Inaugural ‘Women in Leadership Workshop’ Convenes
Recently, 23 high-performing GS 13-SES (and equivalent) female leaders from 15 institutes and centers participated in a new workshop offered at the NIH Training Center, “Women in Leadership: Strategies for Success.” The multi-day program addressed decisions and questions many women face as they move up the leadership pipeline.
The first day involved exploring leadership styles, understanding how they behave during stressful situations and improving personal awareness and communication. A few weeks later, participants took part in a 90-minute webinar on “Effectively Branding and Leveraging Your LinkedIn Profile,” in which they received a step-by-step tutorial on how to create/enhance their profiles. Given the sheer volume of LinkedIn users (approximately 400 million), displaying a strong, professional profile is becoming increasingly important for demonstrating experience and skills to establish credibility.
The second full-day session focused on giving and receiving feedback and an interactive exercise on presentation skills. This combination of self-awareness and skills development provided an abundance of tools that are immediately transferable to the workplace.
The program concluded with a special roundtable forum in which panelists and participants exchanged leadership stories and engaged in conversation about gender, mentoring, self-awareness, leadership presence and more. The panelists were Debra Chew, director, Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion; Dr. Maureen Gormley, chief operating officer, Clinical Center; Barbara McGarey, NIH deputy associate general counsel for public health, HHS Office of General Counsel; and Dr. Maryland Pao, NIMH clinical director and deputy scientific director.
Overwhelmingly, workshop participants valued their experience in the program and shared their insights about it.
“The panel discussion and the training sessions were outstanding,” noted Martha Randazzo, management analyst in the NIH Office of Strategic Planning & Management Operations. “I feel privileged to have participated in this insightful and valuable training opportunity at the NIH Training Center.”
Capt. Antoinette Jones, CC patient representative and panel moderator, said, “What emerged during this session exceeded my expectations. The panelists generously shared the interplay between leadership and gender and it fostered the free flow of tips, lessons, thought-provoking ideas and unique perspectives that remind me of the power of dialogue. I dare say each person—including the panelists—left with a greater sense of connectedness, understanding and hope about what is possible around their own leadership than when they arrived.”
Another participant commented, “One of the best, if not the best, leadership courses I’ve taken at NIH/HHS or elsewhere! I think all women at NIH should be offered the opportunity to take this course.”
The NIH Training Center offers this new workshop (NIHTC 4504) and encourages more women throughout NIH to experience the program.
If you are interested in participating, sessions are available in April, June and August of this fiscal year. Visit https://trainingcenter.nih.gov/ShowDetails.aspx?cid=NIHTC4504 for details and to register.