​Dr. Ann Rogerson, Associate Professor is the Associate Dean (Education) in the Faculty of Business. Ann is a passionate educator, keen to engage students in the developing lifelong learning skills while connecting their learning experiences to theory and real world contexts and their future workplaces.  Ann was therefore in her element on Saturday 21 September when she presented a masterclass on the subject of Leadership to the LIP.

The workshop was a condensed version of the Leadership subject of the MBA as this class can be converted to an MBA point by the cohort subject to successful completion of 2 follow up assignments, which Ann has kindly given the cohort until 30 November to complete.

After introducing herself, Ann asked the cohort to break into groups and introduce each other, and it was a great way to get to know each other even deeper level and observe the genuine connections and relationships the cohort have established in the first 12 months of the program.

Ann focused on emotional intelligence and self -awareness in leadership, and how this makes you the most authentic and natural you can be.  It was stressed that if you can’t manage and understand yourself it will be difficult to understand other people, especially those you lead. If you know how you act and behave, it will help you understand how others do.

The Sustainable Development Goals were also touched upon in the workshop, as these are a focus at UOW, and are a collection of 17 global goals set by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015 for the year 2030.

Relatively recent leadership concepts such as CSR - corporate social responsibility and breakthrough mindset were also introduced and briefly discussed in what was a content heavy and fast paced session.

The LIP were fortunate to have the company of Graham Lancaster, Chair of the Illawarra Connection and therefore a Steering Committee member, and also mentor in the MentorMe program for the morning session.  Graham was particularly helpful in assisting in some AV issues thanks to his breakthrough mindset and ability to think outside the square.
Done Martinovski from BlueScope kindly and professionally closed the day with a vote of thanks for Ann, who I think enjoyed the day almost as much as the cohort.

The Leadership Illawarra Program MentorMe collaboration with JCI Illawarra came to a close on Wednesday 11 September at an informal night of networking and celebration hosted at SmartSpace at the Innovation Campus.

Master of Ceremony duties were shared by Debra Murphy of RDA Illawarra and Bailey Bond of JCI Illawarra, and a number of speakers shared their experiences and gave thanks for the Mentors and the time committed to sharing insights and experiences that assisted the mentees in their leadership learning.
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LIP Alumni Melissa Thompson shared fabulous words about her mentoring experiences across the 2 year program and her LIP journey in general. Melissa regularly catches up with on of her mentors Chris Christodoulou and the connection was obvious when they met up at the graduation and in the image above.

Robert Kempton effectively and kindly spoke on behalf of the current LIP and in his collaborative and caring style, sough feedback from the LIP so that his words would be a reflection of the group as a whole.
Words of wisdom and new insights
•                Time at work does not equal effort at work
•             Have the confidence in yourself to make decisions and to give advice even if you are not 100 percent it is the correct decision.
•             Follow the “four agreements” - Be impeccable with your word. Don't take anything personally. Don't make assumptions. Always do your best.
•             Don’t always focus on your professional development as linear but also develop your community leadership and look for opportunities outside your comfort zone.
•             The importance of taking care of customers and changing our team’s culture to sustainably improve the customer experience
•             If you are lucky enough to have your parents still around, make sure you make the most of your time with them.
Benefits & outcomes
•             Learn from someone in a different industry and be able to take on the challenges presented and apply them
•             Collaboration between leading local businesses
•             The mentoring program gives you access to someone outside your chain of command to bounce ideas off and give you another perspective on our challenges, goals and achievements.
•             Unbiased amazing listening and offering a different perspective
The quote of the night, came from the humble and wise Melanie Haskew, who summed up her experience like this;

“The mentor program  has given me the confidence to explore new rooms within the house, previously I may have lacked the confidence to open the door or enter the next level.  I now not only back myself, but have set personal goals to achieve things I previously thought were out of reach and behind closed doors.”
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Thank you to all those who attended including Alumni and JCI committee and huge gratitude to all of the Mentors who donate their time and expertise each year.

Dr. Terri Simpkin - https://www.braverstrongersmarter.com/- presented at a networking lunch 29 August  2019, organised by LIP Steering Committee Member Janine Cullen and the LIP were proudly represented by current and previous cohorts as well as Mentors and host employers.

Dr. Simkin commenced the session with a clear message that the experience is a phenomenon and not a syndrome.  If it was a syndrome the symptoms or consequences would be constant whereas they tend to be episodic and different depending on the environment, e.g. home or professional.

What Imposter Phenomenon IS NOT, is self-doubt, as it exists on a continuum, is not constant and is present there is a feeling of ‘otherness’ which can be as a result of diversity or difference in whatever way. E.g. socioeconomic, disability, gender, race or religion etc.
70% of people will experience Imposter Phenomenon at some stage of their lives and some people experience it every day and it impacts their work and social interactions.
Unlike self-doubt, in Imposter Phenomenon, you never learn from your successes and trust you can repeat the performance when similar experiences or opportunities arise, and repeat the pattern over and over, never learning or trusting yourself and your skills.
From an impact perspective, it can be passed onto our children or the people around us and it comes from Family, School and Societal experiences.
Whilst this particular event and presentation by Dr. Terri Simpkin was aimed at women, Imposter Phenomenon exists in the male populations also, as it comes from a sense of otherness and is not gender based.
Lee Vale confidently gave a vote of thanks on behalf of all women present and ably and professionally represented the LIP in particular. 
We need to praise and offer positive reinforcement when we suspect we are witnessing the phenomenon, but also need to be cognisant that praise can be challenging and make people with Imposter Phenomenon very uncomfortable.
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Regardless, we must gently, and fact based, call out Imposter Phenomenon when we see it happening in our teams and ask people to accept the praise we offer as it is there’s to keep.
You can read more about the event here https://www.illawarramercury.com.au/story/6355464/why-women-dont-think-theyre-good-enough-to-step-up-at-work/