Investing in women

As the Clinton Global Initiative holds its annual meeting in New York, it continues its focus on investing in girls and women.  Why?

Because an educated, empowered and employed woman reinvests more than 80% of what she earns back into her family and community — compared to less than 30% reinvested by each working man.

Although this was not the impetus for the first Global Women’s Leadership Institute, it has become the slow burning flame of intention and action among the institute’s first participants.

While in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, the institute began to bridge the divide between vision and action — which is what separates aspiring leaders from accomplished leaders.  We started by setting the leadership table with multicultural groups of ambitious women seeking tools and strategies for making a leadership difference.

These women want to DO something — something meaningful that requires leadership expertise.

Consequently, we provided opportunities for them to learn from us and each other, in conflict and in quiet reflection; to acquire leadership tools and test their leadership acumen; and to design and implement a leadership project in their home community that reflects their passion and their commitment to meaningful change.

Not surprisingly, most of the women seized the opportunity and have been seeking partnerships, securing resources and launching projects as varied as multicultural mentorships for aspiring women in health care, a cross-cultural blog for young Saudi women, development of a community college,  and a new, global women handicrafts enterprise constructed in partnership with an established global NGO.  Most of the women have focused their considerable energy and expertise on projects that contribute to the long-term sustainability of their communities.

Some of the projects are underway and others are still taking shape, but one thing is clear — these women are committed to staying connected and making a difference not just in their home country but beyond.

In November, we will distribute leadership medallions to the US women who have successfully completed their project plans and have achieved a project milestone.  In January, we will hold a similar ceremony in Riyadh.

The medallions are a recognition of this point in time and cannot begin to celebrate the long-term contributions that are yet to be revealed.  My experience with this group is that their investments in women will reap rewards well beyond anything we imagined.

Dowd on Saudi tourism

Maureen Dowd has written an article in this month’s Vanity Fair that exposes the many quirks, limitations, and contradictions for women living (and visiting) in Saudi Arabia.

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2010/08/maureen-dowd-201008

The article includes many “Dowd-isms”, amusing anecdotes and even pictures of Dowd posing in her abayah in absurd locations like the Jeddah Park Hyatt pool and the beach on the Red Sea.  I do enjoy Dowd’s distinctive writing style and her wry wit especially concerning womens’ issues.  However, having traveled many times to Saudi Arabia and knowing the important work that is being done there to make meaningful change in that country, I was also a bit turned off.

In service to her humor, she has demeaned (by omission) the work of women leaders in business, government and education who are working tirelessly to expand opportunity for themselves and their peers.  Their shared vision — to empower women to participate in the economic diversification of that country.

Why is it that women can so easily (and so quickly) work to defeat each other in service to their own personal agenda?

In fairness to the article, it does portray the limitations of life for Saudi women including the well-publicized rules against driving and the ubiquitous presence of the abayah.   But, in order to serve Dowd’s distinct agenda and writing style, the article also omits some very important information.

For instance, an influential  group of women in both Jeddah and Riyadh have devoted themselves to expanding women-owned enterprises across real estate, health care and technology industries.  The presence of women in high ranking positions (deputy minister and above) in the education and commerce departments is already delivering results on the quality of education and availability of commercial incentives.   KAUST, the new university in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, is writing a new book on the role of women in and outside the classroom, developing STEM careers for both genders.

Let’s celebrate the successes of women first, Ms. Dowd, especially those women who are making strides under the most difficult circumstances, before you take a cheap shot in service to your editorial agenda.

Desert images

Check out the slideshow of photos from our journey to the desert!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

We are the choices we make . . .

Our 10-day odyssey is over and the women are exhausted from their deep investigation about themselves, aligning their actions with their closely held values and beliefs, and the leadership skill building on teams and in cases and simulations.

We are all tired but strangely refreshed by our new relationships and the challenge of the leadership projects that will be launched over the summer.

The institute was intended to build leadership capability, launch a peer network among a group of multicultural women, and inspire leadership projects that would be completed in the participant’s home community.

On the last day of the workshop, each woman presented her project idea — the list tells the whole story.

The women will pursue projects (either individually or through collaborations across continents) that are as varied as the women themselves.  The projects include:

Women’s Dialogue Project

Working with constituents identified from the two countries, the project managers will design and implement a dialogue project across cultures in which 20 women will participate.

Public Service Training Program

Working with industry and education partners, the project manager will create a training program that prepares 30 women to run for municipal public office.

STEM Project

The project manager will work with a regional chamber of commerce and the statewide technology council to build a network of executive women in technology who will mentor high school women interested in STEM careers.

Women to Women Research Center

In partnership with an existing center, the project manager plans to build a research center where women from GCC countries can grow the knowledge base and conduct studies related to women’s issues.

Indigenous Handicrafts Social Enterprise

A global NGO and regional chamber of commerce in the Middle East will launch a social enterprise which will deliver entrepreneurship training to regional women artisans and crafts producers in an effort to expand their markets and achieve economic independence.

Multicultural Mentorship Project

Working with the GWLI, this project will identify emerging leaders from across cultures, pair them in industry specific settings with an established woman leader, and enhance their leadership skills in a professional practice setting that is consistent with their career goals.

Youth Mentorship Blog

The project manager plans to create a blog where high school students can learn from high profile, successful men and women in industry, sports, entertainment and government and continue their pursuit of education and employment.

Multilingual Mentorship Web Site

The project manager plans to design and launch a multilingual web site where audio and video recordings from GWLI leaders will be posted.  These “leadership moments” will offer women an opportunity to learn from the experiences of members across the globe.

Community Colleges in the Middle East

The project manager, working with regional higher education leaders,  plans to draft a prospectus for the expansion of community colleges in the region as an alternative for obtaining a college education and expanding economic opportunities.

Finance and Investment Training Program

The project manager plans to design a management education program, with a focus on finance and investment, so that women who wish to participate in regional economic development can participate more fully in this process.

Civic Participation Project

The project manager plans to launch a national project that promotes the participation of women in municipal elections in 2011.  The project includes the creation of communities of women (200 potential candidates and 800 campaign workers) who will build capacity and public awareness of the issues facing the region.

Entrepreneurial Seed Fund

The project manager plans to create a seed fund for women college students who have early stage enterprises that require support in order to expand.

Peer-to-Peer Web-based Network

The project manager plans to create an online database of women leaders who can “build bridges of understanding and opportunity,” and provide lessons learned from projects.

Conflict sets the stage for action

When we began this journey, we envisioned a multicultural community of women leaders, who would explore their personal leadership style, acquire “leading-edge” leadership skills and practice those skills in groups and on projects.  This dynamic process would occur in another culture, one that would provide the women with the challenge of learning and developing in a different setting and with women from several cultures.

As with any dynamic process, there were a few surprises.

First, the women connected fairly quickly on issues that were unique to working women – balancing work and life, raising teenagers, caring for elderly parents, communicating with male peers and leaders, staying on a diet, finding time to dance.  The conversations that grew from these shared experiences provided the foundation for a strong peer network and new friendships.

Second, even though the women connected early on in the process, communication issues (lack of understanding and the assumptions that fuel misunderstanding) triggered some very interesting dialogue and behavior.  For example, on the second to last day of our institute, one of the Saudi participants rose from her seat and challenged the instructor on what “we are really doing here.”  This created some excitement and tension in the room, and it offered an opportunity to see the group manage conflict.

The woman spoke passionately about her lack of understanding about the purpose of the institute – why are we here, what will really be accomplished, have we discussed what is really important to the group.  Her colleagues spoke to her in quiet, sympathetic tones and the other Saudi participants said they understood where she was coming from but that they did not feel there was a hidden agenda or message.

The US participants sat quietly at first and watched the tension rise and fall — somehow knowing that her agitation came from a deprivation that US women can only speculate about.  In this woman’s world, she cannot drive, launch a business venture without obtaining the permission of the male family leader,  or vote in elections.

Soon, the US women were asking questions – what did she think was happening, what caused her to feel as if there was a hidden message in the workshop?  The dialogue continued for nearly 40 minutes and what seemed to emerge was her frustration at not being able to discuss the differences between being an American versus a Saudi woman leader.  She spoke excitedly about the challenges facing Saudi women and the absence of cultural understanding between the two groups.

Her US colleagues challenged her for not fully participating outside of the workshop environment — in the meals, excursions and visits to the homes of some of the Saudi women.  It was in these personal and familiar surroundings that the women explored each other’s lifestyles, habits of being and deepest thoughts about the challenges of leading in the home and at work.

In this sometimes tense dialogue, I observed what I had only read about – the power of constructive dialogue to transform conflict into understanding.  Sometimes, we must endure the frustration, anxiety and tension of disagreement in order to transform our assumptions into meaning.

We did not answer her questions about what was left unsaid, about what would happen after the institute.  This left the group feeling more than a little disoriented, but it also provided fuel for an ongoing conversation both in groups and in pairs about what this group could do going forward to help women address the big issues such as equality in the home and at work, access to opportunity, and active participation in the economic and social development of both the US and Saudi Arabia.

Ironically, it is in the leadership projects chosen by each woman that the answers lay.  Each woman chose a project that aligns with her closely held values and beliefs and with the challenges facing her community.  The passion from the Saudi woman’s confrontation, ironically, set the stage for constructive action through these projects.

Visiting Eve

In the middle of our weeklong leadership experience, we boarded our van and headed to Old Jeddah – which is the final resting place of Eve, the mother of human kind.  I was a bit skeptical about this fact, but a quick research trip on Google Chrome confirmed that Eve’s final burial site is in Jeddah, an ancient and active port on the Red Sea.  What a wonderful connection for our first Global Women’s Leadership Institute!

While there, we visited the Old Souk, a marketplace of sorts where poorly made Chinese goods are sold next to traditional Arabic products such as oils, carpets, caftans, and shawls.  The souk area is located within the original city, and immigrants who traveled to Mecca for the Haj (a holy ritual in the Muslim religion) have stayed in this area.  Saudi landlords rent the commercial spaces on the first floor to Pakistani and Indian Muslims, who then also occupy the apartments above.  The structures are ill-maintained and, on the day we were there, there was a break in the local sanitary line and the raw and foul odors were trapped in the hot and humid air.

Our group, a mix of US and Saudi women leaders, was sufficiently unique as to draw out the many occupants of Old Jeddah.  When we arrived, the streets were largely vacant.  In less than 20 minutes, they were filled with vendors and beggars and the shops that had been closed in midday were open and solicitous.   We spent our riyals as if they were freshness dated.  Women scurried from stall to stall as our hosts and guides bickered and bargained with each stall vendor.

Soon, an Indian man clutching an empty produce box and dressed in scant garments approached one of the Saudi women.  He asked for help – wanting to carry our packages in exchange for 10 riyals or about 3 USD.  She smiled and quickly struck a bargain.  He could walk with us and carry our packages in his produce box, and she would trust him to take care of parcels and keep track of the meanderings of our party.  My Saudi friend was soon being chided in Arabic by some of her colleagues who clearly thought this man could not be trusted.  She waved them off.

I asked her why she chose to hire the Indian man for the day, and she taught me a very valuable lesson.  She did not feel the 10 riyals would solve this man’s dilemma.  Instead, she wanted to give him the pride of having a job for the day.  It was a salve for his self esteem and a financial benefit for his family.  And she would have given more than riyals to him – she gave him a job with responsibility.

He followed us for the better part of the day – even through our lengthy tour of the Nassif House – home to an established Jeddah family who nearly 100 years ago gave shelter to Abdulazziz, the founder of modern Saudi Arabia.  At the evening prayers,  we perched ourselves on the roof of the Nassif House.   The Saudi’s participated in the prayers and the rest of us watched silently over the rooftops of this ancient place as human voices were raised above the 12 area mosques, praising God for the gift of all things.

When we emerged from the Nassif House, our Indian friend was there, his fellow beggars listening to the story of how he obtained a job for the day.  I did not know how to feel as he carried our packages the last four blocks to the van and helped us on our way.  He waved to us as we pulled into traffic, I waved back to him and he smiled.

A community of leaders

The cacophony of voices speaking English, Arabic and a mixture of both fills the beautiful workshop space where we have gathered for the past 5 days.  It is hard to believe that these women come from two such different cultures. 

They pass around iPod’s, sharing family photos.  They huddle on the beautiful veranda, four floors above the main campus, discussing work challenges and proposing solutions — with the chants from the large mosque  projecting in the background.  They discuss difficult bosses and balancing family commitments with a full work day.

The Saudi women come from higher education, government, non-profits and business.  They are hard driving, savvy leaders; and they are committed to increasing access for women in this economically active region.  They are inspiring.  They are focused.  They are talented (some poets and some engineers).   We share a common experience and we are teaching each other everyday about what it takes to balance energy and drive with reflection and compassion.

To some extent, it was enough just to put this group together.  It has become a petrie dish of activity — producing innovation, collaboration and, sometimes, the giddy laughter of women who recognize each other’s common experience regardless of cultural difference.

I have said many times this week that even if we stopped today, the institute would have been an unqualified success.  What is miraculous and inspiring is we are not done — we will complete personal leadership maps and from these will sprout leadership project ideas.  Then, we will continue the conversation across continents, mentoring each other as we make progress on this new model of multicultural leadership. 

I am certain that laughter and tears will mix together, and through the prism of emotions we will make meaningful change.

A note about the author:  Dr. Michelle Stronz is the founder and director of the Global Women’s Leadership Institute — a collaborative effort that promotes the empowerment of women leaders across cultures.  The institute provides an immersion experience for global women’s leadership, where the participants investigate current global challenges, construct a purpose-driven leadership map that connects those challenges to personal experience, explore and expand their leadership competencies and practice those skills in a leadership project in their workplace or home community.

We’re off to the desert!

More than a year ago, I began a dialogue, across continents, to launch a multicultural ‘leadership & sustainable communities’ workshop in Saudi Arabia, and last week, in what can only be described as a payoff for tenacity, I got my wish.

In early June, I will be traveling with nine US women leaders to  Jeddah.  In this ideal setting, between the desert and the sea, established and emerging women leaders from both Saudi Arabia and the US will be enriched by the diverse culture, geography and economy.  The women will seek new experiences, challenging dialogue, and relationships outside their comfort zone.  During our 12-day immersion experience, we will explore economic development, environmental ethics and leadership development — focusing on purpose, vision-to-action, and service.

At the end of the journey, each woman will identify and lead a project at work or in her home community that coincides with a topic that resonated for her during her leadership journey between the Arabian Desert and the Red Sea.

This blog will document our shared journey in words, pictures and video.