Leveraging your Superpower

Women in Business Discussion Group Tuesday 30 November 2021 | 6 – 8pm | Via Webex

Did you know that being a female CPA is a secret superpower? When you use it wisely it can supercharge your career and when combined with solid support networks, your professional and personal opportunities are amplified. If you would like to learn more about this superpower and some tools and tactics to leverage it, this session is for you.

Danielle Dobson is a former CPA and over her 14-year career held almost every finance role you can imagine and worked in private practice, NFPS and global Fortune500 companies. Living and working in 5 countries Danielle learned the importance of perspective, empathy and connection and how they can be the foundation for personal and professional success. Now the Founder of her business, Code Conversations, and a leadership coach, facilitator, speaker and advocate, Danielle focuses on supporting professional women to use the strengths and attributes they already have, to achieve their own unique version of fulfilment and success. Danielle is also an author of the book, Breaking the Gender Code and is given plenty of opportunities to practice her leadership insights in her most challenging role of all - being Lead Parent and Family CEO to three rather energetic boys!

To register, use the link in your email from CPA Women@gmail.com

Creating Authentic Connections

 Women in Business Discussion Group Tuesday 26 October 2021 | 6 – 8pm | Via Webex

How we connect with colleagues, business partners and clients in an authentic way that feels good and fosters productive relationships is essential to business and career. It is an interactive session where you will learn to recognise four primary behavioural styles and how they connect and interact. We will also be looking at what separates us from each other and how we can close the gap. If you are a logically / technically minded professional, this session is for you.  

Anna Bashkirova, CPA, is the founder and the Principal Consultant at EQuilibrium Consulting & Coaching (www.equilibriumconsulting.com.au). Anna is a human behaviour specialist and a self-leadership coach focusing on sustainable high performance. 

Prior to coaching, Anna had a successful career in accounting and IT where she consulted accountants and CFOs around accounting systems. This path led her to the realisation that most software implementation issues turned out to be people related. As a result, she devoted a few years to become a human behaviour specialist. Anna is a Professional Coach, qualified Extended DISC behavioural profiler, Meta Dynamics practitioner and a PROSCI certified change manager. Anna is passionate about helping accounting, finance, IT, and legal professionals unlock their potential as organisational and business leaders by enhancing their soft skills, particularly emotional intelligence and fitness.  She works with clients individually and in groups. Anna’s clients appreciate her empathetic and personable coaching style.  

Anna is also a property developer and a mum of a 22-year old engineer. 

To register, follow the link in your email from CPA Women

Deepening relationships for well-being and success

 Women in Business Discussion Group Tuesday 28 September 2021 | 6 – 8pm | Via Webex

Science shows that supportive relationships are the single most important factor in our health, happiness and success. To thrive, we need them in all areas of life: work, home, friendships and communities, local and professional. Yet building and maintaining caring, beneficial connections can be challenging, particularly in these times. The result is soaring levels of isolation, stress and mental and even physical illness globally. Presented by Dr Alicia Fortinberry, an organisational psychologist, best-selling author, business advisor and executive coach, the session will give you science-backed facts and tips to help you find and strengthen relationships that boost your confidence and wellbeing. You will have a better understanding of obstacles in yourself and circumstances that might hold you back from the relationships you want, and how to overcome these. Come prepared to ask questions, share feelings and observations and enjoy your community of CPA women.

Dr Alicia Fortinberry is an internationally recognised keynote speaker, best-selling author, teacher, business advisor and executive coach. An organisational psychologist who draws on the latest research in a wide field of behavioural sciences, Alicia offers proven, practical concepts and tools that enable individuals and organisations to achieve successful relationships, resilience, culture, leadership and strategy. Alicia works extensively with top-tier professional and financial service organisations as well as Global Fortune 500 companies in the US, Europe, Asia and Australia, including all the Big Four accounting consultancies and Australia’s major banks. Books with her partner Dr Bob Murray include two New York Times best-sellers Creating Optimism and Raising an Optimistic Child (both published by McGraw-Hill, New York) and two business best-sellers: The Human Science of Strategy: What works and what doesn’t and Leading the Future: The Human Science of Law Firm Strategy and Leadership (both ARK Group, London).  

To attend, use the registration link in your email from CPA Women.

How to stay connected to your network

 Women in Business Discussion Group Tuesday 24 August 2021| 6 – 8pm | Via Webex

As most of us continue to rely on digital communication and have limited in person interaction, how do we stay connected to our network? For our session on 24 August, we are excited to welcome Tamara (Cohen) Leizer FCA, FCPA, Director, Program Management Office, Fast Rail, Transport for NSW. Tamara will share her insights as an experienced leader and Fellow CPA. We will learn how to be proactive in staying connected, build our networks and develop strong stakeholder relationships. Look for the link to register in your email from CPA Women.

Excel Power Query

Women in Business Discussion Group Tuesday 27 July 2021| 6 – 8pm | Via Webex

The Women in Business Discussion Group are delighted to welcome back Neale Blackwood, Microsoft Excel expert. Neale will demonstrate how Power Query allows you to automatically perform data cleansing routines on your data sources - no manual intervention required. Simply refresh and your data is ready to use. You can use csv files; txt files; databases and existing Excel tables as your data sources.

Continuing his Power Query tips from his last session, Neale will start working with multiple files. For example, you may have 12 separate CSV files in a folder. All with the same layout, one for each month of the year. Power Query can import all 12 files as if they were a single file and create a table for the whole year

This session covers

• importing multiple CSV files from a folder
• a technique to capture the file name in a field (column)
• importing multiple Excel files
• merging data from multiple tables
• Extracting header information into a column from multiple CSV files

Neale Blackwood is a Microsoft Excel expert with over 30 years’ experience as an Accountant and consultant and over 25 years’ experience using and writing about Excel. Neale has been a regular contributor to INTHEBLACK since 2002. He has written over 200 Excel articles for the magazine. He answers Excel questions via email from CPAs from around the world.

He has written and presented numerous Excel sessions at CPA events around Australia over the past 10 years. He has recorded over two dozen Excel podcasts for the CPA Australia podcast series. His first book, Advanced Excel Reporting for Management Accountants, was published in 2014 by Wiley. He has presented over 350 live webinars on Excel since 2012 and written over 400 blog posts.

Neale works with organisations, large and small, to help them make the most of Excel by:

Speeding up reporting processes by re-engineering their current Excel files
Reducing re-keying by creating new reporting solutions
Removing manual processes by automating tasks using Power Query and macros
Providing targeted Excel coaching (in person and online)
Providing customised Excel training (in person and online)
Running live online webinars both free and paid

Women on Boards & Women in Leadership

Women in Business Discussion Group Tuesday 29 June 2021| 6 – 8pm | Via Webex and CPA Centre Level 3, 111 Harrington St Sydney

For our June session, Claire Braund and Ruth Medd FCPA, founders and Non-Executive Directors of Women on Boards, will be presenting on the topic of 'How women can achieve leadership and board roles’. Claire and Ruth founded Women on Boards (https://www.womenonboards.net/en-au/home) in Australia in 2006 and in the UK in 2012 in partnership with some British colleagues. They have influenced and supported thousands of women to succeed in leadership roles and on boards and continue to be strong advocates around issues impacting women.

Ruth Medd
Chair, WOB Pty Ltd (appointed April 2006)

Chair, Women on Boards Australia (appointed February 2018)
Chair, Health and Sciences Institute Pty Ltd
Chair, Australian Chocolate Pty Ltd
Trustee, NSW Historic Houses Trust
Board Member, National Foundation for Australian Women

Ruth is a Certified Practising Accountant and former IT professional who has been pursuing a career as a Non-Executive-Director since 2000. She was the founding chair of Women on Boards and in this capacity has been instrumental in the growth of the business and supported many thousands of women to become board members. She maintains wide interests outside of WOB, including in the start-up sector and angel investing as well as her other board and committee roles. Ruth was previously the chair of Australian Ethical Superannuation, a member of the NSW Casino Control Authority and a director of the Infants Home at Ashfield. Prior executive roles include executive director of the Australian Association of National Advertisers and senior positions with Telstra, the Australian Broadcasting Tribunal and the Federal Government.

 

Claire Braund

Non-Executive Director, WOB Pty Ltd (appointed April 2006)
Executive Director, Women on Boards Australia (appointed February 2018)
President & Building Committee Chair, Central Coast Conservatorium of Music
Non-Executive Director, Coast Shelter Emergency Accommodation Ltd

Claire is a social entrepreneur and businesswoman based on the NSW Central Coast. She co-founded Women on Boards in Australia in 2006 and in the UK in 2012 following a career in journalism and public relations. She is an experienced

Non-Executive Director on small businesses and large Not-For-Profit organisations and has significant expertise on board governance in many other sectors.

Claire is a highly respected facilitator and speaker on a range of topics in the area of board governance, equity and diversity. She is an informed and entertaining MC and presenter and well known for her courage, conviction, compassion and confidence; and as someone who looks for new ideas and opportunities.

In 2011 Claire became a Churchill Fellow for her research into gender balance on boards in Norway, France and the UK. She is also a graduate of the Benevolent Society’s Sydney Social Leadership Program which has led to a lifelong interest in affordable housing and related social issues, particularly those impacting women and children.

Look for the registration link in your email from cpawomen@gmail.com

To give all members the chance to dial in to the CPA Australia AGM next Tuesday night, 27 April 2021, we have cancelled the April session of the Women in Business discussion group.

We encourage our members to attend the AGM online. Details on how to watch via Webcast and ask questions can be found on the CPA AGM site.

We look to forward seeing you in person or virtually at our next discussion group session on 25 May 2021.

Take the CON out of CONfidence!

Women in Business Discussion Group Tuesday 30 March 2021| 6pm – 8pm | via Webex and CPA Centre Level 3, 111 Harrington St Sydney

Hi members!

For our March session were are delighted to introduce Dale Rees-Bevan to show us how to Take the CON out of CONfidence!

Trust is at an all-time low and has become one of the most valuable assets an organisation can have. How do we inspire confidence in our employees, our colleagues and our clients? In this talk, Dale explores what we can do at an individual level to increase our confidence and have an impact within our organisation.

In this session you will:

·       Learn about Trust currency

·       Understand how your actions influence the perception of trust

·       Be inspired by ways to create confident working environments

·       Learn specific things you can do to build your own confidence

Dale Rees-Bevan is a speaker, trainer, certified World Class Speaking Coach™, past President of Professional Speakers Australia NSW/ACT, President of SpeakersBank Australia Incorporated and author of "The Speaking Formula". Dale loves language, learning and laughter and believes in combining these in equal measure in all her sessions.

Over the last 20 years, Dale has helped thousands of people find their voice and articulate their full potential to the world. Her extensive speaking and presenting experience culminated in the opportunity to “walk her talk” competing at the World Championship of Public Speaking in Vancouver, 2017. Dale has been booked to speak at conferences in South Africa, UK, Australia and Japan. Her programs have helped medical professionals, architects, accountants, engineers, sales and HR managers, plumbers, teachers, students, volunteers and professionals from all walks of life.

 ******New!******: We have changed platforms!  We are now using the CPA hosted Webex for our meetings.  This will improve the experience, for members attending both online and in person.  Please use the new Webex details below. 

To attend, please RSVP  by this Friday 26 March to cpawibfb@gmail.com and indicate if you are attending in person or via Webex. 

Details and Registration for Women in Business Tues 23 February - Discover the power mindset plays in learning to utilise both sides of the brain

 Women in Business Discussion Group Tuesday 23 February 2021 | 6pm – 8pm | CPA Offices Sydney and via Zoom

 

Hi members!

 

After almost a year of virtual sessions, we are very excited to welcome Mary Jensen for an in person session on Tuesday 23 February. Logging in via Zoom will also be available.  If you are available to attend in person, you must register at cpawibfb@gmail.com by this Friday 19 February and provide your Full name and email address.  This is to comply with the COVID safe procedures at CPA Australia.

 

Mary Jensen will be sharing with us how to ‘Discover the power mindset plays in learning to utilise both sides of the brain’.

 

Mary Jensen is a Human Behaviour Specialist, Mindset Master and professional keynote speaker. Mary has designed, led and built teams for over three decades with accolades and award-recognition, both locally and internationally.  Mary is passionate about empowering people and driving change with individuals and teams that can be mentored and developed into quality, high performance.  She works extensively with CEOs, C-Suite and Senior leadership teams to guide them through challenges. She trains and studies continuously in the latest models and methods of altering the brain and behaviour to assist her clients to be the best they can be.

 

Mary created M Power Services focusing on business growth, problem-solving and increasing profits through changing the way people think, act and react after a long-term, very successful finance career with large ASX listed companies and some of Australia’s biggest multinational brands. Particularly within her expansive work in mergers and acquisitions – and being tasked with melding teams together – she recognised a gap and urgent need in Human Behaviour skills in Business.