September 23rd 2011

Robert Holden on 'Raise Your Profile, Achieve More, Work Less, and Stay Happy'

Dr Samantha Collins in conversation with Robert Holden, Ph.D., the Director of The Happiness Project and Success Intelligence. His innovative work on happiness and success has been featured on Oprah and Good Morning America, and also in two major BBC TV documentaries, The Happiness Formula and How to Be Happy which have been shown to more than 30 million TV viewers worldwide. He is the author of the best-selling books 'Happiness NOW!', 'Shift Happens!' and 'Success Intelligence'. Robert has presented lectures in 25 countries and worked with clients including Dove, The Body Shop, the BBC, Virgin Media, Unilever and Sony.

This interview is a shot in the arm for those who want to change their outlook and make a positive shift in their whole approach to raising their profile. Robert tackles fundamental everyday concerns that can undermine your success and happiness. Using an inspirational blend of stories, insights and practical exercises, he'll show you how to shift the stuff that hold you back, transform negative thoughts, release fears, and embrace a new level of creativity

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Robert Holden on Raise Your Profile, Achieve More, Work Less, and Stay Happy

September 20th 2011

Kathryn Britten, Lucy Caslon and Staness Jonekos on 'Raising Profile – Success Strategies: An HQ panel discussion'

Listen to Dr. Samantha Collins in conversation with three very different women leaders as they discuss the importance of creating and maintaining a strong and effective professional profile. This panel of extraordinary women from different backgrounds and working in different fields offer their advice in attaining your professional goals, share their top tips, techniques and strategies and reveal what they did well, what they would have done differently and what they would never do again.

Profile Raising Questions covered include –

What does raising your profile mean to you?
Why is it important for women to raise their profile?
How have you successfully raised your own profile?
What are the common challenges on profile raising and how can they be overcome?
What is your top profile raising strategy?

Kathryn Britten – Chair, KPMG Forensics

Kathryn is an active supporter of women in business and regularly contributes to the debate around attracting and retaining female talent in the workplace, in 2008 winning the Accountancy Women of Achievement award for Women in the City. She has more than 30 years' audit and accountancy experience and is one of the UK's most senior professionals in accountancy 'expert witnesses'. She has worked on a number of high profile commercial disputes concerning businesses across the globe and has given evidence both before tribunals and in the High Court on many occasions.

Staness Jonekos – Launch Executive Producer, Oxygen Media

Staness was one of the original executive producers who, along with co-founder Oprah Winfrey, launched Oxygen Media. She is an advocate for women's health, wellness and empowerment and has devoted most of her career to women’s issues. She co-created the Be Fearless campaign at Oxygen Media, as well as producing and directing ‘Inhale’, a daily yoga exercise show; executive produced ‘Who Does She think She Is?!’ profiling powerful women; ‘Just Cause’ featuring celebrities and their causes; ‘Oxygen Women’s Forum’ with Vice President Al Gore and ‘Worth the Risk’ partnered with WITNESS, a Peter Gabriel organization committed to global human rights.

Lucy Caslon – Founder, Msizi Africa

Lucy, winner of the prestigious Vodafone Foundation World of Difference Programme, is the Director of Msizi Africa, a charity she founded in June 2007 after living with 50 orphans in an orphanage in Lesotho, Southern Africa. Raising her profile is incredibly important so that she can fund raise as she now feeds over 1,000 children. She has had plenty of adventures raising her profile to raise money for the children – she has climbed Kilimanjaro and her next challenge is going to the North Pole which she aims to do in April 2013. She has shark cage dived and was even paid £120 by a group of traders in the City to down a pint a beer (which she duly did as it would feed 2 children for a year). She managed to secure a three page article in the News of the World, which until recent revelations, was the piece of PR she was most proud of. She was runner up for the Clarins Most Dynamisante Woman of the Year Award and was been shortlisted for Red and Cosmo magazine’s Woman of the Year Award once and twice respectively. She is also on the shortlist for the Dods and Scottish Widow’s Woman of the Year Award in the charity category which is announced in September.

This discussion was aired live as part of September's programme of events on The HQ, Aspire's online personal development programme. For more information on The HQ, or to join, click HERE.

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Kathryn Britten, Lucy Caslon and Staness Jonekos on Raising Profile – Success Strategies: An HQ panel discussion

December 22nd 2010

Emma Chilvers on 'Make It So, Number 1 - How the Women of 2011 Will Become Their Own Boss!'

"At the end of a long and exhausting day where we had agreed a whole set of actions, one of my clients thrust the meeting papers in my chest and said 'Make it so, number 2.' What my client didn't realize at the time was how hard his 'little joke' had hit home.

The truth was he was right. My entire professional career was run along 'make it so, number 2' lines. I was a successful partner in a consulting firm, delivering someone else's dreams and goals. I did great work with clients, helping them deliver their dreams and goals, not mine. My working life was living out everyone else's dreams and goals. This was a wakeup call and I no longer wanted it to be that way. It was time to ‘Make it so, number 1’"

As a result of this wake up call, Emma has joined a growing number of women who are their own bosses. Like many of her fellow entrepreneurs, Emma is now following her own goals and has set up her own business, www.leaderwithin.co.uk. She works with leaders who are driving important changes to their teams and organizations and helps them uncover what is getting in the way of success, even if it's them!

Prior to 'making it so, number 1', Emma was at PA Consulting Group where she worked for 11 years and successfully navigated the ranks to partner for 5 of those years. She sat on the Partner Election Committee, a body accountable for the development and performance of the partner group. Prior to working in management consultancy, Emma worked in industry for SmithKline Beecham (now GSK) and BP.

Today, Emma manages to balance running her own business with being a non-executive director as well as exploring other interests and passions. During this call we will hear from Emma on some of the hints and tips she has to share on how to 'make it so, number 1’.

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Emma Chilvers on Make It So, Number 1 - How the Women of 2011 Will Become Their Own Boss!

December 15th 2010

Gillian Shapiro on 'When Commitment Just Isn't Enough - Executive Leaders and the Women of 2011'

‘A majority of executives believe that gender diversity improves financial performance, but far fewer translate that belief into action’ ('Moving women to the top': McKinsey Global Survey results, October 2010). Join us to hear Gillian discuss the role of senior leaders - particularly executive leaders – in developing women leaders for 2011.

Gillian has helped many organizations across public and private sectors to increase the diversity of their workforce and leadership teams and create more inclusive work environments.

Previously, at the Centre for Research in Innovation Management at the University of Brighton, Gillian led research in the UK and across Europe on diversity, employee engagement and innovation. Her PhD thesis focused on the development of women as leaders and the organizational approaches that really work in practice to support this.

Gillian's focus is positioning diversity as a strategic strength – not a program. The research she co-authored – 'Reframing Diversity' defines the role of executive leaders in drawing strategic advantage from diversity. Gillian has worked with organizations on gender, race and disability and has co-designed their benchmarking models used to assess the outcomes of diversity programs. She is currently the diversity advisor to the Broadcast Equality and Training Regulator in the UK which works in partnership with the broadcast industry in a unique way to help it continue to raise its game to build a skilled and diverse workforce.

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Gillian Shapiro on When Commitment Just Isn't Enough - Executive Leaders and the Women of 2011

December 8th 2010

Jenny Daisley on 'How the Women of 2011 Will Inspire Each Other - and How You Can Do It Too'

Inspiration is the magic spark that can turn a plan into a passion and good intentions into dogged determination. It can turn a job into a vocation and give courage to any tentative dream. In Jenny's work across cultural, racial and corporate barriers, she has been able to observe how women from all walks of life gain inspiration and provide it for others.

Jenny Daisley, Chief Executive of the Springboard Consultancy Ltd, is one of the most experienced and skilful women's development consultants in the world. A lifetime of creating and delivering extraordinarily successful, women's development programs has resulted in 200,000 women in 33 countries having experienced her down-to-earth programs and her materials having been translated into 12 languages. Her most recent work has been the training of 100 women, from a wide variety of backgrounds, as women's development trainers across the Middle East.

In addition to the many awards won by her various programs, Jenny was personally presented with the 'European Women of Achievement Award' for 'developing pan-European understanding and inspiring others'.

In this interview, she will expand on her observations, illustrate them with practical examples and outline how all of us can inspire ourselves and others to be both successful and happy at work and in life.

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Jenny Daisley on How the Women of 2011 Will Inspire Each Other - and How You Can Do It Too

November 24th 2010

Mikelann Valterra on 'The Savvy Business Woman’s Path to Prosperity'

Even in this day and age, women still earn less than men. Countless women are locked in a cycle of “underearning”, where they consistently make less money than they need or earn below their potential. Despite their experience, education, or results they obtain for their clients, they are frustrated and tired of not earning more. The Women’s Earning Institute is dedicated to helping women overcome underearning. It specializes in understanding the emotional and psychological connections behind why women can undersell themselves and provides women with the tools to make more money and earn at their full potential.

Mikelann Valterra, founding director of the Women’s Earning Institute, is passionately devoted to helping women earn at their potential. Mikelann is a published author, dynamic speaker and nationally sought after expert on women’s work, money and earning issues. After a decade of working with people on financial counseling issues, she published her first book, 'Why Women Earn Less: How to Make What You’re Really Worth' (Career Press 2004). Shortly thereafter she founded the Women’s Earning Institute, dedicated to empowering women to earn what they’re really worth. She published 'How To Set and Raise Your Rates, A Woman’s Guide' in 2007. With her Master’s in Conscious Studies and Financial Recovery counseling background, Mikelann brings a deep understanding of psychology and human potential to the fields of feminine success psychology and money matters. Mikelann has appeared on dozens of radio shows, television spots and in newspapers. Hear her as she talks about changing one’s relationship to wealth and how women can earn at their potential.

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Mikelann Valterra on The Savvy Business Woman’s Path to Prosperity

November 17th 2010

Barbara Sharples on 'Women and 'The Triple Bottom Line''

Barbara Sharples is a mother and grandmother and a retired corporate business woman now running her own consultancy practice. She has had an amazing career working with blue chip companies and feels privileged to count Peter Kindersley and Dame Anita Roddick not only as past colleagues, but as friends. Her career highlights were as Managing Director of Dorling Kindersley Family Learning International (publishers) and Managing Director of The Body Shop Multi Channel operations and The Body Shop at Home International.

Anita Roddick, Activist and Founder of The Body Shop, said of Barbara at this time:- “She defines the reality then defies it. She has a passion that persuades everyone she touches. I am her devotee”.

Since leaving The Body Shop she has held a number of non executive roles. Barbara sat on the board of The Body Shop Foundation and until recently was a trustee of the international charity Children on the Edge. She now works tirelessly supporting local charities through her late grandson’s connection to The Precious Lives Children’s Hospice appeal in the UK. Barbara is passionate about people, opportunities for women and the planet and she has transformed thousands of women’s lives across the globe. Hear from this most inspirational woman on how women are the enablers in ensuring organizations focus on more than profits but also on people and on the planet!

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Barbara Sharples on Women and 'The Triple Bottom Line'

November 11th 2010

Caroline Stroud on 'How Women Do Business'

Caroline was appointed as the first ever Global HR Partner for the international law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP with responsibility overall for global people strategy, skills frameworks, learning and development, diversity and inclusion, talent management, employee engagement and partner leadership programmes. Caroline combines her role as Global HR Partner with being a partner based in pensions and benefits and specialises in employment law. She is co-head of the London employment practice and advises clients on issues such as discrimination, equal pay and whistleblowing.

Caroline has considerable experience in mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution and regularly acts as advocate in employment litigation proceedings. Her clients include several major investment banks and other financial institutions, professional services firms and major corporates. Caroline is an accredited CEDR Mediator and Solicitor Advocate (Civil).

Hear about how Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is advancing gender diversity and specifically Caroline's thoughts on how women develop business, approach networking and sales in order to play to their strengths and promote themselves and their expertise.

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Caroline Stroud on How Women Do Business

November 3rd 2010

Robert Silverstone on ''GROW your Relationship with Money' '

Robert Silverstone is a Conscious Business Coach, Speaker and Author with over 30 years of international business experience. He provides coaching and consulting expertise to CEOs, Senior Executives, Business Owners and Business Partners as well as Senior Management Teams on money and sales related topics such as ‘We are not participating in the recession...’

He was named among the "Top 50 Minds on Personal Development" by Leadership Excellence magazine, along with significant notables such as Anthony Robbins, Tom Peters and Oprah Winfrey. His articles on personal growth have been widely published internationally. He is founder of The GROW Principle^®, a simple and powerful tool for conscious growth and transformation and his book and home study course, "GROW Your Relationship With Money" has key ideas and insights for women. Robert will also share tools and ideas from his up and coming book “GROW Your Relationship With Selling for Women” which highlights a new way of selling aligned to the needs and aspirations of women.

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Robert Silverstone on 'GROW your Relationship with Money'

October 28th 2010

Debbie Phillips on 'Inspiring Women Share Their Secrets (and Save You Years of Struggle!)'

Debbie Phillips shares the secrets of inspirational women and the stories of their most hard-won battles. Through their experiences, you'll find tested strategies for coping with such universal challenges as job stress, recognizing your passion and turning it into profit, balancing the demands of a complex life, accomplishing long-sought-after goals and much more.

In 2003, Debbie founded Women On Fire®, an organization to extend the outreach of inspiration, strategies and support for women to be successful. She is the author of 'Women On Fire: 20 Inspiring Women Share Their Life Secrets (and Save You Years of Struggle!)'; co-executive producer of the film 'Inspire Me!' and a columnist for ABCNews.com. Prior to this, she was a newspaper reporter for the Columbus (OH) Citizen-Journal; a deputy press secretary to former U.S. Senator John Glenn during his quest for the Democratic presidential nomination; the press secretary to former Ohio Governor Richard F. Celeste; and a television executive, responsible for U.S. Health Productions Company, which featured the nationally and internationally syndicated television health and lifestyle show Life Choices. She has a bachelor's degree in journalism from The Ohio State University and a master's degree in public administration from The Kennedy School of Government at Harvard.

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Debbie Phillips on Inspiring Women Share Their Secrets (and Save You Years of Struggle!)

October 21st 2010

Sheryl WuDunn on 'Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide'

Women are not the problem - they are the solution, along with men. Sheryl WuDunn, the first Asian-American to win a Pulitzer Prize and co-author of 'Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide' is a New York Times best-selling book about the challenges facing women around the globe. It has been featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Colbert Report and many other network television shows. 'Half the Sky' lays out an agenda for the world's women and the major abuses that claim one woman a minute.

Hear from this inspirational woman who hopes to recruit you to join an incipient movement to emancipate women and fight global poverty by unlocking women's power as economic catalysts. It is a process that transforms bubbly teenage girls from brothel slaves into successful businesswomen. You can help accelerate change if you'll just open your heart and join in. Previously, Sheryl worked at The New York Times. She has also been Vice President, in the role of investment advisor for private clients, in the investment management division at Goldman, Sachs & Co. and a commercial loan officer at Bankers Trust. Recently, she spoke to Al Gore and his group of colleagues including Sir David King, the chief science advisor to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. She has often been quoted in news articles and has discussed philanthropic issues on such television programs as The Charlie Rose Show and NBC's Dateline.

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Sheryl WuDunn on Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide

October 14th 2010

Melanie Stubbing on 'How to Make a Difference and Get Life Balance'

Hear Melanie’s vision to make a difference to women and children around the world by eradicating obesity. Melanie will discuss her strategies for success and her aspirations to make a huge difference to Weight Watchers. All of this with a complex job, a busy life and a family to spend quality time with.

Melanie Stubbing is President, International of Weight Watchers International, Inc., the world's leading provider of weight management services. In the more than 45 years since its founding, the Company has built its meetings business by helping millions of people around the world lose weight through sensible and sustainable food plans, exercise, behavior modification and group support. Each week, approximately 1.3 million members attend almost 50,000 Weight Watchers meetings around the world, which are run by more than 15,000 leaders—each of whom has lost weight on the Weight Watchers program. Prior to joining WeightWatchers, Melanie was Managing Director, Hedstrom, U.K and held various marketing positions at Mattel UK Ltd., including Group Marketing Director. Melanie is a business graduate of Manchester Metropolitan University.

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Melanie Stubbing on How to Make a Difference and Get Life Balance

October 6th 2010

Dr Elisabeth Kelan on 'Is Superwoman a Myth?'

Is it possible to be ‘superwoman’? Recent research tells us that the lack of senior women leaders may be just a problem of lacking role models but what does this really mean for women who aspire to the senior ranks of corporations and what responsibilities lie with the women already there?

Hear the view of Elisabeth Kelan (PhD), a forward thinking academic, adviser and author. Dr Elisabeth Kelan is Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in the Department of Management at King’s College London. She was Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Women in Business at London Business School and has also worked at the London School of Economics and Political Science and the University of Zurich. Elisabeth is a leading scholar on gender and generational relations in organizations. She has presented her research internationally, published widely, and has received various awards for her research. Her first book is entitled ‘Performing Gender at Work’. She has provided advice to supranational and corporate organizations.

If you are interested in following Elisabeth’s research, you can do so here.

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Dr Elisabeth Kelan on Is Superwoman a Myth?

September 28th 2010

William Arruda on 'Personal Branding for Women Leaders'

According to William Arruda, one of the leading global thinkers on personal brand: "Women are the future. They are forward-thinking companies' most valuable assets. Their innate abilities and strengths are uniquely aligned with the needs of the new world of work". William is the President and Founder of leading global personal branding company, Reach, and is credited with turning the concept of personal branding into a global industry. He is a sought-after spokesperson on personal branding, talent development and leadership. His clients include American Express, JPMorgan, IBM, Microsoft, Adobe, and Johnson & Johnson. He has appeared on the Discovery Channel, BBC and Fox News Live and has been featured in Entrepreneur, Forbes, Harvard Business Review and Time. Hear William's latest thinking and strategies for personal branding success.

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William Arruda on Personal Branding for Women Leaders

September 22nd 2010

Marcia Reynolds on 'How High Achieving Women Find Contentment & Direction'

Marcia Reynolds, PsyD, is the author of Wander Woman: How High-Achieving Women Find Contentment and Direction. In it, she examines how women can find greater happiness and satisfaction with the wondrous things they are achieving. She wrote the book for extremely accomplished women who are tortured by the endless pursuit of "outstanding." Marcia's doctoral degree is in organizational psychology with a research emphasis in high-achieving women in the workplace. Excerpts from her books have appeared in many places including Psychology Today, Harvard Management Review, and The New York Times. Hear Marcia's thoughts on how women can find that elusive sense of satisfaction with themselves as well as their work.

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Marcia Reynolds on How High Achieving Women Find Contentment & Direction

September 15th 2010

Andrée Simon on 'Changing the World for Women'

Andrée Simon is President of Women for Women International, a non-profit organization that helps women survivors of war rebuild their lives operating in places such as Rwanda, The Sudan, Iraq and Afganistan. Around the world, women face some of the greatest obstacles yet also represent tremendous opportunity for lasting social and economic development. Women for Women International believes that when women are well, sustain an income, are decision-makers, and have strong social networks and safety-nets, they are in a much stronger position to advocate for their rights. Andrée is also a Board Member of Women Advancing Microfinance International. She is an adjunct professor of Microfinance at Georgetown University and a frequent public speaker on microfinance and development. Hear Andrée's ideas on how to change the world and harness the power of leadership and women.

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Andrée Simon on Changing the World for Women

September 8th 2010

Marcus Buckingham on 'What the Happiest & Most Successful Women Do Differently'

Marcus Buckingham, the world's leading expert in personal strengths, is the bestselling author of five books, including What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently. In it, he suggests that rather than trying to find the perfect balance, women should "strive for imbalance, pinpoint the strong-moments in each aspect of your life and then gradually target or tilt your life toward them". A Senior Researcher at Gallup Organization for nearly two decades, Buckingham addresses more than 250,000 people in live audiences each year and leads management training initiatives in organizations worldwide. Hear Marcus' strategies for how women can lead strong and happy lives.

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Marcus Buckingham on What the Happiest & Most Successful Women Do Differently

September 1st 2010

Veera Johnson on 'Being an Authentic & Courageous Leader'

'Asian Business Woman of the Year' Veera Johnson is CEO of ProcServe, a leading provider of procurement and electronic trading solutions globally. The central theme of Veera's hugely successful career over the past ten years has been to harness the power of authentic leadership, team and technology to help save private and public-sector organizations time and money. She attributes her success to "being herself" and even painted her boardroom pink to demonstrate her authenticity and courage. Formally a partner at PA Consulting, Veera was 'given' her own company and made CEO in order to utilize her strengths.

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Veera Johnson on Being an Authentic & Courageous Leader

Aspire - Leadership for the future

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