Center for Women and Work Launching New Program to Help Young Women

On Jul 6, 2016

Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations’ Center for Women and Work today announced the launch of Leadership Development for Early Career Women, an Executive and Professional Education certificate program that is designed to help young women advance to management positions within their firms. The announcement follows a recent Catalyst report, which revealed that women hold only 19.9 percent of board seats and 26.9 percent of directorships at S&P 500 companies.

“The lack of women on corporate boards and in the C-suite reflects systemic issues that must be addressed at every rung of the ladder if we want women to have equal representation in our leadership,” said Assistant Research Professor Terri Boyer, Executive Director of the Center for Women and Work. “Issues such as work-life balance, pay gaps, and corporate culture all have weight in the leadership equation, and we need to empower women and their workplaces with the knowledge and skills to address them.”

Leadership Development for Early Career Women is specially designed for women who are three to five years into their career. Research shows this is the stage at which many women veer off a leadership track due to work-life concerns, perceived lack of fit, feelings of inadequacy, or other factors. To overcome these challenges and reach their full potential, participants will create a Personalized Leadership Development Plan that encompasses personal branding, awareness of workplace culture, work-life integration, and networking.

“Working women are every bit as capable as men to achieve leadership positions at work and in their communities,” said Karen White, Director of the Working Families Program at the Center for Women and Work. “This leadership program will not only provide women with the skills and resources to be a leader, but the motivation and self-awareness necessary to advance into leadership roles.”

White recently attended the United State of Women Summit at the White House, where more than 5,000 people convened to celebrate women’s progress in achieving equality and to identify the next steps in closing the gap. Women’s advancement to leadership roles in academia, business, media, and the public sector was identified as one of the six areas of focus. The new program, which has been in development for more than a year, aligns with that goal.

Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations’ Executive and Professional Education, experts in the development and delivery of innovative corporate training solutions, teamed up with the Center for Women and Work to craft this highly-specialized program. Peer coaching groups will supplement four on-campus sessions, which are scheduled for September 21, October 19, November 16, and December 7.

“Helping organizations develop early career women for future leadership positions is a strategic and moral imperative for succeeding in our increasingly competitive and diverse 21st century workplace,” said Bill Castellano, Associate Dean of Executive and Professional Education. “This program is designed to help young women overcome many of the challenges they face ‘climbing the corporate ladder,’ and develop the needed competencies to advance into future leadership positions.”

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