We’re honored to highlight Salo this month who is a TeamWomen Silver Sponsor! Since 2002, Salo has been connecting people, building careers and growing businesses by partnering with exceptionally skilled and seasoned leaders who find purpose and inspiration in solving today’s most difficult business challenges in HR, finance and accounting.

Learn why they’re a continued sponsor of TeamWomen; how they help women through hiring, mentoring and advocacy; and the big things happening for them in 2020 below.

What drew you to continue sponsoring TeamWomen?

Salo’s mission is connecting people to make a difference, and it aligns perfectly with what TeamWomen stands for and accomplishes. We are proud to be a company co-founded by a woman with more than 50% of women on our management team. We believe in the leadership of women, and want to do what we can in the community to help women find careers they love and build companies they’re proud of.

How does Salo support other women around them, professionally and personally?

Our business is talent, and our goal is to help individuals find happiness in their careers and lives. We support women in our business through hiring, mentoring and advocating for them. We are a company of connectors, so when we might not be the right fit, we’ll help women by connecting them to someone who can help.

What does success mean to Salo?

Did you know only 15% of employees are engaged in their work? Success to us is when this number is flipped.

What are some big things happening for Salo in 2020?

We want to continue our path to growth, while helping more companies solve complex challenges and more consultants find meaningful careers. Knowing some form of this virtual environment might be here to stay, we’re also looking at the right ways to evolve and grow our business and offerings from that perspective.

To learn more about Salo, visit their website.

As TeamWomen continues to grow and reach professionals across the Twin Cities, we couldn’t be more grateful for our sponsor Grey Search + Strategy!

Grey Search + Strategy is a strategic search and consulting firm built on a singular idea for delivering better recruiting results. With 60+ years of combined experience in search strategy, recruiting, and team-building, they’ve built a breakthrough brand on offering more strategic, long-term focused solutions to matching talent with opportunities. Driven by a passion for understanding unique challenges and discovering unique talent, they bring the two together for extraordinary results. Find out what drew the owners, Alissa and Lucas Henriksen, to sponsoring TeamWomen and how they support women while giving back.

What drew you to sponsoring TeamWomen?

We’ve always been proponents of supporting women. Lucas and I were both raised by strong, independent women. So, it was never a question that this would not be a focus for us. TeamWomen does an amazing job of lifting up women, giving them an opportunity to grow and shine, providing education and tools to be their best self, and to go after it!

What experiences within Grey Search + Strategy do you provide specifically for women?

Grey Search + Strategy is an executive recruiting and recruiting consulting company. We have clients throughout the US, but with 60% headquartered in MN. We ALWAYS give women the opportunity by making sure women are included in every search we take on. We always look to bring diversity into every single search. In addition to that, we are big on giving back and supporting women-focused organizations. We not only sponsor TeamWomen, but we focus on purchasing promotional items that support women-run/owned businesses. All of our candidates that get hired by our clients get an awesome coffee launch kit. The company we support is City Girl Coffee (where proceeds go back to coffee farms that are operated by women) – owned by my friend and amazing business owner, Alyza Bohbot (Alakef). Supporting women is a big part of our ongoing mission at Grey Search + Strategy and that won’t ever change. We also have one of the best directors, Nikki Francois, at Grey Search + Strategy. Her vision and insights as a female leader are unmatched in our industry! Our HR Business Partner is Vickie Skala. She brings years of expertise and HR strategy to our company. We are proud to have such powerful female leaders. It definitely leaves Lucas outnumbered…but that’s okay!

Grey Search is also the platinum sponsor for the Women in Business events put on by the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce. We’ve been doing this for over 5 years and have loved watching the attendance go from 90 to over 300 in 2019!

What are 3 things (serious or fun) that separate you from other companies within your industry?

Number one – we CARE. We go above and beyond for our clients and our candidates to make sure they have the most incredible experience. It is our job to make sure our service is top-notch and we take it very seriously. One of the number one things our clients say is that we are extremely flexible. We are a retained firm, but we are flexible in our approach. Every client we work with is more than happy and has provided testimonials to our work.

Number two – we visit every single client to make sure we understand their business and culture and we do this more than once…AND this is our expense. Not our clients. We do this before taking on a search. Our clients are giving us a big responsibility to find the best talent that matches their culture and needs, and the only way you can determine a fit is by physically being onsite and getting to know the team(s). It is our job to also go beyond the black and white of resumes – we go deeper to make sure we understand the candidate’s story. Understanding a candidate’s story and physically being on-site allows you to find a culture fit.

Number three – we guarantee we will pay back our retainer within the first 60 days if we aren’t hitting the mark. We are a retained firm, but we also guarantee that if our partnership is not meant to be, we care more about our reputation and will give back the money. Have we ever had to do that…NO! We are proud of that statistic!

What are some big things happening for your company in 2020?

We are bringing on a new senior recruiting partner that has a pretty amazing background in IT (mid-level to executive-level recruiting). IT recruiting is an area our clients have been begging us to support, and we now can say we will as we never wanted to take something on that wasn’t in our wheelhouse. Our new addition has not been announced yet, but we can’t wait to go public! YEA!!

We are also in the process of finalizing the plans for our new office space. The buildout will take a bit of time, but it’s super exciting and speaks to our brand! We can’t wait to invite you all in for the grand opening of our new space. It will be a celebration with free giveaways, networking, and pure appreciation and thanks for all of those that have supported us along the way.

Lastly, we will be launching our recruiting playbooks. This playbook will take companies to the next level when it comes to being proactive in their recruiting approach. This gets companies thinking about what they need to do before, during, and after they have a position to fill. This playbook started out as a pilot and went into full force with a nationally recognized brand in 2019 – Schwan’s! The book was customized for Schwan’s, but the generic book will be something other companies can have access to going forward. You want it customized? We can do that too! The book and our virtual or on-site training increases applicant flow and hires.

We could not be more thankful for the support and opportunity to be part of the TeamWomen family! This is truly a wonderful organization!

Don’t miss Grey Search + Strategy’s virtual talk with us on April 17th as Alissa and Lucas talk about prepping for virtual interviews! To register and learn more, click here.

We are excited to share we have upgraded our member management system and launched NEON, a Customer Relationship Management System (CRM) that will allow us to seamlessly manage both TeamWomen and Empower Leadership Academy business operations and activity. As we enter our next phase of rapid growth, our goal remains consistent: to continuously build and enhance our infrastructure to best serve those we have the privilege of working with including our members, sponsors, partners, donors, board and committee members!

One of the best features of this new system is the added benefits we can provide our members! NEON’s Member Portal is designed to help us provide an enhanced online experience for you. To see the features available to you, simply log in to your account and look for the “What Would You Like To Do?” dropdown menu in the upper-right corner. You can update your member profile and directory listing, join a committee, become a mentor, register for events, join the TeamWomen Members Only Facebook Group, and much more.

Moving forward, new events will now be added to NEON. This means when you register for events, you’ll need to log in to the member portal to see and register for the member rate. NEON allows you to see all events you’ve attended too! Please keep in mind event registration will be a transition process for all of us as we already have events in Eventbrite (where you don’t need to log in) and will have events in NEON, where you will need to log in.

Below are instructions on how to access your member account in NEON. You’ll need to set up a new password to log in for the first time.

1. Click this link to request a new password here.

2. Enter your email address that is connected to your current TW membership.

3. An email will be sent to you with a link to create a new password to the member portal. This will also include your username on the page.

4. Once logged in, verify your information and business listing is correct.

If you have any difficulties logging in, please email Briana at briana@teamwomenmn.org. She’d be happy to help you out!

Thank you for being a part of our team!

We’re honored to highlight Rachel Polson as our Member Spotlight this month! Rachel is a partner with the commercial services group of Baker Tilly Virchow Krause, LLP and has been with the firm since 1997. In 2009 and 2014, Rachel was recognized as one of the “Top Women in Finance” by Finance and Commerce, and in 2011, Rachel was recognized as one of the “Women to Watch” for Women in Business by Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal. She also serves on the TeamWomen Board of Directors Executive Committee.

Have you ever had a mentor?

Yes, I have had mentors, professional coaches and other professionals as resources. As my career has progressed, the type of mentoring I have desired has also evolved. There are people who may have a certain skill for a specific situation. Leveraging their talents and experience was key for both of us to have a mutually beneficial connection and interactions.

What are the 4 things you’ve learned from being a mentor?

• Consider your purpose as a mentor – continue to reflect on it and challenge your mentee to utilize you as the mentor in that role.
• This is not a lifelong commitment. It’s sad when the formal connection of mentoring ends, but that doesn’t mean you can’t find new ways to support your mentee and you can stay connected in other ways.
• I am fascinated with how motivated and brilliant people are at the beginning of their career.
• Mentoring is not always formal. It can be the situation in the middle of the week when someone is looking for a friendly ear to listen – encourage and support them.

What is the best career advice you’ve received?

• Ask for help! There is no reason to do it all yourself ― professionally or personally. Your family will survive if there are crumbs on the floor or if you buy takeout for dinner. Ask for carpool help from other parents.
• Be willing to take on new projects with an understanding of the timeline and commitment. Some deadlines are flexible. Don’t be afraid to discuss the timing to ensure it is realistic and achievable.

Who or what inspires you?

I am inspired by hearing about women who have conquered a fear regarding a new position or project. I am motivated by seeing others succeed. I am also inspired by hearing from others’ hardships and how they have overcome them. These stories have put my own challenges or struggles in perspective, and have either encouraged me to push harder or realize my situation is not as tough or as unbearable as I perceive it to be.

What can women do to support other women around them, professionally and personally?

• Be kind. Don’t judge. Don’t be catty.
• That woman challenging you is not your enemy. Consider their perspective. Try to understand they are coming from a place of positive intent – supporting you!
• Listen for what the women around you aren’t saying.
• Stand up and vocally support each other when others are being negative or unrealistic. Offer up an alternative fact pattern.

We’re honored to highlight Bank of America as this month’s sponsor spotlight! Lindsey Farrell Stampone, Senior Vice President and Market Executive for the Minnesota market, sheds light on how the company invests in women and supports the community around them. She is responsible for leading Relationship Managers in Minnesota and the Dakotas markets to deliver the full breadth of banking solutions to companies under $50 million.

What is considered the best day of the year at your company?

It’s hard to choose one, but my favorite days are tied to the community. November 28, 2018 was a pretty spectacular day as Bank of America pledged $1 million to support the Minneapolis Parks Foundation’s RiverFirst campaign. This initiative will develop riverfront parks and trails on both sides of the Mississippi River from downtown Minneapolis to the northern city limits. My other favorite days are Habitat Global Build, a week-long initiative to build affordable housing and engage in other community projects around the world, as well as celebrating our annual Neighborhood Builders awardee. Habitat Global Build week is a testament to the dedication of our volunteers who roll up their sleeves alongside working families and community partners to create secure, affordable housing for those in need in the Twin Cities. Each Neighborhood Builder awardee receives $200,000 in flexible funding, leadership development for an executive director and an emerging leader at the organization, and the opportunity to connect to a network of peer organizations and access capital.

What experiences within Bank of America do you provide specifically for women?

LEAD (Leadership, Education, Advocacy, and Development) for Women is our largest employee network with more than 26,000 members. LEAD is dedicated to promoting professional women’s development to help grow, attract, and retain successful women throughout Bank of America. We provide women with leadership, development, and career broadening opportunities and tools through a variety of means including information and education, advocacy, and networking.

Power of 10 at Bank of America is a grassroots effort where groups of 10 women in any line of business, cohort, or region can get together to discuss issues, experiences, challenges, and/or books and articles that speak to them. It’s a way to find a support network and has recently been granted a gold award in the Brandon Hall Human Capital Excellence Award for “Best Advance in Women Leadership Development.” Personally, I have benefitted from finding lifelong sponsors and mentors through this group of women while encouraging courageous conversations. My Power of 10 drives me to achieve.

How does Bank of America support other women around them, professionally and personally?

Investing in women is a key focus at Bank of America. We have a strong representation of women at all levels of our organization, and our support of women is evident in the resources we have that focus on bringing female talent to our company, developing our employees, and supporting the economic empowerment of women around the world. We partner with universities and other organizations around the world to recruit diverse talent, and offer many career development programs and events including our Global Women’s Conference, Women’s Executive Development Program, and Women’s Next Level Leadership Program. Further, we advance women’s economic opportunity and empowerment through many programs such as Women and Wealth through U.S. Trust, Supplier Diversity Program, NAWBO (National Association of Women Business Owners), and many more. Personally, we have the LEAD employee network, offer 16 weeks of paid parental leave, and have programs to help with child care, adult care, adoption support, as well as other employee benefits. My division specifically had two offsite programs this year specifically dedicated to the development of women where we heard from an executive coach on presentation power and emotional intelligence, as well as from many outstanding successful women.

What does success mean to Bank of America?

It means living our values of delivering together, acting responsibly, realizing the power of our people and trusting the team, growing responsibly, and delivering our purpose to help make financial lives better through the power of every connection.

To learn more about Bank of America and their services, click here.