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2018-2019 Past Events
Rockstar Breakfast and Networking - SOLD OUT Are you looking for an opportunity to network with senior women leaders? If so, this is THE event for you. Enjoy a light breakfast accompanied by lots of conversation with Charlotte Allerton, Senior Vice President and Head of Medicine Design at Pfizer and Joanne Kotz, Cofounder, President and CEO of Jnana Therapeutics. Registration is for WEST MEMBERS ONLY and will be limited to a maximum of 20 participants to ensure an intimate experience. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-06-26-networking-breakfast Building Your Company Culture and Developing Your People June 20, 2019, 6:00 - 8:30 PM Corporate Culture is a hot topic these days especially in our ever-changing world. As an employee, manager, or executive, have you ever asked yourself: • Is my company’s culture something I can design or is it something that just happens?
• How I do ingrain learning and development into my culture?
• Is there a “right” culture for my company?
• Does my company's culture attract really great people to join?
• What should my role be in defining and influencing my corporate culture? Does my role as I progress into management?
• How can I influence and encourage diversity and inclusion at my company?
• Who “owns” corporate culture in my company?
Panelists include: More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-06-20-company-culture-panel How to Inspire, Advocate and Grow During Change Change. It can be unexpected, feel pushed on us, or have consequences we wish were different. Yet, change presents an opportunity to thrive: To build your advocacy muscles, hone your strategic thinking, and stand up for what's right. During this interactive workshop led by Claudette Rowley, you'll learn a three-phase system for assessing, designing, and implementing your best responses to change. You'll leave with tools, strategies, and an initial plan for handling the next unexpected change you encounter. This workshop will be followed by a panel discussion with panelists sharing how they manage change. The panel will be moderated by Mary Ann O'Loughlin, Principal, Cambridge Coaching and Consulting. Panelists include: More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-06-12-change-management-workshop Finding your Voice Among all the Chatter May 15, 2019, 6:00 - 8:30 PM We all have an inner dialogue that can sabotage the best of intentions. Just because we want to say something, doesn’t mean that we are able to. Sometimes our body does something different! Have you ever gone into a meeting determined to speak your mind or prepared to take a stand and when you have the chance, you feel like you can’t? We all have that internal chatter that speaks so loudly it takes over our voice sometimes. Oftentimes, that voice is the voice of other people from our past. Our mind can be very good at recalling instances when we were shut down or shamed paving the path for our body to repeat those patterns. In this workshop, Andrea will share practices and strategies for you to take that step to speak your voice. We will explore the historical and habitual patterns we have adopted that have shaped who we are and have the opportunity to reflect on our experience with fellow learners. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-05-15-finding-your-voice-workshop Career Book Club May 22, July 17, September 18, November 20, 2019, and January 15, 2020, 6:00 - 8:30 PM WEST is offering a book club for WEST members focusing on women's career advancement. We will have a meeting with a new book every other month. We would like participants to commit to four sessions to create a supportive community. We will have a facilitator for each discussion group who will have read the book, so even if you don't finish the whole book you should still attend and enjoy the conversation. We understand people get busy at certain times of the year and may not get to finish every book. The books were selected based on surveying the WEST community and include You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life by Jen Sincero, Being Strategic: Plan for Success; Out-think Your Competitors; Stay Ahead of Change by Erika Andersen, Grit by Angela Duckworth, Ditch Your Inner Critic At Work: Evidence-Based Strategies To Thrive In Your Career by Susan Peppercorn, and How Remarkable Women Lead: The Breakthrough Model for Work and Life by Joanna Barsh. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-west-career-book-club Equity Compensation April 24, 2019, 6:00 - 8:30 PM Do you have any stock options? Do you know what restricted stock units are all about? Do you understand the tax implications of options, RSU’s, and vested stock? Do you want to understand how your equity compensation might (or might not!) help you build wealth? Equity compensation can be a confusing topic. To unravel some of the mysteries, please join Judi Reed, Financial Advisor, and Robert Peretti, Equity Compensation Specialist, of Morgan Stanley, for a workshop to discuss the basics and the nuances that could impact you financially. To understand equity compensation in a broader context, they will also discuss the importance of having a financial plan to help you achieve your personal goals as well as build wealth through your 401k plan and other investment vehicles. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-04-24-equity-compensation Rockstar Breakfast Are you looking for an opportunity to network with senior women leaders? If so, this is THE event for you. Enjoy a light breakfast accompanied by lots of conversation with Sonia Israel, Founder of Aifred Health and Rosana Kapeller, Entrepreneur in Residence at GV. Registration is for WEST MEMBERS ONLY and will be limited to a maximum of 25 participants to ensure an intimate experience. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-04-12-Networking-Breakfast Managing Up April 10, 2019, 6:00 - 8:30 PM How can you effectively negotiate the relationship that has the most impact on your career, and still be yourself? How can you have power with your manager, being cooperative and expressive? Managing up is not about manipulation or capitulation. Rather it’s learning to influence with respect, and broaden your horizons to speculate about the pressures and demands which may be outside of your view. It’s about influencing diplomatically yet authentically. Being intentional about challenging a plan. How can you get what you need at the same time you’re focusing on what your manager needs? Led by Janet Britcher and Michèle Barnett Berg. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-04-10-managing-up-workshop "Own It" Senior Panel Discussion Join us for this flagship event to learn from seasoned senior leaders as they tell us about their inspiring journeys to success in the fast-paced world of science and technology. The topic will be our annual theme, "Own It! Empowering Your Career & Your Life." Hear advice they have for owning your career and taking charge of your future by exploiting your strengths with confidence and fine-tuning your skills to ask for what you want and need. Network with movers and shakers in the science and technology community and support career advancement of the next generation of women leaders in STEM! More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-04-03-own-it-panel-cambridge Both Sides of Negotiating Equal Pay March 13, 2019, 6:00 - 8:30 PM Sometimes you are the employee negotiating a new job, raise, or end of year bonus. Other times, you are the manager negotiating those same things on behalf of your employer. Regardless of your role, your actions impact the equality of the ultimate compensation decision. Both Sides of Negotiating Equal Pay with Katie Donovan teaches you how some of the best practices in hiring, promotion, and review processes prevent achieving pay equity, ironically by assuming equality already exists. More importantly this workshop will share what you can do in both roles to close gender and other pay gaps. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-03-13-negotiate-equal-pay-workshop Seven Habits of Effective Networkers WEST and The Society of Professional Consultants are partnering to bring you this engaging workshop. When you hear the word 'networking' do you think of an overly-aggressive person pitching you for a deal? You're not alone! Everyone knows that we get more done when we help others and have them help us. But how do you build that network with a sense of authenticity? In this talk, Diane Darling shares her go-to strategies that help everyone learn how to master the art of networking. You’ll gain a better sense of confidence on what events to attend, how to reconnect with someone you've lost touch with, and ways to stay top of mind. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-03-11-effective-networking-workshop Get on Board: Inside the Board of Directors February 7, 2019, 6:00 - 8:30 PM If you would like to serve on a board, are already on a board, or work with a board, join us for Get on Board! The panelists are directors of both for-profit and nonprofit organization boards, and will address issues relating to service as directors, including the combinations of skills and experiences that boards are seeking, how to best position yourself for nonprofit or for-profit board candidacy, resources available to help you identify and take advantage of both paid and volunteer board opportunities, what it’s like to serve as a director on a board, and issues particular to women on boards. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-02-07-board-of-directors-panel How to Advocate for Yourself We negotiate every day. At work we negotiate not just our jobs and salaries, but research priorities, budgets, staffing, deliverables and time tables. At home some of us negotiate child care pick up and drop off, who is making dinner and who stays home when the kids are sick. While men and women are equally skilled negotiators, women face some additional challenges. Not only were many of us not raised to advocate for our own interests, but we sometimes pay a social cost when we assert our needs and interests. With Amy Rebecca Gay, we’ll dive into what we negotiate, our beliefs around advocating for ourselves, how to mitigate others’ negative perceptions when we assert our interests and two tools for increasing our effectiveness. You will leave with a better understanding of what is getting in your way and what to do about it. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2019-01-30-negotiate-advocate-workshop Own It: WEST Annual Awards and Networking Night On January 23rd, WEST will host our annual Awards and Networking Night. This marquee event provides WEST an opportunity to look back on 2018 and look ahead to 2019. It also gives us a chance to thank and recognize the community that has contributed to making 2018 one of our most successful years ever. This year, we will honor members and sponsors of the WEST community who exemplify the spirit of WEST and our 2018-2019 theme: “Own It: Empowering Your Career & Your Life.” Many of our sponsors helped us to select awardees - individuals from their companies who advance women leaders, serve as exemplary leaders or role models, or those who give back to the community in meaningful ways. 2018
Holiday Cocktail Party WEST and Cooley invite you to a Holiday Cocktail Party for an evening of networking and festive food and drinks. Please join us to celebrate the holidays, connect with members, exchange ideas, learn about job openings and more. This event is free thanks to the generous sponsorship of Cooley. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-12-11-boston-networking-holiday-party Redefining Success - Bring Your Values Alive at Work: Discover What Success Means to You! What does it mean to have it all? Whose definition of success is driving your career? Are you struggling to define what “Success means to me”? In this interactive workshop, we will use the principles of Appreciative Inquiry—a model of organizational change that focuses on your strengths and your values—to gain insights into what matters most to you in your career, and in your day-to-day experience. You will gain clarity about what excites and energizes you. If you are not fully engaged in your current role, it may be because you are not tapping into all your strengths. We will explore ways to incorporate your strengths and your values more intentionally in your role. You will discover if your role is fully aligned with your values—and what shifts you can make—to reprioritize your goals to align with your values, and find deeper satisfaction and success in your career. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-12-05-strengths-success-values-career Building a Team You Can Trust November 15, 2018, 6:00 - 8:30 PM Do you struggle to get the results you want from your team? You hand over work, but you’re never sure it will be done the way you want it. You don’t want to micromanage, but you also don’t want work that’s not up to par. So, you end up taking it back and doing it yourself, until you are overworked and overwhelmed. Imagine how different your work life would be if you were part of a team you could trust — with your direct reports and your peers — where people were committed and productive, crushing deadlines and delivering promotion-worthy results. Imagine how much could be accomplished... In the workshop you'll learn: The 3 most important things you can do to build trust and reduce conflict on any team, why trying to do too much yourself is one of the WORST things you can do for your career, and what you can do instead, and how to easily increase your influence and authority without coming across as pushy or hyper-competitive. Focusing on the work where you add the most value can have an enormous impact on your career, and on your day-to-day satisfaction. In order to do that, you need a team you can trust. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-11-15-trust-team-workshop To MBA or Not to MBA At some point in your career, many people ask themselves: I’m succeeding in my STEM career but what’s next? Do I need an MBA to get to the next level? Could leveraging my STEM background by combining it with the in-demand skills of leadership and business be a game changer for my career? Decide for yourself by listening to the experiences of our four esteemed panelists – Some who have an MBA and others who do not – and learn which factors you should consider in this decision. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-11-13-mba-or-not-boston Interrupting Bias Despite strides towards inclusion and equity in our society, messages abound about what it means to be of certain identities. We are socialized with these stereotypes all around us and these messages are so pervasive that despite our best intentions, we sometimes fall into biased behaviors and thinking, often unconsciously. In this workshop led by Chris Haigh, we will define bias, understand where it comes from, reflect on our own biases, and examine strategies for interrupting bias in ourselves and others. Come prepared to engage in self-reflection and in dialogue with your colleagues about an issue that truly affects us all. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-10-23-hidden-bias-workshop Career Paths and Working in Industry Biogen's WIN group is offering roundtable discussions with women from various areas of Biogen. They will be talking to female grad students and post-docs about their career paths and decision to work in industry. This event will be limited to the first 30 to register and sells out every year. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-10-16-career-paths Networking Night Bristol-Myers Squibb will soon be opening its new R&D site in Cambridge. They are inviting the WEST community to join them for a casual networking event to meet their leaders, learn more about the site, and learn about some of the skills and backgrounds they are looking for as they seek to build their Cambridge team. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-10-11-biotech-pharma-networking How to Advocate for Yourself We negotiate every day. At work we negotiate not just our jobs and salaries, but research priorities, budgets, staffing, deliverables and time tables. At home some of us negotiate child care pick up and drop off, who is making dinner and who stays home when the kids are sick. While men and women are equally skilled negotiators, women face some additional challenges. Not only were many of us not raised to advocate for our own interests, but we sometimes pay a social cost when we assert our needs and interests. With Amy Gay, we’ll dive into what we negotiate, our beliefs around advocating for ourselves, how to mitigate others’ negative perceptions when we assert our interests and two tools for increasing our effectiveness. You will leave with a better understanding of what is getting in your way and what to do about it. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-10-03-negotiate-advocate-workshop Successful Communication: How to Build Your Skill in Handling Challenging Conversations Do you notice a sense of discomfort or even dread when you know you have a difficult conversation that needs to happen? Do you leave these conversations feeling less than resolved or understood, or question whether anything will change as a result? In this workshop led by Sue Williamson, you will bring your own challenging conversation and work with it using a model, specific steps, and practice in effectively preparing for and engaging in your conversation. We will talk about the ladder of inference and the power of assumptions and then use a 5 step process to prepare for any challenging conversation. Come join us and build skill and confidence in your abilities to be successful communicators in often emotional scenarios. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-10-02-difficult-conversations-workshop Improving the Quality and Impact of our Conversations through Conversational Intelligence™ September 20, 2018, 6:00 - 8:30 PM We have long thought of communication as a soft skill and given it little attention. Yet it, more than anything else, is the cause of problems and the source of solutions in our businesses and in our lives. Everything happens through conversations. Conversational Intelligence (C-IQ) provides frameworks and tools, based on neuroscience, that elevate the quality of our conversations and our results by creating the conditions for increased trust, creativity and collaboration. In this interactive session led by Cindy Loughran, participants will gain a basic understanding of Conversational Intelligence. They will become familiar with neuroscientific research on conversations and why it matters, identify two core human needs that impact the effectiveness of our conversations, and gain specific tools that increase the impact of conversations in order to build trust and encourage greater creativity and collaboration. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-09-20-conversational-intelligence-workshop No Title? No Problem! Influencing Without Authority Are you leading a project or team without formal authority? Do you have some great ideas but you need others’ support to successfully execute? Do you want to influence important decisions outside of your immediate responsibility? Do you want to want to persuade your boss but you aren't sure how to position yourself? In this age of heightened business complexity, to get things done often requires the support of many others both inside and outside your own organization, department or team. Many change initiatives involve multiple functions within and even between organizations, requiring managers to exercise influence over people without formal authority. In this interactive workshop led by Ank Stuyfzand, we'll explore the key factors for becoming more influential; ways to build credibility, strengthen relationships, and enhance your communication style... all to increase your ability to influence those critical to your success. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-09-13-influence-without-authority-workshop Developing Presence August 1, 2018, 6:00 - 8:30 P Today's leaders need more than a great resume, they need Presence - the ability to connect, inspire and influence others at all levels. In this 90-minute workshop led by Angie O'Donnell, we'll describe three elements of Presence that apply to everyone, regardless of your role, that can easily be learned and refined. You'll leave with some tips and techniques for creating a positive first impression, enhancing your verbal presence, and being intentional about connecting with others. Learn to make a memorable connection without self-promoting. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-08-01-developing-presence Annual Networking Night WEST’s Annual Networking Night is great opportunity to meet and mingle with like-minded STEM professionals. Participate in facilitated networking activities designed to engage you with the wonderful women in the WEST community. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-07-31-networking-night Leadership Strategies to Advance Your Career Sandra Glucksmann, President & CEO at Cedilla Therapeutics, will share stories of her career challenges and successes. She will discuss how to best apply your scientific and analytical abilities to develop influence and negotiation skills. Sandra will share her learning experiences as she transitioned from bench scientist to manager, and from manager to executive in both small and large company settings. More Information: https://www.westorg.org/2018-07-25-leadership-strategies-advance-stem-career
Other Past Events 2024-2025 |
