Reflections on Elevating Excellence: Empowering Women in Leadership & the Workplace
Alabamians showed up for a day full of conversations relating to the theme of Community Empowerment: Thriving Together at this year’s Civic Institute. One of the six-panel sessions in particular was Elevating Excellence: Empowering Women in Leadership & the Workplace. This session, which took place in Independence Hall at the American Village, truly lived up to its name and was an empowering conversation not only for women but for the men in attendance as well.
Opening up the session was DMC Board of Director Marsha Folsom. Marsha welcomed guests on behalf of the David Mathews Center for Civic Life and introduced the panel’s moderator, Karma Tolliver, Corporate Account Executive at WBHM. Panelists of this session included Angela Scott Abdur-Rasheed, Communications & Community Engagement Director at Propser, April Benetollo, CEO of Momentum Leaders, Joyce Brooks, Owner of Brooks Consulting LLC, and Sharon Lavoy, Executive Coach and Owner of Lovoy’s Team Works Inc. These women each brought their own unique background and experiences to the session which resulted in a rich conversation about the roles of women in leadership and the challenges they overcome.
During introductions, Joyce Brooks kicked off the conversation with words of encouragement while introducing the philosophy behind her company. Brooks Consulting LLC is founded on the idea that you cannot give what you do not have. For this reason, Joyce encourages people to be the best possible version of themselves, so that they can give their absolute best. Joyce founded Brooks Consulting LLC after a 21-year career with Alabama Power Company. She is an author, and entrepreneur and holds a bachelor's and master’s degree in electrical engineering. Her company’s mission is to assist businesses and organizations gain a competitive advantage by focusing on leadership development, organizational strategy, and individual well-being.
Following introductions, the panel discussion commenced with questions from the moderator. One question in particular that led to a fruitful dialogue and gave insight into each woman’s work was when Karma asked the four panelists, “What motivates you to do your work?”
Sharon Lavoy hid no secrets by sharing at the start that she had made many mistakes during her career. Despite those mistakes, having the opportunity of “seeing people be different, be better, be amazing” is something that truly motivates her in her work. Sharon currently owns Lovoy’s Team Works, Inc., and is an executive coach, facilitator, keynote speaker, author, and intervention specialist. Her company works with over 450 organizations which include clients such as Mercedes Benz USI, UAB Health Systems, Momentum Leaders, and a cross-function of all types of organizations.
Joyce Brooks shared that her past work in corporate settings motivates her work today. Joyce is also motivated by the opportunity to share her story focusing on “reminding individuals that tomorrow is not promised, but I do have these 24 hours.” Both Joyce’s and Sharon’s replies received applause from the captivated audience.
Angela Scott Abdur-Rasheed, representing Proposer, added to the conversation by sharing a meaningful personal moment. Angela explained that her work is largely motivated by the support she received from women during transitionary periods of her life. For that reason, Angela strives to be the woman that she needed during that time of her life for others. Prosper does just that. Prosper is an effort to align existing initiatives, supplement them with select new opportunities, and scale a collaborative civic agenda. Prosper has four key initiatives focused on the goal of job creation, job preparation, and job access in the Birmingham area.
April Benetollo added that she is often motivated by the stories she hears from others. In reference to her work with Momentum Leaders, April explained that she finds encouragement in the testimony of others. April emphasized the impact of hearing those testimonies by stating, “To hear how what we do has changed them, motivated them to be better people.” Momentum Leaders advances equity for women in leadership through various initiatives including a rigorous executive leadership program, Upward early-career program, conferences, community events, mentor matching, corporate training, and their Men with Momentum initiative.
Karma highlighted a common thread among the panelists in that the work they do is motivated by the opportunity to help others. Community empowerment was brought to light as being at the core of the conversation. The panelists agreed that being motivated to help others and by doing the work that helps others, these women leaders remain empowered and even thrive in their roles.
The session discussed some examples of barriers each of the panelists have faced in their careers. Some of the examples were raising children, divorces, and preexisting biases that can exist in workplaces. They expressed throughout the panel that empowerment in the workforce is for all and left a lasting message of grace, resilience, and the power of working together.
Concluding with an engaging Q&A session with the audience, one participant asked for advice for those who may be feeling the “imposture syndrome” in their role. The imposture syndrome is the idea that somebody feels like a fraud in their role and is riddled with self-doubt and the feeling of being unqualified. April Benetollo addressed this issue head on by offering great advice. “Give yourself permission to not be perfect,” April explained. “We are all in the room because we deserve to be.”
In short, Elevating Excellence: Empowering Women in Leadership & the Workplace was an engaging, informative, and motivating session. Feedback received from audience members seem to agree that participants benefited from hearing the life experiences and advice from all who spoke. The Mathews Center would like to thank our session host, Marsha Folsom, the moderator, Karma Tolliver, and the panelists who shared their time and talent with Alabamians at our 8th annual Civic Institute.
To learn more about the participants and their work, please visit: