WINTER 2017 |
omahamagazine.com
FROM THE EDITOR
THE RISE OF WOMEN IN BUSINESS
07
BY DAISY HUTZELL-RODMAN
The age-old tension assaulted Americans all through the fall election season, as voters weighed a career businessman vs. a career politician vying for the top position in the U.S. Google “women vs. men in business” and hundreds of websites will come up, listing crucial ways in which women are different from men. Some websites explain how women should be treated differently; others argue for women and men to be treated just the same. The familiar narrative seems confusing to even the most intelligent of people, but one thing is certain. There are both women and men in the workplace, and they both contribute greatly to the success of local businesses. In the business world, some say women prefer to build relationships with people and work as a team rather than working in a hierarchical structure. Stefanie Monge is one young businesswoman who knows the value of building relationships. In fact, she recently started an Omaha version of FemCity, the national networking group for women. She shares her story on page 22. For those who want a different sort of local women’s networking group, Omaha offers plenty of those as well, and a list of them can be found on page 25.
07
Some statistics suggest that the circumstances facing women in the workforce are getting worse, that only 26 percent of women work in technology, and that women don’t take as many risks when starting businesses. Some local women are bucking this trend. Entrepreneurs Holly Baker and Leslie Fischer founded the nonprofit Together A Greater Good in 2012. Their app-based business started when these two marketing professionals strived to make a difference in their community. To date, they have received more than 20,000 downloads of their TAGG app. Their story can be found on page 76. Then there’s that glass ceiling. Women’s Fund of Omaha reports that 42 percent of women in business work in management, but few of those women work in senior leadership. One of those rare female executives is Joan Neuhaus, CHI Health COO, who speaks about her career in health care on page 8. As a senior leader of the organization, she oversees 15 hospitals and 2/3 of the organization’s employees. She tries to lead by giving direction—not by micromanaging. It’s advice that anyone can appreciate. I hope you all appreciate this special Women in Business edition. B2B
Internet sources often mention how women look for jobs differently from men, yet much of the job-searching advice from resume writer Bridget (Weide) Brooks and career coach Cindy Wagner can apply to anyone searching for a job. My particular favorite tidbit of advice is, simply, “people hire people.” You can read what Bridget means by this on page 26.
On the cover: Ladies, grab your blowtorches. Businesswomen are in charge and burning through the patriarchy. This issue of B2B celebrates Women in Business. Concept cover modeled by Chelsie Wieczorek.
Daisy Hutzell-Rodman is associate editor of B2B, a publication of Omaha Magazine LTD. She can be reached at daisy@omahamagazine.com.