WOMEN'S LEADERSHIP CIRCLES
OF VERMONT
Begins October, 2023- Franklin & Grand Isle Counties
What People Are Saying
“Kerry is one of the few leadership coaches I have met who recognizes that great leadership relies on being willing and able to look inward as well as outward. As women, we have unique perspectives and skills, and this fact rarely receives the attention it deserves. I finished the program feeling understood and supported, with specific tools I can use every day as Executive Director.”
—Susan Parris, Executive Director, Brattleboro Area Hospice
“Under Kerry's expert guidance and with support from the amazing women in my circle, I am a more self-aware and confident leader, have tools for ongoing learning and improvement, and believe I am making more of an impact on the world around me.”
—Rebecca Towne, CEO, Vermont Electric Power Company
“I didn’t know at the beginning how much this program would come to mean to me. Women leaders, between their work and home life demands, do not have the network of other women leaders. One of the greatest values of this program is that it builds a community of women leaders to learn with and to be a resource once the program has ended.”
—Susan McMahon, Executive Director, Landmark Trust USA
Who is it for?
The Women’s Leadership Circles (WLC) were developed to support women in leadership positions across sectors. Our participants have the initiative and vision to push themselves toward greater personal and professional achievement and to grow their roles as influential changemakers.
We build participant groups of powerful women with the awareness, experience, and professionalism to create a safe place where frank discussions can happen. WLC participants support each other to meet the challenges of leadership with clarity and confidence.
Since 2011, women’s leadership circles have been growing throughout Vermont and are having a tremendous impact.
*WLC has been offered in partnership with the Center for New Leadership at Marlboro College since 2013. With the closing of Marlboro College in 2020, the program is again offered under Watershed Coaching. The program purpose and content remain constant.
WLC Participants hold leadership roles in great Vermont organizations like:
Dartmouth College
Vermont Wood Pellet
Middlebury College
Vermont Community Foundation
Vermont Fresh Network
Vermont State Legislature
Emerge Vermont
Seventh Generation
New Chapter
King Arthur Flour
The state of VT, Agency of Human Services
Burlington City Arts
Sugarbush Resort
Ibex
Vermont Land Trust
Brattleboro Memorial Hospital
Vermont Foodbank
Norwich University
Fletcher Free Library
Windham Regional Commission
Vermont Gas
Gains
Alignment: The program supports deep inquiry into personal and professional priorities and helps participants create a life more in alignment with their values.
Expanded capacity: Participants identify their strengths and develop an individualized plan to effectively build on their leadership abilities.
Grounded foundation: WLC supports women to embody their leadership. Participants explore the link between personal well-being and leadership and take action in support of their improved health.
Real-world impact: Each WLC participant practices her expanded leadership abilities in a real-world project designed to create meaningful outcomes in alignment with personal values and aspirations.
Community: Each Circle is intentionally drawn from the same county. Circle members sustain their friendships long after the formal portion of WLC is completed, and often continue to meet as a group for years.
Curriculum topics include:
Setting Boundaries
Unconscious Bias
Understanding Strengths
Values Clarification
Women’s Circles of Support
Women’s Leadership
Working with Inner Critic
Authentic Leadership
Conflict Resolution
Communication Skills
Enneagram Personality Assessment
Emotional Intelligence
Goal setting & Time Management
Presenting Skills
Organizational Outcomes:
Each WLC participant designs and implements an action project to benefit her business or community.
Examples of organizational outcomes achieved by women participating in this program include:
Obtained $100,000 in new business as a result of better managing time/energy
Launched a successful low-cost community weight-loss program with 25 participants.
Changed direct-report workload as a result of successfully implementing strengths-based management process
Rehabilitated program space to allow for new uses, with the full participation of all end-users; a sense of unity planted for potential future projects
Completed initial stages of new organization launch
Established a new performance review process that supports staff and organization growth
Obtained a $50,000 gift for the organization. The conversation (over several weeks) that led up to the gift was different than it would have been before due to learning from the WLC
Reached commercial loan goal $220K through a better sales team
Increased PTO participation by 500% and designed a plan for increasing parent involvement in a school
Accomplished more fund-raising work; established new fundraising committee, attracting an additional $7,000 this year (10% of budget)
Program Research
The model is based on years of research and tracking women’s experience of how the WLC has supported their career and personal paths. We are now thrilled to share this research: Women’s Leadership Development Through Networks Of Support: An Analysis Of The Women’s Leadership Circles Of Vermont for the book Managing in the Social Sector: Strategies for Advancing Human Dignity and Social Justice, by editors S. Aqeel Tirmizi and John D. Vogelsang. To receive the download, see Kerry’s resources webpage.
Academic Research
The following work was influential in the WLC program design:
Standing at the Crossroads: Next Steps for High Achieving Women, by Marian N. Ruderman and Patricia J. Ohlott
Your Authentic Leadership, by Bill George, Peter Sims, Andrew N. McLean, and Diana Mayer
What Makes a Leader, by Daniel Goleman
Centered Leadership: How Talented Women Thrive, by Joanna Barsh, Susie Cranston, and Rebecca A. Craske