TCNJ

37 WINTER 2022 the gender initiative at Harvard Busi- ness School and co-author of the book, Glass Half-Broken: Shattering the Barriers That Still Hold Women Back at Work. "There have been very few pockets where you see growth of women in leadership positions in the last 25 years." The problems for women are cumu- lative — a lack of mentorship, penalties for motherhood, and biases that hinder female leadership. Tally those together, and women end up shut out of the top echelons. To make meaningful changes, companies need to reconsider their hiring practices, which can rein- force biases, as they aim to recruit women, Ammerman says. The work doesn't end with an offer letter. Once women and people of color are hired, companies need to provide mentorship to support and nurture their careers. For Elaine Rocha '95, the chair of TCNJ's Foundation Board of Directors and AIG's global chief investment officer, the lack of diversity in Invest- ments was glaring when she first joined the division in 2015. "I looked across the trading floor and saw a sea of white men," says Rocha, a lawyer who had moved to Investments from the legal division. In response, Rocha created and implemented a talent recruitment program to enhance diversity, equity, and inclusion in Investments. She started at the beginning of the pipeline, diversifying the colleges AIG recruited from, with an aim to attract more women and people of color. She drew on her own background as a history major from a working-class family who went on to acquire a law degree as a model for who could work in finance. "If there is someone who is an art major who has the drive and ambition, then why not?" she says. But women need more than job offers to stay in the industry. They need mentors, like the one Rocha had when she was serving as interim chief of staff for the former general counsel of AIG. The mentor, whom Rocha described as her "work dad," advised her to sit down with her boss and ask about her next career move. But Rocha was reluctant. "I think most women, we tend to think about proving ourselves first before asking for that next opportunity," she says. But her mentor thought other- wise, and would counsel her with regu- lar telephone calls on her way home from the city. "Every day on my commute home, he said, 'Did you talk to him?'" The group met so regularly that they gave themselves a name — SILKS, which stood for Strong Independent Ladies in Killer Shoes. Finally, she set up a meeting to discuss her next career steps with the general counsel, and after some consideration, he suggested a move to financial services, an option Rocha had not considered. The experience was eye opening. Women need sponsors — senior colleagues who are vested in their careers and who advocate for them on their behalf when they are not in the room. In the recruitment program she later built, "I made sure people had mentors at every step of the way," she says. "We need to have mentor and sponsorship programs that legitimately set people up for success." Men have long had networking spaces to help grow their careers. They may spend Sunday golfing, or bond over drinks after work. When Jennifer Graf '96 started working at a hedge fund, she realized she needed her own network. Graf, the director of operations for Renaissance Technologies, spent the early part of her career at Goldman Sachs, working in private wealth management. As part of a large institu- tion, she felt supported, with plenty of opportunities for mentorship. But the hedge fund world was smaller, and she did not have many connections. And so, through 100 Women in Finance, an advocacy organization that supports a variety of peer advisory groups, she joined one specific to her field. But the real support network came from a bond she formed with three other women in finance. The group met so regularly that they gave themselves a name — SILKS, which stood for Strong Independent Ladies in Killer Shoes, a nod to the 2013 book, Stiletto Network. "I think that branding has kept us together for easily a decade," Graf says. "We send each other notes, 'I need my SILKS.' It really has created this kind of glue that has kept us together." Over the years, SILKS has played a pivotal role in Graf 's support network, giving her a place to commiserate and find support, both professionally and personally. "We get to bring our whole selves to the group. We support each other," she says. "It is a safe space, a trusted network." "We have to figure out: How do we get the word out that this is actually an amazing career for women?" Bolton says. "We have to rebrand." Bolton encouraged her daughters to consider careers in finance, even though neither majored in business. She urged them to look beyond the stereotype of a macho, bare-knuckle industry, and join a profession that she sees as noble, one that helps people prepare for the future and retirement. The industry is driven by relationships and communication, skills women excel at, and should be encouraged to leverage. Both of her daughters now work in financial services.

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