Women’s Business Cincinnati

The May issue (how did it get to be May already?!) of Women’s Business is all about the groups and places and ways that women connect.

We tried to be as wide-ranging as possible — running the gamut from peaceful Grailville to the busy blog at  www.WorkingMomsAgainstGuilt.com. We also mention several women’s clubs and associations.

The danger — the almost-inevitable outcome, in fact — is that someone’s favorite  club gets left out. If you’re that unlucky someone, or you’d like to share more about your group than I wrote in the paper, this is your chance! What women’s networking groups should Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky women know about?

Cindi Andrews, Editor

Ever wonder what women business owners across the country see as their biggest issues? Yeah, like you have gobs of extra time to sit and ponder other business owners’ problems.

But the national nonprofit Women Impacting Public Policy had time to wonder, and to ask via a recent survey.

Not surprisingly, health care was far and away the No. 1 concern cited. Unlike in past years, however, half of respondents said responsibility for providing health coverage shouldn’t fall chiefly on employers.

The No. 2 issue was energy costs and No. 3 was … can you guess?

I doubt it!

… The third-biggest concern among women business owners nationwide is … the environment.

Do you think Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky women business owners would rank their top concerns the same?  What are your biggest issues as a business owner?

Check out WIPP’s full press release, below, and post with your own views on your most critical business issues. While you’re at it, you can also tell us what specific problems or questions we might be able to find a columnist to answer for you in a future issue of Women’s Business!

Cindi Andrews

Editor

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATIONAL POLL RANKS HEALTH CARE AND ENVIRONMENT AS TOP CONCERNS OF WOMEN BUSINESS OWNERS“What Women Want” Bipartisan Survey Reveals Common Ground

The 2007 “What Business Women Want” bipartisan national survey was conducted Jan. 22 – Feb. 9 and included 400 respondents. To read the complete survey, visit www.wipp.org.# # #About Women Impacting Public Policy:

So CBS acts (finally). Women, African Americans and other reasonable people have exercised our/their freedom of speech and won.

The people who claim to hate Don Imus’ message but defend his right to say it on radio and TV airwaves misunderstand what “free speech” means. Imus was and is free to say whatever he likes on any street corner in America. But he doesn’t own the airtime he occupied, any more than a newspaper writer owns the newshole that holds her story.

There are three kinds of content in a typical newspaper: editorial or news, which is supposed to be objective and factual, written without personal or corporate biases; opinion or commentary, which expresses the views of an individual or the newspaper owner/management; and advertising, in which someone pays for space to express whatever opinion or information they want, within some bounds. TV news channels’ content can be similarly characterized.

Imus could theoretically buy airtime and run a commercial that says virtually anything that’s not obscene. If stations refused to sell him the time, he could run it on YouTube. Our free-market version of freedom of speech doesn’t give anyone an inherent right to free airtime — or free newsprint – except possibly in the case of some candidates for public office.

Cindi Andrews

After speaking with family, friends and colleagues about the comment made by Don Imus, an interesting question has come to mind. Has Imus apologized enough?            

As a current college student and female, I am very appalled at Imus’s comment. It is beyond ignorant and his remark has not only hurt his reputation to the brink of destroying his career, but his dignity has been revoked. After reading recent blogs and discussing the issue in further detail, it’s clear that Imus has not only hurt his relationship with the Rutgers women’s basketball team but he’s hurt his relationship with women everywhere, the NCAA, African Americans, and the Rutgers community.

Imus has hurt himself but even more so, hurt the feelings of thousands of individuals. This is when the question came to mind, “Has Imus apologized enough?” He is fighting for his job and apologizing every chance he gets. He is meeting with the Rutgers women’s team on Tuesday, but even players have stated that what he has done is not excusable. I ask you now, has Imus apologized enough? What is an apology?

Personally speaking, I believe Imus has apologized enough. I have heard him apologize on the radio, on television, seen clips on local news stations and on the Internet. Imus knows he has made a mistake and is trying to make up for it. Although I have heard him apologize more than a dozen times I do not believe I can accept his apology. What has been said cannot be taken back.              

Once I realized I could not forgive Imus’s rude remark, I began to question what an apology is. Dictionary.com states an apology is “a written or spoken expression of one’s regret, remorse, or sorrow for having insulted, failed, injured, or wronged another.” I know we all know what an apology is and throughout our lifetimes we apologize but at some point, is an apology effective? It is necessary to apologize to demonstrate you understand you have hurt someone else but at the same time, the damage has already been committed. Now, the fate of acceptance lies in the hands of the individual who has been hurt.            

I am not trying to say that I do not believe apologies are effective, I think apologies need to be said when wrong has been done. It is important for the other person to hear that remorse. It is a life lesson to be able to realize one’s mistakes, apologize, and learn from them in order to grow.            

With this said, you’re probably questioning now “Well if you understand people make mistakes and can forgive, then why can’t you forgive Imus and accept his apology?” Believe me, I’ve asked myself this! I don’t know why exactly I can’t forgive Imus. I believe his comment was very detrimental. He not only insulted a basketball team, but also used unacceptable language. It shouldn’t be said to anyone regardless of their gender, race, ethnicity, or sexual orientation.     

 Today’s society is very diverse and we’ve overcome issues throughout history. What Imus said hurts women and seems to take us back to the era that women were subordinate to men. These remarks cannot be allowed and we need to speak out about the issue. As a young woman, I believe I am capable of doing anything I set my mind to and if someone is going to call me a “nappy-headed ho,” you better believe I’m going to do everything I can to make sure it does not happen again.  

Zofia Romanowicz, intern

We at Women’s Business are outraged at the vile comments made by Don Imus about the Rutgers women’s basketball team. WB joins the call for his ouster and cheers those companies – including Cincinnati’s own Procter & Gamble – that have pulled their advertising from his show.

Two things strike us about the situation.

The first is the dignity with which these young women responded in their press conference. How much clearer can it be that the typical portrayals of young people – particularly African-American young people – as uncaring, unproductive and undisciplined are off the mark? These are young women of character, intelligence and unlimited potential. Imus doesn’t have a thimbleful of the integrity that any one of these women possesses.

The second is that this is sadly just an unusually public example of a common experience in the African-American community. Many of our white colleagues would like to think these bigoted comments represent a few backward individuals and that racially offensive and insensitive acts are a thing of the ’50s and ’60s.

Not true.

Recently, two different African-American colleagues shared stories of being mistaken for coatroom clerks while attending events at private clubs. Many have shared stories of being followed by police cars when driving to business appointments through high-end white communities. And yes, there are many experiences of walking down the street and passing someone who whispers the n-word or h-word as they walk by.

This happens today. This happens here.

Absolutely, be enraged about Imus. Absolutely, demand action. But don’t stop there. Racism is an issue that still permeates our community. There must be more each of us can do – what are your thoughts?

Vanessa Freytag, Co-Publisher

Debbie Dent, Co-Publisher

Cindi Andrews, Editor

The Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber’s first WE Celebrate awards honoring top businesswomen were announced at a breakfast today. For those who have questioned the need for women-focused events in the business community, the 600-plus women (and men) in attendance provided an emphatic answer.

The inaugural winners were:

– Women-owned business of the year with less than 25 employees: The Wolfe Practice, Jennifer Wolfe, president. Runner-up was Blackwell Consulting Services of Ohio, Annette Tarver, president.

– Women-owned business of the year with 25-plus employees: Intrinzic Marketing & Design Inc., Wendy Vonderhaar, president. Runner-up was Cincinnati Sub-Zero Products Inc., Eileen Berke, chairwoman.

– Best new product or service: Bright Future Foods, Anne Chambers, co-founder.

– Social entrepreneur of the year: Technology Recycling Group, Elli Workum, CEO.

– Business mentor of the year: Jackie Mack, director, Provident Travel.

– Woman of the year – corporate: M. Denise Kuprionis, vice president, corporate secretary and director of legal affairs, the E.W. Scripps Co.

– Woman of the year – nonprofit: Pamela Mullins, supplier diversity manager, Cincinnati Public Schools.

– Woman of the year – entrepreneur: Debbie Simpson, president, Multi-Craft Litho Inc.

Congratulations to the winners, and to everyone who attended to show their support for the region’s businesswomen. The energy in the room was amazing.

– Cindi Andrews

Editor, WBC

(Full disclosure: Women’s Business Cincinnati was the media sponsor for the event.)

Several VIPs turned out today to throw their weight behind a new initiative to make the Xavier-UC women’s basketball game on Jan. 17 a sellout.

The presidents of both schools attended the press conference, for starters, as did their athletic directors. Also in attendance were Fifth Third President and CEO Bob Sullivan; Bill Keating Sr., the former congressman and Enquirer publisher; and Bill Keating Jr., a partner at Keating Muething & Klekamp.

In a bit of irony, the idea to have a “Sell Out the Shootout” campaign originated with a man: Bill Keating Jr. He got the ball rolling (so to speak) by contacting UC and Xavier leaders and former student-athletes, and by bringing in Judy Harmony of the Harmony Project, a girls’ advocacy group, to help raise money to buy tickets for youth organizations.

Keating was just about the only person not to take a turn at the podium, but afterward he said his motivation to draw attention to women’s sports dates back to when he was a swimmer at UC and the men practiced alongside the women. Two of the women competed in the Olympics and yet they never received a varsity letter at UC, Keating said. The issue remains top-of-mind for him because he has two daughters who have competed in swimming at the college level — one who just graduated and another still in school.

UC women’s basketball head coach Laurie Pirtle, who just got her 300th win, said one of her golden rules is to leave things better than she found them. “Thank you for leaving this school better than you found it,” she told Keating from the podium.

If the iniative reaches its goal of selling out Fifth Third arena’s 13,186 seats for the game, it will rank as the largest crowd for a women’s regular-season college basketball game in Ohio history.

And even if it doesn’t sell out, I think it’s safe to say the effort alone will raise awareness of and interest in women’s sports in Cincinnati.

“From now on, when we talk about the Crosstown Shootout, we’re going to have to say which one,” UC President Nancy Zimpher said.

Tickets are available for $5 (!!) for adults; $3 for youth 12 and under; and $2 apiece for groups of 10 or more.  UC and Xavier students get free admission with their student IDs.

For more information, call 513.556.CATS or visit www.gobearcats.com or www.goxavier.com.

– Cindi Andrews, Editor

Women’s Business Cincinnati

The Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber did an amazing job of putting together the third annual Bold Fusion networking and educational YP summit on Friday. The event drew an energetic, informed and inspired crowd of professionals, predominantly under 35 years old.

One of the highlights was a media panel with local radio, TV and newspaper representatives and someone from a blog watch company. The young professionals were not shy in expressing concern over the media’s saturation of negative news, particularly regarding violence in downtown neighborhoods. From the homicide count to the Bengals, the general consensus was that our news is predominantly bad news.

A news clip beautifully illustrated the point: One of the local TV stations was doing a piece on LilyPad, Cincinnati’s new wi-fi network. The creation of LilyPad was a marked success in a city that is struggling to maintain its downtown arena. But rather than simply announcing the new network and celebrating its debut, the reporter wove the city’s crime statistics into the story.

How can Cincinnati receive positive coverage on CNN when we can’t get it on WKRC?

I am a nascent journalist – interning at Women’s Business Cincinnati before returning to Ohio University for my final year of undergrad. I am constantly being asked: “So, what do you want to do?” When I started at WBC I told my editor, Cindi Andrews, I don’t want to report the news — I want to write lengthy articles about positive things and people. I know my head is in the clouds, but there must be some middle ground.

It is time for our local media to take a crash course in the power of positive press. When something good happens at a company, the PR person is everywhere spreading the news. Part of the role of
Cincinnati media is to point out the good things happening in our beloved city.

Yes, the news must be honest and accurate; we cannot change the facts. But when progressive, positive initiatives are happening here, we should be eager to spread the word locally and nationally.

— Angela Prues, editorial intern

Taking control of your financial health is vital for every woman. The office of Jennette Bradley, the treasurer for the State of Ohio, has an ongoing commitment to working with women on this issue. Through an error on the part of WBC, we inadvertently left out of our May issue information on the treasurer's Women & Money conference. We encourage you to attend this free conference:

It will be held June 16 from 8:15 a.m. to 4 p.m. at UC Raymond Walters College's Muntz Hall, 9555 Plainfield Road in Blue Ash. Continental breakfast, lunch and parking are included in this free event.

For more information, visit www.ohiowomenandmoney.org or call 800.228.1102.

Vanessa Freytag, co-publisher

Vanessa Freytag and I just returned from a roundtable convened by the Center for Women's Business Research in New York City.

In addition to all the inspirational stuff that Vanessa will be posting about later, we were treated to an advance peek at a study on business exit strategies.

The final report isn't due out until September, but Elaine Sarsynski, the chief administrative officer for study sponsor MassMutual Financial Group, shared some initial findings.

Chief among them: While 85 percent of both male and female business owners rate price as the No. 1 factor in selling their business, women are more concerned than men about other factors.

Fully 86 percent of female owners take into account the prospective buyer's plans for current employees, vs. 61 percent of male owners.

Likewise, 72 percent of female owners take into account the buyer's identity, personality and background, vs. 30 percent of male owners.

"Women are more concerned than men about what happens to their business and their employees," Sarsynski told the 240 roundtable attendees. "Aren't we all better off when business owners aren't just interested in their bottom line?"

Like all studies from the Center for Women's Business Research, this is solid, well-grounded research. It was based on interviews with 800 business owners — half men and half women — who had at least $1 million in annual revenues and had been in business for at least five years. The margin of error is 3.5 percent.

We'd love to hear your thoughts on this survey, and the question of exit strategies may even creep into our profiles of family-owned businesses, coming in the June issue of Women's Business Cincinnati.

Cindi Andrews, editor, WBC