The Exchange - How does it work?

The Exchange is designed for busy professionals. Each group (of no more than 10 participants) meets one morning a week for 12 weeks. Exchanges can be organized throughout the year.

Alternatively, Senderlea offers two scheduled Exchange Sessions: the Fall session runs from September to December and the Spring session from April to June.

The curriculum for each Exchange is determined by each group, so it is always applicable, appropriate and never pre-packaged. On the first day of a new group, a discussion is orchestrated to allow participants to get to know one another and to share their expectations of the Exchange. This discussion lends way to a detailed Issue Analysis about the specific challenges they face as women managers; the results of this analysis determine the customized course content for each group.

While the groups have some autonomy, Director, Susan Laing, closely follows the progress of each group and each participant. She may intervene to suggest development exercises—from reading assigned texts to case studies to risk-taking exercises etc.

At the weekly sessions, guest leaders, facilitators and speakers from the public and private sector address chosen topics and Senderlea Contributors are often on hand to gently guide the discussions with tales from their own valuable experiences.

Between sessions and after graduation, participants are encouraged to actively keep in touch with one another to encourage networking and to foster an effective support system for putting some of the acquired tools and approaches into practice.  The Senderlea Alumnae meets quarterly for Networking Breakfasts, guest speakers and learning sessions.