YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Women comprise more than half of accountants but they trail men in leadership and partner positions.
An initiative at Cohen & Co. aims to change that. The Women’s Leadership Initiative is open to all employees but women comprise the majority. It fosters networking and professional development. Sessions are open to all employees.
“Both internally and externally, we’re still in a profession where a lot of times when you walk into a room, you may be the only woman,” says Jessica Foster, a Cohen & Co. senior manager.
That’s true in many professions, she adds. Having initiatives that specifically support some of the unique challenges women face in the workplace provides a venue for women to network with each other, Foster, an 11-year Cohen & Co. veteran, says.
That develops skill building and provides support that leads to more confidence and understanding. “[So] when we have that seat at the table, we know what to do with it,” she says. “I would love to say that we live in a world where women-focused initiatives are no longer necessary. But I do not believe we are there yet.”
WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP INITIATIVE
The effort is an initiative throughout the entire company that comprises more than 800 employees across 12 offices.
Several women at the Youngstown office of Cohen & Co. are involved including Foster.
Others at the Youngstown office involved with the initiative are Kelly Anzevino, partner; Carmella Minnie, also a senior manager; and Trinette Simon, director of inclusion and equity.
“We’re a group within Cohen and Co. And basically our mission is to engage and empower women to engage with a diverse group of leaders internally and externally,” says Minnie, who sits on the steering committee of the initiative and who’s worked at the company about 13 years.
The initiative presents programming throughout the year and meets at least monthly.
“We look for opportunities to foster connections between women within the firm and externally outside of the firm,” Minnie says. That includes networking and professional development opportunities. She points out that meetings may be virtual or in person, allowing members to network with people they wouldn’t otherwise meet. “It’s helped build relationships,” Minnie says.
Even within the Youngstown office, the initiative enables women who don’t work in the same departments to get to know each other.
Anzevino works in tax, specializing in private client service.
Minnie works in the tax department, specializing in real estate and private equity clients.
Foster works on the assurance side, mainly with private companies and employee benefits plans.
Since moving into her inclusion and equity role, Simon no longer works in accounting. She formerly worked in assurance with a specialty in real estate and employee benefits audits.
“The Women’s Leadership Initiative really helps women to come together that normally would not work together or cross paths,” Minnie continues.
The initiative includes a podcast component with committee members collecting content that may be useful to members. A book club allows members to discuss books on relevant topics including recent selections: “Dare to Lead” by Brené Brown and “How Women Rise” by Sally Helgesen and Marshall Goldsmith.
MENTORSHIP
Mentorship is a crucial element of the initiative. It’s something Anzevino, who’s been with Cohen & Co. for two years, missed early in her career.
“So I learned from that point on how to handle the situation with other people, how to coach people, because I felt lost in the beginning of my career. And I didn’t want anybody else to feel that way …,” she says. “With over 20 years of me being in the workforce and being a mom, I know how to empathize with people.”
It’s fulfilling, too.
“It’s very rewarding to be able to see somebody grow from point A in their career to point B in their career – to be a cornerstone and a lending ear for them, to be able to help them achieve that goal,” Anzevino says. “In the end, it’s their success. But it just feels really good when you see somebody that was working really hard and you help them, guide them in the right direction.”
Minnie agrees. It’s exciting to see someone she’s helped to succeed, she says.
Foster worked as a teacher before becoming an accountant and in her former profession, having a mentor was a requirement the first year. When she changed careers, she wanted someone to learn from. Simon is one of those who filled that role for Foster, particularly during Foster’s first year at Cohen & Co.
“Our office here in Youngstown is predominantly women in leadership,” Foster notes. “All of the partners in our Youngstown office are women. We have four of them and 60% of the office are women.”
She had male mentors as well.
Cohen & Co. has an internal system where employees who want to connect with a mentor in a particular area can review those who have volunteered to mentor and connect with them.
But mentors and mentees connect at the company more organically as well.
“I remember having a partner here – she was the only female at that time – the only female partner in the office – that I just navigated to and learned so much as far as how to deal with situations and people and clients and such,” says Simon who’s been with the firm for 24 years.
NETWORKING, PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
The initiative also offers networking opportunities with women at other professional services firms. And it includes a committee focused on professional development.
All of the efforts are supported by the Ohio Society of CPAs and the American Institute of CPAs women’s initiative committees.
“Last November, I attended the AICPA Women’s Global Leadership Summit in Arizona,” Anzevino says. “It was a very empowering, powerful event to be around so many influential women — to learn from them and to bring back to the firm what we learned and how to help others.”
Foster adds much of what the state and American CPA organizations focus on is how to retain women in public accounting.
Last year, women comprised about 60% of accountants and auditors in the United States, according to Statista.com, a global data platform.
“But women are still lagging behind their male peers when it comes to advancing into leadership and partner positions,” according to the Ohio Society of CPAs’ Women’s Initiatives.
IDEA TEAM
Simon leads the company’s Inclusion, Diversity and Equity in Action Team on which Foster, Minnie and Anzevino also serve.
“It’s about 35 members right now,” Simon says. “It was formed in 2021.”
The team focuses on business development, industry learning and expertise through the Ohio Society of CPAs.
The team formed at the Youngstown office and Simon was asked to lead it.
“We’re basically focused on trying to educate the firm on different DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] initiatives, subjects to bring education type of things here,” Simon says.
EMPLOYEE BENEFITS
Cohen & Co. supports employees with hybrid work, flexible schedules, expanded paid parental leave and help researching child care resources. Employees also have a benefits program that enables the shipping of breast milk. It began about four years ago based on feedback provided to the company through the initiative.
It allows women who are breastfeeding and travel for work to pump while away from home and then to ship the milk to their babies. They don’t have to transport the milk back home themselves.
Foster believes all of those offerings make Cohen & Co. appealing to prospective employees. Benefits like parental leave and flexible work schedules often come up during employee interviews.
“I would say that there’s a lot of reasons that I think we’re the best accounting firm,” Foster says. “I think that is something that sets us apart in the marketplace and not just women entering the firm, but everyone entering the firm.”
Flexible schedules and the hybrid work are examples.
“So some of these things that are coming out of the women’s initiatives are really having positive impact, firm- and profession-wide,” Foster says.
Pictured at top: Trinette Simon, Kelly Anzevino, Carmella Minnie and Jessica Foster participate in the Women’s Leadership Initiative at the Youngstown office of Cohen & Co.