Women of ALPFA
2015 Theme and Framework – Proposal
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I. - Executive summary
IN 2015 Women of ALPFA (“WOA”) will build on its Three-Year Umbrella theme of “Building a Legacy of Latina Leadership”, by focusing on preparing Latinas to make a significant positive impact in a global society. The framework builds on the competencies developed in prior years and focuses on building a global mindset.
Three-Year Umbrella Theme -“Building a Legacy of Latina Leadership”
2015 Theme - “Latina Leadership: Making an Impact in a Global Society”
2014 Theme - “Using the Power of YOU to Transform Latina Leadership”
2013 Theme - “Advancing Latina Leaders through the Power of Influence”
While Latina women with Bachelor’s and higher education degrees have increased in recent years (surpassing those of their male counterparts), professional Latinas still represent a significantly under recognized and untapped talent pool by American corporations and government. This, added to the fast-growing Latino population expected to almost triple to 135 million, or 30%, by 2050, represents a significant opportunity for professional Latino organizations like ALPFA, and specifically for WOA, to leverage its proven track record in implementing professional development programs to advance Latino leaders. The WOA Strategy Development Committee is confident that the proposed Framework--Latina Leadership: Making an Impact in a Global Society--will assist participating Latinas in continuing to develop core leadership competencies necessary to climb the corporate ladder, while enabling them to develop additional competencies to develop a global mind-set.
II. – WOMEN OF ALPFA MISSION
WOA seeks to empower professional Latinas to reach their full potential through targeted programs, training through a professional development curriculum, and exposure to senior leaders through networking and mentoring opportunities. WOA aims to provide professional Latinas with the tools and road map to strengthen their leadership and management skills, fostering both their professional and personal development.
As we look ahead, our goal of providing opportunities and a road map to strengthen leadership and management skills that empower Latinas to reach their full potential will be achieved by focusing on the following six key priorities:
• Building & Delivering Impactful WOA Programs – Partner with the ALPFA Institute to develop thought leadership and expertise that will bring industry-leading know-how and training to bear on the barriers to Latina leadership.
• Developing Latina Leaders – Establish “a learning community” for all members. In 2013, WOA launched a three-year umbrella on Building a Legacy of Latina Leadership. This is the first step in building an ongoing curriculum.
• Connecting Women & Members of ALPFA – Build a community (network) of women and allow members to connect with each other.
• Leveraging the WOA Brand - Develop targeted marketing materials to share the Women of ALPFA story with corporate sponsors and members.
• Driving Performance & Revenue - Measure outcomes from WOA sponsors and the priorities above.
• Giving Back - Provide opportunities to rally around WOA & ALPFA cares to give back to our communities in a way that will have an ongoing impact on Latinas.
III. – BACKGROUND
As we approach the year 2050, our nation will be increasingly more diverse, and Latinos will be one of the forces driving this demographic change. According to the 2010 US Census Bureau, there are roughly 50.5 million Hispanics representing about 16% of the US population. By 2050, the Latino population is expected to almost triple to $135 million, or 30% of the US population, while there will be no racial or ethnic majority among the general population of the US. Consequently, the role of Latinos in shaping the country’s political and economic climate is becoming more significant.
1) Hispanic Purchasing Power - Hispanics have the greatest purchasing power of any US ethnic group, representing the world's ninth largest economy:
• Hispanic buying power is worth $1.2 trillion now and is expected to grow to $1.5 trillion in the next five years.
• With an estimated $1.5 trillion to spend, the Hispanic consumer market is expected to boost several economic sectors: housing, food, retail, education, financial services, transportation, entertainment, and media.
• Latino households earning more than $50,000 are projected to grow at a faster rate than the total number of households.
• The Hispanic labor force grew by 53% from 2000 to 2010, representing the largest increase of any segment.
• Hispanics are boosting the youth population: More than 60% are under age 35. With the baby boomer generation poised to retire, the young Latino workforce takes on added importance.
• Even though Latinos shop less often than non-Hispanics, they tend to spend more money when they do.
• Latino consumers are brand loyal and less likely to try new brands than their non-Hispanic counterparts.
• Hispanic small businesses are growing at twice the rate of the national average, generating over $350BN in annual revenues.
2) Untapped Potential of Latino Electorate - Latino support for President Obama was huge, with a record-breaking 75% of Latino voters nationwide casting their ballot for the President. The previous high for Latino voters was the 72% for Bill Clinton in 1996. However, the Latino vote is yet untapped:
• 12.2 million Latinos voted this past election, representing approximately 10% of the national electorate.
• An estimated 2.5 million Latinos who were registered to vote did not cast a ballot in the presidential election. If they had voted, a total of 14.7 million Latinos would have voted in this past election.
• An estimated 8.6 million Latinos are eligible to register to vote (18 years old or older, and American citizens) but are not registered. If they had registered and voted, a total of 23.3 million Latinos would have voted in this past election, representing approximately 18% of the national electorate.
• In a nutshell, there are almost as many potential Latino voters (registered and not voting, or eligible but not registered to vote) 11.1 million, as there are actual Latino voters (12.2 million).
3) Women and Latinas Disparity in Corporate America - Women have made great strides in the workplace, but inequality persists. Latina women continue to be underrepresented in high-position jobs in Fortune 500 companies. Recent research has revealed that Latinas are growing in number in the business world, growing in educational achievement, and also are becoming a group whose buying power is on the rise, making them both powerful consumers and rich resources for the business industry. However, Latinas and other multi-racial business people still face certain challenges including stereotypes, which might prevent them from getting promotions and leading positions, thus, failing to climb the corporate ladder:
According to the 2013 Catalyst Census: Fortune 500 Women Board Directors, there’s been little to no increase for women on boards in corporate America:
• Women held only 16.9% of board seats in 2013—no change from last year (16.6%).
• In both 2012 and 2013, less than one-fifth of companies had 25% or more women directors, while one-tenth had no women serving on their boards.
• Less than one-quarter of companies had three or more women directors serving together in both 2012 and 2013.
• Women of color held 3.2% of board seats, essentially the same as last year (3.3%), vs. 13.7% white women, and 83.1% men.
According to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data:
• Women in the United States are paid just 77 cents for every dollar paid to men on average.
• African-American women earn just 70 cents for every dollar paid to men, and just 64 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men.
• For Hispanic or Latina, this disparity is much worse, with Latinas earning just 53 cents for every dollar paid to white men, and 89 cents for every dollar paid to Latino men.
According to Diversity Inc:
• There are ten Latino CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, accounting for 2% of all Fortune 500 CEOs. None of them are women.
• There are 24 women CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, accounting for 4.8% of all Fortune 500 CEOs.
• Only 4.9% of Fortune500 company boards of directors are Latinas.
• Less than 10% of Fortune 500 companies have Latinas on their Boards.
• Latina women in the US make just 55 cents for every dollar paid to white, non-Hispanic men, and only 60 cents for every dollar paid to men overall.
IV. - Business Case
Latinos are no longer just a sub-segment of the economy, but a prominent player in all aspects of American life. Hispanics represent the new workforce, client and consumer and drive today’s economic development engine. The Presidential election confirmed the decisive impact that the rapidly changing demographic shift in America is having, in particular that of the Hispanic voter. The above powerful demographics continue to be ignored by mainstream leadership in business and government. American Corporations are deprived of diversity leadership and therefore lack the imagination, creativity, authenticity and innovation to market to today’s fast growing demographic shift. The reality is that, any company that wants to develop and grow in the US has to attract the Hispanic consumer, and most importantly, needs to be culturally relevant. The lack of Hispanics in key leadership positions in America’s corporations is negatively impacting economic development opportunities that can no longer be overlooked, in particular how companies market to Hispanics.
The number of Latina women with Bachelor’s degrees, Master’s degrees and Doctoral degrees have not only increased, but also surpassed those of their male counterparts in recent years. Yet, companies are missing the fact that Hispanic women represent a significant talent pool. While Latina leaders are most needed, their talents to lead are under recognized and not fully leveraged to meet the needs of their organizations. Much research has been focused on how minorities bring many valuable assets to the business world, revealing that Latina women, specifically, bring many benefits to the workplace including an impeccable work ethic, a talent for collaborating with coworkers, and the cultural fluency necessary to succeed in corporate America.
V. - THE WOA 2015 FRAMEWORK - PROPOSAL
Globalization, which today has increasing emphasis on emerging markets, presents worldwide corporations with several challenges in developing the leaders required to run global organizations. Currently, many large global corporations rely on a small group of experienced leaders to make important global decisions from their headquarters, while relying on local talent to execute the technical and management aspects of the business. These organizations need to develop true global leaders who are capable of making sound decisions that are adequate to satisfy local cultures, as well as market and customer needs. Today, it is imperative for organizations to develop leaders with cultural sensitivity with high level of emotional intelligence and self-awareness to understand and unite people of different cultures, and empower them to make decisions without the need for higher-level directions.
The WOA 2015 Framework will focus on developing Latina leaders in pursuit of a global mindset by assisting them in developing the skills needed to be effective in collaborating with different cultures toward common goals that yield strong results. The Framework is comprised of three main tracks: Global Business Acumen, Cross-Cultural Agility and Organizational Positioning. The program will be relevant to all ALPFA women members at any level in their career: Students, Mid-level Professionals, and Senior Executives. Each track will build on specific leadership competencies to enable participants to acquire a global mindset and be comfortable interacting with other cultures whether in the US or abroad by leveraging their unique talents while embracing those who are different.
The Framework will be implemented through a variety of methods, including webinars, webcasts, group-live instruction, speaker series, discussion panels, newsletter articles, etc. While all tracks and topics will be valuable to participants at all levels in their careers, each topic has been labeled with an S (Student), ML (Mid-Level Professional), and SE (Senior Executive), in order to provide clarity and enable a consistent implementation approach at the Chapter level.
1) Track I – Global Business Acumen
• Intellectual Understanding of Global Business – Intellectual understanding of the global business context. This includes identifying adequate information channels, staying current with international events, understanding emerging trends. (ML/SE)
• Developing Global and Local Perspective - Capacity to simultaneously expand on a global and local perspective. This includes understanding industry and company knowledge, as well as local regulations and how they impact the overall business. This involves a clear understanding of the business risks and opportunities in the local external environment, and how sector and other stakeholders (regulators, customers, suppliers, investors, NGOs) are responding to them. (ML/SE)
• Market Orientation - Ability to understand analyses of market and competitive data; a deep understanding of the customer’s business objectives and purchasing criteria; an appreciation of the value of each customer to the company. (ML/SE)
• Cross-Cultural Resourcefulness – Ability to get things done across varied and different conditions. Ability to build relationships quickly and relate well to a wide spectrum of people, while effectively leveraging colleagues, superiors and direct reports to understand what is important and use local skills to get things done. Ability to be flexible, confident, and trust people who are different. (S/ML/SE)
• Global Strategic Agility – Create competitive and breakthrough strategies and plans that are long-term oriented. Develop the ability to anticipate future consequences and trends accurately and communicates effectively with tactical constituents. Ability to disconnect from today’s problems and be curious about future opportunities, embracing complexity and ambiguity. (ML/SE)
2) Track I – Cross Cultural Awareness & Agility
• Cultural Flexibility – Ability to know how to work with different cultures by engaging others in conversations as of how to get things done. Ability to be flexible and open to start an initiative and make changes/adjustments along the way. Ability to use cultural differences for the organization’s advantage and is comfortable taking actions in culturally ambiguous situations. (S/ML/SE)
• Cultural Sensitivity – Understands and empathizes with differences in people and culture. Ability to understand the nuances of the local culture and respects differences (is not judgmental about differences). Ability to adapt very quickly with the local way of doing things and deal with people equitably. (S/ML/SE)
• Conflict Management in a Global Setting – Develop cooperative relationships with a focus on problem solving where equity is perceived. Focuses on common ground issues and interests for the organization and its people. Understands the international setting and where other people are coming from (background and culture) and why they think the way they do. Ability to avoid creating, or downsizing, unnecessary conflict. (S/ML/SE)
• Negotiating in a Global Setting – Ability to examine personal beliefs, values, biases, and prejudices and to identify her individual culture in the context of the organization, in order to negotiate skillfully. Use of the right language, words and timing to reconcile cultural differences with minimum noise. Understands the other party cultural communication style (direct vs. diplomacy, or face to face vs. written or phone). (S/ML/SE)
• Cultural Dexterity – to be discussed with Suri
3) Track I – Organizational Positioning
• Vision and Purpose – Ability to communicate a compelling vision and sense of purpose upwards, downwards and sideways (locally and globally). Ability to simplify enough to help everyone in the organization to understand a complex strategy. (ML/SE)
• Organizational Agility – Ability to navigate the complex systems of the organization to get things done. Understand the formal channels (organizational chart) and informal networks including who are the gatekeepers, expediters, resisters, guiders, etc. Ability to understand the origin and reasoning of key policies, practices and procedures. (ML/SE)
• Political Savvy – Ability to view corporate politics as a necessary part of the organization. Ability to work and maneuver though complex political situations effectively. Is sensitive to how people function locally and at the headquarters. Understands consequences of her actions and is able to influence upper management effectively. (ML/SE)
• Upward Communication – Ability to leverage technology to communicate with headquarters across time zones. Understand how executives think and work and feels comfortable dealing with headquarters. Communicate effectively and inform the right people of the right things. Is inclusive and avoids being a selective informer (up, down and sideways). (ML/SE)
Readings and Sources
1) Harvard Business School – Working Knowledge “Developing the Global Leader”
2) Harvard Business Review – “The Changing Role of Global Leaders”
3) “For Your Improvement: A Guide For Development and Coaching”
4) Cambria – “Beyond Borders: Developing Globally Adaptive Leaders”
5) Journal of World Business “Dynamic cross-cultural competencies and global leadership effectiveness”
6) Catalyst – Various Articles/Publications
7) Diversity Inc – Various Articles/Publications
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Prepared by Gloria Rosal
Women of ALPFA, Strategy Development Committee 1