About the Game Change
Doris Smith
President
Doris Smith Associates
 I
have raced through life at one speed: faster. There were days of
feeling the wind of time passing on my cheeks. I taught myself to
read when I was three; convinced everyone to let me sit in on school
at four; started my first business at four and a half (it crashed
within months, but still) and on and on it went. Keeping to the
pattern was an early marriage, three babies in three years, and
at the same time running my consulting company and working toward
my Ph.D. I kept up with my singing and my art. Even when I went
to work full time for some of my clients, I continued research projects,
served on eleven not-for-profit boards, was an outspoken and vigorous
activist for the handicapped nationwide, and of course, managed
my home and family including three children—one of whom is
multiply handicapped. And this is probably not an atypical picture
of a lot of women reading this newspaper. But running fast can make
you forget that life is always a balance—one that can tip
gradually or abruptly. It is far too easy to get so caught up in
the “game” that you don’t even realize it’s
not your game anymore. Sometimes it takes a dramatic event to pull
back the blinds, to force you to reassess your priorities.
Things in both my personal and business life that had been very
important seemed much less so. Things that used to breeze by now
commanded my full attention. Proportions, perspectives, and energies—all
changed. I began to walk and not run through life. All of us experience
losses. I do not know why mine affected me in the profound way they
did, but they surely changed my game. Business and career are still
important, and so are accomplishments. I will continue to work,
but relationships and love, and learning how to appreciate both
have taken a very different position in my life. I am sure this
is yet another gift.
Dr. Dana Beth Ardi
Human Capital Partner
JP Morgan Partners
 There
is one thing of which we can be sure and that is “change happens!”
But what is change? And how do we approach it? According to the
dictionary, change means to transform; to cause; to be different;
the act, process, or result of altering or modifying. In order to
change, one has to give up a secure state, approach the unknown,
adapt to the differences. We are afraid of change for we are afraid
of the unknown. This keeps us hostage to the past and does not allow
us to grow, to evolve, and to embrace the future. If we knew the
result of the change would be positive, would bring us happiness,
satisfaction, love, riches—we would change all the time. It
is this fear of the unknown that prevents us from moving forward,
evolving, finding ourselves and finding happiness. We must learn
to understand that it is only through the process of change that
we can empower our dreams. In our time, change is a fact of life.
It is the time of “stake in the stream, not stake in the ground.”
Embrace the change; let it take you on the adventure, and have the
confidence to move forward, face the fear of the unknown, for there
is no courage without fear. In the words of the great Gandhi, “You
have to be the change you want to see in the world.”
Jennifer Read Hawthorne
Author
The Soul of Success
 Until
recently, I had always thought of success in the traditional way:
money, status, power and achievements. Then one day I found myself
asking, “What’s the point of position and material abundance
if you’re exhausted and out of balance all the time?”
I realized that success without peace and deep fulfillment is not
the kind of success I want. So I have started changing the way I
do business and live life. A hundred times a day I ask myself, “What
will bring me peace in this situation?” It requires ruthless
honesty and a commitment to self-love—and it’s changing
everything. For some time now, my mantra has been: I want to be
in the world in a new way. Peace is the way—and the greatest
success I’ve ever had.
Jewelle Bickford
Global Partner
Rothschild, the investment bank
 The
game changed dramatically for me 18 months ago. The President of
Rothschild NA called me into his office, without any notice, and
asked me to take a new job as the only full time new business partner
for the North American investment bank.
My first reaction was cautious because the position was purposefully
not clearly defined, no one within Rothschild had held this position
before and there were certainly no dedicated staff resources attached
to the offer. There was a budget and there was a discussion of bonus
expectations if I succeeded in originating new clients for the firm.
I spent the next week thinking about my life. There will be more
travel, but to places in Europe I like visiting. There will much
more entertaining but I like people and I have some control over
this aspect. I can create my own strategic plan within the boundaries
of the firm's advisory business and when I succeed, it will be high
profile.
I also felt I was the right age to take this big risk having recently
turned 60. And, I am very glad I did. It proved once again that,
sometimes, the unknown path is the better one. In my case, the challenge
of the new job was not only personally energizing, but it broadened
my knowledge of my firm and its excellent people and made me learn
a whole new set of skills and attitudes. While I was reluctant to
change something that was working well for me, this change was definitely
for the better.
Meridel Prideaux
President
Prideaux Group Marketing
 It
was in May 2003 at the International Women’s Forum Conference
in Dublin Ireland where I met a British author, Elizabeth Handy.
She has just written a book: Reinvented Lives Women at Sixty: A
Celebration. It was then that I began to think about reinventing
myself after a 35-year-career as an owner of an advertising agency
in Portland Oregon. And so now I am reinvented and loving every
single moment of it. I work only 2 days per week in my office which
gives me more time for family, friends, fitness, community service,
and to pursue my lifelong goal of traveling the world.
I can now take on smaller marketing clients as a consultant; I
have contracted with Portland State University as a marketing advisor
and plan to teach a class once in awhile; I have taken on the presidency
of the Portland Festival Symphony that performs free classical concerts
in the public parks during the summer; I continue working with Young
Audiences, the national organization that puts the arts in education
in 32 cities in the country; and I have taken on the Chairman-elect
position with Fashion Group International, an organization that
I remember as a child when my mother was a member, and my niece
is now a student in the industry.
My list of reinvented dreams includes another 12 things that I
want to also do with my time. Life reinvented couldn't be better.
Embrace it when it's your turn.
Nina DiSesa
CEO
McCann-Erickson NY
 Advertising
is changing dramatically…new people coming in with new ideas.
The old way is passé. Clients are looking for different ways
to get the message across, to reach people in non-traditional ways.
The future lies in brilliant marketing through TV programming. Consider
home makeovers…a 30 minute commercial every week! You can
spend $2-3 million to place your product on these shows and establish
your product overnight. Who in Middle America ever heard of Manolo
Blahnik before Sex and the City?”
Denise K. Fletcher
CFO
Davita
 I
thought that we had made huge strides...And then Harvard’s
Summers, using the great podium of the presidency of Harvard, spouted
out so much sexism... after having shared the most amazing stuff
about Cornell West, one of the giant thinkers of our time...I say
nothing, not even his sexism, can stop women. Who would have thought
that the law schools and the accounting profession would be filled
with women in just one generation!
Lisa Caputo
President/CEO
Women & Company, NYC
 The
“game” has changed for women today, both personally
and professionally. More and more women who have careers are getting
out of the “game” to stay home with their children.
Other women are choosing to stay in the professional “game”
and raise their children at the same time. The most important thing
today is that all women are respected for the choices they make.
One choice is not universally better than the other. It is an individual
choice, and there should be a societal respect for each woman's
personal choice.
Susan V. Sprunk
Co-owner,
Artistry of Poland
 The
“game” has changed for me since I have left the hallowed
halls of big business
to become an entrepreneur. I always enjoyed retail, but the daily
challenges and learnings of running a business importing ornaments
is more fun. The involvement and variety of both strategic and tactical
decisions is fast paced. It also is exciting to have a real ‘stake’
in the game. I have applied all aspects of my MBA training. This
goes for many things I never expected to use like currency exchange...oh
the sinking dollar! But there are lots of opportunities for creative
thinking to counter challenges like the dollar/euro dilemma.
Linda S. Sanford
Senior Vice President
IBM Corporation
 When
I spend time with customers, sharing ideas about transformation,
the conversation inevitably turns to culture change. The other aspects
of transforming an organization—business processes and technology,
are just as important, but culture change—the people side
of business, is usually the most difficult.
To change culture, you have to use all the levers at your disposal—compensation,
rewards, recognition, and education, to move people in the direction
you know the culture needs to go. But by far the most important
ingredient in culture change is leadership, leadership that models
the new culture and behavior you’re seeking, leadership that
inspires the team to see the opportunities that come with change,
leadership that invigorates an organization to constantly reinvent
itself.
The best organizations are constantly reinventing themselves, in
good times and bad. I believe the same principle applies to most
successful people. Leaders are always looking for ways to improve
themselves. That’s how you stay on top—that’s
how you change the game.
Irene Cohen
CFO
FlexCorp Systems
 Adjusting
to short term planning versus the traditional long term plan is
the biggest change in the way we need to run our business in today’s
economic climate. We work towards reaching milestones that indicate
progress knowing that getting that brass ring takes patience and
time. Whether it’s interest rates, the Euro, or a client takeover
we need to be constantly aware that our client’s strategy
will also change. We have to adjust just as they do to help them
meet their business goals.
Westina Matthews Shatteen
First Vice President
Merrill Lynch, NYC
 Approaching
my 20th year with my company and over 25 years in my profession,
I now often hear myself referred to as “mentor.” Proudly
she—or sometimes a he will proclaim that she is my mentor.
Where did the time go, as I seemed to almost effortlessly transition
from being a rookie, to a mentee, to a colleague, to a mentor? As
one friend dryly explained to me, “Being called a mentor just
means that we’ve been around a l-o-n-g time.”
The other day, a new, young, dewey-eyed professional referred to
me—ever so reverentl as the “godmother.” I immediately
began to search for the magic wand to throw fairy dust on myself
to turn back the clock. Alas, a chance glance in the mirror reflected
back a twinkle in the eyes, laugh lines around the smile, a battle
worn heart, and a “Been there/done that/got the t-shirt/don’t
want another one” tilt to the head.
Sounds like a godmother to me; and gosh am I glad to still be in
the game!
Susan Bird
Founder/CEO
Wf360 LLC, NYC
 Women
are creating a whole new conversation in the business world. They’ve
got something to say; the wise ones say it in their own style (rather
than trying to sound like men) and most importantly they’re
being heard. It’s important that we take on the tough issues;
by simply initiating difficult conversations, we can open up an
avenue of communication that has shut down. And that kind of dialogue,
can change everything on both an individual and organizational level.
If you think about it, every company has a “Talk System,”
composed of the conversations that take place all day long, throughout
an organization, forming a kind of corporate circulatory system.
Sometimes whole parts of the organism have been cut off, or operate
dysfunctionally and are not part of the organizational conversation.
Women can be especially skilled at opening the dialogue up, revitalizing
the “TalkSystem,” so that parts that were cut off earlier
can connect again with the flow of the organization. I’ve
seen more and more instances of women taking the lead in this new
conversation. And they’re having an impact...
Betty Murphy
President & Managing Director
ReGenesis, LLC
 The
game has changed for me in a dramatic way… not particularly
because I am a woman, but specifically because of the way that companies
have merged. My company creates, develops, patents and licenses
original consumer and topical drug delivery products. There used
to be a multitude of product companies to choose from for licensing
presentations. Under the onslaught of merger mania, there are simply
fewer client candidates. A perfect example: Lehn & Fink, Airwick,
Benckiser, and Reckitt & Colman are now all one company! All
this may be to our benefit, as we are thinking outside of the proverbial
box and considering a money raise to take products to market ourselves!
Kimberly Till,
VP of Microsoft Corp.’s Worldwide Media & Entertainment
Group
 After
many years in the media and entertainment (M&E) industry (including
Disney in Europe and AOL Time Warner), I decided to move into the
technology sector by joining Microsoft. I am currently responsible
for Microsoft’s Worldwide Media & Entertainment Group,
which focuses on the creation, sale and deployment of value driven
technology solutions for global media & entertainment companies.
It has been fascinating to see how the worlds of technology and
media and entertainment are converging as much of the M&E content
is going digital. The value chains for the creation, manipulation,
and distribution of content are being transformed by technology.
This is just one of the ways that M&E and technology companies
are working together to change the game!
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