How do you get inspired? By spending two fabulous days at the ATHENA International Leadership Summit April 5/6, 2010! Women of the World attended & exhibited at this year’s summit which focused on the topic Advancing Women’s Leadership: Leading Authentically. The conference drew nationally recognized businesswomen, authors, philanthropists and entrepreneurs. A myriad of prominent women from around the globe spoke on topics such as social media, networking, international business, social change and living an inspired, healthy life. Bottom line: Once again, ATHENA created an amazing program that provided cutting edge information from empowered women, creating new opportunities and strategic relationships for all.
So how can Women of the World cover the leadership summit in one blog post? We’re going deeper and wider, instead providing a 3 part series on the movers and shakers of the Leadership Summit. It’s like the Academy Awards, so much talent, not enough bandwidth to showcase them all. We begin with Catherine Lee (pictured right), the founder and president of CDL & Associates. She is an outstanding communicator and a thought leader in the world of international business. We follow with the divine Martha Mertz, founder of ATHENA International and the inspiration to corporate, become entrepreneurial and recognize emerging leaders worldwide. We will conclude the series with the powerful, passionate and purposeful Shawne Duperon, who ignites the room with her energy. She has taught thousands of the people the tools they need to network- it’s no wonder she has won five EMMY Awards and is a cornerstone in the television business. These empowered, focused, and influential women shared their knowledge with the hundreds of attendees. Women of the World would like to pay it forward with our eyes, ears and heart.
Our first shining star: Catherine Lee. She participated in the panel Fierce Advocacy at the International Level and Catherine was the first to speak. Although there were technical difficulties, Catherine laughed it off, knew her material and gave an outstanding talk on the strengths that women have in international business and the necessary awareness of other cultures when conducting business abroad. Catherine has conducted extensive amounts of business in Asia, particularly China. Her work abroad has given her insights into the differences in doing business with people domestically versus abroad. According to her calculations, in the next ten years 40-60% of business will be conducted with those offshore. With so much business being performed with those abroad, it is crucial to be fluent in the cultural etiquette: know and understand the values, ideas and tendencies of other cultures and be prepared to communicate effectively and politely with people from other nations.
When stressing cross-cultural competency, Catherine discussed how she finds women to be particularly well suited to do business with Asian cultures because so much of what is expected from American women coincides with their cultural norms. Feminine qualities that are stressed in US culture tend to include listening, empathy, intuition and humility. All of these qualities are key in having success in business relationships abroad. Catherine spoke of her struggles trying to navigate the US corporate system as a woman: be strong, but not aggressive, be kind, but never a doormat, be intelligent and accomplished, but don’t toot your own horn. Attempting to follow these cultural requirements for women often becomes both difficult and frustrating. However, when bringing her finely honed soft skills to the international business arena, Catherine found herself well suited (much more than her male counterparts!) to be a success. Those “feminine qualities” such as humility were well received and a necessity if successful business was to occur abroad. Catherine had found her niche.
As the world becomes increasingly globalized, women need to take the skills and qualities in which we excel and turn them to the world at large. Catherine is an example of how women are prepared and ready to move to the forefront of international business. As relationship builders and maintainers, Catherine believes that now more than ever is the time for women to step up and realize our potential in the global market.
Catherine Lee is both the founder and president of CDL & Associates, which focuses on international negotiations, communications and multi-national team building. Catherine has been the president of the Chicago Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners and has consulted with major multinational corporations. Catherine is an inspiration to women in business. If you want to know more about Catherine Lee and speak with her directly, she is offering her thought leadership as a panelist at Women of the World’s next event “International Engagement & Opportunity”! We hope you will be as excited and inspired as we are by Catherine.
So how can Women of the World cover the leadership summit in one blog post? We’re going deeper and wider, instead providing a 3 part series on the movers and shakers of the Leadership Summit. It’s like the Academy Awards, so much talent, not enough bandwidth to showcase them all. We begin with Catherine Lee (pictured right), the founder and president of CDL & Associates. She is an outstanding communicator and a thought leader in the world of international business. We follow with the divine Martha Mertz, founder of ATHENA International and the inspiration to corporate, become entrepreneurial and recognize emerging leaders worldwide. We will conclude the series with the powerful, passionate and purposeful Shawne Duperon, who ignites the room with her energy. She has taught thousands of the people the tools they need to network- it’s no wonder she has won five EMMY Awards and is a cornerstone in the television business. These empowered, focused, and influential women shared their knowledge with the hundreds of attendees. Women of the World would like to pay it forward with our eyes, ears and heart.
Our first shining star: Catherine Lee. She participated in the panel Fierce Advocacy at the International Level and Catherine was the first to speak. Although there were technical difficulties, Catherine laughed it off, knew her material and gave an outstanding talk on the strengths that women have in international business and the necessary awareness of other cultures when conducting business abroad. Catherine has conducted extensive amounts of business in Asia, particularly China. Her work abroad has given her insights into the differences in doing business with people domestically versus abroad. According to her calculations, in the next ten years 40-60% of business will be conducted with those offshore. With so much business being performed with those abroad, it is crucial to be fluent in the cultural etiquette: know and understand the values, ideas and tendencies of other cultures and be prepared to communicate effectively and politely with people from other nations.
When stressing cross-cultural competency, Catherine discussed how she finds women to be particularly well suited to do business with Asian cultures because so much of what is expected from American women coincides with their cultural norms. Feminine qualities that are stressed in US culture tend to include listening, empathy, intuition and humility. All of these qualities are key in having success in business relationships abroad. Catherine spoke of her struggles trying to navigate the US corporate system as a woman: be strong, but not aggressive, be kind, but never a doormat, be intelligent and accomplished, but don’t toot your own horn. Attempting to follow these cultural requirements for women often becomes both difficult and frustrating. However, when bringing her finely honed soft skills to the international business arena, Catherine found herself well suited (much more than her male counterparts!) to be a success. Those “feminine qualities” such as humility were well received and a necessity if successful business was to occur abroad. Catherine had found her niche.
As the world becomes increasingly globalized, women need to take the skills and qualities in which we excel and turn them to the world at large. Catherine is an example of how women are prepared and ready to move to the forefront of international business. As relationship builders and maintainers, Catherine believes that now more than ever is the time for women to step up and realize our potential in the global market.
Catherine Lee is both the founder and president of CDL & Associates, which focuses on international negotiations, communications and multi-national team building. Catherine has been the president of the Chicago Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners and has consulted with major multinational corporations. Catherine is an inspiration to women in business. If you want to know more about Catherine Lee and speak with her directly, she is offering her thought leadership as a panelist at Women of the World’s next event “International Engagement & Opportunity”! We hope you will be as excited and inspired as we are by Catherine.
Catherine's time abroad has taught her that women are naturally well-suited for international business. How does this shift from culture to culture? Asia is very different from South America.... did she speak on other locations at all?
ReplyDeleteCatherine's focus in international business is mainly in Asia, however, she is familiar with many different cultures. There are shifts from culture to culture, but much of her advice such as listening and being aware of different cultural etiquette is applicable in any international business situation. If you want more information on Catherine and conducting international business I would recommend checking out her book The New Rules of International Negotiation: Building Relationships, Earning Trust, and Creating Influence Around the World.
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