Amplifying Women Leaders: Entrepreneur and Lawyer Phyllis A. James on the Importance of Treating Your Volunteer Work as Your Job
“There is an incalculable need in our society and thus a super-abundance of opportunities for volunteer work. In deciding where to invest one’s volunteer time and resources, I recommend that most importantly, you consider what causes or organizations you are passionate about, and what personal goals you aim to achieve through your volunteerism. This is crucial because you must treat your volunteer work just as you do your paying job.” Today’s woman dreamer, Phyllis A. James is Founding President and CEO of the Foundation for Women’s Leadership & Empowerment. She has a distinguished multi-disciplinary career history as a lawyer and C-suite executive, with seventeen years at MGM Resorts, serving as Chief Diversity and Corporate Responsibility Officer for more than a decade. She spent eight years as Corporation Counsel (Chief Legal Officer) for the City of Detroit under Mayor Dennis W. Archer – where she served as lead lawyer for the City in several legacy economic revitalization projects.In her inspiring interview with Women Who Win, she reflects on her both her entrepreneurial journey and philanthropic journey. Enjoy her story!
1. You are the founder and CEO of the Foundation for Women's Leadership and Empowerment, which focuses on educating women on leadership and business. Tell us about your journey as a founder.
My current role is an outgrowth of my service as the Chief Diversity and Corporate Responsibility Officer for most of my tenure at MGM Resorts, with responsibility for fusion of the company’s industry-leading diversity and inclusion platform throughout its values, policies, culture, and operations. A major initiative was promotion of gender equity as a priority throughout our company, industry, and society, which led to founding in 2007 of a conference forum for women of color and women (inextricably intertwined) to uplift each other to greater success by sharing life experiences, career challenges and solutions, mutual inspiration, and connections. I led the evolution of the conference from a D&I team small special project into a robust leadership development program – Women’s Leadership Conference (WLC) – focused on the express goals of diversifying the inspirational women role models presented; broader audience appeal; a multi-dimensional curriculum based in business acumen and core leadership competencies; and promotion of professional networks. WLC tapped into aspiring women’s thirst for exposure to accomplished women role models and more access to leadership learning – but most importantly, the experience of affirmation, connection, and collegiality gained from being a part of a large group of other aspiring women. Since its inception, WLC has become the No. 1 women’s conference in Las Vegas and one of the leading western U.S. women’s conferences and has impacted thousands of women.
Building on the momentum of WLC, I founded the Foundation for Women’s Leadership & Empowerment (FWLE) with the mission to continue expansion of the pipeline of women leaders and help eliminate the gender/racial leadership disparity in America’s workplaces, communities, and society through targeted education programs. Our initial goal is to broaden WLC’s reach nationwide and enlarge our program offerings beyond our “Aspiring Women” webinar. WLC and Aspiring Women address key disadvantages to upward mobility that women face, as documented by the McKinsey/LeanIn Women in the Workplace studies and other research – the gap between men and women in forming the basic aspiration to become leaders and taking that critical first entry-level step up the leadership ladder; the gap in access to education and developmental experiences grounded in core leadership competencies; and the gap in forming networks. I am aware of the naysayers who question the value of the contribution a two-day conference like WLC can make in eliminating the gender/racial disparity in American leadership. WLC will not be FWLE’s sole program. Further, my view is that continuous advocacy on this crucial issue is vital. The fact that eliminating sexism, racism and the other negative “isms” and phobias may be more daunting than solving math’s seeminglyinsoluble Riemann Hypothesis should not deter us from taking actions that we can. I believe in the maxim of Edward Everett: “I am only one but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something.”
2. Can you tell us about how your organization uplifts leaders and works to create an impact? How do you foster a diverse community?
FWLE’s programs provide leadership education directed primarily at women, including women of color, but open to men as well, with the fundamental goal of creating more inclusive leaders. Leaders drives progress in organizations. We must reach a critical mass of women/persons of color in leadership across America to make change in unequal norms, stereotypes andpractices and foster inclusive cultures. The more gender/racially diverse our leaders become across the board, the more accepted the concept of diverse leadership will become. Aside from the ethical and moral value of diversity, mountains of data now support the economic value of diverse teams to productivity, innovation, growth, and long-term sustainability – hence the drive to develop more leaders who are women and persons of color as an economic as well as moral imperative for our society.
FWLE promotes women’s aspiration to leadership by presenting successful women leaders as main stage speakers – on the same premise as “If you can see her, you can be her™” – broadly diverse in race/ethnicity, age, socio-economic background, occupation/industry, accomplishment, and life experience. There is an entire body of literature on the power and impact of positive inspirational role models on our beliefs, self-improvement, and growth. Our education sessions (taught by many women executive coaches and subject-matter experts) are rooted in core skills that effective leaders must have – such as business acumen and business judgment, financial acumen, managing complexity, resiliency, effective communication with all levels, and driving change and innovation. We emphasize that leadership competencies are not inherent character traits with which men are born; they are learned, achieved skills and practices. It is particularly important that women and people of color master hard-core business acumen leadership skills because of persistent stereotypes that they lack and cannot achieve skills levels.
We also recognize the importance of including men in FWLE’s mission and our programs, and in diversity and inclusion efforts. Not only do our male participants benefit from the leadership education we provide, but for them to become stronger gender equity advocates, it is beneficial for them to hear women’s perspectives on many workplace and leadership issues. Progress toward gender equality in senior leadership is accelerated when men act as allies. They can influence positive behaviors in their male circles, make gender equality a priority in their organizations (not just their workplaces but beyond), promote women’s career progression and retention of women leaders, enforce accountability, and uphold a culture of inclusion.
3. You are actively involved in several nonprofit organizations including Advisory Council for the Center for Women, Gender and Global Leadership at Howard University College of Arts & Sciences, Nevada Legal Services and Habitat for Humanity Las Vegas. Can you give advice to women who want to give back?
There is an incalculable need in our society and thus a super-abundance of opportunities for volunteer work. In deciding where to invest one’s volunteer time and resources, I recommend that most importantly, you consider what causes or organizations you are passionate about, and what personal goals you aim to achieve through your volunteerism. This is crucial because you must treat your volunteer work just as you do your paying job. Your work is a representation of you and your professionalism, and nonprofit organizations rely on volunteers for significant work the nonprofits cannot afford. If you are not committed and willing to do the work, then I suggest that you do not get involved. Or, if your objective is only short-term, you should be absolutely clear about that with yourself and your organization.
Additional decision points include: the opportunities/organizations where you can make an impactful contribution to your chosen cause • the type of contribution you wish to make, whether specialized knowledge and/or skills, tasks, special projects, etc. • how much time you can realisticallyinvest in light of your other obligations and commitments, such as your job, family, self-care, and personal time. Last, once you embark on your volunteer role, you should regularly assess your continuing level of commitment, the quality of your experience, and the impact or difference you believe you are making. If you do not find that you are deriving a sense of purpose or fulfillment from your volunteerism, you must decide whether and/or to what extent to remain active in it.
4. As the platform for women dreamers, what is your next big dream?
To achieve equity with men, we must increase the number of women in leadership across all areas and institutions of our society. FWLE’s goal is to become a premier resource in America for women’s leadership development program and tools that elevate women’s aspirations and confidence.
Thank you Phyllis for sharing your story with us! We are excited to have you in our global women’s network!
Bio: Phyllis A. James is Founding President and CEO of the Foundation for Women’s Leadership & Empowerment (“FWLE”), a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization established in May 2019 to help remedy one of America’s and the world’s most urgent needs – access by women and women of color to high-quality educational experiences that prepare them (as well as men) for leadership roles across society. With founding support from MGM Resorts International, FWLE seeks to expand the pipeline of women leaders through Las Vegas’ Women’s Leadership Conference (“WLC”) – one of the, if not the, premier women’s development conferences in the western United States, and other accessible programs. She has a distinguished multi-disciplinary career history as a lawyer and C-suite executive, with seventeen (17) years at MGM Resorts, serving as Chief Diversity and Corporate Responsibility Officer for more than a decade. She spent eight years as Corporation Counsel (Chief Legal Officer) for the City of Detroit under Mayor Dennis W. Archer – where she served as lead lawyer for the City in several legacy economic revitalization projects. Beyond her executive and legal experience, Ms. James has served on several for-profit and non-profit boards of directors.