She tirelessly offers her time and expertise to nonprofits. Deborah has a huge heart!”
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The 2011 Positively Powerful Woman Award for Philanthropic Leadership will be given to Deborah Bateman Executive Vice President of Specialty Banking, member Executive Committee and Board of Directors National Bank of Arizona for her establishment of the Women’s Financial Group (WFG) dedicated to providing networking and resources to female business owners; for giving over 500 hours each year to community organizations including the Arizona Foundation for Women, American Heart Association’s Heart Ball, Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, The Phoenix Zoo, and Arizona State University’s Women; for serving as an Arizona Skills Standard Commissioner for the Arizona State Department of Education; for being a board member of Homeward Bound, FreshStart and ChildHelp; for increasing awareness to women’s causes; and for charitable efforts in the last three years that have resulted in raising almost $5 million for the benefit of organizations in Arizona.

In her role, Deborah develops, implements and monitors NB|AZ sales, service, and marketing strategies. She is also responsible for several of the bank’s key departments, including Private Banking, Executive Banking, Internet Banking, Nonprofit Banking and WFG. She has more than 35 years of banking experience as Senior Vice President with JP Morgan Chase in New York, Chicago and Phoenix including assistance in the institution’s merger with Bank One.

An active member of the community, Deborah finds substantive ways to make her difference. She brings boundless joy, passion and heart to every commitment. She’s served as Chair/Co-Chair of the 2011 Arizona Foundation for Women’s Sandra Day O’Connor Luncheon, the 2011 Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s Promise Ball, as well as the 2009 and 2010 Arthritis Foundation’s Oscar Night America.

It’s no surprise that she has received numerous honors. In addition to being one of this year’s Positively Powerful Women she has earned the national 2010 Stevie Award for Best Executive in the Financial Services Industry, Arizona Foothills, 2011 Women Who Move the Valley Phoenix Business Journal, 2011 Women in Business Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, 2011 Bronze Sierra Award YWCA, 2010 Tribute to Women, Corporate Business Leader Award National Association of Women Business Owners, 2010 Visionary Award SCORE, 2010 Phoenix Small Business Award and Trends Charitable Foundation, 2010 Trendsetters and many more.

Join us by clicking here as Deborah receives the first Positively Powerful Women Award for Philanthropic Leadership. She is a spiritual and loving woman with commitment to her family. She is the embodiment of servant leadership – and that you can bank on. She is a role model for what it takes to be a successful woman in a vital company and important industry.

About the Awards Program. The Positively Powerful Woman Award is given to servant leaders who have founded or lead legacy organizations that have stood the test of time. On May 20th, 11:30am to 2pm, at the Ritz-Carlton, Phoenix we will honor women as royalty for their hard work, resourcefulness and diligence. Following the Luncheon will be networking and “Conversations On Leadership” for professional & business development. Positively Powerful Guest Speakers include Diana Gregory, Susan Ratliff and Dr. Kay Lovelace-Taylor. You will leave inspired to go for your vision with new friends and information that will assist you in getting where you want to be…faster. The public is invited to attend. Triad West, Inc. Dr. Joel P. Martin president is the producer.

About the National Bank Of Arizona: Founded in Tucson in 1984, National Bank of Arizona is a full-service community bank offering personal and business financial solutions for every aspect of your life. As Arizona’s fourth-largest bank with over $4.5 billion in assets, NB|AZ has the resources people need, delivered with the local responsiveness and personalized service people want. With branches in more than 50 communities, they are committed to growing Arizona – to being the only bank anyone could ever need. For more information, please visit www.nbarizona.com.

“Kristi went through the fire. She has an empowering story to share.”

The 2011 Positively Powerful Woman Award for Nonprofit Leadership will be given to entrepreneur, speaker and author Kristi Lee for her leadership role in the founding of the National Association for Asian American Professionals (NAAAP) Phoenix Chapter, the NAAAP Mentor and Professional Development Programs; for her service to the State of Arizona as Commissioner of the Governor’s Asian American Advisory Council, and for her  co-founding of the global organization Bridging The Gap Consulting which works to facilitate educational, trade and developmental interests of United States individuals and the people of China.

Kristi has an extensive business background with more than 20 years in marketing and retail. Her previous corporate experience includes responsibility for product and marketing decisions for more than 2,300 Albertson’s Food and Drug stores in 38 states, and negotiations with national brands such as Johnson & Johnson, Proctor & Gamble, Maybelline and Revlon.

Kristi is  the Vice Chair for NAAAP.  NAAAP Phoenix’s mission is to be the proving ground for Greater Phoenix Asian American Professionals, forging leaders of tomorrow through professional development, cultural awareness, community service and mentorship.  She helped create the Professional Development program in 2008 and created the vision for the NAAAP Mentorship Program in 2009.  She is also the facilitator for Public Speaking workshops for the NAAAP leadership team. Kristi has been a Commissioner of the Governor’s Asian American Advisory Council, and a member of the Business On Board program sponsored by the Arts and Business Council of Greater Phoenix.

About the Arts & Business Council of Greater Phoenix (A&BC) and the Business on Board Program:The Executive Director of A&BC is Debbie Paine, the first recipient of the Positively Powerful Woman Award for Nonprofit Leadership. Eugene “Gene” Kochert of Intel Corporation is Board President and Jeannette Thomas is the Community Development Manager. Their mission is to grow leaders and inspire involvement to enrich the entire community. BoB is a dynamic six-month training program that identifies, recruits and trains business professionals for nonprofit arts and human services board positions with modules on Board Rules and Responsibilities, Effective Nonprofit Board Leadership, Legal and Ethical Responsibilities, Fundraising, Financial Responsibility, Diversity, Advocacy and Politics, and The Art of Networking.

In addition to the BoB and educational programs, the Council has become a one-stop shop for the arts by including opportunities for governance training, new educational opportunities for artists, and functioning as a strategic partner for capacity building. The Arts & Business Council of Greater Phoenix provides increased benefit to business by way of exposure throughout the community, growth and enrichment in leadership skills and experience for executives and key management, and business-to-business opportunities.

Kristi is a founding partner of Bridging the Gap Consulting, a firm that specializes in cultural sensitivity training, conversational business Chinese, corporate and individual training on how to conduct business in China, Her company also coordinates Chinese students with exchange programs as well as summer camps and provides translation services for all versions of media and presentations.

Kristi recently co-authored, License to Dream – Every Woman’s Guide to Financial Freedom Through Network Marketing, which was launched worldwide. She and her co-authors were featured in the highly respected Networking Times March 2011 issue, “The Rising Economic Power of Women”.  She is an accomplished speaker and sales trainer and has great passion for empowering women around the world.

Five years ago, faced with her corporate job moving out of state and going through a divorce, she went on to build a successful network marketing business with Send Out Cards, an international greeting card and gift company.  She has team members in 30 states, Australia and Canada and is in the top 250 income earners of the company.  In December 2010, she received the prestigious “Freedom Award” voted by the top leaders of Send Out Cards in Arizona for “Exceptional Leadership and Dedication”.

About the Awards Program. The Positively Powerful Woman Award is given to servant leaders who have founded or lead legacy organizations that have stood the test of time. On May 20th, 11:30am to 2pm, at the Ritz-Carlton, Phoenix we will honor women as royalty for their hard work, resourcefulness and diligence. Following the Luncheon will be networking and “Conversations On Leadership” for professional & business development. Positively Powerful Guest Speakers include Diana Gregory, Susan Ratliff and Dr. Kay Lovelace-Taylor. You will leave inspired to go for your vision with new friends and information that will assist you in getting where you want to be…faster. The public is invited to attend. Dr. Joel P. Martin Triad West, Inc. president is the producer.

“My desired focus is to connect individuals with resources that drive success and assist them with meeting their greatest potential.“

The 2011 Positively Powerful Corporate Woman Award will be given to Vivian Squire for her many contributions as a skilled organizational leader and corporate contributor focused on rapid executive, individual, team and operations improvement; for her commitment to leadership development, diversity and managing change; for her representation of the third-largest public power utility in the nation; for her management of the company’s Corporate Mentoring Program; for being the former Chair of one of the company’s affinity groups, The African American Cultural Committee; and for her commitment to entrepreneurs as company representative to The Greater Phoenix Black Chamber of Commerce. Vivian Squire, a 27-year veteran, is the Supervisor, Human Resources Learning & Development Services: Employee & Management Development of Phoenix-based Salt River Project (SRP) Agricultural Improvement and Power District, a political subdivision of the state of Arizona.

SRP is the largest provider of electricity to the greater Phoenix metropolitan area providing electricity to nearly 934,000 retail customers, operating or participating in 11 major power plants and numerous other generating stations, including thermal, nuclear, natural gas and hydroelectric sources and importantly and as it concerns this year’s award recipient, employing more than 4,400 people. Vivian Squire’s human resources policies and management impact the professional wellbeing and development of each employee.

With a smile, Vivian manages a team of human resource professionals who plan, organize, develop and coordinate corporate learning and the development of human performance improvement solutions needed to achieve corporate goals effectively and efficiently. With a commitment to excellence, she oversees the development of program content, training delivery methods with staff and executives to identify and maximize opportunities that increase organizational learning and employee performance. With success, she has advised on and guided several business units’ on their business development and growth strategies through the process of defining the value they bring to the organization.

Like the first winner of Positively Powerful Corporate Woman Award Angela Curley of Henkel North America, this visionary woman does the work that she does not for glory but for the development of others. Join us by clicking here as she receives the 2^nd annual corporate woman award. We know that her energy will continue to make a difference for her company and humanity. Vivian Squire is a role model for what it takes to be a successful woman in a vital company and important industry.

“She saw more than what we were. She saw what we were to become.”

The Positively Powerful Woman of Global Leadership Award will be given to Kay Kallander for her many contributions as Senior Vice President for Strategic Planning American Baptist Homes of the West (ABHOW); for her design and launch of The Grove, an acclaimed memory support program; chairpersonship of EMERGE, Aging Services of California’s leadership development program; the launch of Leadership ABHOW; her contributions as a delegate to the White House Conference on Aging; representation of the U.S. in Australia at the first Alzheimer’s Association/E-Rotary conference on Alzheimer’s disease; leadership in the  structure of the innovative Leadership AAHSA fellowship program in which she serves as the lead coach and being the recipient of the 2008 AAHSA Mentor of the Year award.

Kay Kallandar is a role model for what it looks like to “have it all” – family, meaningful career, servant leadership and the ability to be positively powerful with grace, humor and style. Florence Nightingale was a history maker. So too, is Kay Kallander.

For her many contributions, Kay Kallander will receive the first Global Leadership Award in the Positively Powerful Women Awards’ 4 years history. She embodies what the Positively Powerful Women Awards stand for: “The empowerment of all people through the celebration of women’s accomplishments in ways that inspire all others to live their dreams.” This annual award is given to women who have founded or lead legacy organizations…organizations that have stood the test of time. During a  gala awards luncheon May 20, 2011 at the Phoenix Ritz-Carlton, Kay Kallander will be honored as royalty for her hard work, resourcefulness, diligence and stand for excellence in global leadership for the aging and health services. While she preferred to remain silently in service (as do so many women making a significant difference), Kay was assured that the commitments near and dear to her heart would share the spotlight with her. Consider these statistics:

• With over 100,000 vacant positions and an ever-growing need for healthcare workers, the career outlook is excellent for the nursing field. Nursing is a highly regarded profession. A 2004 Gallup Poll announced that the public again voted nurses number one for “honesty and ethical standards of various professions.” For those who have a passion for the care of others, we will salute you.
• This year, the first baby boomers turn 65. While Alzheimer’s is not normal aging, age is the greatest risk factor for the disease. “Too many of America’s baby boomers will spend their retirement years either with Alzheimer’s or caring for someone who has it.” For care givers and those searching for a cure, thank you.
• In partnership with Enterprise Community Partners, Inc., AAHSA convened a National Summit on Affordable Senior Housing and Services on May 25, 2010. The event brought together nearly 100 experts to discuss role of affordable senior housing and services models to help lower-income seniors “age in place”; share promising practices and policy initiatives; and identify barriers to the of models. Aging is place, ABHOW’s CCRCS, nursing care, affordable housing and assisted living are important initiatives for us all to consider.

If you would like more inspiration on what is possible when one chooses nursing as a profession, please read on. Then let your imagination about your contributions soar.

Kay Kallandar’s management expertise and commitment to quality are grounded in frontline experience. A registered nurse, she joined ABHOW in 1985 as director of nursing at Plymouth Village in Redlands, Calif., after 12 years of nursing work in hospital and home health settings. Throughout her career, she has volunteered as a nurse through World Vision, traveling to such countries as El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti and Tanzania and working in refugee camps in Cambodia and Thailand.

Once at ABHOW, she took on ever-expanding roles, becoming assistant administrator then executive director of Plymouth Village before joining the corporate team in 1996 as senior vice president and chief operations manager. She moved into her current role in 2001.

While at Plymouth Village, Kay Kallander launched The Grove, an acclaimed memory support program that ABHOW has since expanded to five communities with several more programs in development. Her goal is for The Grove to be in every ABHOW CCRC. Designed for her MBA thesis at the University of Redlands, The Grove emphasizes residents’ abilities rather than disabilities and encourages staff to enter the world of residents. She has shared The Grove’s approach with national and international groups. In 2004, she represented the U.S. in Australia at the first Alzheimer’s Association/E-Rotary conference on Alzheimer’s disease.

Kay Kallander’s work has led to other invitations to lead and speak. She served as a delegate to the White House Conference on Aging. She currently serves as chair elect of Aging Services of California. In addition, she is a trustee for American Baptist Seminary of the West and an advisory committee member for the health care administrator certificate program at the University of Redlands, where she also earned her bachelor’s degree and was named Alumni of the Year in 2001.

Much of her focus today is on cultivating the next generation of senior living leaders.  She understands that a commitment to excellence must include the intentional formation of leaders. She helped structure the innovative Leadership AAHSA fellowship program in which she serves as the lead coach. She received the AAHSA Mentor of the Year award in 2008. (AAHSA is now named LeadingAge.)

In addition, she is chair of EMERGE, Aging Services of California’s leadership development program, and she launched Leadership ABHOW, the company’s yearlong initiative to create a ready reserve of trained and licensed team members who can move into management-level positions as they become available. In her teaching and coaching, Kay Kallander’s aim is always the growth and self-development of others. She motivates people by first having faith in them. As one AAHSA fellow put it, “She saw more than what we were. She saw what we were to become.”

It’s this belief in potential, coupled with her passion for excellence, which brings Kay Kallander into relationship with emerging leaders. She invests in others because she is ultimately a person of hope. In the words of another AAHSA fellow, “Kay affords people the opportunity to turn their potential into reality, their dreams into destiny. Her impact cannot be measured because there is no telling where her influence will stop.”

Kay is known for her commitment to excellence in the service of others. For more than 25 years, she has advanced the senior living profession through pioneering efforts in Alzheimer’s care and memory support, planning for the future of aging services, and mentoring of the next generation of leaders.

As senior vice president for strategic planning for American Baptist Homes of the West (ABHOW), Kay Kallander

guides the company’s award-winning initiatives in quality management, governance, leadership development, and communications. She oversees the accreditation process for ABHOW’s continuing care retirement communities, and she promotes the companywide commitment to Quality First, a national initiative of American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging to build public trust through exceptional service. ABHOW’s Quality First efforts are considered best practices across the nation.

For more information on the 2011 Positively Powerful Women Awards please click here.

Susan Ratliff cautions, “You don’t want to miss (Women Entrepreneurs Small Business Boot Camp) one of the premier women’s conferences in the Valley. Network with hundreds of successful business owners, speak to prominent corporate sponsors, mingle with dynamic industry experts and meet women you can relate to.”

Dr. Joel Martin says, “There are many groups dedicated to entrepreneurial success, I say not only is this one of premiere in the Valley but anywhere. I’ll be speaking at the Boot Camp about personal and organizational branding. This is also the event I’ve selected to launch my new book: GET THE “ME” BRAND AWARENESS (MBA) THE POSITIVELY POWERFUL WAY.”

This is one of the events that I, like hundreds of others, look forward to. Each year, Susan brings together a stellar group of women speakers, business experts, exhibitors (corporate products and services for professional and personal development shopping), fun activities, meet and greet networking opportunities for use in accelerating ones business plus each year her event raises funds for a worthy local nonprofit organization. Here is information on this year’s:

The 2011 Women Entrepreneurs Small Business Boot Camp is proud to support Wings to Fly, a national, non-profit organization that promotes life long self-esteem in young women. Beginning with a fun, educational and inspirational one week educational camp, Wings to Fly focuses on the 4 building blocks of life: emotional, physical, spiritual and financial. By integrating inspiration, knowledge, research based resources and coaching into her daily life, a young woman can aspire with confidence and self respect to design the life she dreams and become a leader of tomorrow.

Susan Ratliff is President of an award-winning display company that helps thousands of businesses stand out from the competition. She is an author and authority on trade and consumer show marketing that gives relevant tools and practical strategies to maximize return on investment. Susan learned the exhibit business from the trenches, discovered the shortcuts and made the mistakes so her audiences don’t have to. She knows what attendees want, how exhibitors think and what they both need to be successful. As the producer of the Bootcamp, Susan insures that the event is unforgettable.

Susan Ratliff is also a POSITIVELY POWERFUL WOMEN AWARD recipient. This award is given to women in business, corporate America, non-profit organizations and the arts who have led or founded legacy organizations. As with the other years’ awardees, Susan received this recognition because she empowers her organization to breakthrough performance, makes a significant contribution to communities and is a positive role model.

On Oct. 28th, you’ll find me at Sheila Robinson’s National DIVERSITY WOMEN’S BUSINESS LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE. Ms. Robinson is the CEO of Diversity Woman magazine and founder of the conference. One of the many reasons I’m looking forward to attending is to meet Donna Brazile who is an adjunct professor, author, syndicated columnist and television political commentator. She’s the keynote speaker for the conference’s MOSAIC WOMEN AWARDS Luncheon where Dr. Maya Angelou, Edie Fraser, Dr. Julianne Malveaux, and Ret. Lt. Col, U.S. Army Consuela Kickbusch will be honored.

Ms. Brazile is the first African-American woman to manage a presidential campaign, the Vice Chair of Voter Registration and Participation of the Democratic National Committee, one of 20 “remarkable visionaries” on the Oprah Magazine Power List, one of the Top 50 Women for Essence magazine, a winner of the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s highest award for political achievement. She’s a native of New Orleans and on the board of directors of the Louisiana Recovery Authority. She’s been at the pinnacle of several key moments in our country and I know she will have a lot tell us.

Sheila Robinson has brought together over 50 other trailblazers from corporate American and successful entrepreneurial companies. The conference focus will be on how to cross “The Diverse & Multicultural Women’s Leadership Gap”, this skill is a business imperative for success.

Here is a partial list of Conference Speakers and Presenters:

• Dr. Maya Angelou, one of the great voices of contemporary Black literature and a remarkable Renaissance woman.
• Tiane Mitchell-Gordon, AOL Chief Diversity Officer
• Cindy Brinkley, AT & T Chief Diversity Officer
• Anise Wiley-Little, Allstate Insurance Company Chief Diversity Officer
• Dr. Julianne Malveaux, Bennett College for Women President
• Tracey Gibson, Cargill Director of Diversity
• Shari Slate, Cisco Director of Inclusion
• Edie Fraser, Diversified Search Sr. Consultant
• Keith Clinkscales, ESPN Senior Vice President & Publisher, ESPN Magazine
• Tujuanna Williams, Freddie Mac Chief Diversity Officer
• Cuc Vu, Human Rights Campaign Chief Diversity Officer
• Colleen J. Payne, MCI Diagnostics CEO
• Jeanette Kilo-Smith, Motorola Chief Diversity Officer
• Carolynn Brooks, Office Max Chief Diversity Officer
• Sherrie Duncan, Progress Energy Supplier Diversity Director
• Dr. Johnnetta B. Cole, Smithsonian National Museum of African Art Executive Director
• Dr. Rohini Anand, Sodexo Senior Vice President & Global Chief Diversity Officer
• Annette Martinez, State Farm Vice President of Human Resources
• Candi Castleberry-Singleton, University Pittsburgh Medical Center Chief Diversity Officer
• Patricia Crawford, Wells Fargo Chief Diversity Officer

Government policy makers, industry leaders, and the media proclaim that women are fast becoming the leading force for change on our planet.  This conference will get us all ready for the opportunities on the way. It is designed to support the leadership and executive development of women of all races, cultures and backgrounds; this conference will spark imagination and energize careers. I am looking forward to contributing.  (I also expect to have some R & R at the Gaylord on the Potomac. The near-DC conference hotel and surroundings are beautiful.)

I will miss participating in events on the 29th because I’ll be delivering a presentation on “Careers for the Year 2020″ at the BIZ = COM conference for the Urban League of Essex County in Newark, NJ. This is my kind of fun – a great combination of benefits, connecting with new and old friends, collaborating on business in a grand environment, and then heading off to serve others by “building bridges of opportunity” and sharing best practices in career development.

Wannapreneur: A person who talks about organizing and managing enterprises, esp. businesses, usually with considerable initiative and risk, but never actually does.

If you’ve decided the answer to your economic situation is to move from government or corporate work to become an entrepreneur but haven’t taken the plunge, you may be a wannapreneur. Here’s a book that will give you direction and something to think about. “I Did It My Way and…It Worked!” by Colleen J. Payne-Nabors who is on the left.. I’m Dr. Joel Martin on the right. Colleen has won a significant number of awards for her business success, Inc. 5000, 2007 Oklahoma Small Business Person of The Year, and most recently, Woman Entrepreneur Of The Year for FraserNet’sPowerNetworking Conference.  Colleen is also a wife, mother, community leaders, and nationally known public speaker. A nuclear medicine technologist by profession, she decided to create a mobile nuclear medicine unit and to provide nuclear cardiac stress testing to those in remote areas of rural northeast Oklahoma.

In her book, she gives it to you straight with no frills. She’s a medical professional so read her book because it’s good for you. I wished that I had when I started my businesses. It would have made the journey to success shorter and easier. Here’s her quote.

The entrepreneur’s sacrifice is tremendous. Initally, we all have dreams of grandeur, thinking, I will be able to work for myself and nobody will tell me what to do. I’ll get to go home. I won’t have to go to the office. I will have so much money. Surely in this day and age, no one still believes in this fairy tale! In every book on being an entrepreneur, the first story you read will tell that this dream is not real! You are going to work longer and harder than anyone else, you are going to have more hats to put on than anyone, you are going to get paid less than anyone in your company and you are not going to get to go home early. On any given day, you are not even going to get to be your own boss (Payne, pg. 133).

Better to read her book, than to face the agony of defeat. She covers all of the bases from banking to communication style. Wannapreneurs, she also says,  “If I can do it you can too!”

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

There was a time when sport teams were seen as the ultimate models for how managers should see their businesses. Some CEOs would make reference to football teams in describing their management style. For example, calling all plays from the sidelines. Others would use basketball, with themselves as the head coach, and another coach who was their eyes and ears on the court being a point guard.  This provided flexibility for the players/employees until a time out was called.

Today, the popular analogy is the family – a different structure, smaller and requiring a different set of sensibilities from the managerial leaders. For example, the football model is to play at any cost to yourself, just don’t hurt your team. It meant being a warrior, like Ben Roethlisberger, having fractured ribs while competing in this year’s Super-Bowl. While we might admire Mr. Roethlsberger heroics, in our businesses this would be seen as reckless. How this might be similar in the workplace is saying one believes in work life balance but asking your teams to work 60 hours a week…”give it your all.”

Many women (men too – the paradigm is shifting) have a different take on business and understand fully the concept of family. Here are just some of the attributes that support the business concept of families.

1. Understanding that emotions mean something.
2. Understanding that change is constant
3. That caring is not a bad word.
4. Risk for risk sake is not taking risk but being silly.
5. That everything matters.

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Series Intro: In this series I’ll be highlighting some of the most interesting and inspiring women that I’ve been meeting, learned about, or working with. Here’s what I know…they are so busy working, filming, teaching, campaigning, leading, etc. that they don’t have time to promote themselves. I get to do that. If there is a positively powerful woman you’d like me to feature, let me know.

Meet Cybel Martin, Director of Photography/Cinematographer:

Singled out for her expressive and stylized work, Cybel Martin is the first and only African American woman to receive an MFA in Cinematography from New York University. Perhaps because she was named after 1962 Oscar winning film, “Sundays and Cybele”, this native New Yorker has set her sights on her own golden statue. Recently she was filming a feature in DC during the Inauguration of President Obama.

It was interesting to learn that the cameras that she must wield are heavy, so staying in peak condition physically (as well as mentally, emotionally, and spiritually) is important. All seem to be taken in stride by this PPW (Positively Powerful Woman). Other traits that I learned are key for those who want to be cinematographers like her – in a male dominated industry – are the abilities to facilitate diverse people, be able to “travel well”, spot great professional talents, be the boss of her crew on the set, and juggle many balls. Cybel is both a Bollywood and Nollywood DP (Director of Photography). Another skill is to be exceptionally entrepreneurial. Cybel Martin is a business entity that creates art and brings stories to life with mathematical excellence. (Try figuring out what lights, filters, camera lenses…to use. That’s a discipline that I can only begin to imagine!) The results of her work bring tears, laughter, and yes Oscars.

Cybel is also an author and speaker: Inspired to share her knowledge and career experiences, Cybel has participated in several film panels and lecture series. Her favorites include guest lecturer at the Psychiatry Department at Columbia University, Cinematography instructor for the Film Academy in Nigeria, guest teacher for The Ghetto Film School and panelist at the Arizona Black Film Fest.  She documents some of her experiences in Nigeria in a recently published photography book, “Picture in Nigeria” which is available for purchase through Blurb. Her website: Click here.

No matter how you interpret the headline, it all rings true when it’s Lorrinda Gray-Davis that’s being referred to. Ms. Gray-Davis is the Director of Diversity Development for Perini Building Co. Inc., a company that is a leader in the high-dollar relationship-based commercial contracting and construction industry. The Las Vegas skyline and Phoenix Airpot are two of the many sites shaped by their corporation.

I met Lorrinda when she held a similar position with Austin Industries and since those early days, I have seen the consistency with which she has exceeded the $$ diversity commitments of these firms. She’s been pivotal in the awarding of millions of dollars to minority companies. She’s received millions of accolades and awards most recently the Champion of Diversity Award from Diversity Plus. She has assisted significant numbers if not millions of business owners in growing their businesses through mentoring, championing, educational forums, etc. because as she says, “If our subcontractors fail, we fail.” She is also supportive of community events serving as the Chairperson of the Grand Canyon Minority Supplier Development Council, Ron Williams President and sponsor of The Positively Powerful Women Celebrate! events among others.

Perini serves as a benchmark for other prime contractors. however, the firm’s diversity success did not come overnight– nor has it been coincidental. It actually started growing roots in 2005 when the firm hired its Director of Diversity Development Lorrinda Gray-Davis. when Gray-Davis took on the challenge, she was charged with establishing a full-time diversity department, policies and procedures. Fortunately, Gray-Davis and Perini alike have seen substantial results. (MBNUSA September 15 – October 15, 2008)

Transformational leaders enroll in their vision: She’s done this at Perini, for entrepreneurs, and in the community. They are vulnerable and she is in her “upfront” style of communication and commitment to get things done. They cause a possibility to occur that would not have happened otherwise as she does being a minority business advocate who is not only a gate keeper for millions but creating gates where there were none before.