By Susan Mitchell Stankovic, CEO, Mitchell Stankovic and Associates

The women’s rights movement profoundly affected my appreciation for the role of a woman in society.  It may take a village, but there is usually a woman at the center steadfastly determined to protect her family. During those days, women were forced to endure situations in the workplace that would shock us today, way beyond the concern of equal pay or glass ceiling.  Have we come a long way, baby? 

While WOCCU’s Global Women’s Leadership Network is my passion project currently, this isn’t an issue du jour for me. My grandmother was a working mom, seamstress, manager of a store and a volunteer leader with VFW and the Democratic Party. My mother raised five children, all the neighborhood kids and anyone else who stopped by; she also worked a swing shift at night, so she could be home during the day. She was one of the first Avon ladies and took all of us with her from home to home when she was selling products. I learned so much from these strong, beautiful women about caring, loving, believing, nurturing, working hard, balancing life, sharing what you have, sacrifice, being grateful and yet, it was my father’s influence that gave me the drive to make money. Survival. Competitiveness. Independence. All required financial empowerment.

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Reflecting upon my early career where I stood next to 19 men and fought for a position, I knew that earning a living meant navigating the call for feminism with my desire to be inclusionary – to be me. It was a fine line to success. I was given “acting” positions instead of being compensated based upon my contribution or being recognized for my efforts. I specialized in the financial services industry and built businesses within core businesses on a national level and still had men refuse to shake my hand. The best moment in my career was when I could quit before being given the President’s award and tell my manager that he was being “emotional” about my decision. Dignity regained!

Fast forward to the 1990s. Why start my own firm?  Because a man reached over and patted my leg when offering me a position, and I said ‘Enough!’ It is time to believe, to be independent, to work hard, and to be accountable for the risk and the reward. We packed up our bags and two babies, quit our jobs and moved to Boulder City. A business was born with no money, just grit. Our firm offered marketing, and we created the first multi-media, online university for the financial industry. We gained more than 5,000 clients by 2005 and spawned global impact.   

The fledgling business had many ups and downs in the beginning, but the creation of the SHEs, Strategic Holistic Executives, my first women’s group in 1993 helped us transition from a fledgling startup to a robust business model. The SHEs met twice a year and unselfishly shared stories and business practices with each other while renewing our spirits. We combined business with insightful discovery of female leadership traits, quickly learning we still needed to fight for women’s rights, equal pay, appreciation of diversity and develop the confidence to advocate for ourselves. And the SHEs acted, creating the first collaborative day care center for credit union employees' children in early 90s to help families.

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My family and I, through Mitchell, Stankovic and Associates, had volunteered and worked with World Council on its strategic goals and desire to change the world through financial inclusion. We facilitate the Future Forum for billion-dollar credit unions around the world to share insights, leverage systems and collaborate future strategic initiatives.

When WOCCU CEO, Dr. Brian Branch asked if I would be interested in volunteering to help him start the Global Women’s Leadership Network, he didn’t realize my connection to women’s issues, but knew of my passion for people and my new volunteer journey began. GWLN started around our kitchen table, with a vision, mission and a brainstorm of what we wanted to achieve. Since its launch in 2009, it has reached more than 2,500 women from 78 countries; awarded scholarships to 42 women from 26 countries; initiated 75 Sister Societies, 35 in the United States and granted more than $400,000 to World Council field projects.  We have raised over $2.5 million dollars to develop a suite of leadership and diversity programs dedicated to achieving tangible results that galvanize the credit union movement and improve the livelihood of women worldwide. Through our program offerings, women all over the globe have been empowered with skills, tools and resources needed to lead and have been equipped with actionable steps for navigating their professional journeys.

Yet, it is only the beginning. Human rights are being threatened or tragically discarded around the world.  All of us, men and women, must hear the call to action if we are going to protect our families and secure future generations. Financial empowerment through credit unions can be a solution.