the Magazine
Promoting, Advancing and Improving PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
Gulf Coast Leaders August 2016 Vol. 2, Ed. 2
Pensacola’s Premier 4th Annual Women-Only Business Conference Celebrating National Business Women’s Week
Early-Bird Registration
$50
$100 at the door
Friday, October 21st
Sanders Beach Community Center Presented By:
With Keynote Speaker
With Emcee
Dr. Lusharon Wiley
Robyn Hatcher
University of West Florida
Standing Ovation Presentations
- Impactful Presentations - Networking Exercises
PLUS:
Kick-Off Event - Monday, September 12th Featuring: Captain Katie Higgins, Blue Angels, C-130 pilot
Meet the Speaker and Expo - Thursday, October 20th *These two events open to men and women*
- Experience Hall - Education for Business Women
80% of profits benefits Gulf Coast Kids House
Sponsorship Opportunities Available For more informations and to register: www.Powerful WomenGulfCoast.com
Support the Restaurants of
Recognizing Area Restaurants Managed or Owned by Women
www.CitySpree.com 850-512-1199 PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
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August 2016
In This Edition
On the cover: From left to right Dr. Janet Pilcher, Pam Hatt, Angela Bottesini. Photography by Kate Treick
Visionary 18 Leadership
Passion & Purpose
Pen Air Federal Credit Union’s Director of Marketing, Pam Hatt explains how aligning to her company’s brand statement has incorporated into her leadership style.
Covenant Hospice’s Executive Director of Major Gifts, Angela Bottesini shares her personal story of when her passion began and what she’s learned along the way.
8
High Expectations 24 Rishy Studer shares her story of leadership and how starting the Bodacious Family of Shops caused her to grow and change as a leader and how she’s utilizing that for future growth.
FINDING THE
RIGHT FIT IS
HUMANLY POSSIBLE
August 2016
Seeing Community in Action 30 Dr. Janet Pilcher, Senior Leader of Studer Education, discusses her thoughts of important leadership skills for women and explains the park ranger leadership approach and how she uses that in her role.
Today, fit goes beyond resumes and requirements. At Manpower,® we connect the potential of people to the ambitions of business. We apply our leading expertise to create ideal employment matches – those that drive businesses success and accelerate personal success. Whether it’s a permanent placement or temporary assignment.
Contact us to explore what’s humanly possible.
manpower.com 185 D West Airport Blvd. Pensacola, FL 32505 850.473.8011 4
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
Change in Direction 40 President and CEO of Autism Pensacola, Susan Byram reflects back on her experience of ten years as a director and shares advice for others in non-profits.
12
Right Words, Right Time, Right Reason Leads to Customer Happiness. By Quint Studer
35
Want to Know What Your Clients Want? Ask Them! By Kolleen Edwards Chesley
14
Power Up Challenge Notes – LinkedIn Tips. By Kolleen Edwards Chesley
36
Financial Organization Can Save Loved Ones Money and Headaches. By Kristen Marks
16
Building Confidence and Command. By Susan Young
38
33
The Story of PWGC, Chapter 2 – Incorporation and Conference. By Kolleen Edwards Chesley
Maximize Your Time Through Value Recognition, Minute Tracking and Goal Setting. By Mandy Fernandez
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
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August 2016
LETTER FROM EDITOR
Welcome to our fourth edition of Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast, The Magazine! We are glad you are here with us! There is an amazing amount of successful women in our Gulf Coast area. The more that I interview, the more I realize how much they have in common. They are giving, supportive, humble, and genuine to share a few traits. They have all been willing to share their stories and experiences. With as much as they have in common, they have an equal amount not in common, as well. Their backgrounds differ, their paths to success are very unique, and they struggle in different ways. We appreciate the opportunity to bring each of their unique stories to you. Learning about their backgrounds and hearing how they came to their current positions is fascinating. These amazing women also share valuable information about mentoring, leadership and personal development to help you grow and develop personally and professionally. Thank you to all of the interviewees in this edition for sharing your stories and tips. You are valuable and appreciated!
Kolleen
Kolleen Edwards Chesley kolleen@powerfulwomengulfcoast.com 850-529-0908
August 2016
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PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
MAGAZINE TEAM
Editor: Kolleen Edwards Chesley Art Director: Coleen Fryer
Photographer: Kate Treick
Business Manager: Elizabeth Nims
Kolleen Edwards Chesley PWGC Founding Director
Advertising Executives: Kolleen Edwards Chesley Jennifer Harrison Chasity Brooks
Elizabeth Nims PWGC Director
Other Contributors: Quint Studer Susan Young Kristen Marks Mandy Fernandez Donna Kirby Carmen Jones
Jennifer Harrison PWGC Director
Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast - P.O. Box 1125 Pensacola, FL 32591 (P) 850-529-0908 www.powerfulwomengulfcoast.com email to: Directors@powerfulwomengulfcoast.com
Published for PWGC by Ballinger Publishing. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained within, however, PWGC is not responsible for any errors or omissions that might occur. PWGC does not endorse the advertisers and disclaims all liability for claims or damages that may result from transactions with PWGC, The Magazine advertisers or from the purchase or use of advertised products or services. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or part in any way without written permission from PWGC.
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
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August 2016
CONNECTING Pas s i on &Pu rp ose By Kolleen Edwards Chesley
Photography by Carmen Jones
Angela Bottesini
has found her calling in the business world. Her journey began as an oncology nurse, where her naturally compassionate nature was a direct fit for providing care for cancer patients. It was there that she discovered a “curiosity, or a need even to understand what the dying patient felt, imagined, and wanted,� says Angela. In search of answers to these and other questions her curiosity raised, she joined Covenant Care, where she has been passionately involved for 14 years. She started on their education team and extended to marketing and outreach, oversaw the opening and facilitation of Covenant Hospice Inpatient and Palliative Care Center at West Florida Hospital and the renovation of Joyce Goldenberg Hospice Inpatient Residence. Angela served as the regional director of sales and the Hospital Liaison program and last year elevated to her current position of executive director of Major Gifts. In this role, she combines two main areas of her career: her compassion and clinical knowledge of the process of the dying patient and dedication to understand and relieve stress
and suffering for the patient as well as the family with her skill of marketing the services of Covenant through community outreach and education. Her new role takes it to the next level by connecting the philanthropic donor to their dream of leaving a legacy gift to support the mission of Covenant. A clear understanding of the services that Covenant provides, the knowledge and tools of how to market these services to our community along with the role of generating the much needed funds that allows this not-for-profit healthcare organization to serve its mission, Angela Bottesini is a powerhouse on a mission to help our community. If you have ever met Angela, you already know how passionate and dedicated she is for the role she serves. She brought me right to the moment she realized she was where she needed to be. She stopped mid-sentence, paused to gather her thoughts, then leaned towards me with her head slightly turned like she meant business and Angela described, “I remember clearly sitting in the parking lot at the hospital after a full day at the Care Center and I saw an ambulance drive up and I knew it was coming to bring one of our patients there.” She continued, “and crying and thinking how beyond blessed I am to be a part of something where there is no greater fear, there is no darker hole, there is no more suspense or unknown then when you are facing the last days of your life. And being in a position to provide an atmosphere and work beside people that as soon as that person facing [end of life] comes into our world, we are equipped, we are ready, and we are honored to witness and care for these patients and their families.” The path, however, was not always easy. Angela remembers the journey going from community educator to leading the team of clinicians at the inpatient centers and that experience being a true test of her credentials. “I have approached most everything I have done this way – I didn’t have the historical credibility to do this; I didn’t have all the academic skill set to do this,” Angela recalls. “But I was not afraid to go sit at the table of the executive leadership team and ask for the opportunity to do that because I knew I had the passion and I knew there is nothing I can’t learn if I have the passion and the desire to make it so.” And, she didn’t look back when they hired her to run the facility. “It’s almost ignorance, sort of blissful because I wasn’t even afraid. I didn’t even think of failing. Of course I PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
surrounded myself with extraordinary people who were experts with a passion for this work.“ It was that internal passion that guided Angela through the unknown. “It’s just interesting,” Angela remarks. “When you want to know something, there is nothing you won’t do to find that information and if your heart is set on doing it well, it is crucial to have people around you that know more about every pocket of existence that you are trying to achieve so that you can all work together.” She questioned herself again when she shifted into the role of major gifts and had to change from taking care of patients to soliciting charitable contributions. Angela explained her new role as “being able to convey the needs of the organization to the amazing people and supporters in the community that really philanthropically want to be a part of something as amazing as an organization that serves people and patients.” “That’s been a whole new skill set. It’s a very different realm to have to go out there and do that. It’s been exhilarating and humbling at times. I’ve never been one to say, ‘I can’t do this,’ but there have been many days that I’ve said, ‘I can’t do this, I’m not your girl, there’s got to be better’ and I’ve had great leaders look at me and say, ‘Quit it! Stop second guessing yourself, get your courage up; this is not about you.’”
education for this, but all along the way, there was somebody who saw something in me and I think that drives me the way I lead other people.” Angela continued, “If you have one person that makes you believe in yourself and know the greatness, because everybody has greatness in there. You just need someone to identify it and grow it and I have had that at every walk and turn in my life.” One of our greatest gifts as a leader is to help the individual team members see their gifts, put them in roles that give them the opportunity to shine and succeed. This requires knowing each person in an intimate professional manner and understanding their goals and dreams. On that note, Angela also added, “It’s very important to identify those people and have your own personal board of directors on those days that you don’t believe in yourself, you can go to them.” This inner circle of advisors are those advocates that when something doesn’t go the way you anticipated, they can help you understand the situation better which allows you to be a better employee and then ultimately a better leader. When it comes to pairing up with someone else to help you grow, Angela shared some advice on the dynamics of having male
She paused to reinforce this last point – thinking it’s all about us when we get into a situation where we don’t feel prepared. Angela said, “I think that’s really important – when we get scared and when our confidence gets down, it’s not about us! When you get scared, it’s because your fight or flight kicks in and it’s all about ‘What are they going to think about me?’, ‘How am I going to get perceived?’, or ‘Am I going to be a failure?’” If it’s not about us, then who is it about? “Very clearly I was told by my leader, ‘This is about the patient that is dying, the child that is dying, the person, the donor that wants to make a difference in the lives of those people, take you out of the equation’,” Angela explained. No matter what line of business you are in, this point can still be translated to focus on the consumer, the end-user of the product or service your business provides and not on yourself when times get tough. Angela is also a big advocate of having others support you when you are having trouble seeing yourself in a new role. “I didn’t go into this with confidence, I didn’t have the huge 9
August 2016
and female teams but in a way that embraces their strengths and differences. Angela explains, “The most successful men that I have worked with have been purposeful listeners with open minds. Women are methodical, broad-thinking individuals, we multi-task.” Angela continued, “Some of the executives that are well versed in the need to combine the different attributes of all people.” In particular, men and women bring unique skills to the table that when recognized, can be creatively combined to yield a greater result. Many times, men are able to focus in on one or two projects and stay focused on those tasks through completion. And many women can think 17 things at the same time and handle that perfectly well. One sex is not better or more efficient; they have different strengths. “Senior male leaders that I know are very much paired with very high powered executive women and from a far it looks like ‘how do they ever communicate?’ But it’s both the women and the men that have realized where the strengths are and how do you join those strengths to move forward and that really makes for a huge power team, it is all about a respect for the differences,” explains Angela. Overall, Angela has already had a tremendous career full of emotion and immense value. She summed it up by saying, “I have a dream career. I’ve not wished for anything greater, I’ve not wished to be anywhere bigger. I’ve just wished this time will not end. That has been so powerful. And, every day, I’m just amazed that I got the blessing to do this. I truly found my life’s work.” When you combine an amazing internal passion like Angela has with finding her purpose of caring for, educating, and funding the efforts of helping the dying patient, it is incredible what happens when those line up.
August 2016
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PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
Right Words, Right Time, Right Reason, Leads to Customer Happiness By Quint Studer
driving citizen-powered change
Research shows there is a relationship between employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction. A vital component of providing great customer service is having the employee say the right words at the right time for the right reason. While it may sound easy, I have found that leaders are often uncomfortable with coaching this skill. Then employees balk if the process is not explained well. Since the earliest of time we have received coaching on the right words at the right time for the right reason.
When employees learn to use right words - right time - right reason, it makes their job easier. Your parents did this. You likely do this with your children. Kids are taught to say “please,” “thank you,” “pardon me,” “excuse me”, “I love you.” Why? Because parents want their children to do well and those teachings are helpful. “Please,” “Thank you for coming in,” and, August 2016
“How are you doing?” You and your business likely have that covered. But right words/ right time/right reason takes it a step further. So how does it work? Though it’s ideal to start the right words/right time/right reason conversation in the interview process, start with current staff. The leaders meet with groups of employees and together they brainstorm to create the best customer experience. A good question to ask your staff: “If you are a customer, what will make you rave about the customer experience?” This leads to comments like an employee’s welcome greeting, help, explanations, understanding process, thank you, follow-up, etc. Naturally, the next step after identifying what’s important is to nail down, “What do we need to say and when?” When explaining this the right words/right time/right reason, it is good to connect this to caring about the customer. This is also 12
widely known as appreciative inquiry – a method for employees to both gather information and help their customers. Have you ever been in a restaurant and had this experience? The manger stops by your table. “How is everything?” he or she asks. You say “fine” when it could be better. Or in a check out line, a cashier asks, “How was everything?” You say “fine,” all the while silently thinking I will never come back here again. But what if the manager asked different questions? Did you find what you wanted on the menu? Is there an item you wish was on the menu? Did your waiter explain today’s specials?
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
&
Is your water and coffee being refilled to your satisfaction?
Saturday
Was the wait time on the food what you expected? These type of more detailed questions lead to better service, a trove of positive feedback to pass on to your staff and opportunities for coaching if the answers aren’t up to par. Sounds great in principle, but what does this have to do with business success? It may sound nice, but supervisors and employees will want to connect this new policy and new words to the why. Why do this? Why does this matter? When employees learn to use right words/right time/right reason, it makes their job easier. It reduces customer anxiety, which leads to increased customer satisfaction. That leads to increased sales, which in turn leads to a more successful company. Then comes increased investments in employee engagement and retention. With employee turnover increasing of late, it is doubly important for a new employee to take on the behaviors of their co-workers. So creating consistency is vital.
Sunday
Brunch
It affects your reputation, too. A happy customer tells a few friends about that positive experience with a business. But an unhappy customer? They tell many more. Research shows the unhappy customer is much more vocal and spreads their displeasure much more than the satisfied customer tells people how pleased they were.
11 AM - 4 PM
Here are a few more tips to implement right words/right time/right reason: •
Involve the staff. Once they get it, which will be quick, they will come up with the right words at the right time as they understand the reason for doing it.
•
Document the words and coach for consistency. Customers value service they can count on every time. Use this in teaching staff.
•
As a manager, role model. Staff will watch the managers. If the manger is not doing it, the staff will not. Behavior is caught as well as taught.
•
Put the reason, words and timing into the interview process. This will assure new hires acclimate quickly to the expected levels of service.
•
Always recognize and thank staff for demonstrating great customer service. What gets recognized gets repeated.
It’s easy to assume a simple greeting or inquiry makes any customer feel appreciated. But using right words at the right time for the right reason can quickly take your customer service – and your business success – to a new level. Originally hosted on Studer Community Institute website: http:// studeri.org/2016/06 right-words-right-time-right-reason-leads-customer-happiness/. Quint Studer is Founder of Studer Community Institute and is focused on improving our community’s quality of life. The mission of the Studer Community Institute is to improve the quality of life for the people in the Pensacola Metro Community. The Institute also provides leadership development training and sponsors workshops geared to help businesses and not-for-profits strengthen their organizations. PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
51 Gulf Breeze Pkwy Gulf Breeze, FL 32561 (850) 932-8638 LaBrisaRestaurant.com 13
August 2016
Power Up - Challenge Week 3: Topic Notes
Category: Marketing
Course: LinkedIn – Basic
Course Description: building your profile according to what to include and what not to include; how to connect with people; how to create a compelling profile; basic navigation. Why should you be on LinkedIn? LinkedIn is the fastest growing social media platform. With its focus on business professionals, it gives you a unique advantage to find potential clients and to be found by potential clients. It is one of the top five sites that ranks on Google, meaning that your profile is ranked in search results on Google. The better your profile is on LinkedIn, the better the chances you will come up sooner than your competitors. The more you fill out in your profile, the more reasons you give someone to connect with you!
Some easy ways to create a captivating profile: - Professional Headline – other than your name, this is the first place people look when they look at your profile. Be descriptive. If you have a generic title, consider being creative and using ways to describe your business. (i.e., instead of “Mary Kay Consultant,” consider using “I help women showcase their inner beauty.”) - Create a public URL address – LinkedIn gives you a generic URL unless you change it. Consider changing it to your full name. Then you can add it to your signature line on email and gently reinforce with every email that you have a profile and to link up with you.
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PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
- Under websites, you can change it from saying “Company Website” to something more descriptive. Again, another place to be unique from competitors. Power Up Challenge #1 was
a
12-week
course
by
Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast where attendees met every week for an hour and focused on growing ourselves personally and professionally. We broke the 12 weeks down into
four
subject
areas
that
were focused on business and self-development. The four areas were: marketing, business planning, networking, and sales. We covered such topics as how to prepare to attend a networking event, how
- Skills and endorsements are super important when it comes to ranking on Google. Work on building these sections up by asking your connections to give you a recommendation or to endorse you in the skills section. - Always use a high quality, professional photo. Secret tip – before you upload your picture, name your picture something that is a main keyword on your profile. No one sees the name of the file, but it still ranks in Google on the backend. Once you have a fantastic profile, you can also download your profile as a PDF, and attach it on meeting confirmation emails with a note saying, “Here is my profile on LinkedIn in case you want to read a little about my focus and background before we meet.” If they do, it will help your meeting stay focused and be more productive!
to ask and receive referrals, as well as focus on sales skills, such as preparing for a sales meeting, business systems, such as Evernote and lead management systems and goal setting and how to conduct an effective one-toone business meeting. We
were
proud
to
have
graduated 11 attendees through our first challenge! Our next Power Up Challenge will start in July. You do not have to be a member of Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast, or a woman to join us in our challenge. If you are interested in more information about Power Up: Email: kolleen@powerfulwomengulfcoast.com for details.
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August 2016
Building
Confidence &Command By Susan Young, MSA printed with permission
“With confidence, you can reach truly amazing heights; without confidence, even the simplest accomplishments are beyond your grasp.” ~ Jim Loehr
her team saw her as weak. Suzanne did not exert the confidence and command needed to unify and lead her people. When people show weakness it makes them vulnerable in both the eyes of themselves and of others. Confidence, or lack thereof, changes the dynamics of communication greatly. After customized communications coaching, Suzanne was able to help her elevate her confidence in not only how sheled her team, but in how she felt about herself.
What do confidence and command look like when you see them? Beyond a healthy self-esteem, they project an air of authority, trust, and respect. Developing a commanding presence is essential for leadership and a powerful impact. There can be a fine line between being confident and cocky. True confidence is not something that can always be determined by a first impression. It may take a few interactions to detect whether a person is full of false bravado or if they are the real McCoy. In our natural world it is the strongest of the species who claim their space, seek out new territories, explore their surroundings, and learn how to survive and thrive. It is those same qualities that enable us to apply confidence and command to transcend the mediocre and achieve outstanding results. August 2016
Confidence in Communications Suzanne Gaddis, PhD, worked as a communications trainer and consultant for an organization whose director had recently resigned. Suzanne, as the assistant director, was automatically moved into the open position. However, there was a problem. She had enormous talent and a rich education, but she had no confidence. Despite her skills, 16
We have a tendency to listen to people who believe their own words as opposed to those who don’t. We lose confidence in those who speak from weakness or little conviction. Even something as simple as ending a sentence with a question mark rather than a period can deteriorate a person’s authority and credibility.
“Low self-confidence isn’t a life sentence. Self-confidence can be learned, practiced, and mastered—just like any other skill. Once you master it, everything in your life will change for the better.” ~Barrie Davenport PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
Low Self-Confidence Low self-confidence is usually the result of the negative thoughts you are saying to yourself. When your inner critic takes over and tells you that you are not good enough, smart enough, handsome enough, worthy enough, or basically just plain not enough, it takes its toll on your self-confidence. You become a self-fulfilling prophecy for what you repeatedly tell yourself, and if your self-talk leans toward the negative, the continual emotional bashing is self-sabotage. Begin to notice when negativity spins in your head and disrupt it immediately before it has a chance to take hold and stick. Even the smartest and most successful people experience lower self-confidence occasionally, but the difference is they deliberately shift out of it and refuse to stay there. Qualities of Self-Confident People What do highly confident people do that separates them from the fold? They: · Inspire confidence in others and would much rather build people up than tear them down. · Are proud of their accomplishments, but can remain humble without bragging. · Face their fears head-on and are willing to take risks. · Know that obstacles are only temporary setbacks. · Tend to be optimistic thinkers and focus on positives.
14 Ways to Project Confidence & Command Building self-confidence is like building a muscle. Your confidence grows in response to your intensity of usage and the level of performance you require from it. If you don’t use it, you may lose it. 1. Think and act positively by focusing on positives in yourself, other people, and situations. 2. Steer clear of negativity and set boundaries so that when people bring it on, you can engage your force-field to deflect their energy. 3. Use your body language and posture to project confidence. Shift your physiology into a more powerful pose or position and your mindset will follow. 4.
Make and maintain eye contact.
5. Speak slowly, articulately, clearly, and deliberately. 6. Dress confidently in clothes that make you feel great about yourself. When you look better you feel better. 7. Embrace change and practice flexibility. It makes you more agile in adapting to new people and situations. 8. Be prepared for all things that matter. 9. Set goals and create a clear sense of purpose and direction. 10. Get outside your comfort zone. Stretch beyond your norm and try new things. 11. Walk the talk and project confidence. If at first you don’t feel confidence, fake it until you make it. 12. Identify confident people whom you admire and notice what they do differently to project such confidence. Learn by observing role models. 13. Practice positive and affirming self-talk. 14. Nurture a balanced perspective that doesn’t “sweat the small stuff.”
· Respect and believe in themselves.
Leveraging Learning Curves
· Don’t make their self-esteem, self-image, happiness, or self-confidence dependent on another person’s approval, validation, or acceptance.
Building confidence is an ongoing process and something that can be accomplished over time. Just because you may not feel confident about doing something now does not mean you won’t master it with ease later.
· Take the initiative to move forward in the direction of their dreams. · Act calmly and rationally when thrown curve balls. · Are mindful about spending their time, energy, and interests on what truly matters.
You will build confidence by continuing to put yourself in new and innovative situations where you can learn new skills, grow your education, test your strengths, and improve your abilities. Just because you don’t know how to do something now doesn’t mean you
can’t learn how to do it later. If you are lacking confidence in something just keep trying and don’t give up. Yes, learning curves can be painful, exhausting, trying, scary and intimidating. How did you learn to ride a bike? One pedal, one balance, and one step at a time. Confidence is not a goal or a final ending point where you arrive and then stop once you reach it. Rather, it is the satisfaction and reward you achieve by stretching to the best of your ability.
This article is an excerpt from the upcoming book, The Art of First Impressions for Positive Impact, by Susan Young. Susan is a main-stage speaker and leadership trainer for her firm, Susan Young International. You can visit her website at www.SusanSpeaks.com
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
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August 2016
Embracing
VISIONARY Leadership
By Kolleen Edwards Chesley Photography by Kate Treick
Pam Hatt
can be extremely practical in her decision making. At six feet tall, she was naturally confident, competitive in sports and taught to never let them see you sweat. She attended college for sports public relations and after taking a course in marketing, she fell in love with the subject. When it came time for a career, Pam went another direction by joining the US Navy. She chose the practical path of training as an electrician because she wanted a profession that would be highly marketable after the military. She met her husband in the military and they were not able to do spousal duty when she was pregnant, so she elected to leave the military. When her daughter was 11 months old, she was ready to return to work and her practical nature kicked in again. Being a military spouse with the thought of a life of moving around a lot, Pam’s practical nature said: “Wherever
we go, there will always be a bank. I think I’ll go into banking.” Over the next 23 years, Pam and her family moved around several times; all the while Pam continued to support her husband’s military career and maintained building her own banking experience and resume. They eventually settled in Pensacola and realized another transfer was unlikely and they would retire here. It was here that Pam was able to lift her head up and look around for the first time with new eyes and the practical decision maker in Pam turned into the visionary decision maker. “I had just finished Leadership Pensacola (LeaP) and our project was to renovate the USOs. It was a phenomenal experience and I really learned a lot about our community,” recalled Pam. “It really struck a chord and a fire in me that I wanted to really be morally aligned with a company that believed in making our community a better place. A company that really was about being local, was about giving back and was about making an impact. Ultimately, about making a difference.” It was at this same time that Pam was approached by someone at Pen Air Federal Credit Union for a marketing manager position. She was hesitant at first. The more she thought about the opportunity, the more excited she became and she took the leap of faith and joined Pen Air. “I just passed my four-year anniversary with Pen Air and I’ve been drinking from a fire hydrant ever since,” says Pam. “It has probably been the most rewarding risk I have ever taken in my life!” Pam is currently the director of marketing overseeing all aspects of marketing, business and Select Employer Group Development for Pen Air. Pen Air is a large federal credit union with assets of $1.3B, 18 branch locations, including three student run credit unions, and over 96,000 members located in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties in Florida, as well as Baldwin and Mobile counties in Alabama. With Pam’s oversight, Pen Air recently completed a full branding redesign and this June was awarded four MAC awards including one gold award, two silver awards and one bronze award for the rebrand marketing package, bringing their total count to date to 12 awards. The awards were presented by the Marketing Association of Credit Unions and Pam was also a finalist for their coveted MACQUEE Award.
Pen Air recently celebrated their 80th anniversary as a credit union and rebranding the oldest local credit union did not come easy for Pam. “This will either be the best thing I have ever done or the worst thing I’ve ever done,” remembered Pam. “For me, personally, God really opened that door and directed my path. Even when I would get really frustrated, I had to cling to that faith because I knew this is where I’m supposed to be and I’m not going to listen to the people who were trying to stop the progression from happening. “It was necessary, it was needed, it was vital for us as a company to be more forward-thinking and move into the future so that we wouldn’t let our community down,” said Pam, explaining the reason behind the rebrand. “People are very emotionally tied to logos and it wasn’t about taking something away that you loved; it was about securing the future of something you love. “It was about projecting into the future and taking us to the next level, so we could ensure the health of our community,” continued Pam. “There were a lot of game changers coming into the market and a lot of financial institutions way bigger than us but we felt that we really provide a lot of value to our local community and we make a difference. We pour a lot of money, outside of salaries, when it comes to supporting non-profits and the local community.” Looking back, Pam says all of the struggle was worth it. “I have never worked so hard in my life, I’ve never worked so much in my life, but I’ve
never been so satisfied in my professional life,” said Pam. It was after the new branding was revealed and the message was repeated in the local credit union that Pam realized how much her true personality already reflected the bank’s brand message. “We promise to respect and value the trust you place in us” is the brand message for Pen Air. “It’s really about moral, ethics and how you are wired,” said Pam, explaining the message in her own words. “It’s really not a stretch, it’s really how we should be as human beings. It’s about treating people how you want to be treated.”
For Pam, it means trust, value and having her back. “Whether it’s a professional relationship or a personal relationship, we all want to have trust in that relationship, we all want to know we are valued, we all want to know you have my back and you respect my decision,” said Pam. When she talks about her personal daily success Pam advises to keep focus on people and doing the right thing. “As long as you keep the main focus about people and you do the right thing for the right reason, you’ll get the right results and you can consciously lay your head down at night and know ‘I’ve done good’,” said Pam. In her 27 years in banking, Pam has had 26 different bosses, which gives her a lot of experience and relationships to pull from. “You have to be adaptable and you have to go with change and putting in extra effort really does set you apart,” explained Pam. “It’s not crowded for those that want to do more. You can’t rely on supervisors to coddle you along the way.” Pen Air agrees with showing up and working hard, but puts less emphasis on the final result.
Robert Andrews, MD
“We are a company that doesn’t expect perfection, but we do like to see perfect effort,” said Pam. Looking internally and connecting with others are more tips that Pam credits with success. “Really understanding self, being true to yourself and connecting with people are all keys for me,” said Pam. “Another thing I really try to live by is to not only learn from my mistakes but to learn from the mistakes of others.” She reinforced that by having that many bosses, she learned what to do and more importantly, what not to do at times. “As we get older, we learn more, we grow more, we mature more and we see things differently,” said Pam, explaining herself with a story. “I’ve always been enabled with a gift to see the bigger picture and see the final product. I can go into JoAnn’s, our local craft store, and look at this beautiful bolt of fabric but I either see a dress or I see curtains. I don’t see a bolt of fabric; I see the final product.” Keeping the main focus about people, having the vision to see the end result and treating others with trust, value, respect, and having their back has allowed Pam to
Paul LaRose, MD
get to where she is today. “There is something really truly to be said when you have morally aligned leadership focused on the right things that you can feel good about what you do,” reiterated Pam. As a community, we appreciate and need to embrace brand partners like Pen Air and support advocates like Pam for all they are doing to make our area a better place to work and live.
Allessa Allison, MD
Jenny Allen, CNM
offering the
SPECIALIZED care youDESERVE
August 2016
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PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
THE END OF ALZHEIMER’S STARTS WITH YOU
Alzheimer’s is an epidemic devastating our families, our finances and our future. The disease is all around us — but the power to stop it is within us. Join us for the Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s® and be inspired by all the footsteps that fall into place behind yours. Together, we can end Alzheimer’s.
START A TEAM. October 1st, 2016
Bayview Park
Registration at 8am
Register online today at act.alz.org/Pensacola2016 alz.org/walk | 800.272.3900 PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
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August 2016
Showcasing a Few of Our Members Judie Rolland
Jan Leavenworth
CREATIVELY ORGANIZING
CHICO’S OF PENSACOLA Outside of Cordova Mall
My passion is coaching my clients to conquer “overwhelm” and create simplicity, space and order in their surroundings and in their lives.
One-of-a-kind designs. Conversation-starting jewelry. The most amazing service. For over 30 years we’ve helped women look as great as they feel.
Tel: 850-910-1286
5100 North 9th Ave, Space E501B, Pensacola FL 32504 Tel: 850-473-6804
www.creativelyorganizing.com Email: Judie.Rolland@creativelyorganizing.com
www.chicos.comstore.00685@chicos.com
Dr. Sandra Winborne
Dianna Montoya
WINNIE & ASSOCIATES, LLC
PANHANDLE WARRIOR PARTNERSHIP
An educational/ credentialing consultant business that offers career assistance to federal & state agencies, school systems,military, institutions, formerly incarcerated individuals, or those dealing with unemployment, under employment, or re-employment for movement into suitable careers. Call me for a complimentary (30 minute) consultation. Tel: 850-206-4814
Panhandle Warrior Partnership has a simple goal: Empower Veterans. Our mission is to empower warriors of Northwest Florida through a holistic program of community collaboration designed to connect warriors and their families to the local community through benefits, services, education, jobs, and housing. Tel: 850-476-0662 www.panhandlewarriors.org Email: dmontoya@panhandlewarriors.org
Email: drwinborne@credentialsforyou.com www.credentialsforyou.com
Florence Doisneau
Sheri Hamilton
REALIZE UNLIMITED
HAMILTON WELLNESS RESOURCES
You have unique potential— unleash that potential by becoming proactive and intentional in your relationships, your career, and your daily life. Our mission is to support you as you discover your vision, articulate that vision, and design a plan of action.
Hamilton Resources is a Human Resources consulting company specializing in working with job applicants to build their interviewing confidence and skills. Hamilton Resources also offers HR consulting to small businesses by developing interview questions and solutions for their employee development needs. Tel: 850-232-5175 www.hamiltonwellnessresources.com Email: sheri@hamiltonwellnessresources.com
Tel: 954-826-9172 Email: florence@realizeunlimited.com www.realizeunlimited.com
We appreciate all of our members! To see the rest of our members, please visit www.powerfulwomenapp.com August 2016
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PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
Showcasing a Few of Our Members Kate Treick
Anamaria R. Meeker
KATE TREICK PHOTOGRAPHY
SAVE YOUR OWN LIFE NOW Save Your Own Life Now is a resource for our elder community. You have more control over their health than you think! I offer an educational and inspirational Seminar titled, “10 Easy Ways To Maximize Your Brainpower Now!” I also facilitate an Alzheimer’s and Dementia support group for Covenant Care in Pensacola, Florida, and have authored a book containing a collection of poetic stories called “IN THE QUIET: Reflections on Senior Living.” Tel: 251-391-5277 www.saveyourownlifenow.info Email: meekerana@gmail.com
You have a story–I can tell your story through beautiful portraits. I I specialize in portraits of children and families, as well as fabulous professional headshots that let your personality shine through. Call for an appointment on location or at my studio on Seville Square! 10% OFF SESSION FEE OR START-UP FEE FOR PWGC MBRS Tel: 850-982-4922 www.katetreick.com Email: kate@katetreickphotography.com
Amy Pernie
Melissa Garner
IN HIS STEPS
SELF-HAVEN
“In HIS Steps” is a contemporary, Christian-based Dance Studio & Performing Arts Center offering professional instruction in ballet, pointe, lyrical, tap, hip-hop, jazz, modern, contemporary, and all-boys classes. We also offer voice, piano, guitar; both private and group sessions.This is a studio where students of all ages can come to learn and grow in the arts in a Christian environment. 6231 North W ST., Pensacola, FL 32505 Tel: 850-474-4922 www.inhisstepsinc.com Email: missamysdance@hotmail.com
My passion is to help women heal from difficult life events, discover their personal strengths, and take better care of their minds and bodies. I am a licensed mental health counselor, wellness speaker, art therapist, and yoga instructor, specializing in helping women overcome depression, anxiety, stress, and burn-out since 2010. COMPLIMENTARY 20 MIN. CONSULT FOR PWGC MBRS Tel: 850-626-7779 www.self-haven.com Email: feelbetter@self-haven.com
Jennifer Harrison
Sara Adams
GULF COAST PREMIER PROMOTIONS
NORTHWESTERN MUTUAL
As a financial planner for individuals and small businesses, my mission is to help my clients create a sound financial path that will allow them to reach their life ambitions. I will work with you to identify your financial goals, suggest solutions to reach those goals, and find ways to implement them. Call me today for your complementary consultation! Tel: 865-386-0450 www.saraadams.nm.com Email: sara.adams@nm.com
I help you get those ideas out of your head and into a working marketing plan… online and offline! Tel: 850-324-2744 50% OFF FIRST MONTH OF SERVICE FOR PWGC MBRS
www. gcpromo.com Email: jennifer@gcpromo.com
To inquire about membership in our organization, please Email: kolleen@powerfulwomengulfcoast.com PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
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August 2016
High Expectations YIE LD
High Results By Kolleen Edwards Chesley Photography by Kate Treick
Rishy Studer
comes from a lineage of strong, professional women. Her mother’s mother was a single mom after she lost her husband in his 40s and she raised six children while living in the south side of Chicago. She worked for a lumber company and invested in properties on the side, also. Turns out, her investments paid off handsomely later on in life, which proved she was a shrewd investor, as well as a hard worker.
Rishy’s mom pursued a path of leadership. She raised six children, also, and she was a school teacher for over 30 years for the City of Chicago. Early in her career she was chosen for a city-wide math program and was responsible for teaching and training other teachers.
The larger they grew, the more she could pick and choose what she wanted to do, and eventually she was able to shift all of her Studer Group responsibilities to other coworkers, allowing her to focus in other areas. In January 2015, Studer Group sold for $325 million.
Rishy’s own path started like her grandmother’s by working in a lumber yard. She worked her way up the ladder and became the head of finance and was named vice president before leaving. When she met Quint, naturally, her path changed.
In 2002, the Studers purchased the Pensacola Pelicans and again Rishy found herself being creative in the business. They realized quickly that local baseball is a family event and they were concerned with keeping
Before meeting, Quint and Rishy lived parallel lives. Both were raised in Chicago suburbs. Both families vacationed in Wisconsin for the summers only about 15 miles apart. Both went to the same college, the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Both had been married before, divorced, and ended up in Janesville, Wis., where they finally both had a chance to meet.
“When I first started, I was the manager of everything,” explains Rishy. “When it’s your baby, you want to touch everything and have input on everything. Now that we have grown, we have lots of talented people to spread the work around.”
They dated for six months and got married. Rishy had one child already and Quint had two, so they blended the families and had two children together, too. Rishy took a break from the business world and focused on raising the children and making sure their needs were met. The family moved from Janesville to Chicago and eventually to Pensacola.
Rishy had to come to grasp with reality about management. “I care too much about everyone, but I’m not a good manager of people and it took me a while to realize that,” said Rishy. “I would bring issues home so we could talk about it and one day he said, ‘You know, managing people is a hard job’.”
In 1999, Rishy re-entered the professional world. Quint was with Baptist and wanted to do some speaking outside the hospital. Studer Group was started.
There were only a few employees and duties were not clearly defined. “I had to set up our IT department,” laughed Rishy, as she remembered some of the early challenges. “Funds were limited and several of us had to share a printer so I figured out how to connect the printer so we could all use it. We thought we were big time!” PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
They started Bodacious Olive with five women and the building concept took off from there. Carmen’s Lunch Bar came in as the winner of the Pensacola Business Challenge. They added Bodacious Brew, then eventually added the demonstration kitchen upstairs and So Gourmet Kitchenry. So Chopped was added inside Bodacious Olive. Bubba’s Sweet Spot is almost open and they now have plans for a drive-thru coffee and smoothie shop at Baylen and Main with a walk-up window and fenced play area for kids. Rishy now has at least 40 employees and several retail businesses under her wings.
“It was at a mutual friend’s summer barbecue when we first met and it was instant love,” recalls Rishy.
“Since my background was bookkeeping and accounting, it was natural for me to start the books for Studer Group,” explains Rishy.
“We didn’t know what we were going to do but we knew it had to be retail,” remembers Rishy. “We had seen an olive oil and balsamic shop and I had a blast in there. It dawned on me that this is what Pensacola was missing. People here like to eat healthy, they love to cook; it was fun and I felt good about the product.”
She agreed.
the prices affordable. Rishy had the idea of screen printing t-shirts and purchased a machine with four heads, so she could use four different colors. She set up in their garage and printed thousands of t-shirts that were sold at the games. In the year between the Pelicans and the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, the Studers purchased the building at Main and Palafox, now known as the SoGo district. 25
“I didn’t know enough about cooking for instance,” explains Rishy. “So to manage the cooking department was tough. I knew I needed to put a manager in place for each of the departments. Then we put someone in place to manage the managers.” Having the framework that was developed at Studer Group is helpful. “We ask all of the employees to read Quint’s books,” said Rishy. “The supervisors read Hardwiring Excellence and the employees read The Great Employee Handbook.” August 2016
Putting a proper management team in place allowed her to be more prepared when a major blow unexpectedly hit. Rishy shattered her knee cap at the end of October and couldn’t drive for three months.
saw that life was going on and things were happening.”
were just as amazing. She credits the good leaders she has in place.
“I knew I couldn’t get to the shops and that I had to learn to let go,” said Rishy. “It was hard. But, it got easier as time went by and I
They put new processes in place, changed some things around, and lost a few people that weren’t happy with the changes.
“I just check in with them and see what’s up,” said Rishy. “And with good people, it makes it easy.”
The people she had put in place were doing a fabulous job. They were bringing in new people to pick up the slack and the new people
She maintains her relationship with her managers and employees daily. “When I come in each day, I enjoy going around and talking with all of the employees individually. I thank them for being here. But, more importantly, I get a chance to connect with them and learn about them as people.” Rishy admits, “I get a lot of satisfaction out of it. It’s actually my favorite thing to do. And, I think it helps to keep in touch with them. It leads to more open communication with them and I hope they feel they could share anything with me. They are truly part of our family.” This openness and focus on relationship spills over to her schedule also. “I admit my biggest challenge daily is staying on task,” said Rishy. “If someone comes to me with an issue about something, or someone shows up to see me, that becomes my first obligation then I’ll get back to what I was working on.” Continued on page 37
August 2016
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Testimonials
“
The first Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast meeting I attended, I was literally fresh off the boat from Europe. I had not been a business owner in the US and business is done in Europe vastly different. I sat down and immediately the person next to me started talking to me and we started chatting and I started to feel more relaxed. I had never even stood up before and given a 30 second commercial! After the meeting, I felt much relief and I decided that I was going to come back. From there I actually grew to doing a lot more networking, but if it weren’t for Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast, I wouldn’t have been able to do that.
”
– Judie Rolland, Creatively Organizing
“ “ “
I was looking for a networking group that I could join to help me get out of my comfort zone! I found PWGC and the support everyone gave each other was so refreshing and made the transition in my life so rewarding! I have enjoyed meeting so many like-minded women in the Pensacola area! Thank you PWGC for helping me grow! – Kirsten Hoffman Philip, Plexus Gulf Coast
”
I’ve been attending for at least 10 years. I keep attending because I always learn something, I always meet someone new, I nearly always get some sort of sale for my business or at least a contact to follow up with and that’s what keeps me coming back
”
– Sally Vickers, Team Powered Success
I’m proud to call myself a member of Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast! This is not your mother’s bridge club! We are a group of 40+ women that collaborate rather than compete. We use our power to empower. Our voice carries strength not gossip. We sing a song of unity.
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
”
– Kesha Royster
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August 2016
Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast
Monthly Networking
The biggest thing in Women’s Business Networking on the Gulf Coast 1st Friday of the month
3rd
11:30-1:00 Pensacola Networking Event Gulf Coast Kid’s House
Friday of the month
11:30-1:00 Gulf Breeze Networking Event Hampton Inn & Suites
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com /PowerfulWomenoftheGulfCoast directors@powerfulwomengulfcoast.com
March 2016 August 2016
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PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
Meeting Pictures
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August 2016
Success is
Seeing Community in
Action
By Mandy B. Fernandez As Interviewed By Kolleen Edwards Chesley Photography By Kate Treick
A powerful, positive approach to professional life is seeing others triumph, then applying that winning attitude to fuel one’s own aspirations.
Dr. Janet Pilcher defines herself as a leader by the success of the teams she leads. If her teams are not performing well and seeing impact, then she is not doing enough to prepare them to be high achievers. This is the same philosophy she teaches in her role as senior leader for Studer Education, a division under Studer Group. At this health care
comfort zone as she did. In fact, she tells coaches and partners at Studer Education that, “The first six to 12 months in their program will be the hardest because people experience going from being experts in their previous leadership role to this new way of thinking.” She adds, “Often our partners go from ‘gosh, that felt good to this feels terrible’ but that’s how individuals grow and become even better leaders.” She takes the best concepts and practices that Studer Group has already done and transfers those ideas to K-12 and now higher education too. Studer Education uses a team approach to guidance. Janet notes, “We all want to help each other. That’s our strength and we have incredible people.”
workforce education, service and finance. They work with superintendents and board members to customize each school or hospital’s key metrics and goals. Together, they facilitate a short cycle planning process with each district. No two plans are quite the same. Janet details, “There are commonalities among our current 37 partners but each one is different because of its localized governance.” The partners and Studer Education all want the same outcome: the best for the children in each community. When asked about important leadership skills for women, Janet remarks, “The best female leaders I see are very strong,
consulting organization, educational coaches transfer proven leadership practices focused on health care partners to education to build better communities. Janet says, “There’s a cross connection between health care and education. They are two of the biggest influencers in a community and their success is valuable for any region. Our company takes pride in working with board members and superintendents who want to take their leadership skills to an even greater level in their local areas.” Janet helped start Studer Education after a 19-year tenure career at the University of West Florida. She has a long history of teaching and inspiring others. Janet began as a math teacher and tennis coach before pursuing a doctoral degree at Florida State University. After attaining a Ph.D. in measurement and evaluation at FSU, Janet went on to serve as Dean at UWF. She started the university’s first doctoral education program. Through her work at UWF, Janet met Quint Studer and transitioned out of higher education to work in the private sector with Studer Education. She comments, “That was the bravest thing I had ever done, leaving a secure and safe position that I excelled at. I did it because I needed to be challenged in a different way.” Janet adds that she has great love and respect for her work and colleagues at UWF but the move to Studer Education allowed her to “continue to grow and set the bar even higher for myself.” Janet is not one to let a challenge deter her. She encourages others to step out of their PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
Those high-performing team members are selected carefully by Janet and senior leadership members. The most important trait they recruit is relationship building. They hire employees who want to be a partner for life with the people they coach regularly. Janet explains, “We have not lost many partners. We work with people for many years as we are not just a vendor, contractor or consultant. Instead we are part of the fabric of a person’s education and community.” Studer Education prides itself on four core pillars in education. They are student success, the highest pillar, followed by 31
thoughtful, methodical, and relationship oriented.” She also adds that leaders, regardless of gender, must be great listeners and highly concerned with helping individuals move from one point to another. If a person is not doing well on the Studer Education team, Janet said the leader must step in and address the issue right away. In the past, if a team members was not performing up to the desired level, he or she would receive direct attention, more training and an improvement plan. Janet comments, “We often talk and joke about the park ranger leadership approach.” In other words, August 2016
knowing when to help people and when to let them fail is a tough call to make. Yet leaders must allow their employees some failures and chances to do things for themselves. Janet reveals, “As a leader I want to encourage and support my people but not do the work for them. My role is to provide the right environment, learning, structure, goal setting and the strategic direction and engagement to achieve. When people are moving in that direction, then we can build success.” As leaders we often walk that fine line of when to help and when to leave staff alone. Janet admits she has struggled in the past in doing for others when they should do more for themselves. To combat the urge to step in, Janet says she leans on the organization’s tight processes and systems to guide herself and others. She remarks that the procedures help remove the emotion from the workplace and let her rely on the business logic needed to complete the tasks. Janet explains, “I’m a better leader when I follow the rules I put in place and advise others to do the same.” Janet says the best time to have emotion in the workplace is in recognizing group success. For example, each quarter her team at Studer Education enjoys a dinner outing to celebrate meeting their goals. She notes that her crew wants to interact more socially and be mindful of their results. Therefore, these dinners are great morale-building events to commemorate achievements. From early in her career, Janet was fortunate to have mentors in her life. When she’s able to be an effective mentor, she takes on the role. A mentor, according to Janet, is one who engages in “two-way conversation” with the person she or he is helping. Janet believes mentoring is setting time aside to engage in dialogue to figure out what help is needed and any barriers that may be in the way of the mentee wanting to prosper. In her leadership roles, Janet is challenged daily by figuring out the right balance between how hard to drive and work both on a personal and professional level. She states, “I often ask myself if I am doing the right thing at the right time in my life. I question when the right decision needs to be made.” Janet’s fear of not continuing to grow has led to her greatest achievements. She has built a program at UWF. Now at Studer Education, she is influencing educational communities across America. Janet is forging ahead to impact all young learners, from K-12 to higher education. She embodies the motto of the organization she serves. Janet exclaims, “I am really proud that my team and I live this philosophy of providing quality education every day. We facilitate it when we go out and train but we take it back home and we put it in our own lives. We help others be stronger and bring back best practices to our community.” Janet has made a name for herself but for real results, she takes pride in seeing the community put work in action. That is what makes true impact occur. She is an inspiration to people not just in our Northwest Florida region but in areas across the U.S. As a difference maker, Janet’s legacy is building societies where we can all grow and thrive in.
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The
story of PWGC
By Kolleen Edwards Chesley Chapter 2, Incorporation and Conference In the last edition of the magazine, I went through the beginnings of Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast. To summarize: it was a story of three women who met through networking and after Hurricane Ivan were desperately looking to find their business paths again. The storm did more than change the physical landscape of the Pensacola area; it impacted the entire business structure. These women didn’t sit down with the intention of starting a networking organization. Instead, they had one impromptu lunch
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
meeting in October of 2004 that turned out to be extremely motivating, encouraging and empowering, and they realized there was something special about women getting together and talking openly about ways they could help each other. They decided to do another lunch and more women came and another lunch and even more women came. This was an organization (originally called Women’s Business Lunch) that started with three women and quickly grew to 20, or more at every meeting. They realized that women network differently than men
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and there was value in having a networking organization where the meetings consisted only of women. Now, onto the second chapter . . . It was the year 2013. Our organization was still called Women’s Business Lunch and I was the one that was running the monthly meetings and steering the growth of the organization. Through the normal course of life, the ladies that were instrumental in the early stages in 2004 and 2005 and later had
August 2016
moved on. One moved out of state and the other started to raise her family, having first a son and then a daughter, which kept her networking efforts trimmed to a minimum. It was evident in Pensacola that women were looking for other ways to get business education and network with like-minded women. I had been in other organizations–Toastmasters and Business Network International to name a few. I had also been very involved with the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at the University of West Florida teaching a few classes a year on referrals and networking. SBDC hosted an annual women’s conference for many years and I had been a speaker at their Women in Business conference starting in 2005 and again in 2009 and 2011 and then was the emcee of their conference in 2012. I had been bitten by the conference bug! Jennifer Harrison had also been a speaker for SBDC and had become involved with our organization as well. She was one of the speakers at the SBDC conference in 2012 that I had been the emcee. After the
conference, we sat down and discussed ways we could bring more value to that conference. SBDC had a great platform and could see the need for this type of event, but their staff was limited and we were willing to step in and help. We wanted to add to their marketing efforts to get the word out to more women. We wanted to help find more speakers and add more benefits to the conference that would appeal to women. We spent a good amount of time coming up with ideas to take the conference to the next level. We wrote our ideas down and scheduled a time to approach them with the information we had gathered on how to take it to the next level. This was about two months before their scheduled conference was to take place. I’m not sure if it was fate or timing, but we walked into our scheduled meeting to find out they had recently made a decision to not do the conference anymore. Staff changes and attention being focused in other areas prevented them from giving the conference the proper dedication.
Jennifer and I looked at each other with our stack of research and our ideas on how to improve the conference. We had all of the plans we needed, we had already run through the event in our heads and on paper, we were brimming with excitement about what we could do to improve the event. And with that, we decided that we would host our very first conference! We knew we needed someone strong to keep us focused and to make sure nothing fell through the cracks and the first person that came to my mind was Elizabeth Nims. Elizabeth and I served on our local Toastmaster’s board and she was detailed, thorough and dedicated. She willingly stepped in to help and together with Jennifer, we now had a trio of women. We quickly incorporated and changed the name to Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast and we held our very first conference two months later. I can’t say it was a huge success, but it was a wonderful learning experience. We are proud to host our fourth conference this year and each year they get better and better. We chose to give back to one of our favorite non-profits, the Gulf Coast Kid’s House, and we proudly donate 80 percent of our profits from the conference to their organization.
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WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOUR
...CLIENTS WANT?
ASK THEM! By Kolleen Edwards Chesley
Donna Kirby - Vice President
of Organizational Development for the Pensacola Blue Wahoos, shared how the Wahoos incorporate excellence into their entire structure. She recently gave a presentation for Studer Community Institute called “Harnessing the Power of Exemplary Customer Service” where she shared key points about how exceptional customer service is at the core of a great organization. Why is exceptional customer service important? “You are using exemplary customer service to differentiate your organization, to make it more elite. Especially if you sell the same product as your competitor, it might come down to the service level, how your customer feels that causes them to choose your store over another.”
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
Why choose mediocre when excellence is an option?
Surveys? It can’t be that simple. Tell me more.
“Absolutely! It distinguishes the good companies from the great ones. It’s the bell curve. You have those companies in the middle doing just fine, hitting their numbers, coming in on budget, turning a profit for their shareholders, happy. But then you have the high performing companies that are taking that and then putting their twist on it. The ultra-successful companies listen to their customers to a ridiculous degree. And that level of service is that distinguishing characteristic that takes them off the chart.”
“Surveying is essential. I can’t emphasize enough how much I believe in it. It’s really us reaching out to them and saying, ‘Give us a report card, tell us how we are doing.’ It’s great for us as the Wahoos to sit in a room and say, ‘This is going to be fantastic, this is the best thing we’ve ever done’ but we are biased. Of course we are going to think what we are doing is great. So we have to go to the fans and say ‘tell us’.”
How do you listen to your customers?
“I help coach other teams on their surveying and a real problem they have is with adhering to the good stuff that they hear and rejecting the bad, when in reality you need to embrace it all. You need to hold the mirror up to your organization and say, ‘That actually is a very good call out’ or ‘We should be doing that’ or ‘That’s absolutely right, we should have handled that differently.’” Continued on page 42
“I talk a lot about data in my presentation, unless you have a firm grasp on how your company is performing and what competition is out there you are really working on quicksand. One way we get that data is from surveys. We send out surveys after every game and ask for feedback.
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What about the information that comes back?
August 2016
Financial
Organization
Can Save Loved Ones Money and Headaches
By Kristen Marks
Few of us like to spend our free time organizing our important financial documents, but the benefits can be tremendous for your peace of mind and can ultimately save your family hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. Billions of dollars in life insurance proceeds remain unclaimed in Florida by beneficiaries who are entitled to the funds. These beneficiaries do not voluntarily waive their right to the funds. They either do not know the policies exist or they are not aware they are entitled to the money. In fact, a recent study by Consumer Reports found that one out of 600 Americans is the beneficiary of an unclaimed life insurance policy with an average benefit of $2,000. A new Florida law recently took effect that requires all life insurance companies and annuity companies when they learn of an insured’s death to take proactive steps to pay the proceeds to the beneficiary within four months. Further, an insurer now has a duty to annually check the Social Security Administration’s database of death records and compare the list against its own list of insureds. This new law applies to individually owned life insurance policies, single life annuity contracts, and retained asset accounts (those temporary cash accounts that life insurance companies establish after the death of an insured while the beneficiary is deciding what to do with the funds). The new law does NOT apply to group life insurance, accidental death policies, or credit life policies. The law also does not apply to other financial institutions, such as banks or credit unions. Although this new law is welcome news to Floridians, it does not give us a pass to keep August 2016
sloppy financial records if we want our loved ones to inherit our money and assets after we die. There is currently over $1 billion in unclaimed property with the Florida Bureau of Unclaimed Funds. Many of the funds sitting there come from accounts that go unclaimed after the death of a loved one. Why? Presumably because no one knew the accounts existed, or the deceased person kept poor or no financial records. You should at a minimum organize the following financial and legal records and keep them accessible to a trusted loved one(s) should you die or become incapacitated:
. Recent account statements for each of
your liquid assets (bank accounts, investment accounts, etc.)
. Life insurance policies,
. Copies of your property insurance policies . List of online accounts, along with your usernames and passwords . Burial, funeral contracts, and cemetery plot deeds . Your estate planning documents, including your will, any trusts, medical and financial powers of attorney
This list is not exhaustive but it will be go a long way to helping your loved ones track down your assets and discern your final wishes. You can store this information physically in binders, file folders, or file cabinets. Alternatively, you now have the option of storing these documents and your wishes online with services, such as Everplans, Docubank,
along with beneficiary confirmation from your insurance company
. Recent retirement
account statements, along with beneficiary confirmation from the companies
. Copies of deeds to any
real properties you own, along with the most current tax bill
. Copies of your last year’s tax return . Copies of recent credit
card statements and other outstanding loans or debts 36
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
or Legal Vault. Some services also allow you to name “deputies” who you authorize with either immediate or post-death access to the information. The bottom line is that being organized is a HUGE gift to your family. After all, who wants to leave behind a mess as their legacy to their loved ones? Want to check to see if you or a loved one has unclaimed property with the State of Florida? You can do a free search by a person’s name for unclaimed funds at www.FLTreasureHunt.org. Kristen Marks is founder of My Pink Lawyer®, lawyers committed to empowering women to make smart planning decisions with their Wills, Trusts & Estates. Her recently published book, “Wise Women Protect their Assets: Essential Estate Planning Guide for Smart Women,” can be download for free at: www.PinkLawyerBook.com.
Continued from page 26 Focusing on others has helped her in other ways. “The first olive oil shop owner I met was an incredible mentor to me and now I’ve had the opportunity to mentor four other shop owners, all women, in this type of business,” explained Rishy. “Until you are up and going you don’t know what you don’t know so it was neat to help others along.”
research, and more research.” With the drive thru coffee shop they are opening she has interviewed a number of people to make sure she has considered everything. “I hadn’t done that in the past but did it for this project,” said Rishy. “And, I’m researching all of the foods that will go into it.”
She explained how mentoring someone else becomes a valuable learning experience.
They can test the food on their current customers before taking it to the drive thru so changes can be made prior to opening.
“You kind of reteach yourself so you are forced to be a little critical of yourself and how you did it,” said Rishy.
In addition to visioning and leadership for the Bodacious Family of Shops, Rishy also has a full work load working on all of the details for their project in Janesville, Wis. They are starting a full-block revitalization downtown very similar to what they built here in Pensacola. The concept of the retail shops that Rishy have proved successful here will be a major component of the project up there.
By teaching, you are able to relive the experience and notice areas for improvement. Through mentoring, she was able to reflect on what hasn’t worked as well as she expected. “Starting these retail businesses has been the most challenging, just trying different things and seeing if they would take off,” said Rishy. “I sometimes wonder if I’m not realistic. I go online and search and look at others that are doing similar and I see what we could do. My biggest concern is that I want so much more and not being there yet.”
She has some great resources and experiences to pull from and shared some of her favorite advice for anyone wanting to start their own business. “Quint is my guru, and everyone should read his books,” said Rishy. “When you have stuff you aren’t good at, or don’t want to do, pass off the responsibility to someone you trust. Have good people around you. And letting go of some of these things allows other to grow.”
To handle that, she talks it out with her leadership team. “I try to convey what I would like to see and assess whether they see the possibility,” said Rishy.
From hooking up computers and starting the books for Studer Group to T-shirt printer for the Pelicans to the chief visionary for the Bodacious Family of Shops, Rishy Studer has had quite a journey. Considering the plans she still has in Pensacola and in Janesville, too, Rishy is nowhere near stopping. Keep setting your high expectations, Rishy. We couldn’t be happier or more supportive to see it all come to fruition.
Even though it is a challenge she does think her high expectations are a key strength and cause her to push harder. Rishy’s biggest fear is that something she tries won’t succeed. Rishy admits to overcome that she has changed what she does before she starts. “I used to just jump into it. But I’m learning now. It helps to do PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
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August 2016
Maximize Your Time
Through Value Recognition, Minute Tracking and Goal-setting By Mandy B. Fernandez
Dr. Seuss understood the importance of time management. He even knew how not staying on track could surprise a person, described in his poem:
How did it get so late so soon? It’s night before it’s afternoon. December is here before it’s June. My goodness how the time has flewn. How did it get so late so soon?
determine where it fits into the day, week or month. Moments occur when my boss may say, “This is critical. Do this now and push all else aside.” In most cases though, I am left to self-manage. Lauren Loeffler, director of Career Services of the University of West Florida, manages her time in “terms of non-negotiables.” She places items on her schedule that cannot be sacrificed or missed, planning everything else around those crucial ones. Loeffler
manages a staff of twelve and is the mother of two young children under the age of eight. She ensures her values are reflected in her activities and priorities. If not, she rearranges to put herself back into balance. For me, when a big assignment is looming overhead, I jump into it as quickly as possible. I brainstorm ideas with others. Feedback is critical as I move along in my career as a marketing and training specialist. I find a mentor to converse with
Like Dr. Seuss, many of us have glanced at the clock and wondered how one hour turned into six. We often wish for more time in the day. Yet, if we had an extra hour, or four, what would we do with those additional minutes? Rory Vaden, author of Take the Stairs: 7 Steps to Achieving True Success, shared in his TED Talk the unrealistic notion of creating more time. He said that we “can only borrow from one activity and move it toward another. Therefore, we should ask ourselves, what can I do now or today to make tomorrow better?” I often have a need list and a want list lying around. Priorities shift around as new projects arise. The deadline, estimated timeframe to complete, and the scope’s value all help me
August 2016
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PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
regularly or locate an expert to study for gaining knowledge. As women, we can lean in and lean on each other for support. I am more prepared and successful if I collaborate and accept criticism from peers. Loeffler agreed. She commented, “My asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness.” To stay on task and juggle multiple duties, Loeffler remarked that she continually looks ahead instead of back in her life. Laura Vanderkam is the author of I Know How She Does It: How Successful Women Make the Most of Their Time. She suggests that “the first step to using time better is knowing how you’re spending it now.” She encourages women to spend several days, ideally a week, writing down everything we do as often as we remember it. Vanderkam says, “Think of yourself as a lawyer billing time to different projects.” She advises to even record hours spent sleeping, watching television, and more but to be honest with the minutes or hours. Vanderkam believes this is the only way women can achieve their goals. She reveals, “Every hour of a person’s week is a choice. Ask yourself what you’d like to do with your time. Then build in an accountability system to make it happen.”
A helpful strategy is to include more professional development bursts into the daily routine. For the past year, I’ve built learning into idle moments. My morning commute may take up to an hour, so I’ve begun using that time in the car to listen to an audiobook or practice a speech I give for Toastmasters. Sometimes, I even listen to books while dressing or eating breakfast. This combines a personal goal with my mundane responsibilities. Another useful tactic is to be protective of essential time blocks and suggest alternatives. Work partners want to meet me over lunch but that hour is precious and already reserved. Instead, I often suggest half hour coffee shop or café meets. I can talk business, but in a more casual environment, with less time used and still preserving the chance for connection and creativity.
match your goals and principles? Do not compare your choices with others. If a situation comes up that starts to grow out of control, work to adapt and grow to the new situation.
Remember these words from Dr. Seuss: If things start happening, Don’t Worry, Don’t Stew Just go right along and You’ll start happening too. Mandy B. Fernandez is a writer, wife, mom to two daughters, and a marketing/ training specialist at the Florida Small Business Development Center at UWF. You can learn more about her at : www.writtenbymandy.com.
The key to not feeling guilty over time is to spend it wisely. Pay attention to the minutes and hours in your day. Does it
Vanderkam’s most beneficial tip for me has been to utilize shorts bursts of time to be more productive and build relationships. Applying it in my own life, now I think in terms of making the most of time bursts. For example, in five minutes I can make a call or type an email to a colleague that will strengthen our partnership. Within ten minutes I can tackle a chore like folding laundry or making a grocery list. In fifteen minutes, I can take a personal family break to play a board game with my kids. In twenty minutes, I can go for a walk or complete a yoga routine. In a half hour, I can review the month’s budget and pay bills. The key is to stay on task and not become distracted. If we work furiously and remain focused on the project at hand, we can move on to the next detail.
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
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August 2016
How A Direction Change
Can Turn Into An Organization By Kolleen Edwards Chesley Photography by Carmen Jones
Susan Byram set off in
her professional life by obtaining a master’s degree in education and after marrying the love of her life, decided on a career in teaching. They started a family and had two wonderful children. When her oldest son, David, at four years old was diagnosed with autism her focus and eventually her career path changed. Susan explains, “When he was diagnosed, the first response I had was ‘I’ve got to find others going through the same thing.’ I felt left out when my friends’ kids were developing typically. It wasn’t anything they
August 2016
were doing, I just felt different.” A friend connected Susan with another mom and together they started an autism support chapter in Kentucky where she was living. “I connected better with other parents going through a similar situation as me and it gave me the chance to share similar stories as them,” Susan shared. Apparently she wasn’t alone in this need for connection because that group grew to 100 or so before she left the area. Her original plan was to stay at home with the kids until elementary school and then return to her professional career. David was entering middle school now but to stay on top of his medical, educational, social, emotional, therapy and other needs, she elected to not return to teaching. After moving to the Gulf Coast, she sought
40
the need for a local connection with parents of children with autism and together with some of the parents from another organization, she started Autism Society of the Panhandle, which is now Autism Pensacola, a 501(c)(3) organization. Susan recently celebrated her tenth year as the director of Autism Pensacola and maintains the current title of president and CEO. She sat down with me and shared some advice these ten years have taught her about running a nonprofit.
How important is culture? I think it’s very important and it gets to the core of what you are for any organization. I think our culture as an organization of high quality, high standards, and inclusiveness
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
and believing that everybody has potential within them; that makes a good non-profit.
Best advice ever received As a nonprofit, the best advice was Quint Studer’s advice about saying thank you. The reward and recognition of staff, but also reward and recognition of donors. You can’t be too grateful. In a nonprofit, you have staff, but you also have volunteers and donors too. Make sure you thank everyone.
How important is flexibility? We learn and change every single year. There
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
are programs we have tried that maybe the participation wasn’t there or the families didn’t take to it like we expected they would. We do surveys and we listen and we aren’t afraid to change when something isn’t working. What I learned from all of my challenges is to keep evolving, to not stop, and to not internalize them as failures; they are all opportunities to get better. There are always speed bumps along the way.
Advise to those just starting Just keep asking for help, you have to ask other people to help you and find out all of
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the legal steps you need to do and make sure you get all of that done and stay up on that because it changes constantly. Your reputation is everything. Do what you say you will do. Have your ducks in a row.
Closing words We want to build acceptance and understanding in the community. And that’s not just about autism, that’s for everything. If we as human beings become more understanding of each other and we accept each other and we support each other, we would solve a lot of problems.
August 2016
Continued from page 35 What about the information you don’t want to hear? You learn from it and you grow and sure enough you send out another survey and the fans say ‘Whoa, I can’t believe you listened to me.’ Example is year one: we got feedback from people sitting on the Hill Kelly Hill saying they had no idea what the score
thought of that, we missed it. They installed another scoreboard and when the fans came back, then they really came back strong saying ‘Thank you so much’, ‘Wow!’ It’s amazing how much appreciation is shown when you acknowledge the human need to be heard. How do you know it’s working? It adds to the pride, loyalty and ownership factor. You start hearing the phrases “Our Wahoos”, “Can’t wait for my team to come back,” and it really is that pride and that loyalty that is compounded by these surveys. We’ve built that culture where the fans feel really empowered.
Overall, you don’t know how you look until you get your picture taken and for Donna and the Wahoos, these pictures in the form of surveys have propelled them to the number one fan experience spot and number two in attendance and that’s even with the Wahoos stadium being one of the smallest in the southern league. Don’t be afraid to ask your customers what they want, be a good listener when they tell you and don’t be afraid to make changes and you just may have a customer for life.
Are surveys just for the fans/customers?
was at any point during the game. It didn’t even dawn on us that the only scoreboard was behind them and they needed to put a scoreboard on the opposite side. We hadn’t
No. We do employee recognition at every single game and we get a lot of the praise for employees and feedback on employees from these surveys but we also do “coworker callouts” where coworkers can praise another employee. It might sound like ‘I saw Jim doing this’ or ‘I noticed Sally jumped in here when we got busy’ and we’ve conditioned the employees to take notice when they see things being done exceptionally.
Would you like to connect with more ladies in the Pensacola area? The Woodlands Medical Specialists / Bella Blue Wahoos Women's Club is perfect for getting together with friends, networking with others and getting to enjoy Blue Wahoos baseball all at the same time! With only one event remaining for this season, sign ups are underway for the 2017 season! For more information call Amanda Stephenson (850) 934-8444 ext 205. August 2016
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PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
MEMBERSHIP OPTIONS FOR
POWERFUL WOMEN OF THE GULF COAST
Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast stays pretty busy with our monthly networking meetings, our annual conference and our quarterly magazine. However, many of our attendees have requested additional opportunities to be more active and gain more exposure within our organization. We also see value in creating a unified front of supporters who are willing to stand together to support women in business. For many reasons, Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast recently announced membership options. Anyone interested can apply for either:
Tr a d i t i o n a l Me m b e r s h i p o r Premier Membership at first year introductory rate offers. If interested in basic benefits and reduced involvement, traditional membership is a great fit. This includes the following benefits for $30 per year:
. Eligible
to be drawn for PWGC Meeting Sponsor role at monthly meeting.
If interested in more benefits and an active involvement, premier membership might be a better fit. This includes the following benefits for $15 per month:
. P r e m i e r
listing in PWGC Me m b e r A p p (v i e w o n l i n e a t : www.powerfulwomenapp.com including member discount offer and clickable buttons for website, pictures, direct dial phone number and direct email).
. Personalized PWGC name tag. . Recognition at Pursue Your conference.
. Simple listing in PWGC Member App (view online at www.powerfulwomenapp.com).
. Personalized PWGC name tag. . Recognition at Pursue Your
Passion
. Discount
at Pursue Your Passion
conference.
. Member
spotlight in PWGC Magazine
annually.
. Eligible to be drawn for PWGC Meeting Sponsor role.
Men and women can apply and attending the monthly meetings is not a requirement to be eligible for membership! “The PWGC Member app and the opportunity for a member spotlight in the PWGC Magazine are both examples of great opportunities to be visible within our organization that didn’t exist before we rolled out membership,” said Kolleen Edwards Chesley, Founding Director, Powerful Women of the Gulf Coast. “We wanted affordable options that weren’t tied to having to attend our meetings but still gave members exposure and inclusion in our group.” For more details or to apply, Email:
Passion
directors@powerfulwomengulfcoast.com.
conference.
EMPLOYEE SOLUTIONS TO COME
PowerfulWomenGulfCoast.com
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August 2016
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