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Contents January 2005 Newsletter |
 Join us on January 13th for our annual Networking Dinner! |
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WelcomeWelcome to the first issue with our new look, and the first issue of 2005, of NAWBO-SF's e-newsletter. Our thanks to NAWBO-SF's Marketing Committee—Leslie Waltzer of Crowfoot Design, Anastasia Fuller of Juxtaprose, and Valerie Camarda of Marketing Sense—for their work on the new e-newsletter. And thanks to all the NAWBO members whose contributions make our newsletter interesting. Remember, if you are a NAWBO-SF member, you can send news items, articles, or events for inclusion in upcoming issues. See "The Fine Print" section at the bottom of this newsletter for more information and submission deadlines. |
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NAWBO Events Calendar |
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Join us at these upcoming NAWBO events:
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President's Letter |
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Grow, Thrive, Lead
The New Year is another chance to revive our good intentions . . . like losing that 5 or 10 pounds, balancing work and life, getting more market share, or sticking to a budget. For busy women some of those goals might remain stubbornly unfulfilled year after year. But we keep on hoping that this will be the year to realize our dreams! As does any well-run organization, our NAWBO-SF chapter sets goals every year. Membership Diversity has been "on our list" for as long as I can remember. Yet each year, we have fallen short of reaching our goal. We thought we were doing all the right things, but clearly whatever we were doing was not working. Then last April, CitiBank offered us a partnership grant specifically designated toward helping us recruit more women of color as members. This opportunity came at a critical moment. According to NAWBO's research association, over the last five years, the number of firms owned by women of color grew six times the rate of all US firms. In California, 25% of women business owners are "minorities." We recognized that without a more diverse membership our Chapter was in danger of being marginalized from the group we represent: all women business owners. Here are some of the bold and aggressive actions we have taken:
We are proud of these efforts. Membership overall had increased by 40%, and we believe that our diversity is increasing. The diversity seems to heighten energy, enthusiasm, and creativity as well. In the coming month we will be sending you a Diversity Survey which will request information about your ethnicity, type and size of business. These statistics are critically important to describe the Chapter and to track the results of the Diversity effort, so we hope you will each take time to put down the information. In the meantime, I and the NAWBO-SF Board offer you good wishes and support toward achieving all of your goals and dreams for growing, thriving, and leading in 2005. Happy New Year,
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President's Community Advocacy Award |
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We are proud to present Julie Abrams with this month's President's Community Advocacy award. Join us at January's Dinner event to honor Julie's accomplishments for the community. Julie Abrams
Despite being new to San Francisco, Julie has recruited an entirely new Board of Directors of successful business women who are a distinct competitive advantage. Julie has established an organizational culture that creates synergy and dialogue, encourages mutual accountability among board and staff, and provides avenues for all stakeholders to express opinions and challenge assumptions. Prior to Women's Initiative Julie served as Deputy Director and Director of Development and Marketing at Chicago's Merit School of Music. Julie's previous positions include Director of Development at Community Christian Alternative Academy and principal at the Catalyst Group consulting firm. She has also held positions with the Illinois Pro-Choice Alliance, the Chicago Department of Health, and the Chicago Foundation for Women. Julie has served on many boards and is currently on the board of the California Association for Microenterprise Opportunity, CAMEO. |
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Member of the Month |
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Each month we present an award for "Member of the Month," who is selected by the NAWBO-SF Board of Directors. The purpose of the award is to express appreciation for volunteers who have helped NAWBO to Grow, Thrive, Lead.
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Featured: WEB Award Nominations |
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Call for Nominations—
NAWBO-SF sponsors our signature event, the Women Entrepreneurs Benefit, every spring and this year it takes place April 22, 2005. In addition to the WEB awards luncheon, we are planning for a NAWBO University program featuring seminar sessions focused on business growth, leadership, and procurement. We are looking for two outstanding women business owners to be honored: Trailblazer—a seasoned business owner (over ten years in business) who has learned how to compete, to change, to create a solid, well-balanced successful business, and to be a mentor and role model for others; and Rising Star—a new business owner with fewer than ten years in her current business and which is in the purest entrepreneurial stage on the fast track, growing, succeeding, prospering. Please take a moment to think of a woman business owner that you would like to nominate for this year's WEB awards. Please complete and submit the online nomination form by January 31, 2005. For more information, please contact May Pon, 415.864.3235 or email webinfo@nawbo-sf.org. Go to Online Nomination Form If you would rather print out and fax or mail the form, you can download the nomination form. [PDF format]
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NAWBO News & Events |
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January 13 Dinner Event: Progressive Networking Dinner—
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Date: Thursday, January 13, 2005 Time: 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Location: The World Trade Club, behind the Ferry Building in San Francisco (map and directions) |
Cost: SOLD OUT! |
Networking Breakfast Meetings:
This series of breakfast meetings provide an efficient, comfortable forum for business women and entrepreneurs to meet monthly, exchange ideas and discuss challenges. While promoting networking, these meetings focus on just-in-time topics and encourage relationships that build ever-widening circles of influence. Unlike a leads group, these meetings concentrate on moving from casual contacts to trusted colleagues who bring a wealth of insight and know-how to motivated business women. Cost includes continental breakfast.
Registration Information
Cost: $12 for members and $15 for guests
RSVP: Register online at: www.nawbo-sf.org/register.html, or with Rhoda at 415.333.2130; email: register@nawbo-sf.org
Dates & Locations
Oakland
Date: Tuesday, January 18, 2005
Time: 7:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Location: Verbena Café in Oakland, 1111 Broadway
(the APL Office Building), in front of the 12th Street
BART Station at 11th
Walnut Creek
Date: Thursday, January, 20, 2005
Time: 7:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Location: Il Fornaio, 1430 Mt Diablo Blvd in Walnut Creek
Marin
Date: Tuesday, January 25, 2005
Time: 7:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Location: Il Fornaio in the Corte Madera Town Center
February 10 Dinner Event:
Eagles view the world from a strategic vantage point. They soar high and use their keen vision to see where they can move quickly, and capture their prey. Our panelists, all honored by the San Francisco Business Times as one of the Top 100 Women Owned Businesses, will tell you what they did to build their single-woman owned businesses into the multi-million dollar enterprises they are today. Panelists include:
Whether your goal is to remain small, grow modestly or become a major industry player, the lessons learned from these exceptional "eagles" will introduce ideas and practices you can apply to your own business.
Register early. This one will be a sellout.
Date: Thursday, February 10, 2005 Time: 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Location: The World Trade Club, behind the Ferry Building in San Francisco (map and directions) |
Cost: Pre-registration $40/members, $50/guests; or pay at the door $45/members, $55/guests |
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Register: Online at www.nawbo-sf.org; with Rhoda at 415.333.2130; or email: register@nawbo-sf.org |
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Mastermind is an advisory board program for women leading businesses. Participants, who commit to attending the six-month cycle, meet on the second Tuesday of each month for continental breakfast.
Mastermind provides program members with an advisory board of NAWBO women who share business know-how, feedback, and insight from their own experience, and it's a great way to connect with other NAWBO members in a supportive environment.
The recent Mastermind Series finished in November. Those interested in participating in the next Mastermind series beginning in January should contact Rhoda Singer at 415.333.2130 or email: register@nawbo-sf.org. Cost for the series is $100. Call soon to join this group, or to be placed on the waiting list.
Retrospective:
What a great way to end the year, share time with colleagues and friends and, best of all, SHOP!
This year's members' bazaar raised the bar and will set a standard hard to match. The variety and quality of gift items suited almost every pocketbook; many attendees found gifts for friends on their lists and for themselves. The house was packed, and the energy (had we have captured it) would have off-set any state energy shortages! Ending 2004 on such a high note sets the tone for 2005.
NAWBO is pleased to announce the completion of the book Tapping Your Inner Entrepreneur: Making the Move from Employee to Business Owner. Sponsored by OPEN: The Small Business Network from American Express, this book has the information entrepreneurs need to make the leap from corporate America to business ownership. From planning an exit strategy and developing a business plan to assembling a business team, Tapping Your Inner Entrepreneur has practical advice from experts and entrepreneurs who have been through the process. As a NAWBO member, you are able to pre-order your copy at the discounted member price by going to the NAWBO National website.
Application now Available!
Are you a trailblazing entrepreneur? If so, this could be your chance to gain national recognition and a cash award. Application deadline is March 4, 2005. For additional details download the nomination form.
You are invited to join our delegation of NAWBO-SF members who will participate in NAWBO National Public Policy Days on February 7-9 in 2005. To read more about this event, go to the NAWBO National website, and the event is listed on the home page. Let us know if you're planning on going, and we can help pair you with other NAWBO-SF members to cut costs.
Welcome to our new members:
We look forward to getting to know you all at our January Networking event!
Plans are underway for the SBA Expo 2005, scheduled to take place in Washington, DC on April 26-28, 2005. In recognition of the small business community's contribution to the American economy and society, the President of the United States designates one week each year as National Small Business Week. Awards are presented in the categories of Small Business Person of the Year, Phoenix Awards (disaster recovery), Small Business Champion Awards (advocacy), and Federal Procurement Awards.
To find out more, or to fill out nomination forms, visit the SBA website: www.sba.gov/expo/.
Participate in a FREE, ongoing series of dynamic, 45 minute teleclasses, designed especially for women business owners, compliments of the Principal Financial Group®.
To see a list of archives pertaining to past classes and to register for future classes visit www.principal.com/women.
Special Offer for NAWBO Members
How often do we fail to achieve what's possible because we jump in and try to execute without a well-conceived plan? How many dollars and hours are spent on efforts that don't pan out? If you'd like to spend next year on a successful path that enables you to chart a course that's more successful—not to mention fun—Mike Van Horn, author of business books and leader of The Business Group, is conducting day-long planning workshops for business owners in convenient locations around the Bay Area. This workshop is for any owner-run business from 1 to 100 employees.
NAWBO members will only pay the discounted rate of $60 for this $125 program. You'll come away with Mike's Success in 2005 Workbook plus your own practical action plan on a single page. Upcoming program dates include January 10 in San Francisco, and January 28 in San Rafael. Visit our website for other dates and locations.
For more about the program and to enroll online, go to www.businessgroup.biz. For NAWBO members to get the discounted price, enter "nawbo" in the Promotion Code box when you go to the Workshop "Sign Up" page.
Joanne Black's book, No More Cold Calling, will be published by Warner Books in early 2006. The book will bring her Referral Selling Methodology to sales teams around the world and will transform the way they work. Her clients typically:
Joanne is the country's leading expert on referral selling, and she has been a featured speaker at the NAWBO National Conference as well as at our San Francisco NAWBO Chapter. Her trademark topic is The Power of Referrals. Check her website for additional information and current Bay Area No More Cold Calling workshops at www.NoMoreColdCalling.com.
Stacey Lapuk, of Stacey Lapuk Interior Design Group, was recently honored with California Home and Design Magazine's Design Achievement Award for Showcase Space, and was also just published on the cover of the Dec/Jan issue of Idaho's Home By Design Magazine.
Great work, Stacey!
Stacey can be reached at:
email: lapuk@staceylapukinteriors.com
phone: 415.499.1228
Despite the fact that we are surrounded by contracts in our daily lives (e.g., car leases, mortgage documents, insurance policies, etc.), many small business owners fail to recognize the importance of a well-crafted contract in their business operations. Perhaps it's the dizzying fine print and legalese of the aforementioned trio that makes people want to flee the room as soon as the "C" word is mentioned. Or perhaps it is simply a desire to demonstrate a more customer-friendly, laid-back approach that leads them to conduct business by means of oral promises, handshake deals, and memos jotted on cocktail napkins. Whatever the reason, the failure to commit one's agreement to a carefully crafted contract can lead to disaster.
Read full article on the NAWBO-SF website and find out more about:
M. Elizabeth Sassano is a partner with the firm of Roeca Haas Hager LLP (www.r2hlaw.com) where she specializes in providing outside general counsel services, including contract preparation and review, to business clients. She may be contacted at bsassano@r2hlaw.com. This article is intended for general informational purposes and is not to be considered legal advice.
©2004 M. Elizabeth Sassano. All Rights Reserved.
As the New Year begins there's an opportunity to revitalize your company's marketing and make a difference to your bottom line. Here are some tips to help you kick-start your marketing for the new year.
Read full article on the NAWBO-SF website for more great tips!
Valerie Camarda is the owner of Marketing Sense, a full service marketing and public relations firm based in San Francisco and Emeryville. She has over twenty years of marketing and PR experience working in a variety of industries. She is a current member of the NAWBO Board of Directors and is vice president of marketing. She can be reached at 510.428.4077.
• Join NAWBO, if you haven't already.
• Attend one of our networking breakfast meetings.
• Join a committee. You can contact the committee chairs directly. Go to our committees page online for more about the committees and for contact information.
• Take a guest or a client to the meeting. If each member recruits one new member, we will double our membership!
• Visit our evolving, and expanding website: www.nawbo-sf.org.
• Let us know how you and your business are doing. Contact Donna Bletzinger: donna@dyerstephenson.com.
"We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give."
~Sir Winston Churchill
Thanks to all our corporate partners who help make NAWBO-SF's programs possible:
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Media Partner:
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If you would like to submit stories, news, events, or happenings for the next issue of NAWBO-SF's e-news, please send to the newsletter editor,
Anastasia Fuller, at news@nawbo-sf.org. Copy submission deadline is the 22nd of the current month for the next month's newsletter (e-mailed out the first week of the month).
We invite anyone who is not already a member to join NAWBO-SF. Take advantage of a growing package of member benefits and activities. To find out more, visit our website: www.nawbo-sf.org/membership.html.
To subscribe to (or unsubscribe from) this newsletter, contact Rhoda Singer at 415.333.2130, or email: join@nawbo-sf.org.
© 2005 The National Association of Women Business Owners - San Francisco Bay Area Chapter (NAWBO-SF). All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of NAWBO-SF is prohibited.
Clipart: ©1999-2005 www.clipartconnection.com
by Sharon Gadberry
Julie Abrams joined Women's Initiative as Executive Director in January 2002. During her first two years Women's Initiative for Self Employment has nearly doubled the number of women served, expanded offerings to contribute to the success of entrepreneurs and has helped Women's Initiative transition from a founder-led organization.
Susan G. Grant
Women Entrepreneurs Benefit Awards