Media contact: Kristi D. Lawrence                              FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Kristi@starfirepr.com

(505) 720-7403

ONLINE LEADERSHIP TRAINING HELPS WOMEN OVERCOME IBM EXECUTIVES' DISTORTED MENTALITY

Albuquerque, NM  (August 11, 2014) –

Wow. Just when you think we're making progress in the gender equality arena, you're slapped in the face with a startling wake-up call.  The most recent one came in the form of a supposedly overheard conversation between IBM executives that someone live-tweeted.  The venomous "boys club" conversation (which actually included a woman) reportedly focused on why they don't like to hire women:

http://mic.com/articles/94978/a-woman-live-tweeted-ibm-executives-discussing-why-they-don-t-hire-women?utm_source=policymicFB&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=social

So how do we, literally, change the conversation? 

"Utilize, rather than hide, natural female strengths," says Katie Snapp, founder of Skirt Strategies, a leadership training company for women. "Women in the workforce are often faced with issues like this David & Goliath example of the corporate power, or a work environment where women are a minority. Too often, being underrepresented leads to a woman not speaking up for herself or deferring to the more powerful ones in the office. "

Katie Snapp and Carol Wight joined forces to create Skirt Strategies because they saw a need for women to be valued as leaders in the workplace.  Katie's career in a male-dominated field (she was an engineer with Honeywell), and Carol's entrepreneurship (she has owned several restaurants and now heads the New Mexico Restaurant Association) gave each of them a unique first-hand perspective.  Katie herself will tell you that as a minority in the engineering world, she felt pressure to conform to the male way of doing things.  It was a disservice to her, and to her company, which did not fully benefit from her creative way of thinking and problem solving, or her savvy relationship-building skills.

Katie and Carol are now using their experience to help other women through Skirt Strategies, and have co-written a book called "Skirt Strategies: 249 Success Tips for Women in Leadership" to provide even more insight.

With the women's issue being a national dilemma, Skirt Strategies was their answer to "What do we do about it?" -- helping women enhance their leadership skills on their own terms by providing affordable, professional training and immediate encouragement.  Katie and Carol are followed by what they call their "tribe," committed subscribers who seek to elevate themselves with extensive, convenient training in small yet regular doses.  These women receive weekly emails with inspiration, a brief podcast or audio training session and a brief "homework" assignment designed to help them put their leadership training into real-world practice.  Every month, trainings focus on a new topic that women deal with in their everyday lives.  For example, July's topic was "Simple Ways to Create a Powerful Image" and one of the related weekly email trainings was "Command Your Presence."  It flows, and it works.

Skirt Strategies also recognizes that we're all in this together.  Katie and Carol also offer training and workshops for companies' male and female employees to improve communication. 

Carol says, "One of the big breakthroughs in improving communication between male and female employees is changing the perspective of the male leaders.  We help them recognize that:  1. The gender gap does exist, 2. They need to acknowledge that women's leadership styles are often different from theirs and that's ok, 3. They need to mentor and promote deserving women, and 4. Having both genders on your team creates optimal balance and maximizes company success."

Skirt Strategies is on the forefront of resolving the issues that women face in today's workplace in a way that celebrates women's strengths. That approach is needed now more than ever.  Companies that value their female workers are proven to have better bottom lines, not to mention happier, more productive employees.  The best thing women can do to fight the destructive mentality illustrated by some unwitting IBM executives is to boost their personal empowerment – enhancing their leadership skills to show themselves, and the world, that they can be impactful leaders.  If powerful women use their strengths to create stronger businesses and communities, all of us will be elevated.

**Katie Snapp and Carol Wight welcome the chance to talk with you about the benefits of leadership training for women, and how that training is crucial for our nation as well.  They are experts on the adverse situations that women face every day in the workplace and can easily talk about how to overcome them.  Dynamic, eloquent and intelligent, they give great interviews.  

**To arrange an interview, please contact Kristi Lawrence with StarFire PR & Marketing at Kristi@starfirepr.com or (505) 720-7403.

**For more information on Skirt Strategies, please go to www.SkirtStrategies.com

We appreciate your coverage.

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