Goals of the Executive Women in Leadership Network
We have a large, very diverse, and totally supportive network in terms of experience, knowledge, and skills across all sectors and functions of the economy, which is unique and invaluable. This is a huge strength to us all in our professional (and for many wider) lives and we are all keen to build on this and keep it interactive and strong. We aim to accomplish our objective by:
In the short term, we want to strengthen the network and ensure that all four cohorts (2016-19) are merged fully and networking effectively.
We strive to serve as examples of and support Authentic Female Leadership and that our network provides an opportunity for members to both give and gain – as individuals, we will gain from it professionally and personally – but we also must feed and nurture others by giving of ourselves.
In summary, we would like this to be a network that you can’t afford not to be a part of because of everything you get from it and all you want to give to it.
The history of The Executive Women’s Leadership Programme and the evolution into Executive Women In Leadership
In 2015, when a UK Government report emphasised the fact that the number of women in senior management positions was not sufficiently improving, Judy Wagner of Executive Search Specialists, FWB Park Brown, and Prof Susan Murphy of The University of Edinburgh Business School decided to do something practical to address this and developed The Executive Women’s Leadership Programme which was launched in 2016 and ran for four years. Over 220 women graduated from the programme, from all sectors and functions, Gaining a mixture of career advancement, promotions, awards and accolades, and forming a strong network of ambitious, talented, and successful women across all parts of the economy.
The Programme was interactive and high level, aimed at women moving up to Board level or already on the Board, keen to develop new skills and knowledge to ensure optimum effectiveness and impact as they advanced their careers. Each session was led by subject matter specialists from the Business School and the Guest Speakers included leading Chairmen and CEOs from business who led interactive discussions on different aspects of senior management.
As one delegate commented:
“The Speaker format and calibre of those we met on the programme was amazing – thought-provoking and inspiring, and the networking was hugely beneficial, adding a bit of magic to the whole programme that is hard to articulate. Being part of a group of senior women working in Scotland was invigorating.”
After four years and with a network of over 220 women, covering the entire economy of Scotland – private and public, all sectors and functional areas – the decision was taken to conclude the programme and to develop the network through a series of learning and networking sessions so that all year groups could develop into a strong, interactive, fully integrated and supportive network across Scotland and beyond, influencing senior decision-makers and empowering women in our communities, becoming ……..
Our principles for leader development included:
1. Female attendees, as opposed to a mixed-gender learning environment.
2. Each session was led by specialists in the subject matter from the University of Edinburgh Business School and also involved both male and female business leaders from a variety of backgrounds, depending upon course topic, with relevant skills and experience pertaining to each.
3. The level of teaching was Executive MBA and above and each session was video recorded for the exclusive use of delegates for continued learning and in case a session was missed.
4. The style of learning and delivery included practical workshops, case studies, and group work to enable practical learning at all times.
Advisory Committee