Meet Member Amanda Novakovic

One of the reasons we take the time to interview each incoming member
personally is that you never know the nugget of information you will find out
about that person. That’s exactly what happened with Second Shift member Amanda
Novakovic. We were deep in the painfully arduous process of becoming certified as a Women Business Enterprise when we spoke to Amanda and learned that her
expertise is sheparding companies through the process of certification. Oh the
happiness and relief we felt handing the entire job over to Amanda to project
manage! A few months later we got our certification and just like that we became officially recognized as a women-owned business.

Below Amanda shares her tips for being a successful project manager
and why Second Shift members should consider getting certified as a WBE.

You’ve worked in HR and Operations for companies like Target; how did you
shift your focus as a consultant to one specialized area?

It
takes planning and discipline to become a consultant. The key to my success in the
corporate world is exactly what helped me gain traction as a consultant. HR and
Operations for a company like Target was really all about Project Management,
and although I have helped many clients get certified as a Women Business
Enterprise (WBE), my specialty is really managing the details of a variety of
projects from the entertainment industry to the construction market.

What is WBE and why is it important?

One
of the areas I consult in is helping businesses to get certified as a WBE, a
Women Business Enterprise. This designation can be a great way to boost
business for a women-owned business that meets a defined set of requirements
set by the state or national certifying agency. Certification can open the door
to work with companies who have established diversity goals, as well as the
State and Federal Government. In many states, up to 30% of all project funding
must go to a certified WBE.

Can Second Shift
members/consultants get certified as WBE?

It is definitely possible! It is also
advantageous depending on their type of business and what their goals for their
business are. I have certified other consultants that have used the
certification for networking and access to jobs.

Why is it so incredibly difficult and complicated??? 

Getting
certified can be complex and that’s where the skills of a good project manager
come into play. There are so many facets to the certification that it is often
overwhelming for people to do on their own. It is a very tedious and detailed
process and can be considered very invasive to some people. That is why if you
are a new organization, it is best not to even begin the process until after
you have been in business for a year. However, I highly recommend starting a
certification application folder from day one because you will need some of
those documents. There has been so much fraud in the WBE space that the process
and application is extremely thorough to protect you and to ensure companies
that are not a true WBE do not get granted certification.

Here
are some tips for getting certified as a WBE:

  • Make sure you research the right certification for
    your business – not all certifications will be beneficial to every organization  
  • Partner with a previously certified firm, who has gone
    through the process to know what to expect
  • Take your time with your application – triple check it
    before submitting
  • Make sure you research any and all services you wish to be
    certified for fully –it’s much easier to select the correct ones up front than
    to change them after you are certified.

Gina’s #Wominspired Role Model

After discovering stage fright before every class doesn’t lend it self to a teaching career, I found my way into advertising at Ogilvy & Mather. Somehow I talked my way into the role of assistant to the creative head of the agency.

I was completely out of my depth, overwhelmed by the amount of work, the pace and the expectations. There was no way I would survive. I was sure I would be fired once I was discovered to be an imposter. It was just a matter if time.

And then something amazing happened. I met CEO Charlotte Beers.

We were in an elevator. I knew she recognized me from my gatekeepers post outside my boss’s office, so I bravely introduced myself.

She smiled “How’s our boy doing? I know you’ll take good care of him and make sure he has what he needs to the get that work done. I’m counting on you.” And with that she got out.

In no more than 2 minutes Ms. Beers instilled a confidence in me that I never thought possible. She let me in on the secret. I could figure this out. I had to. The CEO was counting on me.

Since founding The Second Shift I have met Ms. Beers again. She remembers none of this, which I find this even more inspirational. I was not some special case that she stewarded thru the process, acting as my mentor. For her this was business as usual. When you are in a position of power you can affect change without knowing it.

You may even become a role model.

Jenny’s #Wominspired Role Model

It seems kind of strange to attribute my choice of career to a fictional character, but the truth is, I choose to make a career in broadcast journalism based on Mary Richards the main character of the Mary Tyler Moore show. Though the show went off the air a few months before I was born, I discovered The Mary Tyler Moore Show late at night watching re-runs on Nick at Night and I developed such a girl crush that I modeled an entire career on the star!  I loved Mary’s independence, kind-heartedness, optimism, vibrant friendships, work ethic and fearless feminism. At the time I didn’t’ know much about the role that the show played in breaking many stereotypes about working women, I just loved her job and wanted to do what she was doing. Years later I would find myself in newsrooms in Durham, NC listening to a police scanner or in the Bronx covering local interest stories and think—look at me, I am Mary Richards!  

Mary Tyler Moore was a role model for my entire career journey; her recent death made me re-look at the influences in my own life and career and wonder who else has a story they want to share. With this in mind The Second Shift is launching a new series #wominspired and we are asking for our members to tell their own stories about individuals, fictional or real, who were a driving force in shaping their professional lives. We will continue  personal inspiration stories from Second Shift team members with weekly blog posts. Please post from your own social media accounts using #wominspired and we will share your stories on our blog as well.

Stayed tuned for Gina’s story next week and we are excited to hear from you!
Jenny

Image Via: The New York Times

2017 Makers Conference

I was honored to be invited to the Makers
conference and left inspired and hopeful with the knowledge that the future is
definitely female. Despite all the optimism, there was an acknowledgment of where
we find ourselves as American women. 

  • We heard from Cecile Richards, the head of
    Planned Parenthood about
    what happens if the government defunds the organization leaving a $500 million
    gap that will leave thousands of women without reproductive health care. 
  • Joanne Barsh of McKinsey once again presented
    the findings from the McKinsey/Lean In study
    that showed the extraordinary gaps in pay, board seats and CEO titles between
    men and women.
  • Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg argued that until
    we have national paid parental leave women will never have the same opportunity
    for advancement as their male counterparts.

In a room full of some of the most powerful
women in technology, communication, entertainment and marketing, what was the
take-away? It could have been a huge downer, but I am buoyed by the opportunity
and the message that we each have to be the change we want to see. At The
Second Shift that means working everyday on behalf of our members and clients to
build the most robust and effective platform that disrupts the status quo. And
we are ready and we ARE the change we want to see.

#BEBOLD #MakeWorkWorkForYou

The Legacy of Brenda Barnes

On January 17th when Brenda Barnes passed away it made headlines around the country. In the 1990s she when she was the head of Pepsi-Cola North America she famously left her job to spend time with her family. This decision made Barnes a polarizing figure in the “can women have it all” debate.  At the time she said “I hope people can look at my decision not as ‘women can’t do it’ but, ‘for 22 years Brenda gave her all and did a lot of great things.’ I don’t think there’s any man who doesn’t have the same struggle. Hopefully, one day corporate America can battle this.”

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Image Via The New York Times

Has corporate America changed in the past 20 years? Not much. In fact Catalyst recently released a study showing that a lack of flexible work arrangements is the number one challenge keeping women from work place advancement.

A lot has changed since 1997 when Barnes became a lightning rod for work life struggles:

  • The iPhone was invented
  • Cloud-based computing allowed for remote sharing of files
  • Google and Facebook were launched
  • Aeron chairs arrived. Then inflatable balls instead of desk chairs were in vogue. Now standing desks.
  • Social and digital media became a thing
  • LINKEDIN!

At the same time a lot has not. Women today only make up 47% of the workforce and 4% of CEOs. The corporate world is beginning to embrace the idea of flexible work, but there is a long way to go.

For seven years Barnes remained on the sidelines with her 3 young children. Like many of our Second Shift members, the demands of her job did not allow for any work/life balance. She returned to work full-time in 2004 as president of Sara Lee and then became CEO. In her story there is a lesson for businesses to think outside the box and realize, as Barnes said, “there’s a large pool of women who chose to leave the work force. But it doesn’t mean they lost their brains.”

The  Second Shift hosted an intimate breakfast and panel discussion for our NY based members. Jenny and Gina spoke candidly with Ariane Goldman the founder of the HATCH maternity collection and Lisen Stromberg the author of Work, Pause, Thrive: How To Pause For Parenthood Without Killing Your Career. The important take aways:

-Have Confidence

-Don’t apologize for your life and career choices

-Don’t give up easily

-Understand the deck is stacked against you, but don’t let that stop you

-Have realistic expectations of what a non-traditional career path looks like

-Don’t look back, focus on the journey in front of you and making your mark in unchartered territory

What am amazing morning with so many inspiring women. Thank you Ariane and Lisen. This is the first of many events for our members. We will be coming to a city near you soon!

We March Onward!

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Hello Second Shift Members!

Last Saturday Gina and Jenny and many of our Second Shift
team along with our friends, family and colleagues boarded a bus and headed to
D.C to join more than 1 million people taking part in Women’s Marches around
the world. It was one of the most exciting, invigorating, and emotional days in
our lives. Seeing women from all races, ages and political affiliations gather
together in solidarity was remarkable. While we are not a politically motivated
or partisan business, we are unequivocally activists for women’s rights; equality
and opportunity belong to everyone, regardless of party, age, gender, and
religion.  The Second Shift, by working
to keep women in the workforce, is tackling a small piece of a much larger
social issue.

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Here are some scary statistics that motivate us every day:

·      Nearly 50% of
the US workforce is women. 

·      70% of those
women are mothers with children under 18 years old.

·      The US is the
only industrialized nation in the world to not have guaranteed paid maternity
leave. 

·      Women currently
hold less than 5 of Fortune 500 CEO roles.

·      Women are the
main breadwinner in 4/10 families.

·      Women receive
more college and graduate degrees than men.

·      Women earn 80
cents to every dollar earned by men—a gender wage gap of 21%.

·      19 percent of
Fortune 500 board seats are currently held by women.

·       In the 50
states, the average cost for an infant in center-based care can be as high as $17,082
per year. 

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Women are making incredible strides entering the workforce,
but as they move along their career paths they do not receive the advancement
and fundamental support to remain and climb the ladder of achievement and
success. Whether it is glaring gender wage differences, lack of maternity leave
and exorbitant childcare costs, the lack of support by corporations and the
government is driving women from the traditional work place. The good
news—technology has made it easy to work from anywhere at anytime and companies
like ours are here to provide opportunities so women do not have to make a
choice of “in or out.” Until then, we march!

For more photos of our day at the #WomensMarch, check us out on Instagram @TheSecond_Shift.

2016 Freelance Wrap Up Report

It is the last day of 2016 and we have a lot to celebrate! The Second Shift is now 700 members strong and growing! 35% of the US workforce is now considered freelance. Companies are continuing to come to The Second Shift to create an agile, innovative employment model. 

A recent study put out by LinkedIn supports a lot of our 2016 hiring patterns and what we see in our own talent pool: 

-The most commonly hired freelancers are in marketing, business consulting, design, coaching, writing and editing

– Average hourly rates tend to be in the $50-$150/hr. range, with older freelancers typically charging more.

-56% say they earn their entire salary from freelancing. 44% are freelancing on the side of a full-time job for extra salary. 

-Talent is concentrated in urban centers with a majority in California, NYC Metro, Texas and Florida.

-Most talent is being paid on a project basis vs. hourly or retainer. 

This bodes well for us at The Second Shift as the trends are moving overwhelmingly in our favor. So here is to 2017! Excited for the future of #ondemandtalent #gigeconomy and #thesecondshift! 

Yummy Season’s Greetings

Hello Second Shift Community! 

We want to wish you a very happy holiday season. May your days be filled with laughter and love and delicious food. Our gift to our team every year is a bag of Gina’s homemade granola. This year we share her secret recipe with you! Enjoy! 

NONSTICK VEGETABLE OIL SPRAY

3 CUPS OLD-FASHIONED OATS

1 CUP SLIVERED ALMONDS

¾ CUP SHREDDED SWEETENED COCONUT

1/3 CUP SESAME SEEDS

6 TABLESPOONS PURE MAPLE SYRUP

6 TABLESPOONS (PACKED) DARK BROWN SUGAR

¼ CUP VEGETABLE OIL

2 TABLESPOONS WARM WATER

½ TEASPOON SALT

1 CUP GOLDEN RAISINS 

**Gina says you can add anything else you want. She likes to add chopped up apricots, dried cranberries and pistachios.

  • Preheat oven to 250°F. Lightly spray rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray. Toss oats and next 3 ingredients in large bowl. Whisk syrup, brown sugar, oil, 2 tablespoons warm water and salt in small bowl to blend. Pour syrup mixture over oat mixture and stir to combine. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Bake until evenly browned, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Cool. Transfer to large bowl. Mix in raisins. 

    (Can be made 1 week ahead. Store in airtight container.)