As we write this newsletter, Boris Johnson has just confirmed that the coronavirus roadmap is on track and life can take that step closer to being allowed to see more people in a variety of group sizes, both indoors and outdoors. We are monitoring the situation closely and keeping in touch with our members to judge when people feel comfortable to return to face-to-face events. Online events have shown us that a network can still continue to thrive in a virtual platform, but the best networking is often done face-to-face so we are working towards bringing you back together. We are only planning virtual events over the next few months, with at least one face-to-face event before the year end, maybe more. We plan to keep a number of events virtually throughout this year, perhaps into next year…...watch this space!
The events diary for the next few months features a number of well-known external speakers that feature regularly in our calendar, namely Warwick Business School, WomenOnBoards and RADA. Our focus is on continuous personal development through mastering your leadership style, what to be aware of if you are considering a NED role, strategic thinking and gender equality. The speakers will be demonstrating the importance of these tools whether you are within a large organisation or part of a small team / sole employee.
As we continue to build our connections within CWN, we also have more member meet ups and courageous conversations coming up, looking at financial wellbeing and intersectionality, respectively.
We are kindly invited to learn more from our charity partner WOW, so look out for their events on the weekly emails – often these events have a short notice period.
What else have we been up to? Here is a quick recap of our recent events – the recorded versions are found in the library within the Members Area of the website.
The events held so far this year have enabled members and committees to take the time to reflect on last year’s triumphs, as well as difficulties and share priorities for this year. Where possible, we have been adding in more breakout rooms to meet and connect with other CWN members. We made a splash at the start of the year with members Nicola Foster of Lido Ladies fame!
We also shone a spotlight on our charity partner, Wellbeing of Women, as they reflected on the highs and lows of adapting to the pandemic.
The second Member Meetup focused on our mental health including tips to strengthen the immune system, improve sleep, reduce stress and combat depression with more long-term effectiveness than antidepressants.
The Future Minds event looked at how we can implement the necessary practices in supporting teens and graduates as they move into the workplace.
Our International Women’s Day event looked at the 2021 theme #ChooseToChallenge. We shared the CWN’s own inclusion journey, speaking candidly with our Inclusion and Belonging committee. In April we hosted our first event in the Courageous Conversation series, with the sensitive topic of domestic violence. Our panel event centred around the heart-breaking memoir from author and human rights campaigner Saurav Dutt and Mrs Daksha Dalal, whose daughter took her own life, at just 25 as a result of suffering years of abuse from an ex-partner. The issues raised provided insight into the signs of abuse or violence and how to ask for education on healthy and unhealthy relationships. We followed this up with a pre-recorded session with Sue Hunt, an expert on supporting large Corporate companies with how to engage and provide an environment where employees can spot, or support the survivors of abuse.
We have also spoken to Declutter Dollies to get her top tips for creating the ultimate organisation to help with working from home. If you missed it, we recommend you tune into our Fashion panel event that looked at expected fashion trends as we return to normal life and what some of these amazing brands are doing around sustainability.
The Email Attraction event was very popular where we learnt that less is more – short, sharp emails with a clear ‘call to action’ helps to get results. And Warwick Business School taught us their top tips for being a leader of today and tomorrow, navigating through these unusual times. If you would like to see a topic in our events diary, please email our admin team.
Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn for up to date information about these events.