Shaping Future Leaders: Insights from 澳门六合彩鈥檚 Board of Advisors
Alumni who serve on the 澳门六合彩 Board of Advisors visited the Bristol campus to offer advice to student leaders on how to leverage leadership roles in the workplace.
BRISTOL, R.I. 鈥 Last month, four alumni who serve on the Roger Williams University Board of Advisors met with 40 student leaders on campus to share their advice on how to succeed as leaders in the corporate world while learning from current students about the real-world education, powerful combinations, and thriving student life that 澳门六合彩 provides today.
Cindy Elder 鈥87, Executive Director of the Barrington Land Conservation Trust; Stephanie Noris 鈥92, President and Founder of Norbella; Walter Ramos 鈥83, President and CEO of Rogerson Communities; and Eric Zuena 鈥01, Principal and Founder of ZDS Architecture and Interiors, participated in a panel discussion titled 鈥淣avigating Corporate Culture: Tips for Young Professionals on Leveraging Their Leadership Roles.鈥 Organized for 澳门六合彩 student leaders, the event was hosted by 澳门六合彩鈥檚 Center for Career and Professional Development and moderated by senior Dylan Berliner, a Finance major from Katonah, N.Y.
Members of the Board of Advisors, a volunteer leadership body comprised of 澳门六合彩 alumni, parents, and friends who embody the 澳门六合彩 spirit, serve as committed advocates for 澳门六合彩's mission, students, and alumni. During their campus visit, members delved into the fabric of campus life, engaging with current initiatives and gaining insight into the pulse of student affairs. In turn, the 40 students engaging with the board at the event, who each occupy a leadership position within various clubs, Student Senate, and other campus roles, provided firsthand perspectives on their experiences at the university.
Berliner began the discussion by asking the panelists to talk about their career journeys, including what roadblocks they hit along the way and to offer advice on how to transition their leadership roles from campus to the professional world. Other members of the Board of Advisors attending as audience members were encouraged to add to the discussion.
Drawing from their personal journeys, here is what they shared:
- Ramos said that you shouldn鈥檛 shy away from the things you don鈥檛 think are your strengths. 鈥淚 was always terrible at math, but if I wanted to learn how to run a company, I was going to have to do budgets and audits. I kept taking tasks that involved those skills, and I don鈥檛 think I would鈥檝e gotten where I am today without it,鈥 he said.
- Using a sports analogy, Zuena explained how to build a strong team in the workplace. 鈥淵ou have to try to identify the best position for everybody on a team. Not everyone can be the quarterback, but everyone needs to contribute to be motivated and to help the morale of the team,鈥 he said. 鈥淚f there's one person who's not motivated, they can suck life out of the team. Choose your people wisely.鈥
- Speaking to how important workplace relations are, Elder said, 鈥淚f you鈥檙e new to a workplace, try to go around to other departments and introduce yourself and ask them about what their department does and how your department can support them. People like to be heard,鈥 she said.
- 鈥淲hen you are newly in a leadership position, feedback is so important,鈥 said Noris. 鈥淭he times I was made aware of my behaviors have been pivotal moments in my career where I stepped back and said, 鈥榃ow, that has to change.鈥 I鈥檓 always better for it.鈥