FORGE YOUR FUTURE - A New FWA Initiative

The 2008 financial crisis and ensuing economic turmoil have had a personal and professional effect on Financial Women’s Association members as careers and investments have become more unstable.

As a result, the FWA is proactively responding to help forge through these trying times and is finding ways to create opportunity. The organization has made it a priority to support its members by launching the “Forge Your Future” initiative. This innovative program is designed to:
  • Enhance skills – strengthening those key professional skills critical to career advancement
  • Exploit resources and tools – maximizing resources and providing ready access to the building blocks of career exploration
  • Expand exploration – leveraging programs and people to broaden career perspectives and connections
Forge Your Future offers events and activities that help you create new opportunities for yourself. Sessions this fall have focused on building your brand, communicating without apology when you are “the only woman at the table,” and learning how to exploit the potential of the social networking tool “Linked in” with practical tips and training. Our evolving menu of relevant and timely workshops, networking events, skill-building activities, and tools for the FWA membership is strategically planned to reach our diverse membership base in the corporate, entrepreneurship, and not-for-profit arenas with generalist content that’s applicable to advancement in any sector at a time when many of us have become more open to trying something new.

To give you the flexibility to work these into your busy schedules, we’re holding them at various times and locations. For example, Transition Tuesdays are now offered both in New York and New Jersey, while monthly Technology Thursdays with hands on training in commercial databases and other online power tools are scheduled at lunchtime in midtown Manhattan at The New York Public Library’s Science, Industry and Business Library. Bridgestar’s sold-out breakfast seminar on transitioning into the not for profit sector has us eyeing other early morning events. We’re pulling out all stops to support the careers of our membership.

Here is a preview of Forge Your Future to come. The Career Connections, Entrepreneurs, and Professional Development Committees have shaped outstanding opportunities for you described in our monthly event calendar and issues of Connections. This winter, look for the launch of peer advisory circles as well as two highly interactive sessions, the ever- popular speed networking and a new speed-coaching event that gives you the opportunity to meet with professional coaches one-on-one. And, of course the signature Coaching Summit will return along with programs on surviving and thriving in a merger, developing executive presence, honing your influencing skills, and re-tooling for careers in the growing field of compliance.

Check the FWA website regularly for events, postings, or other tools such as the expanded Job Listings that can help you Forge Your Future. You will see events are branded specially for easy identification. And new events as well as new job postings are added regularly. Forge Your Future recognizes the strength and power of the FWA membership. By working together and leveraging resources we can emerge from the crisis ready to take on the next challenge. Take advantage of the program offerings and see what opportunity reveals itself.


Forge Your Future
FWA Events*

ENHANCE YOUR SKILLS
Strengthen and enhance key professional skills critical to career advancement

EXPLOIT RESOURCES & TOOLS
Maximize resources to give people ready access to insights, opportunities and advancement

 EXPAND YOUR EXPLORATION
Leverage programs and people to broaden career perspectives and connections
What They Didn’t Teach You in Business School: How to Manage Your Career and Build Your Brand Boards: How to Get on Them and How to Prepare for Them Annual FWA – Credit Suisse Executive Coaching Summit
When You Are the Only Woman at the Table: Communicating Without Apology Career Assessment Tools: Myers Briggs, Disc, Career Match Business-to-Business Networking
Advanced and Speed Networking Linked In 101 Women in Philanthropy
Executive Leadership Skills Training in Commercial Database Use: Vault, Hoover’s, ID Exec, First Research, etc. Your Next Career
Take Charge of Your Success Strategies for Starting and Planning a High Growth Business in Turbulent Times Sovereign Wealth Funds Panel Discussion
How to Manage Your Career and Build Your Brand Do You Know Where Your Intellectual Property Is and Whether It’s Safe? Changing Energy Policy and Its Impact on New Green Investments
Take Control of Your Career
FWA Member Resources
Member Directory listings including bio
Connection with other members through dynamic search capability
Access  to senior level job listings
Links to job resources and industry research
Coaching: Life/Executive
Peer Advisory Circles
Bridging from Business to the Non-Profit World
Surviving a Merger and Ending up Thriving Strategic Options for New Career Development
Navigating Your Career in Turbulent Times Small to Big, Becoming an Entrepreneur in New York
Exploring Stock Ownership Plans: 1 CPE Credit Distinguished Speaker Series:
Beth Brooke, Ernst & Young
Daria Foster, Lord Abbett
Terry McGraw, The McGraw-Hill Companies
Self-Defense Workshop Global Agenda, Microfinance and International Affairs Activities
Off-the-job training for
on-the-job success: Committee collaboration with industry professionals		  
 

*As of January 2, 2009

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  Last updated:
  September 1, 2009