­Our mission is to assist in and accelerate the professional development and career advancement of women in business to leadership positions. We want to See Jane SOAR!

Why SOAR? Although women possess inherent leadership skills, they still face obstacles in reaching positions of power and influence. SOAR’s answer is to prepare women for leadership roles in three ways: 1) Through a series of self-assessment designed to help women identify their leadership strengths, weaknesses and gaps, 2) a leadership curriculum designed to prepare them intellectually and psychologically for the tasks of leadership, and 3) instruction on how to use practical, tactical tools and techniques to help them better navigate and negotiate the political/power landscape. Additionally, the curriculum is supplemented with opportunities to build social capital and help in the transfer of knowledge of present leaders to future leaders.

If effect, SOAR is an intense immersion in leadership skill building, allowing the participant to learn leadership from the inside-out, the outside-in and all the nuances in-between. With SOAR, their leadership acumen is thoroughly tested and sharpened.

history

SOAR is a registered program of the Peer Exchange Network™ which is a successful peer-to-peer learning model that was designed and implemented in 1994. The program provides value add by creating forums for exchanging ideas, experiences and information. Since its inception, several different Peer Exchange Network programs have been started in the public and private sectors.

Responding to the needs of our members, other leaders in various business communities we serve, and documented research, a peer exchange network model was developed in 2004 focusing on nurturing and developing women earlier in their business careers than what typically occurs – high potential women who have been working approximately 7-16 years. The success of this program is a testament and validation of the need for SOAR which is built around accelerating young women in their careers.

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