidents Organization, we encourage more girls and women to enter into STEM.  It is crucial to understand that gender inequity in STEM is driven more by perception than by reality.

Download the document here.

The Best CEOs Continually Improve

"Success breeds complacency, complacency breeds failure." – Andy Grove

How do CEOs (business owners) avoid complacency and sustain high performance through the middle years of the role? There is no magic formula, but from these authors research and experience in the field of CEO excellence, they are confident the odds are greatly increased by the following:

• Enhancing your learning agenda
• Taking an outsider’s perspective
• Collaboratively defining the next S-curve
• Future-proofing the organization

Read on to learn more about all of the above.

Minority Business Ownership Differs By Sector

As the U.S. population has become more diverse, ownership of U.S. businesses has changed.  There were more Hispanic-owned businesses overall and more minority-owned businesses in various sectors in 2020 than a decade earlier, according to the Census Bureau’s 2021 Annual Business Survey (ABS).

Approximately 20% or 1.2 million of these employer businesses were owned by minorities. They employed about 9.9 million employees and had annual payroll of $357.4 billion.

Learn more about who owns America's businesses and how minority business ownership differs by sector.

The Entrepreneurial Journey

JP Morgan | Chase asked business owners and leaders to share the strategies, priorities and principles they’ve embraced throughout their entrepreneurial journey.

Here's what they said.

Vegas Events: The 2023 WPO Entrepreneurial Excellence Forum

Come one, come all – it's finally here:  The 2023 WPO Entrepreneurial Excellence Forum May 10-12, 2023 at the Cosmopolitan Hotel Las Vegas.

Check it out here and learn from WPO members the answer to this key question:  Why did you join WPO and what have you gotten out of it?

See you in Vegas!

U.S. Women Entrepreneurs Are Fueling Business Growth

In the United States, many women are fueling this newfound growth in entrepreneurship, creating around half of all new businesses in 2022.

They are the future of work.  Learn why.

Join the Women Presidents Organization in Vegas for the Entrepreneurial Excellence Forum May 10-12, 2023

It's not too late!  JOIN me along with 750 other women business owners from around the world who will be arriving in Las Vegas for the annual Women Presidents Organization Entrepreneurial Excellence Forum. This is the most amazing program of the year for WPO.

Our WPO CEO Camille Burns sums it up nicely in this LinkedIn post.

To learn more and to register, visit here.  And be sure to stop in at the Pre-Forum Workshop I'll [Laurel Delaney] be moderating on Intentional Growth Beyond Borders (May 10th at 9:30 AM local time).

See you there!  

Helping Kids Launch Big Ideas of Their Own

Jess Ekstrom, Founder of Headbands of Hope and Mic Drop Workshop, launched a multi-million dollar company out of her dorm room in college.  

In this interview with Jessica Abo, she shares how it all started and her advice for kids and teens who want to launch their own big idea.

Valarie King-Bailey, CEO, OnShore Technology Group Makes the Crain's Chicago List of Biggest Women-Owned Businesses

Our very own WPO Chicago member, Valarie King-Bailey, M.B.A., Chief Executive Officer, OnShore Technology Group, makes the Crain's Chicago Business List of Biggest Women-Owned Businesses.

Congrats to Valarie.  We are so proud of you.  This recognition supports all your hard work over the years and is very much deserved.

You can access the list if you are a subscriber to Crain's, here.

Advice For a Young Lady Wanting to Become President (of the United States)

What will it take for a woman to obtain the highest office in the land?  in this case we are talking about becoming President of the United States and not President of your own business although I must say that President of your own business is a pretty tall order, too.  We know this to be true at the Women Presidents Organization.  If you want to be a Chief, you join WPO, it's that simple provided you run a multimillion dollar business.  Anything else that you join is subterfuge for the real thing.

But back to President of the United States.  While pundits debate Nikki Haley's chances, historian Alexis Coe looks back at a speech former President Gerald Ford gave to a group of children and wonders if he—and whole bunch of film and TV writers—was right all along.

In 1989 a bespectacled girl with a yellow ribbon in her hair asked Gerald Ford if he had any advice for a “young lady wanting to become president of the United States.” Ford didn’t recommend the best schools or list acts of service. He didn’t even answer her question, instead pivoting to a morbid prediction.

Read on to see what it was.

Women Supporting Women

Starting out with just about 70 women-owned businesses featured on The WMarketplace, the Seattle-based e-commerce site has grown to more than 500 women-owned businesses.

Co-founder and CEO Kate Isler said it was crucial for women business owners to find a place to sell their products and services in order to survive the pandemic and thrive going forward.

Just like the Women Presidents Organization, "Women supporting women" is also a core part of The WMarketplace, according to Isler, who said that mindset is how women entrepreneurs succeed.

Read on to learn more about the backstory on The WMarketplace.

The Rebel Within Her: Ali Florsheim

Ali Florsheim (as shown), is president of Wisconsin-based Rebel Green, a natural household cleaning product company.  She is a rebel to us in the WPO Chicago II chapter.  Because she's strong, bold and fearless in running her successful business.  She's grateful for a lot of things but in particular ... 

When it comes to gratitude, however, Florsheim saves her biggest thank you for the WPO. “I find it difficult to express the depth of my gratitude to the WPO for providing an opportunity for women in business to get together,” she says. “It’s such a unique experience to have even the possibility to sit with such interesting, successful women, and to learn from them, to share experiences in such a non-judgmental and informal way.”

We love having Ali as a WPO member and she is inspiration to us all.  Read the entire WPO interview here.

Marketing to Women Isn’t Just About the Color of a Product

Marketing to women isn’t just about the color of a product. After all, Maserati could make their cars pink if they thought that would appeal to women.

Globally, according to a not-for-profit that helps build workplaces that work for women, women control about $32 trillion in annual consumer spending. That’s a lot of purchasing power.

In the U.S., women account for 85% of all consumer spending, and they are responsible for a growing number of highly significant buying decisions, including 93% of food and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, 92% of vacations, 91% of new homes, as well as 89% of bank accounts, 80% of health care, 66% of PCs and 65% of new cars.

To help your products or services connect with savvy female consumers, these five tips may help.

How to Measure Employee Engagement with the G12

There are 12 needs managers can meet to improve employees' productivity. This approach to engagement is simple, and, according to Gallup, it works. Here they are:

1. I know what is expected of me at work.
2. I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right.
3. At work, I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day.
4. In the last seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work.
5. My supervisor, or someone at work, seems to care about me as a person.
6. There is someone at work who encourages my development.
7. At work, my opinions seem to count.
8. The mission or purpose of my company makes me feel my job is important.
9. My associates or fellow employees are committed to doing quality work.
10. I have a best friend at work.
11. In the last six months, someone at work has talked to me about my progress.
12. This last year, I have had opportunities at work to learn and grow.

Learn the science behind the questions.

Be Empowered and Inspired: Read a Book

Ask yourself these three questions:

1. Do I want to read books that inspired successful women entrepreneurs?
2. Am I curious to see what key learnings other business owners get from their reads?
3. Do I want to start my own business, but there’s something holding me down and I’m not sure what it is?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you’re in the right place. 

Each book in this collection comes with its own recommendation because it’s important to understand why that title was important to its curator, to determine if it might be important to you, as well.

And once you start your business, visit the Women Presidents Organization to get even more inspired.  Reach a million-dollar mark in annual revenue and membership can be yours.  A dream come true. 

As a Business Owner, How Not to Make These Top 3 Mistakes

When companies are just getting off the ground, there are many stressors and opportunities. This is an exciting time in the life of your company, and there are some common pitfalls that you can avoid.

Here are three.

Thoughts, Prayers and Love to Our WPO Sisters in Turkey

We are reposting the LinkedIn post our WPO CEO wrote about the horrific event that happened in Turkey.  

From Chicago to Peru to South Africa – no matter where the WPO chapter is located – we are with our Turkey WPO sister in spirit, love and support.

If you want to help support Turkey, our WPO chapter chair, Gaye Goker, has suggested two trusted organizations:

1. https://lnkd.in/exA4kyrD
2. https://lnkd.in/edvBvqrN

Read CEO Camille Burn's entire post here.

New Pattern of Self-Empowerment Among Women Business Owners

Women business owners and top executives of small and mid-size majority-women-owned businesses have an optimistic outlook about the near-term future of their businesses, according to a recent survey.

The PNC Bank [PNC is a long-stand WPO national sponsor] survey found that women business owner (WBO) expectations for their own companies remain strong, with 41% feeling highly optimistic -- up from 29% in the fall of 2020 but down from 67% in the fall of 2021 – while the share of those feeling pessimistic has held constant at just 1%.

“We are seeing a new pattern of self-empowerment among women business owners that are very encouraging,” said Beth Marcello, director of PNC Women’s Business Development. “Their own hard work to survive the pandemic is the source of their confidence and optimism today.”

The survey suggests that women have a take-charge, can-do attitude. 

Read more here.

Perseverance Matters

Set your soul on fire.

WPO Member of the Moment: Teri Sharp, President at American Precision Supply, Inc.

Congrats to WPO Chicago member Teri Sharp (pictured) for this beautiful feature below on her business.  We love her answer to the first question in the interview.

How has being a WPO member helped your business?

Being a WPO member has helped me grow my business and given me the confidence to keep moving forward. I use the ladies in my chapter as a sounding board for new ideas or things I need to change. They are a support group of women who understand the issues we all face and that helps me when I am in a very male-dominated industry.

Read the entire interview, including the challenges she has faced, what inspired her to start her business and what her favorite WPO event is.

MLK, a Supporter of Women's Rights

Martin Luther King, Jr. marched with women who were underpaid and overworked.  He spoke out for women who were denied equality. He organized for women who were victims of oppression. He knew that women’s rights are civil rights, and helped shape many of the movements in which we participate today. 

Along with NOW, let's all of us honor the memory and the legacy of Dr. King on this holiday.

Trends That Will Shape the Creator Economy in 2023

The creator economy has surprisingly held strong, even with a looming recession, increasing pressure from lawmakers to ban TikTok in the U.S., and Elon Musk being Elon Musk at Twitter, so Fast Company says.

According to Influencer Marketing Hub, the creator economy is currently valued at $16.4 billion, a 19% increase from 2021.  Will that energy carry over into 2023?  

In the latest episode of Fast Company’s Creative Control podcast, KC Ifeanyi spoke with a few experts to get a better understanding of where the creator economy is heading next year.

Here's what they said.

Kickstart the New Year with 5 Reflective Questions to Ask Yourself

Dr. Richard Osibanjo says it's the time of year to reflect on the past 12 months and plan for the new year. When things get tough, remember what Henry Ford said: "When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it." 

Here are five questions to ask yourself to make 2023 a meaningful year.

Happy Holidays From WPO Chicago!

©2022 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Ho Ho Ho Happy Holidays!

©2022 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Oh what fun it is to celebrate the holidays (and successes) with WPO Chicago I chapter members!  Yes, we are serious and focused about growing our businesses, but we also know how to have a blast.  

Happy Holidays from Chicago I chapter members! 

The Holidays Are a Time to Eat Healthy!

Yes, you read that right:  the holidays are a time to eat right.  Fueling with healthier choices enables us to enjoy the celebrations more, and bounce back more easily.  Allows us to run our businesses more efficiently then, too. 

Here’s how to keep the holiday cheer alive while making balanced meal choices.  

Top Female Founders 2022 According to Inc. Magazine

Here are 100 reasons women business owners rock.

One of our WPO Chicago members, Valarie King-Bailey (shown above) is featured in the list!  Congrats!

Photo credit:  OnShore Technology Group

Women Who Want to Lead

For the past 25 years, Nina Vaca has been running Pinnacle Group, an IT and staffing firm in Dallas. While she's seen the industry evolve from the birth of the internet to the introduction of the metaverse, she still hasn't seen a clear path for women who want to lead. 

Today Vaca runs PG on the foundation that people are the asset, and providing service to them is the goal. She applies this mindset to both her clients and her employees -- and anyone who wants to learn how to create a successful business. "My purpose is to improve lives through entrepreneurship, and Pinnacle's is to connect them with opportunity," she said. 

Learn more here.

Are You Quiet Firing?

As companies face tightening budgets, many may be considering trimming their workforce. But of course, outright layoffs are expensive and risky. That’s why some have turned to a subtler strategy: quiet firing, or intentionally creating a hostile work environment that encourages people to leave “voluntarily.” 

The HBR authors’ new research sheds light on how employees can tell if they’re being quietly fired, including changes to work responsibilities, compensation, and communication, and offers ten tactical steps workers can take before throwing in the towel.

Happy Halloween From WPO Chicago!

©2022 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Do What You Are Afraid to Do

©2022 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

"Courage is doing what you are afraid to do.  There can be no courage unless you are scared." – Eddie Richenbacher

Just Like That: Our WPO CEO Is On the Front Cover of Enterprising Women Magazine

We salute our Women Presidents Organization CEO Camille Burns, and WPO Zenith member, Asma Ishaq, CEO of Modere North America, on their induction into the Enterprising Women Magazine Hall of Fame!

https://libraryenterprisingwomen.com/fall2022/

Congratulations!  We are so proud of you both!  And kudos to Enterprising Women Magazine for the great feature.

2022 Women of Color Achievement Awards (Houston)

The 100 Black Men of Metropolitan Houston Chapter, in partnership with the Women Presidents Organization (WPO), are proud to announce the honorees of the 2022 Women of Color Achievement Awards. 

A total of fourteen women were recognized for outstanding professional achievement and demonstrating exemplary community service. 

Sponsored by JPMorgan Chase Commercial Banking, the event took place on October 6, 2022, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., at the Texas Southern University-Jesse H Jones School of Business, 3800 Sampson St, Houston, TX 77004.

Congratulations to all honorees, especially our very own Ramal Taylor, former WPO Chicago member who recently moved to Houston.

Read the news and see the full list here.  More can be found via LinkedIn.

Screenshot source:  LinkedIn post

Turning Empathy Into Compassion

As Arthur Brooks for The Atlantic says, "In contemporary culture, empathy seems like a fairly unalloyed virtue. As virtues go, however, empathy is overrated. Used excessively and on its own, it can bring harm to empathizers and empathizees alike. Instead of striving to be more empathetic, we should all try to build on empathy to cultivate its superior cousin: compassion."

Empathy is not feeling sorry for someone in physical or emotional pain—that’s sympathy. Rather, it is mentally putting yourself in the suffering person’s shoes to feel their pain. It’s the difference between “Get well soon” and “I can imagine how much discomfort you must be feeling right now.”

As business owners who lead, learning to turn empathy into compassion is a virtue in and of itself.  Read the full article here.

Leading By Example Can Still Be Powerful

Leading by example, as in the case of Queen Elizabeth II who was no shrinking violet, can still be powerful, "and every time women or nontraditional people do something that's that important and visible, it changes our sense of who gets those jobs," says Kim Campbell, a former prime minister of Canada and the first and only woman to ever lead that country.

Queen Elizabeth II, who died 9/8/22 at age 96, was the longest-reigning woman in history and a role model for many female leaders. Her work and approach to the role has already influenced many women in politics (and in business), and some of the politicians shared how she has inspired their work throughout the years.

How Chicago-based Bluedog Design Made It to the Top, Twice

Crain's Chicago Business reports, "For the second consecutive year, Bluedog Design, a marketing and growth consultancy in Fulton Market, was ranked the top place to work by Crain's."

How did Bluedog do it?  What can we all learn from the founder and CEO of Bluedog, Michelle Hayward?

Well she certainly cuts to the chase when she addresses the reporter's first question:

If you had to name one thing as the reason you're a best place to work, what would it be?

Curious?  So was I.  So glad I read the entire interview.

(Screenshot photo courtesy of Crain's Chicago Business feature article 9/14/22.)

The Ultimate Success: 19th Annual WPO Chicago Summit on 9/8/22!

©2022 Laurel J. Delaney.  All rights reserved.

Thank you to Susan Walters-Flood, COO of The Planting Hope Company for presenting, "Grow and Scale Your Business Despite Economic Challenges," at our 19th Annual WPO Chicago Summit hosted by Foley & Lardner on Thursday, September 8, 2022.

We appreciate Susan sharing her insights on how to scale a business, take it public, and maintain a company culture.

Special thanks to Foley & Lardner, Ellen Wheeler and Lauren Loew, for their amazing assistance on this program.  We could not have done it without their help and their assistant's help.  It takes a village to put a successful program on.

Lead With Purpose

How do you lead with purpose? This is a beautiful interview with Elisa Choi, MD, an internist and infectious-disease sub-specialist, who always had an affinity for biological and life sciences.   She is the daughter of immigrant parents and a first-generation U.S.-born citizen.

Dr. Choi says:

"One way I lead with purpose is—I try very hard when I'm in a leadership role to listen as much as, and actually more than, I talk. That has taken a lot of work and I won't claim to be perfect at it. But, I do feel that is one way I try to lead with purpose because, ultimately, the best leaders care less about the title and position, and care more about being able to support and represent the people for whom they hold a leadership role." 

She goes on to say, "You can't support people unless you really understand where they're at and what they're experiencing and going through. Part of leading with purpose, in addition to trying to be as active and supportive a listener as possible, is to take a look around at the table—whether it’s the table one is sitting at, or the figurative table of one’s professional network or thinking about who has preceded me—and identify who hasn’t yet had the chance to have a voice at that table, and determine what I can do to then make sure that people who haven’t yet been represented will be in the future."

Read the full interview – you will appreciate a very sound perspective from Dr. Choi on how we can lead with purpose and achieve equity in our world.  

19th Annual WPO Chicago Summit 9/8/22: Grow and Scale Your Business

Growing As a Leader: Sandy Marsico, founder and CEO of Sandstorm

Long time WPO Chicago member Sandy Marsico, founder and CEO of Sandstorm, says:

"Ten years ago I became a member of the Women Presidents Organization to help scale my agency. Not only has Sandstorm Design gone through explosive growth, but I have personally grown as a leader thanks to Laurel Delaney and this group! 

Just this week, fellow WPO board member, Ida Abdalkhani and I interviewed each other on the impact WPO has made on our business and our life. 

The team at PNC made the entire day so much fun! And to be on camera with such a great friend made it even more memorable!" 

Learn more here.

Chapter Chairs Are the Heart and Soul of WPO

From the CEO of the Women Presidents Organization, Camille Burns:

"I always say the chapter chairs are the heart and soul of WPO. I cannot express how wonderful it was for my heart and soul to be in Denver with them at our annual chapter chair training. WPO chairs traveled from all over the US, Canada, South Africa, UK, Mexico, Turkey, Peru and Spain for 3 days of learning, sharing expertise and facilitating greatness in each other. 

I am so proud of the work these incredible women do to create a safe space for women business owners to grow and thrive. I have had countless women over the years tell me that WPO changed their life. It is with the utmost gratitude that I acknowledge our chairs for all of the lives and businesses they have changed and will continue to change."

Read her LinkedIn post here.

Policies Your Workers Value

While the Great Resignation has led employers to offer increasingly generous benefits, it can still be hard to know what policies your workers will value the most. 

Some of the creative benefits offered by companies on Inc.'s 2022 list of Best Workplaces include, but are not limited to:

• Access to parenting coaches
• Work-life balance specialists
• Handyman services

So what perks do workers want that they don't have today?  You will not believe.  Read on to learn more.

Great Leaders Are Self Aware

According to Lindsay McGregor, leaders need to inspire their employees not just to execute their jobs well, but to also find purpose within their roles. 

Great leaders are self-aware and able to objectively assess whether they’re setting a good example for the rest of the team to follow. By first modeling the behavior they want to see in their team members, leaders will be that much closer to having a fully engaged team in good times and in bad.

Here are some ways leaders can better connect with their teams, encourage collaborative leadership, and inspire team members to do their very best work.

Building An Inquiry Driven Culture

Pia Lauritzen for strategy+business says that having worked as an advisor to executives for 18 years, she has never come across another theory, method, or tool that in two minutes helps leaders make up their mind about what’s important, take other people’s situations into account, and think of their input in light of their company’s or team’s common goal. 

So, what is it about asking questions that makes leaders spontaneously do so quickly what no carefully designed manual or process manages to do? Go with Pia's train of thought and take a look at the ideas that make up the magical question triangle – and in the process learn about building an inquiry-driven culture.

Six reasons successful leaders love questions.

Luci Creative is Exclusive Design Partner for the New Adams Presidential Center

We love sharing positive news about our WPO Chicago members. This one is about AJ Goehle, President of Luci Creative and her amazing team.

Luci Creative, the award-winning experiential design studio, is delighted to announce its selection as the exclusive exhibition design partner for the new Adams Presidential Center to be built in Quincy, Massachusetts. Luci Creative has distinguished itself as a developer of award-winning interactive, state-of-the-art, and dynamic exhibitions and spaces that allow visitors to connect to an organization's purpose.   

Read all about it.

Screenshot source:  Luci Creative

Do You Have Consistency of Interest and Perseverance of Effort?

Inspired by the research of psychology professor Angela Duckworth, grit is widely considered an important predictor of success and performance. It has two main components as defined by Duckworth and Quinn in 2009: “consistency of interest” and “perseverance of effort.”

It’s not just about being “resilient in the face of failure, but also about having deep commitments that you remain loyal to over many years,” says Duckworth.

The idea that grit is fundamental to long-term success sounds sensible enough. Keep doing what you’re doing, stay on task, be passionate, don’t give up and you will ultimately be rewarded.

Read on though to see how you can change your life from time to time to achieve a greater chance of success.

Explosive Growth By WPO Chicago Member Shital Daftari

The cover spotlight of Enterprising Women (EW) magazine's Summer 2022 edition features our very own WPO Chicago member Shital Daftari, founder of SNT Biotech.  Congrats Shital. We are very proud of you!

Learn more here and while you are at it, sign up for EW's upcoming conference.  An event you won't want to miss.