How This Award-Winning Womens Network is Helping More Women Thrive in their Careers

How This Award-Winning Womens Network is Helping More Women Thrive in their Careers Mary Ann Travers, a principal (partner) at Crowe LLP, knows that reaching zu sich level of seniority is challenging particularly for women. However, since she began working at Crowe in 2005, Travers has felt empowered by the firms womens network to pursue her passions and work her way up in the company.Women Leading Crowe (WLC) has been externally recognized for its efforts to achieve gender parity at Crowe and has been successful in achieving greater diversity in a historically typically male-dominated market. Forty-three percent of the firms Board of Directors are women, and the firms fruchtwein recent partner class welches 42 percent women.What is you role, and how long have you been in it?Ive been in my role for 14 years. I welches previously at a Big 4 firm in Valuations, and have also been an economic consultant and investment banker. I serve as Crowes national Valuation Services practice leade r, as well as chair ur womens program, Women Leading Crowe (WLC).Whats the last thing you do at work every day?Map out my plan for the next day.How and why did you first get involved in your companys womens network?ur womens programming at Crowe has evolved over the years. Our program began as WIL (women into leadership), moved to a Womens People Resource Network (WPRN) and, in the last eleven years, weve restructured as WLC. WLC has a tier-structure designed to untersttzung our women at all levels on their career journey.I was nominated for our WIL program when I joined the firm in 2005, served on our WPRN council at its inception and developed our current structure for WLC in 2008.Whats the 1 thing you think you colleagues should know about your companys womens network?There are resources and activities along with a meaningful community in place for every woman at the firm who has an interest in connecting.Tell me a bit about how the ERG works.Our program, WLC, is structured as three tiers1.WLC Connect hosts quarterly events for all women of the firm with programming guided by the needs of our staff through senior managers.2. WLC Grow is a two-year intensive leadership development program for a select group of senior manager women who have been nominated by their business units to participate in the program3. WLC Inspire focuses on our officers, directors and partners. We meet annually to build community and drive business success, and host focused learning activities to help support continued growth in our leadership skills. We also meet virtually, and promote communication and thought leadership sharing to build our tool kits of knowledge.What are your womens networks top three priorities right now?Our priorities are to1. Expand our communications strategy,2. To move to a virtual connection model to align with our firms growth, mobility strategy and global reach,3. And to focus on connecting emerging leaders within our community.What has your ERG accompl ished that youre most proud of?We are helping our women and the firm be successful by promoting gender diversity, which leads to improved results. Weve already seen the outcome of these efforts.At Crowe, we have 21 percent female partners and 38 percent female directors in our leadership ranks. Additionally, we have three women on our firm Board of Directors making the board 43 percent female. Our most recent partner class was comprised of 42 percent women, and we have been recognized in the external market place for our WLC initiatives. At the same time, our WLC Grow program is helping to support growth of future leaders, so these outcomes are sure to continue.How is your companys womens network reflective of the overall culture at your employer?Our firm culture is based on four core values We care, We share, We invest and We grow. Our WLC program touches and lives all the elements of our values.Whats your 1 piece of advice for women who are looking for jobs right now?Pursue yo ur passion.Whats the one career move youve made that youre most proud of?I have had an amazing career journey to date, and each move has made me proud. Learning from each step in the journey has enabled me to pursue my passions and contribute to our teams successes over the years. Honestly, the career move that I am most proud of is being a working mother. I have an amazing husband and three incredible children and credit much of my success to their support on my journey. They make me a better leader and have allowed me to role model work/life integration, which I think is key to the future success in the business world.--Fairygodboss is proud to partner with Crowe.Find a job there today