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Photo is of the Honorable Harriett Weider (left), one of the original BreadWinners and Ann Doyle (right)

Friday, February 13, 2009

More Women Than Men Now Primary Breadwinner

The economic downward spiral that we are all struggling with has brought women to another historic milestone: for the first time, there are now more women than men employed in the U.S. workforce. As of November, American women were 49.1% of the workforce. With the latest round of job losses -- 80% of which have impacted men, primarily in manufacturing and construction work -- there are no more women carrying the responsibilities of "primary breadwinner" than men. This isn't about women's progress. It's about men's slippage. It's also leading to new conversations -- in millions of homes across the country -- about the "second shift" work related to home and children, of which women are still doing the lion's share.

Here's more perspective from Boston Globe syndicated columnist Ellen Goodman writing on what she calls, The Curse of an Equal Workforce."

To listen: click here. http://www.annedoyleleadership.com/Please come and visit my site http://www.annedoyleleadership.com/.

Patty took the photo in Pittsburgh at the International Women's Forum Hall of Fame Awards event. Anne Doyle has a new book which we highly recommend. please visit her site.

Dr. Ellie Corigliano, One Woman's Story: Science, Self Discovery & You

Women, Science, Self Discovery & You

The pursuit of science is a lifetime endeavor toward the pursuit of knowledge.

It is a traveling affair engined by questions, by ideas, by imagination, by “What if’s” in the hopes to one day arrive at a destination where the unraveling of life’s great mysteries are revealed. Sometimes, however, that alone is not enough to stimulate the study of science and requires a more intimate introduction, and perhaps even more so for women.

As a young girl I was exposed to the practice of medicine. My mother and father ran a medical clinic, where my father was the primary physician and my mother; well she did everything else from drawing blood samples to scheduling appointments. My father loved science and medicine and was fascinated with the workings of the human body. He would introduce my siblings and I to medical equipment such as the microscope, the stethoscope, a blood pressure cuff and essentially allowed us to play “Doctor”. Of these technologies, I found the most intriguing to be the microscope. Under the magnifying lens of a microscope, the smallest components of life appeared to be larger than life. It was as though the most unimaginable, magical aspects of life came alive! I was soon enamored with the chemistry of life and found that science became my favorite subject in school.

Meanwhile, a love for the arts had been developing along side my educational pursuits in the form of dance and music. I soon found myself dancing with the Los Angeles Joffrey Ballet. Though I was just a teenager at the time I realized that both of these pursuits enhanced my view of the world and from then on have believed that all things are possible.

In college I had the privilege of having four amazing professors, three men and one woman, that took the time to flatter my questions with discussion and encouraged me to read material beyond the scope of the course textbook. Their direction introduced me to the notion of scientific research. I had been a pre-med student focusing my degree in biochemistry, but in my senior year I decided to pursue a graduate degree in lieu of medical school.

My fascination with medicine, however, continued along side my research and soon I found myself more interested in the application of nutritional biochemistry for disease prevention and disease therapy. My graduate school campus did not house a medical school, and made my interest of nutrition and science challenging. My colleges, my professors, even my friends, were uncertain of my new direction. I realized at that point how valuable it is to have mentors that encourage you, support you and enable you to chase your imagination, your interests.

In the last year of my doctoral studies in biochemistry I began to attend nutritional conferences, take online courses from top Universities (that housed a medical program) and found a place of inspiration. I recently completed my Ph.D. in 2008 and continue to pursue nutritional biochemistry from both a research aspect and an applied aspect. Though challenges are always present, one of life’s greatest gifts is the ability to direct yourself and surround yourself with others who believe in your assertions. As a mother of a teenager, I witness the powerful influence ones environment has on the motivation and commitment to continue and push through the challenges of ones interest.

Women have historically been key contributors to many scientific discoveries, and today many of us turn away from scientific careers, but we are needed in science for our creativity, our relational thinking, our ability to multi-task and our contribution to excellence. I want to encourage women to continue their pursuit of science, their pursuit of family, and their pursuit of happiness by standing up and initiating the restructuring of your environment to enable you and to work with you for your success. All things are possible in the right environment!

Dr. Corigliano will be one of the speakers at the 2009 International Women's Festival, for more information please visit http://www.womensfestivals.org/

Al Walsh on the US Economy

What to Do About the U.S. Economy
We need to change the way we think and act.



In order to understand where the U.S. is now economically, it helps to go back and review our history:
We started off as an agrarian society, with small cottage industries springing up here & there. Our cottage industries got a jump-start after the Revolutionary War when the British cut us off from many of their manufactured goods, out of spite, and we had to develop domestic supply-sources.


We then progressed through our industrial revolution, which was fed by a plentiful supply of natural resources and immigrant labor; plus technology bought or ”borrowed” from the British.
Our industrial revolution was prolonged and intensified by the supply demands of the Civil War.
Along came World Wars I & II, and the post-war reconstruction of Europe via the Marshall Plan: putting our industrial-capacity on “steroids” and promoting innovation.



At this point we were the economic “masters of the world”; and just about any citizen could start a business & succeed, often despite themselves, because of the massive global demand.


After the post-war reconstruction, other developing nations started progressing through their own industrial revolutions; taking away traditional U.S. industries and generating intense competition.


We’re now at a point where our few remaining manufacturing activities are under threat, and we’ve been reduced to a largely technology & service-provider role. Our technological strength, which ramped up during WWII and has stayed strong since, helped us maintain an edge. But other countries have now progressed to the point where they are doing the long-term basic research which is slowly chipping away at our technology lead.


In order to survive, many of our corporations have gone global; outplacing production and labor offshore.


Recent events in our previously world-dominant financial industry have left open questions about their future influence on global economics.


Our dollar, which has served as the world’s reserve currency since the collapse of the Bretton Woods Agreement in 1971, is under fire and waning in influence. The Fed & Treasury are creating massive dollar inflation to combat economic deflation; we have yet to deal with the ugly after-effects.


Our government has displayed gross ineptness in dealing with domestic affairs, let alone global ones. Massive debt is building that may take generations to dissipate. The Social Security mess hangs over everyone’s heads; and no one in government wants to deal with it.


Our natural resources are going offshore to feed other nations’ industries, and we have become a consumer society; serving as the world’s primary marketplace - however even that status is starting to wane as our societal wealth dissipates.



Our savings-rate has declined to near-zero; as a result, core-investment is declining.


We do a mediocre job of educating our youth and preparing them for adulthood.
So where does that leave us going forward?
In case you think we’re in for major realignment; we’ve already been doing it for decades - with global competition, and lack of response on our part, forcing fundamental changes across our economy. The trend will continue and intensify as China & India progress through their industrial development.
I think America is still in shock and hasn’t come to grips with the situation. We’re still trying to live and conduct business as if we’re in the post-WWII halcyon era.
What can we as individuals and a society do about it?
Our budding entrepreneurs are leading the way and providing the model. Just to get up & running and survive they must identify niche opportunities, and operate lean & mean. They must keep a good eye on the competition, and find ways to steal market-share. They forever seek ways to keep our bloated, unfocused government out of their affairs and their pockets. They’re reaching offshore and taking risks to pursue new opportunities. They’re developing new technologies, and leaner business models.
I’m not sure what will happen concerning our government. We have the government that we chose. Year after year we go to the voting booths; and what we have now is the result of our cumulative decisions as a nation. All I can offer to America is - “Wake up and smell the coffee”. If you don’t like the results, change them! Now! Please!
These days the news surrounding the auto industry encourages us to point our collective fingers and criticize. But ask yourself - Do you run your personal affairs any more efficiently? Most Americans spend more than they take in. Our national wealth is collecting into fewer & fewer hands. We elected the governments that have for decades created so much waste & inefficiency with our hard-earned dollars. We buy… and buy… and buy… while our savings accounts are collecting moths. We’ve transitioned from being a conservative, collaborative post-war society to a liberal Me, Me, Me… I, I, I - focused culture.
If you want to make a difference in our society, start by changing your personal habits. Then go apply good habits everywhere you can at work; saving money, promoting innovation & efficiency, and looking for every opportunity to take business from the foreign competition. Then go to the voting booth and make smarter decisions. We need leaders who can redirect our efforts to causes greater than our individual self-gratification.
Many business-people from other countries will probably read this article. I wish them well, but I also wish that my country would wake up and give them a better run for their money. They’re only doing what we would do in their shoes. Frankly, I think they wish we’d wake up too. After all: If we can’t save & invest, and generate true value in our businesses, we can’t retain the wealth that makes us good customers.

To quote the immortal words of Dennis Miller: “It’s just my opinion, I could be wrong”.
What’s your opinion?
Speak up and be counted!

Al Walsh on Are YOU a True Leader?

Managing Hard Times

Thoughts for corporate executives on managing change.

If you’ve been properly managing your area of responsibility, whether it be Departmental or Corporate-wide, there shouldn’t be any major surprises for you, and you should be able to weather change effectively.

Regardless of your station in the corporate pecking-order, you should have been maintaining your own Strategic & Operational plans, and adjusting them to circumstances. People who exercise this discipline rigorously are seldom surprised, and usually have contingency plans developed for anticipated new developments. There are usually signs that change is in the wind, if you’re paying attention.

If you’re not doing this, or something fundamentally similar, I suggest that you START IMMEDIATELY; before it’s too late.

A key factor of quality management is a forward-looking posture; always anticipating what’s ahead and thinking about how you will adjust - just as you should be looking ahead regarding employee development - and to succession-planning in the event that you are promoted. People who exercise this discipline are better-prepared to deal with change; even on those rare occasions when it comes by surprise.

▪ Take stock of your talent and think about what you will do if a down-sizing occurs. Don’t wait for your boss to give you the bad news before you develop your plan. If you’ve got a marginal performer you’ve been tolerating, it’s time for them to go. Could you get by with fewer employees, or a leaner budget?

▪ If you see financial pressures building, think about what you can do NOW to cut expenses in your area of responsibility. Don’t wait for someone to pass an edict down.

▪ Go back to your last capital budget and review how you might implement less-costly alternatives, or temporarily shelve the parts that haven’t been implemented yet.

▪ If staff-cuts are possible, and cross-training needs to be done between targeted employees & those who would remain, start it NOW.

These are just a few of the ideas you can enact, but the operative words are THINK! and NOW!

When the down-sizing occurs, will you be perceived as a true leader or just another follower?

Your own job may hang in the balance. Get a leg up while you still can, and make it a permanent part of your leadership discipline. Operate lean, mean, and aware!

Good Luck!


Al Walsh is a Los Angeles area "Unrepentant Capitalist"
CAREER ROLES:~ CEO - V.P. - CFO - COO - Entrepreneur~ Executive Committee & Board Member~ Partner and Advisor to CEO's, COO's & Boards~ Multi-Disciplined Consultant & Contractor

Lee Iacocca has a new book: WHERE Have All the Leaders Gone?

If I've learned one thing, it's this: 'You don't get anywhere by standing on the sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action. Whether it's building a better car or building a better future for our children, we all have a role to play. That's the challenge I'm raising in this book. It's a "Call to Action" for people who, like me, believe in America'. It's not too late, but it's getting pretty close. So let's shake off the crap and go to work. Let's tell 'em all we've had 'enough.'
Make your own contribution by sending this to everyone you know and care about. It's our country, folks, and it's our future. Our future is at stake!!


You can get a copy of Lee's new book at book stores everywhere now!