SHECENTER(FOLD) of the year in monthly advice columns. This year, I talked about the company having a past, a present, and a future, and how our job is to see tomorrow, today. That’s what my job as a leader is: to see tomorrow happen today and to provide agents with guidance on how to accomplish their individual goals. The agents that go the extra mile, that do one more thing every day, I ensure then are recognized for their hard work and dedication. Then, I have to gather others to come with me to that future that I see. We just took our executive team of 50 to 60 people on a fourday-long management review and team building trip. Our keynote speaker was a woman who is one of the top women in the automotive industry. She is the manager of an engine plant for Fiat Chrysler. She talked about how Fiat, when they took over Chrysler, was incredible at communicating their message and then carrying it out throughout the year. That is what our goal is: to take our message and get other people to believe in it. NAWRB: Fifty-six percent of your executive team is comprised of women. What value do women bring to boardrooms and C-suites, and why is the American workforce having such a hard time implementing gender diversity in its executive offices?
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NAWRB: What aspect of your work as President of Howard Hanna do you enjoy the most? Helen Hanna Casey: Speaking to people. Whether it’s one-on-one or on a stage with a thousand people, I’m incredibly blown away by conversations with individuals, conversations in a big group, and people’s reactions. NAWRB: How does a day in your life look when work is not a concern? What are your passions outside of the workplace?
Annie Hanna Cestra, Hoddy Hanna, III and Helen Hanna Casey
“First of all, I think mentorship is more than just women mentoring women. More men have to be involved in mentoring women.”
Helen Hanna Casey: Obviously, women bring a lot to the table. We do think in a different language, and we sometimes speak a different language. I don’t know that from just this table by the way—I’m on a bank board where I’m the only woman. I’d say that we don’t think of each other any differently when we’re saying things, but we appreciate the differences that we bring to the table. I think that’s very important. Sometimes you can get into gender stereotyping by believing that what somebody is saying is based on the fact that they’re a 70-year-old man or a 40-year-old woman. You have to be very careful not to do this. I do think there is an essence that a woman
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brings that men don’t. We also make better executives because we don’t swear as much.
Helen Hanna Casey: I have a few. I have wonderful grandchildren. I love being part of their lives and they’re a big part of my life. I still garden, and I try to escape to Florida occasionally just to relax. We travel with our grandchildren. On a regular day, I go work out or go to church; I do my gardening or read a bit. I’m not very good at sitting down and relaxing!
NAWRB: What is the importance of mentorship to you? What can companies do to encourage mentorship for women and the advancement of women in the workforce? Helen Hanna Casey: First of all, I think mentorship is more than just women mentoring women. More men have to be involved in mentoring women. It can’t just be finding women to mentor women in a diversity program within your company; it has to start at every level. Management has to want to build their future team, and if you’re in a company or environment where everybody believes women are a key component, then it’s everybody’s responsibility to build that. We have so many incredible women who work for us in all different capacities, everybody from our CFO to the mailroom person. We all have to mentor them in whatever their