When the Ladies Home Journal slogan "Never under estimate the power of a woman" was launched in March 1941, it referred to the power of wives to subtly influence their husbands to make the right decisions.
Today, the same slogan could be used to describe the power of today's women to shape their businesses, their communities and their families — and help other women along the way.
Enter the Women's Collaborative Hub, which started last fall as a way to develop the leadership and business skills of women who are either based in the Tri-Cities or who live here but whose companies or jobs are located in another city.
Started by Trish Mandewo, Sandra Horton and Dana Harvey, the Women's Collaborative Hub is a membership-based group that offers support, leadership training and mentorship opportunities.
Mandewo, who owns Tumblebus, a mobile gymnastics program for children, and Sandy Horton, who owns Horton Collaborations, met with The Tri-City News last week to discuss the hub that grew out of conversations about what women need to be successful leaders.
Their own experience led them to believe that professional women want more than what's typically offered in networking groups, such as more educational opportunities and an opportunity to give back through mentoring.
"Women live here but they are not connected here," said Mandewo, "and we wanted to tap into the tremendous energy."
After developing a mission and strategy, the group sought out key women influencers and invited them to come to facilitated workshops called Women Influencers World Cafes, where they asked them what help they needed to get them to the next level in their professional lives.
That hub has grown to a regular monthly meeting in which a variety of local professional women share and support one another, including women leaders from the Tri-Cities' rich multicultural community because, Mandewo said, women can benefit from each others' varied cultural experiences.
Workshops have been developed to meet the needed skills and fill the information gaps identified by participants as necessary for their development, such as problem-solving and systems-thinking, with a five-week program on personal leadership starting April 8.
"That's where we are unique," said Horton, who holds a masters degree in leadership from Royal Roads University. "We are bringing evidenced-based leadership and mentoring to women business owners and professionals in the Tri-Cities."
Recently, WCH has formed a strategic alliance with GroYourBiz, an international organization founded by Barbara Mowat that provides peer-to-peer advisory services for women entrepreneurs to help them grow their business.
Mandewo and Horton say the affiliation with GroYourBiz will help local women with legal, personnel and financial advice to take their business to the next level. As well, WCH members will get a discount on fees for attending the EXCELerate 2017 conference on leadership for professional women May 3 to 5 in Vancouver.
"As strong as women are, they have so many self-doubts," Mandewo said, noting through communication, collaboration and connection they will be able to reach their full potential as powerful female leaders.
• More information is available at www.womenscollaborativehub.com and www.EXCELerate2017.com
