In this blog series FWE&E members share the secrets to their success: incorporate these practical and dynamic strategies to improve your own performance your team’s. Denise Brouillette is a leadership strategist who coaches and consults to leaders in the Fortune 500. To visit Denise’s blog, click here.

I often hear men and women at work talk about how they hate the idea of having to promote their accomplishments just to get their work noticed, and instead wish that the results they deliver could just speak for themselves.

If you’re one of those people, and you’d like to get some attention on your work without having to wait until someone notices you, or without having your update sound like pure self promotion, you can begin using the soundbite strategy for getting your work noticed.

Within the last couple of weeks, how many times have you run into leaders at work who’ve asked, “Hey, how are things going?” or “What’s happening?” and all you were prepared to say was, “great, “fine,” or “not too much” and then hurriedly move on? These chance encounters are your soundbite opportunities – those 15-second responses that give leaders the inside information on what might be of interest to them in your world relative to their world.

Here’s how you can put your soundbite strategy in motion.

1. List the 3 most important people who should know about you/your work/your team’s work and who you’re likely to run into in the hallways, elevator, cafeteria, in a meeting, or elsewhere on your work campus.

2. Next, list the 2-3 high-profile projects you’re working on right now. Catalogue the top 2 recent accomplishments as well as the key 1 or 2 milestones you’re expecting to accomplish and when. These are highlights only – soundbites – not a long list of what’s going on.

3. Then, jot down the professional events you’ll be attending or where you’ve been invited to present or speak, whether inside the company or outside at a professional event, and any important meetings or events you’ve got planned or are facilitating.

4. Finally, get your one or two 15-second soundbites ready for each of the 3 people on your list.

Here’s an example of how well this worked for someone I know. In her words, she wrote: “I was riding in the elevator just this morning and saw a senior leader. He asked, ”What’s up?’ and I said, ‘I’m very excited to be holding our first ever xyz meeting today that covers abc.’ And his response was, ‘Where and when; I’ll be there!’   He showed up and supported me all the way. Amazing! If I hadn’t had my soundbite ready, I would have missed a golden opportunity.”

Not being ready with information that the leaders in your organization would find interesting or useful for their own work is one of the biggest professional mistakes you can make. Because while you’re hurrying on by, many of your co-workers likely are stopping, if only for the moment, to let those leaders in on what’s happening with their projects, with their teams, or what’s new on the horizon. And that’s how they get known and how you might not. When you get your soundbite strategy in place, you can be sure that the next time you run into one of these important leaders and they ask, “Hey, how are things going?” you’ll have a ready response.

With our upcoming “Innovation Leadership – Visions for the Future” event taking place tomorrow at Ericsson in San Jose, the ability to harness the spirit of collaboration has been a focal point in my mind. One of the interviews conducted as part of Ericsson’s “2020 – Shaping Ideas” project resonated with me in particular: that of self-proclaimed “future narrator” Anne Lise Kjaer, who led a research team across the world (yes, the entire world!) to collect opinions about the future of women in business and in the workplace.

Anne Lise Kjaer - 2020 Shaping Ideas

At the onset, Kjaer is quick to remind us that the future is an indeterminate thing. After listening to her interview, I realized that it’s true: I –and perhaps most people—tend to think of the future as a finite thing, as in “the future will be like XYZ,” rather than “the future might be like XYZ.” We forget that the future is not a predetermined place where we will all eventually end up regardless of the choices we make. Corny as it sounds, we have the power to create exactly what that future will be like. The possibilities are endless!

Despite the fact that the future is an intangible and mercurial concept, Kjaer’s job is to make predictions based on current trends and opinions. After her extensive survey, she came to the following conclusion:

“[In the future], women won’t bother to try to get into a male-ruled organization; they will just try to start their own company, because it’s much easier. If you go into an old-fashioned, last-century organization, which was very left-brained, you won’t have a chance in the future…

Daniel Pink supports Kjaer’s premise in his book, A Whole New Mind, reiterates that the era of “left brain” dominance, and the Information Age that it engendered, are giving way to a new world in which “right brain” qualities-inventiveness, empathy, meaning-predominate.

It remains to be seen whether women will be forced to circumvent established traditions of thought by starting their own companies. However, it highlights an interesting shift specific to the world of entrepreneurship – as women step up to take the reigns, innovate, and build new companies, what changes can we expect to see? How will women build, lead, and foster differently? I, for one, am excited to see what changes (hopefully positive) these shifts will bring to the future.

McKinsey’s Centered Leadership points out that people with strong networks enjoy promotions, higher pay and greater career satisfaction. They have a sense of belonging, which is a strong driver of fulfillment.

That being said, relationship building comes more naturally to some than others. For those who don’t gravitate toward the spotlight, there are some valuable skills and tools that can make connecting with people an easier and a more gratifying experience.

1) Networking vs. Connecting: There really is a difference. Over time, the word “networking” has become synonymous with awkward conversation and exchanging business cards. Now take a step back and reflect on your networking efforts. How often have your networking experiences produced long-term relationships or meaningful results? Consider reshaping your perspective and moving away from traditional networking. Redefine your goal with the word “connecting” in mind; find points of engagement with other people who are authentic and fulfilling. The way to accomplish this is reasonably simple – change your frame of reference from “me” to “them” - be open, listen, ask questions and just being OUT THERE.

2) Set Goals for Connecting: It might seem contrived, but now – more than ever – it’s important to be strategic with your efforts and time. Setting goals for connecting and building relationships expedites the process and produces high-quality results. Before you venture out, spend a few moments answering some basic questions: “What am I trying to achieve?” and “Who can help me get there?” Women are natural relationship-builders, however we tend to build deep connections within smaller groups. Be mindful that the connections you need might not be available within your group, which is why identifying “Who” is equally important as identifying “What.”

3) Build it Before You Need It: It’s easy to let your efforts to build relationships slide when you’re career is going smoothly; however those are times when you should be maximizing your efforts, not scaling them back. It’s much easier to build your connection base when you are coming from a position of giving rather than taking. The more you give, the stronger your relationships will be, which makes them a much more valuable commodity when you are in a time of need. Be sure to maintain consistent and relevant contact with all the connections you make – you never know, the opportunities that arise will astound you.

If you’d like to learn more about creating connections, download to this PBWC webinar: Strategic Networking: Learn How to Build Stronger Connections that Fast-Track Your Career or Business with Wendy Beecham

Today marks the 2009 release of the UC Davis Census of Women Leaders where they are reporting that once again, the number of women in the C suite and on Boards of the top 400 public companies in the state of California is a paltry 10.6% which is DOWN from the 10.9% number reported in 2008.

Equally shocking is that 118 (29.5%) of California’s largest 400 public companies have no women board directors or executive officers. Only 15 of the 400 companies have a woman CEO.  The Bay area has the county with the greatet percentage of women directors - San Francisco (15.7%), as well as the county with the least - Santa Clara (8.2%) - the heart of Silicon Valley.

I was really excited to participate in an NPR interview this morning until the first comment from a listener came in with the remark about why are we even talking about this issue since many women want to stay at home to take care of kids while their husbands bring home the paycheck.

When asked to respond to this, I could only comment that it is an example of the gender bias and stereotyping that exists for both women and men that keep things stagnating the way they are.

The reason I don’t understand why we have to talk about this issue is that there is so much data out there supporting that when there is diversity of all kinds in the board room and the C Suite that there is better financial performance, more measured risk taking, and greater creative thinking and problem solving due to the diversity of backgrounds, disciplines, gender, race etc.

Organizations will face a major talent shortage in the near future as qualified, educated women (more women graduating with MBA’s than men for example) will look at those companies who created intention around having diversity of all kinds as a better place to work.  Those who create sponsorships to create opportunities for women, who measure the degree of diversity in hiring and who actually walk the talk will be the ones who win the talent competition.

Women also can influence changing this picture by learning how to network more strategically to break into the power circles where decisions are made; negotiate higher salaries rather than justifying what is offered; and seeking out and accepting roles they might need to stretch into.

Men will take a role if they are 50% qualified and feel they will figure it out when they get there. Women tend to feel they need 100% of the competencies before they can accept the role.

This issue is about choice. Maria Shriver’s recent report on women talks about how roles are changing as many women are the main career bread winner and the husband stays home to take care of things on that front. And, there are many women who are choosing to stay home to relish the valuable time they will have with their children.

The point is, there is not one right answer here. But corporate America seems to be stuck in a model of one way of doing things that does not support the aspirations, life challenges, or goals that many women have.

We’re having a dialogue about this issue tonight with Dean Currall of UC Davis Graduate School of Business, Maureen Connors, Board Member of Decker Outdoor Corporation (in the Top 25 companies in CA on the UC Davis list); Karen Rohde, SVP of Sun Microsystems (being acquired by Oracle), Bethany Mayer, Chief Marketing Officer of BlueCoat, and Deborah Campbell, Director of Membership from Catalyst.  Come join us at 6pm at DLA to continue this discussion or comment here on what you have to say about this very important issue.

In my previous blog, I reported on the highlights of the W.I.N. Global Leadership conference held in Prague, Czech Republic on October 8-10.

In addition to those highlights, during the conference two business school professors from London and Switzerland  delivered presentations that I found quite thought provoking. Both discussed the different characteristics that make women leaders thrive, but also pointed out ways they shoot themselves in the foot.

Do you agree with these competences and assertions from Nigel and George or do you have a different list?  Do any of these competencies strike an idea for a new development area for yourself?

Nigel Nicholson, Professor at the London Business School, began by stating that we have a fundamentally wrong model of leadership being practiced today that is based on meritocracy where decisions are made on a linear hierarchy.  It creates a purely random universe where people “get there” by luck.

What you are supposed to be doing as a leader is getting the best out of those around you.  There is a unique set of characteristics that women have used to help drive the future that are actually more positive than the male dominant hierarchy model.  However, women often don’t jump into the water if it doesn’t look good.Meaning they don’t move between enough different environments - which lessens their opportunities for leadership roles.

Nigel also talked about the strategy of the future being based on vision and outlined some key skills that women have and should develop in order to prepare themselves for future leadership roles.  These key skills include:  asking questions; de-centering (seeing what something looks like from another perspective); managing like a partner and not a boss; storytelling - connecting people with the past, present, and the future in a way that is emotionally compelling.

A leader answers the following questions:

1. Who am I and why am I here?
2. Who are we and what do we stand for? - Our core competence and real purpose
3. Where are we going?
4. Why are we going there? - Stated with conviction!
5. Why must we change? - A crisis is a terribly opportunity to waste

On the last day of the conference, George Kohlrieser, Professor at IMD in Switzerland listed out his view of the critical competencies for women leaders.  His background is very interesting as he began his career in law enforcement and grew to become a hostage negotiator.  Much of his work is about resolving conflict and many of the ideas presented below are covered in his new book “Hostage at the Table: How Leaders Can Resolve Conflict, Influence Others, and Raise Performance.”

The core competencies for women leaders he highlighted in his presentation were:

1. Being assertive
2. Being decisive
3. Social bonding to raise performance (otherwise known as connectedness or networking)
4. Managing conflict for a win-win outcome
5. Being a secure base and having secure bases
6. Mastering the mind’s eye to focus on positive goals (versus being sucked into the negative outlook on life)
7. Developing resilience
8. Understanding business

One of the most compelling statements he made was how we get to the highest level of performance through failure and how we live in a world where there is a high expectation for entitlement.

What a compelling title!  Claire Shipman, Senior National Correspondent ABC News and Katty Kay, Anchor BBC World News have been thrilled by the reception this new book has been receiving. Read the authors’ blog

to learn more about the book and the buzz.

Published just last week on June 2nd, the publisher has already moved into it’s 2nd printing due to the unprecedented demand.  And FWE&E is very proud to be the only venue in the Bay Area hosting Claire and Katty to share their perspectives in person.  Register today for our event at Oracle on June 16th.

So, what’s all the buzz about?  Claire and Katty feel that we are in a unique period in history where women have a chance to take a stand and create a life, both work and personal, that works better for them.  The last time in history where there was such a confluence of events occurred when Rosie the Riveter entered the workforce in droves during World War II.  In Chapter 1 of their book, they list compelling statistics such as the fact that women account for more than half of the educated workforce; more women than men are graduating with advanced degrees; many studies exist showing that companies with the best records for promoting women outperform their competition by every measure of profitability - equity, revenue, and assets.

When I first started reading the book, I wondered how it might apply to me as I don’t have a partner, children, or elderly parents to worry about.  Am I qualified to “Write My Own Rules for Success?”   Then I realized that, even though my story was different, it still fit the need to do some rewriting.

Several years ago, when I was Managing Director of legal publishing company, and then later as SVP of another large division - I lead a life of constant travel, meetings, stress and pressure with the motto of “no pets, no plants, no partner”.  I stopped using that moniker when I realized I was scaring my team but I also stopped using it when I realized that this lifestyle was not exactly fulfilling.

When my health and general well being were at their lowest, I made a drastic decision to quit my job, change careers, and move across the country.  If I had read Womenomics, I might have instead negotiated my current situation to give myself the time and space I needed to lead a healthier, more fulfilling life.

Things worked out in that I live somewhere I love, doing work I find fulfilling, with an enriching community of friends, a cat named Pebbles (yes, same name as Susan Boyle’s cat!) and even some plants that I try not to kill on a regular basis.  Having read Womenomics

the final conflict download

, I see that there are many ways to write your own rules and some of the keys are to be really clear about what you want; be fact based and employer-oriented in the “ask” (meaning consider what’s important to them and your team as well as you), and then over-communicate about how you’re adding value in your new way of working.

Let’s go out there and be role models for women and men about how to lead more fullfilling lives!   Continue this discussion here or in the Event Gallery in our members-only Online Community.

I’m sure many of us read with interest the announcement of Carol Bartz as the new CEO of Yahoo! Carol lead a very successful growth and change effort at Autodesk and has now been brought into Yahoo! at a time when there is much needed strategic and leadership re-direction.  Her track record certainly points to Carol being the right person for the job on both counts.

On the same day this news came out, there was a great article forwarded to me by Board of Advisor member Karen Appleton, VP of Bus Dev at box.net.  The article, The Glass Cliff: Are Women Leaders Often Set Up to Fail? by Sylvia Ann Hewlett of Off-Ramps and On-Ramps

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fame discusses the very interesting premise that women are over-represented in precarious leadership positions such as the one Carol Bartz has just accepted.

Related to women on boards, she references a recent work that disputes that when women are added to boards the financial performance of the company declines.  Rather it appears that women are added to the boards when the share price is tumbling as a means of showing that something is being done.  The women being last in are first to be blamed.

In the article, she references several studies including The Athena Factor

-  research that shows that a significant proportion of women in science, engineering and technology (SET) believe that when they fail they don’t get second chances.

I’ve spoken with several women members of FWE&E who have specifically said they have seen this phenomenon of women not taking senior roles in organizations where they have seen the women before them fail.  The general consensus was that for some reason the bar was higher for the women put in these positions and there was little mentorship and no room for error.

This is not to say, especially in these precarious economic times, that men don’t face the same hurdles.  It just seems that when women are placed in these positions and fail, the cultural stereotypes come out about how women aren’t as effective leaders as men.

Have you had or seen similar situations?  How do you feel about Carol’s chances of success at Yahoo?