Recent Blogs

Erica wrote in an email to me today:

Last night, I went on Hardball with Chris Matthews ([youtube.com]) to talk about how politicians of both parties are fostering a dangerous environment of prejudice against Muslims – and furthering their personal ambitions in the process. The appearance was the result of a video released yesterday by the Agenda Project which connects the leading politicians from both parties to the attack on a Muslim taxicab driver in New York on Tuesday.

[youtube.com]

We created “Hate Begets Hate” …

Women Call for Obama to Act: Linda Tarr-Whelan, Jacki Zehner

Today marks Women’s Equality Day, the commemoration of women’s suffrage achieved in 1920. What better time to take stock of what’s left to do?

We need a national conversation led by the White House to explore how women decision-makers can help achieve better economic performance and a more prosperous future for all.

The administration of Barack Obama has already taken the first step by appointing talented women — including Mary Schapiro, who holds the top job at the Securities and Exchange Commission; Elizabeth Warren, wh…

If I played baseball, I would be thrilled if I hit a Grand Slam! This is a different type of Grand Slam — one that takes guts and determination to pull off. Here’s what’s so amazing about this story. Alison was climbing in memory of Meg Berte Owen, who died last October at the age of 37. Meg fought Hodgkin’s disease for over a decade, rode her bike from Seattle to Washington in 2005 with Lance Armstrong in the Tour of Hope, and married Wes Owen, her spectacular husband who she met at HBS, in the summer of 2008. That was Meg’s Grand Slam. All of my friends have one amazing trait in com…

If you read my blogs, you know that I write most often about the spectacular women in 85 Broads who are doing amazing things with their lives. Today, I’m going to write about one truly spectacular guy in my life — my son Chris Hanson. He is in Australia playing in the World Uni Squash Games with his fellow teammates. I am so proud of both of my kids – Mer cheers her brother on and we both laugh that after all these years, I still don’t know a “boast” from a “nick.” What I do know is that my son has a champion attitude and a champion heart which is all that matters. GO TEAM!

2010 Worl…

A terrific piece in today’s NY Times Biz Section:

PRERNA GUPTA: “TAKING A CHANCE ON YOURSELF”

July 11, 2010

Six years ago, fresh out of Stanford with a degree in economics, I had what many would consider the perfect job. I was a management consultant at a prestigious firm, with an office overlooking the San Francisco Bay and a shiny new ThinkPad to boot.

My co-workers were intelligent, ambitious and fun, and I interacted with high-level executives at Fortune 500 companies. My perks included free concert tickets, ski trips and fancy dinners. I was on track to be earning six figures …

Reshma Saujani, a spectacular young woman who graduated from Yale Law School (where she was a legal scholar) and the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, is going to beat Carolyn Maloney in the NYC congressional primary in September.

I met Reshma at a fundraising event at the home of Katherine Farley and Jerry Speyer last week. The event was hosted by Katherine, Maureen White, and Diana Taylor.

Reshma’s opponent, Carolyn Maloney, is an entrenched incumbent but she’s beatable. Carolyn has been in office for an eternity and for that reason, should be delighted to end her tenure as Co…

Laura Fitzpatrick is one of the most impressive young writers in our network. I am grateful to Laura for sharing the story of June Moss and the enormous contribution and sacrifice that 230,000 American women have made over the last decade in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Wednesday, Jun. 30, 2010

How We’re Failing Our Female Veterans
By Laura Fitzpatrick

The following is an abridged version of an article that appears in the July 12, 2010, print and iPad editions of TIME.

June Moss, 39, maneuvered a Humvee around charred corpses and still smoking shrapnel in Iraq in 2003. The Army driver …

Kelly Hoey and I had the opportunity to chat with Jocelyn Cunningham and several senior Deloitte women a few days ago. I go WAY back with Deloitte and have been impressed and amazed by how they’ve flown past their competition in what I fondly refer to as “the chick space.”

I met Mike Cook, Deloitte CEO, in the early 90’s. Mike was on the Board of Catalyst and was a huge fan of Sheila Wellington’s, Catalyst’s president. Mike had noticed that a lot of women were leaving Deloitte and he naturally assumed it was because they wanted to hang up their spikes and stay home with their kids. T…

Read Connie’s latest blog — and be sure to go to [stirblog.org] to see the kids playing at the playground Connie is building with the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force in Afghanistan!

WHAT AFGHANS WANT

Connie K. Duckworth / June 28th, 2010

This week, the press has been in full “scoop” mode. Since I am not a reporter, a talking head, a think tank expert, an academic, a government employee (whether military, political or civil), or even a “vampire squid” (although I did spend 20 years at Goldman Sachs), I am certainly insufficiently credentialed to opine on the military or political …

By way of introduction, Connie Duckworth and I worked together at Goldman Sachs. Connie was one of the stars at GS and it was not long before the firm made her a partner. She had a splendid career run at GS.

Like many GS partners, Connie kept blazing ambitious new trails after she left. She founded ARZU, which is an innovative model of social entrepreneurship that helps Afghan women weavers and their families break the cycle of poverty by providing them steady income and access to education and healthcare by sourcing and selling the rugs they weave. While structured as a 501©(3) in…