In The March 2022 Issue:

• Intro Letter by Lauren Goff
• Your First 90 Days on the Job written by Julie C. DeCuypere
• WWLF Spotlight: Kristen Marano
• Upcoming Events

Thank you to our Newsletter sponsor:

Dear WWLF Members, 

Thank you for your engagement with WWLF!  It is an honor to address you through our monthly newsletter about upcoming events and opportunities with WWLF. Through exposure at WWLF’s events, members share their expertise, broaden their contacts, and advance their career opportunities.  Our events team, including volunteers at National, Regional and City levels work hard to bring you engaging, informative, and uplifting programming that supports these goals.  For example, WWLF hosted a total of 38 events in 2021, ranging from virtual to in-person, career development, networking, and educational sessions.  And we have no plans to slow down as 2022 moves forward! 

WWLF members and leadership will be attending South Wireless Summit (SWS) at the end of March and we would love to see you there!  You are cordially invited to stop at the WWLF booth for new swag and a special event discount on membership and membership renewal.  Moreover, members are encouraged to pop by the WWLF booth at SWS on Monday, March 28th at 5pm local time to show our WWLF pride en masse!  Are you looking to volunteer for WWLF at SWS, and meet amazing telecom professionals while doing it?  Reach out to myself, Lauren Goff at lgoff@ramaker.com, or any of our events team to reserve your volunteer spot!     

WWLF is always looking for more ways to bring value to our members.  In-person events proved challenging amidst the COVID-19 pandemic; however, while in-person events are now on the rise, I would like to remind our members of some upcoming virtual events that are just as impactful.  If you haven’t yet, I encourage you to check out the monthly Motivation and Mugs virtual networking sessions, where WWLF members across the nation meet at the start of each new month to connect and discuss an engaging professional development topic.  Please join us March 7th for the next installment of Motivation and Mugs!  Another great opportunity to connect this month is WWLF’s Wine Down Wednesday on March 16th.  This will be a fun virtual happy-hour networking platform for all members.  Also, WWLF’s Education team has continued hosting quarterly book reads.  On April 20th, we will be discussing a powerful memoir by trailblazing former CEO of PepsiCo, Indra Nooyi, called My Life in Full.  We hope you will join us!  Check out our webpage and weekly e-blasts for links to registration for any of these events. 

As we look forward to these awesome opportunities, our events team is always open to your ideas.  If you or someone you know is interested in joining the events team as a City Representative or local committee member, we encourage you to check out our website and reach out to our esteemed City Reps and Regional Directors for your area, or any one of our National Events team members, including myself, Laura Lora or Carolyn Hardwick.  If I can personally help enhance your experience with WWLF, please use me as a resource – I look forward to connecting! 

Sincerely,

Lauren Goff

WWLF National Director of Events

lgoff@ramaker.com

(608) 644-2219 (o)

(330) 714-9238 (m)

The First 90 Days at a New Job

Written by Julie C. DeCuypere

With the “Great Reshuffle” comes the “Great Hiring” and you have now found yourself one of the many workers starting a new job in 2022.  Changing jobs has become the norm in modern society and the pandemic heightened those shifts. U.S. workers have an average tenure of about 4.1 years with a single employer. 65% of American workers are actively searching for a new full-time job right now. (1) 

Congratulations!  But now is not the time to rest on your laurels.  The first 90 days in a new role are crucial to setting yourself up for success, making strategic relationships, and contributing in a meaningful way to the company bottom line.  Well before you report in for your first meeting with your new supervisor, make a plan.  Even if you are not in a managerial or executive role, a 90 day plan should be created before you come on board and shared with the hiring manager during the interview process. Leadership consultant Michael Watkins, author of The First 90 Days: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter states “By talking about how you would approach your first 90 days, you demonstrate agility and proactiveness.” (2)

During your first three months in a new role, don’t rely on others to define your path or progress.  Take charge of your own professional development.  Part of your plan should include an assessment of the strengths that you bring, as well as the gaps where you will have to grow.  You can then obtain additional resources and education in order to accomplish those aspects of the role. (3) 

Start an accomplishments journal NOW so you have tangible evidence to show what achieved in your first three months on the job and keep track so you have concrete evidence next time you are up for a promotion or just want to remind yourself of your progress.  Leadership and Career Coach Andrew Lacavita talks about this tool not only for promotion but also for succession planning. (4)

Click to see the footnotes and to read the full article.

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WWLF Spotlight: Kristen Marano

Business Development Manager - Renewables, Kineticom and WWLF City Rep for San Diego

How long have you been a City Rep for WWLF and what is your territory/region? 
I am the WWLF City Representative for San Diego and have been in my position for a year

Why did you join WWLF? 
As a newcomer to the industry, I was approached about the opportunity to join WWLF to network with more women in the space and learn more about the industry. My company, Kineticom Inc., actively supports Women in Wireless and encouraged me to apply for the WWLF San Diego City Representative position. WWLF immediately offered a network of women and educational sessions that support and encourage women to have a space in the industry. WWLF offers an incredible mentorship program to connect newcomers with established women in the space.

How has being a part of WWLF impacted you personally or professionally? 
The WWLF mentorship program impacted me because it gave me the confidence to navigate industry events and be ‘comfortably uncomfortable’ in new spaces by not only my mentor, Sara but also my company, Kineticom and the WWLF network. My mentor, Sara Muehlberger, helped me grow professionally and personally throughout our monthly video meetings and is a person I proudly call a friend! Sara was a profound positive force in my first year in WWLF and encouraged me to bridge WWLF with my current position of Brand and Business Development Manager with Kineticom while also encouraging that it is OK to slow down and embrace hitting ‘pause’.

WWLF requires City Reps to plan two events a year and I planned the first WWLF End of Summer Social in September of 2021. The event pushed me to grow professionally (finding 11 industry sponsors) and connect with key players of the 11 companies, especially women: Shout outs to Jennifer Hawk with Kineticom, Gabriella Bedor with TeleWorld Solutions, Cori Aluli with 5G LLC, Jennifer Winters with Tangent, and Gina Dorati with Wes-Tec. Shout out to the WWLF Events committee that made it happen: Laura Lora, Stella Nguyen Bezebah, and Michelle Salisbury. Shout out to the sponsors of the event who made it happen: Kineticom Inc., Helicore, Tarpon Towers, MasTec, TeleWorld Solutions, 5G LLC, Wes-Tec, Fibe-Con, EBI Consulting, Motive Infrastructure Solutions, Tangent Systems, and GSS Inc.

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Upcoming Events

Monthly Networking Events!
WWLF Members Only

Please join WWLF for our Monthly Networking Event: Motivation and Mugs

The 1st Monday of every month.

Although times are getting somewhat back to normal, we are still not quite there yet.

So, let's come together and connect while enjoying our morning ritual of coffee, tea, lemon water or whatever your choice of drink!

During this Monday Motivation and Mugs, each attendee will have one minute to introduce themselves and talk about what they are looking for/needing during these times: job opportunities, connections, friendly support, etc..

March 7, 2022

10:00 AM - 10:45 AM (EST)

Zoom link to be sent before the event

Registration closes the Friday before the event.

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A New York Times Best Seller!
An intimate and powerful memoir by the trailblazing former CEO of PepsiCo 

For a dozen years as one of the world’s most admired CEOs, Indra Nooyi redefined what it means to be an exceptional leader. The first woman of color and immigrant to run a Fortune 50 company — and one of the foremost strategic thinkers of our time — she transformed PepsiCo with a unique vision, a vigorous pursuit of excellence, and a deep sense of purpose. Now, in a rich memoir brimming with grace, grit, and good humor, My Life in Full offers a firsthand view of Nooyi’s legendary career and the sacrifices it so often demanded. 
 
Nooyi takes us through the events that shaped her, from her childhood and early education in 1960s India, to the Yale School of Management, to her rise as a corporate consultant and strategist who soon ascended into the most senior executive ranks. The book offers an inside look at PepsiCo, and Nooyi’s thinking as she steered the iconic American company toward healthier products and reinvented its environmental profile, despite resistance at every turn.

For the first time and in raw detail, Nooyi also lays bare the difficulties that came with managing her demanding job with a growing family, and what she learned along the way. She makes a clear, actionable, urgent call for business and government to prioritize the care ecosystem, paid leave and work flexibility, and a convincing argument for how improving company and community support for young family builders will unleash the economy's full potential.

Generous, authoritative, and grounded in lived experience, My Life in Full is the story of an extraordinary leader's life, a moving tribute to the relationships that created it, and a blueprint for 21st century prosperity. 

April 20, 2022

6:30 PM (CST)  

Zoom link to be sent before the event 

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All events open to WWLF members

Become a new member of WWLF or renew your membership today!

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Thank you to our exclusive newsletter sponsor

WWLF is a proud affiliate of WIA

Women's Wireless Leadership Forum C/O WIA
2111 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 210 Arlington, VA 22201

© 2021 Women’s Wireless Leadership Forum All Rights Reserved

WWLF is committed to creating an inclusive environment where diverse voices are welcome in all aspects of our organization. WWLF values the knowledge and perspectives that our members bring to our organization from their diverse backgrounds. While all members are welcome to participate in both regional and national events, WWLF remains committed to the design and delivery of content to support the development of women in the wireless communications industry.