In celebration of Women​’s History Month, Grow held our 11th annual March event series. This year, we hosted three discussion panels featuring several of our woman leaders who are making an impact and driving change in the financial industry. We are proud to have exemplary woman leaders within our organization and recognize the value their knowledge and diverse backgrounds bring to our success.

The discussion panels, internally called Coffee Talks, provided team members with engaging opportunities to foster growth, build connections and learn something new. Topics included:

• Women New to Leadership, featuring Brooke Britton, Talent Acquisition Manager, and Chloe Glonek, Market Manager.
• ​Women of Color in Leadership, featuring Flora Jackson, VP Business Solutions, and Paola Woodruff, VP Servicing Operations.
• Women in Male-Dominated Industries, featuring Jen Gallingane, VP Application Development, and Sharla King, Dealership Account Manager.

Britton advised attendees to rely on their existing knowledge and experience as they seek the next steps in their careers. She recommended, “Take advantage of opportunities that might not necessarily be the end goal but can help get you there. Take those opportunities to learn and grow, and ask yourself, ‘What new can I learn from this new challenge?’” She also reminded attendees that careers can be flexible. “Say you hypothetically got into a leadership role and hated it. Then you could discuss other options with your manager. You can always make a change. Nothing has to be permanent, right?”

Glonek encouraged anyone contemplating stepping into leadership to go for it. She said, “I really hope you will take time for yourself to re-evaluate where you are on your career journey, have a renewed sense of confidence and maybe take a risk on opportunities. Go with your gut. If you want to be a leader, you should do it because nothing is stopping you but you!”

Participants had the chance to ask our woman leaders a variety of questions, such as, “What strategies have been effective for you to overcome barriers in advancing your career?”

Woodruff shared, “It was important for me to define my worth and not allow others to define it for me. I had to understand the value I brought regardless of my differences — and the value I brought because of them. This built my confidence and kept me focused.”

Taramattee Ramotar, Branch Supervisor, asked, “How do you overcome your challenges?”, which sparked some helpful insight. Glonek shared, “I try to think practically about solutions and think of best-case scenarios to find a path forward when problem solving. I can recognize my own strengths, so I know when to rely on others who have different strengths for support and lean on other leaders in the organization.”

In discussing gender dynamics in the workplace, King described being the only woman, or one of few women, in sales and management roles throughout her career and normally not noticing any disparity. However, she recalled a time in which she — the only woman manager present — was asked to leave a sales meeting to answer phones. King addressed the issue confidently and privately with the new general manager, explaining the gender bias he unintentionally displayed. “I pointed out that excluding me from the meeting could potentially send the message to the others that I was not an important part of the management team and that he had possibly undone in one moment the equal footing I had spent years achieving.”

Discussions were wide ranging, covering important topics like work/life balance, building confidence, taking risks and relying on others for support. Jackson left attendees with one of the most important pieces of advice related to navigating life and career challenges:

We couldn’t agree more! Thank you to all our amazing woman leaders who hosted the discussion panels and to all the team members who attended. To learn more about Women’s History Month, visit womenshistorymonth.gov.

Find out more about what the Grow team has been up to lately on our Community News page.

---

Posted In:

• Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
• News