“We don’t accomplish anything in this world alone… and whatever happens is the result of the whole tapestry of one’s life and all the weavings of individual threads from one to another that creates something.”
-- U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor

The National Women’s Leadership Summit also included breakout sessions on the topic of Partnerships to promote Women’s Bureau programs and other programs benefiting working women. These sessions targeted leaders in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors because, for each type of organization, success in some way depends on the ability to form meaningful partnerships.

The panelists included:

Public Sector

• Dr. Gail Mellow

President, LaGuardia Community College, Long Island, NY

Private Sector
• Marilyn Gutierrez

Director, Workforce Diversity & EEO, Alcatel, Plano, TX

• Steven Wing

Director, Government Programs, CVS, Twinsburg, OH

Nonprofit Sector

• Kathy Lambert

Executive Director, Connections to Success, St. Louis, MO
• Jennet Robinson Alterman

Executive Director, Center for Women, Charleston, SC
• Bernarda Wong

President, Chinese American Service League, Chicago, IL

According to the panelists, successful partnerships are formed by organizations that share similar goals and know how to create a win-win situation. Building and sustaining partnerships is an ongoing process. Organizations must constantly pay attention to the changing needs of their stakeholders and reach out to the appropriate partners to address those needs.

Depending on the circumstances, partners may be internal or external to the organization itself. For example, different parts of one organization may become internal partners, using their different strengths to achieve a positive result that neither could separately. In 2001 the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA) partnered with the Women’s Bureau to award a grant to the New Jersey Department of Labor (the external partner) for a pilot project to determine whether online learning could be effective in improving the skills and earnings of low wage-earning single mothers.

Partners may include:

• Federal government agencies
• State or local government agencies
• Faith-based or community-based organizations
• Private sector businesses
• Chambers of Commerce
• Colleges and universities
• Healthcare providers
• Individual volunteers

Finding the right mix of partners may be challenging, so it is important for organizations to show potential partners a record of their past accomplishments and their strategic plan for the future.

The Summit provided many networking opportunities and laid a foundation for the creation of enduring and productive partnerships that will promote better jobs, better earnings, and better living for 21^st Century working women.

The Women’s Bureau is proud to support working women as they strive to develop meaningful partnerships.

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Statements of or attributions to private sector speakers or participants may not necessarily reflect Department views.

For More Information About WB, Contact:
U.S. Department of Labor
Women's Bureau
200 Constitution Avenue, NW - Room S-3002
Washington, DC 20210
Telephone 1-800-827-5335 or (202) 693-6710
Fax (202) 693-6725