Date: 4/3/2015
SPRINGFIELD – In support of the growth and success of Pioneer Valley women presidents and the businesses they own, WomenUpFront is launching a new monthly roundtable for women business owners whose annual revenues have passed the $200,000 mark but have not quite reached $1 million.
Sponsored by PeoplesBank and hosted at the Business Growth Center at Springfield Technology Park, WomenUpFront is looking for business owners from Hampden, Hampshire, and Franklin counties for this newest program set to begin on April 15.
WomenUpFront is bringing its successful model piloted in Berkshire County to the Pioneer Valley because there is a need to support women business owners of growing businesses.
“There have been conversations over the years about starting this but none has materialized until now,” Cathy Crosky, founder and facilitator of WomenUpFront, said. “Scaling a business has its challenges, and this is a proven model that helps women business owners succeed. They really appreciate this kind of facilitated peer mentoring too.”
Joan Leahy, vice president of Marketing for PeoplesBank said, “PeoplesBank is proud to sponsor WomenUpFront and bring this important opportunity to area women business owners.
“As an organization that runs on innovation and collaboration, we know the benefits of mentoring, teamwork, and the free exchange of ideas. We support WomenUpFront because it will provide these entrepreneurs with many of the same opportunities and successes that we have enjoyed,” she continued.
The roundtable provides a learning forum for owners to get “out of the weeds” of the day-to-day and look at their businesses more strategically. The objective is to help women accelerate their businesses to the next level and place their companies in a better position to access new opportunities and continue to prosper. Lasting and meaningful relationships are formed among the participants too.
“I’m thrilled that the Business Growth Center is hosting WomenUpFront,” Marla Michel, director of the Business Growth Center, said. “Women business owners are focused, dedicated, and strong, and often have overcome many obstacles to get to where they are. WomenUpFront can help them learn skills and get advice in a very collegial environment to accelerate further success.”
Monthly roundtable meetings will take place at the Business Growth Center in Springfield the third Wednesday of each month from 9 a.m. to noon.
WomenUpFront fosters the growth and development of women who own businesses generating under $1 million in annual revenues through a highly engaging monthly roundtable format. The Pioneer Valley roundtable will be the third one established by the facilitator Cathy Crosky, a partner at Charter Oak Consulting Group who has been working in the area of leadership development for 15 years.
PeoplesBank is a leader in innovation, corporate responsibility, environmental sustainability, and employee engagement. Our three LEED certified offices are environmentally friendly, and we have financed more than $70 million in wind, hydroelectric, and solar energy projects.
As the largest community bank in the market, we have a unique ability to help the communities we serve through volunteering and the millions of dollars we have donated to charitable and civic causes. Our associates donate an average of 6,000 hours each year, and 48 of the bank’s officers serve on the board of directors and committees of 115 area nonprofit organizations.
Since 1999, the Business Growth Center at Springfield Technology Park has provided office space in the Scibelli Enterprise Center, access to free business resources, and growth advisory and mentoring programs and workshops to small businesses, particularly those whose owners are underrepresented and poised for growth in the Pioneer Valley. The Center also supports the growth of the regional clean energy cluster, a burgeoning industry in the Pioneer Valley and the Commonwealth. www.BusinessGrowthCenter.org or @BusGrowthCenter.
For more information on WomenUpFront and membership criteria, please contact Cathy Crosky at ccrosky@cocg.com, or call 822-1263.
