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5 Ways To Build Your Female Power Circle

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In your personal life, those with whom you associate yourself are likely to share your morals, values and personality traits. And a recent study showed that this behavior translates to the workplace as well — especially for women. In a group of 700 participants, women in high leadership roles tended to surround themselves with a network of other women who were not only successful but also well-connected. 

Jennifer Quinlan is the CEO of R2integrated, a digital marketing agency that offers services across technology enablement, marketing strategy, analytics, creative design and user experience through to digital media activation. A former VP at IBM, Quinlan says that she mapped out her path to career success with the guidance and support of a few trusted female colleagues and mentors.

“Whether you’re running a five-person team or a 500-person organization, having a group of trusted advisors to go to for guidance, best practices and to bounce ideas off of is crucial,” Quinlan states. “My go-to group of women is not only important for mentorship and career advice, but also for my personal wellbeing.”  

Like many women, Quinlan faced challenges making her way to the top of the corporate ladder. “I’d like to say it’s been an easy path, but it hasn’t been. There weren’t a lot of women in leadership to draw upon earlier in my career,” she says. “Maybe from the outside it appeared easier than it really was. Importantly, what I figured out along the way is that I needed to build my own network and find connection with women who had with similar goals. As a community of women, we can learn a lot from each other and be more open and willing to share our lessons. I firmly believe that if we help others to appreciate the diversity in thought and experience at the table, our future women leaders will not have to face the same challenges that I did.”

Here, Quinlan shares her top 5 tips for building your female power circle:

1.    Define Your Personal Roadmap. Before you set out building your personal network, step back to evaluate where you are and where you want to be. It’s important to define your vision and purpose in order to grow. Start simple. The important part of developing your roadmap is recognizing that it will evolve and you can adjust course as you go.  

2.    Identify Your Mentors. Look for someone who you identify with or seek out someone you admire professionally. Building a relationship with trusted mentors over time is tremendously valuable as your career progresses. I have a few mentors who have really helped support me as I’ve move up the professional ladder – some from within my industry and some not. I’ve gained very valuable perspective from those outside my space, so keep that in mind as an option. 

3.    Grow Your Crew. Now that you’ve made a career plan for yourself and found your first mentor or two, the next step is to get out there and connect with the strong, hardworking females to fill your circle. Whether it’s strengthening existing connections or building new ones, finding a solid group of women to help celebrate your accomplishments, support you through challenges and navigate the professional world will ultimately lead you down the path of success. Remember, if you really want to build a network, it takes effort to nurture these relationships. Make it a priority. 

4.    Bring Forward the Future. It’s not enough to get there alone. We’ve got to bring the next generation up with us. I’m passionate about ensuring diversity in the workplace and help to foster this by leading and mentoring our future leaders. I also believe it is equally as important to help other women traverse the mid-career gap. We see a drop-off in female leadership ranks due to women who leave the workplace in mid-career, often due to family reasons. It’s very important to look at our organizations for areas of bias or policies that might discourage women from evolving into senior leadership or C-level positions.

5.    Share the Love. Once you’ve built your female power circle, take it upon yourself to invite others to join. By participating in panel discussions and networking events, mentoring young professionals, or just grabbing coffee with a new coworker, you’ll soon become that trusted advisor that you once looked for when starting on your professional journey. It takes a lot of courage to make the first move – especially as a young woman entering the workforce. Take the pressure off for others by helping them take their first steps toward building their own power circles. 

Quinlan always knew she wanted to work in advertising and marketing, a dynamic industry that has changed a great deal over the last 20 years. She says, “I’ve been able to work on and solve some very interesting business challenges. I fell in love with technology, analytics, performance-based marketing and creating measurable customer outcomes. And while you hear a lot about technology enablement and digital transformation, we’re still all striving for human connection. It’s been the right environment for me in terms of the people, experiences and ability to continuously learn.”

At R2i, Quinlan enjoys the opportunity to make things better than she found them. She says, “I get up every day excited about helping our team grow both personally and professionally, and helping our clients evolve their organizations. Ultimately, working on the things that matter to an organization brings me great satisfaction.” Finally, Quinlan is grateful for the opportunity to mentor other women that comes with her role as CEO.

In terms of aligning your career with your life purpose, Quinlan says, “It might sound simple, but I believe you have to like what you’re doing. If you don’t know the best way to tap into purpose, step back and ask yourself what matters. It’s also a good idea to seek out advice from friends or colleagues that you trust. Find mentors! Tapping into your network can provide a lot of traction. This is your community of supporters.”

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