Through Emerging Leaders, women seize opportunities to learn, connect and grow to elevate their careers and the companies behind them. Participants build powerful relationships with other high-potential professional women, leveraging connections to empower their career success. These women come together from a variety of organizations across Kansas City, from small nonprofits and startups to Fortune 100 companies, to advance themselves both personally and professionally.
We’re excited to announce that registration for the 2020-2021 Emerging Leaders class is now open. Katy Corogenes is one of more than 100 Emerging Leaders graduates who has elevated her career and personal life through the lessons she’s learned from Emerging Leaders.
“I WAS LOOKING AT HOW I COULD TAKE MY GREAT EXPERIENCES AND REALLY LAUNCH A LONG-TERM CAREER.”
After four years leading an exciting political career as a White House Researcher and Defense Fellow at the Department of Defense in Washington D.C., Katy sought to capitalize on her vast experience. With her heart firmly planted in her hometown of Kansas City, she resolved to find a role here and get back to family and friends. “I was looking at how I could take my great experiences and really launch a long-term career.”
Although she gave herself a year to find a new job while finishing up her MBA at Webster University, she landed a position at Honeywell within two months. “Honeywell has such a fantastic, long history in the Kansas City community,” Katy notes. “It’s also very much in that national security focus that I’m very passionate about.” Today, Katy continues to follow her passion in her role as Lead Contracts Administrator at Honeywell.
Katy discovered the Emerging Leaders program when she was nominated by a former manager. “He thought I had a lot of potential,” Katy remembers. “He really wanted to provide me with great development opportunities because he felt I had experiences that would be valuable to the organization.”
“EMERGING LEADERS HAS TAUGHT ME TO BE MORE DELIBERATE IN HOW I THINK ABOUT MY CAREER AND THE CHOICES I MAKE.”
Katy’s was intrigued by Central Exchange because her mother had been an active participant throughout Katy’s childhood. “Central Exchange was an organization she was always very enthusiastic about,” Katy remembers. “I think it helped her find her footing, especially in the very different corporate environment of the 1980s.”
Emerging Leaders came at the perfect time for Katy, at a moment when she was hungry to build strong connections — and the program gave Katy the opportunity to do exactly that. “Not only did I get to network with employees from great organizations within Kansas City,” Katy notes, “I also got to network with my own peers from our main site who I hadn’t known that well. That is what led to me getting my current role.”
Becoming a part of Emerging Leaders was part of continuing a legacy for Katy — a legacy that came with a great impact. “Emerging Leaders has taught me to be more deliberate in how I think about my career and the choices I make,” Katy explains. “For years, I thought I was simply lucky getting into my career. There was no intention. At Emerging Leaders, they taught me that I could take control of my career and have intention around it. They gave me the tools to do that.”
“EMERGING LEADERS HELPED ME REALIZE THAT YOUR CAREER IS FOR YOURSELF.”
From her time in Emerging Leaders, Katy developed a long-term perspective that changed the way she looked at her own career. “You could look at my career path and think I’ve taken a step back from the fast track,” Katy says. “Emerging Leaders helped me realize that your career is for yourself. When I’m making those deliberate choices about my career, I’m also making deliberate choices about my personal life and how I want to live my life.”
Learning how to take time for herself when thinking about her career was a monumental lesson for Katy. Through a class in the Emerging Leaders program, Katy learned to become an advocate for herself and get the support she needed to succeed in her job. “Most people don’t want to be the squeaky wheel,” Katy notes. “But when you realize that it’s not just for your own personal benefit, it’s for the benefit of the business to ensure that they’re resourcing their employees correctly and supporting their employees correctly, then it changes how you think about speaking up.
Tools like this have helped Katy in every facet of her career. “Early in the Emerging Leaders program, they gave us great tools to rate our personal development and set personal goals,” Katy adds. “I still use those tools to help me prepare for my annual performance review. When I want a promotion, I can now go in and say, ‘I would like to advance to this role. These are the steps I need to take to do that.’”
“EMERGING LEADERS ISN’T FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE IT ALL FIGURED OUT. THIS IS A PROGRAM THAT GIVES YOU THE TOOLS TO HELP YOU FIGURE IT OUT.”
“Emerging Leaders isn’t for people who have it all figured out,” Katy says. “This is a program that gives you the tools to help you figure it out. I think a lot of people are hesitant to do a program like this because they don’t want to speak up and say, ‘Hey, I might want this opportunity. I just don’t know how to get there.’ This program teaches you how to get there.”
Gain the tools you need to succeed. Join Emerging Leaders and achieve the great potential that you’re capable of. You’re invited to apply, or nominate an up-and-coming woman in your own organization.
