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Please join us on Thursday, February 4 when Mercy Ameyaw, CAMS, Director, Internal Audit, Raymond James Financial Inc., will speak about successfully navigating transitions, of which she has had many. Ms. Ameyaw is responsible for developing and executing robust audit plans in accordance with internal audit standards and relevant government statutes/regulations. She serves as Co-Chair for the Raymond James Valor Network (Veterans Inclusion Network) and President-Elect of the Board of Directors of Girls Inc. of Pinellas. Prior to her current role, Ms. Ameyaw was a Manager in the firm’s Anti-Money Laundering & Financial Crimes Management Governance Group. Her experience also includes analysis and investigation of financial crimes matters while working for the JP Morgan Chase Global Financial Crimes Compliance Team.

In addition to her role in the corporate world, Ms. Ameyaw recently retired after serving almost 17 years in the United States Army. In her last duty position, she served as the Acting First Sergeant and Platoon Sergeant in an airborne unit. In her military career, she specialized in Special Operations Forces multi-level intelligence analysis and network operations. During her military career, Ms. Ameyaw received several awards, including two Bronze Star Medals, a Meritorious Service Medal, two Army Commendation Medals, and a Medal for Humane Action.

With a Masters in Intelligence Studies & Operations, a double Bachelors in Political Science & International Affairs, coupled with her military experience, Ms. Ameyaw is highly proficient in conducting complex global intelligence and financial crimes analysis across multiple jurisdictions and countries. Ms. Ameyaw speaks six languages and currently resides in St. Petersburg, FL, with her significant other and two basenji dogs.

We’re delighted to welcome renowned author, Fawn Germer, to our September Luncheon meeting where she will discuss the principles of her latest book, Work-Life Reset.

If Fawn Germer didn’t live by the Japanese proverb, “Fall down seven times, get up eight,” she probably would have given up years ago, when a bad boss told her she’d never be more than she was right then – a reporter.

She showed him. Fawn is a four-time Pulitzer-nominee and the best-selling author of nine books, including an Oprah book. She has keynoted all over the world and is one of three women on the prestigious “guru list” of the best global leadership speakers. Her first book was rejected by every major publisher in the U.S., but Fawn persevered until it was a bestseller. She wrote 28 letters to Oprah’s producers, but none of them worked. It was the 29th that scored her the windfall of an Oprah book.

Fawn personally interviews the most accomplished leaders and trailblazers of our times for their strategies and stories. Combining their wisdom with her inspiring personal experiences has made her one of the most beloved, uplifting and funny keynote speakers in North America.

Fawn has headlined leadership events for Coca-Cola, Ford Motor Co., Cisco, Walmart, Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, State Farm, Novartis, Accenture, Deloitte, GlaxoSmithKline, Goldman Sachs and dozens of others on the Fortune 500 list… Meeting planners regularly turn to Fawn because she knows how to reach inside of the people in the audience and pull out their best.

She is currently working on her tenth book, which teaches why some careers go the distance and others sputter out. For the project, she has interviewed more than 200 top CEOs, startup geniuses, organizational experts and professionals.

Fawn is a daring outdoor adventurer and she has inspired hundreds of thousands of people to live fuller, more meaningful lives. She is widely recognized as one of the world’s go-to voice on work-life balance, showing that we make choices in life, and those choices have consequences. She recently delivered a TEDx talk on the topic of personal reset for a happier, more balanced approach to life, work and stress.

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What can we learn from history about today’s issues? Terri Lipsey Scott, Executive Director of the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American History Museum, will address that very question when speaking about the museum and its importance to our community. A native of Savannah, Georgia, Terri has been a resident of St. Petersburg since 1981. She is a retired administrative officer having served the Office of the Mayor and City Council from 1987-2014.

Terri’s civic engagement included memberships in the Junior League, Women of the Word, St. Petersburg Chapter of the Links, Inc., St. Petersburg Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., ALPHA HOUSE, SPC Women on the Way, First Night and Colours of Culture. Mrs. Lipsey Scott has served on local boards to include Aids Services Association of Pinellas, St. Petersburg Branch of the NAACP, Co-Chair of Community Alliance, Convener of St. Petersburg Together, St. Petersburg College Women on the Way, Alpha House, the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American History Museum and the One City Chorus.

Terri has been honored by the YWCA, Studio @ 620, Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), and Watermark. Her writing was recently published as the Foreword in the newly released Salt Creek Journal. Terri is an alumna of Savannah State University and Eckerd College. She is a graduate of the Leadership St. Pete Class of 2008 having served as the community project co-chair and visionary. 

Terri is everywhere. She is deeply involved in advocating for dozens of issues surrounding housing, poverty, and opportunity. She has proven a tireless advocate for equity and fairness, committed to making our city a great place to live for all residents. Mrs. Lipsey Scott has said, “I am hopeful that I can create opportunities for young women with respect to leadership. I have a wealth of information that I believe that I can provide to young women who are looking to enter into the field of either administration or politics that I think is critical. There are missing components in today’s environment in the areas of leadership and administration that we need to get back to.”

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Successfully working internationally offers incredible opportunities but also requires patience and awareness and knowledge of cultural norms and differing legal environments. On September 21, come listen to the experiences of three women, who in different stages of their careers and in different industries chose to work outside the US (in different parts of the world). They are Tricia Curry, Marcia Cohen and Sheila Barry-Oliver. How did working internationally impact their careers and their work interactions?

Tricia Curry, in practice since 2008, studied massage therapy at the Cortiva Institute in Pinellas Park and received her BS in Exercise Science in 2012 from USF. She co-owns St. Pete Massage and Fitness with her husband and splits her time between St. Petersburg, FL, and Los Cabos, BCS, Mexico.

Marcia Cohen holds a BA in Education from Roosevelt University of Chicago, an MA in Music Composition from Northwestern University, and a JD from Stetson University College of Law. She practices primarily in the area of labor and employment law with a concentration in employment discrimination and sexual harassment. She was a delegate of the Destree Institute of Namur, Belgium, at the UN Conference on the Status of Women in 2013. Ms. Cohen has been appointed NOW Legal Counsel as of August 2017. She divides her time between Florida and Paris, France, where she is Of Counsel to the international law firm of Cimadevilla Avocats.

Sheila Barry-Oliver, Ed.D., who retired after 28 years in information technology and management consulting and 13 years in higher education, will moderate the discussion. While in consulting, Sheila created and led the workforce diversity initiative at Booz Allen Hamilton, which involved training and implementing corporate policies globally. She has worked in Egypt and lectured on global workplace diversity at Oxford University in England. Sheila has a BA in mathematics, an MBA and a doctorate in human resource development.

The lessons these women learned about working successfully on an international basis can be applied to all work situations.

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On June 1 our luncheon program will focus on the signature programs that fall under the umbrella of BPW/FL Leadership: Individual Development, Women in Transition and Young Careerist.  Jerri Evans, Legal Assistant with Lisa A. Hoppe, PA, Attorney at Law, will represent BPW/St. Petersburg-Pinellas at the Individual Development Speak Off at our upcoming BPW/FL State Conference.  The speak-off consists of a five-minute prepared speech and a two-minute impromptu speech. Jerri will deliver her speech on one of the prescribed topics set forth by the BPW/FL Leadership committee:

1: Running for political office
2: Transitioning to a new job or a new career
3: Motivating women to go out and vote
4: Advising a BPW scholarship recipient
5: Converting the energy at marches into concrete action
6: Celebrating BPW/FL’s 100 year anniversary

Sheila Barry Oliver will discuss our Young Careerist Program and Cynthia Gramberg will inform us all about the program that we have for Women In Transition.

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Strategies for Success 2017. Strategies for Success professional development workshop series based on BPW’s long-running Individual Development curriculum is back by popular demand. This year we had four monthly sessions held on the fourth Saturday of each month (from January through April) at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital Education and Conference Center. This workshop series was for you if you are… Employed or in transition • Early, mid or late career • Working in the for profit, non-profit or government sector • Anticipating a career change • An entrepreneur or working for someone else. Each session was $20 for members, $25 for non-members and there was an early enrollment discount if you enrolled in all four before the first workshop on January 28, 2017. Click here for more information. 

Please join us this Friday, September 9th at 8:00 pm to wish our fellow BPW sister Tricia Curry goodbye. Please contact Jerri at jerri.bpw.president@gmail.com  for more information. Please bring your own beverage.

Liz Illgen, a realtor with Keller Williams Gulfside Realty, won the BPW/St. Petersburg-Pinellas (BPW/SPP) Speak-off held on May 5, 2016. The Individual Development (ID) speak-off, which consists of both a prepared speech and an impromptu speech, is the final stage of the ID program. BPW’s ID program was developed in the 1960s and has continued to evolve as the workplace has changed. BPW/SPP has held ID programs for the last two years, which consisted of five Saturday morning sessions of two modules each. Speak-off participants must have attended at least six ID modules and must be BPW members. For her prepared speech, Liz gave advice to women considering starting their own business.  Liz joined BPW in 2014 and has been active ever since, serving as an officer both last year and this. Liz will represent BPW/SPP at the 2016 BPW/FL State Conference, to be held on June 24-25 at the Vinoy Renaissance in St. Petersburg.

Join us for “Hold Your Own Purse: Personal and Professional Financial Management,” the last in our Strategies for Success series of Individual Development workshops.  Learn about wealth management planning, budgeting, saving vs investing, planning for retirement, insurance, estate planning, organizational financial statements, taxes, and cash flow from our three expert speakers. Attendance at any of the previous workshops is not required, so bring a friend and start 2016 with a step to your own financial security.

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