How well do you understand your organization’s business?

Research conducted in the spring of 2006 by Leibham & Company confirmed that “Understanding the Business” is one of five core competencies for women in leadership roles.

An Important Core Competency: Understand the Business

Women who participated in the research identified that Big Picture Thinking was the number one skill when asked to rank order these skills from most important to least important and anticipating the future impact of decisions was second. In addition to concrete skills such as technical skills in their field and budget/finance skills, you can see that building the right culture in the department or team is critical in terms of fostering innovation, which was ranked in the top 5. And while math and logic skills are important, they don’t show up in this model because this is seen as fundamental to leadership and a foundation piece for management roles.

“It is an absolute necessity to know how to
read financial statements”
Research Participant, Spring 2006

So, if this skill is engrained by the time a leadership role comes around, it must be learned early on in one’s career. This is important to know if you want to move your career forward. In addition to taking a course in finance (such as financial skills for the non-financial manager and both SAIT and U of C have such courses), it is important to ask for development in this area through managing a budget – even a small one.

If you are not able to get this experience at work, then look to helping out your professional association in some volunteer capacity. You can work on your numbers by working on math puzzles and logic problems. There’s a great magazine published by Dell that is called Math Puzzles & Logic Problems that you can purchase. The reality is that the language of the board room is the bottom line in numbers: revenue, balance sheets, cash flow, etc. Check your company’s annual report and see if you can understand it. If not, head out to your nearest accounting co-worker and ask.

Once again, I’d like to thank the following sponsors for making this research possible as they are truly committed to being a workplace of choice for Calgary’s leading women.

Clout Level: ENCANA
Executive Pipeline Level:
SUNCOR ENERGY – TRANSALTA – CANADIAN NATURAL – TRANSCANADA – PARAMOUNT ENERGY TRUST

CONGRATULATIONS TO THESE LEADING WOMEN

Alex Federucci who has assumed additional responsibilities in the areas of Corporate Services as General Manager, IT Systems and Services at Talisman Energy. Alex is one of the Leading Women participating on the panel at the lunch and you can read her biography on my website.
If you know of someone who has moved or been promoted, let us know so we can celebrate this achievement.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Lunch with Calgary’s Leading Women

TUESDAY APRIL 24, 2007
11:30 – 1:30 p.m.
Chamber of Commerce
100 – 6th Avenue S.W.
Cost is $60.00 + GST
Registration Deadline: March 30, 2007

I am delighted that six of the women involved in the research I conducted last spring will participate in a panel discussion at this luncheon. I know you will find what they have to say meaningful and I look forward to seeing you there. Please note there was some confusion with the date, and we are scheduled for Tuesday, April 24, 2007. The deadline for registration though is fast approaching - March 30, 2007!! Click here for registration form or more information.

Leading From Within Program

The Leading from Within Workshop has been successfully modified to a format of private and individual coaching sessions to offer more flexibility for women who are interested in managing and advancing their career. Sessions are scheduled at the client’s worksite and are spread out over several weeks so that information can be integrated. If you are interested in finding out more about this program, contact me at Leibham.and.company@shaw.ca

The Maverick Gallery

I had lunch recently with Deborah Stahl, the VP of the Glenbow Enterprises and was excited to hear about the grand opening of the new gallery: Mavericks: An Incorrigible History of Alberta that is opening on March 24, 2007. This display portrays the important early work done by both men and women who took risks in coming out west and taking a stand, taking an initiative or just working hard for an important development in our community. Check out the link: http://www.glenbow.org/exhibitions/upcoming/upcoming.cfm

Annual Fore Wishes Golf Tournament

Congratulations to Debbie Van Kamp and the crew at the Rainbow Society of Calgary on their sold out event in May, 2007 for the Wine & Wishes 2007. But do check out the website for their upcoming golf tournament scheduled for September 6, 2007 – the Annual Fore Wishes Golf Tournament. The Rainbow Society of Alberta raises money to fulfill the wishes of children with chronic or life threatening illnesses. The golf tournament is a women’s only annual fundraiser and is a well run tournament at the Elks Club.