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Dr. Patricia Arredondo, President of The Chicago School of Psychology, talks about the impact of affinity groups in the workplace.

These groups give employees an opportunity to network and learn from one another in an open setting, but they also help employers attract talent.

The UWM School of Continuing Education has its own affinity group for female engineers, called WiSE, or “Women in Science and Engineering.” Female engineers from across the state present on a variety of pertinent topics, sharing their knowledge and experiences with women in the industry.

For more information on WiSE, click here. You can also find a fascinating study on the experiences of women in the engineering industry here.

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Dr. Patricia Arredondo, President of The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, talks about many of the lessons she learned as an entrepreneur. Most small businesses will fail, but with patience, purpose, and a respect for criticism, you can build the right foundation for success.

After your business is established, though, you need to focus on the people you want to build that organization around. Learn how to develop an effective team and learn what type of person will compliment your purpose and vision.

Recently, a colleague and I were talking about leadership decision making. We exchanged thoughts about the continuum of decisions, the “easy” to the “difficult” ones.  Giving everyone a longer lunch hour on a sunny day is an easy decision to make for a leader. It is considerate and popular; who doesn’t like a little more personal time in the fresh air?

But then there are situations which demand a leader to show courage. The increasing importance of using social media in educational institutions for communicating with different audiences has meant that I decided to add social media usage as part of my staff’s performance plan in 2011. For a school that is largely successful because of its proactive marketing and on-the-ground relationship-building, social media is more of a necessity than an option.  Was my decision (to add social media usage to employees’ performance plans) a popular decision? I guess it depends on who you ask. Some individuals accept new technology more readily. Simply said, they are aficionados of tools such as LinkedIn, Facebook Twitter, Four-Square and so forth. Others, in spite of providing training and coaching, do not come on board so easily. As a leader, I encourage and consistently send the message that everyone must engage in some form of social media practice. But to some staff, this may seem like top-down legislation. However, I view it as the responsibility of a leader to make and stay with decisions that are important for the overall success of the school.

Perhaps the most challenging decisions I have made as a leader are ones that have involved establishing new business practices, confronting a direct report on their lack of professionalism and performance, or dismissing an individual. I prefer to make data-based decisions, ones that will stand up to scrutiny and second-guessing, although they may not be popular. These are situations when a leader needs to show courage and decisiveness.

Every decision can be viewed from multiple perspectives. But whenever I have had to make popular decisions or ones that required courage, I have always endeavored to exercise my values of integrity and transparency.

As a leader, where does courage enter your daily routine?