Former Deputy Director of Prudential Bank, Mary Brown, has urged women leading organisations to take seriously, the issue of personal branding in order to excel in the various sectors where they find themselves.
Speaking at a seminar themed: ‘Positioning yourself at the top, the challenges and rising above to succeed’, which was organised by The Image Refinery in Accra, Mrs. Brown said changing trends in management have made it imperative for women in leadership roles to pay much attention to their personal branding, as their organisations cannot be disentangled from their personality.
She advised that women must know how to project themselves to the world, avoiding the sex symbol type of brand; and make sure there is substance behind the image they project.
She further told the participants drawn from different sectors of the economy — fashion and design, public relations, image building, social enterprises, among others — to climb higher the education ladder so as to boost their confidence. She also urged them to keep update on current managerial practices.
Another important topic Mrs. Brown drew attention to was ethical practices and standards in business. She urged the young women entrepreneurs to always put ethics first in providing goods and services, in dealing with employers, and authorities.
CEO of The Image Refinery, Ivanova Dela Amengor, shared her thoughts on what informed her outfit to put together the conference.
“As women, the challenges we face and what we experience in life affects our roles as leaders in our various positions. And so, I thought it wise to bring women together to learn from the experience of people who have been there.
We always complain that we have been outran by men, but what are we doing as women to position ourselves to get the kind of opportunities men are given. Sometimes, you hear people say that women are their own enemies. What do we do that communicate that to people? And what do the men know, that we women don’t know that gives them advantage over us?
So, these are some of the reasons why this programme was organised for the women who have been at the top to discuss with us, so that we can develop ourselves and grow as leaders,” she said.
