When Roymi Membiela attended the executive leadership development program “Women on the Move” at Florida International University (FIU), she was an assistant vice president at Baptist Health South Florida.
At a recent reunion of program participants from Baptist Health, Membiela was now the organization’s new corporate vice president of marketing and public relations.
Giving women a personal plan for advancement is a goal of “Women on the Move,” a four-day leadership program developed and presented by the Center for Leadership in the College of Business Administration at FIU.
“’Women on the Move’ was extremely valuable as it gave me the opportunity to remove myself from day-to-day operations, change my mode to ‘me’ and focus on my career goals,” said Membiela, one of four Baptist Health women who has earned a promotion since attending “Women on the Move.”
“I was on a succession path but the program helped me frame specific goals and decide what moves to make,” she said. “The reunion in December allowed me to reflect and to network with other Baptist Health women.”
Over the past three years, Baptist Health has had 17 women graduate from the program; 15 of them attended the breakfast reunion held on campus December 6, 2010.
The event took the form of a roundtable discussion facilitated by executive dean and the program’s academic director, Joyce J. Elam as well as executive coach Nance Guilmartin.
“The discussion offered the Baptist Health women an opportunity to take stock of what they’ve accomplished since attending the program,” said the center’s Garth D. Headley (MS ’07), industrial psychologist and associate director, marketing & corporate relations. “The facilitators also challenged them to reset their leadership compasses, to develop a culture of continuous learning and to practice the tools given during the program.”
“It was also an opportunity for me to check in with the Baptist Health women and see how well they have put in action the goals that they set at the completion of the program and what changes have occurred in their careers since attending the program,” Elam said.
“Women on the Move” program scheduled for May 2011.
With 31 participants, the fall 2010 “Women on the Move” drew the largest group in the program’s history. Companies who sent participants included Baptist Health South Florida, Beckman Coulter, Colorado Engineering, FedEx Latinoamerica, FIU, Miami-Dade County, Preferred Care Partners, Road America Motor Club, U.S. Southern Command and Wal-Mart.
Because of substantially increased interest, the Center for Leadership has reinstated its “Women on the Move” spring sessions; the next program is now scheduled for May 24-27, 2011.
“What we are seeing is an increase in the demand for executive leadership development programs perhaps as companies begin to be comparatively more optimistic about the economy,” Headley said. “Programs that particularly speak to the challenges women face as they grow professionally are now in greater demand as women leaders themselves actively seek to hone their skills to meet growing responsibilities and increase their own marketability.”
