Make "herstory" without even knowing it by living your life to the fullest, inspiring others, embracing your path and creating opportunities.

1. Dr. Brenda J. Bowers RN, PhDSr. Vice PresidentWheaton Franciscan Healthcare, Inc.Removing Barriers and Building Bridges“Sourcing America’s Comfort Zone”

2. BACKGROUND My journey as a woman – making “Herstory” without even knowing it!

3. BARRIERS AND BRIDGES A barrier is anything that restrains, restricts, or obstructs progress A bridge is a connecting, transitional, phase or structure that connects at least two adjacent gulfs or gaps, conditions or activities that would otherwise never intersect or meet

4. RESEARCH Focus on the White House Project Report – Benchmarking Women’s Leadership completed in November 2009 – www.thewhitehouseproject.org It’s seal states, “Add Women, Change Everything” President and Founder, Marie Wilson Newly appointed President as of January 20, 2011 Inaugural Day – Tiffany Dufu The project directors and Editors: Lucie Lapovsky, PhD, Consultant, Former President, Mercy College, Board, White House Project Deborah Slaner Larking, Consultant, Board, National Women’s Law Center, Board, White House Project

5. TWHP The White House Project (TWHP) is a national, nonpartisan 501c3 whose mission is to advance women's leadership in all communities and sectors, up to and including the U.S. presidency. Its Corporate Council includes members such as Ernst & Young, Google, and American Express, and it has earned the support of private entities such as the Ford Foundation and W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

6. TWHP The White House Project sits at the nexus of politics, business and the media, leveraging the power of each in order to enhance the public perception of women, propel them into positions of leadership, and to accelerate social justice and progress toward its vision: women and men leading side-by-side in order to create a more equitable culture.

7. COMFORT ZONES A comfort zone is a range of temperature within which an environment is comfortable for most people A situation in which a person or a people feel secure and at ease

8. MOVING INTO OUR COMFORT ZONE TWHP and GFK/Roper Public Affairs after six years of polling found that as high as 90% of Americans and never lower than 70% are comfortable with women in leadership We must move into our comfort zone There is no longer a lack of tolerance for women in leadership – the temperature is right and the people feel secure and at ease with women leaders

9. STANDING IN THE BRIDGE BARRIER Many believe that the fight for parity in the workplace has already been won This is a major barrier that is perceived as a finished bridge Standing in bridge barriers and mistakenly calling them bridges blinds our opportunity to advance Representation and equality are not synonyms

10. UNBLINDING THE DATA Throughout the presentation I will provide several “taking the blinders off” breaks which I am defining as need to know trivia facts to encourage interaction and to increase knowledge and awareness of barriers and bridges So, unblinding the data #1 – in the 21st Century which two countries in the world still do not offer women the right to vote?

11. BARRIER OR BRIDGE Women exceed men in college degrees and are just about equal now at around 50% representation within the workforce However, women still represent only about 18% of top leadership positions - a vast inequality

12. BARRIER OR BRIDGE Pew Report in August 2008 showed of 2,250 adults surveyed indicated women outperform men in the following leadership characteristics Compassion Creativity Honesty Outgoing Intelligence

13. UNBLINDING THE DATA #2 Of 1.2 billion people living in poverty worldwide, how many are women?

14. LET’S START BUILDING THE BRIDGE TWHP suggests six actionable areas to increase the progress of women into top leadership positions because… Women do have what it takes and… Women want to lead!!!

15. UNBLINDING THE DATA #3 What percentage of the world’s land is owned by women?

16. THE STRONGEST PILLAR OF OPPORTUNITY The main aspect of building bridges and removing barriers is critical mass Numbers Matter! What is critical mass? The quantity needed to start a chain reaction, an irreversible propulsion into a new situation or process This idea was adapted more than 40 years ago by Harvard academic Rosabeth Moss Kanter who argued that once women reached a “critical mass” in an organization, people would stop seeing them as women and start evaluating their work as managers. They would be regarded as equal.

17. THE STRONGEST PILLAR OF OPPORTUNITY Robin J. Ely, a professor of organizational behavior at Harvard Business School, found in her research that “critical mass” only brings change if women move beyond entry and mid-level positions entering at “critical mass” into senior level roles. She argued that sex role stereotypes persist – and not only won’t men’s perception of women change, but women’s own perceptions of women remains static.

18. THE STRONGEST PILLAR OF OPPORTUNITY Wellesley Center for Women found that having a “critical mass” of three or more women can cause a fundamental change in the boardroom and enhance corporate governance. Catalyst research organization on women in business, supports this and has made a call to action for business to aim for this no fewer than three women on corporate boards.

19. IS THIS DOABLE? YES!!! In 2002, Norway passed legislation instructing publically traded companies to have at least 40% female board members by mid-2005 They met their deadline, moved from 11% to 40% and then enjoyed the ripple effect of prosperity, with a budget surplus of 11% and a ledger that is entirely debt free

20. UNBLINDING THE DATA #4 In every election since 1980 who has the highest voting rates, men or women?

21. SECOND KEY PILLAR Use financial resources strategically Women and men have financial power that can be leveraged to achieve the critical mass of women needed in leadership When choosing goods and services to purchase, which non-profits to fund – look through a gender lens which considers: Representation of women Representation of women of color Representation of women on boards and in top leadership

22. THIRD KEY PILLAR Amplify women’s voices in the public arena Prominently include women leaders in public forums and media so that they in particular – and women in general – are recognized as role models and considered for boards and other top-level positions

23. FOURTH PILLAR Collect and analyze the data Regular tracking and reviewing of the numbers of women, in particular women of color in positions of leadership, is a must including wage gap data in order for us to set benchmarks and monitor progress. Little systematic data is currently collected.

24. FIFTH PILLAR Maintain accountability through setting targets Targets need to be specific in order to monitor genuine progress. Creating a timeline to achieve targets and imposing real consequences for failure to meet these targets are essential for any institutional change to take hold.

25. SIXTH PILLAR Improve flexibility in the workplace structure Women and men alike, seek and need increased flexibility including an acceptance of the need for work-life balance which promotes career satisfaction and job retention

26. UNBLINDING THE DATA #5 According to US Census Bureau, women are the majority owners of more than 112,000 businesses in Wisconsin generating over 21 billion dollars in sales and revenues annually. What percentage of all Wisconsin businesses does this number represent?

27. SUMMARY WE MUST COMMIT TO REFRAMING THE BARRIER LENS TO ONE OF BRIDGE BUILDING WE HAVE THE INGREDIENTS TO BUILD THE BRIDGE AND ELIMINATE THE GAP WE MUST TAKE THE BLINDERS OFF AND RAISE DATA TO A LEVEL OF “NO MORE EXCUSES” WOMEN AND MEN MUST JOIN FORCES TO WIN THE WAR OF THE CHALLENGES WE STILL FACE IN THIS ARENA

28. SUMMARY UNIQUE LEADERSHIP TRAITS AND DIVERSE PERSPECTIVE ARE NEEDED IN THE NEW NOW WE ARE LIVING IN WORLDWIDE NOT ONLY HISTORY BUT HERSTORY HAS TAUGHT US THAT IN TIMES OF ADVERSITY AND CHALLENGE – WE OFFER SOLUTIONS AND PARTICIPATE IN FORCING THE NECESSARY CHANGE WE MUST UNITE STRONGER, TIGHTER, AND LONGER THAN WE EVER HAVE AND WOMEN ARE THE SAVIOR THAT IS NEEDED TO SAVE THE CONDITION WE ARE IN THE TIME HAS COME TO MOVE INTO OUR COMFORT ZONE

29. WHEN WE ADD WOMEN, WE REALLY CAN AND WILL CHANGE EVERYTHING!!