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ODI Power Lunch Series Presents:

"Advice from Corporate Hallways: Things We Learned the Hard Way"

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion's Women's Power Lunch series recently presented a panel discussion with women of the President's Council of Cornell Women in celebration of Women's History Month. Faculty, staff and students attended the event which featured a dynamic panel of Cornell alumni who offered their "Advice from Corporate Hallways: Things We Learned the Hard Way."

Deborah Smith (MA '71), who runs a human resources consulting business in Naples, Florida served as the moderator. Speakers included Dr. Karel Czanderna (MS '81; PhD '84), vice president and general manager of the brand portfolio at Whirlpool Corporation; Diana Daniels (AB '71), retired vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary of the Washington Post Company; Karen Keating (AB '76), member of the Johnson School Advisory Council and managing director in the Risk Management Division of JPMorganChase; Ana Pinczuk (BS '84, ME'85), vice president of engineering with Cisco's IOS Software organization; and Renu Thomas (BS '90, ME '91), director of production for MacNeil/Lehrer Productions.

The panel represented women at all stages of their careers including women who graduated in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. There was someone who had spent her entire career at one company but had grown through mergers and acquisitions, and others who had shifted industries and career functions. There were women who were married with older children, married with young children, a single working mother, as well as someone who was single without children. From this rich background came a wealth of information on everything from whether the country is ready for a female president (the answer was yes) to how to best balance work and home. Below are just a few pearls of wisdom shared during the interactive discussion:

  1. Think Long Term. Open yourself up to all opportunities. You might be surprised at what you can learn and leverage later on.
  2. Ask questions. Listen more and talk less. Be thoughtful about what you're saying.
  3. Earn the respect of your organization. Your reputation follows you and transcends your company. Always act with integrity, humility and respect for other individuals.
  4. Find and develop mentors. The best mentors are not the ones assigned through formal processes. Find people whose style and values you share and who are knowledgeable in other areas of the company.
  5. Trust your instincts about people. In instances were people are not the right fit for the role, speed is good. Help move them along quickly to a position that's right.
  6. Understand and be comfortable with your own balance between work and home. Respect and understand the personal balance for others. You can do it all, just not all at the same time.
  7. Have fun and a sense of humor at work. Enjoy what you're doing and who you're doing it with.
  8. Remember that you can go from "hero to zero" quickly. There will be moments when your career hits a wall; have confidence that you'll make it through and that there's another great opportunity on the other side of the wall.
  9. Know the value you're bringing to the organization. Be confident in that value and keep it fresh, always make sure it's still relevant to the organization.
  10. Be open. You never know where you'll meet someone who can help you find your next job.

The Women's Power Lunch Series is organized by the Johnson School's Office of Diversity and Inclusion and sponsored by JPMorganChase & Co.