Last month, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney's bi-annual Women's Management Forum convened to discuss leadership and change at MSSB's Westchester headquarters in Purchase, New York. The two-day event featured Monica McGrath, a professor in the Management Department at the Wharton School.

The participants were selected based on their managerial and leadership roles in the field.  The focus of the event was on networking, team-building, and leadership training.

Managing Director Shelley Hanan, MSSB Chief Administrative Officer, welcomed the group. "Strong leaders build great companies, so we all need to make sure we're leading effectively," she said.

Hanan encouraged the women to use the time to focus on their own professional development.

The Forum also included team-building and networking activities with Executive Director Connie Chartrand, MSSB's Chief Learning Officer, as well as workshops and small group discussions such as "The Role of a Leader" and "The Role of Influence in Change Efforts" that Wharton’s McGrath facilitated.

"At the end of this, I hope they're able to walk away with three things," she said. "A sense of community in their careers and life, an idea of what type of things they'd like to learn in their leadership role, and an ability to be more self-reflective."

In addition to gaining skills in effective leadership, the women had the opportunity to network and build a support system for each other.

"The Women's Management Forum was a great opportunity to meet and get better acquainted with other female managers at MSSB," said Deborah A. Cicatelli, First Vice President, Regional Business Development Manager. "I really appreciate our Firm providing us with an open environment to learn more about each other and the challenges that we are facing. At the Forum I was able to exchange ideas and cultivate relationships with other women in management, and that experience was invaluable to me."

Cira Nickerson, Senior Vice President, Complex Manager, Palo Alto Coastal, agreed.

"There could not have been a timelier topic for our firm's leaders than 'Leading Through Change,'" she said. "We have been faced with a changing firm, in a changing industry, in a changing world, so it has been game changing as to how we lead today. I also left with a better understanding that female leaders are faced with no different challenges today than our male counterparts. We just may handle them a little differently, which I found refreshing."