July 2016 Newsletter

Heather Smith, OWA President

Let's Talk Strategy

I spent a good bit of time reflecting on what I wanted to help the organization accomplish when I was preparing to step into the role as President of the OWA. I was having trouble figuring out where to start. There is so much that comes to mind when trying to think of how you can help enhance and support the leadership role of women in our industry! Ultimately, I had to acknowledge the reality that we can't do it all. To be truly effective, we need a clear vision so that our efforts are focused and driving toward the same things. In other words, we needed a concise set of goals and a strategic plan to support it.

I'm so excited to share these goals and strategic plan with all of you! The organization's goals and strategic plan are designed to provide direction over the course of the next three years, so we didn't take this task lightly. In fact, the board started working together to develop the OWA's goals and strategic plan when we met last September in Vegas and we went through a number of discussions, both during our monthly meetings and in separate sessions along the way. We finalized everything when we met in New York, put them in their final formats, and got them ready to present to you in this newsletter.

We have set these four goals: Value, Accessibility, Engagement, and Expansion. Everything that we do, from the board level and through the committees, should be in support of delivering on these goals for our members. We are committed to ensuring that our programs deliver more value and that we make those valuable programs more accessible. By doing this, we believe we can give our members more ways to be engaged with the OWA, which will drive expansion in both our reach and membership base. I get excited just reading that!

We designed these goals to be intertwined and dependent upon each other. It represents our belief that, like women in leadership, we are strong as individuals but strongest when we work together.

I hope that you are inspired by the direction of the OWA and I encourage you to take a moment to read the strategic plan. Let us know what we might be able to do to achieve these goals — especially if you can help us in that mission. We are sure to be successful if you are part of the plan!

Heather Smith
OWA President

New Member Spotlight — Karen Hartman
Courtney Myers
New to the industry and the OWA, Karen Hartman joined Prevent Blindness at the beginning of 2016 and joined the OWA in April.
Read more . . .

My Journey into Active Participation
Brandie Shaw, Vice-Chair, Communications Committee
Like many of us, I first joined the OWA at one of the networking events during a Vision Expo. Of course, since I was just so busy with work and family, I couldn't possibly find the time to join a committee or anything, right? You know what? It takes much less time than I expected and is far more rewarding than I anticipated.
Read more . . .

Committee Spotlight — Membership
Yvette Carranza
This article is the first in a new series designed to spotlight each of the very important committees that make the OWA the great organization it is.
Read more . . .

Welcome New OWA Members!
Michelle Schroeder, OWA Associate Executive Director
The OWA membership continues to grow! We are happy to welcome these 20 new members since the April 2016 newsletter.
Read more . . .